The Enquirer

Domestic Intelligence.

NORFOLK, September 12.

CONFIRMATION OF THE NEWS OF PEACE WITH TRIPOLI.

Tuesday arrived in Hampton Roads, the United States frigate President, Commodore Barron, captain James Barron, in 58 days from Gibraltar. By this ship we are relieved from all anxiety upon this interesting subject, for not only does she bring the certain accounts of peace being concluded, "and the release of our unfortunate countrymen, but she has brought capt. Bainbridge, his officers and part of his crew, a number of whom are now in town. We offer them our felicitations upon this happy occasion, and sincerely hope that the pleasures they will meet in their native country, and in the embraces of their friends, will compensate in a measure their past sufferings. We are sorry to understand Commodore Barron has returned in very bad health.

The particulars which we have collected are corroborative of what has been already published—General Eaton deserves great credit; to his enterprize and courage we are principally indebted for the attainment of these important objects. We understand that gen. Eaton reached Derne about the last of April, when he instantly attacked the Bashaw's army, and defeated it with little loss, himself being wounded in the right arm so as to render it useless. The few Americans who were in the action, displayed a courage that confounded the Turks; they were appointed to lead the attack, which service they performed in a manner that did honour to their country. We understand that at the time general Eaton attacked the army by land, that capt. Hull in the Argus, capt. Dent in the Nautilus, and lieut. Evans of the Hornet bomb ketch, attacked the batteries by sea.

Gen. Eaton's army was, we understand composed of 1500 men, and that of the Bashaw's of 8000. This intrepid little band had marched 500 miles across the Sandy Desarts, through a hostile country, and had several partial actions before the decisive one at Derne. Gen. Eaton was wounded when in the act of chastising down a chief of the Bashaw's army.

The result of this action appears to have been an immediate proposal from the Bashaw for peace: col. Lear went immediately to Tripoli and a treaty of peace was signed on the 3d of June, and our countrymen released the next day. The terms we cannot learn fully, but we understand that as far as we had Tripolitans they were exchanged man for man, for the balance of Americans remaining we are to pay 60,000 dollars. Some provision, but what we cannot understand is made for the Ex-Bashaw; his wife and family who were detained as hostages, are to be liberated. As the official accounts are gone on to Washington, we must suspend our curiosity as to the other articles for the present.

The President left Syracuse the 7th of July: The following was the distribution of the American squadron at that time. The frigates Constitution, Constellation, and Essex, with the Brigs Syren, and Vixen, and Bombketch Hornet, were at Syracuse: the Argus had sailed for Egypt, and the Nautilus, for Messina. The frigate John Adams and two gun-boats anchored the day the President sailed. General Eaton sailed for the United States in a merchant vessel. The Ex-Bashaw was at Syracuse when the President sailed. The President on her passage to Gibraltar got near the Spanish Coast, was taken for a British Frigate, and fired upon from the batteries.

It may be grateful to the friends of the officers, who have been in captivity, to know where they now are, we therefore have procured the following account of them.

Returned in the President.

William Bainbridge, Captain.

Jacob Jones, 1st Lieutenant.

Keith Spence, Purser.

Benjamin F. Read, Lieutenant, promoted.

James Gibson
do.
do.

Daniel T. Patterson, do.
do.

William Osborne, Lieutenant Marines.

James Biddle, Midshipman.

Robert Gumble,
do.

William Curtil,
do.

Wallace Wormley
do.

James Renshaw,
do.

Nicholas Harwood, Surgeon's Mate.

Jonathan Cowdry, do.

William Anderson, Captain's Clerk.

George Hodge, Boatswain.

Joseph Douglas, Sailmaker.

Richard Stevenson, Gunner.

Remained in the Mediterranean.

Lieut. David Porter.

Theodore Hunt.

Benjamin Smith.

Bernard Henry, Master.

Doctor John Ridgely remain as Charge d'Affairs for the U. S. at Tripoli.

Simon Smith, Midshipman, and

William Godby, Carpenter.

[Ledger.]

In addition to the above, we have it from Mr. Dove, who was on board one of the bombarding vessels during the attack on Derne, that out of the 500 Americans engaged on shore, there were only five killed, which took place at the time Capt. O'Bannon, who was second in command, had, with his little band, scaled the walls and pulled down the Turkish flag, in place of which he immediately hoisted the American standard!

The present Bashaw of Tripoli is stated by our officers to be a man of considerable talent and bravery, mixed with great cruelty—altho they did not experience themselves any uncommon share of the last quality—at one time on the attack of the brave Preble, when every man was driven from a fort but the Bashaw, he remained, cooly examining the operations with a spy glass. After the action of Eaton's, that led to a peace, he was heard to declare, that if he should approach nearer to Tripoli, he would massacre every American and every Christian in his power. Mr. Lear has been blamed for making a treaty precipitately and before the appearance of the fleet, but as the danger of the prisoners was eminent, and their release the principal object of the war, it would appear that no moment that could attain this desirable end was to be wasted in calculations of future success; and that in embracing the very first opening to release them from the cruelty of the Bashaw; and shutting the door forever on the return of his caprice or the chance of future events he acted with the wisdom and precision of a politician and patriot.

The officers and men appear while in Tripoli, to have been liberally treated and supplied by the consuls of the Christian nations there, and from their generosity, to have tasted of the wines—denied to their Mahometan masters—this, perhaps, might have given the Bashaw an idea that the Americans in their different attacks were drunk, for he often said, when our vessels stood in so boldly and made such near approaches to their forts, that they were all drunk—if the attack was made in the afternoon, they had been drinking at dinner—if in the morning, they had been drinking all night—none but madmen, drunkards, or devils, would run such risques—and in this way he apologized to himself for the desertion and flight of his own men.

[Herald.]