The Virginia Gazette

Dec. 14. Mr. James Luttrell having in a debate on the first of December asserted that the fleet of England was no longer a part of the national defence: for when the combined fleets were on the coast, that of England was not to be found - Sir Charles Hardy rose in answer to this; he said that when he was off Scilly, he was in search of the combined fleet; that he did not know where it was; he did not know it was off Plymouth, nor on our coast; that as soon as he discovered where they were, he stood after them; he laid the heads of his fleet to the south, and stood in that direction all night; he fully expected to have seen them in the morning, and was prepared to fight; however he saw nothing of them. He then thought it advisable to draw them, if he could, up the channel, that he might have the weather gage, and engage them to other advantages, but he sought them in vain. If they had chosen to fight, they had it fully in their power, but the fact was, they did not.

And the gallant Lord Mulgrave declared, that ships were not sent to sea without their full complement of men of which he could give such an instance as perhaps no other sea could exhibit. The return from Sir Charles Hardy's fleet, in the latter end of August was short, in the whole fleet, only 18 men of the full complement, in a number of about 90,000. It was so in all other service.