WHEN RODNEY SAILED

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2509, 12 October 1915, Page 9

WHEN RODNEY SAILED

GREAT FIGHT WITH DE GRASSE FIRST PUBLICATION OF A NOTABLE LETTER. Used as we have become to the publication of letters from the battle line, there still remains a lively interest in old documents relating to deeds of arms achieved when the world was a deal wider than it happens to be to-day, and at a time when the facility to writ© at all was an accomplishment only possessed by the few. Apropos of the deeds of other times which helped to consolidate our Empire a letter, never before published, is in the possession of Mr. Henry H. Elder, a member of the Wellington branch _of the Navy League, written by his great-grand-father, Alexander Lang, to his (Lang s) father as far back as the year 1782. Lang was an oificer on H.M.S. Formidable, then under Admiral Sir George -Rodney's flag, and the letter was written after the action with the French fleet under Admiral De Grasse. The following is a copy of the text of the letter, in which the original spelling is preserved:— "Formidable, at sea', 18th April, 1782. "Dear Father, —Had time permitted, 1 certainly would have wrote (by the means of our first dispatches to' Government in consequence of our late success) that went oy Lord Cranston in tho Andromache, frigate, about three days since. Now in gpeat hurry, I embrace the opportunity of the Euridice, frigate, going from our Adm. with the duplicates of former dispatches, of relating merely for your own entertainment an account of the.late operations of our fleet against the fleet of the French our common enemy in these seas. Your newspapers, no doubt, will be full of these matters; but nevertheless an account from an affectionate son who has been an eye-witness of them all, can't be displeasing. "When we arrived in these parts in February last, we found the enemy's fleet very strong and very , successfull, St. Kitts and the string of islands adjacent and dependant on it, in the enemy's hands—the brave Adm Hood <uid his inferior squadron seeking their safety in flight,-' and everything realy very gloomy. Matters now appear a little better. After various methods, Adm. Rodney thought it the most proper to anchor with all his fleet in Gros Islet' Bay, St. Lucca, best place to observe the motions of the enemy being within three hours sail of them and at the same time to water and Tefitvhis fleet, which we considered equal to that of the French. "Previous to tho eighth of this month (the day we got under way) some runaway negroes from Martinico, gave us information of the strength and destination ■ of the enemy's _ fleet, and these poor fellows information proved to be very true. On the morning of the eighth inst. our cruizers off Martinico fiiivo us notice, by signals agreed on for'tho purpose, of the French fleet getting under way In consequence all our- fleet consisting of 36 sail of the Line, immediately got under way and stood over towards the on'emj;, who were going down before the wind (which you know here is always easterly) towards, Dominico.

"Keeping their sterninost ships in view by our headmost, wo continued the chase all night and at 2 in the morning could perceive fitom our ship the French Adrns. lights. : "At dawn the 9tli we discovered them close under tho Island of Dominico becalmed, we having a fresh breeze and coming fast up with them under very strong hones of cutting off part of their force much scattered by the calms •from their main body. But there is nothing so teasing as the mutability of these climates, especially near At the time we expected to do great things, a sudden calm, with cross light airs suddenly seized us, and to add to our mortification the enemy's fleet . got the breeze, collected their convoy and ships of war and stood from us in good- order, Our van and part of our center division having soon after got the breeze, came up with the enemy and engaged them at a great disadvantage, 19 of our ships against their whole force, and at their own distance—our i rear and_ most of our center divisions being still becalmed. "The enemy consisted of 34 sail of i the Line, 2' fifty-gun Ships and some frigates, and were in all respects a match for our whole force. We continued engaging them with the above inferiority 4 or 5 ..hours nevertheless and mawled one another pretty much in our rigging. The French as I have ever seen tnem Being to w'dward. hauled their wind and ceased firing, xho 10th and' 11th instant we kept them in view between Dominico and Guadaloup endeavouring to bring them again to near action, and to get the weather gage of them, that is to got to, fight them, they to leeward of us. A favourable rihange of wind on tho morning of the 12th gave us what we wanted and obliged them to fight us—but it is impossible for me to give you (without a drawing of the different positions of the fleets, and which I have not time to do) a distinct and intelligible account of the transactions of that glorious day. Suffice it that we conquered them. sunk. & 64-gun ship pitty-full to tell! And every soul went down, took a 74 after we had shot away all !her. masts and bowsprit. ' Another 74, the Centaur, my old ship laid .alongside of and took, but afterwards was burnt by the carelessness of tlie people, and some hundreds lost. The next a 74 struck to the Cana, Capt. Cornwallis. brother to the late unfortunate Lord of tihiit name. 'Ilie Ardent took from us in 1779 was the next to strike, and last of all the French Admiral himself in the Ville de Paris of 110 guns.

"Had the day continued 2 hourß longer, a dozen more must inevitably havo been in the same situation. I thought at this time' of tho Miracle of the Sun's standing still.

"Our own ship was the first ship that pierced the French line and that olio manoeuvre put them entirely in confusion—nor could the.y ever afterward rally. "Adm. Count de Grasso retreated (or nither fled) with Es fleet at last in the figure of an obtuse angle . . . himself in the center nearest our fire. Ho says that his captain behaved rascally, or he had not been taken. Wo have him oil board here —a noble officerlooking man,, and the largest person I over saw. He is not less than 6ft. Gin. high, and 3trong in proportion, wears a red ribbon with an ornamental cross, being a Knight of a certain Order in his own country.

'.'l.hope these matters will give affairs a turn in our favour and our people at liome in spirits. The French Force .were destined to act in conjunction with the Spaniards against Jamaica, and we are now on our passage towards that island to prevent tho capture of it. America will next be our care, and tlien I should, think back again to the West Indies. "Sir Charles Douglas our first captain has an infinite fund of merit in tho above transactions; never was there ft braver man nor a keener. Fictlitins Becms bis element. Sir George Rodney equally brave, but more cool, deserves everything to be said in his favour. Many of our captains signalized themselves on fclie occasion, the first of whom is Cornwallis. My Captain Symons is gone from us to command the Resolution, whose captain lost his leg, and lias left me here recommended to Admiral Rodney and his secretary, which I expect noon will, procure me a Purser's Warriint, ' . ' "M.v respects to my or, mother. Mr.

Cleland, sisters and brother, and: all friends. Thanking God for my preservation, without realising what I have wrote, I must iu all haste say I ever nm—

"My dr. Father's affectionate son, ("Signed) Alexander Lang."