you from your long and arduous exertions in favour of the brave Catalans, who will cherish your name and manifold services to them, for ages to come and here I shall call a truce to compliments, however justly your due. I shall despatch you direct for Gibraltar, with my public letters and acknowledgments for all the zealous support you have given to me, and my satisfaction. &c., &c.,

Sir E. C. to Mr. Bethell.

EDWD. PELLlew.

Areñs de Mar: January 30, 1813.

The postponement of my return home is by no means repaid to me in the compliment of my presence here being of such consequence to the service; but I drag on through a privation which, by comparison, makes life almost appear burdensome, in the hopes of that real reward which I should find in witnessing an improvement in the affairs of this poor province, arising perhaps, in some small degree, from the aid of my persevering exertions.

February 7.

The Invincible' is actually come to relieve the Blake,' and a vessel is in search of me somewhere with my orders to return to England. We have saluted the French at parting, when going with a large convoy of carts and coaches along this coast for France, in such a way that I think they will hate me and the whole English nation till they reach the end of their journey.

From Capt. C. to Sir Edwd. Pellew.

'Blake,' Areñs: February 9, 1813. MY DEAR SIR,-Your note, with its various accompaniments, reached me only yesterday evening by the 'Merope.' I cannot sufficiently thank you for your kindness respecting my return to England, the flattering confidence you have so long placed in me, and the very favourable light in which you have viewed my services whilst under your command-services which, however harassing to the mind, have been deficient of that attraction which is the characteristic of our profession; and which might well have passed unobserved by a commander less inclined than you, my dear sir, have shown yourself in every instance, to give credit for anxious good-will where there was no opportunity for brilliant execution. It is undoubtedly my wish to get home with all that expedition which may be consistent with my desire to leave nothing undone in which I can be useful to the great cause in which we

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are engaged, the particular welfare of this exemplary province, and the success of our noble little friend Eroles. Anxious as I am to return to my family, I cannot separate myself from him and his brave countrymen without regret; and nothing short of the conviction that I am daily growing less equal to exertion, should have taken me from this station and the continued approbation of my Admiral, which is a reward I shall prize as long as I live. I have written to Eroles, who will, I doubt not, meet me here or at Villanueva as soon as his taking his new office upon him will possibly admit of it. He is now at Vich, and report says he is coming this way with the army to impede the return of the French from Gerona, who are expected with another convoy. If he does, I think with a repetition of the dose they got lately from the shipping, they will be very much put to it. The arrival of the 20,000 dollars, forwarded by Admiral Hallowell for Cataluña, is extremely seasonable, and will, I trust, set many more troops in motion. I have, of course, a world of things to talk over with Adam, in order to put him fully in possession of the state of affairs; and I have great satisfaction in resigning my charge to one so well adapted to the situation. Believe me, my dear sir, with great esteem and with a full sense of your kindness,

Your faithful and obedient servant,
EDWD. CODRINGTON.

To Mrs. C.

February 7, 9 P.M.

Eroles is actually in the chief command, and we have honoured his entrance into office by, as I am told, considerable destruction amongst the French troops passing with the convoy. One of the Blake's' 72-pounders is said to have knocked to pieces the wheels and lower part of the general's carriage; and I hear Eroles meditates preventing their return with a fresh convoy from France. I shall hear from him tomorrow, but I shall not quit the coast without once more shaking him by the hand. I have actually suffered two bad nights' sleep from thinking of my return to my dear, dear domicile, and worrying myself that I may not leave undone any duty to Cataluña in the hurry of my going away. God bless you.-E. C.

February 19.

Somewhere near the coast of Cataluña, in too thick a fog to know where. It seems ridiculous to write to you now that I am on my way home; but I cannot resist the pleasure of thus recording the feelings of satisfaction which I brought away from Mahon in consequence of witnessing the general

esteem of my brother-officers, as well as that of my chief and those who may be supposed to imbibe his sentiments from having the same foundation to build them on. I have tried hard to overcome self-satisfaction so far as to examine dispassionately the apparent approbation of those in whom envy might be expected to prevail: but I come out of these examinations with so much inward content that to avoid vanity I must now quietly take the point as granted. In short, I am in so delightful a disposition that it is a pity there is nobody here to ask me a favour! I write this ready for the chance of sending it by a packet from either Cadiz or Gibraltar, and it will at all events be ready to send up from Plymouth on our arrival. And that you may know the public terms on which I parted with my chief, I extract the following from the letter by which he announced his intention of sending me home :

'I cannot refuse myself the satisfaction of expressing to you, on this occasion, my sincere thanks for the zeal and readiness with which you have, on all occasions, met my instructions in performing the duties of your station, and my high sense of the ability and judgment with which you have conducted the many difficult and arduous services which have been entrusted to your execution. It has been my care that the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty should be frequently apprised of the merits of your services on the coast of Cataluña.'

Cawsand Bay: March 27.

Here we are. I know nothing yet of myself, but that I am as ever, your E. C.

This series of extracts (1810 to 1813) may perhaps be considered as forming a scanty and inadequate account of the interesting warfare on the coast of Spain, in which Captain Codrington bore an active part during those three years. I could have multiplied them to any extent from the mass of materials in my hands, consisting both of private letters full of anecdotes and details, and of communications with Spanish officers, relating to operations carried out in conjunction with them.

I have only refrained from doing so to avoid the risk of wearying the attention of general readers and spreading out to a disproportionate extent this portion of my Father's professional services; but it is with regret that I have suppressed the many interesting details which my materials relating to this period could have freely supplied.-J. B.

WAR WITH AMERICA.

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6

CHAPTER VII.

LESS than a year and a half did Captain Codrington remain in his home after his return to it. The war with America called him out of his retirement, and in May 1814 he left England in the 'Forth' frigate to go out to North America, and join Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane in the Tonnant,' as Captain of the Fleet. In this capacity he was with him in the Chesapeake' when the City of Washington was taken, the American flotilla in the Penobscot destroyed, the passage of the Potomac forced, and the City of Alexandria obliged to surrender all its shipping in the harbour; also when the combined naval and military force entered the Patapsco to reconnoitre Baltimore, when a most decisive victory was gained by the troops and a battalion of seamen and marines over the American army. He afterwards accompanied the expedition to New Orleans.

From Capt. C. to Mrs. C.

At Sea: June 1.

In a day or two we may possibly be passing over the spot where that battle was fought (of which this day is the anniversary), which excited perhaps as great a sensation in London as did lately the entry of the allies into Paris. Yet how entirely is it forgotten in the more recent events, glorious and ever-memorable as it was then termed! It will not, however, cease to be to me a great satisfaction to have had my little share in it. I have a right also to feel very thankful for my escape unhurt, both on that day and the 29th May preceding; for the danger in which the Queen Charlotte' was particularly placed might well have shortened the days of many who lived to tell the proud story. You may console yourself in the reflection that there is no such risk in our present prospect; but you must also recollect that there is no such harvest of credit to be gained in the execution of the service to which I am destined. In a review of my own

life, successful as some may imagine it, I do not see much temptation to recommend the same profession to my sons. Those dangers, both of mind and body, to which I have been exposed might make as little impression on them as they appear to have done on me, and they may escape, as I did, even without a mentor. But I confess the contemplation of it makes me shudder, and I feel anxious that they should begin their journey through life on a road of much greater security. Yet it is of little use my dwelling upon this point, since their own inclinations and abilities must decide it.

July 10. On the 8th we spoke a brig from New Brunswick going to Martinique, by which we got some newspapers of that place. It seems that the 'Peacock' American sloop of war (of what size I know not) has taken our Epervier. But the worst part of our story is, that our sloop was cut to pieces, and the other scarcely scratched! I do not know the captain or his character in the service. But I well know that the system of favouritism and borough influence prevails so very much that many people are promoted and kept in commands that should be dismissed the service. And whilst such is the case, the few Americans chosen for their merit may be expected to follow up their successes, except where they meet with our best officers on equal terms. It is said that that fellow's people showed no spirit until he was wounded and carried below. Something of the same sort attaches to the name of Captain ——, whose ship did not do as well as her reputed discipline promised. This is the case with many of our crack ships, where the people, from being tyrannically treated, would rejoice in being captured by the Americans, from whom they would receive every encouragement. I have heard many shocking stories of cruelty and misconduct witnessed by the relators, officers now in this ship; and I hope the punishments will be more strictly examined into than they are now, by the late regulation of quarterly returns.

The Orpheus' has taken the American Frolick,' but this is no balance for the Epervier,' considering the circumstances of the two captures.

Commodore Codrington arrived at Bermuda on July 13 and joined the Flag of Sir Alexander Cochrane, under whom he was to serve in the capacity of Captain of the Fleet.

Bermuda: July 14. We got into this intricate harbour yesterday evening, and I shall sleep here in Tonnant' until we go to sea.