Page:A history of the military transactions of the British nation in Indostan.djvu/308

302 to wait the renewal of the engagement, if the English chose. But the rigging in the greatest part of their line was so excessively damaged, that the French outsailed them three feet to one; on which Mr. Pocock hauled the flag of battle down, and summoned his captains. They were Latham of the Tyger, Somerset of the Salisbury, Kempenfelt of the Elizabeth with Admiral Stevens, Harrison of the Yarmouth with Mr. Pocock, Brereton of the Cumberland, Leg of the Newcastle, and Vincent of the Weymouth. The loss on board the English squadron was 29 killed, and 89 wounded, in all 118. In the Yarmouth 7 were killed and 32 wounded, in the Salisbury 8 and 16; the Cumberland 7 and 13; none were killed, and only 5 wounded, in the Weymouth and Newcastle together; the rest fell nearly equal in the Tyger and Elizabeth. The killed and wounded in the French squadron amounted by their own accounts to 500. In the Zodiac alone more than in all the English ships, being 35 and 115, including 60 scorched by their own gun-powder; 40 were killed in the Bien Aimé; 32 in the Moras, 13 in the Vengeur, 13 in the Saint Louis, 12 in the Due d'Orleans, 6 in the Due de Bourgogne, 3 in the Sylphide, the Conde 6 or 7: the wounded in all the ships, excepting the Zodiac, were only twice the number of the slain. The disparity of the total loss was more than four to one, and far exceeded the disproportion of the numbers on # board: the French squadron having with the troops 5000, and the English 3200. The frigates on either side suffered nothing, having been kept at a distance to repeat signals.

The Yarmouth with the ships of the van had received so much hurt in their rigging, that none could haul the wind. The immediate resource was, to have anchored; but when the engagement ended, the squadron had got out of sight of land, into 25 fathom water, and the wind blowing fresh had raised such a heavy swell, that the tumbling of the ships at anchor would have rendered the various operations of setting up masts, yards, and shrouds, always difficult at sea, almost impracticable. It was therefore resolved to repair under sail. The ships accordingly stood in for the land s. w. the wind still at s. s. E. but the current was strong and the unweildy Cumberland