Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 06.djvu/399

 Broke currence of the Shannon's officers and ship's company to forego their claim to share in the prize. As the Triumph's claim, however, was maintained, the generous offer of the Shannons was declined. The next two years were passed in similar service, cruising from Plymouth, off Brest, and in the Bay of Biscay it was not till June 1811 that she was ordered to refit for foreign service. In the beginning of August she sailed for Halifax, where she arrived 24 Sept. The relations between England and the States were even then severely strained, and on 18 June 1812 war was declared.

For the next year the Shannon was engaged in cruising, without any opportunity of important service. Broke was keenly sensible of the urgent necessity of keeping the ship at all times in perfect fighting trim, a necessity which the successes of the previous twenty years had tempted some of his contemporaries to ignore. At very considerable pecuniary loss both to himself and to the ship's company, he carried out a resolution to make no prizes which would entail sending away prize crews, and so weakening his force, and most of the ships captured were therefore burned. But, more than this, he bestowed extraordinary pains on training his men, especially in the exercise of the great guns. While the custom of our service at that time was never to cast the guns loose except for action. Broke instituted a course of systematic training, and every day in the week, except Saturday, the men, either by watches or all together, were exercised at quarters and in firing at a mark, so that in course of time they attained a degree of expertness such as had never before been approached. To this end everything was made subservient ; concentrating marks were made on the decks, and at Broke's own cost sights were fitted to the guns ; but all vain show was neglected, and the Shannon, though clean and healthy, was perhaps a little looked down on by some of her more showy companions. Her excellence in gunnery, however, began to be talked about ; and, much to Broke's annoyance, many ships arriving on the station fresh from England brought out orders to exchange a certain number of men with the Shannon, so that they too might receive the benefit of the new system. In May 1813 the Shannon was cruising off Boston, keeping watch on the American frigate Chesapeake, which had been newly recommissioned by Captain James Lawrence, lately in command of the Hornet when she sank the Peacock. On 1 June, finding his store of water running low, Broke adopted the singular plan of writing formally to Lawrence, requesting him to give him a meeting. He stated in exact detail the Shannon's force, and pledged himself to such measures as would insure the absence of all other English ships, adding, 'or I would sail with you, under a flag of truce, to any place you think safest from our cruisers, hauling it down when fair to begin hostilities.' This letter, however, was never delivered ; for before the vessel by which it was sent reached the harbour the Chesapeake was under way and standing out under a cloud of canvas. Expectation in Boston was at an intense height, and crowds of pleasure-boats and other small craft accompanied the ship in order to witness her triumph over the enemy. As she came on she shortened sail, sent down her upper yards, and so, with a flag at each masthead, rapidly drew near. Broke meanwhile called his men aft on the quarter-deck, and, after the manner of the heroes of old, addressed them in a short and telling speech, commenting on the successes which the Americans with a great superiority of force had obtained, and concluding, 'Don't cheer, go quietly to your quarters. I feel sure you will all do your duty ; remember you have the blood of hundreds of your countrymen to avenge.' 'Mayn't we have three ensigns, sir, like she has?' asked a seaman. 'No,' answered Broke ; 'we've always been an unassuming ship.' As the Chesapeake came down nearly before the wind, the Shannon, which had been waiting for her, filled and gathered steerage way ; the Chesapeake rounded to on her weather-quarter at a distance of about fifty yards, and, as she ranged alongside, received the Shannon's broadside fired with the utmost coolness and deliberation, each gun as it bore. The effect was terrible ; more than one hundred men were laid low, Lawrence himself mortally wounded. The return fire of the Chesapeake was wild in comparison, although, at the very short range, it was sufficiently deadly. But the Shannon's men were well disciplined and trained ; those of the Chesapeake were newly raised, strangers to each other and to their officers. A panic spread amongst them, and after sustaining another broadside as deliberate as the first and as effective, the Chesapeake, having her tiller ropes shot away, drifted foul of the Shannon. Broke, calling out 'Follow me who can !' sprang on board, followed by some fifty or sixty of his men. The struggle was very short. The Americans, bewildered and panic-stricken, were beaten below without much difficulty. Broke was indeed most seriously wounded on the head by a blow from the butt-end of a musket ; but within fifteen minutes from the time