Page:Narrative of a captivity and adventures in France and Flanders between the years 1803 and 1809.djvu/19

 about four, a head, of the French squadron. Scarcely were the sails trimmed, and the impossibility of escape obvious, than I determined on running the vessel athwart hawse of the headmost, in the hope of doing some mischief, and thereby facilitating the escape of the Phœbe; but this design was frustrated by our own helmsman, who, being a Frenchman, and alarmed at the enemy's threat to sink us, disobeyed my orders in the conning of the vessel. Seeing her spring too, I ran aft, to the helm, but it was too late, our rigging just cleared the main chains of the frigate, which, to my utter astonishment, hove too, and sent a boat to take possession; thus, by a voluntary and unnecessary act, did the enemy execute that, which I had fondly hoped to effect, and which