Page:Royal Naval Biography Marshall v2p1.djvu/234

 Jan. 8, 1797, and obtained post rank June 8, 1799. During the late war he was employed as Regulating Captain at Bristol.

Agent.– Thomas Stilwell, Esq. 

 officer was a Midshipman of the Monarch 74, and commanded a gun-boat at the capture of the Cape of Good Hope, in 1795. His good conduct on that occasion was particularly mentioned in Sir George Keith Elphinstone’s public letter to the Admiralty. In the following year we find him commanding the Swift sloop of war, and subsequently the Albatross, on the East India station, where he obtained the rank of Post-Captain in la Sybille, of 48 guns and 300 men, June 12, 1799.

On the 23d Aug. 1800, la Sybille assisted at the capture of five Dutch armed vessels, and the destruction of twenty-two merchantmen, in Batavia Roads. Five days afterwards her boats captured a brig of 6 guns and 16 men, from Samarang, laden with rice. In October following she took no less than twenty-four Dutch proas, four of which mounted 6 guns each, laden with coffee, sugar, and rice, and five others in ballast.

On the 19th Aug. 1801, Captain Adam being off the Seychelles, observed signals flying on St. Anne’s; upon which he hoisted French colours, stood round the island, and discovered an enemy’s frigate, with her foremast out, and some smaller vessels, lying in Mahé Road, the passage to which was extremely intricate, being formed by many dangerous shoals. The necessary preparations having been made, and a man placed at the mast head to look out for shoal water, la Sybille stood in to attack the enemy, who at 10 A.M. fired a shot, and shewed her colours: in fifteen minutes after la Sybille, now under English colours, came to an anchor, with a spring on her cable, and at 10$h$ 25' commenced a smart fire, which was instantly returned by the French frigate, assisted by a well-constructed battery, erected in a raking position on the neighbouring shore, from whence hot shot were frequently 