Page:Royal Naval Biography Marshall v3p2.djvu/450

 attacking them; and yet, within, I believe, one month of their having made this sage declaration, the fleet of Ibrahim Pacha anchored at Modon, and, for nearly two years afterwards (either at Modon or Navarin), actually did furnish the Greeks with abundant opportunities of attacking them in the very manner which I proposed.

“The following plan of the proposed expedition was submitted to the inspection of Mr. Ellice, and transferred, as before stated, to the Greek deputies.

“In all cases, hitherto, where fire-ships have been employed for the purpose of destroying an enemy’s fleet, the attack has either been made in the night-time, when the enemy’s ships were at anchor, or in the day-time, under cover of a protecting force, when they were under weigh in the open sea.

“Both these plans are necessarily subject to many great inconveniences; and my object is, with several additions of my own, to combine the good parts of both of them, and leave out all that is bad; or, in plain English, I propose to make the attack in the day-time, instead of the night, when the Turkish fleet shall be at anchor upon a lee shore.

“In a night attack, fire-ships, owing to the darkness, almost invariably miss the objects they are intended to destroy; they are generally fired too soon; and if by accident one, out of a dozen, should fall on board an enemy’s ship, it must necessarily have so much way (i.e. velocity), in consequence of not shortening sail, that it is hardly possible for its grapplings to hold. Thus, for instance, in Lord Cochrane’s celebrated night attack upon the French squadron in the road of l’Isle d’Aix, not one of these ships was injured by a fire-vessel; and, if the captains of these ships had had the presence of mind to remain quietly at anchor, they might have laughed at our impotent attempt to destroy them.

“In a day attack by fire-vessels, in the open sea, the chances of success are not much increased. The ships that are attacked see the danger approaching, and, most generally, have the means of escaping: and, moreover, whenever any of them happen to be set on fire in this way, the mischief ends there; because, in the open sea, it is not likely that they can drift upon other ships that are under weigh, and, of course, in a condition to avoid the contact. The English and French have long since given up this mode of warfare, because it is long since they have discovered the inutility of it. The Greeks, owing to alarm and want of coolness on the part of the Turks, have certainly reaped considerable advantage from it; but, after all, with the loss of nearly one hundred fire-ships, they have done little more than intimidate the Turks, without materially crippling their resources.

“What I propose, then, is to wait the opportunity of catching a Turkish