Page:Vol 5 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/85

Rh But the expulsion of this last force did not end the strife between the mother country and the republic, though henceforth, for a considerable time, it was confined to maritime operations, in which Spanish commerce was the only victim. The Spaniards could not retaliate in this warfare, as there was no Mexican marine to prey upon.

A Mexican squadron, consisting of the frigate Libertad, and the brigs Bravo, Victoria, Guerrero, and Hermon, under the command of Commodore David Porter, sailed on the 5th of December from Vera Cruz for the coasts of Cuba, where a number of Spanish merchant vessels were captured. In order to play still greater havoc with Spanish commerce, already much harassed by Colombian privateers, Porter issued letters of marque, and even approached the coasts of Spain, causing damage to several of the enemy's ships. The Spanish government in retaliation despatched some men-of-war to the gulf of Mexico, and on the 11th of February, 1828, an action occurred between the frigate Lealtad of 50 guns and 300 men, and the Guerrero of 22 guns, the latter being captured after her commander, David H. Porter, a relative of the commodore, had been killed. From an official report of Lieutenant Charles E. Hawkins, commanding the Hermon, to the commodore, it appears that on the previous day the Guerrero met a number of small craft conveyed by the brig Marte and schooner Amalia, of fourteen and five guns respectively, and opened fire on them off Mariel on the north coast of Cuba, and a short distance from Habana. The assailed sought the protection of a battery, which the Guerrero bombarded. But on the 11th the Lealtad came and chased the Guerrero, which kept up a running fight till she was overtaken and forced to haul down her colors. This gallant action produced much