a platform, and one of the crew to hold an umbrella over his head. The deception took, for the schooner hoisted French colours and ran down close to the Heron’s lee quarter. An English ensign and pendant were now hoisted, the half-ports knocked out, and a volley of musketry was fired; but this failed of the expected effect, for the enemy, instead of surrendering to her, attempted to board the British sloop of war. In this, however, they failed; and if Captain Edgcumbe could have depressed his guns sufficiently to fire into so low a vessel whilst along-side of him, the schooner might yet have been captured. This not being the case, a grapnel and chain attached to a hawser were lowered by a whip from the cross-jack-yard, which hooked something about her bowsprit; but fortunately for the enemy that spar was carried away by the Heron’s excessive rolling, and they were thus enabled to effect their escape, after killing one man, who was shot whilst standing close to Captain Edgcumbe. During this affair, the Heron’s motion was more like that of a wash-tub, when thrown overboard, than any thing that should ever be allowed to wear a King’s pendant: but such was the manner in which the character of many a meritorious officer was placed in jeopardy during the late war, through mistaken notions of economy. The schooner was afterwards taken by the Cambrian frigate, and proved to be la Matilde, French privateer, of 18 guns and 130 men, commanded by “a very clever and notorious fellow,” who did not surrender until after that ship’s bow-guns had been playing upon him for several hours. This portion of our information is derived from a letter written by Captain J. W. Deans Dundas, who was then a Lieutenant of the Cambrian.
From Oct. 1805 until Dec. 1806, we find Captain Edgcumbe constantly employed conducting fleets of merchantmen to and from Halifax, Newfoundland, and Bermuda. Whils. on this harassing and anxious service, he rescued the crews of two water-logged American ships, and behaved with so much kindness to them, and hospitality towards their commander and the passengers, two of whom were ladies, as to call forth public acknowledgments of his humane and liberal treatment. One of those ships was abandoned to her fate after some va-
