small squadron, left by Sir Samuel Hood at Vigo, to cover the embarkation of part of the retreating army under Lieutenant-General Sir John Moore; and on his return from that service he was removed from the Alfred 74, in which ship he had been acting, to the temporary command of the Achille, another third rate, attached to the expedition then about to sail for the Scheldt; from whence he brought home 700 French soldiers, who had been taken prisoners at Flushing.
Immediately on his arrival, Captain Hayes obtained the command of the Freija frigate, as a reward for his very zealous conduct in voluntarily taking upon himself the sole charge of navigating the Achille to and from the Roompot, although he had never before been employed on any part of the North Sea station. This act of temerity, as his friends termed it, was committed by him in consequence of the absolute impossibility of procuring a sufficient number of pilots for the vast fleet destined to that quarter, and his ardent wish to share in the dangers, and expected glories, of the ensuing campaign.
At the close of 1809, Captain Hayes proceeded to Barbadoes, and joined the flag of Sir Alexander Cochrane, who, confiding in his ability, entrusted him with the command of a squadron, employed on the north side of Guadaloupe, during the operations which terminated in the surrender of that colony to the British arms[1]. His official account of a very gallant exploit performed by the boats of the Freija at Bay Mahaut, will be found under the head of Commander David Hope, in our next volume.
The Freija proving very defective, returned home in Sept. 1810, and was soon after put out of commission; a circumstance that occasioned Captain Hayes to remain on half-pay till the autumn of 1812, when he was appointed, pro tempore, to the Magnificent 74, which fine ship was rescued from a most perilous situation by his cool intrepidity and superior seamanship, during a heavy gale of wind on the 17th Dec. in the same year. His masterly conduct on the occasion alluded to is worthy of record, and will serve as an example for the benefit of less experienced officers, who may be, hereafter,
