their valour. They engaged the enemy with fo much refolution, that the rebellion was entirely fupprefed, The French who had revolted were punished with great feverity, and embers of them expelled the island on account of fufpicion. The Indans inhabiting St. Vincent had alo, at the inftigation of Victor Hughes, taken up arms against the English; but they were not without fome pretence: they had been wrongfully deprived of fome of their lands, and though years had elapfed ince that deprivation, they were prompted, by that revengeful difpofition common to the Caribbs, to leek for occafions to gratify it. They encountered the British troops with great courage, and difcomfited them in fome very bloody engagements; and though they were finally repreffed, and confined within their own limits, they ftill continued to maintain their ground there, and remained unfubdued.

But the most melancholy event that happened this year, in the Britif Weft Indies, was the fatal difpute that took place in Jamaica, between the colonists and the ancient inhabitants of that lofty ridge of mountains which interfects the inland.

When it was conquered from the Spaniards, in the laft century, during the government of Oliver Cromwell, these people refufed to fubmit to the conquerors; and, withdrawing to their mountainous receffes, infifted that the lands they inhabited should be their own, and themfelves remain free, and retain their former cuftoms and privileges. This being agreed to, and folemnly ratified, they had lived ever fince independent of the British govern ment in Jamaica. In this fituation they had now continued one hun

dred and forty years; during which, though altercations had happened between them and the colonifts, they had ftill preferved their privileges. Among thefe was a remarkable ftipulation, by which they were not to be punished by the courts of judicature in that ifland, for any offence or crime, but were to be delivered up to their own people, to be tried, and fuffer punishment according to their own laws. Such, it has been reprefented, was the right and claim of the Maroons, the appellation by which they were dif tinguifhed from the other inhabitants of the island. It happened, unfortunately, that one of them, being detected in a theft, inftead of being put into the hands of his countrymen, to receive due chaftifement, was, by the authority of a magiftrate, fentenced to be whipped. This being executed upon him, he applied to his countrymen for their interference, in order to procure him redress for a punishment which, of all others, was to them the most odious and difgraceful, and had at the fame time been inflicted upon him contrarily to eftablifhed ufages. The Maroons complained to the government, that their privileges had been violated, and required fatisfaction; but as none was obtained, they determined to procure it by force, and had recourfe to arms. Whether it proceeded from contempt, or a refolution to punish their temerity, no endeavours were used to bring about any conciliation, and they were proceeded against with unre lenting feverity. They made a defperate defence, but were accufed of having exercised horrible barbarities upon the prifoners they took. They were at length fubdued, and [K 4]

almoft

almost exterminated. The receffes, to which they fled for fhelter, were fo intricately fituated, and fo difficult of accefs and difcovery, that blood-hounds were procured from the Spanish ifland of Cuba, in order to purfue and trace them by their fcent. The exact number of the fugitives that efcaped, was never clearly afcertained in England, and, it is probable, that from the inveterate rancour of the colonifts, against a tribe of men who had fo frequently withflood their efforts, they were little difpofed to fhew them any mercy. But the circumftance, gave moft offence to the public, was the employing of the fame means for their deftruction, as had formerly been ufed by the Spaniards, when they first difcovered and invaded this new world. The cruelties exercifed upon the Indians, by those blood-thirsty and inhuman conquerors, rendered them univerfally odious to all the Europeans: but that horrid practice of hunting and deftroying human beings with dogs, trained up for that purpose, had particularly contributed to make them detefted.

The checks received by the Britifh forces, in the Weft Indies, were chiefly due to the immenfe fuperiority of numbers with which they were attacked. Notwithstanding the many difficulties the convention was inceffantly ftruggling with at home, they were too confcious of the value of the French tranfinarine poffeffions, not to exert themselves to the utmoft for their retention. No opportunities, therefore, were omitted of fending reinforcements to protect them from the attacks of the English, or to retake those that had fallen into their hands.

The conquest of Martinico, St.

Lucia, and Guadeloupe, by the forces under the command of general fir Charles Grey, and admiral fir John Jervis, had been attended with circumftances peculiarly bril liant. The difficulty of accels to the places and pofitions, occupied by the enemy, was fuch, that the French entertained a fanguine hope, that the English would be repulfed every where, especially as every poft had been fortified with the utmoft fkill, and was in the strongest pofture of defence, both with respect to number of men, and quantity of ammunition and artillery. The valour, conduct, and knowledge in tactics, difplayed by the British commanders and officers on these various expeditions had been remarkable, and the courage of the foldiers had been no lefs striking. They encountered every obftacle with an intrepidity and perfeverance which the French had not expected; and what was particularly deferving of notice, they obtained most of their advantages by means of the bayonet, a weapon with which the French had, in their European battles, gained fignal fucceffes; and in the ufe of which they confidered themfelves as decidedly fuperior to their enemies.

The fkill and bravery of the offi

cers and feamen of the fquadron, employed in this fervice, had been eminently confpicuous. So established was their reputation at this juncture, that no intention of even meeting them in combat was entertained by the French, whofe principal aim was to elude their vigilance, and to throw what fuccours they were able into their islands by stealth, not daring to try the chance of fight with British cruizers, when thefe were on a parity of ftrength.

They

They acted fo invariably upon this principle, that their fhips were ufually conftructed with a ftedfaft eye to the celerity of failing, where in they commonly exceeded the Brithvellels It was by dint of feamahip, that thefe were able to came up with the others, which, when brought to action, feldom could refift the valour and fuperior dexterity of the British feamen. The many engagements between fingle Cruizers of both nations, during the prefent and the preceding years, amply proved this fuperiority.

Early in the commencement of 1795, captain Faulkner, who had fo greatly fignalized himself in the expedition to Martinico, fell in with La Pique, a French frigate of 33 guns, and near 400 men: his own fhip, the Blanche, carried 32 gans, of an inferior metal, and lit tle more than 200 men. The action The action lafted four hours, when fhe ftruck, after 200 of her people had been either flain or wounded, and only 50 on board the Blanche. But this brilliant fuccefs was fully counterbalanced by the lofs of captain Faulkner, who fell during the engagement. He was fucceeded in the command by lieutenant Watkins, to whom the honour fell of compelling the enemy to furrender.

In the two preceding years, other aval officers had diftinguished themfelves by exploits of a fimilar nature. Captains Pellew, of the Nymphe; Soumarez, of the Crefcent; Laforey, of the Carysfort; Paget, of the Romney; Newcome, of the Orpheus; to mention no others, rendered their names, and thofe of the fhips they ommanded, highly celebrated in the aval tranfactions of this war. The

zeal and ardour with which the officers of the British navy fought the enemy, and conftantly overcame him wherever he was to be found or overtaken, excited the admiration of all Europe. It was not only in foreign parts the French were thus unfortunate: the like difafters attended them upon their own coafts. Few of their fhips of force that ventured out of their ports, either fingle, or in fquadrons, could efcape the vigilance of the English; who either took, or deftroyed them, by compelling them to run afhore, and burning them. Many feats of this kind were performed in the moft daring manner. They ventured close in with the land, expofed to the fuperior fire of formilable batteries, which they frequently filenced with their own guns: fometimes landing their people, and committing the enemy's fhipping to the flames, in fpite of the moft vigorous refiftance. Thofe British officers who chiefly diftinguished themtelves by actions of this kind, were fir Richard Strachan, fir Edward Pellew, fir John Warren, and fir Sydney Smith, all tried men for uncommon valour and feamanship; and who, by their wonderful exertions and fucceffes, became the terror of the French marine.

But, in defiance of their manifest inferiority in every trial of skill and bravery at fea, and of the numerous loffes and difgraces on every part of the extenfive coaft of France, the principal speakers in the convention had the effrontery to reprefent the officers and feamen in their navy, as no ways unequal to thofe of the British fleet, and their conduct and actions as no lefs confpicuous. Their audacioufnefs was such, that

they

they defcribed the famous victory gained by lord Howe, on the 1ft of June, as an action that terminated to their advantage, notwithstanding the capture of feven of their capital fhips, and a lofs of men that amounted, by the clearest calculation, to upwards of ten thousand, in killed, wounded, and taken; while of the British fleet, not one fhip was loft, and not one thousand men killed or wounded.

This great and decifive victory proved a prelude to their fubfequent defeats, in fome general actions, in the courfe of 1795. On the 14th of March, a British fquadron, of fourteen fhips of the line, engaged a French fquadron, of fifteen, that was carrying a large body of troops to Corfica, in order to retake it from the English, who had wrefted it from the French in the preceding year. So averfe were the French to risk an engagement, that no other motive would have compelled them, but the neceffity of refcuing two of their fhips, which, by falling to Leeward, had afforded an opportunity to the British fquadron of attacking them with advantage. By the fkilful management of admiral Hotham, who commanded it, they were accordingly cut off and taken, with upwards of two thousand of the troops deftined against Corfica: the remainder of the French fquadron was obliged to take refuge at Toulon. Though the fuccefs, obtained on this occafion, was not fignal, yet it defeated the expedition, as intended for the recovery of Corfica; the importance of which, in the opinion of the French, may be eftimated from the force embarked on this fquadron, which confifted of eighteen thousand regulars.

In June following, another action took place between a British fquadron of five fhips of the line, and two frigates, and a French fquadron of thirteen fhips of the line, befides frigates. They furrounded the Britifh fquadron, which, unable to cope with fo fuperior a force, engaged it however in a running fight, which lafted a whole day. Through dint of extraordinary fkill and bravery, the English fought their way through. the French, who were not able to take a fingle fhip of the fquadron. This action, which happened on the seventeenth of June, did great honour to the naval talents of admiral Cornwallis.

Six days after, admiral lord Bridport fell in with twelve French fhips of the line, and nine frigates: they were the fame from which admiral Cornwallis had effected fo bold and mafterly a retreat. The British ships of the line were fourteen, and the frigates eight; the French endeavoured to avoid an engagement, and flood clofe in with the fhore, in order to receive the affiftance of fome batteries that greatly annoyed the British fhips; but this did not prevent them from taking three French fhips of the line, and feverely damaging the others, which efcaped, with difficulty, into the harbour of l'Orient.

But the event which principally fignalized the British arms at fea, in the course of this year, was the reduction of the famous Dutch colony, at the Cape of Good Hope, founded in the preceding century, with fo much labour, expence, and induftry, and which was now become one of the most valuable and important fettlements of that commercial people. It was taken by admiral Elphinfion,.

and

and general Clarke, to whom, after an ineffectual defence, it furrendered on the 16th of September,

Thefe defeats and loffes not only diminished the ftrength of the French at sea, but, what was more detrimental to them, greatly difcouraged their feamen; and reduced their hopes merely to fuch advantages as might be gained by depredations on the British comTerce. Herein they met with confiderable fuccefs, before the clofe of the prefent year; efpecially on that branch of trade carried on with Turkey, which, from the neceffity of traverfing the whole of the Mediterranean, lay more expofed to their annoyance than any other. In order to intercept this, together with that from the ports of Italy, a fquadron, of nine fhips of the line, was put under the command of admiral Richery, an experienced and refolate feaman. The trade of the Mediterranean, amounting to fixty fail, with valuable cargoes, was ecorted by three thips of the line, and four frigates'; it had proceeded, on its way homeward, as far as the latitude of Cape St. Vincent, where it was attacked, by the fquadron. commanded by Richery, and one half of it was taken, together with a fhip of the line.

Conformably to the predatory fyftem of warring, at fea, now a dopted by the French, befides Richery's fquadron, which was fitted out at Toulon, they prepared two others at Rochefort, in order to intercept the howard-bound fleet from Jamaica; but they took only twelve, the value of which hardly reimbursed the expence of fitting out thofe fquadrons.

But the defeats, loffes, and difappointments, of the French, at fea,

were amply counterbalanced by their fucceffes at land; their compulfory retreat across the Rhine excepted, they had fucceeded in every other project, and completely fruftrated the attempts of the coalefced powers. Two of the principal menibers of that formidable confederacy had been detached from it, befides others of fecondary note. They had revolutionized the governments of all the countries they had fubdued, together with the minds of a large majority of the inhabitants. The Auftrian Netherlands, to which their ancient denomination of Belgium was now folemnly affixed, were, in general, well affected to the French republic, from the remembrance of the tyranny and haughtiness they had experienced under the house of. Auftria. The German provinces, on the left fide of the Khine, feemed moftly willing to unite with France, rather than to return to the dominion of their former mafters; and the difpofitions of the people of Switzerland, of the Proteftant cantons efpecially, were becoming much more favourable to the French than they had hitherto appeared.

Unwearied pains had been taken, by the French government, ever fince the commencement of the revolution, to conciliate the people of Switzerland. Though principles of democracy, nearly fimilar to thofe profefled by the French, prevailed in fome of the inferior cantons, the greater were governed ariftocratically, and warmly opposed the introduction of French politics. The time was not yet arrived for the French to proceed to thofe violent measures, against the Helvetic body, which have fince been adopted; they contented themfelves with the private encouragement of thofe nu

merous