The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1809-08-02 00:00:00

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the tine, which remained at their ancherage on the
I?th of April in the mortriug, cut or slip their
' bles, and tort toward.' the Chansete
Canoed, helloing a COllOOlO lore's I.ratinlll:4ll,l4nti
slipped or cot; red made sail for the Charente, e'
ten minutes past one, p. no. The Foutiroyc
twining a Rear-Admiral's !lag, made bull for '
Charente, at twenty minutes .past one; I noti
the time by my watch. 1 ant positive as to the
as 1 made it memorandum of it, which 1 have.i
on board the Caledonia.
Q. Do you remember at what time the
enemy's slops, that wore on shore on the Pal
warped off and removed from thence To
best of my recollection, about out o'clock, or
little after.
CouRT—Q. Did those ships remove from thence
before the ships that were at anchor mu woof •
the Charente?—A. They did.
Q. You were on !heard some of the British ship
at their anchorage in Aix Roads; were mite pin
eoemy's ships at too great a distance to be destroy•
ed by them ?—A. I was on hoard the Imperitusi
during the action part of the time ; all the eiseine•
ships were at too great a distance to be destroyed
our ships, except those that were destroyed, sic.
Calcutta, dignilun, and Varsovie.
Q. Was the Tunnere destroyed It was ra-
ther doubtful to me whether the Rem:age's shut
reached tier.
Q. Do you allude to the Kers:age, from her
being the nearest ship to the enemy yes; tfiir
T might have been nearer thou I thought
for.
Q. Was there any other situation in Aix Baud%
in which the British sqnartron could be placed,
from which they could have destroyed the other
ships?—A. No, there was not.
Captain BIIIIESFORD. of ere Trierus, called in
turd tacos is.
Lord Gambier asked—
Q. Were you scut into Aix Roads in the Theseus,
in the afternoon of the 12th of April I—A. The
Theseus's signal was made at five o'clock, to pro-
card into Aix Roads and mime the ships in distress,
winch I did aceonliugly immediately.
Q. Had I seat its Alps of the line into Aix Roads,
curly in the morning of the l2th of April, were any
ships of tile enemy's in a position to rake our ships as
they advanced?—A. Two of the enemy's ships were
afloat, and their guns could have .been brought to
rake our ships as they aelvenceil, and they world
have beau entirely crippled had they been went in.
Au Admiral's ling. imil a Continodore'« limed pend-
ant, ware flying on board of thrum ; h icl-twis of our
ships been so •placed, we might have defied oily
-approaching ships, for the approach must have
lit en going red on.
Q. Had any of our ships advanced under
circumstances. and bed been crippled, either by
being raked, or from the tire of the batteries, cowl'
they nave returner or what would hoer been the.
COalleqUellera I—A. Front the ctrehrostances ot
the wind and tide I do Hot think tiny corrld have
teturoed : if they slid, it must have been by mere
good fortune ; the consequences must hare been
must serious.
Q. Could two or three bite of bettle-ships, on
the movising.of the 1-201, when tenni' the enemy's.
altos 'twinned afloat at their anchor:foie, have
advanced to attack them, by posing near to the
Boyort, withal; their helm o.lre, the fone or main-
top-sails being to the moot; having thuo•hronght
their I.ende to tlie.N. E. would they,•by, three
mess's, have beta enabled to being-their vine to
I beer with effect upon time eneruy'• elsiresiand them-
selves eut of the reach of shot, from Isle d'Aisl—
(.4-n41411y-riot.
Q. Could any hue-of-battle ships have run to
leeward of the two enemy's ship, there lay at their
anchors on the morning of the lith April, and have
spare enough to hove anchored, and by these mean.
to have attacked them I—A. 1 should not like- tb
have risked it ; huh it appenred to me, that there
ssa- si• reely room for a fm-ed to pass between them
• •oist, letting alone an roomy, who would
be firing on me a. k tiosisid t the smoke alone, be-
side the ship being crippled, roust have caused
you to have been entangled, and the ship must
*beet been lost. la short, if I had been ordered to
attempt it, I should have thought the enterprise
aunt hazardous...the tide a strong flood, and wind
. Q. Did you ever understand by whose ardent the
Calcutta was set on tire I—A. The only thing I
know respecting the Calcutta being set on tire, win
by conversation with Lord Cochrane, in the pre-
treat,. or Capt. Eliah and several others. He said,
it was a thousand pities she was not brought oft,
that he sent is youngster on board, to use his own
diacretion, and the boy set tire usher.
. Q. Do you think she might have bees hrostght
off I—A. I was nut on the spot *lien she woo tired,
but Lord Cochrane told me she might have been
brought off easily.
Q. Did you go on board the Irnperieuse on the
afternoon of the 13th of Apnl ; what was the
purport of your conversation with Lord Cochrane ;
and what was her situation N—A. She was on shore
—I told hint I had just some from the Caw,
which was also on share in a critical situation, with-
in the range of shot and shells ; that in my opinion
the ships of the line were in a dangerous situation,
and had no business thee; that Lord Gauthier
seemed to me to be matt anxious to act with his
fleet, but that if he had sent them in there, it
clearly appeared they would be so crippled, that
few would have returned, if any ; and that it
would have been madams to have done so. His
Lordship said, that three Sea of the line might have
been lost, which, in his opinion, did net Signify.—
My reply was, that pia sail of the line being lost
'would have been a disgrace to the enterprile. This,
peeled in the presence of Capt. Bligh, Capt. New-
comb, and several other officers.
Q. Under the circumstances of the wind mid
tide at flood making 14 six o'clock, did it appear to
you, that, on the mooning of the 12th of April, or at any one when the enemy's ships were on shore,
eats signal had been made that they might be de-
'strayed. these was, on my µart, any neglect or un-
: taking effectnet measures to de-
lete: OW eastereehtps le was my opinion, as
well no that et several others, that the time of tide.
lerieeding ships in, was when they could come out
again.
Q. Dues Captain Beresford remember a signal
being made by the hupstiestsc, on the morning of

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Q. an Admiral is informed, by signil,friliat
• specific force is sufficient to execute any iiertiee,
is it generally understood that the Nice poiniteit
out is the greatest that ean be employed, orf:eliu
mustiest that will be required ?—A. It req-ires the
force panned out. •• •
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Q. Pliers, if yew hid been Coiti.tiander-m-Chic.
said 'hat sizmil hod been nisile to yria, %slat would
you hate considered as the smallest force yon ewall
have sent in to destroy die eiieaW ?—A.
in that case send 'in inure this, butt, It; Lwuull nut
leave it to chanci,,,
Q. Do you think; that, on the niurning of the
April, it would have heal proiletit or riper
to have sent in more than half the fleet to &sour
the enemy?—A. It Would have heed very iraprsiver
and, as I said before, I did net think s:iips of the
line had any business there.
Captain Kzatt, of the Rercer, acting at tte thee of
the action in Beira Itwids, called in and :worst.
Lord GAMBIER asken--Q. Do you trriiiriaher
the state of the enemy'. Ileet, on the morning a
the 14th of April ?—A. I think ilk bawdiest, as ex-
pressed in the chart, viz. seven sail on ,bore mid
two ,_float, one line of battle ship iu 'advance tip
the nw.:r, and the frigate* all sl,Ut the late
D'Aix is correct.

both of
the consertoemte
her of the•sh,'
Q. At tirf
dolt order
tack the et
gave yon
o'clock;
tee and
qewinted
Witte ships t
Q. When you an.. ; bat-
teries, and ran to the southward Or wertoard, eac
you confident of ending there auffinieut water,
or what wan your purpose ia gouig that way ,
A. No 11.1.1 110 idea 1 ,110111t1 I.e able to kem
the Revenge afloat—to the Sotitli4erril SiJ, the toll
petition I could take; and I considered a my duty
to ret her ground out of range, if potsilde, rather
than M.
Q. From the pon;tien ire whirl] you place.!
ifeetrage, In the attack, and the dept:i aster
you found round you, would it hive liken lior.ibk
for line-of-hattie rhipr, or large tr;kite-, to k.e..
gone ahead of you, to attack the three-debked
ship and others, towards the entrance of Hirer,
with effect?—A. Certainly not. When the Ac-
reage quitted her sithation, her keel was in the
mud, and I was forced, trent the ebb tide ireking
down the Cf4teente, and the wind on the larboatd
beam. to make soil intshere ; and found Ao little
water as I advaned, that any slap, {limey..i short a
distance a-head, could not po-ribly hay,. gone aliont
*Om! "MA& must have brim beo, tit she would be
itnitaedihtely under the tire of the fort.
Q. .Wee every exeruJii used, according to your
jodgiutitt and observation, by every ship or vessel
cent in to the attack on the enema' ?—A. Every
thlrig appeared to cue to be coterocted sett& the
greatest see and gallantry.
Q. Were the three ships of fp( enemy that were
ishorCon thePellat;and Which afterwards got off, at
any time in a position to he attacked by us ?—A.
Certainly not, they were admired further dean the
l Tonaere, and the RevenKes shot just teethed Went.
Q. Could any inve of the enemy's ships have
been destroyed, had any more ships bets. omitmi
in than were sent?—A. No; it was env biro
that had three ships gine in sooner they would liar*
hern cr,ppled, by whit% tnersht the Treotli rheiti
*raid here diseivirld ire of titbit prat"
taxi, mid hal* of able. reniel4., iottesd of gong
out of the Road, met }relented the feat ships that
were afterwards destroyed from brig so. 1 nasal
the two ships that were afloat would have retnallgrit
Q. Under the circumstance.' of the sold and
tide, did it appear to ”iti. on the Ich, in the morn-
lag, or at soy time When the enemy's vivo wete its

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spy. •
on the f
ft
the I ?tit of April, that threnity.)44 •A,arii . its
eir ea- shore, and that huff the ..et,ouliii. e."/ -"',i ' ?
Tote -9-4.11 was reported to HO! C.A4t the ; • V/00
"1411% inaoo,l did nut we it'.
. ite, pt. 'Q. ".Vilat uttpretrio. ?fifth 41144 4,4p4piielv
1
laza. a. to tlieriFnety ofe. web alma! Jr ,< e 1-y
it the. A: The it satoo wit se trOmg i, ' 44111 et 'a ,
gic-ed• the tiine, A t thjilighal .V 40, .I. 151„: ,moe,. .
fact, that on goi oollnard the hop .- t .;c.r.r.• .--4., ~..
~...nna-... Cochrane tirnignal seemed to In .. • o- • •
tier-m-t 'lll,-f trer •mue1...."40... it t:r
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three hellion' ; the ruo.onel.thouufil tl4p " ' -.-
'44,, or, ..ne was" it was waitossinble gar o' ""- .. to
o the boys acted e•-sing thcsn• '7,• ~
.., .pr '. ' it
or a Coutur-.Q. Froult4Erst attkli alloy toe taipe
of the elp.uays-te the tr,./ ce..ti6i, 0-14,,,0,iii..s
tenet* ay,-ttio..t theht. "4,‘ ,•,crY thtuC dui ri "'"I'l 6' ,rtia door to rfr2t.t theirlientructiott? .. thioit civil
Hying wsa done that could 'be iii.'ankl:touelt
%lips wore w:is done than I could hare itmedL.
rt. tile Q. Are you (lent. th ynjg receltettnettp.t.
_yeti" the :
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.troy. report matte to you of sigD af v. ifs. tiiikt Ng fit,
rit us* fleet could deletroy the enemy i'l--A. C..rtalo UV ;
rent's but I think before that the report was, this: is; set
oil be could do it.
I, tit. I O. 11'i.,.. an •rim,....1:. :-r__—......1 t... S._ ~

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Q. Do von remember a 'telegraphic Signed firing • . I
made on the mooriiii‘oftbe 12th by the Laptricwi, •
that stren Of the ships trete o:t shore. aid4r : Ii!-#
half the squadron could destroy tticiu;—A. yei-
fettly weti; I am positive di to the signal, hainig
seen it myselfiand'havii?g'resd-it off thr telegraph:
Q.• HIM I I-nt in lin*. oT battle Ships !o Ant i tr '
'toads:at the tirrietliat sigifir was • made, oret
after, Wire any ships of the adernyiu a rennin sto i I
enable theist' tb traVe or iiipiretoar ships es ihey*-
sauced 0.-s-A-. The two ships that tiver.,.a Most, .;
certainly. in a position to flare raked and Ilk
any ships advancing. The. thre.t,-decker was t "t
wise in a situation that part Of her saris would Unto
if
borne on the ships ring dotch.
Q. Had any of our line of 'battle ships hrottipp. „.
wencing under such tlrcunist slier'. and had; Meier
by the fire of the enemy's ships, or Omit blittitric••
been crippled, conk! they have tetiitnied, or %%Lot
would have bt en the. cordiequeuce? --LA.': i'Cri,Liiiitip
could have rammed, Si the wind was dii4tly.perie-
ink firolsobad, land the depth or water I i'd
Itti 4". •
the Rewesirriae an trustier tidde„of the 'ebb, in
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afterritsim, it, is -.My firm b:lfie4 that iiie sfo.l",
vancing.estild hot have iot• sufficient!, ova, t
have brought thoic4 two skips. to close action, wild ..
would base *obtrudes', ilirwatives within rani,
both of ther battelrirs in file•d'All, and the sin p' ;
the consequence would' have been the sisevitiMlsya
I. of the sh •ips. '
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Q. At what time in the afternoon' ef that gni . .
41.1 I order you to proceed with the Rereege to at-
tack the enemy, and state • . whether the orders L f
gave you were diseretionary or not?—A. At ton
o'clock; 1 certainly considered my orders, of forte
three, discretionary, from the 'Aka., Imtli th thy .
pimp and the Cakdstne, not lo-i. 16; smificaenty it-
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qsainted if there was tratet eoolgh fdr the liiielot-
nattle ships to act in Aix Itoads.
Q. Wbeii you stood out from under the bat` •
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