The Sun.
London, England, 1814-09-24 00:00:00

OF TM

- AMERICANS.
(Leonidas PoRTBR and other Braggarts).

The different Newspapers published in this Pro;
:vince have i4iVen tolhe Public the Report tilled
it,llaSpleasect Capt. Porter to make to his Go-
verninent (t his cruize to the South Seas., and of
his capture by his Majesty's _ship Phoebe. Its
unreason-able. length prevents it from being in-
serted in this paper. , •It is f. composition worthy
of a Captain in the American Navy. It is
distinguished' by qualities truly American, and
trvaiat:dits, throughout, the genuine AMeriean
character. Whoever has attentively read the
various official accounts of American Olicers
to their Government,.- and the public vets of
the Government itself, ,inust `have observed in
them.all a singular Similarity of. style, and unity
of dasign. The Inters 'and the rtsled, are all- ac.'
voted by the same.feellngs--moved .by the same
prinelpleaini at the same'object, and attain it is
the same maitner. There is an esprit du carps'
that runs throughout the whole machine of state,.
front the. highest in authority to the lowest in of.'
flee. " The Comtonclore ranging the NOrth Seas—
the Captain ranging the South. Seas ;—the pre-
varicating Minister; the boasting GePeral, and
the blustering President—all, all alike "acknow-
ledge its influence, and act And t ink, and-speak,
alike.

This esprit du corps, is, in plain terms; a deter-
mined, disregard to truth, whenever the' truth;
makes against themselves. Deception- is retlaced
to a system among them: 'rite man who fights •
the battles of his country, draws his sword to
-support it ; he perseveres its it through' victory-
and defeat, and \lien Lie dies` he feels '' his rul-
ing passiOn strong in death."
Phis tii~positiou to pervert the truths rises in a
graduated scale front the meanest to the must etc
tilted—and in America, contrary to what we see
.in other countries, the people have less of it than
their rulers. As they ascend in rank, they de.
. scent) in morality. The'eitizen has moire ho-
nour. than the man in office, and each man in of-.
• face more than the next above him. The soldier
and sailor have more than the Commander, and
the Comma:nler more' than ;his superior in each
degree, no til in following the stream CO its source,
we come to.'the 17C plus ultra of degradation—the •
very focus where this moving principle is conceit-
•trated, and from whence it issues into the fiirthest
corners of the land with increased fore&—the Ca-
binet of Washington itself.
From . such; a Cabinet we acknowledge, that
Capt. Porter -deserves " an exceeding great re-
Ward." He has proved -himself one of its most
devoted adherents. He has formed himself upon'
. its example.• He has followed its practice in the
very height!' of its perfection. He has even ex-
celled its excellence. He has Shewn not,, only a
disregard to truth, but a cant:Onto of probabi-.
lity ; and, Sum Mg beyond :ill who preceded him ;
whose modesty or, want of noble daring prevent-
ed them, frotnsgoi.ng hcyond. assertions ;merely
contrary to the truth—he has ventiired,,to fleclare
to his Government what no man in his senses can
ever believe.
We will pot enter minutely into an examination
,of all the misrepresentations contained in his
letter. The task is as -unnecessary as it would be
disgusting. But, to-place in high relief the ab-
surdity of. those misrepresentations, and the im-
pudence with which they arc advanced, it is suffi-
cient to say, that he wishes to make the' World
believe " that be w-ith six twelve-pounders and
225 men, maintained an action for more than two
hours, against two ships, carrying an, aggregate
force of Sl guns and 500 men, and that nothing
but an accident occasioned his capture, and nothing
but an accident saved them from- destruction.'—‘-'
Now the man that could,publish Such a statement
to the world, must have been under the influence
'of some strange delusion, ,far exceeding that
which is incident to his nation ; and the man
who. can believe it, is in a state of mind equally
deplorable. ,
If Captain Porter be entitled to deduct the
Whole of his carrotiades' in stating ibis number of
guns with, which he fought the, .action; because
thosecarrpnadcs_were rendered useless by Captain
Hillyar's choice.of position, surely we ,may claim
the beuefit:of the same rule for if the cal-roil:odes
-of the Essex could not reach the l'h ry be tin tic-
" count of the distance, thecarronades of the Plicebe
'and Cherub, being of the same description, lutist
have been :equally harmles's to the Essex. But
this is a rule that can never be admitted, and the
use that is made of is by Captain Porter is but an-
other specimen of American candour, and another
exemplification of, the esprit du corps.—Undpr the
same head we may class the !ow sarcasms against
the British character, which are to be found in
;,tile letter —and the charge against Captain Hillyar
of having continued his-fire upon the Essex after
she had struck. The character of our Navy for
humanity after victory, is as firmly fixed as their
reputation for Vavery,;- and that character, we
are given to understand; belongs more peculiarly
to the In'avemitin on whtim Captain Porter has en-
deavoured to fix so foul 'an aspersion ;--of its
falsehood; we do not entertain the smallest doubt,
and we leave it to every honourable mind to judge
what is the disgrace doe to a man, who, after
having 'experienced,' as he himself confesses, the.
utmost humanity; from' his too generous,-enemy,',
makes such a return for it the moment he' is out
cf Lis pOwer.--Captaia Hillyar's oiliciALletter ,

nil! remove tie clonds tvliicli the Atnctican Com-
ntander has studiously throi,nr -over this -affair—
will expose the dishonourable conduct of Ciptain
Porter in all its native deformity—will,correct his
misrepresentations--will explain.the extent of the
co-operation afforded by the. Cherub and Essex
Junior—and xviil alone. give us a true statement
of the real circumstances of the action, and of the
teal strength of the ships engaged.
The greater part 'of what has been observed by
tts on this subject', will apply with equal lorce to
another official account also given to the public,
in Which Commodore Chauncey boasts to his
Government of the destruetiOn Of a large schooner
which we 'were building at Presqu'isle, and which'
was calculated to carry 14. gusts.---After all the
magnificent boasting Of the Commodore about this
exploit, and aft-ct gill " the pomp, pride and cir-
cmnstance" with which he has commenced and
enveloped the official detail of it—)or readers
will learn with no less 'amusement. than surprise,
that this " large sehooner.building by the, enemy
at Presqu'isle," this " staunch xv_ell-buitt_vessel to
mount 14 gtds," was an unfinished boat of 40
tons, and was not' building by Government, but
was private propel ty.---After this explanation, our
readers will agree With us that Cot nodore
Chauncey merits the favour of his Government:
We'heartily recoinmend 'hint to it ; and to •hiin
and all the enemies of the Government of Cheat
Jiritain, we would wish no greater .disgrace than
to be favoured null cherished by the Government
of the' Unite'd States.—(Qrikbec Papers, Aug. 4.)