The Sun.
London, England, 1844-12-28 00:00:00

FRIDAY NIGHT'S GAZETTE

AMUR ALTY, DEC. 27, 1844.
The Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty have re-
ceived from Commodore Jones, the senior officer of her
Majesty's squadron on the west coast of Africa, a letter,
inclosing one from Commander Scott, of the Hyacinth,
of which the following is a copy :—.
" Her Majesty's ship Hyacinth, Aug. 13, 1844.
" Sir,—l have the honour to request that you will be
pleased to bring under the favourable notice of the
Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, the following
account of the gallant and dashing behaviour of the
officer belonging to the ship named in the margin,*
which will, I hope, obtain for him that promotion he is,
in every respect, most worthy of. On the 12th of
August, in or about lat. 15 south, longitude 11 deg.
30m. east, when eff Fish Bay, I sent Mr. Tottenham, in
a four-oared gig with one spare hand, to communicate
with the Portuguese Governor.
The weather became thick, and he missed his port,
but, knowing that this ship was working along the coast,
anchored for the night, and pulled to the southward.
On the morning of the 13th he discovered a brig at
anchor, without colours, and saw her slip and make sail,
on which he gave chase, being to windward, and the
breeze light, he was enabled to approach her weather
beam, and fired a musket ahead to induce her to heave
to, and show her colours ; this and a second was disre-
garded, but a port was open and a gun run out and
brought to bear on the boat, which caused the officer to
pull into her wake, when part of the crew of the brig
commenced firing musketry, while the others got the gun
on the poop, and pointed it at the boat. Mr. Tottenham
now commenced firing, as fast as the spare hand could
load for hins, being just able to keep way with the
brig ; having hit four of the men on board, they
left the gun, and after firing muskets for twenty minutes,
finding they were unable to weather the land or tack,
without being boarded by the boat, they ran the brig
on shore, and abandoned her, to the number of eighteen,
including three wounded men, bearing another mortally
wounded (since dead), on board.
In the course of the afternoon, the brig was dis-
covered on shore from the masthead of this. ship,
which stood in, and anchored, and hove her off,
when she proved to be of two hundred tons, with-
out papers, a Brazilian ensign in the cabin, fully
equipped for conveying about one thousand slaves, two
guns of four pounds calibre loaded, a barrel of powder,
and a quantity of langridge shot, a number of muskets,
swords, and bayonets on the deck. Almost every bullet
expended in the gig was traced by me to the gun
carriage, or its immediate vicinity on the poop; and I
trust that the coolness, decision, and gallantry displayed
by Mr. Tottenham, on this occasion, may obtain for him
the rank of lieutenant, for which he passed in 1841.
I have the honour, &c.
(Signed) F. SCOTT, Commander.
To Captain Jones, Commander-in-Chief of her
Majesty's Ships and Vessels, West Coast of Africa.
And the Commodore has also informed them of the
capture of her Majesty's sloop Ferret, on the 28th Sep-
tember last, of a schooner, without colours or papers, but

* Mr. John Francis Tottenham, mate.