Star.
London, England, 1801-08-07 00:00:00

laied ourfelves upon teeing our fquachons fd well
collected together, and failing fo well, which made
us confident that the plan of the enemy would not '
i'fpceeed. At half.paft eleven the wind was confer
derably entreated. The niyiht was very dark, and
weheard a fmart cannonade in the E.N.E. and loon
after we taw a conflagration, which made us ap-
prehend that fome of our veffels, in firing their
(tern guns, had taken fire, in confequence of the
force of the wind. We thought alto that they
might be fire-fhips belonging to the enemy.—We
put about for a moment, but the veal on file
ap-
proaching us, we continued our way, having
conftantly a light at our main-top-mall head, as a
fignal for rallying. It could no longer be doubted
but that the enemy had paffcd the Strait, and
had got into our wake. The cannonade be-
came .pretty general, but the wind was too
ftrong to continue an action. We received fe-
veral (hots on board the frigate, which killed one
man, and wounded five. Several balls paired
through the fails. We took down the fignal we
had at our malt-head, for fear that the enemy
fhould fall Upon us. It was afterwards bodied, in
order to collea our (hips. We made fail, direa-
ing our courfe 16 W.N.W. not chuffing to go more
before the wind, left the wind, which was very
Strong, fhould carry away our malts. We paged
the night in the greateft difonietude, not knowing
whether the velfels which were in fight were not
enemies. At length the day diffipated part of our
fears, and we found ourfelves in the midft of our
fleet, with the exception of two fhips of three,
decks, viz. the Hennenegilda and the Royal
Charles, the Formidable and the Saint-Antoine.
The wind having fallen, it became impoffible to
go in fearch of the veffels which had feparated.—
We were then fix leagues Weft of Cadiz. At half
part four o'clock, the Defraix made" a fignal that
the had fprung a leak, and that the water had
gained upon her thirty inches in an hour, and de-
manded
affiftance, which was granted. At five
o'clock we heard an anion in the Eaft, and per-
ceived a fmoke. The wind being then from the
S. E. we made" the fignal for the line of battle
to be formed as quick as poflible, without regard
to places, in order to affift the oda which was
engaged. At half pall fix the aftion ceafed, and
the molt perfect calm fucceeded. At eleven the
wind riling again, we perceived four veffels at a
confiderable Mance from one another. We flat-
tered ourfelves at firs that they were our (hips,
but we loon found by their manoeuvres, that they
,were enemies. We alto diftinguiffied the Formi.
midable clofe under the land, making the belt of
her way to Cadiz. We Rood for that port, from
which a felucca brought me a letter'from the Cap-
tain of the Fo:midable, which had then anchored
in the Road of Cadiz, Rating that he had in the
morning engaged two Englifh fhips of the line and
a frigate, and that one of the Englifh (hips had
been completely difmafted, and had been towed
away by the frigate. We then anchored in Cadiz.
I mutt acknowledge the confummate experience
and talents of General Mot two, as well as the zeal
and care which he difplayed for the fuccefs of his
million. If feparations have taken place, it muff
be attributed to the darknefs of the night, andthe
neeeffity which there was of getting away from
the veffels which were on fire. That officer, upon
hearing at Cadiz of the deftruaion of two (hips of
his fquadron, the Hermencgilda and the Royal
Charles, was jnftly Struck with grief upon the ocl
carton. He had, by his wife inftruilions, provided
againit alrnoft every poffible cafe.
I have fusee been informed, that the two Spa-
nifh veffels which were deftroyed, cannonaded and
ran foul of one another, each fuppofing the other
to be an enemy. We are uncertain about the fate
of the St. Antoine. The violence of the wind
made it extremely dangerous to fire to windward.
(Signed) Rear-Admiral LINOIL
Dated in Cadiz Harbour, the isth of July, on board the
Formidable.
ALPORT OF CAPTAIN TROUDZ, PNOVISION•1; COM-
-111•11Dil OF LS FORNIDASLI, TO REAL-ADMIRAL

LINOIS. Cadiz, July is.
Citizen General—l have the honour of com-
municating to you an account of the operations
of le Formidable, with the provifional command
of which youentrufted me. Proud of the honour-
able charge to defend your flag, I endeavoured
to execute your orders with the moil fcrupulous
exattnefs ; I immediately repaired on board that
veffel to airtime the chief command, and I put to
fea as loon as you made the fignal.
You obferved as well as myfelf, the movements
of the enemy's fquadron which had retired to
Gibraltar after the memorable battle of the 6th,
at Algebras. Seeing the enemyfet fail at the fame
time as the combined fquadron, and keeping to the
windward of us at the dillance of a league, I en.
deavot, red to follow exaaly your manoeuvres, and
made all the fail poffible to follow you, but the
(hip which I had the honour to command, having
been abfolutely difabled, having only jury-malts
and the lower fails, I could not make that way
which I wiflied during the darknefs of the night
a ftrong breeze broke the (mall top-gallant malt
which ferved me as a fore-top malt, and every
thing contributed to prevent ana from following
the combined fquadron.
About midnight I fuilained the fire of five Eng-
lifh (hips which had come up with me ; they fired
red hot bullets : I efcaped as fall as poffible from
the'briik cannonade which they maintained, hang-
ing up the fame lights as I obferved them to have. '
I had only three men killed, and two wounded;'
as I was (tin very near the combined fquadron I
refolved not to engage, that I might avoid thofe'
fatal mitlakes while too often take place in a night
engagement. I was afraid left Mould fire into
Tome of our own vetch', or that they might fire
into mine, from which fatal accidents muff have
refulted to the combined fqttadron : at Atte in the
morning, not being able to obferve or dittlngdifh
any more fignals, I Made for Cadiz, kezplog clofe
in with the Spanifh coal(, on a courfc N. and N.
E. and by thefe means got to it diftance from the
fquadron which were (leering large in a Weftern
direttion. •
At break of day, I found myfelf attacked by
four of the enemy's fquadron, three (hips and a fri-
gate, which lead purfued the famaaurfe ; though

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