The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1807-03-24
From tie Nezv York Daily Adrertijer.
OF CUN.DOATS.

From tie Nezv York DAILY Adyertier.
OF GUN-DOATS.
hgun-boas, carrying heavy metal, is movable
'ortitcation; and there isno mode or fynem Of Ge-
.ferce the Urited States go into for COATS and
harbors ports, that viii be 70 eeSNua as by gun
beats.
Ships Of the lire are ways fitted FOR the defeaee
efa eoaR. They are too bulky to ACT in narrow wa
tiers. and cannot "A al, in ihoal waters Like
whale they mum be in deep water & at diaanee
from land
Frigates require tsf. room, IN aa in than fhps Of
The line ; bn, frtate is feeble machine compared
With agar-5nat. We're frga,e to carry and diff
charge the fame weigh, of metal and bail that gun
Boat can do, it would make her pieces. The tim
bereJ nrength of every fhp of IS in proportion
to the weigh. Of metal 'he is carry and the weigh,
Of metal ihe is to be expoGed,o. The tides Of fri
gate are not proof againn the weight of ball tina,
agun-boat can difcharge. The difference between
two fhi. Of war is no, 70 much in their number Of
guns, as in their wsghs of metal.
lremernber the late Commodore Johnfnn laying in
the ETitiI, Koufe Of Ccaarions the commencement
OF the American war. that Il Enrie r,n in retired
fiaa'i9n rrsrii dr;v- pip Of TIE line from De, moor
inys. m,rfor ;,, aid he) fJat foo much ssay
=" be sseeFed from .se nevy"
A gur-boat can carry gun Of the fame weight of
metal and ball that Chip Of hundred guns
ry and The carries It to- the greate(t polhe advan-
fage he iiiot from gun boat is horizontal fhos
The gun is 6sed in a frame that flides in grove &
when the man AZ the helm brings the head of the boat
70 oir. AZ tire h;p. the gun pointed with it. When
fhp fights with her narboard or larboard guns fhe
rreents the whole broad hde of the fhp to the OBJ
led The fires at. A gun-boat fights only with her
heal, that's. with the gun at her head, and when fhe
res a. an obie c prefen,s only the breadth Of the
boat m that cbjea. Surpoe then boat be feet
broad and two feet of the q fpeak here of
eoats Intended FOR the defence Of the coat, and of
r
the fame weight OF metal and ball that hip of the
lins eaT-es) fuch boat vii. prefent fpace to be f.
red At equal to twenty fquare feet, that is, fee
horizontal length beng the breadth Of the boat and
two ieet perpendicular height, being the height of
the boat out Of the water. Suppofc on the other
hand, that flip be an hundred feet long and ten
.-rt high on. Of the water c will prefen fpace to
be tired at equal tn thoufand fquare feet that is
a hundred multiplied by ten. 1t isprobab'e that
hip in Firing at guu-;oa. would fire of her bow
guns, becausin 70 doing The apparently fhortens a.
h'ut one hall her length hut IRE FIRE but one gun
at tim" in this angular petition.
6ut the gun boat has other chances in her favor
beiidfs v!at arife from the different dimeuions of
che two olie9s r. ! fhot from the fhip, though in
4 Ara'g.t lire with the boar paies more than two
fest above the water the place where the boat m
Will nais over the boat without flrikipg it. But
iao from, the boat that is too high to nrke the fp
r,ny trke the mat and carry away. Ii is by this
means thar mats are carried away. The fhot that
does it paiIrs clear above the fhp and fpends its
whole force upon the mar. Again, il ihot from the
liip pa. inch wide Of the boat, it can do
her no injury. But mo, from the boat that paiIes
FIVE or ix inches wide of the body of the fhip at the
Kern, may nnihp carry away her rudder. This,
and the CARRYING away matt, the two moi ia
tai ascents that befa flip yet neither of them
San happen 70 gun boat.
OF the number Of men killed or wounded in naip,
oT &c b,, L,si
By pnters from the rhde of the fhip that hy in all
directions, bnt the t!des of gunboat being thick
like the tides of fhip, ball would pats through
without fpliners; and eiTeGual way to pre-.
VEN fpfnters, fiouid any happen be apprehend-
ed, the tides of the boat the inde hould be lined
with frong netting made Of cord which the men
e'p ntakeshenfclveA The cabin OF French ihips are
frequently lined in this manner.
Mufquetry be ued By flip againtt nip in clofe
atsion, hut canno, be ufed againlt gun-boa. be-
cauie gunboa drawing but little wafer, not more
than two and half or three fee,, and depending up
on oars. always keep Of the reach of mufquet
~. The proper di.an1e for gun-boat to FIRE at is
Point blank f:ot' The inoud be frequently ex-
ercifcd at firing point blank iot banks Of earth on
fhore, againh the high perpendicular hores of ri
vers, like the North River, againf the hulk Of old
thPs that are to be broken up, the the helm
10 point the bo-t and give the order for firing. A
gun boat 5houh carry lefs weight of ball than
twenty-ionr ponDds. a trigate would not chule 10
expofe her i.ies to fneh fot
The frf gun-koats built in the United STATES. were
for the defence OF the Delaware, in l775 and TO
The Roebuok man of war came up the Delaware
within few Mills of Philadelphia, and the gur-boats
went and attacked her. The flip fired broadGjes
without frikiug any Of the boats, asd as the deep
water the fhp in, wasbut narrow, the re aGiion
of the broadides forced her into oal water and ne
got aground. The man who commanded the gun
boats, fulpeaed character OF the name of White
gave orders To the boats ceae firing, and when the
tide roe the Rip Aoated and made the ben of her
way to FED. White afterw ards joined the Brtif at
N York.
When General Howe failed from ". York in l777,
to get poileion Of Philadelphia, he avoided coming
mp the Delaware where the gun boats were, and went
10 the Cheiapeak, where there were none, and mar
ehedb by land from tho head Of Elk into Pennfylvania
No sie can be ned for this crcuitous route of f
vctal hundred miles, but that Of not cTpoGng his fps
and tranfPorts 20 the gun-boaS There were at that
time iortiiication on Mud llfapd, few miles be-
low Philadelphia, aAd another at Red Bank on the
Jerfry fdore oppofi:e; but Howe could have landed
below thofe, and Of the reach Of their hot, but
he could land no where on the Delaware Gcre, nor
;le reael, Of The movable Notifications the gum boa.s
After Cen Howe got podeiion of Philadelphia by
lInd, the gud-bozts quilted their Daton below, and
came asoye tie city.
The Ala MAN ofwar, Of CO guns, Capt Vandepu,,
90 aground in S-wYork basbour three or four miles
bsIo the cry, 10 the fprrg etc Cen. Lee com.
n'andeJ a: n. Yorl: at at time, and had there been
any n.bolts, they could have taken her, beeaufe