Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1815-05-10

4
be ascribed Their lordships would obs
serve, that this trigate, the En,ymion, tho
the only one (preyious to the building of the
late large class frigates) which could carry
| a "a FOUNDER, and at all calculated to meet
the American frigates, was, at the time
when he first brought this subject to the att
tention of their lordships. out Of com mission.
Such was the judgment and prescience of
! those who had the direction of the navy,
who must have been acquainted with the
American navy, and the class cf ships with
which our frigstes woald have to contend.
This ship, too, had an additional compile
ment OF men and YETI the captain, of whose
judgment there could now be as little doubt
! as of his valour, thought the crew too small,
and, on leaving port, had pressed the Ad.
\ miralty for a greater number of men,
The noble viscount at the head of the Ad.
mira'ty had. at the beginning of the session,
made pompous display of the number OF
| ships taken from the Americans Consid-
ering the numbers of the British navy, AID
the blockade of the Anne lea rivers s
harbors, 1t would have been surprising if a
! great number of American ships had not
been taken. He did not conceive, there.
fore, that the numbers added much to any
favorable view thas could be taken of the
conduct OF the Admiralty. But in the re
of enark, that the Americans had been ra
ted at the number of guns taken, while ours
had been estimated according to the class
OF the ships the guns in a SO gun frigate
| had been stated at SO, while, in point of
fact, the ship might have carried a guns
! ms, perhaps, was a matter o. no great i'm
\ portance, but still it was not q fair way of
making up an account. Besides, no less
than 124 OF the American ships consisted of
| suu-boats, steamboats,, and vessels of that
description, Carrying about six guns each -
| LIN answer to an observation of his on for
mer occasion, the noble viscount had boas-
ted OF the great number of British ships of
! war at sea. He was DESTROYS of coming to
| issue with the noble viscount on that head
| and should therefore move for return of
the number OF British ships of war at sea
| on the Goth of December, 1914 He should
also.move for return of the number of
men on beard each snip, with the proportion
! OF boys in each. He would venture TO as
| sert, that on the production of these &C.
counts, 1t would appear that great pro-
| portion OF the ships at sea were not effsc
| tive ships OF war. did the noble viscount
thiak that ship under 10 gnns could he
| match even fos an American privateer -
his object then was, 10 have return which
| would give correct view of the number of
l n
merican contest, that it might be seen
what proportion was effective, and what
not. He believed 1T would clearly appear
that it would have been infinitely prefera,
BILE TO nave had :maler number of lar
ser and better description, and better man.
| ned.
! II the admiralty had followed that plan
| OF which the advantages were so obvious.
those disasters which have in a few instan
ces happened co our navy would probabl =
| never have occurred. There vas another
point TO which he was very anxious to di.
| rect their lordships' attenti N, as it was a
| subject which ought ever to be kept in view
In time OF peace as well as in time of war
he alluded to the manner in which our ships
OF war were constructed, Ii had been said
that we never took copy of the body of a
tne snip which came into our hands with,
out spelling it. The noble ,iscount might
smile. But suca ne understood to be the
fact. But such was the attachment of those
10 whom that duty was eDtrusi ed to anti
quated preJudices and old forms, that eli.
ther from that cause, or from our overween-
| ing VANITY, or both, our navy was rendered
| infamous In point of construction. Those
| VINO were employed in this imsortant oh.
Ject could hardly construct sioon of var
that was tit for sea They were really dam
| gerous-not seaworthy 4; and he himself
happened to have seen instances where
sloops had been brought back as unfit IN
keep The sea. He therefore wished to move
tor copies of the corresp ondence between
the Admiralty and the Navy Board ON the
subject OF slUops of war, toge,her with the
representations of the Admiralty to the Ma
Wy Board. These sloops, too, were deFec-
! tive IN point of size, and not fit 20 cone with
the large American sloops. The next
point was, the detective manner in which
the ships were manned. With the know
ledge which the Admiralty must have had
OF the description of ships with which our's
mad to contend, :hey ought to have made
corresponding preparations. They might
nave had fewer ships. and those of a Iare
er size and better manned and If this had
been done, It would have prevented a great
sacrihce ct the lives Of our brave seamen.
Our naval managers had, however, toll
i9~ed different plan. In the case OF the
Macedonian frigate, Tor instance, there ne,
1 yer was crew worse constituted and the
captain, who had subsequently lost nj, life
| PROBABLY from thss Acknowledgement Of the
| admiralty, had, when he leit Portsmouth
| bitterly complained OF the state of the crew.
| lie would ask the noble yiscount whether
! eur sioops had been so manned as TO make
them any thing like a match for the An,e
fican sioopsf a crew OF l27 men was
made up i 70 seameB, 20 boys, ~ marines.
| and these had 10, I or. a