The Evansville journal. (Evansville, Ind.) 1834-184?, 1845-05-22

"But," says |, "Kennedy-I think you said
your craft was bound for the lakes-which
did you go to, Ontario, or Erie?"
81 was on both SIR says he, "afore the
war was over; and we got as much accus-
toned to poking our flying iib-boom into the
trees on them shores, as if the stick was first
cousins-which, being as how the ships was
built in the woods, wouldn't be much won
der. Part Of that ere craft staid down on
Ontario, with old commodore, as was watch
ing Sir James, and part was sent up to Erie.
| went up TO Erie and joined the Lawrence,
Commodore Oliver H. Perry-and l hopes
that old Bill Kennedy needn't be called a
braggart, if he says be did his part in show
ing of as handsome a fight on that fresh-war-
ter pond, as has ever been done by an equal
force on blue water. Our gallant young
Commodore made as tight a fight of it as it
has ever been my luck to be engaged in;
and seeing as how half his men was down
sick with the fever and ager, and not one in
a dozen knew the difference between the
smell of gunpowder and oil of turpentine,
blow me! but Think it was about as we'll
done.
"You see our squadron was lying in a bay,
as they calls Put-in-Bay-and when the enc
my first hove in sight, it was in the morning,
about seven o'clock. | know that that was
the time, because | had Just been made
Quarter Master by Captain Perry, and was
the first as seen them through my glass
They was in the Northwest, bearing down;
as soon as we made them out TO be the enc
my's fleet, up went the signal 10 get under
way; our ship, the Lawrence, in course TAX
ing the lead. Well, as we was working slow
ly to windward to clear some small Islands
one of 'em Snake island hearn, Cap
tain Perry come TO the master, and asked him
in a low voice, whether he thought he should
be able TO get the wether gage ofthe enemy;
but the master said as how the wind was
Sou,west and light, and didn't think he could.
Them said the Commodore, aloud. swear
ship, sir, and go to leeward, for I'm deter
mined TO fight them to-day,'-but Just then
the wind came round TO the Southland and
Bastard, and we retained the weather gage,
andslowly bore down upon the enemy. They
did all they could to get the wind, but not
succeeding, hove into line, heading west'ard,
and CALAMITY waited for US as we came down.
ZHsThere laid their squadron, all light sails
taken in, just like a boxer, with his sleeves
rolled up, and a handkerchief tied about his
loins, ready 10 make a regular stand-up-ight,
and there wasn't a Drawer man, nor a better
sailor, in the British Navy, nor that same Bar
clay, whose broad pennant footed in the van
of that squadron.
"Pretty soon up runs our motto-lag, the
dying words of our hero Lawrence-Dont
gipe up the SAipr-and floats proudly from
our main, and then the general order was
passed down the line by trumpet, Each ship
lag your enemy alongside !n-and if you ev-
Ell seen a flock of wild geese flying south
ard in the fall of the year. you'll have some
idea Of us as we went down into action
The men was full of spirit, and painting for a
fight, and even them as was so sick as 10 be
hardly able to stand, insisted on taking their
places at the guns. i recollects one in par
ticular--he was a carpenters mate, a steady
man, from Newport-he crawls up when we
beat TO quarters, and seats himself upon the
head of one of the pumps, with the sounding
rod in his hand, looking yeller asif he had
just been dragged out of a South Carolina
cypress swamp; but one of the officers comes
up to him as he was sitting there, and says,
you are too sick TO be sitting here my man
there's no use of your being exposed for
nothing-you had better 60 below 'f you
phase, SIR says the poor fellow, IF can do
nothing else, | can save the time of a better
man. and sit here and sound the pump
"Well, sir, as we bore down, the English
occasionally tried our distance by ashot, and
when we was within about a mile of 'em,
one comes ricochetting across the water,
bounds over the bulwarks, and takes that
mans head as clean off his shoulders, as ifit
had been done with his own broad axe. l
have hearn say that every bullet has its bill
iet,' and that is sartin, that its no use TO dodge
a shot, for if you are destined TO fall by a
shot, you will sartin fall by that same shot
and | bears in mind, that an English sailor,
one OF our prisoners, told ne that in a ship
of theirn, a Teller was skulked in the cable
tier, during an action with the French, was
found dead with a spent forty-two resting on
his neck. The ball had come in at the starn
~port--struck one of the beams for'ard, and
tumbled right in upon him, breaking his neck,
as he lay snugly coiled away in the cable
tier. No, no--misfortin and cannons are
very much alike--there's no d~odglng--ev-
cry man must stand up to his work, aud take
his chance-ifthey miss, he is ready when
they pipes to grog-if they hit, The purser's
book is squared, and no more charges is scor-
ed against him.
"But as l was saying, it wasn't long be-
fore we began 10 make our carronades tell,
and then at it we went, hot and heavy, the
Lawrence taking the lead, engaging the De-
troit, and every vessel as she came up obey
;. ing orders, and laying her enemy alongside,
in right good earnest, except the Niagara
She hung back-damn her-with her Jh