The Bloomfield times. [volume] (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1867-187?, 1873-06-10

no more the careless sea-boy of the day
previous. AS If to increase my melan-
choly, an Irish sailor at evening sang q
sweet but tragic ballad It swept along
the waters like prophecy Of sorrow:
"Thy lover will share thy death Rumber with thee
Cathleen Mayourneen, acushia machree"
We sailed soon after for home. France
and the United States were ther virtually
at war with each other, although hostilities
were never formally declared, and very
notable incident Of our passage was an en-
gagement with a French privateer. She
attacked us in what was almost gale, and
SO heavy swell was running that hardly a
shot touched the ship. think we fred
better than the enemy, for although the
Hirondelle carried sixteen guns, we beat
her off with two old rusty six-pounders.
Upon arriving home, learned that the
brig st. Patrick had not reached the port
for which she sailed. 1t is needless to
dwell upon my disappointment. / re-
mained long waiting, but it was finally an
nounced, by a neutral vessel, that the Irish
brig had fallen prey to the Hirondelle,
the very privateer which had engaged our
ship, and doubted not that the bright
face of Cathleen was in the Frenchman's
cabin at the very moment we were firing
upon him.
Never again, mused, could the daughter
of Erin become reality in my experience ;
yet my nightly dreams were gladdened by
her presence, and it seemed strange that
they always resulted favorably. 1 have
ever had faith in dreams. The night be-
fore our engagement with the Hirondelle,
had dreamed of Catbleen as dressed in
the blue, white and scarlet of France.
The elder Adams was now president, and
although no lover of French republicanism,
he would gladly have avoided war with the
ambitious Gauls. Yet something must be
done to protect our commerce, and soon
the names of vessels fitting out against the
French became familiar to all mariners.
/ shipped in the Constellation frigate,
rating thirty-eight guns, and commanded
by Captain Truxton. A nobler object than
this American ship of war, as under her
three topsails, topgallant-sais and royals,
with her broad courses heavily swelling,
her spanker, staysails, jib and flying -jib all
taking the quartering breeze, as she stood
out of the Chesapeake, it would not be
easy to conceive.
Many of our tars regretted that it was
not the English instead of the French of
whom we were sent in quest; for the deeds
of the previous thirty years had given our
countrymen as great dislike for the former
as gratitude toward the latter. Besides,
the capture of a French ship could by nc
means be, regarded as SO notable an achieve
ment as the capture of an Englishman Of
the same rate. If any of my readers who are
careless of historical information should
doubt that we were ever in state of actual
war with France, the records of '99 and 100
will enlghten them. Nothing is more in
tercsting than a file of old newspapers OF
that stirring period.
Crossing the Gulf Stream, the Constella.
tion bore away for the West Indies, where
the French were carrying things with 9
high hand. Never had ship finer crew
than ours, or better commander. From
the rough old salts in the round-tops to the
powder-boys Of the gundeck, every soul OF
board loved and respected CAPITA in Trux
ton.
For some time we cruised Off the Wind
ward Islands without falling in with al
enemy. Once we ran as far south as Mar
Unique, then returned to the neighborhoot
of Montserrat and Guadaloupe. At length
on the ninth of February, 1899, while of
Montserrat, we espied sail to the lee
ward. The Constellation Immediately bore
down for her, while the stranger, who wal
hauled close on the wind, appeared per
fectly willing to meet us. We soon per
ceived her to be a frigate of equal force
with the Constellation; that is to say, she
rated thirty-eight guns, but carried forty
nine. All ships of war at that period car
ried more than their rate. The stranger
had, like ourselves, twenty-eight eighteen
Founders on her gundeck, and twenty-one
on her spar-deck, one of the latter being q
shifting gun.
Whether she were French or English We
knew not, but many of us guessed her to
be the French frigate Insurgente, ship Of
which we had heard--a remarkably fast
sailer, and very active depredator upon
American commerce. AT all events, she
was flne-looking vessel.
We were quite close upon the strange
ship when the Constellation sent up large
ensign at the mizzen, and Immediately
after a smalar ono at the fore The last