six killed and wounded. According to the statement of the British, their loss was sixty-five killed and wounded, besides Indians. In consequence of his good conduct, in this affair, captain Holmes was promoted to the rank of major. The northern sea-coast, which had thus far experienced little molestation from the enemy, became the object of attack early in the spring. On the seventh of April, a body of sailors and marines, to the number of two hundred, ascended the Connecticut river, as far as Saybrook, where they spiked the cannon, and destroyed the shipping; they proceeded thence to Brockway's ferry, where they did the same; and afterwards, unapprehensive of attack, carelessly remained twenty-four hours. In the meantime, a body of militia, together with a number of marines and sailors, under captain Jones and lieutenant Biddle, had collected for the purpose of cutting off their retreat; but the British, taking advantage of a very dark night, and using muffled oars, escaped to their fleet, after having destroyed two hundred thousand dollars worth of shipping. About this time the coasting trade was almost destroyed by a British privateer, the Liverpool Packet, which cruised in the sound. Commodore Lewis sailed with a detachment of thirteen gunboats, and succeeded in chasing her off. On his arrival at Saybrook, he found upwards of fifty vessels bound to the eastward, but afraid to venture out. The commodore consented to take them nnder convoy, but was not able to promise them protection against the squadron then blockading New London. They, however, being disposed to run the risk, he sailed with them on the twenty-fifth, and in the afternoon of the same day, was compelled to throw himself between his convoy and a British frigate, a sloop of war and a tender, and kept up a contest, until the coasters had safely reached New London. Having attained his object, he determined to try what he could do with his gunboats against the enemy's ships. Furnaces being hastily constructed, he began to throw hot balls at the enemy's sides and repeatedly set their ships on fire, without receivi any injury himself. The sloop soon withdrew, -and t fire was principally directed against the frigate. One shot passed through her, very near her magazine; her lieutenant, and a great number of her men were already killed; her captain was on the point of striking, when he observed that the gunboats had ceased firing. The night soon after coming on, the gunboats desisted from the attack, determined to wait until morning. At daylight, they perceived the squadron towing away; it was resolved to pursue them, but several other frigates soon made their appearance, and put a stop to this design. This affair together with that of Craney island, revived the discussion on the utility of gunboats in the defence of harbours and the coast. Great services had been rendered by captain Lewis on this as well as on many other occasions. Formidable squadrons were kept up before the ports of New York, New London, and Boston; and the whole eastern coast was exposed to the enemy. The war was carried on here in a very different manner from that at the south. Commodore Hardy would not permit any wanton outrages upon private property, or upon defenceless individuals. In spite, however, of his general demeanour, there were particular instances of the contrary on the part of the officers commanding smaller parties, and actuated by a thirst for plunder. At the towns of Wareham and Scituate, they burned all the vessels at their moorings; and at the former, they set fire to an extensive cotton manufactory. At a place called Boothbay, they met with a spirited resistance, and were repeatedly repulsed in various desperate attacks. An invasion of a more serious nature was made in July. On the eleventh of that month, sir Thomas Hardy, with a strong force, made a descent on Moose Island, and after taking possession of Eastport, declared all the islands and towns, on the eastern side of Passamaquoddy bay, to appertain to his Britannic majesty, and required the inhabitants to appear within seven days and take the oath of allegiance. About two thirds of the inhabitants submitted; but in the month of August, the council of the province of New Brunswick declared, that notwith standing the oath of allegiance, they should be consider ed as a conquered people, and placed under military government. Eastport was soon after strongly fortified; but it was found extremely difficult for the enemy to subsist his troops, and the desertions were so frequent as to render it almost impossible to keep up a garrison. The commodore soon after sailed with a part of his squadron, for the purpose of attacking Stonington. The appearance of this force excited much alarm, which was not diminished, when they received a message from the commodore, to remove the women and children, as he had received orders to reduce the place to ashes. The inhabitants, although with very trifling means of defence, determined to make an attempt to save their property. The handful of militia of the place, repaired to a small battery erected on the shore, and to a breast work thrown up for musketry, and at the same time despatched an express to obtain assistance from general Cushing, commanding at New London. In the evening, five barges, and a large launch, filled with men, approached the shore, under cover of a heavy fire from the ships. The Americans, reserving their fire until the enemy were within short grape distance, opened their two eighteen-pounders, and soon compelled the invaders to retire out of the reach of their battery. They next proceeded to another part of the town, which they supposed defenceless, but a part of the militia being detached thither with a sixpounder, the barges were again repulsed; the enemy then retired to their ships, but determined to renew the attack in the morning; and in the meantime kept up a bombardment until midnight. The next morning it was discovered, that one of the enemy's vessels had approached within pistol shot of the battery, and the barges advanced in still greater numbers than the day before; these were again gallantly repulsed, and the vessel driven from her anchorage. The squadron then renewed the bombardment of the town, but without effect; and on the twelfth, the commodore thought proper to retire. The inhabitants after this gallant defence, which, considering the means with which it was effected, and the great disparity of force opposed to them, deserves much praise, once more occupied their dwellings in security. It was not long after this, that the British occupied all that part of the district of Maine between Penobscot river and Passamaquoddy bay, and declared it to be held as a colony. On the first of September, the governor of Nova Scotia, and admiral Griffith entered the Penobscot river, and took possession of Castine, which the garrison had previously evacuated. A proclamation was then issued, declaring that possession of that part of the province of Maine east of the Penobscot, was formally taken, in the name of his Britannic majesty. The country, which contained about thirty thousand inhabitants, was then gradually occupied, and possessed until the conclusion of the war. In the The naval incidents of eighteen hundred and fourteen, are as grateful to American feelings as those of the two former years. An occurence took place in the very beginning of the year, which afforded to us as much_cause for triumph, as of mortification to the enemy. month of February, commodore Rodgers, on his return from a cruise in the President, found himself off Sandy Hook, within a short distance of three large British ships of war, the nearest of which was the Plantagenet, a seventy-four. Believing that an engagement with one or all of them was unavoidable, he cleared his ship for action, determining not to surrender, without selling his ship as dearly as he could. But notwithstanding he fired several guns to windward, as a proof of his willingness to engage, the British vessels did not think proper to approach, and he safely reached New York. Captain Lloyd, of the Plantagenet, after returning to England, accounted for his conduct, by alleging a mutiny in his ship, and several of his sailors were executed on the charge. Another affair took place soon after, which furnished a still stronger proof of the now acknowledged superiority of America upon the ocean, an acknowledgment more strongly expressed than by words. In the month of April, captain Stewart was also on his return in the Constitution, after a cruise, when he was chased by two British frigates and a brig, but escaped, by superior seamanship, into Marblehead. Some time before, after cap turing the public schooner Picton, he fell in with the British frigate La Pique, captain Maitland, who fled on the approach of the Constitution, and finally escaped during the night, after a long chase. Captain Maitland was complimented by the board of admiralty, for thus obeying their instructions, in not fighting an American frigate singly; it having been determined, that not less than two frigates could be a match for an American. The enemy had become equally shy of the gunboat flotilla. Commodore Lewis repeatedly beat off the British vessels near Sandy Hook, and facilitated the return of the American ships. The Regent, loaded with a very valuable cargo, was chased by the Belvidera, when commodore Lewis, throwing himself with eleven of his gunboats between them, the frigate moved off without returning the shot of the gunboats. That brave and adventurous seaman, commodore Porter, terminated this year his glorious cruise in the Pacific. From Lima, in the neighborhood of which he had chastised the pirates of the ship Nereyda, he proceeded to the Gallipagos, where he cruised from April, 1813, until October; and in the course of that time, captured twelve British armed whale ships, carrying in all one hundred and seven guns, and three hundred and two men. Several of these were equipped as American cruizers and store-ships; and the Atlantic, now called the Essex Junior, of twenty guns and sixty men, was assigned to Lieutenant Downes. The prizes which were to be laid up, were convoyed by this officer to Valparaiso. On his return, he brought intelligence to Commodore Porter, that a British squadron, consisting of one frigate, and two sloops of war, and a store-ship of twenty guns, had sailed in quest of the Essex. The commodore, having been almost a year at sea, with little intermission, found it absolutely necessary that his ship should undergo considerble repairs. With this view, he steered to the island of Nooaheeva, or Madison's island, which he so named in honor of the President. Here he found a fine bay, and a situation in every respect suitable to his wishes, the inhabitants apparently friendly. But it was not long before he found that his |