representation of the court of Denmark, his Britannic Majesty was pleased, in some degree, to relax the severity of his orders to the forces employed on that service.

A letter from the Earl of Harrowby to Count Wedel Jarlsberg, will shew to what extent it was in our power to cripple the commerce of our

enemies.

Downing-street, July 18, 1804.

It having been a matter of considerable doubt, whether the request signified to me in several notes, which I have had the honour to receive from you, relative to a relaxation of the blockade of the river Elbe, in favour of the Gluckstadt whalefishers, could be complied with, without, in too great a degree, departing from a measure which his Majesty has thought it incumbent upon him to adopt, my answer to your notes on that subject has been unavoidably delayed.

I have now the satisfaction to acquaint you, that orders have been given, conformably to your request, to allow the Greenland ships, enumerated in the list enclosed in your note of the 19th June, to proceed to Gluckstadt, and that orders have also been given, to allow lighters, barges, and small crafts, coming within that description, and laden with innocent and neutral cargoes, to pass and repass along the Danish side of the Elbe, over the Shallows of Watten, between Tonningen and Hamburgh; a measure which will remove the obstruction of the coasting trade of Denmark, and prevent the recurrence of those complaints which this government, has lately not unfrequently received. His Majesty trusts, that his consenting to relax the blockade in these instances, will be considered by the Danish government as a proof of his wish to alleviate as much as possible, every unnecessary pressure on the commerce of his Danish Majesty's subjects, and that no improper use will be made of this indulgence, which may compel him to revert to all the strictness of the blockade.

I have the honour to be, &c. (Signed) HARROWBY.

To the Count of Wedel Jarlsberg,

(Minister of Denmark.)

Downing-street, July 18, 1804.

I have the honour to inform you, that due attention has been paid to the requests signified to me in several notes from you, on the part of the town of Bremen, that lighters might be allowed to navigate between the rivers Jade and Weser.

Orders have been given to his Majesty's ships employed in the blockade of the latter, to permit the passage of lighters (really coming within that description, and laden with innocent and neutral cargoes) to pass and repass over the Shallows, between Varel and Bremen. His Majesty trusts, that care will be taken, that this permission may not be abused, nor any advantage taken, which would compel him to revert to all the strictness of the blockade.

I have the honour to be, Sir,

Your most obedient humble servant,
HARROWBY.

Mr. Groning, Deputy of Bremen.

The blockade of the Texel was reduced to a system on which our admirals acted with great success. The ports of Holland can admit of the ingress or egress of large ships only during the spring tides; two days before which, the British squadron regularly took its station off the Texel, and remained as many days after the full or change of the moon, so that the Dutch lost all the advantages of the high tides, their heavy ships being effectually detained within their harbours.

In April, 1804, the Captains Hardinge and Pelly, of the Scorpion and Beaver sloops of war, went with their boats into the Vlie passage, and cut out the Atalante, a Dutch brig of war, of sixteen long twelve pounders, and manned with seventy-six men. She was gallantly defended, and her captain, refusing quarter, fell on the deck of his vessel; which, though covered with board

The

ing nettings, was carried in a short time. British captains having been personally engaged, were both promoted to the rank of post; and Lieutenant Bluet, of the Scorpion, who was wounded, to that of commander. In this enterprise, there were but five people wounded on the side of the assailants; the Dutch had four killed, and eleven wounded.

The capture of the Atalante afforded Rearadmiral Thornborough, who commanded off the Texel, an opportunity of renewing an amicable intercourse with the Batavian government, by sending back the purser, and pilot, and the servant of the deceased captain with his master's private property. The generous act, in time, produced its effect; but the unhappy Dutch still groaned under the tyranny of France, whose armed vessels occupied her ports, and violated the laws of nations.

In 1803, Lieutenant Dillon having been sent in the barge of the Africaine, with a flag of truce into the Texel, was honourably received by the Dutch Admiral, and suffered to depart with an answer; but on his return to his ship, the gallant young officer was taken by the French guard-ship, and conducted a prisoner to Verdun.

In their attempts to get along shore, the enemy were often and indeed generally successful, though sometimes they met with loss and severe checks. They never moved without a favourable wind and tide, and on these occasions kept as close to the

shore as the depth of water would permit, and were always attended by a troop of flying artillery. On the near approach of our cruisers, they ran their vessels on shore, and the crews escaped; but the French soldiers frequently boarded the vessels again, and continued to fight the guns, while the artillery on the beach kept off the assailants. Many of these vessels were flat bottomed, and called praams; their guns, long thirtytwo or twenty-four pounders; and as they remained in a steady horizontal position, while on shore, their batteries were very effective.

On the morning of the 16th of May, twenty-one sail hauled out of the pier of Ostend, and anchored in the roads; and at the same time fifty-one sail came out of Flushing; two of the latter were large praams or flat vessels, carrying heavy metal with a light draught of water. The Commodore immediately assembled his force, and prepared for action, the only obstacle to which was the shoal water, and the extreme caution required in conducting a ship of any draught among the intricate banks on that dangerous coast. He had with him the Penelope and L'Aimable frigates, Cruiser and Rattler sloops of war. Their captains, Broughton, Bolton, Hancock, and Mason, did all that bravery and perseverance could effect, to impede the course of the enemy to the westward : the sloops of war had of course the advantage of closing with them; and the Rattler and Cruiser

attached themselves to the two praams as being the largest vessels, while the frigates, and finally the Antelope, as soon as the depth of water would allow her, engaged the whole line, as well as the flying artillery which accompanied it along the

shore.

The enemy suffered in some degree, but not in that proportion which a near observer might have been led to expect. The horse-artillery, the guns from the town of Ostend, and from the enemy's camp, reached our ships, but were disregarded. The most ardent pursuit was kept up for many hours; one of the praams struck her colours, and ran on shore, but was quickly filled with artillerymen, who worked her guns and defended her with great bravery. Several of the schuyts and schooners were also driven on shore, but recovered by the army. At eight o'clock the tide falling, obliged the British squadron to haul off into deeper water, and the enemy's vessels that were not aground, or too much shattered, were thus enabled to reach Ostend. Four of the smaller vessels were sunk, and one taken.

The ships and their commanders were as follow: