CHAPTER I.

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MEMOIR

OF THE

LIFE AND SERVICES OF VICE-ADMIRAL

SIR JAHLEEL BRENTON,

BARONET, K. C. B.

EDITED BY

THE REV. HENRY RAIKES,

CHANCELLOR OF THE DIOCESE OF CHESTER.

LONDON:

HATCHARD AND SON, PICCADILLY;

SEACOME AND PRICHARD, CHESTER.

1846.

Dedication.

TO LADY BRENTON.

DEAR LADY BRENTON,

In dedicating to you the Memoir of which I have been permitted to be the

Editor, I cannot but feel how inadequate the portrait, which I have been

endeavouring to sketch, must appear to you, to whom it now is offered.

I undertook the work indeed, chiefly from a sense of public duty; though

without much hope that I should satisfy myself, or those by whom the

charge was entrusted to me. It seemed fit and proper, that the world

should be made acquainted with a character of such rare and peculiar

excellence as that of your husband; and I felt that it was due to the

naval service generally, and in particular to the younger members of it,

that they should see how qualities of a very different kind might be

combined in one man; and might render him, who was the ornament of his

profession, a model of what man ought to be in every relation of life.

My desire therefore was to do good to others, rather than to do justice

to my subject; and instead of dwelling, as to you might seem natural and

proper; on those various graces which endeared him to all, and to those

most, who knew him best; I have endeavoured to shew what he was, by

describing his behaviour under the several trials of his eventful life;

and to extend the benefit of his example by making it more generally

known.

I dare not suppose, therefore, that the offer of the following Memoir

should have any other value in your eyes, than as a token of the

affectionate remembrance, with which I dwell upon the character of your

much loved husband. In this respect, had I attempted more, I should not

have succeeded better; for language never satisfies the requirements of

the heart; and you would still have felt, that the half was yet unsaid;

after I had written all that I could, in endeavouring to express my

admiration and regard.

My chief anxiety is, that the volume may be in some degree acceptable to

those, whose benefit has been always contemplated during its preparation;

and that the navy may not lose the benefit, which the example of Sir

Jahleel Brenton is so well calculated to give. In my solicitude to secure

this object, I have retained as much as possible of the language of

the original memorial, which forms the basis of the narrative. I have

sacrificed all attempt at forming a regular biography, that I might

preserve its originality. I have allowed inequalities of style to remain,

which may offend fastidious minds, that I might not weaken the effect

of particular expressions; and the little that I have ventured to add,

has chiefly been done for the purpose of enabling readers to draw those

inferences from the events recorded, which he, writing with another

object in view, and regarding what was written as merely a memorial

addressed to his children, naturally assumed as certain to be drawn by

those for whom he wrote, and did not think it necessary to add.

In these respects I have endeavoured to speak with the reserve, which

should be felt when professional questions are discussed by one, who is

a stranger to them; and trust, that I have only said, what he would have

wished to have added under similar circumstances. It is satisfactory

to me, however, to think, that whatever may be the deficiencies of the

Memoir, it will at least draw attention to the man, while his qualities

still linger in the recollection of his friends and his associates; for

if the narrative does but lead to enquiry as to the character of the

subject, I feel that there is no doubt as to the result that may be

expected.

Though I feel it necessary therefore to apologize to you for the very

inadequate portrait that is now presented, I am not without hope, that

under God’s blessing, the exhibition of such a life may be beneficial to

the world; and if this be the case, I trust that you will merge private

disappointment in the consideration of general good, and be satisfied

with what is done, in the hope it may do good to others. As for the

comfort to be derived from such a memorial, I know you need it not; and

would not seek it in such monuments as man can raise. Your consolation

under loss is drawn from higher sources, and needs not the support of

human praise bestowed on him, who was dearer to you than life itself. The

recollection of his holy, humble walk, of his work of faith, his labour

of love, his cheerful submission to pain, his forgetfulness of self, and

his zeal for the good of others, forms for you a source of comfort, which

no human honour can equal, and no earthly possession rival. This is your

real consolation, and to the convictions on which this rests, the opinion

of the world can add nothing.

But though you do not look to such a memorial as this for the comfort

that you need; I am willing to hope, that if it should be the means of

doing good; if it should make the memory of him you loved, as beneficial

as his example was, it may be acceptable. The great and the good live not

for their own generation only, but for those that follow. They bequeath

their characters to mankind; and it seems an act of justice to them to

collect, and to offer to public notice, the record of efforts which may

awaken the emulation, or strengthen the faith of others; and lead them to

excellence by the knowledge of the victories achieved by those who went

before them.

If it should please God, then, to make this imperfect notice of Sir

Jahleel Brenton’s course useful to that service of which he was so

bright an ornament while living; you will forgive the insufficiency of

the representation which meets your eye; and I shall be thankful, if in

paying this tribute of respect to the memory of a friend whom I revered

and loved, I can communicate any of his feelings to that profession, to

which the country owes so large a debt of gratitude.

Believe me to remain,

Most truly and faithfully your’s,

H. RAIKES.

CHESTER, SEPT. 30th.

CONTENTS.

INTRODUCTION. 1

CHAPTER I.

Settlement of the Brenton family in America,—and descent.—Birth

of the subject of the memoir.—Breaking out of the war and

removal to England.—Education and introduction to Naval

Service, in the Dido.—Passes for Lieutenant, and accepts an

invitation to serve in the Swedish Fleet.—Adventures on way to

join, and conclusion of service.—Appointed as Lieutenant to the

Assurance.—Transferred to the Speedy, and sent in command of

the Trepassey to Newfoundland.—Return to England and appointed

to the Sybil.—Voyage homewards in the Cleopatra, and in a

Spanish man of war from Cadiz. 34

CHAPTER II.

Service in the Sybil.—Story of the Corfields.—Severe winter at

sea.—Story of John Iceberg.—Invalided and comes ashore.—Applies

for employment, and appointed to the Alliance.—Feelings on

the subject.—Goes out to the Mediterranean.—Made known to

Sir John Jervis, and appointed to the Gibraltar.—Storm and

extreme danger of the ship.—Made First Lieutenant of the

Aigle.—The Aigle being lost, he remains First Lieutenant to the

Barfleur.—Interview with Lord St. Vincent and the subsequent

decision. 55

CHAPTER III.

Service in the Speedy.—Action with gun boats off

Gibraltar.—Sent to Penon de Velez.—Action on the coast, and

with gun boats.—His brother’s death from wounds received in

action in the Peterel.—Letter to his father.—Made Post, and

appointed to the temporary command of the Genereux at Port

Mahon.—Sails to Genoa. 75

CHAPTER IV.

Disappointment of promotion.—Applies to Lord St. Vincent, and

through him appointed Captain to the Cæsar, under Sir James

Saumarez.—Battle at Algesiras.—Exertions of Captain Brenton in

refitting the Cæsar, and subsequent victory.—Tempting offer of

going to England with dispatches declined.—Definitive treaty of

peace signed.—Squadron at Gibraltar. 102

CHAPTER V.

Returns to England.—Recollections on the Cæsar and the

Chaplain.—Married to Miss Stewart.—Reflections on this event,

made after her death.—Hostilities recommenced in 1801, and

appointment to the command of the Minerve.—Dangerous accident

and injury during the fitting out the frigate.—Sails for the

coast of France.—The ship strikes off Cherbourg, and after a

gallant defence is surrendered, July 3. 123

CHAPTER VI.

Commencement of captivity.—Journey from Cherbourg.—Kindness of

M. Dubois.—Arrival at Epinal. 151

CHAPTER VII.

Removal from Epinal to Phalsburg, and thence to

Verdun.—Sufferings of the people on the march, and efforts

made for their relief and improvement.—The Rev. Robert Wolfe

offers his services and assistance.—Mrs. Brenton’s arrival at

Verdun.—Residence at Charni.—Illness, and permission granted to

reside at Tours.—Conduct of the French Government towards the

English prisoners of war. 172

CHAPTER VIII.

The Rev. Mr. Wolfe one of the detenus—hears of the state of

the prisoners at Givet, and resolves on going to reside among

them.—Extract from his work entitled the “British Prisoners in

France.”. 218

CHAPTER IX.

Journey to Tours, incidents on the road and residence

there.—Circumstances attending his exchange, and return to

England. 255

CHAPTER X.

Arrival in England, and application to the Admiralty.—Kindness

of the First Lord of the Admiralty, Mr. Grenville.—Court

martial, acquittal and appointment to the Spartan.—Sails to

the Mediterranean.—Escape from capture.—Boat action with its

unfortunate result, and court of enquiry ordered by Lord

Collingwood. 289

CHAPTER XI.

Cruize off Toulon.—Refits at Malta.—Storm off Sardinia.—Joins

Lord Collingwood’s fleet.—Disaster.—Falls in with the French

Fleet at sea.—Exertions to convey intelligence and to watch

the enemy.—Returns to Toulon.—Service on the coast of Italy in

company with Lord Cochrane.—Reflections. 319

CHAPTER XII.

Removal from the Toulon station to the Mediterranean.—Cruize

off Candia, and in the Adriatic.—Action at Pesaro; and

official letters.—Co-operation with the Austrians in the

Adriatic.—Letters from Lord Collingwood expressive of his

entire satisfaction. 343

CHAPTER XIII.

Return to Malta to refit.—Sudden offer of joining the

expedition against the Ionian Islands as suddenly

accepted.—Capture of Zante, Cephalonia, and Cerigo.—Approbation

of Lord Collingwood.—Cruize on the coast of Italy.—Action off

Naples, victory, and severe wound; carried to Palermo and

Malta.—Letters on the subject, and extract from his personal

memoranda.—Sails for England. 375

CHAPTER XIV.

Joined by his family.—Slow recovery from his wound.—Fresh

trials from the failure of his agents, and actions threatened

by neutrals detained.—Friendly interference of Mr.

Abbott.—Applies to the Admiralty for employment, and appointed

to the Stirling Castle, 1812.—Compelled by the state of his

wound to resign the command.—Made Baronet.—Appointed Naval

Commissioner at Minorca.—Residence there.—Failure of Lady

Brenton’s health.—The establishment at Minorca broken up on the

conclusion of the war.—Return to England, and appointment to

the Dorset Yacht.—Made Naval Commissioner at the Cape. 404

CHAPTER XV.

Residence at the Cape.—Remarks on the advantages of Simon’s Bay

as a Naval station.—Plans for the improvement of the liberated

Negroes.—Rapid failure of Lady Brenton’s health and her

death.—Reflections on it extracted from his private journal. 430

CHAPTER XVI.

Reflections on the death of Lady Brenton.—Extracts from the

private memoranda.—Sufferings from his wound, and remarks on

the subject. 471

CHAPTER XVII.

Narrative of a journey to the Mouth of the Knyzna, and remarks

on the advantages of the Cape as a Colony. 491

CHAPTER XVIII.

Benevolent exertions in favour of the Negro and Hottentot

population.—Captain Edward Brenton’s plan for the restoration

of juvenile delinquents.—Its connection with the Cape,

and failure.—The establishment at Simon’s Town broken up

at the death of Buonaparte.—Return to England.—Temporary

appointment to the Royal Charlotte Yacht.—Marriage.—Made

Colonel of Marines.—Appointment to the Donegal.—Appointment

as Lieutenant Governor of Greenwich Hospital,—resigns the

situation,—residence at Casterton,—at Elford.—Sickness and

death. 611

MEMOIR OF VICE ADMIRAL SIR JAHLEEL BRENTON, K. C. B. BARONET.

It may appear presumptuous in one not connected with the naval service,

to attempt the biography of an officer so distinguished as Sir Jahleel

Brenton; and it may appear a graver, a less excusable offence, that one

belonging to another profession, and that a profession, which requires

the devotion of the whole mind to its own peculiar objects, should be

undertaking an office so foreign from his usual employment and proper

duties. I have, therefore, no hesitation in saying, that if Sir Jahleel

Brenton had merely been the man, whom the world knew through the medium

of gazettes, and the record of public services, and looked up to as a

gallant and distinguished officer; whatever might have been my feelings

towards him as a personal friend, whatever my admiration of him as a

public character, I never should have undertaken the office, which I

am now attempting to discharge. I must also add, that under other

circumstances I must have shrunk from the duty, as involving enquiries

which I had neither leisure nor means to prosecute; if its labours had

not been so far anticipated by documents drawn up by his own hand, and

left to his family; that little more seemed left to his biographer,

than to arrange that which was already written; and to select out of a

memorial designed for the benefit and instruction of his own children,

those parts which might be offered to the public, without trespassing on

the sacredness of a private, a domestic record.

I must again mention, that I was aware that even this portion of my duty

was anticipated, and would be performed in my behalf by one, who, with

a single exception, might be regarded as most identified in feelings,

views, and mind, with the subject of the memoir.

The delicate and difficult task of selecting from a long and confidential

memoir, written with all the fulness of a father’s heart, and intended

to be perused as a sort of sacred record by his children; oftentimes

too minute or too particular for publication; and still exhibiting in

general so much of the character that it was desired to pourtray, that

it was difficult to know how to resist insertion; this task was, I say,

undertaken by another, who has discharged it with as much fidelity as

discretion; and who left nothing to me, but to peruse and confirm that,

which had been thus arranged and prepared for the press.

But even these advantages; assisted and increased as they are by the

affectionate recollections of the members of his own family; while

they promised to render the labour of the undertaking easy, would have

been insufficient to determine me to attempt a work for which I was so

incompetent, if I had proposed to offer to the public a memoir of the

professional life, and of the naval achievements of the man whom it was

impossible to know without honouring or loving him. But this seemed

unnecessary to be done, and certainly was not to be done by me. His

public services, both as a seaman and an officer, have been long known

and fully appreciated by the public, and thus have had their appropriate

record in the naval histories of the last war. His professional

character still lives in the recollection of the service. It therefore

is not necessary that naval events should be narrated here, which have

been better told in other places; nor that exploits should be dwelt

upon, which though they never can be heard without emotion, it may be

sufficient for all present purposes to refer to, rather than to repeat.

I would, therefore, beg leave to state at once, that the only aim I

venture to propose to myself, is one which differs essentially from that,

which has been generally followed by the writers of similar memoirs.

I am not anxious to describe the subject of my narrative, in the form in

which he was known and honoured by the world; but in that in which he was

known to those who lived with him, and served with him; to his family and

his friends; to the men who shared his hardships and dangers, as well as

his successes and triumphs. I am not attempting to represent him as the

man of courage, enterprise and decision, formed for the hour of peril

and contest, fitted to lead and direct the energies of his service, and

carrying every heart with him, from the enthusiasm which his example

inspired; but I am desirous to shew that those qualities, for which the

world would easily give him credit, were united with elements of which

the world knew little, and perhaps thought less; but which had their

effect in forming the general character of the man, and made him what he

was in the different relations of life. I feel it due to him, and still

more to those who may be profited by his example, to trace the peculiar

qualities of his character to their source, and to shew the principles

from which they flowed; so that if there be in his life any thing lovely

and of good report; and this there is no one who ever knew him that can

doubt; it may be referred to its proper cause, and be ascribed to that,

which he himself knew, and felt to be the origin.

It will be my aim, therefore, in these pages, chiefly to dwell on those

features of mind, which though seen by few and observed by few, gave to

his whole character its peculiar dignity and grace. I shall endeavour to

shew, that the courage and enterprise, the firmness and self-resource

which rendered him while he lived the ornament of his profession, were

accompanied by qualities, not generally found in combination with these,

but which enhanced their value, and contributed to their excellence; with

patience, with meekness, with the tenderest consideration for others,

and the most unbounded benevolence. I wish to shew, that the brilliancy

of his public life was equalled by the purity and correctness of his

private life: that he was as amiable in every domestic relation, as he

was admirable in all official duties: and still knew how to keep the

warmth of his affections, in such subordination, that the call which

summoned him from that home, where all his happiness was centered, was

obeyed without a question or a doubt, whenever the interests of his

country and the service required it. Above all, I wish to shew, that the

secret, but the only cause of this unusual combination of qualities, not

often found in his profession, and sometimes considered as incompatible

with it; was that instinctive subjection of the heart to God, which

growing as he grew, and gaining strength and expansion by the trials of

his life, raised him from the state of a conscientious and upright man,

to that of a mature and confirmed Christian; which sustained him under

the various difficulties and burdens of his lot, by teaching him to

look to God in all emergencies, and to cast himself on His mercy under

every doubt; which finally regulated the enquiries which it prompted,

and realizing the divine promises, “that the meek shall He guide in

judgment,” “that God giveth grace to the humble,” brought him through

all the conflict of religious opinions, to that simple child-like faith,

which formed the substance of his happiness in life, as well as of his

hope in decay.

The description of a character such as this, together with a narrative

of the events under which it was formed and perfected, may, under God’s

blessing, be made profitable to many; and as the circumstances of his

story are such as must interest every reader, it is to be hoped that

the memoir of such a man may be offered without presumption to the world

at large, as including much that may be generally useful as well as

amusing. But there is one class of readers to whose attention it may

be more particularly recommended, and to whose improvement and welfare

it is specifically dedicated. I mean the young aspirants to honour and

distinction in the navy, the rising members of that profession, of

which Sir Jahleel was so fine a specimen; and for whom he always felt

and expressed so strong and so paternal an interest. I could wish, that

they who are taught to emulate his character as an officer, and who are

animated by hearing of the gallantry of his actions, should know more of

the man whom they are led to admire, than can be learnt from gazettes

or naval histories; and that they should be made acquainted with the

real secret of the excellence which is held up to them as a model for

imitation. I wish that they should know from his example, that the most

brilliant courage, the greatest firmness in action, and the most perfect

self-possession in the moment of danger, are not only compatible with

deep religious impressions, and personal piety; but that they never can

be looked for with so much confidence, nor will ever be found so largely

developed, as when combined with these as the habitual principles of

the life. And as example is generally more conclusive than theory, it

seems expedient that they should above all others be reminded, that

the man, who in his day, was the model of all we wish to imagine in a

British officer, and a British seaman; the man whose daring courage made

him at one time the chosen associate and friend of Sir Sidney Smith;

who was afterwards selected by that acute and discriminating judge of

character, Lord St. Vincent, out of the number of eminent and gallant

officers around him; and appointed to situations which required all

the combination of naval skill and firmness; was, and avowed himself

to be, in the full sense of the word, a Christian; confessed Christ

and His words in every situation, and under every circumstance with

uncompromising firmness; and still maintained his profession of religion

with such gentleness and dignity, that those who differed from him never

failed to respect and to love him; and could not help venerating the man,

even while they felt that his principles condemned their practice.

In this point, indeed, a memoir of Sir Jahleel Brenton seems an important

opportunity for bringing the example of such a man before the younger

members of his profession as a model for imitation; and an office which

might have been urged upon me, as due to the memory of a deceased friend;

and might still have been urged in vain, to one so occupied and pledged

to other duties; may be viewed in a different way, when it is considered

in reference to those who may be benefited by acquaintance with his

character, and are not likely to know from other sources what were its

peculiar and distinctive qualities.

The name and profession of the editor will, therefore, it is hoped

preclude the possibility of disappointment to those, who having been

attracted by the title of this memoir, may take up the volume as a

subject of mere professional interest, a record of naval struggles or

naval triumphs. The achievements of Sir Jahleel Brenton have been already

appropriately recorded, and may be read elsewhere by those who wish to

enquire into his services It is proposed to give to the public now, that

which the public has not hitherto known, but which may be profitable to

general readers; and which must be full of value to those of his own

profession; the narrative of a life not unmarked with trial, not devoid

of the interest arising from great dangers undergone, and great qualities

of mind and heart evinced in meeting them; but exhibiting in the midst of

these, and of other circumstances not less perplexing or less afflicting;

that consistency of moral conduct, that steady persevering patience,

that cheerful hope, and child-like submission to the will of God, and

above all, that uniform and prevailing benevolence of spirit, which

belong to the Christian character, and which flow from the one single

principle of Christian faith. That the union of these qualities may be

seen in many individuals at present in the royal navy, I am thankful to

believe and know; but their occurrence is not so general as to render

example useless; while we also know, that men are more easily led to

imitate the practice of one, who has taken his place in the annals of his

country, than that of contemporaries; and that no line of conduct can be

so safely recommended for adoption, as that which has already won the

esteem and admiration of the world. I trust, therefore, that the memoir

of such an officer as Sir Jahleel Brenton may be no unacceptable offering

to a service, which must ever be regarded with the deepest gratitude

and interest, as the instrument of God’s protecting providence to this

country, and as the means of enlarging its beneficial influence; and I

hope that the hours, withdrawn from other duties and given to this, have

been transferred rather than stolen, and transferred to purposes of wider

usefulness and more extensive good, than those which belong to ordinary

employment.

In my own profession, the biography of pious and devoted men has long

been regarded as one of the most profitable lines of reading. It has been

felt that the knowledge of truth is likely to be most effective when

combined with its application, and exhibited in practice; and as example

is generally admitted to be more powerful than precept, and men are more

easily led to imitate than to obey; the memorials of those who have been

eminent for zeal and holiness in the work of the ministry, have been

multiplied largely of late years, and are recommended with confidence

as among the most effectual means of raising the tone of feeling and

determining the line of practice among the clergy. In this respect, every

year adds to the resources of the church. Those who are removed from this

field of labour testify to the living. One generation contributes the

encouragement of its experience to the other; and each pious, faithful,

and zealous minister, whose labour and self-devotion are commemorated in

this way, leaves in the record of his example that which may strengthen

the faith, or stimulate the energies of those who are to follow him.

But while the church as a profession, is receiving this increasing

advantage, and sees its means of improvement enlarged by the

recollections of those who are removed from their field of suffering or

of labour; there is reason to presume that other professions are not

equally benefited by the biographies of their distinguished members. They

also have their memorials. The world is anxious to learn the particulars

of their early life and education, as well as of their subsequent

achievements; and those who are called to imitate their example or to

rival their exertions, are naturally desirous to study the secret of

their excellence in the causes which conduced to it. But in cases such as

these, in the narratives of men who have been distinguished in the naval

and military services, or even in the profession of law or medicine, it

is natural that professional excellence should form the chief object of

attention to those who write, as it is probable it will be the chief

object of interest to those who read. The soldier and the sailor, the

lawyer and the physician are described, rather than the man; and the

qualities which raised the individual to distinction, are in these cases

so separate from those, which formed his value as a man, that it is

possible the latter may be wholly lost sight of, while every effort is

being made to do justice to the former. There is danger, therefore, in

all such memorials, that much that is great and good in the individual,

may be merged in the merits of the officer, or in the brilliancy of the

career pursued in practice; and that private excellence, that which

constitutes the real foundation of the man’s value, and makes his life

most profitable as an example, may be lost sight of, while justice is

being done to that which only made him an ornament to his profession, or

an instrument of national advancement.

In a clergyman on the contrary, the chief if not the only claim that

he can possess on the recollection of others, the only sense in which

his life can be held up as an example to those of his own profession,

consists in his personal piety; in the remembrance of that eminence to

which the grace of God had raised him, as a holy, humble-minded, faithful

man; and that is, therefore, told of him, and that is dwelt upon in him,

which it is most useful for other men to know, but which is equally and

alike useful to all of every profession and of every rank. The world

estimates its heroes by a different rule, and looks in consequence to

qualities of a different kind. It dwells on that which is professional to

the exclusion of that which is personal. It dwells on those things which

catch the eye, and fill the ear, and arrest the imagination; while that

which passes within, that which constitutes moral eminence, and which

renders a man a model for a Christian to follow, is overlooked in the

more exciting narrative of contests for distinction, as irrelevant to the

character which is being exhibited; and thus, the benefit of example, in

cases such as these, is lost to men, because men are more interested in

results, than in causes; in the things that have been done, than in the

principles of those who did them; and regard the subjects of biography as

successful candidates for the world’s applause, rather than as models for

private imitation.

It has also sometimes happened, that religious feelings, when strongly

developed, have led a man to withdraw from the active duties of his

profession, either in the army or navy; and have made his example less

profitable to others, by making it less peculiar, less specific than

it would have been, if he had continued where he was; and thus, these

professions have lost a benefit, which seemed to be their right, by

losing those individuals whose moral character would have reflected

additional lustre on their public services. It is impossible, indeed, to

deny that the first impulse of strong religious conviction, must lead a

man to wish to withdraw from every thing that separates him from God;

and to live to Him alone, whom he has now found to be alone worth living

for. It is equally certain, that the fear of falling back, the dread

of being entangled again in sins, which the soul has learnt to hate,

may reasonably lead a man to fly from associations, which he knows from

experience to be dangerous; and to endeavour to secure his own weakness

by saving it from exposure. Excellent men are continually found arguing

and acting in this manner; and where the grounds are so reasonable, and

the object at stake of such incalculable importance, it is not easy to

resist or to controvert their plea. But if some feel it necessary to

quit the field, and to withdraw from a contest they are unfit to meet,

or in which they see reason to distrust their means of standing firm;

the greater must be our gratitude for those who venture to remain, and

who dare to be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might. The

testimony that they then bear, is one of peculiar value; and we may

venture to hope, that where the danger is considered before it is braved,

and man only exposes himself from the conviction of duty, and under the

confidence of support from heaven, he will not be allowed to fail. As his

days are, so shall his strength be; and we may trust that God, who sees

the principle on which the man continues at the post of danger, will not

forsake His faithful sentinel, but will make His grace sufficient for his

trial, and cause his own strength to be perfected in the weakness of His

servant.

On this principle we cannot doubt, that the determination to which

Colonel Gardiner came, and in which he was encouraged by the excellent

Doddridge, to continue in his original calling, and not to quit the army

when he came under deep convictions of religion, has rendered him a far

greater blessing to the world, than he could have been, had he yielded

to his first impressions, and left the service. His memoir would in that

case have remained a record of the unspeakable goodness of God. He might

have edified the world by the piety of his life, and he might have been

named to succeeding generations as a monument of Divine Grace, rescuing

man from the bondage of sin, and plucking him like a brand out of the

fire. But the memoir, as it now stands, is rendered still more valuable

by the testimony of his later life, and by the evidence it contains

to that faith by which he lived; and the power of the grace of God is

manifested more signally in upholding him amidst the opposition which

he at one time thought himself incapable of meeting, than in enabling

him to fly from it at first. Whatever might have been thought then of

Colonel Gardiner’s determination at the time, there can be no doubt, that

Christ was more nobly confessed in the midst of a sinful and adulterous

generation, than He could have been in the retirement of religious

life; and that the doctrine of the gospel was more visibly adorned by

the example of one, who lived in the world without belonging to the

world, than it could have been by the piety which withdrew its subject

from general observation, and led him to seek security by withdrawing

from the scene of temptation. But it is obvious that the value of such

memoirs is enhanced by their rarity. Probably from the causes which have

been enumerated, the narratives which exhibit the moral and religious

character of men belonging to the army or navy are comparatively few;

and those professions in consequence lack the benefit, which example and

experience offer in other cases.

But the loss is not confined to them. There are reasons why it may be

regarded as a general, a public loss; and why all may have cause to

regret that which seems to be a professional want. Whether it be that the

character of these two professions, whether it be that the familiarity

with danger, the necessity for energetic action and quick decision,

carries into the religion they profess, something of its own nature, and

leaves its own particular stamp and impress on its qualities; it seems

admitted, that the men who have been called by the grace of God to a

profession of religion, under such circumstances, have been, generally

speaking, marked and decided Christians. It was a centurion of the Roman

army to whom Christ bore that noble testimony, that He had not found so

great faith, no not in Israel; and we may reasonably think that that

power of grace which sets the soul at liberty in cases such as his, and

enables it to break the ties by which it has been bound, may go on and

carry it to higher attainments than are accessible to other men. But it

may be also confidently asserted, that if the testimony which is there

borne to truth, is not more clear and decided than in common instances,

it is more unquestioned and more unquestionable. The statement that

comes from one, born and bred under the influence of religion, is always

liable to suspicion. It probably may bear upon its surface some traces

of the work of man, in the tone which education has given to the habits

of the mind, to the language and opinions; and in that respect, it may

seem to want the simplicity which belongs to the works of God, and which

shews the source from which the impressions spring. But let the tone of

religion be what it may, it carries a sort of professional stamp upon

it, and is less appreciated than it ought to be, whenever men think that

it is the effect of circumstances, the result of care, and that it could

not have been otherwise. On the other hand, whenever it happens that

conviction is effected under different circumstances, when religion is

found growing where it was least expected, and where it is obvious that

there was nothing to favour or encourage it; when it is found taking its

stand in the midst of opposition and rebuke; overcoming the world by a

power which is not of the world, and which the world cannot understand;

and enabling a man to resist the persecution of which the world is

most sensitive, the persecution of ridicule and contempt, exercised

by associates or superiors, and applied with little consideration or

regard for feeling; when this is seen to be the case, then we cannot be

surprised, if the world is convinced that an influence more than human

is at work; while it sees that done, which seems to be impossible to

man; and men are compelled to feel that it is the power of God by which

the change is effected, while they see a change accomplished, which to

them, and according to their own views and feelings, is nothing less

than miraculous. The unwillingness of the heart to admit a truth which

involves its own condemnation, will naturally induce men to suppress the

acknowledgement of what they feel on such occasions. But the conviction

may be deep, though no confession follows. The testimony which is borne

to truth under circumstances such as these, will possess an authority and

weight which nothing else can give, from a sacred and unuttered reverence

of the power that has produced it; and the results may be perceived at

distant times and in distant places, when the facts had been forgotten by

all, except the persons who had appeared at first most opposed or most

indifferent.

But beyond these reasons, which may shew the value of the memoirs of

men belonging to the naval and military professions, it cannot be

denied that the situations in which such men are placed, and those

qualities which may be called their professional qualities, must add an

interest to the narrative; and make their examples more profitable, in

proportion as their lives have been more interesting. The narrative of

hardships endured, of dangers braved, has always been one of the most

legitimate sources of delight. The description of man rising superior

to the fear which overcomes and subjugates others; daring things, from

which other men shrink; and making a way through difficulties which

seemed insuperable; has ever possessed a charm which no other narrative

could rival; and while human nature remains what it is, and the world is

constituted as it is, the qualities of courage, energy, and activity,

will give an interest to the character with general readers, which the

higher graces of humility, patience, and love might be incapable of

imparting. But as it is important that truth should be presented in the

form most likely to secure its acceptance, no opportunity should be

lost which offers religion to the eyes of the world in the history of

those, whom it respects and admires for excellencies of another kind;

and whenever religion is combined with these, it is little less than an

absolute duty to give publicity to the character, and to admit the world

to benefit by the example.

Whatever then be the quality which excites admiration, whether it be

professional talent, or intellectual superiority; or whether it be simply

that energy of mind which enables man to overcome difficulties and to

struggle through trials; the certainty that the exhibition of such a

character will be read with interest, makes it valuable as a vehicle for

truth; and renders it desirable that such a vehicle should be improved.

But we must also feel that of all the various qualities which have this

effect, and which may in consequence be turned to such a purpose, there

is hardly one which arrests attention so generally, and carries so much

interest with it to common readers, as boldness or contempt of danger.

All men cannot appreciate the higher qualities of mind, the powers of

reasoning or imagination, which lead to literary or political eminence;

but all seem capable of understanding the value of that sort of firmness

which enables man to bear hardships, or to rise superior to fear. It

thus has happened, that in all works of fiction, courage has been the

principal feature of the character held up to admiration, and cowardice

has always been regarded as the reverse; while we know that in real life,

no narratives have been so acceptable to general readers, as those which

described dangers and hardships met and overcome by the firmness and

energy of those, who were exposed to them.

There need therefore be no hesitation in saying, that as every thing

which raises man above the weaknesses of his nature, adds dignity to his

character; the contempt of danger must always entitle him to respect; and

this feeling which adds a sort of grandeur to the bad, gives a sort of

heroic magnificence to the good.

But while we believe that this admiration of courage is inherent in our

very nature, and is felt even by those who are unwilling to confess it;

we cannot be surprised if the admiration which is due to courage, comes

gradually to be limited to such courage as a Christian is capable of

exercising. The boldness which shuts its eye on danger, and rushes on

destruction, may astonish, but it cannot continue to interest the mind,

because it does not satisfy the reason. Men gradually cool on their

impressions, and begin to calculate instead of wondering. They examine

the principle of the action which is set before them. They compare the

risk run with the advantage to be gained; and if they find the risk

infinitely exceeding the value of the prize, or perceive that it was

braved under the mere impulse of passion, in defiance of reason rather

than in subordination to reason; they learn to separate the courage of

the animal from that of the man, and expect that the boldness of the

latter should be regulated by that which is the glory of his nature; and

that even his daring should be reasonable in order that it should be

honoured. In this way the world distinguishes the frenzy of the drunkard,

or that recklessness of life which is found in the infuriated savage,

from the well ordered deliberate firmness, with which a disciplined mind

meets every emergency of trial; and refuses the very name of courage to

the madness, which rushes on death, from the mere impulse of excited

passion.

But under circumstances which seem more favourable; after the first

comparison has been made between the object sought and the danger run;

and there has been found reason enough to justify the exposure according

to the world’s principles; another comparison is apt to follow, which is

conducted on Christian principles, and subjects courage, or contempt of

death, to a different analysis. To a Christian mind death is invariably

connected with the judgment that is to follow. Viewed as the end of the

present state of being, it is necessarily considered as the entrance

to that which must succeed it; and an event which puts a close to the

concerns of time, carries the mind, by an inference which cannot be

resisted, to the contemplation of eternity. But he, who has allowed his

imagination to dwell on the secrets of that unexplored abyss, which

commences when life ceases; and has weighed calmly and deliberately

the value of things that are infinite and eternal; turns back to life

with a conviction which cannot be uttered of the vanity and nothingness

of temporal objects, when once compared with those which are to come

hereafter. To him, the eagerness with which the world is pursuing the

various prizes of gain, honour, pleasure, wealth, seems nothing less than

madness; and all that is called good, and all that is called evil among

men, will shrink into nothing, in comparison with the good and evil with

which he has been conversant in meditating on the prospects of eternity.

To such a man, death appears in a very different character from that

in which it is viewed by the savage, or by man, when his moral state

resembles that of the savage. Death thenceforth may be braved, but

it cannot be despised. At the call of duty it will be met without

hesitation; but it will not be met with indifference or carelessness. The

man who meets it will know what cause there is to fear it; though he may

be able to rise above the sense of fear, and despise it. But the victory

which he thus gains over fear, the principle by which he overcomes the

terrors with which he has become acquainted, must be the result of very

different elements from those which he acted on before; and must be

formed in a very different manner from that which constituted courage in

a less enlightened state of mind.

Now, that there are means of doing this; that the gospel offers to

man, what may be called the whole armour of God; that the power of

meeting and overcoming him, who is called the King of Terrors, may be

possessed, and has been, and is continually exercised by those who seem

the weakest of our race, is happily a subject of such general notoriety,

that it does not require a proof or explanation. But till this power is

acquired; until these means of victory are possessed; the contingency,

the inevitable contingency, in every case where life is risked, involves

such awful consequences; that the mind may be justified in shrinking

from the prospect of danger, where the loss of life must be followed by

the destruction of the soul; and even the narrative of perils becomes

too painful to be a source of pleasure to the reader. Courage under such

circumstances may be an object of wonder, but it cannot be a legitimate

object of admiration; and the reader must shudder while contemplating

results, on which men rushed without thought or preparation; and dangers,

which were boldly braved, merely because they were not understood.

The impression made is widely different, when self-possession and

calmness in the midst of danger, are regarded as the effects of faith;

and man is seen rising superior to the fear of death, because he feels

that he is raised above its power. This is Christian heroism; and

compared with this, all other heroism sinks into feelings which cannot be

reconciled with reason, or be recommended for imitation.

I admit that it may be thought the interest of States to encourage and

foment a courage of another and a lower kind, even that animal courage

which rushes upon danger without consideration, and shuts its eyes on

the real nature of the evil that is braved. The pride of men may be

gratified by the imagination of superiority above other men, which this

indifference to danger gives them; or by the distinctions to which it

leads; and the world may concur in admiring that which feeds or flatters

the imagination. But reason, sooner or later, must be heard; and reason

will gradually make itself heard, in a voice which cannot be resisted;

and reason must refuse its sanction to a judgment which teaches men to

throw away eternity for a temporal advantage; and encourages the exposure

of the soul to consequences, the amount of which cannot be calculated.

And yet, let it not be supposed, that courage loses its real character,

because the occasion for its display is mistaken by the world at large;

or that the effect of religion is to make men cowards. So far from

this being the case, courage, even courage of the highest kind, is not

only indirectly inculcated, but is absolutely commanded in the gospel;

commanded by Him whose word is truth, and who alone can enable his

servants to do that, which He in His wisdom sees fit to command. The only

difference is, that the courage which the gospel teaches is reasonable

in its exercise; a courage, which has reason on its side, and aims at

nothing which cannot be justified; which only despises death, because it

has seen that death need not be feared; and only defies suffering, from

the conviction that it is to be borne as submission to the will of God.

Acting under these principles the Christian hears his blessed Master

say, “Fear not them who can kill the body, and after that have no more

that they can do;” and feels his heart respond to the exhortation.

He reads the experience of the Psalmist, “Though I walk through the

valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for Thou art with

me;” and he rejoices to think, that he can anticipate the same support

in corresponding circumstances. He hears the apostle say, “Add to

your faith, courage;” and the faith by which he walks, and by which

he overcomes the world, raises him above the power of the world’s

disturbances: and thus, in those things which are, and must be the causes

of alarm and terror to men in general, he feels himself a conqueror, and

more than a conqueror, through Him that loved him. With him then it is no

struggle to rise superior to the fear of death, for it is habitual to him

to despise it. The sting is taken out, its terrors are gone; and Christ,

who commands him not to fear death, has delivered him from its power.

If the Christian, therefore, is not only encouraged against fear, but

is actually commanded not to fear; if he is taught to regard courage as

a duty; and to glorify the Master whom he serves, by the firmness with

which he overcomes that, from which other men are shrinking; we see that

it is not without reason that he is daring; and that he is bold in the

midst of danger, only because he is superior to it.

High as the standard is, which the gospel proposes; and much as it

exceeds all the bearings of the mind in general, it is as reasonable as

it is lofty. The grounds on which the duty is enforced are unquestionable

and undeniable; and man cannot dare too much when he only dares according

to this direction.

One great advantage therefore with biographies like the present, consists

in the exhibition which they offer of courage, based on Christian

principles, and regulated by Christian feeling; and there are special

reasons why this connexion between courage and Christian principle

should be traced and noticed. It is hardly possible to doubt, that the

first effect of religious impressions on a mind previously untouched

and unenlightened, will be to awaken such a sense of the importance of

things spiritual and eternal, as will overpower all other feelings, and

overwhelm the mind with the discoveries which have been made. The soul

then, for the first time perhaps, becomes an object of anxiety to the

man, who previously had never given it a serious thought. The vague

inexplicable fear of death, of which he had been always conscious, grows

then into a firm and settled conviction, that of all objects, death

is the most tremendous; since it is obvious that its consequences may

be the most awful. He feels that with such a subject it is madness to

trifle, and folly to be indifferent. His former carelessness is regarded

with wonder and astonishment; and the mind is lost and bewildered in

endeavouring to comprehend the truths which have thus suddenly burst upon

it, and which seem too tremendous to be contemplated.

In fact, such is the character of those truths which religion includes,

and which, on such an occasion, we suppose to be suddenly and powerfully

revealed, that it would seem probable that the equilibrium of the mind

should be disturbed by their discovery; and that every consideration

should be lost sight of, in comparison with the one great question,

“What shall I do to be saved.” That such should be the effect seems

natural, reasonable, and probable; and if it did not generally happen,

that a fresh and livelier sense of duty is awakened at the same moment,

when these impressions are produced; and that conscience becomes more

active, as a sense of responsibility is formed; it might have seemed

inevitable, that the first burst of religious feeling should weaken

and unnerve the man, and lead him to fly from an exposure which he had

learnt to fear, without consideration of the consequences that might

follow. Whatever may be the causes which regulate the first impulse of

these religious feelings, it is satisfactory to know from experience,

that this excessive and violent action is seldom exhibited. The moral

character is generally strengthened in proportion as the conscience is

awakened; and the faith is strengthened, and the man gains firmness in

the perception of every relative duty, in the same degree in which he is

brought under the influence of religion. To this it must also be added,

that the impressions which the gospel forms, are not those of fear alone,

even when the conscience is most strongly touched; and that terror, in a

Christian’s view, is never so entirely separated from hope, as to justify

any desperate or violent departures from ordinary practice. “We have

not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but we have received

the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry Abba Father:” and this, which

forms the comfort of the advanced Christian, is not without its effect

in mitigating the first agonies of conviction in the convert. Duties

are recognized, while every thing else is forgotten; and men feel that

whatever may be their anxiety about their souls, their salvation will not

be forwarded by the neglect of that which they see and know they ought to

do.

There is in truth a sort of general conviction in men, that if religion

merely taught them what they had to fear, and did not combine with that

the knowledge of what they have to hope; if it awakened us to a sense of

our responsibility, without shewing how the claims of that responsibility

had been met, it would have been a gift of very questionable value; for

in that case it would have darkened all the present scene of trial,

without shewing an horizon on which a better light was falling. It thus

happens, that though the effect of first impressions may be to awaken

fear; the effect which follows, when these impressions are retained and

improved, is to relieve or remove fear; and every subsequent advance in

knowledge, has a direct tendency to cast out fear, to substitute love

as the principle of action, and to make hope the character of the mind,

until hope rises to the very level of assurance.

Those therefore, who think that religion is likely to unnerve the man,

and to unfit him for the hour of danger, by making him aware of the

reason there is for fearing death: betray their ignorance of the subject;

and shew how little they are acquainted with the principle they are

traducing. All men know enough to make them afraid of death. Independent

of any sufferings which the body may undergo, there is a shrinking from

extinction, which belongs to our very nature; and is found acting with

almost equal influence in every member of the human race; except in the

few and rare cases where man has sunk himself to the level of the brute;

and thus it is evident that man needs not the light which religion gives,

in order to fly from that which human nature dreads. But this feeling,

the fear of death, which religion does not create, she can regulate,

control, and conquer; and while all men in their hearts feel the fear of

death, and are obliged to close their eyes against their own convictions,

or to harden their hearts by habitual submission to other principles,

while pretending to despise it; the Christian alone is capable of looking

forward to death with calmness, and of exercising a deliberate and

rational contempt of it.

So long then as the present state of things exists; so long as the

blessings of peace are to be preserved by war; and the security and the

comforts of the many are to be purchased by the exposure of the few;

there must be professions where the call of duty may imply the risk of

life, and where courage must be the character of the men who belong to

them. Courage will then become a duty; and men must be found by whom

death shall be braved without hesitation, whenever the interests of the

service require it.

But a Christian community, while it admits this painful necessity, and

tracing the origin of wars and fightings to the lusts which war in our

members, sees in them the marks of the universal corruption of our

nature; and looks on war as the disgrace rather than the glory of man;

must still feel anxious, that the courage which it cherishes and honours

as the means of national security, should be the courage formed on those

bright and lofty principles, which shall discharge its duty to the public

most effectually, without any unjustifiable risk to the individual. There

is an obvious necessity that the public peace should be protected; but

there still may be a question, whether this protection may not be too

dearly purchased; if a limited measure of temporal advantages were to

occasion the loss of an eternity of happiness to those by whom it is

preserved.

It is surely no idle refinement, no morbid spirit of argument, which

compares an infinite loss occurring to an individual, with a definite

and limited loss occasioned to the community of which he forms a part.

Men have not hesitated to say, that the security of property would be

purchased at a price too dear, if it was to be maintained by capital

punishment; and if political wisdom condescends to note the value of

an individual life, can it, with any consistency, deny the value of an

individual soul?

A Christian community is, therefore, not only justified in taking every

measure, which may raise the moral character of those employed in its

defence, and may make them bold and courageous upon principle; but it is

also bound to use every means which may render those whom it exposes, as

superior to the power of death, as they are, or endeavour to be, to its

terrors.

It is easy to state the almost insuperable difficulties which here at

once present themselves. The habits of life, which have rendered the

military and naval professions proverbial, and which seem inseparable

from their position in society; the withdrawal from domestic ties, and

from all the usual restraints of the tendencies of men; these may be

named at once, as rendering the attempt at such a moral improvement

chimerical; and these will long continue to render its accomplishment

difficult. In the meantime the world at large, either indifferent to the

consequences, or despairing of a cure, have found it a much cheaper, and

a much more compendious way, to teach their defenders to forget death,

than to endeavour to prepare them to despise it; and lamentable as it is

to say, grave men, and men who were thought wise men, have argued as if

it was necessary that men should be immoral in order that they might be

brave; and have tried to shew that it was expedient that thousands should

be eternally miserable, in order that some temporary advantage might be

achieved by their exertions.

But the difficulty of a work does not imply that it is impracticable.

Something may be done, if all cannot be accomplished: and wherever any

great and undeniable evil exists in society, it is so obviously the will

of God, that it should be abated or removed; that man ought to think of

nothing, but the means of attempting that, which he may leave to the

power of God to perform.

It is therefore manifestly expedient that men engaged in those

professions, where life is of necessity most exposed, should be prepared

to meet death with firmness. The world has its nostrums for effecting

this object, and these it is always ready to supply. It has a sense of

honour for the high-minded and noble. It has levity and carelessness for

the unthinking. It has brutish indifference for the multitude. With one

or other of these, it drugs the men, who are to be the protectors of

their country’s welfare; and sends them forth to danger, like those who

are blinded and intoxicated. We admit the efficacy of the means, but we

are compelled to feel that the remedy is worse than the disease: and we

dare not purchase courage for our soldiers and sailors, at a price which

compromises all the highest hopes of man.

Without dwelling at present on other resources for accomplishing this

important end; on resources, which might be made to act directly on the

habits of these professions; it seems that example might in some respect

be more beneficial than precept; and that the narrative of one, who

exhibited, in his public life and conduct the model of what a British

officer should be, while he was, at the same time, in the full sense of

the word, a Christian; of one, who might have been described through life

as “_sans peur et sans reproche_;” and who became the ornament of his

service, while living in close communion with his God; might be useful to

others, as shewing that religious principles and professional excellence

are not incompatible; and might encourage the young to pursue a course

which should make them all that their profession implies, and all that

their country can require, without forfeiting that inward peace, and that

future hope, which belong to the true Christian, and make up the sum of

his privileges, as well as the substance of his character.

To those who knew Sir Jahleel Brenton, or who can now recall the singular

combination of qualities which formed his character; qualities which

impressed respect while they conciliated the affection of every one

around him; it is unnecessary to dwell upon features not likely to be

forgotten. But it still may be useful to remind others, and especially

those who may be tempted, in running over the following pages, to smile

at the tone in which this great and good man speaks, when occupied with

questions of a religious nature; that there have been few men, whom an

Englishman would have been more desirous, on any occasion of importance,

to put forward, as the representative of his country, than the subject of

this memoir. The description which the great historian of Rome applied

to the man whose merits he has immortalized by his biography, might have

been with equal justice applied to him, “_Bonum virum facile crederes,

magnum libenter_.” Goodness seemed to belong to him; and it sate so

easily on him, that it coloured every word, and look, and gesture. No

one ever met him, without feeling convinced that the qualities which

conciliated and pleased, were in his case not the incidental expression

of a courtesy assumed to serve a particular purpose; but that they were

qualities on which dependence might be placed, as exhibiting the real

feelings of the man; dignified, and yet kind; indulgent to others, and

yet firm in principle; as playful in the hour of repose, as decided

and energetic in the time of peril. Carrying with him, in the stores

of a well disciplined mind, and a refined taste, ample resources for

profitable conversation, he was fitted to take his place in any form

of society, and would have done justice to any situation to which his

country could have called him; while his country might also have felt,

that the man selected to represent her character, and to maintain her

claims, would have also been what few could be; would have been the

Christian representative of a Christian people; and would have shewn the

lustre which consistent religion spreads over that which is admirable in

man, by the effect produced on his own life and conversation.

To prolong the memory of such a man seems nothing less than a duty. To

extend the knowledge of his excellence; and before that knowledge is

effaced by the competition of other claimants for distinction, to shew

the secret springs of the excellence which is admired; to trace to its

real source, all that in him was distinctive and peculiar; to shew that

it was to the grace of God, and to that alone, he owed the combination of

qualities so rarely met with as united, and so much heightened in value

by combination; to encourage imitation by example; and to hold up to the

future defenders of our country, one, whom they may be proud to follow in

the course of service, and whom it will be their happiness to imitate in

private life; this seems a debt, which every one who feels the blessings

of security he owes to their exertions, and who glories in his country’s

honour, should endeavour to discharge.

Conscious of my own inadequacy for the office, which I am describing, I

am still sustained by the hope that the reader will afterwards learn what

the writer cannot teach; that inferences will be drawn, and conclusions

formed from the narrative, which shall realize the purpose with which

it has been undertaken; and that the familiar acquaintance that may be

gained by admission to the private thoughts and feelings of so good and

great a man as Sir Jahleel Brenton, may lead many a mind to adopt the

sentiments which are here recorded, and that many a high-spirited and

gallant youth may be induced by his example to follow the steps of one

who never forgot his God, while engaged in his country’s service; and was

as faithful to his Saviour as he was obedient to the call of duty.

CHAPTER I.

SETTLEMENT OF THE BRENTON FAMILY IN AMERICA,—AND DESCENT.—BIRTH

OF THE SUBJECT OF THE MEMOIR.—BREAKING OUT OF THE WAR AND

REMOVAL TO ENGLAND.—EDUCATION AND INTRODUCTION TO NAVAL

SERVICE, IN THE DIDO.—PASSES FOR LIEUTENANT, AND ACCEPTS AN

INVITATION TO SERVE IN THE SWEDISH FLEET.—ADVENTURES ON WAY TO

JOIN, AND CONCLUSION OF SERVICE.—APPOINTED AS LIEUTENANT TO THE

ASSURANCE.—TRANSFERRED TO THE SPEEDY, AND SENT ON COMMAND OF

THE TREPASSEY TO NEWFOUNDLAND.—RETURN TO ENGLAND AND APPOINTED

TO THE SYBIL.—VOYAGE HOMEWARDS IN THE CLEOPATRA, AND IN A

SPANISH MAN OF WAR FROM CADIZ.

Sir Jahleel Brenton was the eldest son of Rear Admiral Brenton, a native

of Rhode Island. The family appear to have emigrated to America in the

early part of the reign of Charles the First, probably from apprehension

of the coming troubles of the times. William Brenton, who settled as

a merchant at Boston, in Massachusets, about the year 1634, came from

Hammersmith, in England. He must have been a person of some wealth and

consideration, as he became a freeman, and a select man of the Colony,

the same year; and in the following year, 1635, was chosen a deputy

of the general court. He afterwards removed to Rhode Island, and then

returned to England, from whence he finally removed from Hammersmith,

with his whole family, consisting of three sons, Jahleel, William, and

John, and settled at Newport, in Rhode Island. In 1663 he became Deputy

Governor of the Colony of Rhode Island, and Providence Plantations in New

England, under the charter granted to that Colony by Charles the Second,

in the fourteenth year of his reign. In 1667-8 he became Governor of the

Colony, and died in the year 1674.

Jahleel, his eldest son, resided in Newport, Rhode Island. A great part

of his father’s property was bequeathed to him; and in the year 1691 he

was appointed by commission, in the second year of William and Mary,

Collector, Surveyor, and Searcher of the Customs within the Colonies of

New England.

William, the second son, great grandfather to the subject of the present

memoir, took up his residence either at Taunton in Massachusets, or at

Bristol in Rhode Island, though some doubts exist as to which of these

places became his home. He married Martha Church, by whom he had three

sons, Jahleel (grandfather to the Baronet), Ebenezer, and Benjamin.

Of John Brenton, the third son of William, nothing farther is known

except that he went to a settlement called Bellevoir, in New England; and

was not afterwards heard of.

Jahleel, the collector, died at Newport unmarried, about the year 1732,

and bequeathed the greater part of his large estates in New England

to his nephew Jahleel, who had married in the year 1714-15, Frances,

daughter of Samuel Cranstoun, who was Governor of the Colony, and who

died in 1727, aged 68 years. He was the son of John Cranstoun, the former

Governor of the Colony, who was lineally descended from the Scottish

Baron, James Lord Cranstoun, as appears by the inscription on his

tombstone in the churchyard at Newport, in Rhode Island.

Of the brothers of this Jahleel, Ebenezer and Benjamin, nothing has

been recorded, though Jahleel, the Collector above-mentioned, made

several bequests to them. Where they resided, or whether they left any

descendants does not appear. Jahleel, the grandfather of the Baronet,

had by his first wife, Frances Cranstoun, fifteen children—eight sons

and seven daughters. Jahleel, his fourth son, the father of our present

subject, was born October 22nd, (O.S.) 1729, died 29th January, 1802. He

married in December 29th, 1765, Henrietta Cowley, daughter and coheiress

of Joseph Cowley, Esq. formerly of Worcestershire, in England, and

Penelope his wife, who was the daughter of —— Pelham of Laughton, Esq.;

whose ancestors had removed to Rhode Island during the civil wars in the

reign of Charles the First.

Jahleel, the subject of this memoir, and the eldest son of Jahleel and

Henrietta, was born the 22nd of August, 1770. There were besides four

sons and five daughters; of the latter, all are still living; of the

former two died in their infancy; the other two, with their eldest

brother, followed the profession of their father, who had very early in

life entered the British Navy. Edward Pelham was born the 29th of July,

1774. Of his active and useful life a sketch has already been given to

the public, from the pen of his affectionate surviving brother. James

Wallis lived to be a Lieutenant in the British Navy, and was killed in

action when First Lieutenant of H.M.S. Peterel, in the command of a boat

expedition in chase of an enemy’s vessel near Barcelona.

The seven elder children, were born in America, on the patrimonial

property at Rhode Island; but the circumstance that the father of

Sir Jahleel belonged to the service of Great Britain obliged him to

relinquish his home, and the place of his nativity, at the time of the

civil war, which ended in the separation of the colonies from the mother

country. Urgent entreaties were used on the part of the Americans to

induce Mr. Brenton to join their cause. He was even offered the highest

naval rank which the Republic could bestow; though he was at that time

only a Lieutenant in His Majesty’s service; but that inflexible loyalty,

which was always a strong feature in his character, rendered him alike

insensible to bribery and persecution. That he might take an active

part in the cause of his king, he was obliged to escape clandestinely

from Rhode Island, where he left his wife and infant family, exposed to

considerable hardships and difficulties; from which they were however

soon happily relieved by the efforts of the British cruisers stationed on

the coast.

The whole family were removed to England in the year 1780, when the young

Jahleel was placed in a school at Enfield, in Middlesex. In the year

1781 he embarked as a Midshipman in the Queen, armed ship, commanded by

his father, who had been promoted to the rank of Commander; and whom he

shortly after followed into the Termagant, then a post ship; from which

it may be reasonably inferred that the additional rank of Post Captain

had been bestowed upon this loyal subject as soon as possible.

At the conclusion of the war in 1783, the young sailor had time to resume

his studies on shore, and for that purpose was sent to the maritime

school at Chelsea, where, for the space of two years, he successfully

pursued those branches of learning more particularly suited to the

profession he had chosen. He always retained a grateful recollection of

the advantages he had derived from this establishment, where the best

education was afforded on the most reasonable terms to the sons of naval

officers, who, from their limited income, might have found it impossible

to procure the same advantages for their children in any other academy.

In the year 1785 he was removed to France, where his family then resided,

as the acquisition of the French language was thought an important point.

He has left a remark upon record which will exhibit the state of his

mind at this time. “To shew,” he says, “what an important influence the

most trifling circumstances may have upon a man’s life, I may mention

that, whilst living at St. Omers, in 1786, I was considered to be in

very feeble health from the return of an ague, first experienced in the

preceding year at St. Vincents; and having at the drawing school evinced

a strong inclination for painting, my parents thought of sending me to

Italy, with a view of making that my profession, a plan which I eagerly

caught at for the moment; but thinking it over in my own room, where my

sword was suspended over the chimney, my eye no sooner rested upon it,

than old associations and prospects instantly crowded in upon me, and

induced me at once to reject the tempting offer of a journey to Rome, and

renewed my determination to go to sea.”

In 1787 his father returned with his family to England; and the Dutch

armament having taken place, Jahleel set off for Portsmouth to join the

Perseverance, commanded by Captain, afterwards Admiral, Sir William

Young, a valued friend of his father. This ship was however paid off soon

after his arrival, in consequence of the restoration of tranquillity;

and Jahleel embarked on board the Dido, Captain Sandys, who constantly

employed him in sounding and surveying different bays and harbours on

the coast of Nova Scotia. It was at this early age that his affections

were bestowed upon one, who was well worthy of them; and of the rise

and growth of this attachment, as romantic in its commencement as happy

in its results, he has left some touching and affecting records in

three manuscript volumes addressed to his children. A few extracts from

these, to exhibit the character of the writer, without encroaching on

the sacredness belonging to a domestic memorial of such a kind, will be

introduced in the present notice.

In the year 1789, the time then allotted for the service of a midshipman

having nearly expired, he returned to England, and joined the Bellona,

commanded by Captain, afterwards Sir Francis Hartwell. In the month of

March, 1790, he passed his examination for a Lieutenant; and foreseeing

no chance, either of promotion or active employment during the profound

peace, then subsisting between Great Britain and her neighbours,

he, with a view of gaining experience in his profession, accepted a

Lieutenant’s commission in the Swedish navy, then engaged in active

operations against the Russians in the gulf of Finland. Of his later

and better thoughts on this subject he has left a valuable record in

the manuscript before alluded to. He there says, speaking of the period

in question, “In after life, when better acquainted with my religious

duties, I have felt and acknowledged the guilt of this step, for such

it was; but I was led away by the idea of acquiring distinction and

eminence, so natural in youthful minds, and so powerfully excited by

the biography of those whom the world holds up to admiration for their

conduct in arms, without any reference to the cause which alone can

render war justifiable.”

Leaving England for this purpose, he did not reach Carlscrona until the

fleet had sailed; and before he could join them in the gulf of Finland,

it was already blocked up in the bay of Wyborg, by the Russians. The

vessel on board of which he was embarked was lying in the port of

Lowisa, when the action took place off its mouth on the 3rd of July,

which nearly annihilated the Swedish fleet, by depriving them of seven

sail of the line out of twenty-one, while the remainder with difficulty

reached Helsingfors. Hither Mr. Brenton proceeded, and undismayed by this

mortifying defeat of the power which he came to serve, presented his

commission to the Duke of Sudermania, then commander in chief; and was

immediately appointed Lieutenant of the Konig Adolf Frederic, bearing

the flag of Vice Admiral Modée. He, at the same time, received orders

to introduce the British system of discipline among the men, for which

purpose he was fully supported by the Vice Admiral and Captain.

Of this period the following record has been left in his own hand, “On

arriving at Gottenburg, I found a carriage there waiting for Sir Sidney

Smith, who had also volunteered his services in the same cause, and was

expected from England. It had been sent there by the Duke of Sudermania;

and as Sir Sidney was known to have taken another route, General Toll,

the governor of Gottenburg, offered it to me; and he, at the same time,

requested me to superintend a convoy of British sailors, provided it

would not delay me too much. The number of these men amounted to twenty

or thirty; each had a horse and cart for the conveyance of himself, and

chest, and hammock; and in each of these was a Swedish driver, in many

instances this was a female.

“This cavalcade had, previously to starting, been drawn up in a line

in the market-place; and this line the sailors had arranged in three

divisions, naming an admiral in each, and hoisting a handkerchief for a

flag. The procession was very orderly while passing through the streets;

but we had no sooner got upon the broad road than there were evident

attempts made to try the respective _rates of sailing_; and at length the

signal was made for a general chase. The Swedes, and particularly the

women, soon lost all controul; the most prudent jumped off; and in the

course of a short time many of the carts were upset, some in the ditches

on each side of the road, and there were but few to which some disaster

had not happened.

“But little progress was made in the course of this day; and fearing

I might not reach Carlscrona before the fleet should sail, I left my

countrymen to the Swedish officers, and proceeded without stopping day

and night. I was however too late. The fleet had sailed, and I was

obliged to wait for the Hecte, a Swedish frigate then preparing for sea;

and at length, with the English sailors who arrived in the course of a

week, I embarked in her, and proceeded to Helsingfors. Here I was put on

board the Hussar, a _two decked brig_ carrying twenty twelve-pounders on

the lower deck, and fourteen four-pounders on the upper; or as Johnny

facetiously said, ‘My eye, here is a craft; a two-decked brig, the

quarter deck got forward, and the captain’s cabin under the forecastle.’

The fact was, that the upper deck came no further aft than the mainmast,

and was rather a prolonged forecastle; the captain’s cabin was under the

deck, and next to the galley or cook’s room.”

On the 9th of July the battle of Swinkasund took place between the

Swedish and Russian Galley fleets, when the skill and gallantry of the

British officers serving in the latter made the fortune of the day for a

long time doubtful. That of Sir Sidney Smith and his followers however,

on the side of the Swedes, was more successful, by whose exertions a

brilliant victory was gained. This circumstance convinced his Majesty

Gustavus the Third, that none were so fit to oppose Englishmen as

Englishmen; and he accordingly directed that all the British officers

should be immediately sent from the grand to the galley fleet. They

arrived there a few days after the action, and were distributed amongst

the flat bottomed frigates. Mr. Brenton was appointed to the Sturkollen.

The following is the record he has left of some circumstances belonging

to this period.

“On reaching Swinkasund, the English officers were presented to the king

of Sweden, Gustavus the third, on board his yacht, the Amphisis, where

his Majesty’s flag was flying. Their reception was most cordial. I was

the only officer who spoke French, and therefore became the organ of

communication. The bay at this time was covered with the wreck of the

late battle. The wrecks of two fine frigates were lying on the beach,

besides those of other vessels. Three frigates, a fifty gun praam, and

innumerable gallies and gun boats had been sunk. The masts of the larger

vessels were out of the water; and many of those of the smaller ones,

according to the depth of water where they had sunk. All were abandoned

as irretrievably lost; whereas, had the victors been English instead of

Swedish, it is not too much to say that nearly all, if not the whole,

of these vessels would have been weighed. One frigate in particular

had received but little damage. She was on shore, and lying with her

starboard gunwale in the water; her masts had been cut away by the

Swedes, who never thought of attempting to get her off. The Englishmen

regretting to see so beautiful a vessel consigned to destruction, waited

upon the king, and volunteered to save her, at which he was greatly

pleased, and ordered every assistance and material they required to

be given to them. They accordingly set to work with all the ardour and

confidence of their profession; cleared the vessel of whatever could be

got at, and laid out anchors and purchases in such a manner as to give

every hope of success; expecting, on the following day, to have their

triumph. In the course of the night however, the gear they had prepared

was cut away, and carried off by boats sent from the Swedish ships; the

officers alleging that they were ordered to collect whatever blocks or

ropes could be found amongst the wrecked vessels; but there was reason

to ascribe this conduct to the jealousy of the Swedish officers; a

jealousy easier to be accounted for than excused. It must at the same

time be allowed that the king was imprudent in the partiality he evinced

towards foreign followers; and as those in question were all young and

thoughtless, and arrogant, neither concealing their fancied superiority

over the Swedes, nor using any endeavours to conciliate them, it is only

providential that more serious events did not occur. All hopes of getting

off the frigate were now abandoned, and the Englishmen were sent to their

respective ships.”

From this time there was no active service, peace being proclaimed in a

few weeks. His Swedish Majesty invited the British officers to continue

in his service; but as there was every probability of Great Britain

being involved in a war with Spain at that period, Mr. Brenton preferred

returning to England. Of this time he has also left a record. He says,

“In the month of August the peace was proclaimed at Kymena. The king

assembled the British officers on board his yacht, and addressed them

in the most flattering manner; telling them that he was well assured

how greatly they would have distinguished themselves had an opportunity

offered; and that if they would remain in his service he would insure

their advancement. Four out of the eight accepted his offer; but three

besides myself declared our intentions of returning to England, and

expressed our anxiety to have means provided for our return as soon as

possible; as we had every reason to believe that our country was upon

the eve of a war. The Spanish armament having taken place, the king

recommended us to the care of the Commander of the Galley fleet, with

directions that we should be immediately paid, and have a conveyance to

such place as might enable us to procure a passage to England.

“His Majesty had no sooner gone than the British officers were embarked

in a galley, with orders to proceed to Helsingfors, the great naval

seaport in the gulf of Finland, where we were told we should receive our

pay. On entering the bay, the galley hauled into the rocks; and having

landed the Englishmen upon them, proceeded in execution of other orders,

leaving us to get to Helsingfors as we best could.

“On reaching the town, we were told by the authorities that no order had

been received for our payment, but that we must proceed to Stockholm, a

journey of many miles, besides having to cross the gulf of Bothnia. One

of our party having a sum of money in hand, generously assisted us; we

must otherwise have been greatly delayed. We set out from Helsingfors

through Finland, in the common cart of the country, which consists merely

of a pair of wheels, and two small spars lashed to the axletree, forming

the shafts, and at the same time the only body of the carriage; upon

these the chest and cot of the travellers were secured, making a very

comfortable seat. We took our provisions for the journey, which consisted

of hard bread, a ham, and a bottle of spirits. We could depend upon no

supply on the road except a few eggs.

“In this manner we began our journey through Finland, not knowing a word

of the language: we at length reached Abo, and procured an open boat to

cross the gulf of Bothnia. The weather had become very tempestuous, and

we were obliged to take shelter for a day or two on a small island in the

gulf.

“At length we reached Gustihamnan, and from thence proceeded to

Stockholm. Here we were obliged to wait for some days; the Swedish

ambassador in England, it was said, had sent no account of the terms on

which the British officers had been engaged. It was at length determined

to give them a sum on account, leaving the ambassador in England to make

a final settlement. The sum was twenty pounds to each; but one half of

this was given in a bill on Copenhagen, done evidently with a view of

getting the Englishmen out of the country as soon as possible, lest they

might appeal to the king. We accordingly sailed for Copenhagen in an

English merchant ship, landed at Elsineur, and had to proceed from thence

to Copenhagen, where we remained a week, and left it at that time with

but little more of the twenty pounds than would enable us to pay our

passage to England, where we arrived about the middle of November.

“By this time the Ambassador was changed, and his successor pleaded

ignorance of our concerns; nor was it till the year 1796 that any

settlement was made. This only amounted to twelve pounds, making in all

thirty-two pounds to each officer, instead of more than seventy-two

pounds which had been promised.”

On the 22nd of this month, Mr. Brenton was promoted to the rank of

Lieutenant in the British Navy, through the interest of Lord Hood. Of

this period he speaks thus:—“My first appointment of Lieutenant was

second of the ‘Assurance,’ a troop ship, ordered to take troops to

Halifax, a station of all others I should have chosen, having numerous

friends and relations at that place; but particularly, from having formed

an early attachment there. I was, however, destined not to perform

this voyage, nor to see the object of my affections for the next ten

years. I had been sent on shore at Rochester, in the pursuit of some

deserters from my ship, when I was surrounded by a mob, and arrested by

the civil power, on a charge of impressing within the limits of the city

of Rochester. The Mayor, upon this vague charge, and without taking any

evidence in support of it, committed me and four midshipmen to Bridewell.

It was pointed out to the Mayor that an infuriated mob was waiting at

the door, with the intention of attacking the officers on their way to

prison; regardless of the warning, he sent us under a few constables. I

was immediately knocked down, dragged through the streets, and narrowly

escaped with life, losing nearly all my clothes. We were liberated the

next morning, and a representation having been made at the Admiralty,

their Solicitor was ordered to enter a prosecution against the Mayor of

Rochester; and I was superseded from the Assurance, and appointed second

of the Speedy Sloop of fourteen guns, on the home station, that I might

be at hand to attend the trial. This did not take place till many months

afterwards, when it came on at Maidstone. The Mayor suffered judgment

to go against him by default, and in consequence paid the penalty of

seven hundred and fifty pounds, which sum no doubt was supplied by the

corporation. I continued for some time second of the Speedy, and was at

length made first Lieutenant. I was generally kept in the command of the

boats cruizing after smugglers. The Speedy was paid off in the autumn of

1791.”

Having remained from this period till the summer of 1792 upon half-pay,

Mr. Brenton was then appointed to command the Trepassey, a small cutter

at Newfoundland. The only personal recollections which have been found of

Newfoundland, are contained in the following anecdote.—“In an excursion

made in the winter of 1792-3, from St. John’s to the Bay of Bulls,

Captain, the late General, Skinner forming one of our party, we had, on

our return, to cross a large lake over the ice, some miles in extent.

When about the middle, Captain Skinner informed me that he had long

been severely pinched by the cold, and found an irresistible drowsy fit

coming on. I urged him to exertion, representing the fatal consequences

of giving way to this feeling, and pointing out the state in which his

wife and family would be found, should the party arrive at St. John’s

without him. These thoughts roused him to exertion for some time; but

when we had reached the margin of the lake, he gave way, and declared

he was utterly unable to struggle farther, delivering at the same time

what he considered his dying message to his family. As there were some

bushes near the spot, I broke off a branch, and began to thrash my

fellow-traveller with it; at first without much apparent effect, but at

length I was delighted to find that my patient winced under my blows, and

at length grew angry. I continued the application of the stick, until he

made an effort to get up and retaliate. He was soon relieved from the

torpor; and as we were now but a few miles from St. John’s, I pushed on

before the party, leaving the captain under their especial care. I left

also the stick, with strong injunctions that it should be smartly applied

in the event of the drowsiness returning. I soon reached the town, and

having had some warm porter with spice prepared against the arrival of my

friends; with this and considerable friction he was enabled to proceed

home, where he arrived perfectly recovered. He himself related the story

at the Earl of St. Vincent’s table at Gibraltar, many years afterwards;

expressing, at the same time, much gratitude for the beating he had

received.”

In the early part of 1794 Mr. Brenton returned to England, and was

appointed second of the Sybil, of twenty-eight guns, in which situation

he remained for a few months and then became first lieutenant of that

ship; but with regard to the intermediate steps, by which he rose to

this command, his own pen must supply the narrative. He says, “I was

appointed, in the summer of 1792, to the command of the Trepassey

cutter, at Newfoundland, a very small vessel, and facetiously termed

by naval men, a machine for making officers. There were two cutters

built, it might be said for this very purpose, on an understanding that

a lieutenant should be made into each, every year; one from Admiralty

patronage, and the other by the commander in chief for the time being.

The first two were Lieutenants Rowley and Halket; the next pair Caithen

and Gilbert; then Herbert and Holme. I name these officers that the

regularity of the system may appear. The lieutenant at the end of the

year, or just previously to the sailing of the Admiral for England, (for

he never wintered on the station) went through a nominal invaliding; and

their successors were appointed from the cockpit of the Admiral’s ship.

“At length, in the year 1792, the Admiralty decided upon putting an end

to this certainly most exceptionable method of patronage, and ordered

two lieutenants out from England to command these cutters. I was one of

these, and arrived at Newfoundland in September. I found the Trepassey a

very extraordinary description of a man of war. She was only forty-two

tons; something about the size of one of the Gravesend boats, previously

to the adoption of steam vessels upon the Thames. Her crew consisted

of _five_ men, and a pilot, who performed the functions of every class

of officer below the commander. She had four swivels mounted; and

was employed in going along the coast to protect the fisheries, and

to enquire into abuses. On the last appointment the Admiral added two

midshipmen to each cutter, making the whole number of each complement

eight. These vessels lay in the harbour of St. John’s during the winter,

and were fitted out in the spring, to be in readiness to visit the

different ports on their station, as soon as the harbour was clear from

ice.

“In the month of March, 1793, a small vessel arrived under a flag of

truce from the island of St. Pierre, with a letter from the Governor,

requesting to know what news had arrived from Europe. It was addressed to

the Admiral, and contained evidently an indirect offer of surrender of

the islands to his Britannic Majesty, made with a view of putting them

under our protection, and of saving them from the sanguinary republicans,

who had begun to shew themselves amongst the population. The Admiral was

of course in England; and the question was, who should open the letter.

There was a military force of one company of the fourth regiment, and

another of artillery; and the naval force consisted of the two cutters,

Placentia and Trepassey, commanded by Lieutenant Tucker and myself. The

dispatches of course were received by Mr. Tucker, who forthwith called

upon the captains of the army to consult as to what steps should be taken.

“At this meeting the question arose as to who was the representative of

the Governor. The commission of the Governor stated, that in case of his

_death_, the government was to devolve upon the senior officer of the

navy; and it was maintained that the provision made against death, must

be equally applicable to his absence. This was denied on the part of

the military officers; and until this point was settled no consultation

could take place. Mr. Tucker acted for himself, and proceeded to collect

a body of volunteers on the island, with which he contemplated sailing

for St. Pierre, as soon as a sufficient number could be got together. In

the meantime he sent me in the Trepassey, with a flag of truce, to give

the information to the Governor of St. Pierre, and to prepare him for the

event, that he might be in readiness to act in concert.

“On my arrival I found that the island had been taken possession of the

day before, by a detachment from Halifax; and the Alligator frigate,

which had brought them, was then lying in the harbour. The Trepassey was

immediately dispatched to take possession of Miguelon. On the return

of the Trepassey to St. John’s I found the Pluto, sloop of war, had

arrived, having captured a French corvette from Martinique. News also

from Europe had reached us, with an account of the murder of the French

king, and the commencement of the war. The action of the Boston and the

Ambuscade soon after took place. The Admiral (Sir Richard King) reached

his station in July; and having received a letter which informed me,

that it was the wish of my friend, Captain E. Pakenham, to have me as

his first lieutenant in the Resistance, of forty-four guns, I procured

the Admiral’s permission to go to England, taking my passage in the

Cleopatra, with that most amiable and distinguished character, Sir

Alexander Ball; a circumstance invaluable to me from its being the means

of my acquiring the friendship of such a man.

“We took a convoy to Cadiz, and while waiting there to collect one for

England, it was understood that a Spanish seventy-four was upon the point

of sailing for Falmouth with money; as an indemnification of the Nootka

Sound affair, in 1790. I eagerly caught at the opportunity of seeing the

system of the Spanish navy; and my wish being made known to the Spanish

commander, he immediately invited me to take my passage to England with

him, in the St. Elmo, where I was treated with the greatest hospitality,

and marked attention. We sailed for Ferrol on the following day, and from

that port the 24th December, and arrived at Falmouth early in January.

“This ship had been selected as one in the best state of discipline

in the Spanish navy, to be sent to England. She was commanded by Don

Lorenzo Goycochca, a gallant seaman, who had commanded one of the junk

ships destroyed before Gibraltar, in 1781. I had during this voyage an

opportunity of appreciating Spanish management at sea. When the ship

was brought under double reefed topsails, it was considered superfluous

to lay the cloth for dinner; and when I remonstrated, I was told by the

captain, that not one officer would be able to sit at table, being all

sea-sick; but that he had directed dinner to be got in his own cabin for

himself and me. It was the custom in the Spanish navy for the captain and

all the officers to mess together in the wardroom, which was appropriated

to this purpose. We had henceforth a very comfortable meal together,

whenever the weather prevented a general meeting.

“As the safe arrival of this ship was deemed of great importance, an

English pilot from Falmouth was sent into Ferrol, for the purpose of

enabling her to approach the coast of England with safety. A few nights

before our arrival at Falmouth, the ship having whole sails and topping

sails, was taken aback in a heavy squall from the N.E. and I was awoke

by the English pilot knocking at my cabin door, calling out, ‘Mr.

Brenton, Mr. Brenton, rouse out, Sir; here is the ship running away with

these Spaniards.’ When I got upon deck, I found this was literally the

case. She was running away at the rate of twelve knots, and every thing

in confusion: she was indeed, to use the ludicrous simile of a naval

captain, ‘all adrift like a French post-chaise.’ It required some hours

to get things to rights, and the wind having moderated and become fair,

we then resumed our course, and safely reached Falmouth. The Spanish

Inns, (the Posadas) are proverbially bad, wretched in the extreme; and

great was the astonishment of the officers of the St. Elmo on reaching

Williams’s Hotel at Falmouth, by no means at that time a first rate

inn. Still, such was the effect produced by the carpet, the fire, and

the furniture in general, that it was some time before they could be

persuaded that I had not conducted them to some nobleman’s house, in

return for their hospitality to me; the _bill_ however dispelled this

pleasant delusion.”