Captain Bainbridge reported the matter to Captain Preble, and the latter at once proceeded to Tangiers with four frigates. There the Emperor abjectly disclaimed all knowledge of the affair, renewed his treaty, deprived the Governor of Tangiers of his office, and punished the commander of the Meshboha.
The American squadron was given a salute of twenty-one guns; a present of ten bullocks with sheep and fowl was made to Captain Preble, and the Emperor's court reviewed the American ships and engaged with them in an exchange of salutes.
But, Reuben testified, when the American officers discussed the Emperor's declaration of innocence, they spoke of it as if it were a huge joke.
On the morning of October 31st, 1803, Reuben, who was the lookout on the Philadelphia, espied a corsair sneaking out of a port. Captain Bainbridge at once swung his vessel round in pursuit. The wind was strong, enabling the frigate to gain on the pirate craft.
The ship was one of a corsair fleet under command of the Bashaw's captains, Zurrig, Dghees, Trez, Romani, and El Mograbi. Zurrig had sailed away from the other vessels on purpose to decoy the American ship on to a line of partly-submerged rocks that lay in the waters of the bay, parallel to the shore. The captain of the corsair knew every yard of the coast, and by hugging the shore, he soon drew the pursuing frigate into shallow water. The Philadelphia had drawn close enough to the fleeing vessel to attack with the bow guns, and in the excitement of seeing if the shots struck home, the officers and crew forgot that their vessel was in danger of running upon a reef the corsair knew well how to avoid.
A BRAVE OFFICER'S BAD LUCK
Eight fathoms of water had been reported. Then the men who threw the lead reported seven fathoms. The cry of six and a half fathoms soon followed. Captain Bainbridge at once gave the order to head seaward. The helm was thrown hard over; the sails flapped as the vessel came up to the wind. It seemed that she would reach deep water safely, but suddenly the vessel struck a rock and rose with her bow six feet out of water. From beneath the walls of the city, scarcely three miles away, the Bashaw's gunboats put out and opened fire on the Philadelphia. Captain Bainbridge made every possible attempt to free his vessel. The guns forward and other parts of her equipment were thrown overboard, but the reef held her in an unyielding grip. Her crew returned the fire of the corsairs as best they could, but as the tide went out, the ship keeled over and the guns could no longer be fired. Captain Bainbridge ordered that the magazine be flooded; that the pumps be wrecked; and that holes be bored in the ship's bottom.
Warships—feluccas and other small boats crowded with Arabs—now attacked the Philadelphia. Led by their captains, they swarmed over her sides. The Americans fought with small arms, wounding six of their assailants, but Bainbridge saw that his men would be massacred if the fight were prolonged, and hauled down the flag. Bainbridge and his crew of three hundred and fifteen men then surrendered. A few of the best swimmers took to the water, Reuben among them, but all were captured except him.
The captives, by means I will later describe, managed to write frequently to their friends aboard vessels of the fleet. Reuben corresponded with Tom Bowles, and thus knew as much about the experiences of the prisoners as if he were among them.
A few days later, he found out, the pirates managed to haul the vessel off the reef at flood-tide. They recovered the guns that had been thrown overboard, and boasted that their navy now owned a splendid American warship that had come into their possession without spending a sequin, or a drop of blood. The red flag bearing the crescent of the Moslems was lifted where the Stars and Stripes had flown. To purge the vessel of Christian contamination, and to consecrate her to the Prophet, the green flag of Mohammed was unfurled at certain periods.