Sunday, June 28th.—At 4.30 this evening brought-to a heavy ship with a blank cartridge; or rather she seemed to come-to of her own accord, as she was evidently outsailing us, and was, when we fired, at very long range. Soon after heaving-to she burned a blue light, and whilst our boat, with a light in it, was pulling towards her, she burned another. She afterwards said she would not have hove-to but that she thought we might be in distress. The boarding officer reported us as the United States ship Dacotah, and demanded to see the ship's papers, which were refused, the Master stating that we had no right to see his papers. The boarding officer having been informed of her name (the Vernon), and that she was from Melbourne, for London, and being satisfied, from observation, that she was really an English ship, she being one of the well-known frigate-built Melbourne packets, returned on board, and the ship filled away; and she was already at considerable distance from us when I received the boarding officer's report. Under all these circumstances, I did not chase him afresh to enforce my belligerent right of search. Cui bono, the vessel being really English? Although, indeed, the resistance to search by a neutral is good cause of capture, I could only capture to destroy; and I would not burn an English ship (being satisfied of her nationality) if the Master persisted to the law in not showing his papers. Nor did I feel that the Confederate States flag had any insult to revenge, as the insult, if any, was intended for the Yankee flag. Most probably, however, the ship being a packet-ship, and a mail-packet, the Master erred from ignorance.
Lat. 26.35, long. 32.59.30, current S.E. thirty miles; ship rolling and tumbling about, to my great discomfort. The fact is, I am getting too old to relish the rough usage of the sea. Youth sometimes loves to be rocked by the gale, but when we have passed the middle stage of life, we love quiet and repose.
Tuesday, June 30th.—The bad weather of the past week seems at length to have blown itself out; and this morning we have the genial sunshine again, and a clear, bracing atmosphere. With a solitary exception, the Cape pigeons, true to their natures, have departed. There is still some roughness of the sea left, however, and the ship is rolling and creaking her bulk-heads, as usual. Wind moderate from about East.
Another prize on the 2nd of July, the Anna, F. Schmidt, of Maine, from Boston for San Francisco; and another cautious Yankee transformed into an Englishman; and then came a large ship flying before the wind, with all sail set to her royals, and answering the Alabama's challenge with a gun from her own bow port.
A man-of-war this, from her fashion of replying, even had the fact not been sufficiently apparent from the cut of her heavy yards and lofty spars. An enemy, perhaps! And wild with the hope of a fight, though it be with an enemy not much less than double her size, away flies the Alabama, at top speed of sail and steam, in chase. The sea was smooth, though with a strong breeze; and ere long the saucy little cruiser ranged up alongside of the fine frigate, with ten black muzzles grinning through his ports on either side.
"This is the Confederate States ship Alabama!" rang out from the quarter-deck, as the two ships flew through the water, side by side:—"What ship's that?"
But there was to be no fight that day. The chase contented herself with the laconic reply, "Her Britannic Majesty's ship Diomede;" and went tearing along upon her course under the tremendous press of canvas, beneath which her spars were bending like a whip, and was soon out of sight, evidently bound on some errand that would not brook delay.
Some small compensation for this disappointment was found two days afterwards in the capture of the fine ship Express, of Boston, from Callao for Antwerp, loaded with guano, the particulars of which are recorded as follows:—
CASE OF THE SHIP EXPRESS.
Ship under United States colours and register; cargo guano, shipped by Senan, Valdeavellano and Co., at Callao, and consigned to J. Sescau and Co., at Antwerp. On the back of this bill of lading is the following endorsement: "Nous soussignés chargé d'affaires et consul général de France à Lima, certifions que la chargement de mille soixante douze de register de Huano spécifié au présent connaissement, est propriété neutre."