But it may also be certain that this humiliation before God—this severity of self-enquiry and self-condemnation, prepared him in a peculiar manner for the trial, he was to meet from men. The Admiral, naturally, reasonably offended at this, which seemed a wanton waste of life, found him so humbled, that his resentment was disarmed. The censure that he might have felt himself bound to pass, on the point of discipline, was, he saw, anticipated. He could not strike one who was down. He could not reprove one whose self-reproof was manifest. He was obliged to feel for the man, whose own feelings had been so acute; and he saw that it was unnecessary for the interests of the service, to say anything where so much had been already done within. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth;” and many are the causes of offence in every service, which would come to nothing, if they were not raised into importance by the pride of those who endeavour to defend their error, instead of acknowledging and condemning it themselves.
We shall have occasion to remark a similar trial in the following Chapter, where an accident occurred, which appeared to arise from want of care in the management of the ship; and which for a moment again put the character of the Captain of the Spartan in jeopardy with an Admiral of such correctness as Lord Collingwood. The affair in that case was capable of explanation, and the circumstances under which it happened, exonerated the Commander of the ship from blame; but those, whose daily lives are not exposed to such contingencies as belong to active service, will do well to remember how trifling are the causes which may lead to consequences so serious, and in this way learn to feel for those whose forgetfulness or momentary inattention may be visited with such severity.
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.
The Spartan was employed for the remainder of the year in watching the port of Toulon. The service was at first very arduous, and one of constant anxiety, and solicitude, especially as the French squadron in the outer roads had increased greatly, and it became necessary to reconnoitre them with increased vigilance. Lord Collingwood returned to his station off Cadiz; and the duty of watching Toulon devolved upon two frigates, the Sirius and Spartan in the first instance. On the former being called away, she was relieved by the Apollo; but there was seldom more than one of these frigates off Toulon at a time, the other being absent for the purpose of refitting, or procuring water and provisions. Early in January, 1808, the Spartan went to Malta, to refit, having suffered much from the constant gales off Cape Scicie, and from the necessity of carrying sail to keep in with the land against the heavy N.W. winds, which blow so frequently, and with so much violence on that part of the coast. And as it was with this wind that the enemy would leave their port it became an indispensable necessity that the frigates employed in watching them, should keep as close to the land as possible, that they might have a look out upon them night and day.
On the wind increasing from that quarter, it was therefore imperative upon the frigates to carry as much low sail as possible, and they were obliged to set their courses with close reefed topsails, as long as they could be borne in safety; by this means, they generally managed to keep in smooth water, under the land; but the greatest vigilance was required, lest in some of the heavy squalls coming down through the valleys, the lower yards might be carried away, and the ship crippled in sight of a powerful enemy, who would only have to slip, and take possession of the disabled ship. Admiral Thornborough who commanded the squadron, which in the latter part of the Spartan’s station off Toulon, remained cruizing from fifteen to twenty leagues off the coast, was full of anxiety respecting the frigates; and on Captain Brenton going on board the Royal Sovereign bearing his flag, to make his report of the ships in Toulon, he said to him, “My dear Brenton, I expected to have seen you worne to a skeleton from anxiety; I can scarcely sleep for thinking of you. I dread particularly the treacherous calms off Cape Sicie, whilst the ships in the outer roads of Toulon have a fresh breeze off the land, which might bring them alongside of you in a few minutes.” This indeed was a source of very serious apprehension, and the Spartan was more than once placed in a situation of great danger from it; the line of calm was however generally visible upon the water, and it was important to observe great caution in not approaching too near this line. There are few circumstances however which do not lose their power to alarm by familiarity with the danger connected with them, and so it proved in this case. On his being first employed in the service, Captain Brenton felt the full amount of his responsibility, and the danger to which he was exposed; but after being frequently chased off the land by squadrons of ships of the line, and finding that they invariably left off chase by the time they had got seven or eight leagues from the port; and finding also that they seldom gained much if any thing upon the Spartan during that run; he became so accustomed to being chased, that it was considered a matter of common occurrence, and was unaccompanied by any anxiety. Upon one occasion, when about four miles from Cape Sepet, the entrance to the inner road of Toulon, blowing fresh from the N.W. several ships of the line were seen coming out, and the Spartan of course bore up; at this time, an unfortunate boy fell overboard, and it became necessary to lower a boat down to endeavour to save him, and the time thus occupied was one of the greatest possible anxiety, it was however employed in letting out reefs, and in every preparation to make sail. The boy had sunk, and by the time the boat had returned, the enemy were out of the roads, clear of Cape Sepet, and steering for the Spartan, scarcely more than a league distant; but no sooner was the boat out of the water, than the helm was up, and the ship under a cloud of sail; from this moment all anxiety vanished, and the enemy having run to the length of their tether, hauled their wind as usual.
It was upon one of these occasions that Captain Brenton, sitting in his cabin, watching the enemy in chase of him with his spy glass, was informed by the first Lieutenant that a strange sail was seen on the starboard bow. “Steer for her,” said the Captain, “these fellows will leave off chase before we get up with her, and we may as well chase in our turn.” As he expected, the enemy gave up the pursuit, and the Spartan continuing her course for the stranger, came up with her in the course of the afternoon, and took her; she proved to be a very good prize.
The Spartan having refitted in January at Malta, was returning to her station off Toulon, and the wind being strong from the westward, the Commander as usual ran to the eastward of Sardinia and Corsica. When on the east side of Corsica, the weather being remarkably fine and clear, they were keeping as close to the shore as possible, in order to have the advantage of smooth water, and Captain Brenton and his First Lieutenant, both very unwell, were sitting together over the stove in the Captain’s cabin. The people were at dinner, when in a moment a heavy squall came on. The ship was taken aback, and was laid over with her guns in the water, and before the sail could be taken in, the fore yard was gone, and the ship on a dead lee shore. The Captain and First Lieutenant were soon on deck, and every exertion made to get the ship into safety; but the proximity of the land rendered her situation for many hours one of extreme peril. She was got under a snug sail, and a maintopsail yard was substituted for a fore yard. The wind however continued to increase after the sun went down, and blew with great violence, whilst a heavy sea got up. The ship was wore, as the wind veered a point or two each way, but at ten o’clock it was evident that they could not be far from the S.E. coast of Corsica. Captain Brenton’s chief object in wearing as he did, was to keep the Straits of Bonifacio open; but even this was a most forlorn hope, for the innumerable rocks which abound in every part of these straits, render it a most dangerous passage. His intention was only to avail himself of it, in the event of being so near the coast as to leave no alternative but either going on shore, or attempting to run through the straits; in the latter case their safety depended on steering by the breakers—a fearful resource when the sea was running so high, that the whole surface of the water was broken. Every eye was directed to leeward, and every moment the order was expected to put the helm up; when by the interposition of a kind providence, the wind which had been nearly at east, flew round six points, and enabled the ship to clear the land, and by daylight she had such an offing as enabled the Captain to keep her away for Palermo, where the Spartan arrived on the following day, and to the great surprise of all on board, found Sir Richard Strahan with his squadron lying in the bay, having run up the Mediterranean in chase of the Rochefort squadron. It became necessary that the Spartan should proceed with the utmost dispatch off Toulon, and application having been made to the Sicilian Commodore for assistance, he was pleased to supply the ship with a fore yard from one of his frigates, and the Lavinia, one of Sir Richard Strahan’s squadron, having been put under Captain Brenton’s orders, they made sail for their destination. The wind being perseveringly from the west and north westward, the ships endeavoured to beat up under the lee of Sardinia, but gained but little ground. At length, the wind getting round to the N.E., and blowing very hard, Captain Brenton determined upon bearing up, and running along the south coast of Sardinia, to endeavour to get to Toulon by a western route. On arriving, however, off Cagliari, he spoke an English Privateer, from which he obtained the information, that on the 1st of March, a frigate which had been cruising off Toulon, had arrived in the road of Pulla, near Cagliari, with an account of the French squadron, having got out of Toulon; and from the cross examination which Captain Brenton entered into, he felt convinced that this frigate must be his consort, the Apollo, which he had left off Toulon. The privateer captain further added, that on the following day he was boarded by the Wizard, sloop of war, and had the same intelligence from her, with the additional news that five French sail of the line, and a frigate had lately entered the Mediterranean. This was the squadron which Sir Richard Strahan had pursued. With such important information, Captain Brenton felt himself justified in dispatching Captain Hancock in the Lavinia to Admiral Thornborough at Palermo; and he then stood with the Spartan into the bay of Cagliari, which he reached on the 4th of March, and received from the British Minister a confirmation of the report respecting the French squadron. He proceeded in search of Vice-Admiral Thornborough, but fell in with Lord Collingwood and the fleet off Maretimo; who having heard of the movements of the enemy, was in pursuit of them. All the other frigates and small vessels having been detained in different directions in quest of the enemy, the Spartan was kept with the fleet, and every morning, as soon as a flag could be distinguished, was ordered to look out in a given direction, as far as signals could be made out; and was recalled in the evening.