About the tenth of December Great preparations were made on board of our ship in consequence of a great number of people of the first characters in L'Orient. One prince of the blood royal, and three French admirals, with some ladies of the first quality, having had cards of invitation sent them by captain Jones, inviting them on board of his ship the next day to take dinner with him precisely at 3 o'clock in the afternoon; and also informing the company that captain Jones would in the evening of that day, on board of his ship, exhibit to them a sham sea fight; and that it should in part represent his battle with the Serapis, particularly her tops. To go through with a minute detail of all and every circumstance that related to this scene would, I fear, tire the patience of the reader; I shall therefore be as concise as possible in my relation of this exhibition. First then, all the boats belonging to our ship were busily employed with their respective crews from the time the approaching scene was known on board, (which was the day before it was to take place, at ten o'clock in the morning, till about twelve at night on the day on which the company were to dine, in passing to and coming from the shore, bringing off all the articles wanted. And the reader may rest assured that neither cash nor pains were spared in order that the scene every way should appear magnificent. In a short time our quarter-deck had the appearance of a lady of qualitie's drawing-room. Over head was suspended an elegant awning, the edges of which were cut in scollops, and decorated with a variety of silk roses, tassils, &c. from a little below the awning: at the sides were hung thin canvass lined with pink coloured silk, and which fell down so as to reach the quarter-deck. These sides were hung with a great variety of French pictures and looking glasses; some of the first had been drawn by one of the most finished artists in France, and many of which were quite indecent, especially to meet the eyes of a virtuous woman. However, in these days they made a part of French etequette on such an occasion. The quarter-deck of our ship was covered with the most elegant carpets, the plate alone which was made use of on this singular occasion was estimated to be worth two thousand guineas (for my own part I believe it might have been rated at double that sum.) French cooks, and waiters or servants, were brought from the shore to assist in this business and for nearly twenty hours preceding the serving up of dinner, we were almost suffocated with garlick and onions, besides a great many other stinking vegetables. A French lady (who was said to be a great connossieur in the art of cookery, and in hanging and arranging pictures in a room where the first companies went to dine) was gallanted on board by captain Jones the evening before the day on which the company were to dine, and was by him directed to take upon herself the superintendance of the approaching feast. The next day was ushered in by thirteen guns, and the dressing of the ship with the thirteen stripes, and the colours of all nations who were friendly to the United States. Captain Jones and his officers were all dressed in uniform, with their best bib and band on, and we were directed by captain Jones to conduct ourselves with propriety and to pay implicit obedience to my lady superintendant of the ceremonies. At a quarter before 3 o'clock in the afternoon the ship's boats (three in number, each having a midshipman who acted for this time as cockswains; and the men who rowed the boats were all neatly dressed in blew broad cloth, with the American and French cockades in their hats,) were dispatched on shore to bring on board the company. Jones received them as they came up the ship's side and conducted them to their seats on the quarter-deck with a great deal of ease, politeness, and good nature.[30] Dinner was served up at half past 3 P.M. The company did not rise from table till a little after the sun set, when captain Jones ordered his first lieutenant to cause all hands to be called to quarters, which was done just before the moon was rising. I of course, mounted into the main top, which had always been my station as long as I had served under Jones (of which and the men at quarters there, I had the command.) Orders were given before we mounted into the tops that we must be well supplied with ammunition blunderbusses, muskets, cowhorns, hand granadoes, &c. The same as if we were now to engage with an enemy; and when the signal was given (which was to be a cannon fired upon the fore-castle, and as soon as the gun was fired, the sham fight was to commence.) At 8 o'clock it began, and lasted about one hour and a quarter without any intermission. Such a cracking of great guns, swivels, small arms, cowhorns, blunderbusses, &c. such a hissing and poping of hand granadoes, stink pots, powder flasks, was now heard as they fell into the water alongside, as was never the like in the harbour of L'Orient, seen or heard. Some of the ladies were much frightened, and the sham fight would have continued longer had it not been that some of them intreated captain Jones to command the firing to cease. The fight over, a band of music which had been ordered on board by the commandant, and who had been paraded upon the fore part of the quarter-deck, now played their part, and all was glee and harmony. At about twelve at night the company took their leave of captain Jones, and the boats set them safe on shore, in the same order and regularity as they came on board, excepting a few who were landed half seas over; these the midshipmen assisted along to their lodgings, and returned on board to give an account to captain Jones that we saw all the company safe at their respective places of abode. For several days after this nothing of any note was to be heard in conversation among the French at L'Orient, in their coffee houses and private dwellings, but captain Jones's feast and sham fight. Upon the whole, I believe it must have cost himself as well as the United States a vast sum of money. There was certainly a great quantity of powder burnt, and an abundance of wine (besides other liquors) drank. The cost of the whole of this entertainment, including the powder, amounted (by an estimate made by the American agent's first clerk, and who it seems paid the cash for sundry bills relative to this business, to 3,027 crowns at 6s. 8d. each, Massachusetts currency.) Whether captain Jones charged the whole or any part of the expences of this business to the United States I never learned.
APPENDIX F.
The Continuation and End of the Voyage of the Ariel to the United States.
As the Journal of the Ariel ends on the 14th day of October, 1780, a brief account of her voyage to the United States, gathered from the Biographies of Jones, may not be out of place.
Jones continued to prolong his stay at L'Orient more than two months from the time of his putting back dismasted, and again received the remonstrances of Franklin for the expenses incurred in the refitting of the ship.
The arms destined for our army were so much damaged that they were discharged and abandoned. During this period of delay, Jones was much of his time in Paris, and beguiled his time in giving elegant entertainments on his ship, one of which is recorded in the log on the 2d day of September; the one given on or about the 10th of December is described by Fanning, Appendix E. Fanning left the Ariel immediately after this entertainment, and soon after took command of the privateer Eclipse, sailing out of Dunkirk.
The Ariel sailed from L'Orient on the 18th of December, bound for Philadelphia, and had an eventful voyage. Owing to the lumbered condition of his ship, Jones was not particularly anxious to meet the enemies' cruisers. A conspiracy was discovered amongst the English part of the crew, to take the ship, to defeat which the officers and passengers prepared to defend themselves. Jones followed an unfrequented track, taking the southern passage along the edge of the trade winds. When in latitude 26°, near the meridian of Barbados, a large sail was discovered, apparently a cruiser, from which Jones endeavored to escape, but failed. The ships came close alongside, both displaying English colors. A conversation ensued, and the stranger proved to be a British ship named Triumph. A sharp action took place within pistol shot, when the Triumph struck her colors, and cried for quarter, but the Triumph, having got on the weather bow of the Ariel, made all sail and escaped. The Triumph was undoubtedly a privateer, not a King's ship. After this action, twenty of the ringleaders in the plot to get possession of the ship were identified, and put in irons. No further incidents of note occurred, and the Arielreached Philadelphia on the 18th of February, 1781.
APPENDIX G.
Fanning's Account of the Storm which Wrecked the Ariel.
On the 7th of October, 1780, we set sail from this port for the United States in the Ariel, at about 6 P.M. and at the time we had under our convoy fourteen sail of American vessels, among which were three letters of marque, with the wind blowing a leading gale, at E.S.E. At 10 P.M. the wind shifted suddenly into the W.S.W and blew a heavy gale—took in top gallant sails, and close reefed our top sails—soon after took in our topsails and reefed our courses, and we carried them as long as the ship would bear them. The night was very dark, and we lost sight of the fleet. We were obliged to carry some sail in order to weather the Pin Marks, a long range of sunken rocks about a league from the land, and which we judged to be to leeward of us. At midnight we were obliged to hand our courses, as it blew so violent that we could not suffer a single yard of canvass. The ship at the same time lay in a very dangerous situation, nearly upon her beam ends, and in the trough of the sea, and leaked so bad that with both chain pumps constantly going we could not keep her free. Some French soldiers which we had on board, and who were stationed at the cranks of the pumps, let go of them, crossed themselves, and went to prayers. They were driven from this by the officers to the cranks again; and it became necessary to lift hangers over their heads, and threaten them with instant death if they quit their duty, or if they did not work with all their strength; without this they would again leave off and go to prayers. Soon after, one of our chain pumps got choked in such a manner that it would deliver no water. Jones in all this time shewed a great presence of mind, and kept, with his own hands, sounding with the deep sea lead; and finding that we were shoaling water very fast, and that we should in a short time be upon the Pin Marks, without something was soon done to prevent it. In this extremity a consultation of captain Jones and his principal officers was had upon the quarter-deck, and the result was, that orders were given for cutting away our fore-mast and letting go the sheet anchor; and the latter was executed without loss of time. We sounded now in thirty-five fathoms of water. The sheet cable was now paid out to the better end; but she did not look to her anchor; another cable was spliced to the first, and paid out to the better end; she did not yet bring up; the third cable was also spliced to the end of the second; when after paying out about seven eighths of this last, and the fore-mast cut away at the same time, and when it had fell over board to the leeward, the ship brought to and rid head to the wind, and the sea now run mountains high.[31] By the time of which I am now speaking we had not less than three hundred fathoms of cable paid out—in a few minutes after the ship brought to to her anchor. The ship laboured so hard, rolled so deep, and would bring up so sudden that it sprung our main-mast just below our gun-deck, and as this was now in the greatest danger of being ripped up, orders were given to cut away the main-mast above the quarter-deck, which was immediately carried into execution; and when this fell over the side to leeward it forced off the head of the mizzen-mast. By this time, we had freed the ship of water, but when her masts were gone her motion was so quick and violent that the most expert seamen on board could not stand upon their legs, neither upon the quarter-deck nor fore-castle without holding on to something. The chain pump which had been choked was cleared, and notwithstanding the gale kept increasing, yet our anchor and cables held on so well, that some faint hopes were now entertained that our lives would be spared: however, the gale did not abate much until the morning of the 9th. At meridian of this day the wind had abated so much that we began to get up and rig our jury masts. At 4 P.M. we had them erected and rigged, and what spars and sails we could muster upon them; and there being at this time but a moderate breeze at about W.N.W, a fair wind for L'Orient, and the sea tolerable smooth, we hove in our cables till it was short apeak, and then exerted ourselves every way we could think of in order to purchase our anchor, and after trying a long time without being able to weigh it, orders were given by captain Jones to save all we could of the cable and then cut it away, which was done and we made sail for L'Orient, where we soon after arrived and came to anchor. Many of our friends now came on board to see us, and appeared to be rejoiced at our safe escape, as they said, they expected we were lost, as the late gale was very violent and did a great deal of damage even in the harbour, among the shipping and along side of the keys.