articles of wood and water, at least, which it would have been difficult, if not impossible, to have procured in any other part of the Mediterranean; and if to this consideration we add that of the shelter afforded to our shipping, when Mahon and Malta were not at our command, a strong case is made out in favour of our retaining Corsica.

CHAPTER X.

Kind disposition of Earl St. Vincent - Destitution of the fleet - Letter to Vice-Admiral Vandeput― Order to Captain Tyler - Desertion to America - Letter to Consul Matra — To Sir Gilbert Elliot - To Nelson-To Lieutenant-General de Burgh-To Sir William Hamilton To Mr. Drake To Sir Gilbert Elliot To Captain Stewart - To Mr. Master-To the Honourable Robert WalpoleTo the same — To the same-To the same-To General O'Hara To the Honourable Robert Walpole-To the same - To the same - To Mr. Lemprière-To Lord Garlies.

His kind and quick consideration for the feelings of others, was a marked and pleasing trait in the personal character of Earl St. Vincent. The following letter to Vice-Admiral Vandeput was not absolutely called for by the circumstances of the case; but it was volunteered, as a mark of courtesy and kindness, in the event that was anticipated by the commander-in-chief, of his being called upon to act on the station confided to a junior officer. Vice-Admiral Vandeput held, at the date of this letter, the separate command on the Lisbon station, with his flag in the St. Alban's, of 64 guns.

The subsequent order to Captain Tyler shows the multiplied difficulties attending Sir John Jervis's command at this time, and the comparative destitution of his fleet, and its need of the supplies and shelter afforded by the "miserable Corsica," which he was on the point of abandoning.

To Vice-Admiral Vandeput.

Victory, in Rosier Bay, 2d December, 1796.

My dear Vandeput,

Should the events of this extraordinary war occasion my being ordered to act upon your station, which I have some reason to believe will happen soon, you may rely upon my observing every delicacy and attention to you, consistent with the great object in question.

Your's, most truly,

J. J.

To Captain Tyler.

By Sir John Jervis, K.B., Admiral of the Blue, &c.

You are hereby required and directed to make the best of your way down the Mediterranean, with his Majesty's ships under your orders; and, should you stand in need of stores

or provisions to effect it, I advise your obtaining a supply at Trieste or Fiame, his Sicilian Majesty being restricted, by his preliminary treaty of peace with France (if ratified), from furnishing either, to any of the belligerent powers; and you cannot derive the smallest resource from Porto Ferrajo, which will probably fall into the enemy's hands, the moment my orders for the immediate evacuation are carried into execution. Algiers, Arzou, or Oran, are the only anchorages where you can get refreshments, and your stay should be very short at either, as intelligence is conveyed very rapidly from them to the opposite coast of our combined enemies. You are to send a boat into Gibraltar for intelligence, if the enemy's fleet are not so stationed as to make the experiment hazardous.

In any event, learning nothing from me, you are to make the best of your way to Lisbon, endeavouring to speak with any cruizers which will be stationed along the coast of Portugal, to give information of the position of the fleet,. to the ships coming from the coast of Sicily and the Adriatic.

Given, &c., 4th December, 1796.

The Zaffarina islands form the best anchorage on the coast of Africa, and water may be had in them by digging wells.

The following letter to Mr. Consul Matra, at Algiers, will show the drains by which our seamen escaped from the service, and the constant anxiety and watchfulness of the commanderin-chief, in order to bring them back to it. His efforts were, however, very far from being successful. The temptations to enter into the American service were too great to be resisted; or, shall I rather say, the inducements to remain in our's were wholly inadequate, and unworthy of a nation like Great Britain to offer.

To Mr. Consul Matra, British Consul at Algiers. Victory, in Rosier Bay, 4th December, 1796.

Sir,

I take the earliest opportunity to acquaint you with my arrival at this place, and I shall, from time to time, communicate with you.

It is reported to me, that the British seamen made prisoners, and carried into Tangier, are lost to the King's service, by receipts being given for them to the French and Spanish consuls, and the men left afterwards to their own pursuits. I therefore desire you will not, in future, pass a receipt for any prisoners, unless you can secure them until the arrival of a ship of war to receive them. This is a necessary measure, not only because his Majesty's fleet