The Box of Money temporarily taken charge of Parting of Buonaparte with the Captain Count Montholon's polite Intimation to Captain The Captain declines the Present of a Portrait Savary and Lallemand; their affecting parting with Napoleon in the presence of Captain Maitland The Northumberland sails for St. Helena ib. NARRATIVE, &c. &c. ON Wednesday the 24th of May, 1815, I sailed from Cawsand Bay, in command of His Majesty's ship Bellerophon, and under the orders of Rear Admiral Sir Henry Hotham, whose flag was hoisted in the Superb. I received sealed instructions, part of which were to be opened on getting to sea, and part only to be examined in the event of my being separated from the Admiral. Those B which I opened contained directions to detain, and send into port, all armed vessels belonging to the Government of France. On Sunday the 28th of May, we joined His Majesty's ship Astrea and Telegraph, stationed off Isle Dieu, on a secret service; and the following day, three transports, under charge of the Helicon, arrived from England, having on board arms and ammunition, to supply the Royalists in La Vendée, for whose support and assistance I now found the squadron, of which the Bellerophon formed one, was destined. On Tuesday the 30th of May, I received orders from Sir Henry Hotham, to take the Eridanus under my command, and proceed off Rochefort, for the purpose of preventing a corvette from putting to sea, which, according to information received by the British Government, was to carry proposals from Buonaparte to the West India Colonies, to declare in his favour. I had likewise orders to reconnoitre the Roadstead of Rochefort, and report to the Admiral the number and state of the ships of war lying there. Accordingly, on the 31st of May, I ran into Basque Roads, and found at anchor, under Isle d'Aix, two large frigates, a ship corvette, and a large brig, all ready for sea, which I afterwards ascertained to be the Méduse, Saale, Balladière, and Epervier. Nothing occurred worth mentioning until the 9th of June, when the Vésuve French corvette came in from the northward, and got into Rochefort, notwithstanding every effort to prevent her; the ships under my orders having been driven to the southward, during the night, . by a strong northerly wind, accompanied by a scutherly current. She was from Guadaloupe, and immediately on passing the Chasseron light-house, hoisted the tricoloured flag. |