Venerable, off Orfordness,

October 15, 1797.

SIR, In addition to my letter of the 13th instant, containing the particulars of the action of the 11th, and which I bave not been able to send away until this day, I have to acquaint you, for the information of the lords commissioners of the admiralty, that from the wind continuing to blow on the Dutch coast, the ships have had great difficulty in keeping off the shore, and that we have unavoidably been scparated. On Friday last the wind blew strong from the W. S. W. to W.N. W. and continued so to do until Saturday morning; it then shifted to the north, when I made the signal to wear, stood to the westward, and fortunately anchored here last evening; the Venerable being so leaky, that, with all her pumps going, we could but just keep her free. This morning I observed the undermentioned ships* at anchor near us, three near the Kentish Knock, and three in Hosleybay. The wind is at N. W. and much against the disabled ships; I have therefore sent the Lancaster and Beaulieu out to render them assistance.

Sir Thomas Williams, in the Endymion, who joined me the day after the action, I also sent in shore to keep by and assist the disabled ships; and I am informed that, in the course of the night, he fell in with a Dutch ship of the line off the Texel, and had engaged her, but I have not heard the particulars.

I am, Sir,

Your most obedient humble servant,
ADAM DUNCAN.

"Evan Napean, Esq.
By comparing the lists the seaman will perceive
that, in point of effective force, the advantage was
rather on the side of the English; not, however, in
so great a degree as to ensure a complete victory.
The Dutch, in all their former wars, had been among
our bravest and most successful rivals: in many
actions we had met with obstinate resistance; and in
the last general engagement on the Dogger-bank, in
the year 1781, fought between Sir Hyde Parker and
Admiral Zoutman, both sides claimed the victory,
though, after a very hard fought action, neither side
had taken a ship.

• Monarch, Powerful, Lancaster, Beaulieu.

In the action of the 11th of October, 1797, the superiority of Britain over the Dutch was unequivocally acknowledged and established; but while we justly claim the pre-eminence, let us do justice to the valour of our opponents. Under all the disadvantages of inactivity and consequent want of practice, the resistance made by the Batavian fleet was very respectable, and the number of killed and wounded in the British fleet, though of very inferior force to that of Sir John Jervis, and little more than half of that under the command of Earl Howe, was more than double that of the first, and nearly equal to that of the second: this proves what the Dutch would have done if left to their own energies. But the power of France had overwhelmed the United Provinces, their spirit was crushed, their property confiscated to supply the rapacity of a "liberating army," their youth marched away to fight, in distant and unhealthy climates, battles in which their coun+ try had no interest; the Dutch, in fact, were slaves, and had ingloriously sunk under that power to whom, in the preceding century, they had dictated a peace in the capital of France.* Of this melancholy truth they were sensible in the battle of Camperdown; they knew the victory, if obtained, was not for them, and defeat would render them no worse than they had been. De Winter behaved nobly, and is said to have been the only person on his quarter-deck

Treaty of Aix La Chapelle, the terms of which, according to Voltaire, were arranged by Vanbenning at St. Germain, not far from Paris. See Histoire Générale de la Belgique, tom. vi. p. 19.

that was not either killed or wounded: when conducted a prisoner on board the Venerable he presented his sword to Admiral Duncan, who courteously returned it to him with an appropriate compliment. De Winter and Duncan were two of the tallest and finest men of their fleets: Admiral Duncan had been reckoned the handsomest man of his time in the reign of George the Second; and even at his advanced age, had a noble and commanding De Winter is said to have lamented with bitterness, that in the midst of the carnage, which literally floated the decks of the Vryheid in blood, he alone should have been spared. Towards the conclusion of the action, the Hercules, one of the Dutch ships, took fire in her poop and burnt furiously; it was, however, soon got under and extinguished by the exertions of the officers and seamen of the Triumph.*

appearance.

Two days of bad weather succeeded the action; the fleet being close to the land off Camperdown in a very crippled state, and the wind blowing on the shore, it was with the utmost difficulty the disabled ships were preserved; and one or two of the prizes, taking advantage of these circumstances, escaped into the Texel; the Delft went down astern of the ship which had her in tow: they had been taken possession of, but the number of English put on board was too limited to preserve the command of the vessels against the Dutch officers and crews.

The two admirals, after the duties of the day were arranged, dined together on board the Venerable in the most amicable manner, and concluded the evening with a rubber of whist.