bows; javelins were discharged from engines; and huge rocks were projected from machines, which, we are told, often found their way through the deck and bottom of the hostile vessel, destroying both galley and crew. But the most dreadful weapon then in use was the iron tube, from which the Greek fire was projected in streams upon the vessel and crew of an enemy. This combustible, which had been much earlier used, in the less destructive form of missiles, was of such fearful activity that nothing could resist it, and water, instead of extinguishing, did but augment its fury. Terrible must it have been to the northern pirates, of whom we are told that, imitating those of their countrymen who had invaded Europe by other routes, they descended in canoes, by the Borysthenes, into the Black sea. Having plundered its shores, they were hastening to seize upon Constantinople, when they were met by the fleet of the emperor. Hardly had they raised their war-shout, as they paddled their canoes to the assault, when they were met by well-directed streams of liquid fire, issuing from the prow of every Grecian galley. Consternation seized them, and they plunged into the sea, happy in having yet the alternative of a choice of deaths.* Though the attack of beaks was still continued, less importance was now attached to the point of gaining the wind. In order to escape from the torture of the fire-tube, it was more usual at once to grapple broadside to broadside, and, while the rowers assailed each other with pikes through their rowports, the soldiers rushed, with sword and buckler, to the attack, fighting desperately, hand to hand. Hence it is that, in the history of those times, we so frequently read of ten, twenty, and even thirty thousand men, slain in a single naval encounter.

At length, a great revolution in naval warfare was brought about by the introduction of cannon. They were first used by the Venetians against the Genoese, in 1370. It is a little singular, when we consider their efficacy for the destruction of ships, that they should not have been em

*The Greek fire has lately been reinvented by an American, of the name of Brown. He discharges it, like any other fluid, from a common engine, and, from its resinous and cohesive na- . ture, projects it much farther. As it passes out of the tube into the open air, a match, placed at the end, converts it into a liquid fire, of a destructive energy, not at all inferior to what is attribut

ed to that of the Greeks. He has offered his in

vention to our government; and, as connected with a system of steam-batteries for the defence of our coast, it would prove terribly efficacious.

ployed for this purpose until a whole century from their first use in Europe by the Saracens, in the defence of Niebla, and nearly thirty years from their general introduction, as an implement of war on land, at the siege of Algeziras. When first introduced, the cannon were mounted on the deck which covered the rowers, and were either made to protrude over the rail, or else were pointed through portholes pierced through the bulwark which defended the crew: In the galleas, which was first used at Lepanto, there was one row of ports between the oars, and then batteries of heavier cannon upon the poop and forecastle. Notwithstanding all these innovations, we shall yet find that the ancient mode of naval warfare was, in a great measure, maintained in that renowned naval battle, the battle of Lepanto.

The battle of Lepanto was fought between the papal, Venetian and Spanish fleets, and that of Selim, sultan of Constantinople. In September, 1571, the Christian fleet was collected, and made ready, in the port of Messina. It consisted of 250 ships, manned by 50,000 men, and was placed under the command of don John of Austria, natural son of Charles V, for whom expressly the title of generalissimo was then invented. The pope, having proclaimed a general season of fasting and prayer throughout Christendom, sent a strong corps of ecclesiastics to officiate in the fleet, and a consecrated standard to be displayed from the ship of the admiral. Absolution was promised to every sinner who should fight for the faith, and heaven was opened to the slain. Don John was urged to give immediate battle, and to feel secure of victory. Selim, on the other hand, was not backward in preparing to meet the danger. Though part of his forces was still employed in reducing the island of Cyprus, which was the original subject of contention, he yet succeeded in equipping a fleet still larger than that of the Christians. It was intrusted to the pacha Ali, who proved himself well worthy of the charge. Nor was the sultan slow, on his side, in promising all sorts of good things to the defenders of the faith, and in picturing the joys of a Mohammedan paradise, as the prize of martyrdom. Both parties were to fight the battle of the Most High. The two fleets came together in the gulf of Lepanto. What the Christians wanted in numbers, they made up in superiority of equipment. The prows of their galleys were closer, and better defended, and their soldiers better provided with offensive and defensive

armor. They made general use of helmets, coats of mail and fire-arms, whilst many of the Turks defended their bodies with large leathern shields, and had no more destructive missiles than arrows. Moreover, fortune turned against them at the moment of ouset; for the wind, which had hitherto been favorable to them, now blew in the sails of the Christians. The battle, as of old, began with the admirals. Don Juan and Ali, after a short cannonade, closed and grappled. Both crews rushed to the assault, meeting, in deadly struggle, upon the gunwales. Three times did the Spaniards gain the deck of their adversary, and as often were they driven back. Perhaps the Turks would have followed up their advantage to complete victory, had not don Juan, in that critical moment, received a timely reinforcement of 200 men. By their assistance, the Turk was again boarded, and no longer with doubtful success. The slaughter was indiscriminate and terrible, the crescent being quickly lowered, and replaced by the cross, whilst the severed head of Ali, planted on a pole, and hoisted at his own masthead, filled the breasts of his followers with momentary consternation. Scarce was this result manifest, ere the cry of Victoria! victoria! pealed from the ships of the Christians; and, led on by a host of heroes a Colonna, a Veniero, a Doriathey rushed furiously upon the enemy. Nor did the Turks tamely yield the victory, which they had, of late, so often won. The ships grappled; the enemies fought hand to hand, and sword to cimeter; pikes, javelins and arrows, cannons, matchlocks and arquebusses, aided the fury of the combatants. Turks and Christians had never fought so valiantly, though that was, emphatically, the age of daring. At length, whilst the result was yet doubtful, the Turkish galley-slaves, taking courage at the partial success of their fellow-Christians, and dreading the effect of the reverse upon their own condition, suddenly rose, broke their chains, attacking their masters with them, or with whatever other weapons fury furnished them, and repaid them, in a few short moments, for years of cruelty. In an opposite manner, the criminals who performed the same office at the oar in the Spanish and Italian galleys, having asked leave of their officers, and been unchained and armed, boarded the enemy with a fury rendered irresistible by despair, a recklessness which had nothing to lose, and the double hope of meriting liberty or obtaining martyrdom. At length, the few Turks that remained began to

think of flight. Thirty galleys alone escaped to Constantinople, through the skill of the intrepid corsair Ulucciali, who carried away the standard of Malta, as a trophy.* A few reached the neighboring shore, and abandoned their ships; 130 were taken; the rest were either sunk, burnt, or battered to pieces: 10,000 Turks were taken, 25,000 slain; 15,000 Christians were released from the servitude of the oar. Nor was the victory cheaply purchased-10,000 Christians were among the number of the victims. Beautiful had been the display of the encountering fleets, but now how changed the spectacle! Shattered fragments of wrecks and masts covered the sea, which was every where streaked with human blood, or strewed with limbs and disfigured corpses. The whole of Europe resounded with shouts for this glorious victory, and with the praises of its hero. He was pronounced the greatest warrior of the age; the Christians of Macedonia and Albania tendered him the sovereignty of their country; and, as for the pope, when the news reached him, he is said to have exclaimed, in a holy ecstasy, "There was a man sent of God, whose name was John."

The rapid improvements which the discovery of America effected in naval architecture, for commercial purposes, extended equally to its other branches. A gradual improvement took place in the form and adaptation of ships of war, and they were, at the same time, progressively increased in force and size, until, before the close of the sixteenth century, we already read of Spanish and Portuguese ships of eighty and ninety guns. In the last century, ships of war at length attained a size which may be considered as a maximum; for nature herself has set bounds, to surpass which would be, if not impossible, at least inconvenient. Many harbors exclude vessels of excessive depth; the trees of which ships are made do not exceed a certain growth; and man, who is to construct, equip, and finally manœuvre these won

*The corsair carried away a more precious treasure in the person of the poet-hero Cervantes. His intrepidity had hurried him among the first on board of the enemy's galley, to which his own was grappled; but his comrades were repulsed, the grapnels broken, and he, left wounded on the deck, was carried away by the renegado, as he himself tells us, in the beautiful episode of El Captivo, "the only captive among so many liberated, the only sad among so many rejoicing Christians." The matter might, however, have been worse. Had Cervantes been slain, instead of taken at Lepanto, we had never known the valiant don Quixote, nor the facetious Sancho.

drous machines upon the deep, though able to effect much by an advantageous application of his strength, and by concerted efforts, is yet a being of limited powers. The English Caledonia, the French Commerce de Marseilles, and the Santissima Trinidad, may almost be looked upon as magnificent monsters. Nor have we, perhaps, acted wisely in exceeding all these, in the great ship now building at Philadelphia; though the same admirable symmetry, which distinguishes our ships of the line, is still observed in her. The ship carrying one hundred guns, on three uniform decks, may be considered as the best adapted to unite formidableness and efficiency.

When this increase of size took place, the oar ceased to be a fit agent to move so weighty a machine, and it only remained, by the adaptation of sails, to make the most of that which nature has placed at our disposal, in the restless and ever-moving element which surrounds us. Galleys have been long discontinued on the ocean, and are now only used in the Mediterranean, where immemorial usage renders every thing hereditary. With this revolution in the manner of propelling vessels of war, an equal one was introduced in the method of fighting. Their augmented size rendered it more inconvenient to grapple and fight hand to hand, and risked the destruction of both ships, if the weather were tempestuous. Hence this mode of combat was rarely resorted to; and battering with cannon, at a favorable distance, until one party or the other struck, became the ordinary mode of naval warfare. This we shall now exemplify, by briefly describing the present mode of engagement, and relating a few instances of modern naval battles between single ships and fleets.

When two adverse ships come in sight of each other upon the ocean, accident decides, usually, which is to windward. To be to windward, or to the side from which the wind comes, is always esteemed an advantage. If the weather ship be of inferior force, it enables her to keep out of action much longer, and, though a poorer sailer, she may do so until the intervention of night increases the chances of escape. If, however, the weather ship be of superior force, she is enabled to bear at once down, and direct her head upon the enemy, and, having the advantage in sailing, must soon be alongside of her. We will, however, suppose a case in which two equal ships meet, and are mutually anxous to engage. Then, also, the weather

gage is an advantage, for the ship to le ward, careering to the breeze, exposes her side below wind and water, and, if struck there, and afterwards forced to tack and change her careen, or if merely brought upright, the shot-holes thus made are thrown out of the reach of repairs from without, and may cause her sinking. The ship to windward, on the contrary, has her lee-side exposed to the attack, and the ordinary water-line depressed below the surface, in proportion to the strength of the breeze. In this situation, if she receives dangerous shot-holes at the water's edge, by changing her tack, she may bring them above the surface, so as to stop the leaks. Being to windward, moreover, confers the advantage of heaving up at pleasure to cross an enemy's bow, or stern, for the purpose of a raking fire.

Assuming the advantage of the weathergage, let us prepare for action. Topsails, top-gallant-sails, jib and spanker, with the courses hauled up, ready to be set again, are good sails to fight under, for with them your ship is under perfect command to advance, manœuvre, or lie to. If there is an appearance of squally weather, it is well to have a reef in the topsails, in anticipation. The crew are called to quarters by beat of drum, every man going to the station which has been rendered familiar to him by frequent training, under the eye of his officers. The commander, standing in a conspicuous station on the quarter-deck, watches his own ship and the enemy, and conveys the order that the occasion may require by voice, or through the medium of his aids. Under him, the first lieutenant commands the offensive and defensive operations, and effects the various evolutions which he may direct, in relation to the position of the ship. The clues are stoppered, to keep the sails spread in the event of the sheets being shot away, and the yards are hung in chains, to obviate a like inconvenience from the cutting of the ties. The carpenter rigs the pumps to prepare for a leak, collects his shot-plugs to stop holes in the side, and fishes of wood to strengthen a mast, or yard, that may be wounded, and in danger of falling. The surgeon prepares, in the cockpit, to relieve the wounded. Tubs of water are collected in the tops, channels, and on deck, to be ready to extinguish fire; the decks are wet, to prevent the explosion of powder, and put out sparks that may fall there, and also sanded to prevent the men from slipping when splashy with blood or water. Finally, plenty of wads and shot, round, grape and canister, are collected beside the

guns, and the magazine is opened and lit by the gunner and his crew, who prepare to pass the cartridges to the powder-boys.

And now, having given three cheers, you bear down upon the enemy. It is a great object, in battering from ship to ship, to rake your enemy, if possible; that is, to get across his bow, or stern, out of reach of his guns, whilst yours sweep the whole length of his deck, with fatal execution. If it is desirable to rake your enemy, it is equally so to avoid being raked in return. This double advantage can only be attained by superior sailing, or by great skill in manoeuvring. In directing your fire, it is best to aim between wind and water, and also in the direction of the masts, for in this way the enemy may be soonest disabled, and a victory gained with the least destruction of life. If, on the contrary, your own spars be so disabled that the enemy, having the worst in other respects, might yet effect his escape, from your inability to make sail in pursuit; or even in the more desperate case of your being every way worsted, you may yet profit of your situation to bear down and board, as the last alternative. In the cast of this last chance, a hopeless cause may sometimes be restored; for, in boarding, headlong valor, oftener than numbers, decides the struggle. When the enemy signifies that he yields, by hauling down his colors, a prize-master and crew are detailed; the prisoners are removed and chained,and as much exertion is made in repairing damages as was before exercised in effecting them.

Of all the naval battles, in ancient or modern times, none has ever been more obstinately contested than that which took place, during our revolution, between the Bon Homme Richard, as she was called (after doctor Franklin's Poor Richard), and the British frigate Serapis. The first was commanded by commodore Paul Jones,the last by commodore Pearson, a very distinguished officer. The Richard carried fiftysix guns, and 380 men; the Serapis fiftynine guns, and 320 men. The former was old and decayed, with a motley battery, throwing only 282 pounds at the single broadside, and twenty of her best men, with the second lieutenant, were absent during the whole action. The Serapis, on the contrary, was a new ship, of approved construction, considered the fastest sailer in the British navy; and, besides her superiority in number of guns, they were of heavy calibre, throwing 340 pounds at a single broadside. Jones, having borne down to cut off the Baltic fleet from the harbor of Scarborough, the Serapis and

her consort stood out, to divert the attention of the American ships, and give the convoy time to escape. In this way the battle began. One of Jones's consorts engaged the consort of the Serapis; the other took no part in the action till towards its close, when it fired, with equal injury, upon both. No guns were fired from either ship until they approached within pistol shot, when Pearson cried out, "What ship is that?" This was at eight in the evening. The sky was beautifully clear, and the sea smooth;-the moon, just then rising, lit the combatants, whilst it enabled crowds of people, collected on Flamborough Head, to watch the progress of the battle. When commodore Pearson had waited in vain for an answer to his challenge, the Serapis opened a terrible fire upon the Richard. It was at once returned; but three of the Richard's heaviest guns burst at the discharge, not only becoming lost for the rest of the fight, but destroying more men than the whole broadside of the Serapis, and scattering death and confusion on every side. The battle had not continued long, ere Jones found that he was suffering so much from the Serapis being able, by her superior sailing, to choose raking positions, that he would soon have to yield if the contest continued so unequal; he therefore ordered his ship to be laid on board the Serapis. This manœuvre did not succeed, for the Richard could not bring a single gun to bear. Jones therefore backed his sails, and sheered off, when Pearson, thinking the American was about to yield, because his fire had ceased, asked him if he struck; to which Jones answered, that he had not yet begun to fight. He was not long, however, in making a commencement; for, having sailed by the Serapis, he once more put his helm up, and ran across her bow. Her jib-boom came over the Richard's poop, and Jones himself assisted the master in making the jib-stay, which had been shot away, and hung down upon his deck, fast to his mizzen-mast. At the same time, the anchor of the Serapis hooked one of the Richard's ports, so that when presently Pearson anchored, to let his enemy sweep clear of him with the tide, both ships swung beside each other, the stern of the Richard to the bow of the Serapis, and their starboard sides so close together that the guns met, muzzle to muzzle; the ranimers entered opposite ports, and were dragged from those who used them, who presently began assaulting each other. It is a singular proof of the coolness of Jones that, while engaged with the

master in making the vessels fast, he should have thought to check him for his profanity, saying, "Mr. Stacy, this is no time for swearing; in the next moment you may be in eternity. Let us do our duty." Thus grappled, the two ships kept up a long and desperate struggle for victory. In battering, the superior metal of the Serapis gave her a decided advantage; her shot went through and through the rotten sides of the Richard, cutting the men in pieces, and destroying them with splinters. The rudder was destroyed; the quarter beat in; and while the water entered on every side, one of the pumps was shot away. There was already four feet of water in the hold, and it gaining. Upon this, the carpenter, instead of concealing the ship's situation from all but the captain, cried out that she was sinking. The panic spread. The master-at-arms, moved by the supplications of a hundred English prisoners confined below, released them from irons; and the gunner ran terrified on deck, and bawling for quarters. Among the prisoners thus left at large, one of them, a ship-master, crawled through the ports to the Serapis, and told captain Pearson to hold out, for he had begun to meditate a surrender. Nevertheless, Jones quickly recovered from his desperate position. He punished the cowardice of the gunner by throwing his pistols at him, one of which fractured his skull, and precipitated him down the hatchway. At the same time, he repulsed an attempt to board from the Serapis, and removed the danger of so many prisoners at large below by employing them at the pumps, and telling them to work or sink.

Whilst the battle had taken this unfavorable turn below, the face of affairs was reversed above, by the exertions of a few men stationed in the tops of the Richard. According to Jones's orders, they had just directed their fire into the enemy's tops, until not a man remained alive, except one in the fore-top, who kept loading his musket, and dodging, now and then, from behind the mast, to fire. This bold fellow was at length struck by a ball from the Richard's main-top, and sent headlong upon deck. And now the exertions of the sharp-shooters were all turned to clearing the decks of the Serapis. Some of the bravest even passed, by the yards, into the tops of the Serapis, whence they threw stinkpots, flasks and grenades down her hatches, stifling her men, and firing the ship in various directions. At this time, both ships having taken fire, the cannonade was suspended, to extinguish it. Jones

soon renewed it, however, from some guns which alone remained in order on the forecastle, and which he directed himself. At the same time, a grenade, thrown from the Serapis's top, having bounded into the lower deck, and fired some loose powder, this communicated to the cartridges, which had been brought from the magazine faster than they were used, and laid carelessly upon the deck; and a general explosion took place, by which every man in the neighborhood was blown to pieces, or dreadfully burned. No way remained for commodore Pearson to save the remnant of his crew, but to yield; but even this it was not easy to signify, for none of his crew would take down the flag, which had been nailed, before the action, to its staff; and he was compelled to perform the perilous and humiliating task with his own hand. Thus ended the battle of the Bon Homme Richard and Serapis. The victory was dearly bought, for the carnage on both sides was terrible. The Bon Homme Richard lost three hundred men, in killed and wounded; and nearly all the last died, from the indifferent care which they received, and the dreadful gale which followed the battle. The loss of the Serapis was nearly as great. Of the men whe were blown up, some lingered until the flesh dropped from their bones, dying in excruciating agony. The Poor Richard, assailed by fire and water, was abandoned to her fate, and went down, carrying with her many of her wounded crew.

The battle of Trafalgar, which took place not many years after, is a renowned instance of naval war by fleets. It occurred near Cadiz, between the allied French and Spanish fleets, of thirty-three sail of the line, and the British fleet, of twentyseven sail. The force of the allies was far superior in ships, guns and men, and they had a brave and skilful commander in admiral Villeneuve; but there were circumstances that more than counterbalanced the disparity. The Spaniards had no national interest in the struggle, and between them and the French there was no cordiality. The allied ships, too, had been hastily refitted, and, having just put to sea, were very inefficient; for their crews, belonging, as they did, to nations which had little commercial marine and few seamen, were made up, in a great measure, of soldiers, who had never been long enough embarked to get their sea legs. The British ships, on the contrary, were in the finest order; their crews had been actively employed during years of war; they were commanded by veteran officers, each a