Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 58, Number 360, October 1845Various
Philosophy
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 58, Number 360, October 1845
Various
England -- Periodicals; Scotland -- Periodicals
At daylight next morning, Hastings examined the position of the enemy
with care, but he saw there was no hope of capturing the bomb-ketch or
any of the schooners; he therefore determined to confine his
operations to destroying them. After getting up the steam and heating
a few shot, he stood in to about three-quarters of a mile of the
Turkish ship, and going slowly round in a large circle, he brought his
long guns to bear successively, and fired them with the greatest
deliberation. He then moved out of gun-shot of the Turkish battery to
observe the effect of his fire. In about half an hour, a quantity of
smoke was observed to issue from the large Turkish vessel, which the
enemy appeared at first to disregard; but, in a short time, they
seemed to discover that their ship was on fire, for they were seen
hurrying down and rushing on board in great numbers. The carronades
were now reloaded with shells, and the long guns with large grape, and
the Karteria stood in to prevent the enemy from continuing his
endeavours to extinguish the fire. The attention of the Turks was thus
distracted; the flames soon burst through the decks of the ship, and,
catching the rigging, rendered all approach to her impossible. In a
short time she was a mass of flame; and her guns to the land-side,
having been loaded, went off, discharging their shot into the battery
formed for her protection. As her upper works burned away, she drifted
from her station; but getting again on shore against the rocks, her
magazine exploded, and the remains of her hull, with all her guns,
sank in deep water. The three schooners also received several shells,
and were so injured, as to be rendered unable to put to sea without
undergoing great repairs.
The loss of the Greek squadron in this expedition was very small; only
three men were killed and two wounded. But one of the killed was James
Hall, an Englishman on board the Karteria--an old sailor of a most
excellent character, and possessed of considerable knowledge in every
branch of his profession. He was killed by a twelve-pound shot from
the battery at Tricheri. This shot, after breaking the claw of an
anchor, rebounded, and, in falling, struck Hall in the pit of the
stomach, and rolled on the deck, as if it had hardly touched his
clothes. He fell instantly, and was taken up quite dead--the usual
tranquil smile his features bore still lingering on his lips. Hall was
not only a most excellent sailor, but, a truly honest man, and he was
long remembered and deeply regretted by all on board the Karteria. His
remains were committed to the deep, Captain Hastings reading the
funeral service; for the English insisted that he would have preferred
a sailor's funeral to being interred on shore in a Greek churchyard.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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