on his face; they were easily traced, for it was besmeared with smoke and powder. The _Defence_, Captain Gambier, got into the midst of the French ships, lost her main and mizen masts and behaved in the most gallant manner. Captain Berkeley of the _Marlborough_ was carried off deck wounded, and the second lieutenant, Seymour, afterwards Sir Michael, lost an arm. The ship was reduced to a wreck, but was fought to the last by Lieutenant Monckton. While the bowsprit of the _Impétueux_ was over the _Marlborough's_ quarters, a sailor, leaping over, said he would pay them a visit. He was called to take a sword. 'I'll find one there,' he said, and actually came back with two of the enemy's cutlasses in his hands. The _Brunswick_ had a figure-head of the duke, with a laced cocked-hat on; the hat was shot off. The crew thinking that a prince of that house should not be uncovered in the face of an enemy, sent a request to their captain to supply the loss. He ordered his servant to give them his cocked-hat. The carpenter nailed it on, and there it remained until the battle was over. These incidents, amidst a terrific fire, paint our sailors as they were and as they are. Harvey, the captain of the _Brunswick_, died of his wounds." In less than an hour after the engagement had become close and general the French admiral, who had been engaged by Lord Howe's ship, the _Queen Charlotte_, made all sail and crowded off, followed by nearly all the ships in his van that were in a condition to carry sail; ten or twelve of those that were dismasted, or much crippled, were left behind. Had the British fleet not been very much disabled all these must have been captured; but in consequence of their state several of them escaped; two or three, even under a sprit sail singly or a smaller sail, hoisted on the stump of the foremast, were able to get away. Six, however, were secured and captured--viz., _La Juste_ of eighty guns; _La Sans Pareille_ of eighty guns; _L'Amérique_ of seventy-four guns; _L'Achille_ of seventy-four guns; _L'Impétueux_ of seventy-four guns; and the _Northumberland_ of seventy-four guns; these added to _Le Vengeur_ and _Le Jacobin_, which were also sunk, made the whole loss of the French amount to eight ships of the line. The return of [those] killed on board of the English fleet was two hundred and seventy-two, and of wounded seven hundred and eighty-seven. The loss of the French is not accurately known, but it is believed to have been much greater than that of the English. On board of _La Montagne_ the captain was killed and nearly three hundred men were either killed or wounded. In the ships that were taken six hundred and ninety men were killed and five hundred and eighty wounded; besides, it is supposed that three hundred and twenty perished in _Le Vengeur_.