Such being the spirit in which the French Privateers were fought, it is not wonderful that they committed great ravages among our commerce. The “Duke of Marlborough” was converted into a Privateer, and on her first voyage captured H.M. sloop “Lily.” The sloop in her turn was rechristened “General Erneuf,” the original vessel of the name having been lost in some unexplained manner. The name had lost its luck, however, for she was quickly brought to account by H.M. sloop “Reynard,” Captain Jeremiah Coghlen, who in thirty-five minutes reduced her to such a condition of helplessness that her captain blew her up in preference to surrendering. With facts such as these before us, it is impossible to make light of the actions fought by the Falmouth Packets against these formidable adversaries. The merit of a fight does not depend on the numbers of the men engaged, but on the quality of the defence offered by the weaker party. The character of a forlorn hope attaches to every one of the battles into which these little vessels carried so high a spirit; and it must always be a matter of regret that the records of so many of them have been allowed to perish. There lies before the writer a list of actions fought in the years 1804 and 1805, every one of which might well be thought to deserve some record, had not the details of them been forgotten. It was justly accounted no disgrace to Captain Bull to surrender to the “General Erneuf”; yet Captain Patterson, in the “Eliza,” fought and beat this very Privateer a few months later. The action lasted two hours and a half; and one would give much to know what passed during that time, for it is certain that the Privateer did not drop the prey in which she had fixed her teeth without hard and heavy fighting. In May, 1805, Captain Mudge, in the “Queen Charlotte,” defended himself for two hours against a Privateer of 16 guns and 110 men. Captain Mudge had seen much service in the navy, and had been present at the engagement with Admiral Langara off Cape St. Vincent in 1781. He was a brave and experienced officer, of whom it might be said with confidence that he fought to the very utmost before he surrendered. It is unfortunate that these and many another gallant fight can never now be described; but we are happily in possession of fuller details of a very important public service rendered about this time by a Falmouth officer, on almost the only occasion when the forces of a Packet were employed, and properly employed, in an action which might have been avoided, but was deliberately sought. The island of Dominica, in some respects the most beautiful of all the West Indian group, was an object of continual envy on the part of the French. Lying as it did almost within sight of their own island of Guadeloupe, it seemed not impossible that by a sudden attack it might be captured; and it is strange that the danger of such a surprise was not more carefully guarded against by the English Government.