16. On the 18th of October the American _Wasp_, under Captain Jones, fell in with a fleet of British merchantmen off the coast of Virginia. The squadron was under protection of the _Frolic_, commanded by Captain Whinyates. A terrible engagement ensued, lasting for three quarters of an hour. Finally, the American crew boarded the _Frolic_ and struck the British flag. Soon afterwards the _Poictiers_, a British seventy-four gun ship, bore down upon the scene, captured the _Wasp_, and retook the wreck of the _Frolic_. 17. On the 25th of the month Commodore Decatur, commanding the frigate _United States_, captured the British _Macedonian_, a short distance west of the Canary Islands. The loss of the enemy in killed and wounded amounted to more than a hundred men. On the 12th of December the _Essex_, commanded by Captain Porter, captured the _Nocton_, a British packet, having on board fifty-five thousand dollars in specie. On the 29th of December the _Constitution_, under command of Commodore Bainbridge, met the _Java_ on the coast of Brazil. A furious battle ensued, continuing for two hours. The _Java_ was reduced to a wreck before the flag was struck. The crew and passengers, numbering upward of four hundred, were transferred to the _Constitution_, and the hull was burned at sea. The news of these victories roused the enthusiasm of the people. [Sidenote: Van Rensselaer at Queenstown.] 18. On the 13th of October a thousand men, commanded by General Stephen Van Rensselaer, crossed the Niagara River to capture Queenstown. They were resisted at the water's edge; but the British batteries on the heights were finally carried. The enemy's forces, returning to the charge, were a second time repulsed. The Americans intrenched themselves, and waited for reinforcements. None came; and, after losing a hundred and sixty men, they were then obliged to surrender. General Van Rensselaer resigned his command, and was succeeded by General Alexander Smyth. 19. The Americans now rallied at Black Rock, a few miles north of Buffalo. From this point, on the 28th of November, a company was sent across to the Canada shore, but General Smyth ordered the advance party to return. A few days afterward, another crossing was planned, with the same results. The militia became mutinous. Smyth was charged with cowardice and deposed from his command. In the autumn of 1812 Madison was reelected President; the choice for Vice-president fell on Elbridge Gerry, of Massachusetts. CHAPTER XXXIII. WAR OF 1812.--EVENTS OF 1813.