“In the month of March, 1793, a small vessel arrived under a flag of truce from the island of St. Pierre, with a letter from the Governor, requesting to know what news had arrived from Europe. It was addressed to the Admiral, and contained evidently an indirect offer of surrender of the islands to his Britannic Majesty, made with a view of putting them under our protection, and of saving them from the sanguinary republicans, who had begun to shew themselves amongst the population. The Admiral was of course in England; and the question was, who should open the letter. There was a military force of one company of the fourth regiment, and another of artillery; and the naval force consisted of the two cutters, Placentia and Trepassey, commanded by Lieutenant Tucker and myself. The dispatches of course were received by Mr. Tucker, who forthwith called upon the captains of the army to consult as to what steps should be taken. “At this meeting the question arose as to who was the representative of the Governor. The commission of the Governor stated, that in case of his _death_, the government was to devolve upon the senior officer of the navy; and it was maintained that the provision made against death, must be equally applicable to his absence. This was denied on the part of the military officers; and until this point was settled no consultation could take place. Mr. Tucker acted for himself, and proceeded to collect a body of volunteers on the island, with which he contemplated sailing for St. Pierre, as soon as a sufficient number could be got together. In the meantime he sent me in the Trepassey, with a flag of truce, to give the information to the Governor of St. Pierre, and to prepare him for the event, that he might be in readiness to act in concert. “On my arrival I found that the island had been taken possession of the day before, by a detachment from Halifax; and the Alligator frigate, which had brought them, was then lying in the harbour. The Trepassey was immediately dispatched to take possession of Miguelon. On the return of the Trepassey to St. John’s I found the Pluto, sloop of war, had arrived, having captured a French corvette from Martinique. News also from Europe had reached us, with an account of the murder of the French king, and the commencement of the war. The action of the Boston and the Ambuscade soon after took place. The Admiral (Sir Richard King) reached his station in July; and having received a letter which informed me, that it was the wish of my friend, Captain E. Pakenham, to have me as his first lieutenant in the Resistance, of forty-four guns, I procured the Admiral’s permission to go to England, taking my passage in the Cleopatra, with that most amiable and distinguished character, Sir Alexander Ball; a circumstance invaluable to me from its being the means of my acquiring the friendship of such a man.