"At the dawn of day we saw the Venerable close to a French line-of-battle ship, and drawing up with her by the aid of a light air off the Spanish shore. At five o'clock the Venerable opened her fire upon the enemy. The breeze dying away, the two ships were enveloped in a cloud of smoke. The Caesar, at the distance of about a mile and a half, was perfectly becalmed. The boats were sent ahead, in hopes of being able to tow her within gun-shot of the enemy. In the course of a short time, a light breeze having dispersed the dense cloud of smoke which the fire of the two ships had occasioned, we discovered the Venerable with her main-mast gone, and her opponent availing herself of the air from the eastward to draw away, and pursue her course for Cadiz, firing her stern-chasers at the Venerable. The remainder of the enemy's squadron, consisting of five sail of the line and one frigate, in which both the French and Spanish admirals were embarked, were discerned in the N.W., at a considerable distance, coming down with a westerly wind. "The Superb having secured the prize, was approaching us from the S.E., and the Spencer and Audacious were also to the southward. Such was the relative situation of the squadrons, when, at eight minutes past eight, the Venerable made the signal of having struck on a shoal. The Admiral, very apprehensive of her falling into the hands of the enemy, sent me with discretional orders to Captain Hood, that, should he not be able to get her off the shoal, he might put his men into the Thames, and burn the Venerable, making the signal at the same time for the Thames to close with the Venerable as soon as possible. I had scarcely left the Caesar when I saw the Venerable's fore-mast go over the side; and before I reached her the mizen-mast followed. I found her, on going on board, a perfect wreck, striking on the shoal, and the shot from the stern-chase guns of the Formidable, her opponent, going over her. The gallant Hood was seated on a gun on the quarter-deck, cheerfully waiting for the assistance which he knew the Admiral would send to him as soon as the wind would enable him, and ready to take advantage of any circumstance that might occur. "Having delivered my message from the Admiral, he said, 'Tell Sir James I hope it is not yet so bad with the old Venerable; I hope to get her off soon. Let the Thames stay by me, in readiness to receive our people. These rascals shall not have her.' I returned to my ship; the breeze sprung up; and the Thames closing with the Venerable, enabled her to heave off the shoal, and the enemy availed himself of the wind to get into Cadiz. The Venerable was soon under jury-masts and in tow of the Spencer, steering for Gibraltar, followed by the rest of the squadron; where we all anchored, with our prize, the San Antonio, of seventy-four guns, at 6 P.M. on the 14th.