About half-past seven, the van division, commanded by Sir Samuel Hood, got the breeze; while the centre and rear, in which was the Russell, continued to be becalmed. This of course caused a separation, but did not deter Sir Samuel Hood from advancing, although he had only eight ships to fourteen of the enemy. In the mean time, the French ship seen in the north-west, which had got the breeze, boldly stood on and weathered the Alfred, the van-ship of Sir Samuel Hood's division, which bore up to allow her to pass; and, no signal having been made to engage, not a shot was fired. At nine o'clock the action began, and was maintained with determined bravery for upwards of an hour, the enemy's ships which had the breeze having borne down upon and engaged this division; the Barfleur and others had, at times, three to one opposed to them; and in this attack there can be but one opinion, that the Comte de Grasse displayed great professional ability. At length the leading ships of the centre got up with the enemy's rear, and were followed by the Duke, Formidable, and Namur; the Arrogant lost her main-top-mast, as well as the Royal Oak. The rear squadron, commanded by Admiral Drake, now came up, and the Comte de Grasse prudently hauled his wind; and as his ships sailed better than the English, he succeeded in gradually drawing off, and by half-past one his fleet were all out of the reach of shot. Captain Bayne, of the Alfred, lost his life in this his sixth encounter with the enemy; and it is said that he bled to death after his leg was shot off, before he was carried to the cockpit. In the action of this day the Russell had only a small share, as she belonged to the rear division of the fleet, and, being becalmed, could not get up until the enemy had hauled off. The Royal Oak, Montagu, and Alfred were the ships which suffered most, but not so much as to prevent their being repaired at sea; while two of the enemy's ships were so materially disabled as to oblige them to bear up for Guadaloupe. The necessary repairs of these ships were not completed before the 11th, during which time the enemy, by carrying a great press of sail, had gained so far to windward as to weather the Saints, and were nearly hull down; and, as it was supposed that the Comte de Grasse meant to abandon to their fate two of his ships of the line that had been so much damaged in the late action as not to be able to keep company, all hope of being able to come up with them seemed now to vanish. In the mean time the line had been inverted, which brought Rear-admiral Drake's division in the van, and that of Rear-admiral Hood, which had been engaged, in the rear. The signal having been made for a general chase, the two ships above mentioned would have been cut off, had not De Grasse been induced to bear down to their relief. This brought the enemy so far to leeward, that the hope of forcing them to engage was revived.