While the principal part of our force was thus driving out the Chinese on one side of the fort, another and smaller party, consisting of volunteers from the Nemesis and Calliope, were hastening on towards the gate at the opposite end, at the extremity of the river-front of the fort, the Chinese retreating before them. Close by the gate stood a house, in which many of them took refuge; but finding that there was no hope of escape, and that resistance would be useless, they immediately surrendered. The great object now to be attained was to board the Cambridge, which was lying abreast of the fort. Unfortunately no Chinese boat was to be found along the shore, and it was quite tantalizing for the moment to see a prize so near without the means of reaching her. At this juncture Lieut. Watson, first-lieutenant of the Calliope, gallantly succeeded in dragging one of his boats across the rafts, and launched her on the other side. He then took on board some of the little party on shore, who seeing a body of Chinese crowding upon the deck of the Cambridge, had continued firing upon them. The boat instantly pulled off to the Cambridge, under the command of Lieut. Watson, having with him Mr. Browne, the master of the Calliope, Capt. Hall, and Mr. Galbraith, of the Nemesis, together with Mr. St. Leger, and about nine or ten men. The Chinese were so alarmed at the sudden attack upon all their defences at once, and at the capture of the fort, as well as at the loss they had already sustained on board, that they offered little or no resistance; most of them jumped overboard on the starboard side as the boarding party climbed up on the port side. Many of the Chinese must have been drowned in attempting to swim on shore, as there were no boats at hand to pick them up, and their own redoubtable war-junks had already made the best of their way up the river, for fear of meeting the same fate as the Cambridge. A number of dead and wounded were found upon the decks, strong evidence of the well-directed shot of our ships. She mounted altogether thirty-four guns of English manufacture; and it was rather surprising to see how well the Chinese had prepared for action, the guns being in perfect order, fire-buckets distributed about the decks, and everything very clean and well-arranged. It now became a question whether she was to be blown up or retained as a prize; but it was decided by Captain Herbert, that she should be set on fire and destroyed, principally with a view to strike terror into the Chinese, far and wide, by the explosion; and partly, also, because she was an old and useless ship. Preparations, therefore, were at once made by Lieutenant Watson, with this object. The wounded were all carried on shore, and every part of the ship was searched with great care, to ascertain that there were not any Chinamen remaining concealed. The few stores found on board were of very little value, and at five o'clock she was set on fire.