At length the time came for the "Essex" to depart from the island. The sailors were not happy at the prospect of leaving so pleasant a refuge, and there was some disposition to murmur, as might have been expected. But the captain sternly checked all insubordination, and on the 9th of December the "Essex" and the "Essex Junior," repaired, and well supplied with provisions and stores, sailed away for Valparaiso. The "New Zealander" sailed soon after on her way to the United States, and the "Greenwich," with the "Hammond" and "Seringapatam," was left in the harbor in charge of Lieutenant Gamble of the marines, who was ordered to start for home in five months unless the "Essex" returned before that time. The "Essex" did not return, however, and Lieutenant Gamble found his position full of difficulty. The few men who were left behind became demoralized, and in May a party of the sailors, among them several who had deserted from the prizes, mutinied, and seizing the "Seringapatam," made their escape from the island. The natives now became hostile, and Gamble, after losing some more men through treachery, set fire to the "Greenwich" and left the Marquesas in the "Hammond." He took with him all that remained of the force,--a midshipman, three marines, and three seamen. On her way to the Sandwich Islands the "Hammond" was captured by the enemy's sloop "Cherub;" and Gamble and his midshipman, with their feeble crew of half a dozen men, were made prisoners. Meanwhile the "Essex," with her consort the "Essex Junior," made her way safely to Valparaiso, arriving there early in February. Four days later the English frigate "Phoebe" appeared off the harbor accompanied by the sloop-of-war "Cherub," which had been sent out to capture the "Essex." The two ships were much more than a match for Commodore Porter's force, for the "Essex Junior" carried such light guns that she was of no use at all, and the "Phoebe" alone was about as large as the American frigate. Besides, the "Phoebe" was armed with long guns, while the "Essex" had mostly carronades; so that if Captain Hillyar, the English commander, could choose his distance, he would have the "Essex" at his mercy; for, as we must remember, the long guns carried much farther than the carronades, and if the ships were far apart would hit their mark at every shot, while all the projectiles from the small guns would fall short. [Illustration]