And when they had sung their songs, one who could talk stood up to tell anew the story of this, the first battle in which the Americans had fought with a squadron, and the first battle in the history of the world when the commander of a British squadron had been compelled to haul down his flag. It was a story that young and old heard with rapt and silent interest, until at its close they rose and with the thrill of triumph in their veins, shouted to the immortal words in which Perry announced his victory: “We have met the enemy and they are ours; two ships, two brigs, one schooner, and one sloop.” CHAPTER XIV INCIDENTS OF THE BATTLE ON LAKE ERIE TWO OF THE ENEMY’S VESSELS THAT TRIED TO GET AWAY--A YANKEE SAILOR’S REASON FOR WANTING ONE MORE SHOT--WHEN PERRY RETURNED TO THE _LAWRENCE_--THE DEAD AND WOUNDED--EFFECT OF THE VICTORY ON THE PEOPLE--HONORS TO THE VICTORS--THE CASE OF LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT--ULTIMATE FATE OF SOME OF THE SHIPS. Although victory was declared when, at 3 o’clock in the afternoon of September 10, 1813, Captain Barclay of the British squadron ordered a white flag displayed, the contest was not wholly ended, nor is the story of it yet complete. The British schooner _Chippewa_ and the sloop _Little Belt_ had been shunted off to the westward by the exigencies of battle, and their commanders, taking advantage of the veiling cloud of smoke, made sail in the hope of escaping back to the Detroit River. Stephen Champlin, who commanded the _Scorpion_, and Thomas Holdup, in command of the _Trippe_, went in chase and captured them, although it was 10 o’clock at night before Champlin got back with the _Little Belt_ in tow. And thus it happened that Champlin fired the last shot of the battle. [Illustration: Stephen Champlin. _From a painting at the Naval Academy, Annapolis._] One incident, occurring on the _Somers_, remains to be told. It was on this vessel that Elliott came into the battle the second time, and he says: “I was directing the forward gun--the schooner having but two--and after the enemy had struck ordered to cease firing, but the man at the after gun having lost his fire by the intervening rigging, was in the act of firing again. I struck him with the flat of my sword, saying: “‘You scoundrel, do you mean to fire at him after he has struck?’ “‘Just this once more, Captain Elliott,’ said he. “‘What do you want to fire for?’ “‘I want a little satisfaction just for myself. I was pressed nine times in their service.’”