But here was a squadron of more than seventy vessels to be gathered from several ports in the United States, from wide dispersion on the cruising grounds of an intense naval warfare, from several ship-yards of Spain and France, exposed to storms, to shipwreck, to misunderstood orders, to delays in equipping the ships, to the antagonisms and jealousies of rival officers, and to meet, at an almost unknown island, thousands of miles from the place of departure of each ship. The fleet of the Marquis de Vaudreuil was swept, by the trade winds and the strong current of the Gulf Stream, sixty miles west of Port Cabello. It required three toilsome weeks to recover this distance, beating against wind and tide. The accompanying transports, being heavily laden merchant ships, and not fleet sailors, bearing stores of provisions and ammunition and many land troops, were unable to recover the lost space, against wind and flood. After many ineffectual attempts they were compelled to relinquish the endeavor. They left the squadron, and bore away to the coast of San Domingo. One of the finest of the war-ships, the Burgoyne, of seventy-four guns, in a dark and stormy night, ran upon a rock, and was totally lost, with two hundred of her crew. On the 18th of February, 1783, the Triomphante reached Port Cabello. The Auguste and Pluton, which had been separated from the fleet by the storm, near the Bay of Fundy, had arrived a few days before. Soon after, the remaining war-ships of the squadron, one after another, came in. The Spanish fleet was to sail from Havana, under command of Don Salano. He had promised to be at the rendezvous punctually. But he did not keep his word. Probably some pique stood in the way. Nothing was seen of him, or heard from him. The Spanish government was dissatisfied with his course, ordered him home, and another was placed in command.