At daybreak of September 10, Perry’s lookout discovered the approaching British fleet; the American ships at once weighed anchor, in twelve minutes they were under sail and standing toward the enemy. The wind was light and the lake calm, so that both sides found difficulty in getting into position, but by noon they were drawn up for battle. The British vessels were in a single column, the American in a somewhat more irregular formation, and each vessel opposed one of its own tonnage and build in the enemy’s fleet. Barclay commanded the _Detroit_, a ship of four hundred and ninety tons carrying nineteen guns, and opposite him was Perry’s flagship, the _Lawrence_, with twenty guns. At a quarter before twelve the British opened fire, and the Americans replied. Finding the British fire at long range very destructive, especially to his own vessel, Perry set more sail and passed the word by hail of trumpet for the whole line to close up and advance nearer the enemy. For two hours the fleets manœuvred in this position, the _Lawrence_ within two hundred and fifty yards of the _Detroit_ and both vessels pouring a heavy fire into each other. A second vessel, the _Queen Charlotte_, came to the support of Barclay, and Perry’s flagship, after sustaining the action for over two hours, was seriously disabled. Every gun was rendered useless, the greater part of the crew killed or wounded, and the rigging shot away. At 2.30 the English commander saw the _Lawrence_ drop from her position and a small boat pass from her to the _Niagara_, a vessel under command of Lieutenant Elliot, which had been at some distance from the main engagement and was at this time comparatively fresh. As Barclay wrote in his official report, “The American commodore, seeing that as yet the day was against him, made a noble and, alas! too successful an effort to regain it; for he bore up [in the _Niagara_] and supported by his small vessels, passed within pistol-shot and took a raking position on our bow.” Up to this time the result of the action had been in doubt. For some reason the portion of the fleet under Elliot had pursued an independent course, and Perry with the vessels nearest him had been too hard pressed. A bitter dispute as to the cause of this condition was waged by Elliot’s friends in the ensuing years after the close of the war. Whatever the reason, it was evident to all that the American force was not in its most effective position because so many of the vessels were fighting at long range instead of at close. When Elliot came up near enough to the disabled flagship to allow Perry to go on board, the advantage was for the first time on the American side. Perry was able to bear down on the _Detroit_ and pour into her volleys of shot so that, with American vessels on every side aiding in the attack, she soon became completely disabled. The topmasts and rigging were cut away, the hull was shattered, and the vessel became unmanageable. Within half an hour