of him; the long guns were loaded with round and grape, the carronades with grape only; our sail was reduced to the topsails, and topgallant sails, the main-sail furled, and the boats dropped astern in tow.  The ships were now steering to their appointed stations, and the gun-boats showing their eagerness, by a crowd of sail, to get alongside the batteries.  As we drew towards the shore, the Algerines were observed loading their guns, and a vast number of spectators were assembled on the beach, idly gazing at the approach of the squadron, seemingly quite unconscious of what was about to happen.  Far different were appearances at the mouth of the mole as it opened; the row-boats, fully manned, were lying on their oars, quite prepared for the attack, and we fully expected they would attempt to board, should an opportunity offer; each boat had a flag hanging over the stern.  A frigate was moored across the mouth of the mole, and a small brig was at anchor outside of her.

At fifteen minutes before three P.M. the Queen Charlotte came to an anchor by the stern, at the distance of sixty yards from the beach, and, as was ascertained by measurement, ninety yards from the muzzles of the guns of the mole batteries, unmolested, and with all the quietude of a friendly harbour; her flag flew at the main, and the colours at the peak; her starboard broadside flanked the whole range of batteries from the mole head to the lighthouse; her topsail yards (as were those of the squadron,) remained aloft, to be secure from fire, and the sails brought snugly to the yards by head-lines previously fitted; the topgallant sails and small sails only were furled, so that we had no man unnecessarily exposed aloft.

The Leander, following the motions of the admiral, was brought up with two anchors by the stern, let go on his larboard beam, veered away, until she obtained a position nearly a-head of him, then let go an anchor under foot, open by this to a battery on the starboard side at the bottom of the mole, and to the Fish-market battery on the larboard side.  At this moment Lord Exmouth was seen waving his hat on the poop to the idlers on the beach to get out of the way, then a loud cheer was heard, and the whole of the Queen Charlotte’s tremendous broadside was thrown into the batteries abreast of her; this measure was promptly taken, as the smoke of a gun was observed to issue from some part of the enemy’s works, so that the sound of the British guns was heard almost in the same instant with that to which the smoke belonged.  The cheers of the Queen Charlotte were loudly echoed by those of the Leander, and the contents of her starboard broadside as quickly followed, carrying destruction into the groups of row-boats; as the smoke opened, the fragments of boats were seen floating, their crews swimming and scrambling, as many as escaped the shot, to the shore; another broadside annihilated them.  The enemy was not slack in returning this warm salute, for almost before the shot escaped from our