erty; but unless wounded and maimed, I never will be again
a prisoner to the British.

The American sailor has a beloved home; he was born and brought up in
a house that had a "fire place" in it.--Many of them here, in
captivity, have wives and children, most of them have parents, and
brothers and sisters. These poor fellows partake, at times, the misery
of their dear relatives, at three thousand miles distance. They
recollect their aged mothers, and decrepid fathers, worn down with
age, labor, and anxious thoughts for the welfare of their absent sons.
Some have wives, and little children, weeping for their absent
husbands, and suffering for the good and comfortable things of this
life, having none to help them. In families, neighborhoods, and
villages, men are supported by leaning on each other; or by supporting
each other; and we have here endeavored to do so too; but now our
numbers are thinning, some of our best, our steadiest, and most
prudent men, have left us, and gone to Dartmoor Prison. I have felt
very low spirited for some days past. It is true, our numbers are now
so few, that we can run about, and beguile the tedious hours by a
greater variety of exercise and amusement than heretofore; but then,
our soberest men are gone, and left behind some of the most noisy and
disorderly of our whole crew; and young as I am, I am little disposed
to make a riot or noise, merely for noise sake.

A disturbance took place last night, which deprived all of us of
sleep. It was owing to the unaccommodating disposition of our
commander, Mr. Osmore. About thirty prisoners were selected, and
called aft, with their hammocks all tied up, to be ready to go off
early in the morning in a tender. The tender did not arrive as was
expected; the sergeant was ordered to count us over in the evening to
go to rest; whereupon the thirty drafted men went aft, and requested
their hammocks to sleep in; Mr. Osmore replied, that, as they were to
go off early in the morning, they would only detain the tender, if
they had their hammocks to take down and pack up again, on which
account he refused to let them have their usual accommodations for
sleeping.--The men went below, very much dissatisfied at the churlish
disposition of the commander; and as they despaired being able to
sleep themselves, on bare boards, they all determined that Osmore
should not himself sleep. They waited quietly till about ten o'clock,
when the commander usually went to bed