The Essex Junior brought back the prize-crews and prize-masters who had
navigated the captured ships to Valparaiso, and with the others Farragut
now rejoined the frigate. During their absence Porter had taken four
more valuable vessels. According to his information, there remained but
one uncaptured of the British whalers which centered around the islands.
The Essex had taken eleven; and among these, six carried letters of
marque from their Government, authorizing them to seize for their own
profit vessels of a nation at war with Great Britain. These powers would
doubtless have been exercised at the expense of the unprepared American
whalers but for the opportune appearance of the Essex, which had also
released the vessels of her country from the ports to which, at the time
of her arrival, they had been driven by Peruvian privateers. Porter's
work in this region was therefore finished. He had entirely broken up an
important branch of British commerce, inflicting damage estimated at
nearly three million dollars; but the coming of an enemy's force
considerably superior to his own, an event wholly beyond his control,
reversed all the conditions and imposed upon him some new line of
action. For this he was already prepared, and he took his decision with
the promptitude characteristic of the man. The commander of the British
squadron, Captain Hillyar, was personally well known to him, being an
old acquaintance in the Mediterranean; and he doubtless realized from
observation, as well as from his past record, that his enemy was not a
man to throw away, through any carelessness or false feeling of
chivalry, a single advantage conferred by his superior force. On the
other hand, Porter himself was not one quietly to submit to superiority
without an effort to regain the control which the chances of naval war
might yet throw into his hands. He was determined to fight, if any fair
chance offered; but to do so it was necessary to put his ship in the
highest state of efficiency, which could only be done by leaving the
spot where he was known to be, and, throwing the enemy off his scent,
repairing to one where the necessary work could be performed in
security. Two days after the arrival of the Essex Junior all the vessels
sailed from the Galapagos Islands for the Marquesas. On the 25th of
October they anchored at one of this group, called Nukahiva Island.

During the six weeks the Essex lay at this anchorage her crew bore a
part in sev