weather still continued
boisterous, Captain Fanshawe, having taken the opinion of the
officers, judged that there was no other alternative for saving the
lives of his crew than by surrendering to the enemy. At four o'clock
the cable was cut, and they made sail for the Helder Point, where they
surrendered to the Dutch Vice-Admiral, De Wintner.

The Hero went to pieces during the night: in the morning not a vestige
of her was to be seen. Every exertion was made by the Dutch squadron
to save the crew, but the weather was so stormy, that all their
efforts proved abortive, and thus every soul on board perished.

In the year 1798, Captain Newman distinguished himself by a most
gallant action which he fought off the coast of Ireland. He was then
in command of the Mermaid, 32-gun frigate, and was cruising in
consort with the Revolutionnaire, of 38 guns, Captain Twysden, and the
Kangaroo, gun-brig, commanded by Captain Brace. On the 15th October,
when near Black Cod Bay, two very large French frigates were seen and
pursued, but they were lost sight of during the night. The next
morning, however, the Mermaid and Kangaroo made out one of the
Frenchmen, and the Kangaroo came up with her the same afternoon, but
was speedily disabled by the heavy fire of her opponent, and compelled
to drop astern. The Mermaid kept on in chase, and engaged the French
vessel, which proved to be the Loire, 46-gun frigate, on the morning
of the 17th October. Early in the action the French attempted to
board, but were frustrated by the skilful handling of the Mermaid,
which enabled her to close within pistol-shot of the Loire, when the
latter's foretopmast was soon shot away, and the fire from her great
guns nearly silenced, though a continuous storm of musketry was still
kept up from her decks. Upon attempting to rake her opponent, the
Mermaid's mizenmast unfortunately went by the board, so that she fell
off, and the maintop-mast almost instantly followed. By this time the
rigging of the English frigate was completely cut to pieces, and her
boats destroyed; she was also making a great deal of water, having
received several shots between wind and water. In this crippled
condition, Captain Newman had no other alternative but to discontinue
the action. This was done without any attempt on the part of the Loire
to renew the engagement, the French being no doubt only too glad to
get rid of her spirited antagonist, though she was only half the size
of their