loss of the
West Indian captures, but of the British colonies of St. Kitt's, Nevis,
Montserrat, Dominica, and St. Vincent. It was by the special request of
the king that Rodney had been again sent out, and before his departure
he declared that either the French admiral or himself should be
captured. Lord Sandwich, to impress him the more, on the eve of his
departure said: "The fate of this Empire is in your hands, and I have no
wish that it should be in those of any other."

Meanwhile the Count de Grasse was at Martinique, preparing a large fleet
for the final reduction of the British by conquering Jamaica. He was
expecting large reinforcements of French vessels and troops, which
Rodney tried unsuccessfully to cut off. On the 8th of April the French
were reported as having sailed for Hispaniola, where they were to be
joined by a Spanish contingent, and Rodney at once sailed in pursuit.
The result was that, at last, on the 12th, a decisive victory was gained
off Dominica. Admiral de Grasse was captured, many of his fleet
destroyed, and the whole expedition broken up. The British West Indies
were thus saved, and the people of Jamaica erected a statue to the
gallant admiral. Rodney, in concluding his despatch giving the account,
said it was his most ardent wish that the British flag should for ever
float in every part of the globe, and there is no doubt that this
triumph conduced to such an end. It stands prominently forth as the
greatest sea fight of the age, and was only eclipsed by those of Nelson,
who we may state received much of his naval training in the West Indies.

In January, 1783, peace was again restored. Great Britain lost her
American colonies, restored those she had taken from France and Holland,
and got back her own, except the island of Tobago, which was ceded to
France. From Spain she got the right to cut logwood between the rivers
Hondo and Belize, on the understanding that all other places on the
coasts of Central America should be abandoned, and that no forts be
erected on the concession.

For ten years there was peace, and during that time the planting
colonies were developed to a wonderful extent, while those dependent on
the contraband traffic became much depressed. The English settlements
increased in value so much, that in 1788 they were calculated to have
under cultivation two million and a half acres, with five hundred and
sixty thousand slaves. These were the palmy days of the slave-trade,