for he was always their leader and the foremost
in personal danger.

Since every minute was valuable, Decatur put about and made for the
_Endymion_ with the intention of engaging her at close quarters. But the
British vessel suspected his purpose, for she also turned, and, being
much the superior sailer, was able to hold a safe distance between the
two. It was an exasperating disappointment, but Decatur opened with a
heavy fire, hoping to disable his antagonist before the arrival of the
others.

A furious engagement followed, in which Decatur lost several of his most
valuable officers and was himself painfully wounded by flying splinters.
But the American guns were served with perfect precision and the
_Endymion_ was so broken and shattered by the fire that after two and a
half hours she was incapable of further resistance. She would have
surrendered had the time been sufficient for Decatur to enforce the
demand, but the other blockaders were hurrying up and placed the
American again in grave danger. He crowded on all sail once more, but
the scurrying clouds which gave him a chance of escaping were swept from
the sky and the bright moon revealed him so plainly to his pursuers that
they rapidly overtook the _President_. A running fight followed, but the
_President_ was overmatched in every respect. In his official report
Decatur said: "Two fresh ships of the enemy, the 38-gun frigates
_Pomone_ and _Tenedos_, had come up. The _Pomone_ had opened fire on the
port bow, within musket shot, the other, about two cables' length
astern, taking a raking position on our quarter, and the rest, with the
exception of the _Endymion_, within gunshot. Thus situated, with about
one-fifth of my crew killed and wounded, my ship crippled and a more
than fourfold force opposed to me, without a chance of escape, I deemed
it my duty to surrender."

The British senior officer of the squadron to whom Decatur offered his
sword showed his appreciation of the American's gallantry and of his
chivalrous treatment of Captain Carden, when the situations were
reversed, by handing the weapon back to Decatur with the remark that he
was proud to return the sword of an officer who had defended his ship so
nobly.

Shortly after this misfortune news reached this country of the signing
of a treaty of peace, though several encounters took place on the ocean
before the tidings could reach the various ships.

Turning back to the earlier part of the war, men