war was held amongst
the officers; and as she was then settling fast down in the water, it was
their unanimous opinion, that nothing further could be done for the
preservation of his Majesty's ship; and it was their next care to save
the lives of the crew. To effect which, spars, booms, hen-coops, and
every thing buoyant was cut loose, that when she went down, they might
chance to get hold of something. The prisoners were ordered to be let out
of irons. The water was now coming faster in at the gun-ports than the
pumps could discharge; and to this minute the men never swerved from
their duty. She now took a very heavy heel, so much that she lay quite
down on one side.

One of the officers now told the Captain, who was standing aft, that the
anchor on our bow was under water; that she was then going; and, bidding
him farewell, jumped over the quarter into the water. The Captain then
followed his example, and jumped after him. At that instant she took her
last heel; and, while every one were scrambling to windward, she sunk in
an instant. The crew had just time to leap over board, accompanying it
with a most dreadful yell. The cries of the men drowning in the water was
at first awful in the extreme; but as they sunk, and became faint, it
died away by degrees. The boats, who were at some considerable distance
in the drift of the tide, in about half an hour, or little better, picked
up the remainder of our wretched crew.

Morning now dawned, and the sun shone out. A sandy key, four miles off,
and about thirty paces long, afforded us a resting place; and when all
the boats arrived, we mustered our remains, and found that thirty-five
men and four prisoners were drowned.

After we had a little recovered our strength, the first care was to haul
up the boats. A guard was placed over the prisoners. Providentially a
small barrel of water, a cag of wine, some biscuit, and a few muskets and
cartouch boxes, had been thrown into the boat. The heat of the sun, and
the reflection from the sand, was now excruciating; and our stomachs
being filled with salt water, from the great length of time we were
swimming before we were picked up, rendered our thirst most intolerable;
and no water was allowed to be served out the first day. By a calculation
which we made, by filling the compass boxes, and every utensil we had, we
could admit an allowance of two small wine glasses of water a-day to each
man for sixteen days.

A saw and hammer had