er!" shouted the crew in response, for they instantly
comprehended the pun. Very soon the _Guerriere_ was a shivered, shorn,
and helpless wreck, rolling like a log in the trough of the sea. Hull
sent an officer on board to inquire of Dacres whether he had struck his
flag. Looking up and down, Dacres coolly replied, "Well, I don't know:
our mizzenmast is gone, our mainmast is gone, and, upon the whole, you
may say we _have_ struck our flag."

This victory greatly inspirited the Americans, and astonished the
English. Hull was highly honored by the citizens and Congress, from
which he received valuable tokens of regard. The London _Times_ said,
"The new enemy, unaccustomed to such triumphs, is likely to be rendered
insolent and confident by them."

At mid-autumn, 1812, Captain Jacob Jones, in the fast-sailing sloop of
war _Wasp_, achieved a notable victory over the British war schooner
_Frolic_, convoying six merchantmen, four of which were well armed. They
fought at close quarters, under very little sail, and soon became
entangled, when the crew of the _Wasp_ made their way to the deck of the
_Frolic_ just after it was swept by a raking broadside. They found no
one to oppose them. A few surviving officers stood on the quarter-deck,
most of them wounded. Lieutenant Biddle, who led the boarding party,
hauled down the British flag. When the vessels separated both masts of
the _Frolic_, with the tattered rigging, fell upon the deck, which was
covered with the dead. Two hours after the victory the British ship of
war _Poictiers_ appeared, and captured the crippled _Wasp_ with the more
crippled _Frolic_. Nevertheless, the news of the victory was received
with great joy in the United States, and Jones was the recipient of many
honors.

Precisely a month after this victory a more important one was achieved
by Decatur with the frigate _United States_. On October 26, near the
island of Madeira, he gave chase to a British vessel of war, and
overtook her. An action was immediately begun at long range, but soon
afterward they engaged at close quarters. When the battle had lasted
half an hour, the shot of the _United States_ carried away her
antagonist's mizzenmast. Then her main and foretop masts fell, and she
was dreadfully bruised in her hull. The _United States_ was yet unhurt.
Perceiving longer resistance to be vain, the British commander struck
his colors and surrendered.

"What is the name of your ship?" shouted Decatur.