The fhip Hope, of Bofton, John Seward mafter, was captured by the pilot-boat Democrat, in a few hours after leaving the island of St. Thomas. This veffel was loaded with coffee and cotton at Surinam, and bound to Bofton, fince condemned.—Captain Seward was kept a prifoner on board the privateer Democrat, for fix days after her arrival; and had it not been for the very spirited exertions used by fome American captains and others, he would not even then have obtained his liberty.

Captured and brought into port, and fince condemned, the schooner Delight, of Penobscot, Mark Hatch mafter, bound from Barbadoes to fome port in the United States; the captain and crew turned on shore at St. John's, deftitute of both money and clothes, being pillaged.

Captured and brought into port, and condemned, by the privateer Vengeance, the brig Two Sifters, of Baltimore, Captain Hubbard, bound from Montferat to the island of St. Thomas; the captain plundered of his wearing apparel, and every other neceffary belonging to himself and crew.

of Biddeford,

Captured and brought into port, the bark Sufan, Smith mafter, bound from St. Vincent's to North Carolina. Captain Smith and his crew turned on fhore (though they folicited much without effect to be left in the bark), where they remained at the town of St. John's, at a very heavy expense, to wait the iffue of the bark's trial at Guadaloupe, which finally arrived about the middle of May. Verdict of the French tribunal, cargo condemned, the veffel cleared, but the bark's regifter, fea-letter, and all her other papers deftroyed or made away with by the captors, and the veffel fo much pillaged by them as not to be in a state to return to the continent.

Captain Smith applied to Mr. Paris, the French marine agent at Porto Rico, to affift him to put the

C 4

bark

barque in fuch a condition as would enable him to return in her to Biddeford, without any redress or effect. Captain Smith was therefore neceffitated to purchase the American schooner Delight, which was condemned; in the purchafe of which he was joined by Captain Strong, and five or fix different captured American mafiers and mates; being the only alternative they had left to return to America.

Brought into the port of St. John's by a French privateer, the mate and crew of a schooner belonging to Bofton, whom they turned on fhore without a fecond fhirt or jacket, or a fingle dollar in their pockets. This fchooner, name forgotten, was owned at Boston, and commanded by Captain Dunkendorff, loaded at Tobago, and bound to Boston. Cleared.

Brought into port by the privateer Triumph, the brig, John Fry mafter, bound from Baltimore to St. Bartholomew's. After feveral days detention, and loaded with innumerable expenfes, he was with difficulty cleared, but on a ftipulated condition of entering into a written obligation to acquit the owner and captain of the privateer from all coft and damages.

Captain Williams, of Baltimore, of the schooner, belonging to Norfolk, and his people, were brought to St. John's by the privateer Vengeance, and turned on fhore without a dollar in their pockets. They sent the fchooner for trial to St. Domingo, where the was foon condemned, under pretext of not having either register or fea-letter, which the captain of the privateer was bafe enough to deftroy or conceal,

Taken by the privateer brig Vengeance, and fince condemned, the thip William, of Portland, Robert Strong mafter; bound from St. Kitt's to Portland. In a few nights after the capture of faid fhip, the mate of her, and one failor and the cabin-boy, whom the privateer permitted to remain on board, took an opportunity,

opportunity, while the French prize-mafter and eight Frenchmen were napping or off their guard, to rife on them and retake the fhip. In the conflict, which lafted a confiderable time, the French prize-master and two of the Frenchmen were killed, and three others badly wounded; but, unfortunately, the next day the ship William was met near Porto Rico and retaken by the French privateer Eagle. Both from the crew and owners of the privateers the brave and intrepid American mate and mariner experienced every degree of cruel, unmanly, and favage ufage, difgraceful to be related. These two bold and brave fellows were fent in a few days after, to ftand their trial before a French tribunal, to St. Domingo, in an open boat, double ironed on both legs and hands; and, if report faid or spoke truth, with orders to throw them both overboard if the boat was chafed by an English cruifer. The American captains, and others, prefented a fpirited and humane memorial to the Spanish governor of Porto Rico, Don Raymondo de Caftro, representing those men as American subjects, and praying that they might be tried by the Spanish laws; but to which he never deigned to return an answer.

Brought in by the privateer Vengeance, the schooner, Captain Jones, of Bofton, who fold his cargo at Guadaloupe, and purchased a return cargo there, bound for Boston. Captain Jones was met by an English cruiser, and carried into St. Kitt's; where, after trial, he was acquitted, and permitted to proceed on his voyage to Bofton, but was met in a few days after by the above privateer Vengeance; and, merely under the pretext of Captain Jones being at a British island, he was again captured, from whofe clutches he was glad to get clear, after several days detention, paying heavy port charges and other expenfes, and being plundered of all his ftock and small ftores.

Brought in by L'Efpiegle privateer, and fince condemned, the brig Nabby of Hartford, bound from

Antigua

Antigua to New-York, loaded with rum, sugar, and coffee.

Alfo the floop Hannah, of Milford, fince condemned, bound to New-York, loaded with fugar and molaffes, from Martinico.

Brought in by the privateer Triumphant, the brig Ceres, of Newbern, James Moor mafter, loaded with lumber for Trinidad. So little regard had the owner or captain of this privateer to laws, custom, or ufage, that they ftripped the brig Ceres entirely of her throuds, and part of her running rigging and fpars, with which they again fitted out the privateer, though the brig Ceres' condemnation had not arrived when the fhip Mount Vernon left Porto Rico.

Brought in by a row-boat and eight men, and one fwivel gun, the fnow Harmony of Kennebunk, Burnham mafter; bound from Barbadoes home with rum. The owner of this privateer, Monf. M. Mallet, fold the cargo in a few days after, and the veffel in about four weeks after her arrival, though no condemnation for her had yet come to hand.

Captured and brought in by L'Efpiegle privateer, the fhip Kitty, belonging to Mr. Coppinger of Philadelphia; bound from the Ifle of France to faid port, loaded with coffee, fugar, cotton, indigo, and bale goods.

Captain M'Pherson, and Mr. Cox the fupercargo of the above ship, were confined on board without even having permiffion to converse, or fee a fingle individual, directly or indirectly, or to correfpond with the shore by letter. They at length found means, by the aid of Mr. Bayly, an interpreter, to have a strong and urgent remonftrance, ftating their grievances, drawn up and prefented to the Governor Don Raymondo de Caftro, but to which his Excellency never returned an answer; and, finally, when the ifland was befieged by the British, they were taken

from

from on board the ship with the crew, and clofely confined in prifon, where they yet languish without any profpect of being liberated, unless by the interference of the Executive of their country. Five feamen of the above ship Kitty, all citizens of America, and with protections in their pockets, were put on board the Spanifh frigate Juno to be fent to the Havannah and treated as English prifoners of war. This extraordinary circumftance happened on the morning of the day on which the ship Mount Vernon was to fail; therefore there was no time to be loft to rescue those poor fellows from fuch a dreadful fituation. A ftrong and urgent reprefentation was made in their favour by fome American captains and others, that they might be put on board the ship Mount Vernon, which was at length granted; but not until the very inftant that the ship Mount Vernon was weighing anchor, when the poor fellows arrived from on board a guard-boat from the Spanish frigate Juno.

Some days previous to the ship Mount Vernon leaving Porto Rico, there were thirteen American failors brought to the town of St. John's under a guard of foldiers from the weft end of the island, and put into close prison, where there were no less than fifty negroes confined. These men were all American citizens, and had each of them a protection; being part of the crews belonging to the brig Induftry of Bofton, Jofeph Ryder mafter, bound from Demarara to Bofton; and of the fchooner Betfey, W. Sturges, from Trinidad; and the ship Industry, Robert Oram mafter, of Portsmouth (New Hampshire), all taken by a privateer and carried into Cape Rooke.

Five American captains being made acquainted with the dreadful fituation that thefe poor fellows were in, closely confined in a small cell, and the weather then extremely fultry, prefented a remonfrance to the Governor for their liberation, which

was