HAving been Cruising for several days before Ar­giers, the Twentieth of April, being off at Sea, some Five or six Leagues, I met with the Mary, Hampshire, Portsmouth, and Advice Fregats; and upon the notice they brought me of several Argiers Men of War being at Bugia, I called a Council of War, and it was voted, and thought fit, That I should make the best of my way (the Wind being then Easterly) to ply up thither with the Mary, Warwick, Advice, Gar­land, Portsmouth Pink, and the Fireships, to endeavor the destroying them; the Hampshire and Portsmouth Fregats being left to cruise off of Argiers till further order. The Dragon had been gone five days in chace of Two Argier Men of War, the Winds being then at S. W. it was supposed the Chace had carried him to the East­ward, and might at last be forced into Bugia, if not better Fortune, his being so long absent, and his well Sailing giving me the greater hopes.

The Twenty third, the Dragon came into me, having been two days in fight with the Two Argier Men of War which he chased, Capt. Herbert the Commander, being shot in the Face with a Musket shot, and Nine or ten of his men wounded with small shot, who will all recover.

Until the Twenty eighth, the Winds were always Easterly, the same day, about Eight at Night, the Wind came up to the South West, with very great Gusts and Rain, which disabled my Little Eagle Fire­ship, leaving her not one Mast standing.

The Thirtieth, I had got her Masted and Rigged again fit for service, having luckily a Corn Boat with me taken from the Enemy, which with the help of other Topmasts and Booms, Masted her. In this Weather, the Warwick hapned to spring her Main Mast again, and bore away to the Christian shore; my Brigantine at the same time bore away, and as yet I have no news of her. The same day I got into Bugia Bay, and had a gale, which I thought would have carried me and my Fireships in upon them; but by that time we got within half shot of their Castles and Forts, it proved dead calm, and afterward the Wind came off the shore, and a little further in the Road quite contrary.

The Second of May, the Winds being so very un­certain, after having twice attempted with my Ships, and not able to do service, for want of a certain Wind, every half hour bringing a several Wind with it, I re­solved to make an Attempt upon them in the night with my Boats, and the smallest of my Fireships which row­ed as well as a Long-Boat: About Twelve a Clock at Night, I sent out all the Boats I could make, and the Eagle Fireship, under the command of my Eldest Lieu­tenant Master Nugent; but the Night proving very dark, and the high Land obscuring the Ships as they neer'd them, they passed by the Ships (Lieutenant [Page 5] Nugent leaving one of the Boats with the Fireship, be­sides her own) and rowed in to discover the Enemy, giving the Captain of the Fireship orders, in case he found shoal Water, to come to an Anchor: He was not a minute from him, when he found himself within half Pistol shot of the Ships; upon which, he steered off again to find the Fireship, which to his great astonishment was all in a flame. The Enemy then taking the Alarm, it was not convenient for the Boats to attempt boarding and burning them, they being full of Men. Had not this misfortune of the Fireship hapned, they might at this time have been destroyed without the loss of a Man. The next day they unrigged all their Ships, and made a Boom with their Yards, Topmasts, and Cables, buoyed up with Cask; in all which time we had no opportunity of Wind to do any thing upon them. My other little Fireship being ready primed, by an accident of a Pistol fired by the Gunner, took fire, and was lost; all my hopes and dependency relying upon her to do this busi­ness, in regard of her little draught of Water. Now having nothing to trust to, but the Little Victory, I pre­sently gave order to have her lightned to as small a draught of water as could be, and brought her to eight foot.

On Munday Morning, being the Eighth of May, came to them several Recruits, both of Horse and Foot, with Ammunition, as we suppose, from Argier, which they welcomed with great triumph by their firing of Guns from the Ships and Castles, and putting abroad their Co­lours. But not knowing what other Recruits might come, I took the first opportunity, and about Noon, the same day, it pleased God to favor us with a fair moderate Breeze at East, though after I had made the signs for my Men of War to draw into a Line, and fall on, the Wind dollour'd again, which made me despair of being able to attack them: But it pleased God to order it so, that [Page 6] about Two a Clock, the Gale came in as before; the Dragon, Advice, and Mary, borrowed too much of the South-West shore; so that they were forced to let go their Anchors in Three Fathom and half Water, and so veered in, bringing their Ships broad side to pass: I my self came to an Anchor in Four Fathom, close under their Castles and Walls, battering all of us upon their Ships and Castles for the space of Two hours. I sent in my Pinnace, the Maries and Dragons, to cut the Boom, which was very bravely performed, Lieutenant Pin commanding the Maries Boat, Lieut. Pierce the Dragons, and one Harman (a Reformado Seaman of mine) my own Pinnace; my Second Lieutenant, Mr. Earnly being hurt with a splinter in the Leg, and could not go; Eight of the Maries Boats Crew, and the Lieu­tenant were wounded with small shot; Ten of the Dragons, and the Lieutenant wounded, and One killed; Seven killed out right in my own Pinnace, and all the rest wounded except Harman that commanded. The Boom being then cut, I made the sign for my Fireship to fall on: It pleased Almighty God to order it so, That she got in, and brought up athwart of their Bolt-sprits, their Ships being aground, and fast to the Castles, burnt very well, and destroyed them all, there being in num­ber Ten Sail; Seven of which, were the best Men of War belonging to Argiers. Capt. Harris, Commander of the Fireship, his Masters Mate, Gunner, and one of his Seamen, are desperately wounded with small shot; but I foreseeing the desperateness and danger of the ser­vice that was to be done, Commissionated a second Com­mander Henry Williams, one of my Masters Mates, and late Commander of the Rose Fireship, to take the charge upon him there on Board, in case the other should mis­carry, which he did accordingly, and performed it very well. The three other which we burnt, besides the Men of War, prove to be a Genouese a small Englishman, and Satea.

Upon the Tenth, about Eleven a Clock at Night, a Dutchman who hath been a Slave in Argiers for three years (and now with his Patron who commanded one of these Ships) made his escape by swimming on Board me, and told me for certain, That they confess 360 of their best Men and upwards, all Turks, Soldiers in Pay, lost their lives on Board the respective Ships, by Fire and Gun-shot, not being able to get ashore. But, he saith, he believes a great many more; for that their Ships were all extraordinary well manned, to the number of about 18 or 1900 Men, besides 300 that arrived there that Morning from Argier, who had been (in our view) re­ceived in great triumph; The Castles and Town misera­bly torn, with an infinite number of the Inhabitants killed and wounded; and that which hapned very lucki­ly to second this Success, was, That all their Chirurgeons Chests were burnt on Board their Ships, that they have not the least Medicine to dress a Wound with.

Old Treky, their Admiral, is likewise wounded, who came with the best and chiefest Commanders in Argier, to order things in the best method they could for secu­ring their Ships, most of which are slain and wounded.

He also declares, That these Ships were purposely commanded out by the Duan to find me out, and fight me, where ever they met me; and to that end, all the best Guns in those Ships remaining in the Mole, were taken out and mounted in these; but Eight of which, in each of these Ships, were put ashore to lighten them the better, the rest are all burnt and spoiled.