. Historic fields and mansions of Middlesex. ers in the bay, who tookmany valuable prizes and brought several mercantile houses tothe verge of ruin. The merchants accordingly besought Ad-miral Le Compte de Barras to send some of his frigates fromNewport round to Boston ; but the Count replied that the effortsalready made to induce his men to desert and engage on boardprivateers compelled him to refuse the request. The merchantsthen sent a committee composed of Messrs. Sears, Broome,Breck, and others, to assure the Count that his men should notbe taken under any circumstances. The Counts compli
. Historic fields and mansions of Middlesex. ers in the bay, who tookmany valuable prizes and brought several mercantile houses tothe verge of ruin. The merchants accordingly besought Ad-miral Le Compte de Barras to send some of his frigates fromNewport round to Boston ; but the Count replied that the effortsalready made to induce his men to desert and engage on boardprivateers compelled him to refuse the request. The merchantsthen sent a committee composed of Messrs. Sears, Broome,Breck, and others, to assure the Count that his men should notbe taken under any circumstances. The Counts compliance resulted in the loss of one of hisships, the Magicienne, of thirty-two guns, which was taken bythe Assurance, a British two-decker, in Boston harbor. Theaction was so plainly visible from the wharves of the town,that the French colors were seen to be struck and the Enghshhoisted in their stead. The French ships Sagittaire, fiftyguns, Astrie, thirty-two, and Hermione, thirty-two, were in the 36 HISTORIC FIELDS AND MANSIONS OF harbor when thebattle commenced,and immediately gotunder weigh to goto the assistance oftheir consort; butthe wind being lightand the Sagittairea dull sailer, theenemy escaped withhis prize. ISIanyBostonians went onboard the Frenchships as volunteersin the expected ac-tion. ^Coloiiel Da-vid Sears was amongthe number whojoined the Astrie inthe expectation ofenjoying some di-version of this merchants ofBoston afterwardsgave a splendid din-ner to the Mar(|uisde Gergeroux, thecommander of theFrench fleet, and hisofficers, for the ser-vices rendered inkeeping the bayclear of the enemyscruisers. Nelson, who in1782 was orderedto cruise in theAlbemarle on the AN HOUR IN THE G0VI;RNMENT DOCKYARD. 37 American station, fell in with a lishing schooner on our coast,which he captured, but the master, having piloted the cruiserinto Boston Bay, was released with his vessel and the followingcertificate : — This is to certify that I took the schoo
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