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My dear Sam,
On Thursday the 6th inst. I wrote you a Letter to Portsmouth, upon the
publication of the Gazette extraordinary wch gave us an Account of the late Engagement at Sea
& upon a Supposition yt our Fleet or part of it might return to Portsmouth to refit,
in that case I desired you wod send me what particulars you cou'd gather
at first hand, as the public as well as we ourselves were much disatisfied
with the printed account of that extraordinary Action, but in case none of
our Ships were brought home further than Plymouth, I suggested to you in
my Letter that it might possibly answer to you to go to Plymouth, "if
you cod get a Passage thither by water. I find by your last which came
hither on fryday ye 14th, tho' directed to me at Petersfield instead of
Petersham, a mistake! I don't wonder at considering the hurry in wch
you must have wrote your Letter, what secur'd it's coming to me safe was
your Saying near Richmond. your Journies are generally replete
with Adventures of some kind or other, & I am glad to find you got severall
through your last. tho' I think the conduct of your Lieutenant who
commanded the Tender or the Master, if not both were very reprehensible
& shall not much wonder if one or other of them is broke upon the occasion
I hope there were no press'd men on board, for if there were, I shall expect
to hear they have taken the opportunity of running away with the Vessell
with the rest of its Freight as well as with ywselves and then good buy
to your Cloaths & your Papers, the loss of the latter of which perhaps
you may have occasion to regret more than that of the former.
You see my dear Sam, how much I approve of your flight to Plymouth
from the opinion I entertain'd yt it might be of some essential Service
to you, as well in seeing the state & condition of our Ships that were
affected by the Engagement & the means taken to put 'em into repair
for Reaction, as for the purpose of improving the acquaintance you
had already made with many of the Capts. engaged in ye late actions
and of extending it to others. I wish you cou'd manage to get access to
Mr Hunt the new Surveyor, wch. I hope you will find practicable by
the recommendations you so seasonably procured from Portsmouth
preparatory to your departure from thence — and as nothing can
conduce so much to inform & strengthen your Judgment as actual
experience by occular demonstration & observation, so you cou'd not
do better than to Change your Quarters in ye manner you have
done not that I wod have you continue at Plymouth longer than
it will answer the particular purposes that determin'd you to go
thither — since I can conceive, every other purpose will be better
answered by spending some time at the Royal Academy, & taking the
advantage wch you might make of Mr Witchell. I am sorry to
find the Commander in Chief so universally condemned as he seems
to be, & fear it will have such an Influence upon his mind & Spirits
as to debilitate him for any further action. Sir Hugh Poliser is every
where mentioned in the highest Terms of approbation, & your Friend Bazeley
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Identifier: | JB/538/230/001 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 538.
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1778-??-?? |
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538 |
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230 |
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001 |
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Correspondence |
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Jeremiah Bentham |
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