time, and other circumstances, prevented Lieutenant Jackson from being accompanied by more than a single boat’s crew, one marine officer, and four privates. On arriving alongside, his boat was stove and sunk under the prize’s bottom; himself and his companions were consequently exposed to great peril before they obtained possession. At day-light, July 13, not one of the British squadron was in sight, except the Calpe polacre, and in the course of the day his shattered charge approached so close to Cape Trafalgar as to afford the prisoners an excellent opportunity of retaking, and running her into Cadiz, The honorable conduct of the French officers deserves to be recorded:– they informed Lieutenant Jackson that their men were arming for that purpose; but that, as the ship had been fairly captured in battle, they could not think of entering into their views, and would therefore use any remaining influence they might possess to induce them to desist. Lieutenant Jackson and his handful of men instantly proceeded to disarm the prisoners, threw all their weapons overboard, and thereby convinced them that their design was detected, A violent quarrel now took place between the Frenchmen and the Spaniards, each party accusing the other of misconduct in the recent action. Lieutenant Jackson took advantage of this dissension, – the dons were ordered below, and the duty of guarding them assigned to their late allies. This mark of confidence pleased the republicans so much that they volunteered to assist in repairing damages; regularity was completely restored, and the ship, in a few hours, brought perfectly under command. The next day she was taken in tow by Captain Keats, who conducted her to Gibraltar. It is almost superfluous to add, that Lieutenant Jackson was immediately afterwards Advanced to the rank of Commander.
At the renewal of hostilities, in 1803, Captain Jackson was appointed to the Autumn sloop of war; and in the course of the same year we find him selected by Rear-Admiral Robert Montagu to conduct the operations of a small squadron, stationed off Calais, for the purpose of preventing the gun-vessels in that port from forming a junction with the Boulogne flotilla, a service which was then considered as one of the utmost im-
