My ship was now totally unmanageable; yet as her head was toward the enemy, and he to leeward of me, I still hoped to be able to board him. At this moment, Lieut. Commandant Downes came on board to receive my orders, under the impression that I should soon be a prisoner. He could be of no use to me in the then wretched state of the Essex — and finding (from the enemy's putting his helm up) that my attempt at boarding would not succeed, I directed him, after he had been about ten minutes on board, to return to his own ship, to be prepared for defending and destroying her in case of attack. He took with him several of my wounded, leavino; three of his boat's crew on board to make room for them.
The Cherub now had an opportunity of distinguishing herself, by keeping up a hot fire on him during his return. The slaughter on board my ship had now become horrible, the enemy continuing to rake us, and we unable to bring a gun to bear. I therefore directed a hawser to be bent to the sheet anchor, and the anchor to be cut from the bows to bring her head round: this succeeded. We again got our broadside to bear, and as the enemy was much crippled and unable to hold his own, I have no doubt he would soon have drifted out of gunshot before he discovered we had anchored, had not the hawser unfortunately parted. My ship had taken fire several times during the action, but alarmingly so forward and aft at this moment — flames were bursting up each hatchway, and no hopes were entertained of saving her.
Our distance from the shore did not exceed three-quarters of a mile, and I hoped many of my brave crew would be able to save themselves, should the ship blow up, as I was informed the fire was near the magazine, and the explosion of a large quantity of powder below served to increase the horrors of our situation — our boats were destroyed by the enemy's shot; I therefore directed those who could swim, to jump overboard, and endeavor to gain the shore — some reached it — some were taken by the enemy, and some perished in the attempt; but most preferred sharing with me the fate of the ship. We, who remained, now turned our attention wholly to extinguishing the flames: and when we had succeeded, went again to our guns, where the firing was kept up for some minutes, but the crew had by this time become so weakened, that they all declared to me the impossibility of making further resistance, and entreated me to surrender my ship to save the wounded, as all further attempt at opposition must prove ineffectual, almost every gun being disabled by the destruction of their crews.
I now sent for the officers of divisions to consult them; but what was my surprise to find only acting Lieutenant Stephen Decatur M'Knight remaining, (who confirmed the report respecting the condition of the guns on the gun-deck — those on the spar-deck were not in a better state.) Lieut. Wilnier, after fighting most gallantly throughout the action, had been knocked overboard by a splinter while getting the sheet anchor from the bows, and was drowned. Acting Lieutenant John G. Cowell had lost a leg; Mr. Edmund Barnwell, acting sailing-master, had been carried below, after receiving two severe wounds, one in the breast and one in the face; and Acting Lieutenant William H. Odenheimer had been knocked overboard from the quarter an instant before, and did not regain the ship until after the surrender.
I was informed that the cockpit, the steerage, the wardroom, and the berth deck could contain no more wounded; that the wounded were killed while the surgeons were dressing them; and that unless something was speedily done to prevent it, the ship would soon sink from the number of shot holes in her bottom. On sending for the carpenter, he informed me that all his crew had been killed or wounded, and that he had once been over the side to stop the leaks, when his slings had been shot away, and it was with difficulty he was saved from drowning. The enemy, from the smoothness of the water, and the impossibility of our reaching him with our carronades, and the little apprehension that was excited by our fire, which had now become much slackened, was enabled to take aim at us as at a target: his shot never missed our hull, and my ship was cut up in a manner, which was, perhaps, never before witnessed — in fine, I saw no hopes of saving her, and at 20 minutes after 6 P.