Privateer in the War of 1812
Joseph Valpey

After taking our prisoners out we put a prize master and crew on board and ordered her for the United States. On the twentieth "Sail O" again was the cry of the man at the mast head and all hands was called to make sail in chase. After coming up with her she proved to be the English merchant brig Harriot in ballast. After taking out the prisoners, sails, and provisions &c we burnt her there. It appears that the Lord does favour us. We steered away to the eastward under easy sail until the twenty-third, when we discovered a brig endeavoring to shun us if possible, but we soon in a cloud of sail overhauled her. She proved to be the English merchant brig placed in ballast. After taking out the prisoners, sails, provisions, and four twelve-pound cannonades, we burnt her. That evening we boarded an Portuguese brig and put all of our prisoners on board and ordered her to Lisbon by the prisoners' request.

Early in the morning on the twenty-eighth the man at mast head discovered a sail. On boarding her we found her to be the same brig that we ordered for the United States on the Eighteenth Ins. The prize master, in hopes of making his fortune, put back for Cadiz but he was received on board the privateer again and put on board and ordered for the States. Then we bore up to the northward and eastward and on the first day of May at daylight we discovered a large ship and a brig. It being moderate, all hands was immediately called to sweep oars. We swept to windward of them and then observing that they wished for to keep clear from us we in sweeps and then went to breakfast. After breakfast all hands was called to quarters and sweeps again and hoisting our colours and then all hands with cheerful hearts turned to and by this time the brig had displayed the proud British flag and began to play upon us with her stern chaser's cannons but we took no notice of her shot but kept sweeping until the wind dying away and a smooth sea and we did not think it prudent to sweep along side not knowing what she was.

We took in our sweeps and cleared away for action. Their shot still flying over us with British glory we spliced the main brace and then turned to with coolness. We had given her but three broadsides when she gave us an unlucky shot between wind and water which obliged us to haul off as there was six feet of water in our hole and our powder considerably damaged. All hands then turned to our pumps and we stopped the leak in a few minutes. Our enemy was by this time in a crowd of sail endeavouring to get clear of us but our leak being stopped and we all taking a stiff dram we went to our sweeps and sweept towards a Portuguese brig who stood a silent spectator to our unpleasant play.

We boarded her and took out several boxes of oranges and learnt by her that the enemy was a brig-of-war mounting fourteen guns and ninety men. We took in our boat and stowed her and then opening the boxes we ate up all the oranges and then went to our sweeps again like hardy tars and with a light breeze of wind we had the pleasure of being along of him by dark when we began our play again and continued it until ten at night when it being very dark and we could not see her. But when she discharged her guns we thought it best to leave off our play until daylight but not forgetting to give her our long two-and-thirty guns every half-hour until half past one in the morning when it being our Second Lieutenant's watch on deck and he not having a good lookout kept she escaped us.

The next morning there being several sail in sight we gave chase to the one who was most suspected, but she proved to be a neutral. Then we turned to mend our sails and rigging, and the carpenters in repairing the shot holes and, as kind heavens would have it, we had no employment for the doctor. Nothing more worth our notice until the eighteenth when the man at the mast head discried a sail. All hands was called to make sail in chase. At eleven in the forenoon we came up with her and she proved to be an Irish schooner with a cargo of provisions bound to Lisbon.

After taking out our prisoners we put a prize master and crew on board and ordered her for the United States. The next day we boarded a neutral vessel and put our prisoners on board and wished them good luck. On the ninth at 1:00 PM the man at the mast gave us the joyful cry of "Sail O," but as the wind was light we made but little progress in coming up to her. At five in the afternoon we dispatched our boat with the First Lieutenant and fourteen men well armed to see what she might be. At half past nine the boat returned and gave us the joyful tidings that she was a brig under Sweedish colours with a British cargo of dry goods and jewlery from London.

Joseph Valpey. Journal of Joseph Valpey, Jr., of Salem. (Ann Arbor: 1922).