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21»4         HISTORY OP THE INDIAN NAVY.              ;

        when the 'Nautilus' lay there, and her officers and those of the
        American man-of-war  ' Boxer,' could  scarcely be induced  to
        believe that the little Company's cruiser was the same vessel
        that had been captured by Captain Warrington, as "they had
        always understood her to be a vessel of nearly the same size as
        the  ' Peacock.' " The clearing up of this point did not flatter their
        national vanity.  Commander Boyce, the victim of American
        rowdyism, was compelled to retire from the Service in 1817, in
        consequence of his wounds, and, though now in  his ninety-
        second year, is, as he lately informed us, still in the possession
        of his health and faculties, and in the enjoyment of a pension
        voted sixty years ago by the Congress of the United States,
        who have thus had to pay pretty heavily for this  particular
        item of " glory."
          During the Mahratta War of 1817-18, some of the Company's
        cruisers,  stationed at Fort  Victoria, near Severndroog, had
        the good fortune to be actively engaged, and acquitted them-
        selves so well as to earn the frequent and hearty commendations
        of the Bombay Government, and the military  officers under
        whose  orders they  served.  The  vessels engaged were  the
        ' Prince of Wales,' Lieutenant Dominicetti,  ' Thetis,' Lieutenant
        Arthur,  ' Sylph,' Lieutenant Robson, and some small  craft
       find  the  officers  and  crews, who  were  landed  to  assist
        the  troops, bore a conspicuous  part  in  the  capture  of the
        forts on the coasts of the Concan. A detachment was employed
        at the surrender of the  forts of Severndroog on the 4th of
        December, 1817, and  the Governor in  Council,  in  General
        Orders of the 20th of December, expressed  his high sense of
        the gallantry  of the seamen and marines.  The escalading
        party consisted  of only  thirty  seamen,  led  by  Lieutenant
        Dominicetti, and fifty sepoys, under the command of Captain
        Campbell, of the 9th Regiment.  The General Order  states
        that, though opposed by very superior numbers, the energy of
        this small  force  succeeded in  surmounting  every  obstacle,
        escalading and taking in open day the Fort of Kundah,  not-
        withstanding the heavy fire of the enemy.  This gallant and
        successful enterprise so completely intimidated the enemy, that
        the two other forts of Goa and  Gunjeera were abandoned
        during the night.
          Shortly afterwards the troops on this station were increased
        by the newly raised 1st Battalion of the 10th Native Infimtry,
        commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel M. Kennedy, who, with a
        small force, including a naval brigade of seamen, under their own
        officers, and the marines from  the Company's  cruisers and
        pattamars, under the command of Captain Farquharson, reduced
        the strong forts of Madunghur, Ramghur, Paulghur, Russulghur,
        Anjenweel, and other strongholds, with the territories depen-
        dent thereon.  The following were the General Orders bv the
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