throughout the engagement. Long before that period had elapsed, however,
he found himself running short of ammunition, and taking one marine in
his dinghy, pulled in her to the _Queen Charlotte_, climbed her
side and made his way to the quarter-deck, where, saluting Lord Exmouth,
he said, 'Sir, I am short of ammunition.' 'Well, my lad,' replied the
admiral, 'I cannot help you, but if you choose to go below, and fetch
what you want yourself, you are very welcome.' Charles Yorke, wishing
for nothing better, again saluted and withdrew. He then descended into
the flagship's magazine, and single-handed brought up 1368 lbs. of
ammunition, which he lowered over her side to his single marine in the
dinghy, and in her returned to his gunboat to resume his firing until
the close of the action, when, by the aid of a land breeze, which turned
about half-past eleven into a tremendous storm of thunder and lightning,
the fleet was able to draw out from the batteries. Nothing had been able
to resist the concentrated and well-directed fire, and the sea defences
of Algiers, with a great part of the town itself, had by this time been
shattered and reduced to ruin.

This success was only purchased at heavy cost, for the British
casualties, considering the size of the squadron, were enormous, the
_Impregnable_ being the chief sufferer. One hundred and twenty-
eight men were killed and 690 wounded, while the Dutch lost thirteen and
fifty-two respectively. The _Leander_ had every spar injured and
her rigging cut to pieces, and when her cables were at last shot away,
was unable to set a single sail, and so was drifting helplessly ashore,
when a fortunate change of wind allowed her boats to bring her to a
second anchorage. On the flagship the enemy's fire was so hot that Lord
Exmouth himself escaped most narrowly, being slightly wounded in three
places, and the skirts of his coat were shot away by a cannon-ball.