On Oct. 8th Commodore Rodgers left Boston on his second cruise, with
the _President_, _United States_, _Congress_, and _Argus_, [Footnote:
Letter of Commodore Rodgers. Jan. 1. 1813.] leaving the _Hornet_
in port. Four days out, the _United States_ and _Argus_ separated,
while the remaining two frigates continued their cruise together.
The _Argus_, [Footnote: Letter of Capt. Arthur Sinclair, Jan. 4,
1813.] Captain Sinclair, cruised to the eastward, making prizes
of 6 valuable merchant-men, and returned to port on January 3d.
During the cruise she was chased for three days and three nights
(the latter being moonlight) by a British squadron, and was obliged
to cut away her boats and anchors and start some of her water. But
she saved her guns, and was so cleverly handled that during the
chase she actually succeeded in taking and manning a prize, though
the enemy got near enough to open fire as the vessels separated.
Before relating what befell the _United States_, we shall bring
Commodore Rodgers' cruise to an end.

On Oct. 10th the Commodore chased, but failed to overtake, the
British frigate _Nymphe_, 38, Captain Epworth. On the 18th, off
the great Bank of Newfoundland, he captured the Jamaica packet
_Swallow_, homeward bound, with 200,000 dollars in specie aboard.
On the 31st, at 9 A. M., lat. 33 deg. N., long. 32 deg. W., his two frigates
fell in with the British frigate _Galatea_, 36, Captain Woodley
Losack, convoying two South Sea ships, to windward. The _Galatea_
ran down to reconnoitre, and at 10 A. M., recognizing her foes,
hauled up on the starboard tack to escape. The American frigates
made all sail in chase, and continued beating to windward, tacking
several times, for about three hours. Seeing that she was being
overhauled, the _Galatea_ now edged away to get on her best point
of sailing; at the same moment one of her convoy, the _Argo_, bore