as witnessed by their respective losses. The _Macedonian_, moreover,
was surrendered when she had suffered less damage than either the
_Guerriere_ or _Java_. The chief cause of her loss lay in the fact
that Captain Carden was a poor commander. The gunnery of the _Java_,
_Guerriere_, and _Macedonian_ was equally bad; but while Captain
Lambert proved himself to be as able as he was gallant, and Captain
Dacres did nearly as well, Captain Carden, on the other hand, was
first too timid, and then too rash, and showed bad judgment at all
times. By continuing his original course he could have closed at
once; but he lost his chance by over-anxiety to keep the weather-gage,
and was censured by the court-martial accordingly. Then he tried
to remedy one error by another, and made a foolishly rash approach.
A very able and fair-minded English writer says of this action:
"As a display of courage the character of the service was nobly
upheld, but we would be deceiving ourselves were we to admit that
the comparative expertness of the crews in gunnery was equally
satisfactory. Now, taking the difference of effect as given by
Captain Carden, we must draw this conclusion--that the comparative
loss in killed and wounded (104 to 12), together with the dreadful
account he gives of the condition of his own ship, while he admits
that the enemy's vessel was in comparatively good order, must have
arisen from inferiority in gunnery as well as in force." [Footnote:
Lord Howard Douglass, "Naval Gunnery." p. 525]

On the other hand, the American crew, even according to James, were
as fine a set of men as ever were seen on shipboard. Though not one
fourth were British by birth, yet many of them had served on board
British ships of war, in some cases voluntarily, but much more
often because they were impressed. They had been trained at the
guns with the greatest care by Lieutenant Allen. And finally