UNDER PETER THE GREAT 35

a-cruising 4 or 5 leagues off; when about the30th of this month arrived a brigantine express fromHelsingfors with advice that the General-Admiralwith his galleys was pent up near Hango Head by16 sail of Swedes men-of-war, besides severalfrigates, a prahm , and 6 galleys. Upon the arrivalof this news the Tsar ordered Captain Bredale ofthe St. Paul to hold his ship in readiness, determin-ing to go over in person the first fair wind to viewthe posture of the Swedes, and advise with hisAdmiral. After two or three unsuccessful attempts,the wind not proving favourable, he at last reachedHelsingfors by the 19th of July, and proceeded thencein a galley to Hango Head attended by Captain-Commodore Sievers and Captain Bredale. Theyfound the Swedish fleet lying at anchor off the pointof an isthmus, or neck of land, extended at properdistance a great way into the sea, in order to inter-cept the Russ galleys whenever they should movefrom within the little islands and rocks, where theynow lay secure from insults ; waiting for a calm thatfrequently intervenes at this season of the year,wherein they might in a few hours’ space by theuse of their oars get clear. In the mean time toamuse the Swedes, the Russ made a show of haulingtheir galleys over the neck of land ; and this pointsucceeded so well that Rear-Admiral Ehrenskiold 1was ordered to remove with the 6 galleys, 2 shear-boats, 2 and the prahm mounted with 14 cannon, and

1 MS. ‘Earnshild.’ Even the Swedes are not agreed uponthe spelling of this heroic Admiral’s name. Backstrom spells itEhrenskold. In the Swedish biographical dictionary—the spellingof which is here followed—the name is Ehrenskiold. NilsEhrenskiold, born at Abo, May 11, 1674; died at Karlskrona,November 2, 1728. Entered the naval service in 1692. Captainof the Liffland, 1700. After the action he was kept a prisoner-of-war till the peace of Nystadt, 1721.

2 These are the £ skarbatar ’ (pronounced shareboat) of theSwedes.

d 2