UNDER PETER THE GREAT 81

commanding in chief, for Count Apraxin, a gentlemanof much humanity and compassion, virtues rarelyfound in the native Russ, willingly declined act-ing a second part of the barbarous ravages of theforegoing year. The proceedings of the galleysand the havoc and ruin 1 accomplished in Swedenwere written in too legible characters and are toorecent in the memory of mankind to need a repeti-tion.

Some Swedish frigates, cruising at the entranceof the Norr Botten, 2 to prevent, if possible, thecrossing over of the Russ galleys from theFinnish to the Swedish shore, observed here andthere a straggling galley lying amongst the islands 3and rocks wherewith that coast abounds ; and im-prudently venturing in to attack them in that situa-tion were no sooner entered than the rest of thegalleys that lay concealed at a little distance,moving to their companions’ assistance, surroundedthe Swedes on every side. The largest frigate,touching upon a rock, was boarded and taken ; andtwo others shared in the same misfortune, beingswallowed up with numbers that swarmed in uponthem from every quarter: the fourth not got so farin among the rocks, retreating, escaped. Thesefrigates of about thirty, twenty-four and eighteenguns were carried with their people to St. Petersburg,where great rejoicings were made and the officersand men led in a public procession of triumph.

1 See p. 69, note 1.

2 MS. ‘ North Bottom.’

3 The expression ‘ islands and rocks ’ is a translation of theSwedish word skargard (pronounced sharegord). A chart of Fin-land or of Sweden north of Kalmar Sound shows how thicklystudded the coast is with islets and rocks. Mankell begins hishistory (Studier of ver Svenska Skdrgards-Flottans Historia , Stock-holm, 1855) with an allusion to the ‘peculiar natural formationcalled skargard.’

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