“As to the view that I should have, upon observing the British squadron anchored in Lynnhaven Bay, been aroused to defend myself, I can only offer this. That same squadron was there when Chesapeake arrived from Washington; was Captain Gordon imbued with suspicion as to their intents? I think not, else we he would have acted differently then. The menace those ships implied has been mentioned by very nearly each of the officers in the frigate. I ask you, sirs, could it not be a case of attaching a significance, a weight, to an event after discovering it’s import? Should that not be the instance, it must then appear as though each of the officers, indeed, every soul aboard, was remarkably negligent in the performance of their duties by not making Captain Gordon or myself aware of these misgivings.” Barron paused, looked at the panel to gauge their reaction, and shuffled his papers again.
“The specification refers to the Communications by signal from one of the British squadron.’ Does the mere telegraphic communication from one ship to another signal hostility? I suspect a person, unaccustomed to naval affairs, might infer, from the solemnity with which these circumstances are urged, that such was the case. That same person might determine that signals are rarely used between ships of the same squadron and, when they are used, they are perfectly understood by all observers. This conclusion would derive support from several of the witnesses who mentioned that ‘Leopard got under weigh by signal’ Only Mister Baldwin, I believe, admitted he was, in fact, ignorant of the codes of the Royal Navy”
Goodness! He really was paying attention to what I said!
“I can only imagine, sirs, the surprise of that same person, unfamiliar in the ways of naval affairs, when they learn that communicating by signal is the ordinary mode of intercourse between vessels of the same squadron and that, at sea, scarcely an hour passes in which various signals are not made from one ship to another. It might astonish that same personage to notice that signals regularly are made between this ship, upon which we all stand, to various of the gunboats in the harbor. And that, without a book of explanation, those signals would be quite incomprehensible to any who noticed them.
“Since each of those officers who testified that Leopard got under weigh by signal, I can only wonder why the action then did not excite the suspicions it seems to have in the intervening passage of time. Indeed, sirs, nothing could have given these circumstances any importance but a previous suspicion. The Royal Navy has been in and out of our waters, it is well known, for many months, watching the movements of certain French ships of war, also within our waters. Ships have quit the anchorage often enough to arouse no concern, sail to without the Capes, and return. In some cases, they have actually intercepted French vessels, and captured them within sight of our shores. Is it not extravagant supposition to assume that the ships of a nation with whom we, as a country, have enjoyed the strictest amity, should suddenly and without warning, be sent underweigh to commit mischief on our flag, and at our very threshold?”
I had to admit, that it was certainly the farthest thing from my own mind that Leopard, or any other, would attack us that day. How my colleagues could testify to the contrary could only be explained by Barron’s statement about attaching importance to an event after one had knowledge of the result. I found myself nodding in agreement and was surprised to find my sympathies moving in his direction.
Where is Henry now? He should be hearing this his own self!
I would have to attend closely the commodores words so I could accurately pass them on to my friend. But not immediately, it seemed. A sea-man, I recognized him as one of the new men recently signed, had made his way through the spectators and had handed a note to James Lawrence, sitting at the end of the long table. I watched as Lawrence, followed by each man to his right, glanced at the folded paper and passed it on until it reached the hand of Captain Rodgers; he unfolded it and scowled.
Holding up a hand at the commodore, causing him to pause in his recitation, Rodgers conferred briefly with Captain Decatur and then nodded.
“With your indulgence, Commodore, I would like to pause at this point in your statement for a brief recess. Not more than fifteen minutes, I assure you.” Rodgers actually smiled at Barron as he spoke and, without further comment, banged the gavel on the table and stood up.
Barron was speechless; he stood, slack-jawed, as he watched the president accompanied by several of the members of the court, including Decatur, Bainbridge, and Captain Porter, file past him and out the door. To where, I had no idea.
The commodore turned about and faced his lawyer. His expression had changed from shock to a black fury and he leaned over the table to speak to the civilian. Even though Barron spoke with a tone prompted by his apparently shabby treatment by the court, I could hear only a few bits and snatches of his invective (for I am sure that is what was issuing forth, given his expression) over the hum and buzz of the murmuring that rose rapidly from the stunned silence of the gallery. And while I felt almost the same sense of outrage at the commodore’s behavior last June as Henry, I could not help but sympathize with the man at this moment; one minute he was speaking eloquently and cohesively, debunking arguments made against him by almost everyone involved, and the next, he was cut off in midstride by a thoughtless and senseless interruption.
Could Rodgers and Decatur be so adamantly opposed to Barron’s acquittal they would stop the recitation like that? Might even be illegal Well, I guess one or another of the lawyers woul’ve said something if walking out tike that was against the rules. Where was Henry when I needed his wisdom now?
My head was reeling, filled with confusion, one minute convinced that Barron was being censured, singled out unfairly and the next, equally convinced that his actions last summer were beyond reprehensible and he deserved whatever he got. It seemed from the conversation I heard around me that others were equally horrified; some gloated at his discomfort and others—surely they had to be his confidants—were quite vocal in opposition to the court’s action. But all had opinions to air.
And those opinions were becoming more and more voluble. They quickly reached the point were I could distinguish no individual words from any participant. Indeed, the room seemed to be consumed by a dull and constant roar, as each participant in the battle of opinion raised his voice to be heard by the person adjacent who, in turn, raised his voice, and so on. I may have been the only soul who held his tongue; not due to any lack of opinion, but due to the lowly rank I held and a lack of someone to whom I might offer that opinion. Instead, I simply stared, agog, I must admit, at those who jumped up and down, plucked at their neighbors’ coats, and became more and more embroiled in the melee. So captivated by the antics of those around me, I failed, as did those around me, to notice the return of the panel members who had left.
Until the loud and insistent banging of Captain Rodgers gavel succeeded in gaining at first, the attention of only a handful of the less strident, followed by more and more until only one or two voices rang out in the silence. Those few fell into an embarrassed silence as quickly as they realized it was only their voices they heard.
“Commodore, I apologize for the interruption; I had just received word that Secretary Smith was on board the frigate seeking my presence and I felt it unwise to protract his idleness. As we all are aware, the Secretary is not famous for his patience. You will want to know, sir, the Secretary is most anxious for this affair to come to its natural conclusion and encouraged me … and Captain Decatur to hasten that conclusion.”
There were any number of gasps from the spectators and Barron’s attorney rose to his feet as Rodgers banged his gavel calling for quiet.
“Mister President: I would presume that this … this interference from the Secretary of the Navy will cause no lack of juris prudence on the part of the panel and my client will enjoy the full benefit of a court free from prejudice.” Taylor remained standing as his comment stirred further murmurs from the gallery, which were duly banged into silence by Rodgers’ gavel.
“Without a doub
t, Mister Taylor. All the Secretary requested was to minimize the interruptions and, in his words, ‘get on with it.’”
Obviously, the president missed the irony of his remark, but the smiles that appeared briefly on the faces of both Decatur and Captain Porter indicated they had not. Nonetheless, Commodore Barron rose to his feet again and after glaring at Rodgers and several members of the panel, he continued his monologue.
“As I had mentioned immediately previous to the brief recess, the mere presence of British warships in our waters was insufficient provocation to arouse suspicion to their intended mischief. None of the persons in Chesapeake, regardless of any testimony to the contrary by some”—here Barron paused and looked squarely at someone in the gallery, I could not see who—“could have held any doubt as to the continued placidity of those vessels of the Royal Navy.
“And further, the specification under this charge would imply that I had prior knowledge of some overt intent of the British to retrieve their sailors at the first opportunity. You will acknowledge, sirs, I am sure, that any tales of forewarning, to me or any in Chesapeake are unsupported at best and quite spurious at the worst, condemning by innuendo and unsupported imputation. No witness has been found to lend a shred of credence to this fabrication and, while I have answered it as though it were a valid criticism of my behavior, you gentlemen will, I am sure, see it as the ruse it indeed is.
“As further stated in the specification to this charge, it is suggested, nay, it is stated, that I should, by the maneuverings of Leopard once clear of the Capes, have recognized her hostile intent, a statement based solely on the opinion of others. The changes to Leopard s course were produced by the very same circumstances which caused Chesapeake to change her own course: the vagaries of the wind. The coincidence of the movements of the two ships was a matter of necessity precipitated by the proximity of land and changes in the wind. We had been standing to the southeast, as was Leopard, when the wind began to move into that direction. I changed course to the northeastward and by necessity, so did Leopard. For both of us, it was indeed the only course by which we could get off the land.”
I studied the members of the panel for an indication of agreement to this statement, but observed only the unwavering stares and expressions devoid of any sympathy or even acceptance. Those around me, however, muttered in concert to each other; whether they agreed or not I could not fathom.
“With regard to the charge that I should have inferred that, from the actions of the Royal Navy ship, an engagement was probable, I can offer unflinchingly that had the United States been at war with Britain, the actions might have aroused some concern in my breast as well as in my fellow officers. But surely it can not be expected that such movement in a ship known to belong to a nation at amity with us ought to have excited the same suspicions. Once Chesapeake turned back toward the Capes to discharge our pilot, Leopard followed us under easy sail, making no attempt whatever to overtake us before we reached the limits of United States waters. As to her rounding up on our weather quarter as opposed to our leeward, which would have been in keeping with proper sea etiquette, I could infer nothing, save the rudeness of Captain Humphreys, as being responsible. And even that can be excused, one would suppose, by the sea honors still claimed by ships of the Royal Navy in their misguided arrogance.”
A ripple of laughter broke the silence of the room and vanished as quickly as a gust of wind ripples a calm sea then moves on, leaving the surface again undisturbed. Even several members of the court succumbed to a thin smile. Barron looked up, seemingly startled by the reaction and, as the distraction ended, returned to his monologue.
“One might conclude that, while the individual actions of the British ship might arouse no suspicions by themselves, their combined consideration ought to have created a belief that an attack was designed. Here again, sirs, I can only offer that which I did before: in hindsight, an act can gain importance when the result is known and when viewed in the light of that result. And while some of the officers, whose testimony we have heard related many times over during the course of these proceedings, have imputed greater significance and hostility to individual actions than that which was called for, I would again offer that none felt sufficiently alarmed to mention those concerns to either me or Captain Gordon.
“And Captain Gordon himself, while claiming to have heard me utter words at table some two hours prior to any contact with Leopard indicating my suspicions of their intent, himself felt no onus to even attend the movements of that ship, or to examine the lumbered condition of our own gundeck and give the orders necessary to have his ship ready for an immediate engagement as called for in the regulations. None of the others present bore witness to his claim; indeed, how could they? I had offered absolutely no opinion as to the intent of Leopard either hostile or benign. One can not prove that which did not happen; Captain Gordon’s is the only voice offering testimony to this utterance which, apparently, only he had heard.”
Another ripple of laughter served to break the tension in the room and with it, I began to think Barron had won some of the panel to his point of view. The commodore cleared his throat, shuffled the papers he held and, looking squarely at Captain Rodgers, continued.
“Another thing in this matter is quite remarkable. While there have been some fifteen or sixteen witnesses who claimed no sense of foreboding coming from the overtly hostile actions of the Leopard,” Barron’s voice fairly dripped with sarcasm as he uttered the words ‘overtly hostile action’, “those who did claim an indication of some unfriendly intention from her are the self-same ones who originally preferred the accusation against me, and who have given a written pledge to the world, penned in secret and offered to the Secretary in the same manner to establish their charges. Would it not seem reasonable to think their memories of events might be skewed by that action? Their bias by itself should be sufficient to induce you gentlemen to receive those statements with considerable allowance. And while Captain Gordon is not among the number of my pledged accusers, a stronger motive operates on him. The web of his destiny is interwoven with my own. My condemnation is his acquittal; should it not be proved the catastrophe resulted from my misconduct, then the charge will inevitably fail to that officer, from whose neglect of previous discipline and arrangement, the surrender flowed.”
A great intake of breath, a universal gasp, greeted these observations which Barron offered quite without rancor. For my own part, I was becoming increasingly convinced that much of the blame for our humiliation should rest on Gordon’s shoulders and, while it indeed had been Barron who ultimately surrendered the ship, it was the captain’s complete lack of preparedness which had precipitated it. Henry, I was sure, would vehemently disagree, a result of his animus for the Commodore. And while Barron was surely no Decatur, he could not have attained the status he did were he as incompetent as Henry would have me believe. I studied the faces of those members of the court who I knew held the commodore in contempt. Was there some softening, perhaps an understanding? Could the commodore make them feel the same Hobson’s choice he had been faced with? He surely was gaining ground in my own estimation and I was there! I should share at least a measure of Henry’s feelings still. While I surely had felt all the same humiliation and rage that Henry had at the time, those feelings were beginning to ebb, exposing to me (and, I supposed, to others as well) the less emotional facts of the matter which, when examined in the cold light of unbiased scrutiny, seemed less damning to the commodore than they had.
After a pause, Barron continued in the same level tone, alternately gazing at his papers and the panel. “While I did not believe that hostile action would immediately follow the departure of the British officer who had borne his commander’s missive, I did feel it appropriate to be prepared. To that end, I instructed Captain Gordon, who had reported to me promptly Lieutenant Meade had left the ship, that he should ‘prepare the ship for action.’
“Clearly, while there is no specified and precise form of words b
y which an order to ‘clear for action’ might be given, my intent, regardless of Captain Gordon’s testimony, could be interpreted in no other way. Even he, though he testified that he took my orders to mean to ‘prepare to go to quarters,’ he subsequently issued his own orders instructing the crew and officers to ‘go to quarters,’ an order that was, by all accounts, considered to be an order for battle.
“Captain Gordon also has testified that I did not issue the order to go to quarters in silence and without the beating of a drum until after the first gun had been fired by Leopard. All of the other witnesses, however, have concurred that the drummer had begun his beat before the Leopard fired and that Captain Gordon stopped the man while on his way from the Cabin to the quarterdeck. And all agree that the captain was present on the quarterdeck at the time we were fired upon.
“It was after I arrived on the quarterdeck to observe the actions of the British vessel that I discovered her tompions were out and her guns trained upon us. At that time, I gave Captain Gordon an additional order to ‘hurry his men to quarters,’ clearly a second communication of the original order. And while I did issue that order with the admonition to ‘do it quietly, without the beat of the drum, I did not halt the drummer; that was done, and has been repeatedly testified to, by Captain Gordon. No one, nor any of you gentlemen I suspect, could impugn me for that; there are times when it becomes prudent to conceal one’s actions from an enemy, whether to buy time, or simply not to provoke hostility. Clearly, were our drum to be heard on board Leopard there would be little doubt as to our own intentions.
In Pursuit of Glory Page 11
