Frigate Commander (7 page)

I am heartily tired of doing the duty of first lieutenant; I think nothing of the ship’s duty, but there are so many private jobs to attend to that I really am sick of the business.

There was soon news to distract him from the behaviour of his seniors, for the officers of the fleet were ‘overjoyed’ to hear of a dispute between England and Spain. Letters arrived from England, including one from General John Moore, reporting on the details of the Nootka Sound crisis (popularly known as the Spanish Armament
²³
). A fleet was being prepared for hostilities and rumours spread that there would be a general promotion to find officers for this. Everyone was anxious to know who had benefited. Moore decided that there was little chance directly for himself, but he fully expected that Curzon would be promoted. The thought prompted Moore to think again about his current position as First Lieutenant and his future prospects:

I believe if I have the charge of carrying on the duty in this ship long I shall run some risk of becoming peevish, for there are so many little petty objects independent of the ship’s duty to attend to that I cannot help fretting. O that I were a Captain.

And then days later he inserted into his journal:

I certainly have a strong desire to distinguish myself in war, and if I did not believe I possessed the energy of soul to carry me through the terrours of battle, I should be wretched, for my desires do not point at riches, but to the eminence in life acquired by martial exploits; and, having the reputation of skill and courage, will not at all gratify me, unless I shall have earned it by many conflicts. In short I wish not only to be a great naval commander in the public esteem, but in my own: both of which cannot, however one may, exist, without fighting for it.

It was not long before Moore became aware of another scandal, and one which good officers knew could undermine both crew morale and order. It began when Moore received a complaint from the crew of the
Adamant
that they were being issued with rotten bread. He supported their complaint and referred the matter to Captain Knox who agreed to a formal Survey of the bread. In accordance with common practice, the Masters of the ships in the squadron were summoned to inspect the bread, which they duly condemned as unsuitable. The complaint was then referred back to the victuallers who had been contracted to supply it to the squadron. They, in turn, appealed directly to Admiral Hughes by sending him a sample of their bread, claiming it was of exactly the same quality as that issued to the ships. The Admiral sent the new sample on board the
Adamant
with a request that it be compared with the bread already issued. At this point Moore dug in his heels and pointed out that the supply of bread had already been formally condemned by a survey of the Masters of the squadron. Comparing the condemned bread with the sample would be pointless, as he could not go back on a formal condemnation. Admiral Hughes responded angrily and decided to circumvent Moore by ordering the Masters to reassemble to inspect the new sample. Unable to refuse this direct order, the Masters inspected the sample only to find, as Moore had suspected, that the sample provided to the Admiral was of better quality than that issued to the ships. However, the Masters also took the opportunity to point out that even the newly provided sample was of very poor quality. Thwarted, the Admiral ordered the contractors to replace the condemned bread. However, the replacement too was surveyed and condemned as substandard.

At this point the Admiral lost his patience completely. He issued a direct order that the new bread be accepted on board the ships as it was exactly the same as the sample accepted by the Victualling Office, on the basis of which the contract to the victuallers had been issued. There was little that the junior officers could do, except grumble. Moore was furious, and firmly believed that the Admiral could get into a
‘cursed scrape’
for such irregular conduct. Furthermore, he raged

When Government pay the price for good provisions the Contractor ought not to be suffered to supply indifferent, and put the difference in his pocket.

It was a common complaint and one which marked a changing attitude towards the old way of doing things – an attitude which was to become more important in a few years’ time. In wartime, officers, and frigate commanders in particular, had enough problems to deal with, without the men under their command being supplied with substandard provisions. Despite his perpetual admissions of indolence towards his professional duties, Moore was an officer who cared both about the men under his command and the ability and efficiency of the ship on which he served or commanded.

The selfish interests of both the Admiral and Captain Knox were evidently beginning to have an effect on the
Adamant
and its crew. Moore found that he was unable to exercise the crew at sail handling and setting because so many of them were being constantly sent on shore to undertake work at the houses occupied by the Admiral or Captain Knox. The Admiral’s own bargemen were frequently sent off from the ship at 6am on some comparatively menial business which prevented their return until after sunset, and their absence from the ship meant that they often missed out on meals. Furthermore, Moore was well aware that skilled seamen were discontented with the sort of work they were being given, feeling that it was demeaning. As First Lieutenant he was concerned about the simmering unhappiness that was being created:
‘I am continually on the fret about these things which I cannot remedy’.

The row over the supply of rotten bread soon resurfaced. It was discovered that the Admiral had written to the Victualling Board in London complaining that the Masters were guilty of some form of partiality in condemning the locally-supplied bread. He had dispatched this complaint with a sample of bread which the local victuallers had provided specifically for this purpose. The Masters immediately dispatched their own letter to the Victualling Board, accompanied by some of the real bread which they had surveyed and condemned. While this was going on, Collins, the Master of the
Adamant
, was presented with a receipt from the contractor and asked to sign it to certify that the ship had now been supplied with bread of a satisfactory standard. Without the signature, the victualler could not be paid and Moore realized that the Admiral was taking an unusual interest in trying to get the payment made
; ‘I shall enjoy a piece of such pimping iniquity being properly exposed’.
To his eternal credit, the Master of the
Adamant
refused to sign, and various attempts were made to intimidate him. Shortly before, Collins had submitted a request to be transferred to the
Dido
and the Admiral’s Secretary now responded that his request could only be considered if he signed the outstanding receipt. The
Adamant
’s Master retorted that if that were the case he would happily stay where he was. He was then summoned on shore to the Admiral’s office, where he was confronted by the Admiral himself, his Secretary, Purser and the contractor. To their demand that he sign the receipt there and then, Collins responded that he would sign to the amount of bread delivered but not the quality, which in his opinion was not composed of wheat flour, but some unidentified mixture of meals. The Admiral flew into a violent rage, threatening to complain to the Navy Office about Collins personally. Collins was unmoved, so the Admiral tried a different approach. He pointed out that Captain Knox had already signed the document, so by withholding his signature, Collins was disputing his commanding officer’s judgement. Collins still refused to concede. Why, the Admiral wanted to know next, would Collins not sign a document which would have no effect on his own pocket? Moore noted with some satisfaction the Master’s response that

... although it might not hurt his pocket it would materially affect his conscience.

Moore summed up the incident:

He was treated excessively ill ... he stuck to his text and retired leaving the Admiral foaming with rage.

In the end the Admiral altered all of the relevant documentation to state that he had ordered the bread to be taken on board, even though it had already been condemned by survey. With this proviso, Collins was fully prepared to sign the receipt, although the Admiral was left frustrated and furious. There was a postscript to this incident which Moore recorded with glee: a month later the Admiral received a letter from the Commissioners of the Victualling Office in London stating that the bread issued to the ships was
‘by no means fit for the service’
and that the sample supplied by Admiral Hughes
‘seemed to have been baked for the purpose of sending to them’
. The Commissioners had, in turn, referred the whole matter to their Lordships at the Admiralty. Whether Hughes was alarmed or irritated by this news cannot now be known. It was of little importance to him, for by the same Packet he received news of his promotion to Vice Admiral of the Blue.

Moore too soon found himself the butt of the Admiral’s anger, albeit indirectly. As the year slid towards the end of November, the weather again turned very sharp. Moore, observing the crew of the
Adamant
at their tasks, became increasingly concerned that the men were in danger of getting frostbite by working up on the yards while they were in harbour. When the weather turned cold it was normal practice to strike upper masts and yards and cover the upper works of the ship with some form of roof or ‘house’ which took no more than half an hour to dismantle. Moore therefore found himself anxiously waiting for the general order from the Admiral to prepare the ship for winter. Finally, he decided to put a written request to Captain Knox seeking permission to bed the ship down and Knox gave his approval, also in writing. The masts and yards were struck the same day, probably by a delighted crew. That same evening, Moore received a brisk letter from the Captain claiming that he had exceeded the orders, leading Moore to believe that Knox had probably been berated in turn by the Admiral for pre-empting his orders. However, he was unmoved because his own growing anger exceeded that of his seniors, for this was not the only indication of the Captain’s lack of care for his crew; the fresh bread ordered by the Commissioners had still not been issued.

The arrival of the first Packet of 1791 brought dismaying news. With no prospect of war with Spain, fleets were being disbanded and ships laid up. Moore’s depression was deepened and his health collapsed. Over the Christmas period he had developed a complaint from which he was to suffer intermittently all his life
– ‘This cursed rheumatism’
. He also contracted an inflammation of the eyes that prevented him undertaking any strenuous activity and often confined him to his cabin. Then, quite suddenly and unexpectedly, the situation changed. Another Packet arrived bringing news that the First Lieutenants of all flagships in commission, which included Moore, had been promoted to Master & Commander. Even before he received official confirmation from the Admiralty, he received letters of congratulation from friends and family at home. His friend William Hope was confirmed as the new First Lieutenant of the
Adamant
, and Moore joyfully packed his belongings to be ready to leave on the next available Packet, for promotion also meant that he had to leave the ship. There was happiness all round as the Packet set off on her return journey, which turned out to be an agreeable passage:

We are very sociable, laugh a great deal, eat more, and drink our allowance.

Also, it seemed that his eye condition was beginning to improve.

I was a good deal alarmed by the condition my eyes were in, they are now, however, infinitely better but not yet as I would have them.

4

Commander of the Orestes (April 1791 – May 1792)

Moore arrived at Falmouth on 28 April and went ashore the same evening. His heavy luggage was sent on board a London-bound brig while he travelled overland arriving in London on 2 May. To his surprise, the riverside communities of the capital were swarming with press gangs. A fleet was being assembled to send into the Baltic to persuade the Empress of Russia to make peace with the Turks. As soon as he was able, Moore sought an interview with Lord Chatham at the Admiralty – where he was received ‘
with great civility’
– and asked for the command of a fireship if war broke out. He thought that he had little right to expect more than this, especially as he knew none of the active admirals well enough to apply for their support.

With no professional occupation, Moore spent a week with his friend Charles Locke at his family’s estate in Surrey.
²⁴
He thought Locke’s father, William

the most amiable and enlightened person I have ever known. I left his house with great regret, and with an intention of repeating my visit
[at]
the first opportunity.

Shortly after, Charles joined Moore in London and they went to see an exhibition by the painter Fuseli. Locke had been a pupil of Fuseli and it was almost certainly through Locke that Moore became acquainted with the artist. Moore was totally captivated by his work. He thought him

the most sublime genius ... his ideas are vast and terrible, and whether his execution is unequalled by the other Artists or not, is more than I can determine, but he certainly fills the beholder with grander ideas than the works of any painter alive or dead whose works are extant ... I know of few men who are better fitted to comment on the genius of Shakespeare, and none who are so worthy to paint his scenes ... Fuseli I am sure will be admired when he is once fairly out of the world; at present he is certainly undervalued to a degree that disgraces the age.