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[Page 51]
83rd - An Armed vessel with Letters of Mark having arrived from the Cape of Good Hope, called the Fox, I required to get out of confinement into her, this produced a Letter stating that unless I agreed to go in the Porpoise on their conditions, I should be required to embark (with any one person I might choose to attend me) in the Dart in a few days: this was a poor miserable vessel with only one Deck, deeply loaded with Salted Skins, and in the Interest of McArthur. I then wrote to Major Johnston to know if by the word "required", he meant, that force would be applied, who answered in the affirmative, upon which other difficulties occurred, which were controverted between me and them; when the Lady Nelson, Tender, which had been employed on the same service as the Porpoise, arrived on the 29th March.
84th - This Vessel was commanded by Acting Lieutenant Kent, properly first Lieutenant of the Porpoise, who immediately waited on me before he could be prevented; I therefore conceiving a favorable opinion of him and hoping by his means to get the Command of the Porpoise, at all events, to turn out Lt. Symons, sent him a Commission but as I was prohibited from communicating with
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