"تاريخ البحرية الهندية. (١٦١٣- ١٨٦٣)." [‎٢‎٥‎٢] (٦٢٢/٢٧١)

252
HISTORY OF THE INDIAN NAVY.
protection, and defaced the beauty of their Pagoda. Com
modore Lynch, on delivering his instructions to his second in
command, manned his three cutters and proceeded up the
Salween to intercept the flight of the Burmese. He found
them scattered at the third Pagoda, and ordered his boats to
open fire on them with shell and canister, which made them
scamper away as fast as their legs would carry them. The
boats returned on the same evening, and proceeded up the river
yesterday morning." Martaban was kept in constant alarm by
night attacks, until Lieutenant Sedley, # then in temporary
command of the 4 Zenobia/ dragged one of the 68-pounders of
his ship up to the summit of a hill commanding the town, by a
party of seamen, assisted by elephants. This formidable piece
of artillery was manned and worked by a strong detachment of
men from the 4 Zenobia,' under the command of one of her
lieutenants; " and," says a newspaper correspondent, " since
its elevation the enemy have not ventured to show themselves
near the camp."
On the 1st of September, the boats of the 'Zenobia,' which,
after breaking her shaft, was guardship at Martaban, were
engaged in a little affair, in which the officers and men ac
quitted themselves very creditably. Having received informa
tion that the enemy were encamped at a village named
Ketturhee, Lieutenant Sedley sent, on a reconnoitring expe
dition, the boats of the 'Zenobia,' accompanied by the schooner
6 Pegu,' having men from the 4 Zenobia' to work her guns. On
arriving abreast of the village, the second cutter was ordered to
pull ahead of the other boats, and endeavour to ascertain the
strength of their position. She had not proceeded far, how
ever, before the Burmese opened a sharp fire with jingalls and
muskets, which was speedily returned from the cutter, pinnace,
and schooner. The Burmese kept up their fire with great
spirit and accuracy ; they commenced with a discharge of jingall
balls, followed by volleys of musketry at the boats and schooner.
About forty minutes elapsed before they slackened their fire,
when the 4 Zenobia's ' second cutter and pinnace pulled for the
stockade, landed, and burned the village to the ground. A
large quantity of ammunition was found and destroyed. The
stockade abreast of the river, a strong work, was about 300
yards in length, ten feet high, and three feet thick, with a
trench cut inside. The spherical case fired by the gunners ot
the 4 Zenobia/ on board the 4 Pegu,' committed great execution,
judging from the number of killed and wounded found in this
stockade. The 4 Zenobia's' boats were riddled with musket
# Lieutenant Jermyn, Senior Lieutenant of tlie £ Zenobia' wlien she left
Bombay, was obliged to go on sick-leave to England soon after the capture
Rangoon, when Lieutenant Sedley became First -Lieutenant and assumed em
porary charge on Commander Ball's retirement through ill health.