On Saturday the Brigantine of war Comet,Capt. [Edward] Allen, re­ turned from a cruize, in which he took one prize, mentioned in our last to have arrived. On Sunday the 25th of last month, after a very hard gale of wind, early in the morning he descried two sail, one a large ship right astern in shore, the other a sloop on the weather quarter; the ship appeared to be at anchor, or lying to; the sloop bore down on the Comet, and came within half a league of her, then returned towards the ship. Captain Allen having got every thing ready to engage, stood after them. At twelve o'clock the sloop and ship were observed to speak, the Comet being then about three leagues to windward. By an observation taken then, Capt. Allen found he was 20 leagues to the southward of St. Augustine bar. Wind at S.E. The ship and sloop bore away before the wind with a crowded sail; the Comet gave chace; upon the enemy's perceiving it, both ship and sloop hove too. At half past two the Comet came up within musket shot of them, when the ship was discovered to be armed; she carried 16 guns, and the sloop, supposed to be Captain Moubray's, 14. Capt. Allen immediately run under the ship's stern, as if intending to go on her lee side, gave her three broadsides, and then run in for the land. The sloop thereupon tacked, and the ship weared immediately, and both gave chace. Capt. Allen, finding the sloop weathered and got ahead of him, and the ship coming up astern, wore ship, and with all the sail he could set stood along shore. with the wind large. The ship came up on the Comet's weather quarter, and three or four broadsides were exchanged; the ship's rigging and sails being much hurt, she fell astern to refit; then the sloop came up on the lee quarter within half pistol shot, and after giving three cheers, poured in a broadside; the compliment was soon returned by the Comet, and there ensued a very hot engagement, which lasted upwards of half an hour; after which the sloop, being greatly damaged in her hull, sails and rigging, fell to leeward. The ship having refitted, came up on the Comet's weather quarter, and within musket shot exchanged several broadsides; she then dropped astern. Night coming on, Captain Allen kept his wind, in hopes of drawing the ship from the sloop, but as soon as she could get room to wear under the Comet's stern, she bore away for her consort. The Comet kept her wind all night, and next morning saw nothing of the enemy. On board both vessels were a number of soldiers, whose musketry did most of the damage sustained on board the Comet, which was two men killed, and four wounded.

Capt. Allen informs us that, notwithstanding the great disparity between his vessel and the Apalachicola, taken by him the 21st. ult. Capt. [William] Morwick did not strike till most of his sails and rigging were cut away, and all his shot expended. The cargo of his prize turns out more valuable than at first imagined; the invoices being thrown overboard, the precise quan­ tities cannot be ascertained. The following articles are in it, viz. 126 barrels of flour 67 casks of beef, 40 casks of butter, 50 muskets, 2000 lb. of gun­ powder, 30 cwt. of lead balls, 2 cwt. of saltpetre, 246 pair of mens shoes, blankets, a large quantity of British, Irish and German linens, a large assort­ ment of most kinds of ironmongery, canvass, silver gorgets, bracelets, ear bobs, vermillion, tomahawks &c. for the Indians, broadcloths, plains, flannels, ready made linen and check shirts, huckaback, checks, stripes, calicoes, chintzes, stationary, 20 casks of porter, 40 do. of bottled beer, cheese, hats, cotton romals, a variety of saddlery, pewter, haberdashery, earthen and glass ware, &c. &c. &c.

Captain Ogilvie, who was master of the Apalachicola on the voyage to London from St. Augustine, and was a passenger in her when taken by Capt. Allen, informs us, that in the end of December last, a few leagues to the westward of Bermuda, he fell in with the sloop Mary, Thomas Jones master, from Edenton to Cape Nichola Mole, then a mere wreck. Captain Ogilvie took the master and his six sailors on board, and carried them to England. In the Downs the sailors were pressed by a boat from the Speedwell sloop of war; some of them giving information that Capt. Jones had been lieu­ tenant of an American privateer, he was also taken away, and was on board the Speedwell the last time Capt. Ogilvie heard of him.