The strength of the French had been well
concealed. There to confront him lay twenty-four enemy ships. The
situation was even worse, for the French fleet from Newport was
on its way to join Grasse.
On the afternoon of the 5th of September, the day of the great
rejoicing in Philadelphia, there was a spectacle of surpassing
interest off Cape Henry, at the mouth of the Bay. The two great
fleets joined battle, under sail, and poured their fire into each
other. When night came the British had about three hundred and
fifty casualties and the French about two hundred. There was no
brilliant leadership on either side. One of Graves's largest
ships, the Terrible, was so crippled that he burnt her, and
several others were badly damaged. Admiral Hood, one of Graves's
officers, says that if his leader had turned suddenly and
anchored his ships across the mouth of the Bay, the French
Admiral with his fleet outside would probably have sailed away
and left the British fleet in possession. As it was the two
fleets lay at sea in sight of each other for four days. On the
morning of the tenth the squadron from Newport under Barras
arrived and increased Grasse's ships to thirty-six. Against such
odds Graves could do nothing. He lingered near the mouth of the
Chesapeake for a few days still and then sailed away to New York
to refit.
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