Letter from Rear-Adm. Sir Samuel Hood to General Jacob de Budé reporting that Adm. Sir George Rodney had sailed for Jamaica with various identified ships, commenting on the lack of frigates (which are useful for watching the enemy), his suspicions of what the French may do next and the need for readiness if they proceed to America, and again criticising Rodney's lack of action in pursuing the fleeing enemy fleet.
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it is very far from being so, as no one ship is by any means perfect in her masts & yards, or without wants of various kinds: and I am free to confess, I can see no real use in my keeping the Sea, with a squadron [[underline]] crippled, [[/underline]] and so very inferior to that of the Enemy; for we have certain accounts, that there were on the 17th of this month at teh Cape, thirteen Spanish & five french ships of the Line, with eight thousand Spanish Troops, impatiently waiting the arrival of De Grasse’s Squadron from Martinique, since which Twenty five french have joined, which make in the whole forty three and I should supposed the latter would carry about 4,000 Troops Now had the judgement of the Commander in Chief after the Enemy was so totally put to [[underline]] flight, [[/underline]] bore any kind of proportion, to the high Courage, Zeal, & exertion, so very manifestly shewn by every Captain, officer & man, under his Command, in the action; all difficulty would now have been at an end, and we might have done just as we pleased, and instead of being at this hour upon the defensive, a force might have been preparing, to return to the Windward Islands, for the purpose of attacking the Enemy’s possessions there, and with every prospect of success — Surely there never was an instance before, of a great fleet, [[underline]] so beaten [[/underline]] [[catchword]] and [[/catchword]]
