Medina
Sidonia intended to return to Calais, but his ships had drifted in the
night far to the east, and before his signal of return could be obeyed
the English fleet was upon them.
78. "Sir Henry Seymour, with his sixteen ships, having the advantage
of wind, speed, and skill, came upon a cluster of Spanish galleons at
eight in the morning. Reserving their fire till within a hundred and
twenty yards, and wasting no cartridges, the English ships continued
through the entire forenoon to pour upon them one continuous rain of
shot. They were driven together, and became entangled in a confused
and helpless mass.
79. "Drake, in the mean time, had fallen upon a score of galleons
under the direct command of Medina Sidonia himself. They were better
handled than the rest, and were endeavoring to keep sea-room and
retain some command of themselves. But their wretched sailing powers
put them to a disadvantage, for which no skill or courage could
compensate. The English were always at windward of them; and, hemmed
in at every turn, they, too, were forced back upon their consorts,
hunted together as a shepherd hunts sheep upon a common, and the whole
mass of them were forced slowly eastward, away from the only harbor
open to them, and into the unknown waters of the North Sea.
80. "Howard came up at noon to join in the work of destruction.
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