Why Howe could not take every disabled ship

Villaret gathered eleven ships and briefly threatened the disabled HMS Queen before Howe formed six serviceable ships into a defensive squadron. The French admiral abandoned that recovery attack but still reclaimed several dismasted ships lying within British reach. Howe's fleet lacked the crews and manoeuvrable hulls needed to take possession before they escaped. When Howe finally retired below, Captain of the Fleet Roger Curtis chose consolidation over another pursuit. The decision was criticised afterward, yet only eleven British ships remained capable of battle against roughly twelve French ships, many of them the least heavily engaged vessels.