The story of Nelson

By Edmund Francis Sellar

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Title: The story of Nelson

Author: Edmund Francis Sellar

Illustrator: Monro S. Orr


        
Release date: March 4, 2026 [eBook #78115]

Language: English

Original publication: London: T.C. & E.C. Jack, Ltd, 1924

Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/78115

Credits: Al Haines


*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF NELSON ***






[Transcriber's note: the source book was in extremely poor condition,
with its illustrations in varying states of wear and tear.]




[Frontispiece: Nelson at the Battle of Copenhagen (page 75)]




  THE CHILDREN'S HEROES SERIES


  THE STORY OF
  NELSON

  BY EDMUND FRANCIS SELLAR
  WITH PICTURES BY MONRO S. ORR



  LONDON: T. C. & E. C. JACK, LTD.,
  35 and 36 Paternoster Row, E.C.
  AND EDINBURGH




  PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN BY
  THOMAS NELSON AND SONS, LTD.




TO

Miss E. RUTH DENT


MY DEAR RUTH,

This little book tells the story of the greatest seaman that the
world has ever known.

I hope it says enough to make you want one day to read for yourself
the many other things about him that I have not room to tell you here.

  Yours affectionately,
        THE AUTHOR.




CONTENTS

Chapter

I. Early Boyhood--Joins his Ship

II. Nelson's Early Years at Sea--His First Command

III. Nelson in the West Indies--and in the Mediterranean

IV. Battle of St. Vincent

V. Battle of the Nile

VI. In the Mediterranean--and at Home

VII. Battle of Copenhagen

VIII. Napoleon's threatened Invasion of England

IX. Nelson in Chief Command in the Mediterranean--In Pursuit of the
Enemy

X. Trafalgar--Death of Nelson




THE STORY OF NELSON



CHAPTER I

EARLY BOYHOOD--JOINS HIS SHIP

On the 29th of September 1758, or nearly a hundred and fifty years
ago, Horatio Nelson, "the greatest of our heroes and the dearest to
ourselves," was born.

His father was a country clergyman, who lived at Burnham Thorpe, in
the county of Norfolk.

The boy had many brothers and sisters.  There were eleven children in
the family, only two of whom, however, lived to grow old.

Horatio as a child was weak and sickly, and all his life he was
delicate.  Even after his many years afloat, we are told that he
never quite got over the feeling of seasickness.

Although not a strong boy, there was nothing of the milksop about
him, and at an early age he showed the spirit of absolute
fearlessness which in later years was to stand him in such good stead.

"Fear, grandmamma!  I never saw fear; what is it?" he once asked
while quite a little child.

His father, in bringing up his children, trusted entirely to their
own sense of honour, and in this respect Horatio never failed him.

Once, while riding with his brother to school through deep snow,
William, the elder, wanted to turn back, as the drifts were thick,
and in parts dangerous.  "No! we must get there if we possibly can.
Remember, we are on our honour to do so," was Horatio's reply; and
his pony and he struggled on, and after some difficulty reached their
journey's end in safety.

[Illustration: His pony and he struggled on]

On another occasion, while at school, he lowered himself with sheets
from a window, and took a quantity of fine ripe pears from the
head-master's favourite tree.  On his return to the dormitory he laid
down the spoil before his companions, who had often coveted the
fruit, but had not dared to take it because of the severe flogging
which would probably follow.  Our hero refused to eat a single pear,
for greed had not prompted his daring action.

"He only took them," he explained, "because every other boy was
afraid."

Horatio's school days were brief.

At the time when he was twelve years old, Spain suddenly attacked the
Falkland Islands, a British colony in the far South Atlantic, and
forced our colonists to lower their flag.  This act naturally aroused
great anger in England, and as a result our ships were immediately
made ready for war.

At this time both Spain and France had mighty fleets, manned by
skilful and brave seamen, and Britain was not yet the all-conquering
power at sea which she afterwards became, thanks to Nelson and his
sailors.

The boy himself wished to go to sea, and on his uncle, Captain
Maurice Suckling, getting command of the _Raisonable_, he begged hard
to be allowed to serve in his uncle's ship.

Mr. Nelson, who had always said that in whatever station his son
might be placed he would, if possible, climb to the top of the tree,
accordingly wrote to his brother-in-law.

"What has poor Horatio done," came the answer, "who is so weak, that
he, above all the rest, should be sent to rough it out at sea?"

Still, his uncle said he might come, though he evidently did not
approve of his choice of a profession.  And so, at an age when boys
nowadays have not yet gone to a public school, Nelson said farewell
to lessons, and, no doubt to his great delight, started off alone to
join the _Raisonable_, then lying at Chatham, in the Medway.

No boy going to school for the first time ever had more reason to
feel unhappy.

On leaving the stage-coach at Chatham, he was at a loss where to go,
and how to find his ship.  Too shy to ask his way, he was wandering
about feeling very forlorn and miserable, when fortunately a kind
officer saw him, and spoke to him.

On learning that the unhappy-looking youngster was no lost lad, but a
midshipman seeking his ship, the officer, who knew Captain Suckling,
showed Horatio every kindness, and after giving him a good dinner,
finally saw him safely on board the _Raisonable_.

On arrival at the ship another disappointment awaited our hero.  His
uncle was away, and nobody on board knew anything about young Nelson,
nor even expected a boy to arrive at all.  However, he had to make
the best of it somehow, and with the help of an old sailor, who took
pity on his loneliness, he soon settled down to his new life, and
from that time till the day of his death, except for a few brief
months on shore, his home was on board ship.

These first few hours of misery and loneliness at Chatham Nelson
never forgot.

In later years, remembering his own bitter experiences, he always
made a point of giving a friendly welcome, and speaking a few words
of encouragement and advice, to any young midshipman on first joining
his ship; and he took good care that the boy's start in life should
not be as trying and forlorn as his own had been.




CHAPTER II

NELSON'S EARLY YEARS AT SEA--HIS FIRST COMMAND

Before, however, war had actually begun, Great Britain and Spain
agreed to come to terms, so Horatio was not yet to "smell powder."

Very shortly afterwards the _Raisonable_ was paid off, and Captain
Suckling got the command of the _Triumph_, 74 guns, then the
guardship in the Medway.  To this ship his nephew followed him, and
was on her books for the next two years.  During this time, however,
the boy, in order to gain experience in his profession, by his
uncle's advice went a cruise to the West Indies on board a
merchantman.  On this voyage he shipped as a volunteer, and as a
common seaman he shared the hard work and rough life of a fore-mast
hand.

Life in the forecastle of a merchant ship was, of course, very
uncomfortable, but it had its advantages, and he returned after a
year's experience, to use his own words, "a practical seaman."

On rejoining the _Triumph_ his uncle took care that his time should
not be wasted, and among other duties he was continually employed in
the cutter and long-boat.  Thus he not only became a good pilot,
"confident of himself among rocks and sands," as he afterwards wrote,
but he was at the same time learning the lessons of responsibility
and self-reliance.

Shortly after this, an expedition to the North Pole was fitted out,
and although an order was given that no boys were wanted, Nelson so
earnestly begged Captain Lutwidge, the commander of the expedition,
to let him come, that his wish was granted, and he sailed as the
captain's coxswain, a position for which his lessons in managing a
small boat, learnt in the Medway, quite fitted him, in spite of his
youth.

In these Arctic seas our hero came neat ending his life.  One clear
moonlight night, while the ship was lying ice-bound, he and another
midshipman, armed with a rusty musket between them, slipped down over
the side and started off over the frozen sea to try to shoot a Polar
bear.

They had to wait some time before one was sighted, but at length a
huge white fellow appeared.  The middy took careful aim, pulled the
trigger, but the musket missed fire.

"Never mind!" shouted young Horatio; "do but let me get a blow at him
with the butt end and we shall have him."  So saying, he dashed off
with raised gun, determined to come to close quarters.  Fortunately
at this moment the noise of a gun from the ship broke the stillness
of the Arctic night, and so startled the bear that, with a defiant
growl, he turned tail and shambled off over the frozen snow.

When the boys got back to the ship, Captain Lutwidge, who had
witnessed the scene and been thoroughly alarmed for their safety,
spoke somewhat sharply to them for this piece of daring folly.  Asked
what he meant by it, Horatio, with the pout of his lip peculiar to
him, could think of no other excuse than that "he wished to kill the
bear that he might carry the skin to his father."

On his return from the Pole, he was as eager as ever for more
service, and at his own wish he was transhipped, with scarcely a day
on shore, to a small ship, the _Seahorse_, under orders to sail for
the East Indies.

From the extremes of cold he was to go direct to the extremes of
heat.  "Nothing less than such a distant voyage could in the least
satisfy my desire of maritime knowledge," he afterwards explained.

On the _Seahorse_ he at first did the work of an ordinary seaman
aloft, but in a short time he was finally rated as midshipman and
placed on the quarter-deck.  We are told that he started from England
a thick-set, athletic young man, with a ruddy-brown face and healthy
complexion.

The frozen Pole was, however, kinder to him than the sun and heat of
India.  After two years he was invalided home, his life despaired of,
and it was probably owing to the nursing and tender care of Captain
Pigot of the _Dolphin_, in which ship he made the return voyage, that
our future admiral owed his life.

He arrived in England three years from the time of his departure, no
longer stout and strong as he had started, but a mere living
skeleton, for some time scarcely able to use his limbs.

When he had recovered, his next duty was that of acting lieutenant of
the _Worcester_, 64 guns, then going out to Gibraltar on convoy duty.
Nothing of special interest happened while on this ship, but the
young man always after remembered with pride the words of his
captain, "that he felt as easy when Nelson was upon deck, as any
officer of the ship."

Some six months after joining the _Worcester_, another rung of the
ladder was reached, another milestone on the road to fame was left
behind, for on the 8th April 1777 he passed his examination for
lieutenant.

Two days later he got his commission to the _Lowestoffe_, a frigate
of 32 guns.  Once again he visited the West Indies; but whereas
before he had shared the hardships and labour of a common seaman in
the merchant service, this time he sailed as a full-fledged ward-room
officer in the Royal Navy.

Great Britain was now at war with her revolted American colonies,
which were soon to be known as the United States.

Promotion on such a station was always rapid, and a frigate, being
both fast-sailing and active, was considered a grand school for a
young officer.

But even a frigate was not active enough for Nelson's mind, and he
soon managed to be transferred to the schooner which acted as tender
to the _Lowestoffe_.  Here he was able to put into practice the
lessons in pilotage learned in the Medway.  There was much
responsibility laid on his shoulders, and his position gave scope for
the fearless self-reliance which he already was seen to possess.

Before leaving the Lowestoffe he had distinguished himself by an act
of skilful seamanship and great bravery.

The frigate had captured a Yankee privateer, and the first lieutenant
had been sent to board the prize.  There was a heavy sea running at
the time, and after one or two attempts the boat was obliged to
return, having failed in her object.

[Illustration: There was a heavy sea running]

"Have I no officer in the ship who can board her?" exclaimed the
captain.

"It is my turn now!  If I come back, it is yours," said Nelson,
stopping another officer who had hurried to the side, and jumping
into the boat himself.

Then, as always, he was "the first on every service, whether by day
or night," and his zeal and love of duty were bringing their reward,
for promotion was coming fast.

Joining the _Bristol_, Sir Peter Parker's flagship, as third
lieutenant, in July, he had risen to be first by September.  The
admiral took a great liking to the eager young lieutenant, and,
showing the greatest interest in him and in another young officer,
afterwards to become famous as Lord Collingwood, did his best to
bring the two young men forward.  Both more than bore out their
chief's sound judgment, and showed that the fine old sailor had not
been mistaken in his men.

At twenty, Nelson was a commander, while a year later he was
post-captain of the _Hinchinbrook_.

Great Britain was by this time at war with both France and Spain, and
there was a great deal of fighting on shore, in which Nelson had his
share and showed great courage.

In the words of an eye-witness, "he did more than his duty; when
anything was to be done, he saw no difficulties."

The climate was a trying one, the work hard, and the food often
scarce, and there was little wonder that his health gave way.  For a
long time he refused to leave his post, until finally, almost at
death's door, he was carried to the admiral's house in Jamaica.  Here
he had always been treated almost like a son of the house, and now,
thanks to Lady Parker's care and nursing, he partly recovered, and
was at length able to return to England.

After some nine months' illness, he began to feel a little better,
and the first thing he thought of was to apply for a new ship.

The Admiralty gave him the command of the _Albemarle_, a frigate of
28 guns, and though still an invalid, and often in great pain, Nelson
was glad to be employed again, and entered on his new duties with
cheerfulness.

He had the power of winning men's hearts, and his new ship's company,
both officers and men, soon showed that they would do anything to
serve him.

After visiting the Baltic, where he was afterwards to become so
famous, the _Albemarle_ sailed for Quebec, and while on this station
Nelson soon gave a proof of his skill and coolness in the face of
danger.

His little frigate was met and chased one day by a whole French
squadron.  Escape seemed impossible, but holding on under every
stitch of canvas, Nelson coolly threaded his way among the shoals and
sands of Boston Bay, where the big French vessels were afraid to
follow for fear of running aground.  One frigate, indeed, tried to do
so, but on the _Albemarle_ clearing for action, thought better of it,
and afraid to attack single-handed, turned back and rejoined the
other ships.  Well might Lord Hood declare that the young captain
"knew as much about naval tactics as any officer in the fleet!"

A midshipman on Lord Hood's flagship, no less a person than our
future king, William IV., thus gives his early impressions of our
hero, whom he met now for the first time, and with whom he formed a
lasting friendship.  To him the commander of the _Albemarle_ appeared
"the merest boy of a captain," but he adds, "there was something
irresistibly pleasing in his address and conversation, _and an
enthusiasm that showed he was no common being_."

Peace was soon after declared, and the "boy captain" returned with
Hood to England.  Of money from the capture of the enemies' vessels
he had little, but of honour, which he prized far above riches, he
had had his share.

On the _Albemarle_ being paid off, his whole ship's company showed
the affection they felt for her captain by offering, if he could get
another ship, to enter her immediately.  Nelson was much touched by
this devotion, but he had earned a rest, and after being presented to
his sovereign by Hood, he returned once more to his father's quiet
rectory, to wait till the Admiralty should again call on his
services.  While thus on half-pay, and being eager to gain any
knowledge likely to help him in his profession, he got leave of
absence to visit France, in order to learn the language.

Of this holiday he writes: "I hate their country and their manners;"
and this view he never altered.  To the day of his death the man who
broke and destroyed the power of France "hated a Frenchman like the
devil."




CHAPTER III

NELSON IN THE WEST INDIES--AND IN THE MEDITERRANEAN

Thanks to Lord Hood, very shortly after Nelson's return to England he
was appointed to the command of the frigate _Boreas_.

In this ship he again sailed for the West Indies, taking on board Sir
Richard Hughes, the commander-in-chief of the Leeward Islands, and
Lady Hughes.

There were some thirty midshipmen on board, and Lady Hughes was much
struck with Nelson's interest in and kindness to "the young gentlemen
who had the happiness of being on his quarter-deck," as she calls
them.

"Well, sir," he would say to some midshipman newly come from a life
on shore, and naturally rather timid of going aloft, "I am going a
race to the mast-head, and beg I may meet you there."

Encouraged by this, the boy would clamber up somehow, to be met at
the top by his captain, who would assure him that it was very foolish
to imagine that there was any danger in the feat, and very soon the
youngster would be as much at home scaling the rigging as if he were
climbing a tree bird-nesting.

When Nelson had to attend any big dinner or state banquet on shore a
middy always went with him.

"Your Excellency must excuse me for bringing one of my midshipmen,"
he said to the Governor of Barbadoes, "as I make it a rule to
introduce them to all the good company I can, as they have few to
look up to besides myself during the time they are at sea."

Nelson was by this time second in command on the station, so quickly
had he risen; and as senior captain he had a great deal of work to
do.  One of his chief duties was to prevent smuggling between the
British colonies and the new United States.  This may have been not
quite to his liking, and for the first and only time in his life
Nelson was to feel that he was unpopular.  Bitterly he felt it; but
in spite of the cold looks and angry murmurings of those around
him--especially of his former friends, the planters--he stuck to his
duty, and earned the thanks and gratitude of his king and country.

Some of his West Indian friends remained true to him, especially a
Mr. P. Herbert, the President of the island of Nevis, who lived with
his niece, Mrs. Nisbet, a young widow of twenty-eight, and her son, a
child of three.

The latter soon made great friends with the warm-hearted sailor, who
romped and played with him to his heart's content.  One day, hearing
that Nelson had called, Mr. Herbert hastened to greet him, when, to
his astonishment, he found "that great little man, of whom everybody
is so afraid, playing under the dining-table with Mrs. Nisbet's
child."

Mrs. Nisbet was much touched by the kindness to her boy, and Nelson
soon won her heart also.

They were married on 11th March 1787, Prince William adding
distinction to his friend's wedding by giving away the bride.

Three months after the _Boreas_ sailed for England, and, on arrival
there, Nelson went with his wife and stepson to live under his
father's roof at Burnham Thorpe.

Mr. Nelson was now an old man, and had long been an invalid, but the
sight of his dear son, he declared, had given him new life.  The
latter had intended to go to France to again study the language, but
his father begged him so hard to stay and cheer his old age, that
Nelson felt it would be cruel to distress the fond parent he might
never see again.

While at the parsonage he spent his time quietly, but on the whole
happily enough.  Sometimes he would dig for hours at a time in the
garden, for the sheer pleasure of feeling weary after hard exercise.
At other times his boyish spirit came out, and he would go long
bird-nesting excursions with Mrs. Nelson as his companion.  But on
the whole the idle life of a country gentleman did not suit the man
whose real home was on the sea.

He took an interest in greyhounds and coursing.  "Shoot I cannot, so
I have not taken out a licence," he writes to a friend.  His habit of
carrying his gun at full cock and letting it off without even
bringing it to his shoulder was scarcely likely to kill much game,
though he proudly relates that he once shot a partridge.

The events of the French Revolution were, however, soon to provide
him with more exciting work than shooting and bird-nesting.

In 1793 all Europe was horrified by the news that the French had
beheaded their king and queen, and had promised "assistance to all
peoples and countries wishing to be free."

This was a direct challenge to all forms of law and order, and was a
threat at the loyal people of Britain, who were wisely and kindly
governed and had no wish for any change.

The country had need of her seamen, and on the 30th January Nelson
got what he had always wished for--the command of a battleship, the
_Agamemnon_, of 64 guns.

Two days later Great Britain and Holland declared war on the French
Republic.

Already Nelson had become known as a brave and kind captain to serve
under, and a fresh proof of his popularity was given on his taking up
his new command.  From his native county, Norfolk, seamen flocked in
numbers to his flag, and captains whose ships were filled by the aid
of the hated pressgang looked on with envy at the ease with which the
_Agamemnon_ secured a crew.  Nor were friends of Nelson's own rank
lacking; for, besides his stepson, Josiah Nisbet, who went with him,
many of his neighbours, the Norfolk squires, were glad to let their
sons serve under him.

Nelson was a good hater, and his advice to his midshipmen was short
and to the point:--

"First," he said, "you must always implicitly obey orders without
attempting to form any opinion of your own respecting their
propriety; secondly, you must consider every man your enemy who
speaks ill of the king; and, thirdly, _you must hate a Frenchman as
you do the devil_."

The French were said to have found a way by which they could throw
red-hot shot upon their enemy's ships, and thus set them on fire.
This caused some alarm in England, but Nelson only laughingly said,
"Then we must get so close to those red-hot gentlemen that their shot
may go through both sides, when it will not matter whether they are
hot or cold."  And in this wish to come to close quarters the captain
and crew of the _Agamemnon_ sailed.

Their first duty was the blockade of the towns of Toulon and
Marseilles.  This was not exciting work, and Nelson longed for actual
fighting.

"All we get here," he writes, "is honour and salt beef;" and greatly
did he rejoice when, after nineteen weeks, he was sent to the island
of Corsica.

Corsica had lately been given up to France by the Republic of Genoa,
without asking the wishes of the natives.

Under their brave chief Paoli, who declared that "the rocks which
surrounded him should melt away" before he gave in, they made a brave
fight, but the French were too strong.  And so the British determined
to help these islanders in their struggle for liberty.

To Nelson, in whom Lord Hood had the greatest confidence, was
entrusted the siege of Bastia, an important town, to the capture of
which he gave his whole heart and mind.  But the task was a hard one.
The strength of the enemy was much greater than Hood had fancied, and
to have failed against such odds would have been no disgrace.
Indeed, had Nelson let his commander-in-chief know how greatly
outnumbered he was, the risk might never have been taken.

The captain of the _Agamemnon_, however, was not the man to think of
difficulty or danger, and in the end he triumphed.

"I always was of opinion, have ever acted up to it, and never had any
reason to repent it, that one Englishman was equal to three
Frenchmen," he had declared; and after some sharp fighting the
garrison of Bastia, consisting of 4500 men, laid down their arms to
less than 1200 British seamen.

Unhurt before Bastia, Nelson was not to be so lucky at his next
fight, the siege of Calvi.  Here much of his duty lay on shore.  The
climate was a deadly one; men died around him in scores; he himself
was constantly ill, but his pluck and spirits seemed to keep life
within him.

"I am the reed among the oaks," he wrote; "I bow before the storm
while the sturdy oak is laid low."  To add to his sufferings, a shot
struck near him, while in the batteries before the town, and blinded
him with sand and gravel.

[Illustration: Nelson wounded at Calvi]

Though he lost the sight of one eye and suffered great pain, he still
stuck to his post.  "Nothing but the loss of a limb would have kept
me from my duty," he declared.

At length Calvi fell, and the wounded captain got back to the
_Agamemnon_, now more like a floating hospital than a ship of war, so
filled was she by the sick and wounded.

Though defeated in Corsica, the French were everywhere else
successful.

The combined armies of Great Britain, Austria, and Holland had been
driven out of France and Belgium, and the Prussians and Austrians had
retreated to the right bank of the Rhine.  In Spain also France was
victorious, and Italy was soon to be crushed.

The fate of Europe hung in the balance.  Bonaparte and his conquering
armies seemed to have cast a great shadow of fear and oppression over
the nations, and all eyes were turned upon England and her sea power
as the one means of saving Europe.

With Corsica as a place of shelter for her ships, the influence of
Britain had greatly increased in the Mediterranean.  The French saw
that to make all their conquests secure the British fleet must be
destroyed, and on 8th March 1795 they sent out fifteen ships of the
line, with six smaller vessels.

Admiral Hotham, who was now in Lord Hood's place, sailed to meet them
with a smaller force.  The French, though in much greater strength,
did not venture nearer than three miles to our ships.  They kept this
distance till dawn the next morning, when, still not liking the look
of things, they sailed away, and orders for a general chase were
given to the British fleet.

The _Agamemnon_ got a good start, and being a fast sailer, soon came
up with one of the enemy's ships, the _Ça Ira_, of 80 guns.

The latter had run into the vessel in front of her, and lost both her
fore and main top-masts.

Nelson saw his chance in her disabled condition, and quickly seized
it.  The Frenchman "was absolutely large enough to take _Agamemnon_
in her hold"; but her size mattered little to the _Agamemnon's_
captain.  Down on the enemy she swooped; reserving her fire till at
close range, she poured in a storm of shot.  The other French ships
were meanwhile hastening to the rescue; the British vessel was alone,
far in front of her fleet, and Hotham made the signal for recall, but
not before the _Ça Ira_ had been so damaged that she had to be taken
in tow by another French vessel, _Le Censeur_.

Next morning both these ships had fallen so far behind that they were
surrounded and had to strike their flags.

Thus Nelson's skill and daring caused the loss of two fine ships; but
this was not enough to satisfy him.  In vain he pleaded with the
admiral to pursue and attack the whole French fleet, which he felt
sure would be destroyed.

Hotham, a cool but cautious leader, refused to act.  "We must be
contented; we have done very well," he replied to all entreaties.

"_Now, had we taken ten sail, and had allowed the eleventh to escape,
when it had been possible to have got at her, I should never have
called it well done,_" said Nelson.

Whether Hotham was too cautious, or whether he was right in acting as
he did, it is hard to say; but it is certain that had Nelson been in
command he would have risked everything on a battle.  His plan was
always to attack, and either destroy or severely damage the enemy.
His own loss he never thought about.

After the excitement of the battle, Nelson, who always seemed well
and in good spirits when there was fighting, began to feel ill, and
was much troubled by pain in his wounded eye.

He had been looking forward to Lord Hood's coming out as
commander-in-chief.  The latter had, to use his own words, always
"treated him like a son," and he was much disappointed when Lord Howe
was sent in his stead.

Lord Howe was "a great officer in the management of a fleet," he
said; "but Lord Hood is equally great in all situations which an
admiral can be placed in."

However, it really mattered little to him, as he was at this time
given command of a detached squadron, with which he was to help on
sea the Austrians, who were fighting the French on land, in the part
of Italy known as the Riviera.

On this service, while showing his usual zeal in all purely naval
matters, he gave proof of great skill in dealing with political and
diplomatic questions.

The duties of a naval officer upholding the honour of his country all
over the world are many-sided.

"Soldiers have not the same boldness in undertaking a political
measure that we have," Nelson used to say.  "We look to the benefit
of our country, and risk our fame every day to save her: a soldier
obeys his orders and no more."

At this time we must remember that the British army had not yet
become famous under Wellington.  Our power on land was not strong
enough to make much way against the all-conquering Frenchmen--Great
Britain was looked on purely as a sea power.

"We had yet to see how these sea-wolves could fight on land," writes
a French historian.

Shortly after Admiral Jervis, afterwards Lord St. Vincent, took
command of the fleet.

"You must have a larger ship, for we cannot spare you either as
captain or admiral," was his greeting to Nelson.  And on the 11th of
June the latter, now a commodore, shifted his pendant to the
_Captain_, of 74 guns, and bade farewell to the battered,
storm-tossed _Agamemnon_, with her crew "who minded shot as little as
peas."  The old ship was again to appear in his fleet and share the
glories of Copenhagen and Trafalgar.  Like her former captain, she
ended her career on active service; for, fifteen years after Nelson
left her, she grounded off the coast of South America and was totally
lost.




CHAPTER IV

BATTLE OF ST. VINCENT

The French, everywhere victors on land, now made an alliance with
Spain, with the help of whose large navy they hoped to be able to
beat the British at sea.

At Toulon a powerful squadron was being made ready.  Genoa signed a
treaty with the all-conquering Frenchmen, who were now so powerful
that the British fleet was for a time forced to leave the
Mediterranean.  Bastia was abandoned; the Island of Elba was kept for
a short time, but even Elba had to be given up after a little.
Before this took place, however, Nelson had a sharp action while on
the frigate _Minerve_, which showed that our sailors were still what
he declared they always ought to be, "almost invincible."

The _Minerve_, after a hot fight, captured the Spanish frigate _La
Sabina_, whose captain, Don Jacobo Stuart, a descendant of the
unlucky royal house of Britain, was taken prisoner.

While the _Minerve_ was taking possession of her prize, two ships of
the line and another Spanish frigate came in sight.  A sharp chase
followed, and the little _Minerve_, her masts and sails damaged
during her late fight, was hard put to it before she could shake off
her pursuers and reach a place of safety in the port of Ferrajo.

Don Jacobo had remained a prisoner on board during the pursuit; but
no sooner was the _Minerve_ safe than Nelson returned him his sword
and sent him back under a flag of truce to Spain.  Such a generous
deed was contrary to the usual custom of war, but Nelson felt it to
be worthy of "the dignity of his country" to treat one of their
exiled royal family with this respect.  The Stuarts all were brave
men, whatever their faults, and this Stuart was no exception.

"He was the best officer in Spain, and his men were worthy of such a
commander," said Nelson, who always honoured a brave man even though
he was an enemy.

Nelson received much praise for this brilliant little action and
"dignified retreat," as the admiral called it, before a much larger
force of the enemy.  It was the first sign of more brilliant
victories to follow.

Shortly afterwards the _Minerve_ had another exciting escape from the
enemy.

Slipping out of Gibraltar in order to join Jervis and his ships, the
little vessel was espied by the whole Spanish fleet, which quickly
started off in pursuit.  They gained fast; one huge ship was already
quite close, and Nelson, fairly brought to bay, had already given the
order to "clear for action."

"Before the Dons get hold of that bit of bunting I will have a
struggle with them," he said, pointing to his flag; "and sooner than
give up the frigate I'll run her ashore."

At this anxious moment a shout of "Man overboard" was heard, and
Lieutenant Hardy, in whose arms Nelson died at Trafalgar, on the
instant lowered a boat and started to save the drowning seaman.  Soon
those on the _Minerve_ saw that the boat, which had by this time
picked up the sailor, could not regain the frigate, try as hard as
they might.

The leading Spaniard was already within gun-shot; to stop meant
almost certain loss of the ship.  Nelson's mind was made up on the
instant; come what might, he would not desert a shipmate in danger.

"By God, I'll not lose Hardy!" he shouted; "back the mizzen topsail!"

The order was quickly obeyed; the frigate slowed down in face of her
pursuers.  The Spaniards, astonished at this daring act, for some
strange reason failed to press on, and the _Minerve_, with Hardy and
the rescuing party safe on board, went on her way unharmed.

That same night, in a haze, the little frigate, which seemed to bear
a charmed life, had an even more thrilling and mysterious adventure.

Suddenly she found herself sailing in the very midst of a large
fleet, which they knew could not be that of Jervis.  Partly hidden by
the fog, Nelson continued on his way, obeying the Spanish admiral's
signals, and behaving just as though the _Minerve_ were one of the
enemy's frigates.

It was a time of breathless excitement.  Should the fog lift, and the
enemy discover the strange ship in their midst, Nelson knew that he
would have no mercy shown him and no chance of escape.

Whether he was with the Spanish main fleet or only a portion of it he
had no means in the darkness of finding out.  He himself thought that
he was in company with a squadron on its way to the West Indies.  In
this case his mind was made up; unprepared as the _Minerve_ was for
such a long voyage, she would have to sail at her best speed, ahead
of the enemy, and trust to reach the islands in time to warn them to
be ready to meet an attack.

The suspense was growing greater every minute, with the prospect of
dawn and the mist clearing.  Suddenly the ships went about and
pointed towards Cadiz: the Indies was not their object.

Nelson, now satisfied that he had been sailing in the very middle of
the Spanish Grand Fleet, turned and rejoined Jervis; and at seven
that evening he went on board his own ship, the _Captain_.

All night the ships sailed in close order prepared for action, our
sailors standing to their guns.  At daybreak next morning the enemy
were in sight, their twenty-seven ships of the line advancing in
straggling array.

They were divided in squadrons, six ships in the lee division, the
main body of twenty-one sail being in the weather division.  Three
ships from the larger division, however, quickly crossed over before
the British could get near enough to engage them, and joined the
leeward squadron.

The British were at first sailing in two columns, "line ahead," a
half-dozen of their faster ships pressing on under full canvas to cut
in between the gradually widening gap in the enemy's divisions.

Before the Spaniards had time to form a regular order of battle, and
while they were still in confusion, Jervis had split their force in
two.  He was thus able to fling his whole fighting force on the
larger Spanish squadron, before their friends to leeward could come
to their aid.  When they attempted to do so they were beaten back,
after some rough handling.

Nelson, who was in the rear of the British line, now saw that the
enemy's leading ships of the weather division were bearing up before
the wind, and would in a short time either pass behind the British
rear and join the lee division, or else avoid the fight by sailing
away before the wind.

In a moment, and without orders, he made up his mind to spoil the
foeman's plan.  Giving orders to "wear ship," he turned and threw
himself on the enemy's van.

He had disobeyed the admiral's orders, but the Spanish admiral's
plans had been prevented.  The Dons were brought to bay by one ship;
it only remained for the other British vessels to hasten up and
complete the enemy's ruin.

From the rear on the starboard tack the _Captain_ now took the lead
on the larboard, and single-handed she at first engaged the foe.

The _Culloden_, _Blenheim_, and the _Excellent_--the latter under the
command of Collingwood--were the first to arrive and bring help to
the Captain in her gallant fight against such odds.

When Collingwood, to use Nelson's own words, "disdaining the parade
of taking possession of beaten enemies, with every sail set, pushed
up to save his old messmate," Nelson's gallant vessel had suffered
severely.

She had lost her fore-topmast, not a sail, shroud, or rope was left,
her wheel was shot away.

Thus, unfit for further service in the line, and unable to pursue,
there was only one thing left; and, putting her helm a-starboard,
Nelson gave the order so dear to a British seaman, "Out cutlasses,
and board!"

First into the _San Nicholas_ the boarders leapt.  Captain Miller had
started to lead his men.  "No, Miller, I must have that honour!" said
Nelson, slipping in front of his junior officer, and heading the
attack in person.

Many of our sailors, climbing to the yards which were locked in the
Spaniard's main-rigging, dropped down on deck from above.  The foe
could not resist their furious charge--our seamen swept the decks.
The enemy were driven below; such as still remained yielded, and the
officers gave up their swords.

Leaving some men to guard the _San Nicholas_, Nelson now turned to
the _San Josef_, lying alongside.  Again the order to board was
given, Nelson, with a shout of "Westminster Abbey, or victory!"
leading the way.

Berry, the first man to get on the _San Nicholas_, was again in
front, and with his own hand helped Nelson into the main-chains.
Hardly had they reached the deck before the Spaniards surrendered.
Nelson receiving their swords himself, and coolly handing them over
to one of the old Agamemnon's crew, who had stuck by his side while
the fight lasted.

[Illustration: Berry helped Nelson into the main chains of the San
Josef]

When the _Victory_, the admiral's flagship, passed a few moments
later, both of the Spanish ships of the line had struck their flags
to Nelson.

Cheer after cheer rose from the _Victory_, and the ringing huzzas
were taken up by the whole fleet.

"_Nothing in the world was ever more noble than the action of the
_Captain_ from beginning to end._"  So wrote Sir Gilbert Elliot, who
was with the fleet during the fight.

At 4 p.m. the orders to cease fighting, and to cover the four prizes
and the crippled _Captain_, were given.  The defeated enemy sailed
away, and Nelson went on board the flagship.  There Sir John Jervis
met him on the quarter-deck, and, taking him in his arms, told Nelson
he scarcely knew how to thank him.

On Captain Calder saying that the _Captain's_ wearing out of the
line--which really won the battle--was an act of disobedience, the
admiral replied, "It certainly was so; and if ever you commit such a
breach of orders I shall forgive you also."

For this brilliant victory Jervis was made a peer, with the title of
Lord St. Vincent.  Nelson was offered a baronetcy, which he was too
poor to accept, so he was made instead a Knight of the Garter.

Jervis made him a present which he valued highly--the sword of the
Spanish rear-admiral.  This gift he sent to the city of Norwich,
saying that "he knew no place where it would give him or his family
more pleasure to have it kept than in the chief city of the county
where he was born."

His father wrote that "tears of joy had trickled down his aged
cheeks" to read of his son's bravery.  "The name and services of
Nelson have sounded from the common ballad-singer to the public
theatre," he added.

The _Captain_ had been so knocked about in the battle as to be of no
further use, so Sir Horatio, now a Rear-Admiral of the Blue, shifted
his flag to the _Theseus_, a fine ship which had just come from
England.

On Nelson's first going to the Theseus there was some doubt how the
crew would behave.  There had lately been a mutiny in England among
the sailors, in which the Theseus had taken part.  Nelson was so
beloved that it was felt he was the captain to take command of
discontented men.

His tact and kindness, as well as his bravery and renown, won the day.

Very soon after he came on board he received a packet which was
dropped one night on the deck, and which enclosed a paper signed by
the whole crew, containing these words:--

"Success attend Admiral Nelson!  God bless Captain Miller!  We thank
them for the officers they have placed over us.  We are happy and
comfortable; and will shed every drop of blood in our veins to
support them."

The paper ended by promising that the name of the _Theseus_ should be
as famous as that of her captain; and the brave sailors kept their
word, nor did they ever give trouble by their conduct.

Sir Horatio was now put in command of an in-shore squadron, which had
orders to blockade Cadiz.  There was a lot of work in small boats,
and some fierce fights took place between the little craft on both
sides.

At no time in his life was Nelson's bravery greater than in these
hand-to-hand conflicts.  The danger suited him, for he loved fighting
for fighting's sake.  Once his barge was boarded by a number of
Spaniards, and in the hand-to-hand struggle John Sykes, his faithful
coxswain, twice at great risk saved his admiral's life.

During the blockade news came that the Spanish treasure-ships from
Mexico had heard that Lord St. Vincent was in wait for them, and had
taken refuge at Teneriffe.  This was found to be untrue, but a
homeward-bound Manilla ship had put into Santa Cruz, and Nelson was
told to command an assault on the town, and secure the treasure.

The attack was beaten back, though Nelson and his men fought with
splendid bravery.

Nelson, while leading the force, was struck in the right arm by a
grape-shot.  His step-son, Josiah Nisbet, into whose arms he had
fallen, with great skill and coolness bound the wound; otherwise he
must have bled to death.

Returning to the ship, the wounded admiral refused all help, and,
steadying himself with one hand, jumped up the ship's side.  Arrived
on deck, he called for the surgeon, and quietly told him "to get his
instruments ready, for he knew he must lose his arm, and that the
sooner it was off the better."

He bore the operation without a murmur, and never even mentioned his
own wound in his despatches home.  What he minded more was the
failure of the attack; and what with fretting over this, and the pain
of his wound, he became very ill.

"I am become," he said, "a burthen to my friends, and useless to my
country."  To Lord St. Vincent he wrote: "I hope you will be able to
give me a frigate to convey the remains of my carcass to England: a
left-handed admiral will never again be considered as useful."

When he reached home, Nelson was greatly cheered by the splendid
welcome he got.  The freedom of the cities of London and Bristol was
given to him, while the king received him most graciously, and
decorated him with the Order of the Bath, besides giving him a
pension of £1000 a year.

After a time the wound which had caused him so much suffering healed,
and Nelson wrote to a London clergyman, begging him to announce in
church the next Sunday: "An officer desires to return thanks to
Almighty God for his perfect recovery from a severe wound, and also
for many mercies bestowed upon him."

As soon as he was well he was given the command of the _Vanguard_, 74
guns, in which he sailed to join the squadron off Cadiz.  "I do
assure you that the arrival of Admiral Nelson has given me new life,"
wrote St. Vincent, who, now an old man and in failing health,
joyfully welcomed the return of the brilliant seaman he so trusted
and admired.





CHAPTER V

BATTLE OF THE NILE

Great Britain was now alone in her struggle with France, and
Bonaparte resolved that it should be a war to the death.  With Great
Britain defeated, the conqueror would have the whole of Europe at his
feet.  First he meant to strike a blow at our power in the East, and
a great number of transports, filled with the best and bravest French
soldiers, sailed for Egypt under escort of the French fleet.  From
there they were to go on to India, and with the aid of the rebel
Tippoo, try to drive us out of the country.

To prevent this, Nelson was sent from Cadiz with a large force of
ships.

Heavy weather was met with, during which the _Vanguard_ lost her main
and mizzen top-masts, while her foremast snapped off close to the
deck.  So damaged was she that she had to be taken in tow.  In the
meantime the frigates of the squadron, thinking the flagship would
have to return to refit at Gibraltar, sailed back to that port.

"I thought Hope" (the commander of the frigates) "would have known me
better," Nelson bitterly said; and in four days the _Vanguard_,
having been what is called "jury-rigged," continued on her way.

The loss of the frigates, "the eyes of the fleet," was a great
misfortune, and in the eight weeks' chase which followed Nelson had
much cause to regret their absence.

Alexandria reached, there was no news of the enemy, though three days
after, while the British were sailing between Cyprus and the island
of Rhodes, they actually arrived.

This Nelson of course did not know, and doubling back he reached
Syracuse, where he anchored, "having gone a round of six hundred
leagues," to use his own words, "and still as ignorant of the
situation as he was twenty-seven days ago."

Already at home people were beginning to murmur, and to wonder what
the great Nelson was about to let the foe escape him in this way.

He himself was very sad at his want of success.  "My return to
Syracuse broke my heart; more people die of broken hearts than we are
aware of," he afterwards said.

Again the squadron sailed, and this time the foe were found and
brought to bay.

At length on the 1st of August 1798 the look-out at the mast-head
made the signal that the French were at anchor in Aboukir Bay, 15
miles east of Alexandria, and thus the long pursuit had ended.

In numbers the two fleets were equal, but Brueys, the French admiral,
had larger ships and more guns.  To attack him the British would have
to advance through unknown and shallow waters.

Brueys did not believe that our vessels could thread their way among
the shoals which lay between him and the shore, and in this belief he
prepared to meet the attack, which he felt sure must be made from the
more open sea on his rear.

Nelson, who in his early days had been famous for his skill and
daring as a pilot, was to rudely shake this mistaken idea.

The wind blew along the French line, and he was thus able by
attacking their van and centre to throw what force he pleased on a
few ships.  All his plans were made, and in order that there might be
no mistake about his orders being quickly understood, the admiral had
caused new signals to be written in the signal-books.

His captains had often met on the _Vanguard_ and talked of the coming
battle.  "First gain the victory," Nelson had told them, "and then
make the best use of it you can."  Now they were all eager for the
fight, and full of admiration for the admiral's plan of battle.  "If
we succeed, what will the world say?" exclaimed Captain Berry.

"There is no _if_ in the case," answered Nelson; "that we shall
succeed is certain: who may live to tell the story, is a very
different question."

At 5.30 p.m.--less than three hours after the enemy had been
sighted--the signal was given to the British fleet to form line of
battle in single column, the ships ranged ahead and astern of each
other.

Captain Hood of the _Zealous_, carefully sounding as he went, with
Captain Foley of the _Goliath_, led the way, the latter ship ahead of
but outside the _Zealous_.

The flagship came sixth in order, so that Nelson could, if he thought
it best to do so, change the plan of attack of the other vessels
which came after him.  The _Vanguard_ had six flags flying in
different parts of her rigging, so that her colours might not be shot
away: "_That they should be struck_," to quote Southey, "_no British
admiral considers as a possibility_."

Keeping out of every danger in the way of shoals, the British bore up
to battle; so coolly and steadily did they advance, and so skilfully
did they haul round every danger, that Brueys felt sure they must
have pilots on board.

A brilliant idea here struck Captain Foley.  Taking the depth
carefully as he went along, he passed round _on the inside_ of the
leading French ship, and brought up opposite the _Conquerant_, second
of the enemy's line.  The _Zealous_, _Orion_, _Theseus_, and
_Audacious_ followed, and placed themselves between the Frenchmen and
the shore.  The _Vanguard_, with the other British ships, passed on
the outside.

By this means the French were caught between two fires, and within a
few minutes five French ships were defending themselves against the
attack of eight British, while the other French vessels to leeward
were forced to look on.

The battle was partly hidden by smoke and the fading light.  In the
growing darkness the _Bellerophon_ and the _Majestic_ pushed up.  The
former drew up abreast of the _Orient_, a ship whose power was double
her own, and with whom she was soon engaged in a desperate single
combat.  The _Majestic_, raked by the fire--in which her captain
fell--of the first French ship she met, the _Heureux_, sailed on and
fell upon the _Mercure_, into whose sides she poured a desperate
volley.

For an hour the British ships kept their places, and during the
hottest of the fight Nelson was struck on the forehead, and, for the
time being, was quite blinded.

With the words, "I am killed," he sank into Berry's arms.  With
tender care he was carried to the cockpit.  Here, as at Santa Cruz,
and as afterwards at Trafalgar, he refused to have his wound looked
to before his humbler messmates had been attended by the surgeons.

When the admiral's time came it was found that the wound was less
serious than at first thought.  Rest was ordered, but this the
impatient spirit of Nelson could not stand while the battle was
raging round him and the result was still uncertain.

Meanwhile the other British ships were hastening up to throw their
weight into the balance and turn the scale towards victory.

The gallant Troubridge had the ill fortune of seeing his ship, the
_Culloden_, run aground and stick fast.  All efforts to get her off
failed, and she lay there a helpless log, while her captain and crew
longed to be in the thick of the battle.

Unable to fight, Troubridge was yet able to give his comrades great
help, and to play a big part in the victory.

By constant signalling in the growing _darkness_ by means of
lanterns, he warned the other captains of his position, and prevented
them from sharing his own fate.  With this beacon in the shape of a
stranded ship to guide them, they were able, by avoiding the way she
had come, to sail on with greater speed and confidence to battle.

Nelson saw the service _Troubridge_ had done, and pitied him greatly
for the accident, while he praised his skill in saving the ship.

"It was Troubridge," said he, "who saved the _Culloden_ when none
that I know in the service would have attempted it."

"Her misfortune was great in getting aground," he wrote to the
Admiralty, "while her more fortunate companions were in full tide of
happiness.  Captain Troubridge on shore is superior to captains
afloat: in the midst of his great misfortunes he made those signals
which prevented, certainly, the _Alexander_ and _Swiftsure_ from
running on the shoals.  I beg your pardon for writing on a subject
which I verily believe has never entered your lordship's head; but my
heart, as it ought to be, is warm to my gallant friends."

This letter was sent because he heard that the gold medals given to
the captains at the fight might not include Troubridge, whose ship
had not been in action.

[Illustration: The Battle of the Nile]

Pouring their fire on the enemy's centre, the new arrivals, which the
_Culloden_ had guided, put the fate of the battle beyond doubt.

A little before nine, Admiral Brueys' flagship took fire, and at a
quarter to ten she blew up, with a terrific explosion, the flames
illuminating the whole bay, and showing a picture of awful grandeur.

A death-like silence followed the explosion; both sides for the time
ceased firing.  Of the brave foemen who fought their ship to the
last, only some seventy were saved by the British crews.  Among the
many who perished was the commodore's son, Casa Bianca, a brave boy
of thirteen, the hero of the poem, "The boy stood on the burning
deck," who refused to leave the doomed ship.

When dawn broke over the scene of wreck and ruin, the extent of the
victory was seen.

The leading French ships had struck; the flagship was no more; the
_Tonnant_ was still afloat, but mastless; the _Heureux_ and _Mercure_
ashore.

Three ships of the enemy's line only were still standing, and of
these two escaped under Rear-Admiral Villeneuve.  The third, the
_Timoleon_, ran aground, when she was set fire to by her captain, and
went down with her colours flying in all the pride of "no surrender."

The fight had been fierce, and the victory was great.  The British
crews, who had been "working and fighting at their hardest for near
twelve hours," no sooner cast anchor than they dropped on deck
completely tired out, and slept where they lay.

On the 2nd of August, "Almighty God having blessed His Majesty's arms
with victory"--so ran the memorandum--a public thanksgiving was held
throughout the fleet.

On the same day, Nelson sent to the captains, officers, and seamen of
the fleet, asking them "to accept the Admiral's most sincere and
cordial thanks for their very gallant behaviour in this glorious
battle."

Honours fell fast upon the victor.  Letters of congratulation from
the Czar, the Sultan, the Kings of Sardinia and the two Sicilies
reached him.  A grateful country gave him the honour of a peerage,
under the title of Baron Nelson of the Nile, besides a pension of
£2000 a year.  The East India Company, who felt that he had saved
India by his victory, made him a present of £10,000.

At home the whole country spoke of little else but of Nelson and his
glorious deeds.  Indeed, throughout all Europe the fame of the great
admiral was ringing.




CHAPTER VI

IN THE MEDITERRANEAN--AND AT HOME

After the battle Nelson sailed for Italy.  On this voyage he became
seriously ill, and for eighteen hours he was not expected to get
better.

Feeling his end to be near, he wrote to the chief he so loved, Lord
St. Vincent, bidding him farewell.

"I never expect, my dear lord, to see your face again," he said.  "It
may please God that this will be the finish to that fever of anxiety
which I have endured from the middle of June"--during the search for
the French fleet.  "But be that as it pleases His goodness.  I am
resigned to His will."

The voyage, however, seemed to do him good, and on arrival at Naples
a splendid welcome cheered his drooping spirits.

The Queen of Naples--who was a sister of the unfortunate and
beautiful Marie Antoinette, the queen whom the French had
beheaded--greeted him with every show of joy and delight.

"O brave Nelson!  O God! bless and protect our brave deliverer!" she
said.  "O Nelson!  Nelson! what do we not owe you!  O conqueror!
saviour of Italy!  The whole of the sea-coast of Italy is saved; and
this is owing alone to the generous English."

The people of Naples had all along had kindly feelings to Great
Britain, but they had been afraid of seeming too friendly lest they
should offend the French.

The latter had now overthrown the Pope and his government, and put in
their place a Roman republic.  This was a constant danger to the
kingdom of Naples.  Not only were they frightened of being attacked,
but they also feared that the people would follow the example of the
French, raise the standard of revolt, and perhaps treat the king and
queen as the French had used their royal family.

At the advice of Nelson, and urged thereto by the queen and Lady
Hamilton, her great friend, the wife of the English minister, the
king at length made war on the French, and his army marched on Rome.

Nelson in the meanwhile promised that the Bay of Naples should never
be left without an English man-of-war to protect the royal family.

At first the Neapolitan army did very well; after some skirmishing
they forced the French general to leave Rome, and they then entered
the city in triumph.

This was, however, the end of their success.  The army was composed
of fine stalwart men, and in their bright uniforms had at first so
pleased Nelson that the great seaman compared them to the finest
troops in Europe.  They were, however, useless when it came to hard
knocks and real fighting.

When they attempted to follow up the retreating Frenchmen, the
latter, though outnumbered by two to one, turned at bay.

The result was not long in doubt; the well-trained French soldiers
utterly broke and beat them, and sent them flying back like a flock
of sheep to Naples.

The town was in a state of panic, and unsafe for peaceable people.

The king and queen were in great danger, and Nelson determined to
rescue them from their rebel subjects.

Lady Hamilton, with no thought for the danger she was running, found
out and carefully explored an underground passage leading from the
palace to the seashore.  Through this passage the royal treasures, to
the amount of two millions and a half of money, were secretly
carried, and safely put on board the British vessels.

On a wild stormy night Nelson himself landed and brought off the
whole royal family in three barges, which in face of the storm and
heavy sea reached the _Vanguard_ without accident.

For two more days the _Vanguard_ waited in the bay to rescue any such
people as felt they were in danger.  The property of all British
merchants had been saved, and they were offered a refuge on board any
British ship in the squadron.

At length, when everything had been done to save our countrymen in
peril, the fleet sailed; and after meeting the worst storm Nelson had
ever sailed through, after a three days' stormy passage, landed the
rescued royal family at Palermo, where they were safe from all harm.

All through this exciting time Nelson acted with the most cool
bravery and perfect tact.  His presence of mind never left him;
sailor and fighter first and above all things, he was at the same
time bold and skilful in dealing with affairs of state.

"You are as great in the Cabinet as on the ocean," was the praise
given by Lord St. Vincent.

"The world knows that Lord Nelson can fight the battles of his
country," said Lord Minto; but he went on to say that besides his
skill and courage as a seaman, Nelson possessed judgment, ability,
and patience, with which to protect his country's honour and
interests--qualities "_not always allied to the sort of spirit which,
without an instant's hesitation, can attack the whole Spanish line
with his single ship_."

The power of the French in the Mediterranean was now greatly
weakened.  Their army, watched by the English fleet as a cat watches
a mouse, was not allowed to leave Egypt.  In Malta they were being
sorely pressed, and to make matters worse, the Portuguese made an
alliance with Great Britain, and sent their fleet to be under
Nelson's orders.

The British admiral was determined to destroy their power still more.

"_Down, down with the French!_ is my constant prayer," wrote Nelson.
"_Down, down with the French!_ ought to be placed in the council-room
of every country in the world."

Meanwhile, the French, though so thoroughly beaten at Aboukir, had
not altogether lost heart, and on the 12th of May news came to Nelson
at Palermo that a French fleet had been seen off Oporto, heading
towards the Straits of Gibraltar.

The admiral, who had been in poor health and low spirits, fretting at
the idle and peaceful life he was leading, on the instant became like
a new man.

"Not a moment shall be lost in bringing them to battle," he joyfully
exclaimed.

"Your lordship may depend that the squadron under my command shall
never fall into the hands of the enemy," he wrote to St. Vincent;
adding, "and before we are destroyed I have little doubt that the
enemy will have their wings so completely clipped that they may be
easily overtaken."

The words, "before we are destroyed," show the sort of fighter Nelson
was.  He did not fight only for victory and when he felt sure of
beating the enemy.  For the good of his country he would have hurled
a few ships on the whole fleet of the foe, satisfied if he made the
enemy suffer--"clipped their wings," to use his own words.

At this time Nelson received a strange present from a Captain
Hallwell, in the shape of a coffin made out of the mainmast of the
French flagship which blew up at Aboukir.  Nelson was greatly pleased
with the gift, which he had placed in his cabin just behind where he
sat at dinner.  "We shall have hot work of it, indeed," the crew
said.  "You see the admiral intends to fight till he is killed; and
there he is to be buried."

That this battle never took place was due to no fault of Nelson, who
waited eagerly for the enemy at Palermo.

At this time he learnt to his great grief that Lord St. Vincent, his
old chief and firm friend, was going home.

Admiral Keith, the new commander-in-chief, found a splendid force
under him when he took command.  This was divided into two
divisions--thirteen ships under Nelson cruising in Sicilian waters,
while his own force of twenty ships was off Toulon.

Had Nelson's squadron been stronger, he might have forced the enemy
to fight, but even Nelson shrank from the foolhardy attempt of
wilfully attacking twenty-two French sail with a very much weaker
force.

He therefore made up his mind to wait for more ships before going in
search of the enemy.  Should the French, however, approach either
Naples or Sicily, he was ready to fight to the death, and at least
damage their fleet so much that they could do no further mischief,
and be quite unfitted "even for a summer cruise."

As the enemy made no attempt on either Naples or Sicily, Nelson, with
the help of his squadron, began to restore order in the former place.

Troubridge fought manfully in driving out the French.  The fighting
was for the greater part on shore, and Nelson laughingly called the
brave seaman "a first-rate general."

He replied to those who thought naval officers ought not to be used
in attacking fortifications, "We have but one idea--to get close
alongside."

"None but a sailor would have placed a battery only 180 yards from
the Castle of St. Elmo" (a fortress in Naples), he wrote.  "A soldier
must have gone according to art, and the wwww way"--making with his
pen these zigzags like four w's, to show a roundabout way of attack.
"My brave Troubridge went straight on, for we had no time to spare."

Soon the whole of the French force was driven out of Naples and the
royal family were able to return.  They showed how grateful they were
to the brave Englishman who had not only saved them from danger, but
restored them to their rights, by making Nelson Duke of Bronté, with
a property of about £3000 a year; and from that time Nelson signed
his name "Nelson and Bronté" in all letters and despatches.

While the British squadron was in the Bay of Naples, Caraccioli, the
head of the rebel Neapolitan navy, was captured.

He had been a commodore in his country's navy, but when the rebellion
broke out he deserted his king and joined the rebels.  On being tried
on board the _Foudroyant_, he was found guilty by a court-martial of
his fellow-countrymen.  He was plainly a traitor, and he suffered the
end of traitors, being by Nelson's orders hanged at the yardarm of
the _Minerva_, his betrayed royal master's frigate.

For this act Nelson has often been blamed, but we must remember that
the man was a traitor; it was necessary to make an example, and the
crime of which Caraccioli was guilty was one hateful to all seamen,
and to all loyal men.

Keith had now gone back to England, and it might have been expected
that Nelson, now an Admiral of the Red, would remain in chief
command.  But the Admiralty had other views, and shortly afterwards
sent Keith back to command in the Mediterranean.  Nelson felt this as
a slight put upon him.

"Greenwich Hospital seems a fit retreat for me after being evidently
thought unfit to command in the Mediterranean," he wrote.

Another event took place which caused him much sorrow and regret.
Bonaparte, who had always said, "We will arrive safe; Fate will never
abandon us; we will arrive safe in spite of the enemy," made good his
boast by sailing from Egypt in spite of all the watchfulness of the
British, and landing safely in France on the 11th of October.

Nelson, who wished that not one Frenchman should be allowed to leave
Egypt, was much annoyed at this escape; for had Bonaparte been caught
the war would probably have ceased, and the whole course of history
been changed.

It was no fault of our admiral's, for his ships were being used in
the blockade of Malta.

"If I could have had cruisers, as was my plan, off Cape Bon," he
said, "Mr. Bonaparte could not probably have got to France."

Soon after Keith returned, Nelson, "the heaven-born admiral," as one
of his captains called him, aided by luck, had a triumphant ending to
this period of his career in the Mediterranean; for both _Le
Genereux_ and the _Guillaume Tell_, the two French ships which had
escaped the battle of the Nile, were captured by him.

During the fight with the former, a shot passed through the mizzen
stay-sail of the admiral's ship.  Nelson, patting one of the
midshipmen on the head, asked him laughingly "how he liked the
music."  Seeing the boy looked rather alarmed, he spoke kindly to
him, told him that Charles XII. ran away from the first shot he
heard, though afterwards he was called "The Great," from his bravery.
"I therefore," said Nelson, "hope much from you in future."

With the capture of the last of the Nile fleet Nelson felt that his
work was for the time being done.  "My task is done, my health is
lost, and the orders of the great Earl St. Vincent are completely
fulfilled," he wrote.

Having obtained leave to go home, he started to travel through
Germany, where he was treated as a popular hero, and taking ship from
Hamburg, he arrived at Yarmouth on the 6th November 1800, two years
and eight months from the time he left Spithead.

On going on shore the admiral received a splendid welcome.  He was
the idol of the whole nation, his name on every one's lips.  The
freedom of the city was presented to him; at night bonfires and
illuminations were lit in his honour.

His whole journey to London was a triumphal procession, and when he
arrived the mob insisted on taking the horses out of the carriage and
drawing him in state to the city.

After a short time in London, Nelson went to spend Christmas with his
friends, the Hamiltons, at the country house of Mr. Beckford, a
mutual friend.

During this visit a curious tale is told by his host of Nelson (as
showing what different forms courage may take).

The latter, in order to show his famous visitor some distant part of
the estate, took him for a drive in his mail phaeton, drawn by four
horses.

The horses were quite under control, but, being fresh, rattled along
at a good pace.

Nelson sat in silence for a time, with a fixed, drawn face.  Finally
he could stand it no longer, and saying quietly, "This is too much
for me; you must set me down," he insisted on getting out and walking
the whole way home.

The man whose whole life was a record of daring and bravery at sea
and in action was, after all, only human!




CHAPTER VII

BATTLE OF COPENHAGEN

His time at home was short, for again there were signs of war, and
the fleet was once more to be called upon to strike a blow for our
national honour.

At this time Great Britain claimed the right of searching the vessels
of other countries who were not at war with either England or France,
and if any goods were found on board which were being carried to the
French, they were seized.  This had more than once led to quarrels
with Denmark, and there had already been some fighting between
British and Danish ships, though there was no actual declaration of
war.

Paul I., Czar of Russia, was very angry at the British for not
allowing him to take Malta, and in revenge he seized three hundred of
our merchant ships, which were lying in Russian ports, and made their
crews prisoners.  Not content with this, he revived an old treaty of
1780, and Russia, Sweden, Denmark, and Prussia formed themselves into
an alliance known as the "Armed Neutrality," the object of which was
to prevent the British searching their ships, by force if it were
necessary.

Napoleon naturally did his best to help and encourage the northern
powers.  His own fleet and that of Spain had been crushed, or were
unable to do any harm owing to the strict watch the British kept on
them, which prevented them coming out of harbour.  The northern
powers had, however, a fine fleet of some fifty battleships, and he
hoped to be able to use these as a weapon against his unyielding foe,
Great Britain, who was once again left without an ally in Europe.

Great Britain at first meant to try and reason with Denmark, and in
order to show the Danes that she was in earnest, and at the same time
prevent the Russian ships from joining their allies, a fleet under
Sir Hyde Parker, with Nelson as second-in-command, set sail on the
12th of March from Yarmouth.

"I hate your pen and ink men.  A fleet of British ships of war are
the best negotiators in Europe," Nelson had said, and the Government
also seemed to think so.

Meanwhile the Danes were toiling manfully at the defence of their
capital.  Workmen, country peasants, city merchants, students, young
and old alike of all classes, enrolled themselves as volunteers, and
prepared to make their beloved Copenhagen secure against assault, or
lay down their lives in its defence.

Rather less than three weeks from the time they had left England the
fleet arrived, and passing the island of Elsinore, dropped anchor
about five miles from Copenhagen.

Sir Hyde Parker, who all through acted with an extreme caution, which
was very unlike Nelson's methods, was for a long time uncertain
whether to take his ships by the narrower Sound or by the more open
Great Belt.

At length he decided to risk going by the Sound, and sent word to
tell Nelson of his intention.

"I don't care by which passage we go," said the latter, "so that we
fight them."

He had been in a great state of anxiety lest his chief might think
the fortifications, floating batteries, and ships of the Danes too
strong to assault.  Now that the attack was to take place, he again
felt happy, and was able to give his whole mind to the best means of
making victory certain.

In front of Copenhagen there is a large shoal between the two
channels through which big ships can sail.  Along the land side of
the inner channel the Danes were posted in greatest strength.

Here they waited for the British attack, sure that the fleet would
enter by the inner channel, and confident in their power to defeat it.

They did not know the great seaman.  His plan was quite different to
what they thought, and was to go in by the outer channel, and
flinging himself on their rear, fight his way up the inner channel.

To make matters still more difficult for our ships, all the buoys had
been taken away, so that it was impossible to guess where the channel
lay, and easy to run aground on the many shoals and sandbanks.

This was a serious drawback, but Nelson overcame it, though at great
risk to himself.

Under cover of darkness and fog, he spent two nights in an open boat,
rowing with muffled oars, and silently taking soundings and finding
out the depth.

On April 1 the fleet sailed up still closer to the doomed city, and
was now only two miles away.  After anchoring, Captain Hardy set off
in a small rowing boat, and in the most fearless way slipped under
the Danish batteries.

Hidden by the darkness, he rounded the Danish flagship.  Not daring
to heave the lead in the ordinary way, for fear the noise of the
splash would betray him, he carefully sounded with a pole.

The slightest whisper would have ruined all, but with bated breath
the British seamen continued to take the depth under the batteries
and round the ships, and Fortune favoured them.  The Danish sentinels
never heard them, and they returned to their ship in safety, with a
full knowledge of where their vessels could swing, and what parts of
the channel they must avoid.

Nelson had only asked for ten ships of the line of light draught,
with which to make the attack.  Admiral Parker, however, gave him two
more vessels than he had asked for, as he feared there was a great
chance of some of the ships sticking fast and falling out of the
line.  Parker himself drew off, ready to help if he could do so, but
more for the purpose of preventing the Russian and Swedish ships,
should they come up, from joining their Danish allies.

In the morning the wind, which had hitherto been adverse, changed,
and blew fair for the British attack.  But now a hitch occurred in
the plans, which might have proved fatal.

By eight o'clock not a pilot could be found willing to guide the
British fleet.

"I experienced in the Sound the misery of having the honour of our
country entrusted to pilots who have no other thought than to keep
the ship clear of danger, and their silly heads clear of shot,"
Nelson used afterwards bitterly to relate.

In justice to the men he so severely blames, we must remember that
they were the masters and mates of merchant ships engaged in the
Baltic trade.  These vessels were small and of shallow draught, and
guiding a mighty battleship during the thick of a fight was a
different affair to piloting their little craft through the channels
they had learned to know in time of peace.

While in this difficulty, Captain Murray, in the _Edgar_, volunteered
to lead the line, his master, Mr. Brierly, taking upon him the hard
task of pilot.

At about ten in the morning all was ready, and the signal to weigh in
succession was given.

The _Edgar_, as arranged, advanced, showing the way, and right well
did she play her part.  Not so fortunate was Nelson's old flagship,
the _Agamemnon_, which, failing to round the middle ground, went
ashore, where she stuck, in spite of all the exertions of her crew to
get her off.

Nor did the British misfortunes end here, for the next two ships, the
_Bellona_ and _Russel_, following close in her wake, shared the same
fate, and thus a quarter of the attacking force was already out of
action.

Nelson, who came next, in the _Elephant_, was like to come to grief
in the same manner.  Had he followed his own orders to the fleet,
"that each ship should pass her leader on the starboard aide," he
must have run aground.

In an instant he saw the danger, and, ordering his helm to be put
hard a-starboard, passed the _Russel_ on the larboard beam.  The
whole line followed him, and entering the true channel the battle was
saved.

The rest of the ships all made the dangerous passage in safety, and
on reaching their stations anchored by the stern and began to pour
both broadsides on the Danes.

Captain Rioux, with the light division of frigates, was now ordered
to take the place of the three stranded battleships, and attack the
batteries.  Gallantly did the light division play its part, firing
with deadly effect on the Danish works, and heedless of their own
loss.

  "Again, again, again,
    And the havoc did not slack."

"Here was no manœuvring: it was downright fighting."

"It is warm work, and this day may be the last to any of us at a
moment," said Nelson, amid a shower of splinters; "but mark you," he
added, his eye kindling with the light of battle, "I would not be
elsewhere for thousands."

The pounding at short range was deadly and unceasing; scarcely two
hundred yards separated the combatants.

The Danish flagship, fighting to the end with desperate courage, took
fire; still, amid the flames, the gunners continued to fire a deadly
storm of shot and shell.  Only when the fire got the mastery, and
with a mighty roar the gallant ship blew up, did she cease to trouble
her foes.

Meanwhile, out in the Sound the thunder of the fight was borne to the
anxious ears of Sir Hyde Parker.  The admiral knew the sore straits
from the loss of three ships Nelson was bound to be in, and the odds
against which he was fighting.  A stormy wind was blowing dead
against him, and he could not hope to beat up against it in time to
bring aid.

Nelson, he knew, would never give in while he lived: he was not the
man to turn back from a fight.  At length the admiral could stand the
suspense no longer, and the famous signal, No. 39, the order to cease
action, was hoisted.

What follows is known to every schoolboy wherever the English tongue
is spoken.

Nelson was pacing his quarter-deck when the signal-lieutenant
interrupted his walk and reported the signal.  "Acknowledge it,"
replied the admiral shortly, adding fiercely, "Is mine, No. 16" (for
close action), "still flying?"  On being told that it was, "Then mind
you keep it so," he said, turning on his heel and resuming his
restless pacing of the deck.

"Leave off action!" he added; "I'm hanged if I do!"

Clapping his glass to his sightless eye, "You know, Foley," he added,
turning to his captain, "I've a right to be blind sometimes.  I
really do not see the signal.  _D---n the signal! keep mine for
closer action flying._"

As at Cape St. Vincent, so at Copenhagen, this act of seeming
disobedience won the day.

Unfortunately, the squadron of frigates and small craft under
Rioux--"the gallant good Rioux" of Campbell's poem--took the order
literally.  "What will Nelson think of us?" said the brave captain,
as he obediently withdrew.  Just as he spoke a chain-shot ploughed
into the deck, killing a party of marines and striking him down, with
the ringing words, "Come, then, my boys, let us all die together," on
his lips.

By two o'clock the Danish fire had slackened; half their line were
wrecks, the floating batteries were either sunk or nearly silenced;
their flagship was ablaze.

Nelson's humane nature could not bear that so many brave men should
be killed, now that their valour was useless and his own victory
complete.  Calling for pen and ink, he wrote the following:--


"_To the brothers of Englishmen, the Danes_.

"Lord Nelson has directions to spare Denmark when no longer
resisting; but if the firing is continued on the part of Denmark,
Lord Nelson will be obliged to set on fire all the floating batteries
he has taken, without having the power of saving the brave Danes who
have defended them."


His secretary was about to close the letter in its envelope with the
ordinary wafer then in common use, but Nelson objected to this, and
bade him bring wax and a taper, with which the letter was carefully
sealed.

"Had I made use of the wafer," he explained to those around him, "it
would have been wet when presented to the Crown Prince.  He would
have inferred that the letter was sent off in a hurry, and that we
had some very pressing reason for being in a hurry.  _The wax told no
tales_."

The Crown Prince wrote back proposing that they should stop fighting
for the time and try to come to terms.  Nelson, with great
shrewdness, said he must first ask Sir Hyde Parker.  He knew that it
would take some time before he could get an answer from the latter,
and in the meanwhile he would be able to get his battered ships out
of reach of the Danish guns, and into the open channel.

By nightfall a truce was agreed upon, and the British were busy
floating their own ships which had run aground, and securing their
prizes, only one of which could, however, be used again, so fiercely
had fought the two nations, both sprung from a race of sea-kings.

"The French and Spanish fight well; but they could not have stood for
an hour such a fire as the Danes sustained for four hours," Nelson
said.

The British admiral's aim was next to attack the Russian squadron
lying in Revel, but in order to do this the fleet would have to pass
the batteries which commanded the shoal ground above Copenhagen.

Parker naturally did not care to leave Denmark hostile in his rear,
while the Crown Prince was afraid that if he came too quickly to
terms he would offend his powerful ally and neighbour, the Czar.

Matters were in this state, when, on April 4, while Nelson was on
shore trying to arrange for at least a four months' peace, news was
brought that the Czar had been murdered.

With this monarch's death the chief reason for the alliance was taken
away, and Napoleon's dreams of a great fleet with which he might
attack Great Britain had come to nothing.

Five days after, Denmark agreed to take no further part in the Armed
Neutrality, and also promised to take no further steps to prepare her
ships for war.

Nelson had again shown himself "as great in the Cabinet as on the
ocean."  His victory had been a glorious one, but his skill and tact
in arranging terms after the battle were equally remarkable.  Friend
and foe alike agreed that it was he that had brought about the peace.

"Your Lordship's whole conduct, from your first appointment to this
hour," wrote Lord St. Vincent, "is the subject of our constant
admiration.  It does not become me to make comparisons; all agree
there is but one Nelson."




CHAPTER VIII

NAPOLEON'S THREATENED INVASION OF ENGLAND

As soon as peace had been made with the Danes, the British fleet set
out for the Baltic, with the object of finding the Swedish squadron.

Nelson had in the meantime shifted his flag to the _St. George_, and
as some repairs had to be made to this ship, he was forced to remain
behind till she could be got ready.

"We have reports," he had written to Lady Hamilton, "that the Swedish
fleet is above the Shallows.  All our fellows are longing to be at
them, and so do I, as great a boy as any of them, for I consider this
as being at school, and going to England as going home for the
holidays; therefore I really long to finish my task."

Before his flagship was ready for sea a report came that the Swedish
admiral had sailed.

The idea that a fight should take place, and Nelson himself not be
present, was not to be thought of.  Instantly he ordered a boat to be
lowered, and in this he started off to join the fleet.

His only feeling was one of fear lest the fleet should have sailed
before he got on board one of the ships.

So great was his hurry that he would not even wait till his overcoat
was brought to him.

"No, I am not cold," he kept repeating: "my anxiety for my country
will keep me warm."

"Do you think the fleet has sailed?" he added; "if they are, we shall
follow them to Carlscrona, by Gad!"

In the words of one of his officers, "The idea of going in a small
boat, rowing six oars, without a single morsel of anything to eat or
drink, the distance of about ten leagues, must convince the world
_that every other earthly consideration than that of saving his
country was totally banished from his thoughts_."

About midnight the tired rowers reached the _Elephant_, up whose side
Nelson clambered half dead with cold after his five hours' row in the
bitter northern night.

Next morning the Swedes were seen, but they quickly retired into
shelter behind the batteries of Carlscrona.

After some letters had passed between them, Parker saw that the
Swedish Government sincerely wished for peace, and he gave orders for
the fleet to sail to the Gulf of Finland.

They had not got far on their way, however, when a despatch-boat from
the Russian ambassador at Copenhagen overtook them.  This boat had
been sent to tell the British admiral of the Czar Paul's death, and
to say that the new emperor had accepted an offer made by Great
Britain to end the dispute by agreement, without actually coming to
blows.

The fleet returned to Zealand on hearing this news, and cast anchor
in Kioge Bay, where they remained till despatches arrived from home
on the 5th of May, recalling Parker, and making Nelson
commander-in-chief.

Left to himself, the new commander-in-chief was not long in getting
to work.  First he politely but firmly told the Swedish admiral that
his fleet must remain in port.  Next, by going to Revel as soon as
Parker had left, he let the Russians see that for their own sake they
had better stay where they were.

"I shall now go there as a friend," he had written; "but the two
fleets shall not form a junction, unless my orders permit it."

On his arrival with his twelve ships of the line, he went on shore
and paid an official visit to the authorities, and the presence of
the mightiest seaman of the day, backed as he was by a fleet, had the
wished-for effect.

The British ships with their goods and their crews were instantly
given up; all Nelson asked for was promptly granted, after which the
Czar most prudently, to use Nelson's own words, "begged that he would
go away."

Soon after this, to his great delight, now that there was no more
fighting to be done, he was relieved, and bidding farewell to the
Baltic on the 19th of June, he landed at Yarmouth some three weeks
after.  "To find a proper successor," St. Vincent had written to him,
"your lordship knows is no very easy task, for I never saw the man in
our profession, excepting yourself and Troubridge, who possessed _the
magic art of infusing the same spirit into others which inspired
their own actions_."

On arrival at Yarmouth he was received by vast crowds, who did all
they knew to honour the conquering admiral.

Nelson never halted, but quickly making his way through the dense,
cheering throng, he went straight to the hospital, where lay so many
of his men, wounded in the late battle.

Stopping at every bed, he spoke a few words to each sailor.

"Well, Jack, what's the matter?" he asked of one.

"Lost my right arm, your honour," came the answer.

Nelson stopped, then holding up his own empty sleeve, shook it at the
sailor, and said playfully--

"Well, Jack, then you and I are spoilt for fishermen.  Cheer up, my
brave fellow."

At every bed he came to he said something kind and encouraging.  And
the surgeon said the admiral did more good than a doctor; every eye
seemed to sparkle, and every sufferer to forget his pain when Nelson
spoke to him.

Before leaving for the Baltic, Nelson, who, after the Nile, described
his career as having been far beyond his greatest hopes in the way of
honour and rewards, had serious thoughts of giving up the sea and
settling down to a life of peace on shore.

There was yet, however, much of his finest work to do.

Lord St. Vincent had from the first begged him not to retire, and
events abroad were in such a dangerous state that Nelson could not
possibly leave the service and desert the country he so well and
bravely served.

Baffled in his attempt on India, his fleet destroyed at the Nile,
Napoleon had declared that he had no choice left but to make a
descent on Britain.

To meet this danger the presence of the great admiral was of the
greatest importance.  The knowledge that he was at the head of the
plans made for the defence of his country would alone calm the public
mind.  At the same time the very name of Nelson was enough to make
the enemy think twice before making any attempt in which they were
likely to meet him in battle.

In answer to the call of his country, Nelson undertook its defence,
and, as usual, entered on his task with energy and zeal.

He found the country quite unprepared to meet an invasion.
"Everything must have a beginning," he wrote to Lord St. Vincent,
"and we are literally at the foundation of our fabric of defence."

Calais, Boulogne, and Dieppe, although the ports nearest to England,
were not in Nelson's opinion suitable for the embarking of troops;
that the attack would come from Flanders he thought more likely.

"Great preparations at Ostend," he writes; "Augereau commands that
part of the army.  I hope to let him feel the bottom of the Goodwin
Sand."

That Napoleon thought of making a serious invasion of the country
seemed scarcely possible.  That he might be able to land some troops,
and with them make a dash on London, both Nelson and the nation
thought possible.

The aim of the British defence was, as it is to this day, to keep the
enemy away from our coasts and attack them the instant they came out
of port.

Should the French get a calm day they would most probably row over in
boats, in which case our fleet might not be able to get at them, with
no wind to fill their sails.

In that case the British were to attack them in small boats, no
matter how great the enemy's superiority in numbers might be.

"The courage of Britons," Nelson proudly boasted, "will never, I
believe, allow one Frenchman to leave the beach."

The boats would take some twelve hours to row over from France.
Although they started in a calm, a breeze might quite well spring up
in this time.  In that case the British fleet were to make an
onslaught on the small craft and transports.  Their cannon would mow
through the ranks of transports, the loss of the enemy would be
terrible, but, as Nelson grimly said, "No delicacy can be observed on
this great occasion."

"Whatever plans may be adopted," he wrote, "the moment the enemy
touch our coast, be it where it may, they are to be attacked by
_every man afloat and on shore:_ this must be perfectly understood.
_Never fear the event_."

England was now like a large armed camp; the great shadow of invasion
was hanging over the country.  "Bony" himself, with whose name nurses
were used to frighten children, was coming over to try and conquer
Britain as he had conquered Europe.  Small wonder that the whole
country sprang to arms!

Having drawn up his plan of defence, the admiral, only three weeks
after his return, again hoisted his flag, this time at Sheerness, on
the _Unité_ frigate.

No time was lost; in all his actions he used every haste, "in order
to give an example to the country and the service of the advantage of
all getting to their posts as speedily as possible."

Nelson never spared himself.  One day he would be at Sheerness
inspecting the thirty ships there under his command; two days later
he would hold a review on land of the "Sea Fencibles," a force newly
raised to meet the invasion; again he would appear off Boulogne,
where the French admiral, La Touche Tréville, with his fleet, lay
moored.

On August 15 an attack was made on Boulogne with fifty-seven boats.
The British fought gallantly, but luck was against them, and they
were beaten back.

Nelson, however, had seen enough of the French flat-bottomed clumsy
craft to feel sure that they would be no match at sea for his own
swift cutters.  He also saw that there was little on a great scale
that could be done, and that owing to tides and sandbanks any attack
on the enemy while in port was scarcely worth the risk of so much
loss of life to our brave seamen.

At length the French also saw that the invasion of England was too
difficult to be thought of, and peace was made.

Nelson, though his flag still continued to fly as commander-in-chief,
went on shore and took up his abode at Merton, an estate which he had
newly bought, and which was the only home of his own he ever had on
English soil.

That the peace would last he never for a moment thought likely.  And
though he might long for quiet and rest, still he was ready at the
call of his country.  "Whenever it is necessary, I am your admiral,"
he wrote to the Prime Minister.

Already there had been some talk of his returning to the
Mediterranean.  His very presence there would, in the words of Lord
Minto, "show Bonaparte, if he hoists his flag, it will not be in
joke."

On the 16th of May war was again declared, and four days later Nelson
sailed in the _Victory_.




CHAPTER IX

  NELSON IN CHIEF COMMAND IN THE
  MEDITERRANEAN--IN PURSUIT OF THE ENEMY

Nelson was now in chief command of the Mediterranean squadron.  Great
Britain was once more waging war single-handed against the French
Empire.  The rest of Europe was crushed: everywhere on land the
French were victors, and resistance was for the time being at an end.

Spain was a mere vassal of France; she did not indeed at this period
supply her fleet, but gave to Napoleon a money tribute instead.
Portugal, the ancient friend of Britain, had at the bidding of the
tyrant been forced to close her ports to Nelson's ships.

Never before had Nelson been so impatient to get at the foe.

"If the Devil stands at the door," he said, "we shall sail to-morrow
forenoon."

So eager was he to reach the Mediterranean that having been ordered
to keep the _Victory_ waiting to join Admiral Cornwallis oft Brest,
he left the ship, and with his suite got into a frigate, in which he
pressed on to join the fleet, "going out in all the discomfort of a
convict," as St. Vincent said, and sleeping seven or eight in a
cabin, from his own account.

The French fleet were in Toulon, and off this port Nelson set himself
to wait the coming out of the enemy.

On his arrival he early found an opportunity of showing his zeal and
love for the honour and interests of his own service.

There were at that time several artillerymen serving on board the
bomb-vessels.  Some of the young officers did not like their men
being made to perform other duties than those of soldiers, and were
very angry at having to take their orders from naval officers.  There
thus arose some ill-feeling between the navy and army.

"With all content and smiles around me," Nelson wrote to Lord St.
Vincent, "up start these artillery boys and set us at defiance."

"You and I are on the eve of quitting the theatre of our exploits,"
he adds, with a feeling that his end was near, "but we hold it due to
our successors never, whilst we have a tongue to speak or hand to
write, to allow the navy to be in the smallest degree injured in its
discipline by our conduct."

Nelson felt that a soldier, no matter how high his rank, must, when
on board ship, take his orders from a sailor.  He was backed up in
this by an Act of Parliament.

"It is the old history," he said, "trying to do away the Act of
Parliament: but I trust they will never succeed; for when they do,
farewell to our naval superiority.  We should be prettily commanded."
"Although my career is nearly run, yet it would embitter my future
days and expiring moments _to hear of our navy sacrificed to our
army_."

As a means to put an end to all dispute, he suggested that the navy
should have a separate corps of artillery attached to them, and it is
to this that we owe that splendid body of men, the Royal Marine
Artillery, or "Blue Marines," as they are called in the navy.

The watch off Toulon was a long and weary one.

"I have made up my mind never to go into port till after the battle,
if they make me wait a year," Nelson had said, and for almost two
years did our fleet remain ready for action; nor during that time did
it ever go into harbour.  When, after the long months of waiting, it
was called upon to pursue the enemy for four thousand miles, it was
found, to quote Nelson's words, "in a perfect state of readiness to
act."

This management of the fleet was really as great a triumph in many
ways as his most brilliant victories had been.

The people at nearly every port were in dread of the French, and it
was very difficult to get supplies, so great was their fear of
rousing Napoleon's anger.

No British ships were allowed to enter Spanish ports, though from
these very ports the French privateers sailed out and attacked our
merchantmen.

Nelson pitied the once proud mistress of the world, who was now too
weak to resist, and had no choice left but to obey the all-conquering
French.  "We ought," he said, "by mutual consent to be the very best
friends, and both to be ever hostile to France."

At the same time, though willing to make every allowance for the
miserable situation in which Spain had placed herself, he plainly let
the Spaniards feel that he must be treated with respect.  He had
strictly observed Spain's neutrality by giving up French vessels
taken within gunshot of the Spanish shore, yet from the coasts of
Spain these same French vessels sailed out and attacked our ships.

Nelson said this must stop.  "In whatever place the Spaniards allow
the French to attack us," he told the British ambassador at Madrid,
"assure them that I shall order the French to be attacked."

Meanwhile, the station off Toulon Nelson called his home.  His ships,
thanks to his great care, were in fairly good repair; his men were in
the right fighting trim.  "Let them come as soon as they please," he
wrote, "I never saw a fleet together so well officered and manned."

La Touche Tréville, who had commanded at Boulogne when Nelson's
attack of boats had been beaten back, was now the admiral of the
French fleet.

One day, while the main body of the British fleet was out of sight,
Rear-Admiral Campbell, with only three ships, appeared in the offing.
Seeing this, La Touche, with every sail set, left port and bore down
on the three vessels, on which, as was natural, the little squadron
retired.

The new experience of pursuing, instead of being pursued, so
delighted the Frenchman that he published a most boastful and quite
untrue account of how he had chased Nelson and the whole British
fleet.

This idle brag stung Nelson to the quick, and he promptly sent home a
copy of the _Victory's_ log on the day in question to show what the
real facts were.

"As for myself," he said, "if my character was not established by
that time _for not being apt to run away_, it would not be worth my
while to put the world right."

At the time, he wrote, "Monsieur La Touche came out with eight sail
of the line and six frigates, cut a caper off Sepet, and went in
again."

Two months later, when a copy of the French admiral's letter reached
him, he broke out in wrath.

"You will have seen Monsieur La Touche's letter of how he chased me,
and how I _ran_.  He is a poltroon, liar, and a miscreant.  I keep
his letter, and, by Gad! if I take him, he shall _eat_ it."

In vain did Nelson try to draw his enemy out to fight by every means
he could think of.  The Frenchman would not walk into the trap, nor
be tempted into giving battle until the appointed time came.

The dread of missing the enemy in a fog was one of Nelson's chief
anxieties, and he kept thinking of his long chase of Admiral Brueys
before the battle of the Nile.

"If I should miss these fellows my heart will break," he kept
repeating.

"If that admiral were to cheat me out of my hopes of meeting him," he
added, "it would kill me much easier than one of his balls."

The life on board ship was meanwhile a dull one; daily they cruised
about, one day passing very much like another.  The weather in these
parts is stormy; even during the summer there was a gale almost every
week, followed by two days' heavy swell.  The health of the crews
was, considering the life they were leading, wonderfully good, and
for this they had to thank Nelson.  The admiral took every care for
the comfort of his men, and did his very best to secure lemons,
onions, and other fresh food, without which disease must have broken
out.

The patience with which our fleet bore the long watch off Toulon is,
in Nelson's own words, a "record of perseverance at sea which had
never been surpassed."  From May 1803 to August 1805 the admiral
himself was only out of his ship three times; on each of these
occasions he was absent less than an hour, and was "upon the king's
service," as the saying went.

The whole fleet bore the long wait patiently; the men behaved well,
and all earned Nelson's thanks.  The officers were not behind the men
in doing their duty either.  "Such a gallant set of fellows!  Such a
band of brothers!  My heart swells at the thought of them," wrote
Nelson.


In October the patience of Great Britain was tired out, and war was
declared against Spain.  About three months after, while the British
fleet was at anchor off the coast of Sardinia, the Toulon fleet at
last put to sea and joined the Spaniards.  On getting this news the
British fleet weighed and put to sea, while next morning the signal
was made to prepare for battle.

A chase somewhat like the former pursuit of Brueys now began, stormy
weather keeping pursuers and pursued apart.

After seeing that Sardinia, Naples, and Sicily were safe, as before
Nelson made for Egypt.  Not finding the enemy there this time, he
doubled back for Malta, where news reached him that they had
dispersed in a gale and put back to Toulon.

"These gentlemen are not accustomed to a Gulf of Lions gale; we have
buffeted them for one and twenty months and not carried away a spar,"
Nelson declared with pride.

From the 21st of January till he anchored in Cagliari Bay on the 27th
of February, the ships had been cleared for action, without a
bulkhead up, night or day.

During this chase of the enemy and weary buffeting against foul
winds, a despatch-vessel had been wrecked, a convoy had been waylaid,
and the two small ships protecting it taken.

To add to these small losses, another despatch-vessel had gone ashore
off Cadiz and fallen into the hands of the enemy.

The captain of the latter, Captain Layman, had earned Nelson's praise
and esteem by his smartness and bravery at Copenhagen, and Nelson
could not bear that a brave man should be blamed.

The admiral never turned his back upon a friend, more especially did
he stick by a friend in misfortune.

"Dear Parker is my child, for I found him in distress," he had
written of a captain wounded in the attack of boats at Boulogne.  To
this other captain in distress, the great seaman's tender heart went
out, and he wrote to the Admiralty on his behalf.


"My dear Lord," he began, "give me leave to recommend Captain Layman
to your kind protection; for notwithstanding the court-martial has
thought him worthy of censure for his running in with the land, yet,
my Lord, allow me to say that Captain Layman's misfortune was,
perhaps, conceiving other people's abilities were equal to his own,
which indeed very few people's are.

"Captain Layman has served with me in three ships, and I am well
acquainted with his bravery, zeal, judgment, and activity; nor do I
regret the loss of the _Raven_ compared to the value of Captain
Layman's services, which are a national loss.

"You must, my dear Lord, forgive the warmth which I express for
Captain Layman; but he is in adversity, and therefore has the more
claim to my attention and regard.

"_If I had been censured every time I have run my ship, or fleets
under my command, into great danger, I should long ago have been out
of the service, and never in the House of Peers._

  "I am, my dear Lord, most faithfully,
      "Your obedient servant,
            "NELSON AND BRONTE."


Small wonder the whole fleet adored "Our Nel," as they called him,
and who, they said, was "as brave as a lion but as gentle as a lamb."

On the 4th of April, while bearing up for his old station, Toulon, he
learnt that Villeneuve had five days previously put to sea, with
eleven ships of the line, seven frigates, and two brigs.

At first he searched for them down the Mediterranean, still thinking
that Egypt must be their object.  At length he heard that the enemy
had passed the Straits of Gibraltar, and might be half-way to Ireland
or Jamaica, an attack on both of which places had been thought likely.

Beating up against adverse winds, Nelson, who said that his "good
fortune had flown away," could only pass the narrow straits on the
5th of May, when a favouring wind at last sprung up.

Just before this, a Scotsman, Donald Campbell, who was at that time
an admiral in the Portuguese service, came on board the _Victory_
with the news that the combined fleets were on their way to the West
Indies.

Though the enemy were in far greater numbers than the British, the
admiral started off in hot pursuit with only ten sail of the line and
three frigates.

"Take you a Frenchman apiece," he told his captains, "and leave me
his Spaniards" (there were six Spanish battleships).  "When I haul
down my colours, I expect you to do the same, and not till then."

Meanwhile Nelson was suffering the same torture of mind and spirit as
when once before the enemy escaped him before the battle of the Nile.

"Oh, French fleet!  French fleet!" he wrote, "if I can but once get
up with you, I'll make you pay dearly for all that you have made me
suffer."

By June 4 the British were at Barbadoes, where, misled by reports,
they expected to find the enemy.  They entered the Gulf of Paria with
their ships cleared for action, only to find the enemy gone.

Coming to the rapid but, as it happened, correct decision that the
enemy had returned to Europe, Nelson lost no time in sailing after
them.

As going out he had been able to gain ten days on them, and they had
only five days' start of him on the return to Europe, Nelson thought
he would be able to come up with Villeneuve before the latter had
done much harm.

For three weeks the combined fleet had the West Indies at their
mercy, and as they had not attacked the islands, Nelson felt no great
alarm as to what they would do in Europe.

On the 19th of June he was back again at Gibraltar, and the next day
he went on shore for the first time since June 18, 1803.  Thus for
two years he had not had his foot on dry land.

Though he had not found the enemy, he had at least chased them out of
the West Indies, which were then among Britain's most wealthy and
important colonies.

Had the enemy been met, though they were in far greater numbers,
Nelson had determined to attack them, come what might to his own
squadron.

"Though we are but eleven to eighteen or twenty, we won't part
without a battle," he kept repeating.

That this fight he had in his mind never took place was due to no
fault of Nelson's.  A few days later, however, Admiral Calder with
fifteen ships met twenty of the enemy, and a drawn battle took place.
The British admiral, though he had the best of the fight, thought it
more prudent to draw off and let the enemy escape, after they had
been roughly handled.

This made the people in England very angry, for the country could not
but feel how different the result would have been if their beloved
admiral had been in Calder's place.  Nelson, they knew, would never
have left the enemy, even though half his own ships had been
destroyed.

Nelson's truly great spirit could not bear that his unfortunate
brother admiral should be blamed.

"It most sincerely grieves me," he wrote, "that in any of the papers
it should be insinuated that Lord Nelson could have done better.  Who
can say what will be the event of a battle?  I could have fought the
enemy, so did my friend Calder; but who can say that he will be more
successful than another?"

On August 18 the _Victory_ anchored at Portsmouth and the long chase
was at an end.

Nelson no sooner landed than he posted up to London, where he had
much to talk about, not only with the Admiralty but with the
Secretary for War.

On this visit to London the famous meeting between Nelson, "the
greatest sailor since our world began," and the Duke of Wellington,
the conqueror of Napoleon, "the great world's victor's victor," took
place.  Neither knew who the other was.  They were both waiting in
the anteroom of the Secretary of State.  At first "the Iron Duke"
found Nelson's talk trifling and silly.  But when the war and the
state of Europe were touched upon, then in an instant the somewhat
boastful trifler vanished, and Nelson, the statesman, sailor, and
saviour of his country appeared in his true colours.

On the 2nd of September Captain Blackwood called at Merton at five in
the morning.  Nelson, who was already up and dressed, eagerly greeted
him with the words, "I am sure you bring me news of the French and
Spanish fleets, and I think I shall yet have to beat them."

On Blackwood telling him that the French squadron had arrived off
Cadiz, he could scarcely conceal his joy.  "Depend upon it,
Blackwood," he exclaimed, "I shall yet give Mr. Villeneuve a
drubbing."

All haste was made to get ready the fleet Nelson had chosen.  He
stuck to the _Victory_ as his flagship.  Already a feeling of his
coming death was upon him: he knew "_they meant to make a dead set at
the Victory_," he told his brother.

In his private journal are found these words:--


"Friday night (Sept. 13), at half-past ten, I drove from dear, dear
Merton to go to serve my king and country.  May the great God, whom I
adore, enable me to fulfil the expectations of my country.

"And, if it is His good pleasure that I should return, my thanks will
never cease being offered up to the throne of His mercy.

"If it is His good providence to cut short my days upon earth, I bow
with the greatest submission, relying that He will protect those so
dear to me, whom I may leave behind!  His will be done.  Amen!  Amen!
Amen!"


Nelson had felt his reception at Court after his return from
Copenhagen to be a cold one.  Now, his leave-taking must have assured
him of the love and admiration of a whole nation.

[Illustration: Nelson leaving Portsmouth to join the 'Victory']

Vast crowds had gathered at Portsmouth to catch a glimpse of, and to
bid God-speed to, the national hero.

To quote Southey: "They pressed forward to obtain sight of his face.
Many were in tears, and many knelt down before him and blessed him as
he passed.

"England has had many heroes, but never one who so entirely possessed
the love of his fellow-countrymen as Nelson."

On the 25th the _Victory_ was off Lisbon, and letters were sent on
shore begging that the fleet's arrival might be kept secret.

At all costs Villeneuve was to be tempted to put to sea and give
battle.

"Day by day," wrote Nelson, "I am expecting the allied fleet to put
to sea--every day, hour, and moment.  I am convinced that you
estimate, as I do, the importance of not letting those rogues escape
us without a fair fight, _which I pant for by day and dream of by
night_."

On September 28 the _Victory_ reached the fleet; the day after was
Nelson's birthday.

The reception he met with, he declared, "caused the sweetest
sensation of his life."

The officers who came on board to welcome his return--"the band of
brothers," as he called them--forgot his rank as commander-in-chief,
in the joy with which they greeted him.

"When I came to explain to them the 'Nelson touch,'" the admiral
writes to Lady Hamilton, "it was like an electric shock.  Some shed
tears; all approved."

The "Nelson touch," which has passed into a saying common in the navy
to this day, was the great admiral's plan of attack or conduct of war.

"The business of an English commander-in-chief"--so ran Nelson's
famous order--"is first to bring an enemy's fleet to battle, on the
most advantageous terms to himself (I mean that of laying his ships
close on board the enemy as quickly as possible); and, secondly, to
continue them there without separating until their business is
decided."

"First, to lay his ships close on board the enemy; and, secondly, to
continue them there."  Surely this, in a few simple words, is the
secret of England's naval greatness, and Nelson's own fame.

On the 10th of October Nelson was to have his longed-for wish granted.

The day previous he had noted in his diary--

"Fine weather; wind easterly: the combined fleets cannot have finer
weather to put to sea."

Next morning the signal was flashed throughout the British fleet,
with what feelings of joy we can well imagine--

  "THE ENEMY ARE COMING OUT
  OF PORT."




CHAPTER X

TRAFALGAR--DEATH OF NELSON

The rival Fleets were made up as follows:--


Franco-Spanish, 33 ships of the line, firing a broadside of 30,000
lbs.

British, 27 ships of the line, firing a broadside of 29,000 lbs.


It will thus be seen that though Nelson had fewer ships, yet the
destructive power of his fire was almost as great as that of his
enemies.

On the 13th of October Nelson's old ship, the _Agamemnon, under the
command of "the hero of a hundred fights_," Captain Berry, joined the
fleet.  "Here comes Berry.  Now we shall have a fight!" joyfully
exclaimed his chief.

At last the action for which the great admiral was so eagerly longing
was about to take place.

On the 21st October, forty-eight years earlier, his uncle, Captain
Maurice Suckling, had greatly distinguished himself in a desperate
action against a superior force of the enemy.  "The 21st will be our
day; it is the happiest day in the year for my family," Nelson had
declared a few days previously.

"This day or to-morrow will be a fortunate one for you young
gentlemen," he said to a group of midshipmen.  And again on the
evening of the 20th he said, "To-morrow I will do that which will
give you younger gentlemen something to talk and think about for the
rest of your lives, but I shall not live to know about it myself."

The morning of the 21st showed the sea to be calm, with only a slight
swell; the wind was light, and made the progress of the sailing ships
slow.

To understand the battle we must picture to ourselves the allied
fleet moving in two long lines abreast.  Nelson, on the other hand,
divided his ships into two columns which moved to battle in
"line-a-head" and "line-a-bearing," or what we might almost call
Indian file.  Thus, while the Franco-Spanish fleet came on in a
crescent shape, Nelson sailed to meet them in two perpendicular
lines, which he flung right on their centre.

His object was, as ever, destruction, and complete destruction, of
the enemy, no matter what loss he himself might sustain.

"In cases where signals cannot be seen or clearly understood, no
captain can do wrong if he places his ship alongside that of an
enemy."  These were roughly his orders to the fleet.  Before entering
the battle he thought deeply for a suitable signal to give to his
ships and men.  Finally he decided on the now immortal words:
"England expects that every man will do his duty."  Amidst ringing
cheers the flags spelt this sentence out to the fleet.  "You must be
quick," Nelson said to his signallers, "for I have another signal to
make--'Close Action!'"

Duty and close action, these were the watchwords of Nelson's life and
career.  No more fitting sentiments could come from him on the day of
his death and last and greatest victory.

Nelson's own ship, the _Victory_, led his column.  Collingwood, in
the _Royal Sovereign_, led the other column.

The battle began about noon.  The allies commenced firing at long
range.  Nelson, confident in the better discipline and fighting
powers of his crews, pressed on in silence, withholding his fire.

The _Victory_ was under a storm of shot and shell.  In a minute fifty
of her men were killed or wounded.  One shot alone killed a party of
eight marines; another actually went screaming on its way between
Nelson and Captain Hardy.  Still the British stood to their guns, but
the order to fire did not yet come.

At last the weary waiting and suspense were at an end.  The _Victory_
was at length to speak and to hit back.  "This is too warm work to
last long," Nelson said to Captain Hardy.

When close between the French ship _Redoubtable_, and the huge
Spanish _Santisima Trinidad_, the longed-for order came; the
_Victory's_ broadsides poured in at close range.  The effect was
nearly instantaneous; so close were the combatants that the flames
from Nelson's guns set fire to the French and Spanish ships.

The enemy fought with unflinching courage.  Twice was the order given
to cease firing on the _Redoubtable_, as it was thought that she had
struck her flag and that her guns were silenced.  Twice did the
_Redoubtable_ reply with shouts of defiance and a storm of shot.

From this ship, which he had twice spared, came the hero's death.

Conspicuous by the medals which covered his breast, the admiral made
an easy mark for the French sharp-shooters stationed in the
mizzen-top.

"In honour I gained them, in honour I shall die with them," he
declared when his officers begged him to take them off before action.

Recognising Lord Nelson, a French sharpshooter took careful aim and
fired.  "They have done for me at last, Hardy," the admiral
exclaimed, sinking to the deck.

[Illustration: They have done for me at last, Hardy.]

In mortal agony he was carried below.  Heedless of his own pain, he
gave orders that a handkerchief should be spread over his face and
medals, lest his men should see, and be disheartened by the
knowledge, that he was hit.

"You can do nothing for me," he said to the surgeon who hastened to
his side, and he bade him go and attend to those whose lives he had a
chance of saving.

From the first he knew he had only a few hours to live; but in spirit
he was still on his quarter-deck, and his thoughts were of the battle
raging round him, not of his own suffering.  He repeatedly asked for
Hardy, who could not as yet be spared from his duty on the
quarter-deck.

At length, feeling victory was assured, Hardy left the deck.  "Well,
Hardy, how goes the battle?" was his chief's first eager question.

On Hardy bringing the joyful news that all was going well, and that
twelve or fourteen of the enemies' ships had struck, "I hope none of
our ships have struck, Hardy?" Nelson anxiously exclaimed.  "No, my
lord, there is no fear of that," came the answer.  Nelson then again
shook hands with him, and, assuring him that he was dying, said
farewell to his old and well-tried friend.

Again Hardy returned.  This time he confirmed the capture of fourteen
or fifteen ships.  (There were really eighteen.)  "That is well,"
replied the dying admiral, "but I bargained for twenty."  "Anchor!
Hardy, anchor!"  He gave the order, ever mindful of the well-being of
his fleet, and in those last moments feeling sure that a storm was
coming on.  This was indeed the case, and in the gale that followed
the battle, many ships which had been captured foundered and were
lost.

The end was now near.  The shouts of triumph and victory were in his
dying ear.

"Thank God I have done my duty.  God be praised I have done my duty,"
he kept repeating at intervals.

Finally, with the words, "God and my country," the mighty spirit left
the pain-racked body.  Nelson, "the saviour of our silver-coasted
isle," the greatest seaman the world has ever seen, had fought his
last fight, gained his most splendid victory.

The destruction was complete; the naval power of our foes was
shattered; the British loss was almost trifling in comparison with
that of the enemy.  Some 4400 of the allies were killed, about 2500
were wounded, and many were prisoners.  On the British side there
were 402 killed, and about 1129 seriously wounded.

Seventeen of the enemies' ships were in the hands of the conquerors,
and one had blown up.

Nelson, before battle, had prayed for a great and glorious victory,
and that no misconduct in any one might tarnish it.  "May humanity
after victory be the predominant feature in the British fleet," so
ran his prayer.

His wishes were fulfilled, and our tars spared no effort to save the
lives of their gallant foes, now that the battle was over.

Of the whole allied force only eleven sail of the line succeeded in
making good their escape to Cadiz.  Nelson's fondest hopes had been
realised: the enemy were annihilated.


In those days news travelled slowly, and the official despatches did
not reach London till November 6, or rather more than a fortnight
after the battle.

They were carried by post-chaise, to which was fastened a pole with
the Union Jack flying above the Tricolour.  Thus, as the horses
galloped through the country on their way to London, was the news of
victory conveyed to the country-people and way-farers.  The
mail-coaches took up the tale and spread the tidings.  Many were
draped in black, and the triumphant flag they carried was wreathed in
crape, to tell the people that though a glorious victory had been
won, Nelson, the national hero, had laid down his life to gain it.

"I had their huzzas before: I have their hearts now," Nelson had
written to Hardy before he embarked from England for the last time.
Then cheering crowds had followed him, striving to get a glimpse of
his well-loved face, or even to touch the hem of his garment.

Now, amid the mourning of a whole nation, he was followed by a
sorrowing people to his resting-place in St. Paul's.  Sir Peter
Parker, his early admiral, who had been one of the first to discover
his genius, was chief mourner.

As Lady Londonderry then wrote: "He now begins his immortal career,
having nothing to achieve left, and bequeathing to the English fleet
a legacy which they alone are able to improve."

That legacy the British fleet to this day strive to guard jealously.

Nelson, the boy who knew no fear, had gained his great end.  He had
saved his beloved country; nay, he had saved the whole of Europe.  He
had made the British navy a force which no power has since dared to
attack: he had secured to us India and our colonies.

In the words of Southey we may bid farewell to our greatest national
hero:--

"He has left us a name and an example which are at this moment
inspiring hundreds of the youth of England--a name which is our
pride, and an example which will continue to be our shield and
strength."



THE END



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