Produced by John Hill and David Widger
THE LIFE
OF
HORATIO LORD NELSON
BY ROBERT SOUTHEY (1774-1843)
TO JOHN WILSON CROKER ESQ.,
LL.D., F.R.S.,
SECRETARY OF THE ADMIRALTY;
WHO, BY THE OFFICIAL SITUATION WHICH HE SO ABLY FILLS,
IS QUALIFIED TO APPRECIATE ITS HISTORICAL ACCURACY;
AND WHO,
AS A MEMBER OF THE REPUBLIC OF LETTERS,
IS EQUALLY QUALIFIED TO DECIDE UPON ITS
LITERARY MERITS,
THIS WORK
IS RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED BY HIS FRIEND,
THE AUTHOR
Many Lives of Nelson have been written; one is yet wanting, clear and
concise enough to become a manual for the young sailor, which he may
carry about with him till he has treasured it up for example in his
memory and in his heart. In attempting such a work I shall write the
eulogy of our great national hero, for the best eulogy of NELSON is the
faithful history of his actions, and the best history must be that which
shall relate them most perspicuously.
CHAPTER I
1758 - 1783
Nelson's Birth and Boyhood--He is entered on Board the RAISONABLE--Goes
to the West Indies in a Merchant-ship; then serves in the TRIUMPH--He
sails in Captain Phipps' Voyage of Discovery--Goes to the East Indies in
the SEAHORSE, and returns in ill Health--Serves as acting Lieutenant
in the WORCESTER, and is made Lieutenant into the LOWESTOFFE, Commander
into the BADGER Brig, and Post into the HINCHINBROKE--Expedition against
the Spanish Main--Sent to the North Seas in the ALBERMARLE--Services
during the American War.
HORATIO, son of Edmund and Catherine Nelson, was born September 29,
1758, in the parsonage-house of Burnham Thorpe, a village in the county
of Norfolk, of which his father was rector. His mother was a daughter of
Dr. Suckling, prebendary of Westminster, whose grandmother was sister
of Sir Robert Walpole, and this child was named after his godfather,
the first Lord Walpole. Mrs. Nelson died in 1767, leaving eight out
of eleven children. Her brother, Captain Maurice Suckling, of the navy
visited the widower upon this event, and promised to take care of one of
the boys. Three years afterwards, when HORATIO was only twelve years of
age, being at home during the Christmas holidays, he read in the county
newspaper that his uncle was appointed to the RAISONNABLE, of sixty-four
guns. "Do, William," said he to a brother who was a year and a half older
than himself, "write to my father, and tell him that I should like to go
to sea with uncle Maurice." Mr. Nelson was then at Bath, whither he had
gone for the recovery of his health: his circumstances were straitened,
and he had no prospect of ever seeing them bettered: he knew that it was
the wish of providing for himself by which Horatio was chiefly actuated,
and did not oppose his resolution; he understood also the boy's
character, and had always said, that in whatever station he might be
placed, he would climb if possible to the very top of the tree. Captain
Suckling was written to. "What," said he in his answer, "has poor Horatio
done, who is so weak, that he, above all the rest, should be sent to
rough it out at sea?--But let him come; and the first time we go into
action, a cannon-ball may knock off his head, and provide for him at
once."
It is manifest from these words that Horatio was not the boy whom his
uncle would have chosen to bring up in his own profession. He was never
of a strong body; and the ague, which at that time was one of the most
common diseases in England, had greatly reduced his strength; yet he had
already given proofs of that resolute heart and nobleness of mind
which, during his whole career of labour and of glory, so eminently
distinguished him. When a mere child, he strayed a-birds'-nesting
from his grandmother's house in company with a cowboy: the dinner-hour
elapsed; he was absent, and could not be found; and the alarm of the
family became very great, for they apprehended that he might have been
carried off by gipsies. At length, after search had been made for him in
various directions, he was discovered alone, sitting composedly by the
side of a brook which he could not get over. "I wonder, child," said the
old lady when she saw him, "that hunger and fear did not drive you home."
"Fear! grandmama:" replied the future hero, "I never saw fear:--What is
it?" Once, after the winter holidays, when he and his brother William
had set off on horseback to return to school, they came back, because
there had been a fall of snow; and William, who did not much like the
journey, said it was too deep for them to venture on. "If that be the
case," said the father, "you certainly shall not go; but make another
attempt, and I will leave it to your honour. If the road is dangerous
you may return: but remember, boys, I leave it to your honour!" The snow
was deep enough to have afforded them a reasonable excuse; but Horatio
was not to be prevailed upon to turn back. "We must go on," said he:
"remember, brother, it was left to our honour!"--There were some fine
pears growing in the schoolmaster's garden, which the boys regarded as
lawful booty, and in the highest degree tempting; but the boldest among
them were afraid to venture for the prize. Horatio volunteered upon this
service: he was lowered down at night from the bedroom window by some
sheets, plundered the tree, was drawn up with the pears, and then
distributed them among his school-fellows without reserving any for
himself. "He only took them," he said, "because every other boy was
afraid."
Early on a cold and dark spring morning Mr. Nelson's servant arrived at
this school, at North Walsham, with the expected summons for Horatio to
join his ship. The parting from his brother William, who had been for
so many years his playmate and bed-fellow, was a painful effort, and
was the beginning of those privations which are the sailor's lot through
life. He accompanied his father to London. The RAISONNABLE was lying in
the Medway. He was put into the Chatham stage, and on its arrival was
set down with the rest of the passengers, and left to find his way on
board as he could. After wandering about in the cold, without being able
to reach the ship, an officer observed the forlorn appearance of the
boy, questioned him; and happening to be acquainted with his uncle, took
him home and gave him some refreshments. When he got on board, Captain
Suckling was not in the ship, nor had any person been apprised of the
boy's coming. He paced the deck the whole remainder of the day without
being noticed by any one; and it was not till the second day that
somebody, as he expressed it, "took compassion on him." The pain which
is felt when we are first transplanted from our native soil--when the
living branch is cut from the parent tree is one of the most poignant
which we have to endure through life. There are after-griefs which wound
more deeply, which leave behind them scars never to be effaced, which
bruise the spirit, and sometimes break the heart; but never do we feel
so keenly the want of love, the necessity of being loved, and the sense
of utter desertion, as when we first leave the haven of home, and are,
as it were, pushed off upon the stream of life. Added to these feelings,
the sea-boy has to endure physical hardships, and the privation of every
comfort, even of sleep. Nelson had a feeble body and an affectionate
heart, and he remembered through life his first days of wretchedness in
the service.
The RAISONNABLE having been commissioned on account of the dispute
respecting the Falkland Islands, was paid off as soon as the difference
with the court of Spain was accommodated, and Captain Suckling was
removed to the TRIUMPH, seventy-four, then stationed as a guard-ship in
the Thames. This was considered as too inactive a life for a boy,
and Nelson was therefore sent a voyage to the West Indies in a
merchant-ship, commanded by Mr. John Rathbone, an excellent seaman, who
had served as master's mate under Captain Suckling in the Dreadnought.
He returned a practical seaman, but with a hatred of the king's service,
and a saying then common among the sailors--"Aft the most honour;
forward the better man." Rathbone had probably been disappointed and
disgusted in the navy; and, with no unfriendly intentions, warned Nelson
against a profession which he himself had found hopeless. His uncle
received him on board the TRIUMPH on his return, and discovering his
dislike to the navy, took the best means of reconciling him to it. He
held it out as a reward that, if he attended well to his navigation, he
should go in the cutter and decked long-boat, which was attached to the
commanding-officer's ship at Chatham. Thus he became a good pilot for
vessels of that description from Chatham to the Tower, and down the Swin
Channel to the North Foreland, and acquired a confidence among rocks and
sands of which he often felt the value.
Nelson had not been many months on board the TRIUMPH, when his love of
enterprise was excited by hearing that two ships were fitting out for
a voyage of discovery towards the North Pole. In consequence of the
difficulties which were expected on such a service, these vessels were
to take out effective men instead of the usual number of boys. This,
however, did not deter him from soliciting to be received, and, by his
uncle's interest, he was admitted as coxswain under Captain Lutwidge,
second in command. The voyage was undertaken in compliance with an
application from the Royal Society. The Hon. Captain Constantine John
Phipps, eldest son of Lord Mulgrave, volunteered his services. The
RACEHORSE and CARCASS bombs were selected as the strongest ships, and,
therefore, best adapted for such a voyage; and they were taken into dock
and strengthened, to render them as secure as possible against the ice.
Two masters of Greenlandmen were employed as pilots for each ship. No
expedition was ever more carefully fitted out; and the First Lord of
the Admiralty, Lord Sandwich, with a laudable solicitude, went on
board himself, before their departure, to see that everything had been
completed to the wish of the officers. The ships were provided with a
simple and excellent apparatus for distilling fresh from salt water, the
invention of Dr. Irving, who accompanied the expedition. It consisted
merely in fitting a tube to the ship's kettle, and applying a wet mop to
the surface as the vapour was passing. By these means, from thirty-four
to forty gallons were produced every day.
They sailed from the Nore on the 4th of June. On the 6th of July they
were in latitude 79d 56m 39s; longitude 9d 43m 30s E. The next day,
about the place where most of the old discoverers had been stopped,
the RACEHORSE was beset with ice; but they hove her through with
ice-anchors. Captain Phipps continued ranging along the ice, northward
and westward, till the 24th; he then tried to the eastward. On the 30th
he was in latitude 80d 13m; longitude 18d 48m E. among the islands and
in the ice, with no appearance of an opening for the ships. The weather
was exceedingly fine, mild, and unusually clear. Here they were becalmed
in a large bay, with three apparent openings between the islands which
formed it; but everywhere, as far as they could see, surrounded with
ice. There was not a breath of air, the water was perfectly smooth, the
ice covered with snow, low and even, except a few broken pieces near
the edge; and the pools of water in the middle of the ice-fields just
crusted over with young ice. On the next day the ice closed upon them,
and no opening was to be seen anywhere, except a hole, or lake as it
might be called, of about a mile and a half in circumference, where the
ships lay fast to the ice with their ice-anchors. From these ice-fields
they filled their casks with water, which was very pure and soft. The
men were playing on the ice all day; but the Greenland pilots, who were
further than they had ever been before, and considered that the season
was far advancing, were alarmed at being thus beset.
The next day there was not the smallest opening; the ships were within
less than two lengths of each other, separated by ice, and neither
having room to turn. The ice, which the day before had been flat and
almost level with the water's edge, was now in many places forced higher
than the mainyard by the pieces squeezing together. A day of thick fog
followed: it was succeeded by clear weather; but the passage by which
the ships had entered from the westward was closed, and no open water
was in sight, either in that or any other quarter. By the pilots' advice
the men were set to cut a passage, and warp through the small openings
to the westward. They sawed through pieces of ice twelve feet thick; and
this labour continued the whole day, during which their utmost efforts
did not move the ships above three hundred yards; while they were
driven, together with the ice, far to the N.E. and E. by the current.
Sometimes a field of several acres square would be lifted up between two
larger islands, and incorporated with them; and thus these larger pieces
continued to grow by aggregation. Another day passed, and there seemed
no probability of getting the ships out without a strong E. or N.E.
wind. The season was far advanced, and every hour lessened the chance of
extricating themselves. Young as he was, Nelson was appointed to command
one of the boats which were sent out to explore a passage into the open
water. It was the means of saving a boat belonging to the RACEHORSE from
a singular but imminent danger. Some of the officers had fired at and
wounded a walrus. As no other animal has so human-like an expression in
its countenance, so also is there none that seems to possess more of the
passions of humanity. The wounded animal dived immediately, and brought
up a number of its companions; and they all joined in an attack upon
the boat. They wrested an oar from one of the men; and it was with
the utmost difficulty that the crew could prevent them from staving
or upsetting her, till the CARCASS's boat came up; and the walruses,
finding their enemies thus reinforced, dispersed. Young Nelson exposed
himself in a more daring manner. One night, during the mid-watch, he
stole from the ship with one of his comrades, taking advantage of a
rising fog, and set off over the ice in pursuit of a bear. It was not
long before they were missed. The fog thickened, and Captain Lutwidge
and his officers became exceedingly alarmed for their safety. Between
three and four in the morning the weather cleared, and the two
adventurers were seen, at a considerable distance from the ship,
attacking a huge bear. The signal for them to return was immediately
made; Nelson's comrade called upon him to obey it, but in vain; his
musket had flashed in the pan; their ammunition was expended; and a
chasm in the ice, which divided him from the bear, probably preserved
his life. "Never mind," he cried; "do but let me get a blow at this
devil with the butt-end of my musket, and we shall have him." Captain
Lutwidge, however, seeing his danger, fired a gun, which had the desired
effect of frightening the beast; and the boy then returned, somewhat
afraid of the consequences of his trespass. The captain reprimanded
him sternly for conduct so unworthy of the office which he filled, and
desired to know what motive he could have for hunting a bear. "Sir,"
said he, pouting his lip, as he was wont to do when agitated, "I wished
to kill the bear, that I might carry the skin to my father."
A party were now sent to an island, about twelve miles off (named
Walden's Island in the charts, from the midshipman who was intrusted
with this service), to see where the open water lay. They came back with
information that the ice, though close all about them, was open to the
westward, round the point by which they came in. They said also, that
upon the island they had had a fresh east wind. This intelligence
considerably abated the hopes of the crew; for where they lay it had
been almost calm, and their main dependence had been upon the effect
of an easterly wind in clearing the bay. There was but one alternative:
either to wait the event of the weather upon the ships, or to betake
themselves to the boats. The likelihood that it might be necessary
to sacrifice the ships had been foreseen. The boats accordingly were
adapted, both in number and size, to transport, in case of emergency,
the whole crew; and there were Dutch whalers upon the coast, in which
they could all be conveyed to Europe. As for wintering where they were,
that dreadful experiment had been already tried too often. No time was
to be lost; the ships had driven into shoal water, having but fourteen
fathoms. Should they, or the ice to which they were fast, take the
ground, they must inevitably be lost; and at this time they were driving
fast toward some rocks on the N.E. Captain Phipps sent for the officers
of both ships, and told them his intention of preparing the boats for
going away. They were immediately hoisted out, and the fitting begun.
Canvas bread-bags were made, in case it should be necessary suddenly to
desert the vessels; and men were sent with the lead and line to N. and
E., to sound wherever they found cracks in the ice, that they might have
notice before the ice took the ground; for in that case the ships must
instantly have been crushed or overset.
On the 7th of August they began to haul the boats over the ice, Nelson
having command of a four-oared cutter. The men behaved excellently
well, like true British seamen: they seemed reconciled to the thought
of leaving the ships, and had full confidence in their officers. About
noon, the ice appeared rather more open near the vessels; and as the
wind was easterly, though there was but little of it, the sails were
set, and they got about a mile to the westward. They moved very slowly,
and were not now nearly so far to the westward as when they were first
beset. However, all sail was kept upon them, to force them through
whenever the ice slacked the least. Whatever exertions were made, it
could not be possible to get the boats to the water's edge before the
14th; and if the situation of the ships should not alter by that time,
it would not be justifiable to stay longer by them. The commander
therefore resolved to carry on both attempts together, moving the boats
constantly, and taking every opportunity of getting the ships through. A
party was sent out next day to the westward to examine the state of
the ice: they returned with tidings that it was very heavy and close,
consisting chiefly of large fields. The ships, however, moved something,
and the ice itself was drifting westward. There was a thick fog, so
that it was impossible to ascertain what advantage had been gained. It
continued on the 9th; but the ships were moved a little through some
very small openings: the mist cleared off in the afternoon, and it
was then perceived that they had driven much more than could have been
expected to the westward, and that the ice itself had driven still
further. In the course of the day they got past the boats, and took them
on board again. On the morrow the wind sprang up to the N.N.E. All sail
was set, and the ships forced their way through a great deal of very
heavy ice. They frequently struck, and with such force that one stroke
broke the shank of the RACEHORSE's best bower-anchor, but the vessels
made way; and by noon they had cleared the ice, and were out at sea. The
next day they anchored in Smeerenberg Harbour, close to that island of
which the westernmost point is called Hakluyt's Headland, in honour of
the great promoter and compiler of our English voyages of discovery.
Here they remained a few days, that the men might rest after their
fatigue. No insect was to be seen in this dreary country, nor any
species of reptile--not even the common earth-worm. Large bodies of ice,
called icebergs, filled up the valleys between high mountains, so dark
as, when contrasted with the snow, to appear black. The colour of the
ice was a lively light green. Opposite to the place where they fixed
their observatory was one of these icebergs, above three hundred feet
high; its side toward the sea was nearly perpendicular, and a stream of
water issued from it. Large pieces frequently broke off and rolled down
into the sea. There was no thunder nor lightning during the whole time
they were in these latitudes. The sky was generally loaded with hard
white clouds, from which it was never entirely free even in the clearest
weather. They always knew when they were approaching the ice long
before they saw it, by a bright appearance near the horizon, which the
Greenlandmen called the blink of the ice. The season was now so far
advanced that nothing more could have been attempted, if indeed anything
had been left untried; but the summer had been unusually favourable,
and they had carefully surveyed the wall of ice, extending for more
than twenty degrees between the latitudes of 80d and 81d, without the
smallest appearance of any opening.
The ships were paid off shortly after their return to England; and
Nelson was then placed by his uncle with Captain Farmer, in the
SEAHORSE, of twenty guns, then going out to the East Indies in the
squadron under Sir Edward Hughes. He was stationed in the foretop at
watch and watch. His good conduct attracted the attention of the master
(afterwards Captain Surridge), in whose watch he was; and upon his
recommendation the captain rated him as midshipman. At this time his
countenance was florid, and his appearance rather stout and athletic;
but when he had been about eighteen months in India, he felt the effects
of that climate, so perilous to European constitutions. The disease
baffled all power of medicine; he was reduced almost to a skeleton; the
use of his limbs was for some time entirely lost; and the only hope
that remained was from a voyage home. Accordingly he was brought home by
Captain Pigot, in the DOLPHIN; and had it not been for the attentive
and careful kindness of that officer on the way, Nelson would never have
lived to reach his native shores. He had formed an acquaintance with Sir
Charles Pole, Sir Thomas Troubridge, and other distinguished officers,
then, like himself, beginning their career: he had left them pursuing
that career in full enjoyment of health and hope, and was returning,
from a country in which all things were to him new and interesting,
with a body broken down by sickness, and spirits which had sunk with his
strength. Long afterwards, when the name of Nelson was known as widely
as that of England itself, he spoke of the feelings which he at this
time endured. "I felt impressed," said he, "with a feeling that I should
never rise in my profession. My mind was staggered with a view of the
difficulties I had to surmount and the little interest I possessed. I
could discover no means of reaching the object of my ambition. After a
long and gloomy reverie, in which I almost wished myself overboard, a
sudden glow of patriotism was kindled within me, and presented my king
and country as my patron. 'Well then,' I exclaimed, 'I will be a hero!
and, confiding in Providence, I will brave every danger!'"
Long afterwards Nelson loved to speak of the feelings of that moment;
and from that time, he often said, a radiant orb was suspended in his
mind's eye, which urged him onward to renown. The state of mind in
which these feelings began, is what the mystics mean by their season of
darkness and desertion. If the animal spirits fail, they represent it
as an actual temptation. The enthusiasm of Nelson's nature had taken a
different direction, but its essence was the same. He knew to what the
previous state of dejection was to be attributed; that an enfeebled
body, and a mind depressed, had cast this shade over his soul; but he
always seemed willing to believe that the sunshine which succeeded
bore with it a prophetic glory, and that the light which led him on was
"light from heaven."
His interest, however, was far better than he imagined, During his
absence, Captain Suckling had been made Comptroller of the Navy; his
health had materially improved upon the voyage; and as soon as the
DOLPHIN was paid off, he was appointed acting lieutenant in the
WORCESTER, sixty-four, Captain Mark Robinson, then going out with convoy
to Gibraltar. Soon after his return, on the 8th of April 1777, he passed
his examination for a lieutenancy. Captain Suckling sat at the head
of the board; and when the examination had ended, in a manner highly
honourable to Nelson, rose from his seat, and introduced him to the
examining captains as his nephew. They expressed their wonder that he
had not informed them of this relationship before; he replied that he
did not wish the younker to be favoured; he knew his nephew would pass
a good examination, and he had not been deceived. The next day Nelson
received his commission as second lieutenant of the LOWESTOFFE frigate,
Captain William Locker, then fitting out for Jamaica.
American and French privateers, under American colours, were at that
time harassing our trade in the West Indies: even a frigate was not
sufficiently active for Nelson, and he repeatedly got appointed to the
command of one of the LOWESTOFFE's tenders. During one of their cruises
the LOWESTOFFE captured an American letter-of-marque: it was blowing
a gale, and a heavy sea running. The first lieutenant being ordered
to board the prize, went below to put on his hanger. It happened to
be mislaid; and while he was seeking it, Captain Locker came on deck.
Perceiving the boat still alongside, and in danger every moment of
being swamped, and being extremely anxious that the privateer should
be instantly taken in charge, because he feared that It would otherwise
founder, he exclaimed, "Have I no officer in the ship who can board
the prize?" Nelson did not offer himself immediately, waiting, with his
usual sense of propriety, for the first lieutenant's return; but hearing
the master volunteer, he jumped into the boat, saying, "It is my turn
now; and if I come back, it is yours." The American, who had carried a
heavy press of sail in hope of escaping, was so completely water-logged
that the LOWESTOFFE's boat went in on deck and out again with the sea.
About this time he lost his uncle. Captain Locker, however, who had
perceived the excellent qualities of Nelson, and formed a friendship for
him which continued during his life, recommended him warmly to Sir Peter
Parker, then commander-in-chief upon that station. In consequence of
this recommendation he was removed into the BRISTOL flag-ship, and
Lieutenant Cuthbert Collingwood succeeded him in the LOWESTOFFE. Sir
Peter Parker was the friend of both, and thus it happened that whenever
Nelson got a step in rank, Collingwood succeeded him. The former soon
became first lieutenant, and on the 8th of December 1778 was appointed
commander of the BADGER brig; Collingwood taking his place in the
BRISTOL. While the BADGER was lying in Montego Bay, Jamaica, the GLASGOW
of twenty guns came in and anchored there, and in two hours was in
flames, the steward having set fire to her while stealing rum out of the
after-hold. Her crew were leaping into the water, when Nelson came up in
his boats, made them throw their powder overboard and point their guns
upward; and by his presence of mind and personal exertions prevented the
loss of life which would otherwise have ensued. On the 11th of June 1779
he was made post into the HINCHINBROOK, of twenty-eight guns, an enemy's
merchantman, sheathed with wood, which had been taken into the service.
Collingwood was then made commander into the BADGER. A short time after
he left the LOWESTOFFE, that ship, with a small squadron, stormed the
fort of St. Fernando de Omoa, on the south side of the Bay of Honduras,
and captured some register ships which were lying under its guns. Two
hundred and fifty quintals of quicksilver and three millions of piastres
were the reward of this enterprise; and it is characteristic of Nelson
that the chance by which he missed a share in such a prize is never
mentioned in any of his letters; nor is it likely that it ever excited
even a momentary feeling of vexation.
Nelson was fortunate in possessing good interest at the time when it
could be most serviceable to him: his promotion had been almost as rapid
as it could be; and before he had attained the age of twenty-one he had
gained that rank which brought all the honours of the service within his
reach. No opportunity, indeed, had yet been given him of distinguishing
himself; but he was thoroughly master of his profession, and his zeal
and ability were acknowledged wherever he was known. Count d'Estaing,
with a fleet of one hundred and twenty-five sail, men of war and
transports, and a reputed force of five-and twenty thousand men,
threatened Jamaica from St. Domingo. Nelson offered his services to the
Admiral and to Governor-General Dalling, and was appointed to command
the batteries of Fort Charles, at Port Royal. Not more than seven
thousand men could be mustered for the defence of the island,--a number
wholly inadequate to resist the force which threatened them. Of this
Nelson was so well aware, that when he wrote to his friends in England,
he told them they must not be surprised to hear of his learning to speak
French. D'Estaing, however, was either not aware of his own superiority,
or not equal to the command with which he was intrusted: he attempted
nothing with his formidable armament; and General Dalling was thus left
to execute a project which he had formed against the Spanish colonies.
This project was, to take Fort San Juan on the river of that name, which
flows from Lake Nicaragua into the Atlantic; make himself master of the
lake itself, and of the cities of Granada and Leon; and thus cut off
the communication of the Spaniards between their northern and southern
possessions in America. Here it is that a canal between the two seas may
most easily be formed--a work more important in its consequences
than any which has ever yet been effected by human power. Lord George
Germaine, at that time secretary of state for the American Department,
approved the plan; and as discontents at that time were known to prevail
in the Nuevo Reyno, in Popayan, and in Peru, the more sanguine part
of the English began to dream of acquiring an empire in one part of
America, more extensive than that which they were on the point of losing
in another. General Dalling's plans were well formed; but the history
and the nature of the country had not been studied as accurately as its
geography: the difficulties which occurred in fitting out the expedition
delayed it till the season was too far advanced; and the men were thus
sent to adventure themselves, not so much against an enemy, whom they
would have beaten, as against a climate which would do the enemy's work.
Early in the year 1780, five hundred men destined for this service were
convoyed by Nelson from Port Royal to Cape Gracias a Dios, in Honduras.
Not a native was to be seen when they landed: they had been taught that
the English came with no other intent than that of enslaving them, and
sending them to Jamaica. After a while, however, one of them ventured
down, confiding in his knowledge of one of the party; and by his means
the neighbouring tribes were conciliated with presents, and brought in.
The troops were encamped on a swampy and unwholesome plain, where they
were joined by a party of the 79th regiment from Black River, who were
already in a deplorable state of sickness. Having remained here a month,
they proceeded, anchoring frequently, along the Mosquito shore, to
collect their Indian allies, who were to furnish proper boats for the
river, and to accompany them. They reached the river San Juan, March
24th; and here, according to his orders, Nelson's services were to
terminate; but not a man in the expedition had ever been up the river,
or knew the distance of any fortification from its mouth; and he not
being one who would turn back when so much was to be done, resolved to
carry the soldiers up. About two hundred, therefore, were embarked in
the Mosquito shore craft and in two of the HINCHINBROOK's boats, and
they began their voyage. It was the latter end of the dry season, the
worst time for such an expedition; the river was consequently low.
Indians were sent forward through narrow channels between shoals and
sandbanks, and the men were frequently obliged to quit the boats and
exert their utmost strength to drag or thrust them along. This labour
continued for several days; when they came into deeper water, they
had then currents and rapids to contend with, which would have been
insurmountable but for the skill of the Indians in such difficulties.
The brunt of the labour was borne by them and by the sailors--men never
accustomed to stand aloof when any exertion of strength or hardihood is
required. The soldiers, less accustomed to rely upon themselves, were
of little use. But all equally endured the violent heat of the sun,
rendered more intense by being reflected from the white shoals; while
the high woods, on both sides of the river, were frequently so close as
to prevent any refreshing circulation of air; and during the night all
were equally exposed to the heavy and unwholesome dews.
On the 9th of April they reached an island in the river, called San
Bartolomeo, which the Spaniards had fortified, as an outpost, with a
small semicircular battery, mounting nine or ten swivels, and manned
with sixteen or eighteen men. It commanded the river in a rapid and
difficult part of the navigation. Nelson, at the head of a few of his
seamen, leaped upon the beach. The ground upon which he sprung was so
muddy that he had some difficulty in extricating himself, and lost
his shoes: bare-footed, however, he advanced, and, in his own phrase,
BOARDED THE BATTERY. In this resolute attempt he was bravely supported
by Despard, at that time a captain in the army, afterward unhappily
executed for his schemes of revolutionary treason. The castle of San
Tuan is situated about 16 miles higher up; the stores and ammunition,
however, were landed a few miles below the castle, and the men had to
march through woods almost impassable. One of the men was bitten under
the eye by a snake which darted upon him from the bough of a tree. He
was unable to proceed from the violence of the pain; and when, after a
short while, some of his comrades were sent back to assist him, he was
dead, and the body already putrid. Nelson himself narrowly escaped a
similar fate. He had ordered his hammock to be slung under some trees,
being excessively fatigued, and was sleeping, when a monitory lizard
passed across his face. The Indians happily observed the reptile; and
knowing what it indicated, awoke him. He started up, and found one of
the deadliest serpents of the country coiled up at his feet. He suffered
from poison of another kind; for drinking at a spring in which some
boughs of the manchineel had been thrown, the effects were so severe as,
in the opinion of some of his friends, to inflict a lasting injury upon
his constitution.
The castle of San Juan is 32 miles below the point where the river
issues from the Lake of Nicaragua, and 69 from its mouth. Boats reach
the sea from thence in a day and a-half; but their navigation back, even
when unladen, is the labour of nine days. The English appeared before
it on the 11th, two days after they had taken San Bartolomeo. Nelson's
advice was, that it should instantly be carried by assault; but Nelson
was not the commander; and it was thought proper to observe all the
formalities of a siege. Ten days were wasted before this could be
commenced. It was a work more of fatigue than of danger; but fatigue
was more to be dreaded than the enemy; the rains set in; and could the
garrison have held out a little longer, diseases would have rid them of
their invaders. Even the Indians sunk under it, the victims of unusual
exertion, and of their own excesses. The place surrendered on the 24th.
But victory procured to the conquerors none of that relief which had
been expected; the castle was worse than a prison; and it contained
nothing which could contribute to the recovery of the sick, or the
preservation of those who were yet unaffected. The huts which served for
hospitals were surrounded with filth, and with the putrefying hides of
slaughtered cattle--almost sufficient of themselves to have engendered
pestilence; and when at last orders were given to erect a convenient
hospital, the contagion had become so general that there were none who
could work at it; for besides the few who were able to perform garrison
duty, there were not orderly men enough to assist the sick. Added to
these evils, there was the want of all needful remedies; for though the
expedition had been amply provided with hospital stores, river craft
enough had not been procured for transporting the requisite baggage; and
when much was to be left behind, provision for sickness was that which
of all things men in health would be most ready to leave. Now, when
these medicines were required, the river was swollen, and so turbulent
that its upward navigation was almost impracticable. At length even the
task of burying the dead was more than the living could perform, and the
bodies were tossed into the stream, or left for beasts of prey, and for
the gallinazos--those dreadful carrion birds, which do not always
wait for death before they begin their work. Five months the English
persisted in what may be called this war against nature; they then left
a few men, who seemed proof against the climate, to retain the castle
till the Spaniards should choose to retake it and make them prisoners.
The rest abandoned their baleful conquest. Eighteen hundred men were
sent to different posts upon this wretched expedition: not more than
three hundred and eighty ever returned. The HINCHINBROOK's complement
consisted of two hundred men; eighty-seven took to their beds in one
night, and of the whole crew not more than ten survived.
The transports' men all died, and some of the ships, having none left
to take care of them, sunk in the harbour: but transport ships were not
wanted, for the troops which they had brought were no more: they had
fallen, not by the hand of an enemy, but by the deadly influence of the
climate.
Nelson himself was saved by a timely removal. In a few days after the
commencement of the siege he was seized with the prevailing dysentery;
meantime Captain Glover (son of the author of LEONIDAS) died, and
Nelson was appointed to succeed him in the Janus, of forty-four guns;
Collingwood being then made post into the HINCHINBROOK. He returned to
the harbour the day before San Juan surrendered, and immediately sailed
for Jamaica in the sloop which brought the news of his appointment. He
was, however, so greatly reduced by the disorder, that when they reached
Port Royal he was carried ashore in his cot; and finding himself, after
a partial amendment, unable to retain the command of his new ship, he
was compelled to ask leave to return to England, as the only means of
recovery. Captain (afterwards Admiral) Cornwallis took him home in the
LION; and to his fare and kindness Nelson believed himself indebted for
his life. He went immediately to Bath, in a miserable state; so helpless
that he was carried to and from his bed; and the act of moving him
produced the most violent pain. In three months he recovered, and
immediately hastened to London, and applied for employment. After an
interval of about four months he was appointed to the ALBEMARLE, of
twenty-eight guns, a French merchantman which had been purchased from
the captors for the king's service.
His health was not yet thoroughly re-established; and while he was
employed in getting his ship ready, he again became so ill as hardly to
be able to keep out of bed. Yet in this state, still suffering from
the fatal effect of a West Indian climate, as if it might almost be
supposed, he said, to try his constitution, he was sent to the North
Seas, and kept there the whole winter. The asperity with which he
mentioned this so many years afterwards evinces how deeply he resented
a mode of conduct equally cruel to the individual and detrimental to the
service. It was during the armed neutrality; and when they anchored off
Elsinore, the Danish Admiral sent on board, desiring to be informed
what ships had arrived, and to have their force written down. "The
ALBEMARLE," said Nelson to the messenger, "is one of his Britannic
Majesty's ships: you are at liberty, sir, to count the guns as you go
down the side; and you may assure the Danish Admiral that, if necessary,
they shall all be well served." During this voyage he gained a
considerable knowledge of the Danish coast and its soundings, greatly
to the advantage of his country in after-times. The ALBEMARLE was not
a good ship, and was several times nearly overset in consequence of the
masts having been made much too long for her. On her return to England
they were shortened, and some other improvements made at Nelson's
suggestion. Still he always insisted that her first owners, the French,
had taught her to run away, as she was never a good sailer except when
going directly before the wind.
On their return to the Downs, while he was ashore visiting the senior
officer, there came on so heavy a gale that almost all the vessels
drove, and a store-ship came athwart-hawse of the ALBEMARLE. Nelson
feared she would drive on the Goodwin Sands; he ran to the beach; but
even the Deal boatmen thought it impossible to get on board, such was
the violence of the storm. At length some of the most intrepid offered
to make the attempt for fifteen guineas; and to the astonishment and
fear of all the beholders, he embarked during the height of the tempest.
With great difficulty and imminent danger he succeeded in reaching her.
She lost her bowsprit and foremast, but escaped further injury. He was
now ordered to Quebec, where his surgeon told him he would certainly be
laid up by the climate. Many of his friends urged him to represent this
to Admiral Keppel; but having received his orders from Lord Sandwich,
there appeared to him an indelicacy in applying to his successor to have
them altered.
Accordingly he sailed for Canada. During her first cruise on that
station the ALBEMARLE captured a fishing schooner which contained in her
cargo nearly all the property that her master possessed, and the poor
fellow had a large family at home, anxiously expecting him. Nelson
employed him as a pilot in Boston Bay, then restored him the schooner
and cargo, and gave him a certificate to secure him against being
captured by any other vessel. The man came off afterwards to the
ALBEMARLE, at the hazard of his life, with a present of sheep, poultry,
and fresh provisions. A most valuable supply it proved, for the scurvy
was raging on board: this was in the middle of August, and the ship's
company had not had a fresh meal since the beginning of April. The
certificate was preserved at Boston in memory of an act of unusual
generosity; and now that the fame of Nelson has given interest to
everything connected with his name, it is regarded as a relic. The
ALBEMARLE had a narrow escape upon this cruise. Four French sail of the
line and a frigate, which had come out of Boston harbour, gave chase to
her; and Nelson, perceiving that they beat him in sailing, boldly ran
among the numerous shoals of St. George's Bank, confiding in his own
skill in pilotage. Captain Salter, in the STA. MARGARETTA, had escaped
the French fleet by a similar manoeuvre not long before. The frigate
alone continued warily to pursue him; but as soon as he perceived that
this enemy was unsupported, he shortened sail and hove to; upon which
the Frenchman thought it advisable to give over the pursuit, and sail in
quest of his consorts.
At Quebec Nelson became acquainted with Alexander Davison, by whose
interference he was prevented from making what would have been called
an imprudent marriage. The ALBEMARLE was about to leave the station, her
captain had taken leave of his friends, and was gone down the river to
the place of anchorage; when the next morning, as Davison was walking on
the beach, to his surprise he saw Nelson coming back in his boat. Upon
inquiring the cause of this reappearance, Nelson took his arm to walk
towards the town, and told him that he found it utterly impossible
to leave Quebec without again seeing the woman whose society had
contributed so much to his happiness there, and offering her his hand.
"If you do," said his friend, "your ruin must inevitably follow." "Then
let it follow," cried Nelson, "for I am resolved to do it" "And I,"
replied Davison, "am resolved you shall not." Nelson, however, upon this
occasion, was less resolute than his friend, and suffered himself to be
led back to the boat.
The ALBEMARLE was under orders to convoy a fleet of transports to New
York. "A very pretty job" said her captain, "at this late season of
the year" (October was far advanced), "for our sails are at this moment
frozen to the yards." On his arrival at Sandy Hook, he waited on the
commander-in-chief, Admiral Digby, who told him he was come on a fine
station for making prize-money. "Yes, sir," Nelson made answer, "but the
West Indies is the station for honour." Lord Hood, with a detachment of
Rodney's victorious fleet, was at that time at Sandy Hook: he had been
intimate with Captain Suckling; and Nelson, who was desirous of nothing
but honour, requested him to ask for the ALBEMARLE, that he might go
to that station where it was most likely to be obtained. Admiral Digby
reluctantly parted with him. His professional merit was already well
known; and Lord Hood, on introducing him to Prince William Henry, as the
Duke of Clarence was then called, told the prince, if he wished to ask
any questions respecting naval tactics, Captain Nelson could give him as
much information as any officer in the fleet. The Duke--who, to his own
honour, became from that time the firm friend of Nelson--describes him
as appearing the merest boy of a captain he had ever seen, dressed in a
full laced uniform, an old-fashioned waistcoat with long flaps, and
his lank unpowdered hair tied in a stiff Hessian tail of extraordinary
length; making altogether so remarkable a figure, that, says the duke,
"I had never seen anything like it before, nor could I imagine who
he was, nor what he came about. But his address and conversation were
irresistibly pleasing; and when he spoke on professional subjects, it
was with an enthusiasm that showed he was no common being."
It was expected that the French would attempt some of the passages
between the Bahamas; and Lord Hood, thinking of this, said to Nelson, "I
suppose, sir, from the length of time you were cruising among the Bahama
Keys, you must be a good pilot there." He replied, with that constant
readiness to render justice to every man which was so conspicuous in all
his conduct through life, that he was well acquainted with them himself,
but that in that respect his second lieutenant was far his superior. The
French got into Puerto Cabello, on the coast of Venezuela. Nelson was
cruising between that port and La Guapra, under French colours, for the
purpose of obtaining information; when a king's launch, belonging to
the Spaniards, passed near, and being hailed in French, came alongside
without suspicion, and answered all questions that were asked concerning
the number and force of the enemy's ships. The crew, however, were not
a little surprised when they were taken on board and found themselves
prisoners. One of the party went by the name of the Count de Deux-Ponts.
He was, however, a prince of the German empire, and brother to the heir
of the Electorate of Bavaria: his companions were French officers of
distinction, and men of science, who had been collecting specimens in
the various branches of natural history. Nelson, having entertained them
with the best his table could afford, told them they were at liberty to
depart with their boat, and all that it contained: he only required
them to promise that they would consider themselves as prisoners if
the commander-in-chief should refuse to acquiesce in their being thus
liberated: a circumstance which was not likely to happen. Tidings
soon arrived that the preliminaries of peace had been signed; and the
ALBEMARLE returned to England and was paid off. Nelson's first business,
after he got to London, even before he went to see his relations, was to
attempt to get the wages due to his men for the various ships in which
they had served during the war. "The disgust of seamen to the navy," he
said, "was all owing to the infernal plan of turning them over from ship
to ship; so that men could not be attached to their officers, nor the
officers care the least about the men." Yet he himself was so beloved by
his men that his whole ship's company offered, if he could get a ship,
to enter for her immediately. He was now, for the first time, presented
at court. After going through this ceremony, he dined with his friend
Davison at Lincoln's Inn. As soon as he entered the chambers, he threw
off what he called his iron-bound coat; and, putting himself at ease
in a dressing gown, passed the remainder of the day in talking over all
that had befallen them since they parted on the shore of the River St.
Lawrence.