in one
place, and that _he_ would break it in two." One of the Nelson
"touches" was to "close with a Frenchman, and to out-manoeuvre a
Russian," and this method of terrific onslaught was to be one of the
devices that he had in store for the French at Trafalgar, and which
ended fatally for himself. But it gave the enemy a staggering blow,
from which they never recovered so long as the action lasted. In the
General Orders he says: "Captains are to look to their particular line
as a rallying point, but in case signals cannot be seen or clearly
understood, _no captain can do wrong if he places his ship alongside
that of an enemy_."

The feeling against Sir Robert Calder for not having beaten or forced
another battle on the allied fleets in July did not abate. The public
were out for impeachment, and the Government did nothing to discourage
it; and when Nelson was on the point of leaving England the First Lord
instructed him to convey to Calder the Government's condemnation of
his evident negligence or incapacity. They gave him permission to ask
for the inquiry, but should he not do so, it would be ordered. Nelson
wrote to Barham that he had delivered the message to Sir Robert, and
that it would doubtless give his Lordship pleasure to learn that an
inquiry was just what the Vice-Admiral was anxious to have, and that
he had already sent a letter by the _Nautilus_ to say so, but that he
(Nelson) had detained it. Nelson, in his goodness of heart, urged Sir
Robert to remain until after the action, the result of which would
inevitably change the feeling of the Government and the public in his
favour, and he could then, without any fear, demand an inquiry. Sir
Robert was so crushed with the charge hanging over him, that he
insisted on being allowed to proceed to England at once, and Nelson,
to ease the humiliation and suffering he was passing through, sent him
off in his ninety-gun ship, instead of a frigate. The inquiry was held
in due course, and judgment given against him. The finding is, in our
opinion, based more on prejudice than on any fault he committed, and
as to "committing an error of judgment," it is always difficult to
know what is an error of judgment in circumstances such as he was
confronted with. In any case, it is evident that the Government were
terrified of the effect that public opinion would have on themselves
if they failed to take steps to appease it. We think the Government
would have been serving their