nt effect of their own fleet,
"in being," seems not to have prevented either of them from believing
that the attempt upon Tuscany by sea was seriously intended. True,
Nelson does at times speak of the French as being so unreasonable that
one may expect anything from them; but this scheme, which probably had
not even a paper existence in France, was accepted by him as imminent,
because he thought it suitable. As he cogently remarked to Beaulieu,
it is likely that your enemy will not do the thing which you wish him
to do; and conversely, in this case, what to him appeared most
threatening to his own cause was just what he expected to occur.
Jervis, sharing his views, and already knowing his man, despatched
him again to the Gulf of Genoa, within forty-eight hours of his
arrival in San Fiorenzo, somewhat to the disgust of the other
captains, weary of being ever under the eye of an observant and
exacting admiral. "You did as you pleased in Lord Hood's time," said
one grumbler, "the same in Admiral Hotham's, and now again with Sir
John Jervis; it makes no difference to you who is commander-in-chief."
The tone of these words, which in the reading are almost flattering,
is evident from Nelson's comment: "I returned a pretty strong answer
to this speech."

The object of his present mission was to ascertain what preparations
for the expected descent were being made along the Riviera, and to
frustrate them as far as lay in the power of his squadron. He soon
reported to Jervis that there was as yet no collection of vessels
between Nice and Genoa. He then went on to reconnoitre Toulon, where
he saw thirteen sail-of-the-line and five frigates lying in the outer
roads, ready for sea, while five more of the line he learned were
fitting at the arsenal. During the six days he remained off the port
he noted that continual progress was being made in the enemy's
preparations. At the end of this time, on the 23d of February, 1796,
the admiral joined with the fleet, and the same afternoon the
"Agamemnon" again parted company for Genoa, where she anchored on the
2d of March.

The bustle on board the French ships confirmed Nelson's belief in the
descent upon Tuscany; and it is interesting here to quote his words
upon the possibilities of the operation, regarded from the naval point
of view by one of the ablest of sea-generals. His opinion throws light
upon the vexed question of the chances for and against Napoleon's
projected invasion of Eng