aval establishment. He
recognized the general's difficulty, though he seems to have thought
that, under all the circumstances, he might very well have acted upon
his own expressed opinion, that "the signing of a Neapolitan peace
with France ought to be our signal for departure." "The army," wrote
Nelson to the First Lord of the Admiralty, "are not so often called
upon to exercise their judgment in political measures as we are;
therefore the general feels a certain diffidence." He told De Burgh
that, the King of Naples having made peace, Jervis considered his
business with the courts of Italy as terminated; that the Admiralty's
orders were to concentrate the effort of the fleet upon preventing the
allied fleets from quitting the Mediterranean, and upon the defence of
Portugal, invaluable to the British as a base of naval operations. For
these reasons, even if he had to leave the land forces in Elba, he
should have no hesitation in following his instructions, which were to
withdraw all naval belongings. "I have sent to collect my squadron,
and as soon as they arrive, I shall offer myself for embarking the
troops, stores, &c.; and should you decline quitting this post, I
shall proceed down the Mediterranean with such ships of war as are not
absolutely wanted for keeping open the communication of Elba with the
Continent."

The necessary preparations went on apace. Vessels were sent out to
summon the scattered cruisers to the port. A frigate was despatched to
Naples to bring back Sir Gilbert Elliot, the late Viceroy of Corsica,
who, since the abandonment of the latter island, had been on a
diplomatic visit to Rome and Naples. It is to this incident that we
owe the fullest account transmitted of the Battle of Cape St. Vincent;
the narrator, Colonel Drinkwater, being then a member of the Viceroy's
suite, and attending him upon his return with Nelson's squadron. The
Spanish prisoners were sent to Cartagena in a cartel, Nelson restoring
to the captain of the "Sabina" the sword which he had surrendered. "I
felt this consonant to the dignity of my Country, and I always act as
I feel right, without regard to custom." By the 16th of January all
the naval establishment was embarked, ready for departure, though some
of the ships of war had not yet returned, nor had the Viceroy arrived.
The delay allowed the "Minerve" to be completely refitted, two of her
masts and most of her rigging having to be renewed.

When Elliot came, it was d