r. Immediately
ahead of Nelson was the "Barfleur," carrying the flag of one of the
junior admirals, to whom naturally fell the command in that part of
the line.

Three of the larger Spanish body succeeded in crossing ahead of the
British column and joining the lee group, thus raised to nine ships.
No others were able to effect this, the headmost British ships
anticipating them in the gap. Jervis's plan was to pass between their
two divisions with his one column, protracting this separation, then
to go about in succession and attack the eighteen to windward, because
their comrades to leeward could not help them in any short time. This
was done. The lee ships did attempt to join those to windward by
breaking through the British order, but were so roughly handled that
they gave it up and continued to the south-southwest, hoping to gain a
better opportunity. The weather ships, on the other hand, finding they
could not pass, steered to the northward,--nearly parallel, but
opposite, to the course which both the British and their own lee group
were then following.

A heavy cannonade now ensued, each British ship engaging as its
batteries came to bear, through the advance of the column to the
south-southwest. After an hour of this, the admiral made the signal to
tack in succession. This was instantly obeyed by the leader, the
"Culloden," which was expecting it, and each following ship tacked
also as it reached the same point. But as the Spaniards were
continually receding from this point, which the British rear was
approaching, it was evident that in time the latter would leave
uncovered the ground that had so far separated the two hostile
divisions. This the Spanish admiral expected to be his opportunity; it
proved to be Nelson's.

At 1 P.M.,[43] by Nelson's journal, the "Captain," standing south by
west, had come abreast the rearmost of the eighteen weather ships,
having passed the others. He then noticed that the leaders of that
body were bearing up before the wind, to the eastward, to cross behind
the British column. If this were carried out unmolested, they could
join the lee ships, which heretofore had been separated from them by
the centre and rear of the British line, and at this moment were not
very far distant, being still engaged with the British centre; or
else, so Nelson thought, they might fly before the wind, making
ineffective all that had been done so far. "To prevent either of their
schemes from taking ef