y to him, and on which the maintenance of our superiority at sea
seems to depend against the growing navy of the enemy." "The clamour
against poor Sir Robert Calder is gaining ground daily," wrote
Radstock, condemnatory yet pitiful towards the admiral who had failed
duly to utilize the opportunity Nelson then was seeking in vain, "and
there is a general cry against him from all quarters. Thus much one
may venture to say, that had your old chief commanded our squadron,
the enemy would have had but little room for lying or vapouring, as I
have not a shadow of a doubt but that he would either have taken or
destroyed the French admiral."

But there was but one Nelson, and he meantime, faint yet pursuing,
toiled fruitlessly on, bearing still the sickness of hope deferred and
suspense protracted. "Midnight," he notes in his private diary of June
21st. "Nearly calm, saw three planks which I think came from the
French fleet. Very miserable, which is very foolish." "We crawled
thirty-three miles the last twenty-four hours," he enters on the 8th
of July. "My only hope is, that the enemy's fleet are near us, and in
the same situation. All night light breezes, standing to the eastward,
to go to the northward of St. Michael's.[106] At times squally with
rain." Amid these unavoidable delays, he was forecasting and
preparing that no time should be lost when he reached the Straits and
once more came within the range of intelligence. The light winds, when
boats could pass without retarding the ships, were utilized in
preparing letters to the officials at Gibraltar and Tangiers, to have
ready the stores necessary for the fleet upon arrival. These papers
were already on board the two frigates remaining with him, with the
necessary instructions for their captains, so that they might part at
any moment judged fitting, irrespective of weather conditions. Again
he cautions the authorities to keep his approach a profound secret. No
private letters for Gibraltar were permitted in the mail-bags, lest
they should unwittingly betray counsel. The vessels were directed to
rejoin him forty miles west of Cape Spartel, giving him thus time to
decide upon his course before he reached Gibraltar; for it was quite
on the cards that he might find it imperative to hurry north without
anchoring. On the 13th of July, five hundred miles from Cape St.
Vincent, one of these ships left him, probably the last to go.

On the 18th of July, Cape Spartel was sighted.