till near ten o'clock. Nelson, however, noted its
beginning at seven, and with grave concern; for not only would it put
the allies nearer their port, as it was intended to do, but it would
cause vessels crippled in the action to find to leeward of them,
during the gale which he foresaw, the dangerous shoals off Trafalgar
instead of the open refuge of the Straits. The appreciation of the
peril thus entailed led him to make a signal for all the ships to be
prepared to anchor after the battle, for it was not to be hoped that
the spars of many of them would be in a condition to bear sail. The
result of the allied movement was to invert their order. Their ships,
which had been steering south, now all headed north; the van became
the rear; Gravina, who had been leading the column, was in the rear
ship; and it was upon this rear, but still the southern flank of the
hostile array, that the weight of Collingwood's attack was to fall.

Soon after daylight Nelson, who, according to his custom, was already
up and dressed, had gone on deck. He wore as usual his admiral's frock
coat, on the left breast of which were stitched the stars of four
different Orders that he always bore. It was noticed that he did not
wear his sword at Trafalgar, although it lay ready for him on the
cabin table; and it is supposed he forgot to call for it, as this was
the only instance in which he was known not to carry it when engaged.
At about six o'clock he summoned Captain Blackwood on board the
"Victory." This officer had had a hard fag during the past forty-eight
hours, dogging the enemy's movements through darkness and mist; but
that task was over, and his ambition now was to get command of one of
two seventy-fours, whose captains had gone home with Calder to give
evidence at his trial. "My signal just made on board the Victory," he
wrote to his wife. "I hope to order me to a vacant line-of-battle
ship." Nelson's purpose, however, as far as stated by Blackwood, was
simply to thank him for the successful efforts of the past two days,
and to have him by his side till the flagship came under fire, in
order to receive final and precise instructions, as the situation
developed, for the conduct of the frigates during and after the
battle. To Blackwood's congratulations upon the approach of the moment
that he had, to use his own word, panted for, he replied: "I mean
to-day to bleed the captains of the frigates, as I shall keep you on
board to the very last m