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TRAFALGAR.

"His Majesty's Ship Victory, at Sea,
11th December, 1805.

"About the middle of the Action with the Combined Fleets on the 21st of October last, the late illustrious Commander-in-Chief Lord Nelson was mortally wounded in the left breast by a musketball, supposed to be fired from the mizen-top of La Redoutable, French Ship of the Line, which the Victory fell on board of early in the battle. His Lordship was in the act of turning on the quarter-deck with his face towards the Enemy, when he received his wound: he instantly fell; and was carried to the cockpit, where he lived about two hours. On being brought below, he complained of acute pain about the sixth or seventh dorsal vertebra, and of privation of sense and motion of the body and inferior extremities. His respiration was short and difficult; pulse weak, small, and irregular. He frequently declared his back was shot through, that In he felt every instant a gush of blood within his breast, and that he had sensations which indicated to him the approach of death. the course of an hour his pulse became indistinct, and was gradually lost in the arm. His extremities and forehead became soon afterwards cold. He retained his wonted energy of mind, and exercise of his faculties, till the last moment of his existence; and when the victory as signal as decisive was announced to him, he expressed his pious acknowledgments, and heartfelt satisfaction at He then the glorious event, in the most emphatic language. delivered his last orders with his usual precision, and in a few minutes afterwards expired without a struggle.

"COURSE AND SITE OF THE BALL, AS ASCERTAINED SINCE death.

"The ball struck the fore part of his Lordship's epaulette; and entered the left shoulder immediately before the processus acromoni scapula, which it slightly fractured. It then descended obliquely into the thorax, fracturing the second and third ribs: and after penetrating the left lobe of the lungs, and dividing in its passage a large branch of the pulmonary artery, it entered the left side of the spine between the sixth and seventh dorsal vertebræ, fractured the left transverse process of the sixth dorsal vertebra, wounded the medulla spinalis, and fracturing the right transverse process of the seventh vertebra, made its way from the right side of the spine, directing its course through the muscles of the back; and lodged therein, about two inches below the inferior angle of the right scapula. On removing the ball3, a portion of the gold-lace and pad

"It was not deemed necessary to insert in this Report the precise time which his Lordship survived his wound. This, as before stated, was in reality two hours and three quarters.". ."-Dr. Beatty; but see Note 7 in p. 253.

5 "The Ball, in perforating the epaulette, passed through many of the silk cords supporting the bullions, and through the pad and a doubling of silk besides; as the bag of the pad was composed of yellow silk. This circumstance militates strongly against an opinion entertained by some, that silk possesses in an eminent degree the power of resisting the force, or arresting the velocity, of a musket cr

VOL. VII.

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of the epaulette, together with a small piece of his Lordship's coat, was found firmly attached to it.

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Mr. Beatty then relates what was done with the Corpse after the Victory arrived in England:

"The remains were wrapped in cotton vestments, and rolled from head to foot with bandages of the same material, in the ancient mode of embalming. The body was then put into a leaden coffin, filled with brandy holding in solution camphor and myrrh. This coffin was iuclosed in a wooden one, and placed in the after-part of his Lordship's cabin; where it remained till the 21st of December, when an order was received from the Admiralty for the removal of the body. The coffin that had been made from the mainmast of the French Commander's Ship L'Orient, and presented to his Lordship by his friend Captain Hallowell, after the battle of the Nile, being then received on board, the leaden coffin was opened, and the body taken out; when it was found still in most excellent condition, and completely plastic. The features were somewhat tumid, from absorption of the spirit; but on using friction with a napkin, they resumed in a great degree their natural character. All the Officers of the Ship, and several of his Lordship's friends, as well as some of Captain Hardy's, who had come on board the Victory that day from the shore, were present at the time of the body's being removed from the leaden coffin; and witnessed its undecayed state after a lapse of two months since death, which

pistol ball."-Dr. Beatty. The fatal Ball was given by Captain Hardy to Mr. (afterwards Dr. Sir William) Beatty: on his death in March, 1842, it became the property of his brother Colonel George Beatty, of the Royal Marines, who presented it to THE QUEEN. Among the other relics of TRAFALGAR in Her Majesty's possession, and now in Windsor Castle, is a part of the foremast of the Victory, which was perforated by a large shot: it supports a bust of Nelson, and formerly belonged to King William the Fourth. The Coat in which Nelson fell was (as will afterwards be stated) generously purchased by H. R. H. Prince Albert for Greenwich Hospital.

"The stock of spirit of wine on board was exhausted; and from the sound state of the body, brandy was judged sufficient for its preservation."

excited the surprise of all who beheld it. This was the last time the mortal part of the lamented Hero was seen by human eyes; as the body, after being dressed in a shirt, stockings, uniform smallclothes and waistcoat, neck cloth, and night-cap, was then placed in the shell made from L'Orient's mast, and covered with the shrouding. This was inclosed in a leaden coffin; which was soldered up immediately, and put into another wooden shell: in which manner it was sent out of the Victory into Commissioner Grey's yacht, which was hauled alongside for that purpose. In this vessel the revered remains were conveyed to Greenwich Hospital; attended by the Reverend Doctor Scott, and Messrs. Tyson and Whitby.

"Lord Nelson had often talked with Captain Hardy on the subject of his being killed in battle, which appeared indeed to be a favourite topic of conversation with him. He was always prepared to lay down his life in the service of his Country; and whenever it should please Providence to remove him from this world, it was the most ambitious wish of his soul to die in the fight, and in the very hour of a great and signal victory. In this he was gratified: his end was glorious; and he died as he had lived, one of the greatest among men."

Dr. Beatty concludes his Narrative with several interesting statements:

"His Lordship had on several occasions told Captain Hardy, that if he should fall in battle in a foreign climate, he wished his body to be conveyed to England; and that if his country should think proper to inter him at the public expense, he wished to be buried in Saint Paul's, as well as that his monument should be erected there. He explained his reasons for preferring Saint Paul's to Westminster Abbey, which were rather curious: he said that he remembered hearing it stated as an old tradition when he was a boy, that Westminster Abbey was built on a spot where once existed a deep morass; and he thought it likely that the lapse of time would reduce the ground on which it now stands to its primitive state of a swamp, without leaving a trace of the Abbey. He added, that his actual observations confirmed the probability of this event. He also repeated to Captain Hardy several times during the last two years of his life: 'Should I be killed, Hardy, and my country not bury me, you know what to do with me; meaning that his body was in that case to be laid by the side of his Father's, in his native village of Burnham Thorpe in Norfolk: and this, as has been before mentioned, he adverted to in his last moments.

"An opinion has been very generally entertained, that Lord Nelson's state of health, and supposed infirmities arising from his former wounds and hard services, precluded the probability of his long surviving the battle of Trafalgar, had he fortunately escaped the Enemy's shot: but the writer of this can assert that his Lordship's health was uniformly good, with the exception of some slight

attacks of indisposition arising from accidental causes; and which never continued above two or three days, nor confined him in any degree with respect to either exercise or regimen: and during the last twelve months of his life, he complained only three times in this way. It is true, that his Lordship, about the meridian of life, had been subject to frequent fits of the gout: which disease, however, as well as his constitutional tendency to it, he totally overcame by abstaining for the space of nearly two years from animal food, and wine, and all other fermented drink; confining his diet to vegetables, and commonly milk and water. And it is also a fact, that early in life, when he first went to sea, he left off the use of salt, which he then believed to be the sole cause of scurvy, and never took it afterwards with his food. "His Lordship used a great deal of exercise, generally walking on deck six or seven hours in the day. He always rose early, for the most part shortly after daybreak. He breakfasted in summer about six, and at seven in winter: and if not occupied in reading or writing despatches, or examining into the details of the Fleet, he walked on the quarter deck the greater part of the forenoon; going down to his cabin occasionally to commit to paper such incidents or reflections as occurred to him during that time, and as might be hereafter useful to the service of his country. He dined generally about half-past two o'clock. At his table there were seldom less than eight or nine persons, consisting of the different Officers of the Ship: and when the weather and the service permitted, he very often had several of the Admirals and Captains in the Fleet to dine with him; who were mostly invited by signal, the rotation of seniority being commonly observed by his Lordship in these invitations. At dinner he was alike affable and attentive to every one he ate very sparingly himself; the liver and wing of a fowl, and a small plate of macaroni, in general composing his meal, during which he occasionally took a glass of champagne. He never exceeded four glasses of wine after dinner, and seldom drank three; and even those were diluted with either Bristol or

common water.

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Few men subject to the vicissitudes of a Naval life, equalled his Lordship in an habitual systematic mode of living. He possessed such a wonderful activity of mind, as even prevented him from taking ordinary repose, seldom enjoying two hours of uninterrupted sleep; and on several occasions he did not quit the deck during the whole night. At these times he took no pains to protect himself from the effects of wet, or the night air; wearing only a thin great coat: and he has frequently, after having his clothes wet through

"These complaints were the consequence of indigestion, brought on by writing for several hours together. His Lordship had one of these attacks from that cause a few days before the battle, but on resuming his accustomed exercise he got rid of it. This attack alarmed him, as he attributed it to sudden and violent spasm; but it was merely an unpleasant symptom (globus hystericus) attending indigestion."-Dr. Beatty.

8 This is the only notice of the circumstance, and Dr. Beatty may have been misinformed.

with rain, refused to have them changed, saying that the leather waistcoat which he wore over his flannel one would secure him from complaint. He seldom wore boots, and was consequently very liable to have his feet wet. When this occurred he has often been known to go down to his cabin, throw off his shoes, and walk on the carpet in his stockings for the purpose of drying the feet of them. He chose rather to adopt this uncomfortable expedient, than to give his servants the trouble of assisting him to put on fresh stockings; which, from his having only one hand, he could not himself conveniently effect.

"From these circumstance it may be inferred, that though Lord Nelson's constitution was not of that kind which is generally denominated strong, yet it was not very susceptible of complaint from the common occasional causes of disease necessarily attending a Naval life. The only bodily pain which his Lordship felt in consequence of his many wounds, was a slight rheumatic affection of the stump of his amputated arm on any sudden variation in the state of the weather; which is generally experienced by those who have the misfortune to lose a limb after the middle age. His Lordship usually predicted an alteration in the weather with as much certainty from feeling transient pains in his stump, as he could by his marine barometer; from the indications of which latter he kept a diary of the atmospheric changes, which was written with his own hand".

"His Lordship had lost his right eye by a contusion which he received at the siege of Calvi, in the island of Corsica. The vision of the other was likewise considerably impaired: he always therefore wore a green shade over his forehead, to defend this eye from the effect of strong light; but as he was in the habit of looking much through a glass while on deck, there is little doubt that had he lived a few years longer, and contiuued at sea, he would have lost his sight totally.

"The Surgeon had, on the occasion of opening his Lordship's body, an opportunity of acquiring an accurate knowledge of the sound and healthy state of the thoracic and abdominal viscera, none of which appeared to have ever been the seat of inflammation or disease. There were no morbid indications to be seen; other than those unavoidably attending the human body six weeks after death, even under circumstances more favourable to its preservation. The heart was small, and dense in its substance; its valves, pericardium, and the large vessels, were sound, and firm in their structure. The lungs were sound, and free from adhesions. The liver was very small, in its colour natural, firm in its texture, and in every way free from the smallest appearance of disorganization. The stomach, as well as the spleen and other abdominal contents, was alike free from the traces of disease. Indeed, all the vital parts were so perfectly healthy in their appearance, and so small, that they resembled more those of a youth, than of a man who had attained his forty-seventh year; which state of the body,

See the extracts from this Diary in a former volume.

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