[33] A veteran French officer of the old wars took this view of Nelson’s threat in a study of the battle which he wrote.  ‘Nelson,’ he says, ’a d’abord feint de vouloir attaquer la tete et la queue de l’armee.  Ensuite il a rassemble ses forces sur son centre, et a abandonne le sort de la bataille a l’intelligence de ses capitaines.’  Mathieu-Dumas, Precis des Evenements Militaires, xiv. 408.

[34] The only trace of notice having been taken by anyone of a signal from Nelson at the time stated was Collingwood’s impatient remark when Nelson began to telegraph ‘England expects,’ &c.  ’I wish Nelson would stop signalling,’ he is reported to have said.  ’We all know well enough what we have to do,’ as though Nelson had been signalling something just before.

[35] Monuments des Victoires et Conguetes des Francais from Nicolas, vii. 271.  It was also adopted by Mathieu-Dumas (op. cit. xiii. p. 178) as the best and most impartial account.  He says it was written by a French naval officer called Parisot.

[36] Jurien de la Graviere, Guerres Maritimes, ii. 220, note.

[37] This highly important signal appears to have been generally overlooked in accounts of the action.  Yet Collingwood’s journal is so precise about signals that there can be no doubt he made it.  Agamemnon in Nelson’s column answered it under the impression it was general.  Her log says, ’Answered signal No. 50’—­that is, ’To keep on the larboard line of bearing though then on the starboard tack.  Ditto starboard bearing if on larboard tack.’  Captain Moorsom also says, ’My station was sixth ship in the rear of the lee column; but as the Revenge sailed well Admiral Collingwood made my signal to keep a line of bearing from him which made me one of the leading ships through the enemy’s line.’  No other ship records the signal.  Probably few saw it, for in the memorandum which Collingwood issued two years later he lays stress on the importance of captains being particularly watchful for the signals of their divisional commander.  See post, pp. 324 and 329.

[38] Collingwood to Marsden, October 22. same to Parker, November 1.  Same to Pasley, December 16, 1805.

[39] See supra, p. 119.  Villeneuve saw this.  In his official despatch from the Euryalus, November 5, he says ’Notre formation s’effectuait avec beaucoup de peine; mais dans le genre d’attaque que je prevoyais que l’ennemi allait nous faire, cette irregularite meme dans notre ligne ne me paraissait pas un inconvenient.’—­Jurien de la Graviere, Guerres Maritimes, ii. 384.

LORD NELSON, 1803.

[+Clarke and McArthur, Life of Nelson, ii. 427+.[1]]

Plan of Attack.