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The sun was now nearly down. The AUDACIOUS, Captain Could, pouring a heavy fire into the GUERRIER and the CONQUERANT, fixed herself on the larboard bow of the latter, and when that ship struck, passed on to the PEUPLE SOUVERAIN. The THESEUS, Capt Miller, followed, brought down the GUERRIER's remaining main and mizzen masts, then anchored inside of the SPARTIATE, the third in the French line.
While these advanced ships doubled the French line, the VANGUARD was the first that anchored on the outer side of the enemy, within half pistol-shot of their third ship, the SPARTIATE. Nelson had six colours flying in different parts of his rigging, lest they should be shot away; that they should be struck, no British admiral considers as a possibility.
With regard to the men belonging to the Minotaur and Audacious on board the prizes, I hope to have it in my power to meet more fully your expectations, as I see no reason why these men should not be almost entirely replaced from the ships with me, the Bellerophon and Majestic having only fifty men each on board; the Spartiate certainly can spare the same number for Le Conquérant; and I hope to man the Aquilon from the other three ships, except the party of marines, which I shall direct to be left on board of them.
Of the five ships of the allied van which passed to windward of the "Victory," one was cut off and captured by the "Minotaur" and "Spartiate." The other four continued on the wind to the southwest, and escaped to sea. By the surrender of Villeneuve the chief command of the combined fleets remained with the Spanish admiral Gravina.
A shell dropped upon the deck of the Spartiate, almost amidships. The pink flash blazed out between her two midship funnels. They crumpled up as if they had been made of brown paper. The six-inch armoured casemates on either side seemed to crumble away. The four-inch steel deck gaped and split as though it had been made of matchboard.
Nelson therefore placed the "Vanguard" on the outer side, and within pistol-shot, of the third French ship, the "Spartiate," which was already engaged on the other side by the "Theseus," but at much longer range.
A tremendous crash followed his words, and the Vanguard was seen to pour a broadside into the Spartiate as before related. The men of the Majestic gazed eagerly at the Admiral's ship, which was almost enveloped in thick smoke as they passed ahead, but an order from Captain Westcott to be ready for action called the attention of every man on his duty.
It consisted of the Formidable, Irresistible, Implacable, Majestic and Magnificent, and the cruisers Hogue, Sutlej, Ariadne, Argonaut, Diadem and Hawke. The western Division consisted of the battleships Prince George, Victoria, Jupiter, Mars and Hannibal, and the cruisers Amphitrite, Spartiate, Andromeda, Europa, Niobe, Blenheim and Blake.
The words were hardly out of his mouth before another man came running in with a slip. "'Jupiter and Hannibal torpedoed by submarine. Spartiate blown up by aërial torpedo." Then there came a gap, as though the men at the other end had heard of more news, then followed "'Mars, Prince George, Victorious, all torpedoed. Cruisers escaped to sea. No news of Ithuriel, no torpedo attack up to present."
The lad, Bulkeley, who later in the day was wounded also, was the son of a former shipmate in the far back days of the San Juan expedition, and the dying admiral charged the lad with a remembrance to his father. Two ships of Nelson's column, as yet not engaged, the "Spartiate" and the "Minotaur," were then just reaching the scene.
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