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Before Jack Blunt had put away a pint of best "beeswing" sherry, he was aware of all Alan Hawke's intentions. His keen brain was working all its "cylinders." "Give me just five minutes to think it over, Governor," said the sparkling-eyed, dark-faced, swell cracksman. "I know Jersey like a book. I worked the 'summer racket' there once.
Agitation, to a very considerable degree, was the condition of Hawke's superiors; to say the least, anxiety strained to the point of approaching panic. But Hawke could have adopted truly as his own Farragut's other words, "I have full confidence in myself and in my judgment," that is, of course, in professional matters; and he spoke reassuringly out of the firmness of his self-reliance.
Then they examined the report made to sir Edward Hawke by admiral Broderick, and the captains of the men of war sent to sound the French shore from Rochelle to fort Fouras, dated September the twenty-ninth; the result of the councils af war on the twenty-fifth and twenty-eighth; sir Edward Hawke's letter to sir John Mordaunt on the twenty-seventh, and the general's answer on the twenty-ninth: after which sir John Mordaunt was called upon to give his reasons for not putting his majesty's instructions and orders into execution.
Here we seemed to have left warlike conditions behind us, for the town was agog with the excitement of a cricket-match, between Lord Hawke's eleven and a Natal fifteen. On the cricket-field we met again two of our Tantallon Castle fellow-passengers, Mr. Guest and Mr. H. Milner, who had come down from Johannesburg with the cricketers. We were interested to compare notes and to hear Mr.
The British next morning caught sight of the remaining seven, among which was the admiral, and a sharp chase resulted in the destruction of five. From August 18th the Toulon fleet was eliminated from the campaign; though the vessels in Cadiz remained to the end a charge upon Hawke's watchfulness, similar to that caused by the enemy's divisions expected from America.
To bring them to this pass, a fleet of fifty sail had been mauling them for fifteen hours, the Admiral of the Hulks and the Ascension of Seville had both gone down alongside, and two other vessels had taken refuge on shore in a sinking state. In Hawke's words, "they had taken a great deal of drubbing."
Thence he was advanced into the Eagle, sixty, in which, after some commerce-destroying more lucrative than glorious, he bore an extremely honorable part in Hawke's battle with L'Etenduère, already related. The Eagle was heavily engaged, and was one of the three small ships that on their own initiative pursued and fought, though unsuccessfully, the two escaping French vessels.
Even after Hawke's decisive victory at Quiberon had completed the overthrow of the enemy's sea forces, a British transport was captured between Cork and Portsmouth, and an Indiaman in sight of the Lizard, while Wellington's complaints in the Peninsula of the insecurity of his communications are well known.
"Then you shall have my answer," she faltered, but her eyes shone like stars as she lightly fled away. Captain Anson Anstruther had reckoned without his host when he rejoiced over Alan Hawke's departure.
"As we have but one hour, Madame, pray at once, order a repast for us all. I must have a few words with Hawke." Johnstone was as smiling as a summer sea. "We were delayed a day by my own private business," genially cried the nabob. "What's new in Delhi?" It was the crowning lie of Hawke's splendidly mendacious career when he carelessly said, "Nothing.
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