Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1861-12-26

| menced furious conflict, while on the other
side, she engaged the Bucentaur and Santssima
Trindada. Captain Harvey, in the Temeraire,
fell on board the Redoubtable on the other
side, so that these four ships formed as COM
pact a tier as If they had been moored together,
their heads all lying the same way. The lieu
tenants of the Victory upon this depressed their
guns, and diminished the charge, lest the shot
should pass through and injure the Temeraire; !;
and as every shot from the Victory set tue Re-
doutable on fire, the British sailors stood with
buckets of water in their hands and extin-
guished the flames in the enemy's decks as they
arose, lest they should involve both ships in
destruction. After the first discharge, the Re
doubtable closed her lower deck ports, and
fred from them no more, fearing that she would
be boarded from the Victory Seeing this, and
thinking they had struck, Nelson twice ordered
the firing into her to cease, but her crew still
kept up murdcrous warfare from the decks
and tops; and to this nhumanity he fell VIC
tim The sixty-cight Founders, indeed, on the
Victory's forecastle, each loaded with muskut
balls soon cleared the Bodoubtable's gangways;
but destructive fire was kept up from her fore
and main tops, and as Nelson was walking on
the quarterback, he was pierced by "A shot from
one of the French marksmen, not more than
fifteen yards distant. "Ihev have done for me
at last, Hardy" said he 81 hope not" said
Hardy. ayes" he replied, "my backbone is
shot through" He was Immediately carried
below, but even then, such was his presence of
mind, that he directed che tiller-rope, which had
been shot away, to be replaced, and, taking out
his handkerchief covered his face and stars,
lest the crew should be discouraged by the sight.
The cockpit was crowded with wounded and
dying yet; he insisted that the surgeon should
leave him. and attend to those whom he might
] l,., .f.1 1. 1
nothing" All that could be done was to fan
him with paper and give him lemonade to as
suagc his burning thirst. As the action com
menced, however, several ships of the enemy
began to strike; and as the crew of the Victory
cheered as each successive flag was lowered, at
every hurra gleam of joy Illuminated the
conntenance Of the dying hero.
Meanwhile the battle continued with una
bated fury in all directions. AT a quarter past
two the Santa Ana struck to the Royal Soye-
reign, after an uninterrupted combat of Two
hours duration; but the loss on board the
English ship was also very severe, and as she
was reduced to nearly as unmanagcable a state
as her vanquished opponent. During the lat
ter part of the action Collngwood took his men
oil the poop, that they might not be unneces-
sarily exposed but he long after remained
there, fearless of death himself. AT length,
descending to the quarterback, he visited the
men, ell dining them not to fire hot to waste;
looking himself along the guns to see that they
were properly pointed, commencing particular
y negro gunner, who while he stood beside
himself, fired ten times directly into the OPP
posite port hole of the Santa Ana. Captain
Harvey, of the Temeraire, when engaged in
close combat with the Redoubtable perceived
the Fonsgueux, of II guns, preparing to board
her on the other side. He allowed the enemy
TO come within hundred yards, and then
poured in broadside with such tremendous
effect that she fell perfect wreck aboard of the
English vessel, and was soon aterward carried,
with little resistance, by boarding. The other
British vessels, as they successivey came into
action, engaged in close combat the nearest
ships of the enemy; and when the arrival of
the remote parts of the columns had reduced
the great odds against which the leading line
of-battle ships had at first to contend, the Won
ted superiority of the English soon becam ap-
parent. Before three O'Clock ten ships of the
line had struck. The fire. on the poop of the
Victory from the tops of the Redouotable was
so tremendous, that for time it WAS almost
deserted, upon which the French made Wig
orous attempt to board; but they were quickly
repulsed by the crew of the English vessel
rushing up from below and engaging them at
the muzzleS Of the musket and shortly AFTER
the Temeraire having waited nearer, poured in
her whole broadside upon her crowded decks
with such effect that two hundred men were
swept away by the discharge. BY degrees,
however, the marksmen in the tops of the Re
doubtable were picked off by the Nictory's
marines, and at length her whole masts and
rigging fell across the Temeraires bows, which,
forming bridge of communication between
the two combatants, she was boarded and taken
Of nv afr ha ish
sci, which thus had the glory of capturing an
antagonist on the right and left. Never was
ship more gallantly defended out of six hun
dred and forty-three men, who composed her
crew, only tiye-and-thirty reached the English
shores. Shortly after the Bucentaur which
had never recovered the first broadside of the
Victory, struck her colors, with Villeneuve on
board, and the masts of the Santissima Trni-
dada, which had been exposed to tremendous
raking fire from the Victory Neptune, Leyia-
than, and Conqueror, fell with tremendous
crash, and she was taken possession of when
wholly disabled by boat from the Prince.
While victory was every where declaring for
the British arms, Nelson was lying in the cock
pit, in the utmost anxiety to hear the details Of
the battle As Capt. Hardy could not for above
an hour leave the deck, he repeatedly exclaim-
ed, "Will no one bring Hardy to meP He
must Dc ri lGu ne is surely uCuu. IAl lellBlu
he came down they shook hands in silence.
Hardy in vain Strove to repress his feelings at
that painful moment. "Well, Hardy said
Nelson, show goes the day with us P" "Very
well" replied Hardy, "ten ships have struck,
but five of the van have tackled and are COM
ing down upon the Vic ory but have called
two or three fresh ships round, and have no
doubt we shall give them a drubbing." 81
hope" said Nelson, "none of our ships have
struck P" "There is no fear of that" replied
Hardy. 81 am dead man. them" said Mel
son; 81 am going fast it will be all over with
me soon" Hardy then went up TO the deck,
but returned in about fifty minutes, and taking
Nelson by the hand, congratulated him, even
in the arms of death, on ss glorious victory
adding that fourteen or fifteen of the enemy
were taken. That's WELL" replied Nelson,
"but bargained for twenty and then in
stronger voice said, "anchor, Hardy, anchor
Do you make the signal. Kiss me, Hardy"
said he. Hardy knelt down and kissed his
cheek Snow | am satisfied" said Nelson
'thank God, have done my duty" and ex-
pired without groan, leaving name unrival-
led, even in the glorious annals of the English
navy.
The combined feet now presented the most
melancholy spectacle. In every direction were
to be seen only floating wrecks or dismantled
huks. The proud armament, lately so splend-
i'd was riddled, shattered and torn by shot
Guns of distress were heard on all sides. and
in every quarter the British boats were to be
seen fastening to the vessels which had sur