New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-10-11
A HERO OF THE SEA.
ADMIRAL RODNEY
ENGLISH MEN OF ACTION. RODNEY. BY David
Hannay. 10mo, PIP. 222. Macmillan Co.

ENGLISH MEN OF ACTION. RODNEY BY David
Hannay. 1Omo, PIP. 222. Macmillan q 20
The life of George Bridges Rodney. whose name has
come down In history OF Englands most gallant
seamen, does not, when examined In detaii altogether
satisfy the ideal Of herosm. At least 1t is necessary
TO make very considerable allowances for the nature
OF the time in which he lived, and even when that has
been done the candid inquirer may hesitate before ad-
hitting that his reputation Is fully JUSTIFIED Mr.
Hannay certainly has written Of the great AdInirais
career with q franlsncss which leaTts little TO be dc
sired, lie has eAtenuad nothing, nor has he set DOWN
aught in malice. Rodney, then, appears as scion
Of an ancient and reputable famiya family which had
kept ITS estates for 400 years, despite revolutions ana
considerations and the vicssitudes CT time IL
was however, rot distinguished family ard In It's
obscurty doubt have the explanation OF Its star
bllity. In Rodney's time IL had some influence mainly
through political alliances, and In these appear the
agencies upon which, far more than upon capacity the
young Rodney to depend for advancement In the
Navy. Naval administration in the eighteenth century
like every other department OF eovernment-was IN
credbly corrupt. Everything made subordinate
to political considerations The great party leaders
used the Navy to reward friends and parasites. The
most active jealous and capable seamen were passed
IL they lacked what modern political slang calls
"a pulls Nelson might have pinned In ooscurty all
his life under these conditions, while men who were
destitute Of genius or even commonsense rose swiftly
TO be rear and vice admlrals
1t was a time when such naval effectiveness as ex-
ted seems TO have been preserved In the teeth
OF parayzng corruption and dlscouragement. Nothing
can be more significant than the fact that naval ocefs
who cherished ambition found 1t necessary 10 hoiu
seats in Parliament. OF course they did not seek
election in order to prosecute any private views OF
public questions. In fact ii might almost be sald that
there were no public questions then. Most men
entered the House of Commons the servile tools OF
convenient have plenty
of such Instruments at hand The ethics OF the period
freely allowed such service, and men OF good family ana
breeding like Rodney lost nothing in the estimation OF
their class by attaching themselves to great patrons
suci>as the Pehoms, the Falmouths, or the Duke %
Newcastle To naval officers In particular the House
was an everpreseat source OF strength The man WHO
wanted post rank; who wished 10 be kept steadily Oh
active service; who sought opportunities OF earning
prize-money who desired specially good station OF
specially good ship. found Parliament the 'urest ana
quickest help to his ambition. Now Rodney was
never in advance Of his time. lie was man OF the
world who took things as he found them ana never
troubled himself to reform abuses. His purpose was
to get on and whatever means his generation and his
class deemed legitimate good enough for him.
SO he intrigued, and attercd patrons, ana at'ehueu
vees and drawing rooms and kept himself In evidence
and voted as he was bid and found his reward in this
course At twenty-five he pcst-captain In acHVe
command and he appears always TO have had favorable
assignments. He was thorough seaman accoluhs
IN the prevailng standards and had gone through the
really dreadful ordeal which lay before every aspiht
TO naval distinction. Smollett has shown US "hat
tbat ordeal was The Navy then In fearful
condition Ship-nfe was worse than anything a
modern peniientary tolerates. The ships themselves
provided the scantest and most squald accommodar
ton for the heavy crowded under their narrow
low pitched decks Their outstanding, done By con
tract, was worse than anything the inquiries Into
army contracts disclosed during rebellion. Rotten
provisions were habtually put on board Ills Majesty
ships, and while the contractors grew rich the seamen
sickcned and died. Nothing was more common than
the outbreak of epidcmcs In tropical stations these
outbreaks were expected Scurvy was always present
Zymouc diseases were regarded normal. The
Spanish fleet, which was tho drtiest and worst adj
mrIsered in all Europe lost 400 mon once In few
weeks, In the West Indies. But everywhere the COM
mon sailor treated with the most Gallons and I'm
polite neglect, and not until Rodneys feet physician
a man Of genius came to the front any systematic
or scientific effort made to improve the sanitary con
dlon OF the men He succeeded In nearly eradcating
seurvy and thenceforh the old laissez alsr" policy
was exchanged for more humane, enlightened and
vigorous
Rodney had been forty years at sea, had risen 10
be Vice-Admral and sixty -four years Of ace before
his opportunity TO him. Ills relief Of Gibraltar,
then bcsleged by Spain and France By land and
action, and he old man, and older than
his years through govt, when lie was given command
OF the West India station, ard secured lasting honor
by his defeat OF the French under Dc Gnsse But his
traits also ont strongly in these latter
years. The capture of Eustatius (which had held
position equivalent to that Of Nassau during the
rebelOn) held out such temptation In the way OF
prizemonoy to the always lmpecunious Admiral Of
the White, that he lost his head completely, and ap-
psrcntly forgetting that there such things as
laws, and Admiralty Courts enforce them, he began
selling and conscatng right and left ard laid the
foundation for crop Of suts for damages which kept
him poor 10 his dying day. HIS poverty In the first
place sprang from his extravaganza. He must live
en- grand solgneu.' 1t not in him TO economic,
and his ncomings were precarlous, ne forever
in debt Once he literally chained 10 Paris by his
debts, and had not the Marshs De Biron come to his
aid with timely loan, he might have been prevented
from securing that active servlce which enabled him
to show of what he capable
Naval warfare still rescmDled land warfare I'm
many respects. Neither service had broken through
the trammes of medieval convention. Commanders
did fight merely TO win. but to ilusra certain
regulations and maxims of artificial warfare. On
land all armies went into winter quarters for in
stance At all fleets held TO the lble OF battle
formation. Fighting in any other way was not to be
thought OF. II Rodney who not indeed by pre-
meditation, but with the courage Of al innovator
broke the rule, hurled his ships through the
enemy's line. and by this unexpected step rent the
feet Of the Frenchman into three parts and wrought
it's destruction. As 10 Rodney's deserts in this
crucial instance controversy has not yet ceased
Whether he owed The idea OF breaking the line to
his subordinate. Sir Charles Douglas or whether the
book Of the Scotchman, Clerk Of Edln suggested the
manoeuvre, has not beel, and probably never will
be, definitely settled But It Is certain that tho re-
sponsbllity for breaking the line lay upon Rodney
that he accepted that responsibility and that In so
doing he made the act his own His full capacity
was not exhibited clearly In the battle OF the
10th Of April in the plan lie arranged for
the destruction Of DcGulchen. on April II, 1870
On that occasion Rodney was bafed by the stupidity
or neglect Of his own captains, who did not under
stand his signals, or were 100 hldeb0und In con.
scrvat!sm 70 follow them But the hattie OF nnmin