The story of this strange incident of the coffin is this:  After the battle of the Nile a portion of the Orient’s mainmast was drifting about, and was picked up by order of Captain Hallowell of the Swiftsure, who had it made into a coffin.  It was handsomely finished, and sent to Admiral Nelson with the following letter:—­

Sir,—­I have taken the liberty of presenting you a coffin made from the mainmast of Orient, that when you have finished your military career in this world, you may be buried in one of your trophies.  But that that period may be far distant is the earnest wish of your sincere friend, Benjamin Hallowell.

Nelson received the weird gift in good spirits, and had it placed in his cabin.  It was hardly a pleasant piece of furniture for his visitors to be confronted with, so he was prevailed upon to have it put below until it was required.  A few more raging battles, and a few more years of momentous anxieties, and the prodigious hero was to become its occupant.  It seems to have been landed and put in charge of a firm of upholsterers.

Before leaving his home he went to the bedside where his child Horatia lay sleeping, and offered up a heart-stirring prayer that those who loved him should be a guardian spirit to her, and that the God he believed in should have her in His holy keeping.  On the 13th September, 1805, he writes in his private diary:—­

At half-past ten, drove from dear, dear Merton, where I left all which I hold dear in this world, to go to serve my King and country.  May the great God whom I adore enable me to fulfil the expectations of my country; and if it is His good pleasure that I should return, my thanks will never cease being offered up to the throne of His mercy.  If it is good Providence to cut short my days upon earth, I bow with the greatest submission, relying that He will protect those so dear to me that I may leave behind.  His will be done.  Amen, Amen.

No more simple, fervent, and touching appeal and resignation to the will of Him Who governs all things has been seen in the English language.  It is quite unorthodox in its construction, and impresses us with the idea that he is already realizing the bitterness of death, and that he is in the presence of a great Mystery, speaking to his own parting soul.  The desire to live is there, but he does not ignore the almost unutterable submission of “Thy will be done.”

XIII

Nelson joined the Victory at Portsmouth on the morning of the 14th September, and met with a great public ovation.  He tells Captain Hardy, as he was being rowed to the Victory, that he had “their huzzas when he landed” (after his prolonged period in commission), “but now,” he proudly remarked, “I have their hearts.”  His send-off was magnificent.  The contagious flow of tears, the shouting of blessings, and the