six Spanish sail of the line, and two thousand two hundred and eighty troops.  On the approach of the French fleet off Cadiz, the 9th of April, Sir John Orde, who was blockading that port with five ships of the line, incapable of preventing their junction with the Spaniards, retired from his station; unpursued by the French fleet, which might easily have forced him into action.  L’Aigle, a French ship of the line, which had been some time at Cadiz, immediately came out of the harbour; and was soon after followed by six Spanish sail of the line, and five frigates, under Admiral Gravina:  when, having compleatly effected their junction, a strong easterly wind expeditiously carried them out of sight.

At this period, it has been seen, Lord Nelson had, from circumstances, supposed the Toulon fleet likely to be met with in the Sicilian seas.  Having sent frigates, in all directions, to gain intelligence of the enemy, the moment it was ascertained that they had actually sailed, he was beating to windward, off the coast of Sardinia, on the 16th of April, when he was informed, by an Austrian vessel from Lisbon, that sixteen ships of war had been seen, the 7th inst. standing to the westward.  His lordship, now, justly apprehensive that this must have been the French fleet, felt extremely uneasy, that they had thus eluded all his vigilance.  His agony is not to be described; and he was only consoled, at length, by reflections that, in assuring himself of the safety of Naples, Sicily, the Morea, Egypt, and Sardinia, before he proceeded to the westward, he had certainly done what was perfectly right.  “I must ever regret, however,” writes his lordship, “my want of frigates which I could have sent to the westward; and I must also regret, that Captain Mowbray did not cruize until he heard something of the French fleet.  I am unlucky, but I cannot exert myself more than I have done for the public service!”

In fact, the exertions of Lord Nelson, during the whole of this arduous and perplexing service, were inconceivably great.  He had, besides the usual cares of a commander in chief, the very difficult task of conciliating a variety of discordant states, from whom he was under the necessity of drawing constant supplies of fresh provisions and other requisites, which they were deterred from affording by the dread of a powerful and unprincipled enemy, perpetually menacing them with destruction, whatever degrees of amity they might either possess, or profess, for this country.  The address of our hero, in counteracting the enemy’s designs, with what may be denominated diplomatic combat, and thus obtaining needful supplies as well as useful intelligence, has scarcely ever been equalled.  In corresponding with the various powers with whom it was necessary thus to communicate, the abilities of the Reverend Mr. Alexander Scott, now Dr. Scott, from his acquaintance with most of the modern languages, proved eminently favourable to his lordship’s views.  This gentleman was