and formal complaint, what all the world has agreed to consider as fairly entitling him to immortal honour.  On the receipt of these letters, which are written with a noble confidence in the kind and generous sanction of his lordship, Lord Nelson immediately wrote the following excellent letter to the Duke of Clarence.  It certainly has, being addressed to a brother sailor, some strong professionalism; but it delicately claims, nevertheless, for Sir Sidney’s conduct, the most decided approbation and applause, from a very competent judge of the duties of the profession.

     “Palermo, 9th Nov. 1799.

     “SIR,

“I beg leave to present to your royal highness, Captain Hardy, late of the Foudroyant:  an officer of the most distinguished merit; and, therefore, highly worthy of your notice.  He will tell you of all my arduous work in this country; and, that all my anxiety is, at present, taken up with the desire of possessing Malta.  But, I fear, notwithstanding all my exertions, that I shall not get any British troops from Minorca:  without which, the business will be prolonged, perhaps, till it is relieved; when all the force which we could collect would be of little use, against the strongest place in Europe.  I am anxiously waiting the arrival of General Fox; and hope he will not consider the order for the removal of one or two regiments, of such great consequence as the reduction of Malta, by keeping them for two months longer in the Mediterranean.  On the one hand, they must, in England, or on the continent, be like a drop of water in the ocean.  By staying here, and employed, they would liberate us from our enemy close to our door; gratify the Emperor of Russia; protect our Levant trade; and relieve a squadron of our ships from the service:  besides giving us one eighty-gun ship, two forty-gun frigates, a Maltese new ship of the line ready for sea, and two frigates.  With these in the scale, I cannot comprehend that a moment can be lost in deciding.  But, Sir, I find, few think, as I do—­that, to obey orders, all perfection.  To serve my king, and to destroy the French, I consider as the great order of all, from which little ones spring; and, if one of these little ones militates against it—­(for, who can tell exactly, at a distance?)—­I go back to obey the great order, and object; to down, down, with the damned French villains!  Excuse my warmth; but my blood boils at the name of a Frenchman.  I hate them all; royalists and republicans.

“My late letters from Egypt are, that Sir Sidney Smith is hurt at the notorious cowardice and want of discipline in the Turkish army; and I find, that General Koehler does not approve of such irregular proceedings, as naval officers attacking and defending fortifications.  We have but one idea; to get close along-side.  None but a sailor, would have placed a battery only a hundred and eighty yards from the Castle of St. Elmo:  a soldier must have gone according