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surgeon to make him acquainted with all his sensations. He replied, that he felt a gush of blood every minute within his breast: that he had no feeling in the lower part of his body and that his breathing was difficult, and attended with very severe pain about that part of the spine where he was confident that the ball had struck; for," said he, "I felt it break my back." These symptoms, but more particularly the gush of blood which his lordship complained of, together with the state of his pulse, indicated to the surgeon the hopeless situation of the case; but till after the victory was ascertained and announced to his lordship, the true nature of his wound was concealed by the surgeon from all on board except only captain Hardy, Doctor Scott, Mr. Burke, and Messrs. Smith and Westemburg, the assistant surgeons.

The Victory's crew cheered whenever they observed an enemy's ship surrender. On one of these occasions, lord Nelson anxiously inquired what was the cause of it; when lieutenant Pasco, who lay wounded at some distance from his lordship, raised himself up, and told him that another ship had struck, which appeared to give him much satisfaction. He now felt an ardent thirst; and frequently called for drink, and to be fanned with paper, making use of these words: "fan, fan," and "drink, drink." This he continued to repeat, when he wished for drink or the refreshment of cool air, till a very few minutes before he expired. Lemonade, and wine and water, were given to him occasionally. He evinced great solicitude for the event of the battle, and fears for the safety of his friend captain Hardy. Doctor Scott and Mr. Burke used every argument they could suggest to relieve his an

xiety. Mr. Burke told him “the enemy were decisively defeated, and that he hoped his lordship would still live to be himself the bearer of the joyful tidings to his country." He replied, "it is nonsense, Mr. Burke, to suppose I can live my sufferings are great, but they will all be soon over." Doctor Scott entreated his lordship" not to despair of living," and said “he trusted that Divine Providence would restore him once more to his dear country and friends."---" Ah, doctor!" replied his lordship," it is all over; it is all over."

"Many messages were sent to captain Hardy by the surgeon, requesting his attendance on his lordship: who became impatient to see him, and often exclaimed: “will no one bring Hardy to me? He must be killed; he is surely destroyed." The captain's aid-decamp, Mr. Bulkley, now came below, and stated that "circumstances respecting the fleet required captain Hardy's presence on deck, but that he would avail himself of the first favourable moment to visit his lordship." On hearing him deliver this message to the surgeon, his lordship inquired who had brought it. Mi. Burke answered, "it is Mr. Bulkley, my lord."--" It is his voice," replied his lordship: he then said to the young gentleman, "remember me to your father."

"An hour and ten minutes however elapsed, from the time of his lordship's being wounded, before captain Hardy's first subsequent interview with him; the particulars of which are nearly as follow. They shook hands affectionately, and lord Nelson said: " well, Hardy, how goes the battle? How goes the day with us ?"---" Very well, my lord," replied captain Hardy: "we have got twelve or fourteen of the enemy's

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ships in our possession; but five of their van have tacked, and shew an' intention of bearing down upon the Victory. I have therefore called two or three of our fresh ships round us, and have no doubt of giving them a drubbing."---" I hope," said his lordship, none of our ships have struck, Hardy,"---"No, my lord," replied captain Hardy; "there is no fear of that." Lord Nelson then said: "I am a dead man, Hardy. I am going fast: it will be all over with me soon. Come nearer to me. Pray let my dear lady Hamilton have my hair, and all other things belonging to me." Mr. Burke was about to withdraw at the commencement of this conversation; but his lordship, perceiving his intention, desired he would remain. Captain Hardy observed, that "he hoped Mr. Beatty could yet hold out some prospect of life."--"Oh! no," answered his lordship; "it is impossible. My back is shot through. Beatty will tell you so." Captain Hardy then returned on deck, and at parting shook hands again with his revered friend and commander.

"His lordship now requested the surgeon, who had been previously absent a short time attending Mr. Rivers, to return to the wounded, and give his assistance to such of them as he could be useful to; “for,” said he, “you can do nothing for me." The surgeon assured him that the assistant surgeons were doing every thing that could be effected for those unfortunate men; but on his lordship's several times repeating his injunctions to that purpose, he left him surrounded by Doctor Scott, Mr. Burke, and two of his lordship's domestics. After the surgeon had been absent a few minutes

attending lieutenants Feake and Reeves of the marines, who were wounded, he was called by Doctor Scott to his lordship, who said: "Ah, Mr. Beatty! I have sent for you to say, what I forgot to tell you before, that all power of motion and feeling below my breast are gone; and you," continued he, " very well know I can live but a short time." The emphatic manner in which he pronounced these last words, left no doubt in the surgeon's mind, that he adverted to the case of a man who had some months before received a mortal injury of the spine on board the Victory, and had laboured under similar privations of sense and muscular motion. The case had made a great impression on lord Nelson he was anxious to know the cause of such symptoms, which was accordingly explained to him; and he now appeared to apply the situation and fate of this man to himself. The surgeon answered, my lord, you told me so before:" but he now examined the extremities, to ascertain the fact; when his lordship said, "Ah, Beatty! I am too certain of it: Scott and Burke have tried it already. You know I am gone." The surgeon replied: "my lord, unhappily for our country, nothing can be done for you;" and having made this declaration he was so much affected, that he turned round and withdrew a few steps to conceal his emotions. His lordship said, “I know it. I feel something rising in my breast," putting his hand on his left side, which tells me I am gone." Drink was recommended liberally, and Docter Scott and Mr. Burke fanned him with paper. He often exclaimed, "God be praised, I have done my duty."

N my first arrival at Venice from Vienna, I had the pleasure of forming an acquaintance with the countess Attems. This lady, who was daughter to baron Herbert (the emperor's minister at the Ottoman Porte), lived at Venice with her husband. To a cultivated mind, and a love of the arts, she united an amiableness of character of which I soon experienced the ad vantage; as she did me the honour of admitting me to her company. I had heard much of the acquired and personal accomplishments of Mrs. Spencer Smith, sister to the countess; but during the whole time that I had lived in that city (five months), I had not had an opportu nity of becoming acquainted with her.

"Mrs. Smith being obliged to abandon the severer climates of Eng land and Germany, had come to Venice, where she had at this period resided above a twelvemonth. The very strict regimen which she followed for the recovery of her health, prevented her from frequenting the society of the Venetians; and when the French entered, being anxious to avail herself still further of the pure air of Italy (which was judged the most effectual remedy towards her re-establishment), she requested to be informed by general Lauriston, whether she could flatter herself with being granted permission to stay at Venice in security, and without having to fear subjection to the measures of a hostile power. The general, in reply, not only assured her of her personal safety,

and promised that she should have nothing to apprehend in the way of arrest, or orders to depart, but sup plied her with a passport to enable her to quit Venice whenever she pleased. Such promises and assur ances could not leave any doubt in the mind of Mrs. Smith, nor cause her to hesitate a moment in resolv ing to protract her stay, together with that of her two infant children, Sidney and Edward.

"It was at the theatre of San Samuel, that I had the honour of being presented to Mrs. Smith, by her sister; and two months elapsed before I saw her again. The incle mency of winter now fled at the approach of spring; mild and serene days succeeded those of frost and snow; and Mrs. Smith, no longer fearful of the pernicious influence of the atmosphere on her weak constitution, began to visit her sister. That young lady's versatility of ta lent shone conspicuously in every pursuit: she happily added to a correct knowledge of several languages, a most lively imagination; and to her natural disposition, which was extremely pleasant, she joined a vast degree of refined wit. Her sister's parties of course grew still more agreeable and interesting by such an acquisition.

"In the mean time, my situation was far from being satisfactory: the time passed away, but I continued to remain uncertain of my destiny. The dull monotony into which Ve nice had fallen, oppressed my spirits to a degree that made me weary an existence which appeared to pro

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mise no future source of felicity: though I spent many of my hours in the company of baron Villetti (a friend of the countess Attems) and Mrs. Smith; availing myself of the society of these ladies, and occasionally exercising myself with them in the fine arts, particularly music, for the purpose of obtaining a respite from melancholy and anxiety.

"I felt, however, the want of some stimulus to rouse me from the torpor that gained upon me; and waited impatiently for such a favourable turn of fate, in order to recover my wonted spirit of activity. But it was not long before I experienced this impulse, in the project of relieving from the cruel fangs of the enemy an innocent victim, and two children, doomed to pass their days in captivity, or perhaps to see their mother fall a sacrifice even in her indisposed state. My resolution was soon fixed: it could not have been otherwise, when such objects appeared before a man of feeling. It pointed out to me at once both the path for flying from the enemy, and for arriving at the territory of a friendly sovereign. My heart glowed at the thought of being able to render an essential service to an individual belonging to the British nation.

"Though Mrs. Smith had receive ed the French general's word of honour for her security, and a promise that no molestation whatever should be offered to her during her stay at Venice; though she was provided with a passport to be used whenever she might choose to depart, and was now residing at Venice under the confidence which she had placed in the French general's promise; she received, on the 10th of April, an order to appear before the police.

"On her attending according to

Now her

the summons, she was declared to be under arrest as a French prisoner; and received an order to depart within a week for the city of Bassano, the place fixed upon by the government for her to remain at. She demanded to know the reason for which she was thus treated ; and was answered : "Your country, and your name." native country was not England; and as to her name, the assurances which she had received, and the passport granted to her, under the same name, ought to have served as ample securities against any such conduct. Arguments of this kind however could have no weight with subordinate officers, who only executed the commands of their superiors.

"Still I flattered myself that these considerations, if represented to Monsieur Lagarde (who presided over the police), might prevent him from putting his orders into effect; but neither these, nor the friendly interference of many persons of the first influence, were sufficient to produce the smallest favourable alteration.

"Mrs. Smith herself applied personally to Monsieur Lagarde; and expressed her astonishment at being declared a prisoner of war as an Englishwoman, though her birthplace was Constantinople, and that of her parents was Vienna: besides that no pretext of this sort could reasonably deprive her of liberty in opposition to general Lauriston's word of honour, and his passport, upon the security of which she had formed the resolution to remain at Venice after the entrance of the French troops into that city. She added that, placing the firmest confidence in these promises, she never could have been induced to suspect the possibility of such a breach of

treatment.

faith, which was even an act of violence. She little imagined that the permission to remain unmolested, could be altered into a subsequent arrest that declared her a prisoner; thus changing a liberal and friendly favour into a means for the better surprising her with an armed force, and exposing her to hostile All these arguments were advanced in vain to this man, who had received positive directions for his conduct in this respect. He answered, that her arrest was amply justified by the name alone of Smith, of which she could not divest herself; and her being the sister-in-law of sir Sidney, and wife of Mr. Spencer Smith, placed her in a situation that precluded any mitigation of the order of imprisonment. Surely such a pretext requires no remark to prove its palpable insignificance: nor could any thing be more ridiculous than thus to wage war against a name, on the ground of its connection with a brave admiral and a zealous diplomatist; or barder than this lady's captivity, afflicted as she then was with a severe illness!

"In the mean time Lagarde, unwilling to acquaint her with the fate which was determined upon for her, pretended to permit her to choose any city to reside in except Venice; alleging, that the chief motive for sending her away from a maritime place arose from a desire in the government, that no sus picion might take place of her holding a correspondence with the English. Thus those intrepid warriors who brave the thunder of heaven itself; who sneer at the coalesced efforts of united nations however powerful; are afraid of allowing an Englishwoman to reside at a sea-port town, as she might give intelligence to their brave enemy, the only one capa

ble of effectually opposing them! Those generous sons of war, who at the battle of Ulm set the very general free after having surrendered himself a prisoner of war, in token of their ineffable contempt for their foes, use the utmost rigour, and adopt the most illiberal measures, towards this individual, as well as others belonging to a nation whose recent trophies bear the names of the Nile, Acre, Trafalgar, and Maida.

"Mrs. Smith confided in the minister's offer to mitigate her fate so far as to permit her to continue to enjoy the benefit of that climate at no great distance from Venice, which would facilitate the pleasure of seeing her sister frequently. In compliance with her request, she was allowed ten days before her departure, for the purpose of arranging her concerns, and fixing on the place of her future residence. She went with me to visit the neighbouring towns; and having fixed on Padua for her abode, she let the police know this, that her passport might be made for that place : but the next day, instead of receiving it, she met a soldier in her apartments, who came to announce that by order of the government he was placed there to guard her person wherever she went; and that he was answerable for her during her stay at Venice. This naturally excited her suspicions as to what might ensue ; and she in consequence again solicited the police for the passport, six days having expired of the ten. Far from refusing it, they promised to let her have it immediately; and this, in a measure, eased her mind.

"The arrest of her person roused the curiosity of the Venetians; and on its being mentioned in several French circles, the real destiny of Mrs. Smith was discovered by the undisguised