Horatio Nelson and the naval supremacy of England . bowed down by fits of crushing despondency. Ifelt impressed, he says, with an idea that I shouldnever rise in my profession. My mind was stag-gered with a view of the difficulties I had to sur-mount and the little interest I possessed. I coulddiscover no means of reaching the object of myambition. After a long and gloomy reverie, inwhich I almost wished myself overboard, a suddenflow of patriotism was kindled within me and pre-sented my king and country as my patrons. My mindexulted in the idea. Well then, I exclaimed, Iwill be a hero, and, c
Horatio Nelson and the naval supremacy of England . bowed down by fits of crushing despondency. Ifelt impressed, he says, with an idea that I shouldnever rise in my profession. My mind was stag-gered with a view of the difficulties I had to sur-mount and the little interest I possessed. I coulddiscover no means of reaching the object of myambition. After a long and gloomy reverie, inwhich I almost wished myself overboard, a suddenflow of patriotism was kindled within me and pre-sented my king and country as my patrons. My mindexulted in the idea. Well then, I exclaimed, Iwill be a hero, and, confiding in Providence, I willbrave every danger. This resolution to do, begot-ten in a moment of wretchedness, became the noble,animating, enduring impulse of his glorious never failed him. It was an ever-growing , to his fervid imagination it seemed a thingembodied, indeed ; for he would often declare tohis friend Hardy, that from that hour there wassuspended before his minds eye a radiant orb thatcourted him onward to CAPTAIN MAURICE SUCKLING, FROM AN OLD 6TEEL ENGRAVING BY RIDLEY. CHAPTER II. Confidence in young Nelson—Examination for lieutenant—Cap-tani William Locker—Siclily constitution—Capture of an Ameri-can letter-of-marque — Career in the West Indies — Prince William—Nic-aragua expe-dition — Resi-dence at Bath—A Balticcruise— Anec-dote of theHarmony —Lord Hood. K- APTAIN SUCKLING, who hadalways been Nelsons friend, wasnow an influence, for in 1775, dur-ing his nephews absence, he had^,, > succeeded Sir Hugh Palisser as Comptroller of the Navy, and thanks to his unclesgenerous oflfices, young Nelson, after the Dolphinhad been paid off, found immediate employmentas Fourth Lieutenant of the Worcester, a ship ofsixty-four guns, commanded by Mark Robinson.* * The fact indicated in the following anecdote belongs to thisperiod, though I am unable to fit it: Lord Nelson says that whenhe was seventeen years of age, he
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