IN NELSON’S DAYS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20642, 14 February 1929, Page 7

IN NELSON’S DAYS.

THE STORY OF H.M.S. EURYALUS. . Nelson’s squadron at Trafalgar consisted of 27 line of battleships, four frigates, a schooner, and a cutter. One of the frigates was H.M.S. Euryalus, whose log-book has just come into the possession of Lloyd’s. ' From the pages of this log-book, w-hicb covers the period from May 23, 1805, to March 11, 1806, we can reconstruct a vivid picture of the daily life of a British ship of war during one of the most crucial epochs of naval history (writes Warren R. Dawson, honorary librarian of Lloyd’s). ■ H.M.S. Euryalus was two years old when Trafalgar was fought. She was launched in 1803 from the now forgotten, but once famous, dockyard of Buckler’s Hard, Southampton Water, at which two of her consorts at Trafalgar, Agamemnon, and Swiftsure, were also built. She was a 36-gun frigate of 046 tong, her complement was 264, and her first commander Captain the Hon. Henry Blackwood. At the time at which the log-book opens, Euryalus lay at Spithead taking in stores and fitting out for sea. The British Navy was all alert; and a constant patrol was maintained of all the home waters, while squadrons scoured more distant seas for the combined enemy fleets that were hovering, no one knew where. On June 4, 1905, Euryalus sailed lor Guernsey Roads and patrolled the Channel until July 17, when she put into Plymouth for water and provisions. In Plymouth Harbour she had orders to proceed to St. George’s Channel, for it was thought at the time that the eiemy might attempt the Irish Coast. Accordingly, she sailed on July 29, and, rounding Land’s End, arrived off Cork on August 1. Two days later her log reveals her making all speed southwards: news had evidently been received of Calder’s encounter with the enemy on July 22 off Cape Finist’errc, . For several weeks she patrolled the Bay of Biscay and the coasts of Portugal and Spain. During this period she joined Coflingwood’s Squadron and took part in the Blockade of Cadiz.

At the end of August, Euryalus was sent home with despatches, and early in September, as she lay at anchor at Spithead, Captain Blackwood made all speed to Merton, where kelson was restlessly awaiting news of the enemy. Readers of Southey s “Life of Nelson " are familiar with this famous interview, which stirred Nelson to immediate action. He sailed from. Portsmouth in the Victory on September 15, with Euryalus as an escort. Blackwood enjoyed Nelson’s complete confidence, and the admiral gave him free scope to act according to his discretion. Nelson not only relied on the ability of Blackwood, but he attached the grea'test importance to frigates in naval warefare; he called them "the Eyes of the Fleet,” and Euryalus at Trafalgar was called “Nelson’s Watchdog.” During the days before the battle she never lost sight of the enemy; her log-book shows signal after signal informing the admiral of their whereabouts. Guns were fired hourly and blue lights burned at night to testify to her constant vigilance., Early on the morning of October 21 Nelson had signalled to Euryalus,' and we read in her log: “At 5.40 answered the admiral’s, telegraph, ‘I rely on your keeping sight of the enmey.’” Nelson’s confidence was well placed—Euralus had fulfilled her trust; and'a little later in the morning Captain Blackwood was summoned to. the Victory, where Nelson thanked him warmly for the very valuable services of his ship. Whilst on the Victory. Blackwood, with Hardy, witnessed the tragic codicil of Nelson’s will. The Battle of Trafalgar had now begun. Many pages, of the Euryalus’s log-book are filled with a vivid narrative of 'the fight as she, from her position to windward of the weather column, observed it, Signal after signal she received and transmitted, and of these there is one that will ever stand out as a rubric in English history, for in the log-book we read:

"At 11.56 repeated Lord Nelson’s telegraph message, ‘ England Expects that Every Man will do his Duty."’ The greater part of the long description of the battle falls under the date October 22, for the log-hook is kept according to ship’s time, which ran- from noon to noon. After the battle Collingwood, who succeeded to Nelson’s command, hailed Euryalus, and his own ship, Royal Sovereign, disabled in the action, was taken in tow. It was on board Euryalus that the official despatches sent by Collingwood to the Admiralty were written. When Euryalus had played her part in the weary task of dealing with the prizes during the bad weather that followed the battle she returned to England with the French admiral on board, and anchored at Spithead on December I. She underwent repairs at Portsmouth Dockyard, and the log-book closes on March 11, 1806, with the Euryalus at anchor at Spithead. So far we have traced her history from her own autobiography. She was destined for further service under new masters, for Blackwood left her in 1806 and' was transferred to H.M.S. Ajax. We find her later in active service in the Great Belt, in 1808. in .the Waicheren Expedition in 1809, at the Blockade of Toulon in 1813,. in America in 1814, in the West Indies in 1818-1821, and in the Mediterranean in 1821-1825. She closed her career as a convict hulk, first at Chatham, then at Gibraltar, and in 1860 she was sold out of the service. The log-book now at Lloyd’s covers the golden days of Euryalus’s career. The pageant of naval warfare in Nelson’s days is engrossing reading in the orderly printed type of books, but the story becomes thrilling when we gather it from the straggling handwriting of, the logbook, where the roll and pitch of the ship is reflected in the irregular lines and copious blots of the manuscript. We can picture the master, or the captain, pen in hand, writing down the signals amid the boom of the guns, or recording the knots and soundings as the wind howled in the rigging and the swinging lamp cast black shadows across the page, Some extracts from the Enryalus’slog were published in 1005 in the late Richard Holme’s “ Horatio Nelson: England’s Sailor Hero.” while the manuscript was in the hands of a former owner; it has now found a permanent home in an institution whose name has ever been intimately connected with the sea and shipping.