Page:Authentic Narrative of the Death of Lord Nelson.djvu/37

 long;" and declared that "through all the battles he had been in, he had never witnessed more cool courage than was displayed by the Victory's crew on this occasion."

The Victory by this time, having approached close to the Enemy's van, had suffered very severely without firing a single gun: she had lost about twenty men killed, and had about thirty wounded. Her mizen-topmast, and all her studding-sails and their booms, on both sides were shot away; the Enemy's fire being chiefly directed at her rigging, with a view to disable her before she could close with them. At four minutes past twelve o'clock she opened her fire, from both sides of her decks, upon the Enemy; when Captain HARDY represented to, that "it appeared impracticable to pass through the Enemy's line without going on