LOVE 272 dear little child with us. ... I love, never did love anyone else. I never gave a pledge of love until you gave me one, and you, thank my God, never gave one to anybody else ! " " Never gave one to anybody else ! " Either love had closed Nelson's eyes com- pletely against all sight of facts, or Emma, with amazing cunning, had concealed from him all knowledge of the days which had gone by. The former theory is the more probable. To the admiral England could afford only very little leisure, and during those few, short, peaceful hours Nelson may have been contenc to enjoy unqucstioningly the society of the woman whom he loved. It is true that, when .he danger of imme- 'liate invasion was no longer imminent, he sj)ent eighteen months at Merton at the house which Lady Hamilton had chosen for his home. But, with this as the sole exception, Nelson was allowed no leave save a fortnight now and a fortnight then. England was ever in need of the great admiral's genius. During the long months when he was absent Lady Hamilton, for the most part, made her home at Merton. London, how- ever, she visited frequently, and there was welcomed cordially. Her social charm, her beauty, and her fascination still were incomparable. She was a gorgeous woman, and the world loved her. Even at the house oi Nelson's mother she was an honoured visitor, and Mrs. Nelson was the wife of a Norfolk clergyman and the personification of strict conventionality. NeLson's infatuation, however, was in- satiate. At sea, in times of danger, amid trouble and anxiety never for a moment did he forget Lady Hamilton. Moreover, he longed for the day when he would be able to retire and proclaim as his wife the woman who was, and whom he declared to be, his Alpha and his Omega. " I rejoice," he wTotc on August 20th, 1803, " that you have had so pleasant a trip to Norfolk, and I hope one day to carry you there by a nearer tie in law, but not in love and affection, than the present." So superb a romance, however. Fate deemed worthy of a more dramatic ending, and the finish it devised has justified the intention. It is at one and the same time as grand and as pathetic an incident as a biographer can chronicle. In 1805 Nelson spent one happy fortnight with Lady Hamilton at Merton, and after that he saw her no more. His country called upon him, called upon him for the last time, to save her, and Nelson sailed to death and glory. Off Cape Trafalgar he established the supremacy of England ; off Cape Trafalgar he died. His mission was accomplished ; all was finished save the last and most beautiful of his letters to Lady Hamilton. " My dearest, beloved Emma, and the dear friend of my bosom, — The signal has been made that the enemy's combined fleets are coming out of port. , . . May the God of Battles crown my endeavours with success ! At all events, I shall take care that my name shall ever be most dear to you and to Horatia, both of whom I love as much as my own life, and as my last writing before the battle will be to you, so I hope in God that I shall live to finish my letter after the battle. . . ." But Emma finished the letter : " O, miserable and wretched Emma ! O, glorious and happy Nelson." On this day also died the Emma of romance. Henceforth she degenerated rapidly, and became a silly, extravagant, vain-glorious woman. In 18 13 she was imprisoned for debt. On January 15th, 1815, she died at Calais, at the age of fifty-one, and there were but few to mourn beside her grave. |V«VJVT jCc<kVW VVy>W.*iw Cru*Otr>, VWcA Wi^ v^ao. Lord Nehon's last wish As a legacy to his country he left his daughter Horatia and her mother m
