Comparison of the “Victory” with the “Hercules”
Nelson now looked forward to reaching the quiet waters of Spithead before the end of the year. In this he was disappointed. Hood returned to Toulon, where French naval preparations were going on apace, and Nelson was sent with the _Agamemnon_ to Leghorn in order that his ship might refit and his men have a little rest after their arduous exertions in Corsica. On his own showing, he was “the best in health, but every other Officer is scarcely able to crawl.” When ready for further service Nelson joined the admiral off Toulon, from whence he proceeded to Genoa “to keep peace and harmony” with that Republic by enforcing its neutrality. This mission was not of long duration, and on the last day of September 1794 he was directed to proceed off Gourjean and place himself under the orders of Vice-Admiral Hotham, Hood’s successor as Commander-in-chief in the Mediterranean.
At this stage of our story it may not be unfitting to study the accompanying table,[15] which reveals at a glance the active list of ships, exclusive of harbour and stationary vessels, troop and storeships, ships building, etc., in the British Navy, at the beginning of the Great War and in 1805:
Year. Sail-of- Total of Total Total Naval Seamen and the-line. Vessels. tonnage. Supplies Marines employed. granted.
1793 113 304 295,409 £4,003,984 45,000 1805 116 534 407,814 £15,035,630 120,000
When we come to compare the Navy of Nelson’s day with that of our own, the result is astounding. The estimates for 1910-11 amount to £40,603,700. Of this sum, £13,279,830 is for ships either under construction or about to be laid down. There are 95 battleships and first-class cruisers afloat or building, and there is a total strength of 710 vessels, including torpedo gunboats, destroyers, torpedo boats, and submarines.[16] The entire _personnel_, exclusive of the reserves, numbers 131,000.
The accompanying illustration gives an exact idea of the enormous difference in size between the _Victory_ and the _Hercules_. The former, launched in 1765, has a gross tonnage of 2,164; the latter--at the time of writing, the largest British battleship afloat--has a displacement of 20,250 tons, over nine times that of the _Victory_. Nelson’s flagship is still afloat, but who can tell when the _Hercules_ will be obsolete? Progress demands many and costly victims.