I watched her cross the deck, full of grace and womanly graciousness. I did not mind her calling me Tubby that day: there was an air of affectionateness in her frank greeting. I only conducted her to the Admiral's state-room door, and there left her; but what passed I had from his secretary, with whom he was too busily engaged to dismiss him, as he was wont to dismiss any one when My Lady came to him. For which, indeed, there was good enough reason, for she seldom came to him alone in this fashion except on a matter of import. When she entered, the Admiral flew to her agitatedly: "Oh, my dear lady, my dear lady!" "Why, goodness me, what is the matter, Nelson?" He was so excited, that she was for the moment quite oblivious of the secretary. "Matter!" said the Admiral--"matter! The matter is England--their Majesties--the Emperor--Russia--the Bey--Malta--and that infernal jumping monkey, Sir Sidney Smith." "The French are all right, then?" said My Lady, in good-humoured sarcasm. "The French!" said the Admiral: "they are robbers and murderers--a band of thieves; and wars should cease, and all the world should join in endeavouring to extirpate from off the face of the earth this race of murderers, oppressors, and unbelievers. Divine Providence never will permit these infidels to God to go unpunished." "They have had thirty thousand pounds' worth of palaces and villas and goods of mine," observed My Lady philosophically, and also perhaps to divert the Admiral's thoughts into a new channel. "But what of the rest of the world, from which you seem to have been hearing to-day?" "Bad--bad--bad!" he said, with his intense eye fixed on some trifling object in his state-room, of whose very outline he would be unconscious. "Worst of all, perhaps, the Emperor and these kingdoms,--though I cannot get England to do what she might do. Ministers at home will not see the importance of things here. They will not see the importance of sending money; and it is as impossible to squeeze money out of Sicily as it is to grow corn upon a rock. Without money their Majesties cannot move, and with money they would do nothing." "Oh, Nelson--the Queen!" said My Lady.