Before the more heroic elements in Florence Nightingale’s character had been evoked by the events of the Crimean War, her intimate friends had begun to regard her as a woman for whom the future held some great destiny. This was strikingly shown in a poem by Ada, Countess of Lovelace, the daughter of Byron, who described the future heroine of the Crimea in a poem entitled _A Portrait from Life_. She draws the picture of her slender form, her “grave but large and lucid eye,” her “peaceful, placid loveliness,” refers to her love of books, her “soft, silvery voice” and delight in singing sacred songs-- She walks as if on heaven’s brink, Unscathed through life’s entangled maze-- and in a concluding verse Lady Lovelace makes the following remarkable prophecy:-- In future years in distant climes Should war’s dread strife its victims claim, Should pestilence, unchecked betimes, Strike more than sword, than cannon maim, He who then reads these truthful rhymes Will trace her progress to undying fame. The “war’s dread strife” which, in fulfilment of the poet’s intuition, was to lift Florence Nightingale into “undying fame,” began in the early spring of 1854. An outbreak of hostilities between Great Britain and Russia had been impending for some months. Russia made no reply to the ultimatum sent by Great Britain, and on March 27th, 1854, the Queen’s Message to Parliament announced that the negotiations were broken off with Russia and she felt bound to give aid to the Sultan of Turkey. The following day, March 28th, Her Majesty’s formal declaration of war was read amid scenes of excitement and enthusiasm from the steps of the Royal Exchange. France was England’s ally for the protection of Turkey against Russian aggression, and vigorous preparations for the campaign proceeded on either side of the Channel. A few days after the declaration of war, the English fleet, under the command of the gallant Sir Charles Napier, sailed for the Baltic, speeded on its way by thousands of cheering spectators and by the Queen and Prince Consort, who came in their yacht, the _Fairy_, to take leave of the officers and men. The eyes of elderly people still beam and brighten if one mentions this memorable sailing of the fleet for the Baltic. It was then forty years since Wellington had returned victorious from Waterloo, and the blood of the nation was up for another fight. Time had deadened the memory of the horrors and suffering which war entails: only a thirst for glory and conquest remained. The whole nation echoed the words of Napier to his men: “Lads, war is declared. We are to meet a bold and numerous enemy. Should they offer us battle, you know how to dispose of them. Should they remain in port, we must try to get at them. Success depends upon the quickness and decision of your fire. Lads, sharpen your cutlasses, and the day is ours.” [Illustration: SIDNEY, LORD HERBERT OF LEA.