best endeavours to bring her and his own vessel into Port Mahon. The
difficulties and the dangers increased. Nelson considered the case
of his own ship as desperate, and that unless she was immediately
left to her own fate, both vessels would inevitably be lost. He,
therefore, with the generosity natural to him, repeatedly requested
Captain Ball to let him loose; and on Captain Ball's refusal, he
became impetuous, and enforced his demand with passionate threats.
Captain Ball then himself took the speaking-trumpet, which the fury
of the wind and waves rendered necessary, and with great solemnity
and without the least disturbance of temper, called out in reply, "I
feel confident that I can bring you in safe; I therefore must not,
and, by the help of Almighty God, I will not leave you!" What he
promised he performed; and after they were safely anchored, Nelson
came on board of Ball's ship, and embracing him with all the ardour
of acknowledgment, exclaimed, "A friend in need is a friend indeed!"
At this time and on this occasion commenced that firm and perfect
friendship between these two great men, which was interrupted only by
the death of the former. The pleasing task of dwelling on this
mutual attachment I defer to that part of the present sketch which
will relate to Sir Alexander Ball's opinions of men and things. It
will be sufficient for the present to say, that the two men whom Lord
Nelson especially honoured, were Sir Thomas Troubridge and Sir
Alexander Ball; and once, when they were both present, on some
allusion made to the loss of his arm, he replied, "Who shall dare
tell me that I want an arm, when I have three right arms--this
(putting forward his own) and Ball and Troubridge?"

In the plan of the battle of the Nile it was Lord Nelson's design,
that Captains Troubridge and Ball should have led up the attack. The
former was stranded; and the latter, by accident of the wind, could