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Article MASONIC ANECDOTES. ← Page 2 of 4 →
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Masonic Anecdotes.
porarily hoisted his broad pendant ) and Theseus successively , until the sad affair at Teneriffe . Tom was not on shore on that occasion , but was present at the amputation of the arm , which he often very feelingly described . He came to England with his master in the Sea horse , and after a few months returned with him to the Mediterranean . Nelson ' s command , persevering chase , and consequent destruction of the French fleet at Aboukir , in ivhich he participated , formed the period of Tom ' s elevationbut he also with Lord Nelson
greatest ; was , in the Elephant , at Copenhagen . In action he was generally stationed at one of the upper-deck guns , and , in course of time , became as well used to fighting as it was necessary Nelson ' s follower should be . Although , from certain little expressions which occasionally dropped from him , itis evident that the proverb , " no man is a hero to his valet , " was , in a great measure , exemplified in this instance ; yet it was impossible that any one could
be about Nelson without being inspired with esteem and reverence , as was really the case with Tom . Speaking of the action of the 14 th of February , Tom delighted to tell of the deeds of his master ; nor would he , when closely pushed , deny that he fought at his side when boarding the San Nicolas . At the battle of the Nile , he stated that it was his master ' s intention to have dressed himself in full uniform , previously to his going into action ; but that , with the freedom , and by the influence possessed by an old servant , he induced his master to forego his
intention . As this was a night action , it ivould not have so much signified , but it was an impression on the old man ' s mind , that it was in consequence of the dress worn by Nelson , at Trafalgar , he was killed ; and he often said , that had he been his servant at that time , he ivould have prevented his master from putting on the coat he wore . It is pretty clearly known now , that it was a chance bullet , and not one especially aimed at Nelson , ivhich gave him his death-wound . The smoke , ivhich obscured at the distance of fifteen
every object or sixteen yards , it is generally supposed , precluded the possibility of any man ' s selecting Nelson in particular ; and , therefore , we may fairly conjecture that poor Tom ' s best intention , even had he succeeded in it , would have been frustrated by the hand of Providence , who ordained the most glorious death for his master , and the one which , if he had been allowed a choice , he would to a certainty have chosen . He fell in the arms of victory , the in its
greatest consequences , and most decisive in itself , upon record . It is supposed that Tom , like most other fallible mortals , became too useful to his master ; certain it is , that his master and he quarrelled , and , in consequence , ceased to sail together ; * but on his Lordship ' s obtaining the command of the Mediterranean fleet , the last he ever held , Tom Allen said that his Lordship wrote to him to go with him again . He complied with the requisition , and hurried to London , where he arrived four-and-twenty hours after his Lordship had left . As desired , he went to the Admiralty Office , and was informed that he might be in
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Masonic Anecdotes.
porarily hoisted his broad pendant ) and Theseus successively , until the sad affair at Teneriffe . Tom was not on shore on that occasion , but was present at the amputation of the arm , which he often very feelingly described . He came to England with his master in the Sea horse , and after a few months returned with him to the Mediterranean . Nelson ' s command , persevering chase , and consequent destruction of the French fleet at Aboukir , in ivhich he participated , formed the period of Tom ' s elevationbut he also with Lord Nelson
greatest ; was , in the Elephant , at Copenhagen . In action he was generally stationed at one of the upper-deck guns , and , in course of time , became as well used to fighting as it was necessary Nelson ' s follower should be . Although , from certain little expressions which occasionally dropped from him , itis evident that the proverb , " no man is a hero to his valet , " was , in a great measure , exemplified in this instance ; yet it was impossible that any one could
be about Nelson without being inspired with esteem and reverence , as was really the case with Tom . Speaking of the action of the 14 th of February , Tom delighted to tell of the deeds of his master ; nor would he , when closely pushed , deny that he fought at his side when boarding the San Nicolas . At the battle of the Nile , he stated that it was his master ' s intention to have dressed himself in full uniform , previously to his going into action ; but that , with the freedom , and by the influence possessed by an old servant , he induced his master to forego his
intention . As this was a night action , it ivould not have so much signified , but it was an impression on the old man ' s mind , that it was in consequence of the dress worn by Nelson , at Trafalgar , he was killed ; and he often said , that had he been his servant at that time , he ivould have prevented his master from putting on the coat he wore . It is pretty clearly known now , that it was a chance bullet , and not one especially aimed at Nelson , ivhich gave him his death-wound . The smoke , ivhich obscured at the distance of fifteen
every object or sixteen yards , it is generally supposed , precluded the possibility of any man ' s selecting Nelson in particular ; and , therefore , we may fairly conjecture that poor Tom ' s best intention , even had he succeeded in it , would have been frustrated by the hand of Providence , who ordained the most glorious death for his master , and the one which , if he had been allowed a choice , he would to a certainty have chosen . He fell in the arms of victory , the in its
greatest consequences , and most decisive in itself , upon record . It is supposed that Tom , like most other fallible mortals , became too useful to his master ; certain it is , that his master and he quarrelled , and , in consequence , ceased to sail together ; * but on his Lordship ' s obtaining the command of the Mediterranean fleet , the last he ever held , Tom Allen said that his Lordship wrote to him to go with him again . He complied with the requisition , and hurried to London , where he arrived four-and-twenty hours after his Lordship had left . As desired , he went to the Admiralty Office , and was informed that he might be in