94 HEREDITY AND DEVELOPMENT OF NAVAL OFFICERS. 



His traits were, first, a love of the sea, which showed itself very early and 

 persisted; second, a quickness in meeting crises, as when he jumped into a boat 

 to rescue a sailor who had fallen overboard. Nelson said of him: "Providence 

 had imbued him with an intuitive right judgment." Hardy had no gift of elo- 

 quence and was was no politician. He was a reformer, especially in matters of 

 the navy, in which he showed great foresight. 



He showed great tact and diplomacy. It is said of him (by Hall in Marshall's 

 Naval Biography, page 180): 



" Hardy was trusted everywhere, and enjoyed in wonderful degree the con- 

 fidence and esteem of all parties. His advice, which was never obtruded, was never 

 suspected, and a thousand little disputes were at once settled amicably, and to 

 the advantage of all concerned, by a mere word of his, instead of being driven into 

 what are called national questions, to last for years, and lead to no useful end. 

 When this respect and confidence had once become fully established, everything 

 went on so smoothly under his vigilant auspices that it was only those that chanced 

 to be placed near the scene who could perceive the extent, or appreciate the impor- 

 tance, of the public good that he was quietly dispensing." 



He had courage: 



" He had always made his mark for good; raising, when the exigencies of the 

 situation required it, the prestige of the English flag by some bold stroke of firm 

 insistence." 



Humanity was another of his traits, page 122: 



"One of the most prominent characteristics of Hardy's generous and kindly 

 nature was a solicitude for the comfort and happiness of those placed under his 

 command. His anxiety about the young officers and sailors 'of his various ships 

 is often quite touching. Even at that period, when the navy served as a sort 

 of refuge for the very dregs of society, he believed in treating the British sailors 

 as rational human beings, instead of as animals amenable only to fear of punish- 

 ment. In the matter of discipline he was far in advance of his tunes. He was 

 the first who had the courage to trust to the honor of his men and to dispense with 

 the patrol of boats around the ships for the prevention of desertion. ... At 

 Greenwich Hospital Sir Thomas Hardy found a new sphere for his geniality and 

 human sympathy. He rapidly became as popular with the pensioners ... as 

 he formerly was with the middies and the 'captains' servants.' . . . That 

 which endeared him to every one was his amiable simplicity" (page 122). 



BIBLIOGRAPHY. 



BBOADLET, A. M., and R. G. BARTELOT. 1909. Nelson's Hardy, His Life, Letters and Friends. 

 London: J. Murray, xx + 310 pp. 



