thought to be next door to nobodies; for their only work was to
fit their craft together like so many bits of land in order that the
soldiers might have the best imitation of a "proper field." The main
bodies of these floating armies drew up in line-abreast (that is, side
by side) charged each other end-on, and fought it out hand-to-hand on
the mass of jammed-together platforms. No such battle was ever fought
far from the land; for a good breeze would make the platforms wobble,
while no galley could survive a gale.

These ancient rowboat battles on calm coastal waters lasted till
Lepanto in 1571. Guns, muskets, and sailing craft were all used at
Lepanto. But the main fighting was done on galley platforms, and not
so very differently done from the way the Greeks and Persians fought at
Salamis twenty _centuries_ before. Then, after less than twenty
_years_, the Armada, though better than the Spaniards at Lepanto, was
sent across the open sea to fight a regular sea-going fleet, whose
leaders were admirals, whose chief fighting men were sailors, whose
movements were made under sail, and whose real weapon was the
shattering broadside gun. It was ancient Spanish floating army against
modern English Sea-Dog fleet.

Philip's silly plan was that the Armada should make for the Straits of
Dover, where it would see that Parma's Spanish army had a safe passage
from Flanders into England. Philip had lost his best admiral, Santa
Cruz, and had put the Armada in charge of Medina Sidonia, a seasick
landlubber, whom he ordered not to fight any more than could possibly
be helped until Parma had reached England. Parma, who was a good
soldier, saw at once what nonsense it was to put the army first and
navy second in the fighting, because, even if he could get into
England, his lines of communication with the bases in Flanders and
Spain could never be safe until Drake's fleet had been beaten. He
knew, as all soldiers and all sailors know, that unless you have a safe
road over which to bring your supplies from your base to your front
your fleets and armies must simply wither away for want of these
supplies--for want of men, arms, food, and all the other things a fleet
and army need. Therefore he wanted the fleet to fight first, so as to
clear, or try to clear, safe roads across the sea. After these roads,
or "lines of communication" between the bases and the front, had been
cleared he would try to conquer England with his Spanish a