holding in check. The service
was important, but of secondary interest, and calls for no particular
mention beyond that of its general efficiency as maintained by him.

In 1761, Rodney was again elected to Parliament, and, with a certain
political inconsequence, was immediately afterwards sent out of the
country, being appointed to the Leeward Islands Station, which embraced
the smaller Antilles, on the eastern side of the Caribbean Sea, with
headquarters at Barbados; Jamaica, to the westward, forming a distinct
command under an admiral of its own. He sailed for his new post October
21, 1761, taking with him instructions to begin operations against
Martinique upon the arrival of troops ordered from New York. These
reached Barbados December 24th, a month after himself, and on the 7th of
January, 1762, the combined forces were before Martinique, which after a
month of regular operations passed into the possession of the British on
the 16th of February. Its fall was followed shortly by that of the
other French Lesser Antilles,--Grenada, Santa Lucia, and St. Vincent.
Guadaloupe had been taken in 1759, and Dominica in June, 1761.

Up to this time the contest on the seas had been between Great Britain
and France only; but on March 5th a frigate reached Rodney with
instructions, then already nine weeks old, to begin hostilities against
Spain, whose clearly inimical purpose had induced the British Government
to anticipate her action, by declaring war. The same day another vessel
came in with like orders from the admiral at Gibraltar, while a third
from before Brest brought word that a French squadron of seven
ships-of-the-line, with frigates and two thousand troops, had escaped
from that port at the end of the year. With these circumstances before
him Rodney's conduct was like himself; prompt and officer-like. Lookout
ships were stationed along the length of the Caribbees, to windward, to
bring timely intelligence of the approach of the enemy's squadron; and
as its first destination was probably Martinique, the fall of which was
not yet known in Europe, he concentrated his fleet there, calling in
outlying detachments.

So far there was nothing in his course markedly different from that of
any capable officer, dealing with well ascertained conditions within the
limits of his own command. Occasion soon arose, however, to require more
exceptional action, and thus to illustrate at once the breadth of view,
and the readiness to a