Horrocks

Mr Horrocks, the First Secretary to the Admiralty, is one of the gentlemen who speaks to Mr Norrell when he arrives to discuss how best to prosecute the war against the Corsican Tyrant late in 1807. At his request Mr Norrell obligingly demonstrates the art of seeing visions in a silver basin, shewing not only three ships (H.M.S. Catherine of Winchester, H.M.S. Laurel and H.M.S. Centaur) but also Captain Barry of the Centaur, who is Mr Horrock's cousin. Mr Norrell later animates and bestows speech upon the figurehead of a captured French vessel so that Mr Horrocks can discover useful information from it about French naval strategy[12].