INTRODUCTION.

1)1

the galleys were laid up for the winter, preparations were so quicklymade, that, thirty-six hours after the arrival of the dreadful intelli-gence, they set sail for Sicily, carrying with them medicine-chests,tents, beds, surgeons—in short, every thing necessary for fitting upan hospital.

The standard of St. John floating in the air, was the firstsignal of relief perceived by these miserable sufferers; and theknights of Malta eagerly flew to alleviate their distress. They dis-tributed among them every thing requisite to supply the exigenceof the moment; and thousands of people on the Quay of Messinadaily received provisions from their hands. How affecting was thescene, to behold these same knights, accompanied by the surgeons,searching among the ruins, and rescuing from destruction the un-happy beings who were buried beneath them, and whose woundsprevented their making any efforts for themselves! They nextproceeded to the miserable dwellings scattered over the fields, inwhich some of these wretched sufferers had sought an asylum,whilst others, still more wretched, were stretched on the ground,where I myself beheld them, bathed in their blood. To these like-wise the knights administered relief, and even applied the first dress-ing to their wounds; thus affording that assistance which the unfor-tunate victims had vainly implored from their fellow-citizens.