16

HISTORY OF MALTA.

the stone-work of the beautiful citadel; and only a singlewall was standing of the cathedral, which appeared to over-look the ruins of the different houses, not one of which re-mained entire. The neighbouring country, covered withcrowds of people, presented the idea of troops of wanderingTartars, who had made choice of that spot for their temporaryresidence. Such were the objects which struck the astonishedsight of the knights before they were allowed to land.

The general of the galleys sent to the Neapolitan com-mandant, and offered the same assistance already afforded toReggio; adding, that having heard there were numbers of sickand wounded, he would establish an hospital, which in a veryshort time would be fit to receive five hundred patients. TheNeapolitan returned a polite answer, saying, that the king hismaster having provided for the most pressing wants of the in-habitants, he must decline accepting his offers till he hadwritten to the viceroy of Sicily, who resided at Palermo *.

From this reply, the knights had every reason to believetheir Sicilian majesties had cast a paternal eye on their sub-jects, and relieved their distresses ; they therefore prepared toreturn, as soon as possible, to the inhabitants of Reggio, with

* See the interesting relation sent to the French minister by M. Lallemande, vice-consulof France at Messina, inserted at full in La Borde, vol. IV. part i. page g, where will be foundthe following passage: “ The relief sent by the sovereign was all given to the garrison,which absorbed it entirely. The Maltese galleys supplied the wants of the sick and poor for somedays, with the most praiseworthy generosity. But the most essential services offered by the com-manders were refused; for what reason it is impossible to guess.”