150

HISTORY OP MALTA.

wanting to make a forcible attack, and the batteries raised bjthe besiegers were intended infinitely more to alarm the gar-rison than to give a regular assault. The French sometimesanswered their fire, but frequently paid no attention to whatpassed. The bombs sometimes damaged and threw down houses,but without causing great mischief, very few being wounded,and only four or five killed. The mortars, indeed, placed onthe heights which separate the smaller from the larger Marsa,threw their bombs the whole length of the grand port, andgreatly impeded the departure of the Guillaume Tell. Thepreparations on this occasion went on with much activity, andthe whole w^as completed without any accident, though theenemy threw several bombs, and fired a great many cannonsat the side where the blinds had been taken away.

Vice-admiral Deeres, who commanded the Guillaume Tell,made choice of the moment when the moon was set to ventureout of the harbour. But neither the profound darkness northe silence preserved on board availed any thing against thevigilance of the advanced posts on the Coradin and Marsa;for she had no sooner cleared the port of the galleys, thansignals w ere made at the same instant from the above-men-tioned places, to acquaint the English vessels that she was underway. A constant fire was kept up from the batteries of the be-siegers, which continued till near midnight, when she sailedout of the grand port. The English presently discovered theGuillaume Tell, pursued her vigorously, and after a desperate