william: and mahy.

325

to distinguish himself that impelled him to attempt impossibi- chap.litips”* xx -

The armament which had returned to Portsmouth soonsailed again for the coast of France, but achieved only exploitsworse than inglorious. An attempt was made to blow up thepier at Dunkirk. Some towns inhabited by quiet tradesmenand fishermen were bombarded. In Dieppe scarcely a house■was left standing: a third part of Havre was laid in ashes; andshells were thrown into Calais which destroyed thirty privatedwellings. (The French and the Jacobites loudly exclaimedagainst the cowardice and barbarity of making Avar on an un-Avarlike population. The English government vindicated itselfby reminding the world of the sufferings of the thrice wastedPalatinate; and, as against Lewis and the flatterers of Lewis,the vindication was complete. But whether it were consistentwith humanity and with sound policy to visit the crimes whichan absolute Prince and a ferocious soldiery had committed inthe Palatinate on shopkeepers and labourers, on women andchildren', \\dio did not know that the Palatinate existed, mayperhaps be doubted.

Meanwhile Russell’s fleet was rendering good service to the

® ^ 0 p era _

common cause. Adverse winds had impeded his progress tions inthrough the Straits so long that he did not reach Carthagena diterra-till the middle of July. By that time the progress of the French neau 'arms had spread terror even to the Escurial. Noailleshad, onthe banks of the Tar, routed an army commanded by the Vice-roy of Catalonia; and, on the day on which this victory waswon, the Brest squadron had joined the Toulon squadron inthe Bay of Rosas. Palamos, attacked at once by land and sea,was taken by storm. Gerona capitulated after a faint show of

* Shrewsbury to William,July 1.; Shrewsbury to William

June 34

June '-i'-i.’ July

1694, William to Shrewsbury,