252 THE HISTORY OF THE ORDER OF [book ill.

Great the expense, and holy and pious the charity.What a mischance! Had those succours come,they were quite enough to have made the Turksraise the siege of Rhodes! And the grand masterhad been advised of it previously, but that theletter never reached him . 1

“ Who were they, who defrauded their own orderof such immense honour, such eternal glory ? ”—thus the grand master with grave and severe voicein a chapter general immediately holden. “ If youhave anything to say in your excuse, say it beforeyour brethren, who will judge you. Each of yourleaders plead his own cause and exculpate himselffrom this delay publicly, in a regular wise judiciousspeech rigidly proving it exactly true! ” And theseconsciousjof meriting praise, not blame; these depu-ties from every Christian nation, desired at once tobe strictly examined and judged by those who hadbeen at the siege. And so indeed was done, andafter an acute process, they were all found not onlyinnocent but faithful and industrious servants.Most incontestibly was it proved as clear as noon-day, that every one had set out three full monthsbefore the siege; of the preparations for which menspoke over the whole world, and that they were alldriven back or impeded by different inevitable dis-1 Bosio: par. iii., lib. i. 9.