AI3EY.III.]

ST. JOHN OP JERUSALEM.

255

every virtue, as his exterior for rare beauty, andbore the Castillian and Portuguese knights, had tocombat off Barbary with pirates, who struck thevessel between wind and water with their weightycannon several times, and most dangerously; sothat though the Christians finally were victors, yetit was with extreme difficulty they got to land inthe little port of Coviza, and with all his efforts, hecould not make Messina before the 24th ofOctober.

The Tuscan and Lombard knights had been in-evitably detained by the sudden death of their cap-tain near Pisa, and on account of the civil warshard was it to communicate with the Receiver ofLombardy; so that if it were not for Cardinal Me-dici, they should never have reached Messina.

Also the Priors of Germany and Bohemia ex-onerated themselves completely of any dilatoriness.

At which with vast consolation did the grandmaster continue: “ Brethern revered, dearest as-sociates, I was too austere, instead of embracing,thanking, rewarding you. But consider, and youwill perceive that mine was not severity, but usefuldiligence and necessity; for not only in conscience,but likewise on the theatre of the world, by thelaw of knighthood, honour, reason of state, we areresponsible to all Christendom, and obliged to jus-