CIIAP. II.]

ST. JOHN 01? JERUSALEM.

55

left without water, with a renewal of our suffer-ings in Barbary. But thanks be to God, this didnot happen . 1 Also the order had to feed aboutseven thousand of the poor Maltese, excellentcreatures, who well deserved our care; for whilesome others deserted to the Turks, not one nativeMaltese did.

The indefatigable Turks next turned their ideastowards cutting off all communication betweenSt. Elmo and Borgo, and realized their project ina great degree. It was now the sixth of June,and their horrid, most merciless artillery bellowedand raved night and day just the same, it seemingtheir design to pound the fortress into ashes. Nowfew cannons remained to the Christians. In spiteof all his efforts to prevent them, the Moslem builtup a wall on the ravelin, as high as St. Elmo’sparapets, and enclosing it . 2 The only momentaryrepose of ours was to scrape together a little clayfrom the underground vaults within the fortress,and well wetting it, wrap themselves up in it as ina blanket, to lie down on or near the new parapets,which they made of wooden boxes, filled withearth, and covered with mattresses and bags ofwool instead of fascines; of which they had no

1 Bosio : par. iii., lib. xxv. 545.

2 Id. : id., id. 547.