It Is Hardly Necessary To Observe That This Is The
Expression Of D. Faria In The Seventeenth Century, When Portugal
Groaned Under The Yoke Of The Austrian Sovereigns Of Spain.
- E.]
In the mean time Rumi Khan and Juzar Khan gave a general assault,
particularly directing their efforts against the bastions of St John and
St Thomas, where they found a vigorous resistance and lost a prodigious
number of men. Yet numbers at length prevailed, and the enemy gained a
temporary possession of the bastion of St Thomas. The garrison adding
fury to despair, made so desperate an effort to recover the bastion,
that they made a wonderful slaughter of the numerous assailants who had
penetrated their works, throwing headlong from the wall such as had
escaped the sword, insomuch that the bastion and the ditch below were
heaped with dead bodies. Rumi Khan spent the succeeding night in prayers
and processions to propitiate Mahomet, and next morning renewed the
assault with equal fury. But after mounting the two bastions, he was at
length forced to retreat with the loss of near 2000 men, among whom was
Juzar Khan the Abyssinian general, who was succeeded in his command by
his uncle of the same name. In this action the Portuguese lost seven
men. Several other assaults were given with similar success. In one of
these the fire was so close and furious that several of the Portuguese
who were clad in cotton garments had their clothes set on fire, on which
they ran and dipt themselves in water, after which they returned to
their posts.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 631 of 809
Words from 172085 to 172349
of 221361
