Page:A History of the Knights of Malta, or the Order of St. John of Jerusalem.djvu/380

350 descriptions. When we look to the Turkish historians the matter does not become much clearer. Ahmed Hafiz speaks of 40,000 rowers for the galleys, with 25,000 infantry on board; but these figures only refer to the force which originally started from Constantinople, and take no account of those which the sultan afterwards brought up with him when he proceeded in person to Rhodes. It may therefore well be that even if a liberal discount be taken off the numbers given by the Christian historians, enough will remain to show that the disproportion between the forces of the besiegers and besieged was far greater than usual.

The naval armament by which the troops were transported, together with the matériel and stores, numbered, according to Hafiz, 700 sail, of which 500 were galleys. Curiously enough, these figures are far larger than those given by the Christian writers, who specify only 400 sail, of which 100 were galleys. An advanced detachment, consisting of thirty vessels, piloted the way to the scene of action, and pouring upon the smaller islands, the defenders of which had been withdrawn, carried sword and ravage in every direction. In the island of Lango, however, the fortress of which was still maintained, they met with a decided repulse. The commandant, a French knight named Prejan de Bidoux, at the head of his force, dashed at the disembarking marauders and drove them back in confusion to their ships. Awed by this act of determination they sheered off, and bore away in the direction of Rhodes.

Early on the morning of the 26th of June a signal from St. Stephen’s hill conveyed intelligence into the city that the Turkish fleet was in sight. It was within the octave of the feast of St. John, during which period it had always been the custom at Rhodes for a procession to pass through the principal streets of the town. L’Isle Adam, anxious as far as possible to calm and reassure the terror-stricken population, directed that this procession should pursue its usual course, although the hostile fleet was at that moment studding the horizon. The procession over, high mass was celebrated in St. John’s church. At its conclusion the Grand-Master approached the altar, and mounting its steps he elevated