Page:The History of the Island of Dominica.djvu/129

 with the aitance of the few oldlers, ome of whom were of the artillery, they greatly incommoded the enemy while landing at point Michael, by firing from all the batteries which they occupied.

Thee were, however, ia a very bad tate; the gun-carriages were all rotten, o that after two or three dicharges the wheels were broken to pieces. The cannon in Melville's battery epecially, where the mot execution was done, being in that ituation, were afterwards obliged to be laid on the parapets, there loaded, and fired off. Beides, in this fort they were obliged to load the cannon with looe powder, there being none of it made up into cartridges; and the cartridges that were ued there were fetched by the militia from fort Young, which is upwards of half a mile ditant from the other. Nevertheles, what with the firing from this fort, and from two field-pieces on a point of land jut under it, the French troops were