MURAT CAPTURES THE ISLAND CAPRI. 353

those rocks, up which the men must necessarily climb withropes and ladders from the boats. Some delay was causedby this agitation of the sea, which gave time to the garrisonfor preparation. Nevertheless, such was the ardour of theattack, that one hundred men, headed by Colonel Livron,climbed from their gunboats up the rocks and got footingon the top. Livron, the foremost of the assailants, carryinga flag, lost two fingers of his right hand; but, continuing tofight like a lion, he captured the nearest battery, with theloss of twenty-two of his little band. Four hundred moreof the attackers were speedily on shore, and, driving thedefenders from post to post, made four hundred prisonerson the heights of Anacapri. Sir Hudson Lowe timidly col-lected his troops in the Forts of San Michele, San Costanzo,and Forte Maggiore, on the other half of the Island , to gainwhich from Anacapri , it is necessary to descend a precipiceabove a thousand feet perpendicular. No more than fivehundred of Murat’s troops had been able to effect their land-ing ; the rest were sailing round the Island , in search ofanother point of attack. Sir Hudson Lowe, more expert atconspiracies and intrigue, than in the art of war, keptmarching his troops from place to place in great confusionand perplexity. The five hundred landed on Anacapri ,during the second night, obtained possession of the head ofthe stair, consisting of six hundred steps cut in the solidrock, the only communication as already stated betweenCapri and Anacapri . On the following morning the fortof Anacapri surrendered to General Lamarque , and threehundred prisoners more being added to the first four hun-dred, were immediately sent off to Naples, where I sawthem arrive on the 5 th of October, and became personallyacquainted with the officers who were all English. * From

* A very interesting little girl, daughter of one of the English officers,VOL. I, 2 A