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432

LIFE OF COLONEL MACERONI.

upou the improbability of success. Often would thefrequent skirmishing attacks have been converted byJoachim into a real landing, had not Grenier exercised hisauthority by recalling the French troops engaged. Twojiarties were formed in the camp, the attackers of the king,the non-landers of Grenier. Thus passed the time invain and useless demonstrations for the space of threemonths, or rather one hundred days, when the king,tormented with impatience, and the, to him unaccountableconduct of General Grenier, determined upon showing thata landing was not so difficult; he also hoped, at last, todraw Grenier into the operation in part against his will.October, and the Equinox now began to agitate the sea, soMurat, at last out of all patience, sent one thousand sixhundred Neapolitans commanded by general Ambrosio, toland at Scaletta and attempt by the road of San Stefano, toget to the rear of Messina, while he engaged that the mainof the army should be landed between Messina and Torre-But he reckoned without his host, for general Grenier,peremptorily opposed the landing of the French . The en-gagement between the Neapolitans and the English waswell contested by both parties for some time, and theformer penetrated so far, as to make their case the worsefor it. For on break of day they discovered their isolatedcondition, which being taken due advantage of by theEnglish , they were attacked with such vigour and vastsuperiority of numbers, as to be glad to re-embark withthe loss of their general and half of their number prisoners,besides two hundred and ten killed and wounded. Shortlyafter this disagreeable occurrence, the Neapolitan campwas broken up and the king returned to Naples. On thisoccasion it is a remarkable coincidence, that he embarkedon board of a splendid galley at the little port of Pizzo,amidst the acclamations of the inhabitants, with whom