Thus did Missolonghi contain the ashes of the noble Bozzaris, the brave Kiriakouli, and the generous and enthusiastic Normann. The brave and the virtuous are cut off, while the traitors and cowards remain for the perdition of their country.

I cannot describe the delight with which I embarked and crossed the gulf, after having suffered fatigue, poverty, hunger, ill-treatment, and disease. I landed at Clarenza, on the coast of the Peloponesus. I soon met with a suttler, who offered me his horse to ride as far as the city of Gastugui, six miles distant. We made our bargain, and before the day closed I arrived at Gastugni. I was conducted to a coffee-house, the master of which offered me a bench upon which to pass the night.

Before I continue my journey, I must bring my readers acquainted with Sussini, chief, or to speak more properly, despot, of the city of Gastugni; for he refuses to recognize any government, and rules at his own good pleasure. Under the Turkish government he was physician to many Turkish gentlemen resident in Gastugni. When the revolution broke out, the Turks were apprised of it in time to make their escape with their portable effects, which they knew too well the fate that otherwise awaited them, not to do. Sussini seized the moment when the town was thus deserted by the authorities, and declared himself chief of Gastugni. As he had acquired great influence under the Turkish government, in consequence of the powerful patronage he enjoyed, he was not subjected to any of those formalities which were used among other Greeks. He was universally popular among the citizens, and still more so among the peasantry. No sooner were the Turks gone than he prevailed on the latter to acknowledge him master of all the lands, cattle, and other property belonging to the Turks, in which quality he compelled them all to give him an exact account of the incomes of all the late possessors, and to maintain a punctual correspondence with him. The peasants scrupulously brought him all the produce of these estates. Gastugni contained a great number of Turkish nobles, who were extremely rich, so that it is easy to imagine what a fortune Sussini must have made in a very short time.

At length the government demanded an account of the manner in which he had applied the Turkish property, but he returned no answer whatever.

When the government was established, offers were made by some of the Ionian Islands, to pay a sum of five hundred thousand Turkish piastres yearly to the government, if it would cede to them the estates of the Turks. This proposal was communicated to Sussini, who replied: "These schemes are mad: they want to get all the property, and will pay nothing. I, who really wish to serve the government, will pay two hundred thousand Turkish piastres." The government was weak, and unwilling to employ force; and consequently neither brought Sussini to any reckoning for the first two years, during which he has not remitted a para to the public treasury, nor compelled him to give up the Turkish property in his hands. He therefore lost no time, but within those two years sold all the cattle, and sent the money to his wife in Zante. That he might not be detected in exporting money, he concealed it in skins of butter and cheese.

Such was Sussini's conduct; nor was he by any means alone in hese frauds upon his country, while it was reduced to beg alms of very nation of Europe.

I remained two days at Gastugni, waiting for an opportunity of going to Tripolitza. On the second morning I was taking coffee, in the coffee-house where I slept, when I saw two German officers of the Philhellene corps come in. They were in rags, and asking alms. I recognized them, but they were too much humbled by the sense of their degradation to address me. I called to them by name, and leading them out of the room, I said that an officer and a gentleman ought never to become so abject as to ask alms in a public coffeehouse. They replied that they were dying of hunger-that Sussini would neither see them nor give them an order for rations. As I knew how rich Sussini was, I took them by the arm, and said, "Come with me to Sussini's house." The guards refused to let them pass, but I told them I had business with their master, and that those gentlemen must accompany me. I went forward into the council-chamber, leading these two unfortunate men by the hand. I accosted M. Sussini in Italian: "Is this the way," said I, "in which you treat officers, who have come to Greece to defend your liberties? Are they to beg alms at the door of a coffee-house, while you roll in wealth?" Sussini said he knew nothing about the matter; but he was very sorry for their misfortunes; and concluded with ordering them rations. He ordered the same to me; but I replied, that, fortunately, my wants were not so pressing, and that I hoped I should never again be compelled to stoop to ask a piece of bread of a Greek. Sussini put his hand in his pocket, and gave them a crown. I took no leave of him, but turned my back and went out of the room. The Germans followed, thanking me for the trouble I had taken on their account.

At this time I happened to meet with a suttler who was setting out for Tripolitza, in company with several other persons. It is dangerous to travel alone, or in small companies, among mountains, which are inhabited by men who would not hesitate to take away life for a crown, though they would on no account eat meat or cheese on a Wednesday or Friday. We set off early in the morning of Holy Saturday, and arrived at Pirgo in the afternoon. We should have continued our journey, but some of the inhabitants of Pirgo insisted on detaining some of my companions, to pass Easter Sunday in their village. I was invited too; and though I would rather have been excused, I was obliged to stay. As the people who had invited us had not room to lodge us, we all went to a coffee-house to sleep.

Though I had passed two other Easters in Greece, as I was with my own countrymen, I had seen nothing of Greek customs; which struck me as so curious, that I cannot forbear recording them.

On Easter morning we rose early, and went to the house to which we were invited. The master of the house came out to meet us, and kissed us all on the right cheek, and then on the left, saying, "Christ is risen." We then entered the room in which breakfast was prepared, consisting of eggs, dried figs, and brandy, but no bread. After we had breakfasted, our host told us we must go with him to pay some visits to his friends and relations. At every house the ceremony I have described was repeated; after which we were compelled to eat at least

an egg, or a fig, or to drink a glass of brandy; our refusal would have been thought an ill omen. The whole morning was spent in this way. About noon a great fire was kindled on the outside of every house, whether rich or poor. A lamb was then spitted whole upon a stake, and kept turning until it was cooked. As soon as this was the case, the master of the house was summoned to dinner; all the household sat down upon the ground, with a little round table in the middle, upon which they placed the holy lamb; and, after dividing it, they ate it with their fingers. After dinner they went into the fields, where the young women danced around the trees, and the men retired to look at them from a distance; they are forbidden to approach this sacred dance. I grew tired of this distant view of the fair dancers, and went to my lodgings alone. Shortly afterwards my companions returned with our host. They renewed the attack upon the remainder of the morning's lamb and cheese, and drank great quantities of wine. Every Greek tries, on Easter Day, to eat as much as would feed at least ten persons. The next day they are, of course, all ill; the more so for having eaten nothing during Lent, but bread and olives. On the Monday they generally look back with regret to the days of fasting. About midnight I returned to my coffee-house, deafened with Greek songs, and stupified with the wine I had been compelled to drink.

On the following morning we continued our journey. As we were told we should get no.wine on the road, we provided ourselves with some. Though our road lay over mountains and vallies, we saw numerous beautiful plains; we met flocks of sheep, and could always get milk and cheese for a few paras. Lambs were very plentiful. When the suttlers stopped to bait their horses, we bought a lamb; the shepherds flayed and spitted it for us, and helped us to cook it. As soon as our horses were rested, we resumed our journey. At night we remained in the open air, which we much preferred to the filthy huts of the peasants. We reached Tripolitza in safety, after travelling four days.

The government was organized, and Pietro Bey appointed president. He was a worthy man, but perfectly unfit for a legislator. Mavrocordato was secretary of state, an office for which he was well qualified. He was an unwearied writer, and a man of excellent conduct.

At Tripolitza I made acquaintance with an officer of rank, who had been sent into Greece by General P――, to lay before the government a project for bringing out five thousand men, and a considerable loan. At first they gave him hopes that his proposal would be acceded to. The chiefs, however, instantly set themselves against the measure, which they knew would strengthen the hands of government, and diminish their own importance.

Colocotroni and Eliseo worked under hand, and caused it to be suggested, that any union or co-operation with Carbonari would provoke the hostilities of the European powers. Even Mavrocordato, though a man of sense and talents, listened to this suggestion, in the belief that the European governments would assist Greece. What madness, to think she had any thing to expect from the Allied Sovereigns!

Mavrocordato thanked the bearer of the proposals, and assured him of his great regret at being compelled to refuse an offer so advan

tageous to the cause in which he was embarked; but that their situation rendered it absolutely necessary: he added, that if circumstances should change, he would be the first to lay before the government the proposals of the general. The officer charged with the message, à man of great merit, and a true lover of freedom, returned to Malta, and afterwards to England. If they had accepted his offers, Greece would be free at this moment.

As I had nothing to detain me in Tripolitza, I determined to go to Napoli di Romania, to see my comrades, and from thence to proceed to Athens. What a change in my condition! After suffering every extremity of wretchedness for months, I was now travelling for pleasure, and gratifying my curiosity by visiting the most celebrated antiquities!

In Tripolitza I met Colonel Gubernatis, who was going to join his regiment at Napoli. We agreed to travel together, and to set out on the following day. Going along, I asked him to tell me where they went after they left Missolonghi, and how they succeeded in taking Napoli. "I might have made my fortune," exclaimed the colonel, with a sigh," and that of all my regiment, but I was delicate about it, and trusted to Colocotroni's honour, and he has duped us; and after a blockade of six months, we got nothing." I begged him to relate how the affair happened.

"After we quitted Missolonghi," said he, "we went to Salona, where we staid two months, and received regular rations, and sufficient pay. Colocotroni then ordered us to blockade Palamide, a fortress of Napoli. He made a thousand promises of continuing our rations and pay regularly. We left good quarters, with the hope of being of service to Greece. I was influenced also by the desire of securing the remnant of my regiment against poverty, by the pillage of Napoli. We reached our destined post, where we remained stationary for six months. We had almost daily skirmishes with the enemy, who were forced to make continual sorties in search of food. The Turks would not offer to capitulate: they had done so once, and the terms were completely agreed on, when the Greeks made a mockery of the whole thing. They were moreover encouraged to hold out by the intelligence that Curchid Visir, from whom they expected assistance, had arrived in the Morea. The Turks having abandoned the plain of Argos, the Greeks, together with my regiment, immediately renewed the siege. The garrison of the fort of Palamide were at length reduced to such extremity by hunger, that they evacuated the fort, and descended into the city. The same night an old Turkish man and woman came out of the fort into the camp of the regiment to beg for food. I was immediately called to them, and after giving them something to cat, I interrogated them. At first I did not believe what they reported, that the Turks had abandoned the fortress, as I knew how important a point it was, and that it commanded the whole city. The old people, however, swore so solemnly by the prophet that it was true, that I mustered my men and marched instantly up to the fort. I ordered them to scale the walls, but the old Turks assured me that it was quite unnecessary, for that the gate was open. The night was very dark and windy, and I hesitated for a few minutes whether to enter or not; but as we did not hear the slightest sound, my officers

advised me to march in. We advanced very cautiously, leaving guards at the gate to secure us from a surprize. We reached the battery without finding a single person: we took possession of it and of the posts. On advancing, we found a battery manned by twelve Turks, who, instead of offering any resistance, threw themselves on their knees, and implored us to give them bread. We told them to take courage, and gave them some food. Thus, without firing a shot, I found myself master of Palamide.

"At day-break, I ordered the guns to be fired, and the Greek flag to be hoisted. The Turks immediately saw what had happened, but could not make any movement, so that they were compelled to demand a parley. I had now every thing at my disposal, and could have made what terms I liked. The Turks sent a trumpet. I answered, that I had immediately sent to inform Colocotroni, who would do what he thought proper; but that I could decide nothing on my own authority. As I knew the importance of military discipline, I ordered my men to have no communication with the enemy, and neither to supply them with provisions, nor to carry on any barter for arms. In all this I acted from honourable motives, and I hoped such conduct would secure me respect. Some days elapsed before the arrival of Colocotroni. The pachà sent proposals for the purchase of bread; but I was inexorable. The soldiers remonstrated, complaining that I stood in the way of their good fortune. I replied: "What is expedient for the Greeks, would be disgraceful to Europeans; by this discipline we shall acquire reputation, and a just claim to respect." Colocotroni, Tombasi, and other chiefs, arrived, but made no allusion to the conduct I had observed. Without any regard to me, they took possession of Palamide; and whilst they were deliberating on the terms of its surrender, the Greek soldiers were trafficking with the Turks. My men reproached me with the loss of the fortune they might have acquired. The Turks, remembering the manner in which the Greeks had, in former instances, violated their promise, had no confidence in the terms they granted. Fortunately, at this juncture arrived the English frigate, commanded by Captain Hamilton, who offered his mediation. It was stipulated to guarantee to the Turks a third part of their property. The Greeks pledged themselves to adhere faithfully to this agreement. Even Colocotroni promised to observe it; and, with the other commanders, entered Napoli, taking possession of the city, and all the enemy's treasure. I was forbidden to enter, and ordered to defend the fort of Palamide. I then, too late, regretted that I had not observed a conduct more consistent with my interest. The Turks, thanks to Captain Hamilton, embarked on board the English frigate, and were conveyed to Scala Nova, in Asia Minor. But for his interposition they would have shared the fate of other garrisons. For the first time Colocotroni had been compelled to abstain from violating his promise; and it was not without feelings of bitter disappointment and exasperation, that he saw wrested from him the opportunity of indulging his ferocious revenge against the Turks. Of all the rich plunder taken at Napoli, my poor soldiers received only one hundred Turkish piastres. Such was the reward of their toils and daily fighting for six months; and such my recompense, for having acted the part of an honest man, and maintained the strictness of military discipline."