crease of this disorderly peasantry had grown into a serious mischief, and had been chiefly occasioned by the outrages practised upon them by the soldiery, which left them no means of living, but by reprisal. Their cottages were invariably plundered and burned on the march of the army wherever it moved. The consequence was, that the houseless peasantry assembled in great bodies in the mountains, and being all able to procure pikes, and many of them having fire-arms, they soon became a formidable force, and hanging on the rear and flanks of the British divisions cut off all stragglers, and frequently succeeded in defeating detached parties, and capturing stores, arms, and ammunition. But their hostilities were not confined to the military. They retaliated the injuries they suffered from the soldiers, upon the unfortunate Protestant inhabitants of the country and the villages, or wherever they happened to be exposed to their violence. In the course of this war the Protestants were undoubtedly the greatest sufferers. The Catholics had a powerful and friendly army in the country; and could live in perfect safety within their frontier, and the walls of their fortified towns. The Protestants had no place of safety; they were equally a prey to William's and to James's army, and met with as little mercy from the one as the other; neither did they find security in their walls and ram

parts. In those situations they were rather in the condition of persons shut up with wild animals in a cage, and in momentary apprehension of being devoured.

The lords lieutenants of counties, and justices of peace, in every place within the British frontier," exerted themselves to the uttermost to restrain the excesses of the troops. They issued recommendations addressed to the military, assuring them, that "if they would not take things into their own hands, the country would find them with meat, drink, and whatever else they could reasonably think on." But these efforts had little effect. The better disposed of the soldiery became weary of the disorders in which they lived, and great numbers deserted whenever they found an opportunity of escaping to England: these were mostly Englishmen. To put an end to this practice, which was thinning the army, the lords justices issued a proclamation, prohibiting "all masters of ships or other vessels from taking on board any officers or soldiers, unless those of known quality, without passes from the lords justices."

While the government at Dublin were occupied with those regulations which the state of the country rendered necessary, the Irish, according to their custom, were waging a winter's campaign of posts and skirmishes; and with

considerable success.

Sarsefield had the chief

direction of this warfare, at the head of a large body of light cavalry, and a larger force of armed peasants.

The peasants at Mallow had been bold enough to dispute with General Scravenmore the passage through that town; and he had to dislodge them with some difficulty from the bridge and castle, before he was able to continue his march to Cork.

The Earl of Marlborough was now expected every day at Cork to undertake the siege of that town; and Scravenmore was ordered to support him. Marlborough had become impatient of the inglorious inactivity to which William condemned him; and had contrived to manage a party in the council, and to force himself into command, contrary to the wishes of the king, or with only his reluctant assent. The Princess Anne was at the head of the English party at court; and as Marlborough had deserted James for William, so now, with the true instinct of a courtier, or finding that his defection from his old master was not rewarded as he expected, he deserted William for the princess.

The intrigue which led to his appointment to the Cork expedition was probably the mere working of that great military genius, which afterwards filled Europe with its fame, seeking

anxiously its proper place and natural element; probably, too, this might have been the cause of his defection from James, whose system was pacific, and particularly averse from a French war. The natural bent of genius and inclination is in many men checked for their whole lives by the stern resistance of principle; in Marlborough it either met no such resistance or overcame it.

Marlborough represented to the council, and to the leading members of parliament, the importance of securing Cork and Kinsale, which lay so conveniently for receiving supplies from France. Lewis, he stated, was preparing to open the campaign in Ireland with great vigour next spring; and it would be dangerous to suffer the whole south of Ireland, with all its cities and fine harbours, to remain in the hands of the enemy, till the French king should be ready to secure them by such defences as would make their capture extremely difficult, if at all practicable, while France had the command of the sea. The argument was a good one; though it is probable, that Marlborough's only motive was to push himself into military activity. It answered the purpose of the council also, though with them the main object, no doubt, was to mortify William, and to raise up a military rival of British birth against him

As far as the mortification of William and his Dutch officers was concerned the time was auspicious. Their failure before Limerick and Athlone would contrast strongly with the success of the British general, should he be successful. William understood perfectly what were the views and objects of Marlborough and the council; nevertheless he could not refuse to co-operate in the enterprise. But the jealousy and displeasure he felt upon the subject communicated itself to his foreign officers, and was visible in the progress of the siege.

Marlborough entered the harbour of Cork on the 21st of September, at the head of five thousand men. As his fleet passed through the narrow channel that forms the mouth of that fine harbour, he was exposed to the fire of the forts upon the high grounds commanding the channel, and received some damage. But he made good his passage with some ships of war, and sending his boats ashore, and landing some troops, he took the batteries in the rear, and made himself master of them. His whole fleet then entered the harbour. On the 23d and 24th, he landed his troops on the south bank of the river, and commenced his march by the " passage road" towards the city; the sailors drawing the cannon.

By this time the Duke of Wirtemberg had arrived on the north side of the town, at the