Wilson, Robert Thomas: The British expedition to Egypt: carefully abridged in two parts (London, 1803)

but Would have suffered much more, if Colo-
nel Lockhart had not withdrawn his troops ;
as the French in the rear, finding; their co-
J . z . o
lumn broken, commenced a very sharp and
scattered fire. . :

no observation

This gallant effort, which the whole army
witnessed with pleasure, is generally admitted
as another striking instance of what the Bri-
tish are able toperform with the bayonet;
but Colonel Wilson makes

upon the accidental increase of the physical
force of a body of men, when descending a
hill to rush upon their ascending opponents,
as a principal part of the stability of the latter
is lost in that act.

The above affair is represented by General
Regnier as an attack upon 6000 English by
a corps of only 400 French !-—The remainder
of this day was spent in a partial cannonade,
as General Menon abandoned all tap lights of
regaining the Green-hill.
CD CD . ■
' In the next place, it was found necessary
to take a position to cover the siege of Ma-
rabou. While digging, the working parties
discovered excellent water, without turning
up more than a,spit of earth.
■ In the evening of the same day, the French
flotilla, before spoken of, perceiving the allied
gun-boats under way to attack them, they
left their vessels, after converting them, as
nearly as they could, into fire-ships. None
of them, however, one excepted, did any da-
mage, and that blew up just as some Turks
attempted to board, four or five of whom