edily restored, and there was no longer any
occasion to keep them under shelter.

The bombardment was followed by heavy rains, which caused very
great discomfort to the troops. The water, pouring in torrents down
the face of the hills, swept away the newly raised banks; and
brought down the tents, the soldiers having to turn out in the
wet--and as the troops, owing to their heavy duties, were only one
night out of three in bed, the discomfort and annoyance were very
great. Great quantities of the provisions, too, were damaged; as
these were all stacked in the open air, with no other covering than
that afforded by the sails of the colliers, which were cut off and
used for the purpose. Until the end of the month the downfall of
rain was incessant, and was accompanied with heavy storms of
thunder and lightning. The batteries required constant repair, and
the labours of the troops were very severe.

Since the departure of Admiral Darby's fleet, the enemy appeared to
have given up all hopes of compelling the place to surrender by
hunger. The convoy from Minorca had not been interfered with and,
on the 2nd of May, two native craft came in from Algiers with
sheep, wine, and brandy, unmolested by the enemy's cruisers.

The enemy's fire had never entirely ceased, since the commencement
of the bombardment, and now amounted to about fifteen hundred
rounds, every twenty-four hours; the gunboats generally coming out,
every day, and sending their missiles into the town and
batteries--the latter being specially the mark of the enemy's land
guns, which reached even the highest batteries on the Rock. All
through May and June the enemy's fire continued; dropping, towards
the end of the latter month, to about five hundred shot and shell a
day. The gunboats were specially annoying, directing their fire
against the south end of the Rock, and causing great alarm and
distress among the fugitives from the town encamped there.
Occasionally they directed their fire towards the houses that had
escaped the fire of the land batteries; and several shot and shell
fell near the O'Hallorans' but, fortunately, without hitting the
house.

The volunteers had now been released from duty, and Bob was free to
wander about as he pleased. As, since his exploit in fetching in
the fruit, he had become known to every officer in the garrison; he
was a privileged person, and was able to enter any of the
batteries, and to watch the effects of their fire agains