Wessex . ed courage and resolution to thedefendants. So bold, indeed, did the small handful of these , that they sallied forth and replenished theirsomewhat scanty provisions by the capture of eightcows and a bull, which they brought into the castlewithout loss. This attack repulsed, although thebesiegers had meanwhile mounted a cannon on top ofthe church tower, and without fears of profanationhad broken up the organ pipes for shot cases and tornoff the lead from the roof of the church for bullets,the active siege was for the moment abandoned. Buton the arrival of reinforcements,
Wessex . ed courage and resolution to thedefendants. So bold, indeed, did the small handful of these , that they sallied forth and replenished theirsomewhat scanty provisions by the capture of eightcows and a bull, which they brought into the castlewithout loss. This attack repulsed, although thebesiegers had meanwhile mounted a cannon on top ofthe church tower, and without fears of profanationhad broken up the organ pipes for shot cases and tornoff the lead from the roof of the church for bullets,the active siege was for the moment abandoned. Buton the arrival of reinforcements, in the shape of some150 sailors, with several cart-loads of petards andgrenades and other warlike stores, and a number ofscaling-ladders, the attack was again renewed. Buton these failing to effect any impression upon thecastle, and the courage of the besiegers evaporating onaccount of the large number who had been killed and 196 CORFE ( CORVESGATE) CASTLE FROM WEST STREETA scene in The Hand of Ethelberta. ^ The Siege of Corfe wounded, not less than (,10—at that date a veryconsiderable sum—was promised to the first man whowould successfully scale the walls. This had the effectof heartening up the attacking party, who made severalassaults by means of the scaling-ladders and with fire-balls, with which they endeavoured to set fire to theplace. But all these attempts were met with such a spiritedreception on the part of the besieged that the attackwas ultimately abandoned, and the besiegers suddenlywithdrew on an alarm being raised that Royalistforces of considerable strength were gallant commander of the castle, Captain Lawrence,who had been so ably assisted in his arrangements forthe defence by Lady Bankes herself, was not, however,destined to escape from indirect personal loss, as SirWalter Earle, chagrined at being repulsed, on retiringto Poole sent a party to the house of Sir EdwardLawrence, his father, which they plundered and de-stroyed, leaving only the
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