922 
the inauspicious circumstance of a 
most heavy and constant rain; the 
light infantry brigade were however 
got ashore, and met witlr but little 
opposition in their advance forward. 
Some companies of the 78th were 
next debarked, and thrown forward 
to support the light infantry; we 
dislodged the enemy’s small posts 
as we went along, finally taking up 
a good position about two miles 
from the beach, until the debark- 
ation of the remaining part of the 
army was completed. In this affair, 
about 100 prisoners were taken 
from the enemy, and 30 more 
killed and wounded. The officer 
who commanded the enemy’s force 
in the bay, surrendered to captain 
M‘Gregor of the 78th, whom I 
detached with his company to scour 
some underwood in our front, 
The object of our expedition was 
now sufficiently developed, and 
although I could then by no means 
reconcile or feel confident on what 
the prospective offered, I contem- 
plated with admiration the boldness 
of the adventure, and thought that, 
on this account, we richly merited 
the favours of fortune, if every 
relative and more critical argument 
on the subject did not so immedi- 
ately apply. : 
The army took up a strong posi- 
tion with its right flanked by the 
sea, and its left extending to the 
height of St. Euphemia. ‘The front 
of the line being an extensive plain, 
and the rear being on the northward 
a chain of stupendous and impassable 
mountains. The British force con- 
sisted of the following corps: the 
light-infantry battalion, with a part 
of the Corsican corps, formed the 
advanced guard ; the 78th and 81st 
brigaded under genera] Acland ; the 
grenadier battalion and 27th regi- 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 1806. 
ment, under gen. Cole ; the 58th and 
De Watteville’s, under colonel Os- 
wald of the 35th; 15 pieces of 
light ordnance, under major La 
Moine, and a company ofartillery, 
constituted the sum total; and their — 
effective numbers about 4,500. The 
78th, at my urgent request, were at 
no time deprived of their flank com- 
panies. Our first information, re- 
ceived through the prisoners, stated 
the enemy's force, which had been 
much scattered, to be all retiring 
into Lower Calabria, to join their 
commander-in-chief, gen. Regnier ; 
and that their number did not exceed 
4,000. Had this information been 
confirmed by any insurrection of - 
_the inhabitants in our favour, we 
should, at that moment, have felt 
more confident of a proper result to 
our objects. But Regnier had play- 
ed off a very good ruse de guerrein 
circulating a most contemptuous 
opinion of the British land forces, 
paying, at the same time, the highest 
compliment to its navy, the more 
to reconcile his impudent assertion : 
and we find that he was at first 
successful in restraining the inclina- 
tions, and retarding that armed 
insurrection which the deputies of 
the people had pledged themselves 
to produce, immediately upon our 
appearance ; and upon which pledge, 
a vast quantity of arms and ammu- 
nition had been distributed amongst 
them. The 2nd of the month passed, 
apparently, without any event of 
consequence, unless I am to except 
the deliberation and supposed deter- 
mination of our commander-in-chief, 
under the disappointment of not 
finding the inhabitants so forward in 
our favour as he had reason to _ 
suppose. It was whispered we were 
to re-embark,&c. &c, Thanks to the 
Supreme Disposer of all events! the 
- honour 
