330) Biographical Account of Genéral Kleber. 
fallied from” the walls, and attacked fort. 
Camin with great fury. The Comman- 
der of the fort, who had so more than ten 
men under his orders, fired. on them with 
grape-fhot, and fpeedily repulfed them. 
‘The moft obftinate among them were de- 
termined tosenew the attack, when a body 
of French tharp-ihovters, anda reinforce- 
ment from the head-quariers, feconding 
the fre from the fort, obliged them to re- 
treat with the lots of three hundred men. 
The inhabitants of Boulac new contented 
themfelves with firing upon the French 
troops whenever they made their appear- 
ance with an intent to enter the town.— 
At the fame time the people of Cairo left 
the city in ciowds to witnels the refult of 
a general engagement. Some bodies of 
Mamelukes and. ‘Ofmanlis arriving in fue~ 
ceffion, affured them that the defeat of 
the French was inevitable. Soon after 
the Pacha Nafif appeared at one of the 
gates, accompanied by ail the chiefs of the 
ancient Government, except Mourad,— 
They detlared that the French had been 
cut in pieces, and that they came to take 
poficifion cf the capital in the name of 
Sultan Selim. They brought with them 
two thoufand Turkith cavalry, two thou- 
fand Mamelukes, and ten thoufand inha- 
bitants from the villages. Thefe troops 
entered Cairo en the agth of Veniote. 
he infurreétion of Cairo now became 
general: aflemblies were formed in,.the 
different fguares : more than five hundred 
ef the inhabitan!s were armed with mui 
kets, while others carried pikes and 
fiaves ; and while the white ftandard was 
hoifted, the preachers belonging to the 
mofgques uttered imprecations againit the 
French infidels. 
The principal object of the Pacha was 
to poflets himfelf of the General’s head- 
quarters ; but all his exertions to accom- 
pli fh it -werye of no avail. Two hundced 
French defended them for the {pace of 
two days egainft the united force of the 
famelukes, Ofmanlis, and of the infur- 
gents. . In the midft of this unequal con- 
teft, the column of General Lagrange was 
feen arriving trom. E]-Hanka. A body of 
four thoufand herfle, moft of them Mame- 
Jukes, haftened to meet it. This column, 
however, forming into four fquare batta- 
lions, prepared to receive their charge ; 
when after a fire from the muiketry, and a 
fhort cannonading, the afflailants were 
compelled to retreat. The French troops 
continued their march, and got into the 
head quarters about two o ‘clock in the 
afternoon. This poft now became im- 
pregnable, ‘The fire of the artillery, and, 
(Nov: by 
the ability of the officers, difconcerted the, 
enemy in all their fubfequeut attacks —) 
In the mean time, General Friant, who. 
had been detached from the main body of, 
the army, arrived with five battalions.— 
He fueceeded in driving the enemy back: 
on all pomtged ; bat the-fuccefs which he, 
gained only ferved to convince him of the 
difficulty he mutt encounter in an attempt 
to penetrate into the interior of the citys. 
Every ftreet. was ftrongly barricaded, 
while thé. apartments and terraces of the, 
different houfes were occupied by the Oi- 
manlis, who defended them(elves with the 
sreateft courage. The General, never-. 
thelefs, checked the progrefs of the, ene-- 
my, by fetting fire to a row of houfes on 
the right of the head-quarters, part of 
which underwent the fame fate; but it, 
is not altogether known. whether this hap- 
pened he the negligence of the F rench, 
or the exertions of the befiegers. 
: General Kleber, having received a de- 
tailed account of this infurreétion in Cai-, 
ro, faw that no time was to be loft in fup-. 
prefling i it ; he therefore left Salahie ow 
the 3d of Bianyake and on the 6th arrived. 
at Cairo.. But judging from the fcanti-._ 
nefs of his ftores that any partial enter- 
prize would be extremely hazardous, he 
re{clyed to.wait for the arrival of General. 
Belliard’s troops from Damietta, and the 
divifion.of Reynier, whom he had recalled, 
In the mean time the Mamelukes, the O/-. 
manlis, jand the infurgents, having oppo- 
fite objects in view, did net remain long in 
unifon with-each other. Ihe Pacha.Na-: 
fif, and fome of the Beys, thought proper 
to capitulate,-and many of their demands 
were complied with. But in fpite of the 
advantageous conditions that were offer; 
ed, the capitulation was. not effected. 
Thofe of the inhabitants who had excited 
and maintained the infurrection, dreading. 
the vengeance of the French, neglected 
nothing to keep the populace in motion, 
and diftributed large fums of money 
amongt the Janizaries and Mamelukes.—- 
At the expiration of the term agreed upon 
for the execution of the treaty, the Jani-. 
zaries refuied to deliver up the gates.— 
The General in Chief therefore ordered 
hofilities to be renewed, on all peints ; 
determined, neverthelefs, to employ any 
means, edie than a general attack, to 
gain pofieffion of Cairo, chufing to facrifice 
the glory of victory to another and dearer: 
confideration, that of the prefervation of 
his army, and of a city neceffary to his 
eftablifhment in the country. 
In the mean time, the arrival of Gene-, 
ral Reynier’s divifion, and that of General, 
Beliard 
