and what surmounted all, a Despair of bringing such Animosities and
differing Opinions to any tolerable Agreement. Yet all these
Difficulties, instead of discouraging the Earl, set every Faculty of his
more afloat; and, at last, produc'd a lucky Thought, which was happily
attended with Events extraordinary, and Scenes of Success much beyond
his Expectation; such, as the General himself was heard to confess, it
had been next to Folly to have look'd for; as certainly, _in prima
facie_, it would hardly have born proposing, to take by Surprize a Place
much stronger than _Barcelona_ it self. True it is, that his only Hope
of succeeding consisted in this: That no Person could suppose such an
Enterprize could enter into the Imagination of Man; and without doubt
the General's chief Dependence lay upon what he found true in the
Sequel; that the Governor and Garrison of _Monjouick_, by reason of
their own Security, would be very negligent, and very little upon their
Guard.

However, to make the Experiment, he took an Opportunity, unknown to any
Person but an _Aid de Camp_ that attended him, and went out to view the
Fortifications: And there being no Horse in that strong Fortress; and
the _Miquelets_ being possess'd of all the Houses and Gardens in the
Plain, it was not difficult to give himself that Satisfaction, taking
his Way by the Foot of the Hill. The Observation he made of the Place it
self, the Negligence and Supineness of the Garrison, together with his
own uneasy Circumstances, soon brought the Earl to a Resolution of
putting his first Conceptions in Execution, satisfy'd as he was, from
the Situation of the Ground between _Monjouick_ and the Town, that if
the first was in our Possession, the Siege of the latter might be
undertaken with some Prospect of Success.

From what has been said, some may be apt to conclude that the Siege
afterward succeeding, when the Attack was made from the Side of
_Monjouick_, it had not been impossible to have prevail'd, if the Effort
had been made on the East Side of the Town, where our Forces were at
first encamp'd, and where only we could have made our Approaches, if
_Monjouick_ had not been in our Power. But a few Words will convince any
of common Experience of the utter Impossibility of Success upon the East
Part of the Town, although many almost miraculous Accidents made us
succeed when we brought our Batteries to bear upon that Part of
_Barcelona_ towards the West. The Ground to the