An unexpected event, which took place at this juncture, contributed even
more than this monitory lesson to restore subordination to the army. This
was the capture of a Genoese galleon with a valuable freight, chiefly
iron, bound to some Turkish port, as it was said, in the Levant, which
Gonsalvo, moved no doubt by his zeal for the Christian cause, ordered to
be seized by the Spanish cruisers; and the cargo to be disposed of for the
satisfaction of his troops. Giovio charitably excuses this act of
hostility against a friendly power with the remark, that "when the Great
Captain did anything contrary to law, he was wont to say, 'A general must
secure the victory at all hazards, right or wrong; and, when he has done
this, he can compensate those whom he has injured with tenfold benefits.'"
[40]

The unexpected length of the siege of Tarento determined Gonsalvo, at
length, to adopt bolder measures for quickening its termination. The city,
whose insulated position has been noticed, was bounded on the north by a
lake, or rather arm of the sea, forming an excellent interior harbor,
about eighteen miles in circumference. The inhabitants, trusting to the
natural defences of this quarter, had omitted to protect it by
fortifications, and the houses rose abruptly from the margin of the basin.
Into this reservoir, the Spanish commander resolved to transport such of
his vessels then riding in the outer bay, as from their size could be
conveyed across the narrow isthmus, which divided it from the inner.

After incredible toil, twenty of the smallest craft were moved on huge
cars and rollers across the intervening land, and safely launched on the
bosom of the lake. The whole operation was performed amid the exciting
accompaniments of discharges of ordnance, strains of martial music, and
loud acclamations of the soldiery. The inhabitants of Tarento saw with