GOURA.--A Romeliot captain; was a soldier of Odysseus, and employed
by him in various assassinations, and thus he rose to preferment and
supplanted his protector, and at length assassinated him. This man
possesses courage and extreme ferocity, but is remarkably ignorant.
In the hands of a similar master, he would have been a perfect Tristan
l'Hermite. To supplant Odysseus, he was obliged to range himself with
the Hydriot party.

CONSTANTINE BOTZARES.--A Suliot captain; nephew to the celebrated
Makrys, who, from all accounts, was a phenomenon among the captains.
This man bears a good character.

KARAÏSKAKES, RANGO, KALTZAS, ZAVELLA, &c. &c.--Romeliot captains; all
more or less opposed to order, according as they see it suits their
immediate interest.

That estimate of the Greek heroes--in the main wonderfully
accurate--was certainly not encouraging to Lord Cochrane. He
determined, however, to go on with the work he had entered upon, and
in doing his duty to the Greeks, to try to bring into healthy play the
real patriotism that was being perverted by such unworthy leaders.

Great benefit was conferred upon the Greeks by his entering into their
service from its very beginning, in spite of the obstacles which were
thrown in his way at starting, and which materially damaged all his
subsequent work on their behalf. No sooner was it known that he was
coming to aid them with his unsurpassed bravery and his unrivalled
genius than they took heart and held out against the Turkish and
Egyptian foes to whom they had just before been inclined to yield.