Ali Pasha, the Moslem admiral, came alongside of Don John's ship and was on the point of boarding it when the galley of the Spanish captain Colonna rammed his vessel, while its crew poured a destroying fire across the Turkish galley's deck. Ali Pasha was slain. The Ottoman emblem fluttered down from the mast of the flagship, and the Christian ensign rose in its place. Heartened by this victory, the other Christian galleys triumphed over their foes. Such Turkish ships as were able to escape fled, pursued by the Christians. The Moslems lost over two hundred ships. Twenty thousand of their men perished. The Christian fleet lost over seven thousand men. Twelve thousand Christian slaves were set free from the Turkish galleys. The Pope who had urged that the Christian fleet be assembled cried in thanksgiving: "There was a man sent from God, whose name was John." CERVANTES--WARRIOR AND AUTHOR Following these great corsairs came cruel, mean-spirited buccaneers, whom I was glad to dismiss and replace in my imaginings with that noble captive of the Turkish pirates, Miguel Cervantes, who, after his release was to write the immortal book, "Don Quixote." In 1575 Cervantes set sail from Naples for the coast of Spain in the vessel _El Sol_. His brother, Rodrigo, went with him. They were returning to Spain, their native land, after serving as soldiers of fortune abroad. Cervantes was the son of an impoverished nobleman of Castile. He had commanded a company of soldiers on board the _Marquesa_ at the Battle of Lepanto. In this battle he lost his left arm. He bore with him a letter of testimonial from Don John, stating that he was as valiant as he was unlucky, and recommending him to Philip II of Spain. His ship was almost in sight of the desired haven. The coast of Barbary which lay on the shore of the Mediterranean opposite from Spain was feared by the Spaniards because it was infested with pirates, but it seemed that on this occasion they were to escape attack. Suddenly, however, three corsair galleys, commanded by Arnaut Memi, pushed out from the Algerine shore. The _El Sol's_ captain tried his utmost to escape, but was overtaken. A desperate engagement followed, in which Cervantes fought with valor, but the pirates were in overwhelming numbers and the master of the _El Sol_ was at last forced to strike his colors. Deli Memi, a renegade Greek, took Cervantes as his captive. Finding upon his person the letters of recommendation from Don John to the King of Spain, the pirate thought that a rich and powerful person had become his prisoner and so set a high ransom price upon him. To make Cervantes the more anxious to be delivered from captivity, Deli Memi loaded him with chains and treated him with continued cruelty.