The two armies now approaching each other were quite as disproportioned as when they met in the former year upon the banks of the Boyne. That of Ginckle, exclusive of the garrisons left at Mullingar and Ballymore, must still have numbered over 30,000 men, while that of St. Ruth, after all his detachments had been called in, and the garrisons depleted to the limit of safety, was, according to the most reliable estimate, but 23,000,--horse and foot. In artillery, and all the appliances of war, the disproportion was still greater; while the arms and appointments of the English army were incomparably superior to those of its less numerous adversary. CHAPTER XVI. THE SIEGE OF ATHLONE.[61] Athlone--_Ford of the Moon_; so called, it is believed, from its connection with some ceremony of Druidic mythology--stands on both sides of the Shannon, in the counties of Westmeath and Roscommon; that part of it on the eastern or Leinster side, being designated Englishtown; and that on the western or Connaught side, Irishtown. Its position is as nearly central as the formation of the island will admit, and the country around it is rich in historic and traditional reminiscences. It was the scene of many a stirring event during the sway of the native kings and chieftains, nor has it lost in importance since the era of the English invasion; for ages it marked the greatest western limit of the "Pale," and it is still the strongest fortress and most extensive military depot in the kingdom. At the period under consideration, the two divisions of the town were of nearly equal extent, and a portion of each was encompassed by a wall of considerable strength, beyond which the suburbs extended for some distance into the country. The portion of the English town within the wall, was little more than half a mile in length, its greatest width being somewhat over a furlong, and the Irish town was similar in every respect, but extended a little farther towards the north and south on the river. In the middle of the eastern wall stood the Dublin Gate, facing the main street and market-place, and opposite to it a bridge of nine arches, connecting the two sections, being the only line of communication between them. The eastern end of this bridge abutted on the bank of the river, but at the western end there was a drawbridge of about thirty feet span, and beyond it, but a little northward, stood the castle, or chief citadel, built in the reign of King John; enlarged and strengthened in that of Elizabeth, who wished to make it the seat of her Lords-Justices; and the town was incorporated in the reign of James I. This castle commanded the whole extent of the bridge, in a slanting direction, and, with adequate artillery, could render it impregnable; but in the approaching siege, as in all others through this war, the native army was deficient in this arm of the service, and had for the defence of this castle, and two bastions that protected