YALE UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY

EVENTS OF A MILITARY LIFE.

SECOND EDITION REVISED AND ENLARGED.

¦ retrorsum

Vela dare atque iterare cursus
 relictos"-  — — IIuP.ai.

VOLUME I.

EVENTS OF A MILITARY LIFE:
BEING RECOLLECTIONS AFTER SERVICE IN THE
PENINSULAR WAR, INVASION OF FRANCE, THE
EAST INDIES, ST. HELENA, CANADA,
AND ELSEWHERE.
BY WALTER HENRY, ESQ.
SURGEON TO THE FORCES, FIRST CLASS.

LONDON :
WILLIAM PICKERING.
1843.

TO
SIR JAMES M'GRIGOR, BART.
M.D. L.L.D. F.R.S.L. AND ED.
PHYSICIAN EXTRAORDINARY TO THE Ql'EEN.
DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE ARMY MEDICAL DEPARTMENT,
ETC. ETC. ETC.
THESE PAGES ARE INSCRIBED AS A MARK OF HIGH I'EKSONAL
AND PROFESSIONAL RESPECT, BY
- %ty jautfjor.

PREFACE.
The first Edition of this little Work was pub
lished anonymously in Quebec ; but the Quar
terly Review, in the notice it took of the Book,
having with some freedom though much courtesy
drawn aside the veil of privacy, it would be only
affectation for the Author again to assume it.
The chief incidents are taken from a Journal
kept with fidelity during a long series of years.
The Book has been entirely re-written, with
some omissions and alterations, and much new
matter.

CONTENTS OF VOLUME I.

CHAPTER I.

Page

Boyhood. — River Eske, or Eask, in the County Donegal. —
O'Donnell's Castle. — Capture of my first Salmon.— Habits
of Salmon. — An Entomological Cat. — Simon Stylites . . 1
CHAPTER II.
Adolescence. — Entrance into the Army. — Journey to Ports
mouth. — Hot Soup. — Voyage to Lisbon  14
CHAPTER III.
Lisbon. — Embarrassment with my first Host. — Tragic Incident
at the House of the principal Medical Officer. — Embarkation
for Figueraz and Coimbra  21
CHAPTER IV.
Coimbra. — Inez de Castro. — Turning up a Servant. — First
Dinner on my Rations. — Rejoicings of the Frogs. — Fine
Fountain in the Garden of the Santa Cruz Convent ... 28

CHAPTER V.
Cintra. — Lisbon. — Nocturnal Rains. — Meeting of Hospital
Mates to remonstrate against a General Order of Lord Wel
lington.— Their Remonstrance thrown in their Faces by the
P.M. 0  37

CHAPTER VI.
Lisbon. — Habits of the Ladies. — Great Earthquake. — Aldea
Galega. — Quarrel with a Juiz da Fora. — Flirtation ... 43
CHAPTER VII.
March to Coimbra. — Thence to Elvas and Merida. — Spanish
Fugitives from Badajoz at Albuquerque. — Siege and Storm
of Badajoz. — Exciting March. — Horrors of the Storm. —
Scene at Campo-Mayor the Night of the Storm .... 53

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER VIII.

Adventure with a refractory Patient at Badajoz. — Sickness o
the Author.— Hospitality and Kindness of a Priest and nis
Sisters. — Inconveniences of using Leeches internally

CHAPTER IX.
Truxillo.— Love Matters.— Plot of Assassination discovered
and frustrated.— Medical Treatment of a Spanish Rival-
Serenade. — March to Elvas 
CHAPTER X.
The Adventures of a handsome Commissary. — A Souvenir of
Truxillo  ....
CHAPTER XI.
The Adventures of a handsome Commissary continued
CHAPTER XII.
Bridge of Alcantara. — Nervous Passage. — The Author meets
Lord Wellington travelling to Cadiz. — Ludicrous supposition.
— Escape from Robbers on the Road. — Attack and capture
of the whole Band by Don Julian Sanchez's Cavalry. — Coria.
— Galisteo. — Distancing an Ague-fit. — Easter Sunday at
Plasencia  
CHAPTER XIII.
Opening of the Vittoria Campaign. — Affair near Salamanca. —
Burgos Castle blown up. — Passage of the Ebro. — Anoint
ing a Horse  
CHAPTER XIV.
Battle of Vittoria. — The Author nearly bobs his Head against a
Round-shot. — Doubtful policy of Courtesy on such occa
sions. — Heroic Death of Colonel Cadogan. — Slaughter in a
Field in front of Subijana de Aliva. — Fine Shot. — Pursuit
of the Enemy through the Vale of Bastan. — Hospitality of a
Priest at Elizondo  .
CHAPTER XV.
Reorganization of the French Army by the Duke of Dalmatia.
— Surprise of Maya. — Retreat. — Altered Physiognomy of
the Elizondo Priest. — Action at Buenza. — Hard professional

CONTENTS.

Pagf

Duty at Barrioplano. — Scene of violent Altercation between
wounded Officers of the Chasseurs Britanniques and wounded
French Officers who had been taken Prisoners. — Calmed by
the Author. — Return to the Pyrenees  .164
CHAPTER XVI.
Invasion of France. — Storm of a Field Redoubt on the Nivelle
by three Officers. — Distress of Madame Dupr6 at Espelette.
— Destruction of a big Drum by a Cannon-ball. — Coward ice
of a Chef de Bataillon. — Passage of the Nive at Cambo. —
Rape of a roasting Goose  177
CHAPTER XVII.
Affairs before Bayonne. — Brilliant Conduct of Sir Rowland
Hill. — Incidents at Espelette. — Affair of Garris. — Affecting
Circumstances in the Death of Captain Clitherow. — Sum
mary Justice on a Marauder. — Battle of Orthes. — Modern
Employment of the Battleaxe in Action.— Affair of Aire . 186
CHAPTER XVIII.
Bad French Surgery after the Battle of Orthes. — March from
Aire. — Ardent Bourbonist Lady at Mirande. — Reception of
the News of the Fall of Napoleon at Gimont.— Throwing
down his Statue at Thoulouse. — Reception of Lord Wel
lington at the Theatre. — Corps of Sir Rowland Hill assembled
preparatory to resuming Operations. — Adhesion of Soult to
the Bourbons. — Peace  197
CHAPTER XIX.
March down the Vale of the Garonne. — Parting of the Portu
guese and English Troops. — Great Hospitality and Kindness
of the Inhabitants on this March. — Glut of Horseflesh in the
Bourdeaux Market on the Embarkation of the English Army.
— Worrying of a French Gentleman by a savage Horse be
longing to the Author. — His Treatment by a Spanish Capitraz 207
CHAPTER XX.
Leave of Absence. — Return to the Regiment and Embarkation
for Bengal. — Astounding News of the Landing of Napoleon
in France. — Bet as to his Success. — Voyage to India, with
its Varieties. — Capture of Sharks. — Passing the Surf at
Madras  213
CHAPTER XXI.
Madras. — Poonamalee. — Calcutta. — Mischievous Tricks on
Adjutants. — An Adjutant's Lunch. — Renard au naturel. —

225

233

Xll CONTENTS.
P.ige
Voyage up the Ganges to Dinapore. — Rencontre with a
Buffalo Bull  CHAPTER XXII.
Contrast between the Author's domestic Establishment in Spain
and Bengal.— His Emotion on seeing the Despatch ot we
Battle of Waterloo.— Shooting March from Dinapore to tne
Skirts of the Himalaya Mountains.— Tiger Hunt.— 1 lirtation
with a female Elephant.— Preparations for invading tne
Valley of Nepaul 
CHAPTER XXIII.
Invasion of the Valley of the Rapte by Colonel Nicol's Column.
—Treatment of a dangerous Patient.— Engagement on the
Heights of Muckawnpore.— Superb Order of the 66th Regi
ment. — Disappointment. — Peace  246
CHAPTER XXIV.
March to Quarters. — Poisoned Elephants. — Hot Winds. —
Professional Duties. — Difficulty of getting through a hot Day
in India. — The Author falleth in Love, and is ducked in a
Thunderstorm  258
CHAPTER XXV.
Voyage from Dinapore to Cawnpore. — Faakeer. — Adventure
in crossing a Brook with a Lady. — Suttee. — Reflections on
this horrible Custom  268
CHAPTER XXVI.
Cawnpore. — Extensive and fatal Sickness in the Regiment. —
Indian Jugglers' Tricks. — Imposition in catching Snakes. —
Mistakes as to their supposed fondness for Music. — 66th
Regiment receives the Route for St. Helena  279 n
CHAPTER XXVII.
Renewal of an old Acquaintance. — Visit to Allahabad. 
Voyage down the Ganges. — Characteristic Death of Lieut.
L — b — t, 66th. — Embarkation for St. Helena. — Amuse
ments on board Ship. — Visit to the Isle of France. 
Arrival at St. Helena  289 Mil

RECOLLECTIONS.

CHAPTER I.
BOYHOOD.  RIVER ESKE, OREASK, IN THE COUNTY DONEGAL.
O'DONNELL'S CASTLE.  CAPTURE OF MY FIRST SALMON.
SIMON STYLITES.  HABITS OF SALMON.  AN ENTOMOLO
GICAL CAT.
 Such
The Eske o'erhung with woods ; —
 Hail, native flood !
May still thy hospitable swains be blest
In rural innocence ; thy mountains still
Teem with the fleecy race, thy tuneful woods
For ever flourish, and thy vales look gay
With painted meadows and the golden grain."
Armstrong.
Nestled in a sheltering circle of the mountains of
Donegal, whose heathery summits are often distinctly
reflected from its calm bosom, lies a small lake, of
oval form, and dotted with some half a dozen green
and wooded islets. This remote and secluded loch
possesses scarcely any other fame, than that of pro
ducing the shy and delicate char; which, " when
George the Third was King," were often potted, and
sent to Windsor for the Royal table. Into its pretty
rural basin pours many a torrent from the moun
tainous margin ; and out of the western extremity
issues the clear, quiet, and sinuous river Eske, which
# B

2 BOYHOOD.
runs a short course of five miles to the sea.
valley of the Eske is well cultivated, and the river
flows, for the most part, round the bases of those
small globular hills, shaped like inverted basins— so
common in the north of Ireland ; with a fringe of
alder at the bottom, small clumps of ash and white!
thorn, and a sycamore or two up the sides, and a
farm house and garden crowning the top. Forty
years ago this vale was inhabited by a moral, hardy,
good looking, and industrious population, chiefly of
Scotch and English origin ; and I hope another gene
ration of the same stamp flourishes there still.
The river of which I write, is a stream of consider
able beauty, though small pretensions; and is the
least known of the two or three Eskes of the British
Islands. It has the merit of extreme clearness and
purity ; and its crystal waters meet the tide as pel
lucid as when they gushed from the parent lake, for
no defiling manufactory has been established on the
banks. Nature, too, has given the river's course so
slight an inclination, that it is untortured by rapids
or cataracts, and moves along at a calm and philoso
phic pace ; never losing its temper, or getting into a
burst of fluvial passion, ending in froth and folly.
No sound, save the murmur of a gentle current, is
heard along our quiet river ; and if, in times of yore, it
had been ornamented by an attendant suite of demi-
deities, like the Grecian streams, a naiad might have
invited a mountain hamadryade to breakfast, and
thereafter, both might have reclined on the flowery I
bank, in amicable colloquy, without a ripple on the
placid stream big enough to wet their garters. •
Yet, though the Eske has for a long time glided]
thus peaceably and " at its own sweet will " into the
Atlantic, the stream has not always run with such

RIVER ESKE.

quiet purity ; sounds of war and tumult have, whilom,
awakened the echoes of its banks ; and in the days of
Elizabeth, and again at the Great Rebellion, sad scenes
of violence and cruelty were enacted in the neighbour
hood. The turbulent Shane O'Nihal, who frightened
the Maids of Honour of that great Queen from their
propriety, by appearing at Court, attended by a band
of hairy and half naked Kernes — not unfrequently
tinged the waters of the Eske with human blood. Bar
barous and bloody scenes, too, were witnessed in and
about the massive walls of a fine old castle, which yet
stands on a rocky bank, near the mouth of the river.
Long did the O'Donnells, its owners, there contend
against the ascendancy of the English arms, after sub
duing all the neighbouring rival chieftains.
This castle is now surrounded by the small, but
pretty town of Donegal. The whole enceinte of the
external wall is in a state of good preservation ; and
being deemed a fine specimen of the architecture of the
early Tudor sera, it is kept from farther decay, as much
as may be, by the Earl of Arran, the proprietor of the
town. The north front of the castle rises boldly from
a scarped rock, the base of which is washed by the
river, and is richly mantled with ivy. Within a stone's
throw of this castle I first saw the light.
The umbrageous cover of the ivy harboured, in my
boyish days, a legion of jackdaws and sparrows; but
the only known denizens of the interior were two
large owls, silver white with age and wisdom. When
this worthy pair, at dusk in the evening, were about
to awake from their long siesta, they were wont to
get up such a strange snoring duet, as tried the nerves
of all the little boys passing along the river side, close
to the castle ; and I can remember my own unwil
lingness to traverse the narrow footpath behind the

4 KILLING MY FIRST SALMON.
ivied front. No young owls were ever seen, for the old
couple were unfortunate in their progeny. Whether
it was, that the female was a bad mother — as a philo
sophic lady may sometimes chance to be — and did not
attend to their food, bringing them old mice which
were too tough for infantile mastication, or, that the
neighbourhood of the river, and the thick walls of the
old castle, were two cold and damp for the owlets, I
know not. But the fact was considered certain, that
no chick attained mature owl-hood ; and the parent
birds were left with no other occupation than to snore
away their time in the apoplectic way already men
tioned. Most boys have the organ of destructiveness soon
developed. My piscatorial bumplet — or that parti
cular nodule of cranium charged with the death of
fishes — spouted early, in the course of my juvenile
ramblings along the river banks. The Eske abounded
in trout and salmon; and when there was a flood,
the stream used to form a pretty cascade over the sal
mon-weir, behind the castle ; up which these active
fish then jumped briskly; not caring a fig for the
proprietor of the fishery, nor the wooden trap he had
set to catch them.
You will probably, my dear reader, hear a good
deal of the " gentle craft " of angling in the course of
this book ; but in its most manly and fascinating
kind — salmon fishing. To begin with the beginning
then, I am now tempted to give you, thus early, an
account of my first boyish exploit in this way ; and
confess that I do it, not so much from any merit or
novelty in the adventure itself, as from the "amor
fandi," or story-telling propensities of a middle aged
gentleman ; and the pleasure which, after the long in
terval, the recollection of my success evokes. T

KILLING MY FIRST SALMON. 5
mise ample breathing time, after this short story,
before again resuming the subject.

KILLING THE FIRST SALMON.
One beautiful morning in June, whilst yet in early
boyhood, I strolled up the valley of the Eske, as far
as the lake ; purposing to return by the opposite
bank. The day was delightful, the air balmy, and
not too hot ; being tempered by a gentle south-west
wind, or that mild favonian breeze, so grateful to the
senses, along the western shores of Europe, and so
dear to anglers. " A day with not too bright a beam,
A warm, but not a scorching sun ;
A southern gale to curl the stream,
And, master, half our work is done."
The sky was hung with luxuriant festoons of white
fleecy clouds ; the shadows of which would darken the
water momentarily, and disguise the artificial appen
dages of the fly — then glide across the valley and
ascend the uplands. The bushes on the river banks
were musical with goldfinches and thrushes, the trees
in the first freshness of their vernal honours, and the
whole face of nature was covered with one radiant
smile. At this time I was only a trout fisher, and yet in
nocent of salmocide. But I felt that morning such
an exuberance of high spirits and "lusty life," as
could only be in the presages of approaching good
fortune. When I reached a favourite place, where
I had frequently caught some fine trout, I heard a
sudden splash in the water, and on looking a little
down the stream, there, without doubt, were the large

6 KILLING MY FIRST SALMON.
expanding circles on the surface, caused by the rise
of a salmon. I had only a small trout rod and slender
silk line, but they were good of their kind, and I de
termined to dare the contest. Approaching the place
then, with some such feeling as the harpooner experi
ences when poising his weapon for a plunge into a
whale, or the Spanish matador, when preparing to
transfix the neck of a bull, I threw my flies lightly
over the spot where the fish had risen, whilst my heart
palpitated violently, and my whole frame trembled
with emotion. Up he darted at the fly, but I struck
too soon and missed him ; and a second time I was
equally unsuccessful. After giving him a little leisure
to compose himself, I again placed the tempting object
within his reach ; and once more he dashed at it, but
carelessly and contemptuously, as if he purposed by a
stroke of his tail to wet the nimble wings that had
eluded him before. This last and lucky time I hooked
the fish by the edge of the tail ; a most untoward place,
— for thus hooked, a salmon has tenfold strength on
the line and chances of escape.
When I found him fast, I felt something akin to the
sensation of being in the clutch of a tiger. Whizz !
whizz ! whizz ! sounded the reel, and away darted
the fish. Fortunately the bank of the river was
the edge of an extensive meadow, without trees or
other obstructions ; so that when my line was run out
I could run too. I soon gained on the chase percep
tibly, and began to wind up ; when he would again
start away, pitching himself five or six feet out of the
water, and makiug his tail and fins whirr in the rarer
element like the rise of a covey of partridges. After an
arduous struggle of two hours, between his muscles
and mine, Mr. Salmo was at length fairly tired out and
landed on a shelving sandy bank. He was a fine fish

AN ENTOMOLOGICAL CAT. 7
of twelve pounds, fresh from the sea, with a marine
insect still adhering to his skin ; and as I stood over
him in triumph, whilst floundering on the greensward,
I felt very proud of my exploit. A school boy, with
Homer in his head, might be pardoned for comparing
the sensations then experienced to those of Achilles
bestriding the corpse of Hector.
All the world knows that the great Moliere was
accustomed to read his comedies to his old woman
before producing them on the stage, and to judge by
the effect on her, what he might expect from the
audience. So, to compare small things with great, I
never mounted a new fly without making it pass an
ordeal, but of a very different nature. My old woman
was a venerable cat.
This tabby was rather peculiar in her tastes respect
ing food. She loved milk and fish as well as ordinary
cats, and often regaled herself with a tender mouse
when she could ; but she differed from her race in
being fond of eating flies. It is true, she had no in
clination for the larger kinds, and would turn up her
nose at a blue-bottle — still she appeared to relish ex
tremely the lighter and more delicate genera; enjoy
ing a neuropterous ephemera, such as a green or grey
drake, as much as we should a snipe or a woodcock.
When I found the light favourable, and grimalkin
opening her eyes, after a doze on the hearth rug, I
used to suspend the fly to be examined opposite a
small crack in the window pane, through which the
slight current of air agitated it sufficiently, to give the
appearance of life. If it was destined to be a killing
fly, the old lady looked greedy, twirled her long mus
taches, struck the rug with her tail, made a feline
point, and a dash at the window; and sometimes

8 HABITS OF SALMON.
seized it in her mouth before I could snatch it away.
If the simulated insect was but a clumsy imitation of
life— which, I regret to say, many of my early per
formances were — she disdained any notice of it, and
resumed her nod. I will not aver that, under the
sanction of her approval, I proceeded to my sport
with all the confidence of a Roman going to battle, to
whom the augur had promised victory ; but I usually
felt pretty certain that the fish would confirm the
opinion of the cat.
The salmon is, par excellence, a gentlemanly fish :
in fact, we can scarcely conceive any thing ichthyous
of more perfect physical and moral character. He
is moulded in accordance with our notions of great
muscular strength, combined with lightness of out
line ; and every quality of the animal corresponds
with his appearance. His tunic of rich silver tissue
is in the chastest taste — " simplex munditiis :" his
movements in his own element are peculiarly easy
and graceful ; he is fastidious in his food, as a fish of
such high blood ought to be ; but he can on emergency
bear hunger well, and even total abstinence for weeks,
without injury. His spirit is ardent, adventurous,
and persevering, for he is a famous traveller ; and his
speed is great.
A good deal of attention having been directed of
late years to the habits of salmon in the fresh water,
in consequence of the curious experiments of Mr.
Shaw, in some Sutherlandshire rivers; and having
seen and known certain facts bearing on the subject,
in the course of my boyish explorations of my native
river, I may be permitted shortly to mention what I
saw going on under my own eyes. My position was
a favourable one ; for I have been concealed in a
thicket of the bank, on, I think, twenty-one occasions

HABITS OF SALMON. 9
in different seasons, whilst the proceedings of pairs
of breeding fish were distinctly visible, from four to
ten yards distant from my high place of concealment.
When the place for the gravelly bed, or nest of the
ova is chosen, both fish set to work to scoop out the
sand and gravel ; and on those occasions in which
the whole steps of the operation were witnessed from
the beginning, the female commenced the work. She
can be easily known by her matronly size ; whilst the
male is generally distinguishable by the curious
hooked spur projecting upwards from the lower jaw.
The female, then, in singular analogy with the hen
bird, commences digging into, and excavating the
gravel, with her belly and tail ; occasionally poking
a refractory pebble out of the way with her nose.
The male, all the time, keeps watch in the immediate
neighbourhood of his wife ; and although nature
has denied him the power of serenading her with a
song, after the fashion of the cock bird, he does not
the less tenderly guard the privacy of his spouse,
but swims round her in a protecting circle, to keep
off interlopers. When the lady-fish has worked long
enough, which may be about half an hour, she rests
for a little, and the attentive husband takes her place,
and goes on with the digging ; whilst the female
circles round, and watches over him in turn. Indeed,
there is no little moral interest excited by these pro
ceedings ; and I may add, that the reciprocal courtesy
and affection with which this labour of parental
providence is carried on by the silent pair, is worthy
of all imitation by more exalted husbands and wives.
With admirable instinct, these creatures never
select a part of the stream that is likely to dry up.
It is essential, I believe, that the bed for the ova should
be at the bottom of running water, of moderate depth ;
b2

10 HABITS OF SALMON.
not in too strong a current, which during floods wou
be likely to carry off and destroy the deposit ; nor in
a stagnant part of the river, where a mud sediment,
and the want of water sufficiently aerated, might choke
the embryo brood.
The bed for the ova is a small trench, four or five
feet long, and a foot and a half, or thereabouts, in
breadth and depth. Soon after the roe and milt are
deposited by the parent fish, they commence simul
taneously covering them up with the gravel they had
previously excavated with so much toil ; and this
appeared to be a comparatively easy operation. I
noticed that both fish remained in the vicinity of the
nest all the day, but were not visible next morning,
nor during the next day.
I had an uncle in my native town, a physician, and
a man of ability and learning, who had lost his only
son at St. Domingo, an officer in a Man of War.
Finding me somewhat docile and studious, he took
a fancy to me, which gradually ripened into affection ;
and I found myself, in process of time, established in
the vacuum which the bereavement of his promising
son had left. One beloved daughter remained, to
console and cheer her widowed parent. Her mother
was dead.
Catharine  was my playmate and confidant
from infancy ; she was a graceful and clever girl, and
of a very sweet and generous disposition. She was
frequently permitted to be my companion on my
fishing rambles, when the weather was fine ; and then
she would trip along the bank like a fairy, caroling
her light song, making bouquets, or chasing butterflies
with her little silk-haired lapdog Cato, who appeared
to enjoy the sport as much as his mistress.

SIMON STYLITES. 11
My cousin, who died in the West Indies, had caught
and tamed a large grey Sea-gull, which he called
Simon. Birds of this class are rarely made pets of,
being disliked for their ferocity and voracious dispo
sition, and generally considered stupid and indocile.
But our friend Simon was a bright exception; he
soon acquired the habits of civilized life, became
domesticated, and on the best terms with the poultry ;
and would answer to his name, and come to be fed,
even more quickly than the rest ; for a certain spice
of early greediness still stuck to him, despite his
acquired good breeding. If an unfortunate mouse
was caught and thrown into the yard, the gull, from
a quicker eye and former habits, would be sure to
distance his competitors in a race for the prize, and
gobble it up first. One of his wings was kept clipped,
but notwithstanding, he generally managed, after his
meals, to take up a position on one of the high pil
lars of the gate, whence he would reconnoitre the
poultry yard and garden ; being, I suppose, unwilling
to forego altogether his habit of aerial exploration.
From this circumstance my uncle, who was a bit of
a humourist, called him Simon Stylites ; who, as the
learned reader knows, was an ancient Egyptian her
mit, that lived thirty years on the top of an obelisk.
There was a large fish-pond in the garden, which
was fed by a small rivulet. After my cousin's death,
this, as well as other parts of the establishment, suf
fered from the long apathy of grief which affected the
head of the house, and became choked with grass and
weeds. One day, when my uncle, his daughter, and
myself, were walking in the garden, I directed his
attention to the neglected state of the pond, and
requested that it might be cleared out; promising, in
that case, to stock it with trout, which might be tamed

12 SIMON STYLITES.
and taught to come for crumbs from the hand o
Catharine. The old gentleman adopted the sugges
tion, and gave orders accordingly; whilst his air
daughter's eyes sparkled at the idea of feeding the
finny pets —
" Qui norunt dominam, manumque lambunt
Illam"
When the pond was ready, I put in it several dozens
of trout, that had been caught without injury, and
took measures for feeding them regularly. Some
days after my uncle and Catharine went to inspect
the condition of their new subjects, but were both
much surprised to find they had all disappeared. As
my uncle always acted on the generous principle of
supposing innocence, without proof of guilt, no sus
picion fell on Simon, who still marched about the yard
at the head of his turkeys with all gravity and pro
priety ; but I had my own private opinion on the
subject. In a week a second batch of trout was pro
cured, and a watch was set on the fish-pond. Alas
for honest appearances ! My poor uncle had been
gulled, like many other sensible people who trust in
a grave face ; for the next morning Simon Stylites was
caught in the very act of gormandizing a trout ; and
slunk away to herd among his feathered cronies, with
all the marks of conscious guilt.
The bird was a favourite, and a kind of legacy of
his deceased master, so punishing his offence as a
capital felony was out of the question. The matter
was debated with due consideration between Catha
rine and myself; and at last we devised a plan to
punish the offender, and cure him of the vices of glut
tony and thieving at the same time ; which, accord
ing to the most orthodox jurisconsults, would be

SIMON STYLITES. 13
accomplishing the two grand objects of criminal jus
tice. Next morning, before the fowl house where the sea
gull lived was open, I fastened two small trouts on
unbarbed hooks, and threw them into the pond near
the end of one of the garden walks, with lines attached
to them ; then hiding behind a lilac on the bank, with
the lines in my hand, I awaited the result. I had no
occasion to wait long ; for as soon as the poultry were
let out, Master Simon darted through the garden gate,
which had been purposely left open, strutted down
the walk to the edge of the fish pond, and proceeded
to reconnoitre with all due precision. Having soon
discovered the decoy fish which were kept in motion
near the surface, he pounced on them instantly, with
all the rapacity of his early days, not a bit modified
by his civilized education. When I saw that he
was fairly caught, I started up, pulled the lines, and
soon had my friend Simon floundering about in the
water, in a state of no small astonishment. Now
although advice in such cases is generally thrown
away, and many an asthmatic judge might save the
valuable breath he thus wastes on criminals, this was
by no means the case with my reprimand. On the
contrary, the summary punishment, and the accom
panying good advice, appeared to produce the most
salutary effect on the morals of the sea-gull ; the fish
flourished, and the reformed Simon Stylites troubled
them no more during the rest of his life.

14

CHAPTER II.
ADOLESCENCE.  ENTRANCE INTO THE ARMY. JOURNEY TO
PORTSMOUTH.  HOT SOUP.  VOYAGE TO LISBON.
" And now, farewell. Time unrevoked has run
His wonted course, yet what I wish'd is done ;
By contemplation's help, not sought in vain,
I seem to have lived my childhood o'er again."
Cowper.
" The Lord hath created medicines, and he that is wise will
not despise them." Ecclesiasticus.
I had now received a respectable country education,
was decently instructed in my mother tongue, and had
made a tolerable progress in the classics. I had fol
lowed the Grecian army to Troy ; could enumerate all
the general officers of corps and divisions, and detail
the strength and characteristics of their respective
quotas ; was familiarly acquainted with the names of
the two Inspectors General of the Argive Hospitals —
Drs. Podalirius and Machaon, though I could never
make out much of their practice, except by inference
from Homer's remark, which would lead to the belief
that it was very successful. When the city fell, I
could track Ulysses and iEneas in their devious wan
derings through the Mediterranean ; and what I was
no less proud of, follow the clergyman on a Sunday,
through the Gospel and Epistle in the original Greek.
I was thus as well prepared, as boys usually are, for
the University ; and it was determined in a family
conclave, that I should repair to Edinburgh, study
medicine at that prolific " OfEcina Medicorum," gra-

ADOLESCENCE. 15
duate, and in process of time, establish myself as my
uncle's successor.
But short-sighted man can only propose — a higher
and a wiser power disposes. The cherished object of
our hopes and expectations was frustrated in the most
cruel manner. An untimely death carried off my
cousin in the bloom of her youth ; and my poor uncle
soon followed her to the grave, the victim of a grief
that would admit of no alleviation, nor comfort. A
successor soon established himself; and the feet of
strangers were heard in the familiar chambers, and
amidst those flowery walks, that were hallowed by so
many recollections.
Time, and the natural elasticity of youth, produced
at length their usual soothing effects. Wounds, both
of mind and body, will heal more quickly in early,
than advanced life, although attended with greater
pain. The idea of home practice was given up. I
entered Trinity College, Dublin, prosecuted medical
and other study there; and finally repaired to Lon
don, where I became a pupil of Sir E  H  , I
cannot say with truth, that I derived either much in
struction from the lessons of a man so distinguished
in his day, or much improvement, in any sense, from
witnessing his private or public practice. I owe Sir
E. H. little, but I owe a cleverer man, at that time
young in fame, much. Even then, some two and
thirty years ago, green and inexperienced as I was, I
had a presentiment that Sir Benjamin Brodie would
attain the distinguished eminence which he has since
reached. After a year's residence in London, having obtained
from the chirurgical wisdom of the great conclave in
Lincoln's Inn Fields their authority to cut up scienti
fically the King's lieges, and my future disposal being

16 ENTRANCE INTO THE ARMY.
left to myself, I resolved to enter the medical depart
ment of the army. Joining the army in the Peninsu
lar, was, at this time, a great object of my ambition ;
Lord Wellington was waiting " in grim repose" be
hind the lines of Torres Vedras, in hopes of a false
move on the part of the " Child of Victory." It is true,
the Whig quidnuncs of that day had doomed the
English army to destruction, or embarkation, at the
least ; and gave me, or any body else, small hope of
joining it on Portuguese terra firma; indeed the best
promise they could afford, was of meeting its discom
fited relics in the Bay of Biscay. But notwithstand
ing their gloomy and craven croakings, I persisted
in my determination. My young fancy had been
mightily captivated by the achievements of Sir Ar
thur Wellesley, and his dashing chivalry on the field
of Assaye, seemed worthy of the great Macedonian
himself. There was little difficulty in those days for any
medical youth, duly qualified, to obtain a commission
in the army ; for Talavera, and other bloody fields — and
camps or cantonments on the unhealthy banks of slug
gish rivers, — had caused a great demand for doctors;
moreover, they were far less numerous then than
now. With my credentials from Surgeons' Hall in
my hand, I went to the Horse Guards, and from thence
was referred to a tribunal, sitting at No. 4, Berkeley
Street, Berkeley Square. The wise men on the me
dical bench there, having examined me, and reported
that I could feel a pulse and physic, as well as bleed,
I was in due course gazetted " Hospital Mate for
general service to His Majesty's forces."
In times of yore, and not very remote either, young
men of respectable families, good conduct, and fair
classical education, when entering the army or navy

JOURNEY TO PORTSMOUTH. 17
as medical officers, were not looked upon as gentle
men, but considered as so many hospitable drudges,
scarcely ranking with the ward masters or Serjeants.
They were despised by every raw ensign, far their in
ferior in every estimable quality. The treatment they
then received from government, including the above
appellation, partly accounted for their false position ;
for words are things, and often things of weight too.
The term " Hospital Mate" grated on my ear at first,
and sounded odious and cacophonous to thelastdegree ;
but one gets accustomed to disagreeable sounds. It
has sunk since beneath the growing intelligence of the
age, as the last relic of the times of barber-surgeons ;
having been first softened into Hospital Assistant,
and then changed into " Assistant Staff Surgeon."
Next day I went to an army tailor to order my uni
form. The awful black feather in my cocked hat
was calculated to raise unpleasant ideas ; and I con
sidered it scarcely fair for the Commander in Chief to
put me in mourning so early for any accidents amongst
my patients.
About a week after my appointment I was ordered
to Portsmouth, to embark for Lisbon. I travelled in
the same coach with a facetious brother hospital
mate, bound to Cadiz, named M — d — le. At the inn
where we stopped to dine, my companion electrified
the passengers by emptying his snuff-box into his
soup, mixing the compound well, and swallowing it
with much gusto and delectation. I stared, in com
mon with the rest, not being then initiated, but he let
me into the secret afterwards; though I could never
see much to admire in the queer taste of burning
one's mouth and throat, for the sake of exciting a
little momentary wonder. It was a common trick, it
seemed, to astonish strangers ; and was managed by

18 JOURNEY TO LISBON.
sleight of hand between two similar boxes, one con
taining snuff" and the other pepper.
After waiting several days at Portsmouth for a fair
wind, I sailed in the transport Mary, John Hogg
master, with four officers of the army, bound to Lisbon.
I record Mr. Hogg's name for two reasons— first, he
quarrelled with me one day after dinner, and chal
lenged me to box, for telling him, in the course of a
conversation on heraldry, when he wished to know
what his crest was, that it must be a boar's head ;
and, secondly, because the said Hogg and his name
formed a happy example of perfect identity of appel
lation, appearance, and character.
One beautiful morning, early in May 1811, we
proceeded from Spithead, through the Needles, with
a fleet of three hundred sail, escorted by the Phaeton
Frigate. The passage of such a large fleet through a
narrow channel, with the Isle of Wight on one side
and the smiling coast of Hampshire on the other —
then the opening sea to the west, and the gradual
development of canvass before a breeze as fair as it
could blow — formed altogether a very splendid pic
ture ; but to an inexperienced eye like mine it was
magic. We bore down channel gallantly all the day, and
in the evening had the pleasure of witnessing a pretty
little chase. An American merchant brig, that had
obtained permission to profit by the convoy, finding
that some of the fleet were heavy sailers, and that the
easterly breeze was freshening, and promised to con
tinue, took it into her head to cut our acquaintance.
No doubt she thought she might leave us when she
pleased, and that our frigate would hesitate at quit
ting her fleet in pursuit, particularly as it was near
night, and there were some Dunkirk luggers cruizing

JOURNEY TO LISBON. 19
in the neighbourhood. But it would never do to let
Jonathan move off, and tell all the world in what
latitude and longitude our large convoy was to be
found; so, as soon as the Pheeton saw the brig's
manoeuvre, she fired a gun, and a little after, a second,
but without effect. Upon this she shook out her
reefs, hoisted more sail, and stretched away beautifully
in pursuit. After half an hour's trial of speed, Jona
than lay to, finding he had no chance of getting off;
and I presume he was made to pay the full value of
the powder, besides getting a well deserved lecture
for his ungenerous behaviour, gratis.
When an unfortunate landsman first goes to sea,
and his evil star conducts him at once " in medias
res," namely, the Bay of Biscay, during, or after, a
gale from the westward, bad as he may be, there is this
consolation, that he is in about as ugly a sea as he
ever can meet with afterwards. We had a boisterous
passage across this stormy bay; but we were treated
with several amusing scenes in the cabin, which we
could enjoy after the first deadening depression of the
sea sickness was over.
One morning at breakfast, when I got up from my
chair to manufacture some egg-cream, and had a
large tea-kettle full of boiling water in one hand, and
a glass with the egg in another, the ship gave a fear
ful roll, sending me and my kettle to the other side
of the cabin. I there endeavoured to anchor on one
of the standing births; but both hands being en
gaged, I could only use my elbows, which, not being
provided with hooks, like the bat family, would not
hold ; consequently, back in a second I was sent by
the recoil of the vessel, and a third time launched,
nolens volens, on this perilous navigation. All this
time my four fellow passengers were clinging to the

20 HOT SOUP.
breakfast table, oscillating with the motion of the
ship, throwing up their feet, to keep out of the appre
hended scalding deluge, and screaming with hysteric
laughter, in which fear was a principal ingredient.
After two or three more turns across the cabin with
my dangerous companion, the vessel righted, and I
fortunately made good a landing on my chair, without
spilling a drop either of the water or the cream.
Our dinners, of course, were generally enlivened
by similar little interludes between the acts. Often
our soup-tureen, impelled by some extraordinary
ground swell, would start from its moorings, smash
half a dozen decanters and tumblers in its passage,
and then unrelentingly pour its contents into the lap
of Lieut. Hooper, the Vice President. Then Captain
Maunsell, of the 39th, would exclaim, " Any more
soup, Hooper?" " Ogh, no, bad luck to you, don't
you perceive I have just got my ne plus ultra."
On the 16th of May we made the rock of Lisbon,
were soon after boarded by a Portuguese pilot, and
after passing the imposing array of forts at its mouth,
we entered the Tagus with a fine breeze, proceeded
up the beautiful river, and anchored off Belem steps.

21

CHAPTER III.

LISBON.  EMBARRASSMENT WITH MY FIRST HOST.  TRAGIC
INCIDENT AT THE HOUSE OF THE PRINCIPAL MEDICAL
OFFICER.  EMBARKATION FOR FIGUERAZ AND COIMBRA.
" Quern nao visto Lisboa
Nao tem visto cousa boa."
Portuguese Proverb.
" What beauties does Lisboa first unfold."
" But whoso entereth within this town,
That, sheening far, celestial seems to be,
Disconsolate will wander up and down
'Mid many things unsightly to strange ee ;
For hut and palace shew like filthily,
The dingy denizens are rear'd in dirt;
Ne personage of high or mean degree
Doth care for cleanness of surtout or shirt,
Though shent with Egypt's plague — unkempt, unwash'd,
unhurt." Childe Harold.

This celebrated and scenic capital does certainly dis
play many beauties to a stranger, as his vessel drops
anchor in the broad stream at its feet. There, how
ever, I advise him to stay, satisfied with distant
admiration ; for though all is majestic and magnificent
without, all is indescribable filth and stench within.
For the first week after landing, the smell of the
thousand unsavoury odours every where, of every de
scription, and in various stages of concentration, by
day and by night, without abatement or cessation,
made me often wish it had been possible to leave my
nose behind me in England : for, without a doubt, the
sense of smell is a misfortune in Lisbon.

22 LISBON. EMBARRASSMENT WITH
At the period of my arrival, our worthy allies, the
Portuguese, had cooled not a little, from the first
fervour of their hospitality and civility to their Eng
lish friends, as was but natural ; for what good nature
could bear up so long with a succession of strangers,
forced into their domestic privacy, draining their
resources, harmonizing little with their customs, of a
different religion, and who sometimes requited kind
ness and politeness with rudeness or disdain? My
first business was to look out for a lodging : accord
ingly, having reported myself at the proper places, I
repaired to the town major's office for a billet; and
having procured one, proceeded to establish myself in
my quarters — a matter then represented in Lisbon as
analogous to taking possession of a post in an enemy's
country. Previous to leaving England I had obtained a
Portuguese Grammar and Dictionary, with the in
tention of studying hard on the voyage. But a
transport, during a gale in the Bay of Biscay, is
somewhat different from a bench in the groves of
Academus ; consequently my progress was not great.
On reaching my patrone's door, as they quaintly but
kindly call one's host in Portugal, I found, on muster
ing my acquirements, that the sum total was half a
dozen words and one sentence — the Portuguese for
bread, and wine, and water, and meat, and fish, and
grapes — and "how do you do?" Moreover my voca
bulary, though comniendably brief, had a chance of
being quite unintelligible when reduced to practice,
for it was unenriched by that nasal elegance so classic
in Lisbon.
Thus moderately accomplished, I arrived in front of
a good looking house in the Rua dos Plageres, in
Buenos Ayres, the best part of Lisbon. I was ad-

MY FIRST HOST. 23
mitted with politeness by a well dressed servant, and
shewn into an anti-chamber, where sat a gentlemanly-
looking Fidalgo, with the Maltese cross on his breast.
These were favourable circumstances ; and those first
indications of respectability were not belied by the
subsequent deportment of my worthy host. After
the introductory bow to each other, we were both not
a little puzzled to find that our literary acquirements
had not furnished a mutual channel of communication.
He knew about as much English as I did Portuguese,
and was unacquainted with French. It is true, the
excellent Fidalgo had picked up a few oaths from the
English soldiers ; but these were not well calculated
to make our ideas mutually intelligible, nor to keep
up a good understanding between us. In this dilemma
we again had recourse to the eloquence of courtesy
and the countenance-bows,
"  and smiles and sparkles of the speaking eye ;"

till, his Knightly cross having haply suggested to me
that he might understand Latin, I accosted him as
well as I could in that language. Fortunately I had
been taught to pronounce it in the broad, continental
manner, so he understood me at once ; and a " medius
terminus" being thus established between us, we
chatted away as classically as we might, on the events
of the day, the " bellum internecinum adversus Gal-
los" — the great " Dux Wellington "—the " exercitus
Britannicus" — the " Rex Georgius" — the " spes Lu-
sitanise," — and so forth, for half an hour, until we
became cordial cronies, and the good old gentleman
finished by inviting me to dinner.
We dined tete a tete, and I enjoyed my kind
patrone's multiform and manifold dishes with con
siderable gusto, notwithstanding rather too strong a

24 MY FIRST HOST.
savour of the " alho ;" but the calm that had followed
the perturbations in the Bay of Biscay was accom
panied with an accommodating appetite. Although
we spoke in the Roman language, we did not carry
our imitation of those stern ancients to the extent of
reclining gracefully —
 " ab ovo usque ad mala,"
nor would they, probably, if they had possessed Don
Manoel's well-stuffed and comfortable arm chairs. A
roast duck happened to be one of the dishes; the
" ala" and the " crus" were easily recollected, but
" alliatum intritum" was not, I fear, the term Apicius
would have used for the stuffing.
By the assistance of my good host, I acquired in
the course of a week as much Portuguese as relieved
the Latin occasionally, and sometimes superseded it
altogether. He was besides very useful to me in other
respects : acting as my guide in pointing out the lions
of the Lusitanian metropolis, and introducing me to
several of his friends, after our acquaintance had
ripened into intimacy. He was, I believe, a true
patriot, loved his country, was cordial to the English,
deprecated the convention of Cintra, and abominated
Junot and the French for many reasons ; not the least
of which was, that they had personally insulted him,
and stolen his plate and pictures. In fact, I felt
then, and afterwards, and still feel, under the greatest !»»
obligations to this warm-hearted gentleman, Don
Manoel Joze Mascarenhas.
When I first landed, I had called on Dr. B  ,
the principal medical officer, but he was not at home; s;::
next morning I was more fortunate, and found this
gentleman, an old schoolfellow of my father, who
received me graciously. After a short conversation,

TRAGICAL INCIDENT. 25
in the course of which he directed me to call the next
day for farther instructions, and when I had risen
preparatory to taking leave, we were both startled by
a violent and prolonged female shriek, from the upper
part of the house. Dr. B  turned pale, and,
exclaiming, " By G — , she has killed herself!" rushed
out of the room, and ran up stairs. Another loud
scream met his ear almost immediately, and percep
tibly accelerated his steps; whilst I was left, hat in
hand, deliberating whether it behoved me to disap
pear, or wait for the denouement of what promised to
turn out sufficiently tragic.
I was not left long in suspense, for in two minutes
a frightened maid-servant came running down stairs,
and requested me to hurry up without delay. On
entering a bedchamber, I found the Doctor support
ing and soothing a very handsome young lady, who
was pale and faint, and bleeding freely from a wound
in the left breast. As the chief " medico " was so
dreadfully agitated that he could be of no use, he
requested me to examine the wound, and take the
proper measures for dressing it, and staunching the
bleeding. I found that the fair suicide had stabbed
herself with a stiletto; fortunately the point had
struck against a rib, and glanced off, producing a
deep flesh wound, but not penetrating the chest. She
had in this attempt on her life — and it was a pity —
spoiled the beauty of a very white and well formed
bosom, and the blood was running down her side in
a considerable stream. I soon succeeded in stopping
its flow : the lady was then undressed, after the usual
restoratives, and put to bed. She was obstinately
silent in answer to the reiterated questions of the
doctor; but it appeared to me, that when I told her
the wound was not mortal, she did not receive the
vol. i. c

26 TRAGICAL INCIDENT.
announcement in the mood to be expected from one
who had so recently made such a desperate attempt
upon her own life, but quite the contrary.
The history of the case was this, and it may not be
without its moral. Dr. B  , although old enough
to know better, had had this extremely pretty Portu
guese danseuse living under his protection for a con
siderable period ; but, on making preparations to
embark for England, he wished to cut the connection.
The overture he made to this effect was very unpa-
lateable to his mistress, who desired to accompany
him, and either had some hopes of being one day
made his wife, or as a " pis aller" of picking up some
English guineas on the boards of the London theatres.
* It appeared that, on the morning of my visit, there
had been a recent and violent altercation between the
parties. He swore she should not embark with him,
and she said and swore she would. The ungallant
JEsculapius then flew into a passion, called her a fury
and a fiend, and as many bad names as he could put
into Portuguese; and the lady retaliated with inte
rest. Finally, the scene closed with the figurante on
her knees, asking pardon of the " Virgem purissima,"
and her patron saint " Francisca dos dolores," for
the solemn vow she made to destroy herself and the
babe within her bosom. The above catastrophe was
the result. But the babe was only a " rhetorical
artifice." I attended the fair lady for a week. She soon
recovered, and I am evil-minded enough to suspect,
that, previous to stabbing herself, she had carefully
studied the anatomy of the friendly rib that had
saved her life, and had skilfully directed her poinard's
point upon it. The selection of the beautiful breast
for such a cruel wound appeared also to have been

EMBARKATION FOR COIMBRA. 27
made purposely, and as a " coup de theatre," to melt
the hard heart of the Medico into former affection.
At any rate, I am happy to record that she failed in
her object, the Doctor pensioned and discarded her,
and the Senhorita Serafina returned to the Opera.
About this period there was great lack of medical
assistance, both with the main allied army in the
north of Portugal and in Marshal Beresford's corps
in Spanish Estramadura. The battles of Fuentes
d'Onore, the loss in the unsuccessful attacks on St.
Cristoval, and the bloody combat on the ridge of
Albuera, had filled the hospitals at Elvas and Coimbra
with wounded, and there were many sick. There
chanced at this time to be a large detachment of the
11th Foot at Lisbon, which had lately arrived, and
were preparing to join the head quarters in the north.
They were without a regimental medical officer, and
it was arranged that I should embark with them for
Figueras, a small town at the mouth of the Mondego,
and accompany them up the river to Coimbra ; where
I was directed to report myself, and await farther
orders.

28

CHAPTER IV.

COIMBRA.  INEZ DE CASTRO.  TURNING UP A SERVANT. —
FIRST DINNER ON MY RATIONS.  REJOICINGS OF THE
FROGS.  FINE FOUNTAIN IN THE GARDEN OF THE SANTA
CRUZ CONVENT.

" Doces e claras agoas do Mondego." Camoens.
" De noite em doces sonhos que mentiam —
De dia em pensamentos que voavam ;
E quanto em fim cuidava, e quanta via,
Eram tudo memorias de alegria." Idem.

The weather was fine when we embarked at Belem,
in the beginning of June, 1811. After a pleasant
voyage of two days, we reached the outside of the
bar at Figueras, and anchored until the tide turned.
When we again anchored off the town, the tide flowed
so strong, that our old transport caught fire, from
the velocity with which the cable ran out of a hawse
hole which had lost its iron sheathing. We had
many hands on board, and it was soon put out. Here
the detachment was put in flat-bottomed boats, and
we proceeded up the rich and vine-banked Mondego
to Coimbra.
Coimbra, pronounced Quimbra, the most classical
city, and the seat of the only University in the King
dom, is built on a fine hill, rising boldly from the
broad and clear river. There is a long bridge, and
on the opposite height are beautifully situated the
Convent of St. Francisco, half wav up, and of Santa

COIMBRA. 29
Clara at the top. In fact, every hill in the environs
of this ancient and celebrated city has its convent
picturesquely crowning the summit; embosomed in
groves of pine, oak, chesnut, cypress, myrtle, olive,
and orange trees. Indeed the friars of the olden time
shewed excellent judgment in the selection of good
sites for their domiciles; and though they affected
such utter seclusion from the world, and indifference
to its vanities, they generally managed to perch them
selves in a position affording a bird's eye view of
every thing going on in it.
Having reported my arrival to Dr. T  1, then at
the head of the Medical Staff at Coimbra, I was
directed to cross to the other side of the Mondego,
and take charge of a ward of about a hundred poor
wounded men, lately brought from Celorico, and now
in the Franciscan Convent, which had been turned
into a large hospital. I was also, for greater con
venience, ordered to get a billet in a hamlet near the
Convent. The second morning after I had established myself,
in passing under some fine chesnut trees, covering
the avenue from the external gate of the Convent, I
saw a very good looking Portuguese lad lying on his
back in the shade, taking a comfortable sesta. It
immediately occurred to me that I wanted a servant,
and that here was the very criado I required, dosing
away his time for want of a master; accordingly, by
way of introduction, I touched him gently in the side
with the toe of my boot. He started up, collected a
frown on his handsome brow, at the freedom I had
taken ; but strangled it instantly, and put a smile in
its place, when he saw my red coat and cocked hat.
We then entered into friendly conversation, and I
asked after his name and acquirements. Antonio

30 TURNING UP A SERVANT.
could neither make spatterdashes, nor play upon the
fiddle, like Sterne's La Fleur ; but he said he could
cook, and brush my clothes, and polish my boots, and
groom a horse. He had no certificates, for he had
never been in service ; but he had an honest as well
as a comely face ; and trusting to an ingenuous man
ner, and this natural recommendation, I hired him at
once, appointed him Master of the Horse, Major
Domo, and Factotum, and directed him to look after
my rations.
My morning hospital duties generally occupied
about three hours, and were performed with all the
natural enthusiasm of youth ; luxuriating for the first
time amidst those chosen professional scenes, in which
he had long desired to participate. The arrangements
in the hospitals appeared to me at the time excellent —
the long corridors of the convents were occupied by a
double row of beds, containing the sick and wounded,
classed into wards according to the nature of the
cases; with a medical officer, ward master, and
sufficient number of orderlies to each — a common
kitchen for the whole — a purveyor to provide supplies,
and an apothecary to prepare medicines. Often have
I stopped on entering, to admire the picturesque per
spective of the long corridors, in which the lazy and
obese monks had so long listlessly sauntered about;
but which were now appropriated to the solace of pain,
the preservation of life, and the best duties of humanity
and benevolence.
One day after the morning visit to the Convent, I
strolled up the river side, to the " Quinta das Lagri-
mas" or Garden of Tears, and thence to the " Fonte
dos Amores" the Fountain of Loves ; so called, I
think, with much poetic beauty, from having been the
residence and death-scene of the celebrated Ines de

INES DE CASTRO. 31
Castro. The fountain, running over variegated marble,
full of red spots — still believed by the neighbouring
peasantry to be the marks left by her blood — is sur
rounded by some lofty cypresses ; a tree peculiarly
umbrageous and beautiful in Portugal.
The story of Ines de Castro is one of those his
torical facts, that are stranger, more affecting, and
more appalling than fiction. The disinterment of the
murdered lady — the attiring of the corpse in royal
robes — the coronation — the homage of the nobility,
and the pomp of the final sepulture of Alcobaca, are
incidents strangely sublime — the proofs and the
triumphs of a love stronger than death !
The theme appears to have overpowered the Muse
of Camoens, though his verses on the subject possess
great beauty. Every where in Portugal I found the
Lusiad, and the most intelligent persons have long pas
sages by heart ; indeed Camoens is cherished as the
Shakespeare of Portugal.
It is not very usual to jump the one step from the
sublime to the ridiculous, but it is common enough to
descend from this elevation to the occupations and
amusements of ordinary life. Thus, after the contem
plation of the sad story of Ines, and fresh from the
scene of her cruel death, my eye was attracted in
returning along the bank of the Mondego, by some
lively fish glancing and playing in the water. Instantly
my sentimentalities took wing — the old angling pre
dilections resumed their ascendancy. I hastened
home, put in order my cane-rod — repaired to the
river's side — began to fish — and in an hour succeeded
in persuading a dozen good sized dace to give me the
pleasure of their company at dinner.
I found that my valet had not overrated his culinary
qualifications. He had made some tolerable soup

32 FIRST DINNER ON MY RATIONS.
out of the tough ration beef, and fried the fish nicely
with the azeite fresh drawn from the olives of the
neighbouring hill. A bullock's heart also was very
correctly roasted ; and when the cloth was removed,
I sipped my ration wine philosophically, over a dessert
of delicious grapes and oranges ; with a full view of
the city, the college, the gushing river, and the Serra
de Busaco from my window. Thinks I to myself,
this is mighty pleasant campaigning.
Next day I visited the University, where I was
much disappointed; as from the dispersion of the
professors and students by the recent French invasion,
every thing appeared to be going to decay. The
apparatus of natural philosophy, chemical apparatus,
library, &c. seemed in a deplorable condition; but
some of the professors had returned, and there were
about a hundred students present. These were said
to support themselves by manufacturing tooth-picks :
hence in the Coimbra squabbles between " Town" and
" Gown" they were nicknamed "Palitos."
The observatory appeared to be in better order than
any other department, and there were several good
French instruments, which perhaps the invaders had
spared from patriotism. The view from the western
side is very grand and extensive. It embraces a long
reach of the Mondego, above and below the town, with
the bridge in the immediate fore-ground — the Quinta
das Lagrimas and rich bank adjoining, the Santa
Clara and St. Francisco on the glorious hill opposite
the city, besides fifteen or sixteen other white con
vents; with Busaco in the back-ground to the west,
and the Serra da Estrella, the " Mons Herminius" of
antiquity, to the north and east.
A part only of the Santa Clara Convent had been
given up for the use of the sick and wounded, but

SANTA CRUZ CONVENT. 33
the remainder was still occupied by the Nuns. I
frequently attended the chapel to hear the singing
of these sisters, which was admirable ; but so many
heretics being in the neighbourhood, this was all we
could see or hear of them, for they appeared to be
preserved with more than ordinary care, from all pos
sibility of the most harmless intercourse with the
English officers. Even the usual grille and turning
box were blocked up. However, to console us for this
privation, report said they were mostly old ladies, and
that the few young ones were not handsome ; but they
had one young beauty of undisputed charms amongst
them, who, crossed in her passion for a Portuguese
officer, that had turned traitor to his country, had
thrown herself into the Convent. Such is the witchery
of a fair face, even an ideal one, over all the senses,
that in listening to the choir in the chapel, I always
associated Donna Theodora with one voice pre-emi
nently sweet ; although, for aught I knew to the con
trary, the said beautiful lady might have had a note
like a pea-hen.
At this time there was a fine fountain in the garden
of the Santa Cruz convent, belonging to the Augustine
Friars, within the city, which all our officers greatly
admired ; and to such of them as were convalescents,
it was a very cool and pleasant retreat from the great
heat of the town. The fountain was a circular sheet
of water, as clear as crystal, some thirty yards in dia
meter, surrounded by a verdant wall of clipped cypress,
forty or fifty feet high ; and having a little circular
island in the middle, on which grew an orange tree
worthy of the garden of the Hesperides. There was a
comfortable circular bench at the bottom of the verdant
enclosure, for the refreshment of the Padres ; and to
do the whole Santa Cruz establishment but justice,
b2

34 COIMBRA.
they threw open their gates, and placed the garden,
fruit, and fountain most handsomely at the disposal of
the English . They permitted us to bathe in the foun
tain, into which I believe none of themselves ever ven
tured, for the good reason that they could not swim;
and our common practice was to swim round the tiny
island until we were tired, then land, and return loaded
with as many oranges as we could bring away in our
teeth. The country around Coimbra, on both sides of the
Mondego, is very rich and beautiful ; and is probably
unsurpassed by any district in the Peninsular — cer
tainly by none that I have seen. The slopes from the
river rise into hills softly and gracefully, with the
acclivities richly covered with Indian corn, vineyards,
and olive grounds, mingled with groves and clumps
of tall forest trees, and the crowning Quinta, or Con
vent, embowered in its deep mass of foliage at the top.
But the valley of the Mondego, so lovely to the
eye, and so rich in soil and natural products, has yet
its drawbacks; and they are neither few nor unim
portant. During the winter the most frightful floods,
bearing with them stones and rocks from the moun
tains, ravage the banks, and lay all the low country
under water. In fact there is an extensive inunda
tion every winter, followed by malaria and sickness,
when the wet surface dries under a hot sun in spring.
Coimbra, like all Portuguese towns, is dirty, even to
the taste of the least fastidious of the race of swine.
These animals had been shot without remorse by the
French, when they found them wallowing in the
streets ; both to fill their own cooking kettles, and
as a hint to the Portuguese to improve their muni
cipal police. For a time the pigs that were left stayed
at home ; but when I was in Coimbra they had reco-

REJOICING OF THE FROGS. 35
vered their natural liberties, and in the choice pasture
the city then afforded promised to be soon as flourish
ing as ever.
Few rivers can produce frogs in greater abundance
than the Mondego; the yearly inundation affording
this noisy fraternity great facilities of reproduction
in the breeding season. In the quiet hamlet where I
resided, I was screened by its situation, and the shade
of the fine trees, from the great heat and dust of the
town, but I was in the very focus of the frogs. When
I awoke half a dozen times in a night, disturbed
and stunned by the terrific croak of some billions of
these reptiles, I was sometimes tempted to believe,
that all this tremendous uproar could not be an oc
currence of ordinary seasons, but a kind of national
jubilee this year, at the expulsion from the Kingdom
of their natural enemies the ranavorous French.
Coimbra, at this time, contained nearly a thou
sand British sick and wounded, besides Portuguese,
so that there was a fine field for practice. We had
many bad surgical cases, and not a few happy reco
veries after terrible round shot wounds. Amongst
these was a patient of mine, a grenadier of the 77th
Regiment, who had been wounded by a ricochetting
cannon ball that was nearly spent. It struck him
on the back, and his knapsack and the tin vessel over
it had turned the shot downwards, where it ploughed
its way through the soft parts, carrying the lid of the
tin before it, which cut every thing down to the bone
sheer off like a carving knife. There was great bleed
ing at the time, but he fainted, and the nearest sur
geon tied up the large arteries. He was soon after
sent down to Coimbra.
The cure was happily completed, and nature kindly
furnished him with new skin over the enormous wound,

36 coimbra.
about as extensive as the hide of a calf. Her vis
medicatrix must have also supplied new glutsei,
for, when I left Coimbra, he was beginning to move
about on crutches, to the extent of four or five steps ;
but of course was still very lame and ricketty, from
the great loss of muscle. At parting he expressed
much gratitude for my attentions, and in return, I
wished he might get a good pension and a soft-bot
tomed chair for the remainder of his life.
In the latter end of July, apprehensions being enter
tained that another retreat to the lines might be ne
cessary from the junction of the French army of the
south and that of Portugal, orders arrived to clear the
hospitals and send the sick to Lisbon. Accordingly
steps were taken to break them up, and a large de
tachment of two hundred was placed under my charge:
we embarked on the river, dropped down to Figueras,
where we were put on board a transport, and arrived
without accident in Lisbon.

37

CHAPTER V.
CINTRA.  LISBON.  NOCTURNAL RAINS.  MEETING OF HOS
PITAL MATES TO REMONSTRATE AGAINST A GENERAL OR
DER OF LORD WELLINGTON.  THEIR REMONSTRANCE
THROWN IN THEIR FACES BY THE P. M. O.
" The horrid crags, by toppling convent crown'd ;
The cork trees hoar that clothe the shaggy steep —
The mountain moss by scorching skies embrown'd,
The sunken glen whose sunless shrubs must weep :
The tender azure of the unruffled deep —
The orange tints that gild the greenest bough ;
The torrents that from hill to valley leap —
The vine on high, the willow branch below —
Mix'd in one mighty scene with varied beauty glow."
Byron.
One thinks one's self at Cintra transported to a planet
very different from this homely earth. It is assuredly,
at the least, one of the most extraordinary spots upon
its surface ; and though it offers to the eye the most
singular scenic paradoxes, yet, after a little observa
tion, every thing, as a whole, appears in fine keeping.
I sailed three times close under the mountain, and
spent two long summer days, luxuriating amongst
the fragrant and gelid retreats of Cintra, but need not
expatiate on a place so well known. It is a region of
contrasts ; and nothing can be more striking than the
abrupt transitions of scenery — the alternations of rich
landscape with barrenness and desolation — the dark
ness of the profound ravines, and the lovely sunny
slopes at the top — the vast rocks — the romantic cas
cades—the oak and cork tree forests — the gardens

38 LISBON.
teeming with golden fruit— the palaces and convents,
the vast conical and splintered mountains, and the
immeasurable view of the Atlantic from their high
summits ; all is pure, majestic, and glorious. Yet,
alas ! how small is the effect which this unequalled
picture of the magnificence of nature has upon the
evil passions of man ! In the full view of it, he lies
in wait for his brother and slays him, where yonder
rude cross, surrounded by its cairn of rough stones,
tells its tale of recent murder !
My first care, after returning to Lisbon, was to visit
my fine old host, the Knight of Malta. There was an
officer of the German Legion quartered in the house,
but he was under orders to set out for the army the
next day. In the mean time Don Manoel directed
Antonio to go for my baggage forthwith, and I soon
found myself comfortably re-established in my former
habitation. In the course of a couple of days I was directed to do
duty at a small hospital, near the aqueduct, under the
charge of a German staff-surgeon, a very honest man,
but whose name it is not necessary to mention. I
soon found that my worthy Teutonic chief was fully
as fond of schnapps, as of surgery ; and from keep
ing late hours, was not particularly punctual in his
morning attendance at the hospital — in fact, sometimes
not coming at all for several days together. Now,
this was exactly what I wished, for it gave me the
real management and all the practice of the establish
ment, and every body likes to have his own way. On
one of the few occasions when we met in the morning
I had pointed out to him a man with a bad leg, which
required amputation to save his life ; but the doctor
was not then in the best operating condition, for his
hand shook sadly, so he deferred the matter until the

NOCTURNAL RAINS IN LISBON. 39
next day. At the appointed time the vinous German
was again absent; but the case having now become
urgent, with the assistance of a smart orderly, I took
off the limb myself. The day after the staff surgeon
and myself went round the ward together, and when
we came to the patient, he accosted him : " Well, mine
goot frind, how duz your leek?" " Ogh, faith your
honor, I was aised of it yesthurday althegither, and I
now only feels a small thrifle of a pain like in aich of
my toes." The doctor stared a little, then lifted the
bed clothes, and saw the stump ; but he was quite
satisfied with my explanation, and we went to his
quarters to lunch.
I presume that every body, conversant with the
local peculiarities of Lisbon, is aware of the occurrence
of periodical nocturnal rains there, regularly through
out the year; beginning between ten and eleven
o'clock, p. m. and lasting generally about two hours.
One remarkable peculiarity is, that this fall of rain is
limited to the city and its suburbs ; though showers of
the same description, occurring at the same time, are
common in other large cities throughout the Kingdom.
The confinement of the rains to the towns is a bene
ficent arrangement of nature ; for, unlike all other
showers, they are very prej udicial to vegetation. An
other singularity connected with them — a phenome
non not yet explained by any meteorological laws with
which we are acquainted — is a kind of warning, or
premonition, before they take place ; in fact, a rum
bling in the clouds immediately over the city, but at
no great elevation, somewhat resembling the human
voice, and most probably of electric origin. As the
inhabitants of Lisbon dislike much to be caught in
this rain, which is often charged with noxious atoms,
from the upper strata of the atmosphere, and have

40 lord Wellington's general order.
been morbidly sensitive of strange sounds in the air,
ever since the great earthquake of 1755, which was
preceded by noises of this kind ; they are always on
the alert about the time of the expected setting in of
the nightly shower, and as soon as some such cabalis
tic sound as " agoa vem ! " is heard, a lively sensation
is felt in the streets, and every body houses himself
with great dispatch. Immediately the rains descend
in torrents, particularly in the narrow and lofty streets,
where they fall like a water-spout.
About ten days after my arrival in Lisbon, a brother
medico and myself were returning from the Opera
about twelve o'clock, dressed in our best coats. Not
being then aware of this meteorological phenomenon,
nor apprized of the premonitory aerial countersign,
we had the misfortune to be caught suddenly in a
very heavy shower, saturated with inodorous particles,
probably from the breaking up of some soft aerolite,
that sadly stained our scarlet.
Few mortals pass through life without having to
lament numerous youthful indiscretions. One of my
early follies I may be permitted to relate.
About the month of August 1811, some General
Order of Lord Wellington, respecting a certificate
from the Principal Medical Officer at each Hospital
station, about servant's allowance, excited great wrath
among the numerous officers of the Medical Staff,
then in Lisbon. The obnoxious order, directed in a
way sufficiently ungracious, certainly — that this al
lowance should only be issued to those officers who
were provided with a certificate, from the P. M. 0.
that the offices of a servant were absolutely necessary.
This awkwardness of expression was probably occa
sioned by the bungling of some clerk at Head Quar
ters. However, the young Doctors took fire at what

MEETING OF hospital mates. 41
they considered an insult, and a meeting of the whole
body was held at Lecor's Hotel, to deliberate on what
steps were necessary to be taken under these grave
circumstances. There were about sixty irate children
of Esculapius present; and, after due balloting for a
President and Secretary, I had the honor to be placed
in the chair.
After a prolonged discussion, and much impassioned
oratory about our grievances, a committee was ap
pointed to draw up a Petition and Remonstrance to
the Commander of the Forces, against the recent
order. The committee lost no time in carrying this
into effect, and submitted a very lofty document to
another general meeting, held at the same place, a few
days after. This was unanimously approved, and it
was then resolved that the President and Committee
should present this Petition, signed by all, to Dr.
B  , the P. M. 0. for transmission to Head Quar
ters. The business being thus happily put in train
to our entire satisfaction, we had a hot supper, and
finished the evening with singing and jollification.
At the appointed hour, the President and Com
mittee waited on Dr. B  with the Petition and
Remonstrance, which we considered a model of com
position. He received us civilly, put on his spectacles,
and proceeded to read our laboured document, which
we were pretty certain he would approve and admire.
When he had done he wiped his glasses, put them into
their case, and addressed us in a stentorian voice :
"D — your young bloods, you hot-headed fools, —
what have we here — a petition and remonstrance, aye,
a remonstrance to Lord Wellington, from a parcel of
d — d Hospital Mates ! Be off, and be d — d to you,
and consider yourselves lucky that I do no more than
quash your folly — thus !" And with that he tore our

42 MEETING OF HOSPITAL MATES.
eloquent appeal into a thousand pieces, and flung
them after us as we hastened out of the room.
When we had proceeded a few yards, a messenger
called me back. The Doctor then addressed me. "And
you, sir, have wisely become the President of this fine
deliberative meeting. Why, sir, if I forwarded your
petition, the others might be overlooked, but you
would be made an example of." He then in a more
friendly tone, pointed out the danger and impropriety
of bodies of officers meeting for this, or any other pur
pose, without due authority . We then conversed on
indifferent subjects, he asked me to dinner, and we
parted good friends.
A meeting at the hotel had been summoned for the
next evening, to learn our proceedings respecting the
petition ; and there was a very full attendance. The
President took the chair, and narrated gravely, and
with as much power of face as he could muster, the
transactions at the P. M. O's. office. When he had
done, there was first a murmur of disapprobation, but
this soon was drowned in loud and general laughter.
It was then proposed and carried, First, that the
consideration of our grievances should be postponed,
sine die; Second, that an inquisition should forth
with be made into the quantity of Colares in the cel
lar ; and Thirdly, that in the event of this turning
out satisfactory, a large instalment should be mulled
and produced immediately. As may be well sup
posed, we passed a most hilarious evening; the wine
was delicious, and not strong — the weather was warm,
and we were thirsty — temperance societies were yet
unborn — the night was short, and the morning sun
lighted us to our homes.

43

CHAPTER VI.

LISBON.  HABITS OF THE LADIES.  GREAT EARTHQUAKE.
 ALDEA GALEGA.  QUARREL WITH A JUIZ DA FORA.
 FLIRTATION.

• animam ne crede puellis,

Namque est fceminea tutior unda fide."
Petroxius.

Exactly opposite Don Manoel's house there resided
two good looking young ladies, who passed the greater
part of their time, when the shade of the house or the
cool of the evening permitted, in their handsome
gilded balcony. I watched their manoeuvres with
attention, and found their principal amusement con
sisted in playing tricks on the Gallegos, or Galli-
cian water-carriers, passing beneath, with their little
painted barrels on their shoulders. No sooner did a
Gallego approach, than these damsels would accost
him, " Tio ! Tio !" Uncle ! Uncle ! the familiar term
used to the lower classes. The man would stop and
look up ; then, I am shocked to say, the playful girls
would giggle and spit in his eye. The Gallego would
retort by a squirt from his barrel about the ladies'
ankles, and this was considered great fun on both
sides. Yet my patrone told me these ladies were of
respectable family and irreproachable character.
As our respective balconies were only separated by
a narrow street, I soon introduced myself, and we
generally had a little conversation every fine evening ;
which was wont to become more animated as the

44 HABITS OF LADIES AT LISBON.
increasing darkness screened us from observation.
Mutual compliments would be then interchanged:
I praised the brilliancy of the ladies' eyes, and their
fine persons, which merited a compliment not often
deserved here, where dumpiness is a common charac
teristic. I smiled on perceiving that my lively neigh
bours were much at a loss to discover a laudable
personal quality about me, and were obliged to con
tent themselves with " Vmd tem muito bonitas
dentes." " Your worship has good teeth."
Except occasionally playing a Modinha, set to
music on the guitar, I believe those girls never read,
nor worked, nor drew, nor visited, nor went out, except
to Church ; and their whole employment, during the
time I was their neighbour, appeared to consist in
lounging through the house, looking out of the win
dows, lolling on the couches, amusing themselves
with the Gallegos, and making love to me, after the
fashion above described. And such was the general
outline of unmarried female life in Lisbon : I hope it
is different now.
Don Manoel, unlike the Portuguese, was fond of
boating ; and we often made little excursions on the
river together in the delightful Lisbon evenings.
Nothing can be finer than the views from the river
for an extent of nine or ten miles ; the city rising
majestically from the water on one side, and the
bold and beautiful banks on the other. One evening
we stopped when approaching the quay, and Don
Manoel exclaimed, " On this spot, where the water
is now deep, my grandfather and grandmother, and
four children, stood on dry ground during the great
earthquake, with a crowd of other fugitives, felici
tating themselves on their escape; when the river
suddenly rose and engulfed them all. My father

EARTHQUAKE AT LISBON. 45
was the only individual saved out of the family, by
clinging to a boat."
Few earthquakes on record were so awfully de
structive as that of 1755. It happened, as is well
known, about nine o'clock in the morning of All
Saints' Day, the first of November, when a large
proportion of the population was assembled in the
Churches. In five minutes sixty thousand people
perished ! Even in those churches that partially
escaped the first dreadful shock, fire destroyed what
the earthquake had spared ; and these edifices became
sources of mischief in spreading the conflagration
through the city. The innumerable lights employed
in the gorgeous Roman Catholic ritual were thrown
down, and set fire to every thing combustible around ;
and, in the frightful confusion of the moment, the
only thought was personal safety. A simpler form of
worship would have prevented a large amount of
calamity. It is pleasing to find that the Spanish court and
nation behaved well on this sad occasion, and succours
for the distressed city flowed in from Madrid with
liberality. Our own country, always in the first rank
of the beneficent when misfortune calls for aid, was
conspicuous among the European nations, for the
large sums voted by the legislature, and raised by
private subscription, to relieve the misery of the
wretched inhabitants. We can scarcely conceive any
thing more poignantly distressing than the state of
the city for a year after the earthquake ; nor need we
wonder that it required the utmost exertions of Pom-
bal, a great man as well as minister, to prevent the
Unfortunate people from quitting for ever their doomed
city, and emigrating in a body to Brazil.
From time immemorial Lisbon, and all Portugal,

46 ALDEA GALEGA.
have been subject to earthquakes ; but only three
have done any mischief. The whole country is pierced
by numerous hot springs, shewing that a magazine of
fire exists at no great distance from the surface. One
evening, as my host and I were taking our coffee, a
shock occurred, which, although of short duration,
was yet sufficiently lively to jingle the cups on the
marble table where they stood, and set a mandarin
figure shaking his head very gravely at the phe
nomenon. After a residence of four months, spent agreeably
in the Portuguese capital, I was ordered to Aldea
Galega, a village on the other side of the Tagus, at
the commencement of the high road to Elvas. There
was a strong detachment of Royal Marines of the
British Navy quartered there, of which I was directed
to assume medical charge. In the course of a few
weeks, the three officers and greater part of the men
were withdrawn, and only a Serjeant's guard remained ;
but although I remonstrated against being kept where
there was literally nothing to do, I was not relieved.
Here then I continued in this "otium sine dignitate ;"
although I was Principal Medical Officer and Com
mandant, and had under my authority a Commissariat
Clerk, a Serjeant, twelve jolly Marines, and Antonio.
Gentlemen who have had the honour of being born
in Ireland are generally represented as great adorers
of the gentler sex. There may be some truth in the
" soft impeachment ;" but if my countrymen are a
little ultra in this matter, they know that it is ex
pected from them, and that they would lose caste in
public female opinion if they did not keep up the
national character. It is not their fault so much as
the dear ladies, who no doubt would be offended by
any other line of conduct ; and have been long accus-

A LOVE AFFAIR. 47
tomed to look on innocent gallantry in an Irish
gentleman as natural and decorous as gravity in a
Quaker. I happened to occupy a very good quarter in Aldea
Galega, in fact the best house in the town ; and what
was better, there was an extremely pretty young lady
in it, named Theodora, the daughter of my host, with
whom I could not well help falling in love, being the
only British officer in the town. Accordingly, we com
menced a vigorous flirtation, though under the disad
vantage of an inmate in the house, a maiden aunt of
the fair Theodora; who, as nearly the last of the
obsolete tribe of Duennas, concentrated in her breast
all their watchfulness and malignity.
But love laughs at Duennas. My trusty Antonio con
veyed one day a note to my mistress, written in choice
Portuguese, filled with the usual amatory hyperboles
and soft fibs, at which Jove is said to laugh; and
concluding by soliciting a short meeting on the stairs,
that I might, if only for a moment, hear the dulcet
sounds of her voice, for as yet our amour had been
confined to the eyes, and assure her how much I was
the slave of her charms, &c. &c. I took the liberty
of enclosing her a Limerick fishing-hook, fastened to
a piece of silk line, en pecheur, which I implored her
by all moving considerations to employ in dropping
me an answer at night from her bed-chamber window,
immediately above mine, and to preserve it carefully
as the medium of future communication.
The old song says —
" I took it in my head
To write my love a letter,
But alas ! she cannot read,
And I like her all the better."
So my poor Theodora could not read ; but she either

48 A LOVE AFFAIR.
found some female confidant who could, or, with her
sex's sagacity, conjectured the mystic meaning of
the hook and line ; for as soon as it became dark,
down they came stealthily, with a beautiful red rose
fastened by the stem, which the most obtuse under
standing could not avoid considering " le premier
gage d 'amour."
And certes, I may here observe in passing, " if
things inanimate can feel pleasure as well as grieve,"
my trusty O'Shaughnessy No. 4 must have thrilled
to the top of the barb, at the novel and delightful
exchange it had made, from dragging cold and stupid
trouts out of the water to conveying fragrant flowers
and catching lovely young women.
We met on the stairs, she descending and her lover
mounting. If our position had been reversed, I should
have found falling on one knee a little awkward. I
exhausted my stock of Portuguese in whispers of
love and devotion ; and the amiable girl had just
acknowledged in return, that she esteemed the " valo-
rosos Inglezes," and had blushed no insuperable
objection to myself in particular, I had even been
suffered to kiss her hand, and was in a fair way to
her lips, when the confounded old Hecate, her aunt,
made her appearance at the top of the stairs. Poor
Theodora was thunderstruck — she wept and embraced
her aunt's knees, and kissed her shrivelled hand, and
begged hard for concealment of the matter from Papa.
I implored the old lady to be propitious to us both,
appealing to her kindness of heart and womanly feel
ings, and even daring to compliment her on the good
ness and benevolence expressed in her countenance)
although, in truth, she had the visage of a Gorgon. .
But entreaty and flattery were equally lost labour."
With a withering scowl she cursed me as a "demonio"

QUARREL WITH A JUIZ DE FORA. 49
and " maldito eretico," and seizing the trembling
girl, she hurried her to her apartment by the appli
cation of five or six terrific slaps on the back. Not
withstanding this cruel treatment, the hook and line
brought me that night another rose, and I sent up a
note as affectionate as possible.
In the mean time treachery was at work. Next
day the Juiz de Fora, or Mayor of the town, sent for
me, and after an embrace much more cordial than I
wished, for he was redolent of tobacco and garlic, he
made a thousand apologies for informing me, that he
was under the painful necessity of changing my quar
ter; but, as some compensation, he said he would
give me a billet on the next best house in the place.
The fact was, he assured me, that a Portuguese
General Officer was every hour expected at Aldea, on
his way to.Elvas, and the best quarter in the place,
which I occupied, must, as a matter of course, be
given to him during his stay. Hereupon I remon
strated, that it was hard to turn out the Medico Mor
and Military Commandant, permanently quartered
in the town, for the accommodation of any Brigadier
for only one night. The Juiz was superfluously
polite, he smirked and bowed, and used the blandest
language, but concluded by declaring how much-
soever he regretted the necessity of the case, I must
turn out. After half an hour's farther debate, he
continued inexorable. I then waxed wroth, and, I
fear, swore lustily, that I defied him and his friend
the General a, l'outrance, and would not budge an
inch. The fat little magistrate then blushed up into
a towering passion ; looked very livid and apoplectic,
and swore by one and twenty thousand demonios and
diabos that he would oust me, vi et armis, and so we
parted. vol. i. D

50 FLIRTATION.
I had got a hint through Antonio, from an untrusty
secretary of the Juiz de Fora, that some trickery was
intended ; and I determined not to be bullied out of
my good quarter and the vicinity of the fair Theo
dora. So I immediately posted a Marine as sentry
on the Commandant's door, with specific directions
to defend the garrison ; a piece of impudence which
nothing can excuse. For two days the post was thus
held by regular reliefs, but no General made his
appearance; in fact, no General came at all; and
after a day or two more I triumphed over the con
spirators, and dismissed the sentry: but alas! my
poor mistress was carried away by her old aunt, and
I saw her no more.
In the beginning of December, 1811, I was once
more ordered to Lisbon ; where, as I had been tired
of idleness on the other side of the Tagiis, I volun
teered to be resident attendant Officer in a convent
full of sick, near the Campo d'Ourique. It is true,
when at Aldea, I had been studying Portuguese
hard ; and had cantered through the sandy lanes and
cork-tree forests all over the country, and sauntered
among the vineyards, and chatted with the civil pay-
sanos, and assisted them to prune their vines, as far
as a penknife would go, and kept a journal, and
made love besides — still, isolated as I was there, Time
had moved with leaden sandals. The experience of
my life, as of all rational people, proves that the lazy
Sybarite who first exclaimed, " Dolce cosa far niente,"
told a prodigious fib.
The Christmas Day of 1811 was one of the most
beautiful days the sun ever saw, and he has seen not
a few in his time. The geraniums, and roses, and
passifloras were blooming in the open air, and the
temperature was as warm as Mav in FncrUnrl though

FLIRTATION. 51
the sky was much clearer; and there was no com
parison between its pure and delicate azure and our
muddy blue. I enjoyed the delicious time the more
for having sat up half the preceding night, witnessing
the gorgeous ceremonies of Christmas Eve in the
Igreja da Renya. The church had been then crowded
almost to suffocation ; and the heat and foulness of
the air, from the fumes of incense, the thousands of
lights, and the exhalations from such a crowd of
garlic-eating people, were admirable preparations for
the ride I took, and the enjoyment I experienced
amidst the Atlantic breezes, magnificent views, and
rich sunshine of Cintra.
On my return I dined with a medical friend residing
in the San Jeronymo in Belem. San Jeronymo is the
Patron Saint of Lisbon, and watches continually over
its safety, preserving it from fires, earthquakes, inun
dations, and such calamities. His zeal, vigilance,
and power, of late years, admit of no question;
although it is confessed that in 1755 he slumbered on
his post, and did not awake until his statue, now in
this convent, was pitched from its pedestal prone
upon its face. He was also, it cannot be denied, a
little remiss in permitting the entrance of Junot and
his band of marauders ; although it is averred that he
did all he could to make amends, by wafting Sir
Arthur to Portugal to drive them out.
About this time I witnessed the grand Lisbon hoax
of the cork boots. The wag was a British Artillery
Officer, who managed to bring half the city to Belem
to see a man walking on the water across the river.
It was a humbug on the largest scale ; for I suppose
there could not be less than thirty thousand people
present, by land and water. The matter was managed
remarkably well; and such was the implicit confi-

52 FLIRTATION.
dence of the multitude, that a lane was made by the
police for the performer, from the house where he
resided to the Belem steps, to keep off the pressure
of the crowd. The thing passed off good naturedly;
and when the joke became known, the immense mass
melted away insensibly, and without any disturbance
of consequence.
In the month of December I was appointed Assistant
Surgeon to the 66th Regiment, and directed once
more to proceed to Coimbra.
In consequence of the severe loss this Corps sus
tained on the bloody field of Albuera, it had been
formed into a Provisional Battalion, with two or three
other weak Corps. The Regiment bore an excellent
character, and had behaved admirably at the passage
of the Douro, and at Talavera. A high compliment
had been paid to its good conduct, on the advance to
Oporto, in 1809, by Sir Arthur Wellesley, which was
told me by the Officer through whom it was conveyed.
A sharp little affair had just taken place on the march
from Coimbra, which the Commander of the Forces
witnessed ; and on riding past Captain Goldie, of the
66th (lately Colonel Goldie, commanding 11th Foot)
he thus addressed him, " You may take your men
back, and tell your Commanding Officer they have
fought like lions to-day."

53

CHAPTER VII.
MARCH TO COIMBRA.  THENCE TO ELVAS AND MERIDA. 
SPANISH FUGITIVES FROM BADAJOZ AT ALBUQUERQUE. 
SIEGE AND STORM OF BADAJOZ.  EXCITING MARCH. 
HORRORS OF THE STORM.— SCENE AT CAMPO MAYOR THE
NIGHT OF THE STORM.

" What rein can hold licentious wickedness
When down the hill he holds his fierce career ?
We may as bootless spend our vain commands
Upon the enraged soldiers in their spoil,
As send precepts to the Leviathan
To come ashore." Shakespeare.

Mounted on my bay horse, Liberdade, with my
baggage on a mule in charge of Antonio, I set out
from Lisbon on the 23rd of January, 1812. An
agreeable brother Medico named Reeve travelled in
company. Our first day's march was a short one, to
Saccarem ; next day we passed through Alhandra,
and saw the eastern extremity of the far famed lines
of Torres Vedras. In common with all who ever
saw or heard of them, we admired the foresight and
military sagacity that had appreciated the value of
these mountain bulwarks, and the skill and secrecy
with which they had been made impregnable.
We witnessed much misery and distress among the
poor inhabitants of this devastated tract of country on
the march, who were slowly returning to their burnt
and dilapidated homes, with exhausted means and
emaciated frames, every one having his peculiar tale
of sorrow to tell, but all unanimous in bitter hatred

54 MARCH TO COIMBRA.
of the cause of all their sufferings, the " malditos
Franceses." The cutting down of the valuable olive
trees for fuel was one charge constantly reiterated
against Massena's troops. The poor people said they
did not mind so much the burning and breaking up
of their furniture, or even making bonfires of their
houses, as the wanton destruction of the trees from
which their revenue was mainly derived, and which
took so long a time in coming to maturity.
Between Thomar and Espinhal, after a long wet
march, we were benighted in a wretched condition of
cold and hunger, still two leagues from our desti
nation. A light being observed half a mile from the
road, we turned our horses' heads up a lane leading
to it, and threw ourselves on the hospitality of the
owner of a large house, which we soon reached. The
Fidalgo appeared a very hospitable person, and re
ceived us with great kindness. A huge pine fire was
kindled forthwith on an ample hearth; our clothes
were dried, and a couple of hares and a leash of
partridges put down to roast, and in less than an
hour we sat down to a good supper, our jaded animals
having been also well fed. After supper, a kettle of
vin du pays, with sugar and spice, was put on the
blazing logs, with which we regaled ourselves in com
pany with our host, who expatiated on the prowess
of the Portuguese Army and the wonders of Rio de
Janeiro, whither his daughter had accompanied the
Royal Family on their emigration, as Maid of Honour
to the Queen.
I should feel more pleasure in recording the civility
of our host if he had not made a dead point at my fine
mule the next morning, which he wished me to ex
change with him for one not half its value. But Antonio
laughed in his face when he made the proposition.

MARCH TO ELVAS. 55
When we reached Coimbra,. Ciudad Rodrigo had
fallen, and artillery and troops were fast moving to
the south, where preparations were now making for
the third siege of Badajoz. The 64th, I found, was
quartered in Spanish Estramudura, near Merida, and
I was directed to proceed to join it without delay —
having, it appeared, marched, according to orders,
about three hundred miles out of my way to no
purpose. As I was sitting at breakfast the morning before
leaving Coimbra, Major C-^  , commanding a regi
ment of Portuguese Cacadores, rushed into the room
in a state of great agitation, and begged me to see a
wounded soldier of his regiment. I went with him im
mediately, and found the Cagadores drawn up in line
on parade, with a group of officers in the middle,
surrounding a soldier who was moaning and appeared
to be in great pain. I found that in dressing the line
the Major had used the point, instead of the flat of
his sword ; and the wounded man, either from stum
bling, or that strange fascination that is believed to
throw the bird into the jaws of the snake, had pressed
upon it and given himself a mortal stab. The wound
was scarcely visible, and there was no bleeding, but he
died the same evening. A caution to officers not to
turn the points of their swords against their own men.
Antonio and myself retraced our steps to Thomar —
crossed the picturesque Zezere at Punhete, and pro
ceeded from thence to Abrantes along the right bank
of the golden sanded Tagus. I examined the shining
sand here, and found it full of small plates of mica,
which had been washed or worn out of the granite,
during the long course of its impetuous stream. Pro
ceeding on our march, we crossed to the Alem-tejo ;
had a shot at an impudent wolf that approached us,

56 ARRIVAL AT ELVAS.
but without hitting him, and reached Elvas on the
20th March.
At this time the siege of Badajoz was commencing,
and Lord Wellington's Head Quarters were at Elvas
—the town was full of the Staff, and all was bustle and
note of preparation. But the weather was most un
favourable, and the trenches were half full of water.
The heavy rains had swollen the Guadiana, and the
main bridges had been carried away — thus cutting off
the communications of the divisions investing the
place, with their provisions and military stores on the
Elvas side. Serious apprehensions were entertained
at Head Quarters, that the siege must be raised, and
every body looked long-faced and unhappy. Elvas
is only three leagues from Badajoz, and from the top
of the house in which I was quartered, I could, with
a glass, command every thing that was going on there.
The direct road to Merida is through Badajoz, but
now it was necessary to go round by Albuquerque,
which town we reached in two marches from Elvas —
entering Spain for the first time. The change was
agreeable — the houses were cleaner and better fur
nished than in Portugal, and a glass window would
be seen occasionally; the people too were better
dressed, and the women were far superior in every
respect. But every body knows the fascinations of the
sweet Espagnolas, and a hundred writers have made
the world acquainted with their merits ; so that I
can only corroborate what has been so often said on
the subject. For my own individual part, all I can
say is, that they are such semi-divinities — they skim
over the ground so aerially, and wear the basquinaand
dear little mantilla so gracefully, and their Cinderella
shoes so daintily, and manoeuvre their fans so coquet-
tishly ; and have such magnificent eyes and lovely

ARRIVAL AT ALBUQUERQUE. 57
shapes ; and talk so endearingly, and lisp so prettily,
and smile so affectionately, and waltz so charmingly
— that I wonder I brought away the bigness of a
hazel-nut of heart untouched out of the country.
When we arrived at Albuquerque the cannonading
at Badajoz had begun ; and the next morning, the
weather being fine, all the world mounted the high
hill on which the castle is built to witness the excit
ing spectacle.
Although twenty miles distant, every shot could be
heard distinctly, when it was calm, or the wind
favourable ; and at first, before a broad pall of smoke
covered the town, the operations before it could be
tolerably made out with a good glass. When I
mounted to the top of the hill, the morning after my
arrival, I found a great crowd of spectators, and among
them many ladies. Deep interest was expressed on
every countenance ; and no wonder, for many of those
now assembled were inhabitants of Badajoz, and had
either been forced out of the city by Phillippon, the
French governor, because they were unable to provide
themselves with the three months' provisions he re
quired for all who staid, or had obtained his permission
to retire. Many of them had left their husbands and
families behind ; and every shot they now heard might
be pregnant with the fate of some dear relative.
Yet though concern and apprehension were mani
fest in the countenance, there was nothing unmanly
in the demeanor of the male part of the crowd, nor
any silly expression of violent emotion on the part of
the ladies. Indeed the scene was well calculated to
make an impression favourable to the Spanish charac
ter. As the visitation that might in a moment cut
off their dearest connexions, and render them home
less and destitute, was inevitable ; and as the capture
d2-

58 SIEGE OF BADAJOZ.
of the place was for the ultimate benefit of their coun
try, they appeared to acquiesce in the sad necessity
of the siege without a murmur— only hoping it would
soon be over.
There was one fine and handsome woman, Donna
Thereza Solvielta, and two sweet girls her daughters,
whom I particularly observed, as they chanced to be
ascending the castle-hill at the same time with myself.
When they took their position at the top and directed
their eyes towards the beleaguered city, I noticed
that every shot, as the sound boomed sullenly on the
ear, paled the cheeks of the young ladies, but the
mother stood the fire better. At the first report there
was a faint exclamation, " O Virgem, madre de Deos !"
from one of the daughters ; but they all soon became
composed ; and as I was beginning to feel an interest
in the group, and my uniform as a British officer was
a sufficient introduction, I accosted Donna Thereza,
and thus commenced an acquaintance with a very
amiable family. When I informed them, that in all
probability no bombs would be thrown into the town,
and that the English fire would be chiefly directed
against the ramparts and defences of the place, and
thus that there was scarcely any danger of their house
being hit, which they told me was in the square near
the cathedral — they were much consoled, for they
had feared a general bombardment. It appeared that
the husband and two boys had remained in Badajoz.
After listening and reconnoitering through a glass until
we were tired, I walked about with the ladies until
the sun became hot, and then escorted them to their
lodgings in the house of an old female relative.
The rain that fell lately had swollen the rivers
crossing the road to Merida so much, that they were
unfordable, and the bridges had fallen in the wars.

MARCH TO MER1DA. 59
I was thus detained three days in Albuquerque ; at
length Antonio and myself set out for Merida, the
cannonade sounding in our ears the whole way, and
affording the accompaniment of this sublime military
music on our march. I joined my regiment and was
formally introduced to the officers.
Merida is on the right bank of the Guadiana, forty
miles above Badajoz. It is a very ancient city — was
the seat of a Provincial Military Government under
the Romans, and is still full of fine Roman remains.
There is a long and beautiful bridge over the Guadiana,
of the time of Charles the Fifth, but on a Roman
foundation — a Roman and a Moorish aqueduct — a
large segment of an amphitheatre — the remains of a
Naumachia — a Residium in a very perfect state of
preservation, with several busts of Roman Emperors
in the niches, amongst which I noticed the heads of
Trajan and Galba — a triumphal arch — the portico of
a temple of Mars, with " Marti D. O. M." on the
base of the pediment. This portico is quite perfect ;
it stands in front of a church of Dominican Friars,
and immediately under the old inscription is the fol
lowing — " Jam non Marti, sed Jesu Christi D. O. M.
consecratum est."
This must be a fine field for an antiquarian, and I
suspect it has never been fully explored ; at least,
amongst the Books of Travels in Spain which I have
read there is no good account of Merida. In roaming
about the vestiges of ancient grandeur I could not
avoid smiling at the base uses to which some of
the purest relics of Paganism had been appropriated.
Amongst other metamorphoses, a handsome white
marble facade of a temple of Diana had been built into
the front of a modern house, which by certain indica
tions from two or three unblushing damsels at the

60 SIEGE OF BADAJOZ.
windows, was now any thing but a temple of chastity.
This, and the modern use of the amphitheatre as a
Placa de Toros, are no great proofs of the superiority
of Spanish Christianity over the old religion.
But on this occasion I had little time for antiquarian
explorations. Soult was at this time collecting what
force he could to relieve Badajoz, now hard pressed,
which the covering army under Sir Thomas Graham
and Sir Rowland Hill was determined to prevent ; con
sequently a fight was expected, and it became neces
sary to clear the hospitals and send all incumbrances
to the rear. The sick of the Second Division, there
fore, were ordered to Altar de Chao, an Hospital
Station in Portugal, and although I had only just ar
rived, after a march of near five hundred miles, and
ought in all fairness to be last on the roster, I was di
rected to take charge of the convoy.
The siege of Badajoz was still going on, and this
march, like the former by Albuquerque, was of high
interest, from the vicinity of the route to the invested
city. Our road now described a segment of a circle
round it, within the former course and much nearer ;
and the citadel was visible from every elevation of the
way, rising above a heavy canopy of smoke, which
overhung the ramparts and lower parts of the town,
as well as the besieging batteries. Generally in the
afternoon there was a suspension of firing on both
sides for a short time to allow the guns to cool. Then
the smoke would be wafted away by the wind, and
the whole fortress become distinctly visible. Soon a
salvo would thunder from the breaching batteries> and
be immediately answered by the garrison ; and then
the incessant roar of the heavy artillery on both sides
would proceed without intermission as before.
During all this time the weather was remarkably

SIEGE OF BADAJOZ. 61
fine and clear, as if the elements wished now to atone
for their severe treatment of the allied troops, at the
commencement of the siege. I reached Campo Mayor
on the 6th of April, with my convoy of sick, and was
much pleased to find that the poor fellows had all im
proved wonderfully in health during the march. In
deed the good effects of locomotion, in recovering
very debilitated subjects, were strikingly displayed
during the whole Peninsular struggle, but never more
than on this occasion. My convoy consisted of a
hundred and twenty sick ; thirty or forty of whom
were so ill of bad fevers that it was necessary to tie
them on the mules' backs, or put a muletier, or one
of the guard behind them to prevent their falling off
from weakness. Yet at the end of the second day's
march, these enfeebled subjects would ride by them
selves bravely and vigorously, and call out lustily for
their rations. I am convinced that the lives of several
amongst them were saved by this march, and the re
covery of all was materially accelerated. It is true
our route was a peculiar one, we were enlivened by a
brisk cannonade the whole way ; and the sound of the
salvos of heavy artillery thundering away at the
breaches, the view of the smoke-wreathed city, and
of the French flag flying on the castle, formed, alto
gether, a moral cordial, more tonic and restorative
than all the elixirs in the world.
On the 6th of April, as we approached Campo Ma
yor, the cannonade was much louder and closer than
usual, and as I rode along I became more and more
convinced that a crisis was approaching. It was on
that morning that" the besiegers' guns being all turned
against the curtain, the bad masonry crumbled rapidly
away ; in two hours a yawning breach appeared, and
Wellington, having again examined the points of at-

62 STORMING OF BADAJOZ.
tack in person, renewed the order for the assault.
Then the soldiers eagerly made themselves ready for
a combat so fiercely fought, so terribly won, so dread
ful in all its circumstances, that posterity can scarcely
be expected to credit the tale."*
On our arrival in the evening at Campo Mayor, we
found the whole population in a state of great excite
ment and anxiety ; for it was generally known that
Badajoz was to be stormed that night ; and as we were
only seven miles distant, even the pattering of the
musketry could be heard in the calm of the evening,
between the heavy reports of the artillery. As the
night advanced, every accidental swelling of the sound
was deemed the signal for the terrific conflict at the
breach. During this eventful night few eyes were
closed in Campo Mayor, the priests were performing
Divine Service in the churches, and praying fervently
for success; and the entire adult population were
either engaged in this solemn duty, or traversing the
streets in extreme agitation and alarm. All this time
the thunder of the bloody conflict sounded awfully ;
and as the work of death advanced, and the air be
came cooler and stiller, the report of the heavy artil
lery appeared actually to shake the roofs of the
churches over the trembling masses crowded within.
The scene altogether was tremendous and sublime. I
proceeded from one church to another, but all were
alike — all were filled with people praying with ex
treme fervency; weeping, exclaiming, sobbing — en
quiring wildly for intelligence, and listening intently
to the loud and confused sound of mortal strife.
At length came an ominous lull and calm. Did
this bode good or evil ? Was the city taken, or had

* Napier, vol. iv. 417.

STORMING OF BADAJOZ. 63
the storming parties been shattered and repulsed, and
had the garrison ceased its fire because the besiegers
had retired from the reach of the guns ? People ask
ing these questions, and circulating the thousand re
ports that had been created on the instant, looked
anxiously into each other's faces, pale and shrunk with
fear and suspense, and the harassing vigils of the night.
As day dawned the greater part left the streets and
churches, and repaired to the ramparts, straining all
eyes in the direction of Badajoz. For a long time no
thing could be descried on the wide plain between the
two places : at length a horseman was seen galloping
full speed along the road. The agony of suspense then
became almost intolerable ; but when he approached
nearer, and was seen to stop suddenly, stand up in his
stirrups, and wave his hat repeatedly round his head,
a shout of ten thousand " Vivas ! " rent the air, which
were prolonged and reiterated along the fortifications,
until lost in the overwhelming pealing of all the bells
in the city.
Mv military dress procured me two or three score of
warm embraces ; the pale countenances of the women
brightened up, and their dark eyes beamed out bril
liantly. Never were fair ladies so condescending and
so affectionate, and I believe if I had chosen I might
have kissed half Campo Mayor. " Viva os Inglezez !"
was in every mouth. At length, getting satiated with
all this hugging and embracing, and remembering
that my day's march was a short one, I delayed the
starting of my sick convoy for a couple of hours, and
cantered over the plain to Badajoz.
I reached the bridge over the Guadiana in three
quarters of an hour, but, to my great surprise and
concern, instead of finding every thing quiet, and
every body occupied in attentions to the wounded,

64 SCENE AT CAMPO MAYOR.
and preparations for burying the dead, as I had an
ticipated, I beheld a scene of the most dreadful violence
and confusion. Parties of intoxicated men were roam
ing and reeling about, loosed from all discipline, firing
into the windows, bursting open the doors, plundering,
violating, shooting any person who opposed them,
quarrelling about the plunder, and sometimes destroy
ing each other.
I proceeded amidst this dangerous mob to the
Talavera gate, and thence to the main breach. There
indeed was a most awful scene, where
" Mars might quake to tread."
There lay a frightful heap of fourteen or fifteen hun
dred British soldiers, many dead but still warm, mixed
with the desperately wounded, to whom no assistance
could yet be given. There lay the burned and black
ened corpses of those that had perished by the explo
sions, mixed with those that were torn to pieces by
round shot or grape, and killed by musketry, stiffen
ing in their gore, body piled upon body, involved
and intertwined into one hideous and enormous mass
of carnage ; whilst the morning sunbeams, falling on
this awful pile, seemed to my imagination pale and
lugubrious as during an eclipse.
At the foot of the Castle wall, where the third Divi
sion had escaladed, the dead lay thick, and a great
number were to be seen about the San Vincente bastion
at the opposite side of the works. A number had
been drowned in the cunette of the ditch, near the
Trinidad bastion, but the chief slaughter had taken
place at the great breach. There stood still the
terrific beam across the top, armed with its sharp and
bristling sword blades, which no human dexterity or
strength could pass without impalement. The smell

SCENE AT CAMPO MAYOR. 65
of burned flesh was yet shockingly strong and dis
gusting. Joining some of the Medical Officers who were
beginning to assist the most urgent cases amongst
the wounded, I remained during the morning and
forenoon ; then hastily eating a biscuit blackened
with gunpowder, and taking a mouthful of wine, I
returned to my charge at Campo Mayor ; passing in
my way to the Elvas gate of Badajoz, through the
same dreadful ordeal as before, for the sack of the
city was now at its height. The bells at Campo
Mayor were still ringing merrily at intervals, and
every body was rejoicing. Rejoicing ! after what I
had just witnessed ! After the sacrifice of two thou
sand of the bravest troops in the world in the storm,
and double the number during the siege : after the
piteous moanings and dying ejaculations yet torturing
my hearing : after the blood-cemented pile of slain
still fresh in my eye: rejoicing after all this !
I hastened to get my party in motion, and with
many bitter reflections on the horrors of war, pro
ceeded on the march to Altar de Chao, where I
delivered over my sick.
When the escort and myself were returning to
Elvas, we saw at a distance a large body of men
approaching, whom we soon made out to be the
French garrison of Badajoz, about three thousand
five hundred in number, on their route to embark for
England. As would be the case with any other
troops under similar circumstances, there was a
striking difference in the appearance and bearing of
the veterans and the young soldiers. The former
had a bold and self-confident look, that said, " N'im-
porte — c'est la fortune de guerre — notre temps viendra-
allons." The poor conscripts, on the contrary, ap-

66 OUTRAGES AFTER THE STORM.
peared completely abattus; and their timid furtive
glances betrayed the fear of discovering a loaded
gun, or a Portuguese knife, in every object round
them. I found Elvas full of wounded, with a strong muster
of Medical Officers, and obtained permission to remain
there a fortnight. I never witnessed such cheerful
ness in suffering, and such manly bearing, as amongst
these wounded men ; nor any thing equal to the kind
ness and sympathy they shewed to each other. It
seemed as if the imminent risk they had so recently
undergone had created a mutual friendship, and
something akin to brotherly affection, between them,
which was most pleasing to witness. Nor could one
see these noble fellows without deep interest and
admiration, for there was no neutralizing feeling.
They had been engaged in a conflict, exhibiting the
most unflinching, sustained, and desperate valour
witnessed for ages ; and in their case no atrocity
after conquest, and no taint of pillage or violence had
dimmed its lustre.
On our return through Badajoz, I entered that ill
fated city with very painful feelings. All was still
gloom and dismay, no reaction had yet taken place
after the horrors of the storm; and the citizens, by a
kind of tacit understanding, agreed to be silent as to
the past, for it was too dreadful to contemplate.
Almost every individual of any respectability in the
city had been outraged, either in his property or the
sanctity of his relatives and friends. Happy were the
ladies that had left the place before its investment.
Happy were those beautiful solvieltas that I met at
Albuquerque !
Although the British and Portuguese troops bear
the principal share in the odium, the lower classes of

OUTRAGES AFTER THE STORM. 67
the inhabitants were also performers in the tragedy.
As soon as the magazine of brandy in the vaults of
the Cathedral was opened, the mob got drunk, joined
in the spoil, and, having better local knowledge, con
ducted the strangers to the houses of the principal
inhabitants, and when the doors were burst open
joined in the brutalities of the time.
It ought not to be concealed, however, that the
Spaniards had chiefly their own imbecility, cowardice,
and treachery to thank for the sufferings at Badajoz.
On Mendezabal, but chiefly on the cowardly Governor,
Jtfse de Imaz, who surrendered with his garrison of
eight thousand men, when he was told that help was
at hand, rests the moral responsibility of all the ill that
followed after the occupation of the city by the French.
But even during the tremendous night of the 6th of
April, the Spaniards fired from their houses on our
troops of the fourth division, as they marched through
the deserted but strangely illuminated streets ; and
thus directly provoked the wrath of the already infu
riated soldiers. This would naturally be told to their
comrades ; and when the whole allied force burst into
the city, so treacherous an act would serve as a good
pretext, or be, in truth, a considerable palliation of
the enormities that ensued.
On the 22nd of April I rejoined my regiment at
Almandralejo, a considerable town, situated in a fer
tile plain covered with wheat, where Sir Rowland
Hill's head quarters were established.

68

CHAPTER VIII.

ADVENTURE WITH A REFRACTORY PATIENT AT BADAJOZ.—
SICKNESS OF THE AUTHOR.  HOSPITALITY AND KINDNESS
OF A PRIEST AND HIS SISTERS.  INCONVENIENCES OF
USING LEECHES INTERNALLY.

A phlebototnia auspicandum esse curationem, non a
pharmaeia." Heinsius.

In the beginning of May the Cavalry picquets of our
Division posted near Hornachos being considered
too much exposed, and without support, the Light
Companies of General Byng's Brigade were sent to a
small village called Puebla del Prior, immediately in
their rear, and I was directed to accompany the
detachment. This village is situated on a rising ground, and was
uncomfortably close to the enemy's videttes. One
day a brother officer and myself rode to Hornachos, a
town still farther in front, not occupied by either
French or English, but occasionally patrolled by both.
It was a silly excursion, for we might have been
caught by a patrol, which entered one end of the
town as we were entering the other; but a friendly
inhabitant told us in time, and our " better part of
valour" turned our horses' heads, though not before
the dragoons saw us and gave chace. We soon found
we could distance our pursuers, and checked our
horses, with the intention of inveigling them into the
neighbourhood of a troop of our own cavalry. But they

SKIRMISH AT USAGRE. 69
were old hands, and when they found how matters
stood, they deliberately turned and went back, with
out even honouring us with a shot.
After passing a fortnight quietly at Puebla, we
were disturbed one day when at dinner by the approach
of a strong body of the enemy's cavalry, before whom
our advanced picquets were slowly retiring. The
French gave my faithful valet just time to pack up
the baggage, and his master to swallow his soup,
when they came within musket shot of the village;
but finding it strongly occupied by infantry, they
halted, and ultimately declined an attack. It was
merely to feel our force, during the absence of Sir
Rowland Hill, who had marched to destroy the
enemy's forts at the bridge of Almaraz on the Tagus.
When this object had been handsomely accom
plished, the whole corps of Sir R. Hill advanced
towards Zafra and the Sierra Morena. At Usagre
we had the mortification of witnessing the defeat of
two regiments of our heavy cavalry, by about an
equal number of French, for whom, from the superior
physical strength of our men and horses, they ought
to have been more than a match. The French were
commanded by General L'Allemande, and the British
by General S  , who was much blamed at the time
for want of judgment in leading on his men. We
saw the whole affair distinctly from the church steeple
of Usagre. In the evening the wounded began to
arrive at the village, and the Surgeon of the 66th
and myself sat up the greatest part of the night
dressing the sabre wounds they had received. It was
said this unfortunate business gave great disgust at
Head Quarters ; which is confirmed by a letter of the
Duke of Wellington adverting to it, published by
Gurwood,

70 ILLNESS OF COLONEL D0DGK1N.
Soon after this we retired down the Guadiana, a
large French Corps having collected in our front.
We took post on the old fighting ground of Albuera,
and commenced fortifying the position with field
works. The dry grass, luxuriant after the slaughter
of the year before, was set on fire to clear the front of
the redoubts, and prevent a repetition of the calamities
of Talavera, where the wounded on both sides suf
fered so much from the accidental conflagration. On
this occasion it was painful to see hares, and part
ridges, and game of various kinds, with which the
country abounded, straying about unnaturally tame,
as if scared out of their instincts by the flames ; and
looking sadly disconsolate, from the premature de
struction of their young.
Towards the end of June, my Commanding Officer,
Colonel Dodgin, was attacked with a violent inflam
matory fever, and I received orders to convey him to
Badajoz, and attend him there. Notwithstanding ex
tensive depletion from the temporal arteries, and other
means necessary to subdue ardent fever in a patient of
large and robust frame, strong as a horse, and weigh
ing twenty stone, he became violently delirious. Under
the hallucination that he had been appointed Aide-de-
Camp to Sir R. Hill, he insisted one morning on
dressing himself, to go back to Camp. After fruit
lessly attempting to reason him out of his project, I
found I must employ stronger measures ; accordingly
having first removed the Colonel's sword, pistols, and
trowsers out of the way, and left him in charge of two
servants, I proceeded to the General Hospital in quest
of a strait waistcoat.
Here I found a certain eccentric Staff-Surgeon
named B  , whom I begged to afford me the neces
sary aid ?nr' ?'=<-» ?« <»!•». -r"« v-:~ — - — — ¦ — Stance

A REFRACTORY PATIENT. 71
in subduing my sick Hercules. Now, it so chanced
that Dr. B. had attended General Walker, who was so
badly wounded in the storm* The gallant patient had
had several ribs broken, with other dreadful injuries,
but happily recovered ; and his doctor being a good
draughtsman, had made a sketch of this remarkable
wound, and was, unfortunately, when I called, en
gaged in giving it the finishing touch. After ex
plaining my wishes I waited a few minutes, seeing
him still intent on his work ; but then requested he
would delay no longer, as I was apprehensive my re
fractory patient would break through all opposition,
mount his horse, and ride himself to death. "My
dear sir," he replied, "don't be impatient — just wait
one instant, it will not take more than a moment.
Look there, what do think of that ? Is the colouring
too high? I had much difficulty in managing that
flesh, both ways — eh — do you take? Doesn't that
rib relievo a leetle too much — Stay, I'll j ust soften it
down a shade." At last, after spending a quarter of
an hour in shading down General Walker's rib, out
we sallied, with two orderlies and a strait waistcoat.
I had anticipated mischief at the Colonel's quarters
from this delay, and was not mistaken ; for when we
reached the top of the street where he lived, we were
both horror struck at seeing the patient fully dressed
at the door of his house, preparing to mount his horse.
We all ran down the street as fast as we could, but he
was on horseback before we came up. The doctor
then accosted him very eloquently, imploring him to
alight, and representing that he was not in a condition

* " General Walker, leaping forward sword in hand, at the mo
ment when one of the enemy's cannoneers was discharging a gun,
fell covered with so many wounds that it was wonderful how he
could survive." Napier, vol. iv. p. 429.

72 A REFRACTORY PATIENT.
to travel in a hot sun, &c. &c. The Colonel desired
him to begone, and cursed him for a meddling mis
chievous fool, interfering where he had no business,
in a matter of duty— and then seeing his opponent
still resolutely obstructing his path, he set spurs to
his great black charger, and rode right at the poor
doctor. The latter jumped aside in great alarm, and
disappeared through a low window that was fortunately
open. The patient then proceeded in a canter down
the street, making for the Elvas gate ; but I ran by a
near cut, and arrived there before him, and with some
difficulty persuaded the Spanish Lieutenant on guard
to shut the gate. Presently the Colonel arrived,
ordered the gate to be opened, and flew into a great
rage when he found he could not get out. He then
turned his horse's head towards the Talavera gate, at
the opposite side of the town ; but he found himself
forestalled there also ; for when I had run to one gate,
I had sent a servant to the other. A good deal fatigued
by all this exertion in a burning sun, and weakened
by loss of blood, the Colonel rode home, lay down on
his couch, and fell asleep. He slept nearly thirty-six
hours, wakening only twice to take some drink, when
he awoke free from all complaint but weakness, and
recollecting nothing that had happened.
It appeared, that on my departure he had started
out of bed, soon mastered all opposition, and proceeded
to dress himself. The absence of his inexpressibles
was a puzzler, but with a soldier's presence of mind,
even when the mind was all wrong, he made one of his
servants surrender the pair he had on, threatening him
and striking him with a stick he had picked up, until
the poor man complied. The man's trowsers were
too small, but he forced his legs into them, tearing up
the seams into frio-ht.fnl rpnf« • anrl in^oo^ v.n ^ight

ILLNESS OF THE AUTHOR. 73
as well be absolutely sans culottes when he got on
horseback. He had saddled Black Tom himself, and
actually brought this great war horse into his bed
chamber, until he found his cocked hat. Had we
failed in blockading him at the gates, the Colonel
would have ridden, in all probability, until he dropped
dead from his horse.
After this adventure, Colonel D. soon recovered,
and went to join the Regiment, but without his surgeon.
It was the time when the banks of the Guadiana are
annually afflicted with bad remittent and intermittent
fevers. I caught the disease, struggled against it for
a little, but at last was obliged to take to my bed.
I had no desire to employ the facetious rib-painter
— though I dare say he would have treated me skil
fully, and have made a sketch of my pallid phiz be
sides ; so I confided myself to the care of a young
medical friend, who watched me with the most sedu
lous attention. From a kind, but not very judicious
desire to economize strength, he would not bleed me
as I wished ; but when the head symptoms became
urgent, he sheered and shaved my curly locks one hot
afternoon, and attached three or four dozen leeches to
my poor caput. A few hours after, they carried me into
the yard, placed me erect, and poured five and twenty
buckets of cold well water over me, from a third
story window, to drive away all the blood that was left
in my brains. For the first two hours I was not cer
tain whether my head had not been carried away by
the flood, my feelings were perfectly acephalous, and
all was a cold nonentity above the shoulders — but
there was violent re-action during the night, and I be
came delirious in the morning.
However, I was not destined to leave my bones in
Badajoz, or add to the pyramid of British bones al-
VOL. I. e

74 HOSPITALITY OF A PRIEST
ready there. By the blessing of Providence— which,
laughter loving mortal as I may be, I am not ashamed
to acknowledge— I at length recovered ; but in the
dreadfully hot weather we then had in Estramadura,
the convalescence was tedious.
Throughout the Peninsular campaigns, many offi
cers have complained that they never had the good
luck to meet with civil treatment in their billets; a
few others have been more lucky in uniformly coming
in contact with good patrones, occupying respect
able houses, with both the means and the inclination
for the exercise of attention and hospitality. I belong
to the more fortunate class, and on this occasion, when
I so much required the aid of the social charities, I
was as lucky in my billet as when landing in Lisbon.
I lodged in the house of a kind-hearted young Priest,
Don Juan Joze Martinez, who had two sisters living
with him, and a third, the Abbess of a Convent, in the
same street. The young Senhoras were exceedingly
kind and attentive; perhaps the more so when they
heard from Antonio that I was a Senhor Irlandez —
which in Spain is synonymous with Roman Catholic.
But to do these good ladies justice, when undeceived
in this respect, they did not relax a whit in those
thousand little affectionate attentions which my help
less situation called for, and those soothing offices of
female kindness, that are so delightful to the object,
when on a bed of sickness in a strange land. They
were very urgent in their charitable endeavours to
convert me from my heresy, and bring me within the
pale of their own church, seasoning each cup of the nice
broth they prepared with good advice on this subject;
and often calling in their brother to their assistance.
He was stronger-minded and more liberal, however,
than those dark eyed maidens, and used to reply to

AND HIS SISTERS. 7o
their entreaties, — " Deixa lo, deixa lo, Pobrecito."
Let him alone, poor fellow — we must cure him first,
and convert him afterwards.
When I became convalescent, a strange Spanish
gentleman called to see me. He said he had been
desired by his wife and daughters to enquire concern
ing my health, and to express on their part grateful
thanks for the attentions they had received at Albu
querque. It was Don Ignacio Solvielta; and as soon
as I recovered sufficiently 1 called on my fair friends,
and learned with pleasure that their house had re
mained untouched during the siege ; and in the pillage
after the storm, although the door had been blown
open, a bag of a couple of hundred dollars was the
amount of their loss. I felt a lively pleasure at their
exemption from the misery that bowed down the un
happy city.
My patrone gave me a graphic description of the state
of his family during the two dreadful days that Bada
joz was the prey of a drunken and infuriated soldiery.
He had sagaciously anticipated the plunder, and pro
vided two purses, — a larger and a smaller — placed his
sisters on the top of the house, and then destroyed the
ladder ; after these precautions, the courageous priest
quietly awaited the result. About eight o'clock the
first morning, a party of half drunken British soldiers,
in yellow facings, blew off the lock of the street door,
by simultaneously discharging their muskets, with
the muzzles in a close circle round the key hole, rushed
in and seized him and demanded his money. He
pleaded poverty, but they presented their muskets to
his breast ; and at last by horrid threats extorted the
smaller purse. They then searched the house, pillag
ing whatever struck their fancy ; at length they went
away, and the door was barricaded as well as circum-

76 OUTRAGES AFTER THE SIEGE OF BADAJOZ.
stances permitted. In the course of the day another
party broke through the poor priest's defences, roamed
through the house, and by threats of instant death
forced him to surrender the larger purse. The door
was then left open, but the house was no more mo
lested. The poor trembling girls remained on the
roof till some degree of order was restored in the
town. During the siege two twenty-four pound shot had
penetrated the back wall of the house, and lodged in
the front, without doing farther injury than piercing
a wooden partition, and demolishing an arm chair,
from which one of the sisters had just risen. The
priest said he intended to keep them both, though
they were not in the habit in his church of preserving
relics so substantial.
A veil was thrown purposely over the sufferings of
his sister the abbess, and the inmates of the convent,
which was never withdrawn ; for when I ventured to
enquire if they had escaped insult and outrage, Don
Juan's brow grew black. It was then only I could fully
appreciate the fine character of the man. Smarting
under recent violence and spoliation; and moreover
touched, as there was too much reason to believe, in
a point on which Spanish honour is so peculiarly
susceptible, he yet had the good sense not to confound
the innocent with the guilty, and the magnanimity
still to treat me with the greatest tenderness, when
lying helpless under his roof.
At this time the heat of the weather was extraordi
nary — the Fahrenheit thermometer rising to 97° in the
shade. Under these circumstances it was not easy to
recover strength fast ; but having heard that the Army
was about to move to the front, I became anxious to
join, and marched ten days before I ought to have set

LIBERALITY OF COLONEL N ICOL. 77
out. The consequence was an attack of ague' on the
road ; and though the temperature in the sun could
not have been less than 130° — my teeth danced and
chattered for an hour or so like a pair of castanets ;
and I was forced to halt in a village on the road,
named Santa Martha.
The army was then six months in arrears of pay,
and consequently a good deal of inconvenience from
narrow finances was experienced by officers of all
ranks, particularly when absent from their regiments.
Two or three days after my arrival in Santa Martha,
when taking a farewell look at my last dollar, and de
vising some plan of ways and means suited to the
emergency, I saw a mounted soldier of the 66th Re
giment riding up to the door, enquiring for me, with
a letter from Colonel Nicol commanding the Regiment
at Fuentes del Maestro. It was a very kind letter,
giving me unlimited leave of absence, and was ac
companied by three doubloons, which he thought I
might require ; and it appeared afterwards, that such
was the scarcity of money, he was obliged to borrow
this sum from a Sutler who accompanied the Divi
sion. I know not how others feel on the subject, but I
have always experienced singular pleasure in express
ing obligation ; though it is certainly a very cheap
way of requiting it. I record this act of kindness of
my esteemed friend, General Nicol, first, for this rea
son, and secondly because it was one of a series of
similar deeds of thoughtful and unostentatious good
nature and liberality, towards his officers, during a
quarter of a century that he commanded the Regi
ment. At length I rejoined the 66th at Fuentes del Maes
tro just in time to accompany it on another advance

78 USING LEECHES INTERNALLY.
of the Division, in the direction of Llerena; but on
some intelligence being received of the concentration
of a strong force under Drouet on our right, the Di
vision was countermarched, and General Byng's Bri
gade, consisting of the Buffs, or 3rd Foot, the 31st,
57th, and 66th, returned to their old quarters at
Fuentes del Maestro.
The day of our return was hot and windy, and the
road very dusty. When the Brigade reached the im
mediate neighbourhood of the town, they halted and
piled their arms, until the men got their billets. Near
this spot was one of the old fountains, from which the
place had taken its name; which was a square now
in a ruinous state, and half filled with grass and weeds,
but still containing clear water. The thirsty soldiers,
fatigued with the heat and long march, flew at once
to this reservoir; and kneeling, and placing their
hands on the low wall that surrounded it, they dipped
their dusty muzzles up to the ears in the cool element,
and quaffed away like fishes.
" The consequence was awful in the extreme.''
Next morning, about a hundred and fifty of them
came sick to the different regimental Hospitals, and
at first their cases looked alarming, for they were all
spitting blood. On examination it was ascertained,
that they had fished up three or four hundred leeches
from the old fountain, which, it seemed, was full of
the little wretches. These blood-suckers had attached
themselves in the mouth, nostrils, throat, gullet, and
even the stomach ; higher or lower, according to the
vigour of their own adhesive powers, or the strength
of suction of the drinkers. We certainly had a bloody
day at the Hospital, although no lives were lost, ex
cept the leeches, and they were attacked in all man-

USING LEECHES INTERNALLY. 79
ner of ways, both by stratagem and open force. Some
were noosed with a silk ligature, by the tail, and torn
off leaving the head still sticking. Several were dis-
loged by a strong solution of salt, and tobacco was
used to others. Powerful emetics were necessary to
oust the knowing ones, that had reached the citadel
of the stomach ; and one obstinate sanguisuga re
quired three or four in succession. At last the enemy
was finally beaten from all their positions with great
slaughter, and the doctors of the Brigade washed
their hands and went home to dinner.
The whole Corps of Sir Rowland Hill, consisting
of sixteen or seventeen thousand men, was now set in
motion towards the Sierra Morena, to co-operate with
the forward movement of the main force under Lord
Wellington, assist in harassing Soult during his eva
cuation of Andalusia, and finally push up the Tagus,
and advance to Madrid. We marched on the 27th
of August, reached Llerena on the 29th, and Don
Benito on the 6th of September. During these marches
over a fine level country, the officers had great amuse
ment from the quantity of game they met with ; par
tridges were very numerous, and fine bustards were
occasionally killed. As for hares, they were to be
seen in scores, and often traversed the line of march,
and were killed or caught by the men, amidst great
shouting and fun. On one march of four leagues,
an officer of the 66th killed seven with a greyhound,
and arrived at the end of the march at the same time
as the Regiment.
Don Benito is a large town, a short distance from
the Guadiana, and close to the field of Medellin, where
the imbecile and obstinate Cuesta had been defeated
by Victor with such dreadful loss. It is averred, that
on the evening of the battle, the arms of the French

80 BATTLE-FIELD OF MEDELLlN.
Dragoons were so much swollen by their exertions
in cutting up the Spanish infantry, that they could
not be pulled out of the sleeves of their jackets. The
Spanish cavalry had fled as usual, leaving the artillery
and infantry to their fate.
Colonel Nicol and myself rode out onebeautiful even
ing to the scene of action, intending to visit Medellin
before we returned. The ground was still covered with
the usual relics of the combat — broken bits of arms
and accoutrements — shreds of uniforms — here and
there a cap with a sabre cut, or the crown stove in,
and occasionally a human skeleton, or that of a horse.
When we came to a level piece of smooth ground, ex
tending a long way before us, we commenced a brisk
canter; and I am not sure that I did not apostrophize
the Colonel's lazy Spanish horse, El Medico, by some
such speech as " Come along, old Medico." If so,
my triumph was short; for I had not proceeded a
hundred yards, when a brace of partridges whirred up
under Liberdade's nose — the startled animal bolted to
one side, at right angles with the road, depositing his
rider across the skull of some huge grenadier, which
nearly stove in three or four of his ribs. The Colonel
was with me in a moment, and supported my head
until I recovered from the shock, which was far from
agreeable, and impressed upon me the advisableness
of burying the dead after all battles. I then proceeded
to make an examination of the extent of the injury —
set the ribs to rights — my friend caught the horse,
and we resumed our ride.
The English had never been in Don Benito ; con
sequently, we enjoyed the pleasing effects of the first
burst of patriotism, friendship, and hospitality of the in
habitants, 'after the long and oppressive occupation of
their town by the enemy. Nothing was seen or heard

HOSPITALITY IN DON BENITO. 81
but patriotic songs — swearing allegiance to the Consti
tution before the ugly portrait of Ferdinand the Seventh,
" Vivan los Inglezez !" and feting and dancing. We
had a ball every night, and the people seemed to be
all mad with joy. On the night of the 12th of Sep
tember, when all busily engaged at a ball, the Mar
quis of Worcester arrived from Head Quarters with
despatches for Sir Rowland Hill ; in half an hour the
party was broken up, and early in the morning the
corps was put in motion for Truxillo. I recollect the
terrible wetting we all got in a heavy thunder storm,
as we were leaving the town, and when the sun had
nearly dried our clothes upon our backs, during the
morning march our lower integuments were again
dipped mid-thigh deep in fording the Guadiana.
The angry elements pelted us pitilessly on every op
portunity till we arrived at Truxillo ; and then, after a
poor muleteer had been killed by the lightning, who
was sitting on his mule, singing "Viva Ferdinando !"
it cleared up, and we had very fine weather.
A large depot of provisions and stores, and an hos
pital were established at Truxillo. Head Quarters
remained here and in the neighbourhood for some
days, and then the whole corps moved onward to Ma
drid; whilst, to my great mortification, the Medical
Officer who was ordered to take charge of the hospi
tal fell sick, and I was directed by the Staff Surgeon
of the Division to take his place. I thus escaped
much discomfort and suffering during the Burgos
retreat, but I missed seeing Madrid and the Escurial.

e2

82

CHAPTER IX.
TRUXILLO.  LOVE MATTERS.  PLOT OF ASSASSINATION DIS
COVERED AND FRUSTRATED.  MEDICAL TREATMENT 01
A SPANISH RIVAL.  SERENADE.  MARCH TO ELVAS.
" Cujus a vertice ac nigricantibus oculis
Tale quiddam spirat ac ab aurea venere.'-
Ausonius.
Truxillo, corrupted from Turris Julii, its ancient
name, is a place of high antiquity, having been a Ro
man Praesidium, and the head quarters of a legion.
In modern times it is only known as the birth place of
Pizarro ; and the house in which he was born is still
to be seen in the principal square. It is a large un
inhabited, half-ruined building ; indeed half the town
is in ruins. I occupied the palace of the Medina Si-
donia family as a general hospital ; and it was melan
choly to see the straw beds of the sick spread on the
floors of the most magnificent apartments, and to. be
hold on all sides similiar incongruities, and even
much greater, and every thing in the town hastening
rapidly to decay. A condition of things but too em
blematic of the state of the monarchy.
I lodged in the mansion of the Conde de Q  , a
descendant of Pizarro, a little old man, who, in right
of his ancestor, always wore a small gold key outside
the flap of his right coat pocket, of which he was
very proud. He was very grandiloquent — as most
Spanish gentlemen are — formal, courteous, needy,
and pedantic. When he found I could read Spanish

LOVE MATTERS. 83
he gave me the entree to his Library, which was the
best I saw in Spain ; and I found there several Eng
lish works, which I did not expect, translated into
Spanish, and looking grotesque enough in their Casti-
lian dress. Amongst these were Robinson Crusoe,
Pamela, and Hervey's Meditations — the florid and
inflated style of the last being exactly conformable to
the Spanish idiom.
The Conde de Q  had two daughters, Dona
Francesca, and Dona Bernarda ; with the latter of
whom, who was the younger and the prettier, I soon
found myself falling desperately in love. They had a
very beautiful cousin, Dona Serafina, who used to
spend most of her evenings at our house, whilst her
inamorato, a very handsome Officer of the English
Commissariat, whom I shall call Stanley, was never
far off on these occasions. My time was fully occupied
during the whole of the day ; for I had two hundred
sick, and a number of officers to attend, with one in
competent Spanish Medical Officer to assist me ; but
the evenings were for the most part my own. These
were devoted to dancing, forfeits, blind man's buff,
lessons in Don Quixote, singing, the guitar, and such
like authorised modes of making love. In these very
pleasant pastimes the loves of the Commissary and
the Doctor throve amazingly. I may make his story
the subject of an episodical chapter.
It is customary in Spain to take one's chocolate in
bed, very early in the morning, and as there is no
harm in doing at Rome what the Romans do in such
matters, I found it good policy to conform to the
national custom ; and Antonio would sometimes bring
it to me, fuming and fragrant, by day light. But
more frequently the fairy-footed Bernarda, accom
panied by Francesca, would give a slight tap at the

84 LOVE MATTERS.
chamber door, and then appear at my bedside, bearing
a little silver salver, on which was a small gilded cup
of chocolate, so thick and rich, that the little delicate
parallelopiped of toast, its unvarying attendant, would
stand upright in the middle. Then would the lovely
sisters remain, " . . . twin cherries on one stalk,"
in all honest confidence, laughing and joking, and
lisping their beautiful language, till I had finished
my chocolate — a matter which I was never in much
hurry to accomplish.
Let no man of vain imagination, nor woman either,
entertain for a moment a thought prejudicial to the
amiable couple ; for no sweet brace of sisters on re
cord, chaste as
"... the icicle
That hangs from Dian's Temple,"
could have uniformly comported themselves with
greater propriety.
Love, they say, is as much the pabulum of poetry,
as " Music is the food of Love." But as my poetical
efforts here were mere lessons, to be submitted to the
revision of my fair instructress; and, moreover, were
about as unclassic Castalian as Castillian, I shall not
inflict any of them on the reader. But, to shew him
what is expected from a Lover in Spain, particularly
when the nights are warm and pleasant, I shall in
troduce an English version of a serenade composed
at Truxillo, and intended to be sung. Alas ! there
was not time to learn the guitar accompaniment.

A SPANISH RIVAL. 85
SERENADE.
Truxillo, September, 1812.
By the Moon's imploring light
Which calls thy beauties into sight ;
By the soft and balmy air
That longs to fan thy form so fair ;
By the Nightingale's sweet strain,
Warbling amidst our secret grove —
Burst dull Sleep's ignoble chain —
Awake ! arise, my Love !
By Music's soft mysterious power,
Mellower for the midnight hour,
By thine own melodious song —
By the thoughts that with it throng —
By the scene that song recals,
But known to us, and to the Dove,
Hid in the Arbour's fragrant walls,
Awake ! arise, my Love !
I remained three months at Truxillo, and were I
not afraid of swelling out my book to inexpedient di
mensions, I could detail numerous incidents both of
a comic and tragic nature, but all interesting enough
at the time in which I was engaged. The adven
tures of various English officers, too, at this period,
when robbed and maltreated by the numerous bands
of " ladrones" on their way to join, and their woe
begone appearance when they arrived at our post,
would fill a volume. Many delightful love passages
must also be omitted, however exquisite to the
parties concerned. I must also dispose of graver
matters of jealousy and revenge with a hasty allu
sion. How I had a Spanish rival for the good graces
of my mistress — how I was threatened with the cu-
chillo if I persisted in my presumption, and how this
threat was attempted to be carried into effect, but of
which I had timely information by a friendly anony
mous letter. How, with the assistance of the trusty
Antonio, and two of the Hospital orderlies, the tables

86 LOVE MATTERS.
were turned on the plotters, who were soundly
drubbed ; how I discovered my little venomous rival
amongst them; and though last, not least, how I
treated him on that occasion most professionally, by
administering with my own hands a good stiff dose
of bark with the stick inside.
In the midst of these stirring and joyous scenes,
events of great importance were taking place in front.
King Joseph had assembled a very large force, and
was marching on Madrid ; and Sir Rowland Hill was
moving to unite with Lord Wellington, leaving the
Valley of the Tagus open to the French. One evening,
when my friend Stanley and myself were more than
usually happy with our mistresses, and I was enacting
the part of the blindfolded Hero in our romps, An
tonio brought me a letter that had just arrived, direct
ing me to break up the Hospital establishment imme
diately, and remove the sick to Elvas. That night
we romped no more.
I am well aware that in the frank acknowledgment
of early errors, to be found in these pages, I lay my
self open to the severity of criticism on many accounts ;
and chiefly for the egotistic presumption of supposing
that such details of an obscure individual's youthful
fooleries can interest the public. Still, though an
extremely insignificant hero, as his story is begun, the
Author begs leave to tell it in his own way.
In the garden of the Conde that night, amidst
many sighs and tears, the elopement of the loving but
sorrowing Bernarda was arranged ; but not without
the sanction of the Church, which was to be pre
viously and secretly obtained. There being no post-
chaises, nor other procurable vehicles at a short no
tice in that part of Spain, the ladies must travel on
mule-back, or ass-back; so I purchased a quiet

MARCH TO ELVAS. 87
female donkey to carry her fair load. As the whole
business was secretly conducted — for we feared the
opposition of the Conde — Antonio negotiated, that
the owner of the animal should bring it to my stable
the evening before the intended escapade, ostensibly
to carry baggage. At the time appointed the don
key was grazing in a field with several others ; and
just before the proprietor caught her, a fight and
general row had taken place among the bourros — the
quiet animal selected for me received a kick in the
mele'e from one of her he-relations, that lamed her
effectually — no ass was forthcoming when required ;
and time pressed, for Soult and the King were ad
vancing, and our army was in full retreat from
Burgos. No other conveyance could be obtained ;
and thus our scheme failed, and the ignoble kick of
an ass knocked the best concerted plan in the world
to pieces. This trifling accident fortunately pre
vented me from making a fatal mistake, thus early in
life, which would have irreparably shaded its whole
complexion afterwards.
After bidding farewell to as lachrymose a pair of
sisters as ever wept in each others arms, I conducted
my sick to Elvas, accompanied by my friend Stanley,
a good natured little Doctor of the Buffs, and a gi
gantic officer of the 71st, Ralph Dudgeon, some
where near seven feet high, but every inch a good
fellow. On the march the little boys and girls fol
lowed him as a prodigy, and every body stared up at
him as if looking at a steeple. The roads at this
time were infested by numerous bands of robbers,
formed chiefly of deserters from the starving Spanish
armies ; but we marched in battle-array, and although
we had one alarm in a thick Cork-tree wood, the ras
cals were frightened at our imposing appearance, and

OS MARCH TO ELVAS.
made off on the approach of our small but compact
column. At Badajoz I failed not to call on the good Priest,
my former kind host, and was concerned to find that
one of the amiable sisters was suffering from a Ter
tian fever. Having prescribed for her, and left her a
supply of good medicine (invaluable in Spain), we
marched to Elvas.

CHAPTER X.

THE ADVENTURES OF A HANDSOME COMMISSARY.
A SOUVENIR OF TRUXILLO.

" O Love ! young Love ! bound in thy rosy band,
Let sage or cynic prattle as he will,
These hours, and only these, redeem Life's years of iH."
Byron.

"Ave Maria purissima!" said Don Ignacio Lan-
driz on entering the saloon of the Marqueza de Santa
Cruz one evening.
" Sin pecado concebida !" was the usual response.
" Bellissima Marqueza beso seus manos lindos."
" Beautiful Marchioness, I kiss your fair hands.
Adorable mother and angelic daughter, your vassal
throws himself at your feet."
" Don Ignacio, we are charmed to see you honour
ing our little tertulha so early," said the Marqueza.
" How beautifully fluent you military gentlemen are
in your compliments. Your gallantry to our sex is
only subordinate to the same quality in the field.
Tell me, which is your forte, attacking the citadel of
our hearts, or storming a real fortress?"
" Both are equally our duty, divine Marqueza.
Fealty to El Rey y la Dama, we swear upon our
swords, and are taught with our exercise."
" Bravo ! Senhor," exclaimed a third interlocutor,
the Marchioness's daughter, Donna Serafina. " Bravo,
Senhor — the sentiment is most noble, and the associa-

90 THE adventures of
tion delightful ; but confess, Capitano, is not the gal
lantry a little easier than the fighting?"
" Perdona, lovely Senhorita, it is quite the same.
For my own part, I prefer slicing off the head of a
Frenchman to a bolero or a waltz— except with your
charming self." " Muchissimas gracias Senhor."
"But adorable Donna Serafina, how enchanting
you look this evening. By the honour of a soldier,
you are the most lovely rose-bud in all Spain."
" A pretty compliment, indeed, Don Ignacio. But
my cousin, Maria de Pacheco, told me you said the
same thing to her last night. You should change
the flower, Senhor."
" You are so charming that even a rebuff from you
is delicious."" And from so distinguished a soldado, what lady
ought not to be content with a compliment at second
hand ? But how goes on the war ? How many of the
enemy have you killed lately, Senhor ?"
" Why we have had little to do since the siege of
Tarifa. Some reconnoitering with Ballasterors only.
Nothing that I call fighting."
"And at Tarifa?"
" Why there was a pretty little affair on the main
breach during the storm, and I found myself at
tacked by four French grenadiers. Huge rascals they
were." " Did you slice off all their heads at once ?"
" Ha ! ha ! ha ! how witty you are, fair Senhorita."
" Or only two at a time ?"
" Not exactly, bellissima. But at the Battle of
Barrossa — "
" I understand — you mowed them down in couples.

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 91
But, mia madre, what did the English Commandant
tell us lately of the Regimento del Principe having
run away at the onset, and never pulled bridle till they
reached the Cadiz Lines ?"
" It is true, my child. He said so."
" Calumny — envy — Senhorita. Los Inglezez are,
no doubt, good soldiers ; but they will not allow any
body to be brave but themselves."
" But did'nt the Dragoons really run away, Don
Ignacio?" " Why — no — one squadron wavered a little, only ;
but I led them back."
" And then did wonders ?"
" It is not for me to say. But adorable Senhorita,
let us converse on softer themes. You know how
long I have been the slave of your loveliness. I
swear — "
" To kill two at once — Maria and me. O be not
so cruel. Non, non, Senhor Capitano — you are too
valuable in these bad times to be lost, making love at
Truxillo. Join your Regiment — you are much wanted.
Keep them from running away. Adios, Don Ig
nacio." The Marqueza de Santa Cruz and her daughter
Donna Serafina were the two beauties — par excellence
— of Truxillo. One was a majestic woman of thirty-
five, though looking ten years younger ; the other a
most lovely creature of seventeen, and truly worthy
of the compliment that had just been paid her; for
she was fresh and fair, and fragrant as the richest
bud that ever veiled its beauties on a moss rose tree's
bosom. We all know that roses and rosebuds, acting from
the instincts of their sweet nature, turn their faces to
the Zephyr and the morning sun, while they shrink

92 THE ADVENTURES OF
from the fierce mid-day beam, or the rude wind ; and
their human representatives, lovely matrons and mai
dens, do, or ought to do, the same. When I mention,
then, that this terrible slayer of Frenchmen, a Captain
of Dragoons, in the Regiment of the Principe de Paz—
the execrable Godoy — was a short, stout, dark, and
ugly man — forty-four years of age — with scowling
eyebrows, fierce eyes, huge, coarse moustachios, a
large mouth, and tobacco-stained teeth — I think the
Reader will admit, that his voice could have had very
little of the soft Favonian about it ; and that our dear
Senhorita was quite right in shrinking when she
heard it, drawing close her pretty petals, and keeping
all her charms and rich odours to herself —
' Nee teneris audet foliis admittere soles."
But, if this is scarcely deemed a valid reason by
some ; seeing that in this mammon-ridden world of
ours, age and ugliness are so often successful in woo
ing youth and beauty — I have another for the Reader's
private ear. At this precise time, when Wellington
at Salamanca burst through the French ranks —
and left the gallant Marmont
Extended on the field without his arm on;"
though, en passant, this is a mistake ; for the
Marshal climbed up the Pyramids the other day, and
made lusty use of both arms. However, at this time
a Depot was ordered to be formed at Truxillo, and a
Commissariat Officer, whose true name I disguise
under that of Stanley, was sent there to organize
this establishment. This person was one of the
most handsome, graceful, and accomplished men I
ever beheld ; in fact a perfect Adonis in face and
figure — if such a solecism be endurable, as Adonis

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 93
with a pen behind his ear. The Commissary chanced
to be billeted on the Marquis de Santa Cruz, where
our little story opens; and in the course of my travels
I have observed, that when good looking Cavalier and
lovely Dame dwell under the same roof, no matter
how spacious the mansion, or numerous the apart
ments, or ponderous the locks to the doors — they
have a way of their own of soon getting acquainted.
However, here they were saved all trouble of this
kind ; for, on the very first day of his entering the
house, when Mr. Stanley presented his billet to the
Marquis, with a deferential bow, and a few sentences
of pure Castillian, his noble host, pleased with his
appearance and address, received him very graciously.
After a short conversation, during which the Marquis
learned, that the Officer just billeted on him was to
be at the Head of the Department in that part of
Spain, this good nobleman became quite affectionate ;
conducted his guest into a handsome saloon — in
troduced him to his wife and daughter — installed
him in comfortable apartments — established his Irish
servant also to his satisfaction, somewhere in the
vicinity of the kitchen; and begged that so long as
the Commissary en Xefe, as he termed him, remained
in Truxillo, sua Senhoria would make himself quite
at home in his house.
It would be a little unhandsome, after all this civi
lity, to pry into the kind nobleman's motives. The
French had long occupied Truxillo, and as usual,
fleeced and impoverished the inhabitants; and the
Marquis had severely suffered with the rest. It was
but natural, then, that the people of the place should
be delighted at their departure, and the arrival of the
English, who never maltreated any body, and who
paid every body. I am very much afraid that this

94 THE ADVENTURES OF
last consideration had great weight with our Hidalgo ;
who, with a pedigree reaching to Roderic the Goth,
had as lank a purse as Job the Arabian. The French,
according to their immemorial and amiable custom,
had made free with his Plate and other valuables,
and drained the superfluities of his cellar, besides
making love to his wife ; which they would have done
to his daughter also, if she had not been sent to a
Convent out of the way. But they neither could
know, nor steal every thing ; and a large quantity of
wheat and Indian corn had been secretly buried at
the Marquis's Quinta, or Country House; and thirty
pipes of good red wine there also ensepulchered.
These had escaped the talons of the military harpies ;
and it is just possible that the owner might have er
roneously conceived, he would get a better price for
his corn and his wine, for the use of the English army
if he treated the English Commissary General under
his roof with marked hospitality.
Don Henriquez Stanley, as they called him in Spain,
was, I have stated, a very accomplished person; and
the circumstances of old family, a good education,
and early foreign travel, did not a little enhance the
advantages of face and figure, with which nature had
eminently endowed him. He rose rapidly in the de
partment in which, after the death of his parents, his
friends had obtained him a clerkship; for he spoke
Spanish like a Doctor of Salamanca, and could quote
vernacular proverbs almost as glibly as SanchoPanza
of facetious memory. Moreover, he was a gentleman
in the fullest sense of the word ; of a generous and
affectionate nature ; and wherever he sojourned,
twenty or thirty women were sure to be dying for
him. He played on the flute, the violin, and the
guitar, charmingly, as the ladies said ; and he carried
a first rate violoncello wi^r. Kic. u^n — --- j --''ed it

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 95
his wife. He sang sweetly and manfully, waltzed,
boleroed, and fandangoed supremely, and made love
divinely. Ah ! my delicious little rose-bud, beware !
beware ! Poke thy dear little fragrant head into the
midst of the maternal bush, and implore all its thorns
for thy defence; an eager hand is near to grasp thee,
and a button hole near the heart is open for thy re
ception. " Margaritha, my jewel — and throth your very
name, as my master says, manes a perril — to say no
thing of your illigant teeth. But, mira usted — see, if
there's not that bull-frog of a captain goin out of the
street doorr agin, and drawing his big cloak about
him." " Yes, Senhor Bartholomeo — I see him. He is a
frequent visitor, and I believe an admirer of my beau
tiful young mistress. The grace of the Virgin be
around her !"
" Bad luck to him every day he sees a pavin stone !
Faith, an he might save himself the throuble, now
that we're here. My master wont lave him the ghost
of a chance."
" En verdade, your master is a sweet, handsome
gentleman, un caballero muyhermoso; and that Sen
horita must have a hard heart who could bring her
self to look cross on him."
" Faith, and you may say that with your own sweet
mouth, Margaritha, and those purty lips of yours, like
two beautiful ridd chirries, with the bames of the
evening sun upon them."
" O you flatterer ! You Senhores Irlandezez never
say a word of truth to a woman."
" Throth, darlin, every word of it's the thruth, and
I hav'n't tould you the half of it yitt."
" Ah, but Bartholomeo  "
" Barto — mio — By my conscience you're right in

96 THE ADVENTURES OF
calling me that same— forit's myself is your own Barty
from the cockles of my heart to my heel-taps. And
by the Piper that played afore Moses, us two, and
thimm that's up stairs, will make two as nate couples
for the Priest, as ivirr his Reverince pitched holy wa-
ther upon. But mind you help us with the mis-
thress, Margaritha."
" I understand, Senhor."
" And don't forget, you purty crathur, that the
more your misthress takes to my masthur, the more
will Senhor Bartholomeo take to her maid ; and that's
aqual and rasonable all the world over, and the county
of Cork to boot. Ogh ! but thimm ruby lips of yours
luk so invitin intirely — "
" Don't be rude, Senhor — stop — no — no — no — Bar
tholomeo, no modest Spanish woman permits such a
thing before she is affiangada. It would be a mortal
sin. Then indeed — "
" Ogh ! and would you make a Corkman wait till
thinn, you hard hearted little darlin. My country
men, a cushleen, have the privvilige of the Pope and
St. Pathrick, to stale a kiss when they plazed ; but
only from a purty mouth, — and the good ould saint
swore, that if they stuck to that, he'd forgive thim
the thift."
" O Senhor, in that case — "
Senhor Bartholomeo, as it sounds euphoniously in
Spanish, was known at Kinsale by the name of Barty
O'Reilly, and was as clean and active a boy of his
inches as ever was reared in the extensive county of
Cork. He was faithful, honest, and good humoured ;
and only now and then told a white lie, or displayed
aught of those generic characteristics of his country
men, — tipsitiveness and combativeness. He had gone
to England to push his fortune ; but, not succeeding

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 97
as fast as he expected, he looked out for a master to
take him to the Peninsula at the beginning of the
war, and engaged with Mr. Stanley. With him he
went to Lisbon, Gibraltar, and Cadiz ; and had been
nearly four years his confidential valet at the opening
of the little story.
It is, I believe, an axiom in the philosophy of the
human mind, that the understanding cannot occupy
itself devotedly, and with equal attention on two dif
ferent subjects at the same time ; for the greater in
terest will absorb the lesser ; and if we attempt syn
chronously to master both, our wits will go a wool
gathering with respect to one or the other, or be
brought to a dead lock between them. It is no use
quoting examples of great men before, or after Aga
memnon, who could simultaneously employ half-a-
dozen secretaries, in writing to their dictation, as
fatal to this position; for even then the mind em
braced only one thing at a time. Julius Caesar, or
Napoleon, or any other illustrious Dictator, might thus
tire the fingers of his clerks ; for they possessed the
rare talent of quick mental abstractedness from one
subject, and instantaneous transition to another ; when
the interrupted line of thought would be resumed and
followed up, as if it had been continuously within the
mind's grasp. And as the ideas flowed faster than the
ink, the directing mind had time to quit one matter
and take up another ; keeping all the pens at work.
On the morning of the 20th of September, Mr. As
sistant Commissary General Stanley was rather late in
coming to his office ; and moreover, when he did ar
rive he seemed flushed at first, and then he grew pale,
and became flushed again; and his handsome eyes
looked unsteady, and could not fix themselves long
on any object. In fact he was, as they say in France,
vol. i. f

98 THE ADVENTURES OF
distrait, or in Munster, bothered— quite as good a
word. It might be that he had a headache from
losing his night's rest by the mosquitoes, which had
free access to his bed-chamber from the garden be
neath his balcony. However this may be, the Com
missary put his hat upon a peg, but not its own peg,
sate down to his desk, and began to mend a pen ; but
his hand was as unsteady as his eye, and having cut
one side of the nib too short, and then the other, and
so on alternately to the top of the slit ; and then sliced
off a small section of his forefinger — he wrapped the
wounded member in his pocket handkerchief, placed
his elbow on the desk, and reclined his cheek on his
hand. After half an hour's meditation in this sentimental
position, and answering, a tort et a travers, certain
questions propounded to him by some of the young
clerks in the office — who thought him absorbed in
some financial question as to the price of salt pork
or green forage — Mr. Stanley opened a large ledger,
took a pencil, and began to calculate some long
columns of figures. But he found this even harder
work than mending his pen ; and after floundering
amongst units, and tens, and hundreds, and making
all kinds of mistakes, he shut his book, having made
the notable discovery that Love is the most arrant
miscalculator in the world. Our absent man of figures
then took a sheet of paper, and began several flourishes
with his pencil — first his name, with such a number of
magnificent gyrations to the tail of the last letter, as
no "y" was ever honoured with before — next a small
foot and ankle stood out in skilful relievo from the
paper — and then a beautiful female face. After
about an hour of this useful employment, by which the
interests of His Majesty's Service were very much

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 99
promoted, the Assistant Commissary General put on
his hat, and came to pay me a visit.
It so chanced that he and myself had been old ac
quaintances. We had, I think, liked each other from
the first when we met at Lisbon ; and many a plea
sant ride we had had together — to Mafra, to Cintra,
and through the shady cork tree forests of the Alem-
Tejo. What added now to the old friendship was the
freemasonry of our present position ; for I was engaged
in a little affaire de cceur as well as he — our mis
tresses were first cousins, and mutual confidants ; and
thus circumstanced, the deuce was in it if we could
have been less to each other than old Damon and
Pythias, Castor and Pollux, or any other twins in
blood or friendship on record.
" O my friend, she agreed to meet me at last ! We
had such a heavenly interview in the garden last night !
For a full hour we sat in the arbour, and she poured
into my ear such delicious confessions. I do from
my heart believe there was never so divine a creature
on earth. She sent me a beautiful ringlet of her raven
hair this morning. By Jove, I'm mad to-day. I can
settle to nothing."
" Happy fellow. She is a treasure. I never saw
so lovely a girl. But beware, and be cautious. That
rascally Captain. Had you nobody on watch ?"
" O yes — Barty stood sentinel."
" He is honest as steel."
" We had a little romantic incident. What do you
think of a nightingale striking up a pretty song from
the tree over our heads ?"
" Good, nightingales turn doves here. It must
have pleased the Senhorita, though I suspect neither
of you attended much to her music. I hope you
didn't whisper loud enough to frighten away your
songstress."

100 THE ADVENTURES OF
" No, but an odd noise outside the garden wall did."
" Indeed."
" And Barty swears he saw something like a man's
head rise over the wall, near the large chesnut tree,
and then disappear."
" It was a spy — perhaps Don Ignacio himself.
You must meet no more in the garden."
" Meet no more in the garden ! By all that's sacred,
if twenty such rascals were sure to jump over the wall
dagger in hand, I meet Serafina there to-morrow
night !"
" Then Barty and I are to be in attendance, and
armed." " Thanks — agreed — and how gets on your little
soft affair?"
" As well as possible."
" Do you know I'm brushing up my fencing. I
see it will come to that."
" Never in an honourable way. He is a bragga
docio and coward, who may assassinate but won't
fight. Gibson says this was his character at Cadiz."
" Well, it can do no harm to supple one's wrist. I
was once a tolerable hand at carte and tierce, and
shall be again with a little practice. Doyou know
that Serafina is going to your house to see her aunt
and cousins this evening?"
" J'en suis charme, and her Caballero will not be
far off."
" He will drop in to pay you a visit."
" Bueno, amigo. But caution's the word."
" Never fear. Adios."
In the evening Serafina came early, and half an
hour after entered the Commissary. In a short time
my Patrone and the Condessa — their two unmarried
daughters, a married one with her husband, and
another " anrj

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 101
myself, met in a handsome room with glazed windows,
of which there were not more than a couple of dozen
in the town. These quiet little uninvited parties used
to be very pleasant, and were strongly contrasted with
the stiff and formal tertulhas and grand assemblies
in Spain. We had always singing, with the guitar,
waltzing, sometimes a bolero, ending in charades,
games of forfeits, and blind man's buff. Spanish songs
partake somewhat of the ardent character of the cli
mate and people ; and on whatever subject, are deeply
impassioned. In their love lyrics it is odd enough to
perceive those modes of stilted thought and inflated
hyperboles, which abounded in the voluminous ro
mances of , the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries yet
in common usage, and imbuing their amatory com
positions at the present day. Cervantes may have
banished knight-errantry, but much of the very lan
guage of the Paladins to their mistresses is yet the
common parlance of lovers. The theme of their social
songs is rarely light or comic, it is more generally the
exultation of successful, or the lament of unfortunate
love — the pains of absence — the joys of hope — the
torments of despair — the miseries of a sleepless bed in
thinking of a beloved individual — or thetantalizations
of a dream. In fact, El Amor, in some phase or other,
rejoicing and anticipating, or sighing and despairing.
After one or two light things had been preluded by
my little favourite, with the usual guitar accompani
ment, Bernarda handed the instrument to her lovely
cousin, put her arm lovingly about her neck, kissed
her cheek, and whispered the song she wished to
hear. With a consenting smile, and without the least
affectation, Serafina began a little song to a lively
waltz tune, which soon set us all in motion. I noted
down the words from the dictation of Bernarda the
next morning.

102 THE ADVENTURES OF
SPANISH SONG.
La hermosa Palmira
Mas bella que el sol,
Baylando estu danca
Le dice a su amor.
" A ti dulce dueno
De mi corazon,
Dediccmi afecto
Belleza y candor."
Chorus.
O Bayle dichoso !
Lindo y carinoso,
Por ti los amantes
Pierdan su reposo ;
Por ti corazones
Del amor heridos
Lloran suis pasiones
Con dulces sospiros.
" Como tu me llevas
Con tanta distreza,
Por ti mi firmieza
No se pierde, no —
Un compas gracioso
De tus vueltas sigo,
Baylando contigo
Muero yo de amor."
Chorus.
O Bayle dichoso ! &c.
" Ligando mi cuerpo
En tus finos brazos,
Haces firmos lazos
A mi tierno amor.
Mi pecho agitado
De amor con excesso,
Un beso y outro beso
Templan nuestro ardor."
Chorus.
O Bayle dichoso ! &c.
FREE TRANSLATION.
The fair Palmira in the waltz moved peerless as the sun,
And thus she whisper'd to her love as every dance was done :-
" To thee, O imich beloved youth, the Sovereign of my heart,
I dedicate each charm and grace, and every brilliant part."

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 103

Chorus,
All hail the waltz, that darling dance, where mirth and love conspire,
Where Cupid's darts
Transfix our hearts,
And sighs or smiles are interchanged, as lovers may desire.

a?

_" Supported by thy manly arm I firmly bear me on ;
'What stronger tie can bind my frame to my beloved onel
And with one impulse when we both in graceful circle move,
Love's arrow quivers in my breast — I faint — I die of love !"
Chorus.
All hail the waltz, &c.
" Yet when the blood deserts my heart, and sense and spirit fail,
And fragrance from the drooping flower no longer shall exhale ;
Beloved youth ! thy magic power can bid its bloom revive —
One whisper soft — I start — I hear; one kiss — I thrill— I live !"
Chorus.
All hail the waltz, that darling dance, where mirth and love conspire,
Where Cupid's darts
Transfix our hearts,
And sighs or smiles are interchanged, as lovers may desire.
After a few more songs, and fairly tiring ourselves
with waltzing, games of forfeits were introduced; and
although in these the penalty was sometimes a kiss,
yet the kiss proper, that is, the salutation of the lips,
was never permitted : a chaste touch of the cheek
being its substitute. Still the boundary line between
the lips and the cheek would be sometimes passed
without great risk of hostilities; and I do believe that
in the case of Dona Serafina and her adorer, and
Dona Bernarda and myself, there was more than once
a considerable trespass on the sweet territory about
the mouth.
It is not natural to suppose that the redoubtable
Captain of Dragoons would relish all these pretty pro
ceedings ; of great part of which no doubt he was
apprized, from his intimacy with many persons in his

104 THE ADVENTURES OF
native town. His furlough was drawing to its close,
and yet he was rather retrograding than making pro
gress in his suit, for obvious reasons. At length he
could no longer resist the conviction, that the hand
some Commissary was a favoured rival, and began
only to think of revenge. Still we met him in society
without observing any change in his deportment ; and
he sometimes joined our little excursions to the Mar
quis's quinta, during the latter end of the vintage,
when we roamed and romped amongst the vines,
pelting each other with grapes, as they do with com
fits in Carnival time at Rome or Naples. On these
occasions Don Ignacio appeared good humoured, and
generally attached himself to the Marqueza.
Thus matters proceeded very delightfully. One
morning, when Senhor Bartholomeo took up the shav
ing water to his master, he thus addressed him : —
" Masthur dear, did you come home by your lone
last night?"
" Yes, Barty. Why do you ask ?"
" Ogh, it's only a rason I have. In throth, you'd
betther not do so aginn. There's trason in the wind
for shure an sartain. Nixt time I'll go and lukk for
you, plaze God."
" Thank you, Barty. But what danger do you
dread ?"
" Faith, I'm tould you have a purty chance of half
a futt of cowld steel in your gizzard some of these
dark nights — God save us from harm ! — and it's my
self must lukk after ye."
On farther inquiry, Stanley found that his faithful
henchman had some reason for his fears ; and that his
caution was not to be disregarded. Mr. Barty's Mar
garita had been informed by a gossip of hers, that
she had casually overheard an obscure threat against

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 105
an English Officer, in a conversation between two
men of bad character in the place ; one of whom had
been in jail on suspicion of a midnight murder, but
was discharged for want of evidence.
Notwithstanding this little cloud in the distance —
which yet might come to nothing — the course of true
love could never have been smoother any where than
with us in the city of Julius Caesar. Stanley and his
Serafina mutually believed each other a nonpareil on
earth; her cousin Bernarda — a very attractive little
lady — and myself had no such romantic notions, but
were not the less fond ; whilst Senhor Bartholomeo
and Margarita followed exactly in our wake — as in
duty bound. As for the good Marquis, he also was
in excellent humour; for he had sold his corn and his
wine at very nearly his own price.
One day Stanley and myself called on the English
Commandant, and found him busy tapping a cask of
very superior wine he had just received ; whilst three
or four Westphalia hams were resting themselves
against the wall, after their liberation from confine
ment. " Come, my boys," he said, " you must help
me to discuss the merits of the new supplies to-mor
row. This wine, if I have any taste, is not inferior
to Collares; and I think there is a turkey in the
larder not unworthy to meet one of those hams. By
the by, Mr. Commissary, make your butcher choose
us a good bit of sirloin. Sharp, six then to-morrow,
remember ; and I shall hunt out for recruits. Eight, I
hear, is the Prince Regent's favourite number, and
mine too, when I can manage it."
Punctual to our time, we repaired to the citadel
where our friend resided. This part of the once hand
some and populous City of Truxillo afforded melan
choly evidence of the sad decay of that strong and an-
F 2

106 THE ADVENTURES OF
cient town ; and around the massy walls of the Turris
Julii the greater part of the magnificent houses were
uninhabited and fast becoming ruins. On entering
the Commandant's drawing-room — a superb saloon
in an old decaying palace — I noticed Stanley giving
a little involuntary start, when he observed that
Landriz was one of the guests ; however, we were
soon set at our ease by the very cordial manner of the
Captain, who embraced us both. In a few minutes
dinner was announced.
Much conviviality prevailed, and a handsome pro
portion of the Clarety cask evaporated on this occa
sion. The Westphalia was superb; whilst its bronzed
and attractive vis a, vis, the turkey, was of nearly
equal flavour as its noble congener, strutting in all the
fierce pride of independence in a North American
forest. Even the Commissariat beef, mirabile dictu!
was eatable. Don Ignacio seemed to enjoy himself
beyond any of the party, and, I believe, pledged us
all in rotation at dinner ; besides drinking bumpers to
the health of George Prince Regent, and Ferdinand
the Seventh afterwards. I observed a singular play
of features in his dark and forbidding countenance
when he took wine with Stanley; the expression was
decidedly truculent, but most transient ; and was in
stantly lost in the returning hilarity of face from which
it had involuntarily shot. He told us this was his last
dinner in Truxillo, which he rejoiced to eat with his
carissimos'amigos the brave English. He was tired of
idleness, and his furlough being nearly out, he was
about to proceed on the morrow to join his regiment
at Cadiz. Now that the siege was raised and the
enemy had quitted Andalusia, a great part of the gar
rison would be disposable ; and he hoped there would
soon be something in the way of fighting to do. His

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 107
promotion could not be much longer delayed ; and the
utmost height of his ambition was to command the
Principe's Dragoons in some general action, and shew
the English and the world, that Spanish soldiers, when
properly led on, had not degenerated from the time of
the Capitano Grande Gonsalvo of Cordova.
Don Ignacio left us early with three or four others,
having several arrangements yet to make preparatory
to his journey. Beginning at the Commandant, he
embraced us all round ; then returned to the Host,
and kissed him on both cheeks previous to his de
parture. When the usual valedictory vai usted con
Dios ! God be with you ! was uttered by the company,
it might have been imagination, but certainly some
such sounds as — Go to the devil ! struck on my ear
from one of the party.
We sate rather late, as was too much the fashion in
those times when the guests were harmonious, the
host agreeable, and the Falernian first rate. In our
case we might indulge a little with safety to our
heads ; for the wine, though of excellent flavour, was
not strong — like the Collares it resembled. At one
o'clock we had the bones of our fine bird devilled, and
after a long chat over our concluding glass of brandy
and water, we took leave and wended our way home.
Our host, as I have said, resided in the upper part
of the town, and we had about half a mile to walk,
by rather an intricate route, through narrow streets of
deserted houses, rubbish, and ruins ; but as there was
some cloudy moonlight, we found little difficulty in
threading our way through these gloomy defiles.
We were both in lusty youth, health, and high spirits ;
for somehow, the approaching departure of our friend
with the long spurs appeared to give us more plea
sure than we chose to express. We certainly did not

108 THE ADVENTURES OF
fear him in an open and manly way ; though we had
some undefinable dread of this man, as we might have
of a noxious creature in our path. We chatted away
gaily on our route to the Plaza ; praising the Comman
dant's good cheer, and devising ways and means of
entertaining him in turn.
As we passed round the corner of a ruinous house,
and proceeded down a very narrow lane, opening into
the great square, we heard a whistle at a distance ;
by no means an assassinating signal, however, but a
gleesome and musical whistle, which soon developed
itself into the celebrated tune of" Paddy O'Rafferty,"
performed with many beautiful shakes and variations,
by no less a person than Barty O'Reilly. " Why,
Stanley," I observed, "your trusty valet appears in
great force to-night. But he might have saved him
self the trouble of escorting us."
" Why, yes — but it gratifies him, and he is such an
honest creature. He hates that son of a gun of a
Captain most cordially, and I believe  "
There was not time to finish the sentence; for that
instant three men in black masks darted on us from a
ruinous gateway ; and the onset was so sudden, that
I am surprised how we managed to draw our swords,
which we had lately constantly worn when out at
night. They had only stilettoes to appearance, and
whilst one ruffian assailed me, the other two attacked
my poor friend. Yet they missed the advantage of
the first rush on unprepared men, for we were quick
with our swords ; and with equal numbers we should
probably have been more than their match. Poor
Stanley maintained his self-possession beautifully,
though the odds were terrible; and with his back
against the wall, warded the deadly thrusts of the two
villains, and kept them from closing on him, with "his

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 109
longer weapon. Our aide-de-camp, Barty, had been
quite forgotten in the melee ; but a thought of him
suddenly flashed on my mind, and I shouted his
name as loud as possible.
I don't know that the moon feels any particular pre
dilection for her " minions" in such conjunctions ;
but from her behaviour to us, I should be inclined to
think not, and that she hates treachery and likes to
shew fair play. However this may be, it is certain,
that no sooner were the echoes of the words " Barty
O'Reilly !" heard rumbling amongst the arched pas
sages around, than an effulgent glimpse of moonshine
shewed us the tight little Corkavian, trusty shillelah
in hand, by our side ! It was marvellous, and like a
magic incantation, when certain potent sounds evoke
a spirit at the bidding of the conjuror. Senhor Bar
tholomeo soon mingled in the fray. Hasting to the
assistance of his master, he aimed a blow of his knotted
blackthorn so truly at the head of one of his assail
ants, that it felled the villain to the ground. The
other instantly dived into the ruins and disappeared.
As for my opponent, he also scampered off on the
sudden apparition of Barty ; but not quite with im
punity. The man the least " cunning of fence" may
injure his adversary when he turns his back ; and this
assassin had the benefit of a good thrust about the
midriff when he was making off, which neither im
proved his breathing nor digestion.
I ran to Stanley whilst Barty seized his prisoner
by the neck. " Not hurt, I hope, my dear fellow ?"
« Why — why — only flurried I think, though I cer
tainly felt a stab or two." On a more careful exam
ination, it was found that one murderous thrust had
been aimed directly at the heart, which a guardian
rib had received ; and another had inflicted a consi-

110 THE ADVENTURES OF
derable, but superficial wound on the right side,
from which the blood was still streaming. He was
faint, but it was soon ascertained that neither of the
wounds was dangerous ; which cheering news I im
mediately communicated to my poor friend. He was
then placed on the ground, with his head on a stone,
till I reconnoitred the prisoner.
Senhor Bartholomeo had hitherto been dumb from
apprehension for his master ; but when he heard me
telling him to be of good cheer, for there was no dan
ger, the attached Irishman recovered at once his usual
volubility. " Ogh, you black-faced and black-hearted
villain, is it kilt all out and intirely you are, you C — o
Demonio ! Ogh, but you're rightly sarved ! And
who are ye at all, at all, ye bloody tief of the world-
show us your ugly face." And tearing off the mask
at the word, Don Ignacio Landriz, now restored to
consciousness, lay before us !
" And so you would murdher my masthur," re
sumed Barty, tearing off the Captain's neck hand
kerchief, and pinioning his arms with it ; and giving
him a kick in the ribs when he shewed any resistance
to the process — " You would murdher him behind his
back, you spalpeen, and git another black divvil to
help you, bekase an illigant young lady tuck to his
handsome face, and put her tongue in her cheek at
your ugly mugg. By my sowl, and plaze God, you'll
dance on the tight rope for it, and that's some com
fort, any how."
We conveyed Stanley to his lodgings, had his
wounds dressed, and put him in bed ; and then con
ducted the discomfited Captain of Dragoons to the
main guard, where we left him properly handcuffed
and secured, with two sentries over him. On our
return I found the Marqueza and her daughter in my

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. Ill
friend's apartment, ministering to him with the most
affectionate attention ; however, as it was now late,
they were prevailed upon to retire, and the trusty
Barty took their place.
It has passed into an axiom, that in time of sickness,
the ministrations of an affectionate woman are espe
cially delightful ; and often more sanitary and effica
cious than all the drugs of the leech. O ye who have
been the subjects of her sweet and soothing cares, ye
have experienced the magic communicated by the
last touch of her hand when she smooths your pillow,
draws the curtains, and leaves you to repose. It is
the true and beautiful magnetism that banishes pain
and anxiety, and in their stead leaves ease and tran
quil rest. Yet nature is full of mystery ; and it is a
strange fact, that the power to work the charm we
speak of is regulated by the age and comeliness of
the Lady-Magician. Though learned masculine doc
tors inspire confidence in proportion to years and ex
perience, and though, in them, plainness of features
is not deemed derogatory to power of mind ; yet here
the case is entirely different. The influence of the
spell is in the inverse proportion of age and ugliness.
No practitioner above five-and-thirty can work any
extraordinary cures, unless gifted with singular per
sonal endowments; and a very plain woman, old or
young, cannot remove a single ache.
Senhor Bartholomeo, evidently two or three inches
taller from his recent achievement, ran across the
square at daylight, to say his master had passed a
tranquil night. In the course of the morning the
Commandant and myself repaired to the house of the
chief Alkaldi of the town. He instantly summoned
two of his officers, and we set out in a body to the
main guard, to examine the prisoner, and make the

112 THE ADVENTURES OF
necessary legal depositions, previous to his committal
to the custody of the civil authorities. On the way
we met the Town Serjeant, who handed the following
document to the Commandant :
MORNING GUARD REPORT,
Truxillo, 20th October, 1812.
Parole — Welli ugton .
Strength of the Guard : — 1 Serjeant. 1 Corporal. 15 Rank
and File.
Remarks. — Guard all present, but somewhat the worse for liquor
last night ; it was brought in by the sentries over the prisoner, to
whom he gave money. Prisoner missing. John Fisher.
Serjeant — th Regiment.
Too true it was that the rascal, availing himself
of that sad propensity to drunkenness, almost the
only military vice of British soldiers, but the prolific
source of all others, had corrupted the sentinels,
guard, non-commissioned officers, and all ; and during
their drunken orgies had made his escape. Imme
diate, but fruitless, search was made in the town, by
the civil and military authorities. The Commandant
sent accredited statements of the whole proceedings
to the Spanish Minister of War, and the commanding
officer of the Principe Dragoons; but whether the
murderer became a Contrabandista, or joined a band
of robbers, or deserted to the French, or went to the
d — 1, in some more respectable way, was never cer
tainly known. He did not rejoin his regiment.
Don Henriquez Stanley recovered from his wounds
a great deal too soon, to his great regret, no doubt ;
and I dare say he often wished that the daggers of
the assassins had entered an inch or two deeper, so
as they kept clear of a vital part, that his delightful
convalescence might be a little longer protracted. In
a short time things resumed their old course; and the

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 1 13
dear little scenes of singing, and guitaring, and waltz
ing, and multifarious love-making were enacted as
before. Eheu ! in this sad mutable world of ours, grief
ever treads on the heels of joy. Ugly reports of dis
asters at Head Quarters began to circulate — the army
had been repulsed at Burgos, and was retreating to
wards Portugal ; and apprehensions of another inva
sion of the malditos Francezez began to cloud the
brows of the Truxillians. Still our confidence in Lord
Wellington was strong ; and in our little enchanted
circle the word was every night —
" On with the dance! Let joy be unconfined —
No sleep till morn, when youth and pleasure meet
To chase the glowing hours with flying feet."
One night, as we were all at high romps in a game
of blind man's buff, in the Marqueza's large saloon,
a Courier cracking his long whip, and jingling the
soft-toned bells of his tall mule, galloped through the
square on his way to the Commandant's. The game
went on, and Stanley had just caught the gentle Se
rafina, " nothing loth," and was bandaging her beau
tiful eyes, when letters were brought to him and my
self, having inscribed on them the ominous word
" immediate" in characters of formidable size. These
brought the astounding news, that King Joseph and
Soult, at the head of an overpowering force, were in
hot pursuit of the Allied Army — that the enemy were
in full possession of the Valley of the Tagus, and
their cavalry and light troops scouring its left bank,
which was quite open to their ravages. Under these
circumstances we were very unsafe at Truxillo ; con
sequently the depot must be broken up, the stores
and sick removed, and the town evacuated, with the
least possible delay.

114 A HANDSOME COMMISSARY.
Oh, what sighing, what sobbing, what weeping, what
lamenting, what fainting, what hysterics were to be
seen and heard in Truxillo that night ; more especially
in the households of the Marquis of Santa Cruz and
the Conde de Q  a ! How spoiled and blood-shot
were three or four pairs of the most brilliant eyes in
the world, next morning. What curses and execra
tions were poured out on the abominable Francezez
throughout the town — curses not merely from mascu
line and moustached, but I fear from ruby female lips
also. Recording angel ! thy labours were onerous on
that melancholy night ! Even the gentle affections
that for three or four months had had such delightful
exercise, were for the time overwhelmed by the
greatness of the calamity, and hatred — dire hatred of
the French, momentarily superseding love to the
English, engrossed all hearts. Dona Serafina, la po-
brecita, wailed till she fainted ; and when her mother's
care had brought her back to consciousness, and she
beheld her lover at her feet, it was only once more to
relapse into insensibility.
As for Mr. Barty O'Reilly, he did nothing but pack
up his master's baggage, and abuse the innemy, and
the cowardly Spaniards for not stopping them, for the
first five or six hours ; and I don't wonder, for he
had seldom been in such comfortable quarters. Some
times he swore in Spanish, sometimes in Portuguese,
sometimes in English, or a beautiful medley of all
three ; but his bitterest execrations were expressed in
his native Irish tongue, by reason that he found it
"more convanient in respect to the cursin."

115

CHAPTER XI.
THE ADVENTURES OF A HANDSOME COMMISSARY.  A SOUVE
NIR OF TRUXILLO. — (CONTINUED.)
" And will you pardon, then," replied the youth,
" Your Henry's borrow'd name and false attire —
I durst not in this neighbourhood, in sooth,
The very fortunes of your house inquire,
Lest one that knew me might some tidings dire
Impart . . ."
" She hid upon his breast those eyes, beyond
Expression's power to paint, all languishingly fond."
Gertrude of Wyoming.
All nature appeared to sympathize with the grief
of parting lovers the morning we left Truxillo. The
season was the middle of November ; and although
this month, so cheerless and gloomy to every body
but a sportsman in England, is usually very different
in the south of Spain; yet on this occasion, the dark
clouds, scudding through a cold and muddy atmos
phere, the veiled sun, and the ruffian winds were even
more dismal than in the less genial climate, from
being more uncommon and less expected.
On the second day of our march I observed, a little
way ahead, a woman closely veiled and cloaked,
mounted en cavalier on a donkey, whilst a man, whose
walk and figure were not unfamiliar to me, was urging
on the animal by a touch of the whip now and then,
which was rendered emphatic by the everlasting
"Bourro!" with the prefix of the Milesian interjec
tion, Arrah, Bourro !

116 THE ADVENTURES OF
" In the name of St. Patrick, Barty, who is the
mounted lady?"
" Throth, your honour, it's nobody but Margaritha
the crathur; for she couldn't stay behind me."
" But I hope you have behaved like an honest man
in the business. Are you married ?"
" Ogh, shure, and that we are, sir. She's a dacent
woman, and divvel a peg would she stir without it.
So we were sacretly spliced by the family clargee, and
tight enough I warrant ye, sir, for he was a tundher-
ing long time about it."
" I'm glad to hear it, Barty, and wish you much
joy." " Then thank you kindly, sir, and it's myself that
hopes to do that same to your honour soon, let alone
my good masthur."
The bride was a good looking little brunette, blush
ing and timid, but nevertheless appearing very happy.
No doubt she was under the impression that her
beautiful mistress would soon follow her example,
and that then she would be permitted to resume her
old station. As for Senhor Bartholomeo, he trudged
along as proud as a prince, though often up to the
knees in mud; his master's baggage-mules in front,
and himself covering the rear of the column, with the
donkey and Margarita.
On the fourth day we reached Merida, the Augusta
emerita of the Romans, and here we halted a day.
As I have before observed, this place is full of Roman
remains, and a fine field for an antiquarian. The
Roman citadel is yet in a state of remarkable preser
vation, and with a little labour would make a formid
able Tete du Pont. The walls are strong and massy
— there are some fine baths, with the granite ducts yet
in existence, that let in the water of the river ; but

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 117
the numerous imperial busts in white marble, studded
here and there in the wall, are ridiculously small; and
at even a short distance look more like pins' heads
than emperors'. Though neither my love-sick com
panion, the Commissary, nor myself, even in our sober
senses had any black letter lore worth mentioning,
we devoted nearly the whole of our halt to the explo
ration of those rich relics of Roman power and skill,
under the guidance of a learned clerical Cicerone.
Soon after our arrival in Elvas I parted from my
friend Stanley and marched to join my Regiment,
whilst he remained there. In consequence of the oc
cupation of both banks of the Tagus by the enemy,
and the excursions of their foraging parties down the
left side, there was no correspondence between our
Truxillo friends and ourselves during the remainder
of the winter. There were reports, indeed, that a
Chef de Bataillon of French Infantry in that town was
quartered in Stanley's old billet ; and the jealous ima
gination of a lover did not fail to paint him martial,
handsome, and ardent, and making strong love to the
fair Serafina.
At length such suspicions became absolute and
insupportable torture to my sensitive friend, and he
determined, at whatever risk, to ascertain personally
the state of affairs. He obtained three weeks leave
of absence, under the pretence of private business at
Estremoz ; and, disguising himself as a Capitraz, or
Chief of a small band of muleteers, set off boldly for
Truxillo. He tinged his hands and his handsome
face and neck with walnut juice, to give the true
olive complexion ; added a pair of black moustaches
and a dark wig ; and providing himself with a smart
and appropriate dress, with some scores of silver but
tons on his jacket and vest, he stood forth a good

118 THE ADVENTURES OF
looking and perfect Spaniard. Mr. Barty also turned
muleteer, and accompanied his master on this hazard
ous expedition ; and at the head of four trusty Spanish
muleteers besides, who had long been employed hy
the Commissariat, and were now promised ample pay
ment for this particular service, our hero proceeded on
his journey. He loaded his mules with salt at Me
rida — this prime necessary of life being in great re
quest in the interior towns of this part of the country.
Every thing favoured the romantic enterprise ; and
having met with no obstruction in the way, for I be
lieve the enemy pushed no lower down than Truxillo,
the Capitraz at the head of his little band proceeded
up the steep hill of that town, late in the evening of
the sixth day, smoking his gigarito with the utmost
nonchalance, whilst the muleteers were gaily singing
a quartetto. Near the gate they were brought up by
a sentry. " Qui va la ?"
" Amigo."
" Halte la! amigo. You must see the Comman
dant. Es menester ver el Senhor Commandante."
" Assuramente, Senhor soldado — mas quien es el
Commandante ?"
" Le Colonel Dufresne. His quarter is in the
Plaea." " Vamos entonees, Senhor."
" Non, non. You must wait till I am relieved."
" Paciencia. Fuma usted, Senhor?"
" Merci. It is contrary to orders on my post."
For a full half hour was the party detained ; the
Capitraz all the time smoking his cigar, chatting with
his companions, or singing some old song of the
Moorish wars. At last the relief came, and the cor
poral of the guard, having conducted the convoy to

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 119
the Guard House, left it there in charge of the
Serjeant, who directed him to escort Stanley to the
quarter of Colonel Dufresne — his own former well-
known residence. In quitting his people, he managed
to make a signal of caution and silence to Barty,
pursuant to the plan agreed on, which was, that he
should pretend to be deaf and dumb.
We may conceive what must have been our hero's
emotion on entering the house of the Marquis de
Santa Cruz, ascending the spacious and familiar
stairs, and being ushered into the dear saloon where
he had passed so many happy hours. He found it
occupied by a middle-aged and martial-looking man,
with a stern expression of countenance ; who, casting
aside a letter he had been reading, looked keenly at
Stanley for an instant, and then addressed the Cor
poral. " Eh bien, Caporal Gauthier, who is this man ?"
" A Capitraz of Muleteers, mon Colonel, whom we
stopped at the gate half an hour ago. He has ten
mules laden with salt, from Merida, he says."
The Colonel then asked the Capitraz.
" Parles-tu Francois, ami ?"
There was a negative shake of the head.
" You are a devilish good looking fellow for a
muleteer." Another shake.
"Bueno, amigo, what is your name?"
" Manoel Lopez, of Don Benito, at your Excel
lency's service."
" And you have a convoy of salt — how many mules'
loads?" " Ten, your Lordship, a servicio de sua Senhoria."
" Non, Lopez— I shall be generous, and only take
half."

120 THE ADVENTURES OF
" My cargo is in a manner privileged, please your
Excellency. Both French and English allow it to
pass freely, for the use of the population, who cannot
exist without it. Besides, your Lordship is too high
minded to ruin a poor man, who trusted in your ge
nerosity." " You are a bold fellow, Senhor Lopez, and your
language scarcely befits your station. There is a tinge
of insolence in it not quite to my taste. You come
from Merida?"
" Si, Senhor."
"Any English in that neighbourhood?"
"No Senhor-gracias a Dios, none nearer than
Badajoz." " Sacre ! there are some thousands of them under
the turf there, at any rate. Phillippon gave them a
tough job in the way of burying. Do you bring any
news ?"
"None but what your Excellency has probably
heard already. It is currently reported that the En
glish are despairing of success, and about to retreat
to their ships."
" En verdade ?"
" So it is said at Merida and Don Benito."
" Well, you may retire. I give you three days to
sell your salt ; but the garrison is in need of this
article, and must have one load."
" Adios, Senhor Commandante, muchas gra§ias.
Viva sua Senhoria mil anos."
The Corporal then received instructions to search
the persons of the Capitraz and his band carefully —
to examine the sacks of salt and the trappings of the
mules ; and if nothing wrong could be discovered, to
let the party go, keeping one load of the salt. " Mind,

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 121
Caporal Gauthiar, no violence, no pillage; I shall
not suffer it :" said the Colonel at parting.
Carefully did Stanley scan the interior of the house,
for some trace of the former inhabitants, but he could
observe nothing ; and quitting it with reluctance he
proceeded to the Guard House with the Corporal.
Here his fears were instantly excited by the appear
ance of Barty, surrounded by a group of the soldiers,
to whom he was gesticulating and making all kinds
of strange grimaces ; counterfeiting dumbness and
idiotism, but at the same time, unfortunately mani
festing perfect auricular powers, which appeared to
excite some suspicion. And such was the love of fun
and humour in this genuine son of the green sod, that,
confiding in the license usually granted to persons of
his assumed class, he could not avoid mimicking any
peculiarity he observed among the French soldiers.
When Stanley arrived, Mr. Barty was busy making
faces at a grenadier with a Bardolph nose, to the great
amusement of the muleteers and all the guard, except
the object of his attack; who was beginning to get a
little savage, and to look as if small additional provo
cation was required to make him crop Senhor Bar-
tholomeo's ears.
" Peace ! Sanchez," cried the Capitraz sternly —
giving the grinning scaramouch a good cuff at the
same time — " Peace, idiot ! He is a poor half-witted
creature, Senhor Sargento : you will pardon the liber
ties he takes with the gentlemen under your command.
Pobrecito ! he lost both his senses and his speech by
a fright from a mad bull when he was five years old."
Then taking out his ample cigar case, and lifting
the goat skin cover, he courteously presented it to the
Serjeant and the whole Guard in their turn ; com-
vol. i. g

122 THE ADVENTURES OF
mending at the same time his choice Seville gigaritos
to their notice and approbation, and lighting his own
with a brand from the fire. After the examination of
their persons, to which the muleteers grumblingly
submitted, and a similar scrutiny of the mules and
their loads, and chatting amicably for a while with
the Serjeant, the Capitraz lighted a fresh cigar,
placed the remaining contents of the case in the
Serjeant's hands, left a sack of salt with him, and
then conducted his band to a posada in a remote and
obscure street.
It may well be imagined that our hero did not
devote much of his time to the disposal of his mer
chandize. Knowing the inn-keeper to be trust
worthy, he took him aside, frankly communicated
his secret, and asked information respecting the family
of the Marquis. Stanley's joy was great when he
learned, that some days before the arrival of the
French, the Marqueza and her daughter had dis
appeared; and it was generally believed they were
secreted somewhere in the country ; though the busi
ness had been so well managed that nobody could
tell where. To preserve his property from French
rapacity as much as might be, the Marquis himself
continued to reside in his house in Truxillo. That
same night, by the friendly assistance of Senhor
Zambolo, the inn-keeper, an interview took place be
tween Santa Cruz and Stanley ; and, possessed of the
secret abode of his mistress, the Commissary procured
another disguise, and setoffin the course of the night
to pay her a visit.
Our lovely Serafina, dressed in a rustic habit, had
just arisen from bed, and entered the little cottage-
garden to enjoy the freshness of a fine morning, and
to collect some early flowers for her mother. Their

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 123
abode was in a remote and secluded hamlet, under
the protection of two servants of the family and an
old couple, in whose house they resided. The fair
daughter was busily engaged with her bouquet, when
a strange paysano approached, lifted the latch of the
garden door, entered, and stood beside her. Serafina
uttered a faint scream, dropped her flowers, and would
have run to the cottage, had not Stanley's well-known
voice arrested her. Another moment, and she was
folded in his arms.
It is not necessary at this time of day to make
a long parade of such truisms as the meetings of
lovers after long absence being the sweetest drops in
life's cup — or the radiant points that enlighten and
embellish its long, and sometimes gloomy, vista,
&c. I shall take all this for granted, and only say,
that two days were passed in rapture by Stanley and
his mistress; but on the morning of the third, it be
hoved them to part. They separated, after exchang
ing endless vows of eternal love and devotion, as is
customary in Such cases; and arranging, with the
consent of the Marqueza, that so soon as the south of
Spain should be free from the presence of the enemy
— of which the extensive preparations now making by
Lord Wellington gave promise — Stanley would repair
to Truxillo, and openly claim his bride.
On returning to his posada, our hero saw by the
clouded brow of his landlord, that something wrong
had occurred in his absence ; and soon learned that
the Commandant had been making inquiries respect
ing him, and had directed him to repair to his quarters
immediately ; expressing at the same time much dis
pleasure at his absence. From this, and other threat
ening circumstances, it appeared that a severe ordeal
was yet before our friend; and that himself and his

124 THE ADVENTURES OF
band might find much more difficulty in quitting
Truxillo, than they had experienced in entering it.
The question now was, whether, having accom
plished his object in visiting the place, he ought not
to avoid running any farther risk, and immediately
leave the town by stealth with his people. This
would not have been difficult, for the ruinous wall
permitted egress for man and beast at different places ;
in the darkness the sentries might be evaded, and as
the French had no cavalry, pursuit was out of the
question. But then the safety of Senhor Zambolo
would be compromised by his evasion — other innocent
persons of loyal politics, and who were obnoxious to
the French, might be implicated, and serious mischief
be the result of a proceeding rather of a dastardly
character, and that implied guilt. My gallant friend,
therefore, boldly resolved to run all hazards in pre
ference, and repaired at once to the residence of the
Commandant. On his way to the Placa, he met his acquaintance
the Serjeant of the Guard, with half a dozen soldiers,
going in quest of him. Colonel Dufresne looked a
little savage when he entered, and addressed him in
rather a startling manner.
" You have been three days absent from Truxillo,
neglecting the business which brought you here. This,
then, was not your real business, but a pretence. Par
Dieu ! M. le Capitraz, I believe you to be a spy, and
I have a strong inclination to order you to be shot.
What do you say, hombre?"
" I have no fear your excellency will do so unjust
and cruel an act."
" Sacre ! tonnerre ! you take it coolly. Where have
you been ? What have you been doing ? Why have
you not disposed of your merchandize ?"

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 125
" My lord, I can answer your questions with all truth
and frankness. I sold my whole cargo to the Senhor
Zambolo, the Posadero in the Calle de Cadiz, the
evening of our arrival ; and I went early the next
morning, disguised as a paysano, to visit a married
sister, who lives at Jaracejo."
" Disguised as a paysano — for what reason ?"
" To avoid detention, perhaps robbery on the road."
"How am I certain that your present costume is
not also a disguise ?"
" Here I possess the evidence of several persons
that know me, please your excellency ; and your own
knowledge of the language may convince you, that I
am what I appear, a true Spaniard."
" I distrust you much, Senhor Capitraz. Your
bearing and appearance do not harmonize with your
condition. Serjeant, bring hither Zambolo, landlord
of the Posada where this person's band are lodged."
The Posadero soon appeared ; but having been
previously well drilled, he confirmed the Capitraz'
story in all its parts ; so that the Commandant, though
still suspicious, could yet find no evidence on which
to inculpate our hero. After a long pause he said —
" Senhor Manoel Lopez, I have the strongest reason
to believe that you are not what you appear ; and I
should feel quite justified in proceeding to extremities
with you. I shall pardon you on one condition."
" I have committed no offence, your excellency."
" Tais toi ! Leave your band here — I shall take care
that they are not molested. Repair to Badajoz with
a letter. Deliver it to a friend of ours there, and bring
back an answer. You will then be free, and moreover,
I shall reward your service."
" My Lord, I am in an humble rank of life, but I

126 THE ADVENTURES OF
am an honourable Spaniard, of pure blood, who has
never done a base thing."
" You refuse, then 1"
" I shall never act the base part of a spy, your excel
lency, even though the office were unattended with
the great risk of detection and punishment from the
English." " Listen, hombre ; that no evidence may be detected
on your person, I shall entrust you with a verbal
message, to which a similar answer will be returned."
" I shall never be a spy, I repeat, my Lord, though
death should follow the refusal."
" Sacre Dieu ! then M. le Capitraz, I am sorry for
you. You may see your confessor when you please.
At nine to-morrow morning you shallbeshot. Va-t'en !"
" I am an innocent man, my Lord. You will deeply
repent having shed my blood. God avert so great a
crime !"
The Commandant then ordered Stanley to be con
veyed to the Guard-House ; and directed a party of
eight men with loaded muskets to be ready in the
morning. In the meantime the affair got wind, and many of
the leading persons in the town were entrusted by
Zambolo with Stanley's secret ; which they religiously
kept — for a Spaniard's honour was always inviolate
through the Peninsula struggle, when pledged to the
English — the result was, that before the Commandant
retired to rest, the head Alkaldi, the Marquis of Santa
Cruz, and many of the chief inhabitants waited on him,
and urgently implored pardon for the prisoner. He
heard them with politeness, but dismissed them with
an absolute refusal.
But our poor friend's days were not destined to be

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 127
thus prematurely cut short. Colonel Dufresne,
although a stern soldier, was not naturally a cruel
man ; and after a night's reflection, he again examined
Zambolo, and the Serjeant and Corporal of the guard,
who had first arrested the muleteers. The result was,
that he was staggered by the account he received of
the natural though resolute deportment of the Capi
traz ; and when he bethought him of his fearless and
gallant bearing in the near prospect of death, he could
not refrain from admiration of that manly virtue, which
with a Frenchman atones for such a multitude of sins.
Yielding to this generous impulse, he countermanded
the order for Stanley's execution, and directed that he
should be brought once more into his presence.
"Whoever and whatever you are, I cannot refuse
you the merit of great intrepidity. I pardon you, you
are free."
" I thank your excellency ; but I never had any
fears as to the result. No brave Frenchman is cruel
by nature — still less can any gallant soldier be wan
tonly, and profitlessly, both cruel and unjust."
" Who the devil are you ? Tell me, and I pledge
the honour of a Frenchman to respect your secret,
whatever it is. You are no common man."
Two hours after this question was asked, the
Spanish Capitraz of Muleteers, and the French Com
mandant, were seen sitting down together very ami
cably to breakfast, to the great astonishment of the
servants. This was not diminished by observing
their master embrace our hero warmly on departing
with his band.
All being now happily ended, Stanley and his party
proceeded joyously on their way. Barty was in greater
spirits than any body — voluble as ever, even in his

128 THE ADVENTURES OF
broken Spanish, and sporting his wit and jokes with
out stint or measure.
"Well, Senhor Bartholomeo," said his master —
" after all, you are but a silly fellow — you don't know
the risk we all were exposed to — and yourself parti
cularly — by your nonsensical buffoonery with the
guard." " Ogh, masthur dear, shure no one would suspect a
natural, that hasn't God's blessed speech in him."
" Yes, but you forget that naturals, as you call
them, or idiots who are born dumb, are always deaf."
" Troth, masthur, that same didn't occur to me at
all, at all — but what matther — them ommadhawns
wouldn't be cute in finding it out. Weren't they too
busy in laughing at the fun ? And when I winked
at the rid-nosed grannadier, didn't they all twig the
joke?" "Ay, but he didn't. And I can tell you that a
French grenadier is not to be trifled with ; and that
that same gentleman with the lantern on his poop
would think as little of blowing out your silly brains,
as I would of shooting a snipe."
Mr. Stanley resumed his duties at Elvas, and gave
me a long letter containing the preceding details. At
this time Lord Wellington was busily engaged with
those comprehensive arrangements that ushered in
the Vittoria campaign. The months of February,
March, and April, and the beginning of May, were
employed in improving the equipments of the army —
providing tents — collecting magazines — clearing the
hospitals in the rear-drilling recruits — organizing the
Spanish troops — in fine, putting the whole allied army
in a state of unprecedented strength and efficiency
for taking the field.

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 129
In the first week of May, my friend, accompanied
by the faithful Barty, was once more en route to
Truxillo, from whence the enemy had retired, to make
commissariat arrangements, in concert with the Spa
nish authorities, for establishing a depot of provisions
for the subsistence of the Conde d'Abisbal's army of
Andalusia, which was to pass to the Tagus by this
route. The roads being still much infested by rob
bers, both master and man travelled well armed.
Amongst the numerous contretemps in this world
of cross purposes, few things try one's philosophy
more than to be disturbed in the midst of great en
joyment, or anticipation of enjoyment, by some coup
of imminent personal danger. Towards the evening
of the second day, when our travellers were passing
through the cork tree forest of Miajadas, four leagues
from Truxillo, and Stanley's glowing fancy was
portraying the delights of the approaching meeting
with his true love, without disguise or apprehension,
and in the hallowed scene of the infancy of their
passion, — a bullet whistled sharply past his ear, and
his servant's hat was knocked off by another ! no
enemy was seen, but too puffs of smoke were descried
under two large trees, fifty yards from the road.
Master and man, ignorant of the strength of the
latent enemy, instinctively set spurs to their horses,
and galloped on, pursued by six mounted robbers,
who fired several shots at the fugitives, but luckily
without effect.
The chase was long and doubtful; the horses of
Stanley and his domestic being superior to those of
their pursuers ; but they were fatigued by a long and
rapid journey. After emerging from the wood into
the open country, and coining within distant view of
the high citadel of Truxillo, our friends still found
G 2

130 THE ADVENTURES OF
themselves unrelentingly pursued ; and made the un
pleasant discovery, that the robbers, whom they had
at first left a considerable way behind, were now fast
gaining on them ; and that, as no friendly house was
to be seen, and no aid in view, it was probable they
would be shot or captured before they could reach the
suburbs of the town. In a few minutes two of the
foremost villains had come within a hundred yards ;
the certainty of being overtaken was manifest, and the
question was, whether they should make a merit of
surrendering at discretion, to ensure less violent treat
ment, or turn at once on the two leading bandits,
whose firearms had probably been discharged — take
deliberate aim, and by bringing one, or both of them
down, possibly intimidate and stop the rest.
In circumstances of great danger akin to the pre
sent, a fearless and daring line of conduct is generally
the most prudent after all; and the sentiment, em
bodied as an adage in most languages, that " Fortune
favours the brave," must have been founded on univer
sal conviction of this truth. Suddenly Stanley and
his servant stopped, turned round their horses, rode
full at the two foremost robbers, and each covering
his man, discharged their pistols at them within six
yards distance. Both ruffians were arrested by this
bold act, and one instantly tottered and fell from his
saddle. There was little time for observation, their
danger being yet imminent ; but in the hurried glance
they caught of the wounded man, both Stanley and
his companion recognized the well known features of
Don Ignacio Landriz.
They now urged their horses to the utmost speed,
and were delighted to find, on looking back, that the
whole band of their pursuers was arrested by the
spectacle of their leader's dying agonies ; thus per-

A HANDSOME COMMISSARY. 131
mitting their intended victims to pursue their way
unmolested to Truxillo.
Stanley found the Marquis and his family once
more established in their mansion in the Placa; and
I presume I may waive describing the particulars of
his first interview with his lady love, and leave the
remainder of the story to the reader's imagination,
according to convenient and established usage.*

* Eleven years after these transactions, I spent a happy day with
my friend and his wife, at Oak Cottage, near Durham. They ap
peared to be in comfortable circumstances, and had then a family
of three sons and two daughters, blooming and beautiful, and ex
emplifying in their persons and lineaments the happiest physical
results of the mixture of good Saxon and Spanish blood. Their
mother, six months before, had conformed to the religious faith of
her husband ; and thus, all that was wanting to perfect identity of
sentiment on this important matter, as on all other points, was
attained. She appeared a model of conjugal affection and maternal
devotedness; and having left her own family, and friends, and
country, and confided herself in a strange land to the tenderness of
the object of her first and fervent affection, she was repaid by as
large a measure of marital love as probably ever fell to the lot of
woman. I must not omit mentioning, that Senhor Bartholomeo and his
Margarita followed the fortunes of their master and mistress, and
are, I believe, still in their service. They have not been blessed
with children ; but this privation, however deplored, has had one
good effect in permitting them to continue in the discharge of their
vocations as valet and lady's maid. I understand that when Mr.
Barty gets tipsy, which is not more than two or three times a year,
he maintains that it was his bullet that brought down the bandit
chief, though he is not so confident in his sober senses, for he knows
his master was always a capital shot.

132

CHAPTER XII.
bridge of alcantara.  nervous passage. — the author
meets lord wellington travelling to cadiz.  lu
dicrous supposition.  escape from robbers on the
road.  attack and capture of the whole band by
don julian Sanchez's cavalry. — coria galisteo. —
distancing an ague fit.  easter sunday at pla-
SENCIA. " Every bullet has its billet."
Proverb.
When we reached Elvas, we found that the most
alarming reports were in circulation, as to the defeat
and dispersion of the British Army, and the ap
proaching advance of the enemy, in overwhelming
force into Portugal ; and it was even feared that ano
ther retreat to the lines of Torres Vedras might be
necessary. A general gloom pervaded the city. I
was ordered to remain, and do duty in one of the
general hospitals till farther orders.
In the course of a few days these rumours ceased ;
for certain intelligence arrived, that after suffering
considerable loss, both in the attacks on the castle of
Burgos, and during the retreat from that city, the army
was once more established in its old frontier positions,
covering Portugal. Sir Rowland Hill's head quarters
were at Coria, and General Byng's Brigade was sta
tioned at Moralejo, a small town in that neighbour
hood. I was directed to march to join my Regiment
there. Antonio and his master crossed the Tagus at Alcan-

BRIDGE OF ALCANTARA. 133
tara, where the river runs deep and rapid between
two steep rocky banks. The bridge is a fine relic of
Roman power and skill, one hundred and fifty feet
above fhe level of the water ; and until the main arch
was blown up two years before, was in good preser
vation ; with the white marble slab, even yet perfect
as from the sculptor's hand — telling who were Con
suls, and in what year of Trajan's reign it was built.
It certainly was a daring attempt to lay the founda
tion of the piers of the arches in such a deep and rapid
stream ; particularly as any thing like coffer-dams
must have been out of the question. I doubt whether
all the skill in Spain could do the same thing now.
The Staff Corps under the direction of Colonel
Sturgeon, had cleverly thrown a rope bridge, ninety
feet long, over the broken arch ; which from its great
elevation, broad span, and elastic materials, shook
under passengers very unpleasantly. When we crossed
the day was very windy, and the bridge more than
usually tremulous and unsteady ; and although I dis
mounted, I was not without some apprehension, as a
sudden gust would sweep violently through the deep
gulley, in which the river ran boiling below, that the
slender flooring under our feet might be blown from
its moorings, and all upon it tumbled into the Tagus.
Lord Wellington having now placed his army in
winter quarters, was on his way to Cadiz, to concert
measures with the British Ambassador and the Cortes
for a more perfect control over the Spanish armies,
and the general interests of the kingdom. We met
him and General Alava the morning we crossed the
Tagus, on the road between Zarza Mayor and Alcan
tara. After they passed us, one of the staff rode back
to make enquiries about the bridge. I advised the
party to alight from the coach in which they tra-

134 ESCAPE FROM ROBBERS.
veiled ; adding, that if the gale increased much more,
the safest plan would be to cling to the mules' tails in
passing the bridge. Whereupon this gentleman, no
less a person, I believe, than that most distinguished
officer, Lord Fitzroy Somerset — laughed at my good
advice; and it certainly must have been a laughable
thing to see the great Wellington and General Alava
clinging to the os coccygis of a mule.
The next day an event occurred on the march by
no means of a laughing nature. As we were moving
quietly along a plain, thickly covered with the cystus
shrub — Antonio and the baggage a little in the rear,
a musket ball whistled suddenly by somewhere be
tween my face and the horse's head, which made us
both prick up our ears. I looked round in the direc
tion of the report, and there plain enough was the
puff of smoke amidst the tall shrubs, about fifty yards
from the road. Incontinently I galloped towards a
little hill ; and by the most singular good fortune, not
two minutes after, descried the head of a small column
of cavalry approaching. They belonged to the par-
tida of Don Julian Sanchez, and had been specially
ordered to destroy a band of brigands supposed to be
in the neighbourhood. I told the officer in command
what had occurred, and we all hastened to the spot.
The dragoons dashed into the shrubs very gallantly,
and soon came upon a body of a dozen robbers, who
were making off; not having had time to rifle the
baggage. An exciting little affair followed, in which
the band shewed fight to no purpose, the cystus, in
which they had been hidden, being, at this place, as
penetrable by cavalry as a field of corn. They were
all killed or made prisoners, and I saw three of them
afterwards strangled at Coria.
In this piquant little business one dragoon received

THE RIVER ALLAGON. 135
an ugly wound in the arm, which I dressed on the
spot. Two of the prisoners had received some bad
sabre-cuts, which I also offered to dress, but their
ferocious captors would not permit me — at the same
time abusing them with all imaginable execrations.
It had rained heavily lately, and every stream was
much swollen, presenting numerous obstacles in our
way, which we generally had to ford ; and here again
my portable goods and chattels were more than
once in imminent danger. At length, after a long
dreary march from Zarza, we reached the miserable
town of Moralejo. Here General Byng's Brigade
were resting after the fatigues of the Burgos retreat ;
although the indifferent rations, muddy streets, and
wretched hovels of this village afforded but slender
facilities for recovering efficiency. However, our
Brigade had suffered little comparatively ; the men
having been well taken care of on the retreat, whilst
others were starving, under the watchful eye of the
best Brigadier, assisted by the exertions of Mr. Ed
wards, one of the best Commissaries in the service.
A branch of the river Allagon, a large tributary of
the Tagus, ran through Moralejo, which I soon ex
plored, rod in hand, and found it contained good dace
and barbel, that served to eke out the rations. An
tonio managed to turn the tough, lean, ropy beef into
something like soup; and thus the programme of
dinners was uniformly — soup, bouilli, fish, Sunday, —
fish, bouilli, soup, Monday, — and so on through the
week. We remained but a short time in Moralejo, and
then moved to Coria, and afterwards to a large strag
gling village, named Ceclavin. Coria is a city of nine
or ten thousand inhabitants, surrounded by Moorish
walls and towers, in a ruinous state, with a cathedral.

136 LUDICROUS SUPPOSITION.
The hill on which the city is built rises steeply from
the former bed of the Allagon, which is now dry ; for
the course of the river has been in some way changed
from its ancient channel into another, half a mile dis
tant; though the bridge still stands, oddly enough,
over the old course, looking very useless and discon
solate. The tradition in Coria is, that Saint Bartho
lomeo de Plasencia,to whom the cathedral is dedicated,
foreseeing that in the course of time the foundation
of the building would be undermined by the river,
miraculously changed its course one night ; and in
the morning the astonished inhabitants beheld the
stream running in a new channel at a respectful dis
tance. Certainly the puissant Saint left his miracle
incomplete ; for, beyond all question, he ought to
have endowed the river with the power of carrying off
the bridge on its back.
A canon of the cathedral in relating the story told
me confidentially — " The people believe this legend,
and we don't wish to undeceive them — they are the
more devout for their faith. Between you and me,
the river's course was changed by the earthquake of
1755." I afterwards traced the dry bed of the stream
to its junction with the river; and it appears for
between two and three miles to have been heaved up
by subterranean forces.
During the winter of 1812 amateur plays and
various festivities were got up at Coria. A pack of
fox-hounds came out from England for Sir Rowland
Hill, and hunted generally twice a week, until they
were broken up by a curious and unfortunate accident.
One very fine day there was a strong field — we found,
and had a splendid run of nearly two hours; with
only a short check — every body well up. At last Mr.
Reynard, being hard pressed, made for his earth in a

CORIA GAL1STEO. 137
steep bank of the Allagon; but feeling somewhat
flurried with the long chase, the animal, wise as he
was, forgot his topographical marks, and instead of
descending to his hole obliquely, he went sheer down
a perpendicular bank, a hundred and fifty feet high,
and was followed by five couple and a half of the best
of the dogs. They were all killed instantly, and Sir
Rowland Hill, the huntsman, and some of the leading
horsemen had a narrow escape ; for the bank was
most treacherous, giving no indication of danger until
almost too late.
The amateur plays were not much patronised by
the Spaniards, and the necessary substitution of men
for female performers revolted the ladies, who turned
up their pretty noses at the want of grace and elegance
on the stage. The masculine strides in petticoats
upon the boards must have been an utter abomina
tion in the eyes of those mincing beauties, whose
longest step would not be more than three or,, four
inches. Here, as every where else in Spain, black eyes were
so universal, that any other colour in a lady's seemed
as strange as if nature had given her three, instead
of the usual number. I recollect one evening at a
Tertulla in Coria, there chanced to be a very fair
English woman present. She was pretty and graceful
enough to be remarkable even amidst much Spanish
grace and beauty, but nothing was said of her fair
skin and classic features. The buzz through the room
about the lovely foreigner was — " Mira, mira ! aquella
Senhora tiene ojos azules" — with a soft lisp on the
last mellow word. " Look, look, that lady has blue
eyes." During this winter, although Lord Wellington
seemed to be only occupied in amusing himself in

138 DISTANCING AN AGUE FIT.
following the hounds, measures were quietly taken
to promote the comfort, improve and preserve the
health, and increase the efficiency of the British and
Portuguese regiments. We were all in high spirits —
cheered by the good news from Russia ; and naturally
believed that the reverses of Napoleon there would
have a momentous bearing on the war in the Peninsula,
and probably cause large draughts from thence to be
sent to Germany. The time was thus becoming fa
vourable for a grand combined movement, to push the
enemy out of the Kingdom. With secrecy, and his
usual consummate sagacity, did the great General
who commanded us prepare for the grand and final
hunt over the Pyrenees.
There is a little old walled town called Galisteo,
between Coria and Plasencia, where two of the re
giments of our Brigade were quartered during the
early Spring months.' At this place I was attacked
by my old enemy, the Tertian ague, which I dosed in
the regular way for a fortnight, but all in vain — at
twelve o'clock every second day my teeth began to
chatter. Thinks I to myself, this open attack on the
enemy will never do — let us try a manoeuvre. Ac
cordingly, at half-past eleven I prepared a tumbler of
hot spiced wine, ordered my horse to the door, got
into the saddle and drank it off, and then proceeded
in a canter over the extensive plains in the neighbour
hood. When it approached twelve, although the sun
was powerful, I could feel the ague-fiend's cold fingers
grasping my loins; I then set spurs to Liberdade,
pushed him into a full gallop, and at length, by dint
of good management and perseverance, I fairly dis
tanced my villanous pursuer. I tried this plan with
equal success the next time; and on the return of the
third period, when the fit used to come on, I was de-

EASTER SUNDAY IN PLASENCIA. 139
lighted to find that my feelings continued comfortable
— my spine did not turn into a great icicle, nor my
grinders commence their former hornpipes. I re
commend this as very pleasant practice, and very
effectual besides ; for I left the ague so far behind
on the above occasion, that it has never been able to
overtake me since.
In April we moved to Plasencia, a clean and re
spectable city, with a singular cathedral, the front of
which presents the architectural anomaly of the florid
gothic, Corinthian, and composite orders, rising above
each other ; which is very offensive to the eye. I rode,
soon after our arrival, to visit the convent of St. Justus;
the retreat of the Emperor Charles the Fifth. The
Prior who did the honours of the place assured us, that
the story of the Ex-Emperor having devoted much of
his time to the regulation of watches was a fiction.
During Passion Week we had a sort of religious
tragedy, performed every day by the clergy in Plasen
cia; and on Good Friday there was a grand procession
of images of the twelve apostles, as large as life, and
the Virgin Mary dressed in garments of modern
fashion, with a representation of the dead body of our
Saviour borne on a litter. These effigies were sur
rounded by a strong corps of priests and friars, chaunt-
ing most dolefully. This imposing procession issued
from the cathedral, and visited of course every church
in the city.
The large windows of the cathedral, and all the
interior, had been hung with black throughout the
week, and the light carefully excluded. On Easter
Sunday morning the principal inhabitants and a large
number of British Officers having filled the spacious
interior to overflowing, the dark veil was suddenly
withdrawn, amidst a grand Te Deum — the sunshine

140 MILITARY EXECUTION.
streamed in brilliantly through the painted windows,
and all was at once, as if by magic, changed from the
most melancholy gloom to the most gorgeous religious
splendour. On the following day we had a military spectacle,
in strong contrast to the rejoicings of the Sunday-
The whole Division was assembled in a large plain to
witness the execution of a soldier who had shot his
Captain, and with the same ball badly wounded a Ser-
jeant. The same night, such was the vivid impression
of this scene on the mind of one of the 66th — though
the murderer belonged to anothercorps — that heawoke
his comrade, and told him he had seen the devil carry
ing off the soul of the criminal, and at the same time
calling him by name, and warning him to avoid a
similar fate — which was certainly very unfiendish.
The poor man went to sleep again, but awoke soon
after in the same terror, from some similar dream ; and
then, appearing to have quite lost his senses, he jumped
out of bed, ran into the street/and drowned himself
in the river. There was an officer of the 66th, of very
dark complexion and prominent eyes, who chanced to
be Subaltern of the day, and had visited the quarter
of this man when he first awaked. To his appearance
in the room the officers unanimously ascribed the
catastrophe, and the innocent D  y ever afterwards
retained the nick-name of the devil. Odd enough, the
poor fellow was afterwards drowned himself.

141

CHAPTER XIII.
OPENING OF THE VITTORIA CAMPAIGN.  AFFAIR NEAR
SALAMANCA.  BURGOS CASTLE BLOWN UP.  PASSAGE OF
THE EBRO.  ANOINTING OF A HORSE.
"For who is he whose chin is but enrich'd
With one appearing hair, that will not follow
These cull'd and choice drawn Cavaliers to France?"
Shaespeare.
On the sunshiny morning of the 19th of May 1813,
the corps of Sir Rowland Hill was put in motion from
Coria and Plasencia, through the pass of Baiios towards
Salamanca. The weather was beautiful ; and this long
march, which only ended in the Pyrenees, was com
menced under the most favourable auspices.
The Baiios, or Baths, from which this strong defile
is named, are strongly sulphureous, and much used in
cutaneous diseases. Nature, in fixing their tempera
ture, had been happy in her chemistry, as that good
old experimentalist generally is. The heat is always
about 105° Fah. ; which, to most people's feelings, is
precisely the temperature of a comfortable warm bath.
When we entered New Castille, and approached
Salamanca, the face of the country became very rich,
and was tastefully ornamented with much beautiful
natural planting; gracefully undulating slopes were
seen in all directions, which were dotted with clumps
of tall and umbrageous forest trees : the whole country
having very much the appearance of a fine park. All
this was very pleasing, coming from dry, hot, and
naked Estramadura. Still, as over all Spain, the

142 THE VITTORIA CAMPAIGN.
population was concentrated in towns ; and notwith
standing the beauty and fertility of the intermediate
glades and valleys, and rising grounds, they were
without inhabitants, or only the demesne of the shep
herds, with their enormous flocks, or the hogs in
quest of food. What illimitable tracts of the finest
land lie useless in that lazy country !
On our approach to Salamanca during the last day's
march, the 26th, we perceived at a great distance, on
the other side of the Tonnes, a column of the enemy,
with artillery, deliberately retiring ; and our cavalry
and horse artillery under General Fane fording the
river, and galloping after in hot pursuit. Soon the
guns got within range, and we saw them pounding
the French squares in capital style, until the defile of
Aldea Lengua hid the whole from our view. The
squares kept their formation with great steadiness ;
but the cavalry was dispersed, and upwards of two
hundred were made prisoners, who we had the plea
sure to see with seven guns, in the great square of
Salamanca the same evening. This smart affair cost
the enemy four or five hundred men, and was an aus
picious commencement of the campaign.
We forded the Tonnes and encamped on the right
bank, a mile from Salamanca ; and as soon as we shook
off the dust of our hot march, a party of the officers
of the 66th rode into the city. It appears a venerable
old place, solacing itself among magnificent ruins, by
the consideration of its former greatness. The Plaga
grande, — considered the finest in Spain — is certainly
superb, and the cathedral is a most noble gothic
building; retaining still two or three Murillos, that
have escaped French rapacity. Salamanca has suffered
terribly during the war; for it has been nearly the
whole time since 1809 in the possession of the enemy.

THE VITTORIA CAMPAIGN. 143
We were shown long masses of ruins, the remains of
streets, in the vicinity of the fortified convents taken
last year, which Regnier had destroyed.
We were unwilling to leave this fine old city so
soon, but were ordered off the next morning, and
marched six leagues to camp, near the village of La
Urbada, where ours and the Light Division halted
six days, to give time for Sir Thomas Graham and the
left of the army to get through the rugged and intri
cate country they had to traverse. It was very plain
that there would be no child's play this campaign :
our army was in strong force and great heart, and its
masses were moving concentrically on the main
French communication with their own country, de
termined to beat down all resistance. Concentration
then must be the game of the enemy, and when the
rival bodies came within each other's attraction, we
were likely to have a famous clash.
Our camp was situated in a fine game country ;
open generally, but varied and beautified by many
picturesque copses and young woods, affording ample
cover and food. The evening of the day we marched
, m threatened to be a hungry one, for our rations were
nearly out, and we expected none till the next morn
ing : my faithful Antonio, who hated hunger as mor
tally as Sancho Panza, looked longer visaged than
usual by a couple of inches; and as the punctual
Jonathan Wild, my bat-man, heaped before our ani
mals the glossy and succulent green forage in abund
ance, there was much to envy in their enjoyment.
Just as Antonio had paraded the last biscuit and a
cup of wine for my dinner, we heard a loud and pro
longed shout close to the tent ; and when I ran out
to see what was the matter, a fine hare, that had been
started somewhere in the purlieus of the camp, and

144 AFFAIR NEAR SALAMANCA.
chased by a crowd of soldiers, made a spring over the
tent-cords and came bounding against my breast. It
was certainly cruel treatment of a helpless prisoner,
but truth must be told — poor puss was in the soup-
kettle in five minutes. Some doubts were started as
to property in the animal, but this summary disposal
of the poor captive put an end to them at once; for
it is the best plan to be short and decided in all such
ambiguous cases — great or little — from matters of
moment to the splitting of a hare.
Lord Wellington had entered Salamanca with Sir
Rowland Hill and our Division; but when he found the
right of the army well on, and everything satisfactory,
he started for the left, to superintend its operations,
and hasten its movements. In this rapid journey he
crossed the Douro, under far more dangerous circum
stances than those of the rope bridge at Alcantara,
where I had the honour to meet him ; for at Miranda
he ventured into a small basket, hung on a rope,
stretching from one high rock to another, across the
boiling stream ; and thus, in this giddy seat, three
hundred feet above the water, did this fearless man
traverse a river, which has derived the main part of
its modern celebrity from his great deeds upon its
banks. When the wing of Sir Thomas Graham was suffi
ciently advanced, we broke up our camp and moved
on toToro, where we crossed the Douro. The bridge
had been destroyed, but was temporarily repaired,
so as to admit of Infantry passing over; whilst the
Cavalry and Artillery crossed at a ford a little below.
The water was inconveniently deep for the smaller
baggage animals, and several poor donkeys got out of
their depth and were lost. One of our soldier's wives,
mounted on a good stout ass, swam her^animal gal-

BURGOS CASTLE BLOWN UP. 145
lantly a quarter of a mile down the river, directing
its course to a shelving bank on the proper side,
which she reached in safety, amidst a volley of cheers
from the Division. I chanced to be near this gallant
person when she first got afloat, and observed that she
encouraged her animal in Spanish as volubly as she
could ; thinking, naturally enough, that it would be
better understood than English.
On the 2nd of June there was another successful
rencontre with the enemy at the village of Morales,
where our Hussar Brigade — the 10th and 15th Hus
sars — cut up a body of Cavalry that shewed fight,
taking a hundred and fifty prisoners. We saw many
deep stains of blood on the ground the next day.
In every town through which we passed the inha
bitants received us most joyfully ; standing at the
doors of the houses with pitchers of cool and delicious
water in their hands, which they distributed to the
thirsty men with expressions of cordial friendship.
" Vivan los Inglezez !" ran in our ears the whole way.
In this agreeable style we chased the enemy before us
for the next ten days until we came close to Burgos,
where they seemed inclined to make a stand, and some
fighting took place on the hills near the town. Our
Division was in advance along the high road, and was
startled by a tremendous report on the morning of
the 13th, which was caused by the blowing up of
"Dubreton's thundering castle;"* a very delightful
sound, which waked me out of my morning sleep, and
puzzled me for a few seconds. Burgos had become
a word of ill omen with the army ; but we then little
knew the full consequences of this explosion and its
immediate disastrous effects, in the crushing of a
* Napier.
VOL. I, H

146 PASSAGE OF THE EBRO.
French column and the death of three hundred men,
from the hurried and bungling way in which it was
effected. All we felt was, that the abandonment of a
place the enemy had formerly successfully defended
shewed fear and weakness ; and we now started with
fresh spirits on the glorious hunt across the Ebro.
When we approached Pancorvo, a place of some
strength on this celebrated river, situated on the high
road from Burgos to Vittoria, we struck off by a path
to the left; and after threading a most formidable
defile of two leagues, crossed the Ebro at the Puente
d'Arenas without any opposition. This was another
proof that the French were much frightened, for two
or three hundred men might here have stopped our
whole army for a day or two ; and thus gained time to
enable the retiring masses of the enemy to recover some
order. We were now entering on a new country altogether,
having a more northern character, and differing totally
in appearance, productions, and language, as well as
in the physical attributes of the inhabitants, from the
parts of Spain we had seen before.
Fresh butter is a very rare article in the south of
Spain, the want of which we had often deplored. At
the top of this strong pass we met a great number of
Biscayan paysanas, dressed in pretty fantastic cos
tumes, every one with a clean white ozier basket on
her arm, full of nice looking prints of butter, neatly
folded in vine leaves, and all anxious to sell their
tempting merchandize to the Senhores Inglezez. As
this was a luxury for which we all sighed, I bought
immediately half a dozen prints ; each with a good
looking Biscayan cow and calf on it, in alto relievo.
The baggage being in the rear, it became a question
of importance where to stow my prize. After some
consideration, I took one of the pistols out of the

ANOINTING A HORSE. 147
holsters, (for, though a man of a peaceful profession, it
was just as well to possess such weapons in those
days ;) put it in my pocket, and stowed away the
precious butter in its place.
We proceeded down the Arenas defile, admiring
the grotesque shapes and threatening appearance of
the huge masses of rock, impending over our heads,
until the valley of the Ebro began to open. The river
here runs along a deep glen, with high banks, covered
with trees and rocks, of the most fantastic configura
tion and extraordinary wildness and beauty. It is al
together a study for some Salvator Rosa among modern
landscape painters, and I have often wondered how it
is that none of the picturesque Annuals have yet got
hold of it.
When we crossed the river, our Division was obliged
to halt two hours till the road was cleared, having
become jammed in the defile with part of the left of
the Army. The day was very hot and calm, but we
thought of nothing save the new faces of our friends
from the left, the display of accumulating force, the
probabilities of an approaching conflict, and the splen
did natural scenery with which we were surrounded.
We arrived at our camp near Villacayo about sunset;
and, on dismounting, I was rather surprised at observ
ing an unusual sleek and rather oily appearance on
my horse's chest and shoulders, whilst his forelegs
were floured and crusted over thickly with a coat of
tenacious dust. Immediately the nature of the sad
calamity flashed across my mind, and I hastened to
lift the holster-cover and find out the extent of the
mischief. Ay de mi ! when I pressed upon the vine-
leaves, they returned but a hollow sound ! my firm
and delicious butter had "larded the lean earth" of
Navarre for many a league, and there was nothing
but the green envelope remaining !

148 PASSAGE OF THE EBRO.
We advanced slowly from the Ebro on Vittoria,
where rumour said the French army was collecting,
and appeared determined to fight. O ur columns were
now converging — the lateral routs were difficult for
Artillery — the enemy was concentrating — it was there
fore necessary to move cautiously. Some little fight
ing had taken place on our left, where a couple of
French Divisions, getting entangled in the intricate
country, had suddenly come in collision with our left
wing under Sir Thomas Graham; and again, when
they turned from him, with the Light Division, by
which they suffered much loss, both in men, treasure,
and baggage.
The face of the country had now altogether changed;
and the bracing and beneficial influence of the cooler
climate we were traversing was visible in the more
robust stature and fairer and ruddier complexions of
the natives. All classes cheered us as we passed ; and
though, from the long march, the men's shoes were
worn out, and blistered feet among them, and sore
backs among the cavalry horses and baggage ani
mals, had become more numerous than was agreeable,
the whole army was in the highest spirits. Ours had
been a magnificent burst, without a check, from the
borders of Portugal, across broad Spain, up to the con
fines of the Pyrenees. Scientific combinations had been
carried into effectindistant,but harmonious movements
of different Corps and Divisions of the Allied Army
without any disturbing impediment ; all had been in
spired with the confidence, and almost the certainty of
success, under their great leader ; whilst two or three
little dashing cavalry affairs — the panic of the enemy,
the acclamations of the Spaniards, and the singular
beauty of the weather, might be viewed as the scenic
accompaniments of this first act of the great drama.

149

CHAPTER XIV.
BATTLE OF VITTORIA.  THE AUTHOR NEARLY BOBS HIS HEAD
AGAINST A ROUND SHOT.  DOUBTFUL POLICY OF COURTESY
ON SUCH OCCASIONS.  HEROIC DEATH OF COL. CADOGAN.
 SLAUGHTER IN A FIELD IN FRONT OF SUBIJANA d'aLIVA.
 FINE SHOT.  PURSUIT OF THE ENEMY THROUGH THE
VALE OF BASTAN.  HOSPITALITY OF A PRIEST AT ELI
ZONDO. " Now set the teeth and stretch the nostril wide,
Hold hard the breath, and bend up every spirit
To his full height." Shakspeare.
Such was the deep impression produced by the impor
tant events of the 21st of June 1813, that every thing
I that day witnessed remains as fresh in my memory
as if it only occurred yesterday.
On that celebrated Sunday morning there was a
little light rain about daybreak, followed by some
mist and fog ; which, however, did not last long, and
ended in a fine clear day. Having from the com
mencement of the campaign been attached as Assistant
to Staff Surgeon Wasdell, in medical charge of the
Second Division, I moved with the Head Quarters of
General Stewart ; and thus had the advantage of a
wider range of observation of what was going on, and
better accommodations than I should have had with
my Regiment. The night before the battle we were
quartered in a village half a mile from our camp ;
and as we all anticipated something to do the next
day, I awoke before day-light, and looked out of the
window at the camp ; but nothing was to be Seen
through a thick vapour covering the ground, and aU
was perfectly calm and still. In an hour after this

150 BATTLE OF VITTORIA.
the men were striking their tents, and getting under
arms ; and in half an hour more we were all in motion,
towards the village of Puebla, where there was a bridge
over the Zadorra, a branch of the Ebro, two leagues
from Vittoria.
It was early buzzed along the line of march that
there would be hot work before night — the Staff Offi
cers, as they moved with orders, looked grave and
somewhat excited ; and there was a partial cessation
of that usual chatting and joking in the ranks, which,
though contrary to orders, was tolerated in those days,
and with good reason, for it disguised and softened
the tedium and fatigue of a march, and kept the men
in good humour.
The stream of the Zadorra, when we crossed it at
Puebla about ten o'clock, unlike its dark hue in the
evening, was beautifully clear and full of glancing fish.
Morillo's Spanish Division had seized the bridge before
we came up, crossed, and were now skirmishing with
the enemy on the heights on our right. By and by
the fire thickened — we passed some bodies of French
soldiers lying dead in the defile near the river ; the
column quickened its march when it had crossed the
narrow bridge, and moved up the bank, towards the
table-land at the top, in compact order.
When we reached the heights, a grand and spirit-
stirring spectacle met our view. We saw the extensive
line of the whole French army posted on a range of
high ground, about two miles off, in order of battle,
with the city of Vittoria in the centre, but considerably
to the rear. The position appeared to be four or five
miles in length — the greater part of the troops were
in column — some in line — and the numerous Artillery
was disposed in batteries on the most commanding
points. Numbers of mounted Staff Officers were

BATTLE OF VITTORIA. 151
moving about slowly from one part of the field to
another. This was the first time I had seen a powerful army
prepared for battle ; and truly the sensation was exhi
larating and intoxicating. I was young and ardent,
and felt strong emotions in anticipating the approach
ing combat, and the probable discomfiture of those
imposing masses. And though the reader may smile
at the confession if good natured, and sneer if the
reverse, I acknowledge that I was for a few moments
half ashamed of my quiet profession ; I longed to join
in the impending struggle, and " throw physic to the
dogs." When our Division had advanced along the Vittoria
high road, within long cannon-range of the enemy's
position, we were ordered into a field on the right of
the road, and there halted : the Portuguese Brigades
of Sir Rowland Hill's Corps were also halted at the
same place. The whole were then ordered to pile their
arms and walk about to refresh themselves for a few
minutes ; while Sir Rowland Hill, General Stuart, and
a large Staff, including Mr. Wasdell and myself, rode
forward to a small height, whence there was a better
view; but the crowd of mounted Officers having
attracted the enemy's notice, a shot from one of the
nearest batteries gave us a hint to keep our distance,
and the greater part of us were ordered away — the
Generals and their immediate Staff only remaining.
The contrast between the aspect of the two armies
at this part of the field was striking enough. On one
side the dark and formidable masses were prepared at
all points to repel the meditated attack — the infantry
in column with loaded arms, or ambushed thickly in
the low woods at the base of their position — the cavalry
in lines with drawn swords — and the artillery frowning

152 BATTLE OF VITTORIA.
from the eminences with lighted matches. While on
our side all was yet quietness and repose. The chiefs
were making their observations, and the men walking
about in groups, amidst the piled arms — chatting and
laughing, and gazing ; and apparently not caring a
pin for the fierce hostile array in their front.
But the scene soon changed. At once three or four
Aides-de-camp galloped from the point where the
Generals yet remained — the men stood to their arms —
"with ball cartridge prime and load !" was the word
then given, and all levity and mirth passed away from
their countenances, and an expression of grave deter
mination took their place. Almost immediately after,
the Brigade of Colonel O'Callaghan, consisting of the
28th, 34th, and 39th Regiments, marched to attack
the village of Subijana d'Aliva, close under the
enemy's lines, and half a mile in our front, which was
strongly occupied ; and having there suffered a heavy
loss, I was ordered to the assistance of the Surgeons,
and soon after, this being the most pressing point,
Mr. Wasdell joined us himself.
We collected the wounded in a little hollow out of
the direct line of fire, but within half musket shot of
the village; unpacked our panniers and proceeded
to our work. This Brigade had four or five hundred
men killed and wounded in the course of an hour or
two ; so we were fully employed. A stray cannon
shot, from a battery firing on the village, would occa
sionally drop among us, by way of an incentive to
expeditious surgery ; and after one of these unpleasant
visitors had made his harmless appearance, a young
chirurgeon of my acquaintance, who is still living,
became so nervous, that although half through his
amputation of a poor fellow's thigh, he dropped the
knife, and another hand was obliged to complete the

BATTLE OF VITTORIA. 153
operation. But this was only a temporary weakness : at
my suggestion he lay down on the grass, took a little
brandy, and soon recovered, and did good service the
whole day. Spring waggons were in attendance, in
which we placed our worst patients and sent them to
Puebla, where Dr. M'Grigor, then at the head of the
medical department in the Peninsula, had early in
the day made the most judicious arrangements for
their accommodation.
When Subijana was taken and we had attended to
all the wounded we could find — including a large pro
portion of Officers — a message came to the Staff Sur
geon from the Puebla mountain on our right — a long
time the scene of a bloody struggle — that our first
Brigade, composed of the 50th, 71st, and 92nd Regi
ments, had suffered great loss, and required medical
aid. They had been sent early in the day to assist
Morillo and his Spaniards ; but strong reinforcements
having joined the enemy on this important point, these
gallant regiments had been hardly pressed. I was
again detached up the hill on this urgent requisition.
I had been so entirely occupied professionally for
three hours, that at this time I was quite in the dark
as to the state of the engagement ; except that latterly
the sound of the firing appeared louder and closer
than at the beginning. As I rode up to the higher
ground, I endeavoured therefore to see how matters
stood ; but I could make out no more than that some
heavy firing of musketry and artillery was just burst
ing out on the French right ; the relative situation
of their force and ours being, as far as I could observe,
the same as at the beginning of the action ; only that
we had now possession of Subijana d'Aliva, whilst
the enemy remained in force in a long wood close to
the village. H 2

154 DEATH OF COLONEL CADOGAN.
When galloping up the Puebla hill, Le Cor's Portu
guese Division, belonging to Sir Rowland Hill's Corps,
was moving up to the same place to support the
troops there engaged. The Portuguese marched up
a ravine, in shelter from the French batteries, from
whence they could not be seen; but the enemy
knowing their line of march well, elevated their guns,
diminished the charge, and dropped some shot and
shells among them. When one of these fell amongst
the columns, there was an awful scream ; not merely,
I believe, from the men struck, but their comrades
also, which never is the case when a British square
is hit. One of these round shot, in pursuing its para
bola over the hill, passed so near my head, that I felt
the wind of it, and bowed or bobbed instinctively ;
though, as Napoleon is made to tell his guide at Wa
terloo, the bob might as probably be into the line of
the ball as out of it. At any rate there is a precedent
in point in the case of the great Marshal Turenne,
for -bowing to " a gentleman of that fighting family;"
yet this illustrious commander seems to have gained
little by his civility, for a cannon-ball killed him at
last. I certainly made the best bow the time would
permit ; and an instant after was not sorry to see the
ball plunge into the ground a few yards off, appa
rently having been more a flying shot at me and my
horse than aimed at the Portuguese.
I reached the top of the mountain in time to wit
ness the last moments of Colonel Cadogan of the 71st,
whose death much resembled, and equalled in glory,
that of Wolfe. After he received his mortal wound,
he reclined with his back against a tree, beholding
the progress of the battle, but with glazing eyes ; and
cheered, like Wolfe, by the defeat of the enemy. After

SLAUGHTER AT SUBIJANA. 155
witnessing this fine scene with deep emotion, I pro
ceeded to assist the medical officers of the Brigade,
and remained with them till the urgency was over;
returning then, according to my orders, to Subijana.
Every thing now appeared changed — it was plain that
we had won the day ; the firing was far advanced
towards Vittoria, the enemy had abandoned several
points of his position, and appeared to be in full re
treat. In front of the village of Subijana, and between it
and the wood, was a large field of wheat, without
cover or enclosures of any kind ; and here I could not
help thinking at the time, there had been needless
exposure of the men, and much waste of life. Shortly
after the village was taken I saw parties detached from
the good cover it afforded into this field, to skirmish
in most unequal conflict with the French tirailleurs
in the wood ; exposed at the same time to the Artillery
on their main position. So ignorant even were these
brave men of the danger of their situation, that they
enhanced it a hundred fold by grouping themselves
in little masses through the field, for mutual protec
tion, and thus forming targets not to be missed by
covered infantry, and scarcely by artillery. Such was
the loss sustained in this part of the battle, that in
one section of the field, not more than two acres
square, I counted one hundred and fifty men killed
or badly wounded. To these ought to be added the
slighter cases, which were able to go to the rear.
The wood being now abandoned by the French
light troops, and their Artillery withdrawn from the
hill behind, Mr. Wasdell, two other surgeons, and my
self here set to work afresh, after swallowing some
wine and biscuit; and we remained collecting, dress-

156 A DRUNKEN DRAGOON.
ing, amputating, packing the wounded in the spring
waggons, and sending them to the temporary hos
pitals till seven o'clock.
When our work was done, and we had picked up
every wounded man in the neighbourhood of the vil
lage, we mounted our horses, that had been regaling
themselves all this time in the green corn, and pushed
on to join our Division, now with the whole army,
far in front. At this time the bulk of the French
army having been cut off from the main road to France
by Tolosa, were making for the Pampeluna road in a
state of the most complete disorder and confusion. We
passed Vittoria a mile on our left, where the plunder
of King Joseph's treasure and baggage was going on,
and our Hussars were getting drunk with his Tokay.
We might have picked up something valuable in the
melee had we turned aside; indeed, a friend of mine
who did, met a drunken dragoon with a bottle of wine
at his mouth, and a bag of money under each arm.
When his draught was finished he attempted to
mount his horse ; but, heavily laden and top heavy as
he was, this was no easy operation ; for when he tried
to deposit a bag on the pommel of his saddle and get
up, still clutching the other, the former was sure to
fall off. After several fruitless attempts, seeing my
friend watching the operation, he flung him the re
fractory bag, hiccuping, " Here, d — your eyes, you
look like an honest fellow, here's a bag of money for
you !" The receiver hastened to ascertain the value of
his prize, hoping it was a bag of doubloons ; but was
mortified to find the contents were only a thousand
French crowns.
It was now near sunset, and the pursuit still con
tinued. Most of the French artillery and baggage
had fallen into our hands ; but there was still one

A FINE SHOT. 157
large convoy, escorted by some cavalry, moving off with
great celerity, and having a fair prospect of escaping
in the approaching darkness. A troop of Horse Ar
tillery, commanded, I think, by Captain Bull, galloped
up and unlimbered within range, on a rising ground
near the road, when we were riding past ; and we fol
lowed them to observe their practice. The convoy
was at this time entering a narrow defile, with a bank
on each side, when the Captain pointed the first gun,
exclaiming, " Now for the leading carriage !" He made
a beautiful shot, for the ball killed the two front mules
in the foremost carriage, and thus stopped the whole ;
and before the impediment could be removed, our
Dragoons were up and the whole convoy was taken.
After such a day's work there was a great deal of
confusion at nightfall, and indeed through the whole
night; soldiers, and even officers, straggling about in
utter ignorance of the position of their Brigades and
Regiments, and unable to find them. Mr. Wasdell,
Mr. Frith, chaplain to the Forces to our Division, and
myself strayed about the country a long time after
dark, fruitlessly looking out for its bivouack. In the
course of our rambles that eventful evening, we also
got our humble share of the plunder, for we picked
up a sheep and a keg of Cogniac brandy, and I
stumbled on a piece of superfine cloth in the middle
of the road. And when I tell the honest truth, that,
from the long ride we had had from Portugal, there
was urgent need to relieve my dilapidated inexpres
sibles, notwithstanding the leather casing on the sa
lient points, I hope his grace the Duke of Wellington
will pardon me for keeping my humble quota of the
spoils of Vittoria.
We might, if we chose, have laid in a good library
of French Novels on this occasion, for the road and

158 PURSUIT OF THE ENEMY
adjoining fields were strewn with them for miles; to
gether with public and private letters, military rolls
and returns, prints, and packs of cards. How this
extensive scattering and dispersion took place I never
could make out.
After wandering till midnight to no purpose, we fell
in with some stragglers of the Buffs and 57th, who
kindled a fire in the kitchen of a deserted house,
where we took up our quarters, skinned and dressed
our sheep, and broiled us a very delicious chop upon
the coals. They divided their biscuit with us, and we
gave them a moderate share of our Cogniac. After
this we wrapped ourselves in our cloaks, and slept
profoundly, after a hard day's work.
The reunion of a corps of officers, after a hard-fought
and successful field, is an event of a highly interest
ing and affecting nature. All the baser passions and
tendencies are subdued, under the influence of the
exhilaration of the moment, the joy of escape from
recent danger, and the delightful consciousness of
intrepidity, good conduct, and success. Other of the
social charities also mix with these emotions — sorrow
for the dead, and sympathy with the wounded. Then
follows from each his own peculiar adventures — dis
quisitions on the general conduct of the business on
both sides — the bearing of particular Corps — indivi
dual feats of bravery or address — killed and wounded
&c. until the whole battle is fairly fought over again.
After mutual congratulations and enquiries, I was
pleased to learn, that though the 66th had its fair
share of the fighting, and had lost one seventh of its
number killed and wounded, no officer had been killed.
On the evening of the 22nd of June we started
again on a fresh chase; but as the enemy were then
in light marching order, having been disencumbered

THROUGH THE VALE OF BASTAN. 159
of their artillery and baggage, there was not much
chance of overtaking them. At Salvatierra we saw
three bed-ridden old people that had been murdered
in cold blood by the retreating enemy, apparently
without provocation, and from sheer cruelty. We
pushed them without any respite, as fast as the hor
rible state of the roads would permit, up to the defiles
of the Pyrenees.
In approaching Pampeluna, during a very heavy
thunderstorm, I chanced to be riding along in com
pany with the 34th Regiment, in conversation with one
of the officers named Masterman. Peal upon peal
bellowed above us, whilst the reflection of the brilliant
lightning from the then clear barrels of the soldiers'
muskets, momentarily blinded us. Just as the thun
der-cloud appeared to be directly in the zenith, a flash
more terrible than any that had preceded it irradiated
the column, and when I recovered my sight, I beheld
the poor fellow with whom I had been conversing the
instant before lying under his horse's feet. He was
quite dead ! He had escaped the murderous capture
of Subijana, where so many of his comrades fell a day
or two before, only to be selected from among thou
sands as the victim of this fatal bolt !
Nothino- could be more ardent than the demonstra-
tions of joy in every town we passed. This was the
first time since the days of the Black Prince that
English soldiers had been seen in these romantic and
secluded valleys, and we were treated as if we had
absolutely dropped from the sky on some benevolent
mission. As we marched through the towns, the
windows were crowded with women, cheering, and
waving white handkerchiefs, and tossing out loaves
amongst the soldiers ; whilst the men stood at the
doors serving out wine to the officers, or handing

160 PURSUIT OF THE ENEMY.
goblets of deliciously cool water, from their porous
earthen vessels, to the men. For, with nice discrimi
nation, they would not give wine to the men without
the permission of the officers. All this time the bells
of churches and convents would ring away with all
their might. Shouts of " Vivan los Inglezez ! " filled
the air, whilst every little urchin that could utter a
sound, mingled his shrill treble in the general accla
mation. On the morning of the 6th of July the corps of Sir
Rowland Hill entered the fine Vale of Bastan — quite a
gem amongst the Pyrenean valleys — that was still oc
cupied by two French Divisions, which we proceeded
to drive from several successive positions. There was
a good deal of desultory fighting all the day, for the
enemy had some stores in the pretty town of Elizondo,
which they were withdrawing, and consequently de
fended the approaches to the place with great obsti
nacy. Mr. Wasdell and myself moved with the ad
vance ; having our mule and surgical panniers close
up, so that we frequently attended to the wounded of
the light troops engaged before they could be seen by
their own medical officers, who were with their regi
ments a little way in the rear. In one case, where it
was necessary to amputate the hand, the patient, a fine
looking Light Infantry man of the 50th Regiment, bore
the operation without uttering a sound ; just as if I
had been paring his nail. When it was over, he looked
at the mutilated hand, and exclaimed : " I would
bear it ten times over, if I could ram you into my
piece, and blow out the cowardly villain's brains that
shot me ! " The poor fellow, it appeared, had good
reason for his indignation ; the Light Company of the
50th had surrounded a farm-house, in which about a
score of French had sheltered themselves. Finding

HOSPITALITY OF A PRIEST. 161
escape impossible, they held out a white handkerchief
from a window as a signal of surrender ; the firing then
ceased on both sides ; but when the first of the as
sailants, who happened to be my patient, entered the
door, a rascal discharged his musket at him — shatter
ing his hand, which he threw up instinctively to save
his head. The remainder then made a rush out, and
in the surprise of the moment most of them escaped.
We entered Elizondo late in the evening, with the
Light Companies and Staff of Sir Rowland Hill and
General Stewart, whilst a sharp skirmishing was still
going on at the other end of the town. Head Quarters
remained here during the night ; and the same tumul
tuous acclamations of joy and welcome met us in Eli
zondo as every where else. Indeed these demonstra
tions were peculiarly piquant and somewhat hazardous
to the people of this fine town ; for the joy-bells began
to ring whilst the enemy were yet in sight ; and their
glad sound, and that of the musketry firing, struck on
the ear together in singular and exciting unison.
There was, therefore, utter fearlessness of danger and
the most disinterested kindness in the hearty welcome
these good people gave us.
On entering Elizondo, we were passing a good
looking house, when a priest at the door saluted us
with warmth, and begged we would do him the favour
of spending the night under his roof, and sharing
the dinner he was preparing for some of his " caris-
simos amigos, los valientes Inglezez ;" most dear
friends, the valiant English — anticipating that they
would drive out the enemy in time to eat it. As we
were both hungry and fatigued, we required little
pressing: we dismounted at once, our horses and
attendant mule were put into a comfortable stable,
and were soon up to their ears in provender; whilst

162 HOSPITALITY OF A PRIEST.
we sat down to a sumptuous dinner with his reverence
and his niece— a very pretty muchacha of seventeen.
The dinner only waited till our good host dug up his
plate and some famous old wine, that he had buried
in the garden four years before ; and certes, we passed
a merry evening with this jovial and patriotic eccle
siastic. In the joy for the emancipation of his
native valley from the French yoke, under which it
had so long groaned, assisted perhaps a little by the
rich wine, that sparkled with additional brilliancy
from the sudden liberation of its latent light — the
excellent priest got slightly fuddled, and sang us
several Spanish songs. In return, he said he had
often heard of " God save the King," the English
national anthem, and requested we would sing it. My
friend Wasdell having declined, the task devolved on
me ; and very much did the old gentleman admire
and encore the poor performance, and right sweetly
did the sloe-eyed niece lisp out her pretty admiration
of it; until the evening — "long drawn out," by're
lady — like the chorus, ended happy and glorious, and
we went to bed.
Next day we advanced fighting to Maya, one of
the grand passes to the Pyrenees, amidst the same
exciting accompaniments as the day before. As the
evening closed, and the French retired to the top of
the pass, there was literally an engagement in the
clouds ; both parties being enveloped, and flashes of
a bickering musketry being visible in their picturesque
folds. This was of course very random firing, and
there were not many casualties ; yet some wounded
would now and then be brought in, and Mr. Wasdell
and I thought it proper to remain in the church of
Maya all night to receive them. At sunrise next
morning Lord Wellington passed through the village

CONVERSATION WITH LORD WELLINGTON. 163
to the front; and in riding past the church he sent
for one of the Surgeons, when I went out and had
the honour of a short conversation with his Lordship.
He was pleased to hear that so few men had been hit,
and that their wounds were for the most part slight.
He then rode on, saying courteously, " Good morning,
go on with you duties."
The enemy had descended to his own side of the
mountain during the night ; and in the morning the
British army stood proudly on the summit, looking
down upon the fertile plains of Gascony, amidst many
proud historical recollections.

164

CHAPTER XV.
RE-ORGANIZATION OF THE FRENCH ARMY BY THE DUKE OF
DALMATIA.  SURPRISE OF MAYA.  RETREAT.  ALTERED
PHYSIOGNOMY OF THE ELIZONDO PRIEST.  ACTION AT
BUENZA.  HARD PROFESSIONAL DUTY AT BARRIOPLANO.
 SCENE OF VIOLENT ALTERCATION BETWEEN WOUNDED
OFFICERS OF THE CHASSEURS BRITANNIQUES AND WOUNDED
FRENCH OFFICERS WHO HAD BEEN TAKEN PRISONERS. 
CALMED BY THE AUTHOR.  RETURN TO THE PYRENEES.
" Let him greet England with our sharp defiance —
Up, princes, and with spirit of honour edged
More sharper than your swords, hie to the field.
Rush on his host, as doth the melted snow
Upon the valleys." Shakespeare.
When the French Army had been fairly driven over
the Pyrenees, and the Allied Troops were established
in all those strong gorges of the mountains that form
the Western Passes, Sir Rowland Hill's Head Quar
ters remained at Elizondo, whilst the Head Quarters
of Sir William Stewart, commanding the Division,
were advanced to Maya, a small village on a hill,
about two miles in rear of the pass. Mr. Wasdell's
post and mine were with the latter. We passed the
first fortnight very pleasantly, riding about and ex
ploring the grand mountain boundary where we were
stationed. Unfortunately, clear weather was not com
mon in those celebrated regions, and it was not very
often that we could enjoy that commanding bird's
eye view of France we anticipated in approaching the
Pyrenees. At this time Napoleon, finding that matters were

FRENCH ARMY REORGANIZED. 16 5
going on very badly in Spain, and that his brother
had been ignominiously driven out of the Kingdom,
sent Marshal Soult from Germany to set them to
rights. He invested him with the Commission of Lieu
tenant de l'Empereur, and directed him to organize
the Army afresh, and chase the Leopard, as he con
temptuously called the British Lion, from the pre
sumptuous position he had taken on the borders of
the " Sacred Territory."
The Duke of Dalmatia travelled with great expe
dition; stimulated, probably, by a desire to wipe off
some affronts he had received from Lord Wellington.
He soon re-established order and confidence in the
beaten troops; proceeded to throw strong masses in
the immediate vicinity of the Maya and Roncesvalles
Passes ; and then lost no time in making a determined
effort to pierce at once our extensive line in two or
three places with superior force, take the different
posts en revers, beat them in detail, relieve Pampe-
luna and St. Sebastian ; and, following up his advan
tages, force the English back to the Ebro.
According to the best military opinions, this was
all excellently conceived ; but one or two elements of
success in the calculation were rather unlikely con
tingencies. The French must now fight far better —
with scanty artillery too — than they had done before,
with the aid of that powerful arm; and the British
worse. Lord Wellington, too, must fail in judgment,
and be a little shaken in his nerves.
On Sunday morning, the 25th of July, we were
informed at Maya, that the enemy had appeared in
force near Los Alduides, a post in the mountains, three
leagues to our right, occupied by the Portuguese
Brigade of Brigadier General Archibald Campbell;
whilst every thing appeared quiet in our immediate

166 SURPRISE OF MAYA.
front. General Stewart went to Elizondo, to confer
with Sir Rowland Hill ; both Generals, and several of
the Staff, rode to the right, towards Los Alduides,
and the day being very fine and clear, almost every
body in Maya followed in the same direction, so that
at twelve o'clock I found myself the only Com
missioned Officer in the village.
I also resolved to enjoy the singular clearness of
the weather, and have a peep into Gascony from the
mountains : accordingly, I mounted my horse and
rode towards the top of the pass, where one of our
Brigades was encamped. On the way I met the Bat
men of the 50th, 71st, and 92nd Regiments on their
mules, going to the rear for forage — an unhappy
journey for their masters. The day was still as well
as clear ; and as I proceeded I heard a musket-shot
or two from the top of the mountain, to which I paid
no regard ; but presently this thickened into a close
and heavy fire of musketry, with artillery. When I
reached the summit I found some alarm and con
fusion ; the picquets had been attacked by a very
superior force, and driven in ; their pursuers were
moving quickly in several heavy columns up the
mountain, and had now nearly reached the summit ;
whilst the nearest troops, the 34th and 28th Regi
ments, were in motion to oppose a force tenfold their
strength. It was Drouet, Count D'Erlon, who commanded
here,. and the business had been managed skilfully;
the great force of the enemy had been masked, and the
feint at Los Alduides had drawn the attention of the
Generals from the real point of danger. Notwithstand
ing a gallant resistance, the Count established himself
on the summit of the Pyrenees, to the right of the Pass,
with fourteen thousand men ; and in two hours from

RETREAT. 167
the time I had left Maya, the Camp of the first Bri
gade, whose mules had gone to the rear so mal a pro-
pos — tents and contents — the town of Maya — the
Commissariat stores — the Head Quarter Baggage,
&C. lay quite at the mercy of the enemy.
It was very plain that without energetic measures
I should lose my own goods and chattels with the
rest, so " Self-love and social being here the same,"
I galloped down the mountain to Maya at some risk
of my neck. None of the absentees had yet returned,
and the servants were in great terror and alarm, not
knowing what to do. Under these circumstances,
there was no great merit in assuming the responsibi
lity of ordering everything to be packed up, and sent
to the rear with all expedition; which was done ac
cordingly, notwithstanding some grumbling remon
strances from Sir William Stewart's servants. The
Commissariat bullocks and biscuit were also hurried
off, but no mercy was shewn to the rum, for the mules
required to carry it would.be wanted for the wounded,
who were now dropping into the village. Accord
ingly, the Commissariat Conductor set to work
staving in the casks, and we had soon a torrent of
old Jamaica running down the steep street, into the
river at the bottom, fit to turn a mill. I wonder how
the little fishes liked their grog.
The wounded now began to arrive fast. Many had
been dressed by their own Medical Officers, but a large
proportion required immediate attention, which was
paid them as far as the time permitted. In the mean
while, heavy firing and fighting were still going on to
the left of the pass, where a strong mountain key to
the position was yet held by Colonel Cameron's noble

168 RETREAT.
Brigade, the 50th, 71st, and 92nd ; upon which, Ge
neral Pringle had rallied his broken Regiments, and
had been joined by Troops from the left ; so that the
enemy crept down to Maya very slowly and cautious
ly, giving us more time than we expected. When at
length some of his tirailleurs began to snipe at one
end of the long straggling town, the Commandant
for the time being, with the last of his convoy, was
moving out leisurely at the other.*
Dire was the consternation of the poor inhabitants
when they saw us retreating through the beautiful
valley of Bastan, which had been the scene of such
gratulation and triumph on our advance, three weeks
before. Many of them, male and female, and almost
all the inmates of the convents, abandoned their
homes and retired with the Army. It was a painful
sight to see the poor nuns quitting their convents,
and mixing with the troops in the dusty roads; their
pale faces hectic with unwonted exposure, exertion,
and alarm. To the credit of our men, it ought to be
told, that great kindness, tenderness, and inviolable
respect were shewn to them on this retreat: the
soldiers carried their little bundles, and helped them
along ; and it was pleasing to observe the unsuspect
ing confidence with which many of these old ladies
trusted themselves and their property to the protec-

* Colonel Napier, in his immortal History of the Peninsular
War, repudiates the idea that the disaster at Maya was a surprise;
adding that, although " General Stewart was surprised, his troops
were not; and never did soldiers fight better — seldom so well."
This I humbly conceive they might do, even though surprised. To
my certain knowledge, everybody in Maya, and I believe in Eli
zondo too, was surprised. And that the Officers of Colonel Cam
eron's Brigade, when expecting an attack, should send their baggage
animals two or three leagues to the rear for forage, and thus deprive
themselves of the means of carrying off their personal effects, ap
pears to be, salvo inclyto Auctore, the most surprising thing of all.

THE ELIZONDO PRIEST. 169
tion of our rough grenadiers ; assuredly it was a high
compliment to the character and discipline of the
British Army.
As we passed through Elizondo, a large proportion
of the inhabitants joined us in the retreat; no doubt
dreading the vengeance of the enemy for the demon
strations of attachment to us they had made when
we first entered the town. I called at the house of
our worthy host, the Padre ; but had only time for
five minutes conversation with him at the door. Poor
fellow! he looked very desponding and miserable;
and I have seldom seen a greater contrast than be
tween his long and lugubrious face now, and his jolly
and rubicund countenance when roaring out a patri
otic Spanish song, or joining in the chorus of "God
save the King." The pretty niece had been sent out
of harm's way, to a relation near Pampeluna. When
I bade the fine old fellow good bye, I advised him to
bury his wine and plate once more, telling him we
should all be back again in a fortnight to tax his
hospitality: "Oxala a Dios ! Oxala a Dios!" "God
grant it ! God grant it !" was the reply ; and then
embracing me affectionately, and giving me a long
benediction, we parted.
We retreated to the heights of Trueta, and there
stood firm, confronting the enemy, at whose supine-
ness and inaction we were not a little surprised. On
the evening of the 27th we retreated farther through
a difficult mountain-pass, on the small town of Lantz,
it being supposed that time enough had been given
for the Seventh Division to pass laterally in our rear,
to reinforce the troops now assembling in front of
Pampeluna, who were endeavouring to check Soult's
farther progress. But such had been the state of the
roads, that they could not get out of our way ; and
VOL. I. I

170 DANGEROUS MOUNTAIN PASS.
we fell in with them on a broken and dangerous1
path, along the steep side of a mountain, in the middle
of a most dismal rainy night. In fact, the night
was so pitch dark that no object could be seen a yard
off; and the horses were of necessity trusted to pi
oneer their riders along the side of the steep moun
tain, where a false step would be destruction. My
pole-star was the white tail of my friend Wasdell's
horse, just before me, of which I caught an indistinct
observation when I stooped and looked attentivelv.
At length, both Divisions were obliged to halt on the
mountain where they stood, from sheer inability to
proceed, till day-light shewed them where they were.
When we were brought to a stand-still, the mounted
officers got off to ease their horses, and rested their
weary heads upon the saddles; whilst those who
were lucky enough to have a rock, or a bank of earth,
or a tree, within a yard or two, sat down in the mud,
supported their backs, and many dropped asleep in
this position. I was lucky enough to find a tree,
against the trunk of which I placed my back ; but
soon was fain to sit down, with my horse's bridle
round my arm, and his nose between my knees ;
whilst a shower bath from the branches was lulling
me to repose.
From the 25th of July to the 2nd of August were nine
days of hard fag and fighting. Sir Rowland Hill con
tinued to retire before the Count D'Erlon on the 28th;
shewing occasionally a formidable front. On the
evening of the 29th Sir Rowland posted his Corps on
a strong mountain-ridge, near the village of Buenza,
seven or eight miles to the left of the main British
force, and there anxiously awaited orders and the
course of events.
At day-break on the morning of the 30th every

ACTION AT BUENZA. 171
body was on the qui vive. We had been apprised of
the repulse of the enemy on the 28th ; the 29th had
passed quietly, for our late opponent the Count
D'Erlon seemed very sluggish in pursuit : but we all
expected something decisive on the 30th. As soon
as it was clear, Mr. Wasdell and I mounted our
horses, and joined a large assemblage of Staff, who,
with Sir Rowland at their head, were on their way to
a high hill three miles to the rear, whence they
hoped to be able to descry the important operations
then commencing on our right. For by this time
very heavy musketry firing and a cannonade were
going on in the direction of Sorauren: and we could
see a cloud of smoke, but nothing else. After
remaining on the hill nearly an hour, and plying his
glass most perseveringly, a movement of the whole
Corps was ordered to the rear, and obliquely to the
right, by the General, apparently to bring it nearer
the scene of action. At the same time we were not
certain that our friend the Count D'Erlon was not
close at hand, to disturb us in this movement.
So it turned out; and when we saw his columns
approaching, this order was countermanded, and
directions given to defend the wooded ridge the
troops occupied. Soon after, several bodies of the
enemy's troops were seen moving simultaneously on
the position, evidently prepared to attack us. Our
Light Companies now occupied the woody front of
this long mountain of Buenza; and a brisk firing
soon began between them and the French advance.
Mr. Wasdell and myself had our surgical panniers up
at the top ; but, as a long time elapsed before any
wounded were brought to us, we had the most perfect
view of everything going on. As the French columns
approached the base of the position, I regretted that

172 ACTION AT BUENZA.
the two Brigades of Artillery, which we had seen
waiting for orders in the rear, as we passed, were not
in battery on the heights, to give them a salute of
grape. But I apprehend that Sir Rowland Hill an
ticipated being driven from his post by the great
superiority of force with which he was assailed ; and
did not care to hazard the loss of his Artillery on the
steep ridge whence it could not be easily withdrawn.
However this may be, the enemy dashed at the hill
most gallantly, throwing out clouds of skirmishers,
who after a long struggle forced the Light Com
panies back on the main body, standing in line on
the crest of the position; but these being joined by
assistance from above, turned and drove them down.
At one point the light troops came running in, their
faces begrimed with powder and sweat, quite to the
spot where Sir Rowland Hill and several of his Staff
stood ; and happening to be with them at the time, I
distinctly saw him turning back three or four men of
the 50th Light Infantry himself, and heard his words
when addressing them : — " Go back, my men, you
must not let them up ; you shall instantly be sup
ported; you must not let them up!" Back they
went cheerfully, soon disappeared among the trees,
and, with the aid of a couple of Battalion Companies,
that darted from the line on the hill-top at double
quick, soon beat down the enemy at this point.
It was now three o'clock, and our assailants had
been hitherto repulsed every where; and with great
loss on the right flank of our position, which,
because the ground was very strong there, had been
confided to the Portuguese, with two Companies of
red coats to assist them. But our left was in the air,
as military writers say, for we had not force enough
to occupy the continuation of the long ridge towards

ACTION AT BUENZA. 173
Buenza. At length, after a good deal of hard work,
the French established themselves there, and were
preparing to advance along the crest of the mountain,
when Sir Rowland Hill withdrew his corps delibe
rately and in perfect order, to the heights of Eguaros,
about a mile and a half in the rear of his first position.
This was a sharp affair, although, from the strong
heights occupied by our troops, and the thick cover
down the front, there were but few casualties amongst
them, considering the heavy musketry to which they
had been four hours exposed. The French light troops
fired high, and I think badly ; for there was a con
stant whistling over our heads, where we stood on the
top, of balls aimed at their opponents in the wood,
along the side, and at the bottom of the hill. This
sound appears very insignificant after the near whizz
of a cannon-shot or the whi — s — h — h of a shell.
In the afternoon news arrived of a severe engage
ment the same morning near the scene of the battle
of the 28th, at Sorauren, in which the enemy had
been defeated with great loss. At the same time
Staff Surgeon Wasdell received an order from Dr.
M'Grigor, to detach a Medical Officer to the village
of Barrioplano, near Pampeluna, for the purpose of
collecting there the wounded of both armies, and
forwarding them in spring waggons to Vittoria. I
was detached on this duty, set off immediately, and
reached Barrioplano late in the evening.
A very large number of wounded, the consequences
of two severe actions, were brought into the village
on this occasion ; all the spring waggons with the
Army, and a great number of carts and mules, being
employed in collecting them on the extensive field of
battle, and conveying them to the church of Barrio
plano, as a depot. Here their wounds were examined

174 HARD PROFESSIONAL DUTY.
and dressed ; the limbs urgently requiring amputa
tion were taken off, and the patients again put in
the waggons and sent to the general hospitals at
Vittoria. Such was the urgency of circumstances,
and the pressure of the recent battles on the Medical
Department, that for nearly two days I had no as
sistance whatever in this onerous work. Then,
General Fane, who commanded the Cavalry in the
neighbourhood, sent two assistant surgeons to take
a part of the duty. During five days and nights
patients continued to be brought in, and there was
scarcely an hour's intermission from professional
labour; and thus, razorless and clean-shirtless, di
vorced from Antonio and my baggage since the 25th
of July, snatching half an hour's sleep on a heap of
wheat in a barn, which was literally my bed and
board, I worked away amidst as much surgical prac
tice as would have set up a hundred young sons of
.ZEsculapius, if shared amongst them.
During this time my brother assistant in the 66th,
Dr. Shekleton, a worthy man, now in extensive prac
tice in Dublin, rode over to the village to consult res
pecting the case of our mutual friend, Major Goldie,
of the regiment, who lay at a neighbouring hamlet
desperately wounded by a ball through the lungs.
The patient had been most judiciously and tenderly
treated, and his life hitherto saved by enormous
bleeding, to the extent of three hundred ounces in
two days.*
It chanced one morning that two spring waggons,
full of wounded French Officers, were brought in ;
* I have great pleasure in adding, that this very gallant and
valuable officer (lately Lt. Col. Goldie, C.B. commanding the
11 th Foot,) recovered after this prodigious loss of blood; though
he still carries the ball, nestled somewhere in his lungs.

ALTERCATION BETWEEN THE WOUNDED. 175
and very soon after, two more, with our own people,
principally of the Chasseurs Britanniques, a Corps
composed chiefly of foreigners. I was then busy in
the church with a batch of wounded soldiers that
had arrived earlier; and as the principle was, "first
come first served," without respect of persons, I di
rected that they should be put in a neighbouring
house until their turn came. When I had leisure to
attend them, I proceeded with an orderly, carrying
the surgical trays and apparatus, to dress their wounds,
but was not a little surprised to find them all in a
state of the most violent excitement — abusing each
other with the grossest epithets, gesticulating in the
straw in which they sat, and almost arrived at fisty-
cuffs. The French Officers were vilifying their
countrymen of the Chasseurs; calling them " Sacres
traitres! laches esclaves d'Angleterre!" and their
opponents were retorting with equal heat and bitter
ness. It was altogether a most laughable scene —
most genuinely French ; and I believe that nothing
but the loss of blood and the paralyzing effects of
their wounds restrained them from a general engage
ment. When I entered there was a momentary
pause; but the quarrel broke out afresh in two
minutes. I used all my eloquence to pacify them,
but in vain ; still the mutual objurgations were ban
died about with astonishing volubility and vehemence.
At last perceiving it was a desperate case, I seized my
instruments, directed the orderly to carry away the
tray of plasters and bandages, bade the pugnacious
gentlemen good morning, and requested them to fight
it out. This decisive ' proceeding calmed them at
once; they were then treated as they individually
required, and dispatched in separate waggons to Vit
toria.

176 RETURN TO THE PYRENEES.
When this fatiguing duty was over, and no more
wounded were brought in, I proceeded once more to
Maya, and found the Divisional Head Quarters again
established in that town, and the troops occupying
their old posts on the hills. Great was the comfort
of meeting my baggage, after a long destitution of
clean linen, and an intolerable beard of twelve or
thirteen days' growth.
In the course of the month of August we moved
with the Second Division to the classic Pass of Ronces-
valles, after a romantic march amongst the clouds
shrouding the tops of the mountains. We were treated
with a thunder storm on the way, with the novelty of
the lightning playing vividly, but harmlessly, below
us, and the loud thunder bellowing from beneath.
We experienced very frequent and severe thunder
storms during our stay amongst the Pyrenees; and
it appears to me not unlikely that their appellation
has some reference to this characteristic; and that
mv( aiuvw; — eternal fire, — is a more correct etymology
than the name of the fabulous daughter of Bebrix.
At this time the last siege of St. Sebastian was
going on : at length, on a very tempestuous day, the
place was stormed, amidst the rival thunder of the
sky and the batteries. The elemental storm extended
all over the western limb of the Pyrenees, and blew
down half the tents of our Division.
We remained at Roncesvalles until the surrender
of Pampeluna left Lord Wellington at liberty to push
into France. We then again moved along; the moun-
tains to the Pass of Maya ; where, on the morning of
the 10th of November, the Corps of Sir Rowland Hill
stood, like greyhounds in the slip, ready for a dash
at the position of the enemy in front of Bayonne.

177

CHAPTER XVI.

INVASION OF FRANCE.  STORM OF A FIELD REDOUBT ON
THE NIVELLE BY THREE OFFICERS.  DISTRESS OF MADAME
DUPRE AT ESPELETTE.  DESTRUCTION OF A BIG DRUM
BY A CANNON-BALL.  COWARDICE OF A CHEF DE BATAIL-
LON.  PASSAGE OF THE NIVE AT CAMBO.  RAPE OF A
ROASTING GOOSE.
" Thus come the English with full power upon us,
And more than carefully it us concerns
To answer royally in our defences." Shakspeare.
" Fresh legions pour adown the Pyrenees —
It deepens still." Byron.

A full hour before daylight, on the 10th of Novem
ber, did we wait for the firing of a gun on the extreme
left, which was a signal for our advance, whilst high
feelings were working in many bosoms. After the
lapse of three centuries, the banner of St. George was
once more to be unfurled in Gascony.
As soon as the long expected echoes rolled amongst
the mountains, the column was set in motion and
crossed the frontier, whilst a heavy firing was going
on to our left. We marched about two leagues, until
within cannon shot of the fortified heights above the
small stream of the Nivelle, which had the honour of
giving its name to the battle. Here we halted in
front of a very strong part of the fortified mountain,
which was allotted to our Division to storm ; and as
soon as the Sixth Division, immediately on our left,
had done their work, and driven the enemy from a
I 2

178 STORM OF A FIELD REDOUBT.
large redoubt, General Byng's Brigade pushed up
the steep abbatied height at one place, whilst the
Light Companies of the Division and the two other
British Brigades assailed it at other points. When
the leading regiment of Byng's Brigade reached the
plateau on the top, they looked such a handful, that
a French column opposed to them deployed into line
and prepared to charge ; but though I saw their
officers cheering them on gallantly, they would not
advance, but kept up an irregular fire ; which, being
badly aimed, did far less mischief than it ought to
have done. When more force came up, and the
Brigade, most gallantly led by Byng, formed and
advanced in line, the enemy's line wavered — not
metaphorically, but as I myself witnessed — visibly
and materially ; and after two or three strange oscil
lations they broke and ran.
There still remained a field redoubt, with two guns,
in possession of the enemy on the extreme left of the
position ; these were large ship carronades, and being
loaded with double charges of grape, did much execu
tion among our people. Lieut.-Colonel Leith, 31st
Regiment, Lieut.-Colonel Nicol, 66th, and Ensign
Dunn of the same Corps, at the head of a few men,
charged this work and carried it in good style. In
deed the three officers took it themselves ; for they
cleared the ditch with a running leap, and dropped
down amongst the garrison before a man could enter
to assist them. As they leaped in, the Artillery officer
and most of his men jumped out, but not with im
punity ; for Leith, a Hercules in figure and strength,
knocked the red-headed officer down with a brickbat,
but his cap saved his skull, and he managed to
scramble up and get away. His Serjeant, a formidable
looking person, " bearded like the pard," was not so

DISTRESS OF MADAME DUPRE. 179
lucky — he dislocated his shoulder in the leap, was
taken prisoner, and J set his arm to rights imme
diately afterwards.
This extensive position was an enormous intrenched
camp, on the plateau at the top of which were several
lines of clean and regular huts. As soon as our different
columns succeeded in penetrating to the top, they set
the huts on fire, as did some of the French troops on
quitting them. Thus we had a splendid blaze along
the summit, to the extent of two or three miles, as a
bonfire of triumph, kindled by our enemies' own
hands. We lost a good many people in storming this moun
tain. The Light Companies of the Division, who
were up first, suffered severely — every officer was hit,
and Major Ackland, 57th, who commanded them,
was killed. The death of his pretty spaniel — that
had during the action amused itself by barking at the
dust the balls raised as they struck the ground-
preceded its master's fall only by a few minutes.
Our time was occupied professionally till late in
the evening : when we had done, and were in quest
of some refreshment, a well-dressed woman accosted
us, apparently in a state of the greatest distress and
distraction. She told us she lived in the village of
Espelette, immediately under us, at the bottom of the
hill; that Morillo's Spaniards had entered the place,
and were beginning to burn and plunder, and her
husband had run away and left his family, from dread
of the Spaniards; and that she had come up the hill
alone, trusting in English generosity, to beg for pro
tection. She implored us, therefore, to accompany
her home, as our presence would save her helpless
family from the Spaniards. This poor woman appeared
so distressed, and was so importunate, that we asked

180 DISTRESS OF MADAME DUPRE.
for permission, and accompanied her to her house.
The town was in the greatest alarm and confusion,
and part of it on fire ; but, when this was known, a
regiment was sent down from camp to extinguish the
fire and turn out the Spaniards. A party of plun
derers visited our residence, but instantly decamped
when they found it in possession of British officers.
Poor Madame Dupre's family was also labouring
under distress of a peculiarly severe nature, from
another cause ; and in meeting accidentally with two
English surgeons, this good lady was piously pleased
to consider the circumstance as a special ordination
of Providence. By a most unlucky fatality, Jacque
line, one of her daughters, during the action on the
hill, happened to be looking out of the window listen
ing to the firing, when a grape-shot from a gun in
the redoubt last taken, which was turned on the enemy
as they ran down to the town, miserably fractured her
elbow joint. It was represented to the mother that
amputation was inevitable to save the poor girl's life,
and the sooner the better. After a sad scene, and
not without great difficulty, the patient gave her con
sent, and I took off the arm the same evening, and am
happy to add that she soon recovered.
It would be a graceful finale to state that Made
moiselle Jacqueline was very beautiful. Truth forbids
this ; but she was amiable and grateful, and after she
had recovered the first dreadful shock of such a loss,
she presented me with a handsome purse of her own
netting, as a fee, adding affectingly, " C'est le dernier
ouvrage de ma pauvre main !"
Madame Dupre had a good house, and appeared
in easy circumstances; she treated my friend and
myself with great kindness, and made us very com
fortable. She had a full cellar of the ordinary wine

DESTRUCTION OF A BIG DRUM. 181
of the country; but there was one very clarety cask
which she forced me to accept for distribution amongst
my brother officers in camp. Due notice was given,
and it need not be doubted that I had a full attend
ance of their servants with tins and tea-kettles, and
all manner of unconscionably large vessels, to draw
it off. On the 13th of November Sir Rowland Hill made a
reconnoissance of the enemy's force at Cambo, at the
head of his Corps ; this being a kind of fortified
town, commanding a good bridge over the Nive, from
which he determined to drive them. The troops were
drawn up in line, in a semicircle round the town, out
of musket-shot, but within cannon-range. When we
got within shot-range, Colonel Nicol and myself were
riding together at the head of the Brigade, mixed
with the Band of the Buffs, when a ball plunged
amongst us, knocking over three or four musicians.
In five seconds they all jumped up again unhurt,
amidst great laughter, but the loudest laugher was
the big Drummer, for his drum had been mortally
wounded; indeed, as he classically expressed it him
self, " knocked to smithereens." Its fall had upset the
two men that carried it, and they in falling caught
hold of their two nearest neighbours.
We stood in line a couple of hours, exposed to fire.
As General Byng was passing on horseback where I
chanced to be looking on, en amateur, a shell alighted
within seven or eight yards of us both. With much
coolness he remarked, " There is no danger — throw
yourself off," shewing me the example. When we
had embraced mother earth a couple of seconds, it
burst, and I caught a glimpse of a large fragment
describing its parabola over our heads, but at a safe
distance.

182 COWARDICE OF A CHEF DE BATAILLON.
There was a small house a little in rear of the centre
of our line, where we were attending the few wounded,
who only amounted to four or five during the day. A
brother Medico and myself were amusing ourselves
with a glass, looking out of a window in the upper
story at the French Artillerymen on the rampart of
Cambo. When it came to my friend's turn to take a
peep, he exclaimed, " By Jove, we had better be off
— they are pointing a gun at the house." We left the
room and went down stairs immediately, but had
scarcely reached the bottom when we heard a crash
over our heads, and a shower of tiles coming down
from the roof. The artillery had at length found the
range, and pitched a shell into the very room we had
quitted, which had sent the roof flying in all direc
tions, to the great discomposure of thirty or forty
officers' horses, who were picquetted round the house,
and not less to the annoyance of their masters, when
they saw them, with broken bridles, making the best
of their way to Espelette.
At this time I was witness of a very strange occur
rence. The Commanding Officer of the Buffs, a
regiment in General Byng's Brigade, left his corps,
then under fire, and came half a mile to the house
abovementioned, to inquire after one of his men that
had been hit. Unfortunately he met the Brigadier,
who gave him a cool look — his personal courage being
more than suspected — but said nothing. When the
Lieut.-Colonel had made the necessary inquiries, and
staid as long at the house as he could with any
decency, he returned to his regiment. But in half
an hour, back he came to the house, and his unlucky
stars again threw Byng in his way. This time he was
peremptorily ordered to his post, with the withering

PASSAGE OF THE N1VE. 183
appellation he deserved ; and was strictly forbidden
to quit it at his peril.
The individual here alluded to, after one or two sub
sequent demonstrations of cowardice — in one of which
he nearly compromised the safety of the Corps of Sir
Rowland Hill, by the abandonment of an important
post in action — saw his name one day in the London
Gazette, but not in the way of promotion. He and
two others were disgracefully turned out of the Army.
Lord Wellington having resolved to invest Bayonne
more closely than he had yet done, and cut off its
communication with St. Jean Pied de Port, our Di
vision assembled at Cambo before daylight on the 9th
of December, prepared to force the passage of the
Nive, and advance upon Bayonne. The bridge had
been broken, but there was a deep ford a little way
up ; and on a hill commanding it, a strong battery of
our artillery had been posted to clear the farther bank.
There was another ford of the same description below
the bridge.
We had waited an hour for daylight, which, on
such occasions, is always slow in making its approach.
At length it came, and with it a discharge of grape
from one of the guns above the upper ford, into the
small wood on the French bank, then another and
another, and the 71st Light Infantry plunged into the
water. In five minutes the fords were won : indeed,
there was little opposition, and the chief difficulty
was the depth and rapidity of the stream, which
drowned some men. More would have been lost but
for the exertions of the dragoons, who picked up
several of the shorter infantry that had been borne
down by the current.
We had some desultory fighting in advancing to
Bayonne ; but next morning the enemy retired, and

184 HOSPITALITY AT A FARM-HOUSE.
we were quartered in a good country near the Adour,
within long cannon range of the fortifications. Ge
neral Byng's Brigade occupied the village of Vieux
Mougerre and the neighbouring farmhouses. The
house allotted to me was that of a substantial farmer,
half a mile from the village. As the inhabitants were
always glad to have officers quartered on them, thus
saving them from the chance of bad usage by the
soldiers, the farmer's wife told me she was enchanted
to see me in her house : in fact, the old lady was
overpoweringly civil and complimentary, both to my
countrymen and myself. She said she had always
loved and respected the English, who were " une
nation superbe ; so brave, and so magnanimous, and
so religious." " Tenez," she went on, " regardez
cette eglise," pointing to the Cathedral of Bayonne,
"that magnificent edifice was built by your Black
Prince ; assurement que oui ; par votre grand Prince
Noir." She then told me that everything in her
house was at my disposal, and concluded by inquir
ing what she should prepare for dinner; recommend
ing particularly as the best article in the larder, " une
oie magnifique, si grasse et si tendre." So the mag
nificent goose was forthwith ordered to be put on the
spit. Having some professional duty to do, I left my
horse in charge of the farmer, the servants and bag
gage being still in the rear, and went into the village.
When the work was over, I met on my way home a
hungry looking young Ensign of the Regiment, whom
I invited to share my dinner; it being now near sun
set, and close on the hour it was to be ready. As we
approached the house, we heard sounds indicative of
something wrong about the establishment ; cocks and
hens were screaming and cackling, dogs were barking,

RAPE OF A ROASTING GOOSE. 185
pigs grunting, with other similar noises, ominous of
evil, that made us hasten our steps to find out what
was the matter. When we entered, O sight of horror !
the first object we beheld was a half-drunken German
soldier of the 60th Regiment bearing away the spit
and innocent goose, streaming with its rich juices, in
his unhallowed clutch. The frightened farmer had
shut himself up in the barn, but the gallant dame
contended bravely, although fruitlessly, against the
Philistines. When we entered, she brightened up
wonderfully, and just found breath enough to say,
" II y a un autre voleur dans la cave, la cave, la cave."
The goose-robber bolted out of the back door, spit
and all, the instant he descried us, but I soon caught
him, whilst my companion dived into the cellar, and
found the other in the very act of suction at a wine-
cock. The disturbed bird was then remanded to its
roasting evolutions before the fire, whilst we con
ducted our prisoners to the Provost Marshal, took the
farmer with us, and had the satisfaction of seeing
them receive fifty lashes each. Farther and more
severe measures had been in contemplation, but we
requested that this might be the maximum of punish
ment, considering the cruel disappointment of the
rogues, and that they had got their goose the wrong
way. It is scarcely necessary to add, that after all this,
we enjoyed our dinner and some good vin du pays.
The goose richly deserved the encomiums of its mis
tress; and I doubt whether a sweeter or finer bird
has revolved upon its axis since the deliverance of the
Capitol.

186

CHAPTER XVII.

AFFAIRS BEFORE BAYONNE.  BRILLIANT CONDUCT OF SIR
ROWLAND HILL.  INCIDENTS AT ESPELETTE.  AFFAIR OF
GARRIS.  AFFECTING CIRCUMSTANCES IN THE DEATH OF
CAPTAIN CLITHEROW.  SUMMARY JUSTICE ON A MARAU
DER.  BATTLE OF ORTHES. — MODERN EMPLOYMENT OF
THE BATTLE-AXE IN ACTION.  AFFAIR OF AIRE.

: The cannons have their bowels full of wrath."
King John.

"We were not destined long to remain quiet in our
good quarters round Vieux Mougerre. The Duke of
Dalmatia, feeling uncomfortable at being environed
so closely by the Allied Troops, attempted to dash
through the investing line, with superior force, at a
favourable point, and thus play over again his game
of the Pyrenean irruption of the last summer. He
first attacked the left of the Army on the high road
to St. Jean de Luz ; but after two days hard fighting,
could make no impression of importance. He then
collected a strong force in Bayonne, and at daylight
on the morning of the 13th of December sallied out
to overwhelm Sir Rowland Hill.
The business was well planned, and had the troops
fought out the combinations of their General, we
might once more have been obliged to retire behind
the Pyrenees. The French advanced from the city
in most formidable numbers and great apparent con
fidence, but they found their enemy prepared at all

BRAVERY OF SIR ROWLAND HILL. 187
points to receive them ; for Sir Rowland Hill perfectly
knew their intentions, and had posted his small force in
the most judicious manner. Few are aware of the diffi
culties this noble-minded man had to contend with on
the 13th of December ; when, isolated by the sudden
rise of the Nive, carrying away the bridge of commu
nication with the rest of the Army, threatened by
Paris and Pierre Soult in his rear; with his two
strongest Regiments, the Buffs and 71st, failing him in
the fight, because they were commanded by cowards.
He was thus left to contend with fourteen thousand
British and Portuguese against thirty-five thousand
French, commanded by the intrepid and sagacious
Soult. It was my fortune to witness two prominent inci
dents in this action, the prompt countermarching of
the 71st by Sir Rowland Hill in person when all ap
peared to be lost; and the heading of a column from
the centre by Lieutenant Colonel Currie, his Aide-de
camp, to charge down the high road, when he could
find no General Officer to whom he might deliver the
order. On the return of Colonel Currie from this
dashing service, I met him passing a house where the
wounded were collected. He pointed to the 6th Di
vision coming down the mount in the rear to our
assistance, and said, " There they come, — but, thank
God, we have beat the enemy without their assist
ance." One of the two guns taken on this occasion was
captured by the Light Company of the 66th Regi
ment, immediately after a grape shot from the last
discharge had desperately wounded Captain Bul-
strode in the face. I chanced to be at hand, and
gave the necessary assistance immediately. It was
an ugly wound : the shot struck his chin, and carried

188 INCIDENTS AT ESPELETTE,
away one side of the jaw up to the joint, burying six
teeth in his tongue, which were extracted at the time.
He recovered, though with great deformity, and I
had the pleasure of dining with him many years after
in London.
We had thirteen hundred wounded on the 13th of
December, who were sent to hospitals established at
Cambo and Espelette. I was detached on the night
of the action to collect all I could find on the road,
accompany them to Espelette, and remain there till
farther orders. In two or three days I was relieved •
in the responsibility of the charge, but continued at
the post. There were twenty wounded Officers and
two hundred men under my care ; the weather was
fine, and I was young and active, and felt delighted
in not having an unemployed moment the whole day.
Amongst the Officers was Lieutenant Colonel Leith
of the 31st Regiment, who had been shot through
the arm by a musket-ball, which had grazed the large
artery ; but the coats of the artery — like the man him
self — were made of good stuff, and not easily torn.
The Colonel recovered in a few days, and as he got
the English papers, his quarter was the News' Room
of Espelette.
As those Officers who were slightly wounded re
covered and went to their Regiments, they often sent
their Doctor little presents of eatables, such as suck
ing-pigs, turkeys, or fowls, that abounded in the yet
inexhausted country to the front, but were very scarce
in our neighbourhood. It chanced that a fat turkey
of fine dimensions was sent me one day from Mou
gerre, of which I requested Colonel Leith and two
other convalescent Officers to partake. When I went
out to my work, after an early breakfast, I gave An
tonio very particular directions as to the cooking of

INCIDENTS AT ESPELETTE. 189
the dinner, which he promised faithfully to follow;
and I proceeded to my daily laborious task, comforted
occasionally, when I had time to think of anything
but my patients, by the pleasant perspective at the
close of the day. The hour of dinner was six, and
when I returned a quarter before, I found —
" Quis talia fando temperet a lacrymis ?"
the immaculate Antonio lying prone, and dead drunk,
in the kitchen, the beautiful bird unspitted and un-
stuffed, and the elements of soup, in the shape of the
ration-beef, lying beside it on the table !
But patience is a panacea for human miseries, and
this was one far o'ertopping the largest in Beresford's
book. I went to Colonel Leith, and told him the
calamity that had just happened, and requested the
loan of his cook to repair it. The beef was put into
the pot, and the turkey on the spit, incontinently ; a
fresh batch of English papers had just arrived, with
which the hungry quartetto amused themselves : en-
fin, about eight o'clock dinner was announced ; and
notwithstanding the late unpromising appearances,
everything passed off well and happily.
About the end of January, 1814, I rejoined my
Regiment, well prepared for some recreation by a six
weeks' fag : this we had in private theatricals, recon
noitering Bayonne, and thinning the Gascon wood
cocks. The very wet weather we had had lately quite spoiled
the roads, so that the advance of the Army into the
interior was much retarded ; at last Sir Rowland
Hill's Corps was put in motion on the 13th February,
and on the 14th, there was some sharp skirmishing
with General Harispe's Division, at Hellette, when the
enemy retired, and took post on the strong height of

190 AFFAIR OF GARRIS.
Garris ; the steep and wooded side of which they
garnished with light troops, and stood firm on the
top. We arrived in front of this position near sun
set, after a long march ; and every body expected
that the attack would be deferred till next morning ;
but Lord Wellington at that time came up, and it
was said, being apprehensive that artillery would be
mounted on this formidable hill next day, he ordered
it to be assailed immediately, in the memorable words:
" You must take the hill before dark !"
Several columns then dashed into the ravine and
up the steep side of the hill ; whilst our artillery
played over their heads at the masses on the summit.
The range was long, and the shots at first fell short ;
but this was soon corrected, and I observed one
French square, which had stood bravely enough for
four or five minutes, at length bowing distinctly
along the front ranks, when they heard the sound of
a ball which dropped a few yards in their front. But
when another fell amongst them, they retired, pre
serving their order, to shelter themselves on the other
side of the hill. Three or four victims of this shot
remained on the ground.
At the time General Byng's Brigade attacked there
was hot work going on to our left, where General
Pringle's Brigade, consisting of the 39th and 28th,
had also crossed the deep ravine, mounted to the top
of the position, and were there strongly opposed. Of
this part of the engagement I saw nothing. When
General Byng's column was ascending the hill, it was
one blaze of fire, from the enemy's skirmishes behind
the trees on the sides, and the houses and fences on
the crest. This was, for the greater part, as harmless
as common fireworks, the balls going over our heads;
and as the darkness increased, the effect was strikingly

DEATH OF CAPTAIN CI.ITIIEROW. 191
beautiful. Our men soon reached the summit, scat
tering the enemy,and taking some hundreds prisoners.
Fifty or sixty unfortunate wretches concealed them
selves in a house at the top until the affair was over,
and our men had piled their arms, and were kindling
their night-fires, when they sallied out in a body,
and attempted to escape down the hill. At the first
rush our men seized their arms, which were loaded,
pursued them with a loud cheer, and shot or knocked
down almost every man. They were stripped soon
after, for this process takes place wonderfully early,
and by no visible agency ; and I well recollect when
the moon rose, seeing their plump white corpses scat
tered over the field. In the morning we were
shocked to see their bodies mutilated of tlieir fair pro
portions, and all the fleshy and protuberant parts cut
clean off down to the bone. How this happened none
could say ; although a report was current at the time,
that a certain ingenious regiment in Byng's Brigade,
authorized to recruit inside of Temple Bar, and pick
up all the low talent of London, had metamorphosed
the poor defuncts' hams into pork, and exchanged
this with the Portuguese soldiers for rum. One of
the 66th officers averred, that he had overheard two
of the culprits chuckling at the trick.
Happening to be the first Surgeon on the top of the
hill that evening, General Byng carried me immedi
ately to see his Aide-de-camp, Captain Clitherow,
who was dreadfully wounded. I found this fine young
man with his hand smashed, and a ball through his
breast, which had cut a large artery that I could just
reach with my finger : and I believe I prolonged his
life a couple of hours by continued pressure. This
young officer was much beloved, and died greatly
deplored. His end was calm and serene— he blamed

192 HANGING A MARAUDER.
the French soldier, who, he said, made him a prisoner
and then shot him ; but he forgave him, and died in
my arms, with the resignation and fortitude of a sol
dier and a Christian. He was buried next morning
with military honours on the hill where he fell.
This was altogether as shewy a little piece of fight
ing as I ever witnessed. The brilliant musketry along
the side, and from the crest of the hill ; the cheering
of our men as they mounted, the continued advance
of numerous bugles, the roar of our artillery, reverbe
rating in long echoes, from one side to another of the
deep ravine at the bottom ; all was martially fine and
grand. We proceeded the day after the action through
St. Palais, and after some sharp skirmishing, and
fording several tributaries of the Adour, including
two considerable Gaves, without material opposition;
though at one ford a number of harrows had been
dropped in the water, and a few troops stationed to
defend it, who fled at our approach ; we encamped on
the 25th February near Orthes, but on the other side
of the Gave de Pau. Next morning another officer and
myself, in the course of an exploring ramble in quest
of eggs or poultry, found an old man badly beaten ahd
bleeding, in a farm house that had been robbed the
night before by a marauding party of our soldiers. I
dressed his wounds, including one of the temporal
artery ; the matter was reported immediately, search
was made for the criminal ; who, from a certain mark,
was soon discovered and identified. Expeditious
justice was the practice in those days, and after a
summary trial, the man was hanged the next evening
on the bough of a tree before the whole division.
On the 27th of February we were early under arms.
About nine we saw heavy firing commencing two or

BATTLE OF ORTHES. 193
three miles down the right bank of the river, which
continued and increased into the tumult of a general
engagement. All this time our Corps was looking on
most anxiously; the deep river in our front, and the
town of Orthes, and its old, beautiful, and strong
bridge at our feet, but so powerfully guarded that we
could not force our way. Still the battle raged on the
other side ; our people had the worst of it, yet we
were standing idle and useless. In this interval search
had been making for a ford above the town, and one
was at length found, but well guarded by light troops.
At eleven o'clock a panting Aide-de-camp arrived
from Lord Wellington with orders to cross instantly
how we could.
Immediately all was in motion. We soon reached
the ford, above which was a thicket on the opposite
bank, occupied by the enemy's tirailleurs, but not in
great force, nor did they make much resistance. A
battery of our Light Artillery galloped in front of the
column to the edge of the ford, and opened in beauti
ful style, sending showers of grape whistling among
them, and soon clearing them out. The Corps then
rushed into the ford — five or six shells fell amidst us
in crossing, but the water immediately extinguished
them ; and in the course of an hour, thirteen thousand
men, with twenty guns, had passed without the
slightest accident.
By this time we discovered that the fortune of
Soult had again quailed before the star of Wellington,
and that the French army was in full retreat, which
the close approach of Hill's Corps soon quickened
into a most disorderly flight. At the village of Mont-
brun we joined the cavalry and some of the leading
infantry in pursuit; and at this time the whole French
army, despairing of effecting their escape across the
vol. i. K

194 BATTLE OF ORTHES.
Luy de Beam at the bridge of Sault de Navailles, if
they kept the St. Sever high road, had broken irre
coverably, and the face of the country to a great
extent was covered with a dense mass of fugitives.
All arms were mingled — artillerymen without their
guns, cavalry without their horses, and infantry with
out their arms, were flying pell-mell, helter skelter,
whilst our guns were pouring shrapnell shells and
round shot amongst them, and thus increasing the
general terror and confusion. In short, I never saw
a flock of sheep flee more valiantly ; whilst in the
bright and beautiful evening the sun's broad face,
throwing the yellow beams horizontally on the fugi
tives, and lengthening their flitting shadows to fan
tastic proportions, appeared, as if in derision, to be
playing luminous antics over the scene.
We followed the rout till dark: a little before dusk
the Duke of Dalmatia rallied a great part of the
fugitives on the heights of Sault de Navailles, and
opened on us, to check our pursuit, with two or three
guns. But they retired in the night.
Lieut.-Colonel Dodgin, my former refractory patient
at Badajoz, now commanded the regiment. Whilst
riding at its head, and with some difficulty threading
his way amongst the thousands of muskets and other
arms that had been thrown down in the flight, a fine
ornamented pioneer axe, with a long handle and glit
tering head, struck his eye. Thinking it might be
useful at the night bivouac, it was handed to him,
and he threw it over his shoulder and rode on.
Presently one of Lord Wellington's Aides-de-camp
passed ; and on seeing an officer of most martial
appearance and large stature, mounted on a great
black war-horse, with an immense axe on his shoulder,
he stopped beside me and asked his name. On being

AFFAIR OF AIRE. 195
informed, he inquired further, " Is that battle-axe,
then, his ordinary weapon in action ?" " Invariably,"
I replied ; " and, like Cceur de Lion, he often cleaves
his man to the chine." The Aide-de-camp rode off,
primed with a good story for the Commander of the
Forces. When we halted at dusk, in column on one side of
the road, a shot from one of the enemy's guns, on the
hill where they rallied, struck the ground, rose again,
and knocked over the wife of one of the soldiers, who
always managed to keep up with the regiment. It
was close to where I stood, and I ran to her immedi
ately, but found there was only a graze and slight
contusion on the shoulder. At first she was sadly
frightened ; but when I assured her there was no
harm done, she was so delighted, that she pulled a
fowl out of one enormous pouch by her side, and half
a yard of black pudding, of large diameter, out of the
other, of which she begged my acceptance. I cannot
say I pocketed the fee, but it is unprofessional to
refuse one; and the Colonel and myself regaled on
good Mother Quigley's present the same evening.
After three days' pursuit the French again made a
stand at Aire, on the left bank of the Adour, under
Clausel; and after a sharp affair they were driven
from their post. They had no guns on the hill, but
fired from three or four placed on the high road near
the town of Aire, quite over their position ; knowing
well the bearings of a narrow causeway, flanked by
the river, over which we were obliged to pass. I did
not observe or hear of a single casualty from this
cannonade, though I noticed upwards of thirty balls
falling into a muddy field on one side of our narrow
lane, and the river on the other, some sufficiently
near to splash our faces. My gallant friend Lieu-

196 AFFAIR OF AIRE.
tenant-Colonel Dodgin led the Light Companies of the
Division in his usual dashing style, but not with his
usual luck. He was hit by a musket-ball in the side,
and tumbled off his horse.
The ball was fired by a fellow not twenty yards
off: it struck him above the right hip, and was cut
out directly opposite, over the left ; and if its course
had been straight, death was inevitable. Yet was
there no danger ; for it hit a metal button of his
regimental jacket, and was thus fortunately deflected
from its right course into a curve, outside the muscles,
but through a deep course of fat. The impression of
the two 66 on the button was made most correctly
on the ball ; proving, according to the proverb, that it
carried its billet with it. The day had been cold and
wet, and my friend's defences against the inclemency
of the weather may be judged by the circumstance,
that the nest which the ball had made for itself, and
from which it was cut out, was lined by thirteen plies
of cloth.On the advance of the army from Aire, the Lieu
tenant-Colonel requested that I might be permitted
to remain to take care of him, which was courteously
granted by General Byng. Immediately I got a good
quarter for my patient, and established myself under
the same roof.

197

CHAPTER XVIII.

BAD FRENCH SURGERY AFTER THE BATTLE OF ORTHES. 
MARCH FROM AIRE.  ARDENT BOURBONIST LADY AT
MIRANDE.  RECEPTION OF THE NEWS OF THE FALL OF
NAPOLEON AT GIMONT.  THROWING DOWN HIS STATUE
AT THOULOUSE.  RECEPTION OF LORD WELLINGTON AT
THE THEATRE.  CORPS OF SIR ROWLAND HILL ASSEMBLED,
PREPARATORY TO RESUMING OPERATIONS.  ADHESION
OF SOULT TO THE BOURBONS.  PEACE.

" They now to fight are gone ;
Armour on armour shone,
Drum now to drum did groan,
To hear was wonder ;
The very earth did shake,
Trumpet to trumpet spake,
Thunder to thunder." Drayton.

My duty at Aire did not alone consist in attending
my wounded patient, for several other sick and
wounded officers were placed under my charge, to
gether with a ward in the British Military Hospital,
and an entire hospital of French, wounded in the
battle of Orthes; so that my hands were pretty full.
Dr. M'Grigor, Head of the Medical Establishment
pf the Peninsular Army, was then at Aire, and he
generally gave his officers plenty of work, when
humanity and the public service required it, and
made them do their work well too.
I may here observe, in passing, that I never had a
more painful charge than that of the French wounded.
Whether the state of their wounds. was attributable to
faulty surgery originally, or to rough conveyance from

198 BAD FRENCH SURGERY.
the field of action, or neglect since their arrival here,
or, what is not improbable, to all combined, the fact
is, that nothing could be more deplorable than their
condition. The wounds were foul and sloughing, the
men's health was very bad, and most of the stumps
required re-amputation.
One morning when I was quitting the British
Hospital, a cart was driven to the door from the
Second Division, then quartered five or six leagues
in front, containing a French and an English Dragoon
— the latter being the worst case was attended first.
This man, Corporal James Buchanan, of the 13th
Light Dragoons, carried with him a written certifi
cate from his Commanding Officer, stating that he
had been attacked the day before by three of the
enemy's dragoons, whom he fought individually, slay
ing one outright, putting the second to flight, badly
wounded and capturing the third, who accompanied
him in the cart. Buchanan had received fifteen
wounds in this unequal combat; in the head, face,
arms, and body : his nose was cut off, and one bone
of the fore-arm cut through.
It is scarcely necessary to say that I paid the ten
derest attention to this glorious fellow, patched up a
jury-nose for him as well as I could, and left him
convalescent. It is pleasing to add, that during the
whole time they were under my observation, Buchanan
and his wounded prisoner, who slept by his side,
appeared to be on the best terms, chatting amicably
together in broken French and English, and assisting
each other by mutual attentions : and it is very pro
bable that they then contracted a permanent friend
ship. Good often springs from evil in this whimsical
world ; and we need despair of nothing, when we see
warm mutual amity arising from so unpromising an

ARDENT BOURBONIST LADY. 199
origin, as a thrust through the body, retaliated by a
slice off the nose.
On the 2nd of April, my patient being quite re
covered, we marched to join the army. Our route
lay through a fertile and pretty tract of country, on
the left bank of the Adour; but the road was the
ugly, straight, and elevated Chaussee. At the clean
and handsome city of Tarbes we were detained three
days, from apprehensions of some straggling French
Cavalry in our neighbourhood. Our march on the
whole was very agreeable — the dazzling Pyrenees, in
their winter robes, on our right, good roads, an inte
resting country, civil people, and now and then the
excitement of a white cockade.
On our way to the neat little walled town of Mi-
rande, a soldier, belonging to a detachment we were
taking to the front, had been guilty of theft, with
some violence to an inhabitant, and after due inquiry
was ordered by the Colonel to be punished at the end
of the day's march. As soon as the people of Mirande
heard this, a deputation of about a dozen of the prin
cipal ladies waited on the Colonel in a body, and
begged forgiveness for the culprit. They pleaded so
eloquently and earnestly, and looked so interesting
and so pretty on this mission of kindness, that none
but a very hard hearted person could refuse them.
The Mayor gave us a billet on the best house in the
town, the owner of which, a fine old gentlemanly
man, was an ardent Bourbonist. The lady of the
mansion was one of the most enthusiastic legitimists
I ever met ; but there was a tinge of ferocity about
her politics that did not comport well with the natural
gentleness of her sex. She shewed us a list of Buona
parte's Marshals which she kept, with black marks
opposite the names of those who had died or fallen

200 FALL OF NAPOLEON.
in battle; and she added, that during the last ten or
twelve years pricking these funereal notices on her
chart had been one of her highest enjoyments. She
was a firm believer in the illegitimacy of the King of
Rome ; and told us very scandalous stories of Jose
phine and Marie Louise, which might have made us
blush, if our visages had not already been hardened
against such a modest tint by the sun-burning of the
march. We had an excellent dinner, and many
bumpers of Champagne afterwards, to the health of
Louis Dix-huit, the Prince Regent, our hostess, the
ladies of Mirande, &c. in the orthodox style of the
best age of toasts ; and the lady of the mansion gave
us a pretty ball in the evening.
On Easter Sunday, when we reached Auch, we
heard a very heavy firing in the direction ofThoulouse,
which lasted all the forenoon. Although it was plain
that the work of death was going on to a great extent,
nobody appeared to heed it ; and this general uncon
cern of the inhabitants, at a serious engagement in
their neighbourhood, perhaps involving the destruc
tion of a rich and ancient city, was in disagreeable
contrast with the intense interest shewn by the people
of Campo Mayor in the fate of Badajoz, two years
before. We heard next day at Gimont of the battle of
Thoulouse; and the people blamed Soult much, in
sisting that he had no right to expose a great and
almost open city to the horrors that might result from
a defeat in its suburbs. Every body was hoping for
the speedy downfall of Napoleon, and confident sooner
or later that it must take place. Bourbon demonstra
tions became stronger as we advanced ; till at length,
just as we entered the town of LTsle en Jourdain, the
Mayor had returned from Thoulouse, with the astound-

FALL OF NAPOLEON. 201
ing news of the deposition of Buonaparte, and the
restoration of the old family. In five minutes the
inhabitants collected in the square; and when the
Mayor read from the "Moniteur" the official intelli
gence, every man put his hand in his pocket, took out
something and pinned it to his breast, and instan
taneously a grove of white cockades burst upon the
sight. Then ensued a scene of French enthusiasm,
natural enough to that mercurial people, but sheer
rant to us. Deafening shouts from an immense
multitude filled the air: "Vive Louis Dix-huit!"
" Vivent les Bourbons!" " Vivent les Anglais!"
" Vive Lord Vellingtonne !" and " Vivent les Officiers
Anglais !" intended as a special compliment to our
selves in particular. After this astonishing hubbub
— which sadly disturbed the pigeons of the place, and
sent them in flocks gyrating high over head, wonder
ing what sudden frenzy had invaded the quiet town —
we all repaired to the Church to hear a grand Te
Deum. Not to be singular amidst all this rejoicing,
the Colonel and myself gave a dinner at our quarters
to four or five English Officers on their way to the
army, who halted here for the day ; and in the even
ing the pretty Mayoress had a ball on a large scale,
to which, of course, we all were invited, and treated
with the most marked friendliness and attention.
We entered Thoulouse next day amidst universal
demonstrations of the most lively joy; and when we
reached the great square we witnessed a most extra
ordinary sight. A fine colossal statue of Napoleon,
of white marble, stood on the top of the pediment of
the Capitolium, the grandest building in the city,
which occupied one entire side of the square. A
strong rope had that morning been rove round its
neck, and when we entered there were two or three
k 2

202 napoleon's statue destroyed.
hundred people hauling away below, at the other end,
with shouts and execrations.
What a spectacle ! A crowd of wretches, who would
have sunk into the very earth at the frown of the
living man but two short weeks before, were now
perpetrating this brutal indignity on the beautiful
sculpture of Canova !
The majestic statue resisted for a long time, with
characteristic firmness and tenacity, but at length
gave way amidst an infernal yell of triumph, tumbled
from its lofty position upon the pavement, and was
broken into a thousand pieces.
We found workmen busily employed all over the
city in substituting " Royale" for " Imperiale," and
obliterating every where the poor persecuted great
N's. The Bees also, Napoleon's most unappropriate
emblem, were flying off rapidly, and every external
mark of the fallen dynasty was fast disappearing.
In the evening we went to the theatre: the play
was Henry the Fourth, and the demonstrations of
Anglomania and Bourbon loyalty were quite over
whelming. As soon as Lord Wellington made his
appearance in the Royal Box, the whole audience
stood up, the performance stopped, and actors and
spectators joined in three of the loudest peals of
acclamation I ever heard. Cries of "Vive Louis Dix-
huit!" "Vivent les Bourbons!" "Vivent les An
glais !" " Vive Lord Vellingtonne!" " Vive le Roi
George !" were a thousand times repeated. It was
all like magic.
This was a week of extraordinary excitement and
unusual joy and festivity at Thoulouse ; and it was
all very natural under the peculiar circumstances of
the inhabitants. A few days before a bloody battle
had been fought at their doors, and its sights and

RECEPTION OF LORD WELLINGTON. 203
sounds of distress and horror were yet present to
their senses. To this succeeded the retreat within
their walls of the defeated French army, and the
deadly apprehensions of protracted defence, bombard
ment, storm, and pillage. From all these calamities,
present and prospective, they had been at once re
lieved ; whilst to the Bourbonists in the place, who
formed the large majority, came at the same time the
joyful intelligence of the dethronement of their hated
tyrant. No wonder then that the Thoulousians vied
with each other in doing honour to the illustrious
General now amongst them. He was lodged in the
Palace of the Prefet, and was attended by a French
guard of honour ; whilst balls and fetes followed in
quick succession. Nor were the utmost attention,
kindness, and hospitality wanting towards their
wounded guests, who had suffered in the late battle.
Still, amidst all this gaiety and enjoyment, there
was a cloud in the military horizon. The Duke of
Dalmatia, sulky and obstinate, continued with his
army at Carcassonne, and refused to acknowledge
the Bourbons. It was very generally believed at
Thoulouse that, previous to the battle of the 10th, he
had received intelligence of the abdication of Napo
leon; but conceiving his great antagonist was at
length at fault, and confiding in the strength of his
position, and desirous to end with eclat, he had con
cealed the news, and thus caused a great and wanton
effusion of blood. From this false imputation, we
have since seen his magnanimous adversary defend
ing him successfully in the House of Lords, and
stating that Marshal Soult could not have heard of
the abdication of Napoleon when he fought at Thou
louse. On the 16th of April, my patient and I rejoined

204 ADHESION OF SOULT TO THE BOURBONS.
the 66th Regiment at Ville Franche, after a march
from Thoulouse along the canal of Languedoc, cut by
Louis XIV. to connect the Garonne with the Medi
terranean. In the vicinity of the city the country is
woody, rich, and well cultivated, but as we travelled
eastward it became flat, bare, and ugly.
On the clear morning of the 18th, the whole of Sir
Rowland Hill's Corps assembled under arms near
Ville Franche, in a state of considerable impatience to
learn the ultimatum of the Duke of Dalmatia, which
had been peremptorily demanded by the Duke of
Wellington. To fight or not to fight was the question.
After remaining four long hours under arms in this
suspense, whilst the eyes of all were strained on the
road to Carcasonne, we saw a coach coming along at
a rapid rate, escorted by four English and four French
Dragoons. These were cheered as they passed ; and
we soon learned that the Count de Gazan and one of
Lord Wellington's Aides-de-camp were in the car
riage, charged with the adhesion of Soult to the
Government of Louis XVIII. Thus then ended our
fighting. Soon after, the Brigade of General Byng moved to
a small village named Pourville, about two miles from
Thoulouse, where we remained six weeks, and a most
agreeable time we passed. We were in good quarters,
with a cheap and plentiful market at hand, a fine
riding country, and in the most pleasant season of
the year, whilst we were feted nightly by the loyal
Thoulousians, in the first fervour of their joy at the
restoration of the Bourbons.
On the 27th of April, the Due D'Angouleme en
tered Thoulouse amidst the unbounded acclamations
of the whole city. The streets were lined with the
Allied Troops ; a cortege of British General Officers,

PEACE. 205
and a very numerous band of mounted gentlemen of
the city escorted him to the Cathedral, amidst a royal
salute from the Artillery ; whilst thousands of bright
eyes beamed smiles upon him from the windows, and
a forest of white handkerchiefs were waving over his
head. The ladies of this ancient and celebrated city pique
themselves not a little on their birth, beauty, and
accomplishments ; and aver, that in the worst times
of the revolution, its coarseness did not taint the
society of their aristocratic town ; but that then, as in
a chosen asylum, the politesse and gentlemanly man
ners of the old school sought refuge. Judging from
the many delightful persons we met there, this seems
likely enough ; and I believe that if we had remained
much longer amongst them, the triumphs of the fair
Thoulousians over the hearts of the British Officers
would have centupled those of our great Commander
over their countrymen. As it was, not a few suc
cumbed to their graces, surrendered at discretion,
and married outright.
The Bishop of Thoulouse had a palace near Pour-
ville, in which, after his Lordship had abandoned it
on our approach, two other Officers and myself found
excellent quarters. There was a neglected fish-pond
that was full of frogs in the garden ; and in the heat
of the day, these reptiles used to come to the surface
of the water to look about them and take the air ;
and when they found the sun too hot, would wisely
poke their heads under the broad leaf of some flag or
water-lily, which served the purpose of a parasol. A
great bull-frog enjoying himself in this position,
looked somewhat like a fat Hindoo reposing under
his chattah.
A venerable old servant of the Bishop, who stooped

206 PEACE.
much, and wore a queue of the longitude of Louis
the Fifteenth's time, was left to take care of the esta
blishment. When he wanted a little game on ajour
de fiSte, he was accustomed to visit the pond, with a
branch of a willow for a fishing-rod, and a piece of a
thread and a crooked pin for hook and line ; a petal
or two of a pink or carnation serving for a fly. When
he bobbed this simple bait over the heads of the frogs,
some hungry fellow would rise at it like a trout, and
be pitched out on the bank ; but very often the old
maitre d'hotel would have his work to do over again
after all, for the pin having no barb, Mr. Frog would
very generally extricate himself and hop away, — the
more vivaciously for the prick in the jaw he had just
received. Very often I have enjoyed a hearty laugh,
when sitting in a neighbouring summer-house, and
witnessing the antics of Messire Jean and a fugitive
frog. " S  e !" he would exclaim, when it got off,
" S  e bete !" and then deliberately taking off his
spectacles, and laying down his fishing-rod, he would
address himself to the race. If his game hopped
towards the water, escape was easy, but if the reptile
was bothered as to the locale, and took a course into
the interior, its hind quarters would infallibly be
roasting on a skewer, or simmering in a fricassee in a
quarter of an hour.

207

CHAPTER XIX.

MARCH DOWN THE VALE OF THE GARONNE.  PARTING OF
THE PORTUGUESE AND ENGLISH TROOPS. — GREAT HOSPI
TALITY AND KINDNESS OF THE INHABITANTS ON THIS
MARCH.  GLUT OF HORSEFLESH IN THE BORDEAUX
MARKET ON THE EMBARKATION OF THE ARMY.  WOR
RYING OF A FRENCH GENTLEMAN BY A SAVAGE HORSE
BELONGING TO THE AUTHOR.  HIS TREATMENT BY A
SPANISH CAPITRAZ.

" Good classic Lewis, is it, can'st thou say,
Desirable to be the Desire' ?
Why wouldst thou leave calm Hartwell's green abode,
Apician table and Horatian ode,
To rule a people who will not be ruled,
And love much better to be scourged than school'd ?"
Byron.
We left our pleasant quarters near Thoulouse on the
3rd of June to march to Bordeaux, there to embark
for England. Our route lay down the left bank of
the Garonne, one of the most rich and lovely tracts
in all France. The marches were short, the inhabi
tants overwhelmingly civil, and we had a ball every
night. The Portuguese Oporto Brigade, composed of three
fine Regiments that had long formed a part of our
Second Division, and with which it had maintained
invariable friendly relations, and side by side had
stood in many a well-contested field, accompanied us
part of the way. When we arrived at the town of
Bezace, where the road turned off* to Bayonne, the

208 PARTING OF THE TROOPS.
Officers of Byng's Brigade gave a parting entertain
ment to the Portuguese Officers, which was marked
by a remarkable display of cordiality and affection
between the companions in arms. British airs were
called for by our friends, and we gave them Portu
guese in turn ; whilst suitable toasts were cheered in
flowing bumpers, until it was time to go to the ball
room. These Regiments had secured the esteem and
respect of the British soldiers by their gallantry in
the field and general good conduct. Next morning
we marched early, and when we came to the cross
roads where we were to separate, the old fellow-cam
paigners, officers and men, embraced and exchanged
affectionate adieus; and as we moved in different
directions, loud and prolonged cheers answered each
other in peals and echoes, until they melted away in
the distance.
And there, too, faithful and excellent Antonio, there
didst thou separate from thy master, and wend thy
way to thy native Coimbra, to astonish the untravelled
simpletons of the Mondego by the relation of thy
various adventures. Honestly and diligently didst
thou always serve me; and though in a moment of
weakness thou didst once err, and wast oblivious in
the matter of bespitting the turkey, this solitary fault
was lost in thy general virtue, — it was a spot in the
sun. I do believe, my poor knave, that thou didst
not soon forget thy master, for of this, the tear that
fell upon my hand when thou wert kissing it at part
ing, was a pledge !
We reached Bordeaux on the 18th of June, and
encamped with the Light Division soon after, on a
large heath, four leagues from the city, waiting for
ships of war to take us home. Three weeks more of
gaiety and enjoyment were passed here. We were in

CAROUSING AT BORDEAUX. 209
long arrears of pay, which were discharged at Bor
deaux, at about the rate of two months per week ;
consequently we had plenty of money to spend, and
there were not wanting tempting objects in that fine
city to beguile us of it. Indeed, our superfluous cash
was especially relished by the Bordelais at that time,
when, from the stagnation of trade and general com
mercial distress in France, their beautiful quays were
mantling over with grass, and the richest vintages
remaining unsold in their cellars.
We had then a snug mess of eight at a chateau in
the neighbourhood of the camp, occupied by our
Commanding Officer, my former patient, Lieutenant
Colonel Dodgin. Here I regret to have to tell, that
from the unfortunate abundance of claret and cash,
the life we led was less characterized by strict tem
perance than by several other virtues. Half of the
mess used to go every three or four days to Bordeaux,
stay a night, and return from " the smoke and noise
of Rome" to the cool shades of our chateau garden,
letting the remainder have their turn the next day.
Once, when a party had been in town to see
Mademoiselle Georges, a tragedy beauty of fourteen
stone, playing Ophelia in the French Hamlet, and
had returned as far as the commencement of our
avenue, we saw two odd-looking figures in white,
moving about the garden, spouting and gesticulating,
which we were much puzzled to make out. On a
nearer approach, they turned out to be two of our
Officers, who, under the influence of wine the night
before, had shaved each other's heads ; and made a
mutual vow to walk about the garden in white sheets
until we arrived, under a heavy pecuniary penalty
from the defaulter. They had perambulated thus
half the night, and all the morning and forenoon ;

210 GLUT OF HORSE-FLESH.
and lucky was it for these madcaps that there was
good shade, and that we did not defer our return till
the next day, else the small remains of their hot brains
would have evaporated altogether.
At this time we witnessed another triumphal entry
of the Due D'Angouleme, at Bordeaux, which was
even more brilliant than at Thoulouse : but there was
an unfortunate accident which damped the joy. A
British Brig of War, moored near the quay, killed one
of the crowd with the wadding of a gun in firing a
salute. I was standing on the balcony of the
American Hotel, facing the river, when the misfortune
happened close to the house. I then heard several
cries from the alarmed multitude — " C'est expres ;
c'est expres !"
I suppose that in the memory of man — at least
since the useful invention of money, horses and
mules and asses were never so cheap in Bordeaux as
in the memorable month of June 1814. All the
chargers of all the field officers, the horses and hacks
of the other officers, the mules of every body, and the
donkeys of the soldiers' wives, were in the market
at once. All were sellers, and there were but few
buyers ; particularly as the supply increased towards
the end of the month. The Bordelais had plenty of
wine, but little money. By the exercise of a very small
proportion of foresight, I perceived that horse-flesh
would soon be quite unsaleable, and the very day
after we arrived, I sent two horses and a mule to the
Bordeaux market.
I had a black, savage horse, named Barbary, which
was sold to me by Lieutenant Strenowitz, a very
gallant German officer, honourably mentioned in
Napier's History. His crimes and misdemeanors
had been manifold ; but he was a shewy animal, of

SAVAGE HORSE OF THE AUTHOR'S. 211
a glossy black, and a strong, active, and perfect
horse, in the fullest sense of the word. Yet on more
than one occasion had he so ungenerously behaved,
that the order to slay him was on the point of being
issued. Once, when I visited his stall, and put my
hand on his neck to caress him, he seized me by the
breast with his teeth ; and if I had not made a des
perate struggle to escape, and pommelled him well with
my fists about the eyes, but especially if my vest and
shirt had not given way, he would in all probability
have dragged me under his forefeet, and killed me
outright. I had the marks of his broad teeth on my
breast-bone for three weeks.
When my servant was shewing off this amiable
animal in the Horse Market, an elderly French
gentleman was struck with his appearance, and asked
his age and price. He then moved round him, scan
ning his points critically ; and afterwards made the
man walk, trot, and canter him. This ordeal being
passed satisfactorily, the buyer examined the joints,
feet, and eyes ; and after a long meditative pinch
from his snuff-box, proceeded to inspect his mouth.
Barbary had hitherto undergone these liberties with
forbearance and equanimity ; but when this last free
dom was taken with his person he uttered a fierce yell,
seized the poor man by the shoulder, and proceeded
to worry him as a terrier would a rat. The crowd
ran to the rescue, sticks and stones rained on Barbary,
and he was obliged to drop his prey before he had
committed actual homicide. Of course, all chance of
sale for that day was over, the wounded gentleman
talked of getting him shot by the authority of the
Mayor; but Jonathan Wild jumped on his back, the
crowd opened right and left, and he soon was in his
own stable, four leagues off.

212 TREATMENT TO THE HORSE.
I sold this man-eater to a Spanish Capitraz of
Muleteers for two doubloons, though he was worth
ten or twelve. He soon commenced his tricks with
his new master, but he met with his equal in the
biting department. These hardy fellows are accus
tomed to ferocity as well as stubbornness in their
mules, and know well how to subdue them. The
last time I saw Mr. Barbary, he appeared in consi
derable distress, but I had no pity to bestow upon him.
His new master was clinging to one of his ears with
his teeth, whilst a muleteer with a long cudgel was
belabouring his ribs on the other side, as hard as he
could strike. Under this pleasant treatment he was
leaving Bordeaux, on the road to Spain ; and for
aught I know to the contrary, the discipline might
have been kept up half the way to the Pyrenees.
We sailed in the Rodney of 74 guns to Cove, and
proceeded soon after in the Chatham, 74, to Spithead,
landed at Gosport, and then marched to Bristol.

213

CHAPTER XX.
LEAVE OF ABSENCE.  RETURN TO THE REGIMENT AND EM
BARKATION FOR BENGAL.  ASTOUNDING NEWS OF THE
LANDING OF NAPOLEON IN FRANCE.  BET AS TO HIS SUC
CESS.  VOYAGE, WITH ITS VARIETIES.  CAPTURE OF
SHARKS.  PASSING THE SURF AT MADRAS.
" My native land, good night." — Byron.
As soon as I could obtain leave of absence, I pro
ceeded to my native vale in the north of Ireland,
where the three months soon passed away amidst the
hospitalities of a circle of friends. " Non cuivis con-
tingit adire Corinth urn — " every body had not travelled
in those days ; and a campaigning traveller was then
thought an acquisition to society. Before I went
abroad I had a very humble opinion of my own merits,
but I now rose in self esteem marvellously ; and it
may well be believed that I told all my Peninsular
stories to the best advantage, described the battles I
had been in to the Militia Officers; re-amputated
shoulders for the doctors ; detailed the dresses of the
Spanish ladies, and expatiated on their floating
movements and pretty lisp, for the edification of my
fair acquaintances, and descanted on the respective
merits of the vineyards of the claret country, for the
wine-bibbers. In short, when my leave was nearly
up, I found myself the centre of a considerable knot,
and already expanding into some importance.

214 EMBARKATION FOR BENGAL.
My favourite stream was as clear, as cheerful, and
as populous as ever; and its banks were equally
verdant, though towards the close of Summer. In
the course of my rambles, angle in hand, it was agree
able to discover that I had not been forgotten by the
good yeomanry of the Eske Valley, nor the dear
woman-kind : although a leetle matter of selfishness
might occasionally be developed in the reminiscences
of the latter. Thus, I was frequently coaxed out of
a flying advice, when there happened to be any sick
ness in the family, by the flattering exordium, which
I beg the reader will believe I blush exceedingly in
mentioning : " Ogh ! shure he's the clever young
Doctor that used to be fishing hereabout, and playing
with the childher; Lord bless him, he's jist come
from the wars, and it's himself can tell us what we are
to do with Judy's futt." After this it was impossible
to refuse.
A renewal of leave was asked and refused. I
therefore lost no time in joining the Regiment at
Newport, in the Isle of Wight. Soon after, a detach
ment of eight officers and a hundred men was ordered
to march to Chatham, and embark to join the First
Battalion of the 66th in Bengal : I was directed to
accompany it. We embarked on board the Lord
Melville, Indiaman, in February, but were baffled
by contrary winds and calms all the month of March,
and lay tumbling about in the Downs until the 3rd
of April.
Few things can be more annoying than remaining
weather-bound in port, with every arrangement for
the voyage completed. But about the middle of
March, an event occurred, which dispelled for a time
the monotony of our life at the stupid anchorage, and
electrified us, in common with all Europe — Buonaparte

NAPOLEON IN FRANCE. 215
was again in France ! When we heard he had landed,
most persons on board thought the attempt was mad
ness, and that he would be instantly apprehended and
shot. When, however, news arrived that the garrison
of Grenoble had joined him, matters looked a little
more serious ; still the general opinion on board our
ship was, that the daring invader would be stopped
at Lyons, whither the Compte d'Artois and Marshall
Macdonald had repaired to organize a loyal force:
only one person dissented— my humble self. Well,
he reached Lyons, and the troops cheered and joined,
instead of shooting him; but there was still Ney,
with his iron cage ready, and pledged to pack him
up and send him to the Thuilleries.
In this state of suspense we left England, and many
and various were the arguments, pro and con, respect
ing the result of this astounding expedition — success
or failure ; the Imperial sceptre once more, or a trai
tor's grave. During the early part of the voyage,
our conversation in the cuddy turned almost exclu
sively on this absorbing topic ; at last, every thing
connected with the subject having been pretty well
exhausted, it was abandoned by common consent,
about the time we reached the Line ; after Captain
Crabbe had made a bet with me, of a Champagne
dinner when we reached Calcutta, respecting the
issue of Buonaparte's invasion. He betted that Na
poleon would not be in Paris, except as a prisoner,
on the 15th of April. The dinner was to include
all the cabin passengers.*

* The Quarterly Review for March 1841, did the First Edition
of this insignificant book the honour of a favourable notice ; indeed
more favourable than it deserved ; for which the Author feels much
obliged, as he had never aspired even to the distinction of being
cut up by this gigantic critic. In noticing the above bet, however,

216 A VOYAGE, WITH ITS VARIETIES.
We sailed in a fleet of five Indiamen, our captain
being commodore. The Princess Charlotte, the
fastest sailor, was employed as a look-out frigate,
to reconnoitre any suspicious strangers ; as we were
not quite sure that we might not fall in with an
American frigate in our course, ignorant, most pro
bably of the Treaty of Ghent that had recently been
concluded. We had beautiful weather the whole
way, and so fair was the wind, that we had not oc
casion to wear or tack during the whole voyage,
from the Downs to Madras. We bounded across the
Bay of Biscay in fine style, and on the 18th of April
were off Madeira, but did not stop, for the commo
dore would not run any risk of parting with his
favourable breeze; so we only got a peep through a
glass at Funchal, which, perhaps was quite enough.
As we moved Southward, the sun made us doff our
woollens very quickly. We passed our time most
agreeably, Captain Crabbe had a respectable library,
and he civilly invited us all to enjoy ourselves with a
book in his commodious cabin when we pleased.
Gazing, strolling on deck, reading, and chess, occu
pied the forenoon ; and we generally had Whist in
the evening.
There was but one draw-back to our comfort on
board ; the irregular conduct of Lieutenant L — b — t
of our Corps. This was a talented young man, and
most agreeable when sober, but half mad when ex
cited by wine. One night when passing Madeira,
L  1 came out of the cuddy, tipsy, knocked down

the Reviewer has made a mistake, which appears somewhat ex
traordinary. He says the Author lost his dinner ; whereas, as is
plainly enough mentioned in the text, he won it. Moreover, he
ate it too, and a very good dinner it was.

A VOYAGE, WITH ITS VARIETIES. 217
the seaman at the wheel, and took his place. The
captain was inside ; but finding the ship make a wide
yaw out of her course, he ran out to see what was the
matter; when the new quarter-master explained that
he had seized the wheel, because he had seen the
lubber who was at it going six points out of his true
course. This prank was forgiven, and the man got
hush-money ; but on a similar outrage again occur
ring, the offender was put in close arrest.
This young man was clever and well read ; and it
appears had been first spoiled by the sensual sophis
tries of the Diderot and Voltaire school ; but chiefly
by the pestilent eloquence of Rousseau. He consi
dered the Heloise the quintescence of exquisite com
position ; and this mischievous romance and Lord
Byron's Corsair generally lay under his pillow. Nu
merous were the scrapes in which he had involved
himself during the Peninsular War by his intempe
rance; and manifold were the dangers he ran of losing
his commission with disgrace. As some persons can
sleep at will, L  1 possessed the power of sobering
himself on a great emergency; so that he always
managed to avoid any fatal display of incapacity to
do his duty. When once on an outlying picket in
front of Bayonne, the night after the Second Division
crossed the Nive, he found a barrel of cyder in the
house, got drunk, and fell asleep. Immediately after
poor Clitherow, who was killed at Garris, arrived at
the post, with an order for the officer of the picket to
patrole in a particular direction in front. I happened
to be in the house at the time; the night was dark
and wet, and L  1 so wrapped in drunken sleep
that he could not be wakened, and I thought he was
lost. All this time Captain Clitherow was waiting
at the door, on horseback, to give him his instructions.
VOL. I. L

218 CAPTURE OF A SHARK.
After several fruitless attempts, I roused him at last,
by plunging a large pin up to its head, in the calf
of his leg, as he lay snoring on the bed ; when he
started up with a "d  the bug !" rubbed his eyes
and his leg, went out and received the Aide-de-camp's
orders, took his patrol in the proper direction, re
turned as sober as a judge, and made a satisfactory
report. Before we left Chatham L  1 sallied out of the
Mitre Inn one evening after dinner, with a white
hot poker of large size in his hand. It was Saturday
night, and very wet, yet many people were in the
streets ; and as he proceeded upsetting every body he
met, winding his formidable weapon, fizzing with the
rain, over his head, and cursing in the loudest and
most guttural German, he looked like a demon,
wreathed in fire and smoke.
As we approached the Line, we met with the usual
number of porpoises, flying-fish, and sharks. The
last being a fish I had not yet enjoyed the pleasure
of catching, I baited a hook with a piece of pork,
attached this to a chain, a foot and a half long, fas
tened to a strong cord, and promised a shilling for
the first intimation when one of these voracious ras
cals made his appearance ; which was generally in the
ship's wake, and very early in the morning.
Two mornings after these arrangements, a sailor
shook my cot a little after day-light to announce the
arrival of the enemy, when I started up and ascended
the poop, and there, plain enough, was a good sized
shark visible, about three or four feet below the sur
face, and four or five yards astern. Over went my
bait immediately, and I was delighted to perceive that
it was not long unnoticed ; the shark came up to the
pork, reconnoitered it a little with some attention,

CAPTURE OF A SHARK. 219
poked it with his snout, and then, being satisfied
that it was sweet, he turned himself half round, opened
his huge mouth and sucked it in. I kindly permitted
him to indulge in one squeeze of the luscious morsel,
and then just as he was getting into his former sail
ing order, I gave the rope no gentle pull, and chuck
went the barb into his jaws.
At first he did not appear to comprehend clearly
the meaning of this prick, perhaps supposing it was
nothing more than a sharp bit of bone in the pork ;
but when he found the hook piercing deeper and
deeper, and the " iron entering his soul," down he
plunged desperately, but in the mean time the sailors
had attached the cord to a coil of rope, and I let him
run out as much as he pleased, and then played him
like a salmon. By this time half the passengers were
up witnessing the sport. When the shark was fairly
tired I brought him near the surface, a sailor cast a
noose adroitly round his body below the pectoral fins,
a loud yo — he — oh ! was sung out by the captors,
and we hoisted the gentleman on deck. He there
made great play about our legs, but his tail was soon
nicked with an axe; the sailors dragged him forward
to the cooking galley, and there cut him up and ate
him. In the warm latitudes we caught a number of bo-
nitos from the bowsprit, with a piece of rag, like a
flying-fish, on which they fed. The bonito, notwith
standing its name, is a clumsy ugly fish, and the
Portuguese who first named it must have had either
small acquaintance with ichthyology, or very poor
taste. Nor do its edible qualities make up for its un
promising exterior, for its flesh is very coarse, and
only eatable when dressed with some rich sauce, or
stewed in wine.

220 CROSSING THE LINE.
Of course Neptune did not fail to visit us in cross
ing the Line, and we had the usual ducking, and
rough shaving, and tarring of the equinoctial satur
nalia. We basked and gasped four or five days, be
calmed in his dominions, and I know few things so
utterly intolerable as to be thus roasted in this burn
ing zone, without the power of leaving it; the pitch
starting from the seams of the deck, the perspiration
dissolving everything soluble about our clothes, and
our very eyeballs straining their moorings. At last,
one day, when " 'twas sad as sad could be,
And we did speak only to break
The silence of the sea ;
" All in a hot and copper sky,
The bloody sun at noon
Right up above the mast did stand,
No bigger than the moon :"
some sharp-sighted person perceived at a great dis
tance a small ripple, technically called a cat's paw,
on the surface of the mirror-like ocean. All glasses
were immediately pointed at it, and we soon had the
pleasure of seeing it ruffling and expanding beneath
a gentle air, which became a respectable breeze.
Every inch of canvass was instantly spread, and every
mouth opened to inhale the grateful coolness. Soon
the gallant ship felt its influence; the white foam was
dashed aside from the prow, and we proceeded merrily
south. We had our usual fine weather and a very smooth
sea going round the Cape and through the Mozam
bique Channel. When abreast of the island of Jo
hanna, we saw one morning a number of canoes wait
ing to board us, full of the most grotesquely dressed
black figures, apparently arrayed in cast-off English

BRIGHTNESS OF THE SEA. 221
naval and military uniforms, shouting to us to lay-to
and throw them a rope ; but the Commodore was deaf
to their entreaties, the wind being too fair to lose time,
even for a levee of Admirals and Generals ; and thus
the Prince of Wales, and the Duke of York, and
Billy Pitt, and Lord Nelson — all hard-working Arab
washermen — lost a good job.
Beautiful at this time was the sky above and the
sea below ; the one glorious with southern constella
tions new to our eyes, the other radiant at night in
our wake, like a river of fire. Philosophers, I humbly
think, in their attempts to explain this phenomenon,
overlook one simple, obvious, and sufficient cause,
namely, the violent collision of particles of briny
fluid against each other, charged highly with the
phosphoric salts in these warm latitudes ; and more
saline in every respect from the powerful and constant
evaporation. This would at once explain the bril
liant wake of a ship by night in tropical regions,
contrasted with its duller appearance in higher lati
tudes, — the bright course of a fish and his invisible
path under like circumstances, — and the fact that a
bucket of water when drawn up at night near the
Line, is luminous at first from its agitation, ceases to
be bright when becoming calm, and is again lumi
nous when disturbed.
The usual way of explaining this nocturnal bright
ness of the sea within the Tropics, is to refer it to the
phosphorescence of molluscar animalcules. This has
always appeared to me unsatisfactory; and unless
these minute creatures are — numerous as — not merely
the drops, but the ultimate atoms of water, their
agency would appear inadequate to produce the effect
we witness. Besides, why should they be more vi
sible in disturbed than in calm water?

222 THE VOYAGE.
On the 2nd of July, we got amongst a large covey
of flying-fish chased by innumerable dolphins and
bonitos, some of which poor unfortunates j umped into
the chains, and even on deck, where they were soon
secured. We found them very delicate eating, much
like whiting. This day I caught a very large shark,
— being the thirteenth since we left England — twelve
feet long, and weighing a hundred and fifty pounds.
This monster afforded us an hour's play, and having
given him a great length of line, standing on the
taffrail, whilst a sailor held by my skirts. I found
my hands all blistered afterward, from the running
out and hauling in of the rope, though quite uncon
scious of hurt at the time.
Whilst rapidly traversing the Indian Ocean, many
and various were our conjectures on board concerning
the res gestae in Europe; for here there was full
scope for speculation, and we were now drawing near
Madras, where we might expect that news to a later
time than when we left England would have arrived
overland. Sailing just as Napoleon reached Lyons,
yet when the indomitable Ney, " the bravest of the
brave," was pledged to destroy him, and at the head
of a superior force, it was hard to say what the event
would be. For my own part, I entertained little
doubt of the general defection of the Army from the
White Flag, knowing well their strong attachment to
their old master, and the electric effect of the first
example ; and under this impression had betted the
dinner, which in expensive Calcutta would probably
cost a hundred pounds.
On the 17th of July we saw Ceylon on our larboard
bow, and soon perceived the peculiar odour of land,
which, notwithstanding the accounts I had read of
the spicy exhalations from that island of fragrance,

ARRIVAL AT MADRAS. 223
was more warm and earthy than aromatic. On the
22nd, we anchored in Madras roads. All the ships
of our fleet were instantly surrounded by canoes and
Mussoolah boats, laden with great variety of fruit
and vegetables, for which there is always a ready
sale after the voyage from Europe. Around the Lord
Melville we had, in a quarter of an hour, about a
hundred of these craft in tiers four or five deep,
whilst the owners were handing in their plaintains,
mangoes, and pines to the soldiers through the ports,
and selling them at about a hundred per cent, above
the ordinary price. In the midst of all this noise and
confusion, each vender puffing his goods, and soldiers,
sailors, and natives jabbering away in broken En
glish, Hindosthanee, and Malabar; it was now time
for the Commodore's ship to salute Fort St. George.
Bang ! went a gun from the foremost starboard port ;
bang ! followed a second from the larboard, not two
feet clear of the turbaned heads in the canoes below.
Then ensued a scene of the most laughable nature ;
the more courageous ducked low in the boats, the
timid jumped overboard, whilst half the cargoes were
tumbled into the water, and the sea all around the
ship was covered with cocoa-nuts and pine-apples.
It was a full hour before the consequent squabbles
as to proprietorship could be settled, and trade had
resumed its course.
And now all was intense anxiety to learn the news
from Europe. Soon after dropping anchor, we saw a
Mussoolah boat approach with a white face in it, and
before the Master Attendant of the Port had time to
board us, he was hailed from the gangway, "Any
Europe news?" " Great news," was the reply; but
he proceeded leisurely up the ladder, and stepped on
the quarterdeck, before he would satisfy our curiosity.

224 PASSING THE SURF AT MADRAS.
At length, after shaking hands with Captain Crabbe,
he exclaimed, " Buonaparte is reigning in the Thuil-
leries !"
On the 24th of July we disembarked, and had the
novel excitement, previously, of passing through the
Madras surf. Our course was amidst three successive
tiers of foaming and thundering breakers, often look
ing down upon us as we sat in the bottom of the deep
and elastic Mussoolah boat, the line of the bottom of
which, as we ascended and descended the steep and
awful hills of surf, was as nearly perpendicular as
possible, and exactly like being poised on one end.
We were flanked on both sides by a little fleet of Ca
tamarans, the inmates of which had various shining
medals about their necks, as rewards for saving poor
fellows like us from the sharks. " Allah ! Illah !
Allah!" vociferated the boatmen, as the deep and
vibrating boat rode over the foaming ridges ; " Allah !
Illah !" shouted with equal fear and fervency. At
last the flood of the third surf shot us up the
beach ; when a hundred Orientals seizing the boat,
for fear of the reflux, dragged us up the sandy shore
out of the reach of the wave, and we jumped on the
soil of Hindostan.

225

CHAPTER XXI.

MADRAS. — POONAMALEE.— CALCUTTA. — MISCHIEVOUS TRICKS
ON ADJUTANTS.  AN ADJUTANT'S LUNCH.  RENARD AU
NATUREL.  VOYAGE UP THE GANGES TO DINAPORE. 
RENCONTRE WITH A BUFFALO BULL.
" Man is the only growth that dwindles here."
Goldsmith.
" the cypress and myrtle
Are emblems of deeds that are done in their clime."
Bride of Abydos.

Here then were we fairly landed in this "Clime of
the Sun." My brother officers and myself were im
mediately assailed by an army of black, and yellow,
and straw-coloured, and mud-coloured, and many-
coloured natives, in large white turbans, fine mous
taches, long flowing muslin garments, and naked
feet, presenting numerous credentials and certificates
with low and graceful salaams, and requesting to
have the high honour of being the humblest of our
slaves. With some difficulty we made our way
through the crowd, but not before choosing one or
two each from this importunate multitude ; we then
got into palanquins, and went to the principal hotel.
Next morning we marched to Poonamalee, a mili
tary station fifteen miles from Madras, the appear
ance and agremens of which did not prepossess us
much in favour of the new country. The barracks
were built on a flat, exposed to the heat of a power
ful sun, with little shade or ventilation; the flies
l 2

226 POONAMALEE.
could scarcely have been worse with Pharaoh, and a
sandy plain in front of a detached Barrack appropri
ated to the 64th Detachment, was inhabited by co
bras de capello, the most venomous snake in the
East. These creatures remained in their holes all
day, contrary to the usages of their brethren, but as
soon as it was dark, they sallied out to take a snap
at any body's heels that passed. When obliged to
go over this plain during my night visits to the
hospital, I was at first very apprehensive of a bite;
but I took good care to fortify everything below the
knees with as many pairs of boots as I could move
in, and thus defied the snakes, although of a dark
night I sometimes fancied I felt the villains tugging
at the leather.
After a fortnight at Poonamalee, we were ordered
to re-imbark in the same ship for Calcutta. We
marched at two o'clock in the morning to avoid the
heat, enjoyed several delicious drinks of toddy (the
cool juice of the cocoa-nut palm) on the road, launched
out into the surf attended by the Catamaran people,
once more cheated the sharks, and found ourselves
the same day comfortably established in our good
ship the Lord Melville. After a pleasant voyage, we
reached Calcutta on the 23rd of August, and were all
invited by Captain Crabbe to eat the Buonaparte
dinner at his house in Chouringhee that day week.
This Metropolis of the East has a grand and im
posing aspect ; and the beauty of the fine houses — at
the western extremity in particular — surrounded by
their ornamented and luxurious grounds and gardens,
is very striking. The mansions are on a large scale,
compared with English dwellings at home; and their
deep balconies and verandahs with the white marmo-
rean stucco, called Chunam, with which the walls are

THE ADJUTANT. 227
covered, give them an air of considerable splendour
and magnificence.
But to a griffin, as they hieroglyphically call
strangers in India, perhaps the greatest novelty in
Calcutta is that huge, grave, long-beaked bird called
the Adjutant, but which should rather be named
Dominie Sampson ; for his air is decidedly more
abstracted and pedagoguish than military, and his
costume has nothing garish or gay about it. The
young Johnny Newcome stares with no slight wonder
when he first sees this enormous bird stalking slowly,
and as if in deep thought, through the streets, flying
round a corner within a yard of his person, with his
monstrous bill projecting formidably, and threatening
him with impalement ; gobbling up large bones of
beef, or a four pound loaf, or any other trifle that is
pitched out to him ; and when he has made a satis
factory meal, standing on one leg, like a mutilated
statue, on the highest pinnacle he can find, to digest
it. The Adjutant, as is well known, is a harmless and
useful bird, that performs the duty of a scavenger in
India, devouring offal and punishing snakes, of which
he is very fond. His valuable services are so fully
appreciated, that the Company have taken him into
their charge, and placed the whole fraternity under
their protection ; punishing with a heavy fine the
murder of one of these birds. Yet such is the in
gratitude of mankind, that the poor inoffensive Adju
tant is persecuted by the most annoying and cruel
tricks. Shank bones of mutton are cleaned out and
stuffed with gunpowder, with a slow match applied ;
then the meat is thrown out and swallowed, and when
the poor wretch is chuckling over its savoury morsel
it explodes and blows him to atoms.

228 an adjutant's lunch.
A more venial trick, and not unamusing, I confess,
is to tie two legs of mutton together with a piece of
whipcord, leaving an interval of three or four yards ;
the gigots are then tossed out amongst the birds, and
soon find their way into the stomachs of a couple of
the most active. As long as they keep together it is
all very well ; but as soon as the cord tightens both
become alarmed and take wing, mutually astonished
at the phenomenon, no doubt. A laughable tugging
match then ensues in the air, each Adjutant striving
to mount higher than the other, till at last they attain
a great elevation. When at length the weaker bird
is forced to disgorge his mutton, a new power comes
into play — the force of gravity — and the pendulum
leg of mutton, after some ridiculous oscillations, brings
the conqueror down to the earth a great deal faster
than he wishes.
These creatures have prodigious powers of deglu
tition and digestion. It is a very common thing for
one of them to seize an impertinent crow, who is
troublesome when the Adjutant wants to eat his break
fast in quiet, and after turning him right about face
with a skilful coup de bee, to send him cawing down
his capacious throat. I recollect at Dinapore, when
we shook a bag fox, and had an hour's run one morn
ing, some silly servant brought the dead animal home
and tossed him into the barrack square amongst the
Adjutants, who all came flocking about the poor
defunct. One ravenous fellow would seize him by
the brush, another by the leg, a third by the back ;
still it would not do — none could manage to gulp
him down. At last a wise old bird set about the
business scientifically, beginning at the right end :
he took the fox's head in his mouth, and bolted it
after considerable straining ; then, with a great effort,

CALCUTTA. 229
he swallowed the body, till nothing remained but a
bit of the tail sticking out of one side of his beak. At
this the others began, rather hopelessly, to peck, till
at length the gormandizer, becoming annoyed at their
teazing, flew off with his delicate lunch, to digest it
at his leisure.
As I feared at the time that this fact — every circum
stance of which I had witnessed in bright sunshine,
at a distance of about thirty yards — would not be
credited at home, I called out two of my brother
officers from their breakfasts to be corroborating
evidence. Still it must rest on my single testimony,
as those two worthy fellows, Lieutenants Harvey and
L'Estrange are no longer in the land of the living.
The story, notwithstanding, is true to the minutest
circumstance; and I believe nobody acquainted with
the habits of Adjutants will doubt it.
On reaching Calcutta, we found that our Regiment
had left the Presidency for Dinapore about a fort
night before our arrival. We obtained quarters in
Fort William, but arrived at an unfortunate time ;
the Governor, Lord Hastings, was absent, and every
body was complaining of the dulness of the place.
The weather, too, was insufferably close and hot.
We were therefore very glad to leave the Indian
metropolis, after passing three weeks in its magnifi
cent citadel, Fort William.
In the middle of September we embarked on the
Hoogly, the westernmost and deepest branch of the
Ganges, for Dinapore. Lieutenant D  y and my
self engaged a Budgerow of sixteen dandies, as they
call a covered and gaily painted barge of sixteen
boatmen in Bengal ; and two other 66th Officers and
ourselves formed a mess, and took a native Purveyor
with us, who engaged to provide us food on the

230 VOYAGE UP THE GANGES.
voyage at a very reasonable rate. Three or four large
detachments for different Indian Regiments accom
panied us, and I was placed in medical charge of the
whole. In those Saturnian days John Company paid
his doctors well, and I received so many annas each
per diem for the individuals under my charge, in
cluding myself; and was thus furnished with an
additional reason, value about sixpence a day, for
preserving my own health.
Our voyage up the Ganges was quite a pleasure
trip : when the wind was fair we sailed gallantly
against the current, but otherwise we were pulled
along the shore by the dandies, who moved in the
water like amphibious animals, totally fearless as to
the alligators. At these times I was generally out
with my gun, ranging a little into the interior, with a
couple of servants and a skiff, to observe and follow
my movements. In the middle of the day I was
always on board attending to the sick. We generally
anchored and halted for the night at some pleasant
spot on the bank, ordinarily near some tope or mango
grove. Innumerable were the mallard, teal, widgeon,
black and common partridge, quail, &c. that I shot
on this voyage ; and whenever there were marshes
we were sure to find both common and painted snipe
in the greatest abundance.
But the resplendent wild peacock, with his two
yards of tail, flying over your head, his brilliant
plumage dazzling you blind. What a noble sight!
And what a sensation when you bring him down ! I
shot only a few of these unrivalled birds, for they are
getting scarce in the neighbourhood of the river, and
there is an ugly association with them, which has
some tendency to spoil the enjoyment of any but a
very keen sportsman — the peacocks are shy birds,

VOYAGE UP THE GANGES. 231
and seldom leave the more secluded and remote
jungles, which are also the day-haunts of tigers.
The jackals used to annoy us much in ascending
the Ganges by their doleful howling at night : indeed
these animals appear to take an odd pleasure in con
tinually disturbing people's repose, for no other reason
that I could ever make out than the mere malice of
the thing. There, by moonlight, when I got up, and
could no longer bear the noise, would I see a pack of
them on the bank, baying away at the boats with all
their might, until a couple of barrels raining shot
among them dispersed the rascals with some cause
for howling. They are harmless creatures, however,
and when tamed early are capable of strong canine
attachment, to my own knowledge.
On my little shooting expeditions it was amusing
to observe the absurd fear the Indian domestic cattle
shew of a white man, snorting at his approach, throw
ing up their noses, tossing their tails over their backs,
and running out of his way with all speed. One day
when in quest of black partridges, I happened to
jump into a lane, and there confronted a Hindu riding
on one of his gods, a Brahminee bull, who carried
besides two bags of rice. On perceiving my white
face, the animal bolted to"the right about so suddenly
that he unshipped his Indian master, bags of paddy
and all, and ran snorting up the lane in a state of
great alarm. The Indian, after pulling his bags out
of the dirt, ran to catch his deity, whom he abused
in the grossest manner his very gross and copious
language would permit.
I must however except the tame Indian buffalo,
especially the male, from participating in this fear.
He is disturbed by the near approach of a white man
also ; but being naturally and irreclaimably ferocious,

232 RENCONTRE WITH A BUFFALO.
the feeling becomes hate instead of fear, and he will
attack, whilst the common black cattle will run away.
During one of my rambles on this voyage, I passed a
buffalo bull in a field ; but observing something
peculiarly treacherous in his whole appearance, I
cocked both barrels, and prepared for mischief; and
well it was that I had critically noticed the expression
of his savage eye, for I had not advanced from him
thirty paces when he charged me with a roar. I
stood firm, and when he came so near that missing
him was impossible, he had the benefit of a barrel in
each eye. The pain maddened the blinded brute ;
and, ferocious monster as he was, I could scarcely
help feeling pity when I saw him roaring with agony
and revolving in a bloody circle ; and though his
infamous conduct scarcely deserved the act of mercy,
I put a ball in each barrel and killed him. My two
native servants had scampered off very valiantly when
they saw the beast attacking me ; but when they
returned and found him lying dead, there was no end
to their compliments to Saahib on the occasion.
We continued our voyage prosperously and plea
santly. The troops were healthy, notwithstanding
the horrid habits of intemperance which the ardent
climate and cheap spirits engender. We reached
Dinapore on the 2nd of November, and I delivered
my charge all safe and sound, no casualty having
occured in the detachment since we left the Isle of
Wight.

233

CHAPTER XXII.
CONTRAST BETWEEN THE AUTHOR'S DOMESTIC ESTABLISH
MENT IN SPAIN AND BENGAL.  HIS EMOTION ON SEEING
THE DESPATCH OF THE BATTLE OF WATERLOO.  SHOOT
ING MARCH FROM DINAPORE TO THE SKIRTS OF THE
HIMALAYA MOUNTAINS.  TIGER HUNT.  FLIRTATION
WITH A FEMALE ELEPHANT.  PREPARATIONS FOR INVA
DING THE VALLEY OF NEPAUL.
" Evening comes on ; arising from the stream
Homeward the tall Flamingo wings his flight,
And where he sails athwart the setting beam
His scarlet plumage glows with deeper light." — Southey.
The 66th Regiment marched from Dinapore, in the
direction of the Nepaul Hills, the very day we ar
rived. These hills are long roots of the stupendous
Himalayan chain, whose white tops we could clearly
see from Dinapore, a distance of two hundred miles,
at a considerable elevation above the horizon, looking
like stationary clouds. The intervening valleys were
inhabited by the quiet Nepaulese, but these peaceful
husbandmen had been conquered by the warlike
Goorkah tribes since the beginning of the present
century ; and collisions had often occurred between
these lawless mountaineers and the Company's go
vernment. At length, provoked by some wanton at
tacks on our posts in the Terraie, as the belt of low
land along their hills is called, we had made war on
them the year before ; penetrated into their country,
and forced the Goorkah minister to sign a treaty of
Peace. This the Rajah of Nepaul had hesitated to

234 NEPAUL HILLS.
ratify, and affairs were beginning again to look war
like ; a force was about to be assembled within our ter
ritory but close to the frontier, to coerce him, and a
camp, had been traced out near a village called Bui wee.
On our arrival we found that the sick, the women and
children, and heavy baggage had been left here ; the
detachment was ordered to follow the regiment, I was
directed to remain in charge of the hospital till further
orders, and a hint was given to prepare for a cam
paign. Thus far into the bowels of the land I had come
prosperously, and now was about to contrast Indian
with European warfare, and exchange the pretty val
leys of the Pyrenees for the stupendous sublimities
and profound ravines of the Himalaya Mountains. My
domestic establishment had expanded something in
the same ratio. I had my Sirdaar-bearer, supposed
to be honest, par excellence, and bound by every
honourable consideration to let nobody cheat me but
himself; nine common bearers for my Palkee, or
Palanquin; two Chohkedars, or watchmen, to go
their rounds about my dwelling or tent by night; my
Dhoby, or water-carrier; my Dhurjee, or tailor; my
Khetmugar, alias, Maitre d'Hotel; my Mnausalgee,
my Syce and his assistant, to take care of my horse ;
three Guywallers, to look after the bullocks ; my
Mather to do all kinds of inferior jobs in the dish
washing and boot-cleaning departments; besides
some others whose duties I forget; and finally, ths
incomparable moslem Bhastee Rhamm, with resplen-
dently curled and jet black moustachios, to superin
tend my Hookah.
O Antonio ! my faithful valet, and thou, hard-fisted
Jonathan Wild, my trusty groom ! how often did I
regret you when groaning in the splendid bondage of

PATNA. 235
being lord over twenty and nine bedizened, and be-
muslined, and sashed and slashed, and slippered and
turbaned attendants.
It is the custom in India for strangers to call on
the residents on their first arrival ; the visit is soon
returned, and an invitation follows, for in that part of
the world the exercise of hospitality is more a luxury
than a virtue ; and breaking the monotony of one's
isolation in a remote part of the country, and staying
a day or two, is in fact a favour conferred on the host.
About a week after my arrival I went to dine with the
collector of the district, who lived at Patna ; I was
rather early, and nobody was in the drawing-room
when I entered. During our voyage from Madras to
Calcutta, our residence in the latter city, and voyage
up the Ganges, we had been quite in the dark as to
European news : by the last accounts enormous pre
parations were making both by Napoleon and the
allies; the Duke of Wellington had gone to Flan
ders, and Blucher was assembling the Prussians. I
well knew that these illustrious men would do all
that skill and energy could accomplish ; but then, on
the other hand, the flower of the British Regiments
not yet returned from America, the short time, the
second battalions, the young soldiers, the doubtful
Belgians, contrasted with the unity of Buonaparte's
operations, the composition of his veteran army, and
the bravery of desperation to be certainly expected
from his officers and soldiers. These gloomy ideas
had been passing through my mind in driving to
Patna, and they recurred when the servant left me
alone in the drawing-room. To divert them I turned
mechanically to a table covered with prints, and be
came momentarily engaged with some clever London
caricatures. In taking up one large sheet, I saw a

236 MARCH FROM DINAPORE.
Calcutta Newspaper of a late date underneath, con
taining the Duke of Wellington's Despatch from
Waterloo !
I believe that throughout my whole life I have not
felt on any occasion one tenth part the joy of that
moment. Joy is too feeble a word, it was rapture,
taking instant possession of every faculty of heart and
mind. We dined, but I may say with truth that I
was absent, and could think of nothing but the de
fence of Hougomont, and the glorious and invincible
squares, and the repulsed charges of the Cuirassiers,
and the death of Picton and Ponsonby, and humbler
names of men whom I had known in the Peninsular,
and the crash of the Household Brigade through the
French Cavalry, the last charge of the English line,
the meeting of Wellington and Blucher, and the final
and irrecoverable rout ! The good host and his
amiable wife saw, but pardoned my rudeness and
absence of mind ; for, I think it was not until the
second or third revolution of the decanters that I
recovered perfect identity and local consciousness.
Lieutenant G  n of the Regiment and myself
marched from Dinapore on the 9th of December, to
join the Army in camp at Bulwee. We received a dis
cretionary rout, limited, however, by a maximum time
often days, which would be very comfortable travel
ling, considering that the distance was only a hun
dred miles. As it was the finest season of the year,
the weather clear and cool, the latitude thirty degrees
north, the road good, and the country abounding in
game, we resolved to turn our march into a sporting
expedition; to breakfast early, send on our tents and
baggage to some pleasant spot for halting, retain a
couple of horses and some attendants, and shoot right
and left along the road.

CROSSING THE GANGES. 237
We crossed the Ganges, four miles from Dinapore,
and immediately got into a rich and cultivated coun
try, artificially irrigated, and abounding in small em
banked ponds and little patches of marsh around,
that were full of mallard, teal, widgeon, and snipe.
We here set to work the first afternoon, continued
our sport the next day, and by mid-day on the third,
we had accumulated such a quantity of game of all
kinds, that we were embarrassed with our feathered
spoils, notwithstanding that we had regaled on the
elite of them on the march, more like ploughmen
than sportsmen. In this dilemma we fortunately
fell in with three Company's officers, whom we begged
to assist us ; our cook set to work, and having bruised
the heads of fifty or sixty couple of snipe, they were
put into a large soup kettle, with a few brace of par
tridges, and as many ortolans as would fill up the
chinks. I don't know the correct name of this soupe
aux mille becassines, in the preparation of which a
Parisian traiteur would have been horrified at the
waste of material, but it was exquisitely good. The
rest of our dinner was in harmony.
The next day we had again good sport, slaying in
numerable water-fowl in the ponds and small lakes.
In the evening we found our tents pitched in a Mango
Tope, with turf as smooth as velvet, by the side of a
considerable lake. It was near sunset, and we were
about to dress for dinner, when I saw a wild peacock
emerging from the jungle, fifty yards from the water,
and running down to drink on the opposite side of
the lake. I snatched up my gun, went down the
pond a little way, got across in an old canoe, and
then commenced the delicate operation of turning his
flank, diving into the jungle and getting into his rear,
so as to cut him off from his cover. This was accom-

238 SHOOTING PEACOCKS. ,
plished at the expense of some scratches; I then
advanced till within thirty yards, whilst the vain bird,
after satisfying his thirst, appeared inclined to pick a
quarrel with his image in the clear water. The
peacock received one barrel before he took flight,
without much apparent injury, for these strong birds
are so mailed by their thick feathers that they
require large shot at a short distance, to kill them :
and I could hear my charge rattling on his quills,
without preventing his getting up vigorously. The
reserve barrel, however, brought him down with a
broken wing ; and even then he nearly escaped into
the jungle before I caught him, when he made a des
perate fight. This bird was presented to the mess
the day of our arrival in camp, it was buried in moist
earth five days, after which the flesh was tender and
of fine flavour.
We found a large encampment near the hamlet
of Bulwee, consisting of three British Regiments,
the 24th, the 66th, and the 87th, with thirteen Bat
talions of Seapoys and artillery; the whole com
manded by Major General Sir David Ochterlony.
Our camp enjoyed a splendid view of the mountains,
and though we had approached them a hundred miles
nearer, there was not much difference between the
appearance of their dazzling summits from hence,
and from Dinapore. Our position was only six
miles from a belt of jungle, at the foot of the first
range of hills, that was full of wild animals.
To one just arrived, after campaigning in Europe,
the novelty and luxury of an Indian camp were ex
tremely pleasing and amusing. There was a large
and heterogeneous host of followers, about ten or
twelve for every soldier, consisting of the Bazaar
people, Coolies, Bangywallas, Jugglers, Nautcht-girls,

INDIA. 239
Doud-walliers, Officers' and soldiers' servants, tent-
people, and attendants on the numerous public ele
phants, camels, and bullocks. We had a good bazaar
and plenty of provisions, and as one proof of the
goodness of our fare, I may mention that at the mess
we had green peas in abundance that had been car
ried in baskets on men's shoulders all the way from
Dinapore. Here we remained six weeks, whilst negociations
were going on with the Ghoorkahs. Our last cam
paign against these hardy fellows had not been very
successful on the whole, and some failures in attempts
on their forts, and other untoward affairs had given
them confidence. We were now under arms at day
light every morning, but after this parade we had the
day to ourselves; and as this was a rich and new
country for the sportsmen, we had plenty of amuse
ment in the way of shooting and hunting. We found
large quantities of snipe, both of the common kind,
and of a large gaily plumed species called painted
snipe ; and hunted foxes and jackals, whilst those
officers who had greyhounds exercised themselves in
coursing hares. We could occasionally indulge in
sport of a nobler kind too, for a tiger would some
times leave his lair in the adjacent belt of jungle, to
pay a visit to the purlieus of our camp ; and one large
fellow had been seen lately skulking away when the
troops were getting under arms in the morning. Dr.
Richardson of the Company's service, a celebrated
tiger-hunter, having heard of this, determined to go
in quest of him, and being informed that I was
anxious for an opportunity of getting a shot, he
kindly offered me a seat on his elephant.
We started at 8 a. m. on a clear and calm morning,
directing our course towards a small ravine, four or

240 A TIGER HUNT.
five miles from camp, into which the brute had been
recently tracked. We were mounted on a steady
and well trained male elephant, of large size, reported
to be very courageous and docile, and possessing a
pair of enormous tusks, fit to transfix any tiger in the
forest. The Mohaut, or governor, was an intelligent
and determined looking man, seated on the joint of
the head and neck, with his naked toes in contact
with the animal's huge ears, and a short steel goad in
his hand.
Behold me then, peaceful son of iEsculapius though
I was, at last arrived at the very height of my ambi
tion in the sporting way, with every nerve and muscle
high strung, and every mental and bodily power
screwed to the utmost tension for the approaching
collision. We were not long in discovering the enemy's
retreat ; but he slunk away before we could get a
shot within proper distance, and we beat about the
whole day without success. The same bad luck also
attended us on our second expedition ; but we were
determined to try once more, and a third time skirted
the jungle to a great distance — penetrating where we
could — and looking into every likely place, without
seeing any thing larger than an antelope or a black
partridge. As we were returning, a little out of
humour at our bad luck, in passing through a low
brake, two miles from camp, the elephant became
excited, threw up his trunk, and made a dead point;
whilst the Mohaut partook of the noble beast's emo
tion, pulled up his legs, clenched his hands, and,
I really believe, erected his whiskers, exclaiming,
" Bawg, Bawg, Sahib !" In five minutes the magni
ficent quarry we were seeking gave an angry growl
as he emerged from a bush not ten yards in front of

A TIGER HUNT. 241
us, and slowly got out of our way. We were both
cool, for all our energies had been exerted to preserve
presence of mind, so that we fired with steadiness
and certain aim, and in four seconds as many balls
struck the tiger. He roared horribly, lashed his
sides, glared at us with the most frightful malignity,
and attempted to spring, but could not, for a fore-leg
had been broken near the shoulder. Three more balls
despatched him. After reloading every barrel of our
four guns, and pausing until we saw all motion cease,
we alighted, cautiously approached, and stood over
our fallen enemy.
There are bright but, alas, evanescent periods in
our lives, when we feel the blood circulating in our
veins as if it was charged with electricity, giving to
each pulse tenfold vitality and power. At such times
we seem to spurn the clog of clay which encumbers
our spirit, and perceive so vividly the presence of our
immaterial nature, that we conceive for the moment
we can triumph over all gross mundane obstacles, and
carry every volition into instant execution. Some
thing like this proud consciousness of power animated
us when we saw this tremendous tyrant of the forest
lying extended at our feet, yet grim and dreadful
even in death.
We entered the camp with our glorious prize, a
royal male tiger of the largest size, ten feet four inches
from nose to tail. I measured his right fore-leg near
the shoulder, with my pocket handkerchief, and found
it exactly the circumference of my own body under
the arms, which is somewhat above medium size.
Every muscle of the limb was as hard and as defined
as a rod of iron.
The elephants and camels of our little army were
picketted near the part of the camp occupied by the
vol. i. m

242 TREATMENT OF ELEPHANTS.
66th Regiment. One refractory brute amongst the
former beginning to shew dangerous symptoms of
ferocity, called for suitable treatment; and severe
enough was the discipline he received. They chained
him by the fore-legs to a tree, which even his power
could do little more than shake, and by the others to
strong stakes driven into the ground, half starved
him for a week, and every morning he was pricked
with half a dozen long bamboo poles, armed with
sharp spikes, about the neck and roots of the ears,
when the animal's exertions would make the blood
spout out frightfully. By this gentle treatment they
brought the gentleman to his senses in about ten
days. And here it may be observed in passing, for the
special benefit of menagerie keepers, that some modi
fication of this treatment may occasionally save a
valuable elephant from the miserable fate of Mr.
Cross's Chuny — a butchery most disgraceful and
unnecessary. I well recollect taking two young
ladies to Exeter 'Change, to see the wild beasts, a
week or two before poor Chuny got into mhust; a
temporary ferocity occurring at certain seasons, which
soon subsides when the patient is bled and kept low. On
the above occasion Mr. Cross's elephant looked wild,
and made a snatch with his trunk at one of the ladies'
bonnets; when I cautioned the keeper to strengthen
his cage immediately, and get him bled and treated
after the Indian fashion. But it seemed that Mr.
Cross, perceiving that the animal did not eat his food,
had already decided on a line of practice, very Hamil-
tonian certainly, but, as it turned out, very unsuc
cessful. The keeper put me in possession of the last
prescription which had been ordered for Chuny,
namely,

FLIRTATION WITH AN ELEPHANT. 243
B: Calomel, four ounces (avoirdupois), mix in a
sugar bolus of four pounds, and give at bed
time.
R: Epsom salts, twenty-eight pounds, disguise in a
tub of treacle, and administer at getting out of
bed in the morning.
There chanced to be a female elephant and her calf
stationed not far from my tent. I carried the young
one a large basin of sweet tea after breakfast one
morning, into which he dipped his trunk, and drained
the contents in an instant ; and perceiving his mamma
looking on wistfully, I procured her one also, which
she drank with much gusto. Soon after this intro
duction we became great friends, and the mother and
her son were regular pensioners of my tea-pot; the
lady permitting me to take many liberties with her
person, such as toying with her delicate ear, scratch
ing her neck, or brushing away with a green bough
the flies that annoyed her, and giving me now and
then a hug about the waist with her trunk, which in
no instance exceeded the reasonable warmth of a
friendly embrace. One morning when she was par
ticularly affectionate, I took a fancy to feel her pulse ;
and when handling her ear I groped for an artery at
the base, and noted the number of pulsations in a
minute. This was twenty-four — and I need scarcely
add that there was nothing feeble in its stroke.
By the end of January, 1816, matters began to
assume a very hostile aspect to the Ghoorkahs in our
camp. Preparations were begun for an immediate
invasion of their sequestered valleys — reinforcements
of troops and heavy artillery joined the army — the
sick were sent to the rear — and our whole force, con
sisting of seventeen thousand men, was formed into

244 PREPARATIONS FOR INVADING
four divisions. One of these bodies, consisting of
the 66th Regiment, nine hundred strong, and four
Sepoy Battalions, was placed under the command of
Colonel Nicol, and was destined to penetrate into the
Nepaul valley by the Bhicknee, or most western
Pass; whilst the other columns were to pierce the
formidable frontier of mountain and forest by three
other goat-paths, dignified with the name of Passes,
simultaneously with ourselves.
On the 4th of February we broke up our camp, and
marched westward, skirting the mountain, to Rham-
nahghur, the residence of a Rajah. All the terraie
in this neighbourhood appeared well cultivated, and
the soil good ; whilst the vicinity of the huge snowy
mountains maintained a freshness and coolness of
climate which was very agreeable. Our mornings
were sometimes cold, the Fahrenheit thermometer
standing at 36°, and at midday it would mount to 80°.
But the whole of this country is dreadfully unhealthy
in the hot weather.
On the 14th of February we arrived opposite the
entrance of the Bhicknee Pass, where, on a strong
isolated hill, stood a Hindoo Temple, of great sanctity
and antiquity, named Maahurr a Jaggra, which was
covered with the usual emblems of the worship of
the Lingam. The view of the mountain defile we
were to enter, from the top of this temple, was
stupendously grand, and dwarfed all scenery of the
kind which I had before beheld into insignificance.
Two days were spent in fortifying this post, as a
point of importance in preserving our communications
with the rear; and three hundred Sepoys and two
guns were left as a garrison. These arrangements
being made, and our Commissariat Stores well up,

THE VALLEY OF NEPAUL. 245
we prepared for a dash through the belt of forest, and
an invasion of the Nepaul territory. We had seen
no person; the spies could give us no certain intelli
gence. Except the scream of the parroquet all was
silent in the deep forest in our front; and this omi
nous calm, whilst it impressed the weaker spirits
with an undefined dread of something terrible, cheered
the bolder with the confidence of certain success.

246

CHAPTER XXIII.

INVASION OF THE VALLEY OF RAPTE BY COLONEL NICOL 9
COLUMN.  TREATMENT OF A DANGEROUS PATIENT. 
ENGAGEMENT ON THE HEIGHTS OF MUCKAWNPORE. 
SUPERB ORDER OF THE 66TH REGIMENT.  DISAPPOINT
MENT.  PEACE.

" Majestic woods of every vigorous green,
Stage above stage, high waving o'er the hills,
Or to the far horizon wide diffused ;
A boundless, deep, immensity of shade." Thomson.

On the 17th of February the column of Colonel Nicol
first entered the enemy's territory. After penetrating
through five miles of thick jungle, containing num
bers of deer, we came to the mouth of the Pass, which
we found commencing in the dry bed of a river, about
a hundred and fifty yards wide, with very high steep
banks, covered with enormous saahl and teak trees,
and thick underwood ; altogether exceedingly strong
and defensible. We of course expected opposition
here, but saw not a creature except deer and mon
keys ; the latter were of a large size, numerous and
noisy, running along the tops of the trees on the high
banks, parallel with our advance, scolding and ges
ticulating, and occasionally pelting us with nuts.
Like true patriots, they opposed our invasion with
all their might.
When we had proceeded five or six miles up the
Nullah, it became all at once very narrow, and the
day being well advanced, it was deemed prudent to

THE VALLEY OF RAPTE. 247
halt and look about us. Accordingly, the baggage
soon came up, for in our present position we could
not safely leave it far behind the column, and we
pitched our tents as well as we could in the confined
water-course, where all was stone, with not as much
earth in a league as would hold a peg. Then,
having carefully posted treble cordons of picquets in
all directions, we proceeded to make our toilet and
prepare for dinner.
There was great desertion amongst the followers of
our camp, chiefly the bazaar people, on this first
day's march in an enemy's country, from apprehension
of the Glioorkah mountaineers, who had acquired a
high warlike name amongst the effeminate Asiatics :
our personal servants, however, continued staunch
during the whole campaign. The mess marquee-tent
was soon up, and the servants commenced arrange
ments for dinner forthwith. And, certes, it was no
small comfort and enjoyment to sit down in those
wild solitudes, not merely to a good dinner, but a
luxurious one ; having our wine cooled artificially, in
a literal " wilderness of monkeys," chattering on the
teak trees high above our heads, and surrounded by
beasts of prey. But as this is a world of balanced
arrangements and wise compensations, the sight of a
dark cloud in our limited horizon was calculated to
shade our pleasant position, in more ways than one,
as we were liable to be washed off en masse by any
accidental thunderstorm in the mountains; for the
river that now lent us its dry bed for a couch, and
was kind enough to trickle between the large stones
in a stream scarcely perceptible, but still sufficient to
water man and beast, might in an hour or two, under
the above circumstances, save the Ghoorkahs a world
of trouble.

248 INVASION OF THE
Next day our Nullah fairly ended in a cui de sac,
and after exploring in all directions, the Assistant
Quarter Master General could find nothing but a
faint and doubtful sheep-track ; yet this was all the
high road the country afforded, and it became neces
sary to enlarge it for the passage of the Artillery.
The bearings of our route being known, the pioneers
and fatigue parties began to hew and burn, clearing
their way through the primeval forest, guided only
by the compass and the sun. And now the scene
became truly grand ; the fire and the axe opening us
a path into the enemy's country, and glorious trees,
a hundred and fifty feet high, were seen spouting out
into huge pyramids of flame before us, the beacons of
our advance ; whilst a touch of the grotesque was
added to the sublime by the utter alarm and conster
nation of the great white-faced baboons with which
they were peopled.
Still we saw not a human being, and our Light
Companies that threaded the forest along the heights
on our flanks, met with no opposition but the thick
and tangled jungle through which they were slowly
penetrating. This was strange, considering the nature
of the defile we were passing through ; and many
began to entertain fears that a still stronger pass yet
awaited us, and that the Ghoorkah chieftains were
preparing certain Claudine forks for Brigadier Nicol
and his column, although we could not suppose them
deeply read in Roman story.
For four days we proceeded thus through forest
and Nullah, cutting a rough carriage road as we went
on, and feeling our way cautiously, but no enemy
appeared. The chief inconvenience we experienced
was from the badness of the road, and the round
stones in the dry water-courses, which got between

VALLEY OF RAPTE. 249
the clefts of the hoof, and lamed the bullocks. Our
elephants stood this better; their elastic and thick-
soled boots bearing their weight over pebbles nearly
as well as anything else, and only requiring a slower
rate of going. On the march, I sometimes passed
my female friend and her son with a load of the regi
mental tents ; and although the eye of these animals
is deep-seated and inexpressive, I fancied I could
notice a twinkle of recognition in the old one's phy
siognomy, conveying a hint that a dip of her pro
boscis in the tea-pot would be very grateful under
present circumstances.
At length it appeared probable that the monotony
of our lumbering advance would soon be relieved by
a little fighting, pour nous desennuyer, as positive
information was received that a strong stockade had
been prepared a little way in our front, which the
enemy were determined to defend with a large force.
Preparations were instantly made to attack it; flank
ing detachments were ordered right and left to turn
the position, while the Artillery got ready to batter it
in front, and a strong column was directed to storm.
It was pleasing to witness the tone of satisfaction
this news diffused through the whole of the column,
native as well as European. Our men prepared their
arms, sharpened the points of their bayonets, and
examined their flints with great glee; whilst the
Sepoys did the same, exulting in the support of so
fine and strong a corps, and especially in the bat
teries of Artillery that accompanied us, in which the
Indian troops place a superstitious confidence. But
all this fine enthusiasm was thrown away, for when
the troops moved to the attack, we found that the
enemy had decamped precipitately; and from this
and other circumstances it was conjectured that there
M 2

250 THE VALLEY OF RAPTE.
had been fighting on our right, and the more central
Passes had been forced, consequently, our immediate
antagonists had retired, for fear of being cut off from
the road to Khatmandoo, their capital.
As soon as we found that the stockade before us
had been abandoned, we pushed on and crossed the
^hest point of the first range of mountains on the
23rd of February, after passing through one of the
strongest defiles I ever saw, which had been carefully
stockaded, and covered with abbatis and rude field
works in different places. From the summit we
descried a pretty cultivated valley, through which
flowed the river Rapte, a clear winding stream, on the
banks of which we noticed the village of Accoah, and
a small mud fort. Here we were obliged to halt two
days to rest the cattle.
The Rapte is an auriferous stream, and we picked
up some particles of gold as big as small shot. The
water was very clear, and abounded in fish, somewhat
resembling dace, but of an unknown genus. The
first evening after our arrival, I caught a couple of
dozen as large as herrings, with small trout flies,
which were firm and sweet in eating, and afforded a
little treat to the mess.
The morning after entering this valley, I happened
to go into the tent of my eccentric friend, L  1,
who had annoyed us so much on the voyage out. He
was sitting up in bed, with his writing-desk on his
knees, hard at work ; his face much flushed, his eyes
blood-shot, and his appearance altogether very wild,
with two pistols lying on a camp-table beside him. At
the first glance I saw that mischief was impending, but
only said " Good morning," and sat down. He con
tinued writing for a quarter of an hour, and then
addressed me, " Doctor, I am making my will ; I

A DANGEROUS PATIENT. 251
have left you my books and my sabre as mementoes
of friendship. Look at those pistols, examine them,
you see they are loaded ; oue is destined to kill Co
lonel Nicol, a ball from the other will then finish my
own career. Say not a word; every remonstrance
will be useless; my purpose is irrevocable."
It was necessary to temporize ; so I listened quietly,
and pretended to sympathize with him, and enter into
the story of his griefs, in describing which he was
very eloquent. The origin of the matter was this :
At the battle of Vittoria, when General Byng's bri
gade was ordered to lie down behind a small hill, to
secure themselves from a heavy cannonade, at the
beginning of the action, L  1 sillily jumped up
and ran to the top, posting himself on a conspicuous
point, and thus drawing fire on himself and those in
the rear. When Colonel Nicol observed this, he cried
out, " Come down, sir, instantly ; this needless ex
posure is an act of madness, not a proof of courage."
These words had rankled in his mind ever since, and
now, in his drunken delirium, he was preparing to
take a fatal revenge for the insult.
It was of course necessary to take some decided
step, but not so easy to fix on what was to be done ;
indeed it is not agreeable to prescribe for a mad pa
tient with two loaded pistols before him. After a
short pause, I said, " My dear fellow, you will bungle
the business this morning; your hand shakes so
much, and your eyes are so much inflamed that you
could not hit a church at ten paces. Your head
must ache confoundedly after such late hours and
that rascally wine. Why you really look very ill ;
let me feel your pulse ; brain fever, by all that's good ;
hah ! your tongue foul — fever, by Jove, ardent, brain
fever ! loss of mind soon, perhaps to-night. Come,

252 A DANGEROUS PATIENT.
come, this will never do — Ko-he-hye? Bearer, a
basin instantly — your master must be bled."
From various circumstances not necessary to men
tion, I had acquired much influence over L  1, and
I needed it all now, for he was very refractory ; but
the point was at last carried. The servant brought
in a wash-hand basin, — a practical hint of his opinion
as to the quantity of the vital fluid to be drawn. I
tied up his arm, opened a vein, and had it spouting,
pleno rivo, as we say, in a minute. I was a veritable
Sangrado on this occasion, and not very particular as
to the number of ounces, within a dozen or so ; but
when the basin was more than half full, my object
was accomplished, and the patient fainted. His
pistols, sword, razors, and penknife were then se
cured, and himself placed under close watch for three
or four days, until the frenzy was over.
On the 25th of February we moved up the valley
of the Rapte, not having yet seen a human being;
but on this march, we at last met three or four na
tives, broad-faced, hardy-looking Tartars. They told
us there had been fighting on the right, and that one
of the central Passes had been stormed. This day a
dispatch from Sir David Ochterlony was received by
Colonel Nicol, urging him to move with all speed to
join him, as the enemy were in strong force on a
mountain in his front. We pushed on as fast as the
difficult route would permit, fording the Rapte a
dozen times during the first day's march. At length,
on the 2nd of March, Colonel Nicol's Division joined
Sir David and the main body of the Army, encamped
on a plain at the foot of the mountain of Muckawn-
pore. We were much concerned to find that we had ar
rived too late to share in a sharp affair on the western

ENGAGEMENT AT MUCKAWNPORE. 253
end of the mountain three days before, in which the
Ghoorkahs had fought well, but had been beaten
with great loss. The enemy had several wooden guns
in the action, bound with iron hoops, and throwing
beat-iron balls of very unspherical shape; one of
which, notwithstanding, had managed to kill the
Hurkaru, or messenger of the Commander of the
Forces as he stood beside him. The Light Company
of the 87 th had the principal fighting, and behaved
with great gallantry. One of our men had gone up
the hill attached to the 87th, and had done his duty
so well as to cause the Commanding Officer of that
Corps to give him a written certificate of most ex
cellent conduct in the action. I heard him say, when
he presented this document to Colonel Nicol, " I was
the only 66th man in the field, sir ; so, sir, I thinks I
must fight my best. I peppered three of them, any
how, to a sartainty." It was on this hill that John
Shipp of the 87th had his celebrated duel with a
Ghoorkah Chief.
It was clear that Sir David Ochterlony was well
pleased at our arrival, for before he had only one
British Regiment at Head Quarters, and the enemy
had shewed much resolution and a formidable force;
and still held the highest and strongest part of the
mountain range, where they had built some formid
able stockades.
The day after our arrival, fresh operations began.
The whole of our Regiment and a Grenadier Batta
lion of Sepoys, with four guns on elephants, were
ordered up the hill, with directions to push on cau
tiously along the ridge, and establish ourselves on a
commanding eminence. I accompanied this Brigade.
The road up the mountain was only a narrow foot
path, extremely steep ; and the Mahouts had great

254 ENGAGEMENT AT MCCKAWNPORE.
difficulty in forcing on their elephants, that moaned
and groaned indignantly at the unwonted labour of
the toilsome ascent. When our whole force was col
lected, we advanced boldly a couple of miles to the
eastward, until within about eight hundred yards of
the enemy's nearest stockade, when we halted and
intrenched ourselves for the night. Picquets were
then placed in advance, and on the flanks of our po
sition ; and in a temporary redoubt on the crest of it
eight guns were mounted.
My gallant hookebadar, Bhastee Rhamm, a fine
tall soldier-looking man, who was a discharged Gre
nadier Sepoy, stuck close to my side going up the
mountain, wearing his tulwarr, or short sword, and
having a couple of my Hookah snakes folded circu
larly, hanging on his back, which at a little distance
looked exactly like a shield. We had a cold dinner
brought up to us from the mess establishment, in
camp on the plain ; and afterwards every officer pro
duced his private stock of brandy in his flask, and
smoked his cheroot or cigar. But the incomparable
Bhastee Rhamm was determined that his master should
now have a specimen of his powers of overcoming all
difficulties in the discharge of his vocation. Accord
ingly, he had by some means carried the Hookah to
the top of the position, and in a trice the fragrant
tube was prepared, the charcoal balls ignited, the
silver mouth-piece, wreathed with folds of snowy
muslin, was put in my hand, with the usual graceful
salaam, the spicy tobacco of Chunar exhaled its aro
matic breath, the cool water bubbled, and I enjoyed
as perfect a chillum on this wild mountain as in the
mess room at Dinapore.
The evening was clear, and we could see the Ghoor-
kah Chieftains reconnoitering us, or walking about

ORDER OF THE 66TH REGIMENT. 255
under huge chattahs, or umbrellas, borne by their
attendants, although the declination of the sun at
that late hour of the day rendered protection from
his beams quite unnecessary. Some of our people,
who had good eyes, asserted that they could with
glasses perceive marks of apprehension in their coun
tenances ; but I suppose even Lavater could not dis
tinguish expression of any kind at a mile's distance.
As night fell, our 66th soldiers lined the ditch of the
redoubt with fixed bayonets, and the whole force
remained under arms until daylight.
And here I hope that a slight allusion to the beau
tiful condition of the 66th Regiment on this occasion,
and to its uniform good conduct in the field and in
quarters, may not be deemed unsuitable nor ungrace
ful, as a small return for eight-and-twenty happy
years passed in it. From the time of entering the
enemy's country not even a solitary act of misbe
haviour had occurred in the Corps ; there was abso
lutely nothing to find fault with : all pressed on with
alacrity, obeying all orders and performing all duties
with equal cheerfulness. Thus indeed it has almost
always been the case with the British Army and
Navy in the face of danger; and it is a national trait
to be proud of, that the same appalling circumstances
on flood or field, that paralyse feebler natures, only
serve to screw up their manliness to the highest
pitch. But to resume my slight panegyric — when the
order came to mount the hill of Muckawnpore, and
take the honourable position of leading regiment in
the advance — prepared to storm the enemy's stockades
in succession — I never saw men in such fine fighting
order before or since. Even the eight sick in the
Hospital tent on the plain, sharing the feelings of

256 PEACE.
their comrades, managed to get their clothes and
arms, and under the influence of martial excitement,
which extinguished illness, left the sick tent in a
body, unknown to the Surgeon, and joined the Regi
ment on the hill. This, as far as I have heard or
read, was never done before. It was the only irregu
larity during the campaign. The Surgeon was angry,
and complained of it to the Commanding Officer, but
Colonel Nicol only laughed at him.
It was then, sitting in the redoubt, on the topmost
point of the mountain of Muckawnpore, surrounded
by nine hundred of these noble fellows, with fixed
bayonets, that I moralized over my Hookah; whilst
my brother officers moved about in animated conver
sation, respecting the scene of blood which the morn
ing might witness. There stood the frowning stockade
in front, over which the rising moon was slowly
climbing, that we were to storm at dawn. And here
gleamed around us, irradiated by the same yellow
orb, the array of British bayonets by which the for
tress was to be won.
After smoking two or three chillums amidst such
superb associations, I wrapped myself up in my cloak,
lay down upon the turf, and fell asleep.
Whilst I was comfortably enjoying my repose,
dreaming, most probably, of amputated arms and
legs, or spouting arteries ; and when waking visions
of glory in the fore ground, and a perspective of prize-
money at Khatmandhoo were flitting before the fancies
of my brother officers in the intrenchments, an event
occurred that spoiled all our speculations. The
Ghoorkah Rajah, frightened at our successful ad
vance, accepted the terms of peace proposed to him,
and signed the treaty ; and a Vakeel, or ambassador,
bearing the ratified instrument, came in during the

PEACE. 257
night under a flag of truce, passed through our post
and went down to camp. In his way the substance
of the important news he bore was communicated to
our officers; whilst his attendants repeated in Hin-
dustanee the one ominous word " Peace !" which the
native servants soon brought to our ears. Immedi
ately all was consternation and dismay ; intelligence
soon came up from camp that the war was at an end,
and in the morning we received orders to abandon
our strong hill, and join the Army on the plain.

258

CHAPTER XXIV.
MARCH TO QUARTERS.  POISONED ELEPHANTS.  HOT
WINDS.  PROFESSIONAL DUTIES.  DIFFICULTY OF GET
TING THROUGH A HOT DAY IN INDIA.  THE AUTHOR
FALLETH IN LOVE, AND IS DUCKED IN A THUNDER
STORM. " Thy sword within thy scabbard keep
And let mankind agree ;
Better the world were fast asleep
Than kept alive by thee.
The fools are only thinner
With all our cost and care ;
But neither side a winner,
For things are as they were." Dryden.
Thus, then, were dissipated into thin air all our
anticipations of a glorious campaign, the capture of
the enemy's capital, and the division amongst the
army of some crores of rupees. When the news be
came generally known, I never witnessed such a
change, nor mortification and disappointment more
vividly painted in human countenances than on the
hardy visages of our men. The high tension of fea
ture, the self-confiding look, the beaming of ardent
eyes — those presages and pledges of success — had
disappeared, and been replaced by a somewhat sullen
and reckless indifference.
My own hopes of prize money had been but faint
from the beginning ; as I could not perceive any
satisfactory data to reason from, in the calculation of
treasure or valuable property to be met with. It was
a poor and mountainous country, and without trade ;
the stockades only contained wooden guns; and if

POISONING ELEPHANTS. 259
we approached Khatmandoo, the Ghoorkahs would
probably carry off the little treasure they possessed
and hide it in the mountains. From these considera
tions, when we were talking over the subject one day
at the mess, and most of the officers appeared very
sanguine in their expectations, I offered to sell my
share of prize-money for a small sum — fifty rupees.
An officer took me at my word, and sent me the
money the same evening; and thus, if I may be par
doned for mentioning the thing at all, a very humble
person was the only officer of Sir David Ochterlony's
army who received any prize-money, though he was
jeered at the time as if he had sold his birthright.
On the 8th of March we began to retrace our steps ;
and on the first day's march through the central Pass,
we saw the huge carcasses of five elephants that had
been poisoned on the advance. The Ghoorkahs had
infused a plant, resembling the Belladonna, in a fine
spring, at the top of the pass ; and the poor animals,
thirsty and fatigued after the steep ascent, up which
each had carried a gun, had drunk freely. Here their
characteristic sagacity was at fault ; but these noble
creatures could not suspect such villany in the lords
of the creation. I was told by an officer who wit
nessed their death, that when the poison began to
take effect, their groans and agonies were frightful ;
but danger being apprehended from the madness that
pain might cause, it became necessary to destroy
them, and they were shot.
We halted at Bettiah, the residence of a Rajah,
where we found a Christian Mission from Goa, which
had been established about fifty years. The Priest,
whose odd name was Father Julius Caesar, was a
good looking and venerable man, a Portuguese, appa
rently learned, and speaking several languages with

260 HOT WINDS.
facility. I found him in the chapel, catechizing the
native Christian children, who appeared numerous,
for his congregation amounted to three hundred
adults. The station is admirably situated for spread
ing Christianity into the valleys of Nepaul — perhaps
to Tartary and China ultimately — and may in process
of time become a Missionary position of great im
portance. The hot winds set in on our march, which was
thus made very disagreeable ; as we were involved
in clouds of dust nearly the whole way, impelled by
a strong gale. We reached Dinapore on the 28th of
March. Here the 66th remained three months. The weather
was dreadfully hot, and although we reduced the tem
perature full twenty degrees, by artificial evaporation
from the fragrant grass mats with which our dwellings
were surrounded, we could never bring Fahrenheit's
thermometer lower than eighty-eight or ninety de
grees. Men were constantly employed in sprinkling
water, from the skinful they carried, on the mats ;
and the first gush of cooled air passing through them
into the doors and windows, and carrying with it the
freshness and sweet odour of the grass, was very
delightful. But the cuscuss required continual wet
ting, and the bheesties were apt to be negligent,
and then the temperature would become insupport
able. There was no moving out of the house, except
for an hour in the morning and evening ; and all day
within existence was little better than a succession of
gasps and gapes.
Our professional duties were performed very early
in the morning, and we were invariably at the Hospital
by sunrise, and remained there busy enough all the
cool time, whilst the other officers were taking their

PROFESSIONAL DUTIES. 261
invigorating ride. For, now that the excitement and
tension of the last short campaign had been followed
by languor and relaxation, mental and corporeal, the
sick list increased marvellously. Thus our only
chance of getting a morning ride occasionally was
for the Surgeon or Assistant to do the other's duty ;
and this, at a sickly time, is heavy work — a matter
which I very humbly hope the Right Honourable the
Secretary at War for the time being will be pleased
to take into consideration previous to the next boon
to the Medical Department.
Perhaps one's breakfast is the only meal eaten in
India ; all the rest are sad piddling work, and merely
a form. When I returned from my professional duty
at eight o'clock, there was, Primo, my shave ; and I
take some credit for virtuously resisting all tempta
tions to sloth in this matter, where temptation was
so powerful, for I was always my own barber. Secundo,
my refreshing shower bath ; after which I felt so agile
and invigorated, with such a glow of heat in the skin
and hunger in the stomach, that the toilet was soon
made, and the cool and light habiliments of the east
indued in a very brief space, to admit of enjoying,
Tertio, a breakfast of the first order of merit ; and,
Quarto, my hookah. For, ever watchful at his post,
behind my arm-chair, stood Bhastee Rhamm, waiting
for the close of the meal to hand " Doctor Saahib"
his incomparable chillum, and to retire with the
usual low salaam to a reverential distance at the door
of the apartment, until the nod of approbation from
his master should make him happy. Then were the
slippered feet thrown carelessly upon the table, the
odorous smoke was slowly inhaled, and the ample
bowl of Mandarin tea, its morning accompaniment,
sipped voluptuously.

262 A HOT DAY IN INDIA.
After an hour or two spent thus, the rest of the
day, it must be confessed, was heavy in hand. There
was no reading attentively without head-ache, writing
involved perspiration to a dissolving extent. Playing
backgammon, in addition to the necessity of dry
linen every three hits, burst the tympanum. Playing
chess burst the brain. Playing billiards was a labour
of Hercules. Thus there were great difficulties in
finding any rational mode of passing the day, and for
want of a better, I thought I might as well fall in
love. There was an English family at Dinapore, with
whom I became acquainted. The gentleman com
manded a distinguished Regiment of Bengal Native
Infantry, that had behaved most gallantly in one of
the early attacks on Bhurtpore under Lord Lake :
the lady was one of the most pleasing and accom
plished women I ever knew. There were two young
ladies, one her sister, the other his ; the latter, whose
name was S  , was the fair object of my affection.
On an impartial retrospect, and after the passion
of early years has subsided, and cool judgment has
given its verdict respecting the object of it, I am still
of the same opinion I was then, that S  M 
was a very loveable and delightful girl ; it is certain
I became very fond of her. I by no means wonder,
that this said extraordinary and inexplicable matter,
love, has been so much and so universally lauded in
all ages and nations. If it were for no nobler reason,
than the entire exemption from feeling the little ills
and inconveniences of life, which a true passion con
fers, and the gilding which it sheds upon the homely
landscapes around us, it would be deserving of all
laudation. Truly, as Wordsworth expresses it —

A HOT DAY IN INDIA. 263
" There is a comfort in the strength of love,
'Twill make a thing endurable, which else
Would overset the brain." 
When I fell in love I suddenly found myself proof
against all the desagremens of hot winds, mosquetoes,
blue devils, and all that was diabolical in Dinapore.
My passion was a conductor, through which all atmos
pherical annoyances and disturbances passed with
out molestation or injury after it was once set up.
Independent of this subordinate and somewhat selfish
consideration, there is no small delight in making
yourself agreeable to a pleasing young woman, and
in discerning daily new chords and harmonies of
feeling, and sentiment, and opinion, between her and
yourself, and seeing with your own eyes the growing
expansion of little buds of amiability into lovely
flowers : not to mention the thought that the sweet
bouquet they will make is to communicate to you its
earliest fragrance when worn in your own bosom.
My friend Major M  was a cultivated and gen
tlemanly, as well as most gallant soldier. He had a
very select collection of books, and maintained a
handsome establishment. Having been of some pro
fessional assistance to one of the family, I gradually
became intimate, and at last spent half my time in the
house. Our Regiment gave two or three balls on a grand
scale at Dinapore, and on the last occasion we
covered a large space of the green square, opposite
the mess house, with large marquee-tents, and laid
out a very handsome supper-table there, with a long
and tasteful avenue, brilliantly lighted, connecting it
with the ball-room. When the ball was over, which
was about sunrise, I escorted my fair friend's palan
quin home, like a trusty Paladin, after one of those

264 THE AUTHOR IN LOVE.
noctis Deorum, only assigned now and then by for
tune to ardent lovers.
The day after our party was the hottest I ever felt,
and quite calm, so that we derived little benefit from
our fragrant cuscuss envelopes, which hung uselessly
at our doors and windows without a breath of air to
rob them of their moisture. After passing a couple
of hours at the M  s' I went to the mess to dinner,
which was, as usual, a very good one ; but no dish
was touched except the mullagatawny soup, of which
one or two partook. I came home early and went to
bed, but the house was too hot for any repose, even
after the exercise of the night before. The evening
was as calm as the day had been, thinking therefore,
that my only chance of a nap was in the open air,
I made the servants carry out my bed into the square
in front of the door, and wrap me round carefully
with the mosqueto curtains. In this position I soon
fell fast asleep.
Dreams are immaterial miracles, still, like other
common prodigies passing constantly around us, they
cause no wonder ; yet if we were to dream but half a
dozen times in our lives, we would take good care
like Sultan Tippoo of Mysore, duly to record our
visions. How can they be satisfactorily explained ?
We know that the spiritual part acts with surprising
energy ; but whence is it that one faculty only works,
and that the rest are as powerless and torpid as the
body they inhabit ? By what strange emancipation
are the fetters in which judgment holds imagination
shaken off and that fantastic sprite allowed to wing
her way into worlds of her own, and to revel amidst
the brilliant imagery with which they are furnished?
Or, when involving herself in these novel scenes,
amidst dangers and difficulties, and calling lustily

THE AUTHOR IN LOVE. 265
for assistance, she awakens fear from his nod, what
enables this cautious logician to calculate correctly
the extent of the fancied danger and reason with
accuracy, yet to be unconscious that all the while he
is deducing conclusions from an ideal and erroneous
postulate ?
I had been indulging in a very delightful dream.
The graceful form of S  was painted in my sleep
ing fancy dressed in bridal white, and her fair coun
tenance radiant with smiles. She presented me a
letter, with a myrtle leaf for the device of the seal,
and the words " Je -ne change qu'en mourant" im
pressed upon the wax. In her other hand was a
nosegay of orange flowers, whilst her sister beckoned
to me to haste and open the letter, which appeared
to have some mysterious connection with my fate.
I obeyed, but reluctantly, for I felt a strange dread
of the contents. As I proceeded to break the seal, a
grim figure, dressed in black, suddenly made his ap
pearance, and in a hollow sepulchral voice uttered
three times the single word " Forbear !" Awed by
this solemn warning I hesitated, but my two friends
continuing to encourage me with smiles and gestures,
I opened the letter notwithstanding the frowns of the
gentleman in black. Then, awful sound, a loud clap
of thunder awoke me at the instant, not unreal and
visionary, but substantial, pealing, atmospheric thun
der, accompanied by the most vivid and incessant
lightning, and a deluge of rain which soon dispelled
the beautiful illusion, and sent me into the house wet
to the skin.
Unfortunately, this hot night, in which I had
chosen to sleep al fresco, and to dream all manner of
delightful things, was the breaking up of the monsoon,
which is always terminated by a terrific storm. The
VOL. I. N

266 A THUNDERSTORM.
elements continued to roar away without intermission
for four or five hours ; and the resplendent lightning,
as it illuminated the big drops of rain with the bright
est prismatic colours, appeared as playful and inno
cent as if it was the most harmless and powerless
thing in nature.
The change in the aspect of the vegetable world
next morning was most striking, the four months'
dust had been washed off the face of the earth, the
grass had already begun to shew its tender green,
the air was cool, clear, and balmy, and the frame
felt refreshed as the lungs gulped in the invigorating
fluid. The animal spirits, long depressed by heat,
dust, and other discomforts, speedily recovered their
elasticity and cheerfulness.
I breakfasted with the M  s, but S  did not
make her appearance, at which I was a little con
cerned, as I wanted to give her a laugh at my expense
by relating my adventure of the night before. There
appeared an odd gene air about the host and his wife,
with a significant look at each other now and then,
that struck me. After breakfast M  requested
me to walk into the library, and thus addressed me :
" My dear fellow, I perceive there has been a sad
mistake. We alFesteem you highly, and wish for the
continuance of your friendship ; but — but — S 
has been for some months engaged to be married to
a gentleman in Calcutta."
When one cannot adequately express excited feel
ings on any important subject, it is wise to be silent,
a line of conduct sanctioned by great examples, and
convenient on the present occasion.
Crabbe's graphic pen has described the different
appearance of external nature under opposite moods
of mind, in the case of a lover visiting his mistress,

A TROUBLED LOVER. 267
and returning from the interview. I cannot approach
within a thousand leagues of his inimitable touches,
but I can tell in my own homely way how miserable
I felt that day. As I returned to my quarters, the
air so deliciously pure and cool in the morning, felt
muggy and unrespirable ; the heat was intolerable,
the mosquitoes were atrociously numerous and san
guinary : nothing was as it ought, and every thing
as it ought not to be. The palanquin bearers jerked
and shook me, as if on purpose ; and at my evening
visit to the hospital, several patients were worse that
should have been better, and had evidently retrograded
on purpose to spite me. At dinner the Punkahs did
not move properly over our heads ; the mullagatawny
was cold, and the wine hot. O  was more prosy
than usual in his stories, and told one stupid yarn
about a refractory Jack-Donkey, that we had all heard
a dozen times before. Even Bhastee Rhamm, the
nonpareil of hookabadars, failed to please. At last
I went to bed thoroughly disgusted, but even there
misfortune continued her persecutions; for two or
three vagrant mosquitoes had slipped in when the
servant was closing the gauze around me, and it was
slap — slap— buzz, buzz, buzz, all night.

268

CHAPTER XXV.

VOYAGE FROM DINAPORE TO CAWNPORE.  FAAKEER.  AD
VENTURE IN CROSSING A BROOK WITH A LADY. — SUT
TEE. — REFLECTIONS ON THIS HORRIBLE CUSTOM.

" Ganges, who seem'd asleep to lie,
Beheld them with averted eye." Southey.

In June the Regiment received orders to prepare for
a move to Cawnpore, and in the beginning of July
we embarked on the Ganges, now full to the brim.
If any person wishes to luxuriate amongst roses,
let him repair to Ghazepore, where the whole coun
try, for some hundred or two of square leagues, is
thickly covered with them. Rose-water, and the ex
quisite attar of roses are consequently cheaper here
than in any other part of India; though the latter,
when genuine, must always be a most expensive
article from the enormous consumption of roses used
in its preparation. It takes a prodigious quantity of
the petals to make an ounce of attar ; and to produce
a quart bottle full, would, I believe, require a heap as
big as St. Paul's.
We reached the far-famed Benares on the 8th of
July, and anchored at the opposite side of the river ;
it is a large and populous city, containing between
five and six hundred thousand inhabitants. The
streets are extremely narrow ; in fact, nothing more
than lanes about six feet broad generally. The Brah-

VOYAGE FROM DINAPORE. 269
minee bulls appeared to lead the happiest lives of any
o|eatures in this holy city; roaming through the
streets as they pleased, gentle, and sleek, and fat, the
domestic gods of the Hindoos. We observed them
poking their noses into every confectioner's shop they
passed, and always getting a handful of sweets, which
they licked up with great apparent enjoyment. We
saw three disgusting naked Faakeers perambulating
the town, attended by a train of devotees and fol
lowers, many of whom were women; such fellows
would be good subjects for the discipline of the
treadmill. One of those extraordinary ascetics resided in a hut
not far from the place where our fleet lagowed, or
made fast to the bank. I went to visit him, and
found a miserable object, scarcely human in appear
ance, lying on a bed of sharp spikes, with one hand
closed, which, ten or twelve years before, he had
made a solemn vow never to open. Consequently,
the nails had pierced through the hand, and stuck
out of the back of it, eight or nine inches long, curved
and sharp, and round, like a cock's spur, and alto
gether, the most frightful talons imaginable. On
entering the hut, I questioned him as to the nature of
the crime that had required such terrible expiation ;
but he made no answer, and when the question was
repeated, he scowled forbiddingly, and continued
silent. I left him gazing listlessly on the Ganges, of
which his bed of torture commanded a good view.
There are hundreds of these self-torturing hermits in
Hindostan ; and how they can preserve reason in
their painful uniformity of posture and frightful soli
tude, is to me a mystery. It is said the wild beasts
respect them; and this adds to the fame of their
sanctity among their adherents, who attribute the

270 VOYAGE FROM DINAPORE
exemption from such danger to a special interposition
of Veeshnoo, the Preserver, in their favour ; whereas,
if it be the case, the reason probably is, that the
tigers and hyaenas do not consider such miserable
skeletons worth eating.
The Mosque of Aurungzebe, with its lofty and de
licate minarets, is one of the most pleasing and pro
minent objects in Benares ; but its history is dis
graceful to its tyrannical and cruel founder. The
view from the top is one of the finest in India. The
ghauts, or steps leading to the river, are remarkable
for their vastness and solidity, to say nothing of their
usefulness ; the Shewallah ghaut is particularly su
perb. They are always covered with immense crowds
of people, going to or returning from their devotions
and ablutions ; whilst the finely shaped and graceful
Hindoo females, bearing their vasiform pitchers of
water on their heads, thread the mazes of this moving
mass of life with great dexterity, and give a classic
air to the whole scene.
As on my former voyage up the Ganges, whenever
we mounted the stream slowly, I explored the marshes
and jungles with my gun, and had good sport among
the snipes, partridges, and water-fowl.
But there is one sad drawback on the pleasure of
voyaging on this noble stream ; there is one disgusting
spectacle which is constantly meeting the eye, — hu
man corpses, made buoyant by decomposition, float
ing down the river, with the odious vultures tearing
and disembowelling them, and scarcely quitting their
prey as the current slowly bears them past your boat !
I know nothing more painful than this sad and hu
miliating sight. When we consider that the valley
of the Ganges contains more than thirty millions of
souls, and that the dead are for the most part com-

TO CAWNPORE. 271
(nitted to the sacred river; taking also into conside-
|ation the great heat of the climate, we may form
some opinion of the immense number of bodies that
come to the surface, and the enormous mass of putre
faction that is borne on the face, and imbedded in the
depths of the stream. Is it wonderful that cholera
and other pestilential diseases should abound in this
most beautiful but foul region ? and is it not impos
sible to shut our eyes to the plain proof everywhere
apparent, that the idolatrous adoration of their river
re-acts with terrible' retributive punishment on the
besotted natives ? The goddess Ganesa, under the
awful authority of the true Deity, outraged by Hin
doo crime, casts upon her shores the bodies supersti-
tiously committed to her keeping, charged with pes
tilence and death. This abominable custom ought,
and must be forbidden under severe penalities, for it
is the teeming source of a legion of mortal diseases.
The glorious Ganges must no longer be desecrated by
millions of dead bodies, and cease to be the common
sewer of the accumulated putridity of Bengal.
But these weighty considerations, however natural
to a reflecting spectator, are fitter themes for legis
lators and philosophers, than to be descanted on in
my light book. I may mention, however, that in
numerous instances when on the Ganges I avenged
insulted humanity by destroying these odious vul
tures. I had three barrels charged with large shot
always ready, and never failed to punish them when
possible. I made open war also on the alligators,
but their mail was not so easily pierced, and they
were only vulnerable about the eyes. But the young
reptiles were not so protected, and I often shot them
lying asleep beside the dam on the small sandy islets
of the river.

272 ADVENTURE IN CROSSING
A certain officer accompanied the Regiment on
this voyage, whose education had been not a little
neglected ; and who was a constant source of amuse
ment from the verbal blunders and malapropisms he
sported on all occasions. When he heard a new word,
especially a long one, he was sure to repeat it, muti
lated of a syllable or so, or with some ridiculous com
mutation. During a severe thunderstorm, I hap
pened to observe that the lightning was particularly
" vivid ;" next day L  wished to shew off his new
word, and on the same cause recurring, remarked,
" what flivid lightning." Some of the officers kept
a list of the innocent murders he thus committed,
which was of great length ; he metamorphosed " elec
tric bolt," that somebody pronounced as a bait, into
" hellecrtic boulder ;" a " laburnum" tree into an
" Hibernian ;" and even the common military word,
" defaulter," was shamefully put to death in his
mouth, and became " defunct." " Pray," inquired
Lady Lowe at St. Helena, " how do you manage to
have so nice a garden at your barracks? Do you
employ the Chinese labourers?" "No," was the
answer, "no, my Lady, we employ nobody but our
defuncts." " Your defuncts ! well, that is extraor
dinary. Certainly they should know something of
the soil."
This gentleman often asked me to his Budgerow
during this voyage. There were two unmarried sisters
on board, relations of the family; and when we
anchored at some pleasant spot on the bank, it was
not unusual for some of the officers to accompany
L  and his family in exploring the agreeable
walks and shades in the neighbourhood.
One calm and clear evening, when the fleet had
lagowed for the night at a rich Mango tope or grove,

A BROOK WITH A LADY. 273
with smooth velvet turf underfoot, the sisters, L 
and myself, strolled along the beautiful bank, the
elder on his arm, and the younger on mine. The
pairs, however, soon separated, and my companion
and I sauntered along, following a path through the
trees, until sunset ; we then discovered that we were
two miles from the boats, and the short twilight of
the East soon began to darken apace. Hastening
home, we left the circuitous path we had pursued,
and tried a near cut through a field ; but here an un
foreseen obstacle interposed. A rivulet, which, higher
up we had crossed by a rustic bridge of a log thrown
over it, had become wider and deeper as it approached
the Ganges, and now required a good running leap.
In this dilemma, I proposed to go round by the
bridge, but the young lady would not hear of it :
" You have no idea how active I am ; leap you first,
and I bet you a pair of gloves I'll follow." Then,
after another remonstrance, and the expression of a
hope, as delicately as such an idea could be embodied
in words, that her under garments were sufficiently
capacious, I jumped over. Angela, as I shall
" beneath well sounding Greek
Thus slur a name a poet must not speak ;"
Angela then took a running leap, following the leader ;
but alas ! the petticoats of those days were very cir
cumscribed ; the envious muslin clung round and
hampered the active limbs of the unfortunate young
lady, who, arrested in mid career, uttered a piercing
shriek, and plumped into the middle of the torrent.
I am half ashamed to acknowledge, that at first
I could not help a slight laugh ; but I soon per
ceived it was no laughing matter, as the stream was
six or seven feet deep, and running with great rapi-
N 2

274 CROSSING A BROOK WITH A LADY.
dity, and I knew not well what to do. Throwing/
myself in, however gallant and chivalrous, would be
useless, as I should also be borne away by the strong
current. So telling Angela there was no danger, I
ran down the bank parallel with the floating and
screaming beauty, devoutly wishing for a salmon
gaff, and waiting for a favourable opportunity of
making a snatch with my hand. After one or two
failures, I caught her bonnet, but the ribband under
the chin gave way, and down the torrent she went,
with her loosened hair streaming behind her on the
water like a mermaid's. At last, when she had been
carried down a hundred yards, I succeeded in seizing
a handful of her humid tresses, and brought her safe
to land.
Poor lady, she was sadly frightened, and as she
clung to me more affectionately than was quite com
fortable — I must ungallantly say — considering the
state of her clothes ; I heard such honied expressions
as " guardian angel," " preserver of my life,'' " debt
of everlasting gratitude," uttered sotto voce, which,
no doubt, were the expressions of her gratitude to
some actual angel or superior being, and ought to
have been sacred apostrophes that I had no right to
hear. I may be wrong, but I think — the time and
place being inconvenient — she postponed the hysterics
until we reached the boat ; but then we had them in
abundance. Whilst, when she recovered, I was such
a barbarian as to retire to my Budgerow and enjoy
an unrestrained laugh in the odorous society of my
hookah. Allahabad, a fortified town at the junction of the
Jumna and the Ganges, is a very sacred place with
the Hindoos, as most points of confluence of the river
tributaries are. When we passed, we saw some thou-

IMMOLATION OF WIDOWS IN INDIA. 275
sands of the natives busy in their penitentiary and
sacrificial ablutions; which, the Brahmins teach, not
only atone for past sin, but purchase uninterrupted
ages of happiness.
Suttees, or the voluntary immolation of widows by
fire, together with the corpses of their husbands, were
not of uncommon occurrence at this time in India. I
witnessed one during this voyage, on the opposite
side of the river, and not far from Allahabad.
This cruel scene took place close to the water's
edge, near a huge banyan tree, whose branches,
spreading far and wide, were supported by the vigo
rous shoots they had sent down into the earth — now
grown into strong pillars. It was about ten o'clock
at night, and I suppose two hundred people were
present. The victim was very young, not more than
seventeen ; and though looking a little wild, yet she
distributed the flowers and sweat-meats to her friends
and relations with a certain degree of composure ;
she then mounted the pyre with a firm step, kissed
her husband's lips, and lay down beside him. Before
this time several fruitless attempts had been made by
two of my brother officers and myself to dissuade her
from this terrible self-sacrifice. No— No— was ever
her exclamation, in answer to our entreaties to give
up her design. No — No— for if she lived she would
live in utter disgrace — she would lose her Brahminical
caste — be condemned to perform the meanest offices,
and henceforward be contemned and despised by all
her relations and friends. Thus artfully have the
Hindoo priests intertwined their sanguinary rites
with human pride and vanity, and made these cogent
principles subservient to their ambitious, sensual, and
avaricious purposes.

276 IMMOLATION OF WIDOWS
As soon as this unfortunate woman had placed her
self beside her husband, a kind of cage made of
bamboos was put over them, smeared with ghee, or
buffalo-butter, to make it more combustible ; and a
horrible din of tom-toms, gongs, and human voices
was set up, evidently for the purpose of stifling the
poor creature's cries. A quantity of dry wood, leaves,
and straw surrounded the funeral pile, which was now
set fire to, and blazed up fiercely at once, so as, in
all probability, to save farther suffering, and suffocate
the victim in a few seconds. In a short time the
whole was one glowing flame, which, when swayed
to one side by the wind, gave the spectators a glimpse
of the two blackened objects in the centre. The
most abominable apathy pervaded the crowd, and
scarcely a muscle in any face moved ; and when the
middle of the bodies was consumed, the woman's own
relations pushed the bones of the two skulls and the
legs into the fiercest part of the fire with long bamboo
poles. It was altogether a dreadful and unnatural
sight — an infernal sacrifice, at which demons might
rejoice !
Yet there were not wanting wise men who dreaded
danger to the stability of our Indian Empire from
putting an end at once to this hideous custom ; but
scarcely a whisper has been heard in opposition to
the mandate of Lord William Bentinck, abolishing
the practice for ever. Thus, also, with respect to the
custom of committing dead bodies to the Ganges —
so loathsome and so widely pestilential — I have no
doubt that it requires nothing more than a similar
edict, with the publication of the reasons of its enact
ment, and the penalties for its infraction, to rescue
that noble stream from perpetual pollution.

IN INDIA. 277
When we witness all these horrors in Heathen
lands, it is scarcely possible for the most thoughtless
to avoid reflecting on the infinite obligations our
favoured quarter of the globe is under to Christianity,
and society generally in all places pervaded by its
influence. Christian women, too, have been placed
under a vast debt of gratitude to this benign religion.
Its divine Founder raised them to an equality with
the other sex, by his countenance and gracious
society when he lived on earth, and by the ennobling
influence of his doctrines ever since, and the tone of
purity which they have shed over human relations.
Fresh triumphs of Christianity in favour of the weaker
but more virtuous sex are now passing daily before
our eyes ; amongst which the recent abolition of
female infanticide and widow-burnings in the East
stand out in strong relief. In the Polynesian Archi
pelago we also witness the progressive instruction,
purification, and elevation of the female savage in
the social scale ; or, rather, we see the elements of
society created, where all was dark, dismal, and
bloody barbarism before.
And well, and zealously, and affectionately has
woman paid her tribute of good works for the bene
fits her sex has received from Christianity, from the
very times of its first promulgation till the present
day. Indeed, its propagation, under a superintending
Providence, was much dependant on the ministry of
women, and their powerful suasion with the rougher
half of mankind ; and amidst multiplied instances of
early apostacy and other bad conduct of men, when
we hear the intrepid Paul lament " all men forsook
me " there is only one solitary case of female unwor-
thiness amongst the Apostolic converts; and she,

278 IMMOLATION OF WIDOWS.
Sapphira, plainly acted in obedience to her covetous
husband. No woman ever slighted, or neglected, or
despised, or blasphemed the Author of Christianity,
or any of his Apostles. No — No.
" She ne'er with treacherous kiss her Saviour stung —
She ne'er denied him with unholy tongue :
She, when Apostles shrank, could danger brave —
Last at his cross, and earliest at his grave !"

279

CHAPTER XXVI.
CAWNPORE.  EXTENSIVE AND FATAL SICKNESS IN THE
REGIMENT.  INDIAN JUGGLERS' TRICKS.  IMPOSITION IN
CATCHING SNAKES.— MISTAKES AS TO THEIR SUPPOSED
FONDNESS FOR MUSIC.  REGIMENT RECEIVES THE ROUTE
FOR ST. HELENA.
" Helleborum frustra, cum jam cutis aegra tumebit
Poscentes videas; venienti occurrite morbo." Persius.
On the 7th of August we came in sight of Cawnpore,
a picturesque military cantonment, extending five
miles along a fine high bank of the Ganges. No
barracks being vacant for our reception, we were most
unwisely left in our boats at the opposite side of the
river, in a low, marshy neighbourhood, about three
weeks. The Ganges having some time before at
tained its highest elevation, the waters were now
subsiding rapidly, and large tracts of the shore were
exposed to a powerful sun, covered with animal and
vegetable putrescence, and exhaling almost visible
disease. This was represented by the Surgeons at the
time, and encamping the Regiment on a dry plain near
the cantonment was recommended to the military au
thorities, but without effect. The men were kept in their
boats, shifting daily into deeper water as the stream fell,
but in the very focus of malaria ; and the consequence
of this neglect of our humble advice was the loss of
five officers and a hundred and fifty men, the victims
of a bad remittent fever immediately consequent ; to

280 SICKNESS IN THE REGIMENT.
say nothing of reducing the Regiment to a condition
of total inefficiency for some time afterwards.
During this distressing time the duties of the medi
cal officers were no sinecure. Each of us had charge
of a large Hospital, and there was one besides for the
sick women ; which, I may observe, was altogether
supported by the munificence of Colonel Nicol. We
generally had upwards of two hundred cases of fever
daily, and one week close on three hundred. As the
weather became cooler in October, the violence of
the disease subsided a little, but it did not cease alto
gether till January, and then the soldiers were merely
the shadows of what they had been : every man, ex
cept about half a dozen, having had an attack of
fever, and some two or three times over. It was very
melancholy and painful to see the state to which
those noble fellows were reduced by mismanagement,
who had so recently mustered nine hundred strong,
and in the most glowing vigour of health, on the
heights of Muckawnpore.
In these desultory pages it would be out of cha
racter to enter into professional theories or clinical
details ; though when the subject naturally admits
of it, throwing in a hint now and then may be par
doned.' I shall confine myself here to the observation,
that as we found in Bengal a strong prejudice running
against Dr. Sangrado and his system of depletion, we
at first hesitated as to general bleeding to any extent
in our fever cases. Finding, however, that the men
died fast, when treated on the authorized plan, we
abandoned it, prescribed for our patients as in Eng
land, and with striking benefit for the change. For
merly we had lost nearly twenty-five per cent. — now
the deaths were not more than five or six.
Most of our officers occupied comfortable bun-

SICKNESS IN THE REGIMENT. 281
galows with gardens at Cawnpore ; 1 lived in a good
cottage with a large garden, and kept a gardener and
a couple of oxen, with a cow to give me milk. The
chief business of the oxen was to enjoy themselves
in very gentlemanly idleness, to eat, and drink, and
ruminate; and as an amusement to put their shoulders
to the wheel for half an hour a day, to raise water
from the well to irrigate the garden. On my first
arrival I found several illegal occupiers of my pre
mises, namely a large colony of musk-rats, who had
built a subterranean city under one of my best beds.
These little wretches used to come out of their burrows
at night, to make predatory incursions into the
house, eating and carrying off what they could, and
defiling by their odious and indelible taint every thing
they touched. Incredible as it may appear, it is a
fact, that this strong odour is communicated to wine
or brandy, in sealed bottles, by these creatures merely
passing over them ; and I had both liquors spoiled
thus at Cawnpore, though I could never satisfactorily
explain the modus operandi.
My patience being at last worn out, by multiplied
annoyances from these unsavoury animals, of which
the corrupting my veteran cognac was the climax, it
was determined that by one grand coup the whole
race should be destroyed. Accordingly, I sent to the
barracks, and collected all the curs that could be
found in the precincts, amounting to three or four
dozen, for the extensive battue that was projected.
After five or six preliminary fights amongst this motley
pack, and a due administration of the whip, to put
them in some decent order, we proceeded to the hunt.
First, two Bheesties or water-carriers, with their pig
skins' full of water, were ordered to beat the coverts.
Inserting the muzzle of a pipe attached to the fore-foot

282 SICKNESS IN THE REGIMENT.
of the pig's hide, in one of the central holes of the
principal burrow, the Bheestie played away vigorously^ j
until he had emptied his skin, when he was relieved
by the other ; and as the garden well was near, and
the bullocks hard at work, water was abundant, and
the stream ran uninterruptedly into the subterranean
caves of the rats. The tenacious little animals stood
the inundation with great courage; which to them
must have been nearly as formidable as the Thames
bursting into the Tunnel amongst Mr. Brunei's
workmen. At last, when the water spread far and
wide, and there was no possibility of remaining any
longer, they crept out of their holes, half drowned,
and were all destroyed by the dogs.
There were two or three fine Peepuhl trees in the
garden, the objects of special admiration. When I
awoke one morning, soon after taking possession, I
heard the most horrid noise and screaming close to
my window, and on questioning the Sirdaar bearer
who always slept at the threshold, he said it was only
the parrots, and he would soon drive them away.
Next morning the uproar was repeated, when I started
up and saw about a thousand parroquets, active ras
cals, and very gaily and richly plumaged in gold and
green, with red beaks and long tails, demolishing the
buds and blossoms, and eating and screaming with all
their might. The trees were actually loaded with
them, and the branches bent almost to the ground.
Notwithstanding my bearer's repugnance to destroy
animal life, I made him bring my gun, and sent the
contents of the two barrels amongst the marauders,
which killed fifty or sixty of them. I know not
whether this noisy tribe have ever been deemed of
any value except for their feathers, and in the orato
rical department ; but feeling some of those I shot

INDIAN JUGGLERS. 283
plump and fat they were cooked for breakfast, and
made a very good curry.
I presume that every body has heard of the feats of
Indian jugglers, and many persons have seen a cele
brated magician in London, named Rhaamoh Saamhe,
whose beautiful performance with the brass balls,
before the glass curtain of the Coburg Theatre, was
much admired. In 1822 I saw him keep nine of these
balls in motion at the same time ; which is I believe
the maximum as to numbers, and a very striking
spectacle it was, for the duplication of the bright little
globes in the gigantic mirror, enhanced much the grace
and effect of the performance.
When our detachment was quartered at Poona-
malee, on our first arrival from England, a far famed
' Madras juggler paid us a visit to astonish the griffins,
and put a few of our rupees into his girdle. This
clever fellow began by swallowing a sword, the point
of which I felt in his stomach, then he ate fire,
turned cards into chickens, and chickens into full
grown crowing cocks, and sent eight brass balls
tinkling on their travels round his body, moving
simultaneously and harmoniously in their different
orbits, infallible as the planets, with many other as
tonishing things.
As the soldiers were staring at him he caught the
eye of one man in whose countenance there was an
air of peculiar surprise. He addressed him immedi
ately " What for you wonder? I do one ting more
wonderer, I make you lay one egg here," putting his
hand on the soldier's forehead. The man stared and
blushed, but at length exclaimed, " I'se d  if you
can though." The officers being desirous to find out
how this trick was done, both juggler and soldier

284 INDIAN JUGGLERS.
were stripped naked and brought into an empty room
in which there was a full light from a strong sun.
The magician then made the man sit down on the
floor in the middle of the room; and an ingenious
Yorkshire lad he was, who looked up at the yellow
juggler with a good natured grin, and a strong ex
pression of incredulity. The performer then pro
ceeded to fix his eye, and to walk round him slowly
and deliberately seven times, repeating some unin
telligible gibberish. He then quickened his pace for
seven more gyrations, and still increased it for seven
additional circles, fascinating his eye, gesticulating
and uttering strange sounds as before. At the end of
the third series he slapped the man on the forehead .
with the open palm, when lo ! out started a fine fresh
egg ! The soldier was so astonished, that he ran out
of the room naked as he was, swearing that the jug
gler was the devil.
Now, although five of us watched the whole pro
ceeding with minute attention, in a full light, and
were besides sharpened in our observations by the
idea of some treachery, none could discover where or
how the egg was concealed. That it was genuine there
could be no doubt, for we boiled it, and I ate some of it
myself, but we could not persuade the frightened
fellow that laid the egg to taste it.
One morning at Cawnpore a native asked permis
sion to speak to Saahib and was admitted. After a
profusion of the most reverential salaams, he assured
me that from certain indications, he was sure there
were snakes in Saahib's garden, which he would en
gage to catch if Saahib would direct him, being a
professed snake-charmer. I closed with his offer
immediately, and promised him a douceur on certain

CATCHING SNAKES. 285
conditions, and he said he would come the next
morning. Punctual to his appointment he made his appear
ance, armed with a long pipe, on which when he
entered the garden he began to play violently, using
various grotesque gesticulations. After keeping up
this solo for a quarter of an hour, he stopped suddenly
before a low bush near an old tree, played two or three
bars fortissimo, and then plunging his hand into the
bush, pulled out a large cobra de capello, or hooded
snake, of the most deadly kind, and put it into a
basket slung to his neck. He proceeded in this way
for some time, exploring different parts of the garden,
and ended by catching two more snakes of the same
kind; then after a little more music, the charmer
said there were no more in Saahib's garden, and
claimed the stipulated reward. This I promised to
pay him immediately, if he permitted me to destroy
the reptiles, which I knew very well he would not
allow. I then examined them, and after some trouble
ascertained that the poison fangs had been extracted
from each, and that the animals were half tamed
snakes, which in all probability had been placed in
the very spot where they were found the same morn
ing, by collusion with some of the servants. The
magician and his basket were then very unceremo-
- 'ously expelled the premises, the native servants
opening on him in a pack of choice Hindostanee
Billingsgate; and asking him from what father of
asses he was descended, who could presumptuously
attempt to deceive the wise and sagacious Saahib, who
was more learned than the great Suleyman. And
the best of the joke was, that some of these very foul-
mouthed rascals had received a few pice from the

286 SNAKES — MISTAKES RESPECTING
conjuror, for conniving at his attempt on Saahib's
sagacity. I met cobras on several occasions when out shoot
ing, and twice narrowly enough escaped being bit.
They are fond of burrowing in a loose sandy soil,
particularly about the roots of shrubs and bushes, be
cause they find the diverging roots and radicals conve
nient as so many rafters to support the roofs of their
houses. One day when intent on some partridges, I
stepped over a Palma Christi plant, and placed my
foot almost on the head of a large cobra just coming
out of his hole. This trespass he naturally enough
resented by erecting his hood, coiling himself up, look
ing fierce, and preparing for a spring. But, poor fellow,
notwithstanding the protection of his own tribe, as
the classic symbol of my profession, and the special
aegis of the medicinal plant over his domicile, I was
obliged to shoot him in self-defence. He was large
of his kind being seven feet long.
The Psilloi of antiquity appear to have used the
same means to make these creatures dance to music
as the modern snake-charmers of India ; and these,
I believe, effect their object in a way and from
motives on the part of the snake, that appear to me
to be imperfectly understood. And notwithstanding
popular belief as old as the times of Alexander the
Great, and deemed worthy of notice amongst the
wonders of India, by Arrian the historian, I suspect
that snakes have " no music in their souls," and are
not to be charmed by " concord of sweet sounds."
On a careful analysis, I fear the poetry of the matter
is reducible to very unromantic and simple elements.
The snake previously deprived of his poison fangs, is
kept coiled up in a basket, with two or three others
equally harmless ; and when one is wanted for an ex-

THEIR FONDNESS FOR MUSIC. 287
hibition, the juggler seizes him by the neck, hauls
him out of the basket, and throws him rudely on the
ground. This raises the reptile's choler, which is not
a very difficult matter I imagine ; it hisses, bristles
out its hood, and erects its head. The charmer play
ing away on his noisy pipe, confronts the enraged
creature as if about to tread on it, but adroitly moves
about beyond the reach of its spring. Thus fixing
and fascinating the animal's eye, he keeps describing
a half-circle, perpetually in motion, menacing the
snake, and obliging it to move as he moves, in mo
mentary expectation that its persecutor will come
within reach, and prepared to dart on him if he does,
which never happens. This quick oscillation of the
creature in pure anger and self-defence, perhaps in
disgust at the barbarous music, is called dancing,
and is attributed by the spectators to its fondness for
the very sounds that are teasing it to madness, and
which it must cordially hate. People go away from
the exhibition delighted with the marvellous effect of
the magician's pipe, all manner of quotations relating
to the power of music are made, and perhaps some
fond parent returns home idolizing the science, and
resolved to get the best masters for his leaden-eared
daughter Clementina, who will never distinguish one
note from another.
Cawnpore is supposed by some antiquarians to
have been the site of Palibotbra, of the era of Alex-
iander the Great. In more modern times, the im-
( mense city of Kanouge stood on the bank, part of
[which is now occupied by British barracks. This
(place is said to have contained twenty thousand
betel-shops alone, yet one pagoda is now the solitary
vestige of so vast a city. There is an extensive Mo
hammedan burying ground in the neighbourhood,

288 UNWELCOME NEWS.
containing many fine tombs, and is much frequented,
like all Moslem cemetries, by the relations of the
deceased. But in this climate, which rusts and ruins
everything except the scythe of time, the most solid
and magnificent buildings soon fall to decay.
In the beginning of January 1817, we received the
unexpected and unwelcome news, that the 66th was
soon to proceed to Calcutta, to embark there for St.
Helena, where Napoleon was detained a prisoner of
war by the English government. As at this time the
Marquis of Hastings was making arrangements for a
grand campaign against the Phindarrie hordes, and
stirring times were approaching, we were not at all
pleased with the prospect of leaving the country.
Besides the idea of changing our luxurious Indian
living, and the extensive plains of this rich country,
for the mackarel and yams of that barren islet, and
the constraint and vigilance to which we should be
subject, was far from agreeable. Sed sic visum su-
peris — the Horse Guards had said the word, and
there was no remedy.

289

I

CHAPTER XXVII.

RENEWAL OF AN OLD ACQUAINTANCE.  VISIT TO ALLA
HABAD  VOYAGE DOWN THE GANGES.  CHARACTERISTIC
DEATH OF LIEUTENANT L  B  T OF THE 66TH.  EMBARK
ATION FOR ST. HELENA.  AMUSEMENTS ON BOARD SHIP. 
VISIT TO THE ISLE OF FRANCE.  ARRIVAL AT ST. HELENA.
" There is a fragrant blossom that maketh glad the garden of the
heart :
Its root lieth deep ; it is delicate yet lasting, as the lilac crocus of
Autumn :
Loneliness and thought are the dews that water it morn and even ;
Memory and absence cherish it, as the balmy breathings of the
south :
Its sun is the brightness of affection, and it bloometh in the borders
of Hope,
Its companions are gentle flowers, and the briar withereth by its
side." — Tupper.
The relations of mutual friendship between Major
M  and myself had not been broken off by the
vanishing of any prospect of nearer connexion, and
we had corresponded regularly since the regiment
left Dinapore. He now resided in Allahabad, and
was commandant of that fortress. As soon as he
learned that we were coming down the river, he sent
me a warm invitation to stay a week or ten days with
him in passing; which I accepted, and started a fort
night before the regiment.
I found this amiable family well, but what was my
Astonishment, when a few minutes after entering the
flrawing-room, S  walked in ! I had heard, that
two months before, she had gone to Calcutta to be
VOL. I. °

290 MEETING AN OLD FRIEND.
married ; and was looking out for her marriage in the
papers, and for the slice of cake she would surely send
me. Here now she was in propria persona, but
whether bride or spinster was the puzzle. It was
true her dress was simpler than young married ladies
usually wear in the first pride of the honey-moon, but
her taste had always been characterised by simple
and chaste elegance. She did not look happy, and
her cheek was pale, the former of these was a de
cidedly anti-matrimonial symptom — the latter doubt
ful. So, not being willing to show my ignorance, by
making any enquiries, or hazarding a congratulation,
I was obliged to suspend my curiosity, but I cast
many an anxious glance at her left hand, which a
glove yet concealed. I was received with affectionate
cordiality by every member of the family.
The secret was soon found out. S  had not
gone to Calcutta, and was now unhappy, and in con
siderable distress ; for some unfavourable disclosures
had been made, and had reached the family, respect
ing the character of her lover, whose honour was sus
pected in certain gambling transactions at Calcutta.
Besides all this, he was now in bad health, cruising
in a pilot-schooner off the Sunderbunds, by medical
advice, after a dangerous illness. Here was food for
meditation half way to madness.
Young men ought not to be placed in such di
lemmas, it is morally, and socially, and religiously,
and ought to be legally wrong. Lovely affianced
girls should not be permitted to move about in so
ciety for any considerable time, breaking people's
hearts hopelessly, and spreading distress and envy,
and all kinds of bad feelings and sensations around.
They ought to be made to marry within a month of
the acceptance of a proposal by act of Parliament.

VISIT TO ALLAHABAD. 291
Here, for instance, was myself brought once more
within the circle of a very delightful young lady's
charms ; and under circumstances, too, that did not
altogether preclude hope. Yet, though well aware of
the danger of my position, I had neither the power
nor the wish to fly from the dangerous fascination.
Even the confiding freedom of her manner, reposing
trust in my sense of propriety, and the easy unreserve
of our intercourse, whilst they showed the unaffected
ingenuousness of her nature, excited distressing re-
pinings at perceiving the full value of the prize allotted
to another.
Thus delicately circumstanced, I spent a fortnight
at Allahabad, a truly golden time. The whole family,
from some over-estimate they had formed of certain
professional services I had rendered one of them,
considered themselves under obligations, when in
truth I was the obliged party. They therefore, one
and all, exerted themselves to crowd into this final
visit, before we should part for a long separation,
every agrement and pleasure possible ; morning and
evening drives on beautiful roads, dinners, dances,
music, Waverley Novels then in full blow, brought
from Calcutta by dawk or post. In short, whatever
of agreeableness and enjoyment the kindest solicitude
of refined minds could suggest and ample means
afford was concentrated in that exquisite visit.
I told them of the Suttee I had witnessed in the
neighbourhood, and learned that three more of these
horrid sacrifices had occurred near the town lately.
In fact human life seemed of small value there, for
instances of voluntary drowning as an atonement for
sin were common enough ; particularly at the precise
point of junction of the rivers, which was eminently
gacred. Old bed-ridden people were constantly

292 DEATH SONG OF
brought to the shore of the Ganges, their mouths
were stuffed with the river mud, and there they were
left to perish. At one of the Suttees the ladies and
commandant had attended, and the former had used
all the means of persuasion in their power to prevent
the consummation of the sacrifice, but all in vain.
The victim was affected by their tears and affection
ate intreaties, but persisted in her resolution ; and her
last act before she mounted the fatal pyre was to
throw a handful of delicate comfits amongst them.
The reader will probably smile, when he is told
that this picture was vividly impressed upon my mind
the whole of that evening and great part of the night.
During a short sleep distorted images of piles of fire,
and fierce Brahmins, and long white garments, and
imploring females, and blackened corpses, filled my
imagination. As soon as day-light appeared I left
my bed, obtained writing materials, and scribbled the
following lines, which were produced at breakfast.
O benevole Lector ! would that thou wert as lenient
a critic as the fair beings there assembled !

DEATH SONG OF THE HINDOO WIDOW.

Lord of my life ! within thy arms
I lay me down to rest ;
I quit the earth and all its charms,
To die upon thy breast.
I come in willing sacrifice
Thy dews of death to sip,
Freely as when my loving kiss
Dwelt on thy living lip.
O cease thee, Frangisthanee dame !
Thou comest from icy lands,
And fear'st the atoning flame
Which Indra's law demands.

THE HINDOO WIDOW. 293
E'en like a moth thy love decays
Within the lamp's faint light ;
Mine, like the fire-grass in the blaze,
Becomes more pure and bright.
Thou livest while the yellow worm
Within its slimy cell
Preys loathfully upon the form
Thy bosom loved so well.
But I, when thus my husband's frame
Within my arms I twine,
Can mock corruption ! Gunga's stream
Our ashes will enshrine.
Ah ! know'st thou not high Brahma's power
Shields those who thus expire ?
Ah ! know'st thou not great Camdeo's flower
Uninjured meets the fire ?
Wreathed with its petals, flames in vain
To harm me may arise;
I scorn their power, — I smile at pain, —
We mount into the skies !
There warm, this silent heart will beat
Responsive to my own ;
Those lips resume their accents sweet,
But for a moment flown.
We go in endless love to dwell,
To bask in Brahma's smile :
Kindred and friends, farewell ! farewell !
Now haste and fire the pile !
During of my intercourse with the Major, I saw
and learned a good deal of the character of the Indian
Sepoy, but chiefly of the native soldier of Bengal :
it is altogether a fine one. The Bengal Sepoy is
distinguished for temperance, docility, inviolable re
spect and fidelity to his officers, and a large share of
personal courage. The corps which my friend com
manded had fought most bravely at the storm of
Bhurtpore, and rivalled the King's Regiments in their
desperate attempts to overcome insurmountable ob
stacles on that fatal occasion. He and two of his
Grenadiers had succeeded, after a murderous struggle,
in reaching nearly the top of the breach, when one of

294 BRAVERY OF A GRENADIER.
the brave fellows was shot, and the Major was knocked
down by a stone dropped on his head, and rolled to
the bottom. There he lay insensible, exposed to a
heavy fire, and must have been soon dispatched, but
for the other grenadier, who watched over him, and
bore him out of the ditch in his arms, receiving a
severe wound from a matchlock ball as he carried him
off. This noble fellow was most deservedly made an
Havildar or Serjeant on his recovery; and following
up this good conduct, had been promoted to the rank
of Jemimdar, equivalent to Lieutenant. He was
pointed out to me when I was at Allahabad, and I
never saw a finer looking man. My gallant friend
assured me that he felt as certain of the attachment
and devotion of his regiment as of his own family.
In corps like his, whose recruiting had been care
fully conducted, and into which, low-caste Hindoos
and Mussulmans were refused admittance, there ex
ists a high sense of honour, or esprit de corps. Nor
do the high-caste Moslems and Hindoos quarrel in
the same regiments ; for it is a point of importance
to mix them ; but they conduct themselves much the
same as Protestants and Roman Catholics in the
British Army. They have separate messes, and re
spect each other's particular customs ; and thus very
generally go on harmoniously together, under the
salutary restraint of strict discipline; confiding im
plicitly in their officers, and in the Company's Go
vernment. The day before my departure, my friend drove me
to see an enormous Banyan tree, that covered nearly
three acres of ground ; the age nobody could tell, but
it was supposed to be a thousand years old. Very
probably its age was underrated, for when a healthy
antaeus of the vegetable world, like this, is once set

VOYAGE DOWN THE GANGES. 295
a-going, as long as there is soil and surface enough, I
can see no limits to its progress ; on it goes, multi
plying its own existence, yet not perishing after con
ferring life. But, like some aged patriarch cherished
and supported by the piety of his children, it con
tinues to throw out its huge horizontal arms through
a long succession of ages, and to derive support and
fresh nourishment from the thousand columnar props
and suckers that connect them with the earth.
A great change had taken place in the Ganges
since we sailed on it in July last year ; the water had
fallen about thirty feet, and large tracts over which
our boats had passed were now covered with luxu
riant crops of rice and other grain. The high banks
along which we coasted, when the wind was con
trary, being composed of loose alluvial materials, used
often to come tumbling about our ears rather alarm
ingly, often threatening to swamp our boat; indeed,
accidents of this kind frequently happen in the dry
season. At Benares, I paid a visit to the Faakeer of the
taloned hand, and found him exactly as before, in the
same attitude, wrapped in pride, sulky and silent,
and gazing on the sun and the river. I spoke to him
in his own language, but he would not condescend to
answer. At Dinapore, on this voyage, the career of my ec
centric friend, L— b-t, was brought to a tragic end.
It appears that on our first arrival, he had contracted
some heavy debts in Calcutta, which yet remained
unpaid. This preyed on his mind, and he unfortu
nately adopted the fatal plan of drowning his cares
and apprehensions in habitual intemperance. On the
evening of our arrival at this station, we were all
invited to a ball by the officers of the 24th Regiment.

296 EMBARKATION FOR ST. HELENA.
Instead of accompanying us, L — b — t sat down to his
Hookah, ordered his servant to put a bottle of brandy
on the table, and leave the cabin. He then com
menced drinking and smoking, and singing German
war-songs ; and having finished his brandy, he drew
his sword, sallied out of his cabin, and attacked the
servants and boatmen, whom he soon drove ashore.
Having cleared the boat, he waved the weapon several
times over his head, spouted something to the moon,
which was shining brightly at the time, and then
jumped into the river. The stream there was deep
and rapid, and the body could not be found.
Head Quarters of the regiment, with three hun
dred men embarked at Calcutta, on the 2nd of April,
1817, in the ship Dorah, for St. Helena. Colonel
Nicol made everything as agreeable as possible during
the voyage, which was sufficiently pleasant, though
diversified by one or two incidents that we might have
spared. Whilst at breakfast on the 20th of April, we
had a sudden alarm of fire, and a thick smoke was
seen ascending near the forecastle, whilst the awful
word, fire ! fire! rang through the ship. The Cap
tain made a spring over the table, clearing everything
like a hunter, without touching a tea-cup, and ran
forward ; whilst the Colonel in two minutes had a
line of soldiers formed from each gangway, with
buckets in their hands. There was no confusion ;
and thus with coolness and promptitude a great ca
lamity was averted, and the fire was speedily extin
guished. To vary our amusements, we established a news
paper on board, called the Dorah Gazette, of which I
had the honour to be appointed Editor. As certain
little coolnesses, and even a few downright quarrels,
had occurred ?!"""¦? *u- -¦-'

AMUSEMENTS ON BOARD SHIP. 297
sailed, there was a tempting opportunity for indulging
in a little scandal and satire at their expense; and
very numerous were the communications of this sort
that Mr. Editor received. But he exercised a salu
tary discretion in the matter, and suppressed them all ;
perhaps not altogether so much from high principle,
with reference to abusing the liberty of the press, as
out of due regard to his own ears.
We had the regimental band on board our ship,
which played every fine evening, and then a little
dance on the quarter-deck would follow. Whatever
dancing may be on land, where it is abused into late
hours and supper-eating, it is a most salutary exercise
on board ship, where exercise and cheerfulness are so
much needed ; and here, at least, Petrarch's crusty
aphorism can scarcely hold good, " Chorsea circulus
cujus centrum Diabolus." On board the good ship
Dorah we turned out the gentleman in black, and
put the blooming Hygeia in his place.
Having run short of water from the leaking of our
casks, we put into the Isle of France for a supply.
Here we found Port Lewis, the capital, slowly reco
vering from a dreadful fire that had half destroyed it
the year before ; but Sir Robert Farquhar, the Go
vernor, was exerting himself to promote the rebuild
ing of the place ; still, everything about the town
shewed the severity of the calamity, and the great
distress that had been the result. The appearance of
the island on approaching the shore is very pleasing;
the mountains in the centre rise boldly, and are
crowned by fantastic and picturesque pinnacles, whilst
the extent of verdure and wood surrounding the neat
looking villas and farm-houses, is agreeable to the
eye, and gives promise of competence and comfort.
They told us that when the Isle of France came

298 VISIT TO THE ISLE OF FRANCE.
into our hands in 1811, the state of society was de
plorable ; nothing was thought of but smuggling and
privateering; agricultural pursuits were quite neg
lected, morality was at a low ebb amongst the co
lonists, marriage was universally considered a silly
restraint, and divorces were to be had for a song.
The atheistical catechisms of the French Revolution
were still to be found in the few schools ; the most
Jacobin principles prevailed, and with all these anti
social tenets and practices, was found the usual ac
companiment, a cordial hatred of Great Britain. A
great improvement in every respect was represented
to have taken place.
Two or three days after our arrival, a party was
formed to visit the tomb of Paul and Virginia. I
acknowledge that I was then simple enough to believe
in the actual existence of this charming couple ; and
it was therefore with pain I learned that the narrow
base of fact on which one of the incidents rested, was
not sufficient to redeem the interesting tale from the
character of fiction. We drove to the farm, where a
small obelisk had been erected by the proprietor as a
good speculation ; and were received with great po
liteness and civility, — paying for the same.
The race of slaves here were large and muscular,
and some amongst them of Herculean proportions.
They were chiefly from Madagascar ; many of them
were most active in the water, and admirable divers.
One morning in going ashore, we found a party of
blacks employed by the Harbour-Master in weighing
a large anchor, from which some ship had recently
parted in a gale; and as we approached, one enormous
pegro, with a rope in his hand, dived with a spring
from the edge of the Harbour-Master's boat : I timed
his performance. A minute passed and all was quiet ;

VOYAGE TO ST. HELENA. 299
another, still he did not appear, and we began to fear
the poor fellow was drowned, and begged the rope
might be pulled, and the man hauled up. But the
officer only laughed at our apprehensions, and in
twenty seconds more up came Mr. Blacky, puffing
and blowing like a grampus.
Having completed our watering, we left the Isle of
France with a fair breeze, coasted the Isle of Bourbon,
with its pretty looking capital St. Denis; its white
trellised houses, beautiful foliage, and terrific surf,
and for the next fortnight dashed through the Indian
Ocean at a famous rate. At night the river of fire
that flowed away astern was signally brilliant, as we
ploughed through the illuminated sea. Anon, a
bright streak like lightning would shoot rapidly
athwart our course, shewing the track of some large
fish reconnoitering the ship ; or a shoal of porpoises
would overtake us, puffing, and grunting, and blowing,
and tumbling over each other, as if playing at leap
frog. I felt often a strange enjoyment in watching the
ship's course through the water from one of the
quarter-boats when every body but the watch was
asleep; and sometimes have sat there, occupied in all
imaginable reveries half the night. When tired of
gazing at the bright sheathing of the vessel, gliding
hissingly through the phosphorescent brine, I turned
my fatigued eyes to the sky, and beheld multitudes of
Strange stars, soon to sink in the south, and which I
should probably never see again, it was natural to
indulge in speculations on the illimitable vastness of
the universe, the surpassing glories of the heavens,
the unimaginable power and wisdom of the great
Creator, and in humiliating contrast, the insignifi
cance of man . And truly, it is in a ship by night, in

300 VOYAGE TO ST. HELENA.
the midst of the wide ocean, that we can best appre
ciate our own littleness, compared with the stupen
dous grandeur of Creation. Happy are those who
turn such humiliating ideas to a salutary account,
and instead of drawing thence the illogical and absurd
conclusion, that man is an atom too small to be re
garded by the Deity, amongst the immensity of the
universe, deduce the proper inference, that He who
pervadeth all space, seeth into the secrets of the heart
he hath fashioned, and the mind to which he hath
communicated a spark of his own intelligence, and is
well pleased when he there perceives a reverential
disposition to love, obey, and adore Him !
We now drew near the Cape. On the 17th of June
long. 24° 18" E., lat. 35° 20" S., we sounded, and
found bottom at seventy fathoms; the water being
perceptibly discoloured, and multitudes of Pintado
birds and Mother Carey's chickens, with a few alba
trosses in our wake, we passed the Table Mountain
with a fresh and fair breeze, got into the south-east
trade, and rolled down before it to St. Helena.
The run from the Cape to St. Helena is generally
twelve or thirteen days, and the wind as fair as it
can blow ; in fact, being right aft, it is too fair for
comfort, and makes the ship roll very much. How
ever, our berths and trunks had been well secured,
and the cuddy table so intersected and reticulated
with green puddings to retain the dishes and plates
in their places, that it looked like a map. In this
way they were kept in tolerable order, although when
some awful roll bobbed the ends of the top stud'n sail
booms in the water, on the starboard side, a soup
turreen would impend fearfully as if intent on mis
chief to myself the vice-president. One night as we
approached our destination, and were all assembled

ARRIVAL AT ST. HELENA. 301
at tea, we felt a smart shock as if we had struck the
bottom, which jingled the teacups, and caused a
small scream or two amongst the ladies. This was
accounted for immediately after, for a whale emerged
close to the side of the ship, and began to blow hur
riedly and violently as if in great alarm. We had
seen half a dozen near us in the course of the evening,
and it appeared that the vessel had come right
against one individual, probably enjoying his first
sleep, and roused him from his soft slumbers by a
rough nudge in the ribs. We did not stop to set his
bones to rights, but proceeding on our course made
St. Helena by day-light on the 5th of July, and
anchored off James's Town at eight o'clock in the
morning.

END OF VOL, 1.

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