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PR 4622.A2 1922

Adventures of Gerard.

3 1924 014 152 668

Cornell University
Library

The original of tliis book is in
tine Cornell University Library.

There are no known copyright restrictions in
the United States on the use of the text.

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ADVENTURES
OF GERARD

In Brigadier Gerard Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created a
character who holds a major place amongst all his crea-
tions. The soldier of Napoleon, racy, witty, utterly devoted
both to his Emperor and his Regiment gives, in his
reminiscences, a. true and stirring picture of that huge
military machine created by Napoleon and of the loyalties
and hates it roused as it rolled eastwards across Europe
in triumph and westwards in retreat. Sir Arthur based
this masterly fictional picture on the astonishing variety
of annals that survive in the memoirs of many of Napoleon's
officers.

By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

*TRB ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
*THE CASE-BOOK OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
*THE MEMOIRS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
•the RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
♦his last BOW,

•the hound OF THE BASKERVILLES
•the valley of FEAR

SIR NIGEL

THE WHITE COMPANY

MICAH CLARKE

THE REFUGEES

RODNEY STONE

UNCLE BERNAC

ADVENTURES OF GERARD

THE LOST WORLD

THE TRAGEDY OF THE KOROSKO

OMNIBUS VOLUMES

THE CONAN DOYLE STORIES

THE SHERLOCK HOLMES SHORT STORIES

THE SHERLOCK HOLMES LONG STORIES

THE HISTORICAL ROMANCES

THE COMPLETE PROFESSOR CHALLENGER STORIES

THE COMPLETE NAPOLEONIC STORIES

GRYPHON BOOKS

THE EXPLOITS OF BRIGADIER GERARD
•the SIGN OF FOUR

THE LIFE OF SIR ARTHUR CONAN DOYLB
by JOHN DICKSON CARR

' Sherlock Holmes Stories

ADVENTURES OF
GERARD

By SIR ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE

JOHN MURRAY

FIFTY ALBEMARLE STREET LONDON

First published {George Newnes Ltd.) 1903

Reprinted {John Murray) 192a

Eleventh Impression 1959

Printed in Great Britain by
Wyman &• Sons Ltd., London, Reading and Fakenham

PREFACE

I HOPE that some readers may possibly be
interested in these little tales of the Napo-
leonic soldiers to the extent of following them
up to the springs from which they flow.
The age was rich in military material, some of
it the most human and the most picturesque
that I have ever read. Setting aside his-
torical works or the biographies of the leaders,
there is a mass of evidence written by the
actual fighting men themselves, which de-
scribes their feelings and their experiences,
stated always from the point of view of the
particular branch of the service to which
they belonged. The Cavalry were particu-
larly happy in. their writers of memoirs.
Thus De Rocca, in his " Memoires sur la
Guerre des Fran^ais en Espagne," has given
the narrative of a Hussar, while De NayUes,
in his " Memoires sur la Guerre d' Espagne,"
gives the same campaigns from the point of
view of the Dragoon. Then we have the
" Souvenirs Militaires du Colonel de Gonne-
ville," which treat a series of wars, including

9

10 PREFACE

that of Spain, as seen from under the steel-
brimmed, hair-crested helmet of a Cuirassier.
Pre-eminent among all these works, and
among all military memoirs, are the fzimous
reminiscences of Marbot, which can be ob-
tained in an English form. Marbot was
a Chasseur, so again we obtain the Cavalry
point of view. Among other books which
help one to an understanding of the
Napoleonic soldier, I would specially re-
commend " Les Cahiers du Capitaine
Coignet," which treat the wars from the
point of view of the private of the Guards,
and " Les Memoires du Sergeant Bourgoyne,"
who was a non-commissioned officer in the
same corps. The " Journal " of Sergeant
Fricasse and the " Recollections " of de
Fezenac and of de S6gur complete the
materials from which I have worked in
my endeavour to give a true historical
and military atmosphere to an imaginary
figure.

ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE.

March 1903

CONTENTS

PAGB

I. HOW THE BRIGADIER LOST HIS EAR . I3

II. HOW THE BRIGADIER CAPTURED SARA-

GOSSA 51

HI. HOW THE BRIGADIER SLEW THE FOX . 89

IV. HOW THE BRIGADIER SAVED AN ARMY . II4

V. HOW THE BRIGADIER TRIUMPHED IN

ENGLAND 154

VI. HOW THE BRIGADIER RODE TO MINSK . 186

VII. HOW THE BRIGADIER BORE HIMSELF AT

WATERLOO .... 222

I— THE STORY OF THE FOREST INN 222

II — THE STORY OF THE NINE PRUSSIAN

HORSEMEN .... 255

VIII. THE LAST ADVENTURE OF THE BRIGADIER 291

II

ADVENTURES OF GERARD

I

HOW THE BRIGADIER LOST HIS EAR

It was the old Brigadier who was talking in
the caf6.

I have seen a great many cities, my friends.
I would not dare to tell you how many I have
entered as a conqueror with eight hundred of
my little fighting devils clanking and jingling
behind me. The cavalry were in front of the
Grande Arm6e, and the Hussars of Conflans
were in front of the cavalry, and I was in
front of the Hussars. But of all the cities
which we visited Venice is the most ill-
built and ridiculous. I cannot imagine how
the people who laid it out thought that the
cavalry could manoeuvre. It would puzzle
Murat or Lasalle to bring a squadron into that
square of theirs. For this reason we left
Kellermann's heavy brigade and also my
own Hussars at Padua on the mainland.
But Suchet with the infantry held the town,

13

14 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

and he had chosen me as his aide-de-camp for
that winter, because he was pleased about
the affair of the Italian fencing-master at
Milan. The feUow was a good swordsman,
and it was fortunate for the credit of French
arms that it was I who was opposed to him.
Besides, he deserved a lesson, for if one does
not hke b. prima donna's singing one can always
be silent, but it is intolerable that a public
affront should be put upon a pretty woman.
So the sympathy was all with me, and after
the affair had blown over and the man's widow
had been pensioned, Suchet chose me as his
own galloper, and I followed him to Venice,
where I had the strange adventure which I am
about to tell you.

You have not been to Venice ? No, for it
is seldom that the French travel. We were
great travellers in those days. From Moscow
to Cairo we had travelled everywhere, but we
went in larger parties than were convenient
to those whom we visited, and we carried our
passports in our limbers. It will be a bad day
for Europe when the French start travelling
again, for they are slow to leave their homes ;
but when they have done so no one can say
how far they will go if they have a guide like
our little man to point out the way. But the
great days are gone and the great men are

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 15

dead, and here am I, the last of them, drink-
ing wine of Suresnes and telling old tales in
a caf6.

But it is of Venice that I would speak.
The folks there live like water-rats upon a
mud-bank ; but the houses are very fine, and
the churches, especially that of St. Mark, are
as great as any I have seen. But, above all,
they are all proud of their statues and their
pictures, which are the most famous in
Europe. There are many soldiers who think
that because one's trade is to make war one
should never have a thought above fighting
and plunder. There was old Bouvet, for
example — the one who was killed by the
Prussians on the day that I won the Emperor's
medal ; if you took him away from the camp
and the canteen, and spoke to him of books
or of art, he would sit and stare at you. But
the highest soldier is a man like myself who
can understand the things of the mind and
the soul. It is true that I was very yovmg
when I joined the array, and that the quarter-
master was my only teacher ; but if you go
about the world with your eyes open you
cannot help learning a great deal.

Thus I was able to admire the pictures in
Venice, and to know the names of the great
men, Michael Titiens, and Angelus, and the

16 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

others, who had painted them. No one can
say that Napoleon did not admire them also,
for the very first thing which he did when he
captured the town was to send the best of
them to Paris. We all took what we could
get, and I had two pictures for my share. One
of them, called " Nymphs Surprised," I kept
for myself, and the other, " Saint Barbara,"
I sent as a present for my mother.

It must be confessed, however, that some
of our men behaved very badly in this matter
of the statues and the pictures. The people
at Venice were very much attached to them,
and as to the four bronze horses which stood
over the gate of their great church, they loved
them as dearly as if they had been their
children. I have always been a judge of a
horse, and I had a good look at these ones,
but I could not see that there was much to
be said for them. They were too coarse-
limbed for light cavalry chargers, and they
had not the weight for the gun-teams. How-
ever, they were the only four horses, alive or
dead, in the whole town, so it was not to be
expected that the people would know any
better. They wept bitterly when they were
sent away, and ten French soldiers were found
floating in the canals that night. As a
punishment for these murders a great many

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 17

more of their pictures were sent away, and
the soldiers took to breaking the statues and
firing their muskets at the stained-glass
windows. This made the people furious,
and there w£is very bad feeling in the town.
Many ofl&cers and men disappeared during
that winter, and even their bodies were never
found.

For myself I had plenty to do, and I never
found the time heavy on my hands. In every
country it has been my custom to try to
learn the language. For this reason I always
look round for some lady who will be kind
enough to teach it to me, and then we practise
it together. This is the most interesting
way of picking it up, and before I was thirty
I could speak nearly every tongue in Europe ;
but it must be confessed that what you learn
is not of much use for the ordinary purposes
of life. My business, for example, has usually
been with soldiers and peasants, and what
advantage is it to be able to say to them that
I love only them, and that I will come back
when the wars are over ?

Never have I had so sweet a teacher as
in Venice. Lucia was her first name, and
her second — ^but a gentleman forgets second
names. I can say this with all discretion,
that she was of one of the senatorial families

18 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

of Venice, and that her grandfather had been
Doge of the town. She was of an exquisite
beauty — ^and when I, Etienne Gerard, use
such a word as " exquisite," my friends, it
has a meaning. I have judgment, -I have
memories, I have the means of comparison.
Of all the women who have loved me there
are not twenty to whom I could apply such
a term as that. But I say again that Lucia
was exquisite. Of the dark type I do not
recall her equal unless it were Dolores of
Toledo. There was a little brunette whom
I loved at Santarem when I was soldiering
under Massena in Portugal — her name has
escaped me. She was of a perfect beauty,
but she had not the figure nor the grace of
Lucia. There was Agnes, also. I could not
put one before the other, but I do none an
injustice when I say that Lucia was the equal
of the best. .

It was over this matter of pictures that I
had first met her, for her father owned a
pdace on the farther side of the Rialto Bridge
upon the Grand Canal, and it was so packed
with wall-paintings that Suchet sent a party
of sappers to cut some of them out and send
them to Paris. I had gone down with them,
and after I had seen Lucia in tears it appeared
to me that the plaster would crack if it were

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 19

taken from the support of the wall. I said
so, and the sappers were withdrawn. After
that I was the friend of the family, and many
a flask of Chianti have I cracked with the
father and many a sweet lesson have I had
from the daughter. Some of our French
oil&cers married in Venice that winter, and I
might have done the same, for I loved her
with all my heart ; but Etienne Gerard had
his sword, his horse, his regiment, his mother,
his Emperor, and his career. A debonair
Hussar has room in his heart for love, but
none for a wife. So I thought then, my
friends, but I did not see the lonely days when
I should long to clasp those vanished hands,
and turn my head away when I saw old
comrades with their tall children standing
round their chairs. This love which I had
thought was a joke and a plaything — it is
only now that I understand that it is the
moulder of one's life, the most solemn and
sacred of all things. . . . Thank you, my
friend, thank you ! It is a good wine, and a
second bottle cannot hurt.
C And now I will tell you how my love for
Lucia was the cause of one of the most terrible
of all the wonderful adventmres which have
ever befallen me, and how it was that I came
to lose the top of my right ear. You have

20 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

often asked me why it was missing. To-night
for the first time I will tell you.

Suchet's head-quarters at that time was the
old palace of the Doge Dandolo, which stands
on the lagoon not far from the place of San
Marco, It was near the end of the winter,
and I had returned one night from the
Theatre Goldini, when I found a note from
Lucia and a gondola waiting. She prayed
me to come to her at once as she was in
trouble. To a Frenchman and a soldier there
was but one answer to such a note. In an
instant I was in the boat and the gondolier
w£is pushing out into the dark lagoon, I
remember that as I took my seat in the
boat I was struck by the man's great size.
He was not tall, but he was one of the broadest
men that I have ever seen in my life. But
the gondoliers of Venice are a strong breed,
and powerful men are common enough among
them. The fellow took his place behind me
and began to row.

A good soldier in an enemy's country should
everywhere and at all times be on the alert.
It has been one of the rules of my life, and if
I have lived to wear grey hairs it is because
I have observed it. And yet upon that
night I was as careless as a foolish young
recruit who fears lest he should be thought to

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 21

be afraid. My pistols I had left behind in my
hurry. My sword was at my belt, but it is
not always the most convenient of weapons.
I lay back in my seat in the gondola, lulled
by the gentle swish of the water and the steady
creaking of the oar. Our way lay through a
network of narrow canals with high houses
towering on either side and a thin slit of star-
spangled sky above us. Here and there, on
the bridges which spanned the canal, there
was the dim glimmer of an oil lamp, and some-
times there came a gleam from some niche,
where a candle biurned before the image of a
saint. But save for this it was all black, and
one could only see the water by the white
fringe which curled round the long black
nose of our boat. It was a place and a time
for dreaming. I thought of my own past life,
of all the great deeds in which I had been
concerned, of the horses that I had handled,
and of the women that I had loved. Then I
thought also of my dear mother, and I fancied
her joy when she heard the folk in the village
talking about the fame of her son. Of the
Emperor also I thought, and of France, the
dear fatherland, the sunny France, mother of
beautiful daughters and of gallant sons. My
heart glowed within me as I thought of how
we had brought her colours so many hundred

22 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

leagues beyond her borders. To her greatness
I would dedicate my life. I placed my hand
upon my Jieart as I swore it, and at that in-
stant the gondolier fell upon me from behind.
When I say that he fell upon me I do not
mean merely that he attacked me, but that
he really did tumble upon me with all his
weight. The fellow stands behind you and
above you as he rows, so that you can neither
see him nor can you in any way guard against
such an assault. One moment I had sat with
my mind filled with sublime resolutions, the
next I was flattened out upon the bottom of
the boat, the breath dashed out of my body,
and this monster pinning me down. I felt
the fierce pants of his hot breath upon the
back of my neck. In an instant he had
torn away my sword, had slipped a sack over
my head, and had tied a rope firmly round the
outside of it. There was I at the bottom of
the gondola as helpless as a trussed fowl. I
could not shout, I could not move ; I was a
mere bundle. An instant later I heard once
more the swishing of the water and the
creaking of the oar. This fellow had done his
work and had resumed his journey as quietly
and unconcernedly as if he were accustomed
to clap a sack over a colonel of Hussars every
day of the week.

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 23

I cannot tell you the humiliation and also
the fury which filled my mind as I lay there
like a helpless sheep being carried to the
butcher's. I, Etienne Gerard, the champion
of the six brigades of light cavalry and the
first swordsman of the Grand Army, to be
overpowered by a single, uneirmed man in
such a fashion ! Yet I lay quiet, for there is
a time to resist and there is a time to save
one's strength. I had felt the fellow's grip
upon my arms, and I knew that I would be a
child in his hands. I waited quietly, there-
fore, with a heart which burned with rage,
until my opportunity should come.

How long I lay there at the bottom of the
boat I cannot tell ; but it seemed to me to be
a long time, and always there were the hiss
of the waters and the steady creaking of the
oars. Several times we turned corners, for I
heard the long, sad cry which these gondoliers
give when they wish to warn their fellows that
they are coming. At last, after a consider-
able journey, I felt the side of the boat
scrape up against a landing-place. The
fellow knocked three times with his oar
upon wood, and in answer to his summons
I heard the rasping of bars and the turning
of keys. A great door creaked back upon its
hinges.

24 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" Have you got him ? " asked a voice, in
Italian.

My monster gave a laugh and kicked the
sack in which I lay.

" Here he is," said he.

" They are waiting." He added something
which I could not understand.

" Take him, then," said my captor. He
raised me in his arms, ascended some steps,
and I was thrown down upon a hard floor.
A moment later the bars creaked and the
key whined once more. I was a prisoner
inside a house.

From the voices and the steps there seemed
now to be several people round me. I under-
stand Italian a great deal better than I speak
it, and I could make out very well what they
were saying.

" You have not killed him, Matteo ? "

" What matter if I have ? "

" My faith, you will have to answer for it
to the tribunal."

" They wiU kill him, will they not ? "

" Yes, but it is not for you or me to take
it out of their hands."

" Tut 1 I have not killed him. Dead
men do not bite, and his cursed teeth met in
my thumb as I pulled the sack over his head."

" Hf lies very quiet,"

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 25

" Tumble him out and you will find he is
lively enough."

The cord which bound me was undone and
the sack drawn from over my head. With
my eyes closed I lay motionless upon the
floor.

" By the saints, Matteo, I tell you that you
have broken his neck."

" Not I. He has only fainted. The better
for him if he never came out of it again."

I felt a hand within my tunic.

" Matteo is right," said a voice. " His
heart beats like a hammer. Let him lie and
he will soon find his senses."

I waited for a minute or so and then I
ventured to take a stealthy peep from between
my lashes. At first I could see nothing, for
I had been so long in darkness and it was but
a dim light in which I found myself. Soon,
however, I made out that a high and vaulted
ceiling covered with painted gods and god-
desses was arching over my head. This was
no mean den of cut-throats into which I had
been carried, but it must be the hall of some
Venetian palace. Then, without movement,
very slowly and stealthily I had a peep at the
men who surrounded me. There was the
gondolier, a swart, hard-faced, murderous
ruffian, and beside him were three other men.

26 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

one of them a little, twisted fellow with an
air of authority and several ke3^ in his hand,
the other two tall young servants in a smart
livery. As I listened to their talk I saw that
the small man was the steward of the house,
and that the others were under his orders.

There were four of them, then, but the little
steward might be left out of the reckoning.
Had I a weapon I should have smiled at such
odds as those. But, hand to hand, I was no
match for the one even without three others
to aid him. Cunning, then, not force, must
be my aid. I wished to look round for some
mode of escape, and in doing so I gave an
almost imperceptible movement of my head.
Slight as it was it did not escape my guar-
dians.

" Come, wake up, wake up ! " cried the
steward.

" Get on your feet, little Frenchman,"
growled the gondolier. " Get up, I say ! "
and for the second time he spurned me with
his foot

Never in the world was a command obeyed
so promptly as that one. In an instant I had
bounded to my feet and rushed as hard as I
could run to the back of the hall. They were
after me as I have seen the EngUsh hoimds
follow a fox, but there was a long passage

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 27

down which I tore. It turned to the left and
again to the left, and then I found myself
back in the hall once more. They were
almost within touch of me and there was no
time for thought. I turned towards the
staircase, but two men were coming down it.
I dodged back and tried the door through
which I had been brought, but it was fastened
with great bars and I could not loosen them.
The gondolier was on me with his knife, but
I met him with a kick on the body which
stretched him on his back. His dagger flew
with a clatter across the meirble floor. !| had
no time to seize it, for there were half a dozen
of them now clutching at me. As I rushed
through them the little steward thrust his leg
before me and I fell with a crash, but I was
up in an instant, and breaking from their
grasp I burst through the very middle of them
and made for a door at the other end of the
hall. I reached it well in front of them, and
I gave a shout of triumph as the handle
ttirned freely in my hand, for I could see that
it led to the outside and that all was clear for
my esQiape. But I had forgotten this strange
city in which I was. Every house is an
island. As I flung open the door, ready to
bound out into the street, the light of the hall
shone upon the deep, still, black water which

28 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

lay flush with the topmost step. I shrank
back, and in an instant my pursuers were on
me. But I am not taken so easily.

Again I kicked and fought my way through
them, though one of them tore a handful of
hair from my head in his effort to hold me.
The little steward struck me with a key and
I was battered and bruised, but once more
I cleared a way in front of me. Up the grand
staircase I rushed, burst open the pair of huge
folding doors which faced me, and learned at
last that my efforts were in vain.

The room into which I had broken was
brilliantly lighted. With its gold cornices, its
massive pillars, and its painted walls jmd
ceilings it was evidently the grand hall of
some famous Venetian palace. There are
many hundred such in this strange city, any
one of which has rooms which would grace
the Louvre or Versailles. In the centre of
this great hall there was a raised dais, and
upon it in a half circle there sat twelve men
all clad in black gowns, like those of a Fran-
ciscan monk, and each with a mask over the
upper part of his face.

A group of armed men — trough-looking
rascals — were standing roimd the door and,
amid them facing the dais was a young fellow
in the uniform of the light infantry. As he

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR' 29

turned his head I recognised him. It was
Captain Auret, of the 7th, a young Basque
with whom I had drunk many a glass during
the winter. He was deadly white, poor
wretch, but he held himself manfully amid the
assassins who surrounded him. Never shall
I forget the sudden flash of hope which shone
in his dark eyes when he saw a comrade burst
into the room, or the look of despair which
followed as he understood that I had come not
to change his fate but to share it.

You can think how amazed these people
were when I hurled myself into their presence.
My pmrsuers had crowded in behind me and
choked the doorway, so that all further flight
was out of the question. It is at such instants
that my nature asserts itself. With dignity
I advanced towards the tribunal. My jacket
was torn, my hair was dishevelled, my head
was bleeding, but there was that in my eyes
and in my carriage which made them realise
that no common man was before them. Not
a hand was raised to arrest me until I halted
in front of a formidable old man whose long
grey beard and masterful manner told me that
both by years and by character he was the
man in authority.

" Sir," said I, " you will perhaps tell me
why I have been forcibly arrested and brought

30 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

to this place. I am an honourable soldier, as
is this other gentleman here, and I demand
that you will instantly set us both at liberty."

There was an appalling silence to my appeal.
It is not pleasant to have twelve masked faces
turned upon you and to see twelve pairs of
vindictive Italian eyes fixed with fierce intent-
ness upon your face. But I stood as a de-
bonair soldier should, and I could not but
reflect how much credit I was bringing upon
the Hussars of Conflans by the dignity of my
bearing. I do not think that any one could
have carried himself better under such difficult
circumstances. I looked with a fearless face
from one assassin to another, and I waited for
some reply.

It was the greybeard who at last broke the
silence.

" Who is this man ? " he asked.

" His name is Gerard," said the little
steward at the door.

" Colonel Gerard," said I. "I will not
deceive you. I am Etienne Gerard, the
Colonel Gerard, five times mentioned in
despatches and recommended for the sword
of honour. I am aide-de-camp to General
Suchet, and I demand my instant release,
together with that of my comrade in arms."

The same terrible silence fell upon the

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 31

assembly, and the sajne twelve pairs of merci-
less eyes were bent upon my face. Again it
was the greybeard who spoke.

"He is out of his order. There are two
names upon our list before him."

" He escaped from our hands and burst
into the room."

" Let him await his turn. Take him down
to the wooden cell."

" If he resist us, your excellency ? "

" Bury your knives in his body. The
tribunal will uphold you. Remove him until
we have dealt with the others."

They advanced upon me and for an instant
I thought of resistance. It would have been
a heroic death, but who was there to see it
or to chronicle it ? I might be only post-
poning my fate, and yet I had been in so
many bad places and come out unhurt that
I had learned always to hope and to trust
my star. I allowed these rascals to seize me,
and I was led from the room, the gondolier
walking at my side with a long naked knife
in his hand. I could see in his brutal eyes
the satisfaction which it would give him if
he could find some excuse for plunging it into
my body.

They are wonderful places, these great
Venetian houses, palaces and fortresses and

32 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

prisons all in one. I was led along a passage
and down a bare stone stair until we came
to a short corridor from which three doors
opened. Through one of these I was thrust
and the spring lock closed behind me. The
only light came dimly through a small grating
which opened on the passage. Peering and
feeling, I carefully examined the chamber in
which I had been placed. I understood from
what I had heard that I should soon have to
leave it again in order to appear before this
tribunal, but still it is not my nature to throw
away any possible chances.

The stone floor of the cell was so damp and
the walls for some feet high were so slimy and
foul that it was evident they were beneath
the level of the water. A single slanting hole
high up near the ceiling was the only aperture
for light or air. Through it I saw one bright
star shining down upon me, and the sight
filled me with comfort and with hope. I
have never been a man of religion, though I
have always had a respect for those who were,
but I remember that night that the star
shining down the shaft seemed to be an all-
seeing eye which was upon me, and I felt as a
young and frightened recruit might feel in
battle when he saw the calm gaze of his
colonel turned upon him.

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 33

Three of the sides of my prison were formed
of stone, but the fourth was of wood, and I
could see that it had only recently been
erected. Evidently a partition had been
thrown up to divide a single large cell into
two smaller ones. There was no hope for me
in the old walls, in the tiny window, or in
the massive door. It was only in this one
direction of the wooden screen that there was
any possibility of exploring. My reason told
me that if I should pierce it— which did not
seem very difficult — it would only be to find
myself in another cell as strong as that in
which I then was. Yet I had always rather
be doing something than doing nothing, so I
bent all my attention and all my energies
upon the wooden wall. Two planks were
badly joined and so loose that I was certain
I could easily detach them. I searched about
for some tool, and I found one in the leg of a
small bed which stood in the corner. I
forced the end of this into the chink of the
planks, and I was about to twist them out-
wards when the sound of rapid footsteps
caused me to pause and to listen.

I wish I could forget what I heard. Many
a hundred men have I seen die in battle, and
I have slain more myself than I care to think
of, but all that was fair fight and the duty of

34 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

a soldier. It was a very different matter to
listen to a murder in this den of assassins.
They were pushing some one along the passage,
some one who resisted and who clung to my
door as he passed. They must have taken
him into the third cell, the one which was
farthest from me. " Help ! help ! " cried a
voice, and then I heard a blow and a scream.
" Help ! help ! " cried the voice again, and
then " Gerard ! Colonel Gerard 1 " It was
my poor captain of infantry whom they were
slaughtering. " Murderers ! murderers ! " I
yelled, and I kicked at my door, but again
I heard him shout, and then everything was
silent. A minute later there was a heavy
splash, and I knew that no human eye would
ever see Auret again. He had gone as a
hundred others had gone whose names were
missing from the roll-calls of their regiments
during that winter in Venice.

The steps returned along the passage, and
I thought that they were coming for me.
Instead of that they opened the door of the
cell next to mine, and they took some one
out of it. I heard the steps die away up the
stair. At once I renewed my work upon the
planks, and within a very few minutes I had
loosened them in such a way that I could
remove and replace them at pleasure. Pass-

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 35

ing through the aperture I found myself in
the farther cell, which, as I expected, was the
other half of the one in which I had been
confined. I was not any nearer to escape
than I had been before, for there was no other
wooden wall which I could penetrate, and the
spring lock of the door had been closed.
There were no traces to show who was my
companion in misfortune. Closing the two
loose planks behind me, I returned to my own
cell, and waited there with all the courage
which I could command for the smnmons
which would probably be my death-knell.

It was a long time in coming, but at last I
heard the sound of feet once more in the
passage, and I nerved myself to listen to some
other odious deed and to hear the cries of the
poor victim. Nothing of the kind occurred,
however, and the prisoner was placed in the
cell without violence. I had no time to peep
through my hole of commimication, for next
moment my own door was flung open and my
rascally gondolier, with the other assassins,
came into the cell.

" Come, Frenchman," said he. He held his
blood-stained knife in his great hairy hand,
and I read in his fierce eyes that he only looked
for some excuse in order to plunge it into my
heart. Resistance was useless. I followed

36 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

without a word. I was led up the stone stair
and back into that gorgeous chamber in which
I had left the secret tribunal. I was ushered
in, but to my surprise it was not on me that
their attention was fixed. One of their own
number, a tall, dark young man, was standing
before them and was pleading with them in
low, earnest tones. His voice quivered with
anxiety and his hands darted in and out or
writhed together in an agony of entreaty.
" You cannot do it ! You cannot do it ! "
he cried. " I implore the tribunal to recon-
sider this decision."

" Stand aside, brother," said the old man
who presided. " The case is decided and
another is up for judgment."

" For Heaven's sake be merciful ! " cried
the young man.

" We have already been merciful," the
other answered. " Death would have been
a small penalty for such an offence. Be silent
and let judgment take its course."

I saw the young man throw himself in an
agony of grief into his chair. I had no
time, however, to speculate as to what it
was which was troubling him, for his eleven
colleagues had already fixed their stern
eyes upon me. The moment of fate had
arrived.

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 37

" You are Colonel Gerard ? " said the
terrible old man.
1 am.

"Aide-de-camp to the robber who calls
himself General Suchet, who in turn repre-
sents that arch-robber Buonaparte ? "

It was on my lips to tell him that he was
a liar, but there is a time to argue and a time
to be silent.

" I am an honourable soldier," said I. "I
have obeyed my orders and done my duty."

The blood flushed into the old man's face
and his eyes blazed through his mask.

" You are thieves and murderers, every
man of you," he cried. " What are you
doing here ? You are Frenchmen. Why
are you not in France ? Did we invite you
to Venice ? By what right are you here ?
Where are our pictures ? Where are the
horses of St. Mark ? Who are you that you
should pilfer those treasures which our fathers
through so many centuries have collected ?
We were a great city when France was a
desert. Your drunken, brawling, ignorant
soldiers have undone the work of saints and
heroes. What have you to say to it .? "

He was, indeed, a formidable old man, for
his white beard bristled with fury and he
barked out the little sentences like a savage

38 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

hound. For my part I could have told him
that his pictures would be safe in Paris, that
his horses were really not worth making a fuss
about, and that he could see heroes — I say
nothing of saints — without going back to his
ancestors or even moving out of his chair.
All this I could have pointed out, but one
might as well argue with a Mamaluke about
religion. I shrugged my shoulders and said
nothing.

" The prisoner has no defence," said one
of my masked judges,

" Has any one any observation to make
before judgment is passed ? " The old man
glared round him at the others.

" There is one matter, your excellency,"
said another. " It can scarce be referred to
without reopening a brother's wounds, but I
would remind you that there is a very par-
ticular reason why an exemplary punishment
should be inflicted in the csise of this officer."

" I had not forgotten it," the old man
answered. " Brother, if the tribunal has
injured you in one direction, it will give you
ample satisfaction in another."

The yoimg man who had been pleading
when I entered the room staggered to his feet.

" I cannot endure it," he cried. " Your
excellency must forgive me. The tribunal

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 39

can act without me. I am ill ! I am mad 1 "
He flung his hands up with a furious gesture
and rushed from the room.

" Let him go ! Let him go ! " said the
president. " It is, indeed, more than can be
asked of flesh and blood that he should remain
imder this roof. But he is a true Venetian,
and when the first agony is over he will
understand that it could not be otherwise."

I had been forgotten during this episode,
and though I am not a man who is accustomed
to being overlooked I should have been all
the happier had they continued to neglect
me. But now the old president glared at me
again like a tiger who comes back to his
victim.

" You shall pay for it all, and it is but
justice that you should," said he. " You, an
upstart adventurer and foreigner, have dared
to raise your eyes in love to the grand-
daughter of a Doge of Venice who was already
betrothed to the heir of the Loredans. He
who enjoys such privileges must pay a price
for them."

" It cannot be higher than they are worth."
said I.

" You will tell us that when you have made
a part payment," he said. " Perhaps your
spirit may not be so proud by that time.

40 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Matteo, you will lead this prisoner to the
wooden cell. To-night is Monday. Let him
have no food or water, and let him be led
before the tribunal again on Wednesday
night. We shall then decide upon the death
which he is to die."

It was not a pleasant prospect, and yet it
was a reprieve. One is thankful for small
mercies when a hairy savage with a blood-
stained knife is standing at one's elbow. He
dragged me from the room and I was thrust
down the stairs and back into my cell. The
door was locked and I was left to my reflec-
tions.

My first thought was to establish connection
with my neighbour in misfortime. I waited
until the steps had died away, and then 1
cautiously drew aside the two boards and
peeped through. The light was very dim, so
dim that I could only just discern a figure
huddled in the corner, and I could hear the
low whisper of a voice which prayed as one
prays who is in deadly fear. The boards
must have made a creaking. There was a
sharp exclamation of surprise.

" Courage, friend, courage ! " I cried. " All
is not lost. Keep a stout heart, for Etienne
Gerard is by your side."

" Etienne 1 " It was a woman's voice which

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 41

spoke — a voice which was always music to
my ears. I sprang through the gap and I
flung my arms round her. " Lucia ! Lucia ! "
I cried.

It was "Etienne!" and "Lucia!" for
some minutes, for one does not make speeches
at moments like that. It was she who came
to her senses first.

" Oh, Etienne, they will kill you. How
came you into their hands ? "

" In answer to your letter."'

" I wrote no letter."

" The cunning demons ! But you ? "

" I came also in answer to your letter."

" Lucia, I wrote no letter."

" They have trapped us both with the same
bait."

" I care nothing about myself, Lucia.
Besides,, there is no pressing danger with
me. They have simply returned me to my
cell."

" Oh, Etienne, Etienne, they will kill you,
Lorenzo is there."

" The old greybeard ? "

" No, no, a young dark man. He loved
me, and I thought I loved him until — vmtil I
learned what love is, Etienne. He will never
forgive you. He has a heart of stone,"

" Let them do what they like. They

42 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

cannot rob me of the past, Lucia. But you
— ^what about you ? "

" It will be nothing, Etienne. Only a
pang for an instant and then all over. They
mean it as a badge of infamy, dear, but I will
carry itjlike a crown of honour since it was
through you that I gained it. "

Her words froze my blood with horror. All
my adventures were insignificant compared
to this terrible shadow which was creeping
over my soul.

" Lucia 1 Lucia ! " I cried. " For pity's
sake tell me what these butchers are about
to do. Tell me, Lucia ! Tell me ! "

" I will not tell you, Etienne, for it would
hurt you far more than it would me. Well,
well, I will tell you lest you should fear it
was something worse. The president has
ordered that my ear be cut off, that I may be
marked for ever as having loved a French-

man."

Her ear ! The dear little ear which I had
kissed so often. I put my hand to each little
velvet shell to make certain that this sacri-
lege had not yet been committed. Only over
my dead body should they reach them. I
swore it to her between my clenched teeth.

" You must not care, Etienne. And yet
I love that you should care all the same,"

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 43

" They shall not hurt you — ^the fiends ! "

" I have hopes, Etienne. Lorenzo is there.
He was silent while I was judged, but he may
have pleaded for me after I was gone.*'

" He did. I heard him."

" Then he may have softened their hearts."

I knew that it was not so, but how could I
bring myself to tell her ? I might as well
have done so, for with the quick instinct of
woman my silence was speech to her.

" They would not listen to him I You need
not fear to tell me, dear, for you will find that
I am worthy to be loved by such a soldier.
Where is Lorenzo now ? *'

" He left the haU."

" Then he may have left the house as well."

" I believe that he did."

" He has abandoned me to my fate,
Etienne, Etienne, they are coming ! "

Afar off I heard those fateful steps and the
jingle of distant keys. What were they
coming for now, since there were no other
prisoners to drag to judgment ? It could
only be to carry out the sentence upon my
darling. I stood between her and the door,
with the strength of a lion in my limbs. I
would tear the house down before they
shoixld touch her.

" Go back ! Go back 1 " she cried. " They

44 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

will murder you, Etieime. My life, at least,
is safe. For the love you bear me, Etieime,
go back. It is nothing. I will make no
sound. , You will not hear that it is done."

She wrestled with me, this delicate creature,
and by main force she dragged me to the
opening between the cells. But a sudden
thought had crossed my mind.

" We may yet be saved," I whispered.
" Do what I tell you at once and without
argument. Go into my cell. Quick ! "

I pushed her through the gap and helped
her to replace the planks. I had retained
her cloak in my hands, and with this wrapped
round me I crept into the darkest corner of
her cell. There I lay when the door was
opened and several men came in. I had
reckoned that they would bring no lantern,
for they had none with them before. To
their eyes I was only a black blur in the
corner.

" Bring a light," said one of them.

" No, no ; curse it ! " cried a rough voice,
which I knew to be that of the ruffian Matteo.
"It is not a job that I like, and the more I
saw it the less I should like it. I am sorry,
signora, but the order of the tribunal has to
be obeyed."

My impulse was to spring to my feet and to

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 45

rush through them all and out by the open
door. But how would that help Lucia ?
Suppose that I got clear away, she would be
in their hands until I could come back with
help, for single-handed I could not hope to
clear a way for her. All this flashed through
niy mind in an instant, and I saw that the
only course for me was to lie still, take what
came, and wait my chance. The fellow's
coarse hand felt about among my curls —
those curls in which only a woman's fingers
had ever wandered. The next instant he
gripped my ear, and a pain shot through me
as if I had been touched with a hot iron. I
bit my lip to stifle a cry, and I felt the blood
run warm down my neck and back.

" There, thank Heaven that's over," said
the fellow, giving me a friendly pat on the
head. " You're a brave girl, signora, I'll say
that for you, and I only wish you'd have
better taste than to love a Frenchman. You
can blame him and not me for what I have
done."

What could I do save to lie still and grind
my teeth at my own helplessness ? At the
same time my pain and my rage were always
soothed by the reflection that I had suffered
for the woman whom I loved. It is the
custom of men to say to ladies that they

46 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

would willingly endiire any pain for their sake,
but it was my privilege to show that I had
said no more than I meant. I thought also
how nobly I would seem to have acted if ever
the story came to be told, and how proud the
regiment of Conflans might well be of their
colonel. These thoughts helped me to suffer
in silence while the blood still trickled over
my neck and dripped upon the stone floor.
It was that soimd which nearly led to my
destruction.

" She's bleeding fast," said one of the valets.
" You had best fetch a surgeon or you will
find her dead in the morning."

" She lies very still and she has never
opened her mouth," said another. " The
shock has killed her."

"Nonsense; a young woman does not
die so easily." It was Matteo who spoke.
" Besides, I did but snip off enough to leave
the tribunal's mark upon her. Rouse up,
signora, rouse up ! "

He shook me by the shoulder, and my
heart stood still for fear he should feel the
epaulette under the mantle.

" How it is with you now ? " he asked.

I made no answer.

" Curse it ! I wish I had to do with a man
instead of a woman, and the fairest woman in

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 47

Venice, ' ' said the gondolier . ' ' Here, Nicholas,
lend me your handkerchief and bring a light."

It was all over. The worst had happened.
Nothing could save me. I still crouched in
the corner, but I was tense in every muscle,
like a wild cat about to spring. If I had to
die I was determined that my end should be
worthy of my life.

One of them had gone for a lamp, and
Matteo was stooping over me with a hand-
kerchief. In another instant my secret would
be discovered. But he suddenly drew him-
self straight and stood motionless. At the
same instant there came a confused murmur-
ing sound through the little window far above
my head. It was the rattle of oars and the
buzz of many voices. Then there was a
crash upon the door upstairs, and a terrible
voice roared : " Open 1 Open in the name
of the Emperor ! "

The Emperor ! It was like the mention of
some saint which, by its very sound, can
frighten the demons. Away they ran with
cries of terror — Matteo, the valets, the steward,
all of the murderous gang. Another shout
and then the crash of a hatchet and the
splintering of planks. There were the rattle
of arms and the cries of French soldiers in the
hall. Next instant feet came flying down the

48 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

stair and a man burst frantically into my
cell.

" Lucia ! " he cried, " Lucia ! " He stood
in the dim light, panting and unable to find
his words. Then he broke out again. " Have
I not shown you how I love you, Lucia ?
What more could I do to prove it ? I have
betrayed my country, I have broken my vow,
I have ruined my friends, and I have given
my life in order to save you."

It was young Lorenzo Loredan, the lover
whom I had superseded. My heart was
heavy for him at the time, but after all it is
every man for himself in love, and if one fails
in the game it is some consolation to lose to
one who can be a graceful and considerate
winner. I was about to point this out to him,
but at the first word I uttered he gave a shout
of astonishment, and, rushing out, he seized
the lamp which hung in the corridor and
flashed it in my face.

" It is you, you villain ! " he cried. " You
French coxcomb. You shall pay me for the
wrong which you have done me."

But the next instant he saw the pallor of
my face and the blood which was still pouring
from my head.

" What is this ? " he asked. " How come
you to have lost your ear ? "

HOW HE LOST HIS EAR 49

I shook off my weakness and, pressing my
handkerchief to my wound, I rose from my
couch, the debonair colonel of Hussars.

'' My injury, sir, is nothing. With your
permission we will not allude to a matter so
trifling and so personal."

But Lucia had burst through from her cell
and was pouring out the whole story while
she clasped Lorenzo's arm.

" This noble gentleman — ^he has taken my
place, Lorenzo ! He has borne it for me.
He has suffered that I might be saved."

I could sympathise with the struggle which
I could see in the Italian's face. At last he
held out his hand to me.

" Colonel Gerard," he said, " you are
worthy of a great love. I forgive you, for if
you have wronged me you have made a noble
atonement. But I wonder to see you alive.
I left the tribimal before you were judged,
but I understood that no mercy would be
shown to any Frenchman since the destruc-
tion of the ornaments of Venice."

" He did not destroy them," cried Lucia.
" He has helped to preserve those in our
palace."

" One of them, at any rate," said I, as I
stooped and kissed her hand.

This was the way, my friends, in which I

50 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

lost my ear. Lorenzo was found stabbed to
the heart in the Piazza of St. Mark within
two days of the night of my adventure. Of
the tribunal and its ruffians, Matteo and three
others were shot, the rest banished from the
town. Lucia, my lovely Lucia, retired into
a convent at Murano after the French had
left the city, and there she still may be, some
gentle lady abbess who has perhaps long
forgotten the days when our hearts throbbed
together, and when the whole great world
seemed so small a thing beside the love which
burned in our veins. Or perhaps it may not
be so. Perhaps she has not forgotten. There
may still be times when the peace of the
cloister is broken by the memory of the old
soldier who loved her in those distemt days.
Youth is past and passion is gone, but the
soul of the gentleman can never change, and
still Etienne Gerard would bow his grey head
before her and would very gladly lose this
other ear if he might do her a service.

II

HOW THE BRIGADIER CAPTURED
SARAGOSSA

Have I ever told you, my friends, the cir-
cumstances coimected with my joining the
Hussars of Conflans at the time of the siege
of Saragossa, and the very remarkable exploit
which I performed in connection with the
taking of that city ? No ? Then you have
indeed something still to learn. I will tell it
to you exactly as it occurred. Save for two
or three men and a score or two of women,
you are the first who have ever heard the
story.

You must know, then, that it was in the
2nd Hussars — called the Hussars of Cham-
beran — that I had served as a lieutenant and
as a junior captain. At the time I speak of I
was only twenty-five years of age, as reckless
and desperate a man as any in that great army.
It chanced that the war had come to a halt in
Germany, while it was still raging in Spain ;
so the Emperor, wishing to reinforce the

51

52 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Spanish army, transferred me as senior
captain to the Hussars of Conflans, which were
at that time in the 5th Army Corps under
Marshal Laimes.

It was a long journey from Berlin to the
Psnrenees. My new regiment formed part
of the force which, under Marshal Lannes, was
then besieging the Spanish town of Sara-
gossa. I turned my horse's head in that
direction, therefore, and behold me a week
or so later at the French headquarters, whence
I was directed to the camp of the Hussars of
Conflans.

You have read, no doubt, of this famous
siege of Saragossa, and I will only say that
no general could have had a harder task than
that with which Marshal Lannes was con-
fronted. The immense city was crowded
with a horde of Spaniards — soldiers, peasants,
priests — all filled with the most furious hatred
of the French, and the most savage determina-
tion to perish before they would surrender.
There were eighty thousand men in the town
and only thirty thousand to besiege them.
Yet we had a powerful artillery, and our
Engineers were of the best. There was
never such a siege, for it is usud that when
the fortifications are taken the city falls ;
but here it was not until the fortifications

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA S3

were taken that the real fighting began. Every
house was a fort and every street a battlefield,
so that slowly, day by day, we had to work
our way inwards, blowing up the houses with
their garrisons until more than half the city
had disappeared. Yet the other half was as
determined as ever, and in a better position
for defence, since it consisted of enormous
convents and monasteries with walls like the
Bastille, which could not be so easily brushed
out of our way. This was the state of things
at the time that I joined the army.

I will confess to you that cavalry are not
of much use in a siege, although there was a
time when I would not have permitted any
one to have made such an observation. The
Hussars of Conflans were encamped to the
south of the town, and it was their duty to
throw out patrols and to make sure that no
Spanish force was advancing from that
quarter. The colonel of the regiment was not
a good soldier, and the regime'nt was at that
time very far from being in the high condition
which it afterwards attained. Even in that
one evening I saw several things which shocked
me ; for I had a high standard, and it went
to my heart to see an ill-arranged camp, an
ill-groomed horse, or a slovenly trooper
That night I supped with twenty-six of my

54 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

new brother-of&cers, and I fear that in my
zeal I showed them only too plainly that I
foxmd things very different to what I was
accustomed to in the army of Germany.
There was silence in the mess after my remarks,
and I felt that I had been indiscreet when I
saw the glances that were cast at me. The
colonel especially was furious, and a great
major named Olivier, who was the fire-eater
of the regiment, sat opposite to me curling
his huge black moustaches, and staring at me
as if he would eat me. However, I did not
resent his attitude, for I felt that I had indeed
been indiscreet, and that it would give a bad
impression if upon this my first evening I
quarrelled with my superior officer.

So far I admit that I was wrong, but now
I come to the sequel. Supper over, the
colonel and some other officers left the room,
for it was in a farmhouse that the mess was
held. There remained a dozen or so, and a
goat-skin of Spanish wine having been brought
in, we all made merry. Presently this Major
Olivier asked me some questions concerning
the army of Germany and as to the part
which I had myself played in thfc campaign.
Flushed with the wine, I was drawn on from
story to story. It was not tmnatural, my
friends. You will sympathise with me. Up

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 55

there I had been the model for every officer
of my years in the army. I was the first
swordsman, the most dashing rider, the hero
of a hundred adventures. Here I foimd my-
self not only unknown, but even disliked.
Was it not natural that I should wish to tell
these brave comrades what sort of man it was
that had come among them ? Was it not
natural that I should wish to say, " Rejoice,
my friends, rejoice ! It is no ordinary man
who has joined you to-night, but it is I, the
Gerard, the hero of Ratisbon, the victor of
Jena, the man who broke the square at
Austerlitz ? " I could not say all this. But
I could at least tell them some incidents
which would enable them to say it for them-
selves. I did so. They listened unmoved.
I told them more. At last, after my tale of
how I had guided the army across the Danube,
one universal shout of laughter broke from
them all. I sprang to my feet, flushed with
shame and anger. They had drawn me on.
They were making game of me. They were
convinced that they had to do with a braggart
and a liar.' . Was this my reception in the
Hussars of Gjnfleuis ? I dashed the tears of
mortification from my eyes, and they laughed
the more at the sight.

" Do you know. Captain Pelletan, whether

56 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Marshal Lannes is still with the army ? "
asked the major.

" I believe that he is, sir," said the other.

" Really, I should have thought that his
presence was hardly necessary now that
Captain Gerard has arrived."

Again there was a roar of laughter. I can
see the ring of faces, the mocking eyes, the
open mouths — Olivier with his great black
bristles, Pelletan thin and sneering, even the
young sub-lieutenants convulsed with merri-
ment. Heavens, the indignity of it ! But my
rage had dried my tears. I was myself again,
cold, quiet, self-contained, ice without and
fire within.

" May I ask, sir," said I to the major,
" at what hour the regiment is paraded ? "

" I trust. Captain Gerard, that you do not
mean to alter our hours," said he, and again
there was a burst of laughter, which died
away as I looked slowly round the circle.

" What hour is the assembly ? " I asked,
sharply, of Captain Pelletan.

Some mocking answer was on his tongue,
but my glance kept it there. " The assembly
is at six," he answered.

" I thank you," said I. I then counted the
company, and found that I had to do with
fourteen ofi&cers, two of whom appeared to be

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 57

boys fresh from St. Cyr. I could not con-
descend to take any notice of their indis-
cretion. There remained the major, four
captains, and seven lieutenants.

" Gentlemen," I continued, looking from
one to the other of them, " I should feel myself
unworthy of this famous regiment if I did
not ask you for satisfaction for the rudeness
with which you have greeted me, and I should
hold you to be unworthy of it if on any
pretext you refused to grant it."

" You will have no difficulty upon that
score," said the major. " I am prepared to
waive my rank and to give you every satis-
faction in the name of the Hussars of Con-
flans."

" I thank you," I answered. " I feel,
however, that I have some claim upon these
other gentlemen who laughed at my ex-
pense."

" Whom would you fight, then ? " asked
Captain Pelletan.

" AH of you," I answered.

They looked in siurprise from one to the
other. Then they drew off to the other end
(rf the room, and I heard the hnzz of their
whispers. They were laughing. Evidently
they still thought that they had to do with
some empty braggart. Then they returned.

58 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" Your request is unusual," said Major
Olivier, "but it will be granted. How do
you propose to conduct such a duel ? The
terms lie with you."

-' Sabres," said I. " And I will take you
in order of seniority, beginning with you.
Major Olivier, at five o'clock. I will thus be
able to devote five minutes to each before
the assembly is blown. I must, however,
beg you to have the courtesy to name the
place of meeting, since I am still ignorant of
the locality."

They were impressed by my cold and
practical manner. Already the smile had
died away from their lips. Olivier's face was
no longer mocking, but it was dark and stem.

" There is a small open space behind the
horse lines," said he. " We have held a few
affairs of honour there, and it has done very
well.' We shall be there. Captain Gerard, at
the hour you name."

I was in the act of bowing to thaink them
for their acceptance when the door of the
mess-room was flung open and the colonel
hurried into the room, with an agitated face.

" Gentlemen," said he, " I have been asked
to call for a volimteer from among you for a
service which involves the greatest possible
danger. I will not disguise from you that the

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 59

matter is serious in the last degree, and that
Marshal Laiines has chosen a cavalry officer
because he can be better spared than an
officer of infantry or of Engineers. Married
men are not eligible. Of the others, who will
volunteer ? "

I need not say that all the unmarried
officers stepped to the front. The colonel
looked roimd in some embarrassment. I
could see his dilemma. It was the best man
who should go, and yet it was the best man
whom he could least spare.

" Sir," said I, " may I be permitted to
make a suggestion ? "

He looked at me with a hard eye. He had
not forgotten my observations at supper.
" Speak ! " said he.

" I would point out, sir," said I, " that this
mission is mine both by right and by con-
venience."

" Why so, Captain Gerard ? "

" By right, because I am the senior captain.
By convenience, because I shall not be missed
in the regiment, since the men have not yet
learned to know me."

The colonel's features relaxed.

" There is certainly truth in what you say,
Captain Gerard," said he. " I think that you
are indeed best fitted to go upon this mission.

60 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

If you will come with me I will give you your
instructions."

I wished my new comrades good-night as
I left the room, and I repeated that I should
hold myself at their disposal at five o'clock
next morning. They bowed in silence, and
I thought that I could see, from the expres-
sion of their faces, that they had already
begun to take a more just view of my char-
acter.

I had expected that the colonel would at
once inform me what it was that I had been
chosen to do, but instead of that he walked
on in silence, I following behind him. We
passed through the camp and made our way
across the trenches and over the ruined heaps
of stones which marked the old wall of the
town. Within there was a labyrinth of
passages, formed among the debris of the
houses which had been destroyed by the
mines of the Engineers. Acres and acres
were covered with splintered walls and piles
of brick which had once been a populous
suburb. Lanes had been driven through it
and lanterns placed at the corners with in-
scriptions to direct the wayfarer. The colonel
hurried onwards until at last, after a long
walk, we found our way barred by a high grey
wall which stretched right across our path.

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 61

Here behind a barricade lay our advanced
guard. The colonel led me into a roofless
house, and there I found two general officers,
a map stretched over a drum in front of them,
they kneeling beside it and examining it
carefully by the light of a lantern. The one
with the clean-shaven face and the twisted
neck was Marshal Lannes, the other was
General Razout, the head of the Engineers.

" Captain Gerard has volunteered to go,"
said the colonel.

Marshal Lannes rose from his knees and
shook me by the hand.

" You are a brave man, sir," said he. " I
have a present to make to you," he added,
handing me a very tiny glass tube. " It has
been specially prepared by Dr. Fardet. At
the supreme moment you have but to put it
to your lips and you will be dead in an
instant."

This was a cheerful beginning. I will
confess to you, my friends, that a cold chill
passed up my back and my hair rose upon
my head.

" Excuse me, sir," said I, as I saluted, " I
am aware that I have volimteered for a ser-
vice of great danger, but the exact details
have not yet been given to me."

" G)lonel Perrin," said Lannes, severely,

62 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" it is unfair to allow this brave of&cer to
volunteer before he has learned what the
perils are to which he will be exposed."

But already I was myself once more.

" Sir," said I, " permit me to remark that
the greater the danger the greater the glory,
and that I could only repent of volunteering
if I found that there were no risks to be run."

It was a noble speech, and my appearance
gave force to my words. For the moment I
was an heroic figure. As I saw Laimes's eyes
fixed in admiration upon my face it thrilled
me to think how splendid was the debut which
I was making in the army of Spain. If I died
that night my name would not be forgotten.
My new comrades and my old, divided in aU
else, would still have a point of union in their
love and admiration of Etienne Gerard,

" General Razout, explain the situation ! "
said Lannes, briefly.

The Engineer ofiicer rose, his compasses in
his hand. He led me to the door and pointed
to the high grey wall which towered up
amongst the debris of the shattered houses.

"That is the enemy's present line of
defence," said he. " It is the wall of the
great Convent of the Madonna. If we can
carry it the city must fall, but they have run
countermines all round it, and the walls are

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 63

so enormously thick that it would be an im-
mense labour to breach it with artillery. We
happen to know, however, that the enemy
have a. considerable store of powder in one
of the lower chambers. If that could be ex-
ploded the way would be clear for us."

" How can it be reached ? " I asked.

" I will explain. We have a French agent
within the town named Hubert. This brave
man has been in constant communication
with us, and he had promised to explode the
magazine. It was to be done in the early
morning, and for two days running we have
had a storming party of a thousand Grena-
diers waiting for the breach to be formed.
But there has been no explosion, and for
these two days we have had no communica-
tion from Hubert. The question is, what has
become of him ? "

" You wish me to go and see ? "

" Precisely.' Is he ill, or wounded, or dead ?
Shall we still wait for him, or shall we attempt
the attack elsewhere ? We cannot determine
this until we have heard from him. This is
a map of the town, Captain Gerard. You
pfflTceive that within this ring of convents and
monasteries are a number of streets which
branch off from a central square. If you
come so far as this square you will find the

64 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

cathedral at one corner. In that comer is
the street of Toledo. Hubert lives in a small
house between a cobbler's and a wine-shop,
on the right-hand side as you go from the
cathedral. Do you follow me ? ''■

" Clearly."

" You are to reach that house, to see him,
and to find out if his plan is still feasible or if
we must abandon it." He produced what
appeared to be a roll of dirty brown flannel.
" This is the dress of a Franciscan friar," said
he. " You will find it the most useful dis-
guise."

I shrank away from it.

" It turns me into a spy," I cried. " Surely
I can go in my uniform ? "

" Impossible ! How could you hope to
pass through the streets of the city ? Re-
member, also, that the Spaniards take no
prisoners, and that your fate will be the same
in whatever dress you are taken."

It was true, and I had been long enough
in Spain to know that that fate was likely to
be something more serious than mere death.
All the way from the frontier I had heard
grim tales of torture and mutilation. I
enveloped myself in the Franciscan gown.

" Now I am ready."

" Are you armed ? "

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 65

" My sabre."

" They will hear it clank. Take this
knife and leave your sword. Tell Hubert
that at four o'clock before dawn the storming
party will again be ready. There is a ser-
geant outside who will show you how to get
into the city. Good-night, and good luck ! "

Before I had left the room the two generals
had their cocked hats touching each other
over the map. At the door an under-of&cer
of Engineers was waiting for me. I tied the
girdle of my gown, and taking off my busby
I drew the cowl over my head. My spurs I
removed. Then in silence I followed my
guide.

It was necessary to move with caution, for
the walls above were lined by the Spanish
sentries, who fired down continually at our
advanced posts. Slinking along imder the
very shadow of the great convent, we picked
our way slowly and carefully among the piles
of ruins until we came to a large chestnut
tree. Here the sergeant stopped,

" It is an easy tree to climb," said he. " A
scaling ladder would not be simpler. Go up
it, and you will find that the top branch wiU
enable you to step upon the roof of that house.
After that it is your guardian angel who must
be your guide, for I can help you no more."

66 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Girding up the heavy brown gown, I ascended
the tree as directed. A half -moon was shining
brightly, and the line of roof stood out dark
and hard against the purple, starry sky.
The tree was in the shadow of the house.
Slowly I crept from branch to branch until I
was near the top. I had but to climb along
a stout limb in order to reach the wall. But
suddenly my ears caught the patter of feet,
and I cowered against the trunk and tried to
blend myself with its shadow. A man was
coming towards me on the roof. I saw his
dark figure creeping along, his body crouching,
his head advanced, the barrel of his gun pro-
truding. His whole bearing was full of
caution and suspicion. Once or twice he
paused, and then came on again until he had
reached the edge of the parapet within a few
yards of me. Then he knelt down, levelled
his musket, and fired.

I was so astonished at this sudden crash
at my very elbow that I nearly fell out of the
tree. For an instant I could not be sure that
he had not hit me. But when I heard a deep
groan from below, and the Spaniard leaned
over the parapet and laughed aloud, I under-
stood what had occurred. It was my poor,
faithful sergeant who had waited to see the
last of me. The Spaniard had seen him

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 67

standing under the tree and had shot him.
You will think that it was good shooting in
the dark, but these people use trebucos, or
blunderbusses, which are filled up with all
sorts of stones and scraps of metal, so that
they, will hit you as certainly as I have
hit a pheasant on a branch. The Spaniard
stood peering down through the darkness,
while an occasional groan from below showed
that the sergeant was still living. The sentry
looked round and everything was still and
safe. Perhaps he thought that he would like
to finish off this accursed Frenchman, or per-
haps he had a desire to see what was in his
pockets ; but whatever his motive he laid
down his gun, leaned forward, and swimg
himself into the tree. The same instant I
buried my knife in his body, and he fell with a
loud crashing through the branches and came
with a thud to the ground. I heard a short
struggle below and an oath or two in French.
The wounded sergeant had not waited long
for his vengeance.

For some minutes I did not dare to move,
for it seemed certain that someone would be
attracted by the noise. However, all was
silent save for the chimes striking midnight
in the city. I crept along the branch and
lifted myself on to the roof. The Spaniard's

68 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

gun was lying there, but it was of no service
to me, since he had the powder-horn at his
belt. At the same time, if it were found it
would warn the enemy that something had
happened, so I thought it best to drop it over
the wall. Then I looked round for the means
of getting off the roof and down into the city.
It was very evident that the simplest way
by which I could get down was that by which
the sentinel had got up, and what this was
soon became evident. A voice along the roof
called " Manuelo ! Manuelo ! " several times,
and, crouching in the shadow, I saw in the
moonlight a bearded head, which protruded
from a trap-door. Receiving no answer to
his summons the man climbed through,
followed by three other fellows all armed to
the teeth. You will see here how important
it is not to neglect small precautions, for had
I left the man's gun where I found it a search
must have followed, and I should certainly
have been discovered. As it was, the patrol
saw no sign of their sentry and thought, no
doubt, that he had moved along the line of
the roofs. They hurried on, therefore, in
that direction, and I, the instant that their
backs were turned, rushed to the open trap-
door and descended the flight of steps which
led from it. The house appeared to be an

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 69

empty one, for I passed through the heart of
it and out, by an open door, into the street
beyond.

It was a narrow and deserted lane, but it
opened into a broader road, which was dotted
with fires, round which a great number of
soldiers and peasants were sleeping. The
smell within the city was so horrible that one
wondered how people could live in it, for
during the months that the siege had lasted
there had been no attempt to cleanse the
streets or to bury the dead. Many people
were moving up and down from fire to fire,
and among them I observed several monks.
Seeing that they came and went unquestioned,
I took heart and hurried on my way in the
direction of the great square. Once a man
rose from beside one of the fires and stopped
me by seizing my sleeve. He pointed to a
woman who lay motionless upon the road,
and I took him to mean that she was dying,
and that he desired me to administer the last
ofiices of the Church. I sought refuge, how-
ever, in the very little Latin that was left to
me. " Ora pro nobis," said I, from the
depths of my cowl. " Te deum laudamus.
Ora pro nobis." I raised my hand as I spoke
and pointed forwards. The fellow released
my sleeve and shrank back in silence, while

70 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

I, with a solemn gesture, hurried upon my
way.

As I had imagined, this broad boulevard
led out into the central square, which was
full of troops and blazing with fires. I walked
swiftly onwards, disregarding one or two
people who addressed remarks to me. I
passed the cathedral and followed the street
which had been described to me. Being upon
the side of the city which was farthest from
our attack, there were no troops encamped in
it, and it lay in darkness, save for an occa-
sional glimmer in a window. It was not
difficult to find the house to which I had been
directed, between the wine-shop and the
cobbler's. There was no light within, and
the door was shut. Cautiously I pressed the
latch, and I felt that it had yielded. Who
was within I could not tell, and yet I must
take the risk. I pushed the door open and
entered.

It was pitch-dark within — ^the more so as
I had closed the door behind me. I felt
round and came upon the edge of a table.
Then I stood still and wondered what I
should do next, and how I could gain some
news of this Hubert, in whose house I found
myself. Any mistake would cost me not
only my life, but the failure of my mission.

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 71

Perhaps he did not live alone. Perhaps he
was only a lodger in a Spanish family, and my
visit might bring ruin to him as well as to
myself. Seldom in my life have I been more
perplexed. And then, suddenly, something
turned my blood cold in my veins. It was a
voice, a whispering voice, in my very ear.
" Mon Dieu I " cried the voice in a tone of
agony. " Oh, mon Dieu ! mon Dieu ! "
Then there was a dry sob in the darkness,
and all was still once more.

It thriUed me with horror, that terrible
voice ; but it thrilled me also with hope,
for it was the voice of a Frenchman.

" Who is there ? " I asked.

There was a groaning, but no reply.

" Is that you. Monsieur Hubert ? "

" Yes, yes," sighed the voice, so low that
I could hardly hear it. " Water, water, for
Heaven's sake, water ! "

I advanced in the direction of the sound,
but only to come in contact with the wall.
Again I heeird a groan, but this time there
could be no doubt that it was above my
head. I put up my hands, but they felt only
empty air.

" Where are you ? " I cried.

" Here ! Here ! " whispered the strange,
tremulous voice. I stretched my hand along

72 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

the wall, and I came upon a man's naked
foot. It was as high as my face, and yet,
so far as I could feel, it had nothing to sup-
port it. I staggered back in amazement.
Then I took a tinder-box from my pocket
and struck a light. At the first flash a man
seemed to be floating in the air in front of
me, and I dropped the box in my amazement.
Again, with tremulous fingers, I struck the
flint against the steel, and this time I lit not
only the tinder, but the wax taper. I held
it up, and if my amazement was lessened, my
horror was increased by that which it revealed.

The man had been nailed to the wall as a
weasel is nailed to the door of a bam. Huge
spikes had been driven through, his hands and
his feet. The poor wretch was in his last
agony, his head sunk upon his shoulder and
his blackened tongue protruded from his lips.
He was dying as much from thirst as from his
wounds, and these inhuman wretches had
placed a beaker of wine upon the table in
front of him to add a fresh pang to his tor-
tures. I raised it to his lips. He had still
strength enough to swallow, and the light
came back a little to his dim eyes.

" Are you a Frenchman ? " he whispered.

" Yes. They have sent me to learn what
had befallen you."

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 73

" They discovered me. They have killed
me for it. But before I die let me tell you
what I know. A little more of that wine,
please ! Quick ! Quick ! I am very near
the end. My strength is going. Listen to
me ! The powder is stored in the Mother
Superior's room. The wall is pierced, and
the end of the train is in Sister Angela's cell,
next the chapel. All was ready two days
ago. But they discovered a letter, and they
tortured me."

" Good Heavens ! have you been hanging
here for two days ? "

" It seems like two years. Comrade, I
have served France, have I not ? Then do
one little service for me. Stab me to the
heart, dear friend ! I implore you, I
entreat you, to put an end to my suffer-
ings."

The man was indeed in a hopeless plight,
and the kindest action would have been that
for which he begged. And yet I could not
in cold blood drive my knife into his body,
although I knew how I should have prayed
for such a mercy had I been in his place.
But a sudden thought crossed my mind. In
my pocket I held that which would give an
instant and painless death. It was my own
safeguard against torture, and yet this poor

74 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

soul was in very pressing need of it, and he
had deserved well of France.

I took out my phial and emptied it into
the cup of wine. I was in the act of handing
it to him when I heard a sudden clash of
arms outside the door. In an instant I put
out my light and slipped behind the window-
curtains. Next moment the door was flung
open, and two Spaniards strode into the room
— fierce, swEirthy men in the dress of citizens,
but with muskets slung over their shoulders.
I looked through the chink in the curtains in
an agony of fear lest they had come upon
my traces, but it was evident that their visit
was simply in order to feast their eyes upon
my unfortunate compatriot. One of them
held the lantern which he carried up in front
of the dying man, and both of them burst
into a shout of mocking laughter. Then the
eyes of the man with the lantern fell upon
the flagon of wine upon the table. He picked
it up, held it, with a devilish grin, to the lips
of Hubert, and then, as the poor wretch in-
voluntarily inclined his head forward to reach
it, snatched it back and took a long gulp
himself. At the same instant he uttered a
loud cry, clutched wildly at his own throat,
and fell stone-dead upon the floor. His com-
rade stared at him in horror and amazement.

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 75

Then, overcome by his own superstitious feaxs,
he gave a yell of terror and rushed madly
from the room. I heard his feet clattering
wildly on the cobble-stones until the sound
died away in the distance.

The lantern had been left burning upon
the table, and by its light I saw, as I came
out from behind my curtain, that the im-
fortunate Hubert's head had fallen forward
upon his chest and that he also was dead.
That motion to reach the wine with his lips
had been his last. A clock ticked loudly in
the house, but otherwise all was absolutely
still. On the wall hung the twisted form of
the Frenchman, on the floor lay the motion-
less body of the Spaniard, all dimly lit by
the horn lantern. For the first time in my
life a frantic spasm of terror came over me.
I had seen ten thousand men in every con-
ceivable degree of mutilation stretched upon
the ground, but the sight had never affected
me like those two silent figures who were my
companions in that shadowy room. I rushed
into the street as the Spaniard had done,
eager only to leave that house of gloom be-
hind me, and I had run as far as the cathedral
before my wits came back to me. There I
stopped panting in the shadow, and, my hand
pressed to my side, I tried to collect my scat-

76 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

tered senses and to plan out what I should
do. As I stood there, breathless, the great
brass bells roared twice above my head. It
was two o'clock. Four was the hour when
the storming party would be in its place. I
had still two hours in which to act.

The cathedral was brilliantly lit within,
and a number of people were paissing in and
out ; so I entered, thinking that I was less
likely to be accosted there and that I might
have quiet to form my plans. It was cer-
tainly a singular sight, for the place had been
turned into a hospital, a refuge, and a store-
house. One aisle was crammed with pro-
visions, another was littered with sick and
wounded, while in the centre a great number
of helpless people had taken up their abode
and had even lit their cooking fires upon the
mosaic floors. There were many at prayer,
so I knelt in the shadow of a pillar and I
prayed with all my heart that I might have
the good luck to get out of this scrape alive,
and that I might do such a deed that night
as would make my name as famous in Spain
as it had already become in Germany. I
waited until the clock struck three and then
I left the cathedral and made my way to-
wards the Convent of the Madonna, where
the assault was to be delivered. You will

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 71

understand, you who know me so well, that
I was not the man to return tamely to the
French camp with the report that our agent
was dead and that other means must be found
of entering the city. Either I should find
some means to finish his uncompleted task
or there would be a vacancy for a senior
captain in the Hussars of Confians.

I passed unquestioned down the broad
boulevard, which I have already described,
until I came to the great stone convent which
formed the outwork of the defence. It was
built in a square with a garden in the centre.
In this garden some hundreds of men were
assembled, all armed and ready, for it was
known, of course, within the town that this
was the point against which the French
attack was likely to be made. Up to this
time our fighting all over Europe had always
been done between one army and another.
It was only here in Spain that we learned
how terrible a thing it is to fight against a
people. On the one hand there is no glory,
for what glory could be gained by defeating
this rabble of elderly shopkeepers, ignorant
peasants, fanatical priests, excited women,
and all the other creatures who made up the
garrison ? On the other hand there were
extreme discomfort and danger, for these

78 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

people would give you no rest, would observe
no rules of war, and were desperately earnest
in their desire by hook or by crook to do
you an injury. I began to realise how odious
was our task as I looked upon the motley
but ferocious groups who were gathered
round the watch fires in the garden of the
Convent of the Madonna. It was not for us
soldiers to think about politics, but from the
beginning there always seemed to be a curse
upon this war in Spain.

However, at the moment I had no time to
brood over such matters as these. There
was, as I have said, no difficulty in getting
as far as the convent garden, but to pass
inside the convent unquestioned was not so
easy. The first thing which I did was to
walk round the garden, and I was soon able
to pick out one large stained-glass window
which must belong to the chapel. I had
understood from Hubert that the Mother
Superior's room in which the powder was
stored was near to this, and that the train
had been laid through a hole in the wall from
some neighbouring cell. I must at all costs
get into the convent. There was a guard
at the door, and how could I get in with-
out explanations ? But a sudden inspiration
showed me how the thing might be done.

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 79

In the garden was a well, and beside the well
were a number of empty buckets. I filled
two of these and approached the door. The
errand of a man who carries a bucket of water
in each hand does not need to be explained.
The guard opened to let me through. I found
myself in a long stone-flagged corridor lit with
lanterns, with the cells of the nuns leading
out from one side of it. Now at last I was
on the high road to success. I walked on
without hesitation, for I knew by my obser-
vations in the garden which way to go for
the chapel.

A number of Spanish soldiers were lounging
and smoking in the corridor, several of whom
addressed me zis I passed. I fancy it was for
my blessing that they asked, and my " Ora
pro nobis " seemed to entirely satisfy them.
Soon I had got as far as the chapel, and it
was easy to see that the cell next door was
used as a magazine, for the floor was all
black with powder in front of it. The door
was shut, and two fierce-looking fellows stood
on guard outside it, one of them with a key
stuck in his belt. Had we been alone it would
not have been long before it would have been
in my hand, but with his comrade there it
was impossible for me to hope to take it by
force. The cell next door to the magazine

80 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

on the far side from the chapel must be the
one which belonged to Sister Angela. It
was half open. I took my courage in both
hands, and leaving my buckets in the corridor,
I walked unchallenged into the room.

I was prepared to find half a dozen fierce
Spanish desperadoes within, but what actually
met my eyes was even more embarrassing.
The room had apparently been set aside for
the use of some of the nims, who for some
reason had refused to quit their home. Three
of them were within, one an elderly, stem-
faced dame who was evidently the Mother
Superior, the others young ladies of charming
appearance. They were seated together at
the far side of the room, but they all rose at
my entrance, and I saw with some amaze-
ment, by their manner and expressions, that
my coming was both welcome and expected.
In a moment my presence of mind had re-
turned, and I saw exactly how the matter lay.
Naturally, since an attack was about to be
made upon the convent, these sisters had been
expecting to be directed to some place of
safety. Probably they were under vow not
to quit the walls, and they had been told to
remain in this cell imtil they had received
further orders. In any case I adapted my
conduct to this supposition, since it was clear

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 81

that I must get them out of the room, and
this would give me a ready excuse to do so.
I first cast a glance at the door and observed
that the key was within. I then made a
gesture to the nuns to follow me. The
Mother Superior asked me some question, but
I shook my head impatiently and beckoned
to her again. She hesitated, but I stamped
my foot and called them forth in so imperious
a majiner that they came at once. They
would be safer in the chapel, and thither I led
them, placing them at the end which was
farthest from the magazine. As the three
nuns took their places before the altar my
heart bounded with joy and pride within me,
for I felt that the last obstacle had been lifted
from my path.'

And yet how often have I not found that
this is the very moment of danger ? I took
a last glance at the Mother Superior, and to
my dismay I saw that her piercing dark eyes
were fixed, with an expression in which sur-
prise was deepening into suspicion, upon my
right hand. There were two points which
might well have attracted her attention. One
was that it was red with the blood of the
sentinel whom I had stabbed in the tree^
That alone might count for little, as the knife
is as familiar as the breviary to the monks

82 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

of Saragossa. But on my forefinger I wore
a heavy gold ring — the gift of a German
baroness whose name I may not mention.
It shone brightly in the light of the altar
lamp. Now, a ring upon a friar's hand is
an impossibility, since they are yowed to
absolute poverty. I turned quickly and made
for the door of the chapel, but the mischief
was done. As I glanced back I saw that the
Mother Superior was already hurrying after
me. I ran through the chapel door and along
the corridor, but she called out some shrill
warning to the two guards in front. For-
tunately I had the presence of mind to call
out also, and to point down the passage as
if we were both pursuing the same object.
Next instant I had dashed past them, sprang
into the cell, slammed the heavy door, and
fastened it upon the inside. With a bolt
above and below and a huge lock in the centre
it was a piece of timber that would take some
forcing. '

Even now if they had had the wit to put
a barrel of powder against the door I should
have been ruined. It was their only chance,
for I had come to the final stage of my adven-
ture. Here at last, after such a string of
dangers as few men have ever lived to talk of
I was at one end of the powder train, with the

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 83

Saragossa magazine at the other. They were

howling like wolves out in the passage, and

muskets were crashing against the door. I

paid no heed to their clamour, but I looked

eagerly round for that train of which Hubert

had spoken.. Of course, it must be at the

side of the room next to the magazine. I

crawled along it on my hands and knees,

looking into every crevice, but no sign could

I see. Two bullets flew through the door and

flattened themselves against the wall. The

thudding and smashing grew ever louder. I

saw a grey pile in a comer, flew to it with a

cry of joy, and found that it was only dust.

Then I got back to the side of the door where

no bullets could ever reach me — they were

streaming freely into the room — and I tried

to forget this fiendish howling in my ear and

to think out where this train could be. It must

have been carefully laid by Hubert lest these

nuns should see it. I tried to imagine how

I should myself have arranged it had I been

in his place.' My eye was attracted by a

statue of St. Joseph which stood in the comer.

There was a wreath of leaves along the edge

of the pedestal, with a lamp burning amidst

them. I rushed across to it and tore the

leaves aside. Yes, yes, there was a thin

black line, which disappeared through a small

84 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

hole in the wall. I tilted over the lamp, and
threw myself on the ground. Next instant
came a roar like thunder, the walls wavered
and tottered around me, the ceiling clattered
down from above, and over the yell of the
terrified Spaniards was heard the terrific
shout of the storming column of the Grena-
diers. As in a dream — a happy dream — I
heard it, and then I heard no more.

When I came to my senses two French
soldiers were propping me up, and my head
was singing Uke a kettle. I staggered to my
feet and looked aroimd me. The plaster had
fallen, the furniture was scattered, and there
were rents in the bricks, but no signs of a
breach. In fact, the waUs of the convent
had been so solid that the explosion of the
magazine had been insufficient to throw them
down. On the other hand, it had caused
such a panic among the defenders that our
stormers had been able to carry the windows
and throw open the doors almost without
resistance. As I ran out into the corridor I
found it full of troops, and I met Marshal
Lannes himself, who was entering with his
staff. He stopped and listened eagerly to
my story.

" Splendid, Captain Gerard, splendid ! " he

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 85

cried. " These facts will certainly be reported
to the Emperor,"

" I would suggest to your Excellency,"
said I, " that I have only finished the work
that was planned and carried out by Monsieur
Hubert, who gave his life for the cause."

" His services will not be forgotten," said
the Marshal. " Meanwhile, Captain Gerard,
it is half-past four, and you must be starving
after such a night of exertion. My staff and
I will breakfast inside the city. I assure you
that you will be an honoured guest."

" I will follow your Excellency," said I.
" There is a small engagement which detains
me.

He opened his eyes.

" At this hour ? "

" Yes, sir," I answered. " My fellow-
officers, whom I never saw until last night,
will not be content unless they catch another
glimpse of me the first thing this morning."

" Au revoir, then," said Marshal Lannes,
as he passed upon his way.

I hurried through the shattered door of
the convent. ~ When I reached the roofless
house in which we had held the consultation
the night before, I threw off my gown, and I
put on the busby and sabre which I had left
there. Then, a Hussar once more, I hurried

86 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

onwards to the grove which was our
rendezvous. My brain was still reeling from
the concussion of the powder, and I was
exhausted by the many emotions which had
shaken me during that terrible night. It is
like a dream, aU that walk in the first dim
grey light of dawn, with the smouldering
camp-fires around me and the buzz of the
waking army. Bugles and drums in every
direction were mustering the infantry, for the
explosion and the shouting had told their
own tale. I strode onwards until, as I
entered the little clump of cork oaks behind
the horse lines, I saw my twelve comrades
waiting in a group, their sabres at their sides.
They looked at me curiously as I approached.
Perhaps with my powder-blackened face and
my blood-stained hands I seemed a different
Gerard to the young captain whom they had
made game of the night before.

" Good morning, gentlemen," said I. "I
regret exceedingly if I have kept you waiting,
but I have not been master of my own time."

They said nothing, but they still scanned
me with curious eyes. I can see them now,
standing in a line before me, tall men and
short men, stout men and thin men ; Olivier,
with his warlike moustache ; the thin, eager
face of Pelletan ; yoimg Oudin, flushed by his

HOW HE CAPTURED SARAGOSSA 87

first duel ; Mortier, with the sword-cut across
his wrinkled brow. I laid aside my busby
and drew my sword.

" I have one favour to ask you, gentlemen,"
said I. " Marshal Lannes has invited me to
breakfast, and I cannot keep him waiting."

" What do you suggest ? " asked Major
Olivier.

" That you release me from my promise
to give you five minutes each, and that you
will permit me to attack you all together."
I stood upon my guard as I spoke.

But their answer was truly beautiful and
truly French. With one impulse the twelve
swords flew from their scabbards and were
raised in salute. There they stood, the
twelve of them, motionless, their heels to-
gether, each with his sword upright before
his face.

I staggered back from them. I looked
from one to the other. For an instant I
could not believe my own eyes. They were
paying me homage, these, the men who had
jeered me ! Then I understood it all. I saw
the effect that I had made upon them and
thefr desire to make reparation. When a
man is weak he can steel himself against
danger, but not against emotion. " Com-
rades," I cried, " comrades ! " but I

88 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

could say no more. Something seemed to
take me by the throat and choke me. And
then in an instant Olivier's arms were round
me, Pelletan had seized me by the right hand,
Mortier by the left, some were patting me
on the shoulder, some were clapping me on
the back, on every side smiling faces were
looking into mine ; and so it was that I
knew that I had won my footing in the
Hussars of Conflans.

Ill

HOW THE BRIGADIER SLEW THE
FOX*

In all the great hosts of France there was
only one officer towards whom the English
of Wellington's army retained a deep, steady,
and unchangeable hatred. There were plun-
derers among the French, and men of vio-
lence, gamblers, duellists, and rouis. All
these could be forgiven, for others of their
kidney were to be found among the ranks of
the English. But one officer of Massena's
force had committed a crime which was
unspeakable, unheard of, . abominable ; only
to be alluded to with curses late in the even-
ing, when a second bottle had loosened the
tongues of men. The news of it was carried
back to England, and country gentlemen who
knew little of the details of the war grew
crimson with passion when they heard of it,

• This story has, by the kind consent of Messrs. Smith,
Elder & Co., been transferred from "The Green Flag," so
that all the Brigadier Gerard stories may appear together.

<9

90 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

and yeomen of the shires raised freckled fists
to Heaven and swore. And yet who should
be the doer of this dreadful deed but our
friend the brigadier, Etieime Gerard, of the
Hussars of Conflans, gay-riding, plume-toss-
ing, debonair, the darling of the ladies and of
the six brigades of light cavalry.

But the strange part of it is that this
gallant gentleman did this hateful thing, and
made himself the most unpopular man in the
Peninsula, without ever knowing that he had
done a crime for which there is hardly a
name amid all the resources of our language.
He died of old age, and never once in that
imperturbable self-confidence which adorned
or disfigured his character knew that so many
thousand Englishmen would gladly have
hanged him with their own hands. On the
contrary, he numbered this adventure among
those other exploits which he has given to
the world, and many a time he chuckled and
hugged himself as he narrated it to the eager
circle who gathered round him in that humble
caf^ where, between his dinner and his
dominoes, he would tell, amid tears and
laughter, of that inconceivable Napoleonic
past when France, like an angel of wrath,
rose up, splendid and terrible, before a
cowering continent. Let us listen to him as

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX 91

he tells the story in his own way and from
his own point of view,

You must know, my friends (said he), that
it was toward the end of the year eighteen
hundred and ten that I and Massena and the
others pushed Wellington backwards until
we had hoped to drive him and his army
into the Tagus. But when we were still
twenty-five miles from Lisbon we found that
we were betrayed, for what had this English-
man done but build an enormous line of
works and forts at a place called Torres
Vedras, so that even we were unable to get
through them ! They lay across the whole
peninsula, and our army was so far from
home that we did not dare to risk a reverse,
and we had already learned at Busaco that
it was no child's play to fight against these
people. What could we do, then, but sit
down in front of these lines and blockade
them to the best of our power ? There we
remained for six months, amid such anxieties
that Massena said afterwards that he had
not one hair which was not white upon his
body. For my own part, I did not worry
much about our situation, but I looked after
our horses, who were in great need of rest
and green fodder. For the rest, we drank

92 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

the wine of the country and passed the time
as best we might. There was a lady at
Santarem — but my lips are sealed. It is the
part of a gallant man to say nothing, though
he may indicate that he could say a great
deal.

One day Massena sent for me, and I found
him in his tent with a great plan pirmed upon
the table. He looked at me in silence with
that single piercing eye of his, and I felt by
his expression that the matter was serious.
He was nervous and ill at ease, but my bear-
ing seemed to reassure him. It is good to be
in contact with brave men.

" Colonel Etienne Gerard," said he, "I
have always heard that you are a very gallant
and enterprising officer."

It was not for me to confirm such a report,
and yet it would be folly to deny it, so I
clinked my spurs together and saluted.

" You are also an excellent rider."

1 admitted it.

" And the best swordsman in the six
brigades of light cavalry."

Massena was famous for the accuracy of
his information.

" Now," said he, " if you will look at this
plan you will have no difiiculty in under-
standing what it is that I wish you to do.

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX 93

These are the lines of Torres Vedras. You
will perceive that they cover a vast space,
and you will realise that the English can
only hold a position here and there. Once
through the lines, you have twenty-five miles
of open country which lie between them and
Lisbon. It is very important to me to learn
how Wellington's troops are distributed
throughout that space, and it is my wish
that you should go and ascertain.'^

His words turned me cold.

" Sir," said I, " it is impossible that a
colonel of light cavalry should condescend
to act as a spy."

He laughed and clapped me on the shoulder
" You would not be a Hussar if you were not
a hot-head," said he. " If you will listen
you will understand that I have not asked
you to act as a spy. What do you think of
that horse ? "

He had conducted me to the opening of
his tent, and there was a Chasseur who led
up and down a most adndrable creature. He
was a dapple grey, not very tall — a Uttle over
fifteen hands perhaps — but with the short
head and splendid arch of the neck which
comes with the Arab blood. His shoulders
and haunches were so muscular, and yet his
legs so fine, that it thrilled me with joy just

94 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

to gaze upon him. A fine horse or a beauti-
ful woman, I cannot look at them unmoved,
even now when seventy winters have chilled
my blood. You can think how it was in the
year 'lo.

" This," said Massena, " is Voltigeur, the
swiftest horse in our army. What I desire
is that you should start to-night, ride round
the lines upon the flank, make your way
across the enemy's rear, and return upon the
other flank, bringing me news of his disposi-
tions. You will wear a uniform, and will,
therefore, if captured, be safe from the death
of a spy. It is probable that you will get
through the lines imchallenged, for the posts
are very scattered. Once through, in day-
light you can outride anything which you
meet, and if you keep off the roads you may
escape entirely unnoticed. If you have not
reported yourself by to-morrow night I will
understand that you are taken, and I will
offer them Colonel Petrie in exchange."

Ah, how my heart swelled with pride and
joy as I sprang into the saddle and galloped
this grand horse up and down to show the
marshal the mastery which I had of him I
He was magnificent — we were both magnifi-
cent, for Massena clapped his hands and cried
out in his deUght. It was not I. but he, who

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX 95

said that a gallant beast deserves a gallant
rider. Then, when for the third time, with
my panache flying and my dolman streaming
behind me, I thundered past him, I saw upon
his hard old face that he had no longer any
doubt that he had chosen the man for his
purpose. I drew my sabre, raised the hilt
to my lips in salute, and galloped on to my
own quarters. Already the news had spread
that I had been chosen for a mission, and my
little rascals came swarming out of their tents
to cheer me. Ah ! it brings the tears to my
old eyes when I think how proud they were
of their colonel. And I was proud of them
also. They deserved a dashing leader.

The night promised to be a stormy one,
which was very much to my liking. It was
my desire to keep my departure most secret,
for it was evident that if the English heard
that I had been detached from the army they
would naturally conclude that something
important was about to happen. My horse
was taken, therefore, beyond the picket line,
as if for watering, and I followed and mounted
him there. I had a map, a compass, and a
paper of instructions from the marshal, and
with these in the bosom of my tunic, and a
sabre at my side, I set out upon my adven-
ture. A thin rain was faUing, and there was

96 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

no moon, so you may imagine that it was not
very cheerful. But my heart was light at
the thought of the honour which had been
done me, and the glory which awaited me.
This exploit should be one more in that bril-
liant series which was to change my sabre
into a baton. Ah, how we dreamed, we
foolish fellows, young, and drunk with success !
Could I have foreseen that night as I rode,
the chosen man of 60,000, that I should
spend my life planting cabbages on a hun-
dred francs a month I Oh, my youth, my
hopes, my comrades ! But the wheel turns
and never stops. Forgive me, my friends,
for an old man has his weakness.

My route, then, lay across the face of the
high ground of Torres Vedras, then over a
streamlet, past a farmhouse which had been
burned down and was now only a landmark,
then through a forest of young cork oaks,
and so to the monastery of San Antonio,
which marked the left of the English posi-
tion. Here I turned south and rode quietly
over the downs, for it was at this point that
Massena thought that it would be most easy
for me to find my way unobserved through
the position. I went very slowly, for it was
so dark that I could not see my hand in
front of me. In such cases I leave my bridle

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX 97

loose, and let my horse pick its own way.
Voltigeur went confidently forward, and I
was very content to sit upon his back, and
to peer about me, avoiding every Ught. For
three hours we advanced in this cautious
way, imtil it seemed to me that I must have
left all danger behind me. I then pushed on
more briskly, for I wished to be in the rear
of the whole army by daybreak. There are
many vineyards in these parts which in winter
become open plains, and a horseman finds
few difiiculties in his way.

But Massena had underrated the cunning
of these English, for it appears that there
was not one line of defence, but three, and
it was the third which was the most formid-
able, through which I was at that instant
passing. As I rode, elated at my own
success, a lantern flashed suddenly before
me, and I saw the glint of poUshed gun-
barrels and the gleam of a red coat.

" Who goes there ? " cried a voice — such
a voice ! I swerved to the right and rode
like a madman, but a dozen squirts of fire
came out of the darkness, and the bullets
whizzed all roimd my ears. That was no
new sound to me, my friends, though I will
not talk hke a foolish conscript and say that
T have ever liked it. But at least it had

98 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

never kept me from thinking clearly, and so
I knew that there was nothing for it but to
gaUop hard and try my luck elsewhere. I
rode round the English picket, and then, as
I heard nothing more of them, I concluded
rightly that I had at last come through their
defences. For five miles I rode south, strik-
ing a tinder from time to time to look at my
pocket compass. And then in an instant —
I feel the pang once more as my memory
brings back the moment — my horse, without
a sob or stagger, fell stone dead beneath me !
I had not known it, but one of the bullets
from that infernal picket had passed through
his body. The gallant creature had never
winced nor weakened, but had gone while
life was in him. One instant I was secure on
the swiftest, most graceful horse in Massena's
army. The next he lay upon his side, worth
only the price of his hide, and I stood there
that most helpless, most ungainly of crea-
tures, a dismounted Hussar. What could I
do with my boots, my spurs, my trailing
sabre ? I was far inside the enemy's lines.
How could I hope to get back again ? I am
not ashamed to say that I, Etienne Gerard,
sat upon my dead horse and sank my face
in my hands in my despair. Already the
first streaks were whitening in the east. In

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX 99

half an hour it would be light. That I should
have won my way past every obstacle, and
then at this last instant be left at the mercy
of my enemies, my mission ruined, and myself
a prisoner — ^was it not enough to break a
soldier's heart ?

But courage, my friends ! We have these
moments of weakness, the bravest of us ;
but I have a spirit Uke a slip of steel, for
the more you bend it the higher it springs.
One spasm of despair, and then a brain of
ice and a heart of fire. All was not yet lost.
I, who had come through so many hazards,
would come through this one also. I rose
from my horse and considered what had best
be done.

And first of all it was certain that I could
not get back. Long before I covdd pass the
Unes it would be broad daylight. I must
hide myself for the day, and devote the next
night to my escape. I took the saddle,
holsters, and bridle from my poor Voltigeur,
and I concealed them among some bushes,
so that no one finding him could know that
he was a French horse. Then, leaving him
l5dng there, I wandered on in search of some
place where I might be safe for the day. In
every direction I could see camp fires upon
the sides of the hills, and already figures had

100 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

begun to move around them. I must hide
quickly or I was lost. But where was 1 to
hide ? It was a vineyard in which I found
myself, the poles of the vines still standing,
but the plants gone. There was no cover
there. Beside, I should want some food and
water before another night had come. I
hurried wildly onwards through the waning
darkness, trusting that chance would be my
friend. And I was not disappointed. Chance
is a woman, my friends, and she has her eye
always upon a gaUant Hussar.

Well, then, I stumbled through the vine-
yard, something loomed in front of me, and
I came upon a great square house with an-
other long, low building upon one side of it.
Three roads met there, and it was easy to see
that this was the posada, or wine-shop. There
was no light in the windows, and everything
was dark and silent, but, of course, I knew
that such comfortable quarters were certainly
occupied, and probably by someone of im-
portance. I have learned, however, that the
nearer the danger may really be the safer the
place, and so I was by no means inclined
to trust myself away from this shelter. The
low building was evidently the stable, and
into this I crept, for the door was unlatched.
The place was full of bullocks and sheep.

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX 101

gathered there, no doubt, to be out of the
clutches of marauders. A ladder led to a
loft, and up this I climbed, and concealed
myself very snugly among some bales of hay
upon the top. This loft had a small open
window, and I was able to look down upon
the front of the inn and also upon the road.
Then I crouched and waited to see what
would happen.

It was soon evident that I had not been
mistaken when I had thought that this might
be the queirters of some person of import-
ance. Shortly after daybreak an English
light dragoon arrived with a despatch, and
from then onwards the place was in a tur-
moil, officers continually riding up and away.
Always the same name was upon their lips :
" Sir Stapleton — Sir Stapleton." It was hard
for me to lie there with a dry moustache and
watch the great flagons which were brought
out by the landlord to these English officers.
But it amused me to look at their fresh-
coloured, clean-shaven, careless faces, and to
wonder what they would think if they knew
that so celebrated a person was lying so near
to them. And then, as I lay and watched,
I saw a sight which filled me with surprise.

It is incredible the insolence of these
English ! What do you suppose Milord Wei-

102 ADVENTURES OF GEBiARD

lington had done when he found that Massena
had blockaded him and that he could not
move his army ? I might give you many
guesses. You might say that he had raged,
that he had despaired, that he had brought
his troops together and spoken to them about
glory and the fatherland before leading them
to one last battle. No, Milord did none of
these things. But he sent a fleet ship to
England to bring him a number of fox-dogs,
and he with his officers settled himself down
to chase the fox. It is true what I tell you.
Behind the lines of Torres Vedras these mad
Englishmen made the fox-chase three days in
the week. We had heard of it in the camp,
and now I myself was to see that it was true.
For, along the road which I have described,
there came these very dogs, thirty or forty
of them, white and brown, each with its tail
at the same angle, like the bayonets of the
Old Guard. My faith, but it was a pretty
sight ! And behind and amidst them there
rode three men with peaked caps and red
coats, whom I understood to be the hunters.
After them came many horsemen with uni-
forms of various kinds, stringing along the
road in twos and threes, talking together
and laughing. They did not seem to be going
above a trot, and it appeared to me that it

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX 103

must indeed be a slow fox which they hoped
to catch. However, it was their affair, not
mine, and soon they had all passed my
window and were out of sight. I waited and
I watched, ready for any chance which might
offer.

Presently an officer, in a blue uniform not
unlike that of our flying artillery, came
cantering down the road — ^an elderly, stout
man he was, with grey side-whiskers. He
stopped and began to talk with an orderly
ofi&cer of dragoons, who waited outside the
inn, and it was then that I learned the advan-
tage of the English which had been taught
me. I could hear and understand all that
was said.

" Where is the meet ? " said the officer,
and I thought that he was hungering for his
bifstek. But the other answered him that
it was near Altera, so I saw that it was a
place of which he spoke.

" You are late, Sir George," said the
orderly.

" Yes, I had a court-martial. Has Sir
Stapleton Cotton gone ? "

At this moment a window opened, and
a handsome young man in a very splendid
uniform looked out of it.

" Halloa, Murray 1 " said he. " These

104 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

cursed papers keep me, bnt I will be at your
heels."

" Very good, Cotton. I am late already,
so I will ride on."

" You might order my groom to bring
round my horse," said the young general at
the window to the orderly below, while the
other went on down the road.

The orderly rode away to some outlying
stable, and then in a few minutes there came
a smart English groom with a cockade in
his hat, leading by the bridle a horse — and,
oh, my friends, you have never known the
perfection to which a horse can attain until
you have seen a first-class English hunter.
He was superb : tall, broad, strong, and yet
as graceful and agile as a deer. Coal black
he was in colour, and his neck, and his
shoulder, and his quarters, and his fetlocks
— ^how can I describe him all to you ? The
sun shone upon him as on polished ebony,
and he raised his hoofs in a little playful
dance so lightly and prettily, while he tossed
his mane and whinnied with impatience.
Never have I seen such a mixture of
strength and beauty and grace. I had often
wondered how the English Hussars had
managed to ride over the Chasseurs of the
Guards in the affair at Astorga, but I

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX 105

wondered no longer when I saw the EngUsh
horses.

There was a ring for fastening bridles at

the door of the inn, and the groom tied the

horse there while he entered the house. In

an instant I had seen the chance which Fate

had brought to me. Were I in that saddle

I should be better off than when I started.

Even Voltigeur could not compare with this

magnificent creature. To think is to act with

me. In one instant I was down the ladder

and at the door of the stable. The next I

was out and the bridle was in my hand. I

bounded into the saddle. Somebody, the

master or the man, shouted wildly behind

me. What cared I for his shouts ! I touched

the horse with my spurs, and he bounded

forward with such a spring that only a rider

like myself could have sat him. I gave him

his head and let him go — it did not matter

to me where, so long as we left this inn far

behind us. He thundered away across the

vineyards, and in a very few minutes I had

placed miles between myself and my pursuers.

They could no longer tell, in that wild country,

in which direction I had gone. I knew that

I was safe, and so, riding to the top of a small

hill, I drew my pencil and note-book from

my pocket, and proceeded to make plans of

106 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

those camps which I could see, and to draw
the outline of the country.

He was a dear creature upon whom I sat,
but it was not easy to draw upon his back,
for every now and then his two eairs would
cock, and he would start and quiver with
impatience. At first I could not imderstand
this trick of his, but soon I observed that
he only did it when a peculiar noise — " Yoy,
yoy, yoy" — came from somewhere among
the oak woods beneath us. And then sud-
denly this strange cry changed into a most
terrible screaming, with the frantic blowing
of a horn. Instantly he went mad — ^this
horse. His eyes blazed. His mane bristled.
He bounded from the earth and bounded
again, twisting and timiing in a fienzy.
My pencil flew one way and my note-book
another. And then, as I looked down into
the valley, an extraordinary sight met my
eyes. The hunt was streaming down it.
The fox I could not see, but the dogs were
in full cry, their noses down, their tails up,
so close together that they might have been
one great yellow and white moving carpet.
And behind them rode the horsemen — ^my
faith, what a sight ! Consider every type
which a great army could show : some in
hunting dress, but the most in uniforms ;

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX 107

blue dragoons, red dragoons, red-trousered
hussars, green riflemen, artillerymen, gold-
slashed lancers, and most of all red, red, red,
for the infantry ofl&cers ride as hard as the
cavalry. Such a crowd, some well mounted,
some ill, but all flying along as best they
might, the subaltern as good as the general,,
jostling and pushing, spurring and drivings
with every thought thrown to the winds save
that they should have the blood of this
absurd fox I Truly, they are an extraordinary
people, the EngUsh 1 But I had Uttle time
to watch the hunt or to marvel at these
islanders, for of all these mad creatures the
very horse upon which I sat was the maddest.
You understand that he was himself a hunter,,
and that the crying of these dogs was to him
what the call of a cavalry trumpet in the
street yonder would be to me. It thrilled
him. It drove him wild. Again and again
he bounded into the air, and then, seizing
the bit between his teeth, he plunged down
the slope, and galloped after the dogs. I
swore, and tugged, and pulled, but I was
powerless.^ This English general rode his
horse with a snaffle only, and the beast had a
mouth of iron. It was useless to pull him
back. One might as well try to keep a
Grenadier from a wine bottle. I gave it up

108 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

in despair, and, settling down in the saddle,
I prepared for the worst which could befall.

What a creature he was ! Never have I
felt such a horse between my knees. His
great haunches gathered under him with
every stride, and he shot forward ever faster
and faster, stretched like a greyhound, while
the wind beat in my face and whistled past
my ears. I was wearing our undress jacket,
a imiform simple and dark in itself — ^though
some figures give distinction to any uniform
— and I had taken the precaution to remove
the long panache from my busby. The result
was that, amidst the mixture of costumes in
the hunt, there was no reason why mine
should attract attention, or why these men,
whose thoughts were all with the chase,
should give any heed to me. The idea that
a French of&cer might be riding with them
was too absurd to enter their minds. I
laughed as I rode, for, indeed, amid all the
danger, there was something of comic in the
situation.

I have said that the himters were very
unequally mounted, and so, at the end of a
few mUes, instead of being one body of men,
like a charging regiment, they were scattered
over a considerable space, the better riders
well up to the dogs, and the others trailing

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX 109

away behind. Now, I was as good a rider
as any, and my horse was the best of them
all, and so you can imagine that it was not
long before he carried me to the front. And
when I saw the dogs streaming over the open,
and the red-coated huntsman behind them,
and only seven or eight horsemen between
us, then it was that the strangest thing of all
happened, for I, too, went mad — I, Etienne
Gerard I In a moment it came upon me,
this spirit of sport, this desire to excel, this
hatred of the fox. Accursed animal, should
he then defy us ? Vile robber, his hour was
come 1 Ah, it is a great feeling, this feeling
of sport, my friends, this desire to trample
the fox under the hoofs of your horse. I
have made the fox-chase with the English.
I have also, as I may tell you some day,
fought the box-fight with the Bustler, of
Bristol. And I say to you that this sport is
a wonderful thing — full of interest as well as
madness.

The farther we went the faster galloped
my horse, and soon there were but three men
as near the dogs as I was. All thought of
fear of discovery had vanished. My brain
throbbed, my blood ran hot — only one thing
upon earth seemed worth living for, and that
was to overtake this infernal fox. I passed

no ADVENTURES OF GERARD

one of the horsemen — a Hussar Uke myself.
There were only two in front of me now —
the one in a black coat, the other the blue
artilleryman whom I had seen at the inn.
His grey whiskers streamed in the wind, but
he rode magnificently.v For a mile or more
we kept in this order, and then, as we gal-
loped up a steep slope, my Ughter weight
brought me to the front. I passed them
both, and when I reached the crown I was
riding level with the little, hard-faced Eng-
lish hxmtsman. In front of us were the
dogs, and then, a hundred paces beyond
them, was a brown wisp of a thing, the fox
itself, stretched to the uttermost. The sight
of him fired my blood. " Aha, we have you
then, assassin ! " I cried, and shouted my
encouragement to the huntsman. I waved
my hand to show him that there was one
upon whom he could rely.

And now there were only the dogs between
me and my prey. These dogs, whose duty
it is to point out the game, were now rather
a hindrance than a help to us, for it was
hard to know how to pass them. The hunts-
man felt the difficulty as much as I, for he
rode behind them and could make no pro-
gress towards the fox. He was a swift rider,
but wanting in enterprise. For my part, I

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX HI

felt that it would be unworthy of the Hussars
of Conflans if I could not overcome such a
difficulty as this. Was Etienne Gerard to
be stopped by a herd of fox-dogs ? It was
absurd. I gave a shout and spurred my horse,

" Hold hard, sir ! Hold hard 1" cried the
huntsman.

He was uneasy for me, this good old man,
but I reassured him by a wave and smile.
The dogs opened in front of me. One or
two may have been hurt, but what would
you have ? The egg must be broken for the
omelette. I could hear the huntsman shout-
ing his congratulations behind me. One more
effort, and the dogs were all behind me.
Only the fox was in front.

Ah, the joy and pride of that moment I
To know that I had beaten the English at
their own sport. Here were three hundred
all thirsting for the Ufe of this animal, and
yet it was I who was about to take it. I
thought of my comrades of the light cavalry
brigade, of my mother, of the Emperor, of
France. I had brought honour to each and
all. Every instant brought me nearer to the
fox. The moment for action had arrived, so
I unsheathed my sabre. I waved it in the
air, and the brave English all shouted behind
me.

112 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Only then did I understand how difficult
is this fox-chase, for one may cut again and
again at the creature and never strike him
once. He is small, and turns quickly from
a blow. At every cut I heard those shouts
of encouragement behind me, and they
spurred me to yet another effort. And then
at last the supreme moment of my triumph
arrived. In the very act of turning I caught
him fair with such another back-handed cut
as that with which I killed the aide-de-camp
of the Emperor of Russia. He flew into
two pieces, his head one way and his tail
another. I looked back and waved the
blood-stained sabre in the air. For the
moment I was exalted — superb !

Ah ! how I should have loved to have
waited to have received the congratulations
of these generous enemies. There were fifty
of them in sight, and not one of them who
was not waving his hand and shouting. They
are not really such a phlegmatic race, the
English. A gallant deed in war or in sport
will always warm their hearts. As to the
old huntsman, he was the nearest to me, and
I could see with my own eyes how overcome
he was by what he had seen. He was hke a
man paralysed — his mouth open, his hand,
with outspread fingers, raised in the air. For

HOW HE SLEW THE FOX 113

a moment my inclination was to return and
embrace him. But already the call of duty
was sounding in my ears, and these English,
in spite of all the fraternity which exists
among sportsmen, would certainly have made
me prisoner. There was no hope for my
mission now, and I had done all that I could
do. I could see the lines of Massena's camp
no very great distance off, for, by a lucky
chance, the chase had taken us in that direc-
tion. I turned from the dead fox, saluted
with my sabre, and galloped away.

But they would not leave me so easily,
these gallant huntsmen. I was the fox now,
and the chase swept bravely over the plain.
It was only at the moment when I started
for the camp that they could have known
that I was a Frenchman, and now the whole
swarm of them were at my heels. We were
within gunshot of our pickets before they
would halt, and then they stood in knots and
would not go away, but shouted and waved
their hands at me. No, I will not think
that it was in enmity. Rather would I fancy
that a glow of admiration filled their breasts,
and that their one desire was to embrace the
stranger who had carried himself so gallantly
and well.

IV

HOW THE BRIGADIER SAVED
AN ARMY

I HAVE told you, my friends, how we held
the English shut up for six months, from
October, 1810, to March, 1811, within their
Unes of Torres Vedras. It was during this
time that I hunted the fox in their company,
and showed them that amidst all their
sportsmen there was not one who could out-
ride a Hussar of Conflans. When I galloped
back into the French lines with the blood of
the creature still moist upon my blade, the
outposts who had seen what I had done
raised a frenzied cry in my honour, whilst
these EngHsh htmters still yelled behind me,
so that I had the applause of both armies.
It made the tears rise to my eyes to feel that
I had won the admiration of so many brave
men. These EngUsh are generous foes. That
very evening there came a packet under a
white flag addressed " To the Hussar officer
who cut down the fox.' Within I found the

"4

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY US

fox itself in two pieces, as I had left it.
There was a note also, short but hearty as
the English fashion is, to say that as I had
slaughtered the fox it only remained for me
to eat it. I They could not know that it was
not our French custom to eat foxes, and it
showed their desire that he who had won the
honours of the chase should also partake of
the game. It is not for a Frenchman to be
outdone in poUteness, and so I returned it
to these brave hunters, and begged them to
accept it as a side-dish for their next dejeuner
de la chasse. It is thus that chivalrous
opponents make war.

I had brought back with me from my ride
a clear plan of the English lines, and this I
laid before Massena that very evening.

I had hoped that it would lead him to
attack, but all the marshals were at each
other's throats, snapping and growling like
so many hungry hounds. Ney hated Mas-
sena, and Massena hated Junot, and Soult
hated them all. For this reason nothing was
done^ In the meantime food grew more and
more scarce, and our beautiful cavalry was
ruined for want of fodder. With the end of
the winter we had swept the whole country
bare, and nothing remained for us to eat,
although we sent our forage parties far and

116 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

wide. It was clear even to the bravest of us
that the time had come to retreat. I was
myself forced to admit it.

But retreat was not so easy. Not only
were the troops weak and exhausted from
want of suppUes, but the enemy had been
much encouraged by our long inaction. Of
Wellington we had no great fear. We had
found him to be brave and cautious, but with
little enterprise. Besides, in that barren
country his pursuit could not be rapid. But
on our flanks and in our rear there had
gathered great numbers of Portuguese militia,
of armed peasants, and of guerillas. These
people had kept a safe distance all the winter,
but now that our horses were foundered they
were as thick as flies aU round our outposts,
and no man's life was worth a sou when once
he fell into their hands. I could name a
dozen officers of my own acquaintance who
were cut off during that time, and the luckiest
was he who received a ball from behind a
rock through his head or his heart. There
were some whose deaths were so terrible that
no report of them was ever allowed to reach
their relatives. So frequent were these
tragedies, and so much did they impress the
imagination of the men, that it became very
difficult to induce them to leave the camp.

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 117

There was one especial scoundrel, a guerilla
chief named Manuelo, " The Smiler," whose
exploits filled our men with horror. He was
a large, fat man of jovial aspect, and he lurked
with a fierce gang among the mountains
which lay upon our left flank. A volume
might be written of this fellow's cruelties and
brutalities, but he was certainly a man of
power, for he organised his brigands in a
manner which made it almost impossible for
us to get through his country. This he did
by imposing a severe discipline upon them
and enforcing it by cruel penalties, a policy
by which he made them formidable, but
which had some unexpected results, as I will
show you in my story. Had he not flogged

his own lieutenant but you will hear of

that when the time comes.

There were many difficulties in connection
with a retreat, but it was very evident that
there was no other possible course, and so
Massena began to quickly pass his baggage
and his sick from Torres Novas, which was
his headquarters, to Coimbra, the first strong
post on his line of communications. He
coidd not do this unperceived, however, and
at once the guerillas came swarming closer
and closer upon our flanks. One of our
divisions, that of Clausel, with a brigade of

118 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Montbrun's cavalry, was far to the south of
the Tagus, and it became very necessary to
let them know that we were about to retreat,
for otherwise they would be left imsupported
in the very heart of the enemy's country. I
remember wondering how Massena would
accomplish this, for simple couriers could not
get through, and small parties would be
certainly destroyed. In some way an order
to fall back must be conveyed to these men,
or France would be the weaker by fourteen
thousand men. Little did I think that it was
I, Colonel Gerard, who was to have the
honour of a deed which might have formed
the crowning glory of any other man's Ufa,
and which stands high among those exploits
which have made my own so famous.

At that time I was serving on Massena's
staff, and he had two other aides-de-camp,
who were also very brave and intelligent
ofi&cers. The name of one was Cortex and
of the other Duplessis. They were senior to
me in age, but junior in every other respect.
Cortex was a small, dark man, very quick
and eager. He was a fine soldier, but he
was ruined by his conceit. To take him at
his own valuation, he was the first man in the
a,rmy. Duplessis was a Gascon, like myself,
and he was a very fine fellow, as all Gascon

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 119

gentlemen are. We took it in turn, day
about, to do duty, and it was Cortex who
was in attendance upon the morning of which
I speak. I saw him at breakfast, but after-
wards neither he nor his horse was to be seen.
All day Massena was in his usual gloom, and
he spent much of his time staring with his
telescope at the English lines and at the
shipping in the Tagus. He said nothing of
the mission upon which he had sent our com-
rade, and it was not for us to ask him any
questions.

That night, about twelve o'clock, I was
standing outside the Marshal's headquarters
when he came out and stood motionless for
half an hour, his arms folded upon his breast,
staring through the darkness towards the
east. So rigid and intent was he that you
might have beUeved the muffled figure and
the cocked hat to have been the statue of the
man. What he was looking for I could not
imagine ; but at last he gave a bitter curse,
and, turning on his heel, he went back into
the house, banging the door behind him.

Next day the second aide-de-camp, Du-
plessis, had an interview with Massena in the
morning, after which neither he nor his horse
was seen again. That night, as I sat in the
ante-room, the Marshal passed me, and I

120 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

observed him through the window standing
and staring to the east exactly as he had
done before. For fully half an hour he re-
mained there, a black shadow in the gloom.
Then he strode in, the door banged, and I
heard his spurs and his scabbard jingling and
clanking through the passage. At the best
he was a savage old man, but when he was
crossed I had almost as soon face the Emperor
himself. I heard him that night cursing and
stamping above my head, but he did not
send for me, and I knew him too well to go
unsought.

Next morning it was my turn, for I
was the only aide-de-camp left. I was his
favourite aide-de-camp. His heart went out
always to a smart soldier. I declare that I
think there were tears in his black eyes when
he sent for me that morning.

" Gerard 1 " said he. " Come here ! "
With a friendly gesture he took me by
the sleeve and he led me to the open window
which faced the east. Beneath us was the
infantry camp, and beyond that the Unes of
the cavalry with the long rows of picketed
horses. We could see the French outposts,
and then a stretch of open country, inter-
sected by vineyards. A range of hills lay
beyond, with one well-marked peak towering

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 121

above them. Round the base of these hills
was a broad belt of forest. A single road
ran white and clear, dipping and rising until
it passed through a gap in the hills.

" This," said Massena, pointing to the
mountain, " is the Sierra de Merodal. Do
you perceive anything upon the top ? "

I answered that I did not.

" Now ? " he asked, and he handed me his
field-glass.

With its aid I perceived a small mound or
cairn upon the crest.

" What you see," said the Marshal, " is
a pile of logs which was placed there as a
beacon. We laid it when the country was
in our hands, and now, although we no longer
hold it, the beacon remains undisturbed.
Gerard, that beacon must be lit to-night.
France needs it, the Emperor needs it, the
army needs it. Two of your comrades have
gone to light it, but neither has made his
way to the summit. To-day it is your turn,
and I pray that you may have better luck."

It is not for a soldier to ask the reason
for his orders, and so I was about to hurry
from the room, but the Marshal laid his hand
upon my shoulder and held me.

" You shall know all, and so learn how
high is the cause for which you risk your'

122 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

life," said he. " Fifty miles to the south of
us, on the other side of the Tagus, is the army
of General Clausel. His camp is situated
near a peak named the Sierra d'Ossa. On
the summit of this peak is a beacon, and by
this beacon he has a picket. It is agreed
between us that when at midnight he shall
see our signal fire he shall light his own as an
answer, and shall then at once fall back upon
the main army. If he does not start at once I
must go without him. For two days I have
endeavoured to send him his message. It
must reach him to-day, or his army will be
left behind and destroyed."

Ah, my friends, how my heart swelled
when I heard how high was the task which
Fortune had assigned to me ! If my life
were spared, here was one more splendid new
leaf for my laurel crown. If, on the other
hand, I died, then it would be a death worthy
of such a career. I said nothing, but I cannot
doubt that all the noble thoughts that were
in me shone in my face, for Massena took my
hand and wrung it.

" There is the hill and there the beacon,"
said he. " There is only this guerilla and
his men between you and it. I cannot de-
tach a large party for the enterprise, and a
small one would be seen and destroyed.

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 123

Therefore to you alone I commit it.. Carry
it out in your own way, but at twelve o'clock
this night let me see the fire upon the hill."

" If it is not there," said I, " then I pray
you. Marshal Massena, to see that my effects
are sold and the money sent to my mother."
So I raised my hand to my busby and turned
upon my heel, my heart glowing at the
thought of the great exploit which lay before
me.

I sat in my own chamber for some little
time considering how I had best take the
matter in hand. The fact that neither Cortex
nor Duplessis, who were very zealous and
active officers, had succeeded in reaching the
summit of the Sierra de Merodal showed
that the country was very closely watched by
the guerillas. I reckoned out the distance
upon a map. There were ten miles of open
country to be crossed before reaching the
hills. Then came a belt of forest on the
lower slopes of the mountain, which may have
been three or four miles wide. And then
there was the actual peak itself, of no very
great height, but without any cover to con-
ceal me. Those were the three Stages of my
journey.

It seemed to me that once I had reached
the shelter of the wood all would be easy,

124 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

for I could lie concealed within its shadows
and climb upwards under the cover of night.
From eight till twelve would give me four
hours of darkness in which to make the
ascent.' It was only the first stage, then,
which I had seriously to consider.

Over that fiat country there lay the invit-
ing white road, and I remembered that my
comrades had both taken their horses. That
was clearly their ruin, for nothing could be
easier than for the brigands to keep watch
upon the road, and to lay an ambush for all
who passed along it. It would not be difii-
cult for me to ride across country, and I was
well horsed at that time, for I had not only
Violette and Rataplan, who were two of the
finest mounts in the army, but I had the
splendid black English hunter which I had
taken from Sir Cotton.^ However, after much
thought, I determined to go upon foot, since
I should then be in a better state to take
advantage of any chance which might offer.
As to my dress, I covered my Hussar imiform
with a long cloak, and I put a grey forage
cap upon my head. You may ask me why
I did not dress as a peasant, but I answer
that a man of honour has no desire to die
the death of a spy^ It is one thing to be
murdered, and it is another to be justly

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 125

executed by the laws of wax. I would not
run the risk of such an end.

In the late afternoon I stole out of the
camp and passed through the line of our
pickets. Beneath my cloak I had a field-
glass and a pocket pistol, as well as my
sword. In my pocket were tinder, flint,
and steel.

For two or three miles I kept under cover
of the vineyards, and made such good pro-
gress that my heart was high within me,
and I thought to myself that it only needed
a man of some brains to take the matter in
hand to bring it easily to success. Of course.
Cortex and Duplessis gallopiag down the
high road would be easily seen, but the in-
telligent Gerard lurking among the vines was
quite another person. I dare say I had got
as far as five miles before I met any check.
At that point there is a small winehouse,
round which I perceived some carts and a
number of people, the first that I had seen.
Now that I was well outside the lines I knew
that every person was my enemy, so I
crouched lower while I stole along to a point
from which I could get a better view of what
was going on- I then perceived that these
people were peasants, who were loading two
waggons with empty wine-casks. I failed to

126 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

see how they could either help or hinder me,
so I continued upon my way.

But soon I understood that my task was
not so simple as had appeared. As the
ground rose the vineyards ceased, and I came
upon a stretch of open coimtry studded with
low hills. Crouching in a ditch I examined
them with a glass, and I very soon perceived
that there was a watcher upon every one of
them, and that these people had a line of
pickets and outposts thrown forward exactly
like our own. I had heard of the discipline
which was practised by this scoxmdrel whom
they called "The Smiler," and this, no
doubt, was an example of it. Between the
hills there was a cordon of sentries, and,
though I worked some distance round to the
flank, I still found myself faced by the enemy.
It was a puzzle what to do. There was so
little cover that a rat could hardly cross
without being seen. Of course, it would be
easy enough to slip through at night, as I
had done with the English at Torres Vedras ;
but I was still far from the mountain, and
I could not in that case reach it in time to
light the midnight beacon., I lay in my
ditch and I made a thousand plans, each
more dangerous than the last. And then
suddenly I had that flash of light which

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 127

comes to the brave man who refuses to
despair.

You remember I have mentioned that two
waggons were loading up with empty casks
at the inn. The heads of the oxen were
turned to the east, and it was evident that
those waggons were going in the direction
which I desired. Could I only conceal myself
upon one of them, what better and easier
way could I find of passing through the lines
of the guerillas ? So simple and so good was
the plan that I could not restrain a cry of
delight as it crossed my mind, and I hurried
away instantly in the direction of the inn.
There, from behind some bushes, I had a
good look at what was going on upon the
road.

There were three peasants with red mon-
tero caps loading the barrels, and they had
completed one waggon and the lower tier of
the other. A number of empty barrels still
lay outside the winehouse waiting to be put
on. Fortune was my friend — I have always
said that she is a woman and cannot resist
a dashing young Hussar. As I watched, the
three fellows went into the inn, for the day
was hot, and they were thirsty after their
labour. Quick as a flash I darted out from
my hiding-place, climbed on to the waggon.

128 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

and crept into one of the empty casks. It
had a bottom but no top, and it lay upon its
side with the open end inwards There I
crouched like a dog in its kennel, ""my knees
drawn up to my chin ; for the barrels were
not very large and I am a well-grown man.
As I lay there out came the three peaseuits
again, and presently I heard a crash upon
the top of me, which told that I had another
barrel above me. They piled them upon the
cart until I could not imagine how I was
ever to get out again. However, it is time
to think of crossing the Vistula when you are
over the Rhine, and I had no doubt that if
chance and my own wits had carried me so
far they would carry me farther.

Soon, when the waggon was full, they set
forth upon their way, and I within my barrel
chuckled at every step, for it was carrying
me whither I wished to ga^ We travelled
slowly, and the peasants walked beside the
waggons. This I knew, because I heard their
voices close to me. They seemed to me
to be very merry fellows, for they laughed
heartily as they went. What the joke was
I could not understand. Though I speak
their language fairly well I could not hear
anything comic in the scraps of their con-
versation which met my ear.

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 129

I reckoned that at the rate of walking of
a team of oxen we covered about two miles
an hour. Therefore, when I was sure that
two and a half hours had passed — such
hours, my friends, cramped, suffocated, and
nearly poisoned with the fumes of the lees —
when they had passed, I was sure that the
dangerous open country was behind us, and
that we were upon the edge of the forest and
the mountain. So now I had to turn my
mind upon how I was to get out of my barrel.
I had thought of several ways, and was
balancing one against the other, when the
question was decided for me in a very simple
but unexpected manner.

The waggon stopped suddenly with a jerk,
and I heard a number of grufi voices in
excited talk. " Where, where ? " cried one.
" On our cart," said another. " Who is he ? "
said a third. " A French officer ; I saw his
cap and his boots." They all roared with
laughter. " I was looking out of the window
of the posada and I saw him spring into the
cask like a toreador with a Seville bull at his
heels." " Which cask, then ? " " It was this
one," said the fellow, and, sure enough, his
fist struck the wood beside my head.

What a situation, my friends, for a man
of my standing 1 I blush now, after forty

E

130 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

years, when I think of it. To be trussed like
a fowl and to listen helplessly to the rude
laughter of these boors — to know, too, that
my mission had come to an ignominious and
even ridiculous end. I would have blessed
the man who would have sent a bullet through
the cask and freed me from my misery. ,

I heard the crashing of the barrels as
they hurled them off the waggon, and then a
couple of bearded faces and the muzzles of
two guns looked in at me. They seized me
by the sleeves of my coat, and they dragged
me out into the dayUght. A strange figure
I must have looked as I stood bUnking and
gaping in the blinding sunlight. My body
was bent hke a cripple's, for I could not
straighten my stiff joints, and half my coat
was as red as an English soldier's from the
lees in which I had lain. They laughed and
laughed, these dogs, and as I tried to express
by my bearing and gestures the contempt in
which I held them, their laughter grew all
the louder. But even in these hard circum-
stances I bore myself Uke the man I am, and
as I cast my eye slowly round I did not find
that any of the laughers were very ready to
face it.

That one glance round was enough to tell
me exactly how I was situated. I had beea

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 131

betrayed by these peasants into the hands
of an outpost of guerillas. There were eight
of them, savage-looking, hairy creatures, with
cotton handkerchiefs under their sombreros,
and many-buttoned jackets with coloured
sashes round the waist. Each had a gim
and one or two pistols stuck in his girdle.
The leader, a great bearded ruffian, held his
gun against my ear while the others searched
my pockets, taking from me my overcoat,
my pistol, my glass, my sword, and, worst
of all, my flint and steel and tinder. Come
what might I was ruined, for I had no longer
the means of lighting the beacon even if I
should reach it.

Eight of them, my friends, with three
peasants, and I unarmed I Was Etienne
Gerard in despair ? Did he lose his wits ?
Ah, you know me too well ; but they did not
know me yet, these dogs of brigands. Never
have I made so supreme and astounding an
effort as at this very instant when all seemed
lost. Yet you might guess many times before
you would hit upon the device by which I
escaped them. Listen and I will tell you.

They had dragged me from the waggon
when they searched me, and I stood, still
twisted and warped, in the midst of them.
But the stiffness was wearing off, and already

132 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

my mind was very actively looking out for
some method of breaking away. It was a
narrow pass in which the brigands had their
outpost. It was bounded on the one hand
by a steep mountain side. On the other the
ground fell away in a very long slope, which
ended in a bushy valley many hundreds of
feet below. These fellows, you understand,
were hardy mountaineers, who could travel
either up hill or down very much quicker
than I. They wore abarcas, or shoes of skin,
tied on like sandals, which gave them a foot-
hold everywhere. A less resolute man would
have despaired. But in an instant I saw and
used the strsuige chance which Fortune had
placed in my way. On the very edge of the
slope was one of the wine-barrels. I moved
slowly towards it, and then with a tiger
spring I dived into it feet foremost, and with
a roll of my body I tipped it over the side of
the hill.

Shall I ever forget that dreadful journey
— how I bounded and crashed and whizzed
down that terrible slope ? I had dug in my
knees and elbows, bunching my body into a
compact bundle so as to steady it ; but my
head projected from the end, and it was a
marvel that I did not dash out my brains.
There were long, smooth slopes and then

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 133

came steeper scarps where the barrel ceased
to roll, and sprang into the air like a goat,
coming down with a rattle and crash which
jarred every bone in my body. How the
wind whistled in my ears, and my head
turned and turned until I was sick and giddy
and nearly senseless ! Then, with a swish
and a great rasping and crackling of branches,
I reached the bushes which I had seen so far
below me. Through them I broke my way,
down a slope beyond, and deep into another
patch of underwood, where striking a sapling
my barrel flew to pieces. From amid a heap
of staves and hoops I crawled out, my body
aching in every inch of it, but my heart
singing loudly with joy and my spirit high
within me, for I knew how great was the
feat which I had accomplished, and I already
seemed to see the beacon blazing on the hUl.
A horrible nausea had seized me from the
tossing which I had undergone, and I felt as
I did upon the ocean when first I experienced
those movements of which the English have
taken so perfidious an advantage. I had to
sit for a few moments with my head upon
my hands beside the ruins of my barrel.
But there was no time for rest. Already I
heard shouts above me which told that my
pursuers were descending the hill. I dashed

134 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

into the thickest part of the underwood, and
I ran and ran until I was utterly exhausted.
Then I lay panting and listened with all my
ears, but no sound came to them. I had
shaken off my enemies.

When I had recovered my breath I
travelled swiftly on, and waded knee-deep
through several brooks, for it came into my
head that they might follow me with dogs.
On gaining a clear place and looking round
me, I found to my delight that in spite of
my adventures I had not been much out of
my way. Above me towered the peak of
Merodal, with its bare and bold summit shoot-
ing out of the groves of dwarf oaks which
shrouded its flanks. These groves were the
continuation of the cover under which I
found myself, and it seemed to me that I
had nothing to fear now until I reached the
other side of the forest. At the same time I
knew that every man's hand was against me,
that I was unarmed, and that there were
many people about me. I saw no one, but
several times I heard shrill whistles, and once
the sound of a gun in the distance.

It was hard work pushing one's way
through the bushes, and so I was glad when
I came to the larger trees and found a path
which led between them. Of course, I was

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 13S

too wise to walk upon it, but I kept near it
and followed its course. I had gone some
distance, - and had, as I imagined, nearly
reached the limit of the wood, when a strange,
moaning soimd fell upon my ears. At first
I thought it was the cry of some animal, but
then there came words, of which I only
caught the French exclamation, " Mon Dieu !"
With great caution I advanced in the direc-
tion from which the sound proceeded, and
this is what I saw.

On a couch of dried leaves there was
stretched a man dressed in the same grey
uniform which I wore myself. He was evi-
dently horribly wounded, for he held a cloth
to his breast which was crimson with his
blood. A pool had formed all round his
couch, and he lay in a haze of flies, whose
buzzing and droning would certainly have
called my attention if his groans had not
come to my ear. I lay for a moment, fearing
some trap, and then, my pity and loyalty
rising above all other feelings, I ran forward
and knelt by his side. He turned a haggard
face upon me, and it was Duplessis, the man
who had gone before me. It needed but one
glance at his sunken cheeks and glazing eyes
to tell me that he was dying.

"Gerard!" said he; " Gerard r«

136 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

1 could but look my sympathy, but he,
though the life was ebbing swiftly out of
him, still kept his duty before him, like the
gallant gentleman he was.

" The beacon, Gerard I You will light
it?"

" Have you flint and steel ? ''

"It is. here."

" Then I wiU light it to-night."

" I die happy to hear you say so. They
shot me, Gerard. But you will tell the
Marshal that I did my best."

" And Cortex ? "

" He was less fortunate. He fell into their
hands and died horribly. If you see that
you cannot get away, Gerard, put a bullet
into your own heart. Don't die as Cortex
did."

I could see that his breath was failing, and
I bent low to catch his words.

" Can you tell me anything which can help
me in my task ? " I asked.

" Yes, yes ; De Pombal. He will help
you. Trust De Pombal." With the words
his head fell back and he was dead.

" Trust De Pombal. It is good advice."
To my amazement a man was standing at
the very side of me. So absorbed had I
been in my comrade's words and intent on

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 137

his advice that he had crept up without my
observing him. Now I sprang to my feet
and faced him. He was a tall, djirk fellow,
black-haired, black-eyed, black-bearded, with
a long, sad face. In his hand he had a wine-
bottle and over his shoulder was slung one
of the trebucos, or blunderbusses, which these
fellows bear. He made no effort to unsling
it, and I understood that this was the man to
whom my dead friend had commended me.

" Alas, he is gone ! " said he, bending
over Duplessis. " He fled into the wood
after he was shot, but I was fortunate enough
to find where he had fallen and to make his
last hours more easy. This couch was my
making, and I had brought this wine to slake
his thirst."

"Sir," said I, "in the name of France I
thank you. I am but a colonel of light
cavalry, but I am Etienne Gerard, and the
name stands for something in the French
army. May I ask "

" Yes, sir, I am Aloysius de Pombal,
younger brother of the famous nobleman
of that name. At present I am the first
lieutenant in the band of the guerilla chief
who is usually known as Memuelo, "The
Smiler.' "

My word, I clapped my hand to the place

138 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

where my pistol should have been, but the
man only smiled at the gesture.

" I am his first lieutenant, but I am also
his deadly enemy," said he. He slipped ofi
his jacket and pulled up his shirt as he
spoke. ~ " Look at this ! " he cried, and he
turned upon me a back which was all scored
and lacerated with red and purple weals.
" This is what * The Smiler ' has done to me,
a man with the noblest blood of Portugal in
my veins. What I will do to ' The Smiler '
you have still to see."

There was such fury in his eyes and in
the grin of his white teeth that I could no
longer doubt his truth, with that clotted and
oozing back to corroborate his words.

" I have ten men sworn to stand by me,"
said he. " In a few days I hope to join your
army, when I have done my work here. In

the meanwhile ." A strange change came

over his face, and he suddenly slung his
musket to the front : " Hold up your hands,
you French hound ! " he yelled. " Up with
them, or I blow your head off ! "

You start, my friends ! You stare ! Think,
then, how I stared and started at this sudden
raiding of our talk. There was the black
muzzle, and there the dark, angry eyes be-
hind it. What could I do ? I was helpless.

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 139

I raised my hands in the air. At the same
moment voices sounded from all parts of the
wood, there were crying and calling and rush-
ing of many feet. A swarm of dreadful
figures broke through the green bushes, a
dozen hands seized me, and I, poor, luckless,
frenzied I, was a prisoner once more. Thank
God, there was no pistol which I could have
plucked from my belt and snapped at my
own head. Had I been armed at that moment
I shovild not be sitting here in this caf 6 and
telling you these old-world tales.

With grimy, hairy hands clutching me on
every side I was led along the pathway
through the wood, the villain De Pombal
giving directions to my captors. Four of the
brigands carried up the dead body of Du-
plessis. The shadows of evening were already
falling when we cleared the forest and came
out upon the mountain-side. Up this I was
driven until we reached the headquarters of
the guerillas, which lay in a cleft close to the
summit of the mountain. > There was the
beacon which had cost me so much, a square
stack of wood, immediately above our heads.
Below were two or three huts which had
belonged, no doubt, to goatherds, and which
were now used to shelter these rascals. Into
one of these I was cast, bound and helpless.

140 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

and the dead body of my poor comrade was
laid beside me.

I was lying there with the one thought
still consuming me, how to wait a few hours
and to get at that pile of faggots above my
head, when the door of my prison opened and
a man entered. Had my hands been free I
should have flown at his throat, for it was
none other than De Pombal. A couple of
brigands were at his heels, but he ordered
them back and closed the door behind
him.

" You villain ! " said I.

" Hush ! " he cried. " Speak low, for I
do not know who may be listening, and my
life is at stake. I have some words to say
to you, Colonel Gerard ; I wish well to you,
as I did to your dead companion. As I
spoke to you beside his body I saw that we
were surrounded, and that your captiffe was
unavoidable. I should have shared your fate
had I hesitated. I instantly captured you
myself, so as to preserve the confidence of
the band. Your own sense will tell you that
there was nothing else for me to do. I do
not know now whether I can save you, but
at least I will try."

This was a new light upon the situation.
I told him that I could not tell how far he

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 141

spoke the truth, but that I would judge him
by his actions.

" I ask nothing better," said he. " A
word of advice to you ! The chief will see
you now. Speak him fair, or he will have
you sawn between two planks. Contradict
nothing he says. Give him such informa-
tion he wants. It is your only chance. If
you can gain time something may come in our
favour. Now, I have no more time. Come
at once, or suspicion may be awakened."
He helped me to rise and then, opening the
door, he dragged me out very roughly, and
with the aid of the fellows outside he brutally
pushed and thrust me to the place where the
guerilla chief was seated, with his rude fol-
lowers gathered round him.

A remarkable man was Manuelo, " The
Smiler." He was fat and florid and com-
fortable, with a big, clean-shaven face and
a bald head, the very model of a kindly
father of a faxnily. As I looked at his honest
smile I could scarcely believe that this was,
indeed, the infamous ruffian whose name was
a horror through the English Army as weU
as our own. It is well known that Trent,
who was a British officer, afterwards had the
fellow hanged for his brutalities. He sat
upon a boulder and he beamed upon me like

142 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

one who meets an old acquaintance. I ob-
served, however, that one of his men leaned
upon a long saw, and the sight was enough
to cure me of all delusions.

" Good evening, Colonel Gerard," said he.
" We have been highly honoured by General
Massena's staff : Major Cortex one day,
Colonel Duplessis the next, and now Colonel
Gerard. Possibly the Marshal himself may
be induced to honour us with a visit. You
have seen Duplessis, I understand. Cortex
you will find nailed to a tree down yonder.
It only remains to be decided how we can
best dispose of yourself."

It was not a cheering speech ; but all the
time his fat face was wreathed in smiles, and
he lisped out his words in the most mincing
and amiable fashion. Now, however, he
suddenly leaned forward, and I read a very
real intensity in his eyes.

" Colonel Gerard," said he, " I cannot
promise you your life, for it is not our custom,
but I can give you an easy death or I can give
you a terrible one. Which shall it be ? "

" What do you wish me to do in ex-
change ? "

" If you would die easy I ask you to give
me truthful answers to the questions which
I ask."

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 143

A sudden thought flashed through my
mind.

" You wish to kill me," said I ; "it cannot
matter to you how I die. . If I answer your
questions, will you let me choose the manner
of my own death ? "

" Yes, I will," said he, " so long as it is
before midnight to-night."

" Swear it 1 " I cried.

" The word of a Portuguese gentleman is
sufficient," said he.

" Not a word will I say until you have
sworn it."

He flushed with anger and his eyes swept
round towards the saw. But he imderstood
from my tone that I meant what I said, and
that I was not a man to be bullied into sub-
mission. He pulled a cross from under his
zammara or jacket of black sheepskin.

" I swear it," said he.

Oh, my joy as I heard the words ! What
an end — what an end for the first swords-
man of France ! I could have laughed with
delight at the thought.

" Now, your questions ! " said I.

" You swear in turn to answer them
truly ? "

"I do, upon the honour of a gentleman
and a soldier." It was, as you perceive, a

144 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

terrible thing that I promised, but what was
it compared to what I might gain by com-
pliance ?

" This is a very fair and a very interesting
bargain," said he, taking a note-book from
his pocket. " Would you kindly turn your
gaze towards the French camp ? "

Following the direction of his gesture, I
turned and looked down upon the camp in
the plain beneath us. In spite of the fifteen
miles, one could in that clear atmosphere see
every detail with the utmost distinctness.
There were the long squares of our tents and
our huts, with the cavalry lines and the dark
patches which marked the ten batteries of
artUlery. How sad to think of my magnifi-
cent regiment waiting down yonder, and to
know that they would never see their colonel
again ! With one squadron of them I could
have swept all these cut-throats off the face
of the earth. My eager eyes filled with tears
as I looked at the comer of the camp where I
knew that there were eight hundred men,
anyone of whom would havei died for his
colonel. But my sadness vanished when I
saw behind the tents the plumes of smoke
which marked the head-quarters at Torres
Novas. There was Massena, and, please God,
at the cost of my life his mission would that

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 145

night be done. A spasm of pride and exul-
tation filled my breast. I should have liked
to have had a voice of thunder that I might
call to them, " Behold it is I, Etienne Gerard,
who will die in order to save the army of
Clausel ! " It was, indeed, sad to think that
so noble a deed should be done, and that no
one should be there to tell the tale.

" Now," said the brigand chief, " you see
the camp and you see also the road which
leads to Coimbra. It is crowded with your
fourgons and your ambulances. Does this
mean that Massena is about to retreat ? "

One could see the dark moving lines of
waggons with an occasional flash of steel
from the escort. There could, apart from
my promise, be no indiscretion in admitting
that which was already obvious.

" He will retreat," said I,

" By Coimbra ? "

" I believe so."

" But the army of Clausel ? "

I shrugged my shoulders.

" Every path to the south is blocked. No
message can reach them. If Massena falls
back the army of Clausel is doomed."

"It must take its chance," said I.

" How many men has he ? "

" I should say about fourteen thousand."

146 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" How much cavalry ? "

" One brigade of Montbrun's Division."

" What regiments ? "

" The 4th Chasseurs, the 9th Hussars, and
a regiment of Cuirassiers."

" Quite right," said he, looking at his
note-book. " I can tell you speak the truth,
and Heaven help you if you don't." Then,
division by division, he went over the whole
army, asking the composition of each brigade.
Need I tell you that I would have had my
tongue torn out before I would have told
him such things had I not a greater end in
view ? I would let him know all if I could
but save the army of Clausel.

At last he closed his note-book and replaced
it in his pocket. " I am obhged to you for
this information, which shall reach Lord
Wellington to-morro\y," said he. " You have
done your share of the bargain ; it is for me
now to perform mine. How would you wish
to die ? As a soldier you would, no doubt,
prefer to be shot, but some think that a jump
over the Merodal precipice is really an easier
death. A good few have taken it, but we
were, imfortunately, never able to get an
opinion from them afterwards. There is the
saw, too, which does not appear to be popular.
We could hang you, no doubt, but it would

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 147

involve the inconvenience of going down
to the wood. However, a promise is a
promise, and you seem to be an excellent
fellow, so we will spare no pains to meet
your wishes."

" You said," I answered, " that I must die
before midnight. I will choose, therefore,
just one minute before that hour."

" Very good," said he. " Such clinging
to life is rather childish, but your wishes shall
be met."

" As to the method," I added, " I love
a death which all the world can see.
Put me on yonder pile of faggots and bum
me alive, as saints and martyrs have been
burned before me. That is no common
end, but one which an Emperor might
envy."

The idea seemed to amuse him very
much.

" Why not ? " said he. " If Massena has
sent you to spy upon us, he may guess what
the fire upon the mountains means."

" Exactly," said I. " You have hit upon
my very reason. He will guess, and all
will know, that I have died a soldier's
death."

" I see no objection whatever," said the
brigand, with his abominable smile. " I will

148 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

send some goat's flesh and wine into your
hut. The sun is sinking, and it is nearly
eight o'clock. In four hours be ready for
your end."

It was a beautiful world to be leaving. I
looked at the golden haze below, where the
last rays of the sinking sun shone upon the
blue waters of the winding Tagus and gleamed
upon the white sails of the English trans-
ports. Very beautiful it was, and very sad
to leave ; but there are things more beautiful
than that. The death that is died for the
sake of others, honour, and duty, and loyalty,
and love — these are the beauties far brighter
than any which the eye can see. My breast
was filled with admiration for my own most
noble conduct, and with wonder whether any
soul would ever come to know how I had
placed myself in the heart of the beacon
which saved the army of Clausel. I hoped
so and I prayed so, for what a consolation it
would be to my mother, what an example to
the army, what a pride to my Hussars !
When De Pombal came at last into my hut
with the food and the wine, the first request
I made him was that he would write an
account of my death and send it to the
French camp. He answered not a word,
but I ate my supper with a better appetite

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 149

from the thought that my glorious fate would
not be altogether unknown.

I had been there about two hours when
the door opened again, and the chief stood
looking in. I was in darkness, but a brigand
with a torch stood beside him, and I saw his
eyes and his teeth gleaming as he peered
at me.

" Ready ? " he asked.

" It is not yet time."

" You stand out for the last minute ? "

" A promise is a promise." ,

" Very good. Be it so. We have a little
justice to do among ourselves, for one of my
fellows has been misbehaving. We have a
strict rule of our own which is no respecter
of persons, as De Pombal here could tell
you. Do you truss him and lay him on the
faggots, De Pombal, and I will return to see
him die."

De Pombal and the man with the torch
entered, while I heard the steps of the chief
passing away. De Pombal closed the door.

" Colonel Gerard," said he, " you must
trust this man, for he is one of my party.
It is neck or nothing. We may save you yet.
But I take a great risk, and I want a definite
promise. If we save you, will you guarantee
that we have a friendly reception in the

150 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

French camp and that all the past will be
forgotten ? "

" I do guarantee it."

" And I trust your honour. Now, quick,
quick, there is not an instant to lose ! If
this monster returns we shall die horribly, all
three."

I stared in amazement at what he did.
Catching up a long rope he wound it round
the body of my dead comrade, and he tied
a cloth round his mouth so as to almost
cover his face.

" Do you lie there ! " he cried, and he
laid me in the place of the dead body. " I
have four of my men waiting, and they will
place this upon the beacon." He opened the
door and gave an order. Several of the
brigands entered and bore out Duplessis.
For myself I remained upon the floor, with
my mind in a turmoil of hope and wonder.

Five minutes later De Pombal and his men
were back.

" You are laid upon the beacon," said he ;
" I defy any one in the world to say it is
not you, and you are so gagged and bound
that no one can expect you to speak or move.
Now, it only remains to carry forth the body
of Duplessis and to toss it over the Merodal
precipice."

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 151

Two of them seized me by the head and
two by the heels and carried me, stiff and
inert, from the hut. As I came into the open
air I could have cried out in my amazement.
The moon had risen above the beacon, and
there, clear outlined against its silver light,
was the figure of the man stretched upon the
top. The brigands were either in their camp
01 standing round the beacon, for none of
them stopped or questioned our little party.
De Pombal led them in the direction of the
precipice. At the brow we were out of sight,
and there I was allowed to use my feet once
more. De Pombal pointed to a narrow,
winding track.

" This is the way down," said he,
and then, suddenly, " Dios mio, what is
that ? "

A terrible cry had risen out of the woods
beneath us. I saw that De Pombal was
shivering like a frightened horse.

" It is that devil," he whispered. " He is
treating another as he treated me. But on,
on, for Heaven help us if he lays his hands
,upon us ! "

One by one we crawled down the narrow
goat track. At the bottom of the cliff we
were back in the woods once more. Sud-
denly a yellow glare shone above us, and

152 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

the black shadows of the tree-trunks started
out in front. They had fired the beacon
behind us. Even from where we stood we
could see that impassive body amid the
flames, and the black figures of the guerillas
as they danced, howling like cannibals, round
the pile. Ha ! how I shook my fist at them,
the dogs, and how I vowed that one day my
Hussars and I would make the reckoning
level !

De Pombal knew how the outposts were
placed and all the paths which led through
the forest. But to avoid these villains we
had to plunge among the hills and walk for
many a weary mile. And yet how gladly
would I have walked those extra leagues if
only for one sight which they brought to
my eyes 1 It may have been two o'clock in
the morning when we halted upon the bare
shoulder of a hill over which our path curled.
Looking back we saw the red glow of the
embers of the beacon as if volcanic fires were
bursting from the tall peak of Merodal. And
then, as I gazed, I saw something else —
something which caused me to shriek with
joy and to fall upon the ground, rolling in
my delight. For, far away upon the southern
horizon, there winked and twinkled one great
yellow light, throbbing and flaming, the light

HOW HE SAVED AN ARMY 153

of no house, the light of no star, but
the answering beacon of Mount d'Ossa,
which told that the army of Clausel knew
what Etienne Gerard had been sent to tell
them.

HOW THE BRIGADIER TRIUMPHED
IN ENGLAND

I HAVE told you, my friends, how I triumphed
over the Enghsh at the fox-hunt when I
pursued the animal so fiercely that even the
herd of trauaed dogs was unable to keep up,
and alone with my own hand I put him to
the sword. Perhaps I have said too much
of the matter, but there is a thrill in the
triumphs of sport which even warfare carmot
give, for in warfare you share your successes
with your regiment and your army, but in
sport it is you yourself unaided who have
won the laurels. It is an advantage which
the English have over us that in all classes
they take great interest in every form of
sport. ^ It may be that they are richer than
we, or it may be that they are more idle;
but I was surprised when I was a prisoner in
that country to observe how widespread was
this feeling, and how much it filled the minds

«54

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 155

and the lives of the people. A horse that
will run, a cock that will fight, a dog that
will kill rats, a man that will box — they would
turn away from the Emperor in all his glory
in order to look upon any of these.

I could tell you many stories of English
sport, for I saw much of it during the time
that I was the guest of Lord Rufton, after
the order for my exchange had come to
England. ' There were months before I could
be sent back to France, and during that time
I stayed with this good Lord Rufton at his
beautiful house at High Combe, which is at
the northern end of Dartmoor. He had
ridden with the police when they had pursued
me from Princetown, and he had felt towards
me when I was overtaken as I would myself
have felt had I, in my own country, seen
a brave and debonair soldier without a friend
to help him. In a word, he took me to his
house, clad me, fed me, and treated me as
if he had been my brother. I will say this
of the English, that they were always generous
enemies, and very good people with whom
to fight. In the Peninsula the Spanish out-
posts would present their muskets at ours,
but the British their brandy flasks. And of
all these generous men there was none who
was the equal of this admirable milord, who

156 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

held out so warm a hand to an enemy in
distress.

Ah I what thoughts of sport it brings back
to me, the very name of High Combe ! I
can see it now, the long, low, brick house,
warm and ruddy, with white plaster pillars
before the door. He was a great sportsman
this Lord Rufton, and all who were about
him were of the same sort. But you wUl be
pleased to hear that there were few things
in which I could not hold my own, and in
some I excelled. Behind the house was a
wood in which pheasants were reared, and
it was Lord Ruf ton's joy to kill these birds,
which was done by sending in men to drive
them out while he and his friends stood out-
side and shot them as they passed. For my
part I was more crafty, for I studied the
habits of the birds, and stealing out in the
evening I was able to loll a number of them
as they roosted in the trees. Hardly a single
shot was wasted, but the keeper was attracted
by the sound of the firing, and he implored
me in his rough English fashion to spare
those that were left. That night I was able
to place twelve birds as a surprise upon Lord
Rufton's supper table, and he laughed until
he cried, so overjoyed was he to see them.
" Gad, Gerard, you'll be the death of me yet I "

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 157

he cried. Often he said the same thing, for
at every turn I amazed him by the way in
which I entered into the sports of the English.
There is a game called cricket which they
play in the summer, and this also I learned.
Rudd, the head gardener, was a famous
player of cricket, and so was Lord Rufton
himself. Before the house was a lawn, and
here it was that Rudd taught me the game.
It is a brave pastime, a game for soldiers,
for each tries to strike the other with the
ball, and it is but a small stick with which
you may ward it off. Three sticks behind
show the spot beyond which you may not
retreat. I can tell you that it is no game for
children, and I will confess that, in spite of
my nine campaigns, I felt myself turn pale
when first the ball flashed past me. So swift
was it that I had not time to raise my stick
to ward it off, but by good fortune it missed
me and knocked down the wooden pins which
marked the boundary. It was for-^Rudd
then to defend himself and for me to attack.
When I was a boy in Gascony I learned to
throw both far and straight, so that I made
sure that I could hit this gallant Englishman.
With a shout I rushed forward and hurled
the ball at him. It flew as swift as a bullet
towards his ribs, but without a word he swung

158 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

his sta3 and the ball rose a surprising dis-
tance in the air. Lord Rufton clapped his
hands and cheered. Again the ball was
brought to me, and again it was for me to
throw. This time it flew past his head, and
it seemed to me that it was his turn to look
pale. But he was a brave man this gardener,
and again he faced me. Ah, my friends, the
hour of my triumph had come ! It was a red
waistcoat that he wore, and at this I hurled
the ball. You would have said that I was a
gimner, not a hussar, for never was so straight
an aim. With a despairing cry — ^the cry of
the brave man who is beaten — ^he fell upon
the wooden pegs behind him, and they all
rolled upon the ground together. He was
cruel, this English milord, and he laughed
so that he could not come to the aid of his
servant. It was for me, the victor, to rush
forwards to embrace this intrepid player, and
to raise him to his feet with words of praise,
and encouragement, and hope. He was in
pain and could not stand erect, yet the honest
fellow confessed that there was no accident
in my victory, " He did it a-purpose ! He
did it a-purpose 1 " Again and again he said
it. Yes, it is a great game this cricket, and
I would gladly have ventured upon it again
but Lord Rufton and Rudd said that it was

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 159

late in the season, and so they would play
no more.

How foolish of me, the old broken man,
to dwell upon these successes, and yet I will
confess that my age has been very much
soothed and comforted by the memory of the
women who have loved me and the men
whom I have overcome. It is pleasant to
think that five years afterwards, when Lord
Rufton came to Paris after the peace, he was
able to assmre me that my name was still a
famous one in the north of Devonshire for
the fine exploits that I had performed.
Especially, he said, that they still talked
over my boxing match with the Honourable
Baldock. It came about in this way. Of
an evening many sportsmen would assemble
at the house of Lord Rufton, where they
would drink much wine, make wild bets, and
talk of their horses and their foxes. How
well If remember those strange creatures.
Sir Barrington, Jack Lupton of Barnstaple,
Colonel Addison, Johnny Miller, Lord Sadler,
and my enemy, the Honourable Baldock.
They were of the same stamp all of them,
drinkers, madcaps, fighters, gamblers, full of
strange caprices and extraordinary whims.
Yet they were kindly fellows in their rough
fashion, save only this Baldock, a fat man

160 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

who prided himself on his skill at the box-
fight. It was he who, by his laughter against
the French because they were ignorant of
sport, caused me to challenge him in the very
sport at which he excelled. You will say that
it was foolish, my friends, but the decanter
had passed many times, and the blood of
youth ran hot in my veins. I would fight
him, this boaster ; I would show him that if
we had not skill, at least we had courage.
Lord Rufton would not allow it. I insisted.
The others cheered me on and slapped me on
the back. " No, dash it, Baldock, he's our
guest," said Rufton. " It's his own doing,"
the other answered. " Look here, Rufton,
they can't hurt each other if they wear the
mawleys," cried Lord Sadler. And so it was
agreed.

What the mawleys were I did not know;
but presently they brought out four great
puddings of leather, not unlike a fencing-
glove, but larger. With these our hands
were covered after we had stripped ourselves
of our coats and our waistcoats. Then the
table, with the glasses and decanters, was
pushed into the corner of the room, and
behold us, face to face ! Lord Sadler sat in
the armchair with a watch in his open hand.
" Time 1 " said he.

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 161

I will confess to you, my friends, that I
felt at that moment a tremor such as none of
my many duels have ever given me. With
sword or pistol I am at home ; but here I
only understood that I must struggle with
this fat Englishman and do what I could, in
spite of these great puddings upon my hands,
to overcome him. And at the very outset I
was disarmed of the best weapon that was
left to me. " Mind, Gerard, no kicking ! "
said Lord Rufton in my ear. I had only a
pair of thin dancing slippers, and yet the
man was fat, and a few well-directed kicks
might have left me the victor. But there is
an etiquette just as there is in fencing, and I
refrained. I looked at this Englishman and
I wondered how I should attack him. His
ears were large and prominent. Could I
seize them I might drag him to the ground.
I rushed in, but I was betrayed by this flabby
glove, and twice I lost my hold. He struck
me, but I cared little for his blows, and again
I seized him by the ear. He fell, and I rolled
upon him and thumped his head upon the
ground. How they cheered and laughed,
these gallant Englishmen, and how they
clapped me on the back !

" Even money on the Frenchmaja," cried
Lord Sadleti

162 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" He fights foul," cried the enemy, rubbing
his crimson ears, " He savaged me on the
ground."

" You must take your chance of that,"
said Lord Rufton coldly.

" Time," cried Lord Sadler, and once again
we advanced to the assault.

He was flushed, and his small eyes were
as vicious as those of a bulldog. There was
hatred on his face. For my part I carried
myself lightly and gaily. A French gentle-
man fights, but he does not hate. I drew
myself up before him, and I bowed as I have
done in the duello. There can be grace and
courtesy as well as defiance in a bow ; I put
all three into this one, with a touch of ridicule
in the shrug which accompanied it. It was
at this moment that he struck me. The
room spun rotmd with me. I fell upon my
back. But in an instant I was on my feet
again and had rushed to a close combat.
His ear, his hair, his nose, I seized them each
in turn. Once again the mad joy of the
battle was in my veins. The old cry of
triumph rose to my lips. " Vive I'Em-
pereur 1 " I yelled as I drove my head into
his stomach. He threw his arm round my
neck, and holding me with one hand he
struck me with the other. I biuried my

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 163

teeth in his arm, and he shouted with pain.
" Call him oft, Rufton I " he screamed.
" Call him off, man 1 He's worrying me ! "
They dragged me away from him. Can I
ever forget it ? — ^the laughter, the cheering,
the congratulations ! Even my enemy bore
me no ill will, for he shook me by the hand.
For my part I embraced him on each cheek.
Five years afterwards I learned from Lord
Rufton that my noble bearing upon that
evening was still fresh in the memory of my
English friends.

It is not, however, of my own exploits in
sport that I wish to speak to you to-night,
but it is of the Lady Jane Dacre and the
strange adventure of which she was the cause.
Lady Jane Dacre was Lord Rufton's sister
and the lady of his household. I fear that
until I came it was lonely for her, since she
was a beautiful and refined woman with no-
thing in common with those who were about
her. Indeed, this might be said of many
women in the England of those days, for the
men were rude and rough and coarse, with
boorish habits and few accomplishments, while
the women were the most lovely and tender
that I have ever known. We became great
friends, the Lady Jane and I, for it was not
possible for me to drink three bottles of port

164 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

after dinner like those Devonshire gentlemen,
and so I would seek refuge in her drawing-
room, where evening after evening she would
play the harpsichord and I would sing the
songs of my own land. In those peaceful
moments I would find a refuge from the misery
which filled me, when I reflected that my
regiment was left in the front of the enemy
without the chief whom they had learned to
love and to follow. Indeed, I could have
torn my hair when I read in the English
papers of the fine fighting which was going
on in Portugal and on the frontiers of Spain,
all of which I had missed through my mis-
fortune in falling into the hands of Milord
Wellington.

From what I have told you of the Lady
Jane you will have guessed what occurred,
my friends. Etienne Gerard is thrown into
the company of a yotmg and beautiful woman.
What must it mean for him ? What must
it mean for her ? It was not for me, the
guest, the captive, to make love to the sister
of my host. But I was reserved. I was dis-
creet. I tried to curb my own emotions and
to discourage hers. For my own part I fear
that I betrayed myself, for the eye becomes
more eloquent when the tongue is silent.
Every quiver of my fingers as I turned over

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 165

her music-sheets told her my secret. But
she — she was admirable. It is in these
matters that women have a genius for decep-
tion. If I had not penetrated her secret I
should often have thought that she forgot
even that I was in the house. For hours she
would sit lost in a sweet melancholy, while I
admired her pale face and her curls in the
lamp-light, and thrilled within me to think
that I had moved her so deeply. Then at
last I would speak, and she would start in
her chair and stare at me with the most
admirable pretence of being surprised to find
me in the room. Ah I how I longed to hurl
myself suddenly at her feet, to kiss her white
hand, to assure her that I had surprised her
secret and that I would not abuse her con-
fidence. But, no, I was not her equal, and
I was under her roof as a castaway enemy.
My lips were sealed. I endeavoured to
imitate her own wonderful affectation of in-
difference, but, as you may think, I was
eagerly alert for any opportunity of serving
her.

One morning Lady Jane had driven in her
phaeton to Okehampton, and I stroUed along
the road which led to that place in the hope
that I might meet her on her return. It was
the early winter, and banks of fading fern

166 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

sloped down to the winding road. It is a
bleak place this Dartmoor, wild and rocky —
a country of wind and mist. I felt as I
walked that it is no wonder Englishmen
should suffer from the spleen. My own heart
was heavy within me, and I sat upon a rock
by the wayside looking out on the dreary
view with my thoughts full of trouble and
foreboding. Suddenly, however, as I glanced
down the road I saw a sight which drove
everything else from my mind, and caused
me to leap to my feet with a cry of astonish-
ment and anger.

Down the curve of the road a phaeton was
coming, the pony tearing along at full gallop.
Within was the very lady whom I had come
to meet. She lashed at the pony like one
who endeavours to escape from some pressing
danger, glancing ever backwards over her
shoulder. The bend of the road concealed
from me what it was that had alarmed her,
and I ran forward not knowing what to
expect. The next instant I saw the pursuer,
and my amazement was increased at the
sight. It was a gentleman in the red coat
of an English fox-hunter, moimted on a great
grey horse. He was galloping as if in a race,
and the long stride of the splendid creature
beneath him soon brought him up to the

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 167

lady's flying carriage. I saw him stoop and
seize the reins of the pony, so as to bring it
to a halt. The next instant he was deep in
talk with the lady, he bending forward in his
saddle and speaking eagerly, she shrinking
away from him as if she feared and loathed
him.

You may think, my dear friends, that this
was not a sight at which I could calmly gaze.
How my heart thrilled within me to think
that a chance should have been given to me
to serve the Lady Jane I I ran — oh, good
Lord, how I ran 1 At last breathless, speech-
less, I reached the phaeton. The man glanced
up at me with his blue English eyes, but
so deep was he in his talk that he paid no
heed to me, nor did the lady say a word.
She still leaned back, her beautiful pale
face gazing up at him. He was a good-
looking fellow — tall, and strong, and brown ;
a pang of jealousy seized me as I looked
at him. He was talking low and fast,
as the EngUsh do when they are in
earnest.

" I tell you. Jinny, it's you and only yon
that I love," said he. " Don't bear maUce,
Jinny. Let bygones be bygones. Come now,
say it's all over."

" No never, George, never I " she cried.

168 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

A dusky red suffused his handsome face.
The man was furious.

" Why can't you forgive me. Jinny ? "

" I can't forget the past."

" By George, you must ! I've asked
enough. It's time to order now. I'll have
my rights. D'ye hear ? " His hand closed
upon her wrist.

At last my breath had returned to me.

" Madame," I said, as I raised my hat,
" do I intrude, or is there any possible way
in which I can be of service to you ? "

But neither of them minded me any more
than if I had been a fly who buzzed between
them. Their eyes were locked together.

" I'll have my rights, I tell you. I've
waited long enough."

" There's no use bullying, George."

" Do you give in ? "

" No. never ! "

" Is that your final answer ? "

" Yes, it is."

He gave a bitter curse and threw down her
hand.

" All right, my lady, we'll see about
this."

" Excuse me, sir," said I, with dignity.

" Oh, go to blazes ! " he cried, turning on
me with his furious face. The next instant

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 169

he had spurred his horse and was galloping
down the road once more.

Lady Jane gazed after him until he was
out of sight, and I was surprised to see that
her face wore a smUe and not a frown. Then
she turned to me and held out her hand.

"You are very kind, Colonel Gerard. You
meant well, I am sure."

" Madame," said I, " if you can oblige me
with the gentleman's name and address I will
arrange that he shall never trouble you again."

" No scandal, I beg of you," she cried.

" Madame, I could not so far forget my-
self. Rest assured that no lady's name would
ever be mentioned by me in the course of
such an incident. In bidding me to go to
blazes this gentleman has relieved me from
the embarrassment of having to invent a
cause of quarrel,"

" Colonel Gerard," said the lady, earnestly,
" you must give me your word as a soldier
and a gentleman that this matter goes no
farther, and also that you will say nothing
to my brother about what you have seen.
Promise me ! "

" If I must." '

" I hold you to your word. Now drive
with me to High Combe, and I will explain
as we go."

170 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

The first words of her explanation went
into me like a sabre-point.

" That gentleman," said she, " is my
husband."

" Your husband ! "

" You must have known that I was
married." She seemed surprised at my
agitation.

" I did not know."

" He is Lord George Dacre. We have
been married two years. There is no need
to tell you how he wronged me. I left him
and sought a refuge imder my brother's roof.
Up till to-day he has left me there un-
molested. What I must above all things
avoid is the chance of a duel betwixt my
husband and my brother. It is horrible to
think of. For this reason Lord Rufton must
know nothing of this chance meeting of
to-day."

" If my pistol could free you from this
annoyance

" No, no, it is not to be thought of. Re-
member your promise. Colonel Gerard. And
not a word at High Combe of what you have
seen ! " i

Her husband ! I had pictured in my mind
that she was a young widow. This brown-
faced brute with his "go to blazes " was the

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 171

husband of this tender dove of a woman.
Oh, if she would but allow me to free her
from so odious an encumbrance I There is
no divorce so quick and certain as that which
I could give her. But a promise is a pro-
mise, and I kept it to the letter. My mouth
was sealed. In a week I was to be sent back
from Plymouth to St. Malo, and it seemed to
me that I might never hear the sequel of
the story. And yet it was destined that it
should have a sequel, and that I should play
a very pleasing and honourable part in it.

It was only three days after the event
which I have described when Lord Rufton
burst hurriedly into my room. His face was
pale, and his manner that of a man in extreme
agitation.

" Gerard," he cried, " have you seen Lady
Jane Dacre ? "

I had seen her after breakfast, and it was
now midday.

" By Heaven, there's villainy here I " cried
my poor friend, rushing about like a mad-
man. " The bailiff has been up to say that a
chaise and pair were seen driving full split
down the Tavistock Road. The blacksmith
heard a woman scream as it passed his forge.
Jane has disappeared. By the Lord, I

172 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

believe that she has been kidnapped by this
villain Dacre." He rang the bell furiously.
" Two horses this instant 1 " he cried.
"Colonel Gerard, your pistols! Jane comes
back with me this night from Gravel Hanger,
or there will be a new master in High Combe
HaU."

Behold us then within half an hour, like
two knight-errants of old, riding forth to the
rescue of this lady in distress. It was near
Tavistock that Lord Dacre lived, and at
every house and toll-gate along the road we
heard the news of the flying post-chaise in
front of us, so there could be no doubt whither
they were bound. As we rode Lord Rufton
told me of the man whom we were pursuing.
His name, it seems, was a household word
throughout all England for every sort of
mischief. Wine, women, dice, cards, racing
— in all forms of debauchery he had earned
for himself a terrible name. He was of an
old and noble family, and it had been hoped
that he had sowed his wild oats when he
married the beautiful Lady Jane Rufton.
For some months he had indeed behaved well,
and then he had woimded her feelings in
their most tender part by some unworthy
liaison. She had fled from his house and
taken refuge with her brother, from whose

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 173

care she had now been dragged once more,
against her will. I ask you if two men could
have had a fairer errand than that upon which
Lord Rufton and myself were riding ?

" That's Gravel Hanger," he cried at last,
pointing with his crop ; and there on the
green side of a hUl was an old brick and tim-
ber building as beautiful as only an English
country house can be. " There's an inn by
the park-gate, and there we shall leave our
horses," he added.

For my own part it seemed to me that with
so just a cause we should have done best to
ride boldly up to his door and summon him
to surrender the lady. But there I was
wrong. For the one thing which every
Englishman fears is the law. He makes it
himself, and when he has once made it it
becomes a terrible tyrant before whom the
bravest quails. He will smile at breaking his
neck, but he will turn pale at breaking the
law. It seems, then, from what Lord Rufton
told me as we walked through the park, that
we were on the wrong side of the law in this
matter. Lord Dacre was in the right in
carrying off his wife, since she did indeed
belong to him, and our own position now was
nothing better than that of burglars and
trespassers. It was not for burglars to

174 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Openly approach the front door. We could
take the lady by force or by craft, but we
could not take her by right, for the law was
against us. This was what my friend ex-
plained to me as we crept up towards the
shelter of a shrubbery which was close to the
windows of the house. Thence we could
examine this fortress, see whether we could
effect a lodgment in it, and, above all, try
to establish some communication with the
beautiful prisoner inside.

There we were, then, in the shrubbery.
Lord Rufton and I, each with a pistol in the
pockets of our riding-coats, and with the most
resolute determination in our hearts that we
should not return without the lady. Eagerly
we scanned every window of the wide-spread
house. Not a sign could we see of the
prisoner or of anyone else ; but on the gravel
drive outside the door were the deep-sunk
marks of the wheels of the chaise. There
was no doubt that they had arrived. Crouch-
ing among the laurel bushes we held a whis-
pered council of war, but a singular interrup-
tion brought it to an end.

Out of the door of the house there stepped
a tall, flaxen-haired man, such a figure as one
would choose for the flank of a Grenadier
company. As he turned his brown face and

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 175

his blue eyes towards us I recognised Lord
Dacre. With long strides he came down
the gravel path straight for the spot where
we lay. •

" Come out, Ned I " he shouted ; " you'll
have the gamekeeper putting a charge of
shot into you. Come out, man, and don't
skulk behind the bushes."

It was not a very heroic situation for us.
My poor friend rose with a crimson face. I
sprang to my feet also and bowed with such
dignity as I could muster.

" Halloa ! it's the Frenchman, is it ? " said
he, without returning my bow. " I've got a
crow to pluck with him already. As to you,
Ned, I knew you would be hot on our scent,
and so I was looking out for you. I saw you
cross the park and go to ground in the shrub-
bery. Come in, man, and let us have all the
cards on the table."

He seemed master of the situation, this
handsome giant of a man, standing at his
ease on his own ground while we slunk out of
our hiding-place. Lord Rufton had said not
a word, but I saw by his darkened brow and
his sombre eyes that the storm was gathering.
Lord Dacre led the way into the house, and
we followed close at his heels. He ushered us
himself into an oak-panelled sitting-room,

176 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

closing the door behind us. Then he looked
me up and down with insolent eyes.

" Look here, Ned," said he, " time was when
an English family could settle their own affairs
in their own way. What has this foreign
fellow got to do with your sister and my wife?"

" Sir," said I, " permit me to point out to
you that this is not a case merely of a sister
or a wife, but that I am the friend of the lady
in question, and that I have the privilege
which every gentleman possesses of protect-
ing a woman against brutality. It is only by
a gesture that I can show you what I think
of you." I had my riding glove in my hand,
and I flicked him across the face with it. He
drew back with a bitter smile and his eyes
were as hard as flint.

" So you've brought your bully with you,
Ned ? " said he. " You might at least have
done your fighting yourself, if it must come
to a fight."

" So I will," cried Lord Rufton. " Here
and now."

" When I've killed this swaggering French-
man," said Lord Dacre. He stepped to a
side table and opened a brass-boimd case."
" By Gad," said he, " either that man or I
go out of this room feet foremost. I meant
well by you, Ned ; I did, by George, but I'll

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 177

shoot this led-captain of yours as sure as my
name's George Dacre. Take your choice of
pistols, sir, and shoot across this table. The
barkers are loaded. Aim straight and kill me
if you can, for, by the Lord, if you don't,
you're done."

In vain Lord Rufton tried to take the
quarrel upon himself. Two things were clear
in my mind — one that the Lady Jane had
feared above all things that her husband and
brother should fight, the other that if I could
but kill this big milord, then the whole
question would be settled for ever in the
best way. Lord Rufton did not want him.
Lady Jane did not want him. Therefore, I,
Etienne Gerard, their friend, would pay the
debt of gratitude which I owed them by
freeing them of this encumbrance. But,
indeed, there was no choice in the matter,
for Lord Dacre was as eager to put a bullet
into me as I could be to do the same service
to him. In vain Lord Rufton argued and
scolded. The affair must continue.

" Well, if you must fight my guest instead
of myself, let it be to-morrow morning with
two witnesses," he cried at last ; " this is
sheer murder across the table,"

" But it suits my humour, Ned," said Lord
Dacre.

178 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" And mine, sir," said I.

" Then I'U have nothing to do with it,"
cried Lord Rufton. " I tell you, George, if
you shoot Colonel Gerard under these cir-
cumstances you'll find yourself in the dock
instead of on the bench. I won't act as
second, and that's flat."

" Sir," said I, " I am perfectly prepared to
proceed without a second."

"That won't do. It's against the law,"
cried Lord Dacre. " Come, Ned, don't be a
fool. You see we mean to fight. Hang it,
man, all I want you to do is to drop a hand-
kerchief."

" I'll take no part in it."

" Then I must find someone who will,"
said Lord Dacre. He threw a cloth over the
pistols, which lay upon the table, and he rang
the bell. A footman entered. " Ask Colonel
Berkeley if he will step this way. You will
find him in the billiard-room."

A moment later there entered a tall thin
Englishman with a great moustache, which
was a rare thing amid that clean-shaven race.
I have heard since that they were worn
only by the Guards and the Hussars. This
Colonel Berkeley was a guardsman. He
seemed a strange, tired, languid, drawling
creature with a long black cigar thrusting

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 179

out, like a pole from a bush, amidst that
immense moustache. He looked from one
to the other of us with true English phlegm,
and he betrayed not the slightest surprise
when he was told our intention.

" Quite so," said he ; " quite so."

" I refuse to act. Colonel Berkeley," cried
Lord Rufton. " Remember, this duel can-
not proceed without you, and I hold
you personally responsible for anything that
happens."

This Colonel Berkeley appeared to be an
authority upon the question, for he re-
moved the cigar from his mouth and he
laid down the law in his strange, drawling
voice.

" The circumstances are unusual, but not
irregular, Lord Rufton," said he. " This
gentleman has given a blow, and this other
gentleman has received it. That is a clear
issue. Time and conditions depend upon
the person who demands satisfaction. Very
good. He claims it here and now, across the
table. He is acting within his rights. I am
prepared to accept the responsibility."

There was nothing more to be said. Lord
Rufton sat moodily in the corner, with his
brows drawn down and his hands thrust
deep into the pockets of his riding-breeches.

180 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Colonel Berkeley examined the two pistols
and laid them both in the centre of the table.
Lord Dacre was at one end and I at the other,
with eight feet of shining mahogany between
us. On the hearthrug, with his back to the
fire, stood the tall colonel, his handkerchief
in his left hand, his cigar between two fingers
of his right.

" When I drop the handkerchief," said he,
" you will pick up your pistols and you will
fire at your own convenience. Are you
ready ? "

" Yes," we cried.

His hand opened, and the handkerchief fell.
I bent swiftly forward and seized a pistol, but
the table, as I have said, was eight feet across,
and it was easier for this long-armed milord
to reach the pistols than it was for me. I
had not yet drawn myself straight before he
fired, and to this it was that I owe my life.
His bullet would have blown out my brains
had I been erect. As it was it whistled
through my curls. At the same instant, just
as I threw up my own pistol to fire, the door
flew open, and a pair of arms were thrown
rovmd me. It was the beautiful, flushed,
frantic face of Lady Jane which looked up
into mine.

" You shan't fire ! Colonel Gerard, for

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 181

my sake, don't fire," she cried. " It is a
mistake, I tell you — a mistake, a mistake I
He is the best and dearest of husbands.
Never again shall I leave his side." Her
hands slid down my arm and closed upon my
pistol.

" Jane, Jane," cried Lord Rufton ; " come
with me. You should not be here. Come
away."

"It is all confoundedly irregular," said
Colonel Berkeley.

" Colonel Gerard, you won't fire, will
you ? My heart would break if he were
hurt."

" Hang it all. Jinny, give the fellow fair
play," cried Lord Dacre. " He stood my
fire like a man, and I won't see him interfered
with. Whatever happens, I can't get worse
than I deserve."

But already there had passed between me
and the lady a quick glance of the eyes which
told her everything. Her hands slipped from
my arm. " I leave my husband's life and
my own happiness to Colonel Gerard," said
she.

How well she knew me, this admirable
woman ! I stood for an instant irresolute,
with the pistol cocked in my hand. My
antagonist faced me bravely, with no blench-

182 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

ing of his sunburnt face and no flinching of his
bold, blue eyes.

" Come, come, sir, take your shot I " cried
the colonel from the mat.

" Let us have it, then," said Lord Dacre.

I would, at least, show them how com-
pletely his life was at the mercy of my skill.
So much I owed to my own self-respect. I
glanced round for a mark. The colonel was
looking towards my antagonist, expecting to
see him drop. His face was sideways to me,
his long cigar projecting from his lips with an
inch of ash at the end of it. Quick as a flash
I raised my pistol and fired.

" Permit me to trim your ash, sir," said I,
and I bowed with a grace which is unknown
among these islanders.

I am convinced that the fault lay with the
pistol and not with my aim. I could hardly
believe my own eyes when I saw that I had
snapped off the cigar within half an inch of
his lips. He stood staring at me with the
ragged stub of the cigar-end sticking out from
his singed moustache. I can see him now
with his foolish, angry eyes and his long, thin,
puzzled face. Then he began to talk. I
have always said that the English are not
really a phlegmatic or a taciturn nation if
you stir them out of their groove. No one

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 183

could have talked in a more animated way
than this colonel. Lady Jeine put her hands
over her ears.

" Come, come, Colonel Berkeley," said
Lord Dacre, sternly, " you forget yourself.
There is a lady in the room."

The colonel gave a stiff bow.

" If Lady Dacre will kindly leave the
room," said he, "I will be able to tell this
infernal little Frenchman what I think of
him and his monkey tricks."

I was splendid at that moment, for I
ignored the words that he had said and
remembered only the extreme provocation.

" Sir," said I, "I freely offer you my
apologies for this unhappy incident. I felt
that if I did not discharge my pistol Lord
Dacre's honour might feel hurt, and yet it
was quite impossible for me, after hearing
what this lady had said, to aim it at her
husband; I looked round for a mark, there-
fore, and I had the extreme misfortune to
blow your cigar out of your mouth when my
intention had merely been to snuff the ash.
I was betrayed by my pistol. This is my
explanation, sir, and if after listening to my
apologies you still feel that I owe you satis-
faction, I need not say that it is a request
which I am unable to refuse."

184 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

It was certainly a charming attitude which
I had assumed, and it won the hearts of all of
them. Lord Dacre stepped forward and
wrung me by the hand. " By George, sir,"
said he, "I never thought to feel towards a
Frenchman as I do to you. You're a man
and a gentleman, and I can't say more."
Lord Rufton said nothing, but his hand-grip
told me all that he thought. Even Colonel
Berkeley paid me a compliment, and declared
that he would think no more about the unfor-
tunate cigar. And she — ah, if you could
have seen the look she gave me, the flushed
cheek, the moist eye, the tremulous lip !
When I think of my beautiful Lady Jane it is
at that moment that I recall her. They
would have had me stay to dinner, but you
will understand, my friends, that this was no
time for either Lord Rufton or myself to
remain at Gravel Hanger. This reconciled
couple desired only to be alone. In the chaise
he had persuaded her of his sincere repent-
ance, and once again they were a loving
husband and wife. If they were to remain
so, it was best perhaps that I should go.
Why should I imsettle that domestic peace ?
Even against my own wiU my mere presence
and appearance might have their effect upon
the lady. No, no, I must tear myself away

HOW HE TRIUMPHED IN ENGLAND 185

— even her persuasions were unable to make
me stop. Years afterwards I heard that
the household of the Dacres was among the
happiest in the whole coimtry, and that no
cloud had ever come again to darken their
lives. Yet I dare say if he could have seen
into his wife's mind — but there, I say no
more ! A lady's secret is her own, and I fear
that she and it are buried long years ago in
some Devonshire churchyard. Perhaps all
that gay circle are gone and the Lady Jane
only lives now in the memory of an old half-
pay French brigadier. He at least can
never forget.

VI

HOW THE BRIGADIER RODE TO
MINSK

I WOULD have a stronger wine to-night, my
friends, a wine of Burgundy rather than of
Bordeaux. It is that my heart, my old
soldier heart, is heavy within me. It is a
strange thing, this age which creeps upon
one. One does not know, one does not under-
stand ; the spirit is ever the same, and one
does not remember how the poor body crum-
bles. But there comes a moment when it is
brought home, when quick as the sparkle of
a whirling sabre it is clear to us, and we see
the men we were and the men we are. Yes,
yes, it was so to-day, and I would have a
wine of Burgundy to-night. White Burgundy

— Montrachet Sir, I am your debtor Is.

It was this morning in the Champ de Mars.
Your pardon, friends, while an old man tells
his trouble. You saw the review. Was it
not splendid ? I was in the enclosure for

veteran ofi&cers who have been decorated.

186

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 187

This ribbon on my breast was my passport.
The cross itself I keep at home in a leathern
pouch. They did us honour, for we were
placed at the saluting point, with the Em-
peror and the carriages of the Court upon
our right.

It is years since I have been to a review,
for I cannot approve of many things which
I have seen. I do not approve of the red
breeches of the infantry. It was in white
breeches that the infantry used to fight.
Red is for the cavalry. A little more, and
they would ask our busbies and our spurs !
Had I been seen at a review they might well
have said that I, Etienne Gerard, had con-
doned it. So I have stayed at home. But
this war of the Crimea is different. The men
go to battle. It is not for me to be absent
when brave men gather.

My faith, they march well, those little
infantrymen ! They are not large, but they
are very solid and they carry themselves well.
I took off my hat to them as they passed.
Then there came the guns. They were good
guns, well horsed, and well manned. I took
off my hat to them. Then came the En-
gineers, and to them also I took off my hat.
There are no braver men than the Engineers.
Then came the cavalry. Lancers, Cuirassiers,

188 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Chasseurs, and Spahis. To all of them in
turn I was able to take ofi my hat, save only
to the Spahis. The Emperor had no Spahis.
But when all of the others had passed, what
think you came at the close ? A brigade of
Hussars, and at the charge I Oh, my friends,
the pride and the glory and the beauty, the
flash and the sparkle, the roar of the hoofs,
and the jingle of chains, the tossing manes,
the noble heads, the rolling cloud, and the
dancing waves of steel ! My heart drummed
to them as they passed. And the last of all,
was it not my own old regiment ? My eyes
fell upon the grey and silver dolmans, with
the leopard-skin shabraques, and at that
instant the years fell away from me and I saw
my own beautiful men and horses, even as
they had swept behind their young colonel,
in the pride of our youth and our strength,
just forty years ago. Up flew my cane.
" Chargez ! En avant ! Vive I'Empereur ! "
It was the past calling to the present. But,
oh, what a thin, piping voice 1 Was this the
voice that had once thundered from wing to
wing of a strong brigade ? And the arm that
could scarce wave a cane, were these the
muscles of fire and steel which had no match
in all Napoleon's mighty host ? They smiled
at me. They cheered me. The Emperor

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 189

laughed and bowed. But to me the present
was a dim dream, and what was real were my
eight hundred dead Hussars and the Etienne
of long ago. Enough — a brave man can face
age and fate as he faced Cossacks and Uhlans.
But there are times when Montrachet is
better than the wine of Bordeaux.

It is to Russia that they go, and so I will
tell you a story of Russia. Ah, what an evil
dream of the night it seems ! Blood and ice.
Ice and blood. Fierce faces with snow upon
the whiskers. Blue hands held out for
succour. And across the great white plain
the one long black line of moving figures,
trudging, trudging, a hundred mUes, another
hundred, and still always the same white
plain. Sometimes there were fir-woods to
limit it, sometimes it stretched away to the
cold blue sky, but the black line stumbled on
and on. Those weary, ragged, starving men,
the spirit frozen out of them, looked neither
to right nor left, but with sunken faces and
rounded backs trailed onwards and ever
onwards, making for France as wounded
beasts make for their lair. There was no
speaking, and you could scarce hear the
shuffle of feet in the snow. Once only I
heard them laugh. It was outside Wilna,
when an aide-de-camp rode up to the head of

190 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

that dreadful column and asked if that were
the Grand Army. All who were within hear-
ing looked round, and when they saw those
broken men, those ruined regiments, those
f uf-capped skeletons who were once the Guard,
they laughed, and the laugh crackled down the
column like a. feu de joie. I have heard many
a groan and cry and scream in my life, but
nothing so terrible as the laugh of the Grand
Army.

But why was it that these helpless men
were not destroyed by the Russians ? Why
was it that they were not speared by the
Cossacks or herded into droves, and driven
as prisoners into the heart of Russia ? On
every side as you watched the black snake
winding over the snow you saw also dark,
moving shadows which came and went like
cloud drifts on either flank and behind.
They were the Cossacks, who htmg round us
like wolves round the flock. But the reason
why they did not ride in upon us was that all
the ice of Russia could not cool the hot
hearts of some of our soldiers. To the end
there were always those who were ready to
throw themselves between these savages and
their prey. One man above all rose greater
as the danger thickened, and won a higher
name amid disaster than he had done when

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 191

he led our van to victory. To him I drink
this glass — to Ney, the red-maned Lion,
glaring back over his shoulder at the enemy
who feared to tread too closely on his heels.
I can see him now, his broad white face con-
vulsed with fury, his light blue eyes sparkling
like flints, his great voice roaring and crash-
ing amid the roll of the musketry. His
glazed and featherless cocked hat was the
ensign upon which France rallied during
those dreadful days.

It is well known that neither I nor the
regiment of Hussars of Conflans were at
Moscow. We were left behind on the lines
of communication at Borodino. How the
Emperor could have advanced without us is
incomprehensible to me, and, indeed, it was
only then that I understood that his judg-
ment was weakening, and that he was no
longer the man that he had been. However,
a soldier has to obey orders, and so I remained
at this viUage, which was poisoned by the
bodies of thirty thousand men who had lost
their lives in the great battle. I spent the
late autumn in getting my horses into con-
dition and reclothing my men, so that when
the army fell back on Borodino my Hussars
were the best of the cavalry, and were placed
under Ney in the rear-guard. What could

192 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

he have done without us during those dread-
ful days ? " Ah, Gerard," said he one even-
ing — but it is not for me to repeat the words.
Sufi&ce it that he spoke what the whole army
felt. The rear-guard covered the army, and
the Hussars of Confians covered the rear-
guard. There was the whole truth in a sen-
tence. Always the Cossacks were on us.
Always we held them off. Never a day
passed that we had not to wipe our sabres.
That was soldiering indeed.

But there came a time between Wilna and
Smolensk when the situation became impos-
sible. Cossacks and even cold we could fight,
but we could not fight hunger as well. Food
must be got at all costs. That night Ney
sent for me to the waggon in which he slept.
His great head was sunk on his hands. Mind
and body, he was wearied to death.

" Colonel Gerard," said he, " things are
going very badly with us. The men are
starving. We must have food at all costs."

" The horses," I suggested.

" Save your handful of cavalry, there are
none left."

" The band," said I.

He laughed, even in his despair.

" Why the band ? " he asked.

" Fighting men are of value."

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 193

" Good ! " said he. " You woiild play the
game down to the last card, and so would I.
Good, Gerard, good ! " He clasped my hand
in his.. " But there is one chance for us yet,
Gerard." He unhooked a lantern from the
roof of the waggon, and he laid it on a map
which was stretched before him. " To the
south of us," said he, " there Ues the town of
Minsk. I have word from a Russian deserter
that much com has been stored in the town-
hall. I wish you to take as many men as
you think best, set forth for Minsk, seize the
com, load any carts which you may coUect in
the town, and bring them to me between
here and Smolensk. If you fail, it is but a
detachment cut off. If you succeed, it is
new Ufe to the army."

He had not expressed himself well, for it
was evident that if we failed it was not merely
the loss of a detachment. It is quaUty as
well as quantity which counts. And yet how
honourable a mission, and how glorious a
risk I If mortal men could bring it, then the
com should come from Minsk. I said so,
and spoke a few burning words about a brave
man's duty until the Marshal was so moved
that he rose and, taking me affectionately by
the shoulders, pushed me out of the waggon.

It was dear to me that in order to succeed

G

194 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

in my enterprise I should take a small force
and depend rather upon surprise than upon
numbers.^ A large body could not conceal
itself, would have great difficulty in getting
food, and would cause aU the Russians around
us to concentrate for its certain destruction.
On the other hand, if a small body of cavalry
could get past the Cossacks unseen it was
probable that they would find no troops to
oppose them, for we knew that the main
Russian army was several days' march behind
us. ^ This com was meant, no doubt, for their
consumption. A squadron of Hussars and
thirty Polish Lancers were all whom I chose
for the venture. That very night we rode
out of the camp, and struck south in the
direction of Minsk.

Fortunately there was but half a moon,
and we were able to pass without being
attacked by the enemy. Twice we saw great
fires burning amid the snow, and around
them a thick bristle of long poles. These
were the lances of Cossacks, which they had
stood upright while they slept. It would
have been a great joy to us to have charged
in amongst them, for we had much to revenge,
and the eyes of my comrades looked long-
ingly from me to those red flickering patches in
the darkness. My faith, I was sorely tempted

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 195

to do it, for it would have been a good
lesson to teach them that they must keep a few
miles between themselves and a French army.
It is the essence of good generalship, how-
ever, to keep one thing before one at a time,
and so we rode silently on through the snow,
leaving these Cossack bivouacs to right and
left. Behind us the black sky was all
mottled with a line of flame, which showed
where our own poor wretches were trying to
keep themselves alive for another day of
misery and starvation.

All night we rode slowly onwards, keeping
our horses' tails to the Pole Star. There
were many tracks in the snow, and we kept
to the line of these, that no one might remark
that a body of cavalry had passed that way.
These are the little precautions which mark
the experienced officer. Besides, by keeping
to the tracks we were most likely to find the
villages, and only in the villages could we
hope to get food. The dawn of day found us
in a thick fir-wood, the trees so loaded with
snow that the light could hardly reach us.
When we had found our way out of it it was
full daylight, the rim of the rising sun peeping
over the edge of the great snow-plain and
turning it crimson from end to end. I halted
my Hussars and Lancers under the shadow

196 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

of the wood, and I studied the country.
Close to us there was a small farmhouse.
Beyond, at a distance of several miles, was a
village. Far away on the skyline rose a con-
siderable town all bristling with church
towers. This must be Minsk. In no direc-
tion could I see any signs of troops. It was
evident that we had passed through the
Cossacks, and that there was nothing be-
tween us and our goal. A joyous shout
burst from my men when I told them our
position, and we advanced rapidly towards
the village.

I have said, however, that there was a
small farmhouse immediately in front of us.
As we rode up to it I observed that a fine
grey horse with a military saddle was tethered
by the door. Instantly I galloped forward,
but before I could reach it a man dashed out
of the door, flung himself on to the horse,
and rode furiously away, the crisp, dry snow
flying up in a cloud behind him. The sim-
light gleamed upon his gold epaulettes, and I
knew that he was a Russian of&cer. He
would raise the whole coimtryside if we did
not catch him. I put spurs to Violette
and flew after him. My troopers followed ;
but there was no horse among them to com-
pare with Violette, and I knew well that if I

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 197

could not catch the Russian I need expect no
help from them.

But it is a swift horse indeed and a skilful
rider who can hope to escape from Violette
with Etienne Gerard in the saddle. He rode
well, this young Russian, and his mount was
a good one, but gradually we wore him down.
His face glanced continually over his shoulder
— a dark, handsome face, with eyes like an
eagle — and I saw as I closed with him that
he was measuring the distance between us.
Suddenly he half turned ; there were a flash
and a crack as his pistol bullet hummed past
my ear. Before he could draw his sword I
was upon him ; but he still spurred his horse,
and the two galloped together over the plain,
I with my leg against the Russian's and my
left hand upon his right shoulder. I saw his
hand fly up to his mouth. Instantly I
dragged him across my pommel and seized
him by the throat, so that he could not
swallow.'' His horse shot from under him,
but I held him fast, and Violette came to a
stand. Sergeant Oudin of the Hussars was
the first to join us. He was an old soldier,
and he saw at a glance what I was after.

" Hold tight. Colonel," said he ; " I'll do
the rest."

He slipped out his knife, thrust the blade

198 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

between the clenched teeth of the Russian,
and turned it so as to force his mouth open.
There, on his tongue, was the little wad of
wet paper which he had been so anxious to
swallow. Oudin picked it out, and I let go
of the man's throat. From the way in which,
half strangled as he was, he glanced at the
paper I was sure that it was a message of
extreme importance. His hands twitched as
if he longed to snatch it from me. He
shrugged his shoulders, however, and smiled
good-humouredly when I apologised for my
roughness.

" And now to business," said I, when he
had done coughing and hawking. " What
is your name ? "

" Alexis Barakoff."

" Your rank and regiment ? "

" Captain of the Dragoons of Grodno."

" What is this note which you were
carrying ? "

" It is a line which I had written to my
sweetheart."

" Whose name," said I, examining the
address, " is the Hetman Platoff. Come,
come, sir, this is an important mihtary
document, which you are carrying from one
general to another. Tell me this instant
what it is."

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 199

" Read it, and then you will know." He
spoke perfect French, as do most of the
educated Russians. But he knew weU that
there is not one French of&cer in a thousand
who knows a word of Russian. The inside
of the note contained one single line which
ran like this : —

" Pustj Franzuzy pridutt v Minsk. Min
gotovy."

I stared at it, and I had to shake my head.
Then I showed it to my Hussars, but they
could make nothing of it. The Poles were all
rough fellows who could not read or write,
save only the sergeant, who came from
Memel, in East Prussia, and knew no Russian.
It was maddening, for I felt that I had posses-
sion of some important secret upon which the
safety of the army might depend, and yet I
could make no sense of it. Again I entreated
our prisoner to translate it, and offered him
his freedom if he would do so. He only
smiled at my request. I could not but admire
him, for it was the very smile which I should
have myself smiled had I been in tis position.

" At least," said I, " tell us the name of
this village."

" It is Dobrova."

" And that is Minsk over yonder I sup-
pose ? "

200 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" Yes, that is Minsk."

" Then we shall go to the village and we
shall very soon find some one who will
translate this despatch."

So we rode onward together, a trooper
with his carbine on either side of our prisoner.
The village was but a little place, and I set a
guard at the ends of the single street, so that
no one could escape from it. It was necessary
to call a halt and to find some food for the
men and horses, since they had travelled all
night and had a long journey still before them.

There was one large stone house in the
centre of the village, and to this I rode. It
was the house of the priest — a snuffy and ill-
favoured old man who had not a civdl answer
to any of our questions. An uglier fellow I
never met, but, my faith, it was very difierent
with his only daughter, who kept house for
him. She was a bnmette, a rare thing in
Russia, with creamy skin, raven hair, and a
pedr of the most glorious dark eyes that ever
kindled at the sight of a Hussar. From the
first glance I saw that she was mine. It was
no time for love-making when a soldier's
duty had to be done, but still, as I took the
simple meal which they laid before me, I
chatted Ughtly with the lady, and we were
the best of friends before an hour had passed.

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 201

Sophie was her first name, her second I never
knew. I taught her to call me Etienne, and
I tried to cheer her up, for her sweet face
was sad and there were tears in her beautiful
dark eyes. I pressed her to tell me what it
was which was grieving her.

" How can I be otherwise," said she,
speaking French with a most adorable lisp,
"when one of my poor countrymen is a
prisoner in your hands ? I saw him between
two of your Hussars as you rode into the
village."

" It is the fortune of war," said I. " His
turn to-day ; mine, perhaps, to-morrow."

" But consider, Monsieur " said she,

" Etienne," said I.

" Oh, Monsieur "

" Etienne," said I.

" Well, then," she cried, beautifully flushed
and desperate, " consider, Etienne, that this
young officer will be taken back to your army
and will be starved or frozen, for if, as I hear,
your own soldiers have a hard march, what
will be the lot of a prisoner ? "

I shrugged my shoulders.

" You have a kind face, Etienne," said
she ; " you would not condemn this poor
man to certain death. I entreat you to let
him go."

202 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Her delicate hand rested upon my sleeve,
her dark eyes looked imploringly into mine.

A sudden thought passed through my mind.
I would grant her request, but I would demand
a favour in return. At my order the prisoner
was brought up into the room.

" Captain Barakofi," said I, " this young
lady has begged me to release you, and I am
inclined to do so. I would ask you to give
your parole that you wiU remain in this dwell-
ing for twenty-four hours, and take no steps to
inform any one of our movements."

" I will do so," said he.

" Then I trust in your honour. One man
more or less can make no difference in a
struggle between great armies, and to take
you back as a prisoner would be to condemn
you to death. Depart, sir, and show your
gratitude not to me, but to the first French
of&cer who falls into your hands."

When he was gone I drew my paper from
my pocket.

" Now, Sophie," said I, " I have done what
you asked me, and all that I ask in return is
that you will give me a lesson in Russian."

" With all my heart," said she.

" Let us begin on this," said I, spreading
out the paper before her. " Let us take it
word for word and see what it means.'*

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 203

She looked at the writing with some sur-
prise. " It means," said she, " if the French
come to Minsk all is lost." Suddenly a
look of consternation passed over her
beautiful face. " Great heavens I ** she
cried, "what is it that I have done? I
have betrayed my country ! Oh, Etienne,
your eyes are the last for whom this
message is meant. How could you be so
cunning as to make a poor, simple-minded,
and unsuspecting girl betray the cause of
her country ? "

I consoled my poor Sophie as best I might,
and I assured her that it was no reproach to
her that she should be outwitted by so old a
campaigner and so shrewd a man as myself.
But it was no time now for talk. This
message made it clear that the corn was
indeed at Minsk, and that there were no
troops there to defend it I gave a hurried
order from the window, the trumpeter blew
the assembly, and in ten minutes we had
left the village behind us and were riding
hard for the city, the gilded domes and
minarets of which glimmered above the snow
of the horizon. Higher they rose and higher,
until at last, as the sun sank towards the west,
we were in the broad main street, and galloped
up it amid the shouts of the moujiks and the

204 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

cries of frightened women until we found
ourselves in front of the great town-hall.
My cavalry I drew up in the square, and I,
with my two sergeants, Oudin and Papilette,
rushed into the building.

Heavens I shall I ever forget the sight
which greeted us ? Right in front of us was
drawn up a triple line of Russian Grenadiers.
Their muskets rose as we entered, and a
crashing volley burst into our very faces,
Oudin and Papilette dropped upon the floor,
riddled with bullets. For myself, my busby
was shot away and I had two holes through
my dolman. The Grenadiers ran at me with
their bayonets. " Treason ! " I cried. " We
are betrayed ! Stand to your horses ! " I
rushed out of the hall, but the whole square
was swarming with troops. From every
side street Dragoons and Cossacks were
riding down upon us, and such a rolling fire
had burst from the surrounding houses that
half my men and horses were on the ground.
" Follow me ! " I yelled, and sprang upon
Violette, but a giant of a Russian Dragoon
officer threw his arms round me, and we
rolled on the ground together. " He shortened
his sword to kill me, but, chemging his mind,
he seized me by the throat and banged my
head against the stones imtil I was uncon-

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 205

scious. So it was that I became the prisoner
of the Russians.

When I came to myself my only regret was
that my captor had not beaten out my
brains. There in the grand square of Minsk
lay half my troopers dead or wounded, with
exultant crowds of Russians gathered round
them. The rest, in a melancholy group,
were herded into the porch of the town-hall,
a sotnia of Cossacks keeping guard over them.
Alas ! what could I say, what could I do ?
It was evident that I had led my men
into a carefully baited trap. They had heard
of our mission, and they had prepared for us.
And yet there was that despatch which had
caused me to neglect all precautions and to
ride straight into the town. How was I to
account for that ? The tears ran down my
cheeks as I surveyed the ruin of my squadron,
and as I thought of the plight of my comrades
of the Grand Army who awaited the food
which I was to have brought them. Ney had
trusted me, and I had failed him. How often
he would strain his eyes over the snowfields
for that convoy of grain which should never
gladden his sight ! My own fate was hard
enough. An exile in Siberia was the best
which the future could bring me. But you
will beUeve me, my friends, that it was not

206 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

for his own sake, but for that of his starving
comrades, that Etienne Gerard's cheeks were
lined by his tears, frozen even as they were
shed.

" What's this ? " said a gruff voice at my
elbow ; and I turned to face the huge, black-
bearded Dragoon who had dragged me from
my saddle. " Look at the Frenchman cry-
ing ! I thought that the Corsican was fol-
lowed by brave men, and not by children."

" If you and I were face to face and alone,
I should let you see which is the better man,"
said I.

For answer the brute struck me across the
face with his open hand. I seized him by the
throat, but a dozen of his soldiers tore me
away from him, and he struck me again while
they held my hands.

" You base hound," I cried, " is this the
way to treat an ofi&cer and a gentleman ? "

" We never asked you to come to Russia,"
said he.' " If you do you must take such
treatment as you can get. I would shoot
you off-hand if I had my way."

" You will answer for this some day," I
cried, as I wiped the blood from my mous-
tache.

" If the Hetman Platoff is of my way of
thinking you will not be alive this time to-

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 207

morrow," he answered, with a ferocious
scowl. He added some words in Russian to
his troops, and instantly they all sprang to
their saddles. Poor Violette, looking as miser-
able as her master, was led round and I was
told to mount her. My left arm was tied
with a thong which was fastened to the
stirrup-iron of a sergeant of Dragoons. So
in most sorry plight I and the remnant of my
men set forth from Minsk.

Never have I met such a brute as this man
Sergine, who commanded the escort. The
Russian army contains the best and the worst
in the world, but a worse than Major Sergine
of the Dragoons of Kieff I have never seen in
any force outside of the guerillas of the Penin-
sula. He was a man of great stature, with a
fierce, hard face and a bristling black beard,
which fell over his cuirass. I have been told
since that he was noted for his strength and
his bravery, and I could answer for it that he
had the grip of a bear, for I had felt it when
he tore me from my saddle. He was a wit,
too, in his way, and made continual remarks
in Russian at our expense which set all his
Dragoons and Cossacks laughing. Twice he
beat my comrades with his riding-whip, and
once he approached me with the lash swung
over his shoulder, but there was something

208 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

in my eyes which prevented it from falling.
So in misery and humiliation, cold and starving,
we rode in a disconsolate column across the
vast snow-plain. The sun had sunk, but still
in the long northern twilight we pursued our
weary journey. Numbed and frozen, with
my head aching from the blows it had
received, I was borne onwards by Violette,
hardly conscious of where I was or whither I
was going. The little mare walked with a
sunken head, only raising it to snort her con-
tempt for the mangy Cossack ponies who
were round her.

But suddenly the escort stopped, and I
found that we had halted in the single street
of a small Russian village. There was a
church on one side, and on the other was a
large stone house, the outline of which seemed
to me to be familiar. I looked around me
in the twilight, and then I saw that we had
been led back to Dobrova, and that this
house at the door of which we were waiting
was the same house of the priest at which
we had stopped in the morning. Here it was
that my charming Sophie in her innocence
had translated the unlucky message which
had in some strange way led us to our ruin.
To think that only a few hours before we
had left this very spot with such high hopes

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 209

and all fair prospects for our mission, and
now the remnants of us waited as beaten and
humiliated men for whatever lot a brutal
enemy might ordain ! But such is the fate
of the soldier, my friends — kisses to-day,
blows to-morrow, Tokay in a palace, ditch-
water in a hovel, furs or rags, a full purse or
an empty pocket, ever swaying from the
best to the worst, with only his courage and
his honour unchanging.

The Russian horsemen dismounted, and
my poor fellows were ordered to do the same.
It was already late, and it was clearly their
intention to spend the night in this village.
There were great cheering and joy amongst
the peasants when they understood that we
had all been taken, and they flocked out of
their houses with flaming torches, the women
carrying out tea and brandy for the Cossacks.
Amongst others, the old priest came forth —
the same whom we had seen in the morning.
He was all smiles now, and he bore with him
some hot punch on a salver, the reek of
which I can remember still. Behind her
father was Sophie. With horror I saw her
clasp Major Sergine's hand as she congratu-
lated him upon the victory he had won and
the prisoners he had made. The old priest,
her father, looked at me with an insolent face.

210 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

and made insulting remarks at my expense,
pointing at me with his lean and grimy hand.
His fair daughter Sophie looked at me also,
but she said nothing, and I could read her
tender pity in her dark eyes. At last she
turned to Major Sergine and said something
to him in Russian, on which he frowned and
shook his head impatiently. She appeared
to plead with him, standing there in the
flood of light which shone from the open door
of her father's house. My eyes were fixed
upon the two faces, that of the beautiful girl
and of the dark, fierce man, for my instinct
told me that it was my own fate which was
under debate. For a long time the soldier
shook his head, and then, at last softening
before her pleadings, he appeared to give way.
He turned to where I stood with my guardian
sergeant beside me.

" These good people offer you the shelter
of their roof for the night," said he to me,
looking me up and down with vindictive
eyes. " I find it hard to refuse them, but
I tell you straight that for my part I had
rather see you on the snow. It woidd
cool your hot blood, you rascal of a French-
man I "

I looked at him with the contempt that I
felt.

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 211

" You were born a savage, and you will
die one," said I.

My words stung him, for he broke into an
oath, raising his whip as if he would strike
me.

" Silence, you crop-eared dog ! " he cried.
" Had I my way some of the insolence would
be frozen out of you before morning." Mas-
tering his passion, he turned upon Sophie
with what he meant to be a gallant manner.
" If you have a cellar with a good lock," said
he, " the fellow may lie in it for the night,
since you have done him the honour to take
an interest in his comfort. I must have his
parole that he will not attempt to play us
any tricks, as I am answerable for him until
I hand him over to the Hetman Platoff to-
morrow."

His supercilious manner was more than I
could endure. He had evidently spoken
French to the lady in order that I might
understand the humiliating way in which he
referred to me.

" I will take no favour from you," said I.
" You may do what you like, but I will
never give you my parole."

The Russian shrugged his great shoulders,
and turned away as if the matter were ended.

" Very well, my fine fellow, so much the

212 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

worse for your fingers and toes. We shall
see how you are in the morning after a night
in the snow."

" One nioment. Major Sergine," cried
Sophie. " You must not be so hard upon
this prisoner. There are some special reasons
why he has a claim upon our kindness and
mercy."

The Russian looked with suspicion upon
his face from her to me.

" What are the special reasons ? You cer-
tainly seem to take a remarkable interest in
this Frenchman," said he.

" The chief reason is that he has this very
morning of his own accord released Captain
Alexis Barakoff, of the Dragoons of Grodno."

" It is true," said Barakoff, who had come
out of the house. " He captured me this
morning, and he released me upon parole
rather than take me back to the French
army, where I should have been starved."

" Since Colonel Gerard has acted so gener-
ously you will surely, now that fortune has
changed, allow us to offer him the poor
shelter of our cellar upon this bitter night,"
said Sophie. " It is a small return for his
generosity."

But the Dragoon was still in the sulks.

" Let him give me his parole first that he

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 213

will not attempt to escape," said he. "Do
you hear, sir ? Do you give me your
parole ? "

" I give you nothing," said I.

" Colonel Gerard," cried Sophie, turning
to me with a coaxing smile, " you will give
me your parole, will you not ? "

" To you, mademoiselle, I can refuse no-
thing. I will give you my parole, with
pleasure." ,

"There, Major Sergine," cried Sophie, in
triumph, " that is surely sufficient. You
have heard him say that he gives me his
parole. I will be answerable for his safety,"

In an ungracious fashion my Russian bear
grunted his consent, and so I was led into
the house, followed by the scowling father
and by the big, black-bearded Dragoon. In
the basement there was a large and roomy
chamber, where the winter logs were stored.
Thither it was that I was led, and I was
given to imderstand that this was to be my
lodging for the night. One side of this bleak
apartment was heaped up to the ceiling with
faggots of firewood. The rest of the room
was stone-flagged and bare-walled, with a
single, deep-set window upon one side, which
was safely guarded with iron bars. For light
I had a large stable lantern, which swung

214 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

from a beam of the low ceiling. Major
Sergine smiled as he took this down, emd
swung it round so as to throw its light into
every comer of that dreary chamber.

" How do you like oiu: Russian hotels,
monsieur ? " he asked, with his hateful sneer.
" They are not very grand, but they are the
best that we can give you. Perhaps the
next time that you Frenchmen take a fancy
to travel you will choose some other country
where they will make you more comfortable."
He stood laughing at me, his white teeth
gleaming through his beard. Then he left me,
and I heard the great key creak in the lock.

For an hour of utter misery, chilled in
body and soul, I sat upon a pile of faggots,
my face sunk upon my hands and my mind
full of the saddest thoughts. It was cold
enough within those four walls, but I thought
of the sufferings of my poor troopers outside,
and I sorrowed with their sorrow. Then I
paced up and down, and I clapped my hands
together and kicked my feet against the walls
to keep them from being frozen The lamp
gave out some warmth, but still it was bit-
terly cold, and I had had no food since
morning. It seemed to me that every one
had forgotten me, but at last I heard the key
turn in the lock, and who should enter but

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 215

my prisoner of the morning, Captain Alexis
Barakoff. A bottle of wine projected from
tmder his arm, and he carried a great plate
of hot stew in front of him.

" Hush ! " said he ; " not a word I Keep
up your heart I I cannot stop to explain, for
Sergine is still with us. Keep awake and
ready ! " With these hurried words he laid
down the welcome food and ran out of the
room.

" Keep awake and ready !" The words
rang in my ears. I ate my food and I drank
my wine, but it was neither food nor wine
which had warmed the heart within me.
What could those words of Barakoff mean ?
Why was I to remain awake ? For what
was I to be ready ? Was it possible that
there was a chance yet of escape ? I have
never respected the man who neglects his
prayers at all other times and yet prays
when he is in peril. It is like a bad soldier
who pays no respect to the colonel save when
he would demand a favom: of him. And yet
when I thought of the salt-mines of Siberia
on the one side and of my mother in France
upon the other, 1 could not help a prayer rising
not from my lips, but from my heart, that the
words of BarakofE might mean all that I
hoped. But hour after hour struck upon the

216 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

village clock, and still I heard nothing save
the call of the Russian sentries in the street
outside.

Then at last my heart leaped within me,
for I heard a light step in the passage. An
instant later the key turned, the door opened,
and Sophie was in the room,

" Monsieur " she cried.

" Etienne," said I.

" Nothing will change you," said she. " But
is it possible that you do not hate me ?
Have you forgiven me the trick which I
played you ?"

" What trick ?" I asked.

" Good heavens ! is it possible that even
now you have not understood it ? You
asked me to translate the despatch. I have
told you that it meant, ' If the French come
to Minsk all is lost.' "

" What did it mean, then ?"

" It means, ' Let the French come to
Minsk. We are awaiting them.' "

I sprang back from her.

" You betrayed me !" I cried. " You lured
me into this trap. It is to you that I owe the
death and capture of my men. Fool that I
was to trust a woman !"

" Do not be imjust, Colonel Gerard. I
am a Russian woman, and my first duty is

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 217

to my country. Would you not wish a
French girl to have acted as I have done ?
Had I translated the message correctly you
would not have gone to Minsk and your
squadron would have escaped. Tell me that
you forgive me !"

She looked bewitching as she stood pleading
her cause in front of me. And yet, as I
thought of my dead men, I could not take the
hand which she held out to me.

" Very good," said she, as she dropped it
by her side. " You feel for your own people
and I feel for mine, and so we are equal.
But you have said one wise and kindly thing
within these walls, Colonel Gerard. You have
said, ' One man more or less can make no
difference in a struggle between two great
armies.' Your lesson of nobility is not wasted.
Behind those faggots is an unguarded door.
Here is the key to it. Go forth, Colonel
Gerard, and I trust that we may never look
upon each other's faces again."

I stood for an instant with the key in
my hand and my head in a whirl. Then I
handed it back to her.

" I cannot do it," I said. ^

" Why not ?"

" I have given my parole.''

" To whom ?" she asked.

218 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" Why, to you."

" And I release you from it."

My heart bounded with joy. Of course,
it was true what she said. I had refused to
give my parole to Sergine. I owed him no
duty. If she relieved me from my promise
my honour was clear. I took the key from
her hand.

" You will find Captain Baxakoff at the
end of the village street," she said. " We
of the North never forget either an injury or
a kindness. He has your mare and your
sword waiting for you. Do not delay an
instant, for in two hours it will be dawn."

So I passed out into the starlit Russian
night, and had that last glimpse of Sophie
as she peered after me through the open
door. She looked wistfully at me as if she
expected something more than the cold thanks
which I gave her, but even the humblest man
has his pride, and I will not deny that mine
was hurt by the deception which she had played
upon me, I could not have brought myself
to kiss her hand, far less her lips, "jfhe door
led into a narrow alley, and at the end of it
stood a muffled figure who held Violette by
the bridle.

" You told me to be kind to the next
French officer whom I found in distress,"

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 219

said he. " Good luck ! Bon voyage !" he
whispered, as I bounded into the saddle.
" Remember, ' Poltava ' is the watchword."

It was well that he had given it to me, for
twice I had to pass Cossack pickets before
I was clear of the lines. I had just ridden
past the last vedettes and hoped that I was
a free man again when there was a soft
thudding in the snow behind me, and a heavy
man upon a great black horse came swiftly
after me. My first impulse was to put spurs
to Violette. My second, as I saw a long black
beard against a steel cuirass, was to halt and
await him.

" I thought that it was you, you dog of
a Frenchman," he cried, shaking his drawn
sword at me. " So you have broken your
parole, you rascal ?"

" I gave no parole."

" You lie, you hound !"

I looked aroimd and no one was coming.
The vedettes were motionless and distant.
We were all alone, with the moon above and
the snow beneath. Fortune has ever been
my friend.

" I gave you no parole."

" You gave it to the lady."

" Then I will answer for it to the
lady."

220 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

"That would suit you better, no doubt.
But, unfortunately, you will have to answer
for it to me."

" I am ready."

" Your sword, too ! There is treason in
this ! Ah, I see it all ! The woman has
helped you. She shall see Siberia for this
night's work."

The words were his death-warrant. For
Sophie's sake I could not let him go back
alive. Our blades crossed, and an instant
later mine was through his black beard and
deep in his throat. I was on the ground
almost as soon as he, but the one thrust was
enough. He died, snapping his teeth at
my ankles like a savage wolf.

Two days later I had rejoined the army at
Smolensk, and was a part once more of that
dreary procession which tramped onwards
through the snow, leaving a long weal of
blood to show the path which it had
taken.

Enough, my friends ; I would not reawaken
the memory of those days of misery and death.
They still come to haunt me in my dreams.
When we halted at last in Warsaw, we had
left behind us our guns, our transport, three-
fourths of our comrades. But we did not
leave behind us the honour of Etieime Gerard.

HOW HE RODE TO MINSK 221

They have said that I broke my parole. Let
them beware how they say it to my face, for
the story is as I tell it, and old as I am my
forefinger is not too weak to press a trigger
when my honour is in question.

VII

HOW THE BRIGADIER BORE
HIMSELF AT WATERLOO

I — ^The Story of the Forest Inn

Of all the great battles in which I had the
honour of drawing my sword for the Emperor
and for France there was not one which was
lost. At Waterloo, although, in a sense, I
was present, I was imable to fight, and the
enemy was victorious. It is not for me to
say that there is a connection between these
two things. You know me too well, my
friends, to imagine that I would make such a
claim. But it gives matter for thought, and
some have drawn flattering conclusions from
it. After all, it was only a matter of breaking
a few English squares and the day would have
been our own. If the Husseurs of Conflans,
with Etienne Gerard to lead them, could not
do this, then the best judges are mistaken.
But let that pass. The Fates had ordained
that I should hold my hand and that the

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 223

Empire should fall. But they had also
ordained that this day of gloom and sorrow
should bring such honour to me as had never
come when I swept on the wings of victory
from Boulogne to Vienna. Never had I
burned so brilliantly as at that 'supreme
moment when the darkness fell upon all
around me. ' You are aware that I was faith-
ful to the Emperor in his adversity, and that I
refused to sell my sword and my honour to
the Bourbons. Never again was I to feel
my war horse between my knees, never again
to hear the kettledrums and silver trumpets
behind me as I rode in front of my little
rascals. But it comforts my heart, my friends,
and it brings the tears to my eyes, to think
how great I was upon that last day of my
soldier life, and to remember that of all the
remarkable exploits which have won me the
love of so many beautiful women, and the
respect of so many noble men, there was none
which, in splendour, in audacity, and in the
great end which was attained, could compare
with my famous ride upon the night of June
i8th, 1815. I am aware that the story is
often told at mess- tables and in barrack-rooms,
so that there are few in the Jirmy who have not
heard it, but modesty has sealed my lips,
imtil now, my friends, in the privacy of

224 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

these intimate gatherings, I am inclined to
lay the true facts before you.

In the first place, there is one thing which
I can assure you. In all his career Napoleon
never had so splendid an army as that with
which he took the field for that campaign.
In 1813 France was exhausted. For every
veteran there were five children — ^Marie
Louises as we called them, for the Empress
had busied herself in raising levies while the
Emperor took the field. But it was very
different in 1815. The prisoners had all come
back — the men from the snows of Russia, the
men from the dungeons of Spain, the men
from the hulks in England. These were the
dangerous men, veterans of twenty battles,
longing for their old trade, and with hearts
filled with hatred and revenge. The ranks
were full of soldiers who wore two and three
chevrons, every chevron meaning five years'
service. And the spirit of these men was
terrible. They were raging, furious, fanatical,
adoring the Emperor as a Mameluke does his
prophet, ready to fall upon their own bayonets
if their blood could serve him. If you had
seen these fierce old veterans going into
battle, with their flushed faces, their savage
eyes, their furious yells, you would wonder
that an3^thing could stand against them.

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 225

So high was the spirit of France at that time
that every other spirit would have quailed
before it ; ^ but these people, these English,
had neither spirit nor soul, but only solid,
immovable beef, against which we broke
ourselves in vain. That was it, my friends 1
On the one side, poetry, gallantry, self-sacri-
fice — all that is beautiful and heroic. On the
other side, beef. Our hopes, our ideals, oxir
dreams — all were shattered on that terrible
beef of Old England.

You have read how the Emperor gathered
his forces, and then how he and I, with
a hundred and thirty thousand veterans,
hurried to the northern frontier and fell
upon the Prussians and the English. On the
i6th of June Ney held the English in play at
Quatre Bras while we beat the Prussians
at Ligny. It is not for me to say how far I
contributed to that victory, but it is well
known that the Hussars of Conflans covered
themselves with glory. They fought well,
these Prussians, and eight thousand of them
were left upon the field. The Emperor
thought that he had done with them, as
he sent Marshal Grouchy with thirty-two
thousand men to follow them up and to pre-
vent their interfering with his plans. Then,
with nearly eighty thousand men, he turned

H

226 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

upon these " Goddam " Englishmen. How
much we had to avenge upon them, we
Frenchmen — ^the guineas of Pitt, the hulks
of Portsmouth, the invasion of Wellington,
the perfidious victories of Nelson I At last
the day of punishment seemed to have
arisen.

Wellington had with him sixty-seven thou-
sand men, but many of them were known
to be Dutch and Belgian, who had no great
desire to fight against us. Of good troops
he had not fifty thousand. Finding himself
in the presence of the Emperor in person with
eighty thousand men, this Englishman was
so paralysed with fear that he could neither
move himself nor his army. You have seen
the rabbit when the snake approaches. So
stood the English upon the ridge of Waterloo.
The night before, the Emperor, who had lost
an aide-de-camp at Ligny, ordered me to
join his staff, and I had left my -Hussars to
the charge of Maj or Victor. I know not which
of us was the most grieved, they or I, that I
should be called away upon the eve of battle ;
but an order is an order, and a good soldier
can but shrug his shoulders and obey. With
the Emperor I rode across the front of the
enemy's position on the morning of the i8th,
he looking at them through his glass and

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 227

planning which was the shortest way to
destroy them. Soult was at his elbow, and
Ney and Foy and others who had fought the
English in Portugal and Spain, " Have a
care. Sire," said Soult, " the English infantry
is very -solid."

" You think them good soldiers because
they have beaten you," said the Emperor,
and we younger men turned away our faces
and smiled. But Ney and Foy were grave
and serious. All the time the English line,
chequered with red and blue and dotted with
batteries, was drawn up silent and watchful
within a long musket-shot of us. On the
other side of the shallow valley our own
people, having finished their soup, were
assembling for the battle. It had rained very
heavily ; but at this moment the sun shone
out and beat upon the French army, turnmg
our brigades of cavalry into so many dazzling
rivers of steel, and twinkling and sparkling
on the innumerable bayonets of the infantry.
At the sight of that splendid army, and the
beauty and majesty of its appearance, I
could contain myself no longer ; but, rising
in my stirrups, I waved my busby and cried,
" Vive I'Empereur !" a shout which growled
and roared and clattered from one end of the
line to the other, while the horsemen wave4

228 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

their swords and the footmen held up their
shakos upon their bayonets. The English
remained petrified upon their ridge. They
knew that their hour had come.
, And so it would have come if at that
moment the word had been given and the
whole army had been permitted to advance.
We had but to fall upon them and to sweep
them from the face of the earth. To put
aside all question of courage, we were the
more numerous, the older soldiers, and the
better led. But the Emperor desired to do
all things in order, and he waited imtil the
ground should be drier and harder, so that
his artillery could manoeuvre. So three hours
were wasted, and it was eleven o'clock before
we saw Jerome Buonaparte's columns advance
upon our left and heard the crash of the
guns which told that the battle had begun.
The loss of those three hours was our destruc-
tion. The attack upon the left was directed
upon a farmhouse which was held by the
English Guards, and we hear4 the three
loud shouts of apprehension which the de-
fenders were compelled to utter. They were
still holding out, and D'Erlon's corps was
advancing upon the right to engage another
portion of the English line, when our attention
was called away from the battle beneath

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 229

our noses to a distant portion of the field
of action.

The Emperor had been looking through
his glass to the extreme left of the English
line, and now he turned suddenly to the Duke
of Dalmatia, or Soult, as we soldiers preferred
to call him,

" What is it, Marshal ? " said he.

We all followed the direction of his gaze,
some raising our glasses, some shading our
eyes. There was a thick wood over yonder,
then a long, bare slope, and another wood
beyond. Over this bare strip between the
two woods there lay something dark, like
the shadow of a moving cloud.

" I think that they are cattle. Sire," said
Soult.

At that instant there came a quick twinkle
from amid the dark shadow.

"It is Grouchy," said the Emperor, and
he lowered his glass. " They are doubly
lost, these English. I hold them in the
hollow of my hand. They cannot escape
me.

He looked round, and his eyes fell upon
me.

"Ahl here is the prince of messengers,"
said he, "Are you well mounted, Colonel
Gerard ? ''

230 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

I was riding my little Violette, the pride of
the brigade. I said so.

" Then ride hard to Marshal Grouchy,
whose troops you see over yonder. Tell him
that he is to fall upon the left flank and
rear of the English while I attack them in
front. Together we shall crush them and
not a man escape."

I saluted and rode off without a word, my
heart dancing with joy that such a mission
should be mine. I looked at that long, solid
line of red and blue looming through the
smoke of the guns, and I shook my fist at it
as I went. " We shall crush them and not
a man escape." They were the Emperor's
words, and it was I, Etienne Gerard, who
was to turn them into deeds. I burned to
reach the Marshal, and for an instant I
thought of riding through the English left
wing, as being the shortest cut. I have done
bolder deeds and come out safely, but I re-
flected that if things went badly with me and
I was taken or shot the message would be
lost and the plans of the Emperor miscarry.
I passed in front of the cavalry therefore,
past the Chasseurs, the Lancers of the Guard,
the Carabineers, the Horse Grenadiers, and,
lastly, my own little rascals, who followed
me wistfully with their eyes. Beyond the

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 231

cavalry the Old Guard was standing, twelve
regiments of them, all veterans of many
battles, sombre and severe, in long blue
overcoats, and high bearskins from which
the plumes had been removed. Each bore
within the goatskin knapsack upon his back
the blue and white parade imiform which
they would use for their entry into Brussels
next day. As I rode past them I reflected
that these men had never been beaten, and,
as I looked at their weather-beaten faces and
their stem and silent bearing, I said to myself
that they never would be beaten. Great
heavens, how little could I foresee what a
few more hours would bring !

On the right of the Old Guard were the
Young Guard and the 6th Corps of Lobau,
and then I passed Jacquinot's Lancers and
Marbot's Hussars, who held the extreme
flank of the line. All these troops knew
nothing of the corps which was coming
towards them through the wood, and their
attention was taken up in watching the battle
which raged upon their left. More than a
hundred guns were thundering from each
side, and the din was so great that of all the
battles which I have fought I cannot recall
more than half-a-dozen which were as noisy.
I looked back over my shoulder, and there

232 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

were two brigades of Cuirassiers, English and
French, pouring down the hill together, with
the sword-blades playing over them like
summer lightning. How I longed to turn
Violette, and to lead my Hussars into the
thick of it ! What a picture I Etienne
Gerard with his back to the battle, and a fine
cavalry action raging behind him. But duty
is duty, so I rode past Marbot's vedettes and
on in the direction of the wood, passing the
village of Frishermont upon my left.

In front of me lay the great wood, called
the Wood of Paris, consisting mostly of oak
trees, with a few narrow paths leading through
it. I halted and listened when I reached it ;
but out of its gloomy depths there came no
blare of trumpet, no murmur of wheels, no
tramp of horses to mark the advance of that
great column which with my own eyes I had
seen streaming towards it. The battle roared
behind me, but in front all was as silent as
that grave in which so many brave men
would shortly sleep. The sunlight was cut
off by the arches of leaves above my head,
and a heavy damp smell rose from the sodden
ground. For several miles I galloped at
such a pace as few riders would care to go
with roots below and branches above. Then,
at last, for the first time I caught a glimpse

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 233

of Grouchy's advance guard. Scattered
parties of Hussars passed me on either side,
but some distance off, among the trees. I
heard the beating of a drum far away, and
the low, dull murmur which an army makes
upon the march. Any moment I might come
upon the staff and deliver my message to
Grouchy in person, for I knew well that on
such a march a Marshal of France would
certainly ride with the van of his army.

Suddenly the trees thinned in front of me,
and I understood with delight that I was
coming to the end of the wood, whence I
could see the army and find the Marshal.
Where the track comes out from amid the
trees there is a small cabaret, where wood-
cutters and waggoners drink their wine.
Outside the door of this I reined up my horse
for an instant while I took in the scene which
was before me. Some few miles away I saw
a second great forest, that of St. Lambert,
out of which the Emperor had seen the troops
advancing. It was easy to see, however,
why there had been so long a delay in their
leaving one wood and reaching the other,
because between the two ran the deep defile
of the Lasnes, which had to be crossed. Sure
enough, a long column of troops — horse, foot,
and guns — was streaming down one side of

234 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

it and swarming up the other, while the
advance guard was aheady among the trees
on either side of me. A battery of Horse
Artillery was coming along the road, and I
was about to gallop up to it and ask the officer
in command if he could tell me where I
should find the Marshal, when suddenly I
observed that, though the gunners were
dressed in blue, they had not the dolman
trimmed with red brandenburgs as our own
horse^gunners wear it. Amazed at the sight,
I was looking at these soldiers to left and
right when a hand touched my thigh, and
there was the landlord, who had rushed from
his inn.

" Madman ! " he cried, " why are you
here ? What are you doing ? "

" I am seeking Marshal Grouchy."

"You are in the heart of the Prussian
army. Turn and fly ! "

" Impossible ; this is Grouchy's corps.''

" How do you know ? "

" Because the Emperor has said it."

"Then the Emperor has made a terrible
mistake ! I tell you that a patrol of Silesian
Hussars has this instant left me. Did you
not see them in the wood ? '8

" I saw Hussars." C

" They are the enemy,"

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 235

" Where is Grouchy ? "

" He is behind. They have passed him."

" Then how can I go back ? If I go for-
ward I may see him yet. I must obey my
orders and find him wherever he is."

The man refiected for an instant.

" Quick ! quick 1 " he cried, seizing my
bridle. " Do what I say and you may yet
escape. They have not observed you yet.
Come with me and I will hide you until they
pass."

Behind his house there was a low stable,
and into, this he thrust Violette. Then he
half led and half dragged me into the kitchen
of the inn. It was a bare, brick-floored room.
A stout, red-faced woman was cooking cutlets
at the fire.

" What's the matter now ? " she asked,
looking with a frown from me to the inn-
keeper. " Who is this you have brought
in?"

" It is a French officer, Marie. We cannot
let the Prussians take him."

" Why not ? "

" Why not ? Sacred name of a dog, was
I not myself a soldier of Napoleon ? Did I
not win a musket of honour among the V61ites
of the Guard ? Shall I see a comrade taken
before my eyes ? Marie, we must save him."

236 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

But the lady looked at me with most
unfriendly eyes. '

" Pierre Charras," she said, " you will not
rest until you have your house burned over
your head. Do you not understand, you
blockhead, that if you fought for Napoleon
it was because Napoleon ruled Belgium ? He
does so no longer. The Prussians are our
allies and this is our enemy. I will have
no Frenchman in this house. Give him
up I"

The innkeeper scratched his head and
looked at me in despair, but it was very
evident to me that it was neither for France
nor for Belgium that this woman cared, but
that it was the safety of her own house that
was nearest her heart.

" Madame," said I, with all the dignity
and assurance I could command, "the
Emperor is defeating the English and the
French army will be here before evening.
If you have used me well you will be re-
warded, and if you have denounced me you
will be punished and your house wiU certainly
be burned by the provost-marshal."

She was shaken by this, and I hastened to
complete my victory by other methods.

"Surely," said I, "it is impossible that
any one so beautiful can also be hard-hearted ?

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 237

You will not refuse me the refuge which I
need."

She looked at my whiskers and I saw that
she was softened. I took her hand, and in
two minutes we were on such terms that
her husband swore roundly that he would
give me up hinaself if I pressed the matter
farther.

" Besides, the road is full of Prussians,"
he cried. " Quick ! quick ! into the loft 1 "

"Quick! quick! into the loft!" echoed
his wife, and together they hurried me to-
wards a ladder which led to a trap-door in
the ceiling. There was loud knocking at
the door, so you can think that it was not
long before my spurs went twinkling through
the hole and the board was dropped behind
me. An instant later I heard the voices of
the Germans in the rooms below me.

The place in which I found myself was
a single long attic, the ceiling of which was
formed by the roof of the house. It ran
over the whole of one side of the inn, and
through the cracks in the flooring I could
look down either upon the kitchen, the
sitting-room, or the bar at my pleasure.
There were no windows, but the place was
in the last stage of disrepair, and several
missing slates upon the roof gave me light

238 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

and the means of observation. The place
was heaped with lumber — fodder at one end
and a huge pile of empty bottles at the other.
There was no door or window save the hole
through which I had come up.

I sat upon the heap of hay for a few minutes
to steady myself and to think out my plans.
It was very serious that the Prussians should
arrive upon the field of battle earlier than our
reserves, but there appeared to be only one
corps of them, and a corps more or less makes
little difference to such a man as the Emperor.
He could afford to give the English all this
and beat them still. The best way in which I
could serve him, since Grouchy was behind,
was to wait here until they were past, and then
to resume my journey, to see the Mcirshal,
and to give him his orders. If he advanced
upon the rear of the English instead of follow-
ing the Prussians all would be well. The fate
of France depended upon my judgment and
my nerve. It was not the first time, my
friends, as you are well aware, and you know
the reasons that I had to trust that neither
nerve nor judgment would ever fail me.
Certainly, the Emperor had chosen the right
man for his mission. " The prince of mes-
sengers " he had called me. I would earn my
title.

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 239

It was clear that I could do nothing until
the Prussians had passed, so I spent my time
in observing them. I have no love for these
people, but I am compelled to say that they
kept excellent discipline, for not a man of
them entered the inn, though their lips were
caked with dust and they were ready to drop
with fatigue. Those who had knocked at
the door were bearing an insensible comrade,
and having left him they returned at once to
the ranks. Severed others were carried in
the same fashion and laid in the kitchen,
while a young surgeon, little more than a
boy, remained behind in charge of them.
Having observed them through the cracks in
the floor, I next turned my attention to the
holes in the roof, from which I had an excellent
view of all that was passing outside. The
Prussian corps was still streaming past. It
was easy to see that they had made a terrible
march and had little food, for the faces of
the men were ghastly, and they were plastered
from head to foot with mud from their falls
upon the foul and slippery roads. Yet,
spent as they were, their spirit was excellent,
and they pushed and hauled at the gun-
carriages when the wheels sank up to the
axles in the mire, and the weary horses were
floundering knee-deep unable to draw them

240 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

through. The officers rode up and down the
column encouraging the more active with
words of praise, and the laggards with blows
from the fiat of their swords. ,A11 the time
from over the wood in front of them there
came the tremendous roar of the battle, as if
all the rivers on earth had united in one
gigantic cataract, booming and crashing in a
mighty fall. Like the spray of the cataract
was the long veil of smoke which rose high
over the trees. The officers pointed to it
with their swords, and with hoarse cries from
their parched lips the mud-stained men
pushed onwards to the battle. For an hour
I watched them pass, and I reflected that
their vanguard must have come into touch
with Marbot's vedettes and that the Emperor
knew already of their coming. " You are
going very fast up the road, my friends, but
you will come down it a great deal faster,"
said I to myself, and I consoled myself with
the thought.

But an adventure came to break the
monotony of this long wait. I was seated
beside my loophole and congratulating myself
that the corps was nearly past, and that the
road would soon be clear for my journey,
when suddenly I heard a loud altercation
break out in French in the kitchen.

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 241

" You shall not go ! " cried a woman's voice.

" I tell you that I will ! " said a man's, and
there was a sound of scuflBing.

In an instant I had my eye to the crack
in the floor. There was my stout lady, like
a faithful watch-dog, at the bottom of the
ladder ; while the young German surgeon,
white with anger, was endeavouring to come
up it. Several of the German soldiers who
had recovered from their prostration were
sitting about on the kitchen floor and watch-
ing the quarrel with stolid, but attentive,
faces. The landlord was nowhere to be seen.

" There is no liquor there," said the
woman.

" I do not want liquor ; I want hay or
straw for these men to lie upon. Why should
they lie on the bricks when there is straw
overhead ? "

" There is no straw."

" What is up there ? "

" Empty bottles."

" Nothing else ? "'

" No."

For a moment it looked as if the surgeon
would abandon his intention, but one of the
soldiers pointed up to the ceiling. I gathered
from what I could understand of his words
that he could see the straw sticking out

242 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

between the planks. In vain the woman
protested. Two of the soldiers were able to
get upon their feet and to drag her aside,
while the young surgeon ran up the ladder,
pushed open the trap-door, and climbed into
the loft. As he swung the door back I slipped
behind it, but as luck would have it he shut
it again behind him, and there we were left
standing face to face.

Never have I seen a more astonished
young man.

" A French officer ! " he gasped.

" Hush ! " said I. " Hush ! Not a word
above a whisper." I had drawn my sword.

" I am not a combatant," he said ; " I am
a doctor. Why do you threaten me with
your sword ? I am not armed."

" I do not wish to hurt you, but I must
protect myself. I am in hiding here."

" A spy ! "

" A spy does not wear such a uniform as
this, nor do you find spies on the staff of an
army. I rode by mistake into the heart
of this Prussian corps, and I concealed myself
here in the hope of escaping when they are
past. I will not hurt you if you do not hurt
me, but if you do not swear that you will be
silent as to my presence you will never go
down alive from this attic,"

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 243

" You can put up your sword, sir," said
the surgeon, and I saw a friendly twinkle
in his eyes. " I am a Pole by birth, and
I have no ill-feeling to you or your people,
I will do my best for my patients, but I
will do no more. Capturing Hussars is
not one of the duties of a surgeon. With
your permission I will now descend with
this truss of hay to make a couch for these
poor fellows below."

I had intended to exact an oath from him,
but it is my experience that if a man will not
speak the truth he will not swear the truth,
so I said no more. The surgeon opened the
trap-door, threw out enough hay for his
purpose, and then descended the ladder,
letting down the door behind him. I watched
him anxiously when he rejoined his patients,
and so did my good friend the landlady, but
he said nothing and busied himself with the
needs of the soldiers.

By this time I was sure that the last of
the af my corps was past, and I went to my
loop-hole confident that I should find the
coast clear, save, perhaps, for a few stragglers,
whom I could disregard. The first corps was
indeed past, and I could see the last files of
the infantry disappearing into the wood ; but
you can imagine my disappointment when

244 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

out of the Forest of St. Lambert I saw a
second corps emerging, as numerous as the
first. There could be no doubt that the
whole Prussian army, which we thought we
had destroyed at Ligny, was about to throw
itself upon our right wing while Marshal
Grouchy had been coaxed away upon some
fool's errand. The roar of guns, much nearer
than before, told me that the Prussian bat-
teries which had passed me were already in
action. Imagine my terrible position ! Hour
after hour was passing ; the sun was sinking
towards the west. And yet this cursed inn,
in which I lay hid, was like a little island
amid a rushing stream of furious Prussians.
It was all important that I should reach
Marshal Grouchy, and yet I could not show
my nose without being made prisoner. You
can think how I cursed and tore my hair.
How little do we know what is in store for
us I Even while I raged against my ill-f or-
time, that same forttme was reserving me for
a far higher task than to carry a message to
Grouchy — a task which could not have been
mine had I not been held tight in that little
inn on the edge of the Forest of Paris.

Two Prussian corps had passed and a third
was coming up, when I heard a great fuss and
the soimd of several voices in the sitting-

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 245

room. By altering my position I was able
to look down and see what was going on.

Two Prussian generals were beneath me,
their heads bent over a map which lay upon
the table. V Several aides-de-camp and staff
officers stood round in silence. ..Of the two
generals one was a fierce old man, white-
haired and wrinkled, with a ragged, grizzled
moustache and a voice like the bark of a
hound. The other was younger, but long-
faced and solemn. He measured distances
upon the map with the air of a student,
while his companion stamped and fumed and
cursed like a corporal of Hussars. It was
strange to see the old man so fiery and the
young one so reserved. I could not under-
stand all that they said, but I was very sure
about their general meaning.

" I tell you we must push on and ever
on ! " cried the old fellow, with a furious
German oath. " I promised Wellington that
I would be there with the whole army even
if I had to be strapped to my horse. Billow's
corps is in action, and Zeithen's shall support
it with every man and gun. Forwards,
Gneisenau, forwards ! "

The other shook his head.

" You must remember, your Excsellency,
that if the English are beaten thev will make

246 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

for the coast. What will your position be
then, with Grouchy between you and the
Rhine ? "

" We shall beat them, Gneisenau ; the
Duke and I will grind them to powder be-
tween us. Push on, I say ! The whole war
will be ended in one blow. Bring Pirsch up,
and we can throw sixty thousand men into
the scale while Thidmann holds Grouchy
beyond Wavxe."

Gneisenau shrugged his shoulders, but at
that instant an orderly appeared at the door.

" An aide-de-camp from the Duke of Wel-
lington," said he.

" Ha, ha ! " cried the old man ; "let us
hear what he has to say."

An English officer, with mud and blood
all over his scarlet jacket, staggered into the
room. A crimson-stained handkerchief was
knotted round his arm, and he held the table
to keep himself from falling.

" My message is to Marshal Blucher,"
says he.

" I am Marshal Blucher. Go on ! go on ! "
cried the impatient old man.

" The Duke bade me to tell you, sir, that
the British army can hold its own, and that
he has no fears for the result. The French
cavabry has been destroyed, two of their

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 247

divisions of infantry have ceased to exist,
and only the Guard is in reserve. If you give
us a vigorous support the defeat will be

changed to absolute rout and " His

knees gave way under him, and he fell in a
heap upon the floor.

" Enough 1 > enough I " cried Blucher.
" Gneisenau, send an aide-de-camp to Wel-
lington and tell him to rely upon me to the
full. Come on, gentlemen, we have our work
to do ! " He bustled eagerly out of the room,
with all his staff clanking behind him, while
two orderlies carried the English messenger
to the care of the surgeon.

Gneisenau, the Chief of the Staff, had
lingered behind for £in instant, and he laid
his hand upon one of the aides-de-camp.
The fellow had attracted my attention, for
I have always a quick eye for a fine man.
He was tall and slender, the very model of
a horseman ; indeed, there was something
in his appearance which made it not unlike
my own. His face was dark and as keen as
that of a hawk, with fierce black eyes imder
thick, shaggy brows, and a moustache which
would have put him in the crack squadron
of my Hussars. He wore a green coat with
white facings, and a horsehair helmet — a
Dragoon, as I conjectured, and as dashing a

248 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

cavalier as one would wish to have at the end
of one's sword-point.

"A word with you, Count Stein," said
Gneisenau. " If the enemy are routed, but
if the Emperor escapes, he will rally another
army, and all will have to be done again.
But if we can get the Emperor, then the war
is indeed ended. It is worth a great effort
and a great risk for such an object as that."

The young Dragoon said nothing, but he
listened attentively.

" Suppose the Duke of Wellington's words
should prove to be correct, and the French
army should be driven in utter rout from the
field, the Emperor will certainly take the
road back through Genappe and Charleroi as
being the shortest to the frontier. We can
imagine that his horses will be fleet, and that
the fugitives will make way for him. Our
cavalry will follow the rear of the beaten
army, but the Emperor will be far away at
the front of the throng."

The young Dragoon inclined his head.

" Tu you, Coimt Stein, I commit the
Emperor. If you take him your name will
live in history. You have the reputation
of being the hzirdest rider in oiu: army. Do
you choose such comrades as you may select
— ^ten or a dozen should be enough. You

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 249

are not to engage in the battle, nor are you
to follow the general pursixit, but you are
to ride clear of the crowd, reserving your
energies for a nobler end. Do you under-
stand me ? "

Again the Dragoon inclined his head. This
silence impressed me. I felt that he was
indeed a dangerous man.

" Then I leave the details in your own
hands. Strike at no one except the highest.
You cannot mistake the Imperid carriage,
nor can you fail to recognise the figure of
the Emperor. Now I must follow the Mar-
shal. Adieu 1 If ever I see you again I
trust that it will be to congratulate you upon
a deed which will ring through Europe."

The Dragoon saluted, and Gneisenau hur-
ried from the room. The young officer
stood in deep thought for a few moments.
Then he followed the Chief of the Staff. I
looked with curiosity from my loophole to
see what his next proceeding would be. His
horse, a fine, strong chestnut with two white
stockings, was fastened to the rail of the inn.
He sprang into the saddle, and, riding to
intercept a column of cavalry which was
passing, he spoke to an officer at the head of
the leading regiment. Presently, after some
talk, I saw two Hussars — it was a Hussar

250 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

regiment — drop out of the ranks and take
up their position beside Count Stein. The
next regiment was also stopped, and two
Lancers were added to his escort. The next
furnished him with two Dragoons, and the
next with two Cuirassiers. Then he drew his
little group of horsemen aside, and he gathered
them round him, explaining to them what
they had to do. Finally the nine soldiers
rode off together and disappeared into the
Wood of Paris.

I need not tell you, my friends, what all
this portended. Indeed, he had acted exactly
as I should have done in his place. From
each colonel he had demanded the two best
horsemen in the regiment, and so he had
assembled a band who might expect to catch
whatever they should follow. Heaven help
the Emperor if, without an escort, he should
find them on his track 1

And I, dear friends — ^imagine the fever,
the ferment, the madness, of my mind I . All
thought of Grouchy had passed away. No
guns were to be heard to the east. He
could not be near. If he should come up
he would not now be in time to alter the
event of the day. The sun was already low
in the sky and there could not be more than
two or three hours of daylight. My mission

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 251

might be dismissed as useless. But here
was another mission, more pressing, more
immediate, a mission which meant the safety,
and perhaps the life, of the Emperor. At
all costs, through every danger, I must get
back to his side. But how was I to do it ?
The whole Prussian army was now between
me and the French lines. They blocked
every road, but they could not block the
path of duty when Etienne Gerard sees it lie
before him. I could not wait longer. I must
be gone.

There was but the one opening to the loft,
and so it was only down the ladder that I
could descend. I looked into the kitchen,
and I found that the young surgeon was
still there. In a chair sat the wounded
English aide-de-camp, and on the straw lay
two Prussian soldiers in the last stage of
exhaustion. The others had all recovered
and been sent on. These were my enemies,
and I must pass through them in order
to gain my horse. From the surgeon I
had nothing to fear ; the Englishman was
wounded, and his sword stood with his cloak
in a corner ; the two Germans were half
insensible, and their muskets were not beside
them. What could be simpler ? I opened
the trap-door, slipped down the ladder, and

252 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

appeared in the midst of them, my sword
drawn in my hand.

What a picture of surprise ! The surgeon,
of course, knew all, but to the Englishman
and the two Germans it must have seemed
that the god of war in person had descended
from the skies. With my appearance, with
my figure, with my silver and grey imiform,
and with that gleaming sword in my hand,
I must indeed have been a sight worth see-
ing. The two Germans lay petrified, with
staring eyes. The English ofiicer half rose,
but sat down again from weakness, his mouth
open and his hand on the back of his chair.

" What the deuce ! " he kept on repeating,
" what the deuce ! "

" Pray do not move," said I ; "I will hurt
no one, but woe to the man who lays hands
upon me to stop me. You have nothing to
fear if you leave me alone, and nothing to
hope if you try to hinder me. I am Colonel
Etienne Gerard, of the Hussars of Conflans."

" The deuce ! " said the Englishman.
" You are the man that killed the fox." A
terrible scowl had darkened his face, s The
jealousy of sportsmen is a base passion. He
hated me, this Englishman, because I had
been before him in transfixing the animal.
How different are our natures ! Had I seen

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 253

him do such a deed I would have embraced
him with cries of joy. But there was no
time for argument.

" I regret it, sir," said I ; " but you have
a cloak here and I must take it."

He tried to rise from his chair and reach
his sword, but I got between him and the
corner where it lay.

" If there is anything in the pockets "

" A case," said he.

" I would not rob you," said I ; and
raising the coat I took from the pockets a
silver flask, a square wooden case, and a
field-glass. All these I handed to him. The
wretch opened the case, took out a pistol,
and pointed it straight at my head.

" Now, my fine fellow," said he, " put
down your sword and give ymirself up."

I was so astonished at this mfamous action
that I stood petrified b.iore him. I tried
to speak to him of honour and gratitude, but
I saw his eyes fix and harden over the pistol.

" Enough talk ! " said he. " Drop it I "

Could I endvire such a humiliation ? Death
were better than to be disarmed in such a
fashion. The word " Fire ! " was on my
lips when in an instant the Englishman
vanished from before my face, and in his
place was a great pile of hay, with a red-

254 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

coated arm and two Hessian boots waving
and kicking in the heart of it. Oh, the gal-
lant landlady ! It was my whiskers that had
saved me.

" Fly, soldier, fly ! " she cried, and she
heaped fresh trusses of hay from the floor
on to the struggling Englishman. In an
instant I was out in the courtyard, had led
Violette from her stable, and was on her back.
A pistol bullet whizzed past my shoulder
from the window, and I saw a furious face
looking out at me, I smiled my contempt
and spurred out into the road. The last of
the Prussians had passed, and both my road
and my duty lay clear before me. If France
won, all was well. If France lost, then on
me and on my little mare depended that which
was more than victory or defeat — ^the safety
and the life of the Emperor. " On, Etienne,
on I" I cried. " Of all your noble exploits,
the greatest, even if it be the last, lies now
before you ! "

HOW THE BRIGADIER BORE
HIMSELF AT WATERLOO

II — ^The Story of the Nine Prussian
Horsemen

I TOLD you when last we met, my friends, of
the important mission from the Emperor to
Marshal Grouchy, which failed through no
fault of my own, and I described to you how
during a long afternoon I was shut up in the
attic of a country inn, and was prevented
from coming out because the Prussians were
all around me. You will remember also how
I overheard the Chief of the Prussian Staff
give his instructions to Count Stein, and so
learned the dangerous plan which was on foot
to kill or capture the Emperor in the event
of a French defeat. At first I could not have
believed in such a thing, but since the guns
had thundered all day, and since the sound
had" made no advance in my direction, it
was evident that the English had at least
held their own and beaten off all our attacks.
I have said that it was a fight that day

«55

256 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

between the soul of France and the beef of
Engleind, but it must be confessed that we
found the beef was very tough. It was clear
that if the Emperor could not defeat the
English when alone, then it might, indeed,
go hard with him now that sixty thousand
of these ciursed Prussians were swarming on
his flank. In any case, with this secret in
my possession, my place was by his side.

I had made my way out of the inn in the
dashing manner which I have described to
you when last we met, and I left the English
aide-de-camp shaking his foolish fist out of
the window. I could not but laugh as I
looked back at him, for his angry red face
was framed and frilled with hay. Once out
on the road I stood erect in my stirrups, and
I put on the handsome black riding-coat,
lined with red, which had belonged to him.
It fell to the top of my high boots, and
covered my tell-tale uniform completely. As
to my busby, there are many such in the
German service, and there was no reason why
it should attract attention. So long as no
one spoke to me there was no reason why I
should not ride through the whole of the
Prussian army ; but though I understood
German, for I had many friends among the
German ladies during the pleasant years that

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 257

I fought all over that country, still I spoke
it with a pretty Parisian accent which could
not be confounded with their rough, un-
musical speech. I knew that this quality of
my accent would attract attention, but I
could only hope and pray that I would be
permitted to go my way in silence.

The Forest of Paris was so large that it
was useless to think of going round it, and so
I took my courage in both hands and galloped
on down the road in the track of the Prussian
army. It was not hard to trace it, for it was
rutted two feet deep by the gunwheels and the
caissons. Soon I found a fringe of wounded
men, Prussians and French, on each side
of it, where Biilow's advance had come into
touch with Marbot's Hussars. One old man
with a long white beard, a surgeon, I suppose,
shouted at me, and ran after me still shouting,
but I never turned my head and took no
notice of him save to spiir on faster. I heard
his shouts long after I had lost sight of him
among the trees.

Presently I came up with the Prussian
reserves. The infantry were leaning on their
muskets or lying exhausted on the wet
ground, and the officers stood in groups
listening to the mighty roar of the battle
and discussing the reports which came from

258 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

the front, I hurried past at the top of my
speed, but one of them rushed out and stood
in my path with his hand up as a signal to
me to stop. Five thousand Prussian eyes
were turned upon me. There was a moment !
You turn pale, my friends, at the thought of
it. Think how every hair upon me stood on
end. But never for one instant did my wits
or my courage desert me. " General Blucher ! "
I cried. Was it not my guardian angel who
whispered the words in my ear! The
Prussian sprang from my path, saluted and
pointed forwzirds. They are well disciplined,
these Prussians, and who was he that he should
dare to stop the ofi&cer who bore a message
to the general ? It was a talisman that would
pass me out of every danger, and my heart
sang within me at the thought. So elated
was I that I no longer waited to be asked, but
as I rode through the army I shouted to
right and left, " General Blucher I General
Blucher !" and every man pointed me onwards
and cleared a path to let me pass. There
are times when the most supreme impudence
is the highest wisdom. But discretion must
also be used, and I must admit that I became
indiscreet. For as I rode upon my way, ever
nearer to the fighting line, a Prussian officer
of Uhlans gripped my bridle and pointed to a

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 259

group of men who stood near a burning farm.
" There is Marshal Blucher. Deliver your
message !" said he, and sure enough my
terrible old grey-whiskered veteran was there
within a pistol shot, his eyes turned in my
direction.

But the good guardian angel did not desert
me. Quick as a flash there came into my
memory the name of the general who com-
manded the advance of the Prussians.
" General Biilow 1" I cried. The Uhlan let
go my bridle. " General Biilow ! General
Biilow 1" I shouted as every stride of the dear
little mare took me nearer my own people.
Through the burning village of Plancenoit I
galloped, spurred my way between two columns
of Prussian infantry, sprang over a hedge, cut
down a Silesian Hussar who flung himself
before me, and an instant afterwards, with
my coat flying open to show the uniform
below, I passed through the open files of the
tenth of the line and was back in the heart
of Lobau's corps once more. Outnumbered
and outflanked, they were being slowly driven
in by the pressure of the Prussian advance.
I galloped onwards, anxious only to find
myself by the Emperor's side.

But a sight lay before me which held me
fast as though I had been turned into some

260 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

noble equestrian statue. I could not move,
I could scarce breathe, as I gazed upon it.
There was a mound over which my path lay,
and as I came out on the top of it I looked
down the long, shallow valley of Waterloo.
I had left it with two great armies on either
side and a clear field between them. Now
there were but long, ragged fringes of broken
and exhausted regiments upon the two ridges,
but a real army of dead and wounded lay
between. For two miles in length and half
a mile across the ground was strewed and
heaped with them. But slaughter was no new
sight to me, and it was not that which held
me spell-bound. It was that up the long slope
of the British position was moving a walking
forest — black, tossing, waving, unbroken. Did
I not know the bearskins of the Guard ?
And did I not also know, did not my soldier's
instinct tell me, that it was the leist reserve
of France ; that the Emperor, like a desperate
gamester, was staking all upon his last card ?
Up they went and up — ^grand, solid, unbreak-
able, scourged with musketry, riddled with
grape, flowing onwards in a black, heavy
tide, which lapped over the British batteries.
With my glass I could see the English gunners
throw themselves under their pieces or run to
the rear. On rolled the crest of the bearskins,

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 261

and then, with a crash which was swept
across to my ears, they met the British
infantry. A minute passed, and another, and
another. My heart was in my mouth. They
swayed back and forwards ; they no longer
advanced ; they were held. Great Heaven 1
was it possible that they were breaking ?
One black dot ran down the hill, then two,
then four, then ten, then a great, scattered,
struggling mass, halting, breaking, halting,
and at last shredding out and rushing madly
downwards. " The Guard is beaten 1 The
Guard is beaten I " From all around me I
heard the cry. Along the whole line the
infantry turned their faces and the gunners
flinched from their guns.

" The Old Guard is beaten ! The Guard
retreats !" Ah ofiicer with a livid face
passed me yelling out these words of woe.
" Save yourselves ! Save yourselves ! You are
betrayed ! " cried another. " Save your-
selves ! Save yourselves ! " Men were rushing
madly to the rear, blundering and jumping like
frightened sheep. Cries and screams rose from
all around me. And at that moment, as I
looked at the British position, I saw what I can
never forget. A single horseman stood out
black and clear upon the ridge against the
last red angry glow of the setting sun. So

262 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

dark, so motionless against that grim light,
he might have been the very spirit of Battle
brooding over that terrible valley. As I
gazed he raised his hat high in the air, and
at the signal, with a low, deep roar like a
breaking wave, the whole British army flooded
over their ridge and came rolling down into
the valley. Long steel-fringed lines of red
and blue, sweeping waves of cavalry, horse
batteries rattling and bounding — down they
came on to our crumbling ranks. It was
over. A yell of agony, the agony of brave
men who see no hope, rose from one flank to
the other, and in an instant the whole of
that noble army was swept in a wild, terror-
stricken crowd from the field. Even now, dear
friends, I cannot, as you see, speak of that
dreadful moment with a dry eye or with a
steady voice.

At first I was carried away in that wild
rush, whirled off like a straw in a flooded
gutter. But, suddenly, what should I see
amongst the mixed regiments in front of me
but a group of stern horsemen, in silver and
grey, with a broken and tattered standard
held aloft in the heart of them ! Not all the
might of England and of Prussia could break
the Hussars of Conflans. But when I joined
them it made my heart bleed to see them.

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 263

The major, seven captains, and five hundred
men were left upon the field. Young Captam
Sabbatier was in command, and when I asked
him where were the five missing squadrons
he pointed back and answered : " You will
find them round one of those British squares."
Men and horses were at their last gasp, caked
with sweat and dirt, their black tongues
hanging out from their lips ; but it made me
thrill with pride to see how that shattered
remnant still rode knee to knee, with every
man, from the boy trumpeter to the farrier-
sergeant, in his own proper place. Would
that I could have brought them on with me
as an escort for the Emperor ! In the heart
of the Hussars of Conflans he would be sate
indeed. But the horses were too spent to
trot. I left them behind me with orders to
rally upon the farmhouse of St. Aunay, where
we had camped two nights before. For my
own part I forced my horse through the throng
in search of the Emperor.

There were things which I saw then, as I
pressed through that dreadful crowd, which
can never be banished from my mind. In
evil dreams there comes back to me the
memory of that flowing stream of livid,
staring, screaming faces upon which I looked
down. It was a nightmare. In victory one

264 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

does not understand the horror of war. It
is only in the cold chill of defeat that it is
brought home to you. I remember an old
Grenadier of the Guard lying at the side of
the road with his broken leg doubled at a
right angle. " Comrades, comrades, keep off
my leg ! " he cried, but they tripped and
stumbled over him all the same. In front
of me rode a Lancer ofl&cer without his coat.
His arm had just been taken off in the
ambulance. The bemdages had fallen. It
was horrible. Two gunners tried to drive
through with their gun. A Chasseur raised
his musket and shot one of them through
the head. I saw a major of Cuirassiers draw
his two holster pistols and shoot first his
horse and then himself. Beside the road a
man in a blue coat was raging and raving
like a madman. His face was black with
powder,, his clothes were torn, one epaulette
was gone, the other himg dangling over his
breast. Only when I came close to him did
I recognise that it was Marshal Ney. He
howled at the flying troops and his voice
was hardly human. Then he raised the
stump of his sword — it was broken three
inches from the hilt. " Come and see how
a Marshal of France can die 1 " he cried.
Gladly would I have gone with him, but my

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 265

duty lay elsewhere. He did not, as you
know, find the death he sought, but he met
it a few weeks later in cold blood at the
hands of his enemies.

There is an old proverb that in attack
the French are more than men, in defeat
they are less than women. I knew that it
was true that day. But even in that rout
I saw things which I can tell with pride.
Through the fields which skirt the road
moved Cambronne's three reserve battalions
of the Guard, the cream of our army. They
walked slowly in square, their colours waving
over the sombre line of the bearskins. All
around them raged the English cavalry and
the black Lancers of Brunswick, wave after
wave thundering up, breaking with a crash,
and recoiling in ruin. When last I saw
them the English guns, six at a time, were
smashing grape-shot through their ranks, and
the English infantry were closing in upon
three sides and pouring volleys into them ;
but still, like a noble lion with fierce hounds
clinging to its flanks, the glorious remnant
of the Guard, marching slowly, halting,
closing up, dressing, moved majestically from
their last battle. Behind them the Guards'
battery of twelve-pounders was drawn up
upon the ridge. Every gunner was in his

266 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

place, but no gun fired. " Why do you not
fire ? " I asked the colonel as I passed. " Our
powder is finished." " Then why not retire ? "
" Our appearance may hold them back for a
little. We must give the Emperor time to
escape." Such were the soldiers of France.

Behind this screen of brave men the
others took their breath, and then went on
in less desperate fashion. They had broken
away from the road, and all over the country-
side in the twilight I could see the timid,
scattered, frightened crowd who ten hours
before had formed the finest army that ever
went down to battle. I with my splendid
mare was soon able to get clear of the throng,
and just after I passed Genappe I overtook
the Emperor with the remains of his Staff,
Soult was with him still, and so were Drouot,
Lobau, and Bertrand, with five Chasseurs of
the Guard, their horses hardly able to move.
The night was falling, and the Emperor's
haggard face gleamed white through the gloom
as he turned it towards me.
" Who is that ? " he asked.
" It is Colonel Gerard," said Soult;
" Have you seen Marshal Grouchy ? "
" No, Sire. The Prussians were between."
" It does not matter. Nothing matters
now, Soult, I will go back,"-

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 267

He tried to turn his horse, but Bertrand
seized his bridle. " Ah, Sire," said Soult,
" the enemy has had good fortune enough
akeady." They forced him on among them.
He rode in silence with his chin upon his
breast, the greatest and the saddest of men.
Far away behind us those remorseless guns
were still roaring. Sometimes out of the
darkness would come shrieks and screams
and the low thunder of galloping hoofs. At
the sound we would spur our horses and
hasten onwards through the scattered troops.
At last, after riding all night in the clear
moonlight, we foimd that we had left both
pursued and pursuers behind. By the time
we passed over the bridge at Charleroi the
dawn was breaking. What a company of
spectres we looked in that cold, clear, search-
ing light, the Emperor with his face of wax,
Soult blotched with powder, Lobau dabbled
with blood 1 But we rode more easily now
and had ceased to glance over our shoulders,
for Waterloo was more than thirty miles
behind us. One of the Emperor's carriages had
been picked up at Charleroi, and we hedted
now on the other side of the Sambre, and
dismounted from our horses. *

You will ask me why it was that during
all this time I had said nothing of that which

268 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

was nearest my heart, the need for guarding
the Emperor. As a fact, I had tried to
speak of it both to Soult and to Lobau, but
their minds were so overwhelmed with the
disaster and so distracted by the pressing
needs of the moment that it was impossible
to make them understand how urgent was
my message. Besides, during this long flight
we had always had numbers of French
fugitives beside us on the road, and, however
demoralised they might be, we had nothing
to fear from the attack of nine men. But
now, as we stood round the Emperor's
carriage in the early morning, I observed
with anxiety that not a single French soldier
was to be seen upon the long, white road
behind us. We had outstripped the army.
I looked round to see what means of defence
were left to us. The horses of the Chasseurs
of the Guard had broken down, and only one
of them, a grey-whiskered sergeant, remained.
There were Soult, Lobau, and Bertrand;
but, for all their talents, I had rather, when
it came to hard knocks, have a single quarter-
master-sergeant of Hussars at my side than
the three of them put together. There re-
mained the Emperor himself, the coachman,
and a valet of the household who had joined us
at Charleroi — eight all told ; but of the eight

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 269

only two, the Chasseur and I, were fighting
soldiers who could be depended upon at a
pinch. A chill came over me as I reflected
how utterly helpless we were. At that
moment I raised my eyes, and there were
the nine Prussian horsemen coming over
the hill.

On either side of the road at this point
are long stretches of rolling plain, part of it
yellow with corn and part of it rich grass
land watered by the Sambre. To the South
of us was a low ridge, over which was the
road to France. Along this road the little
group of cavalry was riding. So well had
Count Stein obeyed his instructions that he
had struck far to the south of us in his
determination to get ahead of the Emperor.
Now he was riding from the direction in
which we were going — the last in which we
could expect an enemy. When I caught
that first glimpse of them they were still half
a mile away.

" Sire ! " I cried, " the Prussians I "
They all started and stared. It was the
Emperor who broke the silence.
" Who says they are Prussians ? "
"I do, Sire — I, Etienne Gerard ! "
Unpleasant news always made the Emperor
furious against the man who broke it. He

270 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

railed at me now in the rasping, croaking,
Corsican voice which only made itself heard
when he had lost his self-control.

" You were always a buffoon," he cried.
" What do you mean, you numskull, by
saying that they are Prussians ? How could
Prussians be coming from the direction of
France? You have lost any wits that you
ever possessed."

His words cut me like a whip, and yet
we all felt towards the Emperor as an old
dog does to its master. His kick is soon
forgotten and forgiven. I would not argue
or justify myself. At the first glance I had
seen the two white stockings on the forelegs
of the leading horse, and I knew well that
Count Stein was on its back. For an instant
the nine horsemen had halted and surveyed
us. Now they put spurs to their horses, and
with a yell of triumph they galloped down the
road. They had recognised that their prey
was in their power.

At that swift advance all doubt had
vanished. " By heavens. Sire, it is indeed
the Prussians I" cried Soult. Lobau and
Bertrand ran about the road like two fright-
ened hens. The sergeant of Chasseurs drew
his sabre with a volley of curses. The
coachman and the valet cried and wrung their

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 271

hands. Napoleon stood with a frozen face,
one foot on the step of the carriage. And I
— ah, my friends, I was magnificent ! What
words can I use to do justice to my own bear-
ing at that supreme instant of my life ! So
coldly alert, so deadly cool, so clear in brain
and ready in hand. He had called me a num-
skull and a buffoon. How quick and how
noble was my revenge ! When his own wits
failed him, it was Etienne Gerard who supplied
the want.

To fight was absurd ; to fly was ridiculous.
The Emperor was stout, and weary to death.
At the best he was never a good rider. How
could he fly from these, the picked men of an
army ? The best horseman in Prussia was
among them. But I was the best horseman
in France. I, and only I, could hold my own
with them. If they were on my track instead
of the Emperor's, all might still be well.
These were the thoughts which flashed so
swiftly through my mind that in an instant
I had sprung from the first idea to the final
conclusion. Another instant carried me from
the fined conclusion to prompt and vigorous
action. I rushed to the side of the Emperor,
who stood petrified, with the carriage between
him and our enemies. " Your coat. Sire !
your hat !" I cried. I dragged them off

272 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

him. Never had he been so hustled in his
life. In an instant I had them on and had
thrust him into the carriage. The next I
had sprung on to his famous white Arab
and had ridden clear of the group upon the
road.

You have already divined my plan ; but
you may well ask how could I hope to pass
myself off as the Emperor. My figure is as
you still see it, and his was never beautiful, for
he was both short and stout. But a man's
height is not remarked when he is in the
saddle, and for the rest one had but to sit
forward on the horse and round one's back
and carry oneself like a sack of flour. I wore
the little cocked hat and the loose grey coat
with the silver star which was known to every
child from one end of Europe to the other.
Beneath me was the Emperor's own famous
white charger. It was complete.

Already as I rode clear the Prussians were
within two hundred yards of us. I made a
gesture of terror and despair with my hands,
and I sprang my horse over the bank which
lined the road. It was enough. A yell of
exultation and of furious hatred broke from
the Prussians. It was the howl of starving
wolves who scent their prey. I spurred my
horse over the meadow-land and looked back

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 273

under my arm as I rode. Oh, the glorious
moment when one after the other I saw eight
horsemen come over the bank at my heels !
Only one had stayed behind, and I heard
shouting and the sounds of a struggle. I
remembered my old sergeant oi Chasseurs,
and I was sure that number nine would trouble
us no more. The road was clear, and the
Emperor free to continue his journey.

But now I had to think of myself. If I
were overtaken the Prussians would certainly
make short work of me in their disappoint-
ment. If it were so — if I lost my life — I
should still have sold it at a glorious price.
But I had hopes that I might shake them oft.
With ordinary horsemen upon ordinary horses
I should have had no difficulty in doing so,
but here both steeds and riders were of the
best. It was a grand creature that I rode,
but it was weary with its long night's work,
and the Emperor was one of those riders who
do not know how to manage a horse. He had
little thought for them, and a heavy hand upon
their mouths. On the other hand Stein and
his men had come both far and fast. The
race was a fair one.

So quick had been my impulse, and so
rapidly had I acted upon it, that I had not
thought enough of my own safety. Had I

274 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

done so in the first instance I should, of
course, have ridden straight back the way we
had come, for so I should have met our own
people. But I was off the road and had
galloped a mile over the plain before this
occurred to me. Then when I looked back
I saw that the Prussians had spread out into
a long line, so as to head me off from the
Charleroi road. I could not turn back, but
at least I could edge towards the north. I
knew that the whole face of the country was
covered with our flying troops, and that
sooner or later I must come upon some of
them.

But one thing I had forgotten — the Sambre.
In my excitement I never gave it a thought
until I saw it, deep and broad, gleaming in
the morning sunlight. It barred my path,
and the Prussians howled behind me, I
galloped to the brink, but the horse refused
the plunge. I spurred him, but the bank was
high and the stream deep. He shrank back
trembling and snorting. The yells of triumph
were louder every instant. I turned and
rode for my life down the river bank. It
formed a loop at this part, and I must get
across somehow, for my retreat was blocked.
Suddenly a thrill of hope ran through me, for
I saw a house on my side of the stream and

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 275

another on the farther bank. Where there
are two such houses it usually means that there
is a ford between them, A sloping path led
to the brink, and I urged my horse down it.
On he went, the water up to the saddle, the
foam flying right and left. He blundered
once and I thought we were lost, but he
recovered and an instant later was clattering
up the farther slope. As we came out I
heard the splash behind me as the first
Prussian took the water. There was just
the breadth of the Sambre between us.

I rode with my head sunk between my
shoulders in Napoleon's fashion, and I did not
dare to look back for fear they should see my
moustache. I had turned up the collar of
the grey coat so as partly to hide it. Even
now if they found out their mistake they
might turn and overtake the carriage. But
when once we were on the road I could tell
by the drumming of their hoofs how far
distant they were, and it seemed to me that
the sound grew perceptibly louder, as if they
were slowly gaining upon me. We were
riding now up the stony and rutted lane which
led from the ford. I peeped back very
cautiously from under my arm and I per-
ceived that my danger came from a single
rider, who was far ahead of his comrades.

276 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

He was a Hussar, a very tiny fellow, upon a
big black horse, and it was his light weight
which had brought him into the foremost
place. It is a place of honour ; but it is also
a place of danger, as he was soon to learn. I
felt the holsters, but, to my horror, there
were no pistols. There was a field-glass in
one and the other was stuffed with papers.
My sword had been left behind with Violette.
Had I only my own weapons and my own
little mare I could have played with these
rascals. But I was not entirely unarmed.
The Emperor's own sword hung to the saddle.
It was curved and short, the hilt all crusted
with gold — a thing more fitted to glitter at a
review than to serve a soldier in his deadly
need. I drew it, such as it was, and I waited
my chance. Every instant the clink and
clatter of the hoofs grew nearer. I heard
the panting of the horse, and the fellow shouted
some threat at me. There was a turn in the
lane, and as I rounded it I drew up my white
Arab on his haunches. As we spun round I
met the Prussian Hussar face to face. He was
going too fast to stop, and his only chance
was to ride me down. Had he done so he
might have met his own death, but he would
have injured me or my horse past all hope of
escape. But the fool flinched as he saw me

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 277

waiting, and flew past me on my right. I
lunged over my Arab's neck and buried my
toy sword in his side. It must have been the
finest steel and as sharp as a razor, for I
hardly felt it enter, and yet his blood was
within three inches of the hilt. His horse
galloped on and he kept his saddle for a
hundred yards before he sank down with his
face on the mane, and then dived over the
side of the neck on to the road. For my own
part, I was already at his horse's heels. A
few seconds had sufficed for all that I have told.
I heard the cry of rage and vengeance
which rose from the Prussians as they passed
their dead comrade, and I could not but
smile as I wondered what they could think
of the Emperor as a horseman and a swords-
man. I glanced back cautiously as before,
and I saw that none of the seven men stopped.
The fate of their comrade was nothing com-
pared to the carrying out of their mission.
They were as untiring and as remorseless as
bloodhounds. But I had a good lead, and
the brave Arab was still going well. I thought
that I was safe. And yet it was at that very
instant that the most terrible danger befell
me. The lane divided, and I took the smaller
of the two divisions because it was the more
grassy and the easier for the horse's hoofs.

278 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Imagine my horror when, riding through a
gate, I found myself in a square of stables
and farm-buildings, with no way out save
that by which I had come ! Ah, my friends,
if my hair is snowy white, have I not had
enough to make it so ?

To retreat was impossible. I could hear
the thunder of the Prussians' hoofs in the
lane. I looked round me, and Nature has
blessed me with that quick eye which is the
first of gifts to any soldier, but most of all
to a leader of cavalry. Between a long, low
line of stables and the farmhouse there was
a pig-sty. Its front was made of bars of
wood four feet high ; the back was of stone,
higher than the front. What was beyond I
could not tell. The space between the front
and the back was not more than a few yards.
It was a desperate venture, and yet I must
take it. Every instant the beating of those
hurrying hoofs was louder and louder. I put
my Arab at the pig-sty. She cleared the
front beautifully, and came down with her
forefeet upon the sleeping pig within, slipping
forward upon her knees. I was thrown over
the wall beyond, and fell upon my hands and
face in a soft flower-bed. My horse was
upon one side of the wall, I upon the other,
and the Prussians were pouring into the yard.

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 279

But I was up in an instant, and had seized
the bridle of the plunging horse over the top
of the wall. It was built of loose stones, and
I dragged down a few of them to make a gap.
As I tugged at the bridle and shouted the
gallant creature rose to the leap, and an in-
stant afterwards she was by my side and I
with my foot on the stirrup.

An heroic idea had entered my mind as I
mounted into the saddle. These Prussians,
if they came over the pig-sty, could only
come one at once, and their attack would
not be formidable when they had not had
time to recover from such a leap. Why
should I not wait and kill them one by one
as they came over ? It was a glorious
thought. They would leain that Etienne
Gerard was not a safe man to hunt. My
hand felt for my sword, but you can imagine
my feelings, my friends, when I came upon
an empty scabbard. It had been shaken out
when the horse had tripped over that infernal
pig. On what absurd trifles do our destinies
hang — a pig on one side, Etienne Gerard on
the other ! Could I spring over the wall and
get the sword ? Impossible ! The Prussians
were already in the yard. I turned my Arab
and resumed my flight.

But for a moment it seemed to me that I

280 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

was in a far worse trap than before. I found
myself in the garden of the farmhouse, an
orchard in the centre and flower-beds all
round. A high wall surrounded the whole
place. I reflected, however, that there must
be some point of entrance, since every visitor
could not be expected to spring over the pig-
sty. I rode round the wall. As I expected,
I came upon a door with a key upon the inner
side. I dismounted, unlocked it, opened it,
and there was a Prussian Lancer sitting his
horse within six feet of me.

For a moment we each stared at the other.
Then I shut the door and locked it again.
A crash and a cry came from the other end
of the garden. I understood that one of my
enemies had come to grief in trying to get
over the pig-sty. How could I ever get out
of this cul-de-sac ? It was evident that some
of the party had galloped round, while some
had followed straight upon my tracks. Had
I my sword I might have beaten off the
Lancer at the door, but to come out now
v/as to be butchered. And yet if I waited
some of them would certainly follow me on
foot over the pig-sty, and what could I do
then ? I must act at once or I was lost.
But it is at such moments that my wits are
most active and my actions most prompt.

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 281

Still leading my horse, I ran for a hundred
yards by the side of the wall away from the
spot, where the Lancer was watching. There
I stopped, and with an effort I tumbled down
several of the loose stones from the top of
the vOall. The instant I had done so I hurried
back to the door. As I had expected, he
thought I was making a gap for my escape
at tha^ point, and I heard the thud of his
horse's I hoofs as he galloped to cut me off.
As I reached the gate I looked back, and
I saw a green-coated horseman, whom I
knew to be Count Stein, clear the pig-sty
and gallop furiously with a shout of tri-
umph across the garden. " Surrender, your
Majesty, surrender I" he yelled; "we will
give you quarter ! " I slipped through the
gate, bijt had no time to lock it on the other
side. Stein was at my very heels, and the
Lancer had already turned his horse. Spring-
ing upon my Arab's back, I was off once
more with a clear stretch of grass land before
me. Stein had to dismount to open the gate,
to lead his horse through, and to mount again
before jie could follow. It was he that I
feared father than the Lancer, whose horse
was coarse-bred and weary. I galloped hard
for a mije before I ventured to look back, and
then Stdn was a musket-shot from me, and

282 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

the Lancer as much again, while only three
of the others were in sight. My nine
Prussians were coming down to more manage-
able numbers, and yet one was too much for
an unarmed man.

It had surprised me that during this long
chase I had seen no fugitives from the army,
but I reflected that I was considerably to
the west of their line of flight, and that I
must edge more towards the east if I wished
to join them. Unless I did so it was probable
that my pursuers, even if they could not
overtake me themselves, would keep me in
view until I was headed off by some of theii
comrades coming from the north, As I
looked to the eastward I saw afar off a line of
dust which stretched for miles aaoss the
country. This was certainly the main road
along which our unhappy army was flying.
But I '(oon had proof that some of our
stragglers had wandered into these side tracks,
for I came suddenly upon a horse grazing at
the corner of a field, and beside him, with his
back against the bank, his master, a French
Cuirassier, terribly wounded and evidently
at the point of death. I sprang down, seized
his long, heavy sword, and rode on with it.
Never shall I forget the poor man's face as he
looked at me with his failing sight. He was

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 283

an old, grey-moustached soldier, one of the
real fanatics, and to him this last vision of his
Emperor was like a revelation from on high.
Astonishment, love, pride — all shone in his
pallid face. He said something — I fear they
were his last words — but I had no time to
listen, and I galloped on my way.

All this time I had been on the meadow-
land, which was intersected in this part by
broad ditches. Some of them could not
have been less than from fourteen to fifteen
feet, and my heart was in my mouth as I
went at each of them, for a slip would have
been my ruin. But whoever selected the
Emperor's horses had done his work well.
The creature, save when it balked on the
bank of the Sambre, never failed me for an
instant. We cleared everything in one stride.
And yet we could not shake off those infernal
Prussians. As I left each watercourse behind
me I looked back with renewed hope, but it
was only to see Stein on his white-legged
chestnut flying over it as lightly as I had done
myself. He was my enemy, but I honoured
him for the way in which he carried himself
that day.

Again and again I measured the distance
which separated him from the next horseman.
I had the idea that I might tiirn and cut him

284 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

down, as I had the Hussar, before his comrade
could come to his help. But the others had
closed up and were not far behind. I reflected
that this Stein was probably as fine a swords-
man as he was a rider, and that it might take
me some little time to get the better of him.
In that case the others would come to his aid
and I should be lost. On the whole, it was
wiser to continue my flight.

A road with poplars on either side ran
across the plain from east to west. It would
lead me towards the long line of dust which
marked the French retreat. I wheeled my
horse, therefore, and galloped down it. As I
rode I saw a single house in front of me
upon the right, with a great bush hung over
the door to mark it as an inn. Outside there
were several peeisants, but for them I cared
nothing. What frightened me was to see
the gleam of a red coat, which showed that
there were British in the place. However,
I could not turn and I could not stop, so
there was nothing for it but to gallop on and
to take my chance. There were no troops
in sight, so these men must be stragglers or
marauders, from whom I had little to fear.
As I approached I saw that there were two
of them sitting drinking on a bench outside
the inn door. I saw them stagger to their

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 285

feet, and it was evident that they were both
very drunk. One stood swaying in the
middle of the road. " It's Boney ! So help
me, it's Boney 1 " he yelled. He ran with
his hands out to catch me, but luckily for
himself his drunken feet stumbled and he
fell on his face in the road. The other was
more dangerous. He had rushed into the inn,
and just as I passed I saw him run out with
his musket in his hand. He dropped upon
one knee, and I stooped forward over my
horse's neck. A single shot from a Prussian
or an Austrian is a small matter, but the
British were at that time the best shots in
Europe, and my drunkard seemed steady
enough when he had a gun at his shoulder.
I heard the crack, and my horse gave a
convulsive spring which would have unseated
many a rider. For an instant I thought he
was killed, but when I turned in my saddle
I saw a stream of blood running down the off
hind-quarter. I looked back at the English-
man, and the brute had bitten the end off
another cartridge and was ramming it into
his musket, but before he had it primed we
were beyond his range. These men were foot-
soldiers and could not join in the chase, but
I heard them whooping and tally-hoing behind
me as if I had been a fox. The peasants also

286 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

shouted and ran through the fields flourishing
their sticks. From all sides I heard cries, and
everywhere were the rushing, waving figures
of my pursuers. To think of the great
Emperor being chivied over the country-
side in this fashion 1 It made me long to
have these rascals within the sweep of my
sword.

But now I felt that I was nearing the end
of my course. I had done all that a man
could be expected to do — some would say
more — but at last I had come to a point
from which I could see no escape. The
horses of my pursuers were exhausted, but
mine was exhausted and wounded also. It
was losing blood fast, and we left a red trail
upon the white, dusty road. Already his
pace was slackening, and sooner or later he
must drop under me. I looked back, and
there were the five inevitable Prussians —
Stein, a hundred yards in front, then a
Lancer, and then three others riding together.
Stein had drawn his sword, and he waved it
at me. For my own part I was determined
not to give myself up. I would try how many
of these Prussians I could take with me into
the other world. At this supreme moment
all the great deeds of my life rose in a vision
before me, and I felt that this, my last exploit.

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 287

was indeed a worthy close to such a career.
My death would be a fatal blow to those who
loved me, to my dear mother, to my Hussars,
to others who shall be nameless. But all of
them had my honour and my fame at heart,
and I felt that their grief would be tinged
with pride when they learned how I had
ridden and how I had fought upon this last
day. Therefore I hardened my heart and,
£is my Arab limped more and more upon his
wounded leg, I drew the great sword which
I had taken from the Cuirassier, and I set
my teeth for my supreme struggle. My
hand was in the very act of tightening the
bridle, for I feared that if I delayed longer
I might find myself on foot fighting against
five mounted men. At that instant my eye
fell upon something which brought hope to
my heart and a shout of joy to my lips.

From a grove of trees in front of me there
projected the steeple of a village church.
But there could not be two steeples like that,
for the corner of it had crumbled away or
been struck by lightning, so that it was of
a most fantastic shape. I had seen it only
two days before, and it was the church of
the village of Gosselies. It was not the
hope of reaching the village which set my
heart singing with joy, but it was that I

288 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

knew my ground now, and that farmhouse
not half a mile ahead, with its gable end
sticking out from amid the trees, must be
that very farm of St. Aunay where we had
bivouacked, and which I had named to
Captam Sabbatier as the rendezvous of the
Hussars of Conflans. There they were, my
little rascals, if I could but reach them.
With every bound my horse grew weaker.
Each instant the sound of the pursuit grew
louder. I heard a gust of crackling German
oaths at my very heels. A pistol bullet
sighed in my ears. Spurring frantically and
beating my poor Arab with the flat of my
sword I kept him at the top of his speed.
The open gate of the farmyard lay before
me. I saw the twinkle of steel within.
Stein's horse's head was within ten yards
of me as I thundered through. " To me,
comrades I To me ! " I yelled. I heard a
buzz as when the angry bees swarm from
their nest. Then my splendid white Arab
fell dead under me, and I was hurled on to
the cobble-stones of the yard, where I can
remember no more.

Such was my last and most famous exploit,
my dear friends, a story which rang through
Europe and has made the name of Etienne
Gerard famous in history. Alas ! that all

HOW HE BORE HIMSELF AT WATERLOO 289

my efforts could only give the Emperor a
few weeks more liberty, since he surrendered
upon July 15th to the English. But it
was not my fault that he was not able to
collect the forces still waiting for him in
France, and to fight another Waterloo with
a happier ending. Had others been as loyal
as I was the history of the world might have
been changed, the Emperor would have
preserved his throne, and such a soldier as
I would not have been left to spend his life
in planting cabbages or to while away his
old age telling stories in a cafL You ask
me about the fate of Stein and the Prussian
horsemen ! Of the three who dropped upon
the way I know nothing. One you will
remember that I killed. There remained
five, three of whom were cut down by my
Hussars, who, for the instant, were under
the impression that it was indeed the Emperor
whom they were defending. Stein was taken,
slightly wounded, and so was one of the
Uhlans. The truth was not told to them,
for we thought it best that no news, or false
news, should get about as to where the
Emperor was, so that Count Stein still believed
that he was within a few yards of making
that tremendous capture. " You may well
love and honour your Emperor," said he,

K

290 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" for such a horseman and such a swordsman
I have never seen." He could not under-
stand why the young colonel of Hussars
laughed so heartily at his words — ^but he has
learned since.

VIII

THE LAST ADVENTURE OF THE
BRIGADIER

I WILL tell you no more stories, my dear
friends. It is said that man is like the hare,
which runs in a circle and comes back to die
at the point from which it started. Gascony
has been calling to me of late. I see the blue
Garonne winding among the vineyards and
the bluer ocean towards which its waters
sweep. I see the old town also, and the
bristle of masts from the side of the long stone
quay. My heart hungers for the breath of my
native air and the warm glow of my native
sun. Here in Paris are my friends, my occu-
pations, my pleasures. There all who have
known me are in their grave. And yet the
south-west wind as it rattles on my windows
seems always to be the strong voice of the
motherland calling her child back to that
bosom into which I am ready to sink. I have

played my past in my time. The time has

391

292 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

passed, I must pass also. Nay, dear friends,
do not look sad, for what can be happier than
a life completed in honour and made beauti-
ful with friendship and love ? And yet it is
solemn also when a man approaches the end
of the long road and sees the turning which
leads him into the unknown. But the
Emperor and all his Marshals have ridden
round that dark turning and passed into
the beyond. My Hussars, too — there are not
fifty men who are not waiting yonder. I
must go. But on this the last night I will
tell you that which is more than a tale — it is
a great historical secret. My lips have been
sealed, but I see no reason why I should
not leave behind me some account of this
remarkable adventure, which must otherwise
be entirely lost, since I, and only I of all
living men, have a knowledge of the facts.
I will ask you to go back with me to the
year 1821. In that year our great Emperor
had been absent from us for six years, and
only now and then from over the seas we
heard some whisper which showed that he
was still alive. You cannot think what a
weight it was upon our hearts for us who
loved him to think of him in captivity eating
his giant soul out upon that lonely island.
From the moment we rose until we closed

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 293

our eyes in sleep the thought was always
with us, and we felt dishonoured that he,
our chief and master, should be so humiliated
without our being able to move a hand to
help him. There were many who would
most willingly have laid down the remainder
of their lives to bring him a little ease, and
yet all that we could do was to sit and grumble
in our cafis and stare at the map, counting up
the leagues of water which lay between us.
It seemed that he might have been in the
moon for all that we could do to help him.
But that was only because we were all soldiers
and knew nothing of the sea.

Of course, we had our own little troubles
to make us bitter, as well as the wrongs of
our Emperor. There were many of us who
had held high rank and would hold it again
if he came back to his own. We had not
found it possible to take service under the
white flag of the Bourbons, or to take an
oath which might turn our sabres against the
man whom we loved. So we found our-
selves with neither work nor money. What
could we do save gather together and gossip
and grumble, while those who had a little
paid the score and those who had nothing
shared the bottle ? Now and then, if we
were lucky, we managed to pick a quarrel

294 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

with one of the Garde du Corps, and if we
left him on. his back in the Bois we felt that
we had struck a blow for Napoleon once
again. They came to know our haunts in
time, and they avoided them as if they had
been hornets' nests.

There was one of these — ^the Sign of the
Great Man — in the Rue Varennes, which
was frequented by several of the more dis-
tinguished and younger Napoleonic ofl&cers.
Nearly all of us had been colonels or aides-
de-camp, and when any man of less distinction
came among us we generally made him feel
that he had taken a liberty. There were
Captain Lepine, who had won the medal of
honoiu: at Leipzig ; Colonel Bonnet, aide-de-
camp to Macdonald ; Colonel Jourdan, whose
fame in the army was hardly second to my
own ; Sabbatier of my own Hussars, Meunier
of the Red Lancers, Le Breton of the Guards,
and a dozen others. Every night we met and
talked, played dominoes, drank a glass or two
and wondered how long it would be before the
Emperor would be back and we at the head of
our regiments once more. The Bourbons
had aheady lost any hold they ever had upon
the country, as was shown a few years after-
wards, when Paris rose against them and they
were hunted for the third time out of France.

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 295

Napoleon had but to show himself on the
coast, and he would have marched without
firing a musket to the capital, exactly as he
had done when he came back from Elba.

Well, when affairs were in this state there
arrived one night in February, in our ca/l,
a most singular little man. He was short
but exceedingly broad, with huge shoulders,
and a head which was a deformity, so large
was it. His heavy brown face was scarred
with white streaks in a most extraordinary
manner, and he had grizzled whiskers such
as seamen wear. Two gold ear-rings in his
ears, and plentiful tattooing upon his hands
and arms, told us also that he was of the sea
before he introduced himself to us as Captain
Fourneau, of the Emperor's navy. He had
letters of introduction to two of our number,
and there could be no doubt that he was
devoted to the cause. He won our respect,
too, for he had seen as much fighting as
any of us, and the burns upon his face were
caused by his standing to his post upon the
Orient, at the Battle of the Nile, until the
vessel blew up underneath him. Yet he
would say little about himself, but he sat in
the corner of the caf& watching us all with
a wonderfully sharp pair of eyes and listening
intently to our talki

296 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

One night I was leaving the cafi when
Captain Fourneau followed me, and touching
me on the arm he led me without saying
a word for some distance until we reached
his lodgings. " I wish to have a chat with
you," said he, and so conducted me up the
stair to his room. There he lit a lamp and
handed me a sheet of paper which he took
from an envelope in his bureau. It was
dated a few months before from the Palace
of Schonbrunn at Vienna. " Captain Four-
neau is acting in the highest interests of the
Emperor Napoleon. Those who love the
Emperor should obey him without question
— Marie Louise." That is what I read.
I was familiar with the signature of the
Empress, and I could not doubt that this
was genuine.

" Well," said he, " are you satisfied as to
my credentials ? "*

" Entirely."

"Are you prepared to take your orders
from me ? "

" This document leaves me no choice."

" Good ! In the first place, I understand
from something you said in the cafi that you
can speak English ? ''{

" Yes, I can."

" I,et me hear you do so."

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 297

I said in English, " Whenever the Emperor
needs the help of Etienne Gerard, I am ready
night and day to give my life in his service."
Captain Fovirneau smiled.

"It is funny English," said he, " but still
it is better than no English. For my own
part I speak English like an Englishman.
It is all that I have to show for six years
spent in an English prison. Now I will tell
you why I have come to Paris. I have come
in order to choose an agent who will help me
in a matter which affects the interests of the
Emperor. I was told that it was at the caf&
of the Great Man that I would find the pick
of his old officers, and that I could rely upon
every man there being devoted to his interests.
I studied you all, therefore, and I have come
to the conclusion that you are the one who
is most suited for my purpose."

I acknowledged the compliment. " What
is it that you wish me to do ? " I asked.

" Merely to keep me company for a few
months," said he. " You must know that
after my release in England I settled down
there, married an English wife, and rose to
command a small English merchant ship,
in which I have made several voyages from
Southampton to the Guinea coast. They
look on me there as an Englishman. You

298 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

can understand, however, that with my
feelings about the Emperor I am lonely
sometimes, and that it would be an advan-
tage to me to have a companion who would
sympathise with my thoughts. One gets
very bored on these long voyages, and I
would make it worth your while to share
my cabin."

He looked hard at me with his shrewd
grey eyes all the time that he was uttering
this rigmarole, and I gave him a glance in
return which showed him that he was not
dealing with a fool. He took out a canvas
bag full of money.

" There are a hundred pounds in gold in
this bag," said he. " You will be able to
buy some comforts for your voyage. I should
recommend you to get them in Southampton,
whence we will start in ten days. The name
of the vessel is the Black Swan. I return to
Southampton to-morrow, and I shall hope to
see you in the course of the next week."

" Come now," said I, " tell me frankly
what is the destination of our voyage ? "

" Oh, didn't I tell you ? " he answered.
" We are bound for the Guinea coast of
Africa."

" Then how can that be in the highest
interests of the Emperor ? " I asked.

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 299

*' It is in his highest interests that you ask
no indiscreet questions and I give no indis-
creet replies," he answered, sharply. So he
brought the interview to an end, and I found
myself back in my lodgings with nothing save
this bag of gold to show that this singular
interview had indeed taken place.
r- There was every reason why I should see
the adventure to a conclusion, and so within
a week I was on my way to England. I
passed from St. Malo to Southampton, and
on inquiry at the docks I had no difficulty
in finding the Black Swan, a neat little vessel
of a shape which is called, as I learned after-
wards, a brig. There was Captain Fourneau
himself upon the deck, and seven or eight
rough fellows hard at work grooming her and
making her ready for sea. He greeted me
and led me down to his cabin.

" You are plain Mr. Gerard now," said he,
" and a Channel Islander. I would be obliged
to you if you would kindly forget your mili-
tary ways and drop your cavalry swagger
when you walk up and down my deck. A
beard, too, would seem more sailor-like than
those moustaches."

I was horrified by his words, but, after all,
there axe no ladies on the high seas, and what
did it matter ? He rang for the steward.

300 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" Gustav," said he, " you will pay every
attention to my friend, Monsieur Etienne
Gerard, who makes this voyage with us.
This is Gustav Kerouan, my Breton steward,"
he explained, " and you are very safe in his
hands."

This steward, with his harsh face and
stern eyes, looked a very warlike person for
so peaceful an employment. I said nothing,
however, though you may guess that I kept
my eyes open. A berth had been prepared
for me next the cabin, which would have
seemed comfortable enough had it not con-
trasted with the extraordinary splendour of
Fourneau's quarters. He was certainly a
most luxurious person, for his room was
new-fitted with velvet and silver in a way
which would have suited the yacht of a noble
better than a little West African trader. So
thought the mate, Mr. Burns, who could not
hide his amusement and contempt whenever
he looked at it. This fellow, a big, solid
red-headed Englishman, had the other berth
connected with the cabin. There was a
second mate named Turner, who lodged in
the middle of the ship, and there were nine
men and one boy in the crew, three of whom,
as I was informed by Mr. Burns, were Channel
Islanders like myself. This Burns, the first

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 301

mate, was much interested to know why I
was coming with them.

" I come for pleasure," said Ii

He steired at me.

" Ever been to the West Coast ? " he
asked.

I said that I had not.

" I thought not," said he. " You'll never
come again for that reason, anyhow."

Some three days after my arrival we un-
tied the ropes by which the ship was tethered
and we set off upon our jovirney. I was
never a good sailor, and I may confess that
we were far out of sight of any land before
I was able to venture upon deck. At last,
however, upon the fifth day I drank the soup
which the good Kerouan brought me, and I
was able to crawl from my bunk and up the
stair. The fresh air revived me, and from
that time onwards I accommodated myself
to the motion of the vessel. My beard had
begun to grow also, and I have no doubt
that I should have made as fine a sailor as I
have a soldier had I chanced to be born to
that branch of the service. I learned to pull
the ropes which hoisted the sails, and also to
haul round the long sticks to which they are
attached. For the most part, however, my
duties were to play 6cart6 with Captain

302 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Fourneau, and to act as his companion. It
was not strange that he should need one, for
neither of his mates could read nor write,
though each of them was an excellent sea-
man. If our captain had died suddenly I
cannot imagine how we should have found
our way in that waste of waters, for it was
only he who had the knowledge which enabled
him to mark our place upon the chart. He
had this fixed upon the cabin wall, and every
day he put our course upon it so that we
could see at a glance how far we were from
our destination. It was wonderful how well
he could calculate it, for one morning he
said that we should see the Cape Verd light that
very night, and there it was, sure enough,
upon our left front the moment that darkness
came. Next day, however, the land was out
of sight, and Burns, the mate, explained to
me that we should see no more until we
came to our port in the Gulf of Biafra. Every
day we flew south with a favouring wind,
and always at noon the pin upon the chart
was moved nearer and nearer to the African
coast. I may explain that palm oil was the
cargo which we were in search of, and that
our own lading consisted of coloured cloths,
old muskets, and such other trifles as the
English sell to the savages.

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 303

At last the wind which had followed us so
long died away, and for several days we
drifted about on a calm and oily sea under
a sun which brought the pitch bubbling out
between the planks upon the deck. We
turned and turned our sails to catch every
wandering puff, until at last we came out of
this belt of calm and ran south again with a
brisk breeze, the sea all round us being alive
with flying fishes. For some days Burns
appeared to be uneasy, and I observed him
continually shading his eyes with his hand
and staring at the horizon as if he were
looking for land. Twice I caught him with
his red head against the chart in the cabin,
gazing at that pin, which was always
approaching and yet never reaching the
African coast. At last one evening, as Captain
Fourneau and I were playing 6caxt6 in the
cabin, the mate entered with an angry look
upon his sunburned face.

" I beg your pardon. Captain Fourneau,"
said he. " But do you know what course
the man at the wheel is steering ?"

" Due south," the captain answered, with
his eyes fixed upon his cards.

"And he should be steering due east.''
" How do you make that out ?"■
The mate gave an angry growl.

304 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" I may not have much education," said he,
" but let me tell you this, Captain Fourneau,
I've sailed these waters since I was a little
nipper of ten, and I know the line when I'm
on it, and I know the doldrums, and I know
how to find my way to the oil rivers. We £ire
south of the line now, and we should be
steering due east instead of due south if
your port is the port that the owners sent
you to,"

" Excuse me, Mr. Gerard. Just remember
that it is my lead," said the captain, laying
down his cards. " Come to the map here,
Mr. Burns, and I will give you a lesson in
practical navigation. Here is the trade wind
from the south-west and here is the line, and
here is the port that we want to make, and
here is a man who will have his own way
aboard his own ship." As he spoke he seized
the unfortunate mate by the throat and
squeezed him until he was nearly senseless.
Kerouan, the stewzird, had rushed in with a
rope, and between them they gagged and
trussed the man, so that he was utterly
helpless.

" There is one of our Frenchmen at the
wheel. We had best put the mate over-
board," said the steward.

" That is safest," said Captain Fourneau.

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 305

But that was more than I could stand.
Nothing would persuade me to agree to the
death of a helpless man. With a bad
grace Captain Fourneau consented to spare
him, and we carried him to the after-hold,
which lay under the cabin. There he
was laid among the bales of Manchester
cloth,

"It is not worth while to put down the
hatch," said Captain Fourneau. " Gustav, go
to Mr. Turner, and tell him that I would
like to have a word with him."

The unsuspecting second mate entered the
cabin, and was instantly gagged and secured
as Burns had been. He was carried down
and laid beside his comrade. The hatch was
then replaced.

" Our hands have been forced by that
red-headed dolt," said the captain, " and I
have had to explode my mine before I wished.
However, there is no great harm done, and
it will not seriously disarrange my plans.
Kerouan, you will take a keg of rum forward
to the crew and tell them that the captain
gives it to them to drink his health on the
occasion of crossing the line. They will
know no better. As to our own fellows,
bring them down to your pantry so that we
may be sure that they are ready for business.

306 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

Now, Colonel Gerard, with your permission
we will resume our game of 6carte."

It is one of those occasions which one
does not forget. This captain, who was a
man of iron, shuffled and cut, dealt and
played as if he were in his caf&. From
below we heard the inarticulate murmurings
of the two mates, half smothered by the
handkerchiefs which gagged them. Outside
the timbers creaked and the sails hummed
under the brisk breeze which was sweeping
us upon our way. Amid the splash of the
waves and the whistle of the wind we heard
the wild cheers and shoutings of the English
sailors as they broached the keg of rum. We
played half a dozen games, and then the
captain rose. " I think they are ready for
us now," said he. He took a brace of pistols
from a locker, and he handed one of them to
me.

But we had no need to fear resistance, for
there was no one to resist. The Englishman
of those days, whether soldier or sailor,
was an incorrigible drimkard. Without drink
he was a brave and good man. But if drink
were laid before him it was a perfect madness
— ^nothing could induce him to take it with
moderation. In the dim light of the den
which they inhabited, five senseless figures

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 307

and two shouting, swearing, singing madmen
represented the crew of the Black Swan.
Coils of rope were brought forward by the
steward, and with the help of two French
seamen (the third was at the wheel) we
secured the drunkards and tied them up, so
that it was impossible for them to speak or
move. They were placed under the fore-
hatch, as their officers had been under the
after one, and Kerouan was directed twice
a day to give them food and drink. So at
last we found that the Black Swan was en-
tirely our own.

Had there been bad weather I do not
know what we should have done, but we still
went gaily upon our way with a wind which
was strong enough to drive us swiftly south,
but not strong enough to cause us alarm.
On the evening of the third day I found
Captain Fourneau gazing eagerly out from
the platform in the front of the vessel.
" Look, Gerard, look !" he cried and pointed
over the pole which struck out in front.

A light blue sky rose from a dark blue
sea, and far away, at the point where they
met, was a shadowy something like a doud,
but more definite in shape,

" What is it? " I cried.

" It is land."

308 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

" And what land ?"

I strained my ears for the answer, and
yet I knew already what the answer
would be.

" It is St. Helena."

Here, then, was the island of my dreams 1
Here was the cage where our great Eagle of
France was confined I All those thousands
of leagues of water had not sufficed to keep
Gerard from the master whom he loved.
There he was, there on that cloud-bank
yonder over the dark blue sea. How my
eyes devoured it 1 How my soul flew in front
of the vessel — flew on and on to tell him that
he was not forgotten, that after many days
one faithful servant was coming to his side !
Every instant the dark blur upon the water
grew harder and clearer. Soon I could see
plainly enough that it was indeed a moun-
tainous island. The night fell, but still I
knelt upon the deck, with my eyes fixed
upon the darkness which covered the spot
where I knew that the great Emperor was.
An hour passed and another one, and then
suddenly a little golden twinkling light shone
out exactly ahead of us. It was the light
of the window of some house — perhaps of his
house. It could not be more than a mile
or two away. Oh, how I held out my hands

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 309

to it ! — ^they were the hands of Etienne
Gerard, but it was for all France that they were
held out.

Every light had been extinguished aboard
our ship, and presently, at the direction of
Captain Fourneau, we all pulled upon one of
the ropes, which had the effect of swinging
round one of the sticks above us, and so
stopping the vessel. Then he asked me to
step down to the cabin.

" You understand everything now, Colonel
Gerard," said he, " and you will forgive me
if I did not take you into my complete
confidence before. In a matter of such import-
ance I make no man my confidant. I have
long planned the rescue of the Emperor,
and my remaining in England and joining
their merchant service was entirely with that
design. All has worked out exactly as I
expected. I have made several successful
voyages to the West Coast of Africa, so that
there was no difficulty in my obtaining the
command of this one. One by one I got
these old French man-of-war's-men among
the hands. As to you, I was anxious to have
one tried fighting man in case of resistance,
and I also desired to have a fitting companion
for the Emperor during his long homeward
voyage. My cabin is already fitted up for

310 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

his use. I trust that before to-morrow morn-
ing he will be inside it, and we out of sight
of this accursed island,"

You can think of my emotion, my friends,
as I listened to these words. I embraced
the brave Fourneau, and implored him to
tell me how I could assist him.

" I must leave it all in your hands," said
he. " Would that I could have been the
first to pay him homage, but it would not be
wise for me to go. The glass is falling, there
is a storm brewing, and we have the land under
our lee. Besides, there are three English
cruisers near the island which may be upon
us at any moment. It is for me, therefore,
to guard the ship and for you to bring off
the Emperor."

I thrilled at the words.

" Give me your instructions ! " I cried.

" I can only spare you one man, for already
I can hardly pull round the yards," said he.
" One of the boats has been lowered, and this
man will row you ashore and await your
return. The light which you see is indeed
the light of Longwood. All who are in the
house are your friends, and all may be de-
pended upon to aid the Emperor's escape.
There is a cordon of English sentries, but
they are not very near to the house. Once

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 311

you have got as far as that you will convey
our plans to the Emperor, guide him down
to the boat, and bring him on board."

The Emperor himself could not have given
his instructions more shortly and clearly.
There was not a moment to be lost. The
boat with the seaman was waiting alongside.
I stepped into it, and an instant afterwards
we had pushed ofi. Our little boat danced
over the dark waters, but always shining
before my eyes was the light of Longwood,
the light of the Emperor, the star of hope.
Presently the bottom of the boat grated
upon the pebbles of the beach. It was a
deserted cove, and no challenge from a
sentry came to disturb us. I left the sea-
man by the boat and began to climb the
hillside;

There was a goat-track winding in and
out among the rocks, so I had no difficulty
in finding my way. It stands to reason that
aR paths in St. Helena would lead to the
Emperor. I came to a gate. No sentry —
and I passed through. Another gate — still
no sentry ! I wondered what had become of
this cordon of which Fourneau had spoken.
I had come now to the top of my climb, for
there was the light burning steadily right in
front of me. I concealed myself and took

312 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

a good look round, but still I could see no
sign of the enemy. As I approached I
saw the house, a long, low building with a
veranda. A man was walking up and down
upon the path in front. I crept nearer and
had a look at him. Perhaps it was this
cursed Hudson Lowe, What a triumph if I
could not only rescue the Emperor, but also
avenge him I But it was more likely that
this man was an English sentry. I crept
nearer still, and the man stopped in front of
the lighted window, so that I could see him.
No ; it was no soldier, but a priest. I won-
dered what such a man could be doing there
at two in the morning. Was he French or
English ? If he were one of the household
I might take him into my confidence. If he
were English he might ruin all my plans. I
crept a little nearer still, and at that moment
he entered the house, a flood of light pouring
out through the open door. All was clear
for me now, and I imderstood that not an
instant was to be lost. Bending myself
double I ran swiftly forward to the lighted
window. Raising my head I peeped through,
and there was the Emperor lying dead be-
fore me !

My friends, I fell down upon the gravel
walk as senseless as if a bullet had passed

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 313

through my brain. So great was the shock
that I wonder that I survived it. And yet
in half an hour I had staggered to my feet
again, shivering in every limb, my teeth
chattering, and there I stood staring with
the eyes of a maniac into that room of
death.

He lay upon a bier in the centre of the
chamber, calm, composed, majestic, his face
full of that reserve power which lightened
our hearts upon the day of battle. A half-
smile was fixed upon his pale lips, and his
eyes, half-opened, seemed to be turned on
mine. He was stouter than when I had seen
him at Waterloo, and there was a gentleness
of expression which I had never seen in life.
On either side of him burned rows of candles,
and this was the beacon which had welcomed
us at sea, which had guided me over the
water, and which I had hailed as my star of
hope. Dimly I became conscious that many
people were kneeling in the room ; the little
Court, men and women, who had shared his
fortunes, Bertrand, his wife, the priest, Mon-
tholon — all were there. I would have prayed
too, but my heart was too heavy and bitter
for prayer. And yet I must leave, and I
could not leave him without a sign. Regard-
less of whether I was seen or not, I drew

314 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

myself erect before my dead leader, brought
my heels together, and raised my hand in a
last salute. Then I turned and hurried off
through the darkness, with the picture of the
wan, smiling lips and the steady grey eyes
dancing always before me.

It had seemed to me but a little time that
I had been away, and yet the boatman told
me that it was hours. Only when he spoke
of it did I observe that the wind was blowing
half a gale from the sea and that the waves
were roaring in upon the beach. Twice we
tried to push out our little boat, and twice it
was thrown back by the sea. The third time
a great wave filled it and stove the bottom.
Helplessly we waited beside it until the
dawn broke, to show a raging sea and a
flying scud above it. There was no sign of
the Black Swan. Climbing the hill we looked
down, but on all the great torn expanse of
the ocean there was no gleam of a sail. She
was gone. Whether she had sunk, or whether
she was recaptured by her English crew, or
what strange fate may have been in store
for her, I do not know. Never again in this
life did I see Captain Fourneau to tell him
the result of my mission. For my own part
I gave myself up to the English, my boatman
and I pretending that we were the only

HIS LAST ADVENTURE 315

survivors of a lost vessel — though, indeed,
there was no pretence in the matter. At
the hands of their officers I received that
generous hospitality which I have always
encountered, but it was many a long month
before I could get a passage back to the
dear land outside of which there can be no
happiness for so true a Frenchman as
myself.

And so I tell you in one evening how I
bade good-bye to my master, and I take my
leave also of you, my kind friends, who have
listened so patiently to the long-winded
stories of an old broken soldier. Russia,
Italy, Germany, Spain, Portugal, and Eng-
land, you have gone with me to all these
countries, and you have seen through my
dim eyes something of the sparkle and splen-
dour of those great days, and I have brought
back to you some shadow of those men whose
tread shook the earth. Treasure it in your
minds and pass it on to your children, for
the memory of a great age is the most precious
treasure that a nation can possess. As the
tree is nurtured by its own cast leaves, so it
is these dead men and vanished days which
may bring out another blossoming of heroes,
of rulers, and of sages. I go to Gascony,
but my words stay here in your memory,

316 ADVENTURES OF GERARD

and long after Etienne Gerard is forgotten
a heart may be warmed or a spirit braced
by some faint echo of the words that he has
spoken. Gentlemen, an old soldier sedutes
you and bids you farewell.

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