72 A Century of Family Letters [CHAP, v 



amazing long march, and I had not time to get collected 

 but soon got right again. On the 18th I did not feel at all 

 in the same way, as we expected the action, and I was 

 prepared. I trusted in God and He has been pleased to 

 spare me, for which I hope I am as thankful as I ought. 

 The most disagreeable part was when we were on the top 

 of our position, lying down doing nothing, with the shells 

 and shot coming over like hailstones, and every now and 

 then seeing 1 or 2 men killed. We had 2 officers wounded 

 in that way. It was a very mournful sight next morning 

 when I was on parade to see but little more than one-half 

 the number of men that there were the morning before, 

 and not quite one-half the officers. The Duke of Wellington 

 was very much pleased with us, but I do not believe he 

 was so much so with the cavalry, as they did not do what 

 was expected of them. . . . We were five days without 

 any baggage tents or anything else, and you have no idea 

 of what we underwent during that time, sleeping in the 

 fields without even a hedge to cover us, generally raining 

 the whole night and the ground ankle-deep in mud. I was 

 48 hours without eating anything, even a bit of biscuit, and 

 having very often to send above a mile for water, but now 

 we have got our baggage and tents and are much better off. 

 We are now about 8 leagues from the frontier, and are, I 

 believe, to march straight for Paris. Most of the villages 

 we pass through have the white flag hanging out, and vive 

 le roi written on the houses. As yet we have found the 

 people very civil, and they say they are very glad to see us. 

 The Belgic troops behaved excessively bad, both in action 

 and out, plundering and illtreating the inhabitants. I wish 

 they would send them back to their own country, I think 

 they will do us more harm than good. We have had two 

 actions ^nd they have run away both times. At the first 

 action the Duke of Wellington was slightly wounded, and 

 was saved being taken prisoner by the 92nd Regiment, who 

 formed a square, round him and by that means saved 

 him. 



