442 The Captain of Rifles., [APRIL, 



his head, from which the cap had been knocked away some yards. The 

 cap, however, had saved his life, and he escaped with a contusion. The 

 variety of military life makes even its hazards almost pleasanter than the 

 monotonous indulgences of peace. The evening of this day of danger 

 almost compensated for its hardships. The itifles got a good dinner, one 

 of the rarest occurrences of the whole campaign. " There is nothing," 

 says this lively soldier, " so gratifying to frail mortality as a good dinner 

 when most wanted and least expected ! It was perfectly dark before 

 the action finished. But on going to take possession of the fires which 

 the enemy had evacuated, we found their soup kettles in full operation, 

 and every man's mess of biscuit lying beside them in stockings the 

 French mode of carrying them ; it is needless to say how unceremo- 

 niously we proceeded to do the honours of the feast. It ever after 

 became a saying among the soldiers, whenever they were on short 

 allowance, ' Well, we must fall in with either the commissary or the 

 French to-day, I don't care which/ " 



The pursuit goes on, enlivened by touches of character. " The 

 French were beaten over the Mondego, and the light division followed 

 them. But the late Sir A. Campbell, commanding the next division, 

 would not suffer any of their baggage to cross the bridge, in the idea 

 that it might impede his march. He, however, received no order to 

 march, and we were thereby prevented from getting anything to eat for 

 the next thirty-six hours. I know not whether the curses of individuals 

 are recorded under such circumstances; but if they are, the gallant 

 general will have found the united hearty ones of four thousand men 

 registered against him for that particular act." 



The following day had its incident and its remark. " March, 19th. 

 We this day captured the aid-de-camp of General Loison, with his 

 wife, who was dressed in a splendid hussar uniform. He was a Por- 

 tuguese, and a traitor, and looked very like a man who would be hanged. 

 She was a Spaniard, and very handsome, and looked very like a woman 

 who would quickly get married again." 



At length the enemy, on approaching the Spanish frontier, made a 

 stand, and the consequence was, an attack on a large scale. But a sud- 

 den change of the weather misled some divisions of the British ; and, in 

 the confusion, the attack was left to a part of the light division. Their 

 success was among the most extraordinary instances of gallantry, in a 

 war full of brilliant examples. " Even the second brigade of our 

 division could not afford us any support for nearly an hour ; so that we 

 were thus unconsciously left with about fifteen hundred men, in the 

 very impertinent attempt to carry a formidable position, in which stood 

 as many thousands. 



" The weather, which had deprived us of the aid of our friends, favoured 

 us so far as to prevent the enemy from seeing the amount of our paltry 

 force ; and the conduct of our gallant fellows, led on by Sir Sydney 

 Beckwith, was so truly heroic, that, incredible as it may seem, we had the 

 best of the fight throughout. Our first attack was met by such over- 

 whelming numbers, that we were forced back, and followed by three 

 heavy columns, before which we retired slowly, and keeping up a 

 destructive fire, to the nearest rising ground, where we re-formed, and 

 instantly charged the advancing masses; sending them flying at the 

 point of the bayonet, and entering their position along with them, where 

 we were assailed by fresh forces. Three times did the very same thing 



