A MANCEUVRE. 107 



ment of cavalry of the line ; behind them two guns loaded 

 with grape ; and behind them the infantry of the line, and 

 so on. Had the Mobile shown signs of Avavering, the 

 cavalry would have opened right and left to demask the 

 guns, which would have poured in a volley of grape upon 

 the unhappy Mobile ; and then the cavalry, charging upon 

 them and finishing them, the infantry in the rear would 

 have dealt with the insurgents as if the Garde Mobile had 

 never existed. As M. Dornout observed, this was an 

 unpleasant degree of attention to their interests, which 

 would have considerably abated the ardour of tlie worthy 

 gamins, had they only known of it. 



With this and similar talk we beguiled an hour or two, 

 until we bethought us that it was time to re-embark ; but 

 with one accord our companions refused. It was not 

 necessary, they said, to do so immediately: the wind 

 would abate, we had plenty of time, the wild fowl might 

 return. These and various other reasons were urged per- 

 tinaciously; nothing more was said of "the sea — the ever 

 free," &c. ; on the contrary, they greatly preferred the 

 barren rock on which we Avere, because it was at least 

 terra jirma ; and could they have stayed the night there, 

 they would have done so. But we represented the voyage 

 back as a mere nothing — all before the wind — quite a dif- 

 ferent thing to the morning one, and persuaded, and 

 pushed, and talked them into acquiescence after much 

 trouble. And the return was better, so much so that ere 

 we reached the river's mouth, signs of returning comfort 

 began to appear, and before getting home faint attempts 

 at repartee and song were heard. We agreed, however. 



