DISPATCHES TO DUTCH ARMY. 191 



army. Being on this duty, Colonel Jiigel, the Duke's 

 secretary, made inquiry for the first orderly officer to 

 convey important despatches to the Prince of Orange, 

 who commanded the Dutch army which formed one of 

 our wings. None of the orderly officers were to be 

 found except mj^self, and although it was not my turn. 

 Colonel Jiigel desired me instantly to go off with the 

 despatches ; that on my arrival at the Hanoverian head- 

 quarters, Count Walmoden, who commanded the Ger- 

 mans, would give me an escort to the Dutch outposts ; 

 that I should remain all night at the Prince's head- 

 quarters, after delivering my despatches, and return the 

 next day to Antwerp, to which place our head-quarters 

 Avould be removed. I was particularly well mounted, 

 and when I arrived at Count Walmoden's station, he 

 gave me a corporal and two dragoons, light cavalry, as 

 my escort to the Dutch advanced post. I had rode only 

 a few miles with this escort when, in the midst of a 

 wide and dreary heath, the scoundrels suddenly turned 

 their horses, and galloped away from me in the direc- 

 tion we had come. I called after them in vain in 

 French. I now found myself in a most awkward and 

 perilous situation, being totally ignorant of the country, 

 and the chances were even that I might ride into the 

 French outposts instead of the Dutch, as the former, I 

 had been told, were at no great distance. After pro- 

 ceeding two or three miles over this heath, I came to 

 some cultivated land, where a young Flemish peasant 

 was ploughing. ]Most of them speak a little patois of 

 bad French, and I contrived to make him understand 

 that I wanted him to take one of his horses out of the 

 plough, and pilot me to the Dutch outposts, for he ad- 

 mitted he knew where they were stationed. As he ob- 



