ROBERT POCOCK. 103 



guard man. Two soldiers were prepared with fixed 

 bayonets to conduct me to this grand place, and conse- 

 quently through the streets, and there I knew I would 

 be instantly set at liberty, yet the figure I must have 

 cut with these two personages and perhaps a crowd of 

 persons after me would have been rather ridiculous. I 

 still laughed and made light of it said this was ridicu- 

 lous, and what was it he required. He then said with 

 great emphasis, f Nothing ; prepare, soldiers, to conduct 

 him/ 'Very well/ I said, ' come along; is it this way or 

 that ? Make haste/ And coming out of the guard- 

 house door, he said, ( What is it you are willing to give/ 

 This I was not sorry to hear. ' No great things, I said ; 

 a few halfpence only;' and putting my hand in my 

 pocket produced about threepence, which he received, 

 and I was at liberty. I felt myself, I confess, somewhat 

 humbled ; and after the two soldiers had retired I was 

 asking the sergeant whether the old scoundrel had 

 the authority to do all this, who said he must have sent 

 me to the police if he had persisted in his charge, when 

 seeing me speaking to the sergeant he returned very 

 angry, and ordered me to leave the spot. ' Go that way/ 

 he said, pointing to one street. I replied, ' N"o ; it is my 

 pleasure to go that way/ pointing the contrary way. So 

 this was the only punishment I could inflict on this 

 nuisance. I returned home, and at four o'clock the 

 officer called on me to go and dine with him at the 

 restaurateur's. I told him my adventure, who said, 

 however right he might have been in giving me in 

 charge it was infamous and ought to be punished, the 

 taking of money. But he said such subsisted with 

 the military, for if any person is found committing 

 the least nuisance upon the house of a general officer, 



