446 LIEUT.-GENERAL THOMAS DYNELEBY, C.B., B.A. 
LETTER X. 
(To Mrs. Dynezy). 
La Pursia, June 9th, 1812. 
We marched as we expected, my dearest mother, on the morning of the 
6th ; on the road our route was changed from Aldea de Ponte to this 
place, two leagues further, and we arrived about one o’clock. The next 
morning at daylight I mounted my horse to ride over to head-quarters 
at Guinaldo to see “ Old Fram,”’ who, I had heard had broken both his 
shins and blackened one of his eyes by falling over a log of wood in the 
street; however, he was not so bad as I expected to find him. He was 
exceedingly glad to see me and I stayed with him till about 10 o’clock 
that night. On my arrival at home I had the satisfaction to find we 
had orders to turn out at half-past 12, as we, the 7th division, were to 
be reviewed by his Lordship the other side of Aldea de Ponte at 5 
o’clock a.m. We got very well over this and returned here about 12 
noon. His Lordship is a man of few words, but I understood he was 
very well pleased with the appearance of the whole, and expressed his 
approbation at the condition of our horses. 
When I was at head-quarters I called and left my name upon his 
table. From what I could hear there I believe we are now certainly 
on our march to Salamanca. ‘The whole army is to be assembled to- 
morrow, excepting Sir Rowland Hili’s corps. From a letter I have 
this instant received from ‘‘ Old Fram,” I find he is also following our 
route. I pity the poor French in the north and the poor Spaniards in 
the south. IfI am not much mistaken they will both get a pretty 
good dressing, that is to say if they are not very quick on their legs. 
I am in beautiful health myself and anticipate the pleasure of routing 
the scoundrels in the north with no small degree of delight. I suppose 
the day after to-morrow at farthest we shall commence our march. 
We have a report of a paper of the 13th being in the country, by 
which I find I have lost my bet, and most happy am I to find that 
wretch Bellingham has been executed. Hanging was too good for 
him, I would at least have had his finger nails torn out first, or some 
other worse torture could I have invented it. 
Between 20 and 30 French deserters came into Guinaldo while I was 
there ; they desert in hundreds and remain in the mountains until they 
have an opportunity of coming over to us. 
None of you, in your late letters, have said a word about my grey- 
hounds; now don’t get into your old custom of thinking, for although 
I shall be some little way in advance of Lisbon, yet I have plenty of 
friends there who will receive and forward them to me. Tell Henry 
Freeling I am very much obliged to him for the army list, it was very 
acceptable, as the last I received from Bloomsbury Square was for the 
month of July. Tell Robert I shall be much obliged to him to send 
me out by the first packet a scythe and a whet stone; we have nothing 
to cut our grass with in the country excepting sickles, and with a scythe 
double the quantity of grass might be cut in half the time. I wish you 
would always say in your letters the dates of those you receive from 
time to time from me. I hear of your having received none from the 
history of the goat until the 23rd April. 
