428 SWABEY DIARY. 
into the mine I could not but notice a want of caution in the way 
the train was laid, but nevertheless agreed to do the job with 
him. He, anxious to perform his duty without assistance, sent me to 
see if the coast was clear, and put the match to the train, when to my 
dismay the whole exploded before he was out of the building, and so 
persuaded was I that he had perished, that I dismounted from my 
horse and took a shovel to dig him out, when, making my way in the 
dark through the smoke that almost suffocated me, to my astonishment, 
he came out, with no other injury than being well burnt. The day 
before two Clerks of Stores and some men were blown up. 
As to Madrid, I can scarcely say I entered it, having only gone into 
one street to purchase a pack-saddle. As the Hscorial road passes 1t, it 
winds majestically above a beautiful stream. Its palaces and buildings 
strike the eye as beautiful. How painful it was to me only to have a 
distant view! We this day joined here the divisions! of Lord 
Wellington’s army that had been quartered there. The people of 
Madrid were constant to the last, and even cheered them, though 
left to their fate. We did not get into camp until 10 o’clock at 
night, and at 12 broke our fast for the first time. 
[During the retreat in November 1812 ,we passed by the road to the 
Escorial close to Madrid but can hardly be said to have seen it. The 
inhabitants however were true to the last and cheered us as we left 
them to their fate. The building called the Retiro was a square stone 
massive edifice having every capability for a fortress sufficient to over- 
awe the inhabitants. It was decided to breach it in several places by 
blowing up the angles, and in this there was no great apparent difficulty, 
because it was built over immense vaults. However, the day before I 
arrived there with the rear guard, it had only been ineffectually done, 
and some men had been killed in the explosion. An officer of our 
German Legion Artillery was engaged in completing the business and 
General Long, whose cavalry were the last in the line of march 
ordered me not to assist him, but I suggested it would be safer 
to take an escort of dragoons to prevent the inhabitants interrupting 
the operation. ‘To one of these I gave my horse and went into the 
vaults with the German. I could not help remarking a degree of 
recklessness in the preparations; however, there was no time to lose 
and I went out to ascertain that there were no persons within reach 
of danger. Whether by accident, or because my companion, was 
jealous of my presence, I cannot say and never ascertained, but I had 
hardly got into the open, and by no means indeed out of danger, when 
up flew the corner of the building into the air and the breach was 
indeed effectually made! My first act was to rush into the vaults of 
the building which I didwithouta lieht. It seemed in vain to hope 
that the perpetrator of this rash act, rash if designed, could have escaped, 
and my only idea was to recover his body, but to my utter terror 
and dismay I ran against him in the dark vault: a feeling of horror came 
over me, and my first impression that I had encountered his spirit gave 
1 eee Bite infantry divisions and two weak cavalry brigades. Wellington Despatches, Vol. 
IX., p. 487. 
