us into the sea
made the folks as was against us very bold. The sentries had to be
doubled at night, for lots of our men were found stabbed, and it was
dangerous to go about outside the town except in parties. Well, sir,
Sergeant Adams of ours, as smart a soldier as ever wore pigtail, had
fallen in love with the daughter of an innkeeper at a place four miles
from Lerida.

"It wasn't much of a village, but there was a big convent close by, one
of the richest in Spain, they said. The girl was fond of Adams, and had
agreed, so he told me, to cut and run when the regiment marched away,
and to be spliced to him. I rather tried to dissuade him from the
affair, for, as I pointed out, how would a Spanish woman get on in
barracks with the other sergeants' wives, specially if she was as pretty
as the whole lot put together? However, of course, he wouldn't listen to
that--no chap ever does when he's downright in love; so he asked me
one afternoon if I would go out with him and Sergeant Saunders to the
village, so that while we were having our glass he could manage to get a
few words with the girl to arrange about her joining him, for the French
were only two or three marches away, and we might have to fall back any
day.

"I didn't much like the job, for it was a risky business three of us
going so far; but he pointed out that we needn't start till it got dark,
so nobody would see us till we got to the village, and we needn't stay
there above a quarter of an hour, and could be off before any one who
meant mischief could find out that we were alone; besides, hitherto
the people there had always been friendly, for, being just the right
distance for a walk, and the wine there being good, our fellows went
over there a good deal: so the long and short of it was we went.

"We got there all right, and walked into the wine shop as usual and sat
down and called for wine. There were half a dozen fellows sitting there
drinking. They were talking aloud when we entered, but stopped at once
as we came in, and looked as men do when you come across them just as
they are saying something as is no good about you. We passed the word as
usual, and were soon chatting with them. They didn't seem very free and
friendly, and asked several questions about the French army, and whether
we had any troops coming up to help us hold Lerida. I said we expected
five or six thousand in a day or two, which seemed rather to take them
by surprise.

"Well, presen