e sole was my own natural one belonging to my foot. I
had some little difficulty in procuring them, however; I happened to
see a shoe-wagon that had been captured from the enemy and was being
fast emptied by a number of our men, so I asked the captain to let me
fall out, as my shoes wanted replenishing. He only answered, "No, not
until the enemy is fairly away, and then you may do as you please;" so
I had to disobey orders again, and on the next halt step off to the
wagon to see what I could find. There were, however, such a number on
the same errand that I began to despair of getting any boots, but at
length I succeeded in getting into the wagon, and I hove out a hundred
pairs or so to the mob, while I took up six or seven pairs for myself,
or rather some likewise for some of my comrades, in hopes of making
off with them quietly.

My hopes, however, were far from being fulfilled, for no sooner was I
off the wagon, than I was completely smothered with parties that
wanted and craved for boots equally with myself; so I had to let all
my lot go, finding that I could not get clear, and got back into the
wagon. Then I threw out another stock to the barefooted mob, and
replenished my own lot, this time, however, only getting five pairs,
and of these I did not succeed in getting off with more than three
after all.

I made back to my company thinking to be unobserved, but in that I was
again mistaken, for the captain himself seeing me called out, "You
will disobey orders then, will you? and what are you going to do with
all those shoes?" I told him I was going to put on a pair as soon as
possible, to which he replied, "Very well, sir, mind you give the rest
to your comrades;" which I did, as that had been my intention from the
first; if not, I should not have troubled to get more than one pair,
as on such marches as ours it was not likely that any man would care
to carry a change in boots, or of anything else but food, which,
though seldom denied to us, was more seldom obtained.

At Vittoria, too, Buonaparte's carriage was captured with some ladies
in it. The French army had retreated to Pampeluna, so Lord Wellington
sent a sergeant and twelve men under a flag of truce to escort these
ladies into the French camp at that place, in return for which
Buonaparte behaved very well, for he gave the sergeant a doubloon and
each of the men one-half of that sum, and had them escorted out of his
lines by a French officer.

Our army m