nd before morning a large number of
fugitives had rallied. Marlborough sent forty squadrons of horse
in pursuit of them, but the French showed so firm an attitude that
the cavalry were unable to seriously interfere with their retreat.
Berwick had remained, during the day, near the marshal; and had
placed his aides-de-camp at his disposal, for the difficulty of
the ground, and the distance from the plateau of the various
points at which the troops were engaged, rendered communication
much slower than it otherwise would have been, and Desmond and his
companions were frequently sent off with orders.

It was the first time Desmond had been under fire, and the effect
of the roar of musketry, the whizzing of bullets, and the shouts
of the combatants, gave him a much stronger feeling of discomfort
than he had expected. The roar of cannon was not added to the
other sounds, for the guns of the day were clumsy and difficult to
move; and, owing to the rapid marches and countermarches of both
armies, the greater portion of the artillery had been left behind,
and only a few guns were on the field, and these, in so close and
confined a country, were of little use.

Desmond felt now that he would far rather be fighting in the thick
of it, with O'Brien's regiment, than making his way alone along
the lanes, impeded constantly by columns advancing to the front,
while he was met by a stream of wounded men making their way to
the rear.

At first, all was exultation among the troops, for as the
Hanoverians and Dutch were forced to give way before the assault
of the main body of the French, shouts of victory rose; and it was
confidently believed that they would, this day, avenge the two
great victories Marlborough and Eugene had gained over them.

Having delivered his orders to the officer in command, Desmond
rode back. Vendome and Berwick had both dismounted, and were
standing together, with a few of their staff, at the edge of the
plateau, examining the field with their telescopes.

"I have delivered your message, sir," he said, riding up and
saluting. "The general bade me tell you all was going well. The
enemy were falling back, and will soon be in full flight."

"Very well, Mr. Kennedy. By this time, he will have found out that
he was a little too sanguine."

The fire had, indeed, for the past few minutes broken out with
augmented fury. Marlborough had arrived at the threatened point,
and had placed himself at the head of the D