in a sharp bend of the river and may be defended for a time. If any
can do so it is surely you and your Scots. Tilly is already close to the
town; indeed the man who brought me the news said that when he left it
his advanced pickets were just entering, hence the need for this haste.

"You must hold it to the last, Hepburn, and then, if you can, fall back
to Wurtzburg; even a day's delay will enable me to call in some of the
detachments and to prepare to receive Tilly."

Without halting, the little column marched sixteen miles, and then,
crossing the bridge over the Maine, entered Ochsenfurt.

It was occupied by a party of fifty Imperialist arquebusiers, but these
were driven headlong from it. The night was extremely dark, all
were ignorant of the locality, and the troops were formed up in the
marketplace to await either morning or the attack of Tilly. Fifty
troopers were sent half a mile in advance to give warning of the
approach of the enemy. They had scarcely taken their place when they
were attacked by the Imperialists, who had been roused by the firing in
the town. The incessant flash of fire and the heavy rattle of musketry
told Gustavus that they were in force, and a lieutenant of Lumsden's
regiment with fifty musketeers was sent off to reinforce the cavalry.
The Imperialists were, however, too strong to be checked, and horse and
foot were being driven in when Colonel Munro sallied out with a hundred
of his own regiment, and the Imperialists after a brisk skirmish, not
knowing what force they had to deal with, fell back.

As soon as day broke the king and Hepburn made a tour of the walls,
which were found to be in a very bad condition and ill calculated to
resist an assault. The Imperialists were not to be seen, and the king,
fearing they might have marched by some other route against Wurtzburg,
determined to return at once, telling Hepburn to mine the bridge, and to
blow it up if forced to abandon the town.

Hepburn at once set to work to strengthen the position, to demolish
all the houses and walls outside the defences, cut down and destroy all
trees and hedges which might shelter an enemy, and to strengthen the
walls with banks of earth and platforms of wood. For three days the
troops laboured incessantly; on the third night the enemy were heard
approaching. The advanced troopers and a half company of infantry were
driven in, contesting every foot of the way. When they reached the walls
heavy volleys were