e can manage to
get Drummond to delay his departure for a day or two.'

"So the thing was done."

Chapter 16: At Minden.

On the following day Fergus started, riding the new horse the count
had given him, while Karl led Tartar. The journey to Breslau was
performed without adventure. He found on arrival that the king had,
ten days before, gone to Landshut, round which place a portion of
his army was cantoned. At Landshut he commanded the main pass into
Bohemia, was in a position to move rapidly towards any point where
Daun might endeavour to break through into Silesia, and was yet but
a few marches from Dresden, should the tide of war flow in that
direction.

Already several blows had been struck at the enemy. As early as the
16th of February, Prince Henry had attacked the Confederate army
which, strengthened by some Austrian regiments, had intended to
fortify itself in Erfurt, and driven it far away; while the Prince
of Brunswick had made a raid into the small Federal states, and
carried off two thousand prisoners. Early in March a force from
Glogau had marched into Poland, and destroyed many Russian
magazines; while on April 13th, the very day on which Fergus
arrived at Breslau, Duke Ferdinand had fought a battle with the
French army under Broglio, near Bergen. The French, however, were
very strongly posted, and Ferdinand was unable to capture their
position, and lost twenty-five hundred men, while the French loss
was but nineteen hundred.

On the same day Prince Henry crossed the mountains, and destroyed
all the Austrian magazines through the country between Eger and
Prague--containing food for an army of fifty thousand for five
months--captured three thousand prisoners, and burnt two hundred
boats collected on the Elbe, near Leitmeritz; and was back again
after an absence of but nine days. A fortnight later he was off
again, marching this time towards Bamberg, burning magazines and
carrying off supplies. He captured Bayreuth and Bamberg, took
twenty-five hundred prisoners, and struck so heavy a blow at the
little princelings of the Confederacy that he was able to leave
matters to themselves in the west, should the king require his aid
against Daun or the Russians.

On the 16th of April Fergus arrived at Landshut, and proceeded to
the royal quarters. On sending his name to the king, he was at once
ushered in.

"So you have returned, Major Drummond," Frederick said cordially,
"and in plenty of time to