ugh to prevent me from
walking. Hunting about, we found a horse and a saddle fitted to him, by
which means I was able to continue my progress. On arriving at several
farms we found that, although no attempt was made to defend them, all
the cattle had been driven off and the pigs and poultry concealed. Now
and then the grunting of a pig or the cackling of a hen betrayed the
dust-hole or cellar in which they were imprisoned. The men were, in
most instances, absent, but the women seldom failed to abuse us in no
measured terms for our behaviour, nor could I help feeling that we
deserved everything, that was said against us. My men, I must say,
behaved very well. In no instance did they offer any violence to the
villagers, and when they were abused they only laughed and retaliated
with jokes, which, if not refined, were harmless.

We continued our foraging labours, (some people might have called them
our depredations), till about three o'clock in the afternoon, when I
judged that it was necessary to commence our retreat. From the
experience I had gained I felt pretty certain that we should be harassed
on our march by the enemy. I therefore formed my people in the best
order I could for defence. Our six butchers, with their axes, saws, and
knives, marched ahead as an advanced guard. We had collected in all
fifty-seven head of cattle and forty-two sheep. These were driven by
thirty negroes and closely surrounded by the seamen, who formed the
centre. In the rear came the marines to cover our retreat, while on
each flank I placed four marines, who were occasionally relieved from
the rear. Brown laughed at my precautions, and said that they were
absurd and useless, and so I found did my lieutenants, but I knew that I
was right, and kept to my plan.

Had the country been open our progress would have been easy, but instead
of that it was thickly wooded, so that our order of march was constantly
broken. I kept riding about, doing all I could to keep the people and
the cattle together; but every now and then where the wood was thickest
I could see an ox, or a cow, and a couple of sheep, slyly impelled by a
cunning negro, stealing away between the trees; and perhaps, while I
sent some of the seamen in pursuit of them, others would break away in
an opposite direction. Of course, when the negroes were overtaken, they
always pretended to be endeavouring by lusty strokes to drive the
animals back to us, and there was littl