hicken-hearted, gained some advantages over
his disposition before the end of the campaign, which happened to be
neither perilous nor severe.

During the winter, while both armies remained in quarters, our adventurer
attended his patron to Presburg, and, before the troops were in motion,
Renaldo obtained a commission, in consequence of which he went into
garrison at Philipsburg, whither he was followed by our hero, while the
old Count's duty called him to the field in a different place. Ferdinand
for some time had no reason to be dissatisfied with this disposition, by
which he was at once delivered from the fatigues of a campaign, and the
inspection of a severe censor, in the person of Count Melvil; and his
satisfaction was still increased by an accidental meeting with the
Tyrolese who had been his confederate at Vienna, and now chanced to serve
in garrison on the same footing with himself. These two knights-errant
renewed their former correspondence, and, as all soldiers are addicted to
gaming, levied contributions upon all those officers who had money to
lose, and temerity to play.

However, they had not long pursued this branch of traffic, when their
success was interrupted by a very serious occurrence, that for the
present entirely detached the gentlemen in the garrison from such
amusements. The French troops invested Fort Kehl, situated on the Rhine,
opposite to Strasburg; and the Imperialists, dreading that the next storm
would fall upon Philipsburg, employed themselves with great diligence to
put that important fortress in a proper posture of defence. If the
suspension of play was displeasing to our hero, the expectation of being
besieged was by no means more agreeable. He knew the excellence of the
French engineers, the power of their artillery, and the perseverance of
their general. He felt, by anticipation, the toils of hard duty upon the
works, the horrors of night-alarms, cannonading, bombardment, sallies,
and mines blown up; and deliberated with himself whether or not he should
privately withdraw, and take refuge among the besiegers; but, when he
reflected that such a step, besides the infamy that must attend it, would
be like that of running upon Scylla, seeking to avoid Charybdis, as he
would be exposed to more danger and inconvenience in the trenches than he
could possibly undergo in the town, and after all run the risk of being
taken and treated as a deserter; upon these considerations he resolved