pen rupture with me; but, at last, we both lay down to
repose again, I thinking to myself, "I shall try your courage by-and-by,
my lad." I pretended to be asleep, and soon heard the thieves on the
move again. I therefore stole silently from my bed, and discharged both
my pistols in the air, bellowing out, with the lungs of an ensign,
"Choor! choor! choor!" which my companion perfectly understood to be,
thieves! thieves! thieves! Hearing this, he made a desperate jump over
my bed, and was out with me in a moment; but he afterwards confessed
that he was most dreadfully alarmed. We retired to rest once more, but
had not lain long before I felt a hand cross my face. I immediately
seized the fellow, but he was so oiled that he slipped through my hands
like an eel, and was out of sight in a moment. I ran out after him, but
he was gone like a whisper on the breeze. At this juncture I heard my
companion crying out, "Where are you, Sir? Where are you, Mr. Shipp?
Don't leave me." When I returned, I found him in a dreadful state of
alarm, and, I must confess, I did not myself half like it. These
nocturnal robbers go perfectly naked, with their heads shaved, and oiled
from head to foot. They seemed bent upon robbing us, for it was strange
that they should have returned after I had fired. However, I reloaded my
pistols, and I said, "Now, Sir, I think we may repose till the
morning."--"Repose, Sir!" he replied; "I don't think I shall sleep again
for a week."--"Nonsense!" said I; "we soldiers must not mind these
little skirmishes. Such things as these happen every day, and we laugh
at them. If we had nothing more to disturb our peace than these little
annoyances, soldiering would be a delightful life indeed. The grand
thing is to keep a good watch, so as not to be taken by surprise."

[Illustration]

FOOTNOTES:

[13] The 87th "Prince of Wales's Own Irish" Regiment of Foot,
re-entitled in 1827 the 87th "Royal Irish Fusiliers" (the facings being
changed from deep-green to blue at the same time), now the 1st Royal
Irish Fusiliers. In 1815, when Shipp was appointed to it, the 87th had
_two_ battalions, the first of which, after some years at the Cape and
Mauritius, landed in Bengal in August that year. The second battalion,
which had greatly distinguished itself in the Peninsula, under command
of Sir Hugh, afterwards Viscount Gough, was at Colchester, where it was
disbanded in February, 1817, the effective officers and men mostly
joini