Under Wellington\'s Command

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They soon formed up in the street, and were told off, in parties of
twelve, to the houses in the outskirts of the village. Three in
each party were to keep watch, by turns, while the rest slept. An
English officer was to remain in charge on one side of the street,
and a French officer on the other. The rest went back to the
church, whose doors were now thrown open.

"I thank you most heartily, gentlemen," the French officer said, to
Terence and to the other British officers, "for the immense service
that you have rendered us. Had it not been for your aid, our
position would have been a very precarious one, before morning. As
it is, I think we need fear no further interruption. We are now all
armed; and as, with the wounded fit for work, we are still three
hundred strong, we should beat off any force likely to attack us;
though indeed, I have no belief that they will rally again. At any
rate, their losses have been extremely heavy; and the streets were
completely strewn with guns, so that I doubt whether half of those
who got away have carried their weapons with them."

The next morning, indeed, it was found that in all about 400
muskets had been left behind. All that remained over, after arming
the British soldiers, were broken up and thrown down the wells.
Enough provisions were collected, among the houses, to furnish the
whole with three or four days' rations. The dead were buried in a
field near the village, those wounded too severely to march were
placed in the waggons; and the rest, who had now resumed their
uniforms, set out in high spirits. They were in the same order as
before, but the prisoners were told to carry their muskets at the
trail, while the French shouldered theirs; so that, viewed from a
distance, the British should appear unarmed.

"That has been a grand bit of excitement, Terence," Dick Ryan said
gleefully to his friend, as they marched along together. "Those
fellows certainly fight a good deal more pluckily than the regular
troops do. It was a capital idea to make all the men take off their
uniforms, for I don't suppose the Spaniards, even for a moment,
dreamt that we were among their assailants; at any rate, they have
no proof that we were.

"You really must get me as your adjutant, Terence. I see there is
very much more fun to be got out of your sort of fighting than
there is with the regiment. I am very pleased, now, that I stuck to
Portuguese as you advised me; though it was a great bore, at
first."

"I hope, Dicky, we sha'n't find, when we get back in the spring,
that the corps has been turned over to Beresford as part of his
regular command; for I must say that I quite appreciate the
advantage of independence.

"Well, this business ought to do us some good. No doubt the major
will report, in warm terms, the assistance we have rendered him;
and we shall get good treatment. Of course, some of their prisons
must be better than others and, if they will confine us in some
place near the frontier, instead of marching us half through
France, it will make it all the easier for us to get away. It is
not the getting out of prison that is the difficulty, but the
travelling through the country. I am getting on well with my
French, but there is no hope of being able to speak well enough to
pass as a native. As for you, you will have to keep your mouth shut
altogether, which will be mightily difficult."

"You will manage it somehow, Terence. I have no fear of you getting
me through the country. It is getting out of the country that
seems, to me, the difficulty."

"There is one thing, Dicky. We need be in no hurry about it. There
is little chance of fighting beginning for another six or seven
months and, directly we come to the end of our march, wherever it
may be, we must begin to pick up as much French as we can, from our
guards. In three or four months I ought, at least, to be able to
answer questions; not perhaps in good French, but in French as good
as, say, a Savoyard workman or musician might be able to muster."

"Oh, Lor'!" Dick Ryan said, with a deep sigh, "you don't mean to
say that I must begin to work on another language, just after I
have been slaving, for the last six months, at Portuguese?"

"Not unless you like, Dicky. I can either start alone, or with
someone else who has some knowledge of French; but I am not going
to run the risk of being recaptured by taking anyone with me who
cares so little for liberty that he grudges three or four hours'
work, a day, to get up the means of making his escape."

"Oh, of course I shall learn," Ryan said pettishly. "You always get
your own way, Terence. It was so at Athlone: you first of all began
by asking my opinion, and then carried out things exactly as you
proposed, yourself. Learning the language is a horrid nuisance, but
I see that it has to be done."

"I expect, Dicky, you will have to make up as a woman. You see, you
are not much taller than a tallish woman."

"Well, that would be rather a lark," Ryan said; "only don't you
think I should be almost too good-looking for a French woman?"

"You might be that, Dicky. It is certainly a drawback. If I could
get hold of a good-sized monkey's skin, I might sew you up in it."

"A bear skin would be better, I should say," Dick laughed; "but I
don't think anyone would think that it was a real bear. I saw a
chap with one once, at Athlone: no man could open his mouth as wide
as that beast did; and as to its tongue, it would be four times as
long as mine. No, I think the woman idea would be best; but I
should have to shave very close."

"Shave!" Terence repeated, scornfully. "Why, I could not see any
hair on your face with a magnifying glass. If that were the only
drawback, the matter could be arranged without difficulty."

Without farther adventure, they crossed the mountains and came down
to Bayonne. At each halting place where French troops were
stationed, the British prisoners were received with warm
hospitality by them, when they learned from their comrades that the
British had fought side by side with the French against the
guerillas, and had saved them from what might have been a very
serious disaster. The French shook hands with them warmly, patted
them on the shoulders, with many exclamations of "Braves garcons!"
and they were led away to cafes, and treated as the heroes of the
day, while the officers were entertained by those of the garrison.

At Bayonne they and their escort parted on the most cordial terms,
the French exclaiming that it was a shame such brave fellows should
be held as prisoners; and that they ought to be released at once,
and sent back in a ship, with a flag of truce, to Portugal.

The major, after handing over the soldiers to the prison
authorities, took Terence and the other British officers to the
headquarters of the governor of the town; and introduced them to
him, giving him a lively account of the fight with the guerillas,
and the manner in which the prisoners, armed only with clubs and
the muskets of the soldiers no longer able to use them, had made
common cause with the French and, joining them in the sortie,
defeated the Spanish with heavy loss. The governor expressed,
courteously, his thanks to the officers for the part they had
taken.

"I shall forward Major Marcy's report to headquarters, gentlemen,
and shall be happy to give you the liberty of the town on parole. I
have no doubt that, if no other good comes of your adventure, you
will be placed among an early list of officers to be exchanged."

"I am very much obliged to you, general," Terence said, "but I and
Lieutenant Ryan would prefer not to give our parole. I don't say we
are likely to make our escape but, at any rate, we should like to
be able to take any opportunity, if we saw one."

The general smiled.

"Of course, it must be as you like, sir; but I think that you are
wrong. However, at any time, if you like to change your minds, I
will give instructions to the officer in command of the prison to
release you, immediately you give your parole not to leave the
town."

The matter had been talked over on the march, and the others now
expressed their willingness to give their parole. They had told
Terence they thought he was wrong, and that it would be impossible
to make an escape, as it would be necessary to traverse either the
whole of Spain or the whole of France before he could find any
means of rejoining the army; and that, before long, they might be
exchanged.

"I don't think there is a prospect of an early exchange," Terence
said. "There cannot have been many prisoners taken, during this
short campaign; and I don't suppose there will be any talk of
exchanges, for some time to come. I am particularly anxious to get
back again, if I possibly can, as I am afraid that my regiment will
be broken up; and that, unless I get back before the campaign
begins in spring, I shall not get the command again. So I mean to
get away, if I can. Anyhow, I would just as soon be in prison as
walking about the streets of Bayonne. So I have quite made up my
mind not to give my parole."

The officers all returned to the prison quarters assigned to them;
the difference being that those on parole could go in and out as
they chose, and could, at will, take their meals in the town; while
Terence and Ryan were placed together in a room, with a sentry at
the door, whose instructions were to accompany them whenever they
wished to go beyond the door and to walk in the prison yard, or on
the walls surrounding it.

Chapter 5: An Escape.

"Well, here we are, Terence," Ryan said cheerfully, as the door of
their cell closed behind them; "and now, what next?"

"The next thing is to look round, Dick. Other matters can wait. One
cannot form the remotest idea as to the possibilities of an escape,
until one has found out everything about the place. I should say
that it will be quite soon enough to discuss it, in another couple
of months.

"Now, as to the room; there is nothing to grumble at here. Two
truckle beds, not altogether luxurious in appearance but, at any
rate, a good deal softer than the ground on which we have been
sleeping, for months past. A couple of chairs, designed for use
rather than comfort; but which will do to sit on, while we take our
meals, and at other times we can use the beds as sofas. A
good-sized piece of carpet, a table, and what looks like a pudding
dish to wash in.

"Things might have been better, and they might have been a great
deal worse. As to our food, we must reserve comment until they
bring us some.

"Now, as to funds, I had only twenty-five crowns on me when I was
captured. You were rather better off, as you had ten pounds in gold
and eight crowns in silver. You see, had we given our parole like
the others, and gone in for luxurious feeding outside, our stock
would soon have given out; and money is an essential for carrying
out an escape, when that escape involves perhaps weeks of
travelling, and certainly disguises of different kinds. We have not
a penny too much for that, and must resolve to eschew all luxuries
except tobacco, and perhaps a bottle of wine on Sundays."

"Our windows, as you observe, are very strongly barred. They look
westward, but that range of buildings opposite prevents our getting
a view of the sea. One thing is evident, at once: that it is no
manner of use for us to think of cutting through those bars, or
dislodging them; for we should only, on lowering ourselves, be in
the courtyard, and no nearer escape than we were before we began
the job. It is a good thing to get at least one point off our mind.

"Now, Dick, before we go further, let us make an agreement that we
will always talk in French. I know enough of it to be able to
assist you, and it will be an amusement, as well as a help, to
accustom ourselves to talk in it."

"All right," Ryan said, resignedly; "but I bargain that, for an
hour a day, we drop it altogether. It will be an awful nuisance;
and one must give one's tongue a rest, occasionally, by letting it
straighten itself out a bit."

The door now opened, and one of the warders entered with two large
bowls of broth, a fair-sized piece of the meat from which it was
made, a dish of vegetables, a large piece of bread, and a bottle of
wine.

"This is your supper, messieurs. In the morning you have coffee and
a piece of bread; at twelve o'clock a meal like this, with a bottle
of wine between you."

"Thank you," Terence said cheerfully, "that will do extremely well.
Are there any other British officers here?"

"None, except your comrades. There were some naval officers here
last week, but they have been sent into the interior. We do not
have many prisoners here. Those captured at sea, by warships or
privateers, are generally taken to Brest and, so far, we have not
had many of your nation sent from Spain. There are Spaniards,
sometimes, but they do not count. Those that are taken are
generally drafted into the Spanish corps of our army."

"Can we buy tobacco?" Terence asked.

"Certainly, monsieur. There is a canteen in the courtyard. It is
open from eight till nine o'clock in the morning, and from five to
six in the evening. But you are not allowed to get things in from
the town; but nevertheless--" and he smiled, "--as your comrades
are on parole, doubtless, should you need anything beyond what is
sold in the canteen, it may chance that they may bring you just the
things you want."

"Thank you. You had better get something from the canteen for
yourself," Terence said, handing him a crown.

"Thank you, monsieur. I have heard, from the soldiers who came in
with you, that you fought bravely with them against the Spanish
brigands; and they think that it is very hard that you and your
companion should be shut up here, after having proved such good
comrades. I have a cousin among them. He, like myself, is a native
of Bayonne and, should it be in his power, I am sure that he and
his comrades would do anything they could for Monsieur--as far, of
course, as their duty as French soldiers will allow them."

"Thanks. By the way, what is your name?"

"Jean Monier, monsieur."

"Well, Jean, will you please tell your cousin that I am obliged to
him for his goodwill? It was a pleasure to fight side by side with
such brave soldiers and, should an occasion offer, I will gladly
avail myself of his services. The detachment is not going farther,
is it?"

"No, monsieur. They will remain here for perhaps two or three
months, till the good French air has invigorated them; then they
will join some column marching south again. There is nothing more
that you will want tonight, monsieur?"

"No, thank you, Jean. Good evening!"

"Good evening, good sleep!" and the warder retired.

"What is all that jabber about, Terence?"

"Very satisfactory jabber, and jabber that is likely to lead to a
very good result. A cousin of his is one of the guard that came
down with us. He has told this warder about our fight, and asked
him to say that he and his comrades were very angry at our being
shut up here; and as much as said that they would aid us to escape,
if it was in their power, so we may consider that our first
difficulty is as good as arranged. No doubt in a short time they
will be put on regular garrison duty, and will take their turn in
furnishing prison guards. This warder is evidently ready to do
anything he can, so that we may look upon our escape from prison as
a matter of certainty. I don't suppose that, in any case, the guard
is a very vigilant one; for they would not expect that prisoners of
war here would try to escape. At Verdun, and other prisons within a
few days' journey of the frontier, it would be different."

"Well, that is good news, Terence, though I see myself that our
difficulties will really begin only when we get out. There is no
doubt that the fight with the guerillas was a lucky thing for us. I
would not have missed it for anything, for I must say there was
much more excitement in it than in a battle, at least as far as my
experience of a battle goes. At Talavera we had nothing to do but
stick up on the top of a hill, watch the French columns climbing
up, and then give them a volley or two and roll them down the hill
again; and between times stand to be shelled by Victor's batteries
on the opposite hill. I cannot see that there is any fun about
that. This fight, too, has turned out a very good thing for us. I
expect we should not have been so well treated if it had not been
for it, and the fact that some of these French soldiers are ready
to give us a helping hand is first rate.

"You see, it is all your luck, Terence. There never was such a
fellow for luck as you are."

"There is no doubt about that," Terence agreed. "Now, Dick, you
must really break into French."

"Tomorrow morning will be time enough for that," Ryan said, in a
tone of determination. "I want to talk now, really talk; and I
can't do that in French, especially after what you have just told
me. By the way, I don't see, myself, why we should make this
journey through France. Why not try to get a boat, and land
somewhere on the coast of Spain?"

"I have been thinking of that, Dick; but it seemed to me, before,
altogether too difficult. Still, if we can get help from outside, I
don't know why we should not be able to manage it. We should have
to go some distance along the Spanish coast, for there are sure to
be French garrisons at Bilbao and Santander; but beyond that I
should think we might land at any little village. Galicia must
certainly have been evacuated by the French, for we know that Ney's
corps were down in the Tagus valley; and I should think that they
cannot have any great force in the Asturias. The worst of it is, we
have not got enough money to buy a boat; and if we had, the
soldiers could hardly bargain with a fisherman for one. Of course,
if we were free we might arrange with a man to go with us in his
boat, and pay him so much for its hire, for three or four days."

"We might make our way down the river, and steal one, Terence."

"Yes, we might do that, but it would be a heavy loss to some poor
fellow. Well, I shall look forward to the morning, when we can go
out and see all about the prison arrangements."

"Then you have given up the idea of waiting for two months before
you do anything, Terence?" Ryan remarked.

"Certainly. You see, these French convalescents may be marched back
again, in another month's time and, at present, our plans must be
formed upon the supposition that they are ready to help us. It
would never do to throw away such an opportunity as that. It would
be little short of madness to try and get out, unless we had
disguises of some sort. My staff officer's uniform, or your
scarlet, would lead to our arrest at the first village we came to.

"Besides, before this news one was willing to wait contentedly, for
a time, till some good opportunity presented itself. Now that we
have such an unexpected offer of assistance, the sooner we get out
of the place the better."

The next morning they went out into the courtyard of the prison.
The soldiers who had been captured with them were walking about in
groups; but the sentry who accompanied the two British officers led
them through these, and took them up to the top of the wall
surrounding the prison.

"Messieurs," he said, "when the others are shut up you can go where
you please, but my orders are that you are not to communicate with
your soldiers."

He then fell back some distance, and left them free to wander about
on the wall.

From this point they had a view over the city. Bayonne was a
strongly fortified place, standing on the junction of the Nive and
Adour, and on the south side of the latter river, two miles from
its mouth. The Nive ran through the town, and its waters supplied
the ditches of the encircling wall and bastions. The prison was
situated on the Nive, at some three or four hundred yards from the
spot where it entered the Adour.

"I should say this quite decides it," Terence said, when they had
made the circuit of the walls, upon which sentries were placed at
short intervals. "Once out of the town the river would be open to
us, but it would be next to impossible to pass those semicircles of
fortifications on both sides of the town. You can see the masts of
the craft lying at the quays and, though I should not like to rob a
fisherman of his boat; I should not feel the smallest scruple in
taking a ship's boat, which would be, comparatively, a small loss
to the owner. The worst of it would be that, directly we were found
to be missing, and the owner of the boat reported its loss, they
might send out some of their gunboats in search of us, and we
should very soon be overtaken."

Discipline was not very strict in the French army, except when in
an enemy's country; and the sentries, knowing well that there was
really no occasion for watchfulness, answered willingly the
questions that Terence asked them as to the names of places within
sight.

"It must be rather tedious work for you, on the wall here," Terence
said to one whose post was shielded by a building close by, from
observation from below.

"Very dull," the soldier said, "and we shall be glad enough when we
are relieved and marched into Spain. Here we are doing no good.
There is no chance whatever of the prisoners attempting an escape,
for if they did get out of here they could get no further; but they
say that we shall not stop here long, and we shall be heartily glad
when the order comes. They say the convalescents who came in
yesterday will take over the prison duties next week."

Terence's motive for speaking to the men was to discover whether
they were forbidden to talk, and it was satisfactory to find that,
if there was such a rule, it was by no means strictly observed.
Leaning on the parapet, he and Ryan stood for some time looking at
the sea. There were many fishing boats dotting its surface, and the
tapering masts of two schooners could be seen near the mouth of the
river.

"I have no doubt that they are privateers," Terence said. "They
have just the appearance of that fellow we captured on the way out.
One would not have much chance of getting far in a boat, with those
fellows after us.

"It seems to me that, if it could possibly be managed, our safest
plan would be to lie quiet in the town for a week or so, after we
got out; then it would be comparatively safe to get hold of a boat
and make off in it."

"Yes, if that could be managed, it certainly would be the safest
plan. If we changed our minds about making off by sea, we might
then be able to pass out through the fortifications, without
question. Of course, they would be vigilant for a short time after
we were missing; but I suppose that, at ordinary times, the country
people would go in and out unquestioned, just as in any other town
for, with no enemy nearer than Portugal, there could be no occasion
whatever for watchfulness."

Terence and his companion had seen nothing of their friends on
parole, as these, they found, although lodged in prison for their
own convenience, were not permitted to have any communication with
the other prisoners. Ten days after they arrived at Bayonne, the
warder, who had, since he first spoke to them, said nothing beyond
the usual salutations, remarked carelessly:

"The soldiers who came down with you took up the prison duties last
night. My cousin told me to say that you will know him, and four or
five of his comrades of the 72nd of the line, all of whom are
thoroughly in agreement with him, by their saying as you pass them:

"'The morning is fair, Colonel.'

"To any of them you can speak, when you find an opportunity of
doing so, unobserved."

"Thank you; but will it not be safer for them were you to carry my
messages?"

"No; I cannot do that," the warder said. "I think that it is quite
right that my cousin, and his comrades, should do anything in their
power to aid those who stood by them when attacked; but I wish to
know nothing about it. It must be between you and them, for I must
be able to swear that I had no hand in the matter, and that I
locked you up safely, at night."

"You are quite right, Jean. It is much the best plan that it should
be so. I certainly should not, myself, like to know that in making
my escape I might endanger the life of one who had acted simply
from kindness of heart; and trust that no suspicion, whatever, will
fall upon you. I thank you most heartily for having brought me the
message from your cousin, and for the goodwill that you have shown
us."

When Terence and Ryan went out as usual, after breakfast, all the
sentries they passed saluted, as if to one of their own officers.
They of course returned the salute, and made a cheery remark to
each, such as "Rather a change, this, from our work up in the
hills, lad," to which each gave some short and respectful answer,
three of them prefacing it with the words: "The morning is fair,
mon Colonel ".

Two of these had the number of their regiment on their shako. The
other, who had a deep and scarcely-healed scar over the ear, only
wore a forage cap, having evidently lost his shako when wounded.

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