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with General Copons, and gain more exact information of the enemy's movements, Sir John Murray rode that morning to Vendrills, with the avowed intention of choosing a position, and fighting, if the report of their advance should turn out to be true. General Clinton, the next in command, was left in charge of the siege, with directions to make every preparation for storming the Fuerte Real that night, the breach in which had been practicable since the 8th. A fire was again opened upon it on the morning of the 11th, in order to clear and widen the breach more effectually, which was supported by the six Spanish gun boats, under the command of the first Lieutenant Br, which maintained a vigorous flanking fire upon the fort throughout the day, and also drew upon themselves the fire from the southern works of the town. All now felt confident that the General was in earnest, and that the siege would, in future, be prosecuted with energy and vigour; and when we observed the terrible effect of the two advanced batteries, opened only since the morning, we calculated upon the speedy surrender of Tarragona with that confidence, which such advantages and the strength of the besieging force so justly inspired.

No sailors were landed from the ships, nor were any boats sent away upon service on the night of the 11th, and being aware that the Fuerte Real was ordered to be stormed, the officers collected on the quarter deck of the Guillaume Tell soon after dark, watching with strained and eager eyes for the rocket which was to signal the advance of the storming party. About 10 o'clock, or a little after, a dropping desultory fire was heard on the north side of the town, where the divisions of Clinton and Whittingham were stationed. This we knew to proceed from a false attack, meant to distract and divert the enemy's attention from the real point to be assailed, and we became, in consequence, if possible, more on the qui vive, expecting momentarily to see the concerted signal. All, however, remained quiet to the south of the town. No rocket went up; and soon the firing to the north ceased, when every thing around became once more perfectly still. The patience of some became now exhausted-they went below, but a few lingered still upon deck, hoping that the hour only was changed, and that the attack would yet take place. About midnight, when we were still conjecturing what could delay the assault of Fuerte Real, the Admiral came on board. Without a word of observation he descended immediately to his cabin, and sent for the Captain and First Lieutenant. When the latter came on deck we all crowded around him to learn the news, when we heard with mingled feelings of astonishment and indignation, that the assault of the Fuerte Real was not only given up, but that the siege of Tarragona was to be raised, and the army forthwith embarked! Such then was to be the reward of our labours-the realization of all our visions of credit and renown! But no time was given us then to brood over our chagrin and disappointments. One was instantly dispatched to the agent of transports, and others to the different men-of-war, with orders to have all boats on the beach by daylight for the purpose of embarking horses, artillery, stores, &c. The boats were all ashore at the appointed time, and the work of embarking guns and stores from the depôt commenced—but in its performance one could not help contrasting the downcast look, and dejected expression of officers and men, with the bold, and confident,

and cheerful demeanour of the same people a few days before, when busy in landing the same matériel—and instead of the manly port, and erect and haughty carriage which distinguished them heretofore, the officers of the staff, in the execution of some necessary order, now moved about dispirited and crest-fallen, and in place of mutual congratulations for the success of last night's work, a shake of the head with "It's a bad business," was the only salutation that passed between

us.

At 8 o'clock that morning (the 12th) the General commanding the army went on board the Guillaume Tell. He staid but a short time, the purport of his visit being to tell the Admiral that, "he had staid too long, and that he had made up his mind to embark the men immediately, to leave the guns in the batteries, and his cavalry and artillery behind." The Admiral was terribly mortified, and at breakfast the officer of the morning watch, who partook of that meal with him, had an opportunity of observing how much hurt and distressed he seemed. For a long time he remained silent, apparently absorbed in deep thought. At length he exclaimed, "I fear all is over, but I will make one effort more. I will try and get all the Generals together, and go and represent to him their opinions of the measures which he is pursuing." Then suddenly desiring his secretary to bring pens and paper he dictated the following note:

"Sir,-It being your determination to raise the siege of Tarragona and embark your army at this place, at the risk of losing your artillery and cavalry, I hope you will not be offended at my suggesting a plan for their safe retreat and embarkation. It is, that they, with a column of infantry, shall be immediately put in motion for the Pass of Balaguer, and I will answer for their being got off."

This letter was immediately dispatched, and the Admiral soon after went on shore. The General adopted, in part, the suggestion offered by the Admiral, and the field artillery, and the most part of the cavalry, marched for Balaguer. He then assembled some of the General Officers, and the officers commanding the artillery and engineers, and they all repaired to head-quarters, for the purpose of respectfully representing to the commander of the forces the propriety of marching to meet General Decaen, who was said to be advancing from Villa Franca, or at all events to suspend the embarkation of the troops until night, when all the guns could be brought down to the beach from the batteries, and embarked with safety. To the first part of this representation he only answered by an ominous shake of the head, saying, that "it would not do," but he promised to wait till night in order to save his guns. Having so far succeeded, the Admiral hastened to the beach, where, by his own indefatigable exertions, ably seconded by the zeal and promptitude of his own officers, and those of the other men of war and transport service, and in spite of frequent interruptions from the contradictory orders, and, as the second in command called them, "that endless change of measures to be observed on that il-fated day," he embarked all the heavy guns brought down to the beach, besides a considerable quantity of stores, by two o'clock in the afternoon. While in the midst of this operation what must have been his amazement and mortification at seeing a smoke ascend from all the batteries, which soon convinced him that the promise so lately made him of staying till night was not to be kept-that the General had

again changed his mind, and that the guns in the batteries were to be abandoned. And if any doubt existed as to such being the case, it was soon dissipated by the arrival of the first division of troops on the beach. At three o'clock in the afternoon the embarkation of the men commenced, and by midnight the whole army was on board, except the advance under Colonel Adam, the field artillery, and part of the cavalry, which had marched to Salou, and the Pass of Balaguer.

Sir J. Murray, who went on board the Guillaume Tell at eight o'clock on the night of the 12th, left early the next morning and proceeded in the Volcano with a division of transports to Balaguer, and the Admiral followed in the Guillaume Tell soon after, having first seen that the horses and mules, whose embarkation had been stopped the previous day at the western cove in order to have every boat that was possible to embark the men, were all safe on board. Captain Bathurst, in the Fame, was left in the Bay of Tarragona with the rest of the transports, ready to weigh whenever the Admiral should send him orders for that purpose.

FOUR YEARS OF A SOLDIER'S LIFE.

BY A FIELD OFFICER.

I WAS a boy little more than thirteen years of age, when I was gazetted to an Ensigncy, and shall not easily forget the rapturous delight with which I received the information that I was an officer of the Army. At play with my school-fellows when I was told of it, I was, in my own opinion, the greatest man in the world. Long-long years have since passed over my head, yet memory brings back this, perhaps the happiest day of my life, as if it were but yesterday. Many have outstripped me in my military career, men who never heard the whiff of a shot in their lives-who never received the honourable baptism of a soldier in the battle-field, now command the veterans of Wellington, many of whom, without even a riband or a medal on their breast, fag on with nothing to cheer them in their path, save those glorious recollections for which, if he cling somewhat too fondly, the old unrewarded soldier may be forgiven. Where is the warrior who has fought at Waterloo and in the Peninsula, who would part with his service, and doff the veteran (were it possible), to be the Boy Colonel of the most favoured corps in the Army? not that I repine,life is but a lottery, we cannot all draw the prizes. It is an old saying, though not the less true, that Providence has pretty equally portioned out its lot of joy and misery to all beneath the sun; the clouds and storms of to-day may bring forth sunshine and fair weather to-morrow. I, above all, have no cause to murmur,-God has blessed me with a thousand favours, and it were base ingratitude to Him not to be thankful.

But to proceed with my tale: then I was secure of the future, I was an officer in a light corps, commanded by an uncle who had adopted me as his son, and been all that father could be to me. I was taken from school; and the first day I put on my scarlet jacket, and cased

my little short legs in white breeches and black gaiters, the full-dress costume of the day, (1810,) object that I was! I deemed myself an Adonis; in my own eyes I was perfection. The regiment soon afterwards received an order to join the army under Wellington, then serving in Portugal: here was another brilliant career of happiness open to me. I could not sleep the night previous to our march for Portsmouth; I revelled in dreams of the most perfect and unalloyed delight. We embarked in line-of-battle ships, sailed with the fleet under Sir J. Yorke; and after a long and stormy passage, made the Rock of Lisbon. The next morning (1811) we anchored in the Tagus, crowded with men-of-war and transports, bearing the flag of the mistress of the seas; the splendid river, the beautiful city and country round it, the fineness of the climate, all conspired in my mind to make it appear a perfect fairy land-a scene of enchantment.

Lord Wellington had just broken from the lines of Torres Vedras, and his army was in full march on the footsteps of the retiring French. The regiment, with the 2nd battalion of the 52nd, was soon pushed forward to join him; and I now began to perceive some of the miseries and horrors of war. . Putrid carcases of men and horses lay unburied at every two or three hundred yards along the road, villages, towns, deserted, and in ruins; the city of Leyria was in flames as we entered, and a most frightful picture of ruin and desolation it presented. One of its principal churches had been used by the French as an hospital, and was filled with dead bodies. Houses had been plundered, and many unroofed for firewood. The one we occupied-a nobleman's palace, had been stripped of every thing save books: these were useless to the barbarians, but they had wantonly torn them from the shelves of a splendid library, hacked them to pieces, and strewed them on the floor. The next scene of horror I witnessed on this march, was at a bridge over a beautiful, clear, rocky-bedded river, where the French rear-guard had attempted a stand; but hard pushed by the light division, a regiment of Voltigeurs had rushed into the water, and the greater part of them were drowned. When we came up, the peasants were fishing up their bodies, and there they lay on the banks quite naked, three or four hundred corpses of the finest men I almost ever saw. My young blood froze at the sight, and I experienced at the moment a sensation of horror not to be described.

We joined the division at a village called Carripinar, and were bivouacked on the heights above it. Here we suffered most dreadfully from want of food. We were nearly a week without either bread or spirits, having but the lean and tough ration of beef killed and served out instanter to the troops, popped half alive into the pot; and happy was the individual who could add thereto an onion, or the slightest apology for a vegetable, to put into the water in which this carrion was boiled, and miscalled soup: this place the soldiers christened "Starvation Camp."

From hence we moved with our division into cantonments at a small village in the north of Portugal, Villa Mayor, and there remained until the beginning of May, 1811, when Massena advanced with the intention of raising the siege of Almeida. We were then moved forward, and took up our position near Fuentes d'Onor. The were assembled with the rest of the army, was on th

U.S. MAG., No. 189, AUG., 1844.

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arrived on our ground at night; the deep and dark blue sky was without a cloud, spangled with thousands of stars; there was not a breath of air; the lizards and frogs were alone making themselves heard through the stillness of that beautiful night. My brother-officers all seemed delighted at the thoughts of the next morning's work. We could see the fires of the enemy in the wood, and on the heights in our front. My uncle left me to command the piquets; and as I pillowed my head on a soldier's knapsack to sleep, how I longed for the morrow's dawn. Day broke at last; and I well remember, in the early grey of a summer's morn, as the men stood to their arms, how my eyes stretched to see the French; but they were hidden generally from view by the woods, and I could only just discern two or three dark heavy columns, as quiet and apparently as motionless as ourselves. Soon, however, the musketry began with the attack upon the village, then the deep heavy roar of cannon, and we saw the troops in our front, the 3rd Light Division, smartly engaged. We were kept in reserve all this day, remaining under arms, but doing nothing. During the night we were moved to the right on account of some movement of the enemy; but with the dawn of day we were in our places, and deploying into line, were formed with our left thrown back; a Portuguese brigade was immediately behind us, lining a long broken stone wall, and they began a heavy straggling fire, which would have done us considerable harm, had it not been for the presence of mind and gallantry of our Colonel, (my uncle,) who rushed up, and at the imminent risk of his own life, knocked up their muskets with his sword, and succeeded in stopping (to us) this most dangerous fire. We had not as yet seen the foe; soon, however, a round shot whizzed over our heads, and went bounding away far behind us. I made a most polite bow as it passed: it was the first I had ever heard. I was but a boy, and breathing a short prayer to Heaven, for I was then young and innocent, and such prayers we are told never ascend in vain, I murmured to myself, whilst my heart beat most violently, "Now, I am in earnest in battle;" not that it was fear, it was a mingled emotion of awe and pleasure, and of I know not what, I have never felt it since, and cannot now describe it. I looked towards my uncle, heard I him steadily and coolly giving his orders; then came the heavy gallop and rush of cavalry, an immense column of horse advancing at full speed; again the deep manly voice of the Colonel, "Steady, soldiers; ready-present-fire!" In a second all this passed; the regiment, all young soldiers, stood in line like a solid rock, poured in a deadly volley; and when the smoke cleared away, horses were to be seen galloping wildly about without riders, and the enemy's column were moving, much thinned, round our left flank, to attack the regiments posted there; from them they met with the same warm reception, and were repulsed with great loss.

We now retired from the right by companies through a small wood, and reformed again in line on some rising ground, exposed to a heavy cannonade. The officer who commanded our brigade, was not to be found; and upon our commanding officer asking the General of Division what was to be done, his reply was, "Do whatever you please, Colonel Mg." This officer then taking the command, retired over a plain, in the presence of a large cavalry force, in the most judicious manner, showing, through the whole operations of the

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