the contractors having established here their grand depôt, &c. &c.; great crowding and bustling in the streets, occasioned partly by this circumstance, partly by the presence of the Duc de Berri and his troops, and partly by an unusual influx of travellers. Moreover, I remember that we got a most delicious omelet and bottle of very fine Sauterne at the Maison d’Autriche, for which (_garçon_ included) we paid only five francs; whilst, _en revanche_, as it were, we had to pay eight to the villain of a carrier for the feed of bad oats which our horses would not eat; that we saddled them ourselves, and sallied from Alost, expecting, in due time and without _contre-temps_, to reach St Gille; that we actually arrived within a mile of Lebbeke, the spire of whose church was closely seen by us above the trees, and towards which we attempted a short cut, which attempt ended in losing ourselves, and wandering about for an hour within 800 yards of St Gille, and always with the spire of Lebbeke in view, without being able to reach one place or the other; and that there we might have wandered till doomsday, had we not fortunately fallen in with a patrol (foot) of _gens-d’armés_, who put us into the right way--such is the intricacy of this country, intersected as it is by lanes and ditches, like network, and the view confined to the neighbouring field by the multitudinous little woods. We got home! _Chez moi_, things went on so comfortably that I was quite happy, my worthy host and his spouse treating me and mine quite as part of the family. Of Monsieur, however, I did not see very much, for every morning, immediately after breakfast, he went to his office in Dendermonde, where he remained all day, and he never ventured another soirée with our party. The last year (1814) my position in their _ménage_ had been occupied by a French colonel, of whom they spoke in the highest terms, always winding up with, “Ah! il était brave garçon, celui là.” When taking leave of them, which the approach of English troops rendered necessary, he added to his adieux, “Mais pour l’année prochaine;” and both these good people confidently expected to see him again, setting it down as certain that the moment the Emperor advanced the English would hasten to their ships, never dreaming that we could resist _him_. So slipped time away, and my present comfort approached its end. _May 1st._--I still slept, when, at five o’clock in the morning, our sergeant-major aroused me to read a note brought by an orderly hussar. It was most laconic--_la voici_: “Captain Mercer’s troop of horse-artillery will march to Strytem without delay. Signed,” &c. &c.