Petit Jean from that moment became our great friend and ally. On almost all occasions he sided with the soldiers in any little difference between them and the boors. On one occasion a complaint had been made to me, by a man who lived near the gate, that one of our gunners had not only plundered his potato-garden, but had also otherwise ill-treated him. On my going to investigate the business on the spot, it turned out that he had struck the gunner. Petit Jean, who had accompanied me officially, on hearing this, turned suddenly on the fellow, “You sacré cochon! frapper un militaire; sacré vilain homme! Quoi!--un vil paysan frapper un militaire? Ah, que cela me révolte!”--and seizing a stake from the hedge, foaming with unfeigned anger, he fell on the poor devil, and fairly chased him out of sight, belabouring him all the way. What English soldier would ever take up the cudgels against his own countryman because the French soldier was his brother-in-arms? Whenever his patrol duty did not call him out, he was sure to be found in the guard-room, or somewhere amongst the men. He might certainly have been a spy in the camp, for Buonaparte had most accurate information respecting the state, positions, and numbers of our army, part of which no doubt was communicated by these _gardes-champêtres_, who, as before mentioned, were all old French soldiers, and did not conceal their attachment to the Emperor. Spy or no spy, Petit Jean was always extremely obliging, and frequently of most essential service to us. Our equipment was in every way too perfect to leave any care as to what might be reported of our state; and as to future movements, we were as ignorant of them as Napoleon himself. But to return to our story. The row was all over, our mess party broken up, and I retired to my room; but, alas! on getting into bed I found sleep impossible--the moat under my window was peopled with millions of frogs, and such was the horrid croaking of these little wretches, that sleep was out of the question, and the Van Voldens were avenged. CHAPTER VII.