“Whilst changing horses on the road to Givet, a beggar came to the carriage to whom I gave a sol; which my companion, the gens d’armes, observing, said, ‘Monsieur, voila un de mes defants. Je suis trop charitable. Je ne vois jamais la misère, sans que les larmes me viennent aux yeux.’ None were however observable on this occasion, nor did he give any other testimony of his being ‘trop charitable.’ On our arriving in the evening at Rocroix, where we were to sleep, another gens d’armes presented himself, who being a brother Brigadier to my escort, was invited to join the dinner party; and the prowess of the French troops became naturally a subject of conversation. The charitable gens d’armes then observed to me, ‘Ah, Monsieur, voila un autre de mes defants. Je suis, trop brave o si vous pourriez me voir marcher contre une redonte—ah, vraiment c’est une chose a voir.’ “On our arrival at Phalsbourg we found nearly fifty men still in the hospital, of those who had been left there on the breaking up of the depôt in December; and it is but justice to that worthy man, Monsieur Parmentier, the mayor, (whose kindness to the prisoners I before mentioned) to say, that it is impossible any people could have been treated with more kindness, and real benevolence, than these people were; much praise is also due to M. Geville, the surgeon of the hospital. I mentioned in my official letter to the Transport Board, the conduct of M. Parmentier, and stated that he had a relation, M. Leopold Liot, who had been taken prisoner at St. Domingo; and requested that he might be liberated, as an expression of gratitude to M. Parmentier, and I have the impression on my mind that this was granted. From Phalsbourg we proceeded to Bitche, where we found forty men confined in a souterrain. These were generally persons who had been detected in an attempt to make their escape, and were sent here as a punishment, and at the same time for greater security. On our return we visited Nancy and Metz, relieving the prisoners in the hospitals at those places; and reached Verdun in the early part of March.”