as I know, for I did not stop to look behind me. I arrived safe at the division, not a little frightened; and I can venture to say that, the elephant affair excepted, I never ran so fast before in my life. This afterwards proved to be a strong cavalry piquet. We at last took possession of the village, and established a depot there; and a rising ground about two or three hundred yards from it was the spot selected for our batteries. We were at first heard, when the fort commenced a heavy firing, but in the wrong direction. Every man was employed in digging a sufficient space to lie down in; and, in the course of a couple of hours, we were covered and protected from their shot. We then erected batteries; and, by daylight in the morning, everything was finished, and we were so close to the enemy that we could distinctly hear English spoken,[8] and the _reveillee_ beaten. On Christmas eve, as dark and cold a night as ever blew from the heavens, the breach was reported practicable, and the rising of the moon was a signal for marching to the storm. She did rise, in splendid effulgence, over one of the highest bastions of the fort we were about to storm; and we could see by her light, spears on the ramparts as thick as plants in a new-set forest. We were now and then saluted with a solitary gun from the fort, to let us know they were not asleep; blue lights were seen burning on their ramparts, and they occasionally indulged us with a rocket or two, which played beautifully in the air. The soldiers, seeing I was a spirited youth, and a competitor with them for glory, gave me a few salutary hints, especially an old veteran of the 76th Foot, who had been then fighting about twenty years in the East. Among the hints he gave me were these: 1st. Never to pass a man lying down, or supposed to be dead, without giving him the point of the bayonet or sword; for it was a common trick of theirs to lay themselves down on your approach, and then to watch the opportunity of cutting you down. 2nd. Whenever I saw a rocket or shell fall near me, to get as close to it as possible, and lay myself flat on my face. This was undoubtedly very excellent advice; but I soon got tired of killing dead men, and lying down every time I saw a rocket; the having neglected to do which, on one occasion, however, nearly cost me my life, which I shall mention in its proper place.