Second to None: A Military Romance, Volume 2 (of 3)Grant, James
General
Second to None: A Military Romance, Volume 2 (of 3)
Grant, James
Soldiers -- Fiction
During a halt near an ancient church, Jack Charters, observing the
earth at the root of a tree to have been recently disturbed, thrust
his sword into it, and about eighteen inches below the surface found
all the sacred vessels of the altar, tied up in a tablecloth. There
were three elaborately chased gold chalices, a patine, and several
silver salvers and cruets. Our troops were making merry on the
discovery of this plunder, when Charters, who never forgot his
forfeited position, and felt himself still a gentleman, restored the
whole to the curé of the church, who came to beg it of us.
Soon after, an officer of one of our foot regiments found near a
chateau a quantity of silver plate, worth several hundred pounds,
concealed in the same manner. This officer sent the plate to the
chateau, from which the proprietor was absent (for indeed he was no
other than Captain the Chevalier de Boisguiller, who was making
himself so active against us), together with a letter, purporting
that he had restored the treasure, as we came not to war on the
people, but the government of France. In proof of this, in many
instances our men shared their scanty rations with the poor and needy
whom they found by the wayside, and who trusted us.
Rumour of such acts as these having preceded us, we were kindly, even
warmly received by the people of Dol, which is an ancient episcopal
city surrounded by time-worn fortifications, and situated in the
midst of what was then a marshy plain. Its mediæval streets are
quaint and narrow, with picturesque gables and carved gablets that
almost meet from either side of the way.
We entered it without opposition, after a fourteen miles' march, and
to our surprise the bells of the cathedral rung a merry peal in our
honour. A contribution was levied on the city exchequer, and there
we passed the night after posting guards at all the gates and
outpickets beyond. The duty apportioned to the light troop of the
Scots Greys was solely to furnish patrols on the various roads
leading to Dol, to prevent a surprise, for as yet we knew not exactly
what troops were in Brittany.
About daybreak on the following morning, I formed one of a party that
patrolled the highway in the direction of St. Aubin du Cormier.
Cornet Keith commanded, and Sergeant Duff and Corporal Charters were
with us. Each officer and man carried oats for his horse in a bag,
and a bundle of hay trussed up in a net behind the saddle. We were
only eleven in all.
Keith was a brave but inexperienced young officer, who had joined our
corps from Richmond's Foot in consequence of an incident which made
some noise in the service at the time.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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