Nothing very brilliant, however, was done by Graham's corps, although it certainly carried out its _rôle_, and prevented any attempt of the enemy to raise the siege. Nor was this an easy task, for Graham displayed considerable activity, and endeavoured to do something more than merely to hold the French in check. Discovering that a small body of the enemy was occupying Llerena, eight leagues distant from his headquarters, the general ordered the 51st and 100 German riflemen to make a forced march and surprise the place. The garrison, however, had received information of the threatened attack, and evacuated Llerena, which was immediately occupied by the 51st. Yet, within a few hours, the regiment learned that Soult was making a night march on the town with 5000 men, and the small British force, in its turn, was obliged to beat a hasty retreat. Graham waited a day or two, and then determined to turn the tables on Soult. He issued sudden orders for his whole corps to march on Llerena and surprise Soult's force, and the 51st again took part in the enterprise. Everything went well throughout the long march, and just before dawn the troops approached the town. The surprise was thought to be complete, and success seemed certain, when, of a sudden, there arose a panic, which had the most dire consequences. General Graham and his staff had ridden, unknown to the troops, on ahead of the columns to reconnoitre, and were fired upon by a single vedette. They immediately galloped back to the columns, with the unfortunate result that they were mistaken for the enemy's cavalry. Major Rice, writing a week afterwards, thus describes the affair:-- "In one of our night rambles, when the whole force of our corps, 12,000 in number, was advancing upon Llerena, the heads of columns were thrown into confusion by alarm of cavalry. A firing unfortunately began. Friends, and not foes, were shot. We[67] expended two officers and a private. It had like to have proved a business of the most serious nature. The Hero of Barrosa rowed us all most terribly for unsteadiness. The real fact is he himself was in fault, having been in front with a parcel of A.D.C.'s and staff, and other tom-fools; not being in their places, and gaping about, they came suddenly in contact with a French cavalry picket, upon which D.I.O.[68] was the word full speed. Our advance gave them a fire and frightened their animals, who ran furiously between our columns. We mistook the business for a charge of cavalry, and unfortunately a fire ensued. Several generals were spilt and run down. The affair was ludicrous enough. I was at the head of the column, but escaped by my horse tumbling head and heels into a ditch--a species of good luck, for I was running the gauntlet."