"Ay, my good friends; ay, ay," said Moric, "here I am; but I am in leading-strings, my boys, I am in leading-strings. I'm baby Moric now, and there's my nurse--my captain, I mean to say; so I must go and speak to him, for I have a word for his ear." "If he seeks to fill his purse," said one, looking at me across the room, "you're the man for him; for you could always fill a purse, but never keep one." "Too true, good friend, too true," replied Moric, advancing towards me; "but I will do better this time." They all shook their heads, however, with laugh; and Moric came on and sat down beside me. He had lost no time in pursuing his avocations, and informed me that he had already seen and spoken with nearly twenty of his old comrades, who were hanging about the camp and seeking for employment. They were rather more difficult, however, in their choice than those which I had already enlisted; for not one of them would serve with a leader who had never served at all. "We must make up to-morrow, sir," said Endem, "for your idleness hitherto. It answered no purpose my telling them that you would do this or do that; the answer always was--Let us see him fight. So to-morrow, at the assault, we must eat fire and brimstone, to show what sort of stuff we are made of." "Rather a hot breakfast, Master Moric," I replied; "but, nevertheless, I don't think I shall find my appetite fail." This conversation had been carried on in a low tone, but it had caught the ears of the merchants nevertheless; and one of them asked me at what time it was intended to storm the breach. I replied that I really did not know, as I had not received my orders yet, but supposed that it would not be late; and Martin Vern, in reply, intimated his determination to wait and see the result before he departed. Soon after this I retired to the little cottage which had been appointed as quarters for myself and all my men; and, having given what orders I thought necessary, and seen that the horses had been well fed and put under shelter, I threw myself down upon some straw, which Andriot had prepared for me in one corner of the hovel, and in a few minutes was fast asleep.