CAMPAIGN OF 1810—THE 1ST GERMAN HUSSARS.
In the winter of this year [12 Dec. 1809] we marched towards the
northern frontier of Portugal. We marched towards Almeida, and were
cantoned in villages to its rear—Alameda, Villa de Lobos, Fequenas, not
far from the Douro. Here too was good shooting and coursing; but I was
not permitted to be idle. We moved into Spain [19 Mar. 1810], and at
Barba del Puerco had a most brilliant night attack, in which Colonel
Beckwith greatly distinguished himself.
At Villa de Ciervo a detachment of one sergeant and twelve Hussars
(1st German) were given me by General Craufurd to go right in among
the French army, which had moved on Ciudad Rodrigo and then retired.
Many are the hairbreadth escapes my Hussars and I had, for we were very
daring; we were never two nights in the same place. One night at Villa
de Ciervo, where we were watching a ford over the Agueda, two of my
vedettes (two Poles elegantly mounted) deserted to the enemy. The old
sergeant, a noble soldier, came to me in great distress. “O mein Gott,
upstand and jump up your horse; _she_ will surely be here _directly_!”
I was half asleep, with my horse’s reins in my hand, and roared out,
“Who the devil is _she_?” “The Franzosen, mein Herr. Two d——d schelms
have deserted.” So we fell back to the rear of the village, sitting
on our horses the remainder of the night, every moment expecting the
weakness of our party would cause an attempt to cut us off. At daylight
we saw fifty French dragoons wending their way on the opposite bank to
the ford. I immediately got hold of the _padre_ and _alcalde_ (priest
and magistrate), and made them collect a hundred villagers and make
them shoulder the long sticks with which they drive their bullock-carts
and ploughs, which of course at a distance would resemble bayonets.
These villagers I stationed in two parties behind two hills, so that
the “bayonets” alone could be seen by the enemy. Then with my sergeant
and ten Hussars (two having deserted) I proceeded to meet the enemy,
first riding backwards and forwards behind a hill to deceive him as to
my numbers. The French sent over the river about half their number. I
immediately galloped up to them in the boldest manner, and skirmished
advancing. The enemy were deceived and rapidly retired, and I saved
the village from an unmerciful ransacking, to the joy of all the poor
people.
At this period General Craufurd had officers at two or three of the
most advanced vedettes where there were beacons, who had orders to
watch the enemy with their telescopes, and, in case of any movement,
to report or fire the beacon. I was on this duty in rather a remote
spot on the extreme left of our posts. The vedette was from the 1st
Hussar picquet. These men would often observe a patrol or body of
the enemy with the naked eye which was barely discernible through a
telescope, so practised were they and watchful. Towards the evening my
servant ought to have arrived with my dinner (for we officers of the
look-out could take nothing with us but our horse and our telescope),
but he must have missed his way, and as my appetite was sharpened by a
day’s look-out, I began to look back, contrary to the vedette’s idea of
due vigilance. He asks, “What for Mynheer so much look to de rear?” I,
sad at the fast, “Hussar, you are relieved every two hours. I have been
here since daylight. I am confounded hungry, and am looking out for my
servant and my dinner.” “Poor yonge mans! but ’tis notings.” “Not to
you,” said I, “but much to me.” “You shall see, sir. I shall come off
my horse, you shall up clim, or de French shall come if he see not de
vedette all right.” Knowing the provident habits of these Germans, I
suspected what he was about. Off he got; up get I _en vedette_. With
the greatest celerity, he unbuckled his valise from behind his saddle,
and took out a piece of bacon (I had kept up a little fire from the
sticks and bushes around me), from a cloth some ground coffee and
sugar, from his haversack some biscuit, and spread on the ground a
clean towel with knife, fork, and a little tin cup. He had water in
his canteen—his cooking-tin. He made me a cup of coffee, sliced some
bacon, broiled it in the embers, and in ten minutes coffee, bacon,
biscuit were ready and looked as clean as if in a London tavern. He
then says, “Come off.” Up he mounts, saying, “Can eat. All you sall
vant is de schnaps.” I fell to, and never relished any meal half so
much; appetite was perfect, and the ingenious, quick and provident
care of the Hussar added another to the many instances I had witnessed
of this regiment to make them be regarded, as indeed they were, as
exemplary soldiers for our emulation.
My servant soon after arrived. The contents of his haversack I
transferred to my kind friend the Hussar’s, and half the bottle of
wine, on which the Hussar remarked, “Ah, dat is good; the schnaps make
nice;” and my servant put up his valise again for him. I was highly
amused to observe the momentary glances the Hussar cast on me and my
meal, for no rat-catcher’s dog at a sink-hole kept a sharper look-out
to his front than did this vedette. In the whole course of my service I
never was more amused, and nothing could be more disinterested than the
Hussar’s conduct, which I never forgot.