My com we wended our way towards the military secretary's office. panion now recounted his adventures since the day we had parted at Donnington Grove. No sooner had I left my worthy tutor's house to "seek the bubble reputation even in the cannon's mouth," than a spirit of military ardour fired H- -'s breast, who lost no time in urging his father to allow him to proceed to the south of France, there to join the battalion of guards to which he had lately been gazetted. In less than eight-and-forty hours after his request had been acceded to, the young ensign had furnished himself with the necessary "kit" and baggage, and was seated on the box of the Plymouth mail, to be conveyed to that port, from whence upon the following day a man-of-war was to sail to join the squadron of Admiral Penrose, then actively employed in co-operating with the land force under Sir John Hope, in the works before Bayonne. During the passage out H got acquainted with an adjutant of the line, who, severely wounded at the battle of Vittoria, had only just recovered sufficiently to rejoin his regiment; this brave man, who had been promoted from the ranks for his gallant conduct upon many trying occasions, with the assistance of the sergeant of marines, not only instructed the aspiring guardsman in his first duties, but inculcated upon his mind those qualifications necessary to form a good soldier. "In Wellington's army," said the veteran, "the characters of the officers are as well known to those under them as the men's are to their superiors: I served for five years in the ranks-for two as a corporal, and three as a sergeant. Impartiality, bravery, strict attention to duty, and a deep interest in the comforts of those under their command, were the characteristics of our officers; and there was not one, from the lieutenant-colonel down to the junior ensign, that was not loved and respected by the corps. We had no go on's, as we termed those who were in the habit of skulking instead of leading forward their men! Come on, my fine fellows!" was the cry in our regiment, and there never was an occasion upon which it was not cheerfully responded to." In this strain would Adjudiscourse for hours; and so powerful was the effect produced upon the mind of his attentive listener, that during the honourable yet brief career of the latter it was never effaced from his memory. Hthen proceeded to narrate that in consequence of a succession of contrary winds he had only reached Bayonne a few days before the sortie, and gave a graphic description of the affair in which his regiment had borne so conspicuous a part. From the spirit-stirring conversation of our short yet brilliant campaign we got back to the scenes of our boyish days, and as H- was about to touch a chord that vibrated through my whole frame, by alluding to Mary Wilmot, the orderly from head quarters saluted and informed us that Lord Fitzroy Somerset was anxious to see us at his office. There we speedily wended our way, and to our great satisfaction ascertained that my companion's leave of absence had been granted, and that in four-and-twenty hours I was to be the bearer of despatches home. Colonel F, who was to have accompanied me to England, had had a relapse; so I easily persuaded H-to take his place. "I was just going to write to you, my lads," said a staff officer with a strong Scotch accent, 66 to say that Lord Wellington will be happy to see you at dinner to-day." We expressed our gratification at the summons. "None of your fashionable tricks," continued the kind-hearted and popular Colin Campbell; "we dine punctually at half-past six, and his tant 66 lordship waits for no one. During the rest of our séjour at Toulouse H— and myself lionized the town, and at eleven o'clock the following morning despatches addressed to the late Earl Bathurst were placed in my hands, with instructions to make the best of my way to England and deliver them to the Foreign Secretary without loss of time. Our voyage down the Garonne to Bordeaux occupied only two days, it being flood-time; the scenery is at some points exceedingly picturesque, particularly at the embouchure of the Lot, where we commanded a fine view of the town and château of Aiguillon, and also at La Réole, where there is an ancient Benedictine convent. As we approached the town the beauty of the prospect increased; the river, which is rather an arm of the sea, and nearly double the breadth of the Thames at Westminster bridge, takes a bend at this point, the town and quays forming a splendid crescent on the left bank, while the opposite side is covered with rich woods, beautiful villas, and luxuriant vineyards. - While our baggage was being disembarked from the flat-bottomed boat that had brought us down the rapid stream, to be reshipped on board a transport bound for England, and my trusty servant was making arrangements with a voiturier for the hire of a carriage, H-- and myself strolled to the Chapeau-Rouge, which is one of the finest streets in France, which terminates in the Exchange. The river was full of shipping; there might be seen the white flag which had so recently succeeded the red blue and white; there the banners of Spain and Portugal; but above all, the meteor flag of England floated proudly in the wind. While quaffing a bumper of good "medoc" a light open barouche drove up to the door of the café, and our courier having provided us with a passport and suggested golden rules to the postilions for their guidance, off we trotted at the rate of seven miles an hour, amidst the cracking of whips, the rattling of the wheels, the clattering of the horses' feet, and the ejaculations of the riders. As both H and myself were most anxious to return to England we required not the commanderin-chiefs's injunctions to expedite us on our journey; and travelling night and day through France, we reached a port on the coast of Normandy in an almost incredibly short time; there we engaged a fast-sailing lugger, which during the war had been employed in contraband and privateering exploits, and in less than twenty hours we were running through the Needles, wind and tide in our favour. Anxious to land at Portsmouth we made our wishes known to Monsieur Breton, captain of la Guêpe, who, amidst a thousand grimaces and shrugs of the shoulder, assured us that some of his tackle had given way, that the foremast had sprung, that the vessel was in a very leaky state, and urged us to permit him to hail a cutter that was now in sight, beating to the westward. Whilst deliberating upon what was best to be done we observed an exchange of signals between the two vessels, and our worthy "skipper," who had evidently been in a state of great anxiety ever since the period we had neared the British coast, now appeared almost frantic. After delivering himself of sundry anathemas which we cannot mention "at least to ears polite," poor Breton made so eloquent an appeal to our feelings that we at once consented to transfer ourselves, his precious cargo, to the weatherly-looking craft, the captain of which having been hailed through the speaking-trumpet, was now within a biscuit's throw of the lugger. The boat of the" Pretty Poll," so the cutter was called, now came alongside, and two men jumped on board ; having agreed with them to land us at the Sally-port for a couple of guineas, whilst our luggage was being put on board the boat, H--- and myself descended into the cabin to exchange our travelling costume for a fancy undress staff uniform. Enveloping ourselves in our military cloaks we settled with the Capitaine Breton, and in a few minutes were on the deck of the "Pretty Poll," "Like to take the helem, gentlemen?" said the weather-beaten steersman; "she'll skim through the water like a duck, now we have got rid of our heavy boat astern. The boat had been taken in tow by the lugger. We declined the proffered honour, fearing our want of nautical knowledge might draw down upon us the opprobrious term of lubberly horse marines, instead of the more complimentary one of smart young soldier-officers from the south of France. 66 May I make so bold," said the captain, "to ask you to allow your servant to land this small hamper with your baggage; it belongs to an officer who is now staying at the George: my mate shall see every thing taken care of." To this apparently simple proposal we young greenhorns readily assented, and after a delightful run we found ourselves off the revenue "look out" house in Portsmouth harbour. "What name and what port were you last from?" enquired the man on duty. "The Pretty Poll' of Yarmouth, last from West Cowes." Before there was time for any further parley a boat shoved off from the Custom-house stairs, and the officer in command came on board. After politely addressing us, and ascertaining that we were the bearers of despatches from the Duke of Wellington, he requested to know whether we had any contraband goods to declare. "None but what are contained in this cigar-case and silver flask," responded H——. "Very well, gentlemen; I'll pass your luggage, and you can land." With this the man of customs made a hieroglyphic mark upon our respective articles, and took his leave. In the mean time a shore wherry was alongside, and the captain having with the assistance of his mate handed our effects and his own hamper covered over with a tarpauling coat into it, gave the order to shove off. The tide sets strong into the harbour, gentlemen; we had better land at the common hard." "If you please," we responded; and the sail being set, we darted through a variety of craft of every description, from the "ship-shape" looking man-of-war to the somewhat dark and dingy collier brig, or oyster-dredging vessel. "You'll take our luggage to the George," said I in rather a pompous tone," and order a chaise-and-four to be ready." "Hi, hi, sir," responded the mate; and taking H--'s arm, and throwing our cloaks back to display our handsomely braided frock coats, gold-embroidered waistcoats, and laced overalls, we strutted along the streets that led to the celebrated inn, prouder than any two peacocks that ever trod the earth. As we approached the draw-bridge the sentry carried arms to us; and here a crowd of women and boys, hearing that we had just returned from the campaign, gathered round us: at every step we took, the assemblage increased; one commenced shouting, another halloaing, and at the entrance of High-street we began to think that we should be carried triumphantly to the hotel on the shoulders of the people, when an event occurred that for a moment lowered our dignity and humbled our conceit. "I beg your pardon, gentlemen," said the officer who had boarded the cutter, "your baggage must go through the Custom 66 house, and you must please to attend with it." We began to remonstrate, and were warmly backed by the mob, who attempted to lay hands upon the truck which had been seized by two of the proper authorities. "You had better make no resistance, gentlemen," continued the first speaker," or the consequences will rest with you." This was said in so quiet yet determined a tone that it produced a wonderful effect upon our minds, and we at once proceeded to address the mob and to urge them not to infringe the laws of the land, and to leave us to vindicate ourselves. 66 'Brayvo!" cried a dozen urchins; “work those sea and land sharks, that won't let an honest fellow earn an honest livelihood." Taking a route by the back streets we soon reached the Custom-house, where we were ushered into the searching room: our portmanteaux were opened, and certainly no article contained in them was subject to any import duty; the hamper belonging to the captain of the "Pretty Poll" was then produced, and for the first time the truth flashed across our minds that we had been victimized by the plausibility of this modern "Will Watch," for so he eventually turned out to be. Not liking to follow the Dogberry fashion of "writing myself down an ass," I must remind my readers that both Hand myself were young and inexperienced; that our heads were so full of the glory of the campaign, so elated with delight at returning home, and so proud at being the bearers of despatches from the Duke of Wellington, that we never for a moment thought of that which at the first blush appeared to be a simple and natural request. To proceed the hamper was opened and the contents produced; it proved no dirty, petty fraud upon the revenue in the shape of a keg of spirits, but a flagrant breach of the custom's laws in a large quantity of French lace, the value of which must have amounted to many hundreds of pounds. The huge tarpauling cloak of the captain then attracted the attention of the lynx-eyed searcher, who unripping the seam, to our surprise and dismay soon disclosed to our eyes a complete lining of silks, satins, gloves, and stockings. The affair began to look serious, when H—— with that candour and openness which guilt can seldom, if ever, effectually assume, told the plain unvarnished tale as it had occurred; this was corroborated by my servant, who having gone on to get a cheque converted into money had not been present during the investigation, and whose statement to the most minute detail confirmed that made by my companion; most happily for us, a more important witness, and one whose evidence could not be controverted, made his appearance; this was no other person than the commander of H.M. revenue-cutter Vigilant, who had witnessed the whole transaction. "Ma foi! je n'en sais rien, je n'ai rien à faire là dedans," ejaculated a voice which we immediately recognized as that of the unfortunate Captain Breton. The wretched Frenchman was now dragged into the office in the custody of two officers of the customs. No sooner did he recognize us than he exclaimed, "Oh! ces messieurs sont innocents; ce sont des hommes de cœur, de braves officiers." Lieutenant l' of the Vigilant then proceded to state that for some time he had been on the look-out for "La Guêpe," that he had fallen in with her during the morning, but that to avoid observation he had altered his course and had landed his mate with a party of men to watch the movements of the lugger; this order had been strictly obeyed, and by a preconcerted signal the cutter pounced upon the ill-fated smuggling vessel 66 a few minutes after the captain of the latter had transferred his living and contraband cargo to the care of the owner of the "Pretty Poll,' and just in time to capture the boat in tow, which was found to be filled with kegs of the choicest spirits. The principal parties were then taken before a magistrate, and we were permitted to depart after pledging our words that if our attendance was required we would appear at the ensuing assizes. With light hearts at our own escape, but somewhat downcast at the probable fate of our shipmates of the last twenty hours, we made the best of our way to the hotel, where a chaise-and-four was in readiness to convey us to Horndean, our first stage on the London road. A light carriage, excellent horses, and liberal payments to the post boys and ostlers insured us a quick journey to the metropolis, and the old abbey clock had just struck seven when we rattled over Westminster bridge and drove up to the door of the foreign office in Downingstreet. Despatches from the Duke of Wellington for Lord Bathurst," said I, descending the rattling steps of the gaudily painted yellow postchaise, with its red wheels and spread-eagle emblazoned on its panels. The messenger ushered us into an office where we were presented to a gentleman who held for many years a most confidential post in the foreign department, and whose public and private conduct through life, like Bayard's of old, has been "sans reproche;" happy am I to say that the individual I have referred to still lives to enjoy his well-earned popularity, and the Pen that in 1814 and other important public years wrote volumes of despatches that affected the fate of kings, emperors, and countries, has in more modern times contributed most agreeably to the light literature of the day, as his work upon chess and fishing will prove. Lord Bathurst is particularly engaged with the commander-in-chief at this moment," said Mr. Richard Penn, but hopes that you and Lord H▬▬ will give him the pleasure of your company at dinner to-day at eight o'clock; it will be a full-dress affair, as many of the foreign potentates are to honour him with their presence.' Although in those days both Hand myself would have preferred a beef steak at the One Tun or Blue Posts, the little theatre in the Haymarket, or Astley's at half-price, or Vauxhall Gardens, to a sumptuous entertainment at one of the ministers of state, the invitation was of much too flattering a nature to be refused; so entering our chaise we drove "home" (where I was able to offer my companion a bed) to prepare for the imperial, royal, and noble banquet. 66 STRAY SHOTS. BY RAMROD. "His grace the Duke of Humpty Dumpty has been entertaining a distinguished shooting party at Dumbleton Hall during last week, consisting of Lord Arthur Knockemdown, Lord Rubberdale, Honourable Augustus Fitzsimpson, Mr. Pea Green, Colonels Toddy, and Captains Fuzzlewig, Widgeon, and Wild-duck. The return of killed and wounded is as fol |