No Surrender! A Tale of the Rising in La Vendee

by G. A. Henty

  Chapter 12: A Series Of Victories.

  More formidable foes than the peasants had yet met were approachingLa Vendee. Mayence had surrendered to the allies, and the garrisonthere, which was a large one, composed of veteran troops, wasallowed to march away, on each man taking an oath that he would notagain serve on the frontier.

  Outside France there was no idea of the desperate struggle that wasgoing on in La Vendee. Had it been known, in England, that itneeded but little aid for Brittany and La Vendee to successfullyoppose the efforts of the Republic, men, money, arms, andammunition would no doubt have been sent; but unfortunately theleaders of the insurrection, occupied as they were with the effortsthey were making, had taken no steps to send a statement of thereal facts of the case to the English government. The ports wereall in the hands of the Republicans and, although in Paris publicattention was concentrated on the struggle, the British governmentwas very badly informed as to what was passing there. Had theallies been aware of it, the terms granted to the garrison atMayence would have been very different; and they would either havebeen held as prisoners, or been compelled to take the oath thatthey would, in future, not serve the Republic in any way, in arms.

  As it was, they were free to act in France, and were already on themarch towards La Vendee. As before, arrangements were made for thedistrict to be attacked simultaneously on all sides. LaRochejaquelein was so much weakened by the return of the peasantsto their homes that he was obliged to evacuate Saumur, and thistown was taken possession of by the division from Tours, consistingof twelve thousand five hundred infantry, sixteen hundred cavalry,and four hundred artillerymen, under General Menou.

  The division of Niort comprised fifteen thousand six hundredinfantry, and thirteen hundred and eighty cavalry. It was commandedby Chalbos, having Westermann with him. At Sables were fourthousand three hundred infantry, two hundred and fifty cavalry, andthree hundred artillery. They were commanded by General Boulard.

  There was but small breathing time for the Vendeans. Westermann hadmoved towards Parthenay with a strong force and, but a few hoursafter the Martins had left it, Lescure was forced to fall back fromthe town. This was occupied by the Blues. They pillaged and burneda village near, although no opposition had been offered, and thensent off a force which burned Lescure's chateau at Clisson.

  The Martins were engaged in conversation when a messenger ran in.

  "I have an order from Monsieur Lescure," he said. "The church bellsare to be rung throughout the district."

  All started to their feet.

  "Already?" Jean exclaimed. "Why, what has happened?"

  "We have fallen back from Parthenay. The Blues under Westermann,eight thousand strong, have already occupied the town. Thegeneral's orders are that all are to join him at Moulin, in twodays' time. Messengers have been despatched all over the country,and Monsieur de la Rochejaquelein has been sent for, to joinGeneral Lescure at Moulin."

  "That gives us twenty-four hours, then," Jean said, with a sigh ofcontent. "I will see that your message is carried on to all thevillages near. There are plenty of boys of twelve or fourteen aboutthe place."

  But the bells rang that night to deaf ears. Many of the peasantswere still absent, others had returned but a few hours before, wornout and dispirited. But when on the following day the news camethat Westermann's troops were burning villages, and slaying all whofell into their hands, and that Monsieur de Lescure's chateau hadbeen burnt, fury and indignation again fired them and, that night,the greater part of them set out for Moulin.

  "I wonder what has become of our horses," Jean said, as he preparedto start. "We shall never hear any more of those we left at Nantes.We must go on foot this time, and trust to getting hold of a coupleof horses, the first time we defeat the Blues."

  He had that day been over with Patsey, her child, his father, thenurse, and Francois to the peasant's house, deep in the forest, towhich he had before arranged that she should go, in case of need.All the party were dressed as peasants. The man and woman from whomthe house was hired removed to another hut, a quarter of a mileaway. Francois was to go down every day in the cart to the village,to get news and letters and buy provisions. The cure had arrangedto send off one of the village boys, the moment that he heard thatany party of the Blues were approaching; when the whole of theoccupants of the village and the farms around it would be obligedto take to the woods, for it was evident that neither age nor sexwas respected by Westermann's troops.

  It was morning when Jean, Leigh, and Desailles arrived at Moulin.They were warmly received by Rochejaquelein and Bonchamp, to whomJean introduced Desailles as a new comrade.

  "I know nothing of fighting," the latter said; "but, gentlemen, Ishall do my best."

  "That is all that anyone can do," Rochejaquelein said heartily. "Wemay say that none of us, with the exception of Monsieur Bonchampand a few others, had any experience in fighting when we began; butwe have done pretty well, on the whole."

  "Do you think that we have much chance of holding this place?" Jeanasked. "They told us, as we came in, that at present there are notmuch more than eight thousand men here; and Westermann, they say,has about as many."

  "That is so," Bonchamp said, "and I do not expect that we shallbeat them; but we must fight, or they will march through thecountry, wasting and destroying as they go. It is only by showingthem that we are still formidable, and that they must keep togetherand be prudent and cautious, that we can maintain ourselves. Asuccession of blows, even of light ones, will break a rock."

  At two o'clock the enemy's forces approached, and the engagementsoon became hot. Every hedge was lined by the peasants, everyposition strongly defended, and only evacuated when the horns gavethe signal. At the end of two hours Westermann, after losing aconsiderable number of men, approached ground where his cavalrycould come into play; and the leaders of all the bands had beenwarned that, when they fell back to this point, the horn was to besounded three times, and that resistance was to cease at once andthe bands disperse, to meet at a given point, two hours later.Seven of the ten cannon they had with them were safely carried off;and although compelled to retire from their position, the peasantswere well satisfied with having withstood, so long, the attack ofan equal number of troops, supported by an artillery much superiorto their own.

  Leigh had taken no part in the actual fighting. His right arm wastightly strapped, and bandaged across his chest; and he thereforeacted only as the general's aide-de-camp.

  "I'll tell you what it is, Jules," Jean said to Desailles, as theyretired from the field; "if you are going to expose yourself in theway you have done today, your fighting will be over before long.When it comes to leading the peasants to an attack, one mustnecessarily set the men an example; but when on the defence, yousee, the peasants all lie down behind the hedges and bushes, andshow themselves as little as possible.

  "And there were you, walking about as if you were in the principalstreet in Nantes! I do not say that we must not expose ourselves agood deal more than the peasants, in order to encourage them; butthere is a limit to all things, and one must remember that we arevery short of officers, and that the peasants, brave as they are,would be useless without someone to direct them."

  "I have no doubt but you are right, Jean," Desailles said with alaugh; "but in fact, I don't remember giving a thought to thematter. I was almost bewildered by the roar of the battle and thewhistling of the bullets. I felt like a man who had taken too muchwine; which, in my student days, happened to me more than once. Myblood seemed to rush through my veins, and I would have givenanything for the order to come for us to throw ourselves upon theenemy."

  "You will get over that," Jean laughed, "but the same feeling isstrong among the men. One can see how eager they are for the orderto charge. They use their muskets, but it is to use their bayonetsthat they are panting. They would make grand soldiers, if they werebut well drilled and disciplined.

  "Unless I am mistaken, you will see them at their favourite work,before many days are ove
r. Westermann will get to Chatillontonight. When he gets there, he will find no provisions for histroops, and will begin to wonder whether he is wise in thuspenetrating so far into a nest of hornets.

  "Bonchamp will give him two or three days to forget the maulingthat we have given him. By that time our force will have increased,and it will be well for Westermann if he manages to carry half hisforce back with him."

  The news of the burning of la Rochejaquelein's chateau, on thefollowing day, excited the liveliest indignation. The young counthimself received the news with greater indifference than did thosearound him.

  "When a man carries his life in his hand, every day," he said, "hedoes not fret over the loss of a house. I do not suppose that Ishould ever have sat down quietly in possession of it, and thecousin who is my heir may have to wait a number of years before, ifever, he comes to take possession of the estate. Had circumstancesbeen different, the loss of the old chateau, where my family havelived for so many years, would have been very grievous to me; butat present it affects me comparatively little.

  "It is lucky that I sent off four men, directly the fight was over,with a letter to my steward, charging him to hand over to them thefour horses that still remained in my stables. They arrived here anhour ago. I guessed that the Blues would be paying a visit there inmy absence.

  "One of them is for you, Monsieur Martin, and one for Leigh; theothers I shall keep as spare chargers. I have had two shot under mealready, and am likely to have more. In the meantime, if yourfriend Monsieur Desailles likes to ride one, it is at his service."

  "I thank you very much, marquis," Jules said; "but I would prefertrusting to my own legs. My profession has been a peaceful one, andI have never yet mounted a horse, and certainly should feel utterlyout of my element, in the saddle, with an animal under me excitedalmost to madness by the sounds of battle. Of the two, I think thatI should prefer being on a ship, during a storm."

  Rochejaquelein laughed.

  "It is all a matter of training," he said. "As for me I feel twicethe man, on horseback, that I do on foot. I have never triedfighting on foot, yet; and I should certainly feel altogether outof my element, the first time that I attempted it.

  "However, I will not press the animal on you. I shall send it andthe other to some cottage, in the heart of the woods, whence I canhave them fetched when needed."

  "I am sure that we are greatly obliged to you," Jean said. "As Itold you, when relating our adventure in Nantes, we had to leaveour horses behind us there though, had we captured the town, weshould have recovered them. As it is, the Blues carried off the twoI had left behind at the chateau, and I could only buy one other,as we came through. That I detailed for the use of my wife. Icertainly had not expected to obtain another, until we capturedsome from the enemy. We are heartily obliged to you, not only foryour generous gift, but for your thoughtful kindness in sending forthem for us."

  "Say not another word," Rochejaquelein said. "You are a sailor andI am a soldier, and between us there is no occasion for thanks orcompliments. You would have done the same for me, and I am glad tobe able to set you both on horseback again. And indeed, I am notsure that I was not a little selfish in the matter; for yesterday Imissed the company of your brother-in-law greatly, and felt that Iwould give a good deal to hear his cheery laugh, and confidenttone."

  As usual, the army dispersed after its victory; but there were buta few days' quiet, for on the fourteenth it gathered to oppose theadvance of a strong French column, from Brissac; and on the morningof the fifteenth, early, just as the troops were getting intomovement, the Vendeans burst down upon them.

  Their numbers were not large, for the notice had been short, and onlythe peasants of the surrounding district had had time to gather.Nevertheless they attacked with such energy, led by Rochejaqueleinand d'Elbee, that they fought their way into the middle of the camp,captured the headquarters with its correspondence and treasury, andscattered several battalions in utter confusion.

  On the return of the advanced guard, under Santerre, the situationchanged; the fugitives were rallied and, after long and fiercefighting, the Vendeans drew off.

  "We must admit another failure," said Rochejaquelein; who had, withhis little troop of mounted men, been in the thick of the fight;charging again and again into the midst of the enemy, and coveringthe retreat, when it began, by opposing a determined front to theenemy's cavalry; "a failure, but a glorious one. They were superiorto us in numbers; and yet, if it hadn't been that their advancedguard returned while our men were scattered, intent upon theplunder of their headquarters, we should have won the day. However,we shall have reinforcements up, in a couple of days."

  On the seventeenth, the French column resumed its march. Santerre'scommand led the way to Vihiers, which they reached withoutopposition. The rest of the division arrived in the afternoon. Theyhad left, at their previous halting place, the heavy baggage; witha portion of their artillery ammunition. Scarcely had they arrivedat Vihiers when a tremendous explosion told them that the guardleft behind had been overpowered, and their store of ammunitiondestroyed.

  A feeling of uneasiness and alarm spread through the army.Santerre's battalion were at once attacked by Rochejaquelein, whohad but a small body of men with him, but who thought to takeadvantage of the alarm which the explosion would naturally causeamong the enemy. Santerre's battalion, however, stood firm, and theVendeans were drawn off. In the night, however, the main body ofthe peasants arrived and, at one o'clock next day, made theirattack.

  Menou himself, with the rest of his command, had now come up. Someof the battalions, as before, stood steadily; but the rest of thearmy, dispirited by the perseverance with which the Vendeans, inspite of failure and losses, were ever ready to renew their attack,speedily lost heart.

  In two hours the right fell back in disorder, the panic spread and,in a short time, the rout became general. In vain the officersendeavoured to check the fugitives. So great was their terror that,in three hours, the panic stricken mob traversed the distancebetween Vihiers and Saumur.

  Thus the second great invasion of La Vendee had met with no greatersuccess than the first. The two strong columns that had advanced,in full confidence of success, had returned utterly discomfited.Westermann's division had been all but annihilated. The army fromSaumur had lost great numbers of men, and had for the time ceasedto be a military body. The Bocage, with its sombre woods, its thickhedges, and its brave population, seemed destined to become thegrave of the Republican army; and the order to advance into it was,in itself, sufficient to shake the courage of those who boasted soloudly, when at a distance.

  It was the grave, too, of the reputation of the French generals.One after another they had tried, failed, and been disgraced. Thefirst general, Marce, was superseded by Berruyer; Berruyer byBiron, who was recalled and guillotined. Westermann was also tried,but having powerful friends, was acquitted. Generals of divisionshad come and gone in numbers. Some had been dismissed. Some, attheir own urgent request, allowed to return to the districts theycommanded before the outbreak of the insurrection. But one and allhad failed. One and all, too, had never ceased, from the time theyjoined the army of invasion, to send report after report to theConvention, complaining of the untrustworthiness of the troops, thebad conduct and uselessness of the officers, and the want of asufficient staff to maintain discipline and restore order.

  Indeed, the bulk of the revolutionary troops possessed little morediscipline than the Vendeans themselves and, being uninspired, aswere the latter, by a feeling either of religion or of patrioticenthusiasm, they were no match for men who were willing to givetheir lives for the cause.

  The Vendeans were far better armed than when they commenced thestruggle. Then the proportion of men who were possessed of musketsor firearms of any kind was extremely small; but now, thanks to theimmense quantity which had been captured in the hands of prisoners,thrown away by fugitives, or found in the storehouses of the towns,there were sufficient to supply almost every man of the populationwi
th firearms; and in addition, they possessed a good many piecesof artillery.

  Unfortunately they had learned little during the four months'fighting. Their methods were unchanged. Love of home overpoweredall other considerations; and after a victory, as after a defeat,they hurried away, leaving with their generals only the officersand a small body of men, who were either emigres who had returnedfrom England to take part in the struggle, or Royalists who hadmade their way from distant parts of France, for the same purpose.

  After the capture of Saumur, too, a good many Swiss and Germans,belonging to a cavalry regiment formed of foreigners, had desertedand joined the Vendeans. Thus a small nucleus of an army heldtogether, swelling only when the church bells summoned the peasantsto take up arms for a few days.

  But while the Royalists of La Vendee remained quiescent, after theyhad expelled the invaders; the Republicans, more alarmed than ever,were making the most tremendous efforts to stamp out theinsurrection.

  Beysser, who had commanded at Nantes, was appointed to succeedMenou. Orders were given that the forests and hedges of La Vendeewere all to be levelled, the crops destroyed, the cattle seized,and the goods of the insurgents confiscated. An enormous number ofcarts were collected to carry faggots, tar, and other combustiblesinto La Vendee, for setting fire to the woods. It was actuallyproposed to destroy the whole male population, to deport the womenand children, and to repeople La Vendee from other parts of France,from which immigrants would be attracted by offers of free land andhouses. Santerre suggested that poisonous gases should be inclosedin suitable vessels, and fired into the district to poison theatmosphere.

  Carrier, the infamous scoundrel who had been appointed commissionerat Nantes, proposed an equally villainous scheme; namely, thatgreat quantities of bread, mixed with arsenic, should be baked andscattered broadcast, so that the starving people might eat it andbe destroyed, wholesale. This would have been carried out, had itnot been vigorously opposed by General Kleber, who had now takenthe command of one of the armies of the invasion.

  The rest of July and the first half of August passed comparativelyquietly. General Toncq advanced with a column into La Vendee, andfought two or three battles, in which he generally gained successesover the peasants; but with this exception, no forward movement wasmade, and the majority of the peasants remained undisturbed intheir homes.

  Soon, however, from all sides, the flood of invaders poured in. Nofewer than two hundred thousand men were now under the orders ofthe French generals, and advanced from different directions, in allcases carrying out the orders of the Convention, to devastate thecountry, burn down the woods, destroy the crops, and slay theinhabitants. Five armies moved forward simultaneously, thatcommanded by Kleber consisting of the veteran battalions ofMayence.

  But everywhere they were met. Charette had marched to the aid ofthe Vendeans of the north, and the country was divided into fourdistricts, commanded by Charette, Bonchamp, Lescure, and laRochejaquelein. Each of these strove to defend his own district.

  The war now assumed a terrible aspect. Maddened by the atrocitiesperpetrated upon them, the peasants no longer gave quarter to thosewho fell into their hands and, in their despair, performedprodigies of valour. They had not now, as at the commencement ofthe war the superiority in numbers. Instead of fighting generallyfour to one against the Blues, the latter now exceeded them in thesame proportion.

  But the peasants had changed their tactics. Instead of rushingimpetuously upon the enemy's lines, and hurling themselves upon hisartillery, they utilized the natural features of their country. Asthe Republican columns marched along, believing that there was noenemy near, they would hear the sound of a horn, and from behindevery hedge, every thicket, every tree, a stream of musketry wouldbreak out. Very soon the column would fall into confusion. Thelanes would be blocked with dead horses and immovable waggons. Invain would the soldiers try to force their way through the hedges,and to return the fire of their invisible foes. Then, as suddenlyas the attack commenced, the peasants would leap from their shelterand, with knife and bayonet, carry havoc among their enemies.

  These tactics prevailed over numbers, even when, as in the case ofKleber's division, the numbers possessed military discipline,training, and high reputation. For a month, fighting was almostcontinuous and, at the end of that time, to the stupefaction of theConvention, their two hundred thousand troops were driven out of LaVendee, at every point, by a fourth of that number of undisciplinedpeasants. Never, perhaps, in the history of military warfare didenthusiasm and valour accomplish such a marvel.

  The second half of September was spent by the peasants at theirhomes, rejoicing and returning thanks for their success; butalready a heavy blow was being struck at their cause. Charette,hotheaded, impetuous, and self confident, had always preferredcarrying out his own plans, without regard to those of the leadersin Upper Vendee; and he now quarrelled with them as to the coursethat had best be pursued, and left, with the forces that he hadbrought with him, to renew the war in the south.

  But although the peasants rejoiced, their leaders knew that thestruggle could not long continue. The number of fighting men--thatis to say, of the whole male population of La Vendee capable ofbearing arms--had diminished terribly; indeed, the number thatoriginally responded to the summons of the church bells wasdecreased by fully a half. Food was scarce. Owing to the continuedabsence of the peasants the harvest had, in many places, not beengarnered; and wherever the Republican troops had passed, thedestruction had been complete. A large portion of the populationwere homeless. The very movements of the Vendeans were hampered bythe crowds of women and children who, with the few belongings thatthey had saved, packed in their little carts, wandered almostaimlessly through the country. Many of the towns were in ruins, anddeserted; in all save a few secluded spots, as yet unvisited by theRepublicans, want and misery were universal.

  There was no thought of surrender, but among chiefs and peasantsalike the idea that, as a last resource, it would be necessary toabandon La Vendee altogether, and to take refuge in Brittany, wherethe vast majority of the population were favourable to them,gradually gained ground.

  Generals Beysser, Canclaux, and Dubayet were recalled by theConvention for their failure to obtain success, and l'Echelle wasappointed to the command, having Kleber and Westermann as leadersof his principal divisions.

  Jean Martin and Leigh had joined their friends, in their retreat inthe forest, after the repulse of all the Republican columns. Theyhad heard, while engaged in the thick of the fighting, of the deathof Monsieur Martin. He had never recovered from the effects of hisimprisonment at Nantes, and instead of gaining strength he hadbecome weaker and weaker. The terrible uncertainty of the position,the news that constantly arrived of desperate battles, and theconviction that in the end the Vendeans would be crushed, toldheavily upon him. He took to his bed, and sank gradually.

  "I am not sorry, my child," he said to Patsey, the day before hedied, "that I am going to leave you. I was wrong in not takingJean's advice, and sailing for England with my wife and daughter.However, it is useless to think of that, now.

  "I can see terrible times in store for all here. It is evident thatno mercy is to be shown to the Vendeans. It has been decreed by theConvention that they are to be hunted down like wild beasts.

  "Had I lived, I should have been a terrible burden to you. I shouldhave hampered your movements and destroyed any chance, whatever,that you might have of escaping from these fiends. It would havebeen impossible for me to have supported the fatigues and hardshipsof a flight, and I should have been the means of bringingdestruction on you all. It is therefore better, in every respect,that I should go.

  "I pray that Heaven will protect you and Jean and your bravebrother, and enable you to reach England in safety. You will bearmy last message to my wife and Louise. You will tell them that mylast thought was of them, my last feeling one of gratitude to Godthat they are in safety, and that I have been permitted to die inpeace and quiet."

  "It is a sad ho
mecoming this time, Jean," Patsey said, as herhusband and Leigh rode up to the door.

  "It is indeed, Patsey; and yet, even when the news came to me, Icould scarcely grieve that it was so. I had seen how he was fadingwhen I went away, and was not surprised when I heard that he hadgone. For me it is one care, one anxiety, the less, in future.

  "Patsey, we will be together. I cannot leave you here, when Leighand I are away. The child shall go with us and, when all is lost,we will escape or die together."

  "I am glad to hear you say so, Jean. It has been terrible waitinghere, and knowing that you were in the midst of dangers, and thateven while I thought of you, you might be lying dead. I shall beglad, indeed, to share your fate, whatever it is."

  For three weeks the little party lived quietly in the cottage.There were many discussions as to the future. It was agreed that,in case of a final reverse, it would be better that they shouldtravel alone.

  "The more of us there are, the more certain to attractobservation," Jean said. "We must go without Francois and Marthe.Their chance of safety will be greater if they either return totheir villages, or take up their abode with the family of somewoodman--or rather, Marthe's safety would be greater. As toFrancois, he has long been eager to join in the fighting, and it isonly his fidelity that has constrained him to remain in what heconsiders is a disgraceful position, when every other man who canbear arms is fighting. We will therefore take him with us and, whenthe day of battle comes, he will join the fighting men and, if weare defeated, must care for his own safety.

  "When we fight, I shall always leave you at a village, a mile ortwo away. You will have the horse ready to mount, and we shall joinyou at once, if we are defeated."

  "We ought to be disguised, Jean," Leigh said.

  "It would be well," Jean said, "but I hardly see what disguisewould be of use to us. Certainly not that of peasants, for in thatdress we should be shot down, without question, by the first partyof Blues we came across. Even if we succeed in reaching the riverand crossing it, we may be sure that the authorities will beeverywhere on the lookout for fugitive peasants. It would be betterto be shot, at once, than to await in prison death by theguillotine."

  "I should say that it does not matter a bit how we are dressed,till we reach the river. We know now pretty nearly every lane inthe country," Leigh said, "and I should think that we ought to beable to reach the Loire."

  "That is where the difficulty will begin. In the first place therewill be the trouble of crossing, and then that of making our waythrough the country. Certainly we could not do so as Vendeanpeasants."

  "I should say, Jean, that the best disguises would be those offairly well-to-do townspeople; something like those we wore intoNantes, but rather less formal--the sort of thing that ordinarytradesmen, without any strong political feeling either way, wouldwear. I don't say that we shall not be suspected, however we aredressed, because no one in his senses would be travelling aboutjust at present; but when once we get beyond Tours, if we go thatway, we might pass without much notice.

  "Which way do you think that we ought to go, Jean?"

  Jean shrugged his shoulders.

  "I don't see that there is any choice. There would be very littlechance of escaping from any of the ports of Brittany, and LaRochelle would be still more hopeless. As far south as Bordeaux weshould be in a comparatively peaceful country, and I should hope tofind friends there. The eastern frontier is of course the safest tocross, but the distance is very great and, in the towns near theborder, a very sharp lookout is kept to prevent emigres escaping.

  "There is a rumour that Lyons has declared against the Convention,but if we got there it is certain that it would be but La Vendeeover again. Lyons cannot resist all France and, as soon as theyhave done with us here, they will be able to send any number oftroops to stamp out these risings.

  "Undoubtedly, if we could get there, Toulon would be the bestplace. I have heard for certain that they have driven out theextreme party, and have admitted the English fleet. Once there, weshould be able to take berths in a ship bound somewhere abroad--itmatters little where--and thence get a passage to England. Mostprobably we shall be able to arrange to go direct from Toulon, forthere are sure to be vessels coming and going with stores for theBritish fleet."

  "But that would be a terrible journey, Jean," his wife said.

  "Yes, I think that would be quite out of the question. It seems tome that our best chance would be either to cross the Loire and thenmake for Le Mans, and so up through Alencon to Honfleur--that waywe should be east of the disturbed district--or, if we found that avast number of fugitives had made their way into Brittany, as isalmost certain to be the case, we might bear more to the east, andgo up through Vendome and Chartres and Evreux, and then branch offand strike the Seine near Honfleur. In that case we should beoutside the district where they would be searching for fugitivesfrom here.

  "Once on the seashore, or on the Seine, it would be hard if wecould not steal a fishing boat, and cross the Channel. However, onemust of course be guided by circumstances. Still, I do think thatit would be as well to buy the disguises Leigh suggests, withoutloss of time. I will ride over to Chatillon, tomorrow, and getthem."