by T. Smollett
CHAPTER NINETEEN
HE PUTS HIMSELF UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF HIS ASSOCIATE, AND STUMBLES UPONTHE FRENCH CAMP, WHERE HE FINISHES HIS MILITARY CAREER.
Nothing else of moment was transacted during that campaign; and in thewinter our adventurer, with the young Count, and his friend the Tyrolese,were disposed in quarters of cantonment, where Ferdinand made himselfamends for the chagrin he had undergone, by the exercise of those talentsin which he excelled. Not that he was satisfied with the sphere of lifein which he acted; though he knew himself consummate in the art of play,he was not at all ambitious of a gamester's name; nor did he find himselfdisposed to hazard those discoveries and explanations to which heroes ofthat class are sometimes necessarily exposed. His aim was to dwell amongthe tents of civil life, undisturbed by quarrels and the din of war, andrender mankind subservient to his interest, not by stratagems whichirritate, but by that suppleness of insinuation, which could not fail tosoothe the temper of those on whom he meant to prey.
He saw that all his expectations of Count Melvil's future favour wereconnected with his choice of a military life; and that his promotion inthe service would, in a great measure, depend upon his personal behaviourin such emergencies as he did not at all wish to encounter. On the otherhand, he confided so much in his own dexterity and address, that he neverdoubted of being able to rear a splendid fortune for himself, provided hecould once obtain a fixed and firm foundation. He had in fancy oftenenjoyed a prospect of England, not only as his native country, to which,like a true citizen, he longed to be united; but also as the land ofpromise, flowing with milk and honey, and abounding with subjects onwhich he knew his talents would be properly exercised.
These reflections never occurred, without leaving a strong impressionupon the mind of our adventurer, which influenced his deliberations insuch a manner, as at length amounted to a perfect resolution ofwithdrawing himself privately from a service that teemed withdisagreeable events, and of transporting himself into the country of hisancestors, which he considered as the Canaan of all able adventurers.But, previous to his appearance on that stage, he was desirous ofvisiting the metropolis of France, in which he hoped to improve himselfin the knowledge of men and things, and acquire such intelligence aswould qualify him to act a more important part upon the British scene.After having for some time indulged these prospects in secret, hedetermined to accommodate himself with the company and experience of theTyrolese, whom, under the specious title of an associate, he knew hecould convert into a very serviceable tool, in forwarding the executionof his own projects.
Accordingly, the inclination of this confederate was sounded by distanthints, and being found apt, our hero made him privy to his design ofdecamping without beat of drum; though, at the same time, he begged hisadvice touching the method of their departure, that he might retire withas much delicacy as the nature of such a step would permit. Diversconsultations were held upon this subject, before they adhered to theresolution of making their escape from the army, after it should havetaken the field in the spring; because, in that case, they would havefrequent opportunities of going abroad on foraging parties, and, duringone of these excursions, might retire in such a manner as to persuadetheir companions that they had fallen into the enemy's hands.
Agreeable to this determination, the camp was no sooner formed in Alsacethan our associates began to make preparations for their march, and hadalready taken all the previous measures for their departure, when anaccident happened, which our hero did not fail to convert to his ownadvantage. This was no other than the desertion of Renaldo's valet, who,in consequence of a gentle chastisement, which he had richly merited,thought proper to disappear, after having plundered his master'sportmanteau, which he had forced open for the purpose. Ferdinand, whowas the first person that discovered the theft, immediately comprehendedthe whole adventure, and, taking it for granted that the delinquent wouldnever return, resolved to finish what the fugitive had imperfectlyperformed.
Being favoured with the unreserved confidence of the young Count, heinstantly had recourse to his bureau, the locks of which he found meansto burst open, and, examining a private drawer, contrived with great artto conceal Renaldo's jewels and cash, made himself master of the contentswithout hesitation; then cutting open his cloak-bag, and strewing thetent with his linen and clothes, began to raise his voice, and producesuch a clamour as alarmed the whole neighbourhood, and brought a greatmany officers into the tent.
He on this, as on all other occasions, performed his cue to a miracle,expressing confusion and concern so naturally in his gestures andexclamation, that no man could possibly suspect his sincerity; nay, tosuch a degree of finesse did his cunning amount, that when his friend andpatron entered, in consequence of an intimation he soon received of hisloss, our adventurer exhibited undoubted signs of distraction anddelirium, and, springing upon Renaldo with all the frantic fury of abedlamite, "Villain," cried he, "restore the effects you have stole fromyour master, or you shall be immediately committed to the care of theprevot." However mortified M. de Melvil might be at his own misfortune,the condition of his friend seemed to touch him more nearly; heundervalued his own loss as a trifle that could be easily repaired; saideverything which he thought would tend to soothe and compose theagitation of Ferdinand; and finally prevailed upon him to retire to rest.The calamity was wholly attributed to the deserter; and Renaldo, far fromsuspecting the true author, took occasion, from his behaviour on thisemergency, to admire him as a mirror of integrity and attachment; in suchan exquisite manner did he plan all his designs, that almost everyinstance of his fraud furnished matter of triumph to his reputation.
Having thus profitably exercised his genius, this subtle politicianthought it high time to relinquish his military expectations, andsecuring all his valuable acquisitions about his own person, rode outwith his understrapper, in the midst of fifty dragoons, who went in questof forage. While the troopers were employed in making up their trusses,the two adventurers advanced towards the skirt of a wood, on pretence ofreconnoitring, and the Tyrolese, who undertook to be our hero's guide,directing him to a path which leads towards Strasburg, they suddenlyvanished from the eyes of their companions, who in a few minutes hearingthe report of several pistols, which the confederates purposely fired,conjectured that they had fallen in with a party of French, by whom theywere made prisoners of war.
The Tyrolese had overrated his own knowledge when he took upon himselfthe charge of conducting our hero; for upon their arrival at a certainplace, where two roads crossed each other, he chanced to follow thatwhich not only frustrated their intention, but even led them directly tothe French camp; so that, in the twilight, they fell in upon one of theoutguards before they were aware of their mistake.
Whatever confusion and perplexity they might undergo, when they heardthemselves questioned by the sentinel on the advanced post, certain itis, they betrayed no symptoms of fear or disorder; but while Ferdinandendeavoured to recollect himself, his fellow-traveller, with theappearance of admirable intrepidity and presence of mind, told thesoldier that he and his companion were two gentlemen of family, who hadquitted the Austrian army, on account of having sustained some ill-usage,which they had no opportunity of resenting in any other way, and thatthey were come to offer their services to the French general, to whosequarters they desired to be immediately conveyed.
The sentinel, to whom such an instance of desertion was neither rare, norindeed uncommon, directed them without scruple to the next post, wherethey found a serjeant's party, from which, at their request, they weretransmitted to the officer of the grand guard, and by him next morningintroduced to Count Coigny, who very politely received them as volunteersin the army of France. Though this translation was not at all to ourhero's liking, he was forced to acquiesce in his fate, glad to findhimself, on these terms, in possession of his effects, of which he wouldotherwise have been infallibly rifled.
This campaign, however, was the most disagreeable period of his wholelife; because the mann
er in which he had entered into the servicesubjected him to the particular observation and notice of the Frenchofficers; so that he was obliged to be very alert in his duty, and summonall his fortitude to maintain the character he had assumed. Whatrendered his situation still more unpalatable, was the activity of botharmies in the course of this season, during which, over and above sundryfatiguing marches and countermarches, he was personally engaged in theaffair of Halleh, which was very obstinate; where, being in the skirts ofthe detachment, he was actually wounded in the face by the sword of anhussar; but this was, luckily for him, the last time he found himselfunder the necessity of exerting his military prowess, for a cessation ofarms was proclaimed before he was cured of his wound, and peace concludedabout the end of the campaign.
During his sojourn in the French camp, he assumed the character of a manof family, who being disgusted at some supercilious treatment he had metwith in the German service, and at the same time ambitious of carryingarms under the banners of France, took the opportunity of retreating bystealth from his friends, accompanied only by one with whom he couldintrust his intention. In this capacity he had managed his matters tosuch advantage, that many French officers of rank were very well disposedto contribute their interest in his behalf, had his inclination vergedtowards promotion in the army; but he thought proper to conceal his realdesign, under the specious pretext of longing to see the metropolis ofFrance, that centre of pleasure and politeness, in which he proposed tospend some time for the improvement of his address and understanding.These were motives too laudable to be opposed by his new patrons, some ofwhom furnished him with letters of recommendation to certain noblemen ofthe first rank at the court of Versailles, for which place he and hiscompanion set out from the banks of the Rhine, very well satisfied withthe honourable dismission they had obtained from a life of inconvenience,danger, and alarm.