Page:Narrative of a captivity and adventures in France and Flanders between the years 1803 and 1809.djvu/37

 consisted of eleven, who, being now considered on parole, had no guard; being accompanied only by one gendarme to shew the road, and take the "feuille de route;" a cart was allowed, to carry the baggage. We proceeded at discretion during three days, dined and slept at the different inns, like independent gentlemen, and enjoyed all the luxuries our limited finances would afford. On our arrival at Auch, about forty miles west of Toulouse, we hired lodgings, in different parties; six of us took up our quarters in the house of a "cidevant" nobleman, who was particularly kind on all occasions. He frequently amused us with the relation of his adventures, during the horrid times of blood and rapine; also with accounts of his subsequent travels; dwelling particularly on those in England, where he had passed some very happy days in high life. He possessed all the distinguishing qualities of the gentleman, and had all the communicative intelligence of the learned traveller, without any of that "gasconade," that bombastic exaggeration, tending to