Page:Narrative of a captivity and adventures in France and Flanders between the years 1803 and 1809.djvu/42

 sent to surround the house. Here we remained the 24th; the 25th, when preparing to depart, a long bill was presented, with the expenses of the gendarmes included, and it was with much difficulty we could convince our host, that, not having invited them to guard us, we had too much urbanity to offer so gross an insult to the colonel, as to pay for his guests, and therefore desired that the demand might be made upon him; this so incensed these members of the legion of honour, that they swore it should cost us dear; however, nothing material occurred. Journeying on, and halting occasionally, as inclination urged, we ate our mournful Christmas dinner in a miserable village, where we stopped for the night. In this manner we trudged on, two days, and on the third, a dispute arose between the landlord and our commissariat department, in consequence of the nefarious impositions of the former, when the mayor interposed, and cast us, with costs.

During the dispute, I entered an adjoining bed room, and observing on the mantle