Page:Narrative of a captivity and adventures in France and Flanders between the years 1803 and 1809.djvu/75

 horse gendarmes forming the van, and four the rear-guard; one on each side of every waggon, and twenty foot soldiers in files, with others in each carriage, made up the escort, the commander bringing up the rear upon his black charger. Whenever the road passed by a wood, which frequently occurred, we halted, to give the infantry time to occupy its skirts; two gendarmes on each side were posted mid-*way, whilst the rest occasionally displayed their pistols, somewhat ostentatiously, by way of intimidation. I have been thus minute in detailing the strength and manner of the escort, not only to contrast it with similar detachments in England, where twice the number of French prisoners, with infinitely greater facilities of escape, might be safely entrusted to the care of a serjeant's guard; but also to show how fully persuaded Wirion was, that some of us would make the attempt. My most intimate friend and brother mid, Moyses, was of the party, and we had agreed to avail ourselves of the first opportunity to decamp; this, however, appeared almost