And now, as we broke through the further edge of the cornfield, we got
in front of the smoke, and there was the whole French army in position
before us, with only two meadows and a narrow lane between us. We set
up a yell as we saw them, and away we should have gone slap at them if
we had been left to ourselves; for silly young soldiers never think that
harm can come to them until it is there in their midst. But the Duke
had cantered his horse beside us as we advanced, and now he roared
something to the general, and the officers all rode in front of our line
holding out their arms for us to stop. There was a blowing of bugles, a
pushing and a shoving, with the sergeants cursing and digging us with
their halberts; and in less time than it takes me to write it, there was
the brigade in three neat little squares, all bristling with bayonets
and in echelon, as they call it, so that each could fire across the face
of the other.

It was the saving of us, as even so young a soldier as I was could very
easily see; and we had none too much time either. There was a low
rolling hill on our right flank, and from behind this there came a sound
like nothing on this earth so much as the beat of the waves on the
Berwick coast when the wind blows from the east. The earth was all
shaking with that dull roaring sound, and the air was full of it.

"Steady, 71st! for God's sake, steady!" shrieked the voice of our
colonel behind us; but in front was nothing but the green gentle slope
of the grassland, all mottled with daisies and dandelions.

And then suddenly over the curve we saw eight hundred brass helmets rise
up, all in a moment, each with a long tag of horsehair flying from its
crest; and then eight hundred fierce brown faces all pushed forward, and