regiment to water--he led the way, and two or three took hold of the
skirts of his jacket on each side; the skirts of these were seized again
by as many more; and double the number to the last, and so all held on by
one another, till they had all had a drink at the well; and, as the devil
would have it, there was but one well among us all--so this corporal used
to water the regiment just as a groom waters his horses; and all
spreading out, you know, just like the tail of a peacock."--"Of which the
corporal was the rump," interrupted the doctor. The captain looked grave.
"You found it warm in that country?" inquired the surgeon. "Warm!"
exclaimed the captain; "I'll tell you what, doctor, when you go where you
have sent many a patient, and where, for that very reason, you certainly
will go, I only hope, for your sake, and for that of your profession in
general, that you will not find it quite so hot as we found it in Egypt.
What do you think of nineteen of my men being killed by the concentrated
rays of light falling on the barrels of the sentinels' bright muskets,
and setting fire to the powder? I commanded a mortar battery at Acre, and
I did the French infernal mischief with the shells. I used to pitch in
among them when they had sat down to dinner; but how do you think the
scoundrels weathered on me at last? ---- me, they trained a parcel of
poodle dogs to watch the shells when they fell, and then to run and pull
the fusees out with their teeth. Did you ever hear of such villains? By
this means they saved hundreds of men, and only lost half-a-dozen
dogs--fact, by----; only ask Sir Sydney Smith, he'll tell you the same,
and a ---- sight more." * * * * He continued his lies, and dragged in as
usual the name of Sir Sydney Smith to support his assertions. "If you
doubt me, only ask Sir Sydney Smith; he'll talk to you about Acre for
thirty-six hours on a stretch, without taking breath; his cockswain at
last got so tired of it, that he nick-named him '_Long Acre_.'" * * *
"Capital salmon this," said the captain; "where does Billet get it from?
By the by, talking of that, did you ever hear of the pickled salmon in