glasses. My man emptied his and I raised mine without putting it to
my lips, for I had never drunk undiluted wine and I found the smell
of this liquid disagreeable. I admitted this to my mentor, who
shouted, in a stentorian voice, "Waiter! Bring some lemonade for this
boy who never drinks wine." A gale of laughter swept through the
room. I was mortified, but I could not bring myself to taste this
wine, and as I did not dare to ask for water, I dined without a
drink.

A soldier's apprenticeship has always been hard going. It was
particularly so at the time of which I write. I had, therefore, some
unhappy experiences to suffer. A thing I found unbearable was the
requirement to share my bed with another Hussar. The regulations
allotted only one bed for two soldiers. N.C.O.s alone were allowed
to have a bed each. On the first night which I spent in the
barracks, I had already gone to my bed when a tall, ungainly Hussar,
who arrived an hour after the others, approached it, and seeing that
it was occupied, he unhooked a lantern and stuck it under my nose to
examine me more closely. Then he got undressed. As I watched him, I
had no idea that he intended to get in beside me; but I was soon
disillusioned, when he said to me roughly, "Shove over, conscript!"
And got into the bed, taking up three-quarters of it, and began to
snore loudly. I was unable to sleep a wink, largely because of the
revolting odour arising from a large package which my comrade had
placed under the bolster, to raise his head. I could not think what
this could be, so to find out, I slid my hand gently toward this
object and found it to be a leather apron impregnated with cobbler's
wax, which shoemakers use to treat their thread. My amiable bed
companion was one of the men employed by the regimental bootmaker. I
was so disgusted that I got up, got dressed, and went to the stables