eadquarters to
move to this point at once and, as we have marched from Banos, you
see we have lost very little time on the way."

"Indeed, you have not. I suppose it is about forty miles; and that
distance, in fourteen hours, is certainly first-rate marching. I
will send off one of my men to report who you are. Two squadrons of
my regiment are a quarter of a mile away, awaiting my return."

"Have you any reason to believe that the enemy are near?"

"No particular reason that I know of, but their cavalry have been
in great force along the upper part of the river, for the last two
days. Victor has retired from Talavera, for I fancy that he was
afraid we might move round this way, and cut him off from Madrid.
The Spaniards might have harassed him as he fell back, but they
dared not even make a charge on his rear guard, though they had
3000 cavalry.

"We are not quite sure where the French are and, of course, we get
no information from the people here; either their stupidity is
something astounding, or their sympathies are entirely with the
French."

"My experience is," Terence said, "that the best way is to get as
much information as you can from them, and then to act with the
certainty that the real facts are just the reverse of the
statements made to you."

As soon as the forces halted a picket had been sent out; and
Terence, when the men finished their supper, established a cordon
of advanced pickets, with strong supports, at a distance of a mile
from his front and flanks; so as to ensure himself against
surprise, and to detect any movement upon the part of the enemy's
cavalry, who might be pressing round to obtain information of the
British position. At daybreak he mounted and rode to Talavera, and
reported the arrival of his command, and the position where he had
halted for the night.

"You have wasted no time over it, Colonel O'Connor. You can only
have received the order yesterday morning, and I scarcely expected
that you could be here till this evening."

"My men are excellent marchers, sir. They did the forty miles in
fourteen hours, and might have done it an hour quicker, had they
been pressed. Not a man fell out."

"Your duty will now be to cover our left flank. I don't know
whether you are aware that Wilson has moved forward, and will take
post on the slopes near the Escurial. He has been directed to
spread his force as much as possible, so as to give an appearance
of greater strength than he has.