and fifty guns, eighty thousand shots, and a great
quantity of muskets and ammunition were taken in the place. Ours was a
much severer loss, for nearly five thousand of our men, including
three or four hundred officers, were either killed or wounded. But it
must be observed that with the circumstances under which our troops
had to fight it was a wonder that they entered the town at all that
night, every obstacle that a cunning enemy could devise being there to
be overcome. Every kind of combustible deadly in its action was thrown
amongst the men; placed in readiness along the ramparts were trees,
stones, and beams; and the worst of all was the fearful _chevaux de
frise_; in fact nothing had been wanting to discourage the men, who,
however, pushed on, being as anxious as Lord Wellington himself to get
into the town.

All being now over, thoughts of Pig Harding, George Bowden, and our
engagement, ran in my head, and how it had all failed, poor Pig having
received seven shots in his body, and George Bowden having had both
thighs blown off. Both must have met with instant death, and I myself
had four wounds and was disabled for some time from getting about. I
resolved then that I would never make any more engagements under the
same fearful circumstances. We missed poor Pig more than any man of
the regiment, for he passed many an hour away pleasantly with his
jokes, being a thoroughbred Irishman, and not only that, but he
supplied us with many an extra piece of tommy by his roguish tricks.

CHAPTER XIV.

Six weeks in hospital at Estremoz -- A new way to keep up the
spirits -- Lawrence allowed to go on to Salamanca at his own risk
-- He catches the fever there, and has to go into hospital again
at Ciudad Rodrigo -- At last rejoins his regiment -- Cessation of
hostilities on both sides, and the British Army goes into
cantonments -- Lawrence made a corporal -- The cat's paw comes in
for its share of the booty, and gets the chestnuts into the
bargain -- A romantic episode to relieve the monotony of war.

A day or two after these events, the wounded were all conveyed to
hospital, some to Elvas and some to Estremoz. I was amongst the
latter, as was likewise my comrade whom I mentioned as meeting me in
the streets of Badajoz, as we were considered better able to stand the
longer journey, the distance on from Elvas to Estremoz being about six
leagues the other side from Badajoz.