ses was put, but
all they had to say was that they were both guilty and hoped this
would be a warning to their comrades. The chaplain then left them, and
on the wagon being moved along they were left dancing on nothing. The
poor fellows were not long in expiring, but they were left one hour
before they were cut down, during which time we had to retain our
post, and at the end of it each regiment retired solemnly to its own
quarters, leaving a company of the men's own regiment to bury them.

During the brigade's stay near Cambray an order was received that a
captain and five sergeants from each regiment should be sent to
Valenciennes to learn the sword exercise; so Captain Barnard of my own
company was chosen, and amongst the five of our sergeants myself. We
started accordingly to Valenciennes, which was about twenty-five or
thirty miles from Cambray, and remained there six weeks till we got
sick enough of the sword exercise, having six hours a day of it for
the whole six weeks except on Sundays. At the end of that time we
again joined our regiment, which had been ordered to return
immediately to Scotland.

The day after our arrival the regiment was put on the march for
Calais. We were quartered in cantonments every night, and at one of
our sleeping-places I met a Jew, and having a silver watch to dispose
of, I asked him what he would give me for it. He replied fifteen
francs and a silk dress, which I took, and when we arrived at Calais
we changed the French money into English; but since I had left my own
country the coinage had been altered, which bothered me a little at
first sight, and certainly did not bring me any gain. We lay in
Calais two nights, where I and my wife got very comfortable quarters.
I may as well say here that she had borne the marches quite as well as
I did, if not in some cases better.

Three colliers had been contracted with to convey our regiment to
Scotland, and from the appearance of the vessels themselves, I very
much doubted, if bad weather should set in, that we should ever reach
Leith, the port we set sail for, they being the rickettiest old
watertubs I ever saw. Leith was supposed to be three days' sail from
Calais with a fair wind, but we had a foul one nearly the whole time,
and we were seven weeks on the voyage, having to put in at Bridlington
in Yorkshire to wait for this fair wind. My wife, who had never before
seen salt water, was at first ill and found the whole voyage terribly