I
declare upon my honor that my only thought was to prevent Lord Mohun
from mischief with Frank, and the end of this meeting was, that after
half a dozen passes my lord went home with a hurt which prevented him
from lifting his right arm for three months.

"Oh, Harry! why didn't you kill the villain?" young Castlewood asked. "I
can't walk without a crutch: but I could have met him on horseback with
sword and pistol." But Harry Esmond said, "'Twas best to have no man's
life on one's conscience, not even that villain's." And this affair,
which did not occupy three minutes, being over, the gentlemen went back
to their wine, and my Lord Mohun to his quarters, where he was laid up
with a fever which had spared mischief had it proved fatal. And very
soon after this affair Harry Esmond and his General left the camp for
London; whither a certain reputation had preceded the Captain, for my
Lady Castlewood of Chelsey received him as if he had been a conquering
hero. She gave a great dinner to Mr. Webb, where the General's chair
was crowned with laurels; and her ladyship called Esmond's health in
a toast, to which my kind General was graciously pleased to bear the
strongest testimony: and took down a mob of at least forty coaches to
cheer our General as he came out of the House of Commons, the day when
he received the thanks of Parliament for his action. The mob huzza'd and
applauded him, as well as the fine company: it was splendid to see
him waving his hat, and bowing, and laying his hand upon his Order
of Generosity. He introduced Mr. Esmond to Mr. St. John and the Right
Honorable Robert Harley, Esquire, as he came out of the House walking
between them; and was pleased to make many flattering observations
regarding Mr. Esmond's behavior during the three last campaigns.

Mr. St. John (who had the most winning presence of any man I ever saw,
excepting always my peerless young Frank Castlewood) said he had heard
of Mr. Esmond before from Captain Steele, and how he had helped Mr.
Addison to write his famous poem of the "Campaign."

"'Twas as great an achievement as the victory of Blenheim itself," Mr.
Harley said, who was famous as a judge and patron of letters, and
so, perhaps, it may be--though for my part I think there are twenty
beautiful lines, but all the rest is commonplace, and Mr. Addison's hymn
worth a thousand such poems.

All the town was indignant at my Lord Duke's unjust treatment of General
Webb, and applauded t