nable Gustavus to carry out the
campaign he intended, the king determined to make a desperate effort to
effect it.

"He selected 3000 of his best Scottish infantry, among whom was
Hepburn's own regiment, and 500 horse under Colonel Thurn. When they
were drawn up he gave them a short address on the desperate nature of
the service they were about to perform, namely, to cut a passage over a
strongly fortified hill defended by 30,000 men. The column, commanded
by Hepburn, started at dusk, and, unseen by the enemy, approached their
position, and working round it began to ascend the hill by a narrow
and winding path encumbered by rocks and stones, thick underwood, and
overhanging trees.

"The difficulty for troops with heavy muskets, cartridges, breastplates,
and helmets, to make their way up such a place was enormous, and the
mountain side was so steep that they were frequently obliged to haul
themselves up by the branches of the trees; nevertheless, they managed
to make their way through the enemy's outposts unobserved, and reached
the summit, where the ground was smooth and level.

"Here they fell at once upon the Poles, who were working busily at their
trenches, and for a time gained a footing there; but a deadly fire of
musketry with showers of arrows and stones, opened upon them from all
points, compelled the Scots to recoil from the trenches, when they were
instantly attacked by crowds of horsemen in mail shirts and steel caps.
Hepburn drew off his men till they reached a rock on the plateau, and
here they made their stand, the musketeers occupying the rock, the
pikemen forming in a wall around it.

"They had brought with them the portable chevaux-de-frise carried by the
infantry in the Swedish service. They fixed this along in front, and
it aided the spearmen greatly in resisting the desperate charges of the
Polish horsemen. Hepburn was joined by Colonel Mostyn, an Englishman,
and Count Brahe, with 200 German arquebusiers, and this force for two
days withstood the incessant attacks of the whole of the Polish army.

"While this desperate strife was going on, and the attention of the
enemy entirely occupied, Gustavus managed to pass a strong force of men
and a store of ammunition into the town, and the Poles, seeing that
he had achieved his purpose, retired unmolested. In every battle which
Gustavus fought Hepburn bore a prominent part. He distinguished himself
at the storming of Kesmark and the defeat of the Poles