- calmly, "I wish we could get him to call the
officer on guard;" and, turning to the gaping sentinel again, "Officer,"
he continued, "appelez officer," speaking half French, half English.

The man ducked his shakko, and departed. Almost immediately the officer
of the guard came out, wrapped in the huge folds of a military cloak,
and, gazing at us through the bars, uttered a sentence in Danish. Making
no reply to him, he then said, saluting us with much politeness,

"Que voulez vous, Messieurs?"

"Nous sommes des Messieurs Anglais qui desirent passer d'ici jusqu'a
notre jhat," replied P----.

"Certainement;" so saying, a second time the officer raised his cap,
and, turning to two serjeants who had followed him from the guard-room,
gave directions that the gates should be unlocked, and we passed
unmolested through.

This was an act of courtesy and kindness which, we learned the next day,
we were fortunate in receiving; for it was the stringent order of the
Governor of Copenhagen, the Prince of Hesse, that the gates of the city,
particularly this one, should be closed at ten o'clock, and no one
permitted, on any pretence, to go in or out after this hour. The
smuggling between the coast of Sweden and the town of Copenhagen being
carried on to a great extent, render these restrictions very necessary;
and we could only be indebted to our country for the exception which had
been made to us by the officer on guard.

I rose betimes the following day, and went on deck before breakfast, in
order to take a view of the harbour, its position and defences. The
mouth of Copenhagen Harbour opens to the eastward. In the centre of its
entrance is a small island, called Armager, well fortified; and to the
south of it is another battery separated from Armager by a narrow
channel, which is so shallow, that, a reef of rocks may be noted by the
foam of the waves as they curl and break over it; while to the North is
the tremendous citadel of Fredrikshavn, and the only passage into the
harbour is between this fortress and the Island of Armager.

Gambier may have effectually bombarded Copenhagen in 1807, but, I think,
such an achievement would be scarcely practicable now. However, I am no
judge of either naval or military tactics, but if the metal of guns, and
the strength as well as position of fortifications promise to a city
protection from an enemy, be he ever so mighty, Copenhagen has that
promise well guaranteed to her.

In the mi