l bring you safely through, if it can
be achieved at any price."

And, indeed, as the travellers pursued their long ride through a
disturbed and often half-hostile country, they had frequently to
depend as much upon the fleetness, fidelity, and strength of their
horses as upon the strength of their own right arms.

Well did Tom now understand why Lord Claud had made such a point of
having their own horses with them. Had they been jogging along upon
some beast hired or purchased in the country, they would never have
got through the divers perils of the way.

Once Tom was aroused from slumber in a little, ill-smelling inn by
the sound of kicking and stamping proceeding from the stable; and
when he had aroused his companion, and they had hastily dressed
themselves and descended, it was to find that a desperate fight was
going on between the two horses and a handful of French soldiers,
who had followed after the fine animals, and were seeking to steal
them whilst the travellers slept.

They had paid dearly for their temerity, however, for Nell Gwynne
was stamping the life out of one wretched fellow; whilst Lucifer
had broken the leg of a second, and had pinned his companion by the
arm, so that he was yelling aloud in his agony.

Lord Claud sprang in, and at the sound of his voice the horse
loosened his grip, and the man reeled hack against the wall, white
and bleeding, and cursing beneath his breath. Tom was too late to
save the life of the victim of the mare's anger, but he was in time
to strike up the pistol which another of the soldiers had pointed
at her, in the trembling hope of saving his comrade.

"If you fire you will drive her to madness, and she will kill every
man of you," said Lord Claud coolly. "She has a devil in her, and
is bullet proof; you had better leave meddling with both the
beasts."

The men crossed themselves in pious horror, and were glad enough to
back out of the place, carrying their dead and maimed companions
with them. Tom and Lord Claud did not linger longer than the time
needful for saddling the horses. They knew that the people of the
inn must be in collusion with the soldiers, and the sooner they
quitted the place the better.

They had long since left behind them the level plains, and were now
in a country that became increasingly mountainous and difficult.
After the long, flat plains of Holland, Tom had thought the Baden
territory sufficiently mountainous; but now he was to make