med by the Duke of Cambridge that his
commission would be ante-dated two years.

Until this memorable event Baden-Powell had expressed no special
predilection for soldiering. His chief desire had been to go in for
some profession that would take him abroad and show him the world. The
first service which seemed to attract him definitely at all was the
Indian Woods and Forests, and this chiefly on account of a burning
desire to roam about the gorgeous East. It was only when an elder
brother suggested that, if he wanted to see India and other countries
as well, he might be better suited in the Army, that this born soldier
gave any indication of his desire for a military career. And only with
the Army examination successfully conquered did he seriously begin to
think of uniforms and swords and the glamour of a soldier's life.

On the 11th September 1876 Baden-Powell joined the 13th Hussars in
India, and one of his first acts was to take from his baggage an
ocarina, and having assembled all the European children he could find
in the station, to march at their head through the streets of Lucknow,
playing with great feeling, which suffered, however, a little from his
all-comprehensive grin, "The Girl I Left Behind Me." In this manner he
signalised his arrival, earning the undying love of every English
mother in the place, and infusing into the gallant 13th Hussars
(_Viret in AEternum!_) fresh vigour and fresh spirit.

The 13th Hussars, Sir Baker Russell's old regiment, boasts a fine
record, and the songs in the canteen at night will tell you how the
regiment rode on the right of the line at Balaclava, when it was known
to fame as the 13th Light Dragoons. One of these songs begins:--

Six hundred stalwart warriors, of England's pride the best,
Did grasp the lance and sabre on Balaclava's crest,
And with their trusty leader, Lord Cardigan the brave,
Charged up to spike the Russian guns--or find a soldier's grave.

And the refrain, which every man present sings with a face as solemn
as my Lord Chancellor sitting on the Woolsack half an hour longer
than usual, runs in this fashion:--

Oh, 'tis a famous story; proclaim it far and wide,
And let your children's children re-echo it with pride,
How Cardigan the fearless his name immortal made,
When he crossed the Russian valley with his famous Light Brigade.

This is the great glory of the regiment, the knowledge of which makes
the recruit blow h