ur, that I never saw an army drawn up with so much variety,
order, and exact regularity since, though I have seen many armies
drawn up by some of the greatest captains of the age. The order by
which his men were directed to flank and relieve one another, the
methods of receiving one body of men if disordered into another, and
rallying one squadron without disordering another was so admirable;
the horse everywhere flanked lined and defended by the foot, and the
foot by the horse, and both by the cannon, was such that if those
orders were but as punctually obeyed, 'twere impossible to put an army
so modelled into any confusion.
The view being over, and the troops returned to their camps, the
captain with whom we drank the day before meeting me told me I must
come and sup with him in his tent, where he would ask my pardon for
the affront he gave me before. I told him he needed not put himself
to the trouble, I was not affronted at all; that I would do myself the
honour to wait on him, provided he would give me his word not to speak
any more of it as an affront.
We had not been a quarter of an hour in his tent but Sir John Hepburn
came in again, and addressing to me, told me he was glad to find me
there; that he came to the captain's tent to inquire how to send to
me; and that I must do him the honour to go with him to wait on the
king, who had a mind to hear the account I could give him of the
Imperial army from my own mouth. I must confess I was at some loss in
my mind how to make my address to his Majesty, but I had heard so much
of the conversable temper of the king, and his particular sweetness of
humour with the meanest soldier, that I made no more difficulty, but
having paid my respects to Colonel Hepburn, thanked him for the honour
he had done me, and offered to rise and wait upon him. "Nay," says
the Colonel, "we will eat first, for I find Gourdon," which was the
captain's name, "has got something for supper, and the king's order is
at seven o'clock." So we went to supper, and Sir John, becoming very
friendly, must know my name; which, when I had told him, and of what
place and family, he rose from his seat, and embracing me, told me he
knew my father very well, and had been intimately acquainted with
him, and told me several passages wherein my father had particularly
obliged him. After this we went to supper, and the king's health being
drank round, the colonel moved the sooner because he had a mind to
talk w
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