Ferdinand; Pitt himself never. Ferdinand persists in
sticking by Minden neighborhood,--and, in a scarcely accountable way,
manoeuvring there, shooting out therefrom what mischief he can upon the
various Contades people in their sieges and the like.

"On Contades himself he can pretend to do nothing,--except hoodwink
him, entice him out, and try to get a chance on him. But for his own
subsistence and otherwise, he is very lively;--snatches, by a sudden
stroke, Bremen City: 'Yes truly, Bremen is a Reichstadt; nor shall YOU
snatch it, as you did Frankfurt; but I will, instead; and my English
proviant-ships shall have a sure haven henceforth!' Snatches Bremen
by one sudden stroke; RE-snatches Osnabruck by another ('our magazine
considerably INCREASED since you have had it, many thanks!'); does lose
Munster, to his sorrow; but nevertheless sticks by his ground here;--nay
detaches his swift-cutting Nephew, the Hereditary Prince, who is growing
famous for such things, to cut out Contades's strong post to southward
(Gohfeld, ten miles up the Weser), which guards his meal-wagons, after
their long journey from the south. That is Contades's one weak point,
in this posture of things: his meal is at Cassel, seventy miles off.
Broglio and he see clearly, 'Till we can get a new magazine much nearer
Hanover, or at lowest, can clear out these people from infesting us
here, there is no moving northward!' To both Contades and Broglio
that is an evident thing: the corollary to which is, They must fight
Ferdinand; must watch lynx-like till a chance turn up of beating him in
fight. That is their outlook; and Ferdinand knows it is,--and manoeuvres
accordingly. Military men admire much, not his movements only, but his
clear insight into Contades's and Broglio's temper of mind, and by what
methods they were to be handled, they and his own affairs together, and
brought whither he wanted them. [In MAUVILLON (ii. 41-44) minute account
of all that.]

"This attempt on Gohfeld was a serious mischief to Contades, if it
succeeded. But the detaching of the Prince of Brunswick on it, and
weakening one's too weak Army, 'What a rashness, what an oversight!'
thinks Contades (as Ferdinand wished him to do): 'Is our skilful enemy,
in this extreme embarrassment, losing head, then? Look at his left wing
yonder [General Wangenheim, sitting behind batteries, in his Village of
Todtenhausen, looking into Minden from the north]:--Wangenheim's left
leans on the Wese