ADVENTURES OF AN OLD SAILOR.*

WHEN We left M. de Jonnès at Brest, he was full of indignation at the way the government had treated him, and determined to serve no more. For a whole year he adhered to his resolution, but an opportunity of being revenged on perfidious Albion scattered his resolves to the winds. A squadron of fifteen vessels of the line and twelve frigates was appointed to invade Ireland, and our author, nothing loth, joined the expedition as master-at-arms on board the Coquille frigate. But the old misfortune pursued the French arms: a heavy storm dispersed the squadron with some severe loss, while, worse than all, Hoche, the commander of the expedition, was missing. Within six days of leaving Brest the expedition reached Bantry Bay, and our author was struck by the wretched aspect of the country they were about to invade. However, he took heart of grace, and was one of the first to land and try to open communications with the chiefs of the insurgents. The party were surprised by the volunteers, and all taken prisoners with the exception of our hero, who, after wandering about for some time, came up to a peasant's cabin, which he boldly entered. The only inhabitants were an aged woman and her granddaughter, about fifteen; but the sight of the French cockade rendered them friendly at once. Their history was only too common at that day: the sole support of the family, the girl's brother, had been shot by the Hanoverians for alleged complicity with the French, and they were left to starve. But, though Mary was so young, she seemed fully affiliated in the designs of the United Irishmen, for, after some persuasion, she agreed to show our author the way to the camp, after supplying him with some cartridges, which she produced from beneath the altar of the village chapel. The commander of the insurgents in these parts was Lord Edward Fitzgerald, who received M. de Jonnès very affably, and requested him to come and see what Irishmen could do. They proposed attacking" that beautiful city called Cork ;" and, though the assault was unsuccessful, they succeeded in taking some prisoners, whom, on return to camp, they calmly proceeded to burn. M. de Jonnès, horrorstruck at such butchery, appealed in vain to Lord Edward, and finding that he would by remaining become an accomplice in the barbarity, he quitted the camp to rejoin the French squadron. On his return through the village he called at Mary's cabin, and was just in time to save her from the brutality of two soldiers of the Foreign Legion, who had already murdered her grandmother, but were killed in their turn by our author, To escape the vengeance of the other troops they then sought refuge in a cave, but Mary would not remain quiet; she insisted on returning to the village and burying her poor grandmother, and she quitted M, de Jonnès with promises of speedy return. The hours slipped away, however, and feeling at last very uneasy about her, he proceeded to reconnoitre in the vicinity of the village. He was startled at noticing a band of Hanoverians assembled round a watch-fire, and, examining more closely,

*Aventures de Guerre au temps de la République et du Consulat. Par M. A. Moreau de Jonnès, Membre de l'Institut. Paris: Pagnerre.

he saw the unhappy girl suspended from a tree above their heads. But his vengeance was speedy.

The tears this terrible scene had drawn from me were speedily dried. I was seized by an outbreak of rage, which at the outset deprived me of judgment. I accused myself of the death of the young girl who had saved my life on the previous day. But if I had arrived too late to defend her, I could at least avenge her. A dozen projects entered my head at once, but not one satisfied me, for there was a great risk lest some of the murderers might escape. In this perplexity I called to my aid all my recollections of war, and straightway the Demon of Murder suggested to me one of his inspirations. I ran to the church -I penetrated into the devastated choir-I searched behind the altar in the tomb I had visited a week previously-I took out a barrel of gunpowder-I lifted it on my shoulders, despite the weight, and returning with a firm and rapid step to the edge of the cliff, I cast it into the watch-fire at the foot, round which the ruffians were seated. The explosion was sudden and terrific; it reached me and beset me in a mass of flame, which hurled me into a muddy pond twenty paces off. I should have perished if the cartridges I had about me had exploded. My immersion extinguished the flames, but my hair, face, and hands were burned. When I succeeded in extricating myself from the bog, I was in a deplorable state. Still I managed to crawl to the edge of the cliff and look down. All was gloomy and silent. Not a soul remained alive on the spot.

At daybreak he managed to reach the sea-coast, and was searching for the cave which had already afforded him shelter, when he was hailed by a boat's crew belonging to the Affronteur brig. The officer, at first, supposed he was one of the "salvage men" of the country, but when he heard his story, he took him on board and treated him kindly. The same night they started once more for Brest, and were again exposed to a fearful tempest. The Scævola sank; the Impatiente frigate was lost off Cape Clear; several ships were captured by the British, and Admiral Linois reached Brest roads with the relics of his squadron, after passing through the English fleet, which was prevented by the storm from attacking him. But we cannot endorse our author's opinion that "if the 25,000 men forming the expedition had been disembarked, or if even Grouchy's corps of 6000 men had been landed according to his wish, Ireland would infallibly have escaped from English dominion," for the ill success of the second expedition, to which we shall revert presently, proved that England was not disposed to let Ireland escape so easily from her grasp.

After a lengthened cruise in the Sémillante frigate, during which the French displayed their liberality by gutting and firing the vessels they captured, for fear they might be recaptured by the English, M. de Jonnès returned to Brest, and was appointed gunner on board the Agile cutter. This vessel was a fast sailer, and employed in desperate enterprises, which generally consigned its crew to the Portsmouth hulks when armed by France, or to the château of Brest when employed by the British. On this occasion the cutter was employed on the British coast to land a spy, as the French government hoped to make political capital out of the mutiny at the Nore and at Spithead. On arriving off Newhaven, M. de Jonnès was ordered off with the gig and two sailors to put the French agent on board a schooner lying close to land, and which had replied to their night signals. The three Frenchmen were armed to the teeth, and two loaded blunderbusses were laid in the stern-sheets, ready for any

emergency, so the agent went on board the schooner unsuspectingly. But our author was too old a sailor to trust himself in the hands of the enemy, so he lay off, and turned a deaf ear to the solicitations to come on board and crack a bowl of punch. His precautions were perfectly justified, for, before long, several men appeared on the forecastle of the schooner, the agent was shot on deck, and eight men discharged pistols and muskets into the boat.

We replied by a flanking fire, which discharged thirty bullets along the enemy's line, and opened the way for boarding. When we reached the deck, cutlass in hand, only two men remained upright, and these rushed to the stern, and put off in a small boat. One of my sailors who rushed up to fire at them was struck in the head and killed on the spot. At this moment I perceived that I was alone, for the other sailor had doubtless been hit while boarding, and had fallen into the sea. Convinced that the fugitives would return in force, I cut the cable and hoisted the jib, to bring her head round seaward. While proceeding along the deck, I was wounded by a pistol-shot from one of the men lying on the deck, who was not yet dead. This was a warning that there might be more than one among them living, and that the conqueror ran a risk of being killed by the conquered. In my present desperate position I had no choice, so in a second I cleared the deck, and remained alone.

The whole affair was a trap; the English government were aware of the communication carried on with France, and determined to put a stop to it. Hence, when the Agile ran down to the schooner, a corvette appeared from behind a point, and tried to intercept her; the captain of the cutter had, therefore, no choice but to escape, and leave M. de Jonnès to his fate. Exhausted by fatigue and his wound, the conqueror fell asleep on the deck of his prize, and on waking found himself watched by a British cutter. He was in a desperate condition, without papers, and liable to be regarded as a pirate; but the young officer commanding the cutter soon reassured him. He was strongly imbued with feelings favourable to the mutineers, and being under the delusion that M. de Jonnès was a French delegate, he conducted him to the Nore, where he found the whole fleet in a state of mutiny. He soon proceeded on board the Sandwich, where the delegates had assembled. He was introduced to Parker, who gave him a kind greeting, and held a long conversation with him as to the results of the mutiny. Unfortunately, he says, he found the chief of the insurrection less persuaded of the certainty of success than was essential to convince the others. Our author strongly recommended that the fleet should sail to Spithead, and, after collecting the vessels there, it would have been an easy matter to bring over the fleet commanded by Admiral Duncan off the Texel. But Parker contented himself by sending delegates overland who were never heard of again. Equally futile were the other schemes proposed, and M. de Jonnès at length suggested that the fleet should sail to Brest and claim the support of the French government. To the eternal honour of our sailors, this perfidious advice was scouted by Parker, although our author suggests that it was carried by a majority of the delegates. The Admiralty, however, having heard of the scheme, tried their utmost to gain the sailors over. They were so far successful that four vessels quitted the insurgents and sailed up to Woolwich, and from this moment, according to our author, treason broke out everywhere. Parker foresaw

approaching ruin, and he, therefore, made preparations for saving the life of the French delegate. He was landed below Sheerness, where he was awaited by "Miss Kitty," a poor girl brought up by Mrs. Parker, and possessing her entire confidence. He was led by her to a garret at the top of an isolated house, whence he had a perfect view of the roads, and the very next morning perceived that the neck of the insurrection was broken; only five vessels still kept the red flag flying. Even the Sandwich had capitulated, and Parker and Davis given up to their fate. It was some time before Kitty could arrange the preparations for our hero's escape, but at length she bade him hold himself in readiness. He was disguised as a fisherman, and conducted by Kitty to join four men who were implicated in the mutiny, and who allowed him to join them at the request of Mrs. Parker, whom they venerated as a saint. They had almost succeeded in quitting the mouth of the Thames, when they were pursued by a brig of war, and forced to turn back. They were soon entangled in a multitude of boats all proceeding in one direction, and thus escaped observation. But this accident forced M. de Jonnès to be witness of the unfortunate Parker's death, for that was the occasion which had collected so many boats. When the melancholy exhibition was over, the party joined a flotilla of boats bound for Margate, and thence succeeded in making their escape into Calais, after being chased by an English cutter. During all this time, however, our author was delirious, and the English sailors treated him like a brother. They carried him to an hostel, and left him one-fourth of the money for which they had sold the boat in which they had made their escape. When M. de Jonnès was convalescent, he went back to Brest and joined his brigade. He had remained forty days in England, and had never been exposed to such danger as that which pursued him during this fatal expedition.

Again the French government, which would not take warning by the first failure, determined on sending an expedition to Ireland, and our author was appointed to the Concorde frigate as gunner's mate. The entire force only consisted of two thousand men, under the command of General Humbert, but Wolfe Tone was so sanguine that the Directory at length yielded to his arguments. The passage to Ireland was fearfully unpleasant, for the ships were crowded, and, in addition, Captain Savary sailed up to Iceland, in order to distract the suspicions of the English government before finally landing. At last, on the fifteenth day, the fleet landed in Killala Bay, and within an hour General Sarrazin had landed at the head of the grenadiers and taken the town, which was defended by from three to four hundred men. This success necessarily induced the troops to believe that they would march from victory to victory till they reached Dublin. But M. de Jonnès could not form this opinion immediately.

When our troops were landed, and the ships had supplied all the men they could spare, our strength did not exceed a battalion. But it was worse when we proceeded to arrange the matériel. The armies of the Republic did not take with them any means of transport or stores; there were no rations, and even no military chest: the enemy must provide all this. But in this instance the neglect was driven further, for they had forgotten to supply our four fieldguns with the matériel for their transport or even for firing. When this discovery was made, I was just saying "Good-by" to Captain D'Herblay, and

about to return to my post on board the frigate. He implored me to remain with him, and General Humbert soon smoothed down any difficulties, by declaring that if the ships did not supply him with all he wanted, he would make the captains responsible to the Directory for the ill success of the expedition. The general's wrath secured D'Herblay a dozen artillerymen and my assistance; and thus I found myself, much against my will, second in command of the artillery of what was pompously termed the army of Ireland.

Humbert, under the impression that nothing was impossible to a French soldier, ordered the artillery to be ready to start with the army next morning, and as it would not have done to tell him nothing was ready (for he was just the man to shoot any one who thwarted his designs), our author set to work with a will. He confiscated the bishop's carriage-horses; he converted the mail-carts into ammunition waggons; the cathedral bell-ropes served as prolongs; and in this way, by daybreak, his four guns were in readiness to take the field. On leaving Killala, they proceeded southward to Castlebar, where the enemy was in At Balayna they were joined by the main body of the insurgents, and if these had reason to reproach the French for being so few in number, the latter, in their turn, had cause for alarm at the deplorable appearance of their allies. A French beggar would have been ashamed to appear in such rags, and scarcely one in ten was armed. General Humbert received them very kindly, but he could not conceal his surprise and dissatisfaction, and thenceforth ceased from calculating on the support of his auxiliaries. At Castlebar the French defeated General Laze, and the Irish were very useful in the pursuit: they tracked the fugitives with a persevering ardour and courage which did not remain unrewarded, for at nightfall the majority of them possessed shoes and even shirts. But the further the army proceeded, the more desperate its condition became: the Irish allies expected to be fed and paid by the French; and the government proclamations ensuring an amnesty to all but thirty chiefs, had a decided effect in keeping Ireland tranquil. At last the French reached the Shannon, which they crossed at Balintra. At Ballynamuck, the general, in his despair, threw his twelve hundred men on the English, who amounted to more than ten thousand. action was very sanguinary; the French artillery fired at point-blank range on the British for more than an hour, and made huge gaps in their line; but M. de Jonnès is forced to confess that no troops sustain fire with more courage and resignation than the English. The French eventually fell back in good order, with a loss of three hundred men.

The

During the retreat, a body of Rangers pressed us very close. The general sent an aide-de-camp to order the infantry to charge them. The captain appointed to this duty, and who wore his arm in a sling, asked me to do him an essential service by taking charge of his son in the event of his being killed. I consented, and he led the young man up to me, after embracing him tenderly. A few minutes later he was brought back dead: a ball had passed through his head. I immediately brought up two guns at a gallop, and attacked the flank of the sharpshooters, who were protected by a stone wall. A ricocheting ball dispersed them like a swarm of ravens, and a volley of grape-shot levelled one-half of them. This tardy revenge was of no avail: still the general openly stated that this round caused him the only pleasure he had experienced for a week.

On returning to the young man, M. de Jonnès found him clasping his father's body and refusing to be comforted. Papers found on the dead