book xxi. c. 5. Wellington’s rapid riding on this occasion defeated

a very able combination of Soult’s. The Duke was always an expert and eager horseman, and it was not for nothing that he kept his pack of fox-hounds in the Peninsula.

XXXIII. “The advancing Chief * * Their treasure-trove, their gold without alloy!”

Longas, ô utinam, dux bone, ferias Præstes Hesperiæ! Horat. _Carm._ iv. 5.

“The shout that ne’er was heard unmoved by Britain’s foes.”

“That stern and appalling shout which the British soldier is wont to give upon the edge of battle, and which no enemy ever heard unmoved.” Napier, _Hist._ book xxi. c. 5.

XXXIV. “Soult was now so near, &c.”

“Lord Wellington suddenly stopped in a conspicuous place, he desired that both armies should know he was there, and a double spy who was present pointed out Soult, then so near that his features could be plainly distinguished. The English general, it is said, fixed his eyes attentively upon this formidable man, and, speaking as if to himself, said: ‘Yonder is a great commander, but he is a cautious one and will delay his attack to ascertain the cause of these cheers; that will give time for the sixth division to arrive and I shall beat him.’ And certain it is that the French general made no serious attack that day.” Napier, _ibid._

XXXVI. “But vain its poise ’gainst that enormous height.”

“Some guns were pushed in front of Zabaldíca, but the elevation required to send the shot upward rendered their fire ineffectual.” Napier, _ibid._

“’Tis Nature’s storm-artillery ushers in the night.”

“A terrible storm, the usual precursor of English battles in the Peninsula, brought on premature darkness and terminated the dispute.” Napier, _ibid._

XXXVII. “Dumb be your voices, while the thunder-chime, &c.”

Bedecke deinen himmel, Zeus, Mit wolkendunst, und übe! Goethe (_Prometheus_).

“Curtain thy heavens, Zeus, with clouds and mist, and exercise thy arm!”

“While roar the elements with rage sublime,” &c.

Nè quivi ancor dell’ orride procelle Ponno appieno schivar la forza e l’ira; Ma sono estinte or queste faci or quelle, E per tutto entra l’acque, e’l vento spira * * La pioggia ai gridi, ai venti, al tuon s’accorda D’orribile armonía, che’l mondo assorda. Tasso. _Gerus. Lib._ vii. 122.

--“Ye feel as feathers, dust.”

----La materia humana-- Viento, humo, polvo, y esperanza vana! Lope de Vega, _Sonetos_.

XXXIX. “Pack’s corps, whose swift approach by Soult unguest.”

General Pack was in command of the sixth division till this battle, when he was wounded, and the command passed to general Pakenham.

XL. “Stern was the fight, and Gaul had battled ne’er so well.”

Throughout the entire Peninsular campaigns, the French never fought with such desperate valour as on this and the few preceding and following days. In Soult they had the utmost confidence; they saw that a crisis had arrived, and trembled for France. “The fight raged close and desperate on the crest of the position, charge succeeded charge, and each side yielded and recovered by turns; yet this astounding effort of French valour was of little avail.” Napier, _ibid._

XLI. ----“Lusia’s rifles swell the fray.”

General Ross’s brigade of the fourth division was posted on this strongly contested height, having a Portuguese battalion (the seventh caçadores, tenth regiment) in his front, with its flank resting on the chapel. “The seventh caçadores shrunk abashed, and that part of the position was won.” Napier, _ibid._ The inequality with which the Portuguese fought was remarkable throughout the Peninsular War. They fought well, or gave way, in great measure according to the impulse of the movement. Here they gave way, then inspired by the example of Ross’s brigade renewed the combat, but again gave way. “Soon, however, they rallied upon General Ross’s brigade * * and the tenth Portuguese regiment fighting on the right of Ross’s brigade yielded to their fury.” Napier, _ibid._ Sometimes they fought extremely well.

XLIII. “Ev’n gallant Ross.”

This epithet was well deserved by general Ross, and is assigned to him by Napier. “That gallant officer.” Book xxi. c. 5. I am proud to record the exploits of my countryman, whose name and achievements are endeared to me by early recollections. A lofty column is erected in his honour at the beautiful village of Rosstrevor, within seven miles of which, at Newry, my early years from infancy to the period of my going to College were passed. All my summers were spent in and near Rosstrevor, one of the most charming sea-bathing spots in the British dominions. The noble Bay of Carlingford stretches before it, girt by an amphitheatre of lofty hills, and Killowen Point, the Wood-house, Greencastle, the light-house, and Grenore, with the ancient and picturesque town of Carlingford, the stupendous mountain overhanging it, and the bleak tract extending along to Omeath, contrasted with the sunny and wooded slopes beyond, have left impressions indelible even during much travel in foreign lands. I rejoice to perceive that a railway is about to open up this magnificent region, and trust that this new means of intercourse will be eminently beneficial to the warm-hearted inhabitants of all the surrounding district.

“But to return next instant with no lack Of desperate courage.”

Φεύγειν μὲν οὐκ ἀνεκτὸν, οὐδ’ εἴωθαμεν. Eurip. _Iphig. in Taur._ 104.

“For to fly is not tolerable, neither has it been our custom!”

“Each gains and yields by turns--the sod is dyed with gore.”

This action between Ross’s brigade and Clauzel’s second division was one of the most terrific during the war. “The fight,” says Napier “raged close and desperate on the crest of the position, charge succeeded charge, and each side yielded and recovered by turns.”

XLV. “So stood Leonides, with Persia’s life-blood red.”

ἐν Σπάρτᾳ δ’ ἐρέω πρὸ Κιθαιρῶνος μάχαν: ταῖσι Μήδειοι κάμον ἀγκυλότοξοι: Pind. _Pyth._ i.

“In Sparta I will sing the fight before Cithæron, where the Median bowmen fell.” For the details of the battle, and of the Trachinian treason, see Herodotus, _lib._ 7. Pindar does not name Thermopylæ, but Cithæron being in its immediate neighbourhood would make the allusion at once intelligible. Pindar with instinctive good taste prefers the name “Cithæron” to that of “Thermopylæ,” the latter name, though to us so magnificent, sounding somewhat vulgar to Greek ears, as indicating the θερμὰ λουτρὰ, or hot-baths from which it was derived.

XLVII. “That now in spite of Hell she will be free.”

Siasi l’inferno e siasi il mondo armato. Tasso, _Gerus. Lib._ xiii. 73.

IBERIA WON.