HLI Chronicle 1914 - The Royal Highland Fusiliers

160 HIGHLAND LIGHT INFANTRY CHRONICLE.concealed in a. bush and wounded in the heel.Pat bawls Otlt--" By J--s! boys, here's theSergeant-Major of the French!" The Generalreplied in English-" No, I am a GeneralOfficer," and at the same time held out apiece of money to the recruit. And whilePat was in the act of receiving the moneyCorporal John M'Kay would not allow himto accept of the money, and took the Generalunder his arm and carried him to the CommandingOfficer. The Frenchman representedthe generous conduct of the Corporalto the Commander, who told him that Britishsoldiers fought for honour and not for money.M'Kay shortly afterwards got. an Ensigncyin the 8th West India Regiment. Had Patbeen honest he ought to have had the commission,but "her nainsel" was too cutefor Pat.D. The capture of Oporto was achievedwith little loss, the enemy having withdrawnpart of their troops some time before. I shallstate one act of cruelty committed by theFrench which is a disgrace to their Army.On passing through a small village which theenemy had just abandoned, plundered, andburned, we found the Alcade, or Chief Magistrate,and two clergymen hanged on a postin the middle of the town, and a number offemales barbarously murdered.E. Talavera was the hardest fought battlein the Peninsula. The evening previous tothe battle, and after the enemy had driven inour outposts, we were sitting in a wood, andthe enemy, of course, had no wish to see usso comfortably situated, and accordinglybestowed upon us a few of their favours. Thefirst, a round shot., struck the ground, rebounded,and passed over our heads. Anotherof the same kind grazed my thigh and carriedthe'leg off the man sitting next me. They nowtreated us in a different manner. The firstshell exploded mid-way; the next fell withina yard of where I was sitting, exploded, anddid no harm; the next killed a horse andwounded his rider. '],his concluded the eveningservice. ~lorning came, and the work ofdeath commenced. About mid-day a beautifulsmall field of ripe wheat in front of thatpart of the field where I was engaged took firefrom the explosion of musketry, and was soonin a flame, consuming the wounded who wereunable to escape. A little further in frontran a small rivulet with steep banks and atthat time almost dry; in that place hundredsof dead and wounded were heaped together.Having kept possession of the field of battlefor some days, I had an opportunity of examiningthat part of it occupied by the BritishArmy. The dead, hundreds of whom hadbeen stripped naked, soon began to putrefy.The blue fly could be seen depositing its spawnbefore life was extinct, and decompositionwas so sudden that the air became tainted.In place of burial--the last tribute we pay todeparted friends--we were obliged to erectthe funeral pile. I myself was one whoassisted. Such scenes as these are well calculatedto draw forth the feelings of humanity.On an eminence in front of the left centreof the British line the enemy had twelvepieces of cannon thundering upon us. Onour side we had a battery of the same kind,and without much ceremony returned thecompliment. A shell from our artillery feUinto one of the enemy's ammunition tumbrels,some of which were loaded with live shells,and the whole twelve exploded, when men,horses, waggons, and everything portablewas destroyed. Curiosity prompted me tovisit that part of the field occupied by theenemy. I went the second day after thebattle. I was soon satisfied. The scene washorrible. Men and horses torn in pieces!In one place lay a number of horses with theirriders. A little further on lay a large mass ofmen so disfigured that the human form couldscarcely be distinguished. Intermixed withthis scene of carnage could be found brokenmuskets, swords, pistols, military caps, drums,musi,cal instruments: books, letters, and fragmentsof broken carriages, horse bridles,bits of cloth, etc.; in short, everything wasthrown together into this Golgotha. I soon