Such, however, did not turn out to be the case, for the Prince had presented himself at the Spanish lines, provided with both dogs and gun, and accompanied by a sportsman to show him the country.
The kind-hearted Colonel hurried down to Sir George, buckling his sword on as he went, and was immediately on his arrival taken into a private room to consult as to what could be done in the business, as well as to hear the officer of the escort’s edition of the story. Mons. Murat meanwhile remained in the study with one of the general’s Aides de Camp (my friend Budgen of the Royal Engineers) and myself, and to us, who were yet unacquainted with the heinous nature of the crime of which he was accused by the Spanish government, appeared to be most unnecessarily alarmed, and to rely but little on the friendly interference of Sir George; on which indeed he had as little claim as upon the protection of the British flag, beyond the jurisdiction of which he had voluntarily placed himself:—for, considering perhaps that such a step would have been beneath his dignity as an ex-prince of the Two Sicilies, he had neglected to pay the customary compliment of calling upon the Governor on arriving at the Fortress, and was consequently unknown.
After sundry exclamations of regret at having suffered himself to be made a prisoner without a struggle, he asked if there was a door of communication with the street running at the back of the house; and, on my replying in the affirmative, he proposed that I should lend him my military frock coat, and ask an English officer who had accompanied him and remained outside to meet him there with his horse—“alors”—said he—the reckless valour of the father showing itself—“avec le sabre de Tupper[31] je m’en—de ces laches d’Espagnols.” This of course was out of the question; as however unfairly he might have been kidnapped—and of which we had yet to be convinced—it was clear that Sir George’s honour, on the faith of which he had been permitted to enter and remain in the house, would have been compromised by our connivance at his escape from it.
We did all we could to quiet his apprehensions until the return of Sir George, who informed him that it appeared from the statement of the officer of the escort, that orders had been received from the general officer commanding at Algeciras to arrest him, should he, on any pretence, again pass the limits of the British garrison.
The kind-hearted old General expressed the utmost regret at his having been so imprudent as to trust himself a second time in Spain (for only a month before he had been conducted to Gibraltar under an escort from Malaga)—and hoping that his own consciousness of innocence would relieve him from any fear as to the result of the affair, gave him a letter to General José O’Donnell, who commanded in the Campo de Gibraltar; in which letter he requested, as a favour to himself, that every respect and attention might be paid to the young Frenchman:—a favour he had every right to ask, from one who had received so many more important ones at his hands.—
General O’Donnell, in his reply, stated that he had but acted in conformity with instructions received from Madrid—that Monsieur Murat had some months previously landed at Malaga from a vessel which, when on its passage with him to America, had been obliged to put into that port to repair some slight damage experienced in a gale of wind—that, during his stay there, he had publicly expressed his hostility to the king’s government, and, instead of proceeding to his destination when the vessel again put to sea, he had appeared rather disposed to establish himself in that (not over-loyal) city.—The Spanish government viewed these circumstances with a very suspicious eye; particularly as his elder brother had, but a few years before, been one of the aspirans to the constitutional crown of Spain;—and he had consequently been sent with a guard of honour to Gibraltar, from whence opportunities for America are more frequent than from Malaga.
In compliance with Sir George Don’s request, General O’Donnell promised that every attention should be paid to the youth’s comfort, consistent with his safe custody, until instructions as to his disposal should be received from the capital.
The cause of the violent proceedings adopted by the Spanish government turned out eventually to be, that this scion of Despotism had sung Riego’s hymn all the way from Malaga to Gibraltar; some of his guard of honour even joining in chorus! and that at Estepona he had, through the influence of a colonato,[32] persuaded an old barber who had shaved him—he being the ex-trumpeter of the Nacionales—to play the forbidden tune to the astonished fishermen of the place!
The sequel of this state affair was, that Monsieur Murat remained in durance at Algeciras, until a vessel bound to the United States offered him the means of crossing the Atlantic.
I used to find that an occasional visit to San Roque made a very agreeable break in the monotony of a garrison life; for what place, let its attractions be ever so great, does not become dull when one is per forza obliged to make it a residence? Even London, Paris, or Vienna, would not stand the test.