"I am sorry to say the horse I bought in London has turned out very bad. I shall be obliged to send to England for another. The grey I took from Easton is a very promising horse, but is rather too slight for my weight.
"I must now bid you adieu.
"Give my kindest regards to all the family at Cockshut.
"F. C. Kinchant."
"July 2nd, 1817.
"Dear Sir,
"In the course of a short excursion which I was obliged to make last week thro' the lower part of Lancashire, I met at the Rectory house, Middleton, with Dr. Hardie, a young Scotch physician of considerable eminence in his profession at Manchester, where he practises. The battle of Waterloo being accidentally mentioned, Dr. H. amused myself and the rest of the party after supper with various anecdotes of the gallantry and success of Sergeant Ewart of the Scots Greys, who performed prodigies of valour on that day and whose good fortune it was to be the captor of one of the three French Eagles that were taken during the battle.
"To a remark made by one of the party that he supposed Ewart must be very proud of the honour of having taken a French Eagle, Dr. H. observed that he always seemed to speak of it with much indifference, and that when once asked the name of the regiment to which the Eagle belonged, he answered, with much sangfroid, 'The Invincible or the like.' The only exploit, Dr. H. observed in continuance, of which Ewart appears to be proud, is the summary revenge which he had an opportunity of taking for the death of Mr. Kinchant, who was the cornet of his own troop.... On the morning of the 18th, a little before 12 o'clock, the Scots Greys were ordered to charge a body of French infantry at some distance, which order they instantly proceeded to execute in a column of two deep, Sergeant Ewart in this charge being the front man of Cornet Kinchant. Ewart, on reaching the enemy, immediately singled out a French officer, whom, from being a very expert swordsman, he soon disarmed and was on the point of cutting him down, when Mr. Kinchant, on hearing the officer crying out, 'Ah, mercy, mercy, Angleterre,' said, 'Sergeant, Sergeant, spare his life, and let us take him prisoner.' Ewart considering that moment as a period for slaughter and destruction, and not the proper time for taking prisoners, replied, 'As it is your wish, sir, it shall be done.' (I ought to have said that the French officer, prior to Mr. K.'s address to the Sergeant, had cried that he had surrendered and was their prisoner and had dropped his sabre.) Mr. K. to whom the French officer had delivered up his sword, addressed him in French and ordered him to move to the rear. Ewart was preparing to proceed in the charge when he heard the report of a pistol behind him, and turning round, from a suspicion of some treachery, the first object which met his eye was Mr. K. falling backwards over his horse, apparently in a lifeless state, and the French officer attempting to hide his pistol under his coat. Indignant at such a dastardly act, Ewart instantly wheeled round, and was again entreated by this villain for mercy in the same supplicating terms as before. The only answer which he returned was, 'Ask mercy of God, for the deil a bit will ye get at my hands,' and with one stroke of his sabre, severed his head from his body, leaving it a lifeless trunk on the field of battle."
