Two o’clock, Sunday.—Still nothing decisive from Pamplona. To-day’s post brings accounts of no communication for two days, but that the garrison desert twenty a-day, and say that the place is almost in a state of mutiny against the General. To-day the weather has a little cleared up, but our artillery horses are living upon dried fern and corn—no hay, no straw, and very little coarse grass; every one in a fidget to move from hence. Unless we can so maul this French army as to have them at our mercy, and then go where we please, and stop where we please, out of our own moderation, I think we shall not have any quiet winter-quarters this year. As long as anything like an army remains, the French must be doing something to molest us, unless we molest them; and then the great nation can never submit to let our allied army quietly take up their winter-quarters in the French territory—at least I think not. Several of their conscripts have joined them, and they make a parade of drilling them within sight and hearing of our outposts, even in marching without arms, &c. Their deserters say they have about fifty-five thousand men; it is supposed with their conscripts this is rather under the mark. They are throwing up works in all directions all over the country, and making breast-works, redoubts, &c. A breast-work, half round a hill, appears to be turned up in a few nights.
It must be allowed that they are industrious at least, but the morale of the old soldiers is shaken very much. It is even said that the young ones fight the best of the two. This agrees with the story that we hear from the North: that before the Austrian ambassador left Paris, a letter from Marshal Soult had arrived, stating, that unless he had fifty thousand new men, who had never met the British, he would not answer for the South of France.
I see your papers make Endage a fortified place—it is a great heap of ruins; never strong, only once a fortified village. It was nearly destroyed about the year 1790 by the Spaniards, and has never recovered itself. In return, Fontarabia, once really rather a strongly-fortified town, was soon afterwards blown up by the French, and the works are for the most part still in ruins. The town has not suffered much, for this was only a military operation. Of all the ruins we have made amongst us in Spain, even including Badajoz, and Rodrigo, and Almeida, it is said St. Sebastian is the most complete. It was a large, handsome, and thriving town four months since: one side of one street alone remains entire! every street is barricaded and blockaded! Rubbish up to the one pair of stairs windows, and walls half down, make it dangerous in wind to walk anywhere. Beside this, the large wooden balconies, hanging about by a few beams at the two pair of stairs windows, threaten every moment to fall, even where the walls are sound. Some repairs are being carried on, however, in a few buildings; at least preparations are being made, by clearing, and the works are in progress towards a state of defence. Most officers think the destruction so great that it can scarcely ever be a good town again—that is, as a town; as a fortified place, with much labour, it may. The French garrison were so disheartened in the castle, that they could not be made to do more, I understand from the engineers, for it was still tenable for some time longer when it surrendered. When the town was first taken, and our men were all drunk about the place, committing every disorder, the Governor was doubting about a sortie to recover it; thinking, however, that we must have fresh men near at hand, in case of such an accident, kept sober and together, he gave up the idea. Many say, that if he had done so, such was the disorganized state of our men, that it would have succeeded. His own men were very much weakened and dispirited.
Most of the light division tents in front here have been declared unserviceable from rents, &c. The men are still returned healthy, to the astonishment of all, even the doctors, who say the consequences of this must soon appear. Wine is dearer, which is a good thing, and I believe our men bear this cold wet weather better than heat.
Tell John his two newspapers of the 20th have been in great request. I believe only Dr. M’Gregor had one besides Lord Wellington. They have been much read, and I have now enclosed one to Colonel Belson, which will probably be the only one in his division. It happened to contain almost all the news of the last week.
Lieutenant-colonel Elphinstone is still here. I understand that he got a queer answer from Lord Wellington when at Lisbon, which brought him here in such a hurry. When he became senior officer of the corps here, he wrote up for instructions from Lisbon, and to ask what Lord Wellington wished him to do, and where he was to go as Chief Engineer in the Peninsula? The answer was, that as Chief Engineer in the Peninsula he would best know where his proper place was. Up he came by sea in a week, in consequence.
A man to thrive here must have his wits about him, and not see or feel difficulties, or start them, to go on smoothly. People wonder at Lieutenant-colonel Dickson, Portuguese service, and only (barring brevet rank) a captain of artillery in our service, commanding, as he has done now ever since Frenada, all the artillery of both nations, English and Portuguese. He has four seniors out here, but all young comparatively also, who have submitted hitherto. E—— says it should be a General’s command to be done properly, with proper officers under him; others say the old artillery officers have rather changed their sex, and are somewhat of old women.
Lord Wellington seems to favour the latter opinion a little. I conclude that he finds it answer in practice. As an instance of this, it may be stated that in the pursuit after the battle of Vittoria in the bad roads, Lord Wellington saw a column of French making a stand as if to halt for the night. “Now, Dickson,” said he, “if we had but some artillery up.” “They are close by, my Lord.” And in ten minutes, from a hill on the right, Lieutenant-colonel Rose’s light division guns began bang—bang—bang! and away went the French two leagues further off. I fear if there had been a General, that we should have had, instead of this, a report of the bad state of the roads, and the impossibility of moving guns. In fact, this same brigade of guns, with their mounted men, took the last French mortar near Pamplona, and Lord Wellington passed whilst they were putting it to rights to proceed. They had killed two of the horses in it the day before.
CHAPTER XV.
Fall of Pamplona—Deterioration of the Army—Duke of York’s Orders—Orders of Merit—Church Service—Capture of French Redoubts—March of the Army—Incidents of Foreign Service—Frequency of Desertion—Wellington and the Lawyers.