"That I will, that I will," he said. "I am no prude about such things; though I cannot but think that a gentleman with his head broke might do better, or, at least, wait till the campaign is over."
Thus saying, he sped away, and soon returned, bringing the Seigneur de Blaye along with him. As I had not the keeping of my prisoner's morality, it gave me but little concern at the time; but it became afterward, I grieve to say, a matter of sad and great importance; and I must add here, that, during the three or four days he remained with me, though brave and good-humoured, as well as vain and light, his life was one continued course of the lowest intemperance and debauchery.
On the following day I went early to see the battery and the effect it had produced; but there was, as yet, no appearance of its being practicable; and the Prince de Condé, whom I met near the spot, stopped his horse to speak with me upon the subject, saying, "Probably tomorrow we may be able to do something. Will you be of the storming-party again, Monsieur de Cerons?"
"Willingly, my lord," I answered; "and hope to be permitted to take the same post."
"No," replied the prince, "I will not suffer you to expose yourself too far. Besides, D'Andelot is jealous of you, and will lead the party this time himself. But you shall be one of the number, if you desire it. You can take four men with you, if you please, but not more; for, after yesterday's exploits, every gentleman in the camp wants to have a share in the business."
I thanked him for the permission, and retired; and about eleven on the following morning the attack was determined upon. The army was drawn up in battle array; the storming party was formed, and led by D'Andelot himself; the batteries were redoubling their fire; and we were even beginning to march, when a white flag was suddenly displayed upon the breach, and some horsemen came forth from the city with an offer of capitulation. The terms were soon agreed upon; the garrison was permitted to march out with their swords, the leaders with their baggage, and the town was surrendered immediately.
A little incident occurred in the marching in of the troops which struck me greatly, and showed that the good old spirit of our ancient armies was not entirely extinct. There was some dispute at first as to what regiment should take possession of the town; but the admiral settled the matter by declaring that the storming party, having been disappointed, should march in first through the breach, with his brother D'Andelot at the head, while he led another party round by the gates. This was accordingly effected; and, as was natural enough under such circumstances, on taking possession of the city, we found almost all the houses shut up and barricaded. As we came into the long street, however, which runs down the hill, we saw the troops of the admiral advancing, and a good deal of confusion taking place. We had ourselves preserved the strictest order; but, as there were many officers and leaders among us, D'Andelot permitted us to separate, in order to remedy any evil that might be going on.
Taking my way down the street towards the spot where I had seen some confusion, I found that, in spite of all commands and efforts, some excesses had been committed. A jeweller's shop had been broken open; and the admiral, having been informed thereof, had turned back and ordered the house to be surrounded and the men to be marched out one by one. The regiment commanded to perform this service was that of an old soldier, famous for his courage, named the Seigneur de Puyviault; and, as I came up on foot, I heard more of the facts than the admiral himself was aware of. The soldiers in the house, it seems, were Puyviault's own men; and it was very evident, from the dispositions he made, that the worthy commander was inclined to screen them from the punishment which was justly their due, and which the admiral would certainly have inflicted had he discovered them. The moment they were driven forth, they were swallowed up in the mass of Puyviault's men surrounding the door; and Coligny, seeing what nobody could help seeing, rode up in fury, and pushed Puyviault vehemently with his leading staff. The colour came into that commander's cheek, and one or two of his followers behind exclaimed, "He has struck you! he has struck you!" One moment of forgetfulness on the part of Puyviault would have given another striking instance of how frail are the bonds which unite volunteer armies together; but, turning to those behind him, he said, "I endure everything from my leader, nothing from my enemies: and I this day show you what I expect from you."
There was a murmur of applause ran through those around; and, after that little incident, the town was quietly occupied by the Protestant troops.