"And you were taken prisoner——"
"In America, mademoiselle, on the Acushnet River, where my regiment was serving with the brigades of grenadiers and light infantry then ordered to destroy a number of pirates who made New Plymouth their haunt. This we achieved successfully, but not without severe loss."
"Were you not dreadfully frightened?"
"I was then under fire for the first time," said the young officer, smiling.
"And how did you feel—oh, pray tell me?"
"A tightening of the breast—a long-drawn breath, as the first shot whizzed past my ear; another as the first cannon-ball seemed to scream in the air overhead, and then I rushed on fearless, filled by a fierce and tumultuous joy. I heard only the din of the bagpipes and the cheers of my comrades. But I lost my way in the wood, and falling among a detachment of the Regiment of Languedoc, was made a prisoner. With many others in the same predicament, I was soon shipped off for France, and so have the honour to appear before you."
"And who was the soldier for whom you risked your life?"
"A sergeant of the Regiment of Languedoc."
"A Frenchman!"
"Yes, mademoiselle; the same man who made me prisoner in America."