“The life-guards do, as you say, appear grand, but there is many a foot-soldier with his coarse, grey great-coat, and knapsack on his back, ay, and many a common sailor, in his plain blue jacket, that carries as brave a heart in his bosom as a life-guardsman. In the royal regiment of horse-guards the officers wear a blue coat with embroidered scarlet collar. Many parts of their dress resemble that of the life-guards, but their feathers are red, and their waist-belt white silk; their horse-furniture is scarlet with gold-lace and embroidery.”
“How handsome their horses must look in embroidery, scarlet, and gold lace!”
“The officers of the dragoon-guards and heavy dragoons wear a scarlet coat with collar, cuffs, and turn-backs of regimental facings, and embroidered skirt-ornaments, and helmets of gilt-metal, with bear-skin crest. Their trousers are blue, and gold lace. Their horse-furniture is a high-mounting saddle, black sheep-skin shabraque edged with scarlet cloth, with dress housing of blue cloth and gold lace, a bear-skin flounce, and white web collar.”
“Gilt helmets! How they must glitter in the sun!”
“They do. A double-breasted scarlet jacket, with gold basket braid, is worn by the officers of the light dragoons, if it be not already changed for a blue one. Their chaco, or cap, is black beaver, with white drooping cock-tail feathers, trousers dark blue and gold lace, girdle and waist-belt gold lace. Their horse-furniture is embroidered blue cloth.”
“Why are dragoons called light and heavy?”
“The heavy dragoons are larger men, and have heavier and stronger horses. Light troops are the most nimble, and heavy the most powerful. The lancers, like the light dragoons, wear a double-breasted scarlet jacket; the cuff and collar are blue, and the button-holes embroidered; the cap-plume is a black cockade, their waist-belt and pouch-belt are of gold lace, and the pouch-box scarlet leather; their shabraque is of blue cloth embroidered.”
“The lancers wear scarlet jackets, but the life-guards wear scarlet coats; we remember that.”
“The clothing of Prince Albert’s hussars, I believe, is, blue dress jacket, pelisse all blue, with fur cuffs and collars; trousers, crimson with yellow stripes; undress jackets, blue; the hurby, or fur-cap, of seal-skin; the horse covered with a crimson shabraque, ornamented with German silver. On arrival of Prince Albert in England a squadron of the hussars escorted him from Canterbury to Sittingbourne. The band played on that occasion in front of the fountain at Canterbury, when his royal highness presented them with ten pounds. From the circumstance of this being the first regiment which received him on the English shores, and of his royal highness being struck with their fine appearance, Prince Albert, it is thought, selected it as his own.”
“Would it not be better if soldiers were clad in armour, as the knights used to be in old times. Nothing then could hurt them, unless it was a cannon ball?”