And the rush of a thunder-bred storm in its stride!

Now the brink! now the leap! they are over! Hurrah!

Horse and rider are safe, and dash wildly away;

Not a slip, not a flinch, swift and sure as the flight

Of an eagle in mid-air they sweep through the night,

While the baffled foe glare in bewildered amaze

At the fast-flying prey speeding far from their gaze;

And the soft stars grow dim in the dawn's early glow

When MacMahon rides into the camp of Bugeaud.