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THE YOUNG BUGLERS

by G.A. Henty

PREFACE

To my Young Readers.

I remember that, as a boy, I regarded any attempt to mix instruction

with amusement as being as objectionable a practice as the

administration of powder in jam; but I think that this feeling arose

from the fact that in those days books contained a very small share

of amusement and a very large share of instruction. I have endeavored

to avoid this, and I hope that the accounts of battles and sieges,

illustrated as they are by maps, will be found as interesting

as the lighter parts of the story. As in my tale, "_The Young

Franc-Tireurs_," I gave the outline of the Franco-German war, so

I have now endeavored to give the salient features of the great

Peninsular struggle. The military facts, with the names of generals

and regiments, the dates and places, are all strictly accurate, and

any one who has read with care the story of "The Young Buglers" could

pass an examination as to the leading events of the Peninsular war.

Yours truly,

THE AUTHOR.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER I. A Coaching Adventure

CHAPTER II. The Young Pickles

CHAPTER III. Enlisted

CHAPTER IV. A Tough Customer

CHAPTER V. Overboard

CHAPTER VI. Portugal

CHAPTER VII. The Passage of the Douro--Talavera

CHAPTER VIII. A Pause in Operations

CHAPTER IX. "With the Guerillas"

CHAPTER X. Madrid

CHAPTER XI. The Fight on the Coa

CHAPTER XII. Busaco and Torres Vedras

CHAPTER XIII. Albuera

CHAPTER XIV. Invalided Home

CHAPTER XV. Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajos

CHAPTER XVI. Salamanca

CHAPTER XVII. Caught in a Trap

CHAPTER XVIII. Just in Time

CHAPTER XIX. Vittoria

CHAPTER XX. Toulouse

THE YOUNG BUGLERS.

CHAPTER I.

A COACHING ADVENTURE.

Had any of the boys in the lower forms of Eton in the year 1808, been

asked who were the most popular boys of their own age, they would have

been almost sure to have answered, without the slightest hesitation,

Tom and Peter Scudamore, and yet it is probable that no two boys

were more often in disgrace. It was not that they were idle, upon the

contrary, both were fairly up in their respective forms, but they were

constantly getting into mischief of one sort or another; yet even

with the masters they were favorites, there was never anything low,

disgraceful, or ungentlemanly in their escapades, and they could be

trusted never to attempt to screen themselves from the consequences

by prevarication, much less by lying. If the masters heard that a

party of youngsters had been seen far out of bounds, they were pretty

sure that the Scudamores were among them; a farmer came in from a

distance to complain that his favorite tree had been stripped of

its apples--for in those days apples were looked upon by boys as

fair objects of sport,--if the head-master's favorite white poodle

appeared dyed a deep blue, if Mr. Jones, the most unpopular master

in the school, upon coming out of his door trod upon a quantity of

tallow smeared all over the doorstep, and was laid up for a week in

consequence, there was generally a strong suspicion that Tom and Peter

Scudamore were concerned in the matter. One of their tricks actually

came to the ears of the Provost himself, and caused quite a sensation

in the place, but in this case, fortunately for them, they escaped

undetected.

One fine summer afternoon they were out on the water with two or three

other boys of their own age, when a barge was seen ahead at some short

distance from the shore. She was apparently floating down with the

stream, and the fact that a horse was proceeding along the towing-path

a little way ahead was not noticed, as the rope was slack and was

trailing under water. The boys, therefore, as they were rowing against

stream, steered their boat to pass inside of her. Just as they came

abreast of the horse a man on the barge suddenly shouted to the rider

of the horse to go on. He did so, the rope tightened, rose from the

water just under the bow of the boat, and in another minute the boys

were struggling in the water. All were good swimmers, and would

have cared little for the ducking had it occurred accidentally, but

the roars of laughter of the bargeman, and the chaff with which he

assailed them as they scrambled up the bank, showed clearly enough

that they had been upset maliciously. The boys were furious, and one

or two proposed that they should report the case, but Tom Scudamore

pointed out that the bargeman would of course declare that it was

a pure accident, and that the boys were themselves in fault in not

looking out whether the barge was being towed, before going inside

her, and so nothing would come of reporting.

The boat was dragged ashore and emptied, and in a few minutes they

were rowing back towards the town. The distance was but short, and

they did not repass the barge before they reached their boat-house.

The brothers had exchanged a few words in a low voice on the way, and

instead of following the example of the others, and starting at a run

for the house where they boarded to change their clothes, they walked

down by the river and saw that the barge had moored up against the

bank, at a short distance below the bridge. They watched for a time,

and saw the bargeman fasten up the hatch of the little cabin and go

ashore.

That night two boys lowered themselves with a rope from the window

of one of the dames-houses, and walked rapidly down to the river.

There were a few flickering oil lamps burning, and the one or two

old watchmen were soundly asleep in their boxes. They did not meet a

soul moving upon their way to the object of the expedition, the barge

that had run them down. Very quietly they slipped on board, satisfied

themselves by listening at the half-open hatch to the snoring within

that their enemy was there, then loosened the moorings so that they

could be thrown off at a moment's notice.

"Now, Peter," the elder brother said, "open our lantern. The night is

quite still. You hold your hand behind it, so that the light will not

fall on our faces, and I will look whether he is only wrapped up in a

blanket or has a regular bed; we must not risk setting the place on

fire. Get the crackers ready."

A dark lantern was now taken out from under Tom's jacket, and was

found to be still alight, an important matter, for striking a light

with flint and steel was in those days a long and tedious business,

and then opening it Tom threw the light into the cabin. It was a

tiny place, and upon a bench, wrapped up in a blanket, the bargeman

was lying. As the light fell on his eyes, he moved, and a moment

afterwards started up with an oath, and demanded who was there.

No answer came in words, but half a dozen lighted crackers were thrown

into the cabin, when they began to explode with a tremendous uproar.

In an instant the hatch was shut down and fastened outside. The rope

was cast off, and in another minute she was floating down stream with

the crackers still exploding inside her, but with their noise almost

deadened by the tremendous outcry of shouts and howls, and by a

continued and furious banging at the hatch.

"There is no fear of his being choked, Tom, I hope?"

"No, I expect he's all right," Tom said, "it will be pretty stifling

for a bit no doubt, but there's a chimney hole and the smoke will find

its way out presently. The barge will drift down to the weir before it

brings up, there is not enough stream out for there to be any risk of

her upsetting, else we daren't have turned her adrift."

The next day the whole town was talking of the affair, and in the

afternoon the bargeman went up to the head-master and accused one of

the boys of an attempt to murder him.

Greatly surprised, the Provost demanded what reason the man had for

suspecting the boys, and the bargeman acknowledged that he had that

afternoon upset a boat with four or five boys in her. "They would not

bear you malice on that account," the Provost said; "they don't think

much of a swim such weather as this, unless indeed you did it on

purpose."

The man hesitated in his answer, and the Provost continued, "You

evidently did do it on purpose, and in that case, although it was

carried too far, for I hear you had a very narrow escape of being

stifled, still you brought it upon yourself, and I hope it will be a

lesson to you not to risk the lives of Eton boys for your amusement. I

know nothing about this affair, but if you can point out the boys you

suspect I will of course inquire into it."

The bargeman departed, grumbling that he did not know one of the young

imps from another, but if he did find them, he'd wring their necks for

them to a certainty. The Provost had some inquiries made as to the

boys who had been upset, and whether they had all been in at lock-up

time; finding that they had all answered to their names, he made no

further investigation.

This affair had taken place in the summer before this story begins,

on the 15th of October, 1808. On that day a holiday was granted in

consequence of the head-master's birthday, and the boys set off, some

to football, some for long walks in the country.

The Scudamores, with several of their friends, strolled down the

towing-path for some miles, and walked back by the road. As they

entered their dames-house on their return, Tom Scudamore said for the

twentieth time, "Well, I would give anything to be a soldier, instead

of having to go in and settle down as a banker--it's disgusting!"

As they entered a boy came up. "Oh, Scudamore, Jackson's been asking

for you both. It's something particular, for he has been out three or

four times, and he wanted to send after you, but no one knew where you

had gone."

The boys at once went into the master's study, where they remained all

the afternoon. A short time after they went in, Mr. Jackson came out

and said a word or two to one of the senior boys, and the word was

quickly passed round, that there was to be no row, for the Scudamores

had just heard of the sudden death of their father. That evening, Mr.

Jackson had beds made up for them in his study, so that they might not

have the pain of having to talk with the other boys. The housekeeper

packed up their things, and next morning early they started by the

coach for London.

Mr. Scudamore, the father of the young Etonians, was a banker. He was

the elder of two brothers, and had inherited his father's business,

while his brother had gone into the army. The banker had married the

daughter of a landowner in the neighborhood, and had lived happily and

prosperously until her death, seven years before this story begins.

She had borne him three children, the two boys, now fifteen and

fourteen years old respectively, and a girl, Rhoda, two years younger

than Peter. The loss of his wife afflicted him greatly, and he

received another shock five years later by the death of his brother,

Colonel Scudamore, to whom he was much attached. From the time of his

wife's death he had greatly relaxed in his attention to his business,

and after his brother's death he left the management almost entirely

in the hands of his cashier, in whom he had unlimited confidence.

This confidence was wholly misplaced. For years the cashier had

been carrying on speculation upon his own account with the monies

of the bank. Gradually and without exciting the least suspicion he

had realized the various securities held by the bank, and at last

gathering all the available cash he, one Saturday afternoon, locked up

the bank and fled.

On Monday it was found that he was missing; Mr. Scudamore went down

to the bank, and had the books taken into his parlor for examination.

Some hours afterwards a clerk went in and found his master lying back

in his chair insensible. A doctor on arriving pronounced it to be

apoplexy. He never rallied, and a few hours afterwards the news spread

through the country that Scudamore, the banker, was dead, and that the

bank had stopped payment.

People could believe the former item of news, but were incredulous as

to the latter. Scudamore's bank was looked upon in Lincolnshire as at

least as safe as the Bank of England itself. But the sad truth was

soon clear to all, and for awhile there was great distress of mind

among the people, for many miles round, for most of them had entrusted

all their savings of years to the Scudamores' bank. When affairs were

wound up, however, it was found that things were not quite so bad as

had been feared. Mr. Scudamore had a considerable capital employed

in the bank, and the sale of his handsome house and estate realized

a large sum, so that eventually every one received back the money

they had entrusted to the bank; but the whole of the capital and the

profits of years of successful enterprise had vanished, and it was

calculated by the executors that the swindler must have appropriated

at least 80,000_l._

For the first month after their father's death the boys stayed with

the doctor who had long attended the family and had treated all their

ailments since they were born. In the great loss of their father the

loss of their fortune affected them but little, except that they were

sorry to be obliged to leave Eton; for the interest of the little

fortune which their mother had brought at her marriage, and which was

all that now remained to them, would not have been sufficient to pay

for their expenses there, and indeed such an education would have been

out of place for two boys who had to make their own way in life. At

the end of this month it was arranged that they were to go to their

only existing relative, an elder sister of Mr. Scudamore. The boys had