The Spanish Bride (14 page)

‘I’d like to wring your neck! Do you know what a fright you gave me?’ ‘It is all the fault of this stupid, cowardly horse. I won’t ride him any more. I will have Tiny instead.’

‘We’ll talk about that later. Go on, and get under cover, if you can find any!’ He was obliged to leave her, for he had his duties to attend to, and it was not until an hour or two later that he found her again. Meanwhile, undaunted by the rain which beat remorselessly on her head and shoulders, Juana joined Kincaid, whose brigade was already across the river. He seemed to be in some kind of trouble. He said in a shaken voice: ‘My God, I thought I was blind!’

‘Why? What has happened to you?’

‘Nothing, my dear. That terrific flash so dazzled me I thought I had been struck. I tell you, I couldn’t see a thing, not even the lanterns, for a full ten minutes! Never had such a scare in my life! By Jove, though, what a sight it is!’

The storm, by this time, was at its height. The lightning, which was almost continuous, luridly lit up the whole scene, casting into sharp relief the background of towering hills and woods, and seeming actually to nicker on the points of the long column of bayonets still moving steadily down the mountain-side to the river at its foot. The Light division, keeping close order, passed the river without losing its formation, but a jagged fork of fire, falling amongst some of Le Marchant’s dragoons, already bivouacking on the low ground near Santa Marta, killed several men and beasts, and frightened the picketed horses so much that hundreds of them broke loose from the ropes and galloped off into the surrounding gloom, squealing with panic. The noise of their pounding hooves, as they careered wildly round, the shriller note of their squealing, mingled with the roar and clatter of the thunder, created such an infernal pandemonium that Kincaid was quite astonished to find Juana apparently unperturbed by all the commotion, but laughing, with the rain-drops splashing off the sodden brim of her hat, and running down her neck.

‘My poor dear, you ought to be under cover!”

‘Yes, but I like this better. The rain does not hurt me, and I must stay with the brigade.’ ‘Where’s Harry? Gone off with the QMG to find quarters for Vandeleur?’ ‘He did not tell me, but certainly that is what he must be doing. Enrique never neglects his duty.’

‘Only his wife?’ said Kincaid quizzically.

‘You know better! A decir verdad, he is very angry with me, because this stupid horse would not cross the river. I am going to ride Tiny in future.’

‘Are you, by Jove! Does Harry know?’

‘Yes, for I have told him,’ replied Juana firmly. 7

Vandeleur’s headquarters for that night were fixed in a cottage, which, though very small and poor, had the advantage of possessing a barn in which the horses, and Harry’s greyhounds, could be sheltered from the storm. There was only one room in the cottage besides the kitchen, but Vandeleur would not hear of the Smiths camping out in their little tent. Himself suffering from rheumatism, which had attacked the shoulder that had been wounded at the storming of Ciudad Rodrigo, he could not bring himself to believe that the drenching rain had not given Juana as much as a cold in the head. He wanted to make her drink the glass of brandy and hot water which his ADC brewed for him, and when she made a face over the first sip, and choked, and would not take any more, he shook his head, prophesying an inflammation of the lungs for her, ‘And as for you, Harry, you’ll report yourself sick, and let’s have no more nonsense about it!’ he said.

‘Not I, sir!’ ‘You damned fool of a boy, you can scarcely ride! You’re no use to me with fifteen boils, so don’t flatter yourself you can’t be spared!’

‘Only eleven, General,’ pleaded Harry. ‘Preposterous!’ said Vandeleur testily.

Over the stew which was prepared for their dinner, Juana announced that she had given West orders to put her saddle on Tiny’s back on the following morning. ‘West takes his orders from me,’ said Harry.

‘Seguramente! I said that it was your order.’

‘That’s an attack on your flank, Harry,’ said Vandeleur. ‘Have at him, m’ dear! Roll him up, horse, foot, and guns!’

‘General Vandeleur,’ said Juana, without the flicker of an eyelid, ‘wishes to see me on Tiny.’ ‘Quite right! Can’t bear to see you on that clumsy brute of a Portuguese.’ ‘Have it your own way,’ said Harry. ‘But don’t blame me if you can’t handle Tiny. He’s not an easy horse to ride.’

But Juana showed next morning that she was perfectly able to manage the little Spanish horse. He had been Mameluke-trained, and she made him caracole in front of the troops, showing off like the child she was.

‘You ought to be ashamed of yourself!’ Harry said, but without much conviction. Quite as much as she did, he enjoyed the applause the troops accorded her. To Charlie Beckwith, he said: ‘I do believe there isn’t one of those rascals that wouldn’t lay down his life to defend her. Awful blackguards some of ’em are, too.’

Since there did not seem, at first, to be any prospect of an engagement, he allowed her to remain with the brigade throughout the morning. The Light division, which formed the left wing of the army, was stationed behind a hill, as a reserve force. Nothing much could be seen of the enemy from this, or any other position, Lord Wellington having followed his usual disconcerting custom of drawing up his force on the reverse slopes of the hills that fronted the French. With Salamanca only four miles to the rear, it seemed unbelievable that no engagement would be fought, but the news that the entire baggage-tram had been sent off at dawn towards Ciudad Rodrigo came as an unpleasant surprise to men who had been fretting for days to stop marching, and fight. No one knew exactly what his lordship’s intentions were, but plenty of critics remembered that he had the reputation of being a good commander chiefly in defence.

The army was drawn up in an advantageous position (trust his lordship for that!) along a three-mile front. The country was well wooded, and undulating, and was marked by two steep hills, called the Arapiles, one of which, the Northern, or Lesser Arapile, was occupied by Allied troops. The greater Arapile, larger but not as steep, was some six hundred yards in advance of the position. Beyond it, on the southern side of the valley, Marmont had his divisions drawn up on the edge of a thick forest.

The storm of the previous evening had given place to a brilliant day, with a cloudless sky, and a hot sun swiftly drying the ground which had been so drenched a few hours before. The men lay by their arms, grumbling and smoking, and trying to protect themselves from the glare by such means as came most readily to hand. Except for some changes in’ the disposition of the divisions, the morning was spent in almost complete inaction. Outposts and vedettes reported the French to be similarly undecided, which was felt to be some comfort; but at noon, when it was rumoured that a plan of retreat was being drafted, feelings began to run high.

Harry, who, as Brigade-Major, was in a position to know rather more about the movements of the various divisions than his friends, saw no reason to banish his wife to the rear until after two in the afternoon. Except that Pakenham, in command of Picton’s division, had been ordered up from the north side of the Tonnes to a position in the right rear of the front, near the Ciudad Rodrigo road, no movement of any importance had taken place. Lord Wellington, who with his Staff, Marshal Beresford, and the Spanish Commissar, General Alava, had established his headquarters in a farmhouse, somewhere towards the right of the line, was reported at two o’clock, by one of his aides-de-camp, to be sitting down to a belated lunch of hunks of cold meat clapped between slices of bread. It was at this moment that Marshal Marmont began to extend his left.

Maucune’s division was the first to move. Just before two o’clock, it was observed to march towards the centre of the narrow plateau, which extended for three miles to the west of the French position. A smooth slope to the north led up to the Allied line, but since this was cleverly masked, the French had no very exact knowledge of either its formation or its strength. They marched to the centre of the plateau, until the road leading from Salamanca to Alba de Tonnes was reached, and here, before the village of Arapiles, which was held by Leith’s division, they halted, and began to deploy. Their voltigeurs were sent out to work down the slope to the village, and the thunder of artillery-fire broke out. Someone, returning from headquarters, said that a Staff-officer had ridden off to the farm, where Wellington sat in the yard, eating his lunch at a deal table, and had announced that the French were extending. ‘The devil they are!” had said his lordship, stuffing the rest of his sandwich into his mouth, and striding off to a place of vantage. ‘Give me the glass quickly!’ Lord Fitzroy Somerset handed it to him, and for a few moments his lordship observed the French movement in silence. Presently he lowered the glass, and said in a brisk tone: ‘Come! I think this will do at last!’

‘Did he?’ Harry cried. ‘By Jupiter, then we’re going to fight!’

‘Yes, and that Spanish fellow—what’s-his-name?—Alava!—kept on saying: “Mais que fait-il? Que fait Marmont la-bas?” and old Hookey gave one of his laughs, and said (for I heard him) “Mon cher Alava, Marmont est perdu!”

‘Oh, famous!’ Harry said. ‘But I must get my wife out of this at once.’

But West had already taken Juana to the rear, telling her woodenly that Master’s orders had been explicit. She was in a rage with him, because she wanted to stay with the brigade, and watch her first battle, and she thought that if Harry were wounded he would like to have his wife at hand to attend to him. West said, No, it was the last thing Master would like, a statement which made Juana so cross that she sulked all the way to Las Torres, a village situated about a mile behind the Allied right. However, the reserve was stationed at Las Torres: a force consisting of a Portuguese brigade, Espana’s Spanish contingent, and Anson’s, Le Marchant’s, and Arentschildt’s cavalry, and the throng of troopers with their sleek mounts made Juana feel much more cheerful. She liked the warm smell of horseflesh, the jingle of accoutrements, and the splendour of scarlet uniforms, glittering helmets, and swirling plumes, and she very soon stopped sulking, and began to look about her in the hope of perceiving an acquaintance. In the crowd of horses and lounging troopers it was hardly surprising that she did not recognize anyone, but upon entering Las Torres she had the excitement of seeing Lord Wellington himself ride past at a full gallop. There was no mistaking that low-cocked hat, and bony profile, but to see his lordship going hell-for-leather, and unattended, was something quite out of the ordinary way. His Staff rode past in pursuit of him a few moments later, going hard, but clean outpaced. Juana, who had dismounted in the village, and found herself standing beside an officer of the 3rd dragoons, asked him in the friendliest fashion if he knew where his lordship was bound for. He said, in halting Spanish, that he had no certain knowledge, but supposed he must be going to order Pakenham up.

It was not until much later that they heard how Wellington had ridden up to his brother-in-law, not entrusting to anyone the order he had for him.

‘Edward,’ had said his lordship in his cool, imperative way, ‘move on with the 3rd, take the heights in your front, and drive everything before you!’

It soon became known, of course, that the 3rd was moving up to the front, but as the division had two miles of rough ground to cross, it was a long time before anything more was heard of its doings. The artillery-fire continued; scraps of news filtered through to the rear; and her new acquaintance in the 3rd dragoons was able presently to assure Juana that the Light division was not engaged, being placed on the extreme left of the line, containing Foy’s and Ferey’s divisions in their front.

These tidings were clearly excellent, and Juana, her mind relieved of its chief anxiety, began to enjoy herself. Her henchwoman had gone off with   the baggages-train, but West remained in close attendance on her, so that she did not miss rough Jenny at all, but, on the contrary, was rather glad that she had only one person to watch over her.

After a time, a number of wounded began to trickle towards the rear, but from what they said it did not seem as though the two armies had as yet come to grips. They were all suffering from gunshot wounds, and the only news seemed to be that the French army was still extending along the plateau, Thomieres’ division having followed Maucune’s, and the whole force now presenting a dangerously elongated appearance. Nobody knew quite what was happening, though it was obvious that Marmont’s object was to cut Wellington off from Ciudad Rodrigo. Maucune’s division was still before the village of Arapiles, and there was some hand-to-hand fighting going on, but only between advance-guards. Thomieres, one officer with a grape-shot wound in his chest said, had passed Maucune, and was forging westward along the plateau, leaving a very unsoldierly gap between the two divisions. In fact, the opinion held by most of the men who had been in a position to observe the French movement, was that it was a slovenly manoeuvre, such as would never have been initiated by the English commander.

8

Juana, who had taken up temporary quarters in a posada in the centre of the village, was joined there presently by a lady who came into the yard with a soldier-servant, and desired the landlord to bring her a glass of lemonade. After looking at Juana for a few moments, she went over to her, and asked if she too had a husband in the army. She was a good many years older than Juana, an Englishwoman with a deeply tanned and weather-beaten skin, and careworn lines at the corners of her eyes.

West, who had just come out of the shed where he had tethered the horses, touched his hat, and explained that his mistress spoke no English. The lady repeated her question in Spanish, and when Juana answered, Yes, she was married to an English officer, she said wonderingly: ‘I had not thought it possible! You are so young, my dear.’ ‘Oh no!’ Juana assured her. ‘I shall very soon be fifteen. I have been married since three months already.’