Читать книгу Adventures with the Connaught Rangers, 1809-1814 - William Grattan - Страница 4

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Headquarters of the 88th Regiment—Its losses from sickness—Unhealthy state of the country—The British army leaves the Alemtejo—General Picton takes the command of the 3rd Division—Remarks on the general’s conduct—His apology to Colonel Wallace—The Connaught Boy and the goat.

The 88th at this period, although one of the strongest and most effective regiments in the army, did not count more than five hundred bayonets. The fatigues of the late campaign, and the unhealthiness and debility of many of the soldiers in consequence, caused a material diminution in our ranks; added to this, the country in the neighbourhood of the Guadiana was swampy and damp, and what between ague, dysentery, and fever, the hospitals were in a few weeks overstocked. Not less than ten thousand were on the sick list, or about one-third of the entire force, as borne on the muster-rolls; and there was a great paucity of medical officers; many of those had been left at Talavera with the wounded, that were of necessity obliged to be abandoned, and others, either catching the contagion that raged throughout the country, or infected by their close attendance in the hospitals, were lost to us. The consequence was that the men and officers died daily by tens and fifteens, and this mortality was not confined to the old soldiers alone, for the young militia men, who now joined the army from England, suffered equally with those who were half starved on the retreat from Talavera, and during the occupation of the bridge of Arzobispo. For several days the rations of those soldiers consisted of half a pound of wheat, in the grain, a few ounces of flour twice in the week, and a quarter of a pound of goat’s flesh; and regiments which a few weeks before were capable of exertions that were never equalled during the remainder of the Peninsular contest, were now unable to go through an ordinary march.

It was not to be wondered at that men who had so suffered should be now attacked with disease when all excitement was over, and a reaction of the system was the natural consequence; but the young men who joined from England at this period could not be so classed, and as it was manifest that the air of the country was unwholesome, Lord Wellington decided upon marching his army to the north-eastern frontier; yet before quitting the Alemtejo it was necessary that the safety of Seville should be guaranteed by a sufficient Spanish force.

Early in December the army left the Alemtejo, and by the first week in January the 3rd Division was distributed in the different villages in the neighbourhood of Trancoso. The villages of Alverca and Frayadas, distant about two miles from each other, were allotted for the 88th Regiment. Midway between the two was a plain of considerable extent, and upon this plain the regiment exercised every day for several hours.

At the end of six weeks Colonel Wallace had his battalion in the most perfect state of discipline that it is possible to conceive; the men left in hospital were speedily joining the ranks, and the stragglers which were from necessity left behind in the north of Portugal were now coming in fast to their different regiments. It may be remembered that the troops commanded by Lord Beresford in the spring of 1809 suffered great fatigues in their advance through the province of Tras os Montes; the 88th Regiment formed a portion of this force.

The best-regulated army during a campaign, even if carried on under the most favourable circumstances, always becomes more or less relaxed in its discipline; and when it is considered that the wreck of the 88th Regiment, after its capture at Buenos Ayres, was made up by drafts from the second battalion, that a few short months only were allowed it to recruit and reorganise before it was again employed in Portugal, it may be matter of regret, but certainly not of surprise, that it did not form an exception to the general rule.^[2] Many stragglers were left behind. Some preferred remaining with the Portuguese, and never joined the army again. Nevertheless, many of the good soldiers who had been worn down by fatigue and were obliged to make a short stay, soon rallied, followed the track of their different regiments, and joined them by sixes and sevens. Others of a different stamp preferred remaining where they were, and continued under the hospitable roofs that had given them shelter, and made themselves useful to the inhabitants by assisting them to till their fields and gardens. Others, fatigued with the sameness of the scene, went through the country under pretence of seeking their different regiments, and in many instances committed acts that were disgraceful; and, strange to say, not the slightest effort was made to look after those stragglers and collect them.

2. The Wellington despatches for the summer of 1809 contain two angry notes to Donkin, the brigadier commanding the 87th and 88th, concerning the vast number of men absent from the ranks.

Lieut. Gen. Sir T. Picton, G.C.B. London, Edward Arnold, 1902.

Several of these men were shot by the peasants, while others were made prisoners and were marched by the militia of the country to the nearest British depôt. There they were either flogged, hanged, or shot, according to the nature of their different offences. Others were sent under escorts to whatever corps they belonged. All this relaxation of discipline commenced, as we have shown, in the early part of 1809, while the regiments of which those marauders formed a portion, between that period and the end of the year, had marched over hundreds of miles, fought a battle in the heart of Spain, occupied a line of posts on the Guadiana, and finally, after the lapse of ten months, took up new ground on the north-eastern frontier of Portugal.

It was at this time, and when the 3rd Division were stationed as has been described, that General Picton joined the army. It would be impossible to deny that a very strong dislike towards the General was prevalent. His conduct at the island of Trinidad,^[3] while Governor of that colony, and the torture inflicted, by his order, on Louise Calderon, a torture which, by the way, had been given up in our army as being worse than flogging, had impressed all ranks with an unfavourable opinion of the man. Besides this, the strong appeal made by Mr. Garrow, the Attorney-General, to the jury by whom he was tried and found guilty, was known to all, and a very general, and I do believe a very unjust clamour was raised against him. From what I have just written it will be seen in what sort of estimation General Picton was held, and as we of his division had never seen him, his first appearance before his troops was looked for with no little anxiety.

3. Sir Thomas Picton, while Governor of Trinidad, then recently conquered from Spain, had allowed torture to be used to extort confession from a woman accused of theft. This was, he supposed, legal because the island was still under Spanish law, which permitted the practice. His action led to the case of Rex v. Picton, and brought immense odium upon his head. The torture was “picketing.”

Our wishes were soon gratified, for, in a few days after his arrival at Trancoso, a division order was issued stating that on a certain day, which was named, the division should be under arms and ready to receive the General.

Punctual to the appointed time, General Picton reached the ground, accompanied by his staff; every eye was turned towards him, and, as first impressions are generally very strong and very lasting, his demeanour and appearance were closely observed. He looked to be a man between fifty and sixty, and I never saw a more perfect specimen of a splendid-looking soldier. In vain did those who had set him down in their own minds as a cruel tyrant, seek to find out such a delineation in his countenance. No such marks were distinguishable; on the contrary, there was a manly open frankness in his appearance that gave a flat contradiction to the slander, and in truth Picton was not a tyrant, nor did he ever act as such during the many years that he commanded the 3rd Division.

But if his countenance did not depict him as cruel, there was a caustic severity about it, and a certain curl of the lip that marked him as one who rather despised than courted applause. “The stern countenance, robust frame, caustic speech, and austere demeanour,” told in legible characters that he was one not likely to say a thing and not do as he said. In a word, his appearance denoted him as a man of strong mind and strong frame.

The division went through several evolutions, and performed them in a very superior manner indeed; the line marching and the echelon movements, for which the 88th, under Wallace, was so celebrated, seemed to surprise the General; he however said little. Once he turned to Wallace and said, in rather a disagreeable tone, “Very well, sir.” The parade was about to be dismissed, and the General about to return to his quarters, when two marauders of the 88th were brought up in charge of a detachment of Portuguese militia. They had stolen a goat on their march up to join their regiment. The complaint was at once made to Picton, who ordered the men to be tried by a drum-head court-martial on the spot. This was accordingly done; the men were found guilty, and flogged on the moment in presence of the General.

This act was considered by all as not good taste in General Picton on his first appearance amongst his troops; the offence committed by the soldiers could have been as well punished in front of their own regiment as in the presence of the entire division; and, besides this, there was no necessity for the General’s remaining to witness the punishment. This act on his part caused those who had formed a favourable opinion from his appearance to waver, and the word “tyrant” was more than muttered by many of the division.

So soon as the two soldiers were removed after having received the number of lashes it was thought necessary to inflict, the General addressed the brigade in language not of that bearing which an officer of his rank should use, for turning to the 88th he said, “You are not known in the army by the name of 'Connaught Rangers,' but by the name of Connaught footpads!” He also made some remarks on their country and their religion.

Language like this was enough to exasperate the lowest soldier, equally with the Colonel, who had done so much for the regiment during his command; and Colonel Wallace, directly the parade was over, waited on General Mackinnon, who commanded the brigade, and requested that he would go to General Picton, and intimate to him that he conceived the abusive language which he had made use of towards the 88th was not just to the corps, or to himself as commanding officer of it.

Mackinnon was a strict disciplinarian, but a man of an extremely mild temper, and he felt greatly annoyed at what had taken place. He readily complied with Colonel Wallace’s request, and received for answer from Picton, that he would remove those impressions when he again had an opportunity of assembling the division.

A long period elapsed before the division was again brought together, and when it was Picton neglected, or perhaps forgot, to fulfil the promise he had made. Immediately after the parade Wallace reminded General Mackinnon of what had before passed on the subject, and Mackinnon, for the second time, waited on Picton. The latter requested that Wallace should call upon him, which was immediately complied with, and then took place a memorable interview.

When Wallace reached Picton’s quarters he found the General alone; a long conversation took place, which Colonel Wallace never repeated to me, nor was it necessary that he should, because my rank did not entitle me to such disclosure, but I have reason to think that it was very animated, and what I am now about to write I have from under Colonel (now General) Wallace’s own hand. It is as follows:—

“After a conversation which it is here unnecessary to recapitulate, General Picton paused for a little and said, 'Well, will you dine with me on——?' I replied, 'Most certainly, General, I shall be happy to do so.' When I went to dinner on the day appointed, I found almost all the superior officers of Picton’s division, and the troops quartered in the vicinity of Pinhel, assembled. General Picton then addressed himself to Colonel Mackinnon, commanding the brigade, and said, 'I understand that Colonel Wallace has taken offence at some observations made by me relative to the corps he commands, when addressing the division. I am happy to find that I have been misinformed as to their conduct for some time past; and I feel it but justice to him and them, to say that I am satisfied every attention has been paid to the conduct and appearance of the corps. I certainly did hear, on my way up to the army, of irregularities that had been committed, but I am happy to say that I have had every occasion to be satisfied with the general conduct of the corps since my joining the division.' I made no reply, but bowed to the General. Dinner was announced, and General Picton came up to me and asked me to sit beside him at dinner. There ought always to be a deference given to a general of division by an officer inferior in rank, and under these circumstances I considered General Picton’s conduct to have been arranged in a very gentlemanlike and handsome manner. From that period General Picton and myself were always on the best terms, and though from prejudice he often signified that he suspected the Connaught Boys were as ready for mischief as any of their neighbours, he always spoke of them to me as good soldiers while I was with his division.”

Thus ended the matter, and I never knew or heard that Picton ever again made use of a harsh expression towards the regiment; indeed his biographer says that he often gave them “unqualified praise.” Perhaps he did, but for nearly four years that Picton commanded the 3rd Division, not one officer of the 88th was ever promoted through his recommendation, though it is well known in the army that many deserved it.

Shortly after this period a laughable circumstance took place between Picton and a soldier of the 88th, which put the General in great good-humour, and he often repeated the story as a good joke. He was riding out one day, accompanied by his aide-de-camp, near the river Coa, when he saw, on the opposite bank of the river, a man of the Connaught Rangers with a huge goat on his back.

We had received but scanty rations for some days previously, and such a windfall as the old goat was not to be neglected. I am not prepared to state whether it was the cries of the animal, or the stench of his hide—for the wind was from that point—attracted Picton to the spot; howbeit, there he was.

It would be difficult to say, with truth, whether the General was most angry or hungry, but he seemed, in either case, resolved not only to capture the goat, but also the “boy.” That he would have done the one or the other, perhaps both, there can be little doubt, had it not been that a stream, whose banks had been the theatre of other scenes of contest, separated the parties. This stream was the Coa, and although its different fordable points were well known to Picton, his vis-a-vis neighbour was by no means ignorant of some of the passes; and as the General had not time to consult his chart, and find out the nearest “ford,” nor inclination to plunge into the river, he made a furious, but quite an ineffectual, attack of words against the “Connaught boy.”

“Pray, sir,” said, or rather roared Picton, addressing the soldier, “what have you got there?”

Sol. “A thieving puckawn, sir.”

Pic. “A what?”

Sol. “A goat, sir. In Ireland we call a buck-goat a puckawn. I found the poor baste sthraying, and he looks as if he was as hungry as myself.”

Pic. “What are you going to do with him, sir?”

Sol. “Do with him, is it? To bring him with me, to be sure! Do you think I’d lave him here to starve?”

Pic. “Ah! you villain, you are at your old tricks, are you? I know you, though you don’t think it!”

Sol. “And I know you, sir, and the 'boys of Connaught' know you too, and I’d be sorry to do anything that would be displaising to your honour; and, sure, iv you’d only let me, I’d send your sarvent a leg iv him to dhress for your dinner, for by my sowl your honour looks could and angry—hungry I mane.”

He then held up the old goat by the beard, and shook it at Captain Tyler, the General’s aide-de-camp, and taking it for granted that he had made a peace-offering to the General, or, probably, not caring one straw whether he had or not, went away with his burden, and was soon lost sight of amongst a grove of chestnut-trees.

“Well,” said Picton, turning to Tyler, who was nearly convulsed with laughter, “that fellow has some merit. What tact and what humour! He would make a good outpost soldier, for he knows, not only how to forage, but to take up a position that is unassailable.”

“Why yes, sir,” said Tyler, “when he held up the goat’s head, he seemed to beard us to our faces; and his promise of sending you a leg was a capital ruse!”

“It was, faith,” replied Picton, “and if the fellow is found out, he will, I suppose, endeavour to make me the 'scape-goat'!”

The General used often to tell this story as one of the best things of the sort he had ever met with.

It is a remarkable circumstance that a few days before the battle of Waterloo, Picton met Wallace in London, when he spoke highly of the regiment, and said if it returned from America in time to join the army under the Duke of Wellington (being then on their passage home), and if he joined the army, the 88th would be one of the first regiments he would ask for his division.