ANNALS OF THE TWENTY-EIGHTH REGIMENT.

TIM account of a Regiment, truly written by a man competent to She task, would be a very singular and a most interesting book : for what a collection of characters must a regiment at any time contain, but more especially in time of war ! Country bumpkins, with their stupid cunning; the rabble of the towns, with their coarse blackguardism; the better representatives of the three nations—the Irishman and his wit—the Scotchman and his shrewd steadiness—the Englishman, like his own bull-dog, dogged, but unwcarying. These form the masses who have inlisted, rather than do worse : but what strange individuals arc frequently met with in the rankS—from the silly youth, who has turned soldier through a quarrel with his sweetheart, or has been deluded in a fit of romance by some Sergeant Kite, to the lost and undone men, who, well-bred and well-educated, have sacrificed means, friends, and reputation, in the pursuit of pleasure. and taken refuge at last in the service of their king and country ! Those who remember FRANKLIN'S delightful sketches of the persons he worked with in his early wanderings, can form a notion of what such a book might be made, even without the addition of the jovial scenes in barracks or on the march, the spirit-stirring incidents of battle and victory, the hardships and privations of retreat, and a descrip- tion of the modes in which the same events operate upon different minds; whilst the exploits of the regiment itself', and the great events in which it was engaged, would give unity and historical dignity to the whole. At present we may assume that there is not a FRANKLIN in the British army, or (what would be still better) a luau combining in some degree the qualities of FItANKLI N, SCOTT, and lls Fos. Even if such a person could be found, our system of strict discipline and haughty reserve would tremendously cripple his means of obser- vation. Waiting patiently, therefore, for great changes and a great :genius to profit by them, we take thankfully such memoirs as the present taste for regime:nal biography gives us; of which, all -things considered, these Annuls of the Twenty-eighth are not the worst.

Mr. CADELL appears to have ,joined this distinguished regiment on tor soon after the return front Egypt in 1802, and to have ac• companied it through all its exploits and adventures till 1833. He was first engaged in the expedition to Copenhagen, &c.; served under Moolist in the advance into Spam, and took his share of the hardships suffered in the retreat to Corunna. Ill the miserable Walcheren project, the ranks of the regiment were thinned by the pestilence, which not only accompanied them to England, but even to Spain ; our hero escaping the Flushing fever, -as be appears to think, by not smoking. During the greater part of the Peninsular war, the Twenty-eighth was actively employed, -commencing operations with the battle of Barossa, and ending with that of Toulouse. The accidental miscarriage of the regi- ment's new suits of clothes (without which it could not have ap- peat-ed in decent trim before Jonathan) prevented one voyage to America ; a second was countermanded, apparently without any reason ; the escape of NAPOLEON from Elba stopped a third. The Twenty-eighth went to Flanders instead of America; was present at Waterloo; assisted in the taking of Paris; and on the peace went through the usual routine of garrison-duty in the Mediterranean and Ireland. The last important incident in its history was the presentation of a stand of colours ; which cere- mony is set forth at due length, with a full report of the Marquis of ANGLESEY S speech on the occasion. Its last movement was for India. Hither our veteran, after some thirty years' service, declined to accompany it ; preferring to retire—we hope to the possession of the Nino: cum dignitute. Total leisure, however, seems to have hung heavy upon his hands; so he relieved its monotony by composing a narrative of the " most disastrous chances,

The moving accidents by flood and field,"

which he and .his companions in arms had seen or suffered.

To high literary merit, or to excellence as a work of art, these Regimental Annals make no pretensions. More accustomed to handle the sword than the pen, and preferring, like the Romans, to have his good deeds praised by others rather than to narrate them himself, the gallant Colonel disavows all attempts at gene- ral history or comprehension of view, and seems not to have aimed at a high style of description, or at the expression of the mingled impressions which the scenes he beheld must have made upon his Aphid. Facts—absolute facts—at the same time characterize his work and give it its value. They are frequently dry and bald enough, it is true ; and those which possess an interest for the gene- ral reader derive it from the singularity of the circumstances them- selves, and are quite unindebted for it to the art of the narrator. But then, these facts sometimes admit us into the privacy of a soldier's life, and exhibit the economy of a regiment on actual service, We catch glimpses of the general effects of war upon those who pur- sue peaceable professions; • we have a pretty good idea of the ex- citement of an advance and a battle—of the hardships endured in a retreat, and the disorganization which accompanies it, together with the privations endured by an army in the field. We learn something too of the spirit which animates the soldier, and see how habit and the esprit do corps accustom men to face hunger, thirst, cold, danger and death, as things of course. The class of pictures alluded to are not indeed given to the public for the first time ; but they possess interest enough to bear repeating, especially when the plain unvarnished manlier of telling affords a strong guarantee for their truth. Of course, to those persons who are in any way connected with the regiment, this unpretending volume possesses an historical attraction quite independent of those qua- lities which the general reader alone regards.

Though the author commenced his warlike career at Copenha- gen, yet the first taste which he and other novices had of actual campaigning, was in Portugal ; when the regiment made a forced march of three leagues on an August day, the officers carrying a change of raiment rolled in their cloaks, slung across their shoul- ders, besides three days' provisions in their haversacks. Of the

retreat on Corunna, Colonel CADELL does not speak in the lachry-

mose strain of some writers. Perhaps, by that time he had got a little seasoned; or, being in the rear-guard, be was not so badly off as those who had more leisure and less fighting : for it is a sin-

gular circumstance, that the men who acre always opposed to the enemy, and almost always harassed by their attacks, suffered less

(in military parlance) than the other divisions of the army ; though these latter arriving first, had the choice of provisions, and some- times left little for the rear. The truth was, the men in the pre- sence of the enemy kept sober and organized. The naked facts of our author, however, make the retreat bad enough. Ilere are some bits from it, which will at once convey an idea of his manner and of " military state."

On the arrival of the cavalry at Camberas, about midnight, the reserve immediately moved on, and arrived next morning, 1st January 1809, at Bern- Libre, just as the other division was marching off to Villa Franca. The scene of drunkenness that here presented itself was truly shameful. The stragglers from the preceding division so crowded every house, that there was hardly place to be had for the wearies] reserve. Crowds of half- naked and unfortunate peasants of nomana's army added to the confusion. Ou the thL when SirJohn 31oore left Bembibre with the reserve and the cavalry for Villa Franca, Colonel Ross was left with that excellent regiment, the Twentieth, and a detachment of hussars, to cover the town, while officers were employed in endeavouring to collect the stragglers. A few were got away, but many wine so tired and lame from sore feet, that they did not care if the French sabres and bayonets were at their breasts, so completely did most of them give themselves up to despair. The rear-guard was at length forced to mine and leave those unfortunate people to their fate. Some of those poor fellows, who had thought better of it, and were endeavouring- to overtake their countrymen, wet e unmercifully sabred by the French cavalry, many of them in a defenceless state.

One of the handsomest men in the grenadier company, of the name of M'Gee, was coming along the road, lance from an accident, his &clock and pack having been taken by his messmates to enable him to keep up ; he was, how- ever, overtaken by two French dragoons, awl, although unarmed and helpless, was inhumanely cut to pieces almost within our sight: the exasperation of the grenadier company was terrible; they longed to have an opportunity to revenge

the death of their comrade. • 4 • January 8.1. The following occurrence had more effect in establishing the good conduct of the reserve than any thing that had yet been done. We were fitrmed in close column on the Bembibre side of the liver, when our gallant chief, General Paget, in an excellent address called the attention of the soldiers to the dreadful and disgraceful scene of yesterday, and the merciless conduct the enemy's cavalry had shown to many of the stragglers. Ile told the men that they had now become the rear guard of the army ; and upon their sober, steady, and good conduct, the safety of the whole depended. :lust as the Gene- ral had finished his admirable and soldier-like address, and after all the orders had been given, and the necessary example that had been made, two nun of the reserve were found in the very art of shamefully plundering a house in the vil- lage, and ill-treating the inhabitants. The report was made, and the reserve was instantly funned in square; the culprits were brought out, the General being determined that an example should he made. They were ordered to be hanged upon a tree close to the village. Every thing being prepared, the awful sentence was al t to be carried into execution; the unfortunate men were in the act of being lifted up to the fatal branch, when an officer of the hussars rode into the square and reported that the enemy were at that moment advanc- ing. The General said he did not care if the whole French cavalry were coming up; that he would hang those men who had been guilty of so shameful an out- rage. At that instant a few distant shots were heaid, and a second officer ar- rived at full speed with another report. The General then stopped the execu- tion, and turning round to the reserve, said " Soldiers, if you promise to be- have well for the future, I will forgive those men; say yes, in an instant." " Yes! " was said by every one. " Say it regain," said the General. " Yes, yes!" was again exclaimed by all. " Say it a third time." " Yes, yes, yes ! " and a cheer followed. The men were forgiven, the square was reduced, and the Fifty-second Regiment, under Colonel Barclay, went through the village is double-quick time, and in the most beautiful manner took possession of the vine- yards on the opposite side of the river. s • • On our way to Nogales' and passing over a mountain covered with snow, on the top of it we witnessed a c'readfur scene. Two Spanish waggons had been upset, under which lay the bodies of two men and a woman with': a babe at her breast, all frozen to death. There had been some bags of bread in the waggon with them, as there were some crumbs and dust remaining. The men were in such a state from hunger, that they actually moved the bodies to collect the snow, and picked out the fragments a bread as they went along. • • I must not omit an excellent action of a soldier of our regiment,.private Shea, of No. 8 company. He had been sent forward on the cummissariat guard, and when every thing had been expended, he was left at Nogales to rejoin the regi- ment. He by accident discovered a quantity of very. fine potatoes; and having lroeured a boiler, by the time he thought the regiment would arrive, had a arge quantity ready boiled; and as we passed the house he was is, he served them out two or three beech officer and man, nobly making no distinction, as

be knew we all had suffered alike. This was indeed a must seasonable and un- looked .for relief. Out I awls were completely benumbed, having marched over a mountain covered with snow, with a shower of sleet in our faces. I was quartered with a number of my brother officers, in a house which also contained a Spanish general with two aides-de. camp. We were drenched when we came in, and in taking off our clothes before a large fire to dry, I placed a valuable watch on the chimney piece, and going to the door to direct spine stragglers where they wete to lie down, found on my return that a Spanish aide.de-camp had taken the liberty to walk off with it. On awaking the noble Don, who was lying in an adjoining room covered with warm skins, to report the circumstance, he replied in a surly manner, that " He could not account for the people he had about him."

Even war has its reliefs. Thpugh we may die to-morrrow, there is, in the philosophy of the camp, no reason why we should starve or sorrow to-day ; and the joke, the frolic, and the dinner, when it can be got, seem to be enjoyed with more zest. from their ecntrast and the uncertainty of their continuance. We take a few natters of this kind.

A SET MILITARY DINNER.

On the Ifith, being the second anniversary of the battle of Allittera, the regi- ment gave a dinner to Sir Rowland Hill and the staff of the 2e1 division. Hein encamped, we had no tables or chairs, but the deficiency was ingeniously sup- plied by Lieutenant Irwin. A nice piece of turf being selected, lie marked out the length and breadth of a mess-table for one hundred covers. The sward was carefully lifted, and a trench dug round large enough to accommodate the parry ; the soils and mould were then carefully placed in the centre and levelled,—this centre-piece was excavated sufficiently to give room fur our legs underneath : when the mass was raised to a proper height, the sward was carefully laid on, so that we had a beautiful green table, novel and ingenious. The dinner was cooked in every way the old soldier could invent—toast and boiled, soup and horilk : camp kettles were reversed for ovens to bake pies, and every guest brought his knife, fork, and plate. The wine of the country being excellent, we all enjoyed ourselves much ; so much so, that some of us bivouacked under the table for the night.

TOM PATTEN'S EXPLOIT.

About the middle of January, when the Grenadiers, the Twenty. eighth, were on this duty, a daring fellow, an Irishman, named Tom Patten, performed a singular feat. At the barrier there was a rivulet, along which our line of sentries was posted. To the right was a thick, low wood, and, during the ces- sation of hostilities, our officers had again become intimate with those of the French, and the soldiers had actually established a traffic in tobacco and brandy, in the following ingenious manner. A large stone was placed in that part of the rivulet screened by the wood, opposite to a French sentry, on which our people used to put a canteen with a quarter-dollar, for which it was very soon fulled with brandy. One afternoon, about dusk, Patten had put down his canteen with the usual money in it, and retired ; but though he returned several times, no canteen was there. He waited till the moon rose, but still he found nothing on the stone. When it was near morning. Tomahought he saw the same sentry there who was there when he put his canteen down ; so he sprang across the stream, seized the unfortunate Frenchman, wrested his firelock from him, and actually shaking him out of his accoutrements, recrossed, vowing he would keep them until he got his canteen of branch., and brought them to the piequet- house. Two or three hours afterwards, just as we were about to fall in, an hour before day break, the sergeant came to say that a flag of truce was at the barrier. I instantly went down, when I found the officer of the French picquet in a state of great alarm, saying that a most extraordinary circumstance had occurred (relating the adventure), and stating, that if the sentry's arms and accoutre- ments were net given back, his own commission would be forfeited, as well as the life of the poor sentry. A sergeant was instantly sent to see if they were in the picquet-house, when Patten came up scratching his head, saying, " He had them in pawn for a canteen of brandy and a quartet-dollar," and told us the story in his way, whereupon the things were immediately given over to the French captain, who, stepping behind, put two five-franc pieces into Patten's hand. Toni, however, was net to be bribed by an enemy ; but generously handed the money to his officer, requesting that he would insist on the French captain taking the money back.

The Frenchman was delighted to get the firelock and accoutrements back ; and the joy of the poor fellow who was stripped of them may be conceived, as, if it had been reported, he would certainly have been shot by sentence of court- martial in less than forty. eight hours. Patten, however, was confined, and re- ported to Sir Rowland, and in a few days after he was tried, and sentenced by a court-martial to receive three hundred lashes. The British regiments of the division were collected at the alarm. post, when Tom was brought out, and his sentence read, and Sir Rowland in an excellent speech addressed the man and regiments assembled, on the unprecedented crime of which he had been guilty, justly observing, that the consequences of his imprudence might have cost the lives of thousands; but the General, being informed of his gallantry on many occasions from the passage of the Douro, and Talavera, was pleased to remit the sentence, to the great delight of every one present. Paddy on his return to his quarters got three cheers from the company for his good fat tune.

PORK STEAKS.

A shocking imposition was practised upon two of our officers, Lieutenants I — and C—, that evening. Some time after the action, a Portuguese soldier came to their tent with some pork steaks to dispose of, which their ser- vants eagerly purchased, and dressed them for their masters' supper. They being very tired and hungry after a long march and hard fighting, sat down and made a hearty meal; but a short time after, what was their surprise and disgust, when they discovered it to be more than equivocal that the alleged "pork steaks" bad not long before belonged to the person of a Frenchman ! I—, like an old soldier, drank off half a tumbler of brandy, and thought no more of the matter; but poor C-- turned very sick, and was always ill whenever the sub- ject of their cannibal repast was mentioned.

HOW TO GET A NIGHT'S REST.

During the war we bad often been halted in ploughed fields with no comfort near us—not a bush or a tree to shelter us ' • we generally passed the night in the following manner : two of us would sit down upon a stone with our cloaks rolled about us, back to back, supporting each other, our feet likewise upon stones, to keep them out of the wet. It is an old soldier's maxim upon service, "Sleep when you can; you can always eat, if you have any thing to eat."

A MILITARY FUNERAL.

The hussars suffered a great loss in Captain Busche, who was mortally wounded, and died three days afterwards in the same hospital in which our wounded officers were placed, at the Ida de Leon. I shall never forget the night before this brave officer was buried. The whole of his men stood round the coffin in the deepest grief, saying they had lost their father; they sate up all the night singing hymns, the whole joining. It was the most touching scene of devotion that we had ever witnessed ; it would have melted the stoutest heart. At the siege of Copenhagen, while we were under arms one morning, a little before sunrise, I remember this same regiment of Germans passing us. At first we could not conceive what delightful sounds were approaching, and, to our surprise, we found it was the whole of them singing the morning hymn, led by the calomel