"
"It has occurred to most of us, O'Grady," Captain O'Connor said, laughing.
"Terence, you see, doesn't care for whisky, and perhaps that has something
to do with his ideas coming faster than ours. Well, so we are off
to-morrow; though, of course, no one knows which way we are going to
march, it must be either to Leirya or along the coast road. It is a good
thing Spencer has come up in time, for there is no saying how strong the
French may be; though I fancy they are all so scattered about that, after
leaving a garrison to keep Lisbon in order, and holding other points,
Junot will hardly be able at such short notice to gather a force much
superior to ours. But from what I hear there are some mighty strong
positions between this and Lisbon, and if he sticks himself up on the top
of a hill we shall have all our work to turn him off again."
"I fancy it will be to Leirya," the adjutant said; "the Portuguese report
that one French division is at Candieros and another coming from Abrantes,
and Sir Arthur is likely to endeavour to prevent them from uniting."
That evening there was a grand feast at the mess-room. The colonel had
been specially invited, and every effort was made to do honour to the
occasion. Tim Hoolan had been very successful in a foraging expedition,
and had brought in a goose and four ducks, and had persuaded the
landlord's nieces to let him and the cook have sole possession of the
kitchen.
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