A little later the young secretary came up again to see me.

To supplement my messages through Mr.Drake, I requested this young man to tell the General that I could see they were taking a cowardly advantage of me because I was a woman, and that they would never have detained a man under similar circumstances.

In fact, I was on every occasion so importunate that I am quite sure the General's Staff only prayed for the moment that I should depart.

That afternoon I had a long talk to two old German soldiers, then burghers, who were both characters in their way.

Hoffman, before alluded to, had been a gunner in the Franco-German War, and was full of information about the artillery of that day and this; while the other had been through the Crimea, and had taken part in the charge of the Light Brigade, then going on to India to assist in repressing the Mutiny.