The Siege advances beautifully: but Beck is come hereabouts, Lacy masked behind him; and I cannot yet tell you [not till REICHENBACH and the 16th] whether the Enemy intends some big adventure for disengaging Schweidnitz, or will content himself with disturbing and annoying us." PETERSWALDAU, 9th SEPTEMBER.

Springs, water-threads coming into our mines delay us a little: "by the 12th [in 3 days' time, little thinking it would be 30 days!] I still hope to despatch you a courier with the news, All is over! Your Nephew [Prince of Prussia] is out to-day assisting in a forage; he begins to kindle into fine action.

We are nothing but pygmies in comparison to him [in point of physical stature]; imagine to yourself Prince Franz [of Brunswick; killed, poor fellow, at Hochkirch], only taller still: this is the figure of him at present." PETERSWALDAU, SEPTEMBER 19th....

"Our Siege wearies all the world; people persecute me to know the end of it; I never get a Berlin Letter without something on that head;--and I have no resource myself but patience.

We do all we can: but I cannot hinder the enemy from defending himself, and Gribeauval from being a clever fellow:--soon, however, surely soon, soon, we shall see the end.