"On our retreat from the siege of Gibraltar, most of those who had flattered themselves with hopes of honor and profit in that enterprize, had lost all inclination for a renewal of the attempt; three volunteers left the army immediately, and I, owing to a wound and the unfavorable state of my health, went with them on leave of absence. We all set off to the interior of Spain, to visit a common friend, who had recently married a beautiful and opulent Spanish heiress. We found this journey more pleasant than journies generally are in my country; two of my companions were of the same lively turn as myself; and whenever pleasure began to slacken, the drolleries and fantastic lies of the fourth, often made us forget the badness of the roads, and the wretched accommodation we met with in some of the inns.
"This man, whom for good reasons, we shall now call Baron Braggart, was a most eccentric character. Though he knew, that we had on all occasions witnessed his behavior in the field, and had seen nothing less than heroic exploits on his part, he would never-
