every man to his taste, but also every man to his trade; and I carried on mine. I think I see you now; you were rather disappointed when, instead of employing yourself in cultivating marine plants, as you expected, you were sent to man the shrouds of a thirty-six: and when you were ordered to fire a bomb-shell! that was a nosegay for you! But no more of that; and let us drink a measure of wine. Come, lads, here's to our comrades."
I filled all the glasses, and the serjeant continued—"You see that I am not wanted now, therefore let us make of all of us but a pair of friends. This is easily done; I have caught these nicely in my snare, but that is nothing; we recruiters of the marines are but fools to the recruiters of earlier days; you are still but green-horns—Ah, you never knew Belle-Rose; he was the lad for taking in the knowing ones! Such as I am, I was not a thorough noodle, and yet he twisted me completely round his finger. I think I have already told you the tale; but at all events I will give it you again for the general good.
"Under the ancient regime, do you see, we had colonies, the isle of France, Bourbon, Martinique, Guadaloupe, Senegal, Guyana, Louisiana, St Domingo &c.; now they are ours no longer; we have only the isle of Oleron left; it is little more than nothing; or, as somebody said, it is a foot of earth whilst we wait for the rest. The descent would have restored us all the others; but bah, the descent—we must no longer think of that, that is settled; the flotilla will rot in the port, and they will make fire-wood of the hulls. But I am getting out my latitude, steering seaward, instead of landward; now then for Belle-Rose! for I believe it was of Belle-Rose that I was speaking.
"As I told you, he was a spark who had cut his wisdom-teeth, and in his time young fellows were not of the same kidney with those of the present day.
