"Warfare is not all glory and bravery," Captain Rogers spoke quietly, as though from very far away. "Oh, there is plenty of that as the men stand under the flapping Colours and the white powder-smoke drifts past, now revealing, now concealing. Then you hear the French with their pas-de-charge, the most sinister drumbeat in the world, and their shouts "Vive la France" and our boys respond with three barking cheers. The Highland pipes scream out then, thin and high, raising the hairs on the back of your head."
pas-de-chargeVive la FranceI was there with him, holding my sword as I stood at Captain Rogers" side, facing the French. Perhaps I had drunk more claret than I realised, or maybe my nerves were reacting from their earlier strain by pushing me in the opposite direction. I do not know.
