I Have begun a new book, on purpose
that I might have room enough to
explain the nature of the perplexities
in which my uncle Toby was involved,
from the many discourses and interroga-
tions about the siege of Namur, where
he received his wound.
I must remind the reader, in case he
has read the history of King William's
VOL.II A wars,
wars, -- but if he has not, -- I then inform
him that one of the most memorable at-
tacks in that siege, was that which was
made by the English and Dutch upon the
point of the advanced counterscarp, be-
fore the gate of St. Nicolas, which inclo-
sed the great sluice or water-stop, where
the English were terribly exposed to the
shot of the counter-guard and demi-
bastion of St. Roch: The issue of which
hot dispute, in three words, was this ;
That the Dutch lodged themselves upon
the counter-guard, -- and that the English
made themselves masters of the covered
way before St. Nicolas's gate, notwith-
standing the gallantry of the French offi-
cers, who exposed themselves upon the
glacis sword in hand.
As this was the principal attack of
which my uncle Toby was an eye-witness
at
at Namur, ---- the army of the besiegers
being cut off, by the confluence of the
Maes and Sambre, from seeing much of
each other's operations, -- my uncle Toby
was generally more eloquent and parti-
cular in his account of it ; and the many
perplexities he was in, arose out of the
almost insurmountable difficulties he found
in telling his story intelligibly,
and giving such clear ideas of the differ-
ences and distinctions between the scarp
and counterscarp, ---- the glacis and co-
vered way, ---- the half-moon and rave-
lin, ---- as to make his company fully
comprehend where and what he was
about.
Writers themselves are too apt to con-
found these terms ; ---- so that you will
the less wonder, if in his endeavours to
explain them, and in opposition to ma-
A 2 ny
ny misconceptions, that my uncle Toby did
oft times puzzle his visiters ; and
sometimes himself too.
To speak the truth, unless the compa-
ny my father led up stairs were tolerably
clear-headed, or my uncle Toby was in
one of his best explanatory moods, 'twas
a difficult thing, do what he could, to
keep the discourse free from obscurity.
What rendered the account of this
affair the more intricate to my uncle
Toby, was this, -- that in the attack of the
counterscarp before the gate of St. Ni-
colas, extending itself from the bank of
the Maes, quite up to the great water-
stop ; -- the ground was cut and cross-cut
with such a multitude of dykes, drains,
rivulets, and sluices, on all sides, -- and
he would get so sadly bewilder'd and set
fast
fast amongst them, that frequently he
could neither get backwards or for-
wards to save his life ; and was oft times
obliged to give up the attack upon that
very account only.
These perplexing rebuffs gave my
uncle Toby Shandy more perturbations
than you would imagine ; and as my
father's kindness to him was continually
dragging up fresh friends and fresh in-
quirers, -- he had but a very uneasy task
of it.
No doubt my uncle Toby had great
command of himself, -- and could guard
appearances, I believe, as well as most
men ; -- yet any one may imagine, that
when he could not retreat out of the ra-
velin without getting into the half-moon,
or get out of the covered way without
A 3 falling
falling down the counterscarp, nor cross
the dyke without danger of slipping into
the ditch, but that he must have fretted
and fumed inwardly: -- He did so; -- and
these little and hourly vexations, which
may seem trifling and of no account to
the man who has not read Hippocrates,
yet, whoever has read Hippocrates, or
Dr. James Mackenzie, and has considered
well the effects which the passions and
affections of the mind have upon the di-
gestion -- (Why not of a wound as well
as of a dinner ?) ---- may easily conceive
what sharp paroxisms and exacerbations
of his wound my uncle Toby must have
undergone upon that score only.
-- My uncle Toby could not philoso-
phize upon it ; -- 'twas enough he felt it
was so, -- and having sustained the pain
and sorrows of it for three months toge-
ther,
ther, he was resolved some way or other
to extricate himself.
He was one morning lying upon his
back in his bed, the anguish and nature
of the wound upon his groin suffering
him to lye in no other position, when a
thought came into his head, that if he
could purchase such a thing, and have it
pasted down upon a board, as a large
map of the fortifications of the town and
citadel of Namur, with its environs, it
might be a means of giving him ease. --
I take notice of his desire to have the
environs along with the town and cita-
del, for this reason, -- because my uncle
Toby's wound was got in one of the tra-
verses, about thirty toises from the re-
turning angle of the trench, opposite to
the salient angle of the demi-bastion of
St.
St. Roch ; ---- so that he was pretty con-
fident he could stick a pin upon the iden-
tical spot of ground where he was stand-
ing in when the stone struck him.
All this succeeded to his wishes, and
not only freed him from a world of sad
explanations, but, in the end, it prov'd
the happy means, as you will read, of
procuring my uncle Toby his HOBBY-
HORSE.
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