saddle might hurt the horse, and calls my new captain up.  “George,” says I, “I believe this saddle hurts the horse.”  So we alighted, and looking under the saddle found the back of the horse extremely galled; so I bid him take off the saddle, which he did, and giving the horse to my young Leipsicer to lead, we sat down to see if we could mend it, for there was no town near us.  Says George, pointing with his finger, “If you please to cut open the pannel there, I’ll get something to stuff into it which will bear it from the horse’s back.”  So while he looked for something to thrust in, I cut a hole in the pannel of the saddle, and, following it with my finger, I felt something hard, which seemed to move up and down.  Again, as I thrust it with my finger, “Here’s something that should not be here,” says I, not yet imagining what afterwards fell out, and calling, “Run back,” bade him put up his finger.  “Whatever ’tis,” says he, “’tis this hurts the horse, for it bears just on his back when the saddle is set on.”  So we strove to take hold on it, but could not reach it; at last we took the upper part of the saddle quite from the pannel, and there lay a small silk purse wrapped in a piece of leather, and full of gold ducats.  “Thou art born to be rich, George,” says I to him, “here’s more money.”  We opened the purse and found in it four hundred and thirty-eight small pieces of gold.

There I had a new skirmish with him whose the money should be.  I told him ’twas his, he told me no; I had accepted of the horse and furniture, and all that was about him was mine, and solemnly vowed he would not have a penny of it.  I saw no remedy, but put up the money for the present, mended our saddle, and went on.  We lay that night at Halle, and having had such a booty in the saddle, I made him search the saddles of the other two horses, in one of which we found three French crowns, but nothing in the other.

We arrived at Erfurt the 28th of September, but the army was removed, and entered into Franconia, and at the siege of Koningshoven we came up with them.  The first thing I did was to pay my civilities to Sir John Hepburn, who received me very kindly, but told me withal that I had not done well to be so long from him, and the king had particularly inquired for me, had commanded him to bring me to him at my return.  I told him the reason of my stay at Leipsic, and how I had left that place and my comrade, before he was cured of his wounds, to wait on him according to his letters.  He told me the king had spoken some things very obliging about me, and he believed would offer me some command in the army, if I thought well to accept of it.  I told him I had promised my father not to take service in an army without his leave, and yet if his Majesty should offer it, I neither knew how to resist it, nor had I an inclination to anything more than the service, and such a leader, though I had much rather have served as a volunteer at my own charge (which, as he knew, was the custom of our English gentlemen) than in any command.  He replied, “Do as you think fit; but some gentlemen would give 20,000 crowns to stand so fair for advancement as you do.”