When I think that I, the descendant of the kings of Ireland, was threatened with a caning by a young scoundrel who had just joined from Eton College—­when I think that he offered to make me his footman, and that I did not, on either occasion, murder him!  On the first occasion I burst into tears (I do not care to own it) and had serious thoughts of committing suicide, so great was my mortification.  But my kind friend Fagan came to my aid in the circumstance, with some very timely consolation.  ‘My poor boy,’ said he, ’you must not take the matter to heart so.  Caning is only a relative disgrace.  Young Ensign Fakenham was flogged himself at Eton School only a month ago:  I would lay a wager that his scars are not yet healed.  You must cheer up, my boy; do your duty, be a gentleman, and no serious harm can fall on you.’  And I heard afterwards that my champion had taken Mr. Fakenham very severely to task for this threat, and said to him that any such proceedings for the future he should consider as an insult to himself; whereon the young ensign was, for the moment, civil.  As for the sergeants, I told one of them, that if any man struck me, no matter who he might be, or what the penalty, I would take his life.  And, ’faith! there was an air of sincerity in my speech which convinced the whole bevy of them; and as long as I remained in the English service no rattan was ever laid on the shoulders of Redmond Barry.  Indeed, I was in that savage moody state, that my mind was quite made up to the point, and I looked to hear my own dead march played as sure as I was alive.  When I was made a corporal, some of my evils were lessened; I messed with the sergeants by special favour, and used to treat them to drink, and lose money to the rascals at play:  with which cash my good friend Mr. Fagan punctually supplied me.

Our regiment, which was quartered about Stade and Luneburg, speedily got orders to march southwards towards the Rhine, for news came that our great General, Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick, had been defeated-no, not defeated, but foiled in his attack upon the French under the Duke of Broglio, at Bergen, near Frankfort-on-the-Main, and had been obliged to fall back.  As the allies retreated the French rushed forward, and made a bold push for the Electorate of our gracious monarch in Hanover, threatening that they would occupy it; as they had done before, when D’Estrees beat the hero of Culloden, the gallant Duke of Cumberland, and caused him to sign the capitulation of Closter Zeven.  An advance upon Hanover always caused a great agitation in the Royal bosom of the King of England; more troops were sent to join us, convoys of treasure were passed over to our forces, and to our ally’s the King of Prussia; and although, in spite of all assistance, the army under Prince Ferdinand was very much weaker than that of the invading enemy, yet we had the advantage of better supplies, one of the greatest Generals in the world:  and, I was going to add, of British valour, but the less we say about that the better.  My Lord George Sackville did not exactly cover himself with laurels at Minden; otherwise there might have been won there one of the greatest victories of modern times.