consequence of a fatal disaster which had befallen the Russians on the right. They of course threw the blame off their own shoulders, and wished to attribute the whole misfortune to the want of concert and a proper support on the part of the British; but I verily believe the real fact to be this. After most gallantly driving the enemy before them as far as Bergen, where it was previously arranged they should halt, they dispersed for the sake of plunder;—the French, hearing of this disorder, renewed the attack, and never gave the Russians an opportunity to form, but continued driving them with the bayonet until they encountered a body of English, under General Manners and Prince William, whose brigades suffered considerably. The Russians were, however, thus happily enabled to effect their retreat without further molestation; they were certainly the original cause of this disaster, but whether the British were sufficiently brisk in coming to their assistance, is doubted. The Russians in their persons are rather short of stature, and very thick and clumsy; they have nothing expressive in their features, but resemble much the Chinese countenance. I remarked an exception to this rule in a grenadier battalion, who, with tall, elegant persons, possessed remarkably fine, commanding faces. The officers in general are the most despicable wretches I ever saw: accustomed, as they have always been, to fight with troops much inferior to themselves, they thought themselves invincible. They take the field with an immense number of artillery, with which they cover their front and flanks, and thus never dreamed it possible, from their former experience, for troops to rally after being once beaten. This fatal security was the cause of the misfortune which befell the allies on the 19th. After the retreat from Horn, the 4th brigade took its station on the right, preparatory evidently to being actively employed; accordingly, on the 2d of October, the weather not permitting it sooner, the brigade assembled before daylight at Petten, and formed the advanced guard of a column, consisting of 10,000 men, which was to proceed along the beach to Egmont-op-Zee. After every thing had been properly arranged, it moved forward, supported by 1,000 cavalry, under Lord Paget. It was intended that the reserve, under Colonel M'Donald, should cover our flank, and that the column should rapidly advance to Egmont, in order to turn the flank of the enemy at Bergen. This was, however, prevented by a strong body of the enemy, who engaged the reserve the moment it ascended the sand hills; and although he retreated before the reserve, he constrained Colonel M'Donald to follow in a different direction to that intended, thereby leaving our left flank uncovered. But this did not impede our moving forward, and it was not until we had proceeded five or six miles that we found the least opposition. The enemy then appeared in small force, and the 25th was ordered up the sand hills, but, he having increased, the 79th followed, and it was not long before the 49th was also ordered to form on the left of that regiment. It is impossible to give you an adequate idea of the nature of the ground, which I can only compare to the sea in a storm. On my getting to the left of the 79th, I found that its flank was already turned, and that the ground, which we were to occupy, did not afford the least shelter: my determination was instantly taken. I had gone on horseback to view the ground, and on my return to the regiment, which I met advancing, I found the left actually engaged with the enemy, who had advanced much beyond our left. I, however, continued advancing with six companies, and left Colonel Sheaffe with the other four to cover our left: the instant I came up to the 79th, I ordered a charge, which I assure you was executed with the greatest gallantry, though not in the greatest order, as the nature of the ground admitted of none. The enemy, however, gave way on every side, and our loss would have been very trifling had the 79th charged straightforward; but unfortunately it followed the course the 49th had taken, thereby leaving our right entirely exposed. I detached Lord Aylmer[11] with the grenadiers, who, after charging different times, totally cleared our right. The 25th then advanced, and behaved with the greatest good conduct. The enemy after this never attempted to make a stand, but continued to retreat, and their loss on this occasion was very considerable. Nothing could exceed the gallantry of the 25th, 49th, 79th, and 92d. For my own part, I had every reason to be satisfied with the conduct of both officers and men, and no commanding officer could be more handsomely supported than I was on that day, ever glorious to the 49th. Poor Archer brought his company to the attack in a most soldierlike manner; and even after he had received his mortal wound, he animated his men, calling on them to go on to victory, to glory; and no order could be more effectually obeyed: he is an irreparable loss to the service. I got knocked down soon after the enemy began to retreat, but never quitted the field, and returned to my duty in less than half an hour. Savery acted during the whole day as aide-de-camp either to Sir Ralph or Moore, and nothing could surpass his activity and gallantry. He had a horse shot under him, and had all this been in his line, he must have been particularly noticed, as he has become the astonishment of all who saw him. We remained that night and the following on the sand hills; you cannot conceive our wretched state, as it blew and rained nearly the whole time. Our men bore all this without grumbling, although they had nothing to eat but the biscuits they carried with them, which by this time were completely wet. We at length got into Egmont, and on the following day (5th) into Alkmaar, where we enjoyed ourselves amazingly. Alkmaar is a most delightful city; but the inhabitants are rank patriots, and none of the higher class remained to welcome our arrival. The following day another engagement ensued,[12] in consequence of the Russians advancing further than they were ordered to do: during this severe contest we were snugly in church. It is extraordinary that both parties were so beaten as to find a retreat necessary, as while we retreated to our old position, the enemy was also in full retreat. I shall say no more of the expedition to Holland, as what remains to be added, you will see fully detailed in the papers. I go to Norwich, where the regiment is quartered, this evening. Another expedition is talked of, under Lord Moira. Adieu."

In the battle of Egmont-op-Zee, seven pieces of cannon, a great number of tumbrils, and a few hundred prisoners, were taken, and the loss of the enemy was estimated as exceeding 4,000 men. Major-General Moore, in whose brigade was the 49th, although severely wounded through the thigh, continued in action for nearly two hours, until a second wound in the face obliged him to quit the field. In his dispatch relative to this battle, the Duke of York observed, that "under Divine Providence this signal victory obtained over the enemy, is to be attributed to the animating and persevering exertions which have at all times been the characteristics of the British soldier, and which on no occasion were ever more eminently displayed." The following extract from this dispatch, dated Alkmaar, 6th of October, will shew the part borne in the engagement by Sir Ralph Abercromby's division, in which was Major-General Moore's brigade.