Part 59 (2/2)

Then Feriz Beg blew with the trumpets, and suddenly the imperial troops were attacked from all sides. They were unable to repel the attack in the regular way, but intermingled with their a.s.sailants, fought man to man. The picked German troopers quitted themselves like men, not one of them departed without taking another with him to the next world, but the Turks outnumbered them, and just when the Prince's army was exhausted by the attacks of the Tartars, Feriz brought forward his well-rested reserves, who burned with the desire to wash out the shame of former defeats. The Prince of Hanover fell on the battle-field with the rest of his army. Not one escaped to tell the tale.

This was the first victory which turned the fortunes of war once more in favour of the Turks after so many defeats.

CHAPTER x.x.xII.

THE LAST DAY.

It was well known in Transylvania that the Porte had proclaimed Tokoly Prince and given into his hands armies wherewith he might invade the Princ.i.p.ality and conquer it, so General Heissler gave orders to the counties and the Szeklers to rise up in defence of the realm, which they accordingly did.

The Hungarian forces were commanded by Balthasar Mackasi and Michael Teleki himself; the leader of the Germans was Heissler, with Generals Noscher and Magni, and Colonel Doria under him, all of them heroic soldiers of fortune, who, all the way from Vienna to Wallachia, had never seen the Turks otherwise than as corpses or fugitives.

When Tokoly was approaching through Wallachia with his forces, Heissler quickly closed all the pa.s.ses, and placed three regiments at the Iron Gates, while he himself took up a position in the Pa.s.s of Bozza, and there pitched his camp amidst the mountains.

The encamped forces were merry and sprightly enough, there was lots to eat and drink of all sorts, and the Szeklers were quite close to their wives and houses, so that they did not feel a bit homesick--only Teleki was perpetually dissatisfied. He would have liked the forces to be marching continually from one pa.s.s to another and sentinels to be standing on guard night and day on every footpath which led into the kingdom.

The third week after the camp had been pitched at Bozza he suddenly said to the general with a very anxious face:

”Sir, what if Tokoly were to appear at some other gate of the kingdom while we are lying here?”

”Every avenue is closed against him,” answered Heissler.

”But suppose he got in before we came here?”

”The trouble then would not be how he got in but how he could get out again.”

But Teleki wanted to show that he also knew something of the science of warfare, so he said with the grave face of an habitual counsellor:

”I do not think it expedient that we worthy soldiers should be crammed up into a corner of the kingdom. In my opinion it would be much safer if, after guarding every pa.s.s, we took up a position equi-distant between Torcsvar and Bozza.”

Now for once Teleki was right, but for that very reason Heissler was all the more put out. It was intolerable that a lay-general should suggest something to him which he could not gainsay.

And the worst of it was Teleki would not leave the general alone. ”I am partic.i.p.ating in nothing here,” said he, ”make use of me, give me something to do, and I will do it--occupation is what I want.”

”I'll give it you at once,” said Heissler, and putting his arm through Teleki's he led him to his tent, there made him sit down beside him at a round table, sent one of the yawning guards to summon Noscher, Magni, Doria and the other generals, made them sit down by the side of Teleki, sat down at the table himself, and drawing a pack of cards from his pocket, gave it to Teleki with the words:

”Here's some occupation for you--you deal!”

”What, sir!” burst forth Teleki, quite upset by the jest, ”play at cards when the enemy stands before us?”

”How can we be better employed when the enemy is _not_ before us? Do you know how to play at landsknecht?”

”I do not.”

”Then we'll teach you.”

And they did teach him, for in a couple of hours they had won from him a couple of hundred ducats, whereupon Teleki, on the pretext that he had no more money, retired from the game.

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