branch before them. And another mode is this: -The robber will lead a mare into the neighbourhood of the camp; the horses of the country being all entire horses, the vicinity of a mare renders them outrageous. Sniffing the night-air the gallant steed bursts his bonds, and dashes from the camp. The robber trusts to Providence that the most fiery only will fall into the snare, and, mounting his mare, away he goes. The noble pursuer follows madly the track of his desire ;

"Thro' his mane and tail the high wind sings;"

onward, onward they fly-the pursuer and the pursued through the brushwood, across the wide plain, or into the heart of the mountains. Then does the seducer seize his prize, and, delighted with his success, leads him to his gourbie. His admiring brother-rascals gather round, and, examining with a critical eye the noble prisoner, laugh to scorn the "dog of a Christian" his former owner. Numerous indeed are the manœuvres thus put in practice by the African horse-stealer, and often is he successful: but woe betide him if he is caught! for the morning sun will shine upon his head, rolling, bloody and gaping, before the French commander's tent, much to the benefit of him who cut it off. The Marshal gives ten francs a head for these noc

turnal visitors; and this being a treasure for a poor sentinel, I often had strong suspicions, (though perhaps unjustly,) that more than one head was brought into the camp, which, by the phrenological formation of it, had never a sufficiency of wit to have belonged to a horse-stealer; but had probably wagged on the shoulders of some unfortunate, led by curiosity within the purlieus of the camp, too early in the morning for his personal safety.

The succeeding day, the camp not being raised until a late hour, some of us took our guns, but saw nothing, in the game way, excepting numerous blue pigeons, which inhabit the rocks in the neighbourhood. Within a short distance of the camp, a most delightful ravine, with groves of oranges, almonds, and olives, attracted our steps. Upon one of its slopes was a considerable dashkrah, embedded amidst wild olives, mingled with the jujeb and karoubie. As the wanderer gazes upon these retired villages, so sweetly situated, a voice cries within him, "Here is surely the very throne of peace and undisturbed tranquillity!" Sad error! "All save the spirit of man is divine!" These wild mountaineers, if not united against one common enemy, such as an invading Christian host, are continually waging war, one tribe against another, revenging deadly

feuds or creating fresh ones; and, as a people, they are vicious in the extreme, and given up to the most degrading immoralities.

It was past one p. m. before the baggage and infantry were on the move; the Marshal having awaited the arrival of a courier from Algiers. About half-past two p. m. the cavalry were in the saddle. The egress from the valley of Tifferas presented many bad passes. Amongst other faux pas, made especially by the beasts of burthen of the convoy, one unfortunate mule rolled over, and fell above thirty feet perpendicular into the bed of the river: nevertheless, though heavily laden, it escaped serious injury. Such little incidents are of course of frequent occurrence during the march of a column through a rough country. We crossed the bed of the Isser, or some of its numerous tributary streams, more than twelve times in the course of this afternoon's march, following the main course of the river through a deep valley with lofty heights of sand-rock on either side; in some parts clothed with stonepine, and in others with a prickly species of broom, presenting one mass of small yellow flowers.

Three soldiers of a battalion of "Turcos" with us were convicted this day of selling gunpowder to the Arabs. These traitors were, it

was reported, sent back to Algiers under an escort provided by the Shiekh Mahieddin, and were probably condemned to the punishment of the "boulet;" that is to say, to have attached to them a heavy cannon-ball by a chain passed round the body and leg; the dragging about of which, in this climate, is anything, it may be imagined, but agreeable. A report was rife throughout the column, that Sidi Mahieddin had expressed great surprise and displeasure at the Marshal's traversing his territory with so large a force; and it was also rumoured, about this time, that some Kabyle tribes, amongst whom we should probably arrive about the 15th, were making hostile preparations to receive us. Amongst these tribes of the Kabylie many French deserters were said to have sought refuge, and to have assisted and instructed them in forming redoubts and other military works; so that the column was quite enlivened with the expectation of an affair to break the monotony of a peaceful march; and as the officers beheld visions of decoration, so did the common soldier of plunder.

This night we encamped at the junction of the "Oued-Hactatharba" and the "Oued Meklah; the former flowing into the latter from the South-east. The Oued Meklah is in fact a mere continuation of the Isser; the chief source of

which river (according to the French map of the Province of Algiers, drawn at the "dépôtgénéral de la guerre" for 1846) seems to be near "Berouagnia," about fifteen miles S. S. E. of Medeah, and in the territory of the "Beni-Hassan." From thence, flowing under different names in a north-easterly direction for about forty-five miles, it suddenly turns in the territory of the "BeniDjaad" almost direct North, and flows into the sea some five miles to the West of Cape Djinet, which promontory is about forty five miles to the East of Algiers.

The site of our bivouack this evening was a little plain, or mountain basin, amphitheatred with lofty heights of sand-rock adorned with groves of stone pine. On these heights outposts were placed about half a mile on either side of the camp. Their huge fires of unctuous pine-wood, glaring through the dark mantle of night, produced a fine effect. The column was accompanied by numerous flocks and herbs convoyed by Arabs. The subdued or allied tribes are of great service to the French in this way, as also in supplying camels, horses, mules, &c.; especially during the long expeditions into the interior towards the South: for every active column calls upon all the tribes of the district to be traversed, to supply a stated number of beasts