harmless piece of cannon was soon entirely surrounded by crowds of the
townspeople. They were not content with spiking it in such a way as to
make it utterly impossible that it should be discharged; but they
succeeded in turning it entirely round, so that the back of the carriage
faced towards the town.

The soldiers still continued the fight within the barrack-yard, and from
the barrack windows; but they were so completely mixed with the
townspeople, that the officers were afraid to order the men to fire from
the windows, least they should kill their own comrades. At last the
colonel himself was taken prisoner; he was literally dragged out of one
of the windows by the people, and soon afterwards the remainder of the
troops gave up. One of the three officers and six men were killed; the
rest were nearly all more or less wounded, and were all, without
exception, made prisoners of war.

Cathelineau and Foret had been in front of the battle all through; but
neither of them were wounded. It was to Foret that the colonel had given
up his sword, after he had been dragged headforemost through a window,
had had his head cut open with a brick-bat, and his sheath and
sword-belt literally torn from his side. He had certainly not
capitulated before he was obliged to do, and the people did not like him
the worse for it.

And now the unarmed soldiery, maimed and lame, with broken heads and
bloody faces, were led down in triumph into the square; and after them
was brought the great trophy of the day, the cannon, with its awful
mouth still turned away from the town. Cathelineau and Foret led the
procession, the former still carrying his bayonet, for he had given up
both the musket and pistols to some one else, and Foret armed with the