"Allow me, sir," said Stanhope, and taking up a quill from the
adjutant's table he rapidly copied the figures. "Lord Wellington
must have this memorandum as soon as possible. The rest, Sir
Terence, is of course a matter for yourself. You will know what
to do. Meanwhile I shall report to his lordship what has occurred.
I had best set out at once."
"If you will rest for an hour, and give my wife the pleasure of
your company at luncheon, I shall have a letter ready for Lord
Wellington," replied Sir Terence. "Perhaps you'll see to it,
Tremayne," he added, without waiting for Captain Stanhope's answer
to an invitation which amounted to a command.
Thus Stanhope was led away, and Sir Terence, all other matters
forgotten for the moment, sat down to write his letter.
Later in the day, after Captain Stanhope had taken his departure,
the duty fell to Tremayne of framing the general order and seeing
to the dispatch of a copy to each division.
"I wonder," he said to Sir Terence, "who will be the first to break
it?"
"Why, the fool who's most anxious to be broke himself," answered Sir
Terence.
There appeared to be reservations about it in Tremayne's mind.
"It's a devilish stringent regulation," he criticised.
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