"There must have been a plenty left," said Mrs. Shortridge. "One does
not know the wealth of a country till you plunder it. Even some of our
fellows, though they came as friends, still continue occasionally to
pocket a useful thing. The officers cannot put a stop to it
altogether, do what they may."
"But, with some exceptions," said L'Isle, "each French general levied
contributions on his own account. Some idea of the amount may be
formed from the fact, that at the Convention of Cintra, Junot, who had
probably not brought baggage enough into Portugal to load five mules,
demanded five ships for the conveyance of his private property. Yet
Soult's accumulations in Andalusia are said to exceed Junot's.
Whatever may be the result of the war, many a French officer will have
made his fortune here. Well did they obey the injunction--
"'See thou shake the bags
Of hoarding abbots; angels imprisoned
Set thou at liberty.'
"This last, though, in a sense different from the poets; in Lisbon
alone, turning thousands of nuns into the streets, that their convents
might be converted into barracks. In obedience to the imperial decree,
all the gold and silver of the churches, chapels, and fraternities of
the city were carried off to the mint; and, in this day of sweeping
confiscation, individuals did not forget themselves.
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