Hard to read, near miss

The Baron rode north for three days through country that nobody in his regiment had properly mapped. By the third evening the road had disappeared, and the officers began complaining about their horses and their provisions.

He answered them with considerable patience, explaining that a road was only a suggestion made by earlier travelers. The officers thought this explanation was unsatisfactory, but none of them wanted to contradict him in public.

At the river they discovered a ferry run by an elderly gentleman who demanded payment before departure. The Baron negotiated for about an hour, and finally exchanged a damaged telescope for passage and a quantity of smoked fish.

The following morning brought unexpected snow, which delayed the delivery of several important dispatches. The regiment still arrived at the fortress before the end of the month, and the general congratulated everybody on an efficient campaign.

Historians have questioned several details of this account, particularly the telescope and the fish. The Baron always insisted that his critics had simply traveled less, and that they misunderstood the difference between an accurate report and a memorable one.

He kept the remaining fish in his saddlebag for the rest of the winter, and he offered it to visiting ambassadors as a local delicacy. Most of them accepted politely, and several of them later reported an unfortunate digestive experience.

The snow fell for a week. The men sat by the fire and told old tales. The Baron told the best ones. Most of them were not true. Nobody minded very much. The fire was warm, and the wine was good. In the spring the road came back, and they all rode home again.