the restless spirit of adventure which prompted the author, mr george manington, to enlist in the french foreign legion, at a later date called him post haste from london, and thus caused us, his friends, to promise to see the manuscript of "a soldier of the legion" through the press.
though well under forty years of age, he had been a student in france and germany, a prospective doctor in paris, a soldier in algeria and tonquin, a man of commerce in indo-china, an interpreter, traveller, and journalist in south china, besides a participator in more fleeting occupations in many lands, including japan and the philippines.
it was in the restful periods between these various enterprises that this book was written.[pg xii] malaria and kindred ailments, contracted during his military service in tonquin, hampered him from time to time, and while he was recuperating in england from an attack, "a soldier of the legion" made most progress. presently a journalistic offer came from hong-kong, and the prospect it afforded of more adventurous missions in the remoter regions of the far east proved irresistible. he accepted by cable, called upon us to deal with the manuscript, and within a few days was mailing further sections of the book from ports "somewhere east of suez."
we have dealt as lightly as possible with the manuscript, for it is permeated with the brave and cheery spirit of the author, and, beyond giving an eye to the connection of the narrative as the various sections came to hand, our duties have been light.
an educated gentleman, mr manington has given an insight into the unusual experiences of an englishman in the french foreign[pg xiii] legion, such as no ordinary "mercenary" could have done. most of the narrative deals with tonquin, and the fighting there against the rebels in their forest fastnesses. incidentally, in giving an account of his friendship for the native sergeant, doy-tho, the author has been able to impart to the pages of the book an oriental atmosphere that we think will prove attractive to the reader.
acknowledgment is due to his friend, m. cézard, who is fully acquainted with the ground covered, both as a public servant of france and as an accomplished artist, for the illustrations which appear in this volume; also to general frey and messrs hachette, the author and publishers of a military work on tonquin, for permission to reproduce the map and plans of forts, in relation to the events spoken of in the description of the author's service under the tricolor. the map was prepared by the officers of the topographical section of the french army in tonquin, and gives a detailed[pg xiv] outline of the country in which most of the experiences described by "a soldier of the legion" took place.
w.b.s.
a.j.s.
london, june 1907.
