Not so impertinent. Not so impertinent at all. "The French call us Grasshoppers. Because of the green, I reckon. Or because we're too bloody fast for them. Us rifles have always worn green."

He shifted to face her and prepared to speak more than he usually did. "We're skirmishers. We don't advance in rank and file, y'see? Fight in pairs -- go in ahead of the British lines and pick off as many froggy officers as you can. Light companies, we're called."

It was a bit like a modern sniper, perhaps. "Green on green is a tougher target to hit than red on green." For, unlike the men in the musket ranks, the rifles weren't meant to be cannon fodder.