 It was whilst stationed there that he was randomly selected as part of a firing squad to execute a deserter, an action which he reports "for many years afterwards remained deeply impressed on my mind".Shortly afterwards he was despatched as a garrison force to Ireland, and served duty in Cork and in Dublin, where he met and joined a newly formed regiment, the 95th Regiment of Foot, the now famous green-jacketed riflemen.From Ireland, Harris was returned to England following a period with a recruiting party, and rapidly settled into regimental life, learning to become a cobbler in addition to his regular duties, by which means he made a substantial amount of money which later enabled him to afford medical treatment which saved his life.