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diff --git a/46300-8.txt b/46300-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index dd63ae3..0000000 --- a/46300-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6836 +0,0 @@ - THE FIRST CANADIANS IN FRANCE - - - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost -no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it -under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this -eBook or online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license. - - - -Title: The First Canadians in France - The Chronicle of a Military Hospital in the War Zone -Author: F. McKelvey Bell -Release Date: July 16, 2014 [EBook #46300] -Language: English -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIRST CANADIANS IN FRANCE -*** - - - - -Produced by Al Haines. - - - - - -[Illustration: "HE IS A MAN AFTER MY OWN HEART!" EXCLAIMED MADAME -COUILLARD] - - - - - THE - FIRST CANADIANS - IN FRANCE - - THE CHRONICLE OF A MILITARY - HOSPITAL IN THE WAR ZONE - - - BY - - F. McKELVEY BELL - - - - ILLUSTRATED BY - CHRISTOPHER FULLEYLOVE - - - - MCCLELLAND, GOODCHILD & STEWART - PUBLISHERS :: :: :: :: :: TORONTO - - - - - COPYRIGHT, 1917, - BY GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY - - - - PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA - - - - - TO - - SURGEON-GENERAL GUY CARLETON JONES, C.M.G. - - AND TO - - THE CANADIAN MEDICAL SERVICES OVERSEAS - - THESE PAGES ARE DEDICATED - - The wise and skillful guidance of the former and the efficient - fulfilment of onerous duties by all have given to the Canadian - Medical Service a status second to none in the Empire: The sick - and wounded soldier has been made to feel that a Military Hospital - may be not only a highly scientific institution--but a Home. - - - - - *PREFACE* - - -In glancing through these pages, now that they are written, I realise -that insufficient stress has been laid upon the heroism and -self-sacrifice of the non-commissioned officers and men of the Army -Medical Corps--the boys who, in the dull monotony of hospital life, -denied the exhilaration and stimulus of the firing line, are, alas, too -often forgotten. All honour to them that in spite of this handicap they -give of their best, and give it whole-heartedly to their stricken -comrades. - -The pill of fact herein is but thinly coated with the sugar of fiction, -but if the reader can get a picture, however indefinite, of military -hospital life in France, these pages will not have been written -altogether in vain. - -F. McK B. - - - - - *ILLUSTRATIONS* - - -"He Is a Man After My Own Heart!" exclaimed Madame Couillard (See page -166) . . . . . . _Frontispiece_ - -The Song Was Sad--But We Laughed and Laughed Until We Wept Again - -René Had Risen in the Excitement of His Description - -"How Can You?" She Cried Involuntarily, "How Can a Little Lad Like You -Bear to Kill Men with a Bayonet?" - -German Wounded - - - - - *THE FIRST CANADIANS IN FRANCE* - - - - *CHAPTER I* - - -We were a heterogeneous lot--no one could deny that--all the way down -from big Bill Barker, the heavyweight hostler, to little Huxford, the -featherweight hustler. - -No commanding officer, while sober, would have chosen us _en masse_. -But we weren't chosen--we just arrived, piece by piece; and the Hammer -of Time, with many a nasty knock, has welded us. - -One by one, from the farthest corners of the Dominion, the magic magnet -of the war drew us to the plains of Valcartier, and one by one it -dropped us side by side. Why some came or why they are still here God -knows! Man may merely conjecture. - -Divers forces helped to speed us from our homes: love of adventure, loss -of a sweetheart, family quarrels, the wander-spirit, and, among many -other sentiments--patriotism. But only one force held us together: our -Colonel! Without him, as an entity, we ceased to exist. His -broad-minded generosity and liberal forbearance closed many an angry -breach. His love of us finds its analogy only in the love of a father -for his prodigal son. - -Long after we reached France, when the dull monotony of daily routine -had somewhat sobered us, one early morning the sweet but disturbing note -of the bugle sounding the _reveille_ brought me back from dreams of -home. I lay drowsily listening to its insistent voice. The door of my -room opened softly, and the orderly stole in. - -He was a red-cheeked, full-lipped country lad, scarce seventeen years of -age. He knelt down before the fireplace and meditatively raked the -ashes from its recess. He was a slow lad; slow in speech, slower in -action, and his big dreamy blue eyes belied his military bearing. - -I turned over in bed to get a better view of him. - -"What freak of fancy brought you so far from home, Wilson?" I queried. - -"Dunno, zur," he drawled. "Not much fun hustlin' coals in the mornin' -nur pullin' teeth in the afternoon." For Wilson, among his -multitudinous duties, was dental orderly too. - -"There's such an air of farm and field about you, Wilson, that -sometimes, at short range, I imagine I get a whiff of new-mown hay." - -He sat up on his haunches, balancing the shovel upon his outstretched -hand. The pool of memory was stirred. A hazy thought was struggling to -the surface. He looked dreamily toward me for a moment before he -replied. - -"I wuz born an' raised in the country, zur," he said. "When the war -broke out I wuz pickin' apples on dad's farm. I didn't like my job. -Gee! I wish't I'd stayed an' picked 'em now." - -How we ever taught Wilson to say "Sir," or even his corruption of the -word, must remain forever shrouded in mystery; but it was accomplished -at last, just like many other great works of art. - -The Canadian spirit of democracy resents any semblance of a confession -of inferiority, and the sergeant-major's troubles were like unto those -of Job. Military discipline commenced in earnest when the ship left the -harbour at Quebec, and has hung over us like a brooding robin ever -since. - -It was an eventful morning to us (and to England) when our fleet of -thirty ocean liners, with its freight of thirty-three thousand soldiers, -steamed slowly into the harbour at Plymouth and dropped anchor. - -For two glorious October weeks we had bedecked the Atlantic. His -Majesty's fleet night and day had guarded us with an ever-increasing -care. I can still look over the starboard rail and see the black smoke -of the _Gloria_ prowling along in the south, and, afar off in the north, -the _Queen Mary_ watching our hazardous course. The jaunty little -_Charybdis_ minced perkily ahead. - -There were other battleships, too, which picked us up from time to time; -and the _Monmouth_, on the last voyage she was destined to make, steamed -through our lines one day. The brave fellows, who were so soon to meet -a watery grave, lined up upon her deck, giving us three resounding -cheers as she passed by, and we echoed them with a will. - -Captain Reggy, our dapper mess secretary, was pacing the hurricane deck -one day. From time to time his gaze turned wistfully across the waves -to the other two lines of ships steaming peacefully along side by side. -Something weighty was on his mind. Occasionally he glanced up to the -military signalling officer on the bridge, and with inexplicable -interest watched his movements with the flags. - -"I say," Reggy called up to him, "can you get a message across to the -_Franconia_?" - -"She's third ship in the third line--a little difficult, I should say," -the signaller replied. - -"But it _can_ be done, can't it?" Reggy coaxed. - -"Yes, if it's very important." - -"It's most important, I want to send a message to one of the nurses." - -The signalling lieutenant leaned both elbows upon the rail and looked -down in grinning amazement upon his intrepid interlocutor. - -"What the d----l! I say, you're the sort of man we need at the -front--one with plenty of nerve!" - -"Be a sport and send it over!" Reggy coaxed. - -"All right--I'll take a chance." - -"Ask for Nursing Sister Marlow. Give her Captain Reggy's compliments -and best wishes, and will she join him on board for dinner this evening, -seven o'clock!" - -There was a flutter of flags for several seconds, while the ridiculous -message passed across from ship to ship. Reggy waited anxiously for a -reply. - -In less than ten minutes from across the deep came this very lucid -answer: "Nursing Sister Marlow's compliments to Captain Reggy. Regrets -must decline kind invitation to dinner. _Mal de mer_ has rendered her -_hors de combat_. Many thanks." - -On the last day of our journey the speedy torpedo boat destroyers rushed -out to meet us and whirled round and round us hour by hour as we entered -the English Channel. Soon the welcome shores of England loomed through -the haze, and the sight sent a thrill through all our hearts. - -We had scarce dropped anchor when, from the training ship close by, a -yawl pulled quickly toward us, "manned" by a dozen or more lads from a -training ship. They rowed with the quick neat stroke of trained -athletes, and as the boat came alongside ours they shipped their oars -and raised their boyish voices in a welcoming cheer. We leaned over the -side of our ship and returned their greeting with a stentorian -heartiness that startled the sleeping town. - -Showers of small coin and cigarettes were dropped into their boat, and -the way in which they fought for position, scrambling over or under one -another, upsetting this one or knocking down that, showed that these -lads were quite capable of upholding all the old fighting traditions of -the British Navy. A tug-boat soon steamed alongside, too, and down the -accommodation-ladder scrambled those of us who were lucky enough to have -permission to go ashore. - -"Come along, Reggy," I shouted. But Reggy shook his head sorrowfully, -and his handsome face was clouded. - -"Just my rotten luck to be orderly officer on a day like this!" he -replied. "To-day I guard the ship, but to-morrow--oh, to-morrow!" -Reggy held out both hands in mock appeal to the shore: "Me for the red -paint and city lights!" - -Progress up the streets of Devonport was slow. Thousands of troops -already landed were marching to the time of "The Maple Leaf Forever," -and every foot of pavement or sidewalk was packed with struggling but -enthusiastic humanity shouting itself hoarse in delirious welcome. - -We were on the upper deck of a tram-car, leaning over the throng, and -eagerly looking for the faces of friends in the ranks of a passing -battalion. They swung along to the music of their band--a clean-cut, -well-set-up, manly lot, who marched with the firm independent step of -the free born. Suddenly our colonel discovered a familiar face among the -khaki-clad below. There is no military precedent for what he did; years -of training fell away on the instant. He leaned from the car and -shouted: - -"Hello, 'Foghorn'! What cheer?" - -"Foghorn" looked up. His right arm was somewhat hampered, from a -military point of view, by reason of being about the waist of a pretty -girl, who accommodatingly marched along with the battalion in general, -and "Foghorn" in particular. - -"Hello, Jack," he bellowed in a voice which easily accounted for his -nickname. "Lots of cheer. Can't salute. One arm busy! Other is glass -arm from saluting the brass hats. See you later. Good luck!" - -And thus our cosmopolitan and ultra-democratic battalion passed on. - -Some one has said that the Englishman is temperamentally cold. It can't -be proved by Devonport or Plymouth. His temperature in both towns -registered ninety-eight degrees in the shadiest and most secluded spots. -And the women and children! Banish all thought of British frigidity! -The Canadians in England never discovered it. - -The passion of the Devonport children for souvenirs in the shape of -pennies and buttons became so violent in a few hours that our small coin -was likely to become extinct and our buttons merely things that used to -be. Every time a soldier appeared upon the street he was instantly -surrounded by a bevy of insistent and persistent mendicants. - -Once we sought refuge in a cooling spot where glasses tinkle and the -beer foams high--and children might not follow there. The pretty barmaid -smiled. The second in command twirled his long moustache and fixed the -maiden with his martial eye. - -"What will you have, sir?" she inquired sweetly. - -The senior major was always gallant to a pretty girl. He drew himself -up to his full six feet, two, and saluted. A mellow line from "Omar -Khayyám" dropped from his thirsty lips: - - _"A jug of wine, a loaf of bread, and thou_ - _Beside me singing in the wilderness."_ - - -How much further he might have gone one cannot say. The girl held up a -reproving finger and exclaimed: - -"Ah, I see it is black coffee the gentleman requires." - -But the major's poetic spirit was aroused. "Avaunt coffee," he cried. - - _"Shall I distress my ruddy soul_ - _With dusky dregs from coffee urn?_ - _Far sweeter, sweet, to quench its fire_ - _With wine for which the 'innards' yearn._ - -A glass of beer, please." - -The adjutant leaned over toward me and hazarded, in a hoarse whisper: - -"I presume they have no ice." - -The barmaid's red cheeks dimpled and two straight rows of pearly teeth -shone upon him, as she answered for me: - -"Your presumption is ill-founded, young man. We have plenty of ice with -which to temper the hot young blood of the Canadians." - -The adjutant looked helplessly up, bereft of repartee; then -apostrophised the ceiling: - -"And these are the stupid Englishwomen we have been led to expect!" - -Our education was going on apace. - -A few moments later we emerged and discovered ourselves in a veritable -whirlpool of young monetary gluttons. - -"Penny, sir! penny! penny!" they shouted in staccato chorus. Our supply -of pennies had long since been depleted. An idea struck me. - -"See here," I said in serious tone. "We're only a lot of poor soldiers -going to the war. We can't always be giving away pennies. We need -pennies worse than you do." - -A sudden hush fell upon the little circle. Some looked abashed, others -curiously uncertain, a few sympathetic. The silence lasted a full -minute. We all stood still looking at one another. - -"Can any little boy or girl in this crowd give a poor soldier a penny to -help him along to the war?" I asked quietly. - -Again silence. Finally a little ragged tot of about eight years of age, -carrying a baby in her arms, turned to her companions and said: "Here, -hold the baby for me and I'll give the poor fellow a penny." She dived -deep in the pocket of her frock, brought out a penny, ha'penny (her -total wealth) and held it out to me. - -Lieutenant Moe stepped forward. "Look here, major," he said sternly, -"do you mean to say you'll take that money from a youngster?" - -"I do," I replied, without a smile. - -"I won't permit it," he cried. - -Here was an embarrassing situation. I couldn't explain to him without -confessing to the child as well. I wished to gauge how much patriotism -beat in those little hearts, what sacrifice they were prepared to make -for their country; and here was one measuring up to the highest ideals, -I daren't either withdraw or explain. - -"I must have the pennies, Moe, and I am going to take them," I replied -firmly. "Stand aside, please!" - -Military discipline came to the rescue. Moe saluted stiffly and stepped -back. The little girl gravely handed over the pennies and took back her -baby. - -"Any others?" I asked. - -Some of the children declared they had none; a few looked sheepish and -hung their heads. I slipped a sixpence into the hand of the little -lady. - -"Well, I'll be damned!" exclaimed Moe. "Here's another penny for you," -and he handed the bewildered child half a crown. - -A shout of surprise and dismay went up from the other children, who -realised too late that they had failed in the test. - -"The drinks are certainly on me!" Moe cried. "About turn!" - -Sometimes when I feel that the world is sordid and mean I go to my trunk -and look at those two coins, and I know that somewhere, in a frail -little body, beats a generous heart, and I feel that after all part of -the world is worth while. - - - - - *CHAPTER II* - - -Reggy was on shore at last. He said he felt much better walking alone -up street--more as if he owned the town! - -It's a strange sensation stepping on solid ground after weeks on -shipboard. There is a lack of harmony between oneself and the ground. -You rock--the ground stands still; you stand still--the ground rocks, -like an angry sergeant. - -The senior major was on the corner, holding an animated conversation -with a beautifully gowned young lady, to whom he bid a hasty adieu as -Reggy hove in sight. - -"Corking girl, that," said Reggy mischievously. - -"Where?" demanded the major, looking about. - -"The young lady to whom you just avoided introducing me." - -"It's rather a remarkable coincidence," said the major, avoiding -controversy, "that I should run across a relation in this far-away -place!" - -"Very!" Reggy replied drily. "Family's fond of travel, I take it." - -A tall, well-knit young subaltern elbowed his way through the crowd and -joined the pair. Reggy greeted him: - -"Better come and have dinner with your brother and me, Tom. I feel he -needs good company and a chaperon or two!" - -The trio entered the rotunda of the _Royal_. - -A distinguished looking gentleman and a prepossessing lady of middle age -stood chatting together. Their voices were agitated, and the three -officers could not avoid overhearing snatches of the conversation. - -"He is on the _Cassandra_, and in this medley of ships no one seems to -know where his is anchored," the man was saying. - -"Dear me," sighed the lady. "To think that our boy should be so near -and that we should not be able to see him! It's dreadful!" - -"But we must find him," the man declared reassuringly. "Surely there is -some way of reaching the ship?" - -"They tell me no one is allowed on board; and when the battalion -disembarks they will be marched away. What shall we do?" she cried in -great distress. - -Reggy's impulsive heart was touched. He approached them and -respectfully saluted. - -"A thousand pardons, sir," he said, "for breaking in upon a private -conversation, but I couldn't help overhearing your words. Can I be of -any assistance to you?" - -"It is very kind of you, indeed," the man answered in a rich voice of -unusual gentility. "Perhaps you can help us. My son is aboard the -_Cassandra_. We haven't seen him since he went to Canada four years -ago. He is only a Tommy, so cannot come ashore, and it seems impossible -to get into communication with him." - -"What luck!" Reggy exclaimed. "His ship and ours are anchored side by -side; so close, in fact, that we have a connecting gang-way." - -"Oh, do you think we could get out to him?" the mother asked anxiously. -"We have no permit to visit the ships." - -"If you can get authority to enter the dockyards, I'll see what I can do -to get you aboard to-morrow noon," Reggy answered. "I'll meet you at -the quay." - -"God bless you!" exclaimed the lady, with tears in her eyes. - -The following day, true to his word, Reggy, with a written permit in his -pocket, ushered Mr. and Mrs. Hargreaves aboard the ship. - -"You will stay and lunch with me," said Reggy. "I'll get your boy -across, and we'll all lunch together." - -"But I was under the impression that Tommies were not allowed to dine -with officers," protested Mr. Hargreaves. - -"The deuce! I'd forgotten all about that," Reggy exclaimed, as he -scratched his head perplexedly. "Ah, I have it," he ejaculated a moment -later; "he shall be an officer during the meal. I'll lend him a tunic. -No one else on board will know." - -"But I don't wish you to get yourself into trouble," Mr. Hargreaves -remonstrated. - -Reggy laughed. - -"I love such trouble," he cried, "and the risk fascinates me. I'll be -back in a moment." And he dashed off in his impetuous way. - -In a short time he returned, bringing with him a handsome but much -embarrassed youth, wearing a captain's uniform. But the sight which met -his eyes banished all thought of clothes. - -"Mother! Father!" he cried; and in a moment was clasped in his mother's -arms, while tears of joy she didn't strive to hide rolled down her -cheeks. The old gentleman turned his head aside to hide his own -emotion, and Reggy, feeling _de trop_, slipped quietly away. - -A few days later our ship was dragged slowly into dock by two small but -powerful tug-boats. The boys who had been caged on board for a full -week in sight of but unable to reach the land shouted and danced for -joy. The noise of the donkey engine pulling our equipment out of the -hold was to us the sweetest sound on land or sea. - -We were almost the last ship to dock, and a thousand boys were -impatiently awaiting their turn to step on English soil. Machine guns, -boxes of rifles and ammunition, great cases of food and wagons came -hurtling through the hatchway, vomited from the depths below. With -great speed and regularity they were deposited on the quay, while heavy -motor lorries, piled high with freight, creaked from dock to train. - -From across the quay, and in awesome proximity, the great guns of the -battle cruisers _Tiger_ and _Benbow_ yawned at us. As far as one might -look heavily armoured men-of-war, ready to sail or in process of -construction, met the eye, and the deafening crash of the trip-hammer -stormed the ear. Britain may well be proud of her navy. Its size and -might are far beyond our ken. Patiently, in peaceful harbour, or on sea, -she lies in wait and longs for Germany's inevitable hour. - -The hospitality of the citizens of Devonport and Plymouth will long -remain a pleasant recollection. First impressions linger and our first -impressions there still stir up delightful memories. - -"Now, then, look sharp there! Stow them adoos an' get aboard!" - -It was the raucous voice of Sergeant Honk which thus assailed his -unwilling flock. The boys were bidding a lengthy farewell to the local -beauties, who had patriotically followed them to the train. - -The sergeant was hot and dusty, and beaded drops of sweat dripped from -his unwashed chin. His hat was cocked over one eye, in very unmilitary -style. The Tommies, under the stimulating influence of two or more -draughts of "bitter" purchased at a nearby bar, were inclined to be -jocose. - -"'Ave _another_ drink, 'Onk!" cried one, thrusting a grimy head from the -train window and mimicking Honk's cockney accent. This subtle allusion -to previous libations aroused the sergeant's ire. - -"Oo said that?" he shouted wrathfully, as he turned quickly about. -"Blimey if yer ain't got no more disc'pline than a 'erd uv Alberta -steers! If I 'ears any more sauce like that some one 'ull be up for -'office' in th' mornin'!" - -The culprit had withdrawn his head in time, and peace prevailed for -moment. - -"What's that baggage fatigue doin'?" he cried a moment later. "D'ye -think y'er at a picnic--eatin' oranges? Load them tents!" - -The orange-eating "fatigue," looking very hot and fatigued indeed, fell -reluctantly to work. - -Sergeant Honk was not beautiful to look upon--his best friends conceded -this. His nose was bent and red. He had one fixed and one revolving -eye, and when the former had transfixed you, the latter wandered -aimlessly about, seeking I know not what. He was so knock-kneed that -his feet could never meet. I think it was the sergeant-major in Punch -who complained that "it was impossible to make him look 'smart,' for -when his knees stood at attention his feet would stand at ease." - -To see Honk salute with one stiff hand pointing heavenward and his -unruly feet ten inches apart has been known to bring a wan sweet smile -to the face of blasé generals; but subalterns, more prone to mirth, have -sometimes laughed outright. - -Some one had thrown a banana peel upon the station platform. Honk -stepped backward upon its slippery face. He didn't fall, but his queer -legs opened and shut with a scissor-like snap that wrenched his dignity -in twain. - -"Fruit's the curse of the army," he muttered. - -Somehow we got aboard at last--officers, non-commissioned officers and -men. The crowd cheered a lusty farewell, and amidst much waving of -pocket handkerchiefs and hats, Plymouth faded away, and the second stage -of our journey began. - -It was midnight when we pulled into Lavington station. There is no -village there--merely a tavern of doubtful mien. Rain was falling in a -steady drizzle as we emerged upon the platform and stood shivering in -the bleak east wind. The transport officer, who had been awaiting our -arrival, approached the colonel and saluted. - -"Rather a nasty night, sir," he observed courteously. - -"Bad night for a march," the colonel replied. "My men are tired, too. -Hope we haven't got far to go?" - -"Not very, sir; a matter of eight or nine miles only." - -The colonel glanced at him sharply, thinking the information was given -in satirical vein; but the Englishman's face was inscrutable. - -"Nine miles!" he exclaimed. "That may be an easy march for seasoned -troops, but my men have been three weeks on shipboard." - -"Sorry, sir, but that's the shortest route." - -"Thanks; we'll camp right here." The colonel was emphatic. - -"In the rain?" the Englishman inquired in some surprise. - -"Yes. What of it?" - -"Nothing, sir; but it seems unusual, that's all." - -"We're unusual people," the colonel answered dryly. "Quartermaster, get -out the rubber sheets and blankets. The station platform will be our -bed." - -The transport officer saluted and retired. - -The adjutant was weary and sleepy. He had vainly tried a stimulating -Scotch or two to rouse his lagging spirit. - -"Fall in, men," he shouted. "'Shun! Right dress. Quartermaster, issue -the blankets, please." - -The quartermaster was disposed to argue the point. The blankets would -all be wet and muddy, and damaged with coal cinders; but he was finally -overruled. - -The adjutant turned to look at the men. Their line had wabbled and -showed strange gyrations. - -"_Will_ you men stand in line?" he cried. "How do any of you ever expect -to succeed in life if you can't learn to stand in a straight line?" -With which unanswerable argument and much pleased with his midnight -philosophy, he relapsed into his customary genial smile. - -At last the blankets were distributed, and in an hour the station -platform and bridge over the tracks looked like the deck of an emigrant -steamer. Wherever the eye reached, the dimly-lighted platform showed -rows of sleeping men, rolled up and looking very like sacks of potatoes -lying together. - -Five of us officers turned into the expressman's hut, and in the dark -fell into whatever corner was available. Reggy and I occupied either -side of an unlighted stove, and throughout the jumpy watches of the -night bruised our shins against its inhospitable legs. - -Dawn was breaking, and breaking darkly, too, as the dim shadow of the -expressman came stumbling across the platform through rows of growling -men. At last he reached his office, and, all unconscious of our -presence, stepped within. He stepped upon the sleeping form of the -adjutant, and the form emitted a mighty roar. The expressman staggered -back in amazement, giving vent to this weird epigram: - -"Every bloomin' 'ole a sleepin' 'ole!" - -"You'll 'ave to get up," he cried indignantly when he had recovered from -his astonishment. "This ain't a bloomin' boardin'-'ouse!" - -"Could you return in half an hour?" Reggy queried in drowsy tones, but -without opening his eyes. - -"No. I couldn't return in 'alf an hour," he mocked peevishly. - -"Run away like a good fellow, and bring some shaving water---have it -hot!" Reggy commanded. - -"Oh, I'll make it 'ot for you all right, if you don't let me into my -office," he retorted angrily. - -Might is not always right, so we reluctantly rose. We had had three -hours of fitful sleep--not too much for our first night's soldiering. -Hot coffee, cheese and biscuits were soon served by our cooks, and we -prepared for our first march on English sod. - -No one who made that march from Lavington to West Down North will ever -forget it. Napoleon's march to Moscow was mere child's play compared -with it. Reggy said both his corns were shrieking for Blue Jays and -when Bill Barker removed his socks (skin and all) it marked an epoch in -his life, for both his feet were clean. - -Every fifteen minutes it rained. At first we thought this mere -playfulness on the part of the weather; but when it kept right on for -weeks on end, we knew it to be distemper. By day it was a steady -drizzle, but at night the weather did its proudest feats. Sometimes it -was a cloudburst; anon an ordinary shower that splashed in angry little -squirts through the canvas, and fell upon our beds. - -And the mud! We stood in mud. We walked in mud. We slept in mud. The -sky looked muddy, too. Once, and only once, the moon peeped out--it had -splashes of mud on its face! - -Reggy loved sleep. It was his one passion. Not the sweet beauty sleep -of youth, but the deep snoring slumber of the full-blown man. But, oh, -those cruel "Orderly Officer" days, when one must rise at dawn! Reggy -thought so, too. - -Six a.m. The bugle blew "Parade." Reggy arose. I opened one eye in -time to see a bedraggled figure in blue pyjamas stagger across the -sloppy floor. His eyes were heavy with sleep, and his wetted forelock -fell in a Napoleonic curve. The murky dawn was breaking. - -Outside the tent we could hear the sergeant-major's rubber boots flop, -flop, across the muddy road. - -"Fall in, men! Fall in!" His tones, diluted with the rain, came -filtering through the tent. It was inspection hour. - -Reggy fumbled at the flap of the tent, untied the cord, and through the -hole thus made thrust his sleep-laden head. - -"Parade, 'shun!" shouted the sergeant-major (a sly bit of satire on his -part). The warning wasn't needed. The sight of Reggy's dishevelled -countenance was enough; Bill Barker himself "shunned." Somewhere from -the depths of Reggy's head a sleepy muffled voice emitted this succinct -command: - -"Serg'nt-major; dish-mish th' parade." - -"Right turn! Dis-miss!" With a shout of joy the boys scampered off to -their tents. - -A moment later Reggy tumbled into bed again, and soon was fast asleep. -And within two hours, at breakfast, he was saying, with virtuous -resignation: "How I envied you lucky devils sleeping-in this morning! I -was up at six o'clock inspecting the parade." And the halo of -near-truth hovered gently about his head. - -Thus passed three weeks of rain and mud. In spite of ourselves we had -begun to look like soldiers. How we ever developed into the finest -hospital unit in the forces none of us to this day knows--and none but -ourselves suspects it yet. We had, and have still, one outstanding -feature--a sort of native modesty. Whatever in this chronicle savours -of egotism is merely the love of truth which cannot be suppressed. - -And then, one eventful day, the surgeon-general came to inspect us. He -seemed pleased with us. Presently he passed into the colonel's tent, -and they had a long and secret conference together. Finally the pair -emerged again. - -"What about your horses?" the general queried. - -The horses had been our greatest worry. They came on a different boat, -and the two best were missing or stolen. Once Sergeant Honk discovered -them in the lines of another unit, but was indiscreet enough to proclaim -his belief to the sergeant-major of that unit. When we hurried down to -get them they were gone. No one there had ever heard of a horse of the -colour or design which we described. We were discouraged, and in our -despair turned to the senior major, who was a great horseman and knew -the tricks of the soldier horse-thief. - -"Don't get excited," he said reassuringly. "They've only hidden away the -horses in a tent, after you chumps recognised them. To-morrow, when they -are not suspicious, I'll go down and get them." - -And on the morrow _mirabile dictu_ he secured them both. - -So the colonel answered: "The horses are here, and ready, sir." - -Ready for what? There was a tenseness in the air--a sense of mystery -that could not be explained. We listened again, but could only catch -scraps of the conversation, such as "Transport officer," "Nine a.m." -"Don't take the mess tent or any tents but hospital marquees." - -Something was brewing and brewing very fast. At length the colonel -saluted, and the general left. - -"What news, Colonel?", we cried breathlessly, as soon as discretion -allowed. And he let fall these magic words: - -"We are under orders to move. We shall be the first Canadians in -France!" - - - - - *CHAPTER III* - - -It was exactly 10 p.m. as Bill Barker and Huxford, with the heavy team -and wagon, drove up to the colonel's tent. - -"Do you think you can find your way to Southampton in the dark?" the -colonel asked Barker somewhat anxiously. - -"Yes, sir. I've never been lost in my life--sober." The afterthought -was delivered with a reminiscent grin. - -"Remember, no 'booze' until the horses are safely in the town; and a -glass of beer will be quite enough even then," the colonel admonished -him. - -"Never fear, sir," Bill replied, as he saluted. With a last long look -at the camp he said: "Good-night, sir," and the horses started down the -muddy road. - -Why we should still have any affection for that camp in which none of us -ever wore a dry stitch of clothes or knew a moment's comfort, is merely -another illustration of the perversity of human nature. Like Bill -Sikes' dog, our love is stronger than our common sense. For a moment we -stood watching the team pass down through the lines toward the unknown -south, and then we turned in to sleep. - -At 3 a.m. our camp was all astir, and the dull yellow glow of candles -and lanterns shining through the tents dotted the plain. Here and there -brighter lights flitted to and fro, as the men proceeded rapidly with -the work of packing up. - -And what a medley of goods there was! Blankets and rubber sheets were -folded neatly into their canvas covers; stoves and pots and pans were -crated; boxes of cheese, jam and bully-beef, together with bags of bread -were carried out of the tents into the open. At one side stood large -boxes of medicines, beds, mattresses, portable folding tables and -chairs, and a hundred other varieties of hospital necessaries, all -packed and ready for transport. - -By 9 a.m. the motor lorries commenced to arrive. How the boys worked -that morning! The pile of forty tons of goods which represented our -home, and soon would be the home of many others, sick and wounded, -melted away before their united effort. - -We had come to Salisbury Plain in the rain; it was but fitting that we -should leave in a similar downpour. We did! - -The soldier is a strange creature; a migratory animal whose chief -delight in life is moving. Put him in one place for months, be it ever -so cheery and comfortable--he frets like a restless steed; but give him -the rein, permit him to go, he cares not whither--he is happy. It may -be from sunshine to shadow; it may be from château to trench; it may be -from heaven to hell--he cares not if he but moves, and, moving, he will -whistle or sing his delight. - -The road was lined with envious Tommies who came to see us start. - -"Yer colonel muster had _some_ pull with Kitch'ner t' git ye away so -soon," said one of the envious to Tim, the colonel's batman. - -Tim was quite the most unique of all our motley tribe. He was born in -Ireland, educated (or rather remained uneducated) in the Southern -States, and for the past ten years had lived in Canada. He was a -faithful servant, true to his master and to all his friends. Like many -another "original," he was permitted to take liberties which shocked all -sense of military discipline, as well as every other sense; but he -amused us and was forgiven. He was a prize fighter, too, of no mean -ability, and carried the scars of many a hard-fought battle. No other -being in the world used a dialect like Tim's. It was a language all his -own, and negroid in character. - -"Pull wit' Kitch'ner!" he replied disdainfully. "Wit George hisself, ye -means. D'ye s'pose my kernel hobnobs wit' anyt'ing lessen royalty? De -king sent fer him, an' he goed to Lunnon a' purpose." - -"'Wot is yer Majesty's command?' sez de kernel. - -"'Kernel,' sez he, 'when I seed yer men on p'rade las' Sunday, I turned -to Lord Kitch'ner an' sez: "Kitch'ner, it ain't right t' keep men as -good as dat in England; dere place is at de front!"'" - -"You was sure needed there," Tim's vis-à-vis interjected sarcastically; -"good thick-headed fellers t' stop a bullet." - -Tim ignored the remark, and continued: - -"So he sez, 'Kernel, yer unit 'ull be de first t' leave fer France, an' -good luck t' ye!' Wit dat de kernel comed back, an' now we're goin' to -see de Pea-jammers." - -"Wot's them?" the other growlingly inquired. - -"Don't ye know wot Pea-jammers is yet? Ye muster bin eddicated in night -school. Pea-jammers is Frenchmen." - -By what process of exclusion Tim had arrived at this strange decision -with reference to the French, none but himself knew; and he never by any -chance alluded to them otherwise. - -"All in, men!" shouted the sergeant-major, and each man scrambled to his -allotted place. - -To look at the rough exterior of our men one would not suppose that -music lurked within their breasts--nothing more unlikely seemed -probable; and yet, listen to the vibrant harmony of their chorus as they -sit upon their bags and boxes! It rolls in melodious waves over the -camp, and crowds of soldiers come running toward the road to listen. -Oh, you may be sure they had their good points, those lads of ours--so -many good points, too! - -The lorries started, and the boys lifted their voices to the strains of -"Good-bye, Dolly, I Must Leave You." The little crowd which lined the -road on either side raised their caps and gave three cheers in kindly -token of farewell. As we looked back upon those stalwart soldier-boys, -many a wistful glance was cast toward us, and many a longing eye -followed the trail of our caravan. - -Night had fallen before our train puffed noisily into the railway sheds -at Southampton. How hungry we were! And the sight of the crowded buffet -and its odour of steaming coffee gave us a thrill of expectant delight. - -There are times in life when it takes so little to please or interest -one. In the ornate grandeur of a metropolitan hotel such coffee and -cake as we received that night would have called forth a clamour of -protest; but in the rough interior of a dockyard shed no palatial -surroundings mar the simple pleasures of the soul. What delicious -cheese our quartermaster produced out of a mud-covered box, and how -splendidly crisp the hard-tack, as we crunched it with hungry teeth! -Seated on our bags and boxes, we feasted as none but hungry soldiers -can, and the murky coffee turned into nectar as it touched our lips. - -Through the big doorway, too, the eye could feast on the towering side -of the ship which was so soon to take us to our great adventure, as she -lay snuggled against the quay. But as we rested there, another train -pulled into the sheds and stopped. The doors were opened from within, -and we were surprised to see hundreds of great horses step quietly and -solemnly out upon the platform. There was a marvellous dignity about -those tall, magnificent animals, with their arched necks and glossy -coats. They drew up upon the platform in long rows like soldiers. -There was no neighing, no kicking or baulkiness. They seemed to be -impressed with the seriousness of the mission upon which they were sent. -A little later, as they passed up the ship's gangway, and were marched -aboard, no regiment ever stepped upon the deck with finer show of -discipline. - -Our saddle horses were already aboard; but what had become of Barker and -the team? - -"Where's Barker?" the colonel suddenly demanded. No one present knew; -but, as if in answer to his question, little Huxford came running down -the platform. By the look of distress upon his face we knew something -serious had happened. - -"What is it, Huxford?" cried the colonel, as Huxford approached. - -"Barker's been arrested, sir, by the military police, and the team are -in the detention camp, four miles from here," he gasped. - -"Drunk, I suppose?" the colonel queried angrily. - -"Well, sir, he _had_ had a drink or two, but not till after we got to -town," Huxford answered reluctantly. - -"I might have guessed as much," said the colonel with some bitterness. -"It's useless to depend upon a man who drinks. Here, Fraser," he called -to Captain Fraser, "take a taxi and make the camp as quickly as -possible. The boat sails in two hours. Don't fail to bring both Barker -and the horses--although, Lord knows, Barker would be no great loss." - -It was characteristic of the colonel that no matter what scrapes we got -into, no matter what trouble or humiliation we caused him, he never -forsook us. More than once in the days that were to follow he saved -some reckless youth from being taken out at early dawn and shot; not -because he did not feel that the punishment was deserved but because his -big, kindly heart enwrapped every one of his wayward soldier-boys with a -father's love. - -An English regiment was embarking upon the same ship with us. The -donkey engine was busy again hauling their accoutrement and ours aboard. -Great cases swung aloft in monotonous yet wonderful array. Sometimes a -wagon was hoisted into the air; again a motor truck was lifted with -apparent ease, swayed to and fro for a moment high above our heads, and -then descended to the depths below. By midnight the ship was loaded, -but Barker and the team with Huxford and Captain Fraser had not -returned. - -The transport officer addressed the senior major. - -"I'm sorry," he said, "but I can't hold the ship more than ten minutes -longer. If your men don't arrive by that time they'll have to remain -behind." - -The colonel had gone to meet the train on which the nursing sisters were -to arrive. They were coming from London to join us, and were to cross -upon the same boat. But the colonel returned alone. - -He was a tall, well-built, handsome man, and his winning smile was most -contagious. It took a great deal to ruffle his genial good nature, and -his blue-grey eyes were seldom darkened by a frown, but this was a night -of unusual worry. - -He called out to Captain Burnham: - -"Have your luggage brought ashore, Burnham. You and I will remain -behind to chaperon the nurses. They can't possibly make the boat." - -"What's the trouble, sir?" Burnham inquired, as he descended upon the -quay. "Was their train late?" - -The colonel laughed a trifle impatiently. - -"No; the train was quite on time, but I have been having a new -experience. I under-estimated the baggage of thirty-five women, that's -all. It's astounding! I don't know how many trunks each nurse has, but -the _tout ensemble_ makes Barnum's circus train look foolish. I -ventured to remark that we were only going to the war, not touring -Europe, but this precipitated such a shower of reproach upon my innocent -head that I made no further protest. I was never able to oust one woman -in an argument. Imagine, then, where I stood with thirty-five! The -trunks, every one of them, will cross with us to-morrow, and if they -wish to bring Peter Robinson's whole shop, you won't hear a murmur from -me!" - -At this moment the sound of horses' hoofs coming at the gallop broke -upon our ears; and Captain Fraser, himself driving the team, with Barker -and Huxford clinging to the seat for support, dashed upon the quay. As -the horses pulled up, Barker descended and stood sheepishly awaiting the -inevitable. - -"Barker, I'm ashamed of you," the colonel said in a tone of stern -reproach. "You have been the first to bring disgrace upon our unit, and -I hope you will be the last. In future Huxford will have charge of the -team. I shall have something further to say when we reach France. Get -aboard!" - -Barker dropped his eyes during this speech. - -"I'm sorry, sir, I--I didn't mean to disgrace you, sir!" With these -words he saluted and shuffled humbly and contritely aboard. - -It was many a long day before Barker tasted liquor again. The colonel's -words burned with a dull glow in his heart, and kindled a spark of -manhood there. - -Crossing the Channel in those days was not as comparatively safe as it -is to-day. Under the water, always prowling about, lurked the German -submarines. Every day reports of their dastardly deeds came to hand. -Being torpedoed was not the sort of end which one might wish. There was -no honour or glory in such a death, and besides, the water looked dreary -and cold. In spite of oneself the thought of being blown suddenly into -the air recurred occasionally to mind. It was not that we had any real -fear, for any form of death was part of the game of hazard on which we -had embarked. But we stood for some time upon the deck and peered -inquisitively into the darkness as we steamed rapidly out into the -Channel. - -What was the dull glow at some distance ahead? Perhaps a ship--it was -impossible to say. We looked astern, and there in the darkness we could -just discern a ghostly shape which followed in our wake, and, hour by -hour, ahead or behind, these two mysterious phantoms followed or led our -every turn. - -Dawn was breaking; the hazy shapes became more real. Slowly the -daylight pierced the mist, and there revealed to our astonished gaze, -were two sturdy little torpedo boat destroyers. It was a part of that -marvellous British navy which never sleeps by night or day. - -What a sense of security those two destroyers gave us! The mist closed -round us again, and hid them from our view, but ever and anon the roar -of our siren broke the silence and presently, close by, a sharp -answering blast told us that our guardians were near. By and by the fog -closed round about us so densely that further progress was unsafe, and -so the engines were stopped, and for another day and night we remained -at sea. - - - - - *CHAPTER IV* - - -During the day and a half that we stood out in the Channel fog, -wondering whether we should ever reach land, or whether a stray German -submarine would send us to a higher sphere, we had plenty of time to -look about the ship. She was an India liner which had been pressed into -service as a troop ship; and the Hindu stewards looked after our many -wants as only the Oriental can. - -What a far-reaching cosmopolitanism emanates from that little land of -Britain! Here were English officers giving orders to the Hindus in -their own mysterious tongue; and the deference with which these men -obeyed helped us to realise Britain's greatness. To conquer a country, -tame it, civilise it--sometimes by force--and still retain the love and -respect of its inhabitants, is a power given to but few peoples; yet -Britons possess it to the full. - -On Sunday morning--a bright warm day in early November--our ship steamed -slowly into the port of Le Havre. We lingered a few minutes near a high -stone quay. Close beside us was a Belgian hospital ship, its white and -green paint and big red crosses contrasting strangely with our own dull -grey. We could see the nurses and medical officers on board ministering -to their patients with tender care and solicitude. - -We were steaming slowly through a narrow channel between block after -block of wharves, where ships unnumbered piled their ocean freight. -Finally we emerged into a great basin filled with craft, both large and -small, some of which were dismantled. Across the bay a splendid ocean -liner reared her four smokeless funnels toward the sky; she was one of -that great fleet of passenger ships, so recently the pride of France, -now thrust aside by the stern demands of ruthless war. - -At length we docked, and as we stood leaning over the rail, some little -children came running down the quay to greet us. - -"_Messieurs! Messieurs! Bon jour!_" they cried; and then for the first -time we realised that we were in a foreign land. - -_France, la belle France_! How often have we dreamed of you in better -days! Bright, vivacious France, whose wit and laughter sparkled like -champagne, whose joy was ever rampant! How soon your smiles and tears -were to intermingle with our own! - -But the soldiers on board had not yet learned to speak in French, and -they responded in our own dull tongue: "Good-day, little girls. Hello, -little boys," and they dropped silver coins and pennies on the quay. - -The French children had already learned a word or two of English, and -they had also discovered that the Tommy understood two very useful -French words. Not to be outdone in courtesy, they flung them up to us -in piping chorus: "Good-night, cigarette, souvenir!" - -How many thousand times we have since heard this same greeting! It has -become the children's formula, and as a gracious concession to our -ignorance of French has met its just reward--in pennies. - -Dusk fell before we had completed the unloading of our equipment and had -it all stowed away in the _hangar_. Then we formed up and, with a -French boy-scout as guide, started our march toward camp. - -The senior major, on his splendid black horse, led the van; the men, -contrary to military custom, carrying a Union Jack, followed, and -Captain Reggy and I, mounted, brought up the rear. - -The first half-mile of our march was uneventful, as there were few -people in the streets of the _basse ville_; but as we passed farther up -into the city the sidewalks became crowded with spectators. At first -the French mistook us for English soldiers on the march, the sight of -whom, while an almost hourly occurrence, was still a matter of keen -interest. But as the crowd, becoming larger and larger, and pushing one -another off the sidewalks into the road, caught a glimpse of our -shoulder badges marked "Canada," the word was passed from mouth to mouth -with lightning-like rapidity, and the excitement became intense. - -They broke forth into the wildest cheering and shouted again and again, -"_Les Canadiens! Vive le Canada!_" until the clamour was deafening. -Men, women and children surrounded us in thousands, laughing, singing -and talking, shaking the soldiers by the hand, embracing and even -kissing them in the excess of their welcome. - -That the boys weren't always kissed on account of their irresistible -beauty may be gathered from this little conversation which took place -_en passant_: - -"_Mon Dieu!_" exclaimed one of the girls to her nearest neighbour, "why -did you kiss that ugly face?" - -"Because," was the reply, "he looked so lonely--he seemed to need it -most." - -They marched up the street with us, arm in arm, all who could get near -enough, and threw a thousand questions at us in one unintelligible -clatter of French. It was a welcome to stir the blood of the coldest, -and from that moment we took France to our hearts, as she had taken us, -and held her fast. - -What did the landing of a mere handful of Canadians mean to France? -There weren't enough of us to be of much importance, compared with the -thousands of other British troops which landed daily. But the French, -with their keen sense of appreciation, recognised at once that the -advent of this little Canadian band had a broad significance; it meant -that in her great struggle for the cause of liberty and humanity France -was to be supported not only by Britain but by the far-flung elements of -the Empire. It meant encouragement; it meant success! - -And as they shouted "_Vive le Canada_" we echoed with a will, "_Vive la -France_." We sang, too, "God Save the King," and "_La Marseillaise_." -A few who knew English joined in the first, but "_La Marseillaise_" -starting by courtesy with us, swelled in a moment into a mighty anthem -which swept the city like a storm. Later, when we followed with "The -Maple Leaf," a respectful silence fell upon the throng. With quick -intuition they knew it was a song of home, with which they sympathised, -but which they could not understand. And as the melody concluded we -could hear them whispering one to another: "_Quelle est cette chanson?_" -And we answered in our broken French, "It is a song of our native land, -far, far from here." - -It was my good fortune during this strange march to ride upon the side -close to the curb, while Reggy, in comparative obscurity, rode opposite. -Frequently, too, it was my privilege to return the greetings of the -dainty French girls who lined the walk and waved their handkerchiefs -high above the heads of the crowd in the road. - -At last Reggy, trotting along in the shadow, could contain himself no -longer. He burst out: - -"Hang it all, major! Just my bally luck again; you're always closer to -the girls than I." - -"But not closer to their hearts, Reggy dear," I interjected soothingly. - -"Small consolation, that, in the present situation," Reggy was -grumbling, when he was suddenly interrupted by a pretty black-eyed girl -who, running alongside his horse, caught him by the hand and forthwith -begged a kiss. I believe--or, rather, I hope--Reggy blushed. I should -always like to think that at that precise moment Reggy's sense of -modesty came to his rescue. If it did, however, it vanished again with -alarming rapidity. - -"Here's an embarrassing situation," he cried dolefully. - -"Very trying, indeed, to have a pretty girl demand a kiss," I laughed. - -"Confound it!" he returned. "That's not the trouble; but I'm not -horseman enough to lean over and get it." - -There, you see, Reggy in one fell moment had destroyed all my illusions -about him. Here was I worrying over his distress and presumed -embarrassment, while he, hopeless young scamp that he was, showed actual -regret because he couldn't fall from grace. - -"I would suggest that you dismount," I answered, in a spirit of sarcasm. - -For a moment I believe this insane thought obsessed him, and then his -latent sense of military discipline and dignity saved him. He turned -regretfully to the young lady, and pressing her hand warmly--very -warmly, I thought--broke forth in schoolboy French: - -"_Merci, cherie! Mille fois, mille fois_. Another time will have to -do." - -"_Est-ce-que vous parlez Français, monsieur?_" she demanded sweetly. - -"Rather rough on your French, Reggy," I teased, "asking you, after that -brilliant sortie, if you really speak the language." - -Reggy appeared hurt. - -"Look at you," he cried, "riding along like a bloated monarch, scooping -in the obeisance of the whole kingdom, and because I command the -attention--and, I trust, respect--of only one of your subjects, you're -jealous. Out upon you--for shame!" - -All good things come to an end at last. For half an hour we had been -princes or kings, drinking in the nectar of adulation in mighty gulps. -It turned our heads and made us dizzy, and this feeling of elation -lasted long after we had left the crowd behind, and the faint cry of -_Vive les Canadiens_ followed us into the darker streets. We toiled -slowly over the cobble stones, up the steep hill, and finally into camp. - -The camp commandant came to meet us a few minutes after we arrived. He -was a fine-looking specimen of British officer--tall, athletic, with -iron-grey hair and keen blue eyes. He smiled as he greeted us. - -"Good evening, gentlemen," he said, as the senior major approached and -saluted. "Where have you all come from?" - -"Originally from Canada, sir," the major replied, "but recently from -Salisbury Plains." - -"How interesting," he cried in a tone of delighted surprise. "I had no -idea the Canadians were coming to France so soon." - -"Weren't you expecting us, sir?" the major ventured. - -The commandant laughed good-humouredly. We seemed to amuse him. - -"Well, not exactly," he replied; "but you are quite welcome. Take those -three rows of tents, draw your rations and make yourselves at home. One -of these days orders will come along for you." - -One of these days! Well, well! Was he actually addressing us in that -careless and flippant manner, we who had just taken France by storm? -Alas! we were not so important after all. For a full hour we had looked -upon ourselves as the whole war, and the rest of the British army as a -mere background to our glory. And now we were told that "one of these -days!" It was really too bad. But still, he was kindly and courteous, -and behind those smiling eyes lurked a great sympathy, I am sure, for -our little band. - -We looked about us and then we understood. There were miles of tents. -Regiments of soldiers were marching in and regiments were marching -out--the Highland "kilties" with their sporrans swaying to and fro in -stirring unison. We heaved a sigh. It was all too true. We were only -one small cog in the great machine! - -But the senior major was elated with a strange and inexplicable emotion. -After the commandant had bidden us good-night, he paced back and forth, -with his hands behind his back and his head in the air. He raised his -feet high as he walked, and clicked his spurs with the firmness of his -tread. Something was effervescing in his mind, and soon would blow his -mental cork out. What was it? He twirled his moustaches from time to -time and smiled a crafty smile. At last it popped: - -"Gentlemen," he said, "that's one thing which no one can ever take from -me!" - -"What?" we cried breathlessly. - -"That _I_ was the first officer who ever led a Canadian unit into -France!" - -Oh, the supreme egotism and self-love of old bachelorhood! We turned -away without a word, in time to hear little Huxford's piping voice in -ungrammatical query. - -"Did ye had a good time to-night, Bill?" - -And Bill's reply echoed the sentiments of all our hearts. - -"Did I?" he cried exultantly. "_Some_ class!" - - - - - *CHAPTER V* - - -How it stormed that night! Thunder, lightning, rain and wind combined -in one uproarious elemental war. It seemed as if no tent on earth could -stand the strain. Once I peeped outside, and in the flashes saw vistas -of tents rolling like great white-crested waves on an operatic sea. -From time to time the cracking of poles and the dull swish of canvas, -blending with the smothered oaths of men beneath, told us that some tent -had fallen. - -Reggy slept as peacefully as a new-born babe. Tucked into his canvas -sleeping-bag and with a woollen toque pulled well down over his ears, he -was oblivious to the storm, and in the faint glimmer of our -candle-lantern looked like an Eskimo at rest. - -Peg after peg jerked out of the ground, and our tent commenced to rock -to and fro in a drunken frenzy. Would the guard never come to tighten -the guys? They seemed to have forgotten us. Warmly ensconced in my -blankets and half asleep in spite of the noise, I lay and from time to -time idly wondered how much longer the tent would stand. - -Sometimes I dozed and dreamed of getting up to fix it, and saw myself -crawling about in wet pyjamas in the wind and rain. The thought awoke -me; the tent was flapping still. Reggy, as the junior, was in duty -bound to right it; but if the storm couldn't wake him, what could mere -man do? I dozed again and awoke just in time to see the canvas give one -last wild gyration. Then it crashed down upon us. - -"Hi! What the d----l are you doing now?" - -It was the sleep-saturated voice of Reggy in angry, smothered tones -beneath the wreck. For answer to his question, a gust of wind lifted the -canvas from his face, and a spurt of rain, with the force of a garden -hose, struck him. - -"O Lord!" he howled. "The bally tent's blown down!" Reggy's -perspicacity, while sluggish, was accurate. - -"Get up, you lazy blighter, and lend a hand!" I shouted between blasts -of wind and rain which soaked me through and through. - -"Ugh! You wouldn't ask a chap to get up in a storm like this," he cried -appealingly. - -I didn't. I merely took the lower end of his sleeping-bag and emptied -it, as one would a sack of potatoes, onto the floor. Reggy emerged like -a rumpled blue-bird. - -"Rotten trick, I call that," he grumbled, as he scrambled to his feet. - -Luckily by this time the guard arrived to help us, and after a long -tussle with the ropes, the tent was pitched once more, and we crawled -back to bed. - -The morning sun rose clear and bright and smiled as if it had no -memories of the night before. Wherever one might look tents lay in -heaps upon the ground, but not a breath of wind stirred the fresh cool -air. Fainter and more faint from the distance came the weird strain of -the bagpipes--a Highland regiment was passing down the hill, starting on -that long journey whence all might not return. - -Our men had breakfasted and were already at work raising the fallen -tents. The adjutant emerged from his abode wearing a weary smile--he -hadn't slept much. - -"'What of the night?'" he cried. "The storm has given me an appetite. -Where's breakfast? I'm as hungry as an R.M.C. cadet." - -Where indeed was breakfast? As yet we had no "mess"; our goods were -still unpacked. - -"There's a soldiers' buffet managed by ladies in the cottage yonder," -said Fraser, pointing to a brick house on the crest of the hill. Trust -Fraser to know where grub abounds! "Perhaps I can persuade the little -lady of the place..." - -"You'll need help," Reggy interpolated hastily. "Some one with -persuasive powers. I'll go along." - -Reggy's eagerness to go suggested other distractions than foraging. We -said we would accompany him--lest he forget. We entered a long room at -the rear of the house, which had been a carpenter's shop before the war. -It was furnished with two long tables, benches, and a large number of -kitchen chairs. The carpenter's tools hung unused upon the wall. At the -farther end of the room several young women and one of maturer years -were rapidly cutting up bread and meat for sandwiches, buttering -appetising French rolls and placing them all in large baskets. It -looked enough to feed a multitude. - -We approached the table. One young woman looked up, apparently more -from courtesy than with any special interest in our arrival, and said: -"Good morning!" - -It was true then; they _were_ English-women. They were as cool--and -refreshing--as the air outside. Reggy saluted gravely. - -"May we have something to eat, please?" he inquired hesitatingly. - -The young woman looked up again, with a surprised smile. "But you are -not Tommies," she replied. - -"No; merely officers, and very hungry ones at that." - -She looked a trifle perplexed. "We don't serve officers here," she -asserted. "You see, this buffet is meant for Tommies only." - -Bless their hearts! Here at least was one place where the officer was -discounted, and Tommy was king. We had been fêted and pampered to such -an extent that we had lost sight of the true proportion of things. Here -were women who realised that Tommy is quite as important as his officer, -that he is a man and as such has rights. We honoured the young women -who could thus devote themselves to the men who really needed their help -most. But this elevating thought did not appease our hunger in the -least. We still wanted something to eat, and the dainty food before us -failed to modify our internal cravings. - -"Couldn't we have just one bun?" Reggy coaxed. - -The young woman smilingly shook her head. "It's against our rules," she -replied. - -Reggy looked distressed. We imitated his look with such success that -another young woman, who seemed to be the one in authority, came forward -and volunteered: - -"If you will step into the house, gentlemen, I shall see what the -_concierge_ can do for you there." - -That we didn't fall upon her neck in sheer thankfulness speaks well for -our self-control. We kept sufficient restraint upon ourselves, however, -to merely murmur our gratitude in becoming words. We explained that we -had just arrived, and that our mess was not yet open. - -"Well, well," she laughed. "Of course, we can't let you starve, but you -really mustn't eat in here." - -If the angels in heaven look anything like that sweet young woman as she -appeared to us at that moment--well, it's a great incentive to lead a -good life, that's all. - -We were ushered into a quaint French dining-room, furnished with -hand-carved mahogany. That a carpenter should have such exquisite taste -surprised us. We were yet to learn that the artistic sense is a keynote -of French character. The owner of the cottage was away at the war; he -was one of the poilus who were then, and are still, upholding the -martial traditions of a noble fighting race. His wife spread a dainty -table for us, and we breakfasted for the first time in France. - -Our menu consisted of small mackerel, rolls and coffee! How prosaic it -sounds in English! We shall always remember that _petit dejeuner_ in -French: _Petits maqueraux, petits pains et café-au-lait._ What music -there is in such a language! The food itself loses its identity and is -transformed into the sustenance of the gods! - -Days passed by, but there was no word from our colonel, and no orders -came for us to move. Had they all forgotten us? Had we by mischance -taken the wrong boat and landed in the wrong part of France? What had -become of our colonel and the rest of our unit? These thoughts -perplexed and worried us. But one day, as we were lunching, a messenger -suddenly appeared at the tent door and asked for the senior major. - -"Telegram for you, sir," he said. - -The major slowly unfolded it, read it as slowly, refolded it and placed -it in his pocket without a word. Could it be from the colonel? If so, -where was he? The major continued his meal. At last Fraser could bear -the suspense no longer. - -"Was that a message from the colonel?" he inquired anxiously. - -"It was," the major replied. - -One might have heard the proverbial pin drop--the strain was so intense. -Would he never go on? Were we to hear nothing further? - -Fraser ventured again: "What does he say?" - -The senior major got up and left the tent without a word. - -Even after all these months it pains me to record the bitter -disappointment of that moment. All men have their peculiarities--Some -are afflicted more than others. We may forgive, but we cannot always -forget. And yet he had his good points, too; he wasn't quite all bad. -Perhaps Fraser's question was injudicious; perhaps he hadn't been -deferential enough to his senior officer. At any rate it was two days -later when we first heard the news. The adjutant, who had been taken -into the major's confidence, whispered the message to us: - -"The colonel is at Boulogne, and orders will be sent us in a few days to -join him. I have been told not to tell you, but I must relieve your -anxiety. Keep it secret!" - -How we loved him for his thoughtfulness! The tension was broken. We -were once more happy and content. - -Three days later the order came to move. We were to entrain at midnight, -and all day long we were busy packing. By nine everything was ready. -The motor lorries were loaded, and we started our march toward the -train. It was a pitch-black night and rain swept the streets in -chilling torrents. - -One of the horses of our team had a chafed back and could not be -harnessed, so that my horse was selected to take his place. The wagon -was piled high with the kit-bags of the men, and from this elevation one -of the orderlies held the halter of the sick horse, which followed -behind. We started down the steep hill from the camp, horses and men -alike slipping upon the wet and greasy cobblestones. - -Suddenly a slight explosion startled the led horse. He reared upon his -hind legs, jerked the halter from the hand of the orderly and bolted -down the hill into the darkness. Who would dare follow him? To ride -down that incline at any rate faster than a walk was sheer recklessness. -Surely no horse or man who attempted to do so would return alive. But -Huxford, putting spurs to his horse, plunged down the hill at breakneck -speed, a shower of sparks flying out on either side as the horse's steel -shoes struck the stones. - -"Good God!" cried Barker; "he'll never come back--he's a dead man!" - -"Why didn't he let the horse go?" cried the senior major anxiously. -"Now we've lost two horses and a man. He doesn't know the city or where -we are going, and even if he gets through alive, he'll never find us -again." - -"How could he expect to overtake a run-away horse in a strange city on a -night like this? It's madness!" exclaimed the adjutant. - -"He was a fine lad," said the quartermaster sadly, as though Huxford -were already dead. "Seems such a pity to lose him. I didn't think he -had the courage to do it." - -But war shatters preconceived ideas. No one can tell which men are -brave until the crisis comes. Those who seem strongest fail; those who -seem weakest succeed. - -A gloom had been cast over us all. We despaired of seeing Huxford -again--except perhaps to find his mangled body somewhere at the foot of -that long hill. When we reached the bottom he wasn't there, and we went -on despondently for a mile or more, knowing the hopelessness of trying -to find him; when suddenly, as we turned a corner, he appeared, still on -horseback and leading the runaway. A cheer from the boys greeted him. - -"Well done, Huxford!" cried the senior major. "We never expected to see -you again!" - -"I couldn't let him go, sir, 'cause th' colonel giv' th' horses into my -charge, an' he _had_ to be caught." - -May we all fulfil our duty as faithfully as this lad! - -The queer little French train, with its cars marked eight -_chevaux_--forty _hommes_ (8 horses--40 men) was waiting at the station -when we arrived. The transport officer had told the senior major not to -leave until he had received his papers, but to get the men and horses -aboard. - -Shortly before midnight all were entrained. The equipment and horses -were loaded, but there was no sign of either engine or conductor. We -unrolled our sleeping-bags, placed them upon the seats in the -compartment coach and fell asleep. At four a.m. we were awakened by an -angry discussion taking place on the train platform. One voice was -French, evidently that of the train conductor; the other was -unmistakably that of the senior major. He was talking very loudly: - -"I tell you, you can't move this train one inch until I get my papers." - -The reply was in French: - -"_Comprend pas, monsieur!_" Evidently he was about to signal the -engineer to start. - -"Stop! I command you to stop!" shouted the major again. - -The Frenchman understood the action, if he failed to understand the -words. "_Il faut partir tout de suite, monsieur_," he replied with -respectful firmness, and then, placing the bugle to his lips, he blew a -signal to the engineer and the train started. - -The major sprang from the platform just in time to catch his coach. He -had not received the papers, and had had an unintelligible wordy duel in -which he had been vanquished. He was boiling with rage. - -"If I had my way," he stormed, "there would be only _one_ language in -the world!" - -We were off once more. We had but a faint idea of where we were going, -but we were on our way. - - - - - *CHAPTER VI* - - -When we awoke the sun was high in the heavens, and through the train -windows we could see the steep banks of the Seine as we wound along that -picturesque river toward Rouen. From time to time we passed small -villages, the red tile of their roofs contrasting prettily with the -snow-white of the walls. Some houses were decorated with bright blue or -green, and as they swept by the window in kaleidoscopic array, the scene -was one of manifold variety. - -The French love a dash of colour; it is manifest everywhere--in their -clothes, their houses and their military uniforms. In the larger cities -where civilisation is over-developed, and humanity is more effete, the -bright colours have given place to pale and delicate shades--an -indication of that transformation of life which we call art. But in -these little country villages, a thousand years or more behind the -times, Dame Nature still holds sway, and the primary colours riot in -their rugged strength. Centuries from now these rural hamlets, grown to -greater size, losing their primitive audacity, will fade as well; and -looking back will marvel at the boldness of their youth. - -Every quarter-mile along the track a lone sentinel, in sky-blue coat and -scarlet cap, guarded our path. With fixed _baionette_ he stood hour by -hour, watchful and keen. He had a little thatched sentry-box into which -he might retire when it rained, and through the small round windows -watch on either side. - -As we pulled into the railway station at Rouen, we could see resourceful -"Tommy" cooking his breakfast on a little charcoal stove. "Tommy" is -always at home, no matter where we find him--whether it be on the -battlefields of France or Belgium, or on the rock-bound shores of -Gallipoli. - -Our men descended from their coaches, lugged out their bags of bread, -their cheese and jam and "bully-beef." The sergeant-cook meted out each -share, and they soon were at their morning meal. - -A few hours later Reggy and I were seated at luncheon in the _Hotel de -la Poste_. The _salle a manger_ was filled with English, French and -Belgian officers, and their wives or friends, and to the casual observer -the place was as gay as in times of peace. But in spite of the bright -colours of the uniforms, in spite of the "chic" Parisian hats and pretty -faces of the ladies, one felt over all an atmosphere subdued and -serious. - -It is true wine sparkled upon almost every table, but in France this -doesn't necessarily mean gaiety. Every Frenchman drinks wine, but it is -very rare indeed to see one drunk. Wine, like water at home, is used as -a beverage--not as an intoxicant. - -Imbued with the spirit of the time and place, Reggy and I called for a -bottle of old _Chambertin_, and under its mellowing influence, care and -the war were soon forgotten. - -Of course we visited the Cathedral, and listened to the old sexton -pouring incomprehensible data into our stupid ears for half an hour -while we examined the rare stained windows and the carved oak door. -When we returned to the train, the senior major and the transport -officer were deep in conversation: "But where are your papers?" the -R.T.O. was asking. - -"We haven't any," the major replied. "That French conductor wouldn't -hold the train until they arrived. Can't we go on without them?" - -"Where are you going?" - -"We presume to Boulogne--the rest of the unit is there, but we have no -orders. When does the train leave, please?" - -"There'll be one at 3 p.m., and if you wish to take that, get your men -aboard." - -We might have been touring France--he was so nonchalant, and there was -such an absence of "red-tape." Imagine in these hyper-martial days -being told to "take the 3 p.m. train if we wished!" Nowadays it is not -a matter of volition; units go where and when they are commanded, and a -definite system has replaced haphazard. But the old way had its good -points--it still let one believe he was in part his own master. - -Having a sense of duty and, moreover, being anxious to reach our -destination--wherever that might be--we entrained once more and -travelled all the balance of that day and night. - -Promptly at 3 p.m. Reggy fell asleep, and didn't wake once, not even to -eat, until the following morning at six o'clock, when with a crash he -was thrown off his couch to the floor of the train. Thus rudely -startled, but not quite wide awake, he ejaculated: - -"Torpedoed, by Gad!" - -We didn't take time to wake Reggy and explain the situation, but sprang -to our feet and threw open the door of the train. What had happened? -We were at Boulogne; our train had collided with another in the railway -yards, but fortunately only one coach was crushed and no one hurt. We -descended to the tracks and found other coaches on other trains in a -similar condition. - -It was not difficult to understand the cause. The German spy leaves -nothing undone, and was very careful to attend to such details as -changing the railway switches to the wrong tracks. By now the spies -have been almost completely weeded out; but in those days they were very -active. - -How thorough was their system was well illustrated when, later on, the -Western Cavalry entered the trenches. A wooden horse rose instantly -above the German trench, bearing this legend: "Western Cavalry, come -over and get your horses!" Our boys promptly shot the offending animal -full of holes. It fell; but in a moment was raised again with bandages -about its neck and leg! - -Despite the early morning hour, in a railway car a few yards from us, -several young Englishwomen were busy serving hot cocoa and rolls to the -hungry soldiers. The interior of the coach had been transformed into a -kitchen and travelling buffet. Every man in uniform was welcome to -enter and partake free of charge. We took advantage of this practical -hospitality and, much refreshed, returned to our own train. - -At another platform a regiment of Ghurkas were engaged loading their -equipment. One came across to our engine and drawing some hot water -from the boiler, washed his teeth and mouth with infinite care. - -The Ghurka is so like the Jap in appearance that when, later, we saw a -body of these brave little chaps, with their turned-up Stetson hats, -marching along the street, for a moment we actually mistook them for our -Oriental allies. It was only when we observed their short broad swords -(kukris) that we realised it could be none other than these famous men -from India. - -The colonel was at the station to meet us. How glad we were to see his -genial face once more! - -"Your billets are all arranged," he said. "The officers will stay at the -_Louvre_ and the non-commissioned officers and men at the _Jean d'arc_ -theâtre." - -The men were lined-up and, now that the unit was once more complete, -formed quite an imposing sight. In those days medical units wore the -red shoulder straps; the privilege of retaining these coloured straps -has been granted only to members of the First Contingent. - -The men marched across _Le Pont Marguet_, up the main thoroughfare, -along the _Rue Victor Hugo_, crossing the market place, and in a narrow -street not far from the market found the little theâtre. It made a -perfect billet, the main hall serving as a mess room, and the gallery as -an excellent dormitory. - -The quartermaster, Reggy, and I were billeted in one large room at the -_Louvre_. Our window overlooked the basin and across the quay we could -see the fish-wives unloading the herring boats as they arrived in -dozens. With their queer wooden shoes (sabots) they clack-clacked -across the cobblestones; their large baskets, overflowing with fish, -strapped to their backs. Among all the varied odours of that odorous -city, that of fish rises supreme. It saluted our nostrils when we -marched in the streets, and was wafted in at our windows when the -thoughtless breeze ventured our way. - -We could see too, the Channel boats arriving at the dock, bringing -battalion after battalion of troops. These rapidly entrained, and were -whisked away in the shrill-whistling little French trains toward the -battlefront. - -Sometimes convoys of London 'busses, now bereft of their advertisements -and painted dull grey, filled with "Tommies" destined for the "big -show," passed by the door and rolled away into the far beyond. - -The second morning of our stay at Boulogne Reggy awoke feeling that he -really must have a bath. Why he should consider himself different from -all the other people in France, is a matter I am not prepared to -discuss. A bath, in France, is a luxury, so to speak, and is indulged -in at infrequent intervals--on fête days or some other such auspicious -occasion. - -He rang the bell to summon the maid. In a few moments a tousled blonde -head-of-hair, surmounted by a scrap of old lace, was thrust inside the -door. - -"_Monsieur?_" it enquired. - -Reggy prided himself upon his French--he had taken a high place in -college in this particular subject, but, as he remarked deprecatingly, -his French seemed a bit too refined for the lower classes, who couldn't -grasp its subtleties. - -"_Je veux un bain_," he said. - -He was startled by the ease with which she understood. Could it be that -he looked--but, no, he appeared as clean as the rest of us. At any -rate, she responded at once in French: - -"_Oui, monsieur_. I'll bring it in to you." She withdrew her head and -closed the door. - -"What the deuce," cried Reggy, as he sat up quickly in bed. "She'll -_bring in_ the bath! Does she take me for a canary?" - -"A canary doesn't make such a dickens of a row as you do," growled the -quartermaster, "looking for a bath at six a.m." - -I tried to console him by reminding him that it was much better to have -Reggy sweet and clean than in his present state, but he said it made -small difference to him as he had a cold in his head anyway. Reggy, as -an interested third party, began to look upon our controversy as -somewhat personal, and was about to interfere when a rap at the door cut -short further argument. - -Two chambermaids entered the room, carrying between them a tin pan about -two feet in diameter and six inches in depth. It contained about a -gallon of hot water. They placed it beside his bed. - -"_Voici, monsieur!_" cried she of the golden locks. - -Reggy leaned over the side of the bed and looked down at it. - -"_Sacré sabre de bois;_" he exclaimed. "It isn't a drink I want--it's a -bath--'bain'--to wash--'laver' ye know!" - -He made motions with his hands in excellent imitation of a gentleman -performing his morning ablutions. They nodded approvingly, and laughed: - -"_Oui, monsieur_--it _is_ the bath." - -"Well, I'll be d----" But before Reggy could conclude the two maids had -smilingly withdrawn. - -Reggy explored the room in his pyjamas and emptied our three water -pitchers into the pan. - -"Now I'll at least be able to get my feet wet," he grumbled. "Where's -the soap?" he exclaimed a moment later. "There isn't a bally cake of -soap in the room." - -It was true. This is one of the petty annoyances of French hotels. -Soap is never in the room and must be purchased as an extra, always at -the most inopportune moment. After half an hour's delay Reggy succeeded -in buying a cake from the porter, and his bath proceeded without further -mishap. He then tumbled into bed again and fell asleep. - -The maids shortly returned to carry out the bath, but when they saw how -Reggy had exhausted all the water in the room they held up their hands -in undisguised astonishment. - -"Monsieur is extravagant," they exclaimed, "to waste so much water!" -Fortunately "Monsieur" was fast asleep, so the remark passed unnoticed. - -Later we approached the _concierge_, and asked here if there were not a -proper bath-tub in the place. She laughed. _Les Anglais_ were so much -like ducks--they wanted to be _always_ in the water. - -"But I will soon have it well for you," she declaimed with pride. "I am -having two bath tubs placed in the cellar, and then you may play in the -water all the day." - -At the time we looked upon this as her little joke, but when, weeks -later, one early morning we noticed a tall _Anglais_ walking through the -hotel "lounge" in his pyjamas, with bath towel thrown across his arm, we -realised that she had spoken truth. The bath tubs were really and truly -in the cellar. - -It was ten days before we succeeded in locating the building which we -wanted for our hospital. All the suitable places in Boulogne were long -since commandeered. Every large building, including all the best -hotels, had been turned into hospitals, so that we were forced to go far -afield. Finally, twenty-two miles from the city, we found a summer -hotel exactly suited to our needs. It was in a pine forest, and close -to the sea shore, an ideal spot for a hospital. - -During these ten days the talent of our corps conceived the idea of -holding a concert in the _Jean d'arc_ hall. - -At this time all theatres, music halls, and even "movies" in France were -closed, and music was tabooed. France was taking the war seriously. -She was mourning her dead and the loss of her lands. The sword had been -thrust deeply into her bosom, and the wound was by no means healed. The -streets were filled with widows, and their long black veils symbolised -the depth of the nation's grief. - -Let those who will admire the light-heartedness of Britain--Britain -wears no mourning for her heroes dead. In Britain it is _bourgeois_ to -be despondent. We keep up an appearance of gaiety even when our hearts -are heaviest. But France is too natural, too frank for such deception. -What she feels, she shows upon the surface. At first our apparent -indifference to our losses and hers was a source of irritation. France -resented it; but now she knows us better. We are not indifferent--it is -merely an attitude. The two nations now understand one another, and in -that understanding lies the foundation of a firmer friendship. - -With success and confidence in the future, France has risen out of the -"slough of despond." She has recovered a portion of her old-time -light-heartedness. We thought her effervescent, artificial and -unstable; we have found her steadfast, true and unshakable. She has -manifested throughout this desperate struggle a grim and immutable -determination that has been the marvel of her allies and the despair of -her enemies. - -Realising the temporary distaste for amusement in France, our little -concert was intended to be private and confined solely to our own unit. -But a few of the new-found French friends of the boys waived their -objections to entertainment, and as a special favour volunteered to -come. - -It was a strange and moving sight to see a Canadian audience in that -far-off land, gravely seated in their chairs in the little hall, waiting -for the curtain to rise. Our staff of Nursing Sisters honoured the boys -with their presence, and every officer and man was there. Thirty or -forty of the native population, in black, a little doubtful of the -propriety of their action, were scattered through the khaki-clad. - -The boys outdid themselves that night. How well they sang those songs -of home! We were carried back thousands of miles across the deep to our -dear old Canada, and many an eye was wet with tears which dare not fall. - -But reminiscence fled when Sergeant Honk assumed the stage. Some one -had told Honk he could sing, and--subtle flatterer--he had been -believed. With the first wild squeaky note we were back, pell-mell in -France. The notes rose and fell--but mostly fell; stumbling over and -over one another in their vain endeavour to escape from Honk. Some -maintained he sang by ear. Perhaps he did--he didn't sing by mouth and -chords long lost to human ken came whistling through his nose. The song -was sad--but we laughed and laughed until we wept again. - -[Illustration: THE SONG WAS SAD--BUT WE LAUGHED AND LAUGHED UNTIL WE -WEPT AGAIN] - -At the end of the first verse he seemed a little bewildered by the -effect, but he had no advantage over us in that respect. At the end of -the second verse, seeing his hearers in danger of apoplexy, he -hesitated, and turning to Taylor, the pianist, muttered in an aside: - -"They downt understand h'English, them bloakes--this ayn't a funny -song--blimed if I downt quit right 'ere, and serve 'em jolly well right -too!" - -And under a perfect storm of applause and cries of protest, Honk -departed as he had come--anglewise. - -Tim and his brother then had a boxing-bout; and Cameron, who acted as -Tim's second, drew shrieks of joy from his French admirers, between -rounds, as he filled his mouth with water and blew it like a penny -shower into the perspiring breathless face of Tim. - -"A wee drap watter refraishes ye, Tim," he declared argumentatively -after one of these showers. - -"Doze Pea-jammers tinks it's funny," Tim puffed. "Let dem have a good -time--dey ain't see'd nuthin' much lately---an' a good laff 'ull help -dem digest dere 'patty de frog-grass!" - - - - - *CHAPTER VII* - - -It was my fate, or fortune, to be in charge of the advance party which -was detailed to prepare for the opening of our hospital. - -Captain Burnham and I, with about forty N.C.O.s and men, and with two -days' rations, left Boulogne one cold November afternoon, a few days -after the concert. After a slow train journey of three hours' duration, -we were deposited at the railway station of a fishing village on the -coast. - -If Boulogne prides itself on its odour of dead fish, this little place -must be an everlasting thorn in its side; for all the smells of that -maladorous city fade into insignificance before the concentrated -"incense" of the back streets of Etaples. We didn't linger -unnecessarily in the village, but pushed on at the "quick-march" and, -crossing the bridge, were soon on the broad paved road which runs -through _Le Touquet_ forest. - -It was just dusk, and snow had fallen to the depth of about two inches; -the most we saw in two winters during our stay in that part of France. -It was a crisp, cold evening, and the swinging pace of our march did -much to keep us warm. - -From time to time we passed large summer residences and artistic villas -partly hidden in the woods, but all the doors were closed, and all the -windows were dark. Not a human being passed us on the road, and the -noise of our shoes crunching through the crusted snow was the only sound -which broke the solemn stillness of the air. - -Our men too seemed oppressed with the weird solitude of the forest and -seldom spoke above a whisper. - -"Seems as though the world were dead," said Burnham, after we had walked -nearly two miles in silence. - -"Yes," I replied, "it gives one a creepy feeling passing through this -long dark avenue of pines. The houses too look as if the inhabitants -had fled and that no one had the courage to return." - -"I understand the _Bosches_ were through quite close to here," Burnham -remarked, "in their first mad dash for Paris, and that some German -soldiers were killed near the outskirts of this wood." - -"By the gruesomeness of it I can imagine they were _all_ killed," I -replied. - -By this time we had turned at right angles to our former path and -entered another long avenue of trees. The white walls of an isolated -mansion stood out in the distance against the black-green of the forest -and the fading purple of the evening sky. The grounds about it were -enclosed by a high pointed iron fence; it looked a veritable prison. - -After tramping another mile we emerged into an open space between the -trees and the rolling sand dunes of the coast, and saw before us a large -limestone building, three stories in height and almost surrounded with -broad, glass-enclosed balconies. The tracks of a disused tramway ran to -the gate, and the rust upon the rails spoke more forcibly than ever of -desolation and desertion. - -We passed through the stone gateway and crossed the snow-covered lawn. -Everything was as dark and dreary as the grave. Surely no one was -within! We mounted the steps and rang the bell. Its peal reverberated -strangely through the empty halls. After a few moments, however, a -light appeared and a solitary man entered the rotunda; he turned the -electric switch, flooding the room with a bright light. He came to the -door, unlocked it, and rolled it back slowly upon its wheels. - -"Gut evening, zhentlemen," he said in English, but with a peculiar -Franco-German accent difficult to diagnose. "It iss fery kolt, iss it -not?" - -We acknowledged the fact. - -"You are vrom the Canadian Hospital?" he queried. - -"You were evidently expecting us," I replied. "We are the advance party -from that hospital." - -He pushed the door wide for us to enter. We didn't debate the propriety -of accepting the hospitality of a German, but marched in at once. - -"Your dinner vill be retty in a leedle vhile. I vill haf Alvred ligh'd -you the grate, und you soon fery comfortable vill be." - -"Show me to the kitchen first," I asked him, "and let me see what -arrangements you have for supper for the men. When they are made -comfortable it will be plenty of time for our dinner." - -He piloted us into a large room with red tile floor. There was good -accommodation for the men, and the kitchen ranges were close by. They -had their cooks and rations with them, and as soon as we had chosen -their sleeping quarters and had seen that everything was satisfactory we -returned for our own dinner. - -In a commodious room, just off the rotunda, a roaring coal fire was -blazing on the hearth. Big easy-chairs had been conveniently placed for -us, and Burnham and I fell into them and stretched our tired feet toward -the fender upon the rich red Turkish rug. The table was spread close -by, and we noticed the fine linen, the sparkling cut glass, crested -silver and _Limoge_ china. The scent of delicious French cooking was -wafted to us past the heavy silken hangings of the door. Presently our -German host appeared once more: - -"Vat vine vill the zhentlemen have mit zehr dinner?" he enquired -politely. - -Burnham threw himself back into his seat and laughed aloud. "Holy -smoke!" he chuckled, "and we are at the war!" - -"What wines have you?" I enquired tentatively. - -"Anyzing you wish to name, zir," he responded with a certain show of -pride. - -I thought I would put him to the test. "Bring us a bottle of 'Ayala,' -'04 vintage," I commanded. - -"Mit pleasure, zir." And he bowed and retired to get it. - -Burnham slapped his knee and burst out: "Am I awake or dreaming? We -walk four miles through a stark forest on a winter night, enter a -deserted hostel, are received by a German spy and fêted like the Lord -Mayor. I expect to fall out of the balloon any minute and hit the earth -with a nasty bump!" - -"I'm a little dazed myself," I admitted, "but it's all a part of the -soldier-game. Some other day we'll find the cards reversed, and have to -play it just the same." - -Our host, however, was not a German, although that was his native -tongue. He came from that little-known country of Luxembourg, which, -sandwiched in between France and her Teutonic enemy, has still -maintained a weak and unavailing neutrality. Being too small and -unprotected to resist, the German army marched unmolested across it in -the early days of war. - -"Alvred," who was a French-Swiss, and spoke more languages than I can -well remember, waited upon us at table. We were just finishing an -excellent five-course dinner with a tiny glass of _coin-treau_, when the -sound of a motor-car stopping at the door aroused us from our dream of -heavenly isolation. - -As we stepped into the hall, the door opened, and in walked the colonel, -the senior major and the quartermaster, who had followed us from -Boulogne by road. - -"Well, how do you like our new hospital?" the colonel demanded with a -satisfied smile. - -"We love it," Burnham exclaimed. "It is weird, romantic and altogether -_comme il faut_." - -I suggested that a liqueur and a cigar might not be unacceptable after -their long drive. The colonel smiled appreciatively as he replied: - -"We _are_ a bit chilly after our journey; I think a little drink will do -us good. What do you say, Major Baldwin?" This question was addressed -to the senior major, who, with the others, had now entered our dining -room. - -The artistic surroundings drove the major into poetry at once. He -exclaimed: - - "'Ah! my beloved, fill the cup that clears - To-day of past regrets and future fears.'" - - -"Splendid!" cried Burnham enthusiastically. "Now, let's have 'Gunga -Din'--you do it so well! How does it go? 'You're a better drink than I -am, Gordon Gin!'" - -"No, no!" said the major deprecatingly. "You mustn't abuse Kipling--it's -too early in the evening." - -Whether the major intended abusing that famous author at a later hour, -or merely reciting from him, we didn't enquire. We talked until late, -formulating our plans for the morrow and for many days to come. We made -a tour of inspection about the building. The colonel unfolded his plans -as we walked along the halls. - -"This suite," he said, as we came to the end of the hall, "will make a -splendid pair of operating rooms, an anæsthetic and a sterilising room. -The fifth will do for a dressing room for the surgeons, and in the sixth -Reggy will have full sway--that will be his eye and ear reformatory. On -the left we'll install our X-ray plant, so that all surgical work may be -done in this one wing." - -"What about the hotel furnishings," I enquired, "are they to remain in -places?" - -"Everything must go, except what is absolutely necessary to the comfort -or care of patients," he replied. "It seems a pity, but we are here not -only to cure patients, but to protect the Government from needless -expense. In the morning set the men to work dismantling the entire -building." - -We walked along to the opposite end of the hall. - -"Here's a fine room," exclaimed Major Baldwin, as he peeped into the -dainty boudoir which I had chosen as a bedroom. "Who sleeps in this -luxurious state?" - -"I do--for to-night," I replied. - -"I want that room for myself," he declared. "It looks like the best in -the place." - -How is it we always want that which the other fellow has? Its value -seems enhanced by its inaccessibility. - -"It shall be yours to-morrow night," I replied to this covetous request. -It was no deprivation to give it up as there were fifty other rooms, -which the Major had not seen, more richly decorated and more attractive -than mine. This little room was cosy and prettily furnished in -bird's-eye maple. It boasted an Axminster rug, a brass bed, and the -glow from the open fire lent it a charm which had captivated Major -Baldwin's eye. - -There were other suites of rooms, with private baths attached, and hot -and cold running water. The floors were covered with costly Persian -rugs, and the furniture was of hand-carved olive wood or mahogany. -Private balconies overlooked the golf course and the forest. Every -detail bespoke wealth and luxury combined with the most modern -contrivances for comfort. - -The colonel was amused at us: "Pick out whatever rooms you like," he -said, "and enjoy yourselves while you may, for in three days' time no -one but patients will live in this building. The men will sleep in the -Golf-club house, the nurses in one of these deserted villas, and we -shall have another villa for ourselves." - -We discovered that our hospital building was owned by an English -company; hence the great number of bathrooms--thirty-four in all. The -halls and glass enclosed balconies were steam heated throughout, and -each room had its old-fashioned open fireplace to combat the chill of -winter days. - -At midnight the colonel and his party left us and commenced their return -journey to Boulogne. Burnham and I climbed the stairs to my bedroom, -our footsteps echoing loudly through the untenanted halls. We sat and -chatted for an hour before the fire. I was getting very sleepy--we had -dined well--and as I looked at Burnham his form seemed to dwindle to -smaller and smaller proportions until he looked like a pigmy from -Lilliput. I amused myself awhile watching this strange phenomenon. By -and by his diminutive size provoked me to remark: - -"Do you know, Burnham, although an hour ago when you entered the room, I -mistook you for a full-grown man, I can now see that in reality you are -only about ten inches tall--yet your every feature is perfect." - -"Much obliged for the compliment implied in your last clause," he -laughed; "you corroborate suspicions which I have long entertained that -I'm a handsome dog whose beauty has remained unappreciated. It's a -strange coincidence, but I am labouring under the opposite delusion, and -although an hour ago you waddled into the room--just an ordinary fat -man; now I view you as a Colossus." - -I rather approved his regarding me as a Colossus, but saw that I must at -once frown upon that "waddling" idea. It's an impression I can't afford -to let go abroad. - -"Come, let's to bed," I cried, "and sleep 'will knit your ravelled -sleeve of care'--I really think your wide-awake impressions are the -worst!" - -We arose at six and under our direction the men commenced the work of -disrobing the hotel. The stern necessities of war permit no sentiment. -Everything had to go: The beautiful paintings, the silken hangings, the -Oriental rugs, the artistic statuary, were all rapidly removed and -packed away for safety. The card and dining rooms and lounges were -stripped of their carpets, and before night its former guests would -scarce have recognised the place. Sanitation is the first and paramount -law of a Military Hospital; carpets and unnecessary furniture are a -source of danger, for such a variety of diseases follow the troops that -special care must be given to every possibility for infection and its -prevention. - -By five that evening the colonel, the matron and the nursing sisters -arrived, and a few hours later came the balance of our officers and men. -Motor lorries and ambulances toiled through the gates, laden with our -equipment. Hundreds of boxes, crates of iron beds, bales of mattresses -and blankets, folding bedside tables, bags of tents and poles, were -brought to the door in an apparently endless stream. As fast as the -lorries arrived the men unloaded them, piling boxes and bales under the -balconies for protection. - -Huxford and the team did their share too, bringing up loads of food from -the train for the men and for prospective patients. - -The senior major was pale and tired; he had been up since dawn and had -worked hard. Nothing had been forgotten, and the transport of men and -accoutrement had been accomplished systematically and well. He was a -good soldier, true to his duty, stern and unflinching, and he never -asked others to work without being willing to do more than his own -share. Tired as he was, he would neither rest nor eat until the last -box was unloaded, and the last lorrie had left the grounds--and the men -shared his deprivation. - -It was almost nine p.m. as Tim and Barker, staggering under the weight -of a tremendous case, came across the driveway and dumped the last box -to the ground. Tim sat breathless for a moment upon it, then looked -wearily up at Barker, with his head on one side as was his custom when -he soliloquised. - -"Dat's a heavy load t'get offen an empty stummick," he gasped. "I can't -lif annuder poun' until I gets a slab o' roas' beef under me belt. I'm -dat hungry I could lick de sweat off a bake-shop window." - -"I smell supper cookin' now," said Barker. "Did ye see th' ranges? Some -cookery, I kin tell ye--they kin roast a whole cow at one time!" - -"An' I kin eat dat same cow jus' as fas' as dey kin roast it," Tim -declared. "I'm dat weak from starvation dat a drink uv holy water 'ud -make me drunk!" - -About nine-thirty p.m. the men fell upon their supper like a pack of -hungry wolves. - -"Gee!--Don't food taste good--when ye're hungry," drawled Wilson, with -his mouth full. - -"Dat's right," Tim replied. "Glad t' see ye're perkin' up an' takin' a -little notice agin. I fought youse and Huxford wuz about all in." - -"Where'd you get the onion?" Wilson queried. - -"I foun' dis in d' hotel garbage," said Tim, as he took a large bite out -of a Spanish specimen, "an' I wuz jus' t'inkin' wat a diff'rence there -is 'tween an onion and a cake. Hav ye noticed it yerself?" - -"I hevn't eat cake in so long I don't s'pose I could tell 'em apart -now," Wilson replied. - -"Well, dey say ye can't eat yer cake an' hev it too; but wit an onion -it's different--wen ye eat it, it's like castin' yer bread upon de -troubled waters--it'll always come back t' ye." - -Cameron looked up as if he were about to correct this scriptural -misquotation. It seemed to harass his religious sense. He opened his -mouth to speak, but it was too full for utterance, and he had to content -himself with a reproachful look at Tim. - -Ten o'clock found everybody sleepy and exhausted. The boys didn't -trouble to go to their quarters, but, crawling into any available -corner, threw themselves down upon bundles or empty beds, and soon were -fast asleep. The sergeant-major was too tired to care, and for one -night at least discipline was happily forgotten. - -In the morning early we were at it again, tooth and nail. If some of -our friends at home, who think the trained nurse is too proud to work, -could have only seen those splendid girls on their first day in the new -hospital, they would still be lost in wonder. They washed woodwork and -windows, helped to put up unruly beds, swept the floors and did a -hundred other menial labours--menial only because in our artificial life -we call them so--cheerfully and speedily. - -If some day, by chance, one of our nursing sisters reads these lines, -and blushes at the recollection of her work that day, let her remember -that by that very labour, in our eyes, she was glorified. We shall -always remember with pride those brave girls who were not afraid, when -duty called, to "stoop and conquer." - -The following evening I was despatched to Boulogne to interview the -A.D.M.S. regarding our hospital. I was met at the office door by the -D.A.D.M.S., who was one of that breed of cock-sure officer--now _merci a -Dieu_ almost extinct. - -"Hello," he cried brusquely. "Is your hospital ready for patients?" - -"We should prefer another day or two of preparation, sir," I replied. - -"How long have you been out there now?" he demanded. - -"Two days, sir." - -"What! At the end of two days you mean to tell me you're not ready! -You're very slow." - -It was the first time we had been accused of sluggishness. It was -undeserved, and I resented it accordingly. I replied--not too politely, -I fear: - -"You will please remember we had to dismantle and remove the carpets and -furniture of a large hotel, take stock of the fixtures and house-clean -the building before commencing the setting up of our hospital equipment. -We are ready for two hundred patients now--but we prefer another day or -two to make everything complete." - -"I'll send you two hundred patients to-night," he cried. "Be prepared -for them." - -The A.D.M.S., a typical English gentleman of the old school, interfered. -He called his deputy aside and said to him: - -"You mustn't rush patients into a new hospital in this manner. Give -them a few days' grace." He turned to me and continued: "You will -receive a trainload of patients three days from now. That will give you -plenty of time. Kindly inform your commanding officer to this effect." - -Some men brush one's fur the wrong way, and others smooth it back again. -I had been so rumpled by the D.A.D.M.S. that every bristle of my not too -gentle nature was standing on end--it was not only what he said, but the -manner of the saying; yet the A.D.M.S., with one gentle, kindly stroke -of common sense, had soothed and made me human once again. I felt my -wrath slipping quietly away, and I basked for a moment in the sunshine -of a genial personality. I gratefully murmured: - -"Thank you, sir. I shall tell him." - -"I trust your hospital will soon prove itself a credit to your staff and -to Canada. Good night, and good luck," he said, as he shook me warmly -by the hand. - - -It was midnight of the third day after this interview. The orderly on -duty in the hall was suddenly startled by the sharp ring of the -telephone bell. He sprang to his feet and put the strange French -receiver to his ear. - -"Yes, this is the Canadian Hospital," he answered; and a distant voice -gave this message: - -"A train-load of three hundred wounded will arrive at the station at two -a.m. Be ready for them!" - - - - - *CHAPTER VIII* - - -At last the time for action had come. Three hundred wounded would -arrive in two hours; one-fifth the number would throw the average city -hospital into confusion. Nurses and officers hurried from their villas -to the hospital. The cooks and orderlies were already on duty, and the -hospital presented a scene of bustling but systematic activity. - -Our ten wards, each named after a province of our beloved Dominion, were -soon ready for the reception of patients, and the deft hands of the -nursing sisters added the final touch of extra preparation. - -The colonel's motor car throbbed in waiting at the door, and ambulance -after ambulance, with its quota of stretcher-bearers, whirled away into -the darkness of the forest on the road to the station. It was a clear, -cold nights. The ground was hardened by the frost, and the pale -quarter-moon cast a faint chill light over the trees. - -Reggy and I clambered into the colonel's car as it started, and in a -moment we were moving swiftly through the gaunt, trembling shadows of -the wood. As we approached the turning of the road we could see in the -distance the flashing headlights of other motors from the English -hospital, as they too sped toward the train. - -When we reached the station a constant stream of vehicles was pouring -through the gates, and as fast as each car or ambulance arrived, it was -backed into the waiting line. Every few yards carbide jets spluttered in -the wind, adding their fitful glare to the strangeness of the scene. - -After about an hour's wait the shrill whistle of the incoming French -train warned us that our vigil was nearly over. In a few minutes the -coaches, each with its big red cross, came clanking slowly into the -station yard. Car after car passed by: one, two, three,--ten,--twenty; -it was a tremendous train. At last it stopped, the doors opened and we -had our first glimpse of the brave boys who had held the line. - -Dozens of Scots and English battalions were represented, but there were -no Canadians save ourselves as yet in France. Some of the boys could -stand or walk, and they clambered slowly and painfully down the steep -steps and stood in little wondering groups. God knows they looked -tired, and their clothes were still covered with the dried mud from the -trenches; for during a battle speed and the necessities of the moment -are the important things--the refinements of civilisation must await -time and opportunity. Many were smoking cigarettes; some had bandages -about their head or hands or feet; some had their arms in slings; but -from none was there the slightest groan or sound of complaint. They -waited with soldierly but pathetic patience until we were ready to take -care of them. - -One tall young man who was standing apart from the others and whose face -was unusually pale, approached me and saluted. His right hand was -thrust into the bosom of his coat, with his left he nervously drew a -cigarette from his pocket. - -"Would you mind helping me light this, sir?" he asked respectfully. "I -can't protect the match from the wind." - -As I assisted him I enquired: "Have you had your right hand wounded? I -see you keep it in your coat." - -"It's not exactly that, sir," he replied, with a faint smile. "I have -no right hand--had it blown off this morning." He drew the bandaged -stump from his breast as he spoke and held it up for inspection. - -"But you must be suffering frightfully!" I exclaimed in pity, surprised -at his coolness. - -"It does give me 'Gip' now and again. I can bear it better when I -smoke," and he pulled tremulously at his cigarette. - -I helped the brave fellow into one of the waiting motors and turned to -see what I could do for the others. There were dozens with bandaged -feet who limped slowly toward the ambulances. - -"What has happened to you chaps?" I enquired, as I came to a group of -six, all apparently suffering from the same condition, and who could -scarcely walk. - -"Trench feet, sir," they answered readily. - -At the time this was a new disease to me, but we soon saw all too much -of it. It corresponds quite closely to what in Canada is known as -"chilblain," but is much more painful, and is in some ways equivalent to -"frost-bite." It is caused by prolonged immersion in ice-cold water or -liquid mud. In those days too, the trenches were not as well built as -they are to-day, or the ground was lower and more boggy. Men were -subjected to great privations, and suffered untold hardships. "Trench -foot" has now almost entirely disappeared, and conditions in the -trenches are altogether better. - -"Were you standing long in the water?" I asked them. - -"We've been in it night and day since Sunday," they replied---and this -was Friday! - -"Was the water deep?" I asked. - -"The mud was up to the waist," one answered; "an' poor Bill Goggins -stepped in a 'ole in the trench an' were drowned afore we could get to -'im." - -Another spoke up: "A lad from my platoon got into a part of the trench -that were like a quicksand, on'y 'e went down so fast--like as if there -was a suction from, below. We seen 'im goin', an' 'e called fer 'elp, -but w'en we got to 'im 'e were down to 'is chin, an' we couldn't pull -'im back." - -"Good heavens!" I exclaimed in horror. "Was he drowned too?" - -"'E were that, sir," he replied. "It were jolly 'ard to see 'im go, an' -us right there!" and there were tears in the good fellow's eyes as he -spoke. - -"Climb into the motor, boys," I said. "We'll try to make up a little -for the hell you've all been through." - -There were others who had been severely wounded; some with broken arms -or legs; some shot through the head or chest. It was wonderful to see -the gentleness and kindness of our own rough lads as they lifted them -tenderly from bed to stretcher, and carried them from the train to the -waiting ambulances. - -I stepped inside the train for a moment. It was a marvel of a hospital -on wheels. It had comfortable spring beds and mattresses, and soft -woollen blankets. There were kitchens, a dispensary, an emergency -operating room and even bathrooms. A staff of medical officers, nurses -and trained orderlies did all which human power can do to make the men -comfortable during a trying journey. Every man had had his supper, and -his wounds had been dressed _en route_ as scientifically and carefully -as if he had been in a "Base Hospital." - -The ambulances rolled slowly away from the train with their precious -loads, the drivers cautiously picking their way along the smoothest -parts of the road; for to the man with a broken leg or arm the slightest -jolt causes pain. - -We saw the boys again at the entrance to the hospital, lying in rows on -stretchers, or standing patiently in line, waiting until their names and -numbers were duly recorded. Each one, as this procedure was completed, -was given a little card on which the name of his ward and the number of -his bed was written. He was then conducted or carried to his allotted -place. - -How tired they looked as they sat wearily upon the edge of their beds, -waiting for the orderlies to come and assist them to undress! But even -here they were able to smile and crack their little jokes from bed to -bed. - -As soon as they were undressed, they were given a refreshing bath, in -which they revelled after their weeks of dirty work and mud. After the -bath came clean, warm pyjamas, a cup of hot cocoa or soup, a slice of -bread and butter, and last, but to the soldier never least, a cigarette. - -To him the cigarette is the panacea for all ills. I have seen men die -with a cigarette between their lips--the last favour they had requested -on earth. If the soldier is in pain, he smokes for comfort; if he is -restless he smokes for solace; when he receives good news, he smokes for -joy; if the news is bad, he smokes for consolation; if he is well--he -smokes; when he is ill--he smokes. But good news or bad, sick or well, -he _always_ smokes. - -As I entered the ward a Highlander, not yet undressed, was sitting upon -the side of his bed puffing contentedly at his cigarette. His tunic was -still spattered with dried blood. - -"Are you badly wounded?" I asked him. - -"Not verra badly, sir," he returned, as he stood at attention. - -"But you have a lot of blood on your tunic," I said, pointing to his -right side and hip. - -"It's not a' mine, sir," he replied as he grinned from ear to ear--"it's -a souvenir from a _Bosche_, but he did make a sma' hole in ma thigh wi' -his bayonet." - -"And what happened to him?" - -He laughed outright this time. "He's got ma bayonet an' ma rifle too," -he cried. "Oh, man, but it was a gran' ficht!" - -"Is he dead?" I asked. - -"Dead?" he exclaimed. "I hae his top-hat wi' me noo;" and he held up a -Prussian helmet to our admiring gaze. - -I congratulated him and passed on; but I had little time just then for -chatting. All the wounds had to be unbandaged, washed and freshly -dressed, and although we worked rapidly, the nurses undoing the bandages -and attending to the minor cases, while I did the more serious ones -myself, it was broad daylight before we had finished. The morning sun, -stealing gently over the trees, found patients and doctors alike ready -for a few hours' sleep. - -A similar scene had been enacted in every other ward. It was nearly six -a.m. as the other officers and myself, with the exception of the -unfortunate orderly officer, started down the road toward the villa. -Our billet was about a quarter-mile away, but our "mess" was in the -hospital building. I crawled into bed at last, very, very weary, and in -a few moments was lost to the world. - -It was Tim who finally roused me from this heavy sleep. He was standing -at the foot of my bed with his head on one side in his customary -bird-like attitude. His stiff black forelock hung straight over his -brow. I was just conscious enough to hear him saying: - -"Wake up, maje!" - -Before strangers, or before brother officers, Tim was always respectful -to us. He was a trained soldier, and, when occasion demanded, could be, -and was, very regimental. But in the privacy of our home (of which he -was in charge) Tim treated us like children whose pranks might be -tolerated but must not be encouraged. - -"What's the trouble, Tim?" I enquired sleepily. - -"It's time to git up," he complained. "D'ye s'pose ye're goin' t' sleep -all day, jes' because ye loss ye're beauty sleep las' night? Dis is -war--dis is!" - -"What's the hour?" I asked. - -"It's ten o'clock," he replied, "an' dat Cap' Reggy's in de nex' -room--chloroformed agin; wit his knees drawed up an' his mout' open -ventilatin' his brain. Dey ain't a Pullman in de whole worl' dat's as -good a sleeper as dat gent." - -By this time I was fully awake, as Tim intended I should be. I turned -over on my side and addressed him: - -"Run downstairs now, Tim, and make me a good hot cup of coffee, and a -slice of toast with fried mushrooms on top." - -Tim stared at me a moment in open-mouthed amazement. We weren't -supposed to eat at the villa, but Tim was a good cook and those he -favoured with his "friendship" might coax a cup of tea before rising. - -"Fried mushrooms," he repeated, as he went toward the door, shaking his -head slowly from side to side. "Fried--mush--rooms! Gees, an' dey -calls dis _active_ service!" - -But in spite of this show of pessimism, he returned shortly with the -breakfast as ordered. - -When we reached the hospital that morning everything was as neat and -clean as though nothing had happened the night before. No adequate -description can be given of the trained nurse at the front. She is one -of the marvels of the war. Patient, industrious, cheerful, -self-sacrificing and brave, she has robbed war of much of its horrors. -She has made the wounded soldier feel that a sister's care, a mother's -love and a clever woman's skill follow him wherever he goes. Her smile -has cheered his lagging day; her gentle touch has soothed his pain and -the warm sympathy of her kindly heart has made the foreign land a home. -Under stress of work and nervous strain, ever forgetful of self, always -thoughtful for others, no truer or nobler band of gentle women ever left -the shores of Canada. - -The patients had had a refreshing sleep and a good breakfast and were -now snugly tucked in their clean sheets and warm blankets, looking very -happy and contented. Even those who were badly wounded had partly -forgotten their troubles. Some had souvenirs--German rifle bullets or -bits of shell which had been extracted at the Clearing Hospital farther -up the line, and these they exhibited with great pride to their fellow -patients. The German helmet was always an object of interest. The -slanting cut in the glossy leather of one spoke better than words of a -bayonet thrust which had gone home. Each little bedside table had a few -priceless trinkets, bought with blood, and brought with great difficulty -and care from the battlefield. - -It was our custom to postpone surgical operations, except urgent ones to -save life, for one or two days, in order to give the tired soldiers a -chance to get a much-needed rest--a simple expedient whereby many lives -were saved. The patients were grateful for this little reprieve, and -showed their gratitude by recovering more rapidly. - -But sometimes it was necessary to operate at once. That morning I found -a poor chap who had been shot through the brain with a rifle bullet. -The missile had entered the temple and emerged at the back of the skull, -fracturing the bone both at the point of entry and exit. His heavy -breathing and stupor told us the case called for immediate relief. In -the operating room pieces of the skull were removed, the depressed bone -lifted, and in about an hour the patient was taken back to his ward. We -had little hope of his recovery. - -The following day, when I entered the hospital, his bed was empty. I -thought: "Poor fellow! He has died in the night and no one has sent me -word." I turned with a feeling of disappointment to the man in the next -bed and asked: - -"What has become of your neighbour?" - -"Oh," he replied, "he's just gone out to the wash room. He'll be back -in a few minutes. He stole out of the ward while the nursing sister was -in the other room." - -While we were talking he walked in, got quietly into bed and reached for -a cigarette. I bade him good morning, repressing, as well as I could, my -astonishment. - -"You are feeling better this morning?" I remarked, as casually as if he -had had a cold in his head. - -"Oh, yes, I'm very well in myself, sir," he replied with a contented -smile, "but I have a little headache--I'm thinkin' the bandages are a -bit tight." - -I loosened them and gave him a warning not to get up again. He seemed -disappointed, but promised not to transgress a second time. - -It is surprising and pleasing to know that a large percentage of men -shot through the brain recover. Seven out of nine who entered the -hospital one day, some months later, made a good recovery, and when they -left were apparently mentally sound. - -A young lieutenant who arrived with one train load of wounded, walked -unassisted up the steps, and smilingly addressed the Registrar: - -"About a week ago, a sly bullet popped over the trench and caught me in -the temple. Fortunately it passed out through the opposite side. They -took me down to the Field Ambulance, and, as the surgeon wasn't very -busy that morning, he said he'd like to take a look inside and see the -works." He laughed aloud at this gruesome witticism and continued: "So -he gave me a whiff of ether, opened the skull and, just as I expected, -found 'nobody home.' He closed the door, and here I am, as fit as a -fiddle. What a lucky devil I am to have no brains!" - -A number of wounded officers had arrived with the men, and many of our -private rooms were filled. We had retained the brass beds, a few -practical chairs and small rugs for these rooms, and with a good fire in -the grate they looked particularly cosy and attractive. - -The nurses, too, took special pride in supplementing the meals of the -patients, both officers and men, with delicacies of their own. To the -hot roast chicken was added creamed asparagus or French peas, followed -by appetising salads of fresh green vegetables--which may be had in -France the year round. A bottle of ale or wine and hot-house grapes or -Spanish canteloupe helped to make life pleasant and hastened them along -the road to health. Oh, you may well believe that nothing was omitted -which made for their comfort or well-being. We felt, and justly so, -that for the men who "held the line" there was nothing in this wide -world half good enough. As the inspecting general remarked to the -colonel a few days later: - -"Give the boys the best the land affords--if they want Malaga grapes, -get them. If they want beer or wine, let them have it. Spare no -expense that will make them happy and well--they deserve it all!" - -As I entered the room of a young English captain, I found him propped up -in bed with a few magazines and books beside him. He was looking very -bright and happy. - -"How are you feeling this morning?" It was our stock question. - -He smiled pleasantly as he replied: "Splendid, sir, splendid. Your -nurses are charmingly attentive and kind. The rooms and meals are -delightful. I'm in great dread lest I get well too soon!" - -He was wounded in the foot; it had been shot through with a piece of -high explosive shell. The small bones were fractured, but he appeared -to be suffering little. The nurse deftly assisted me with his dressing; -after we had finished he said: - -"I have a slip of paper here you might be interested to see. I shall -always treasure it as a souvenir of a brave man." - -He handed me a little crumpled square on which a few lines in pencil -were scrawled, and continued: "I showed that note to my commanding -officer before they carried me away. It was an humiliation, but it was -my duty." - -"What does it mean?" I asked him. "I'm sure this little bit of paper -has a history." - -He smiled reminiscently and began: "Our company had been holding a point -in the lines which, under a terrific bombardment, had become untenable. -The commanding officer ordered us to withdraw to a safer trench in the -rear. I called my men and we succeeded in retiring to the position -indicated, in good order and with few casualties. - -"I thought every man had left the advanced trench, but a few moments -later when a small body of Germans attempted to storm it, we were -astonished to see it defended by rapid rifle fire from some unknown -source. The battle raged for some hours all along the line, but still -this little spot was stubbornly held. Again and again the Germans -assailed it; but each time with the same lack of success--each attack -they lost twenty or thirty men, and those who reached the trench were -apparently unable to oust its mysterious defenders. When dusk fell the -fighting ceased; and shortly after, I received this little note--it -speaks for itself." - -I spread the paper upon my knee and read: - - -"_Sir:_ - -"Two other men and I were left behind when the Company withdrew. During -the fight we collected in eight stragglers from other battalions, so we -are now eleven. We held the line against all the attacks. If you, sir, -and the rest of the company wish to come back now, the trench is -perfectly safe. - -"JAMES GUFFIN, - "_Sergeant._" - - - - - *CHAPTER IX* - - -Every military unit at the front has its "mascot." Ours was no -exception; in fact we overdid it, and became a sort of home for pets of -all shapes and sizes, from Jean, a little French boy nine years of age, -who wandered in one day from Soissons, to nursing sister Marlow's baby -goat. - -Jean's mother was dead; his father was fighting at the front, and the -little chap being, as we discovered later, of a migratory disposition, -forsook his native haunts and "took the trail." How or why he came to -us, no one knows, but he liked our company, so he stayed. - -A small boy being the only sort of animal we had not already adopted, -was hailed with joy, and before two days had passed, we had taken up a -collection and bought him a complete military uniform, from cap to -boots. He couldn't speak a word of English--but he was a boy, and as we -too had been boys not so very long ago we understood one another from -the start. Jean picked up English words with disturbing rapidity. He -had learned several distinct and artistic varieties of oaths before we -were aware he understood at all. - -Jean and the goat had much in common. They had both been cast upon a -warlike world at a tender age. They had both adopted us, and both -accepted their living from us with gracious condescension. - -According to world-wide custom, the goat was promptly nick-named -"Billy," although he was a mere bundle of lank grey wool with legs so -long that it must have made him dizzy every time he viewed the earth -below. He was just strong enough to stagger over to the nursing bottle -which Jean held out in his grimy fist. - -Jogman loved Jean; Jean loved the goat, and the goat loved Jogman. Thus -was established an "odd-fellows" circle into which none might break. - -"Dat's a hand fer ye," Tim commented to Jogman, as the pair watched Jean -feeding the goat. "A hand like dat ain't friends wit' soap an' water, -but de goat ain't too pertickler." - -"I washed him about an hour ago," Jogman replied defensively, "but ye -can't keep th' boy clean--he ain't happy without dirt." - -Jean sat upon the ground as they spoke, still holding the nursing bottle -up to Billy's greedy mouth. He understood only a little of what they -were saying, but looked up quickly at the last few words. - -"I'm happy here--me," he cried. "_Bien content_--damn!" - -The expletive was addressed to Billy who with a sudden tug had pulled -the bottle from his hand. - -"Do ye know where small boys that swear go?" asked Jogman reprovingly. - -"Big boys what swear go to de war," Jean contended, "an' me soldier -too." - -"If you do it again I'll send ye back to yer aunt at Soissons," said -Jogman. - -The child sprang to his feet at once, and catching him by the hand cried -tearfully: "No!--No!--No!--not back to Soissons--Oh! _Je vous en prie, -non!_" - -What strange fear had driven him from home? He couldn't or wouldn't -explain it; but he was in great dread of being sent back, and it was the -one threat which influenced him. - -"Well, well," said Jogman soothingly, "be a good boy, an' don't swear no -more--then we kin keep ye with us." - -Jogman had a good heart, but a bad stomach--it's difficult to get a -perfect combination. Jogman drank; so did the goat, but they imbibed -from different bottles and with different results. He had been on his -good behaviour for almost two weeks--his money had run out. But pay day -came at last and trouble always followed in its wake. - -Thirty dollars--over one hundred and fifty francs in French money--was -enough to turn the head of any soldier. With a bulging pocket the -Tommy's heart throbbed nervously, until he got a chance to "blow it in." -But before this fortuitous event was completed Jogman had signally -disgraced himself and us. Tim accosted him as he was leaving the -hospital grounds: - -"Where are ye goin'?" he demanded. - -"Goin' to town to see th' sights," Jogman returned with a grin. - -"_Some_ sights--dose gals," Tim growled. "Remember yer failin' an' don't -hit de can too hard. I can't bear seein' ye doin' mor'n six days 'First -Field' per week." - -Jogman had good cause to know to what form of military punishment Tim -alluded. He had already had several trials of it. - -Paris-plage was only two miles distant, and its smart cafés and pretty -girls called irresistibly to the lonely boys. The girls, however, never -worried Jogman. His life was full when his stomach was full, and the -fumes of "cognac" or "whiskey blanc" beckoned him like a siren's smile. -Loaded down with his full month's pay and with a twenty-four hour pass -in his pocket, he took the shortest path through the forest towards his -objective. - -The day was clear and almost warm, and the soft breeze droned lazily -through the pines. As he reached the edge of the wood he saw before him -the sand dunes rolling gently toward the sea. There was a weird -fascination about those great hollows and hills of sand. Time and the -wind had beaten them so firmly that one might tread upon their crusted -surface and scarcely leave a footprint. Craters as large as the Roman -Coliseum, surrounded by tufted grass, spread before his gaze, but he -tramped stolidly on, hardly conscious of the lonely beauty of his -environment. All that Jogman saw was the top of the large French -hospital which marked the edge of the town and stood out clearly against -the deep blue of the sea. - -When he came to the highest point of the dunes he idly noticed the -strange house surmounting it--a dwelling made from an overturned -fishing-smack, with door and windows in its side. But a little farther -on a habitation, stranger still, by accident attracted his attention. -He had lain down for a moment's rest beside some bushes, and on turning -his head was surprised to see a small window on a level with his eyes. -The house was buried in the sand; its little door, scarce big enough to -permit a man's body to pass through, was cunningly hidden by the brush -and grass. Whoever lived within was hiding from the world. - -Jogman got upon his knees and thrust the brush aside; he pried open the -window and peered within. He saw a small room, neatly furnished with -bed and rug and chair. A dresser stood against the wall. An electric -light hung from the ceiling, but no wires were visible without. The -clothes still lying upon the bed, the overturned chair and the remains -of a lunch upon the table all spoke of a hasty departure. Perhaps it -had been the secret home of a German spy. If so, he had decamped some -time since. - -Dismissing idle speculation, but making a mental note for future -reference, Jogman rose and proceeded on his quest. He soon found -himself in the streets of that lively little town which has been aptly -called the "Monte Carlo" of northern France. Its big gambling "Casinos" -had long since been turned to better use, and the beds of wounded -soldiers now replaced the gambling tables and _petits chevaux_. - -Hurrying through the "Swiss Village" and scarcely taking time to -acknowledge the greetings of a Belgian lassie who waved her hand from a -shop window as he passed, he entered the _Café Central_ and seating -himself at one of the little round tables forthwith called for a drink. -The barmaid approached him. - -"_M'sieur veut?_" she asked. - -"Gimme a glass of Scotch an' soda," Jogman demanded. - -"Ees eet wiskie m'sieur desires?" she queried in broken English. - -"Yes--whiskey--big glass," said Jogman picturing the size with his two -hands. - -"_Oui, m'sieur._" - -She filled his glass. He drank it thirstily and called for another. -Several more followed their predecessors, and being now comfortably -alight he proceeded up street, seeking new worlds to conquer. - -The butcher-shop door stood invitingly open. Jogman entered unsteadily; -what maudlin idea was fermenting in his brain none but himself might -say. The fat butcher, meataxe in hand and pencil behind his ear, -approached to take his order. - -"_Bonjour, monsieur!_" he said. - -Jogman placed one hand upon the slab, the better to steady the shop -which, ignoring the law of gravity, was reeling in most unshoply -fashion. - -"Bone Dewar, yerself!" he cried, incensed at being addressed in an -unintelligible language. "Why th' hell can't ye speak English--like -a--white man?" - -How often we too have been unreasonably irritated by a foreign and -incomprehensible tongue! Jogman's sense of injustice was -preternaturally keen just then. The butcher was a trifle alarmed at his -attitude without in the least understanding the cause of complaint. - -"_Quest ce que vous voulez, monsieur?_" he demanded nervously. - -"Drop that hatchet!" cried his irrational customer, making a step -forward. "Drop it, er I'll drop you." - -The unfortunate shopkeeper grasped his weapon more firmly still, and -stood tremulously on the defensive. - -"I'll learn ye to do as ye're told!" shouted Jogman, and seizing a large -knife from the slab he rushed at the frightened man who ran screaming -into the street, with Jogman in hot pursuit. - -The sight of a British soldier brandishing a meat knife and chasing a -fellow citizen along the main street was terrifying in the extreme to -the peaceful denizens of the town. They ran shrieking for help, bolting -into their shops or houses, and barring the doors as though the devil -himself with a regiment of imps on horseback were at their heels. - -Jogman had cleared the _Rue de Londres_ and in the pride of drunken -conquest was about to attack the lesser streets, when the Military -Police hove in sight. Much to his annoyance the disturbance interrupted -Sergeant Honk in a monosyllabic conversation, which he was holding with -a pretty French girl. He humped himself around the corner just in time -to see the Sergeant of Police take the belligerent Jogman by the scruff -of the neck and the seat of his breeches and heave him into a waiting -ambulance. - -Honk returned to his Juliette. She had retired to her balcony and -refused to descend. Honk lifted his voice appealingly from the street: - -"H'I say! Down't ye' be h'afeered--'e won't come back, an' 'e wouldn't -'urt ye when h'I'm 'ere. Come h'on down!" - -But Juliette was obdurate, and turned a deaf ear to his entreaties. - -"_Merci--je ne descends point!_" she returned. This was about as -intelligible to Honk as Chinese script, but he understood the shake of -the head all too well. - -"Blast 'im," he grumbled; "them bloomin' blokes what drinks is goin' to -'ave th' 'ole bleedin' town h'about our h'ears. Th' gals won't look at -a decent feller soon." And he forthwith went to drown his sorrow in a -mug of beer. - -Honk's complaint was soon verified by the facts. Jogman's fame flew -from house to house with such infernal rapidity that in less than -twenty-four hours the French had learned an English phrase which it cost -our lads several months of good conduct to eradicate. It was simple and -to the point: "Canadians no good!" For weeks afterward it was shouted -at them every time they entered the village. The populace gathered in -little groups close to their own homes, while a few of the more timid -locked themselves in and shouted through the shutters these same -humiliating words. - -As Jogman was brought in to the Guard Room, Barker caught a glimpse of -him. - -"Well," Barker cried in scathing criticism; "the colonel said I wuz th' -first t' disgrace th' unit. By cripes; I wuzn't th' last. You sure -made a good job uv it!" - -The colonel was a busy man. His day was as varied and colourful as -Job's coat. When it wasn't the vegetable woman who had to be bartered -with, it was the iceman who sought, with true French business acumen, to -show him why he wasn't really overcharged, although the bill was three -times what the natives had to pay. - -"Alvred" had been installed as "Interpreter," and throughout all these -ridiculous and unsatisfactory arguments maintained a face as impassive -as an English butler at a club dinner. - -If the electric light bill to the former tenant was eighty francs per -month, and our bill was three hundred francs for the same period, -monsieur was assured, on word of honour, that the party of the first -part was undercharged, and would forthwith be requested to pay the -difference. But one thing was certain; the account against us was -_always_ correct. - -When the colonel had finished these little business details he was -hurried away to the operating room. A serious case was awaiting his -skilled hand. The wounded man, whose thigh had been shattered with a -rifle bullet, was lying upon the table waiting patiently to be -etherised. The colonel stepped over to pass a kindly word with him -before he was put to sleep. - -"And how are you this morning?" he enquired. - -"Oh, verra weel in me'self," the poor fellow answered, with a ready -smile, "but ma leg is a bit troublesome. I hope ye won't hae t' cut it -off, sir?" - -"Oh, I think not," the colonel declared reassuringly. "I expect it won't -be as serious as that." - -"In course, sir, ye'll dae whichever ye think best--but I hae a wife and -twa wee bairnies at hame, an' I were thinkin' as how I'd be better able -tae dae for them wi' baith ma legs." - -"We'll do our very best to save it," the colonel answered. - -In a few minutes we were dressed in our white gowns and caps. The X-ray -plates were brought in and placed in the illuminator for us to see the -exact damage done. The thigh bone was badly splintered for a distance -of three inches, and one large piece was torn away. We hoped to be able -to put a steel plate upon the bone, and, by screwing it down, draw the -fragments together with some fair chance of having them unite. This is -a delicate operation, and not only demands considerable skill, but the -operating facilities must be perfect. - -Fortunately our operating room was ideal, with its white enamelled walls -and marble basins, its rubber covered floor, the most modern of surgical -appliances, and, most important of all, a staff of highly trained -nurses--it was as ideal as science could make it. - -With a bright keen knife the incision was made down to the bone. Alas! -It was hopelessly fractured. For a space of several inches there was -nothing but tiny fragments, and the one long loose piece we had seen in -the X-ray plate. The colonel turned, and said: - -"What a pity! The space is so large, the bone will never regenerate. -This leg should come off--but I promised to try and save it." - -We discussed the situation for a few moments, and finally decided to try -an experiment. The loose piece of bone had not yet been thrown away. -Might it be used as a splint? We fitted it in between the upper and -lower fragment--it was just long enough to be wedged between. We -drilled a hole through either end and fastened it firmly with silver -wire. Would it grow or decay there? We had grave doubts, and time -alone would tell. - -Let no one imagine that in the thousands of operations performed at the -front surgeons become careless! Every case is a special one; every -"Tommy" the private patient of the Empire. The surgeon's responsibility -is as great--and he feels it, too--in that far-away land, as it is at -home. - -We put the limb in a plaster cast to hold it firm. It had been a clean -wound--no infection--we had hopes. Six weeks later the bone had united -fairly well, and in three months McPherson was able to walk! - -But when this operation was done the colonel's troubles were by no means -over for the day. It was ten o'clock, and "office" must be held. This -miniature military "Police-Court" sits every morning, with the -commanding officer as judge. If the court is small, it is by no means -unimportant. Jogman realised this as he stood waiting with the guard -and witnesses in the hall, the day after his great "debâcle." - -The colonel and adjutant were seated in due state, being in full -"service dress," which, as distinct from undress, comprises belt and -cap. The sergeant-major, in equally dread attire, ordered the guard and -prisoner (the latter being minus both belt and cap--these appurtenances -being denied him) to "'Shun!--Right turn; quick march!--Halt!--Right -turn!" and the whole squad was in line, awaiting "office." - -The colonel's face wore a tired and worried expression; his smile had -disappeared. The sergeant-major announced: - -"Private Jogman, sir!" - -The adjutant read the charge sheet. "Number 17462, Private James Jogman, -is accused with conduct to the prejudice of good order and military -discipline, in that he, on the afternoon of the 21st instant at 4 p.m., -in the village of Paris-plage, was disorderly." - -The colonel turned to the accused: "Private Jogman, you have heard the -charge against you, as read. Are you 'guilty' or 'not guilty'?" - -"Not guilty,--sir," Jogman muttered shamefacedly. - -Sergeant Honk, as a witness, expressed his surprise by an almost -imperceptible lifting of the brush of red hair which did service in lieu -of eyebrows. The sergeant-major's lip curled slightly. The colonel's -face remained immobile. - -"Read the written statement of the Military Police, Mr. Adjutant," he -commanded. - -The adjutant did so. Each line was correct and convincing. The -accused, when asked, declined to express an opinion on it. - -"Who is the first witness?" the colonel asked. - -"Sergeant Honk, sir." - -"Sergeant Honk, what do you know of this case?" demanded the Colonel. - -"Sir, h'on the afternoon of the twenty-first, at about four o'clock, h'I -was talkin' to a lady h'on the main street of Paree-plaige, when h'I -'eard th' devil of a row--beg pardon, sir, it slipped h'out afore I -thought." - -"Go on;" said the colonel drily. "I daresay what you state is quite -correct." - -Thus encouraged, Honk resumed with morose enthusiasm: "H'I says to th' -young lady, says h'I, 'Somethin's broke loose 'ere.' The women and men -was a-screamin' an' runnin' into their 'ouses. H'I run to the corner as -fast as me legs could carry me--" Jogman looked instinctively at Honk's -queer limbs, as if he were about to do a mental calculation of his -speed, but was immediately called to attention by the sergeant-major. - -"When h'I got there, h'I see th' prisoner goin' like h---- (h'excuse me, -sir); well, 'e were goin' some, I tell 'e, with a butcher's' knife in -'is mit----" - -"Did he appear intoxicated?" the colonel interrupted. - -"'Orrible drunk, h'I calls it, sir--'e were that same, sir; and afore -h'I gets to 'im, th' Sergeant o' Police 'ad 'im by th' seat of 'is pants -an' 'oisted 'im into the waggin!" - -"Have you any questions to put to the witness?" the colonel asked. - -"Yes, sir," Jogman replied. "Will Sergeant Honk state, sir, how many -beers he had inside him when he thought he seed me?" - -The unfortunate Honk turned a deeper hue of red, and shuffled -uncomfortably from one foot to the other. - -"Your question is not allowed," the colonel replied sternly. "There is -plenty of other evidence to show that Sergeant Honk's vision was -reasonably accurate." - -Other witnesses were called, but the evidence was all equally damning. -At last the colonel asked the prisoner if he had any further defence to -offer. - -Jogman replied: "Yes, sir. Last month I fell from the boiler and my -head has been queer ever since. When I take a drink I don't know what -I'm doin'. I don't remember anything about all this." - -And the Colonel replied: "This month you fell from the water waggon, and -your head is queerer than before. For the crime of which you are guilty -you might be shot; but I intend being lenient with you--on one -condition--" - -Jogman looked up expectantly. - -"--and that is--that you sign the pledge that you will not touch another -drop of liquor while you are in France." - -Honk looked as if he thought this worse than being shot. Jogman glanced -furtively at the colonel's face; he had never seen him look so severe -before. It was a big sacrifice, but it could not be avoided. He heaved -a sigh and replied slowly: "I'll--sign--it, sir!" - -"Twenty-eight days First Field Punishment!" - -"Right turn, quick march!" cried the sergeant-major; and "office" was -over for the day. Remorseful recollection of the pledge he had just -signed clouded Jogman's brow. - -"He's gone an' spoiled th' whole war fer me," he grumbled, as they led -him away. - - - - - *CHAPTER X* - - -Reggy might have been a success as Mess Secretary, if it hadn't been for -the Camembert cheese. No one could have remained popular long under -such a handicap. He had discovered it in some outlandish shop in -Paris-plage. The shopkeeper had been ostracised and the health -authorities called in. - -Some one has said that cheese improves with age. I do not propose to -indulge in futile argument with _connoisseurs_, but Reggy's cheese had -passed maturity and died an unnatural death. When he produced its green -moss-covered remains upon the table, the officers were forthwith divided -into two factions--those who liked cheese and those who did not; and the -latter class stated their objections with an emphasis and strength which -rivalled the Camembert. - -Corporal Granger had charge of the Mess. He was a quiet, gentlemanly -little chap who said little, thought much, and smoked when he had a -chance. He opened the box before dinner, took a whiff which distorted -his face, and silently passed the box to his assistants. - -Wilson and René--a French-Canadian lad--wrinkled their noses in unison -over it; then Wilson drawled: - -"Smells--like a--disease--we uster have--in the ward upstairs." - -But René's atavistic sense approved the cheese. "Dat's bon fromage," he -declaimed emphatically. "Cheese ain't good until it smells like dat." - -"Then folks to home eats a lot what's bad fer them--don't they?" Wilson -retorted, with mild satire; "an' them so healthy too!" - -René disdained controversy, and with unruffled dignity continued laying -the table. During the first few months of our labours he had been -orderly to no less a person than the senior major--hence his feeling of -superiority. But he and the Second-in-Command hadn't always agreed; the -senior major had a _penchant_ for collecting excess baggage, and it -behooved his unfortunate batman to pack, unpack and handle his -ever-increasing number of boxes and bags. By the time we reached -Boulogne these had become a great burden. René looked ruefully down -upon it before he started to lift it, piece by piece, into the lorrie. - -"Ba gosh!" he exclaimed, in perspiring remonstrance, "I hope de war don' -last too long--er it'll take one whole train to move de major's -bag-gage!" - -René was impressionable and had all the romantic instinct of the true -Frenchman. As I watched him decorating the table with flowers--we were -to have company that night, and it was to be an event of unusual -importance to us--my recollection carried me back to a bleak October -night on Salisbury Plain. It was scarcely nine p.m., but I had turned -in and lay wrapped in my sleeping bag, reading by the light of a candle -propped on a cocoa tin. René had just returned from "three days' -leave," having travelled over fifty miles to see a little girl whose -face had haunted him for weeks. He was flushed with excitement and had -to unburden his heart to some one. He stepped into my tent for a -moment, the rain running off his cap and coat in little rivulets onto -the floor. - -"I'm afraid you're in love, René," I teased, after he had given me a -glowing account of his trip. - -"I t'ink dat's right," he exclaimed, with sparkling eyes. "Why, dat's -de purtiest gal what I ever see. Dose arms of hers! Gee, dere ain't -lilies so white like dat, an' de roses of her cheeks!--every time I meet -her, I see her like more kinds of flowers!" - -"But you'll see another bud next week, René," I interjected, "and forget -all about this dainty little flower." - -"Me forget? Non!" he declared, with conviction--and then a wistful look -crept into his big brown eyes. He sat upon the edge of Reggy's cot -opposite and reminiscently smoothed the hair off his brow before he -continued: - -"Sometime wen you're up de Gat'-ineau at home, an' de lumbermen free de -logs in de riviere, you see dem float so peaceful down de stream. De -water is run so slow an' quiet you don' see no movement dere; but bimeby -de riviere go lil' faster, de ripples wash de banks, de logs move -swifter an' more swift until dey come above de falls---dey fall, crash, -boom! One gets stuck, annuder an' annuder; dey jam--dey pile up higher -an' more high--more hun'reds of logs come down, an' jam an' jam. De -water can't pass--it overflow de bank an' spread out in a great lake -over de fields." - -[Illustration: RENÉ HAD RISEN IN THE EXCITEMENT OF HIS DESCRIPTION] - -René had risen in the excitement of his description. The candle light -shone faintly upon his broad shoulders and handsome, inspired face. His -right arm was extended in harmony with the vehemence of his description. -He continued more softly: - -"Dat riviere is me; de falls is my lil' gal at de turnin'-point of my -life, an' de great lake is my love which has burst over de fields of my -fancy an' freshes all de dry places. I can't tell you how I love dat -gal--sometimes I tink--maybe--I marry her some day." - -At this juncture the senior major had thrust his head inside the tent. - -"René," he called sternly, "get back to your work! Wash my rubber boots -and keep an eye on the tent 'til I return." - -And poor René, thus rudely brought to earth, had crept silently away. - -At seven-thirty p.m., the shrill call of the bugle sounded "Officers' -Mess": - - "The officers' wives get pudding and pies, - The soldiers' wives get skilly--" - -It is the one call which every officer, senior or junior, knows by -heart, and answers promptly. - -A mess dinner is a parade, and is conducted with all the pomp and -dignity peculiar to a Chinese wedding. Woe betide the untrained "sub" -who dares seat himself before the Commanding Officer has taken his place -at the centre of the table! For the first time since our arrival in -France, we were to be honoured with the presence of several ladies, and -the whole mess was in a state of excitement compatible with the -seriousness of such an occasion. It was so long since any of us had -dined under the charming, but restraining, influence of the fair sex -that, as Reggy afterward remarked, he was in a condition bordering on -nervous prostration lest he forget to eat the ice cream with his fork, -or, worse still, "butter" his bread with _paté de fois gras_. - -Reggy had other worries on his mind as well. He had been taken aside -early, and solemnly warned that if he, his heirs, executors or assigns, -dared to bring forth upon the table so much as a smell of his -ill-favoured cheese, he would be led out upon the sand dunes at early -dawn and shot. This precaution having been duly taken, he was permitted -to retire to the pantry with Fraser and Corporal Granger, and amuse -himself making thirty Bronx cocktails for our express delectation. -Promptly, as the last note of the bugle died away, the colonel and -matron ushered our fair guests into the Mess Room. - -Had our long separation from the beautiful women of Canada whetted our -sense of appreciation? Or was it some dim recollection of an -almost-forgotten social world which stimulated our imagination? -Certainly no more exquisite representatives of the, to us, long-lost -tribe of lovely women ever graced a Mess Room in France! - -After the customary introductions had taken place, the twenty-five -officers who now comprised our Mess distributed themselves in various -awkward positions about the chairs of the five ladies--all the rest of -our chairs were at the table--each trying vainly to give himself that -appearance of graceful ease which indicates that the entertainment, of -_grandes dames_ is our chief sport in Canada. - -What a dreadful encumbrance one's hands are on such an occasion! A -military uniform does not take kindly to having its wearer's hands -thrust deeply into his breeches pockets, and, as every one knows, this -is the only way to feel at ease when addressing a lady in her evening -gown--if you fold your hands unostentatiously behind your back, it -hampers your powers of repartee. - -Lady Danby, who conducted a Red Cross Hospital in a near-by town, -appreciated our embarrassment, and did her best to make us feel at home. - -"What a delightful Mess Room!" she exclaimed, as her tall, lithesome -figure sank into an arm chair. "It must be so restful and refreshing -after those dreadful operations!" - -"Captain Reggy finds it very restful indeed," Burnham volunteered -mischievously; "he spends a great deal of his time here--mixing drinks." - -"Ah!--and he does them so very well too," exclaimed Madame Cuillard, -with a flash of her beautiful dark eyes toward the hero of the moment, -and lifting her glass to him in gracious compliment. "He is a man after -my own heart." - -"Madam, you flatter me," Reggy murmured, with a low bow, "and yet I fear -I am not the first who has been 'after' such a kindly heart?" - -"Nor you shall not be the last, I hope," the little widow returned, with -a rippling laugh. "Still, 'Weak heart never won'--ah, non--I am -forgetting my English--let it pass. A heart is so easy to be lost in -France--you must be careful." - -Fraser's Gibsonian figure towered above the others as he and Father -Bonsecour and the senior major stood chatting with two Canadian guests. -The girls made a pretty contrast, petite, dainty and vivacious; the one -with blue-black hair and large soft brown eyes, the other fair as an -angel, with hair of finely spun gold and eyes as blue as the sea over -the dunes. - -"May I take your glasses?" Fraser queried. - -"Thank you, by all means," said the little brunette smilingly. "There's -nothing I regret more than an empty glass or a flower that is dead." - -"The former leaves little to hope, and the latter hopes little to leaf," -asserted the senior major sententiously, animated by the beauty of our -guests. - -"What a dreadful pun, Major Baldwin!" cried the pretty blonde. "You -deserve five days C.B.!" - -"Thank Heaven," laughed the major, "we don't always get our deserts! We -incorrigibles may still, for a moment - - _"'Take the cash and let the credit go,_ - _Nor heed the rumble of the distant drum'!"_ - - -But the Colonel interrupted these delightful inanities by offering his -arm to Lady Danby and showing her to the seat of honour on his right. -The other ladies were distributed as impartially as was possible amongst -the remaining twenty-four of us. We stood for a moment with bowed heads -while our chaplain repeated that concise but effective military grace: - -"For what we are about to receive, thank God!" and then we took our -seats. - -The dinner was progressing splendidly. Wilson hadn't spilled the soup; -René hadn't tripped over the rug; course after course had proceeded -under Granger's worried eye with daintiness and despatch. The _sole -meuniere_ was done to a turn, the roast pheasant and asparagus had been -voted superb, and the ice-cold salad a refreshing interlude. Even the -plum pudding, with its flaming sauce, had been transported without -accident to the guests, when Reggy beckoned with a motion of the head to -Granger, and whispered something in his ear. - -Granger was the best lad in the world when he wasn't disturbed, but if -he became excited anything might happen. The order was transmitted to -René, and in a moment the murder was out. Whether through -misunderstanding, or René's secret pride in its possession, Reggy's -cheese had been excavated, and before it was possible to interfere, its -carcase was upon the table! - -The scent of hyacinth and lilies-of-the-valley faded on the instant; the -delicate charm of _poudre de riz_ was obliterated and all the delicious -odours of the meal were at once submerged in that wonderful, pungent, -all-embracing emanation from the cheese. - -The colonel turned first red, then pale. He cast an appealing glance at -Reggy--it was too late. The rest of us glared surreptitiously and -silently at the culprit. An inspiration seized him. Unobserved, he -signalled the mess president, who rose to his feet on the instant. - -"Mr. Vice--The King!" he commanded. - -"Ladies and gentlemen--The King!" came the formal but inspiring reply. - -The cheese was forgotten. We were upon our feet, and lifting our -glasses we drank to our sovereign. Cigars and cigarettes were passed -around, and we waited patiently until the colonel lighted his cigar--for -no one smokes at mess until the O.C. has set the example, or given his -permission. The offending element had been quickly but quietly removed -from the table, and once more peace and happiness prevailed. - -But Reggy's fate as Mess Secretary was sealed! - - - - - *CHAPTER XI* - - -The first line of a certain popular song emphasises a bold and truthful -platitude, namely: "The World's growing older each day." The -incontrovertible fact is plumped unexpectedly before us, and blocks our -only exit down the passage of argument. If it had read: "The World's -growing _smaller_ each day," we might have run to our text-book of -Elementary Physics, and, placing a stubby but argumentative forefinger -on the Law of the Indestructibility of Matter, have proved it a -falsehood of the Nth. degree. But, of course, this must all have -happened before the War. Every one knows now--every Tommy can tell -you--that the world is really and truly smaller; for, if not, how is it -he meets Bill, or Jake, or Harry on the streets of _Poperinghe_ or -_Dickibusch_? He knows instinctively that the world is shrinking, and -Halifax and Vancouver may be found any time jumbled together in a little -Belgian village on the wrong side of the Atlantic. I hadn't seen Jack -Wellcombe for twenty-five years--we had been school chums together--and -his name had almost faded from the pages of my mind; so that on entering -the hospital the morning after Reggy's last dinner, I received a slight -shock as I lifted a new chart from the table and saw this name staring -up at me: - - -"Captain J. Wellcombe. Royal Army Medical Corps." - - -Had the world really become so small? Could a quarter century be bridged -in an instant? I seemed to see the little old stone schoolhouse once -again; its low-ceilinged room, the big box-stove, the well-hacked seats, -and the rows of little boys and girls bowed over their greasy slates. -The scent of midday lunches stowed away floated back to me in memory's -dream, and the haw-tree brushed its leaves against the window pane. I -saw Jack as he was then, with frank blue eyes and waving golden -hair--courteous, genial and big-hearted, beloved by all; and I wondered -as I stood there if by any chance this might be he. - -The nursing sister awoke me from this reverie: "He arrived in the early -morning," she volunteered, "but as he was not seriously hurt I didn't -call you, and dressed the wound myself." - -It was with a feeling of nervous tension and expectancy that I followed -her down the hall to his room and entered. Alas! the world is full of -disappointments. It was not Jack--this dignified man with the touch of -grey about the temples--but still the resemblance grew stronger, the -kindly blue eyes, the same winsome smile--I wondered still. - -We passed the customary greetings and chatted commonplaces for a few -moments, and all the time his face wore an expression of puzzled -enquiry, as if he too were trying to recall some faint memory from the -past. At last I blurted out: - -"Are you by any chance related to Jack Wellcombe, of K----?" - -"A very close relation," he returned laughingly. "I am his dearest -friend; in fact--himself. And you--you are Mac--dear old Mac!" he cried, -stretching out both hands to me in his impetuous, warm-hearted way. I -could have hugged him, I was so glad to see him! - -"What a queer game is Life!" he exclaimed a moment later. "For years -you and I have been shaken about, with many a jolt, in the dice-box of -the world, and now, like two Jacks, we are once more tossed together -upon the Table of Fate!" - -While we were chatting over old times, the nurse unwound his bandages. - -"I hope it doesn't hurt too much?" I asked him, as I examined his wound -preparatory to dressing it. - -"It's a mere scratch," he returned lightly; "a piece of shrapnel through -the flesh of the thigh; but the surgeon at the Field Ambulance thought I -should come back to hospital for a week or two. Things are rather noisy -around Ypres." - -"But what possessed you to join the R.A.M.C.?" I enquired. "You should -be with the Canadians." - -He laughed. "Oh, you chaps were too long in coming over. I'd have lost -three whole months of the war. I was in England when it broke out, and -came over with the First Expeditionary Force." - -"You were in the retreat from Mons, then!" I exclaimed in envious -admiration. - -"Every foot of it," he replied. "That _was_ a fight, you may well -believe. But the Huns didn't have it all their own way. I saw a -strange scrap one day between a French and a German battalion. The Huns -sprang suddenly out of an ambush and were upon the French with the -bayonet before you could catch your breath. Taken by surprise, the -'poilus' ran for all they were worth for about a quarter of a mile--and -they are some sprinters too--the Huns following them, shouting like -demons. Suddenly the French stopped--they must have been running to get -their second wind--wheeled about, and with fixed bayonets charged back -like a streak of forked lightning through the Germans. You never saw -such a surprised and rattled bunch of Huns since you were born. If it -hadn't been so awful I could have shrieked with laughter. But the -French weren't satisfied with going through them once; they turned about -and came back at them again, like a regiment of cavalry. The Huns -seemed stupefied with amazement and terror; they fought like men in a -daze, and very few ever got back to tell the story of the 'cowardly -French who ran away'!" - -"We, too, have underestimated the French, I'm afraid," I said. "We are -beginning to realise their possibilities as a fighting force, and the -Germans aren't yet awake to their strength and determination." - -"They fought well at the battle of the Marne," Jack remarked. "It makes -me smile still as I picture a fat little French officer with drawn -sword--God only knows what he intended doing with it--who stood behind a -haystack waving to his men to come on. He was absolutely fearless. -Again and again he charged up that steep hill with the men, and when -they couldn't make it, back he would come to hide behind his hay-stack -and wait until he could induce them to try it again. About the fifth -attack they succeeded and went on over the hill." - -I questioned him about the battle of Ypres. (This, of course, was the -first battle of Ypres--not that in which the Canadians distinguished -themselves.) - -"It was fast work at 'Wipers,'" he said, "with shells falling into the -town like a thousand roaring devils. They dropped one into the -signaller's billet. It tore a hole in the side of the building large -enough to march an elephant through, and killed every mother's son of -them. A 'Jack Johnson' came through the roof of our hospital and -dropped into the ward--exit ward! There wasn't a bed left standing. -Luckily we had removed most of the patients into the cellar--but those -who were left are still there, buried in the ruins." - -"The usual German respect for the Red Cross!" I commented bitterly. - -"The flag makes a good mark for their artillery," he returned, with a -smile; "they always look for us." - -"You've had many narrow squeaks, I presume?" - -He laughed merrily. "So narrow that if I had had a big stomach it might -have been whittled down to sylph-like proportions. I was standing one -day close to a dug-out, talking to two brother officers. The -'Whizz-Bangs' and 'Coal Boxes' were sizzling over from time to time, but -not especially close. An old friend of mine" (Jack always had an "old -friend" everywhere!) "stuck his head out of the dug-out and shouted up -to me: - -"'Drop in and have a drink, Jack--the water's fine!' - -"I told him I was never thirsty in the mornings. He looked surprised, -but called back again: - -"'If you'll do me the honour to descend, I'll make you a fine long John -Collins!' - -"'Well, well,' I said, 'as you're so kind and such a persistent beggar, -I'll humour you.' The other two officers said they wouldn't go in, and -so I climbed down into his dug-out and sat down. - -"Just as I did so a big shell came--bang!--right where I had been -standing. We sprang to our feet and looked out--the poor chaps I had -just left had been literally blown to pieces!" - -He lay pensively silent for a moment or two, and there was a suspicious -glint of moisture in his eyes as he turned his face toward the wall. -Then he turned on his side once more, and smiling brightly up at me, -murmured: - -"It's been a great lesson to me!" - -"In what way?" I queried. - -"Never to refuse a drink!" - -It will take more than a world's war to depress Jack. His cork-like -spirit will always make him pop up serene to the surface of the -whirlpool of life. - -"You know the Guild Hall at Wipers?" he exclaimed a moment later. - -"No; I haven't been to the actual firing line yet," I returned. "The -only time we realise there is a war back here is when the trains of -wounded come in; or, on a stormy night, when the wind blows fiercely -from the trenches, and the boom of the great guns is driven here -intermittently with the gusts." - -"As soon as I can stand upon this peg of mine, you and the colonel and I -will motor up and see it all," he declared, with assurance. - -"Agreed!" I cried. "You may now feel confident of a speedy recovery. -But tell me more about 'Wipers.'" - -He raised himself on one elbow, and commenced reminiscently: "Our dear -old colonel was billeted in the tenement row which used to be in the -square of Ypres, close to the Guild Hall. We had been shelled out of -place after place, but for several days lately Fritzie had left us in -peace. It was too good to last long. One night they started chucking -big shells into the cathedral and what was left of the square. I counted -fifty-seven falling over and around the colonel's billet. I began to -suspect the place. Taken as an exhibition of fire-works, it was a -success, but as a health resort it had defects. - -"It was about eleven o'clock, and some of the houses in the row had -already been hit. Ye gods! Vesuvius in its balmiest days was like a -Chinese lantern to this--for a second, in a lull, you would hear the -whine of a big shell; then, crash! it went into a building, and shell -and house went up together in one frightful smash-up. - -"I went over to wake the old boy, as he showed no symptoms of having -been disturbed. It was useless to rap--there was such an infernal racket -with shells bursting, roofs toppling in and walls falling out. I -stumbled up the dark stairs to his room. He was sound asleep--think of -it! I spoke to him, but he didn't wake; so I shook him gently by the -shoulder and he opened his eyes. - -"'Hello, Wellcombe!' he growled, in his rough but genial way. 'What the -devil brings you prowling around at this time of night?' - -"I told him that I thought the billet was becoming a trifle unsafe, as -some of the other houses in the row had already been hit. - -"'Is that all you came to tell me?' he asked, with indifference. - -"I said it seemed sufficient to me, and told him we had no wish to lose -him. - -"'Well, well,' he came back at me, but not unkindly, 'and you woke me -out of a sound sleep to tell me this! Go and get me a drink and then -run along like a good fellow and go to bed.' - -"And after the old chap had his drink he thanked me, turned over in bed, -and I believe was sound asleep again before I got out of the -house--while a continual hell of fire and shells tore the guts out of -the town about him! When I went back in the morning, there was only one -house left standing in that row--the colonel's. The others were a -crumpled mess of bricks and mortar!" - -I chatted with him as long as I could, and then, telling him I would -drop in later in the day, continued my rounds on the wards. - -As we entered one of the smaller rooms, I noticed a bright-eyed, -red-cheeked Scotch lad, not more than seventeen years of age, seated -upon his cot. He was chatting animatedly with several others, but -sprang to attention as we approached. The nurse unwound the bandages -and showed me his wound--a bayonet cut across the palm. We had already -heard from his comrades that this slip of a boy, with the smiling eyes -and ringing laugh, was one of the finest bayonet fighters in his -battalion, and had to his credit a string of German scalps that would -make a Pawnee Chief green with envy. His wound was the result of -grasping his opponent's bayonet during one of these fights. - -The nurse looked up at the boyish face--the big blue eyes and laughing -mouth--he did seem such a child! - -"How _can_ you," she cried involuntarily; "how _can_ a little lad like -you bear to kill men with a bayonet?" - -[Illustration: "HOW CAN YOU?" SHE CRIED INVOLUNTARILY, -"HOW CAN A LITTLE LAD LIKE YOU BEAR TO -KILL MEN WITH A BAYONET?"] - -His lips parted over his even white teeth in a broader smile than ever, -but he flushed deeply as he exclaimed: "Oh, ma'm, when ye're in a charge -an' ye see them steekin' yer best chums--ye go fair mad--everything -turns red afore ye, an' ye could kill the whole bleedin' lot!" - -"Bravo!" cried the little nurse enthusiastically, clapping her -hands--she had been carried away, as I admit I too was, by his sincerity -and vehemence. "May you live long and grow to be a great man, as you -deserve!" - -After dressing his hand and the wounds of the others, we passed on into -the next room, where a poor fellow, shot through the hip, lay suffering -in heroic silence. - -It required three of us to do his dressing, because, on account of the -peculiar position of the wound, he had to be turned upon his side each -time, and with a fractured hip this was a process of great difficulty. -This wonderful war has produced its many heroes, but when the great -Recorder above opens His book at doomsday, He will find the name of -William Hoare written large on the pages of valour. - -Throughout the painful dressing Nursing Sister Dolly stood at his head, -and, placing her strong little arms about his great shoulders would tell -him to lift himself by her; and Hoare would gratefully lock his hands -behind her neck and help to raise himself. What he suffered, God only -knows! He made no sign of complaint, but gritted his teeth together -like a vise and never spoke until the operation was over. Beads of -sweat stood upon his brow, and his face was pale, but no groan had -escaped. - -"Have a little brandy, Hoare," Sister Dolly coaxed; "it'll do you -good--you look so white." Tears of sympathy stood in her eyes, but -Hoare smiled bravely up at her and said simply: - -"Thank you--it would be welcome." - -"You are a splendid soldier, Hoare," I remarked, as Sister Dolly hurried -away for the stimulant. - -"I'm not really a soldier, sir. I've only been a few months in the -ranks," he answered. "I'm a 'bus driver in London." - -I thought to myself: "A 'bus driver in London--but a hero of heroes in -France!" - -He raised his head as Sister Dolly held the glass gently to his lips. -"You are very kind," he murmured gratefully. "I'm a deal of trouble to -you." - -The little sister smiled sadly and shook her head, then without a word -dashed from the room. - -"I'd have burst out crying--if I'd stayed another minute," she exclaimed -impetuously, when I met her a moment later in the hall. "I'm a fool, I -know--I'm too chicken-hearted to be a nurse." - -"You're a real woman," I ejaculated in genuine admiration; "the world is -the better because you were born!" - -We then visited the large ward. There were forty patients in it, most -of them looking as jolly as if hospital life were one of the most -amusing experiences in the world. Some were reading, some playing -cribbage, some of those with minor wounds were helping about the ward, -and all were smoking. - -But one, who had just arrived, looked dangerously ill. We approached -his bed, his greenish pallor was alarming. I felt for his pulse--it had -disappeared. We gave him a hypodermic at once to stimulate him, but we -knew all too well he was far beyond human aid. He smiled slightly as I -spoke to him. His mind was clear, with that preternatural clearness -which heralds death. I sat down beside his bed--it was screened off -from the others--and took his hand. - -"Have you any friends to whom you wish to send a message?" I asked him -gently. - -"Why, doctor," he enquired, with a keenness of perception that was -embarrassing, and looking up at me with a glance of slight surprise, "do -you think I am going to die?" - -"You are very ill indeed," I replied hesitatingly, "and I think it would -be well, if there is some one in whom you are specially interested, that -you should write at once." - -He smiled faintly again as he looked me in the eye and answered: "There -is only one person in the world who concerns me deeply--my mother;" he -turned his head away an instant, "I have already written her. How long -do you think I have to live?" - -Even when one can answer, this is always the most awkward question in -the world. No one ever gets accustomed to pronouncing a death sentence. -I shook my head sadly and replied: "I cannot tell you positively--but I -fear you have only a few hours more." - -"Well, well," he said somewhat indifferently, and then his voice became -more interested. He turned back and asked suddenly: "By the way, will -you grant me a favour?" - -I assured him I would do anything in my power; but I was totally -unprepared for his request. He spoke eagerly: - -"Then, may I have a bowl of rice pudding?" - -His _sang-froid_ startled me beyond speech. Death to him was a matter of -small moment--but hunger was serious. We got him his pudding. He ate it -with relish, and two hours later, with a cigarette between his lips, his -brave eyes closed forever. - -There was a bustle in the hospital that afternoon. We had orders to -send two hundred patients to England. The boys were in a state of happy -excitement; those who could walk hurrying down to the pack-stores and -returning with all sorts of wrinkled tunics and breeches, and with old -boots and caps. Sometimes an Irishman secured a kilt, and a "kiltie," -much to his annoyance, was obliged to wear breeches. For when men from -hospital were returning to England, although all their clothes were -sterilised, no special effort was made in those days to return them -their own. New clothes were issued at home. Those patients who were -unable to get up were dressed in bed, their heads were encased in -woollen toques, big thick bed-socks were drawn over their feet to keep -them warm, and they were rolled in blankets and placed in the hall on -stretchers, ready to depart. - -The nurses had slaved for hours. Every patient had been carefully -bathed, his hands and face were spotlessly clean, his wounds were -freshly dressed and he was wrapped up so snugly that the loving eye of a -mother could have found no fault. - -The ambulances were at the door once more--but on a different mission -this time--and the boys, all smiles and chatter, were carried out upon -their stretchers or clambered gleefully down the stairs. Nurses, -officers and men were at the door saying good-bye to their patients. -Murmured words of thanks or gratitude on the one hand, and warmest well -wishes on the other were exchanged, and at last, with much waving of -caps and handkerchiefs, the convoy of ambulances started for the steamer -at Boulogne, carrying the happy, care-free loads of boys another stage -toward home, or, in Tommy's own vernacular--toward "Blighty." - - - - - *CHAPTER XII* - - -It was a wild fight the day the Germans broke through at Givenchy; and -the _Bosches_ were wilder still when, finding themselves in the town, -they were in considerable doubt what to do with it. Of course it would -have been perfectly all right if the rest of their corps had followed on -and backed up the intrepid stormers. But the enemy had reckoned without -his host, and Tommy decided that such visitors should be given a warm -reception. In fact, they went so far in their efforts at hospitality -that they entirely surrounded their guests and closed the breech behind -them, in order that they might receive no "draft" from the rear. - -Having thus graciously encompassed them, Tommy proceeded to kill them -with kindness, rifles, bayonets and hand grenades. The Germans, greatly -bewildered by this flattering reception, would fain have rested on the -laurels already won. Tommy, however, insisted on entertaining them -still further, and at last, despairing of ever satisfying such a busy -host, the visitors threw down their arms and capitulated. - -When we opened the doors of the Ambulance Train at Etaples and, instead -of the customary khaki, saw the drab coats and the red-banded skull -caps, we were almost as surprised as the Germans had been the day -before. - -They were a sorry-looking lot. Dazed and bewildered by their -astonishing defeat, they looked like men still under the influence of a -narcotic. As they got slowly down from the coaches, their heads or arms -in bandages, they looked sick--very sick indeed; but it was not so much -with an illness of the body as an illness of the mind. They stood -together, silent and sullen, seeming to expect ill-treatment at our -hands. - -[Illustration: GERMAN WOUNDED] - -There is so little of the time "sport" in the German composition that -they cannot understand that to the British war is still a game and, when -the contest is over, ill-feeling ceases. We bore no more enmity toward -these hapless victims of a malevolent militarism than as if they had -been helpless waifs cast upon our charity. This is not a matter for -self-praise; it is the inevitable result of a wholesome and broad-minded -upbringing. God knows these defeated men looked sufficiently depressed -and mean without our adding to their brimming cup of sorrow! - -Waiving prejudice for the moment and looking at them with an impartial -eye, what did we see? Stripped of their accoutrements of war, they -looked quiet and inoffensive enough, but the closely shaven heads gave -them the appearance of criminals. In spite of this handicap some looked -to be decent, reliable chaps, not so very different from our own men. -Some were dark and short of stature; some were tall, broad-shouldered -and strong. Some had the fair hair and blue eyes which we always -associate with the Saxon. But there were those too whose low brows, -irregular features and cruel eyes indicated an unmistakable moral -degeneracy which boded no one good. - -One, a corporal, who spoke English and acted as interpreter for his -fellows, presented a countenance of such striking malignancy and low -cunning that the mere contemplation of his ugly features--the long nose, -receding forehead and sneaky grey eyes--impressed one with an uneasy -feeling that no dastardly deed would be beneath him. Upon request, he -herded his companions into the ambulances, and as they were, with a few -exceptions, but slightly wounded, a strong guard was sent to the -hospital with them to see that they should do no mischief nor attempt to -escape upon the way. - -When they arrived at the hospital and were drawn up in line in the -admittance hall, it was perhaps a pardonable curiosity which prompted -the orderlies to crowd around and get a glimpse of the first German -prisoners they had ever seen. The _Bosche_ corporal took his stand -beside the registrar's desk and called out, in English, the names, -numbers and regiments of each of the prisoners. Amongst them were -Prussians, Bavarians and German Poles. It is difficult to say how this -medley of nationalities came to be together. - -Sergeant Honk was in the forefront among the orderlies, and perhaps that -was the reason he was drawn still further into the limelight. For -suddenly a prisoner, putting his hand into the pocket of his coat, drew -forth a hand grenade, and thrust it at him. Honk was startled, and, -jerking his half-extended hand away with great expedition, backed -hastily from the evil-looking bomb. - -"'Ere you!" he gasped excitedly, "wot the dooce are ye h'up to now?" - -"_Ein 'souvenir' für Ihnen,_" said the German, astonished at Honk's -precipitate retreat. Honk understood only the one word, but that was -enough. - -"H'I down't want any damn dangerous souvenir like that!" he returned -wrathfully. "Put it h'on the tyble!" - -The German, gathering his meaning from his actions rather than Honk's -words, did as he was bidden, and stepped back into line. - -"The bleedin' fool might 'a' blowed h'up the 'ole hospital," he -declaimed peevishly to his companions, "whippin' out 'is blimed -h'infernal machine like that; blessed if h'I wouldn't 'a' put 'im in the -clink fer h'it." - -Burnham now ordered our men to get about their business and proceeded -with the allotment of beds for the prisoners. A slight difficulty arose -at this point, as to their disposal. The colonel had decided to put -them all in one ward; but, as we had no armed guard, we thought they -would be safer if distributed in the several rooms. A number of them -were so slightly wounded that, if segregated in one room, they might -easily concoct schemes for escape or even offence. At the same time, by -decentralising them, they would not only be under surveillance by the -ward orderlies, but by the British Tommies as well, and there would be -little opportunity for collusion. This plan was finally adopted. The -Prussians fell to Reggy's lot; the Bavarians to mine, and the balance -were divided amongst the different wards. - -The next morning Reggy, who had studied in Berlin and spoke excellent -German, when making his rounds approached the bed of a tall, fair-haired -prisoner, whose steely blue eyes contained no hint of welcome, and who, -in spite of his good treatment, was still openly suspicious of us. - -After bidding him _guten Morgen_ and dressing his wound--which was in -the place we would have liked to see all Germans "get it," viz.: the -neck, Reggy enquired: - -"What do you think of the war? Do you still think you are going to -win?" - -The Prussian looked up with a half smile and the suspicion of a sneer -curled his lip. "Is there any doubt about it?" he returned. - -"There should be considerable doubt in your minds," Reggy answered -warmly. - -"We shall win," the prisoner said, with imperturbable coolness and -assurance; "the war has only commenced, as far as we are concerned." - -"But you will be starved out, if you're not beaten otherwise," Reggy -continued. - -The shortage of food in Germany was one of our early delusions about the -war. The Prussian laughed amusedly--not by any means a pleasant laugh. - -"If we do not grow a grain," he replied scornfully, "we have sufficient -food stored away to last us for three years. For the past ten years -every city in Germany has kept a three-year supply stored, and only the -oldest crop has been used annually." An illuminating confession! - -"But you will run short of men," Reggy persisted. - -His patient smiled again at our innocence. "We have ten million trained -soldiers in reserve, who have not yet been called up," he answered -calmly. - -We were not prepared at the time to dispute the veracity of these -statements, although later events seem to have corroborated them. - -There was a grim heroism about this cold-blooded man, for when he was -placed upon the operating table, although he must have suffered greatly -while the deeply embedded bullet was being extracted under cocaine, he -permitted no groan or complaint to escape his lips. However much we may -hate the Prussians, or loathe their materialistic and unsentimental -attitude toward their fellow human beings, if this man was a sample, -they are as well prepared to suffer as to inflict pain. Proud, -disdainful and bitter, one could not help but feel that he hated us so -thoroughly that should the opportunity have occurred, he would have -killed his attendants without a qualm of conscience. - -The contrast between this prisoner's mental attitude and that of one of -my Bavarian patients was striking. The latter had had his left arm -cruelly shattered, and on dressing it I discovered a large ragged wound -above the elbow. He spoke no English, so that I was obliged to use my -indifferent German. - -"_Wie geht es dieser Morgen?_" I asked him. - -"_Ganz gut,_" he replied, as he looked up with a grateful smile at -hearing his native tongue. He continued in German: "The nurses have been -very good to me, but my arm pains greatly." - -We carried on a more or less desultory conversation while the dressing -was proceeding, but, by dint of getting him to speak slowly, I managed -to understand him fairly well. Wishing to estimate his frame of mind as -compared with the Prussian, I remarked: - -"I presume you feel badly over being taken prisoner?" - -"No," he replied slowly; "I am glad. To us Germans this war means a -fight to the death; there are only two ways of escape: being crippled -for life--or this. You will wonder at my confessing that I am glad, but -I have left behind me in Heidelberg all that I love best on earth--my -wife and two little children----" His voice choked and tears came into -his eyes, but after a moment he sighed: "God knows whether I shall ever -see them again--for me the war is over--it is just as well." - -Do you blame one for forgetting that this man was an enemy? "One touch -of sympathy" in spite of the horrors of war, still "makes the whole -world kin." We may hate the Germans _en masse_, but heart cannot help -going out to heart, and in the weeks that followed I confess, without -apology, that I learned to look upon this man as a friend. - -It was about four o'clock the following afternoon that Wilson approached -me, and, pulling himself up to attention, said: - -"Th' nurse on Saskatchewan ward, zur, ses as that German corporal ain't -had any feed t'day." - -"Why not? I asked him. - -"Dunno, zur, but he ain't, an' she's ast me to bring th' Orderly Officer -to see him." - -We had laid it down as a principle that German patients, in every -instance, were to be treated the same as our own Tommies, so that it was -annoying to hear that one of our men had been guilty of Hun tactics. -Although I despised this corporal more than any of the others, neglect, -even of him, could not be countenanced in a hospital. I hastened up the -stairs to investigate. The nurse corroborated Wilson's statement. The -German had complained to her that he had had only a light breakfast and -no dinner, although the other men in his room had received theirs. - -I called the ward orderly. "Why did you not give this man his dinner?" -I asked him sternly. - -"The meat was all gone when I went for it, sir," he replied, without -looking me in the eye, "but I gave him a dish of custard." - -Evidently the orderly had made up his mind to punish the _Bosche_, and -while I sympathised secretly with his antipathy to the individual, I -couldn't condone his disobedience or the principle. - -"Come with me," I commanded, "and I'll ask him myself." - -We entered a room which contained only three beds. In the farthest was -a burly giant of a Highlander, in the middle the wretched German -corporal, and nearest to us was a Munsterite of prodigious muscle and -who was but slightly wounded in the leg. - -I asked the German in English, which I well knew he understood, whether -he had received his dinner or not. He affected not to understand me, -and answered in German. As my German is not as fluent as my French, and -I knew that he also spoke this language and might have some secret -reason for not wishing to speak English, I tried him in French. He -pretended not to understand this either. My opinion of him sank even -lower. I tried him then in German, and he replied quite readily in his -own tongue. - -"I did not have any meat, but I was given a dish of pudding." - -"Did you eat it?" I asked him. - -"I had no chance to do so," he answered. - -"Why not?" I queried. - -He turned his head slowly and looked first at the big Highlander and -then at the equally big Munsterite, and shook his head as he replied: "I -don't know." - -There was some mystery here, and not such a deep one that it couldn't be -unravelled. I asked the Munsterite: - -"Did you eat this man's pudding?" - -"No, sir," he answered readily, but with a queer smile. The Highlander -also answered in the negative. There was still a mystery. - -"Do you _know_ this German?" I asked the man from Munster and whose bed -was nearest. - -"Do I know him, sir!" he replied, with a significant look directed at -his enemy. "I've seen that swine several times. He's a sniper, and -used to go about with another tall swine who wore glasses. We never -could kill the blighter, but he picked off three of our officers and -wounded a fourth. Do I know him, sir?--my eye!" - -Under the circumstances I couldn't reproach him. I felt morally certain -he had stolen the German's pudding, as he could easily have reached it -from his bed. I didn't care to probe the matter further, but warned him -that such a breach of discipline must not occur again. After -reprimanding the orderly also for his negligence--more from a sense of -duty than desire, I admit--I ordered that some food be brought up at -once, and saw that it reached its destination. - -We could not have punished the German worse than to leave him in that -room. One could easily understand why he pretended not to understand -English, for I am sure the remarks which passed across his bed in the -days he was there made his ears tingle and his miserable flesh creep. - -After I had retired that night, Tim came up as usual to see that I was -comfortable. Sometimes, when I was in the humour, I told him a story; -not so much with the idea of enlightening him as to hear his comments as -I proceeded and from which I gained much amusement. - -"Did you ever hear of the mammoth whose carcase they found in Siberia, -Tim?" I asked him. - -"Wot's a mammoth, Maje?" he queried, as he seated himself upon my box -and, crossing his legs, prepared to listen. - -"A mammoth, Tim," I replied, "is an extinct animal, similar to the -elephant, but which grew to tremendous size." - -"How big?" he enquired tentatively--his head on one side as usual. - -"Oh, taller than this house, Tim; often much taller. His teeth were -nearly as big as a hat box, and his leg bones almost as big around as -your waist." - -"Go on--go on, I'm a-listenin'," he growled dubiously. - -"Well, this mammoth had tumbled over a cliff in the mountains of -Siberia, thousands of years ago, and falling upon a glacier was frozen -solidly in the ice, and, as it never melted, his body didn't decay. A -few years ago they discovered it, and dug it out practically intact." - -Tim's eyes were wide, and his mouth had fallen open during this -description. - -"Wot more?" he demanded quizzically. - -"Only this," I continued, "that everything had been so well preserved by -the ice that even the wisp of hay was still in his mouth." - -"Dat'll do--dat'll do," he cried, as he rose abruptly to his feet. -"Don' tell me no more. I sits here like a big gawk listenin' to dat -story wit' me mout' open an' takin' it all in like a dam' fool. An' I -stood fer it all, too," he continued, with remorseful irritability, -"till ye comed to dat 'wisp o' hay' business--dat wos de las' straw." - -"Hay, Tim," I corrected. - -"Hay er straw, it's all de same to dis gent. Gees! you is de worse liar -wot I ever heard." - -Tim's humiliation at the thought that he had been taken in was so -comical that I had to laugh. He turned hastily for the door, and as he -passed out cried: - -"Good night, sir. Don' have no more nightmares like dat." - -The first faint light of day was stealing into the room as I felt myself -tugged gently by the toe. I opened my eyes and dimly saw Tim's -dishevelled head at the foot of my bed. - -"What is it, Tim?" I asked, in some surprise. - -"Look'ee here," he said huskily, "tell me some more about this yere -biffalo." And with a soft chuckle he tiptoed out of the room. - -When the time came to send the German prisoners to England little -Sergeant Mack was detailed to guard them. After a comfortable stay for -two weeks in hospital, and with a keen recollection of kindly treatment -throughout, it was hardly likely they would attempt violence or brave -the dangers of escape. But Mack, seated in the ambulance with a dozen -healthy-looking Germans, who could easily have eaten him alive had they -been so disposed, clutched in his coat pocket a little .22 revolver -which Reggy had lent him. He seemed to appreciate the possibility of a -catastrophe and, judging by the uneasy expression on his good-natured -face, he had little relish for his precarious duty. - -Even the ill-famed corporal looked his disappointment at leaving us, and -the others seemed to feel that they would rather stay with captors whom -they knew than fly to captors "whom they knew not of." - -The Pole had, remarkable to relate, learned to speak English with a fair -degree of success during his two weeks' stay, and quite openly expressed -his regret at leaving. The others were merely silent and glum. Perhaps -they felt that now that their wounds were healed, like well-fed cattle -they were to be taken out and killed. The ambulance driver and Sergeant -Honk were seated in front, but little Mack was alone inside, and they -had twenty miles to go. - -Nothing of moment happened until the ambulance, threading its way -between the railroad tracks at Boulogne, pulled up upon the quay at the -_Gare Maritime_. Here unexpected trouble arose. No German prisoners -could be taken upon the hospital ship; the Embarkation Officer refused -to let them aboard. He said they must be taken back to the Canadian -hospital until a proper boat was ready for them. - -During this discussion it got whispered about amongst the populace that -there were _Bosches_ in the ambulance, and in an incredibly short space -of time it was surrounded by an angry mob who shook their fists and -swore savagely at the occupants. Apparently they only needed a leader -to urge them on, and the Germans would have been torn from their seats. -The prisoners remained quiet, but the pallor of their faces showed that -they realised the seriousness of their position. - -Sergeant Mack drew his little revolver and shouted to the driver to make -haste and get away. The driver needed no further urging; the danger was -too obvious. The car started with a jerk and cleared the crowd before -they were aware of Mac's intentions, but they shouted wrathful oaths -after it as it sped up the quay. - -"Blimey, if them French ayn't got a bit uv temper too!" Honk ejaculated, -as he wiped the sweat from his excited brow; "five minutes more'n they'd -'ave 'ad them blighters inside by the scruff uv their bloomin' necks." - -Imagine the surprise and dismay of the nurses as they saw the crowd of -broadly smiling Germans coming up the hospital steps. The nurses, who -had for two weeks repressed their natural antipathy to these men and had -given them good care, felt considerably put out by their return. But -the prisoners, like mangy dogs who had found a good home, were so glad -to return to us that it was pitiful to see their pleased faces, and we -took them in again with the best grace we could assume. The few hours -they had had together in the ambulance had given them a chance to -compare experiences. They were content. All we could hope was that our -own boys under similar circumstances in Germany would be treated as -tolerantly and well. - -Three weeks afterward they all left for England, and even the Prussian -was almost reconciled to us, for he said in parting: "_Auf -Wiedersehen!_" - - - - - *CHAPTER XIII* - - -The colonel's seven-passenger _Berliet_ was chug-chugging softly at the -villa door, the drowsy hum of the exhaust hinting of concealed power and -speed. The colonel, Reggy, Jack Wellcombe and I were about to commence -our long-looked-for trip to that battered corner of Belgium which still -remained in British hands. - -Tim was standing at the door with his master's "British warm" thrown -across his arm, waiting for the colonel to come out. It was a clear -cold February morning, the air had in it just the faintest hint of -frost, but not a breath of wind stirred the green foliage of the pines. -Lady Danby's runabout stood across the road, and from beneath it peeped -a pair of trim limbs encased in thick woollen stockings and ending in a -pair of lady's heavy walking boots; telling Tim that her ladyship's -dainty "chauffeur" was somewhere there below. - -The "lady-chauffeur" was one of that eccentric, but interesting, band of -mannish Englishwomen who invaded France in the early days of the war, -and who have done wonders toward making Tommy's life in a foreign land -agreeable. Intelligent, highly educated, remarkably indifferent to the -opinion of the outside world, Miss Granville was a character worth more -than a passing glance. Her toque was always pulled well over her ears, -her thick, short grey woollen skirt had two immense pockets in the -front, into which her hands, when not otherwise engaged, were always -deeply thrust. A long cigarette invariably drooped from the corner of -her pretty, but determined mouth, and she walked with a swinging, -athletic stride. Romance might have passed her by unnoticed; but the -world could not ignore her--she was too much a part of it. Some innate -chivalry impelled Tim to step across and offer his assistance to the -fair one in distress. - -"Kin I be any help to ye, Miss?" he enquired, as he stooped down and -peered underneath the car at the little lady who, stretched at full -length upon, her back, was smoking a cigarette and at the same time -screwing home an unruly nut. - -"Oh! Is that you, Tim?" she remarked without removing the cigarette or -taking her eyes off her work. "No, thanks, I think not--this is a -woman's job." - -"Ladies does queer stunts in France," Tim commented meditatively; "we -ain't taken advantage uv dem in Canada de way we ought. See how de -womens here, carries wood on dere backs, an', look at dem fish-women -ketchin' skrimps in de sea. Gee, de gals to home ain't never seed real -work!" - -"You should train them, Tim. It's all a matter of up-bringing. Won't -you have a cigarette?" she replied as she thrust a long open silver case -out from under the car toward him. Tim extracted an Egyptian of a size -such as he had never seen before. - -"T'ankee, Miss--dat's a smoke fer a prince." - -"That was the intention, Timothy," she remarked casually; and then came -an unexpected question: "Do ladies in Canada smoke, Tim?" - -Tim was visibly embarrassed. "Not sich as we _calls_ ladies, Miss," he -stammered; and then realising that he had made a _faux pas_ he blundered -on--"that is, Miss, I mean t' say--" - -A rippling laugh from beneath the car cut short further explanation. - -"Tim, Tim," she cried mockingly, "what a sad courtier you would -make--you're too deliciously truthful." - -Poor Tim was red with chagrin. - -"I don' know wot a kertyer is," he replied defensively; "I'm a -hod-carrier meself." - -"Stick to it, lad," she laughed, "the hod lost one of its best exponents -when you came to the war." - -But the colonel now appeared at the door, and Tim, with a hasty adieu to -his fair tormentor, sprang across the road. When we were all snugly -tucked in the car, he stood for a moment looking ruefully toward the -cause of his recent embarrassment. - -"Dat's a queer gent, sir," he observed to the colonel, "dat lady-shoffer -'cross de way. It ain't on'y her boots wot's like a man's--de works in -her belfry's queer too." - -Reggy secretly sympathised with Tim's discomfiture, for it was only the -day before, when he had made a graceful but unavailing whack at a golf -ball, that he had turned to see her watching him intently--hands in -pockets, cigarette in mouth. - -"Rotten stroke, Miss Granville?" he remarked, to cover his annoyance; -and she had coolly blown a cloud of smoke through her nostrils and -replied: - -"You're dead lucky to have hit it at all." - -As the car moved off Reggy exclaimed: "That's the sort of girl who never -gets a husband." - -"Why not?" queried the colonel. - -"Too much brain," Reggy returned. "It's too humiliating for a man to -have a wife cleverer than himself." - -"All depends upon the man," the colonel commented drily. Reggy ventured -no reply to this ambiguous retort, but for the next few miles seemed -lost in thought. - -An hour's uneventful run brought us to the barricade on the outskirts of -Boulogne. It consisted of two large waggons placed at an oblique angle -across the road, at the foot of a steep hill. It was so ingeniously -arranged that a motor car could not pass except at low speed. We were -stopped by the French guard who stood with fixed bayonet--that long -slender wicked-looking instrument, the sight of which makes cold shivers -run up and down the back. The officer emerged from his little hut, and -saluted with all the grace peculiar to the true Frenchman. - -"_Votre 'laisser-passer' monsieur, si'l vous plais?_" he demanded -politely. - -The colonel unfolded the large blue pass, duly signed and stamped. It -was scrutinised closely, the name and number of the car were recorded, -and the officer, once more saluting, motioned us to proceed. - -Running a barricade in France is not a healthful exercise. We did it -once, by mistake, but an immediate rifle shot brought us to a halt. The -sentry takes nothing for granted; if one goes through six times a day, -the pass must be produced each time. Even the small towns of northern -France cannot be entered or left without this ceremony. - -We lunched at _Mony's_--every English and Canadian officer in France -knows the spot--a small Italian restaurant close to the theatre, where -substantial but delicious meals pop up from the cellar's depths. In -this small room with the sawdust-covered floor and the little glass -partitioned stalls, the full-stomached Signor Mony beams upon a -clientele such as no other like café in the world can boast. - -French, Belgian, English; yes, at times Italian, Russian, Serbian and -even Japanese officers of high rank and ladies whose fame in charitable -and Red Cross work is international, dine in this unique café. The -little bar is in the dining room, and above its mahogany top you may see -the head and shoulders of the proprietor's youthful daughter--a girl of -such rare and artistic southern beauty that men and women too stare in -admiring wonder. - -But the military and the nobility are not the only guests. The crowded -café distils a broad Bohemianism which startles one. At one table we -see two dark-eyed "ladies-of-the-street" boldly ogling a couple of young -subalterns in khaki who have just arrived from England. Brushing -shoulders with the finest in the land the demimondaine quaffs her green -liqueur, powders her nose and dabs again the painted cheek that riots in -its bloom. At another table two French generals, oblivious to the hum -about them, are planning schemes of war too deep for thoughts of giddy -girls who seek to catch their eye. - -Above the glass partition curls the smoke of cigarettes, and the -laughing voices of Englishwomen tell us who are there. Upon the -leather-cushioned bench which skirts the wall, a handsome Belgian, well -past middle age, rests his chin upon the shoulder of a beautiful young -Russian girl, and gently puts his arm about her waist. And as we look -with passing interest at the pair, she takes the lit cigar from her -companion's lips and places it between her own, blowing the clouds of -smoke into his face. Every table but one is filled. The blended murmur -of a dozen different tongues, the popping of champagne corks, the -rippling laughter of the women, all combine in one strange sound in -stranger France. One thing only reminds us of the outer world. The -mani-coloured uniforms of soldiers of the several nations represented -tell us all too truly that only a few miles away is the great grim -battlefield and--death. - -At 3 p.m. we started once more on the road and climbed the steep hill to -that broad highway which leads to Calais. But now we reached another -barricade, and an unexpected obstacle arose. The sentry regretted with -a shrug of the shoulders and both uplifted hands, but the road was under -repairs, and none might pass that way. - -Jack came to the rescue and appealed to him in his inimitable French. -_Monsieur le Colonel_ with him was urgently needed at the front. The -shortest and quickest route was the only one for such an important -man--great speed was essential to the completion of pressing duties. - -We could see the sentry wavering. Jack repeated: "_Mon Colonel est bien -pressé--bien pressé!_" The sentry capitulated--of course if the -_Colonel_ was _pressé_, there was nothing else for it. He let us pass. -As we whirled along the road, Jack laughed in that boyish manner of his -and exclaimed: - -"If you're ever held up by a French sentry, you must always be -_pressé_--it's a great word! If you're only _pressé_ enough you can get -anywhere in France." - -There wasn't another vehicle but ours upon that splendid highway, and we -bowled along at tremendous speed through green fertile valleys and -through leafless forests, rounding the curve which runs to the southeast -from Calais and skimming along the crest of a low smooth mountain for -mile upon mile. - -We soon were on the road to St. Omer. From time to time the noisy whir -of an aeroplane overhead helped us to realise that we were gradually -drawing nearer to the real battle line, and once on looking up we could -see the giant human bird at a great height, sailing above us. He came -lower, so that we were able to see the pilot distinctly, and directed -his course straight above the road. At the time we were travelling -about fifty miles an hour, but he passed us as though we had been -standing still--a moment later he became a mere speck in the distance, -then faded into the mist beyond. - -As we approached closer to the front we had expected to find the towns -deserted except by troops. In this we were agreeably disappointed. As -we entered St. Omer we found motors and waggons by the hundreds coming -and going in a busy rush; every store was open too, and business was -thriving with a thrift unknown before the war. Women and children, -soldiers and civilians, crowded the busy streets, and the hum of -industry was heard on every hand. Here not many miles from the -trenches, we could see again the undaunted confidence of France, -implicit reliance upon her troops, unswerving loyalty to her -ideals--unutterable contempt for the possibility of further German -invasion. It was a revelation in faith and a stimulus to merit such -whole-souled unbreakable trust. - -We had just drawn up at the curb in the city square when a big -Rolls-Royce turned the corner and stopped close to us. It contained a -man who wore the uniform of the British Red Cross Society, and who well -matched the car in size; he descended and hastened over to our car. - -"Jack!" he cried delightedly, "old Jack Wellcombe; by George, I'm glad -to see you!" As he spoke he shook Jack warmly by the hand. "You and -your friends must come over to the 'Bachelor's Own' with me." - -Jack performed the round of introductions, and Mr. Harman, who proved to -be an American from Texas, reiterated that we must come and dine with -him. - -"Thanks, Harman, old chap; we really must get along, we have to make -Poperinghe to-night," Jack protested; but his American friend refused to -take "no" for an answer. - -"For," he concluded, parodying a line from a once popular opera, "'you -really must eat somewhere, and it might as well be here.' Don't be in a -hurry to get to Poperinghe," he continued. "I was over there this -afternoon when a German aviator came to call. Just as a preliminary, -and in order to show his good faith, he dropped a bomb on the -church--Some crash, I tell you. It trimmed one corner off the tower and -spattered the door rather badly." - -"Was any one hurt?" Reggy enquired anxiously. - -"Not at the moment," Harman replied, "but a few hundred fools, including -your humble servant, rushed into the square 'to see what made the wheels -go round.' He hovered over us gracefully for a few moments, waiting to -collect a good crowd of spectators, then he dropped a big one right into -the centre of the mass." - -"Good Lord!" Reggy exclaimed in a horrified whisper, "what happened?" - -"Nothing as bad as we deserved, but there were eleven killed and as many -more wounded--it was a horrible sight! You'll see the effects of it -still when you get there, in the broken windows and pieces of stone -knocked out of the buildings for fifty yards around." - -We decided to stay for dinner. We motored down a side street and pulled -up at his "Bachelor's Own." It was a comfortable French house of the -better class, with floor of coloured tile and long glass doors -connecting all the down-stairs rooms. A piano and a grate-fire, around -which a few leather easy chairs were placed, gave the "lounge" an -appearance of homelike comfort--moreover, one might sit there and, by -merely turning the head, see everything of interest on that floor. We -noticed in the next room the table being spread for numerous guests, and -a Belgian servant bustling about at his work. - -Harman motioned us to be seated, and after offering us some cigarettes, -told us to "make ourselves at home" as he must warn his butler (save -us!) of our arrival. When he returned a few moments later, beaming with -smiles, like the true host he proved to be, he remarked deprecatingly: - -"You mustn't expect too much of an old bach's table in these rough -war-worn days; but as far as it goes this is open house to every man in -uniform." - -Later in the evening, when guest after guest "dropped in," until there -were eighteen of us in all, we grasped the significance of his remark, -and realised what his genial hospitality meant to the lonely officers -who passed that way. - -We didn't expect too much--in fact we didn't expect half of what we got. -We hadn't looked forward to grilled _merlin_, roast chicken, tender -lamb, Jerusalem artichokes or delicious cantaloupe, nor to Gruyère -cheese served with crisp cream-wafers. In our modesty we had forgotten -to expect the mellow flavoured wines which clung to the sloping sides of -glass as delicate as a spider's web, or rich Havana cigars and real -Egyptian cigarettes. No, strange as it may seem to the casual reader, -we hadn't expected any of these things; we were prepared for Bologna -sausage and a can of sardines, but in these we were disappointed. A -whirlwind of plenty rose at Harman's magic call, and cast us adrift upon -a sea of luxury. - -Towards the close of this splendid repast, I took occasion to ask our -benevolent host to what particular branch of the Red Cross work he was -devoting his energies. - -"Just what you see," he answered with a laugh. "Cheering up dull dogs -like Wellcombe here, as they pass upon their weary way--that's about -all." - -"He's talking bally rot!" cried Jack from his end of the table, "I'll -tell you what he does, as he won't tell you himself. He feeds the -hungry and the poor; he gives all kinds of delicacies, from pickles to -pheasants, to the wounded and sick soldiers in the Field Ambulances and -hospitals for miles around; he carries food and drink to the wounded -Tommies in the trenches and the Dressing Stations. I've seen him steal -out upon the battlefield in a perfect hell of machine gun bullets and -shrapnel--places where the devil himself wouldn't venture or expect to -get out alive--and carry back those poor shattered lads in his arms. -He--" - -"Jack, Jack," Harman cried in protest, "for heaven's sake have a little -pity--I can't live up to a rep' like this!" - -"Don't interrupt, please!" Jack commanded. "One word more and then I'm -through. He's been a perpetual Santa Claus to every boy at the front, -and a godsend to every man in the rear--a damn good fellow and a man." -He had risen to his feet and struck the table with his hand in his -earnestness. "Here's a toast for you, my comrades in arms," he cried in -conclusion: "Here's to Harman--Harman the Red Cross hero of St. Omer!" - -As one man we rose to our feet and drained our glasses dry. - -After dinner we crowded into the lounge, and Jack sat down at the piano. -With nimble fingers he drew soft music from the keys. We soon -discovered we were in a nest of artists, drawn together by a common tie. - -Little Watkins, another Red Cross driver, who, as we afterwards learned, -had risked his life a score of times to help some wounded fellow on the -treacherous road, sang for us. It seems but yesterday that we sat there -in the smoke-filled room, listening with rapt attention to his silvery -tenor voice. The flames from the fire lit up his face as the throbbing -notes poured forth. _Je sais que vous etes jolie;_ we know now why he -sang so well--he was in love. Poor Watkins has many months since passed -to the "great beyond," but the sweet pathos of his voice still lingers -in the ears of those he charmed that night. - -Kennerly Rumford was then called upon--yes, the world-renowned Kennerly -Rumford, in khaki in a little room in St. Omer--and in that magnificent -baritone of his filled the house until it rocked with glorious sound. -Rich, deep, rolling melody welled up from his great chest, until the -wonder of it struck us dumb. I looked about me; pipes rested unused -upon the table; cigarettes had been cast away, and the cigars, forgotten -for the nonce, were dead. - -We were loathe to leave this house of entertainment, but time was -pressing, and we still had many miles to go. - -The streets were black as pitch; no lights were permitted in the war -zone, but at last we found our way out of the town, and started. - - - - - *CHAPTER XIV* - - -As we sped along the road to Poperinghe, the headlights of our car made -a lone streak of white against the utter blackness of the outer world. -Occasionally on the wings of the wind came the boom of the big guns, -followed a moment after by the sharper crash of the bursting shells. -The barricades became more numerous, and from time to time we were -halted by a British sentry and our passes were scrutinised with especial -care. - -It was about ten p.m. when we crept softly through the outskirts of the -little Belgian town which marked our destination for the night. We -pulled up at a small hotel, less than a hundred yards from the spot -where the German aviator had wrought such havoc that afternoon. The -stone walls of the buildings about were marked with holes, which showed -up plainly in the light from the car, and the cobblestones for several -yards around were splintered. - -As is the case with most small hostels in northern France and Belgium, -the door through which we entered opened directly into the bar. The -blaze of light within, well screened off from the street by heavy -curtains, dazzled our eyes, and the crowded room with its round -marble-topped tables was heavy with smoke. The ever-smiling bar-maids -were having a busy time. Bottles of whiskey and soda, beer or wine, -stood upon every side, and the clink of glasses intermingling with the -clatter of foreign tongues, fell upon our ears. The soft, sibilant -French, the cockney English and the guttural Flemish warred with one -another in an unintelligible babble. - -Jack seemed as much at home here as ever. The pretty blonde bar-maid, -the daughter of the house, came forward to greet him, and shook him -warmly by the hand. She assured him, and us, that "_M'sieu le Capitaine -was ton jours le lien venu_." In fact, we were made so welcome that we -were shown forthwith into a private room, the better to avoid the noise -and smoke of the bar. - -"What are the prospects of a bed or two for four?" Jack asked the -Belgian lassie. - -Mademoiselle was _desolé_, but she feared the prospects were _bien -mal_--in other words, nil. She would enquire across the way, however, -and see if any of the houses round about could still boast an empty bed. -She returned shortly, more _desolé_ than ever. What with the thousands -of Belgian, French and English troops billeted in the town, there was -not a vacant room left. She would give up her own room for monsieur, -but _hélas_, it was so _petite_ there was only accommodation for one. - -Reggy laughed. When Reggy could laugh at the prospect of no bed for the -night the situation must have been amusing. "Colonel, you'll have to -take the bed," he cried, "and the rest of us can sleep in the car." - -"No, no," Jack protested; "We must all be together. We'll take a run up -to the convent and see what Sister Paulo has to say." - -"Good Lord!" laughed the Colonel. "You don't suppose a nun is going to -house four strange officers for the night, do you?" - -"All things are possible--in Belgium," Jack returned. "You don't yet -know the size of the Belgian heart. Sister Paulo and I are old friends. -I had the pleasure of bringing her and several other Sisters of Charity -out of Ypres one night last fall, during the bombardment. The _Bosches_ -had killed some of them and shot their poor convent full of holes. -Sister Paulo gave me this silver crucifix as a memento of the occasion." -He held up for our inspection an exquisite little cross. "I have always -carried it since--she's a good sort; more woman than nun." - -"If I should die and by mischance arrive in Hades," cried the colonel, -"I hope you'll be in heaven, for I'm sure you'll have enough pull with -St. Peter to get me up!" - -As we crossed the dark square, crowded as it was with troops of the -three nations on their way to and from the trenches, we could hear -distinctly the rattle of artillery and the bursting of the German -shells, not many miles away. A mischievous gun might have dropped a -shell into that square at any moment--we wondered why it didn't. There -could be only one reason. No humanitarian consideration ever deterred -the German; but the town was so full of spies that it would not have -been good business to bombard it. A few months later, when the spies -were all eliminated, the long-range German guns soon made short work of -Poperinghe. - -We arrived at a two-storey brick building, and after a lengthy pull at -the bell-rope the door was slowly opened a little way. Jack enquired -for Sister Paulo, and upon giving his name, the door was immediately -thrown wide and we were ushered into a small waiting-room. We had -scarcely seated ourselves when a tall nun, with saint-like face and -frank smiling eyes entered the room. She recognised Jack at once and, -holding out both hands in greeting to him, exclaimed in excellent -English: - -"My dear Capitaine! How glad I am to see you once more--you are as -welcome as your name." - -"These are some very dear friends of mine, Sister Paulo," Jack cried, -after he had introduced us individually, "and we have come to you in -distress--we poor sons of men have no place to lay our heads." - -"Ah!" said Sister Paulo, with a gracious smile, "perhaps we shall now -have an opportunity of doing you a little kindness for your many, many -goodnesses to us." She turned to us and continued: "You see, Capitaine -Wellcombe risked his life to save ours. He came to our Convent in Ypres -during the night of that frightful battle, when the shells were falling -in thousands about us, and the city was in ruins. One big shell tore -through the wall and fell into the building--I shall never forget the -horror of that night! The streets were lit up by fires, and the noise -was awful beyond words. We were distracted--we seemed to have been -forgotten by every one, when suddenly Captain Wellcombe came like an -angel from above and climbed in through the rent in the wall. One by one -he carried us out in his arms and put us in an ambulance. He took us -through those dreadful streets and brought us here to safety. He is a -brave man, and every night we pray for his protection." - -For once in his life Jack looked embarrassed, and blushed like a -school-girl. "Sister Paulo exaggerates, I'm afraid," he said, in some -confusion. "It seemed more dangerous than it really was." - -"You may make light of it, if you wish, my dear Capitaine," Sister Paulo -replied, holding up a reproving finger, "but you can never make it to us -less than the act of a brave and noble man!" - -She left us for a space, but shortly returned to tell us that our rooms -were ready and that we were thrice welcome to what accommodation their -poor house afforded. We were ushered upstairs and along a narrow hall -in which we met several Belgian officers, who bowed low as we passed. -Jack was given a small room to himself. - -When Reggy and the colonel and I arrived at the room which was pointed -out as ours for the night we met a tall Belgian officer coming out of -it. We grasped the situation on the instant. These officers, who had -been hastily aroused, were, with their remarkable courtesy and native -hospitality, actually giving up their beds to us. The others had -already disappeared down the stairs, and this officer too would have -passed us with a bow, but we arrested him and protested that he must on -no account deprive himself of his room. - -"But you are not disturbing me in the least," he replied in French; "you -are doing me a great pleasure by accepting my bed." - -We assured him that we should be able to find accommodation somewhere, -and that we felt very guilty for having been the cause of so much -inconvenience. - -"My dear sirs," he protested feelingly, "there is but a very small -corner of Belgium left to us; there is so little opportunity for us to -offer hospitality to a guest, that when such an occasion as this arises -where we have the honour of accommodating our English friends--it would -be unkind if you denied us this poor privilege." - -We could not doubt his sincerity, and felt that he would be hurt if we -made any further protest. Where he was to sleep we did not know; but we -thanked him, and after bidding him _bonsoir_, passed inside. There was -a single and a double bed in the room. The tables were strewn with -swords, revolvers, field glasses, prismatic compasses and all the usual -accoutrements of military officers. It was evident the room had been -vacated hastily. - -The single bed naturally fell to the lot of the colonel, while Reggy and -I, being a trifle smaller than he, clambered into the other--a high, -old-fashioned one. Reggy sank wearily into the feather mattress and -fell asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow. He had the happy -faculty of being able to sleep anywhere and at any time. - -We were to make an early start, and six a.m. came all too soon. A light -French breakfast was prepared for us when we descended. About an hour -later, after expressing our deep thanks to our gracious hostess, we got -into the motor once more and started on the road towards Ypres. There -wasn't a cloud in the sky. The sun shone brightly, and not a warlike -sound broke the stillness of the clear, cool air as we sped along -between the tall poplars which lined the road. One thing only reminded -us that we were approaching close to the battle line--the reserve -trenches dug on either side. These we passed from time to time; but they -were half full of water and uninhabited, and it was apparent there was -little thought of their ever being needed. - -Here and there a few horses were tethered in poor canvas-covered -shelters, and in the farmyards near-by we saw numbers of French military -waggons which looked like gipsy carts. Occasionally we overtook a -battalion of French or Belgian troops marching quietly towards the -trenches. Their apparent absence of any definite marching formation -struck us with surprise. They did not walk in line, but ambled along of -their own free will; some with loaves of bread or rolls strapped to -their knapsacks, and one carrying a roast of beef under his arm. They -seemed to have foraged for themselves, and carried along any extras -which appealed to their individual fancy. But they were a tall, -stalwart-looking body of men, and we felt sure were much better trained -than their irregular march would indicate. - -We had reached a point about midway between Poperinghe and Ypres. The -morning was still soundless, save for the whir of our motor. - -"Looking at this blue sky and the quiet fields, who would ever believe -there is a war so near?" Reggy remarked. - -These words had no sooner fallen from his lips than the air was suddenly -rent with the blast of gun after gun, so close on our right that we were -startled and instinctively jumped towards the left of our car. The -sharp bursting of shells over our heads impelled us to look up, and -there directly above us was a German aeroplane. - -Shell after shell burst below him, leaving rounded clouds of white smoke -hanging in the still air, and as each exploded the aviator rose higher -and higher. The range of the guns grew longer; some shells burst above -him; some to right or left. Round after round of shrapnel followed his -every movement. We looked in vain for the battery. They were so -carefully hidden that although we could not have been fifty yards away, -there was not the slightest visible sign to indicate their position. - -At the same time the whirring rat-tat-tat-tat of a machine gun close -beside us on the left made us turn our heads sharply in that direction. -At first we could not see this gun either, but guided by the sound we -soon discovered it on a platform halfway up the outside of a farmhouse, -against the wall, and manned by a French soldier. We watched the -aviator with the same interest that a quartette of hunters might view -some great bird, hoping to see him winged. But he seemed to bear a -charmed life, and dodged shrapnel and machine-gun bullets alike, soaring -higher and higher until he became a mere speck in the heavens. Then the -firing ceased as abruptly as it had commenced. - -Our car had been stopped during this one-sided battle, but now that it -was over we started on again. The cobblestone road had been torn up by -shell fire in many places, and driving was rough and difficult. We -passed batteries of artillery and long lines of army service waggons, -wending their way Ypres-ward. There was no further firing for the -present and we crossed the bridge over the Yser and entered the town -without mishap. From the distance there was little change to be noticed -in Ypres; but now that we entered the streets we soon saw the effects of -the bombardment. For the most part the smaller houses had not at this -time been destroyed; but every large building in the place was in ruins. -Churches, convents, schools and factories had been ruthlessly crushed, -and the railway station was levelled to the earth. The streets were -almost deserted, shops were long since closed, and business was dead. - -We arrived at _La Grand Place_--once the scene of a busy market, and -stood beside the ruins of the famous Guild Hall. Its roof had fallen -in; the walls were shattered; piles of stones and mortar had tumbled -into the street. The clock tower alone, as if in defiance of the German -gunners, stood erect and the clock remained untouched. A dead horse -lying close by upon the pavement reminded us that we were now within -easy reach of the enemy's fire. - -We turned and walked across to the Cathedral of St. Martin; a short time -since the pride of that beautiful city. Alas! it too was lost. We -clambered over the ruins and got upon the window ledge to look within. -The priceless panes were gone; the marble floor, except in patches here -and there, was buried deep and the great supporting columns of the dome -had toppled over; one lay across the nave, its round flat stones still -clinging obliquely together and lying like _rouleaux_ of coin side by -side. The sacrilegious shells had burst into the chapel of the Holy -Sacrament, had desecrated the altar and piled huge heaps of masonry upon -the floor. The crucifix had disappeared, but the statues of the saints, -by some strange miracle, remained intact. - -From the torn paintings upon the walls the faces seemed to have turned -appealingly toward the open roof, their gaze fixed as in a last pitiful -prayer to heaven. They were lost--those wondrous works of Art which -once with magic charm had held the world enthralled. Never again would -humanity come to bow in humble admiration at that shrine of beauty, nor -gather inspiration from the hallowed walls. And as we looked upon the -wreck about us, now but the memories of an irrestorable past, our bitter -thoughts travelled across the lines of trenches to that strange race to -whom no neighbour's hall or home is sacred and to whom the work of -centuries, the irreplaceable monuments of master minds, are naught. - -As we looked again upon those time-honoured, tottering walls the great -jagged holes seemed to cry out to us for revenge, and a sudden just but -implacable anger against the perpetrators of these hideous world-crimes -stormed within our hearts and choked our utterance. - -With a sigh we turned from the contemplation of this scene of wanton -destruction and started our walk through the desolate streets. Crossing -the Menin road, we entered that little graveyard where so many of our -brave men lay buried. The houses round about lay crumbled, but this -sacred spot, by accident or design, had been spared. As we passed -bareheaded down the path between rows of closely crowded graves, the -new-made wooden crosses seemed to lift their white arms to us in mute -appeal. Here and there the cap of some once gallant French or Belgian -officer hung upon his cross--a crown of glory that no mortal hand dare -touch. Some of these caps had rested there for months, rotted by rain, -torn by the wind, faded by the sun--but dyed with a glory which time -could never dim, and emblazoned with the halo of self-sacrifice. And as -we stood there upon the threshold of the battlefield we saw the conflict -in a clearer light--behind us faith and patriotism; in front patience -and heroism, and at our feet self-sacrifice and deathless love. - -A great wreath of purple leaves lay upon the grave of a young prince, -clinging lovingly to the new-made mound. He rested there side by side -with his humbler fellows--they had fought and died together. We -sometimes forget that a prince is human; he seems so far above us--he -lives in a different sphere and appears to be cast in a different mould. -But when we stand beside his grave, we realise at last that he was but a -mortal like ourselves; that he has lived his life like us--the same -desires, the same ambitions and the same need for love. Only one word -was entwined, in white letters, with the purple leaves; only one word, -but it bridged two countries and two souls--heaven and earth were -joined--for the small white flowers clinging together spelled the magic -name of "_Mother_." We may fall unnoticed in the thick of battle, we -may be buried with a host of comrades in a nameless grave, but a -mother's heart will seek us out, no matter where we lie, and wrap our -lonely souls about with the mantle of her undying love. - -"You have seen both ends of a battle now--the hospital and the -graveyard," Jack exclaimed, as we left the cemetery; "come with me and I -will show you what it is like to be in the middle." - -"Can't we take a little walk along this road, and see the first line -trenches?" Reggy enquired. We were crossing the Menin road again at the -moment. - -Jack laughed. "Not if you wish to come further with us. If you step -out of this shelter in daylight there won't be any Reggy to brighten our -trip. No one goes out there in daylight--that is, if he wishes to -attain old age." - -"But it seems so quiet here," Reggy protested. "Apart from broken-down -buildings, I can't see a sign of a war--there isn't a soul in sight but -ourselves." - -"Jolly good reason," Jack replied. "If you take a peep through the -hedge there you'll see the trenches--we're as close as we dare go at -present." - -Reggy looked disappointed. "There isn't even a gun," he complained. - -It seemed as if the invisible gunners had heard him, for suddenly the -fields round about us sprang to life and belched forth smoke and shells. -Some cannon in the dark shade of the bushes were actually so close that -we could see the streak of flame from the muzzle light the shadow. The -Germans were not slow to retaliate, and in a few minutes the roar of -their guns and the howl and crash of shells added to the general -clamour. Fortunately they did not appear to have our range, and the -shells fell far afield. - -"That's what _you_ brought down upon us--you doubting Thomas," Jack -remarked facetiously to Reggy. "You've started a nice row now that will -last for hours." - -"Isn't this great!" Reggy cried like a pleased child. "I wouldn't have -missed this for a million." - -"I hope Fritzie will miss you for less," laughed the colonel, "or we'll -be short an ex-Mess Secretary." - -Reggy vouchsafed no reply to this hope. - -"We'd better get along out of this," Jack said; "the _Bosches_ may -discover their mistake before long and pour a little shower of hate on -us." - -We got into the motor and started towards the Dickibusch road. At -Jack's request we stopped for a few minutes at the ruins of a large -schoolhouse which had comprised one city block. The semblance of a -building remained, but the walls stood only in jagged patches. - -"These are the remains of our Field Ambulance," Jack explained. "Come -inside and see; you will get a faint idea of what the 'Jack Johnsons' -did to our hospital wards." - -We passed into what had once been the main entrance. The doorway had -received one great shell which on bursting had carried the four walls -with it. We stumbled along the floor over heaps of brick and mortar; -through piles of broken chairs and beds, and, climbing the ruins of the -staircase, arrived upon a landing from which we could see the interior -of what had once been a large room. - -"This was my ward," Jack told us. "You see that big hole in the roof? -A big shell came through there, and burst right here." He pointed to a -wide, irregular opening in the floor. Every stick of furniture was -smashed to atoms. Daylight came through great gaping holes in the walls -and floor. The beds were merely nests of twisted iron. The greater -part of the ceiling had fallen in and lay in a heap in the centre of the -room. - -As we walked about we saw that every other ward was in a similar -condition. We went out into the schoolyard. There were five or six -tremendous excavations in the ground, perfectly round and capable of -holding a baby whale. There was no earth heaped up, for the big shells -which made these hollows left nothing behind. - -We were still standing there when suddenly there arose a noise like the -muffled scream of a distant multitude. We stood rooted to the spot, -wondering what grim horror this might be. It grew louder and louder, -coming towards us at terrific speed. - -"For God's sake," I cried to Jack, "what is that awful sound?" - -"Look into the field--quick--you will see!" - -We all looked. The sound became a roar--a crash, and then about a -hundred yards away the earth sprang high into the air in a great black -mass intermingled with clouds of smoke and stones. - -"Permit me," Jack remarked coolly, "to introduce you to 'Jack Johnson.' -Now you can understand a little how those poor boys in the hospital felt -when he came crashing through the roof." - -"If we stay here a few minutes longer," the colonel remarked, "we may -have it brought even more dramatically to our attention." - -Jack laughed. "Oh," he cried, "we're as safe here as anywhere--you -never can tell where the next will drop." - -We were soon to verify the truth of this remark. - - - - - *CHAPTER XV* - - -We had turned the corner of the road on which we had just witnessed the -effect of the big shell--the hole was still smoking--when once again we -heard the distant whine. This time there was no need to ask what it -meant; we knew all too well, and for an anxious moment or two we -wondered whether after its arrival the newspapers would speak well of -us, or whether we should be blown into such small pieces that we should -only be reported "missing." - -It is recorded that sometimes those who are drowning are able, in a few -brief moments, to rehearse the drama of their lives. Our lives must -have been too complicated for such hasty revision, but as the sound -changed from a whine to a shriek, an unearthly roar, and with a crash -like the crack of doom the ground opened before us and shot a blinding -storm of rocks and mud sky high--when all this occurred far, far faster -than I can pen the lines, we had plenty of time to develop a nasty pain -in the pit of the stomach, to which the mystic torment of an unripe -cucumber is a joy. A great cavity yawned before us where once the road -had been, and belched forth clouds of smoke as if the crust of hell were -riven in twain. At the same moment, lest our tranquillity should be -restored too soon, our own guns opened up with a vicious roar and hurled -their screeching shells over our heads like myriads of fiends possessed. -Reggy's face was a study in black and white--I couldn't see my own. - -"Do you think the Germans see us?" he enquired anxiously of Jack. - -"No, I think not," Jack reassured him; "it's customary for them to shell -any good road in the hope of picking off a convoy." - -"It's a damned uncomfortable custom," Reggy returned earnestly, "and I -could forgive them for not observing it for the next ten minutes." - -The chauffeur, who had stopped the car dead by using the emergency -brake, now released it, and we started forward again. But we had -considerable difficulty in navigating the ditch on the side of what had -been the road. - -We had just moved in time, for a second shell dropped where we had been -a moment since, and tore the opposite side of the road away. - -"Being between two lines of artillery is a little too much like -battledore and shuttlecock," I remarked to Reggy, "with all the odds -against the shuttlecock." - -"Object to word 'battledore,'" Reggy retorted; "it's too frivolous and -pun-like for the present dangerous occasion." - -We were now making haste towards a small village a few miles ahead, and -we were not sorry as we passed into the poor shelter its brick houses -afforded. As long as we were on the open road it was quite impossible -to rid oneself of the feeling that the car was in full view of the -German gunners. - -The streets of this dirty little village were filled with British -Tommies, who, still covered with the mud from the trenches, were as -care-free and happy as were those fifty miles from the front. They -smoked and chatted together in little groups at the entrance or in the -courtyards of the miserable hotels, one at least of which seemed to be -on every block. As we drew up the colonel enquired of a sentry: - -"Can you tell me where the 'Princess Patricias' are billeted?" - -We had been informed that this famous battalion, which had reached -France just six weeks after us, was somewhere in this neighbourhood. To -discover their whereabouts was the real object of our journey. The -sentry made reply: - -"I believe, sir, there is a battalion of that naime 'ere somew'eres. -Hi, Bill!" he called to another Tommy, who was leaning against a near-by -door-post; "w'ere is them Canydians wot wos 'ere t'other day?" - -"Bill" banked his cigarette by pressing it against the wall and came -over on the double to the side of our car. He saluted with that -peculiar Jumping-Jack motion so much a part of the real Tommy, and -ejaculated: - -"I 'eard they was at the next town, sir; it ayn't far from 'ere, but -it's a funny naime--Runnin'-hell, er somethin' like." - -"Would it be Reninghelst?" Jack enquired. - -"Ay--that's it, sir; I knowed they was 'hell' in it somew'eres." - -"Just since the 'Canydians' came, I'll wager?" Reggy interjected -mischievously. - -The Tommy grinned approval of this jest, and volunteered to show us the -direction. He stood on the running board of the car and saw that we got -started on the right road. - -"Straight ahead now, sir," he said, as he saluted and sprang down. - -The heavy shelling had died away, and for the next two miles the sun -shone on a peaceful country. We had a chance to marvel at the -well-ploughed fields, and wondered what venturesome farmers dared work -in such a place. It was almost noon and we had begun to think that we -had left the war behind us once more, when suddenly the rapid bark of -German guns aroused us, and the sharp crack of shrapnel high above our -heads caused us to look up. A new sight met our gaze. - -Three of our own aeroplanes were hovering directly over the German -trenches, and battery after battery of artillery were exhausting -themselves in an angry effort to bring them down. The accuracy of the -enemy gunners startled us. This time we were not the hunters, and our -sympathies were with the aviators. As shell after shell burst, leaving -their white clouds to right or left, we held our breath in suspense. -Time and again, as the explosion occurred directly under one of our -machines, the smoke hid it from view, and, in a tremor of anxiety, we -feared to see it dive to earth. But when the smoke cleared away our -three undaunted birdmen were still on high, swooping over the German -batteries with a persistence and intrepidity which must have been -maddening to the helpless _Bosches_. - -It wasn't long before two enemy aviators rose to give battle, and as -they approached our men the firing from below ceased. The five -aeroplanes circled round and round, apparently sparring for position, -and rose to such great height that we could hardly distinguish them. -They were so close together that neither the British nor German -artillery dared fire upon them. At last one of the enemy machines -detached itself from the others and darted towards our lines with the -speed of the wind. - -Immediately our batteries opened up, and round after round of bursting -shells followed its every movement; now to right, now to left; now -above, now below, ever closer to their mark. Finally one well-directed -shell burst immediately beneath the aviator. The machine was straight -over our heads; we craned our necks to follow it. It swerved and -fluttered like a wounded bird, slipped sideways, fell for a short -distance, then seemed to stagger like a drunken man; righted itself at -last and swiftly descended towards the German lines. That the aviator -was wounded we did not doubt, but he had somehow escaped death. In the -meantime we had lost sight of the other four machines, and when we -looked for them again they had disappeared from view. - -The streets of Reninghelst were crowded with soldiers when we reached -that town, and among them we recognised, to our joy, some stalwart lads -from the "Princess Pats." On the corner was a group of young officers, -and in the crowd we espied the familiar features of Captain Stewart who -had spent his last night in Canada with us. At the same moment he -recognised us and hurried over to the car to greet us. - -"Well, well," he cried delightedly, as he shook hands with us two at a -time, "welcome to our city! Where the devil did you chaps spring from?" - -We assured him that his question was quite _à propos_, as we had just -passed through the infernal regions. He laughed as he replied: - -"Interesting bit of road, that stretch between Ypres and here--been in -the front line trenches ourselves for a week out there--caught blazes, -too!" - -His uniform still showed the effects of the trench mud. He was a tall, -thin chap, prematurely grey. Like many others of the Princess Pats, he -was a veteran of the South African War, a crack-shot, and all-round -dare-devil. He spoke in short, quick snatches, starting his sentences -with unexpected jerks, and could keep a regiment in shrieks of laughter. - -"How is the trench life out here?" the colonel enquired, with a jerk of -the head towards the battle line. - -"Plain hell--with a capital H. Excuse the repetition of the -word--nothing else describes it--a quagmire two feet deep, full of mud -and filth." - -"Couldn't you dig it deeper?" Reggy enquired with some concern. - -"No chance--everywhere you dig--turn up rotting carcases--farther down -you go the more water you have to stand in." - -"The snipers are bad too, are they not?" I asked him. - -He laughed again. "_Were_ bad, you mean," he cried; "not many left -around our trench. Poor Fritzie found us a nasty lot--played dirty -tricks on him--organised a 'snipe-the-sniper' squad--put 'em out of -business." - -"How did you manage it?" I asked curiously. - -"Stalked 'em--like red Indians--dug a tunnel out to a hill too--came up -through the centre of it--hollowed it out inside--and put 'em to sleep -one by one. Fritzie doesn't love us any more, but, by Gad, he respects -us!" - -After we had listened to a few more details of this wild and remarkable -life, the colonel enquired: - -"Where are your headquarters? We want to see your O.C. and the rest of -the chaps." - -"I'll climb in and show you the way. It's in another village a few -miles from here." - -Under his guidance we soon found ourselves in the town, and we stopped -at the entrance of a small house which still claimed a patch of garden -in front. The room we entered contained a barrack table strewn with -field maps and papers, and on the tile floor were the sleeping bags of -the four officers who made this their temporary home. Major Gault, a -tall, handsome officer, with the bearing of the true soldier, rose to -welcome us. - -"It seems good to see some one from home again," he exclaimed, as we -shook hands. "I thought we were the only Canucks in Belgium." - -"You were the first Canadians in Belgium, but we beat you to France by -some weeks," the colonel replied, "and we have come up here to tell you -where we live, and to let you know that there is a Canadian hospital -waiting with open arms to receive you when you call." - -"That's splendid," cried the major; "when the boys get hurt be sure -you'll hear from us." - -It is just as well we cannot look into the future. We walk blindfolded, -clinging to the hand of Hope, and trust to her for kindly guidance. -None of us at that moment guessed how soon we were to "hear" from those -brave men. - -Later, when we were about to start for home, they all came out to the -car to say _au revoir_. - -"It's a good expression--'_au revoir,_'" Captain Stewart cried, as we -were parting; "much better than 'Good-bye.'" - -"Take care of yourselves," we cried, "but don't forget if you need us, -we are waiting!" - -"We'll remember," Stewart returned, "for I have a premonition I'll not -be _killed_ in this war." - -He waved his hand as we left, and when we looked back the little group, -whom we were never to see together again, waved their hands in a last -farewell. - -After about an hour's run we saw in the distance, set like a jewel of -the Tyrolese Alps, the pretty town of Cassel, near which our own -Canadian boys were shortly to be quartered. It was about twenty miles in -a direct line from the trenches, and soon after our visit the long-range -German guns dropped their tremendous shells on its outskirts. - -When we reached the hospital a cablegram was waiting for the colonel. -He tore it open hastily, fearing bad news from home. As he read its -contents his mouth expanded in a broad grin, and he passed it silently -to us. We read, and Reggy, looking over Jack's shoulder, had the grace -to blush as he too saw his mother's message: - - -"Greatly worried about my son. No word from him for weeks. He was -troubled with insomnia at home. Does he sleep better now? Cable my -expense." - - -And the colonel sat down and forthwith wrote this soothing reply: - - -"Reggy splendid. Awake only at meal hours. Don't worry!" - - -Late one night, about a week after our visit to the firing line, we were -at the railway yard assisting in the unloading of a train of wounded. -About three hundred and fifty had arrived, and we were transporting them -rapidly to the hospital. The Medical Officer commanding the train -approached me and said: - -"I have one car filled with wounded officers, and nearly all are -stretcher cases. Will you come and see them?" - -We walked down the line of cars and, mounting the steps, entered the -officers' coach. We passed between the cots, and chatted with each -officer in turn; they seemed quite cheery and bright. But one, who had -pulled the blankets high about his neck, and whose face was partly -covered with a sleeping-cap, looked very ill indeed. Unlike the others, -he didn't smile as we approached, but looked up without interest. His -face was white and he took no notice of his surroundings. I asked him -how he felt. He answered slowly and in a weak voice: - -"I'm all in, I guess--don't trouble about me." - -Something in the voice and the jerky manner of speech seemed familiar. -I looked at him more keenly. - -"Stewart!" I exclaimed with involuntary dismay. "Good Lord, it's -Charley Stewart!" - -"Oh, is that you, Major?" he said, with a faint show of interest. "I've -come to call, you see, sooner than I expected. It'll be a short visit," -he continued grimly. "Short trip and a dull one." - -"Surely it's not as bad as that," I said, as encouragingly as I could, -but feeling very sick at heart as I looked down at his pale face. - -"Hole through the stomach," he replied weakly. "Bad enough for a -start." - -"We'll take you up to the hospital--I'm sure we can fix you up all -right," I said, with as much assurance as I could assume. - -"Take me wherever you like," he replied dully; "it won't be for long." - -I assisted in getting him into an ambulance, and cautioned the driver to -go carefully, and after seeing the others safely transferred, sprang -into a motor and followed. Imagine my surprise and chagrin when I -reached the hospital to find that he had not arrived, and after due -enquiry discovered that he had been taken, through some misunderstanding -on the part of the ambulance driver, to Lady Danby's hospital. We -concluded it would be unsafe to move him again that night, and after -'phoning the commanding officer to give him his very best attention, -proceeded with the urgent work of caring for the hundreds of others who -had already arrived. - -In the meantime Captain Stewart was carried through the imposing portal -of his new abode. As the stretcher was deposited with a slight jar upon -the floor in the centre of a great hall, he opened his eyes and stared -in wonder, first at the vaulted roof, then at the magnificent paintings -on the walls, the stage at the far end of the hall, and last, but by no -means least, at Lady Danby's beautiful face as she leaned over him to -assist him. Her golden hair, her big blue eyes and flushed cheeks, and -her graceful figure were too much even for a man half dead. He gave one -more helpless glance at the stage, then his gaze returned to this -vision, and, closing his eyes in a sort of drowsy ecstasy, murmured: - -"Where's George Cohan and the chorus?" - -"What does he say?" asked Lady Danby in surprise. - -"He takes this for a theatre, and is asking where the chorus girls are," -a sprightly nurse volunteered, with keen appreciation, and not a little -amused at the shocked expression on Lady Danby's face. - -"Dear me," she exclaimed, "it must be one of those dreadful Canadians!" - -"I'm afraid he's not quite himself at present, your ladyship," the nurse -protested, scarcely able to repress a smile. - -Stewart opened his eyes once more and remarked coolly as Lady Danby -hastened to another patient: "No--not quite all there--part shot away, -excuse me." He then closed his eyes again and lay still until the -orderlies removed him to his bed. - -The Medical Officer came to examine him, and the nurse cut away the -dressings from his side. He inspected the wound very carefully and -finally said: - -"Rifle bullet wound through the lower lobe of left lung. It might have -been worse." - -"How long do you think I have to live?" Stewart enquired, with some -anxiety. - -"To live?" cried the surgeon, with a laugh. "About thirty or forty -years, with luck." - -"What!" shouted Stewart, as he half sat up in bed with a quick jerk. -"Do you mean to tell me I have the ghost of a chance?" - -"You'll have a splendid chance if you keep quiet and don't shout like -that. You'd better lie down again," the surgeon commanded, not -unkindly. - -"But, good Lord," Stewart protested animatedly, "here I've been trying -to die for three days,--every one encouraged me to do it; and after -passing through four surgeons' hands, you're the first to tell me I have -a chance. It's wonderful. Now I _will_ live--I've made up my mind." - -"Who said you would die?" - -"First the Chaplain at the Field Ambulance where they carried me -in--more dead than alive. He came and shook his head over me. He was a -good chap and meant well, I'm sure--he looked very dismal. I asked him -if I would die, and he answered pityingly: 'A man shot through the -stomach can't live, my poor fellow. Shall I pray for you?' I told him -to go as far as he liked--he got on his knees and prayed like the -deuce." - -"But you said you were wounded three days ago," the surgeon remarked. -"What kept you so long from reaching here?" - -"I lay one whole day in front of the trench where I was wounded. The -stretcher-bearers, against my wishes, came out to bring me in--just as -the man at my head stooped down they shot him through the brain. I -heard the bullet go 'chuck,'--he fell stone dead across me. I ordered -the others back at once--that they must leave me until night. They -refused to go at first, but I commanded them again to get back--at last -when they saw I was determined, they went. Poor chaps! I know they -felt worse at leaving me than as if they had been shot down." - -During this conversation the surgeon had dressed the wound, and now, -admonishing his patient that he must not talk any more, left him for the -night. In the morning Lady Danby came to his cot and marvelled at his -bright face and cheery smile. - -"You're feeling better this morning, I see," she remarked brightly. - -"Much the better for seeing you, madam," Stewart returned, with his -customary chivalry; "and one does recover rapidly with such excellent -nursing and care." - -"I'm afraid we're going to lose you to-day," she replied, with a tinge -of regret in her tone. "The Canadians insist on claiming you as their -own, and I suppose we must let you go." - -"I must admit," he returned, "that I am sorry to leave such congenial -company--come and see me sometimes, won't you, please?" - -Lady Danby smiled. "When I first saw you last night, I thought I -shouldn't care to see you again--but you aren't really quite as dreadful -as I thought. Some day soon I'll run in to see how you are getting on." - -A few hours later, when Stewart was safely ensconced in our hospital, he -observed reminiscently: "I'm awfully glad to be among old friends once -more--but those English hospitals are not without their attractions!" - - - - - *CHAPTER XVI* - - -He was a mere boy, scarce nineteen years of age, a sub-lieutenant in the -Territorials, and a medallist in philosophy from Oxford. - -Who would have guessed that this frail, delicate-looking Welsh youth -with the fair hair and grey eyes was gifted with an intellect of which -all England might be proud? He might have passed unnoticed had one not -spoken to him, and, having spoken, had seen the handsome face light up -with fascinating vivacity as he replied. - -One cannot attempt to recollect or depict the mystic workings of his -marvellous mind; for, once aroused, gems of thought, clear cut and -bright as scintillations from a star, dropped from his lips and left his -hearers steeped in wonder. - -It was then, you may well believe, no ordinary youth who walked into the -hospital, with mud-covered clothes and his kit still strapped to his -back. He dropped the kit upon the floor of his room, and, sinking -wearily into a chair, brushed back with his hand the unruly hair which -sought to droop over his high forehead. - -His commanding officer, who had accompanied him to the hospital, had -taken me aside, before I entered the room, and had told me privately his -views about the boy. - -"You look tired," I remarked, as I noted the weary droop of the head. - -He smiled quickly as he looked up and said: "Done up, I think. Those -six months in Malta were a bit too much for me." - -"But you have been home before coming to France, have you not?" I asked -him. - -"Home!" he cried in surprise. "No such luck! We had expected a week or -two in England after our return, but it's off. There were four thousand -of us in Malta, but we're all here now, at Etaples, and liable to be -sent to the trenches any moment. When I stood on the cliffs at Wimereux -yesterday and saw the dear old shores across the Channel--" He stopped -suddenly, overpowered by some strong emotion. "I'd be a better soldier -farther off. Between homesickness and the pain in my chest, I'm about -all in." - -He did look tired and faint, and even the pink rays of the setting sun -failed to tint the pallor of his cheeks. I told him I would send the -orderly to help him undress and that he must get into bed at once. - -When I returned shortly and examined his chest, I found that he was -suffering from a touch of pleurisy; there were, too, traces of more -serious trouble in the lungs. - -"What do you think of me, Major?" he enquired with a quizzical smile, -when I had completed the examination. "Anything interesting inside?" - -"Interesting enough to call for a long rest," I replied. "We'll have to -keep you here a while and later send you home to England." - -"My O.C., who by the way is my uncle too, and a medical man, insisted on -my coming here," he remarked. "He says I'm not strong enough for trench -life. But the old boy--bless his heart!--loves me like a son, and I'm -morally certain he wants to pack me off for fear I'll get killed. I -simply can't go home, you know, until I've done my bit. It would be -jolly weak of me, wouldn't it?" - -"You might go for a time," I replied guardedly, "and return later on -when you get stronger." - -He started to laugh, but a quick stabbing pain in the chest caught him -halfway, and he stopped short with a twisted smile as he exclaimed: - -"I believe the old chap has been talking to you too! You're all in -league to get me out of France." - -This was so close to the truth that I could not contradict him, but -shook my head in partial negative. His uncle felt, as I too came to -feel later, that the loss to the world of such a brilliant mind and one -with such potentialities would not be compensated for by the little good -its master could accomplish physically in the trenches. - -"After all," he argued, "how much poorer would Wales be if I were gone? -The hole would soon be filled." - -"I can't agree with you," I answered slowly; "your life is more -important to others than you think, and you would risk it in a field for -which you are not physically fitted. You have overdrawn your brain -account at the Bank of Nature, and flesh is paying up. You must go home -until the note is settled." - -"Sounds rational but horribly mathematical--and I always hated -mathematics. Hope I'll be able," he continued mischievously, "to repay -the 'interest' you and uncle are taking in me." - -"We want you to consider the matter philosophically," I said, "not -mathematically." - -"That's better," he replied, with his usual bright smile; "philosophy -comes more natural to me. True, it savours of Euclid, but I can forgive -it that offence; it has so many virtues." - -He remained silent a few moments, thinking, and then asked me suddenly: -"If I go home, how soon can I get back to France?" - -"I hope you won't return here," I replied gravely; "it would be -suicidal, and, flattery aside, your life is too valuable to be -sacrificed over here." - -"Perhaps you are right," he murmured pensively, as though we were -discussing a third party whose life interested him only in an impersonal -manner, and without exhibiting the slightest self-consciousness or -vanity. "It might be better if I stayed at home. I admit," he -continued more brightly, "I have a selfish desire to live. I am so -young and have seen so little of this great big interesting world and I -want so much to know what it all means. Still I would far sooner die -than feel myself a slacker or a 'skrimshanker.'" - -"No one will mistake you for either," I returned warmly. "Your lungs -are not strong, and I fear if you remain here in the cold and wet you -will not recover." - -"There's so much in life to live for," he cried animatedly; "besides, -I'm a little dubious of the _after_ world. For a little longer I should -like to learn what tangible pleasures this world offers, rather than -tempt the unsubstantiated promises of a future state." - -"But surely you believe in an after life?" I enquired, in some surprise. - -"It's difficult to believe what one cannot prove," he returned -evasively. - -"But," I ventured argumentatively, "I can imagine that if the total -_matter_ in the universe is indestructible and cannot be added to or -taken from, the _soul_ too is indestructible--it may be changed, but -cannot be destroyed." - -"Ah!" he exclaimed quickly, "you are assuming the reality of the -abstract. Suppose I do not agree with your hypothesis, and deny the -existence of the soul! You cannot prove me wrong. Sometimes I fear," -he continued more softly, "the soul, or what we conceive to be the soul, -is merely the reflection of poor Humanity beating its anxious wings -against the horror of extinction." - -"Or the shadow of a poor physician scuttling away from the terrors of -your philosophy," I laughed. "You iconoclasts would pull our -castles-in-the-air about our ears and leave us standing in the ruins." - -"I'll build another castle for you," he returned with a queer, sad -smile, as though he sympathised with my dilemma. - -"But not to-night," I urged, as I arose to go; "you must wait until you -are stronger; you have been talking too much already for one so ill, and -I must say good night." - -It was several days later, and the youthful philosopher was making good -progress on the road to recovery, when another young officer, very -similar in appearance to our patient, drove up to the door of the -hospital in a motor car. He was attended by two senior officers of -distinguished appearance and very military bearing, and who showed -considerable deference towards their young companion. - -Apparently they had come from the front and, as the colonel showed them -about the various wards, took the keenest interest in the patients. At -last they came to the young Welshman's room. As they entered he turned -to look at them, and, dropping his arms, suddenly lay at "attention" in -bed. - -"Llewellyn, by Jove!" exclaimed the youngest of the trio, as he stepped -forward and shook our patient warmly by the hand. "I had no idea you -were here. How are you?" - -"Much better, thank you, your Royal Highness," said Llewellyn, with his -ready smile, "and greatly honoured by your visit, sir." - -"I hope it is nothing serious," said the Prince of Wales kindly--for it -was he--"you are looking quite bright!" - -"It isn't _very_ serious, I believe, sir--a touch of pleurisy, that's -all. But the doctors insist on sending me home on account of it. That -is my chief grievance." - -The young Prince smiled understandingly. It was not so long since he too -had unwillingly been detained at home by illness. His blue eyes lit up -with a quick sympathy as he remarked: - -"I hadn't expected to find an old class-mate here; I hope you will soon -be quite well again and able to return to France." - -"I shall do my best to get well soon," Llewellyn answered thoughtfully; -"but the doctors seem to consider my constitution too delicate for -trench life, sir. I have the consolation, though, of knowing that our -college is well represented at the front, for of the seventy-five -students at Magdalen only five are home, and three of those were -physically unfit." - -"Isn't that a splendid record!" cried the Prince with enthusiasm. "It -makes one feel proud of one's college." - -They chatted on various topics for a few moments longer, and then as his -Royal Highness turned to go he exclaimed: - -"This is a wonderful hospital; a great credit to Canada! I must write -father and tell him about it. I consider it one of the finest in -France. I am sure you will do well here. Good-bye, dear chap, and the -best of good luck to you!" - -The kindly and earnest good wishes of his Royal young friend touched -Llewellyn deeply, and there was a suspicious trace of moisture in his -eyes as he returned: - -"Good-bye, sir, and many, many thanks for your kindness in coming to see -me." - - - - - *CHAPTER XVII* - - -The senior major bought a motor car. It was his supreme extravagance. -If there were others who frittered away their substance in riotous -living, at least the major could not be accused of such frivolity. He -had none of the petty vices which eat like a wicked moth into the fabric -of one's income. Any vice that got at his income bit it off in large -chunks and bolted it before you could say "Jack Robinson." The motor -car was the greatest of these. There may be some who do not consider a -motor car a vice. The only answer I can give them is that they never -saw the major's car. When he first unearthed its skeletal remains in the -hospital garage, it bore a remote resemblance to a vehicle. It had part -of an engine, four tireless wheels, and places which were meant for -seats. A vision of its possibilities immediately arose before his -mind's eye, and he could see it, rehabilitated and carefully fed, -growing into a "thing of beauty and a joy forever." - -Some of the officers argued it was German, because no such thing could -have been made by human beings. Others maintained it had been left on -the hospital grounds centuries before and the garage had grown up around -it. The maker, out of modesty, had omitted to inscribe his name, but it -had a number whose hieroglyphics antedated "Bill Stump's Mark." The -original owner sacrificed it, from a spirit of patriotism, no doubt, for -the paltry sum of three hundred dollars, and in the course of time, with -the trifling expenditure of three hundred and fifty more, two mechanics -succeeded in getting it started. - -That was a memorable day when, with a noise like an asthmatic -steam-roller, it came ambling out of the hospital yard, peered around -the corner of the fence, and struck off down the road at a clip of three -good English miles an hour. - -We rushed to the door to see it, and when the smoke of the exhaust -cleared a little, there sat the major ensconced in the front seat. There -was a beatific smile about his mouth and a gleam of pride in his -eye--the pride of possession. He wasn't quite sure what it was he -possessed, but it was something which moved, something instinct with -life. - -"Sounds a bit noisy yet," he murmured confidentially to himself, "but it -will loosen up when it gets running a while." - -What prophetic sagacity there was in this remark! It _did_ loosen up, -and to such good purpose that several parts fell off upon the road. -Little by little it got going, and in less than a month you might have -heard it almost any bright afternoon, groaning in the garage preparatory -to sallying forth upon its quest. - -But about this time another event of such importance occurred that the -major's car was thrust into the background. We had in our hospital a -venerable old sergeant of peripatetic propensities, who had two claims -to recognition: first, that he was, and is, the oldest soldier in the -Canadian force in France; and secondly--but this was never proved--that -he could "lick," according to his own testimony, any man within fifteen -years of his age in that part of the world. - -Sergeant Plantsfield, our postman and general messenger, travelled into -Boulogne and back from once to thrice daily--in other words, inside the -year he accomplished a motor trip of sufficient length to encompass the -earth. His stock of rumours was inexhaustible, for he developed and -launched upon an unappreciative world at least one new tale daily. - -Now if there is one thing a soldier loves more than another it's a -"rumour"; and the more glaringly absurd, the more readily he will listen -to it. So when the worthy old sergeant burst into the hospital with -excited eyes, flushed cheeks and cap all awry after his latest trip from -Boulogne, the boys crowded round to hear the news. - -"They're here! By gosh! They're here at last!" he shouted, as he -deposited his overflowing mail bag in the hall and looked triumphantly -from one to another of his listeners. - -"Who's here," demanded Barker, "the Germans?" - -"Germans be blowed!" declared the sergeant with scornful emphasis. -"They won't never be here!" - -"Put a little pep in it, dad!" said Huxford. "Wot is it?" - -The sergeant waited a full minute to give impress to his announcement, -and then in a tense whisper ejaculated: "The rest of the Canadians are -in France--the whole division's at the front!" - -There was a dead silence for a moment, and then a wild cheer went up -that shook the hall until the windows rattled. - -"Ye ain't stuffin' us again?" Wilson queried anxiously, when the noise -had died away. "Ye done it so often afore." - -Plantsfield looked at him with withering contempt. That his word--the -word of the chief "rumourist" of the unit--should be doubted was almost -too much for human endurance. - -"I'll stuff you, ye young cub, if ye dare to doubt a man old enough to -be yer grandfather," he returned scathingly; and then turning to the -others he continued: "I seen the Mechanical Transport near Boulogne and -was talkin' to them." - -"Oh, I'll bet you wos talkin', all right," Wilson came back -vindictively, "if ye got within fifty yards uv 'em." - -Plantsfield's garrulity was proverbial. He had been known to buttonhole -generals and draw them to one side to whisper a choice bit of scandal in -their unwilling ears--his age excusing him from reprimand. - -He looked wrathfully at Wilson, but that wily youth kept his rosy cheeks -carefully out of arm-shot. Turning back to his more respectful -auditors, and for the nonce ignoring the disrespectful one, he pursued: - -"The Supply Column on their way to the front saw a German aeroplane over -them, forgot discipline in their excitement, jumped down off their -waggons and blazed away at it with their rifles." - -"Without orders, I'll bet?" exclaimed Jogman, slapping his knee. - -"Of course," grinned Plantsfield. - -Honk had been standing with his mouth open, listening intently and -taking in every word orally. He opened it a shade wider as Jogman -finished speaking, and was about to make an observation, when Huxford, -who was somewhat of a mimic, took the words out of his mouth: - -"Just like them blawsted Canydians--'avin' their poke at th' bleedin' -Hun. W'y cawn't they wyte fer h'orders like h'everybody h'else--wyte -until 'e gits aw'y?" - -Honk's indignant protest was drowned in the general clamour which -followed this sally, but his eyes--individually--said wonders. - -At the outset discipline was a sore point with the Canadians. Like the -peoples of all free-born countries, it took a long time to suppress the -desire for individual initiative and an innate independence resented -authority. But as the war progressed, Tommy and his seniors came to -realise the absolute necessity for discipline, and bowed with what grace -they might before its yoke. Perhaps what reconciled them most was the -acquired knowledge that it pervaded all ranks from the generals down. -They soon saw that the chain of responsibility must have no missing -link. - -In the early days of the war, however, on Salisbury Plains in the rain -and mud, discipline was almost an impossibility, and officers seeking to -inculcate this quality in their men had many strange experiences. - -A Tommy was doing "sentry go" one evening in front of his battalion -lines when an officer approached to speak to him. Tommy kept his rifle -firmly on his shoulder, at the "slope," and made no attempt to come to -attention or salute. The officer, wishing to see if he understood his -duty, demanded: - -"What are you doing here?" - -"Just walkin' up an' down," Tommy replied nonchalantly, forgetting, or -at least omitting that important suffix: "sir." - -"Just walking up and down," the officer reiterated, with annoyance. -"What do you suppose you're walking up and down for?" - -"To see that none of them guys comes in soused an' disorderly, I -s'pose," he replied, but without any apparent interest in his -occupation. - -"Don't you know who I am?" the officer demanded testily, exasperated -beyond endurance by such slackness. - -"No," Tommy answered shortly. The absence of the "sir" was striking, -and the tone implied further that he didn't care. - -"_I'm the commanding officer of your battalion!_" Each word dropped -like an icicle from the official lips. - -"Holy--Jumpin'--Judas!" Tommy exclaimed, doing the "present arms" in -three distinct movements--one to each word; "court-martial fer me!" - -It was too much for the gravity of the most hardened disciplinarian. -The colonel turned and fled from the spot until he was far enough away -that the God of Discipline might not be incensed at his shouts of -laughter. - -Tommy escaped the court-martial, but he wondered all evening what a -sentry really was supposed to do. - -It was almost a month after Plantsfield's momentous announcement before -the Canadians commenced arriving at our hospital. They came in twos and -threes, scattered amongst large numbers of other British troops, but -they were mostly cases of illness or slight wounds--and we had little -opportunity for comparing the stoicism of our own boys with that of the -English, Irish and Scotch who arrived in droves. What would our lads be -like when they too came back broken and torn? Would they be as patient -and brave as the other British Tommies? Could they measure up to the -standard of heroism set by these men of the Bull Dog breed? We waited, -we watched and we wondered. - -There was only desultory fighting during the month of March, and most of -the wounds were from "snipers" or shrapnel. - -The first seriously wounded Canadian to reach the hospital was an -artillery officer, from Alberta. A small German shell had dropped into -his dug-out and exploded so close to him that it was a miracle he -escaped at all. When he arrived with his head completely swathed in -bandages, and fifty or more wounds about his body, he looked more like -an Egyptian mummy than a man. His mouth and the tip of his nose were -the only parts of his body exposed to view, and they were burned and -swollen to such an extent that, apart from their position, they conveyed -no impression of their true identity. It was somewhat gruesome to hear -a deep bass voice, without the slightest tremour, emerge from this mass -of bandages. It was as if the dead had suddenly come to life. - -"Would you be kind enough to put a cigarette in my mouth, sir?" he -asked. - -One is tempted to believe that after this war the eternal question will -no longer be "Woman," but "Cigarette." - -"Do you think you can smoke?" I asked him doubtfully. - -Something remotely resembling a laugh came from the bandaged head, but -there was not the slightest visible sign of mirth. - -"I can manage it fairly well," he returned confidently; "my right arm -has only a few wounds." - -Only a few wounds! And he could lie there and speak calmly of them! He -might have been excused for hysterics. The English officers in the -other beds smiled appreciatively: - -"He's a brick!" I heard one murmur. - -The nursing sister, a keen, young woman of ability, looked across the -bed at me with a slight smile of pride. She made no remark but as she -leaned over her patient to unwind his bandages, a flush of pleasure at -his heroism dyed her cheeks. We would have no cause to be ashamed of -our own boys. As we stood beside the bed of that gallant chap, the -epitome of all that was best and bravest from home, a lump arose in our -throats and choked back speech. - -With the aid of cocaine, I removed about a dozen small pieces of shell -from his chest and arms. His face was mottled with myriads of splinters -of stone, and his right eye was practically gone. The hair had been -completely burned off his head and in the centre of the scalp a piece of -nickel, about the size of a penny and as thin as a wafer, had been -driven. One large piece of shell had buried itself in the right leg; -half a dozen more smaller scraps were in the left; his wrist watch had -been smashed to atoms and the main spring was embedded in the flesh. - -"I can't see yet," he explained, "so please watch where I lay my -cigarette. I suppose my eyes will come around in time?" - -How much would we have given to have been able to assure him of such a -possibility! I had grave doubts, but answered as encouragingly as I -dared. Reggy came in later to examine the eye and shook his head over -it despondently. - -"There's a chance for the left eye," he remarked to me, as we passed out -into the hall, "but the right eye will have to be removed as soon as he -is able to stand the operation." - -(Apart from this loss, in the course of time, he recovered perfectly.) - -We went into the room of a young officer from British Columbia, who had -also just reached the hospital. He was a tall, handsome, fair-haired -youth. He rose to his feet, trembling violently, as we entered. He was -still dressed and after we had passed the customary greetings I -enquired: - -"Have you been wounded?" - -"No," he replied with a smile, although his lip quivered as he spoke. -"I wish I had been. It's rotten luck to get put out of business like -this. I got in the way of a 'Jack Johnson'; it played me a scurvy -trick--shell-shock, they tell me, that's all." - -It might be all, but it surely was enough. There is nothing more -pitiable than the sight of a strong, active young man, trembling -continuously like an aspen leaf. Shell-shock, that strange, intangible -condition which leaves its victims nervous wrecks for months or years, -was uncommon in the early days of the war, but with the advent of -thousands of guns is much more common now. - -We chatted with him for a little while, and then continued our -pilgrimage to the larger wards. Nursing Sister Medoc, a tall graceful -girl, a typical trained nurse, met us at the door. - -"Here's a strange case, Major," she remarked, as she pointed to one of -the new arrivals who had just been placed in bed. "He is quite insane -and thinks he is still in the trenches, but he refuses to speak." - -"He must be insane if he won't speak to you, Sister," Reggy suggested -facetiously. - -"That will be quite enough from you, young man," she returned with calm -severity. - -Sister Medoc preceded us into the ward, and Reggy whispered -confidentially in my ear: - -"Do you know, you can't 'jolly' our trained nurses--they're too clever. -Sometimes I think they're scarcely human." - -"You're quite right, Reggy," I returned consolingly, "too many are -divine." - -Reggy looked as if he would have liked to argue the point, but by this -time we had reached the bedside of our patient. I addressed a few words -to him, but he made no response and returned my look with a fixed and -discomfiting stare. I wondered how, if he refused to talk, the nurse -could tell he believed himself still in the trenches. - -The riddle was shortly solved. Turning on his side and leaning on one -elbow, he grasped the bar at the head of the bed and cautiously drew -himself up until he could look over the "parapet." He shaded his eyes -with one hand and gazed fearfully for a moment or two into the mists of -"No Man's Land." Then quickly raising his elbow in an attitude of -self-defence, he shrank back, listening intently to some sound we could -not hear, and suddenly, with a low cry of alarm, dived beneath the -sheets (into the trench) as the imaginary shell went screaming over his -head. - -As soon as it had passed he was up at the "parapet" again, straining his -eyes and ears once more. His nostrils dilated tremulously as his breath -came in quick short gasps. His upper lip curled in anger, and in that -grim moment of waiting for the German charge, his teeth snapped firmly -together and every muscle of his body was tense. - -By the strained look in his eyes we knew the enemy was almost upon -him--Reggy and I in the forefront. With a wild cry of hate and fury he -sprang at us, lunging forward desperately with his bayonet. Reggy -backed precipitately against me, but before he had time to speak our -assailant, with a shiver of horror, had retreated into his "dug-out." - -"Thank the Lord that was only an imaginary bayonet!" Reggy gasped; "I -could hear my finish ringing the door bell." - -"If we had been real Germans, Reggy," I returned with conviction, "we'd -be running yet!" - -"Do you think he'll recover?" Reggy asked. - -"Yes. The attack is so violent and sudden; I think he has every chance. -We'll send him to England to-morrow." - - -Another month passed. It was the night of the twenty-second of April -when this startling message reached the hospital: - - -"Empty every possible bed. Ship all patients to England. Draw hospital -marquees, beds, blankets and paliasses, and have your accommodation for -patients doubled in twenty-four hours." - - -Something unlooked for had happened. We worked like slaves. The -hospital grounds soon looked like a miniature tented city. In half the -time allotted us we were able to report that we were ready for six -hundred wounded. - -A despatch rider, covered with mud, whirled up to the door on his -motorcycle. A little crowd gathered round him. - -"Anything new?" we asked him excitedly. - -"The Canadians are in one of the most frightful battles of the war," he -replied. "The wounded will be coming in to-night." - -And this was the day for which we had been waiting! This was the day -for which we had crossed the sea! It was as if an iron hand had -suddenly gripped the heart and held it as in a vise. We asked for -further news, but he knew nothing more, and with anxious and impatient -minds all we could do was--wait. - - - - - *CHAPTER XVIII* - - -As the sun hid its face on that tragic evening of the twenty-second of -April, 1915, the Turcos and Canadians, peering over their parapets, were -astonished to see a heavy yellowish mist rolling slowly and ominously -from the German trenches. In the light breeze of sundown it floated -lazily toward them, clinging close to the earth. Although the Turcos -thought it a peculiar fog, they did not realise its true significance -until it rolled into their trenches and enveloped them in its blinding -fumes, stinging their eyes, choking their lungs and making them deathly -ill. They could neither see nor breathe and those who could not get -away fell in heaps where they were, gasping for air, blue in the face, -dying in the most frightful agony. - -Germany, discarding the last tattered remnant of her mantle of honour, -had plunged brazenly into a hideous crime--poison-gas had been used for -the first time in the history of war! - -Coughing, sneezing, vomiting; with every breath cutting like a knife, -crying tears of blood, the unfortunate Turcos who had not already -fallen, fled from the accursed spot. The horses too, choking and -startled, whinneying with fear, stampeded with their waggons or gun -limbers in a mad endeavour to escape the horror of the poisoned air. A -storm of shrapnel, high explosive and machine-gun bullets followed the -flying masses and tore them to pieces as they ran. - -For four miles the Allied trenches were left unprotected, and a quarter -million Germans who had been awaiting this opportune moment, started to -pour through the broad gap on their drive for Calais. - - -A brigade of Canadian artillery in Poperinghe received a hurried message -that evening to move forward, take up a position on the road near Ypres -and wait for further orders. They had but a faint notion of the great -trial through which they were to pass. - -When they arrived at the point designated it was almost dark and the -noise of the German bombardment was terrific. Presently along the road -from Ypres came crowds of fleeing civilians. Feeble old men tottering -along, tearful women carrying their babes or dragging other little ones -by the hand, invalids in broken down waggons or wheel-barrows, wounded -civilians hastily bandaged and supported by their despairing friends -hurried by in ever-increasing numbers. Some had little bundles under -their arms, some with packs upon their backs--bedding, household goods -or clothes, hastily snatched from their shattered homes. With white -terror-stricken faces, wringing their hands, moaning or crying, they ran -or staggered by in thousands. Their homes destroyed, their friends -scattered or killed, with death behind and starvation before, they ran, -and the greedy shells, as if incensed at being robbed of their prey, -came screaming after them. - -To add to the confusion and horror of the evening, the Turcos, wild-eyed -and capless, having thrown away their guns and all encumbrances, came -running in stark terror across the fields shouting that the Germans had -broken through and would be upon them any moment. They cried to the -artillery to escape while they yet had a chance--that all was lost! - -It required more heroism to stand before that onrush of terrorised -humanity than to face death a dozen times over. To the Canadian -artillery these were the most tragic and trying hours of their lives, -but with stolid and grim determination they stood through it, waiting -impatiently for the order to move forward. - -All through the night the homeless, despairful creatures from St. -Julien, Vlamertinge, Ypres and the villages round about streamed by in a -heartrending, bemoaning multitude. Sometimes in agonised fear they broke -through the ranks of the soldiers, stumbling onward toward Poperinghe. - -The shriek of shells and the thunder of the guns continued hour after -hour, while on high the vivid glare of bursting shrapnel cast a weird -unearthly glow over the land. Between the blasts of artillery, from -time to time on the wings of the wind, human cries blending in a -gruesome murmur added to the horror of the night. - -Through it all those men of iron stood by their guns waiting for the -word of command. At 3.00 a.m. it came. A murmur of thankfulness that at -last they were to do something went up, and in a twinkling they were -galloping eagerly forward toward their objective. - -They chose the most advanced position in the line of guns, close to the -Yser, and soon were in their places ready for the fight. Shells fell -about them in thousands, but the men happy to be in the thick of the -battle turned to their guns with a will and worked like mad. - -The dawn broke, but there was no cessation of the fight. The guns -became hot, and screeched complainingly as each shell tore through the -swollen muzzle, but still there was no reprieve or rest, and all day -long they belched forth smoke and death over the Yser's bank. - - -When the Germans commenced to pour through the gap which their -treacherous gas had made, they overlooked one important obstacle. On -their left were the men who had lived through four months of misery in -the rain and mud of Salisbury Plains, each day laying up a bigger score -against the _Bosches_ for settlement. - -With this unhappy memory, it was not likely that the First Canadians -were to be ousted from their trenches or killed by gas alone without a -struggle for revenge. For some reason only their left wing had received -an extreme dose of the gas. Many fell and died, but those who remained -stuffed handkerchiefs into their mouths, covered their noses and held on -like grim death for the great attack they knew was coming. They had not -long to wait. Most of them had never seen the enemy before, and the -sight of thousands of Germans marching forward in dense masses was to -Tommy a distinct and unlooked for pleasure. But on they came in a -multitude so great that it looked as if no guns on earth could mow them -down. - -In spite of the sight of these great numbers, it was with the utmost -difficulty that the officers could restrain their men from rushing out -at the enemy with the bayonet. Tommy argued: "Between Salisbury Plains -and Wipers we've been stuck in the mud for six months, never so much as -seeing the nose of a German, and now here they come, just asking to be -killed and you won't let us get out at them!" The mere fact of being -outnumbered twenty times over didn't seem sufficient excuse to -disappointed Tommy for remaining under cover. - -Myriads of self-satisfied _Bosches_ came marching past, as though the -world were theirs. They were due for a rude awakening. They had not -progressed far when the extreme violence of the counter attack caused -them to pause in irresolute wonder. Who were these bold, desperate men -who dared remain in the trenches when half an army had passed? No army -in its senses would remain with unprotected flank. There must be -tremendous reinforcements at their back--so reasoned the Germans. To -stay with one wing "in the air" seemed too much madness even for the -"untrained" Canadians. - -But one thing was clear to the Teuton mind; whoever they were, they were -a decided menace to their advance and must be annihilated or forced back -at all costs before the German Army could progress. But what a lot of -annihilating they seemed to take! - -The third brigade swung across the enemy's flank and poured such a -withering fire into the _Bosches_ that they were sore pressed, with all -their horde, to hold their own. Men and guns were fighting back to -back, grimly, determinedly, unflinchingly and with invincible valour. - -The enemy artillery now had command of the main road to Ypres, and of -many of the lesser roads, and was keeping up a hellish fire on all to -prevent reinforcements or supplies from reaching the Canadians. - -All that night our plucky men fought them off, driving them back through -the woods. They retook four captured guns. All the next day, thousands -without food or water fought side by side with unconquerable spirit. In -impossible positions, raked by enemy shell fire, without chance to eat -or sleep, they held on and tore at the Germans like angry wolves, -fighting with such unheard of ferocity that their opponents were -absolutely staggered. - -If a seemingly hopeless message came from headquarters to a battalion: -"Can you hold on a few hours longer?", back would come the answer piping -hot: "We can!" - -Again and again the doubting question came to the trenches: "Can you -still hold on?", and again and again returned the same enheartening -reply: "We can and _will_ hold on!" - -Then an unheard of thing occurred--neglect of an order. The message -from headquarters, couched in generous words, read: "You have done all -that human power can do. Your position is untenable. You must -retreat!" - -A flush of disdainful anger swept over the officer's face as he read -this message, and he replied in three words: "Retreat be damned!" - -The Canadians had not learned the meaning of the word "retreat." It had -been left out of their martial vocabulary--some one was responsible for -this omission. The Germans tried to teach them its meaning with gas, -with bayonet and with shell; but thick-headed Tommy and his officers -always misunderstood it for "hold" or "advance." It took four days of -starvation and four sleepless, awful nights to make the most intelligent -amongst them understand the word, and even then it was a scant -concession to the _Bosche_. - -Little bands of men, the remnants of dauntless battalions, holding -isolated, advanced points, were commanded to fall back in order to -straighten out the line. But the brave fellows who had so gallantly -defended their posts, were loath to give them up. Unnerved, weak and -exhausted, they still wanted to remain, and when their officers insisted -on their leaving, some actually sat down in the trench and wept bitter -tears of humiliation and chagrin. - -During these four fateful days British and French reinforcements had -been rushed up to fill the gap, and further German progress was -impossible. Harassed from the flank, beaten back from the front, -decimated and discouraged, the Germans had suffered a disastrous and -momentous defeat--for to them Calais, their greatest hope, was -irretrievably lost. - - -During the great battle the Field Ambulance in which Jack Wellcombe was -stationed was working night and day at fever pitch. Time and again the -German guns sought out their quarters and big shells levelled to earth -the houses round about; but, as if the hand of Providence were watching -them, the little field hospital escaped with its patients each time, -just before the buildings were wrecked. - -Five times during the three days this fortunate move was accomplished -not a moment too soon, but still they stuck doggedly to the village, as -close as possible to the guns. Sleep was out of the question. Even if -the noise and imminent danger might have been ignored, the streams of -wounded coming in had to receive attention, and during those frightful -days no man flinched before his precarious and arduous duty. - -In the seventeen consecutive days and nights of the artillery battle -there was never a full minute's break in the bombardment from either -side. - -On the fourth day, during the lull in the infantry fighting, the door of -the field ambulance was suddenly darkened by the figure of a man. He -staggered in. His eyes were bloodshot. His clothes were torn and -covered with mud, his chin had not been shaved for days and his -appearance betokened utter weariness and exhaustion. - -Jack Wellcombe met him at the door and, in spite of his unkempt and wild -appearance, recognised him at once as the Commanding Officer of a -Canadian battalion. - -"Good morning, sir," he said in his usual cheery manner. - -The colonel looked toward him with glazed, unseeing eyes and without a -sign of recognition. - -"I want four coffins," he muttered, ignoring Jack's greeting. - -"You want what, sir?" Jack exclaimed, with a puzzled look. - -"Four coffins," he repeated with mechanical firmness and in a tone of -command, "and I want them at once!" - -"Come in, sir, and sit down," Jack urged. "You're unnerved from this -wild fight and lack of sleep. You need a rest--not a coffin." - -"I know what I want," he repeated with calm insistence, "and it's four -coffins--to bury four of my officers." - -Jack thought the man's reason had gone as a result of the terrific -strain, but decided to humour him. - -"Come over to my billet with me and get a shave, a wash and a good glass -of grog, and then when you're feeling better we'll go out together and -get what you want, and I'll go back to the lines with you." - -The colonel passed his hand across his forehead as though he were trying -without success to recollect something, and then without a word suffered -Jack to take his arm and lead him away. When they arrived at the billet -Jack gave him a stiff glass of brandy and asked him to lie down while -the water was being heated for his bath. Before it was ready he had -fallen sound asleep and Jack did not disturb him for a couple of hours, -when he was aroused with difficulty. - -The batman meanwhile brushed the caked mud from his clothes, and by the -time he had had a bath and a shave and a bite of lunch he had begun to -look more like himself. He seemed greatly depressed and talked little; -he was like a man walking in his sleep and still in the throes of a -gruesome nightmare. - -As they started off up the street of the village Jack remarked: "You -don't really want those coffins for which you asked me this morning, do -you?" - -The colonel looked uncomprehendingly at him. Without answering the -question, he asked in return: - -"Is there a florist's shop in the village?" - -"Well, not exactly a 'florist's,'" Jack replied, "but there is a place -at the far end of the street where we might get some flowers." - -"Let us go there!" - -He spoke no further word until they arrived at the little house which -Jack pointed out as a likely place. They entered the room and after -some slight delay madame produced a vase filled with deep red roses. -The colonel selected four of the largest, paid the woman and without a -comment walked out with the roses in his hand. - -"Get me a motor car," he said to Jack; "we have several miles to go." - -The mechanical transport supplied them with a small car and they started -on their strange mission. They pulled up a few miles back of the firing -line and tramped silently across the fields, the colonel still clutching -the roses, until they came to a spot where a number of Tommies were -standing by four open graves which they had just dug. Beside the graves -rested four shapeless bundles covered with blankets. - -"Do you know the burial service?" the colonel asked Jack suddenly. - -"I'm afraid I don't remember it well enough to repeat it," Jack replied. - -"It doesn't matter much," he went on thoughtfully, "I can say it -myself." - -The men got ready with their ropes to lower the packages, one by one, -into their respective resting places. It was all that was left of four -gallant officers of a gallant battalion. The colonel repeated the -burial service from memory, word for word: - -"Ashes to ashes--dust to dust..." - -But before the earth closed over them he stood at the foot of each -grave, silent as the grave itself, and dropping a rose tenderly upon -each stood at attention, his right hand at the "salute." As the earth -fell dully upon the blankets he turned away with tears in his eyes and -said simply: - -"Poor brave chaps! I loved them all! God keep them. They did their -duty!" - - -It was ten o'clock at night as Reggy and I, crossing the tracks at the -_Gare Maritime_ in Boulogne, saw a battalion which had just disembarked -from the cross-channel boat drawn up on the quay, ready to entrain for -the front. - -We walked toward them in a spirit of idle curiosity--for the sight was -one to which we were well accustomed--when, under the dim light of a -partly shaded street lamp, we noticed that they were from home. We -approached a little group of officers who were chatting animatedly -together, and among them found several whom we knew. - -"What's the truth about this big show the Canadians are in at the -front?" one cried. "There are all sorts of rumours in England. Some say -eight hundred casualties; some say eight _thousand_." - -"I'm afraid eight thousand is nearer the mark," I replied hesitatingly, -fearing to discourage them. - -"Eight thousand!" he echoed; and then an eager cry went up from the -little group: - -"By Jove! Hope they'll hurry us on to the front!" - -And I was afraid of discouraging them! How little I understood my own -countrymen! - -"All aboard!" came the call a moment later, and the enthusiastic Tommies -eagerly clambered into the waiting coaches. As the train clank-clanked -along the street and left us standing there alone in the darkness, back -to our ears came the familiar but ribald strain of "Hail, hail, the -gang's all here!" - -No matter in what strange words it may find vent, the care-free spirit -of song is the true spirit of the army. - -"You can't discourage men like that," said Reggy with a smile half -amusement and half unconscious pride. - -And each occupied with his own thoughts we turned and walked silently -down the quay. - - - - - THE END - - - - - - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FIRST CANADIANS IN FRANCE -*** - - - - -A Word from Project Gutenberg - - -We will update this book if we find any errors. - -This book can be found under: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/46300 - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no one -owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and -you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission -and without paying copyright royalties. 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