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+The Project Gutenberg eBook, In the Field (1914-1915), by Marcel Dupont,
+Translated by H. W. Hill
+
+
+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 www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+
+
+
+Title: In the Field (1914-1915)
+       The Impressions of an Officer of Light Cavalry
+
+
+Author: Marcel Dupont
+
+
+
+Release Date: April 14, 2006  [eBook #18177]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN THE FIELD (1914-1915)***
+
+
+E-text prepared by Jeannie Howse, Thierry Alberto, Henry Craig, and the
+Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team
+(http://www.pgdp.net/) from page images generously made available by
+Internet Archive (http://www.archive.org/)
+
+
+
+Note: Images of the original pages are available through
+      Internet Archive. See
+      http://www.archive.org/details/InTheField
+
+
+    +------------------------------------------------------------+
+    | Transcriber's Note:                                        |
+    |                                                            |
+    | Any obvious typographical errors have been corrected in    |
+    | this text. For a complete list, please see the bottom of   |
+    | this document.                                             |
+    |                                                            |
+    +------------------------------------------------------------+
+
+
+
+
+
+IN THE FIELD (1914-1915)
+
+The Impressions of an Officer of Light Cavalry
+
+by
+
+MARCEL DUPONT
+
+Translated by H. W. Hill
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+London
+William Heinemann
+London: William Heinemann, 1916.
+
+
+
+
+
+TO
+
+GENERAL CHERFILS
+
+A TRIBUTE OF
+
+SINCERE GRATITUDE
+
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE
+
+
+In the following pages the reader will find no tactical studies, no
+military criticism, no vivid picture of a great battle. I have merely
+tried to make a written record of some of the hours I have lived
+through during the course of this war. A modest Lieutenant of
+Chasseurs, I cannot claim to form any opinion as to the operations
+which have been carried out for the last nine months on an immense
+front. I only speak of things I have seen with my own eyes, in the
+little corner of the battlefield occupied by my regiment.
+
+It occurred to me that if I should come out of the deathly struggle
+safe and sound, it would be a pleasure to me some day to read over
+these notes of battle or bivouac. I thought, further, that my people
+would be interested in them. So I tried to set down my impressions in
+my intervals of leisure. Days of misery, days of joy, days of
+battle.... What volumes one might write, if one were to follow our
+squadrons day by day in their march!
+
+I preferred to choose among many memories. I did not wish to compose
+memoirs, but only to evoke the most tragic or the most touching
+moments of my campaign. And, indeed, I have had only too many from
+which to choose.
+
+I shall rejoice if I have been able to revive some phases of the
+tragedy in which we were the actors for my brothers-in-arms.
+
+Further, I gladly offer these "impressions" to any non-combatants they
+may interest. They must not look for the talents of a great
+story-teller, nor the thrilling interest of a novel. All they will
+find is the simple tale of an eyewitness, the unschooled effort of a
+soldier more apt with the sword than with the pen.
+
+
+         M.D.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+  _The Editor of SOLDIERS' TALES will be glad to read diaries or
+  notebooks of those returning, in any capacity whatsoever, from the
+  Front with a view to inclusion in the Series. Contributions must
+  be strictly truthful and should be written with no effort at fine
+  writing. They are intended to tell truthfully the experiences and
+  the feelings of the writers. They should be sent by registered
+  post to the Editor, "Soldiers' Tales," 21, Bedford Street, W.C.,
+  and they may be accompanied by sketches and photographs. All
+  contributions printed will be well paid for. Contributions should
+  be of 30,000 words and upwards in length._
+
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+
+CHAP.                                                    PAGE
+
+   I. HOW I WENT TO THE FRONT                              1
+
+  II. THE FIRST CHARGE                                    57
+
+ III. RECONNOITRING COURGIVAULT                           76
+
+  IV. THE JAULGONNE AFFAIR                               102
+
+   V. LOW MASS AND BENEDICTION                           152
+
+  VI. A TRAGIC NIGHT IN THE TRENCHES                     178
+
+ VII. SISTER GABRIELLE                                   226
+
+VIII. CHRISTMAS NIGHT                                    258
+
+
+
+
+
+I. HOW I WENT TO THE FRONT
+
+
+The train was creeping along slowly in the soft night air. Seated on a
+truss of hay in the horse-box with my own two horses and that of my
+orderly, Wattrelot, I looked out through the gap left by the unclosed
+sliding door. How slowly we were going! How often we stopped! I got
+impatient as I thought of the hours we were losing whilst the other
+fellows were fighting and reaping all the glory. Station after station
+we passed; bridges, level crossings, tunnels. Everywhere I saw
+soldiers guarding the line and the bayonets of the old chassepôts
+glinting in the starlight. Now and again the train would suddenly pull
+up for some mysterious reason. The three horses, frightened at being
+brought into collision with each other, made the van echo to the
+thunder of their hoofs as they slipped, stamped, and recovered their
+balance. I got up to calm them with soothing words and caresses. By
+the light of the wretched lantern swinging and creaking above the door
+I could see their three heads, with pricked ears and uneasy eyes. They
+were breathing hard and could not understand why they had been brought
+away from their comfortable stable with its thick litter of clean
+straw. _They_ were not thinking about the war, but they seemed to
+understand that their good times were over, that they would have to
+resign themselves to all sorts of discomforts, march unceasingly, pass
+nights in camps under the pouring rain, keep their heavy equipment on
+their backs for many days together, and not always get food when they
+were hungry.
+
+Then the train would set off again with a noise of tightened couplings
+and creaking waggons. Whilst I was mechanically looking out at the
+darkness, dotted here and there with the coloured lights of the
+signals placed along the line, my straying thoughts would wander to
+the fields of battle and try to picture the scene on my arrival at the
+Front.
+
+It was the 28th of August, nearly a month after the order had been
+given for mobilisation. And the armies had been fighting for some days
+already. What had happened? We could only glean part of the truth from
+the short official announcements. We knew there had been hard fighting
+at Charleroi, at Dinant, and in the direction of Nancy. But the result
+had not been defined. I thought I could guess, however, that these
+battles had not been decisive, but that they had cost both sides dear.
+I was tempted to rejoice, fool that I was, to think that the first
+great victories would not be won before I joined my regiment. I had
+not yet been able to console myself for the ill-fortune that prevented
+me from starting with the squadrons of the first line. And yet I had
+to submit to regulations. The colonel was inflexible, and answered my
+entreaties by quoting the inexorable rule: In every cavalry regiment
+the sixth lieutenant in order of seniority must stay at the depôt to
+help the major and the captain of the 5th squadron. They must
+assemble, equip, and train the reserve squadrons of the regiment.
+
+I shall never forget what those days were to me. Days of overwhelming
+work, when, in a tropical heat, I was busy from sunrise to sunset,
+entering the names of thousands of men, registering the horses, giving
+certificates, and providing food for the lot. It needed some skill to
+find billets for them all; the horses were lodged in stables, riding
+establishments and yards, the men in every corner and nook of the vast
+district. It was tiresome work, and would have been almost impossible
+but for the general goodwill and admirable discipline. But all the
+time I was thinking of the fellows away in Belgium boldly
+reconnoitring the masses of Germans and coming into contact with the
+enemy.
+
+At last, at eleven o'clock on the 28th of August, the colonel's
+telegram came ordering me to go at once and replace my young friend,
+Second-Lieutenant de C., seriously wounded whilst reconnoitring. At
+six o'clock in the evening I had packed my food, strapped on my kit,
+and got my horses into the train. I set off with a light heart, and my
+fellow-officers of the Reserve and of the Territorials, who were still
+at the depôt, came to see me off.
+
+But how slowly the train travelled, and what a long way off our little
+garrison town in the west seemed to me when I thought of the firing
+line out towards the north! I made up my mind to try to imitate my
+faithful Wattrelot, who had been snoring in peace for ever so long. I
+stretched myself on the golden straw and waited impatiently for the
+dawn, dozing and dreaming.
+
+At about eight o'clock in the morning the train stopped at the
+concentration station of N. What a crowd, and yet what order and
+precision in this formidable traffic! All the commissariat trains for
+the army muster here before being sent off to different parts of the
+Front. The numerous sidings were all covered with long rows of trucks.
+In every direction engines getting up steam were panting and puffing.
+In the middle of this hurly-burly men were on the move, some of them
+calm, jaded and patient. These were the railwaymen, who went about in
+a business-like way, pushing railway vans, counting packages, carrying
+papers, checking lists, and giving information politely and willingly.
+The rest were soldiers, lost, bewildered in the midst of this
+entanglement of lines which seemed inextricable. They were asking each
+other questions, swearing, laughing, protesting, and then they got
+into a train and were promptly hauled out and sent to another. But,
+with all this, there was no disorder, no lack of discipline.
+Everywhere the same admirable composure reigned that I had already
+noticed at the station of my little garrison town.
+
+With Wattrelot's help, I tidied myself up for a visit to the military
+authorities of the station. After many difficulties, and after passing
+through the hands of a number of sentries and orderlies on duty, I
+came into the presence of a kindly captain, to whom I stated my case:
+"These are my marching orders, Captain; I am to join the ---- Light
+Cavalry. Do you know where it is just now?"
+
+The captain raised his hands to Heaven with a look of despair: "How am
+I to know where any regiment is now? You can't expect it. All I can do
+for you is to couple your truck on to the commissariat train of your
+army corps. It will take you as far as the terminus, and there you
+must see what you can do."
+
+I went back to my horses. After various excursions hither and thither
+which took up the whole morning I at last managed to get my horse-box
+coupled to the train. Wattrelot and I, together with the Territorial
+section that served as guard, were the only passengers. The whole
+train was composed of vans stuffed with food supplies and mysterious
+cases, packed into some separate vans carefully sealed. Our departure
+was fixed for two o'clock, and meanwhile I had a chat with the
+Territorial lieutenant who commanded our escort. I tried to find out
+from him what had happened at the Front. He did not know any more than
+I did, and merely told me how sorry he was for his own ill-luck: "You
+know, our job is no joke. We start after luncheon, travel all the rest
+of the day and part of the night, sleep where we can, and the next day
+we go back again in the empty train. It takes still longer to get
+back. And the day after we begin all over again."
+
+And the worthy man quietly folded his hands on the "fair roundness" of
+his figure. He looked a good sort of fellow. He did his job
+conscientiously; put his men into the third-class compartments
+assigned to them; saw that they had their cartridges, and gave them
+some fatherly counsel; and then he invited me into the second-class
+compartment reserved for him. But I declined, as I preferred to travel
+with my horses. The train jolted off. The heat was tropical. We had
+pushed our sliding-door wide open, and, seated on our packages, we
+contemplated the smiling summer landscape as it passed slowly before
+us. And I came to the conclusion that we had found out the pleasantest
+way of travelling:--to have a railway carriage to yourself, where you
+can stand up, walk about and lie down; to go at a pace that allows
+you to enjoy the scenery of the countries you pass through; and to be
+able to linger and admire such and such a view, such and such a
+country mansion or monument of olden days! That is a hundred times
+better than the shaking and rush of a _train de luxe_.
+
+I was delighted and touched by the sympathetic interest shown in us by
+the people. Everywhere old men, women and children waved their
+handkerchiefs and called out, "Good luck!... Good luck!"
+
+The worthy Territorials answered back as best they could. One felt
+that all hearts were possessed with one and the same thought, wish,
+and hope,--the hearts of the men who were going slowly up to battle,
+and those of the people who watched them pass and sent their good
+wishes with them.
+
+At one station where we stopped a group of girls dressed in white were
+waiting on the platform under the burning rays of the sun. With
+simplicity, grace, and charming smiles they distributed chocolate,
+bread, and fruit to all the men. The good fellows were so touched
+that tears came to their eyes. One of them, an elderly man with a
+small grey pointed beard, could not help saying: "But _we_ aren't
+going to fight, you know. We are only here to take care of the train."
+
+"That doesn't matter. That doesn't matter. Take it all the same. You
+are soldiers, like the others.... _Vive la France!_" And all the
+thirty Territorials, in deep and solemn tones, repeated "_Vive la
+France!_"
+
+What a change had come over these men who, people feared, were ripe
+for revolt, undisciplined, and reckless! What kindness and grace in
+the women who stay at home and suffer! An old railwayman said to me:
+"It has been like that, Sir, from the first day of the mobilisation.
+These girls pass their days and nights at the station. It is really
+very good of them, for they won't make anything by it." The old
+working man was right: "They won't make anything by it." And yet I am
+sure that many soldiers who have passed that station on their way to
+the Front will keep the same grateful remembrance that I still have.
+I shall never forget the group of girls in white on the sunny platform
+of the little station; I shall never forget the simple grace with
+which they prevailed upon the men to accept the good things they
+offered and even forced upon them. I thanked them as best I could, but
+awkwardly enough, trying to interpret the thoughts of all those
+soldiers. And when the train had started again on its panting course,
+I felt sorry I had not been more eloquent in my speech; that I had
+already forgotten the name of the little station, and never thought of
+asking the names of our benefactresses.
+
+We were now getting near the fighting zone, and I already felt that
+there was a change in the state of mind of the people. They still
+called out to us: "Good luck!... Good luck!" But earlier in the day
+this greeting had been given with smiles and merry gestures; now it
+was uttered in a serious and solemn tone. At the station gates and the
+level crossings, the eyes of the women who looked at us were more sad
+and profound. They fixed themselves upon ours, and seemed to speak to
+us. And even when their lips did not move their eyes still said "Good
+luck!... Good luck!"
+
+We saw motor cars rushing along the roads, and could distinguish the
+armbands on the men's sleeves, and rifles in the cars or lying in the
+hoods. And yet daily life was going on as usual. There were workers in
+the fields, tradespeople on the doorsteps of their shops, groups of
+peasants just outside the hamlets. But yet a peculiar state of mind
+was evident in each one of these people who were going on with their
+daily work. And all these accumulated cares, all these stirred
+imaginations, produced a strange atmosphere which infected everything,
+seemed to impregnate the air we breathed, and quenched the gaiety of
+the men in our train. Wattrelot and I were overcome by a kind of
+religious emotion; we felt as though we were already breathing the air
+of battle.
+
+At about six o'clock we arrived at the station of L., where the train
+stopped for a few minutes. The platforms were crowded with Staff
+officers. A soldier assured me that the chief Headquarters were here.
+I wanted to question some one and try to get some authoritative
+information as to what was happening at the Front. It seemed to me
+that I had a right to know, now that I was on the point of becoming
+one of the actors in the tragedy in progress a few leagues off. But
+directly I came up to these officers I felt my assurance fail me. They
+looked disturbed and anxious. There was none of that merry animation
+that had reigned in the interior and that I had expected to find
+everywhere.
+
+And then a strange and ridiculous fear came over me; the fear of being
+looked upon as an intruder by these well-informed men who knew
+everything. I imagined that they would spurn me with scorn, or that I
+should cause them pain by forcing them to tell me truths people do not
+like to repeat. It also occurred to me that I was too insignificant a
+person to confront men so high in office, and that I should appear
+importunate if I disturbed their reflections. But I was now quite sure
+that the official announcements had not told us all. Without having
+heard one word, I felt that things were not going so well as we had
+hoped, as every day in our little town in the west we tried
+passionately to divine the truth, devouring the few newspapers that
+reached us.
+
+A pang shot through me. I now felt alone and lost amongst these men
+who seemed strangers to me. Crossing the rails, I got back to our
+train, drawn up at some distance from the platforms. The sun was on
+the horizon. In the red sky two monoplanes passed over our heads at no
+great height. The noise of their engines made everybody look up. They
+were flying north. And I felt a desire to rush upwards and overtake
+one of them and take my seat close to the pilot, behind the propeller
+which was spinning round and sending the wind of its giddy speed into
+his face. I longed to be able to lift myself into the air above the
+battlefields, and there, suspended in space, try to make out the
+movements of the clashing nations.
+
+I resolved to have a talk with the engine-driver of a train returning
+to Paris empty. He told me in a few words that the French army was
+retreating rapidly, that it had already recrossed the Belgian
+frontier, and that at that moment it was fighting on French soil. He
+told me this simply, with a touch of sadness in his voice, shaking his
+head gently. He added no comments of his own, and I did not feel equal
+to any reply. Full of foreboding, I returned to my train and
+Wattrelot. He had heard what the engine-driver had told me, and he
+said not a word, but looked out into the distance at the fiery sky. We
+sat down side by side and said nothing.
+
+So we were retreating. Then all our calculations and dreams were
+shattered. All the fine plans we officers had sketched out together
+were folly. We were wasting time when, bending over our maps, we
+foresaw a skilful advance on the heels of Belgium's invaders, followed
+by a huge victory, dearly bought, perhaps, but one that would upset
+the German Colossus at a single blow. The whole thing was an illusion.
+And I thought what a fool I had been. I thought of my regiment. How
+much of it was there left? How many of those good fellows were lying
+dead on foreign soil? How many friends should I never see again? For I
+imagined things to be worse than they really were. I felt absolutely
+despondent. What my mind conjured up was no longer a retreat in good
+order but a rout.
+
+The train had begun to move again. The sun had set, and over the
+horizon there was but a streak of pale yellow sky lighting up the
+country. I sat down in the open doorway with my legs dangling outside,
+and as I breathed the first few whiffs of fresh air I felt somewhat
+relieved. The calm around was such as to make one forget that we were
+at war. Darkness came on by degrees.
+
+Suddenly my heart began to beat faster, and I rose with a nervous
+movement. Wattrelot too had started up from the straw he had been
+lying on. We both exclaimed in one breath: "Cannon!" It was a mere
+distant growl, hardly audible, and yet it was distinct enough to be a
+subdued accompaniment to the thousand noises a train makes as it goes
+along. We could not distinguish the shots, but gradually the dull
+sound became louder and seemed to be wafted towards us by a gust of
+air. Then it seemed to be further off again, and almost to die away,
+and again to get louder. There is no other earthly sound like it. A
+thunderstorm as it dies away is the only thing that could suggest the
+impression we felt. It sends a kind of shiver all over the surface of
+the body. Even our horses felt it. Their three heads were raised
+uneasily, their eyes shone in the twilight, and they snorted noisily
+through their dilated nostrils.
+
+Leaning out, I saw the heads of the Territorials thrust out of the
+windows. They, too, had heard the mysterious and stirring music. No
+one spoke or joked. Their bodies, stretching out into space, seemed to
+be asking questions and imploring to know the truth. We came nearer
+to the sounds of the guns and could now distinguish the shots
+following one another at short intervals. The air seemed to be shaken,
+and we might have thought we were but a few paces off.
+
+The train had pulled up sharply in the open country. It was still
+light enough for us to make out the landscape--meadows covered with
+long pale grass, bordered by willows and tall poplar trees gently
+swaying in the evening breeze. In the background a thick wood shut in
+the view. The railway line curved away to the right and was lost to
+view in the growing darkness. Now that the train was motionless the
+impressive voice of the cannon could be heard more distinctly. The
+long luminous trails of the search-lights passed over the sky at
+intervals.
+
+Impatient at the delay, I got down and walked along the line to the
+engine. It had stopped at a level crossing. At the side of the closed
+barrier, on the doorstep of her hut, with the light shining upon her,
+sat the wife of the gatekeeper, a child in her arms. She was a young
+woman, fair and pale. She seemed somewhat uneasy, and yet had no idea
+of quitting her post. She was talking in a low voice to the engine
+driver and stoker of our train. I tried to get some information from
+her. "_Mon Dieu, monsieur_," she said, "I know nothing, except that
+the guns have been firing all day long since yesterday, and even at
+times during the night. The sound comes chiefly from the direction of
+G. Some soldiers, who went by just now with carts, told me the
+Prussians got into the town yesterday, but that it was to be retaken
+to-day; and that there were a great many dead and wounded."
+
+My hopes revived a little. I saw at once in my mind the German attack
+stopped on the river Oise, our armies recovering, drawing together and
+driving the enemy back across the frontier. Our engine-driver
+explained to me that we had come quite close to the terminus, but that
+we should have to wait some time before we could get in. Other trains
+had to be unloaded and shunted to make room.
+
+I went back to my van. Night had fallen, and it must have been about
+nine o'clock. The guns had suddenly ceased firing. Our lantern had
+burnt itself out, and the rest of our wait was made more tedious by
+darkness. An empty train passed us, and then silence fell once more
+upon the spot where we waited anxiously to be allowed to go forward
+towards our brothers-in-arms. Oh! how I longed to join them, even if
+it were only in the middle of a bloody and difficult retreat; how I
+longed to be delivered from my solitude!
+
+At last, at about eleven o'clock, the train set off again without
+whistling, and very slowly. It went along timidly, so to speak, and as
+though it was afraid of coming into some unknown region which might be
+full of mysteries and ambuscades. In the distance I saw some signal
+lamps waved, and suddenly we stopped. What I then saw astounded me. I
+had thought we should draw up at a large platform where gangs of men
+would be waiting, in perfect order, to unload the train, sort out the
+packages, and pile them up in their appointed places for the carts to
+take them quietly away.
+
+Instead of this the train stopped at some little distance from a small
+station standing by itself in the open country. I could make out some
+buildings, badly lighted, and around them a crowd of shadowy forms
+moving about. And drawn up alongside of our train were countless
+vehicles of all sorts and kinds in indescribable disorder, made all
+the more confusing by the darkness. Some of them were drawn up in some
+sort of a line. Others tried to edge themselves in and get a vacant
+place among the entanglement of wheels and horses. The drivers were
+abusing each other in forcible language. Every now and again there was
+an outburst of laughter interspersed with oaths.
+
+All this time officials were running down the platform with papers in
+their hands, trying to read what was chalked on the vans. Enquiries
+and shouts were heard:
+
+"Where is the bread?"
+
+"Over here."
+
+"No, it's not."
+
+"Where is the officer in charge?"
+
+Matches were struck. The few lighted lanterns there were were snatched
+from one hand by another. And in spite of all this apparent disorder
+the work went rapidly forward. Men climbed in through the open doors.
+Sacks and heavy cases were passed along. Porters, bending under their
+loads, slipped through the maze of vans and carts to the one they
+wanted and deposited their burdens.
+
+After giving Wattrelot orders to prevent any one from invading our
+horse-box I slipped out and went towards the station office to look
+for the military commissary. I had great difficulty in making my way
+through the crowd of men who seemed to be rushing to take the train by
+assault in the darkness. Then I had to avoid breaking my neck in
+getting across the maze of rails, the signal wires, and the open
+ditches.
+
+I got to the station. A number of wounded were there lying on the
+platforms; about a hundred of them, with their clothes torn, and
+covered with dust. They presented a sad picture. They were, it is
+true, only slightly wounded; but it cuts one to the heart to see
+soldiers in that plight, hauled out upon the ground without straw to
+lie upon or any doctor to attend to them. However, they had all had
+first-aid dressings. Below the bandages that bound their heads their
+feverish eyes gleamed in the light of the lanterns. Their bandaged
+arms were supported by pieces of linen tied behind their necks.
+Several of them were sitting on baskets, casks and packages of all
+kinds, and they were talking eagerly. Each man was relating, with
+plenty of gesticulation, the great deeds he had taken part in or seen.
+As I passed, I heard scraps of their conversation: "They were in the
+first line of houses.... Then, old chap, our lieutenant rushed
+forward.... You should have seen them scuttle...."
+
+I was delighted to see that the _moral_ of those fine fellows didn't
+seem in the least affected. To hear them you would have thought the
+Germans had been driven back at all points.
+
+I got a porter to tell me where the military commissary was. He
+pointed out an Artillery lieutenant, in a cap with a white band,
+talking to a group of officers. I introduced myself, and asked him if
+he knew anything about the state of affairs. Like everybody else, he
+could only give me very vague information. "However," he added, "I can
+confirm what you have heard about G. The First Corps has just retaken
+the town, which was defended by the Prussian Guard. It appears that
+our fellows were wonderful, and that the enemy has suffered enormous
+losses. However"--the lieutenant's voice trembled slightly, and the
+shrug of his shoulders betrayed his despair--"I have orders to
+evacuate the station, with all my men and my papers, so soon as the
+last train has been unloaded. I am to fall back towards L. How is one
+to understand what all this means?"
+
+We looked at each other, without a word. Everybody felt dejected and
+doubtful. Not to understand!... To have to obey without understanding
+why! It was the first time I had really felt the grandeur of military
+service. You must have a soul stoutly tempered to carry out an
+order--no matter what, even if that order seems incomprehensible to
+you. There must have been in that corner of France, on the edge of
+that frontier which we had sworn should never be violated--there must
+have been thousands of officers, thousands of soldiers who would have
+given their lives rather than yield up one inch of ground. Then why
+abandon that station? Why say so bluntly, "To-morrow you will have no
+need to go so far north to bring supplies. We shall come nearer to
+you; _we_ shall withdraw ..."?
+
+There I was again, allowing my mind to wander and to suffer. I tried
+to learn by what means I could get some information about my regiment.
+
+"Well, it's very simple," said the Artillery lieutenant, very kindly.
+"Your commissariat officer will certainly have to come with his convoy
+to fetch supplies. Try to get hold of him. He will tell you all about
+it."
+
+I grasped his hand and went off, glad indeed at the thought of seeing
+my regiment's uniform once more. And Providence seemed to guide me,
+for I thought I saw the very man I was looking for in the little
+booking office. But I had some difficulty in recognising him. He
+looked aged and worn. His beard had grown quite grey. Bending over the
+sill of the ticket office, he was in the act of spreading the contents
+of a box of sardines upon a slice of bread. Yes, it was he. How tired
+and disheartened he looked! I pushed the door open and rushed in:
+
+"_Bonjour! Comment va?_"
+
+"Ah!... It's you! What have you come here for, my poor fellow? Ah!
+Things aren't looking very rosy...."
+
+I plied him with questions, and he answered in short incoherent
+sentences:
+
+"Charleroi? Don't talk of it!... Our men? Grand!... A hecatomb....
+Then ... the retreat ... day and night.... The Germans daren't.... Ah!
+a nice business, isn't it? We're retreating."
+
+He told me where the regiment was, in a huge farm a long way off. He
+said he could take my canteen in one of his vans. As for me, I should
+have to manage as best I could next day to join my comrades. It would
+take some time to get my horses detrained, as the only platform was
+still being used for the vans not yet unloaded. "Thanks," said I.
+"Well, it's quite simple. To-morrow I go straight towards the cannon.
+Good-night." And I went off to finish my sleepless night, lying beside
+my horses. With my eyes fixed on the chink of the door, I waited, hour
+after hour, for the daylight....
+
+When dawn broke I had already got Wattrelot and a couple of railwaymen
+who were still in the station to bring my horse-box up to the
+platform. The three horses were quickly saddled and ready to start.
+The freshness of the morning and the joy of feeling firm ground under
+their feet again made them uncommonly lively. Indeed, Wattrelot came
+near feeling the effects of their good spirits somewhat uncomfortably
+as he was getting into the saddle.
+
+At last we started at a quick trot along a white and dusty road which
+led straight across fields still bathed in shadow. I went first in the
+direction my friend had vaguely indicated the night before. Wattrelot
+followed, leading my spare horse. The horses' footsteps resounded
+strangely in this unknown country where nothing else could be heard.
+Were we really at war? Everything seemed, on the contrary, to breathe
+perfect tranquillity. What a change from the feverish bustle of the
+station the evening before!
+
+We rode through a rich and fertile countryside. The fields stretched
+out one after another without end, covering the rounded flanks of the
+undulating ground with their stubble, dotted with stacks and golden
+sheaves. A few hedges and some clumps of trees broke the monotony of
+the landscape. Here and there farms of imposing proportions appeared
+among the foliage. No shots were to be heard, nor any sound of
+marching troops. And this made me so uneasy that I began to wonder
+whether something had not happened during the night to shift the scene
+of the fighting without my knowledge. But I was about to see something
+which was to remind me, better than the noise of cannon, that the
+scene of the strife was not far off.
+
+As the daylight became gradually brighter we distinguished figures
+moving round some straw-stacks--folks who had collected there to pass
+the night sheltered as much as possible from the cold and the morning
+dew. I thought they were soldiers who had lost touch with their
+regiments and had taken their brief night's rest in the open air. But
+I soon saw my mistake. As by enchantment, as soon as the first rays of
+the sun appeared the sleepers got up, and I saw that they were
+civilians, mostly women and children. They were the unfortunate
+country-folk who had fled before the barbarian hordes. They had
+preferred to forsake their homes, to leave them to the invader, rather
+than fall into his hands. They had fled, carrying with them the most
+precious things they possessed. They had come away not knowing where
+they would stop, nor where they could pass the night. And as soon as
+the twilight came and found them exhausted on the interminable roads,
+they had dropped down by the stacks grateful for a humble bed of
+straw. There they had stretched their aching limbs, the mothers had
+carefully made up little beds for their babies, families had nestled
+closely together, and often whole villages had gathered in the same
+fields and around the same stacks.
+
+And when the daylight appeared they had got up hurriedly and the roads
+were already crowded with mournful pilgrims seeking refuge further and
+further inland. I must confess that I had not expected to see such a
+sight. It made my heart ache. I was seized with a fury and longed to
+be able to rush upon the enemy, drive him back across the frontier,
+and restore the dwellings forsaken by these poor folks.
+
+What human being, however cold-hearted, could help feeling deep pity
+at the sight of those poor, weak and inoffensive creatures fleeing
+before invasion? There were pitiable sights on every hand. A mother
+pushing a perambulator containing several small children, whilst five
+or six others were hanging on to her dress or trotting along around
+her. Poor invalids, dragged, pushed, carried by all possible means,
+sooner than be left in the hands of the Prussians. Old men helped
+along by boys; infants carried by old men. And as they passed they all
+cast a look of distress at the officer who rode quickly by, averting
+his eyes. I thought I saw a reproach in those glances: they seemed to
+say to me: "Why haven't you been able to defend us? Why have you let
+them come into our country? See how we are suffering. Look at our
+little children, who cannot walk any further. Where are we to go now
+that, by your fault, we have left the homes of our childhood, and of
+our fathers and our fathers' fathers? Is that what war is?" I urged
+on my horse to get them out of my sight and to reach the fighting line
+as quickly as I could.
+
+Suddenly the report of a gun sounded straight in front of me. Further
+off a few rifle shots were audible, and then guns again, accompanied
+by concentrated rifle fire. A kind of shiver passed through my whole
+body.
+
+My first battle! I was going to take part in my first battle! I felt
+really mad and intoxicated at the thought of at last realising the
+dream of my life. But other feelings were mingled with it. I
+reflected: "What effect will it have upon me? I expect I shall come
+into the middle of the fight when I get over that ridge. Shall I duck
+my head when I hear the bullets whistling and the shrapnel bursting
+around me? I am determined to play the man. I know Wattrelot is close
+by, trotting behind me. He mustn't see the least symptom of
+nervousness in me."
+
+The noise of the guns became louder. "By the way!... I wonder what
+Wattrelot feels like!" I turned to look at him, and found his face a
+bit pale; but directly he saw me glance at his blue north-country
+eyes, his face lit up with a broad smile.
+
+"Here we are, sir."
+
+"Yes, Wattrelot, here we are. I'm sure you don't know what fear is!"
+
+"Oh! no, sir."
+
+"That's all right. Forward then! To the guns!"
+
+We passed through a hamlet full of waggons and motors. Some orderlies
+were loading them up with rations and boxes. On one of these I
+happened to see the number of my own army corps. "I'm all right then,"
+thought I, and turned to an adjutant of the Army Service Corps, who
+was superintending the work.
+
+"Do you know where the Staff of the ---- Corps is?" I asked.
+
+The man shrugged his shoulders to show that he didn't, and that he
+didn't care. What did it matter to him? His job was to get the goods
+loaded, forget nothing, and then to go to his appointed post where he
+would have to wait for further orders to unload his stuff in the
+evening. He had enough to do. What did anything else matter to him?
+However, he pointed in a vague manner: "They went over there...."
+
+Off I started again over the wide undulating plain. The noise of the
+cannonade became louder and louder, and I now perceived traces of the
+work of death. At a turning of the road there were a couple of dead
+horses that had been dragged into the ditch. I cannot say how painful
+the sight was to me. Apparently a dead horse at the seat of war is a
+trifle, and no doubt I should very soon see it with indifference. But
+these were the first I had seen, and I could not help casting a glance
+of pity at them. Poor beasts! A month before they had been showing off
+their fine points in the well-kept stables of the artillery barracks.
+When I saw them their stiffened corpses bore traces of all their
+sufferings. Their harness had rubbed great sores in their flesh, in
+more places than one. Their glazed eyes seemed to be still appealing
+for pity. They had fallen down exhausted, finding it impossible to
+keep up with their fellows. They had been quickly unharnessed, so as
+not to block up the road; had been dragged on to the sunburnt grass,
+and it was there no doubt the death-agony that had already lasted for
+some hours had come to an end.
+
+We went on, and, in the distance, here and there on the plain, which
+now stretched before us for miles, we saw more of them. I wondered how
+it was that so many horses had fallen in so short a time. It was not a
+month since mobilisation had been ordered, and hardly ten days since
+operations had begun. What a huge effort then the army must already
+have made!
+
+But I soon forgot the poor beasts, for we were nearing the scene of
+the struggle. Behind the shelter of every swell in the ground were
+ammunition waggons. I went up to one of these and was astonished at
+what I saw. The limbers, which are always so smart in the
+barrack-yard, with their grey paint, were covered with a thick coating
+of dust or of hardened mud. The horses, dirty and thin, seemed ready
+to drop. Their necks were covered with sores, and they were hanging
+their heads to eat, but seemed not to have strength enough to take
+their food. Drivers and non-commissioned officers were sprawling
+about, sleeping heavily. Their cadaverous faces, beards of a week's
+growth and drawn features showed even in their sleep how exhausted
+they were. I could hardly recognise the original colour of their dingy
+uniforms under the accumulation of stains and dust.
+
+It was now eight o'clock in the morning. The sunshine was beating hot
+upon the sleepers, but they seemed indifferent to this. They had
+simply pulled the peaks of their caps over their eyes and were snoring
+away, with their noses in the air and their mouths open. Beasts and
+men together formed a group of creatures that seemed utterly depressed
+and worn out. I could never have believed it possible to sleep under
+such conditions, with the guns booming unceasingly in all directions.
+
+I went up the nearest ridge and thence got a glimpse of a corner of
+the battle. I had expected to see a sight similar to that which had
+delighted us at manoeuvres; troops massed in all the depressions of
+the ground, battalions advancing in good order along the roads, and
+mounted men galloping about on the higher ground. But there was
+nothing of the sort.
+
+In front of me, about 600 yards off, and under cover of the brow of a
+hill carpeted with russet stubble, I saw two batteries of artillery,
+firing their guns. I looked intently. The pieces were in perfect line
+and the gunners at their posts. The shots were fired at regular
+intervals and with cool deliberation. The gunners took their time, and
+seemed to be working very casually. I had expected to see them fairly
+excited: the men running under a hail of shells, teams brought up at a
+gallop as soon as a few salvoes had been fired, and the guns whirled
+off at full speed and lined up in battery again some hundreds of
+yards further off.
+
+On the contrary, these guns seemed to be planted there for good. The
+limbers, which were massed to the rear under cover of a slope, looked
+very much like the sections of munitions I had seen just before. The
+men were sleeping in the shadows of their horses, and the horses were
+asleep on their feet in their appointed places. The only man standing
+was a stout-looking adjutant who was walking up and down with his
+hands in his pockets. With his eyes on the ground he seemed to be
+counting his steps. And meanwhile, the two batteries went on firing
+salvoes of four at a time. When one was finished there was a pause of
+two or three minutes. Then the other battery took it up.
+
+But Wattrelot interrupted my reverie: "Look over there, sir.... _Ça
+barde!_" I looked in the direction he was pointing out. And now I no
+longer felt the uneasy feeling that had come over me at the sight of
+what was going on here. Above a height that overtopped the hill on
+which I was, and about 1,500 yards away, the German shells were
+bursting incessantly. We could distinctly hear the sharp sound of the
+explosions. In the clear blue of the sky they made little white puffs
+which vanished gradually and were replaced by others. Their gunners
+could not have been firing with the same coolness as ours, for the
+white puffs increased in number. The noise they were making on the
+spot must have been deafening. From where I was we heard the
+explosions following one upon another without intermission.
+
+But what was most thrilling was to watch one of our own batteries in
+action under this avalanche of projectiles. The slope on which it was
+placed was in shadow still. Against this blue-grey background short
+flames could be seen flashing for a second at the muzzles of the guns.
+And the four reports reached us almost at the same moment. The gunners
+could be seen just as calm under fire as the others here. The German
+shells, that tried to scatter death among them, burst too high. They
+were trying to annihilate this battery, which was no doubt causing
+terrible ravages among their men. But the broken fragments fell wide,
+and our gunners worked their pieces gallantly. This was something that
+more than made up for my touch of disappointment at first. My hope
+revived, and I started off at a trot straight in front of me, getting
+past the ridge, under cover of which the pair of batteries were plying
+their guns.
+
+No sooner had I gained the further slope than I understood that what I
+had seen hitherto was only the background of the battle. From this
+spot a violent rifle fire was heard in every direction. In the meadows
+were a large number of infantry sections crouching behind every
+available bit of cover. On the opposite slope long lines of
+skirmishers were deployed. And dotted about everywhere, above their
+heads, rose puffs of smoke--white, black, and yellow--the German
+shells bursting. The noise of them was incessant, and the spot where
+we were seemed to me very quiet, in spite of the firing of the two
+batteries close behind us.
+
+Everything was wonderfully coloured by the sunshine. The red trousers
+of the soldiers, lying in the grass, showed up brightly. The mess-tins
+on their knapsacks and the smallest metal objects--buttons,
+bayonet-hilts, belt-buckles--glittered at every movement. On my left,
+in a dip of ground with a little river running down it, a gay little
+village seemed to be overflowing with troops. I rode towards it in
+haste, hoping to find a Staff there which could give me some
+information.
+
+The streets were, in fact, full of infantry, lying about or sitting
+along the houses on both sides. In the middle of the main road was a
+crowd of galloping orderlies, cyclists and motor-cyclists. I felt
+rather bewildered in all this bustle. However, these people seemed to
+know where they were going. They were, no doubt, carrying orders or
+information. And yet I could see no chief officer who appeared to be
+busying himself about the action or directing anything. Those who
+were not sleeping were chatting in little groups. The soldiers of
+different arms were all mixed together, which had, perhaps, a
+picturesque effect, but was disconcerting.
+
+Suddenly I heard some one call me by my name. I turned round and
+hesitated a moment before I recognised in an artillery captain with a
+red beard, a former friend who had been a lieutenant in a horse
+battery at Lunéville. Yes, it was he. I recognised him by his grey
+eyes, his hooked nose, and his ringing voice.
+
+"Eh, _mon cher!_ What are you doing here? You look fresh and fit!...
+What are you looking for? You seem to be at sea."
+
+I explained my position to him, and asked him to tell me what had
+happened.
+
+"Oh! that would take too long. Your fellows were at Charleroi with us;
+they had some experiences! But hang it if I know what they are doing
+with us. We beat them yesterday, my friend. Our men and our guns did
+wonders. And now there's talk of our retreating further south. I
+don't understand it all. Ah! we have seen some hot work, and you will
+make a rough beginning.... Looking for your regiment, are you? I
+haven't seen it yet to-day. But you see that Staff right over there
+behind those stacks?... Yes, where those shells are bursting....
+That's General T. He can help you; only, you see, he's not exactly in
+clover. T. has been splendid; always under fire, cheering on his men.
+They say he wants to get killed so as not to see the retreat...."
+
+I knew General T. well. He commanded a brigade in our garrison town of
+R. And a kindly chief he was, clear-minded, frank, and plain-spoken. I
+soon made up my mind to go to him and see what help I could get to
+enable me to rejoin my regiment. It would be a pleasure, too, to see
+him again.
+
+I measured the distance with my eye--a kilometre, perhaps. There was
+no road, and to go across the fields would not be very easy, as there
+were walls and hedges round the meadows. I took the other way out of
+the village, and just as Wattrelot and I were leaving it we saw some
+wounded men arriving. They came slowly, helped along by their
+comrades, and there were such a number of them that they blocked the
+road. Those faces tied up with bandages clotted with perspiration,
+dust, and blood; those coats hanging open; those shirts torn, and
+showing lint and bandages reddened with blood; those poor bandaged
+feet that had to be kept off the ground--all this made a painful
+impression on me. No doubt this was because I was not accustomed to
+such sights, for others hardly took any notice of it.
+
+"The ambulance! Where is the ambulance?" cried the men who were
+helping them along.
+
+"At the station," answered some soldiers, hardly looking round; "go
+straight on, and turn to the left when you get to the market-place."
+
+And the sad procession went its way. I jumped the ditch at the side of
+the road, and struck across the fields, spurring straight for General
+T. At that moment the rifle fire became more violent. Some forward
+movement was certainly beginning, for the infantry sections, that were
+lying in cover at the bottom of the valley, began to climb up the
+slope of the ridge on which I was galloping. Suddenly my horse swerved
+sharply. He had just almost trodden upon a body lying on the other
+side of the low wall of loose stones that I had just jumped. I drew
+rein. A sob burst from my lips. Oh! I did not expect to see that so
+suddenly. A score of corpses lay scattered on that sloping
+stubble-field. They were Zouaves. They seemed almost to have been
+placed there deliberately, for the bodies were lying at about an equal
+distance from one another. They must have fallen there the day before
+during an attack, and night had come before it had been possible to
+bury them. Their rifles were still by their side, with the bayonets
+fixed. The one nearest to us was lying with his face to the ground and
+was still grasping his weapon. He was a handsome fellow, thin and
+dark. No wound was visible, but his face was strikingly pale under
+the red _chéchia_ which had been pulled down over his ears.
+
+I looked at Wattrelot. The good fellow's eyes were filled with tears.
+"Come!" thought I, "we must not give way like this."
+
+"Wattrelot, my friend, we shall see plenty more. You know, they were
+brave fellows who have been killed doing their duty. We must not pity
+them...."
+
+Wattrelot did not answer. I galloped off again towards the big rick by
+which stood General T.'s Staff. I had already forgotten what I had
+seen, and my attention was fixed upon that small group of men standing
+motionless near the top of the ridge. German shells kept bursting over
+them from time to time. We were now about 100 yards off, so I left
+Wattrelot and my spare horse hidden behind a shattered hovel and went
+alone towards the rick.
+
+But just as I was coming up to it I heard a curious hissing noise
+which lasted about the twentieth part of a second, and, above my
+head--how high I could not quite tell--vrran!... vrran!--two shells
+exploded with a tremendous noise. I ducked my head instinctively and
+tried to make myself as small as possible on my horse. A thought
+passed through my mind like a flash: "Here we are! Why on earth did I
+come up here? My campaign will have been a short one!" And then this
+other thought followed: "But I'm not hit! That's all their shells can
+do! I shan't trouble to duck in future."
+
+And yet I was disagreeably impressed: a soldier who had been holding a
+horse just before about 30 yards from me ran down the slope, whilst
+the horse was struck dead and lay in a pool of blood, his body torn
+open.
+
+But I was now close to the officers composing the Staff of the T.
+Brigade. They came towards me, supposing, probably, that I was
+bringing some information or an order. One of them was known to me, an
+infantry captain who had been in garrison at R. with me. We shook
+hands, and I explained the object of this unusual visit. He replied:
+
+"Your regiment? You will find it to the left of the Army Corps. It's
+the regiment that ensures our _liaison_ with the ---- Corps."
+
+"Well, Captain, it seems our troops are advancing. Things are going
+well!"
+
+He shrugged his shoulders sharply. His eyes were hard and sombre as he
+gazed fixedly at the horizon in the direction of the enemy, and then
+said in an exasperated tone:
+
+"Certainly, they are advancing. See those lines of skirmishers working
+along there to the right of the village. And those others further off,
+there where you see those puffs of yellow smoke. But that won't
+prevent us from beginning our retreating movement at noon. There are
+express orders. We must move together with the whole army. We shall
+sleep to-night 20 kilometres from here ... and not in the right
+direction!"
+
+We looked at one another in silence. I didn't like to ask any further
+questions, nor to express my disappointment and the angry feeling that
+was becoming stronger in me. The sight of General T. calmed me at
+once. It seemed to tell me what my duty was, and to impose silent
+obedience and firm faith in our chiefs.
+
+Standing alone, 100 yards in advance of his officers, whom he had told
+to remain concealed behind the enormous stack, the General was
+observing the struggle. He stood perfectly still, with his back
+slightly bent and his hands behind him. He had allowed his beard to
+grow, and it formed a white patch on his slightly tanned face. In
+front of him, at some little distance, two shells had just burst,
+falling short. The General had not stirred. He looked like a statue of
+sadness and of duty. I had thought of going and introducing myself;
+but I now felt that I was too insignificant a being to intrude myself
+upon a chief who was watching the advance of his brave soldiers, as a
+father watches over his children.
+
+I turned and went away, quietly and slowly, with a feeling of
+oppression.
+
+So I made my way back again, skirting the firing line behind the
+ridge, often obliged to pull up to allow troops to pass to reinforce
+the line. Now and then it seemed that the fighting had ceased at the
+spot I happened to be in, but I soon found myself again in the thick
+of the artillery and rifle fire. On all the roads I crossed there was
+a continual stream of wounded men limping along and stretcher-bearers
+carrying mutilated bodies. The heat had become tropical. It was nearly
+twelve o'clock. My head began to swim. My shako seemed gradually to
+get tighter and to press on my temples till they were ready to burst.
+I thought I should never find my regiment--never....
+
+I came to a small village, and decided to stop and get some food for
+ourselves and for my horses, as they showed signs of distress. There,
+too, the streets were full of infantry, but, to my astonishment, none
+of them belonged to any of the regiments of my Corps. So I supposed I
+had passed its left wing without knowing it. Bad luck! I rode up the
+steep alleys, looking for some inn where I could put up, but all the
+inns were filled with hot, footsore soldiers, who seemed thankful for
+a moment's rest. They were sitting about wherever there was any shade
+to be found. With their coats unbuttoned, their neckties undone and
+shirts open, they were trying to recover their vigour by greedily
+devouring hunks of bread they had in their wallets, spread with the
+contents of their preserved meat tins.
+
+At the door of the vicarage, near the pretty little church which could
+be seen from the surrounding country, I saw an old priest who was
+distributing bottles of white wine to an eager crowd of troopers. I
+heard him say in a gentle voice:
+
+"Here, my lads, take what there is. If the Prussians come, I don't
+want them to find a drop left."
+
+"_Merci, ... merci, Monsieur le Curé_."
+
+All at once there was a frightful explosion quite close to us, which
+made the whole church-square quiver. A German "coal-box" had fallen on
+to the roof of the church, making an enormous hole in it, out of which
+came a thick cloud of horrible yellow smoke. A shower of wreckage
+fell all around us and made a curious noise. The windows of all the
+houses came clattering down in shivers. In a twinkling the little
+square in front of the vicarage was empty. A few men who were wounded
+fled moaning. The rest slung their rifles and went off quickly in a
+line close under the shelter of the houses. I was left alone face to
+face with the white-haired priest who still held a bottle of golden
+wine in his hand. We looked at each other greatly distressed.
+
+"_Tenez, Monsieur l'Officier_," he said suddenly; "take some more of
+this. I am going to break all the remaining bottles, so that they
+shall not drink any of it.... Ah! the savages! Ah! the wretches!... My
+church!... My poor church!..."
+
+And he went across his little garden quickly, without listening to my
+thanks. I handed the bottle to Wattrelot, who stuffed it into his
+wallet with a smile of satisfaction.
+
+But a second "coal-box" soon followed the first. It was certainly not
+the place to stay in, so I decided to be off and postpone my luncheon
+until I could find a rather more sheltered dining-room. As I left the
+village I saw one of our batteries moving briskly away. It was the one
+that had been in action close to the village, and had probably been
+the target of the German gunners. It went rapidly down the slope. The
+drivers brandished their whips and brought them down upon the haunches
+of their jaded animals. They had to make haste, for the position had
+become untenable. The German guns were concentrating their fire on the
+hapless village and the neighbouring ridge. The formidable shells
+burst in threes. The ground shook. It was evident that very soon
+nothing would be left there but ruins.
+
+I resumed my wanderings. I saw then that what the captain had told me
+was true. The retreating movement was beginning to be obvious. Whilst
+the firing grew more intense along the whole line small parties of
+infantry marched across the fields in an opposite direction to the one
+they had taken two hours previously.
+
+So we were beating a retreat. However, I had seen it with my own eyes;
+not only had we held our ground along the whole line, but at several
+points our soldiers were making headway. And then suddenly, and
+without any apparent reason, we had to withdraw. It was enough to make
+one mad. We had to retreat over the soil of our France and give it up,
+little by little, to the hordes which followed on our heels.... I had
+slackened rein, and was allowing my horse to go as he liked over the
+country strewn with troops. He seemed to understand what was
+happening, and with his head lowered, as though he did it reluctantly,
+he slowly followed the direction the immense army was taking. I was
+seized with a deep feeling of hopelessness. I doubted everything; our
+men, of whose bravery and tenacity I had just seen proof; and our
+leaders, whose courage I knew. My head seemed to be on fire.
+
+But I heard a ringing voice behind me, calling me by my name. I
+turned, and my sadness gave way to joy as I recognised two light-blue
+tunics with red collars. I had found the uniform of my regiment! and
+my hope revived. I felt I was no longer alone, and that we might yet
+accomplish great things.
+
+In front of a score of our Chasseurs rode two good friends of mine,
+Lieutenant B. and Lieutenant of Reserve de C. What a pleasure it was
+to shake their hands, and to see their bronzed faces and dusty
+garments.
+
+We now went on together, chatting merrily. C. knew the village where
+the regiment was to be billeted. We went straight for it at a trot. It
+was there that, at nightfall, I was going to find my chiefs again, my
+comrades and my men; and I should at last take my part in the
+fighting. I could not know what the days to follow had in store for
+me, but I did know that none could be so cruel for me as the day when
+I went to the Front. I was now in the bosom of my military family, and
+I looked forward to taking my share of danger at the head of the brave
+Chasseurs I knew so well. Doubtless I should now know where we were
+going; why we had to advance, and why to retire.
+
+It seems that moral suffering is less keen when it can be shared with
+others. I shall never suffer again what I suffered that day.
+
+
+
+
+II. THE FIRST CHARGE
+
+
+
+        _September 4._
+
+
+Six o'clock in the evening.
+
+The atmosphere was heavy and stifling. The regiment had been formed
+into two columns, to the right and the left of the high-road from
+Vauchamps to Montmirail. The men, tired out, their faces black with
+dust, had hardly dismounted when they threw themselves on the ground
+and slept in a field of cut corn. The officers chatted together in
+groups to keep themselves awake. Nights are short when you are on
+campaign. The bivouac was pitched at midnight and was to be struck at
+three o'clock in the morning.
+
+And since six o'clock the battle had been raging, for the enemy had
+engaged our rearguard almost immediately. This had happened each day
+of that unforgettable retreat, begun at the Sambre and pushed beyond
+the Marne. Each day we had had to fight. Each day the enemy was
+repulsed. Each day we were obliged to retire.
+
+Brother-soldiers!--you who came through those painful hours--shall you
+ever forget them? Shall you ever forget the anguish that wrung your
+hearts when, as the sun was sinking, you, who had seen so many of your
+comrades fall, had to give up a further portion of our sweet France;
+to deliver up some of our lovely hamlets, some of our fields, our
+orchards, our gardens, some of our vineyards, to the barbarians?...
+You were ordered to do so. We have learnt, since then, how important
+such sacrifices were. But, at the time, we did not know ... and doubt
+came into our minds. We passed through cruel days, and nothing will
+ever efface the impression of physical and moral prostration that
+overcame us then.
+
+The regiment was sleeping--tired out.
+
+Alone, calm, phlegmatic, the Colonel kept watch, standing in the
+middle of the road. With his pipe between his teeth, beneath his ruddy
+drooping moustache, his cap pulled over his eyes, his arms crossed on
+his light-blue tunic, he seemed to be the ever-watchful shepherd of
+that immense flock. At such moments the chief must be able to seem
+unconscious of the self-abandonment, the disorder and the exhaustion
+of his men. Human powers have their limits. They had been expended for
+days without stint. Every moment of cessation from actual fighting had
+to be a moment of repose. The important thing is that the chief should
+keep watch. Brave little Chasseurs! sleep in peace; your Colonel is
+watching over you.
+
+I looked at the men of my troop, on the ground in front of their
+horses. How could I recognise the smart, brilliantly accoutred
+horsemen, whose uniforms used to make such a gay note in the
+old-fashioned streets of the little garrison town?
+
+Under the battered shakoes with their shapeless peaks, the tanned and
+emaciated faces looked like masks of wax. Youthful faces had been
+invaded by beards which made them look like those of men of thirty or
+more. The dust of roads and fields, raised by horses, waggons, and
+limbers, had settled on them, showing up their wrinkles and getting
+into eyes, noses, and moustaches.
+
+Their clothes, patched as chance allowed during a halt under some
+hedge, were enamels of many-coloured pieces. A few more days of such
+unremitting war, and we should have vied with the glorious
+tatterdemalions of the armies of Italy and of the Sambre et Meuse, as
+Raffet paints them.
+
+With their noses in the air, their mouths open, their eyes half shut,
+my Chasseurs lay stretched out among the legs of their horses and
+slept heavily. Poor horses! Poor, pretty creatures, so delicate, so
+fiery, in their glossy summer coats! They had followed their masters'
+fortunes. How many of them had already fallen under the Prussian
+bullets; how many had been left dying of exhaustion or starvation
+after our terrible rides! They seemed to sleep, absorbed in some
+miserable dream of nothing but burdens to carry, blows to bear, and
+wounds to suffer. They were hanging their heads, but had not even the
+strength to crop the green blades growing here and there among the
+stalks of corn.
+
+I felt uneasy, wondering whether they would still be equal to an
+effort for the fight that was always likely and always desired.
+
+Suddenly, from the ridge some 800 yards behind us, coming down like a
+bolt, I saw a horse, at full gallop. Its rider was gesticulating
+wildly. Strange to say, though not a word had been said, as though
+awakened by an electric current, every man had got up and had fixed
+his astonished eyes on the newcomer. He was an artillery
+non-commissioned officer; his face was crimson, his hair unkempt, his
+cap had come off his head and was dangling behind by the chin-strap.
+With a violent jerk he pulled up his foaming horse for a second:
+"Where is the Colonel--the Colonel?" With one voice the whole squadron
+replied: "There, on the road. What's the matter?"
+
+He had already set off again at full speed, had reached the Colonel,
+and was bending down towards him. Even at that distance we could hear
+some of his words: "Uhlans ... near the woods, ... our guns, our
+teams...."
+
+Then it was like a miracle. Without any word of command, without any
+sign, in a moment the whole regiment was on horseback, sword in hand.
+The Colonel alone had remained standing. With the greatest calmness he
+asked the sergeant in an undertone for some information; and the man
+answered him with emphatic gestures. All eyes were fixed upon the
+group. Everybody waited breathlessly for the order which was going to
+be given and repeated by five hundred voices, by five hundred men
+drunk with joy.
+
+We believed the glorious hour was at last come, which we had been
+awaiting with so much impatience since the opening of the campaign.
+The charge! That indescribable thing which is the _raison d'être_ of
+the trooper, that sublime act which pierces, rends, and crushes by a
+furious onslaught--wild gallop, with uplifted sword, yelling mouth,
+and frenzied eyes. The charge! The charge of our great ancestors, of
+those demi-gods, Murat, Lasalle, Curély, Kellermann and so many
+others! The charge we had been asking for, with all our hearts, ever
+since the opening of the campaign, and which had always been denied
+us!
+
+Ah! that famous German cavalry, that set up its doctrine of pushing
+the attack to the death, what hatred and what contempt had we
+conceived for them! We had one desire, and one only--to measure
+ourselves with them. And every time we had seen their squadrons the
+result had been either that they had turned and retired in good order
+behind their lines of infantry, or they had drawn us into some
+ambuscade under the pitiless fire of their deadly machine-guns.
+
+Were we at last to meet them and measure our swords with their lances?
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The regiment moved off in one body behind the Colonel, who, riding a
+big chestnut horse and as calm as at manoeuvres, led us at a gentle
+trot skirting the little clumps of trees that dotted the plain. A
+troop had gone forward in a halo of glittering dust to act as an
+advance guard.
+
+Our horses seemed to have understood what we were about. Or was it we
+who had passed on to them the fighting spirit that fired us? I felt
+behind me the thrill that ran through my men. The first rank could not
+manage to keep the correct distance, the yard and a half, which ought
+to separate it from its leader. Even the corporal in the centre
+allowed his horse to graze the haunches of mine, "Tourne-Toujours," my
+gallant charger, the fiery thoroughbred which had so often maddened me
+at the riding schools of the regiment and at manoeuvres, by his
+savageness and the shaking he gave me. "Tourne-Toujours" gave evident
+signs of excitement. By his pawing the ground every now and then he,
+an officer's horse, seemed to resent the close proximity of mere troop
+horses. And certainly, under ordinary circumstances, I should have
+fallen foul of the rider imprudent enough to ride close to his heels.
+But on that occasion I merely laughed in my sleeve, knowing that in a
+few minutes, when the charge had begun, "Tourne-Toujours" would soon
+have made them all keep their proper distance, and something more.
+
+I took a pleasure in looking at the faces of the men of the third
+squadron, whose troops were riding in column abreast of us. Their
+chins were raised, their eyes wide open, intent, under the shade of
+their cap-peaks, upon the slightest irregularities of the ground
+ahead. Their hands grasped their sword-hilts tightly. Major B.,
+leaning well forward, and riding between the two squadrons, was
+practising some furious cutting-strokes. What a grand fight it was
+going to be! How we should rejoice to see the curved sabres of our
+comrades rising against the clear sky to slash down upon the leather
+_schapskas_ of our foe! We waited for the word that was to let loose
+the pent-up energy of all those tense muscles.
+
+A trooper came back from the advance guard at full speed, and brought
+up his horse with the spur beside the Colonel. He reported in short
+sentences, which we could not hear. The Colonel turned towards our
+Captain, who was behind him, leaning forward over his horse, all
+attention, with his sword lowered, receiving the orders given in an
+undertone. We only heard the last sentence: "I shall support you with
+the rest of the regiment."
+
+"Thank Heaven!" thought I; "it is we; it is our dear squadron that is
+to have the honour of attacking first." Every man pulled himself
+together. Every man felt conscious of all the glory in store for us.
+Every man prepared to perform exploits which, we felt sure, would
+astonish the rest of the regiment, of the army, and of France.
+Forward! Forward! Forward!
+
+The troops had already ridden past the Colonel at an easy gallop, and
+we suddenly found ourselves strangely isolated in that vast tract of
+country which, a few minutes before, we had passed over in a body.
+There was a succession of yellow or green fields, with here and there
+some leafy thicket. On our left, surrounded by orchards, rose the grey
+and massive buildings of the farm of Bel-Air. In front of us, some few
+hundred yards off, there was a dark line of wood, the lower part of
+which was hidden from us by a slight rise in the ground.
+
+Hardly had the first troop reached the top of the brow when some shots
+were fired at us. We at once understood. Again we were to be deprived
+of the pleasure of measuring ourselves with their Uhlans at close
+quarters. We saw distinctly on the edge of the wood, kneeling and
+ready to fire, some fifty sharp-shooters in grey uniform and round
+caps without peaks. We recognised them easily.
+
+It was one of their cyclist detachments that had slipped into the wood
+and had been quietly waiting for us with rifles levelled. As usual,
+their cavalry had retired under cover of their line.
+
+What did it matter to us? The wood was not thick enough to prevent
+our horses from getting through, and the temptation to let the fellows
+have a taste of our steel was too strong. I rejoiced at the thought of
+seeing their heavy boots scuttle away through the trees. I resolved to
+have a thrust at the skirts of their tunics, to help them on a bit.
+
+The Captain understood the general feeling. "Form up!" he cried.
+
+In a twinkling a moving wall had been formed, to the music of merrily
+clinking stirrups and scabbards and jangling metal; and the gallop
+towards the wood began.
+
+Just at that moment its skirts were outlined by a circle of fire, and
+a violent fusillade rang out. Bullets whistled in all directions, and
+behind me I heard the heavy sound of men and horses falling on the
+hard ground. In my troop a horse without a rider broke away and came
+galloping towards me. What did it matter? Forward! Forward!
+
+We were about 200 yards off. We spurred our horses and got into our
+stride.
+
+Suddenly a horrible fear took the place of the martial joy that had
+urged us to the fight. We were all struck by the same discouragement,
+the same feeling of impotence, the same conviction of the uselessness
+of our sacrifice. We had just realised that the edge of the wood was
+surrounded with wire, and that it was behind this impassable barrier
+that the Prussians were calmly firing at us as at a target. What was
+to be done? How could we get at them and avenge our fellows who had
+fallen? For one second a feeling of horror and impotent rage passed,
+like a deep wave, over the squadron. The bullets whistled past us.
+
+But the Captain adopted the wisest course. He saw that retreat was
+necessary. He had, behind him, more than a hundred human lives, and
+felt they must be saved for better and more useful sacrifices. With a
+voice that rose above the noise of the firing, he shouted: "Follow me,
+in open order!" And he spurred in an oblique direction towards the
+nearest depression in the ground. But the movement was badly carried
+out. The men, disheartened, instead of spreading out like a flight of
+sparrows, rushed off in so compact a body that some more horses were
+knocked over by the Prussian bullets. How long those few seconds
+seemed to us! I wondered by what sort of miracle it was that we did
+not lose more men. But what an uncanny tune the innumerable bullets
+made in our ears as they pursued us like angry bees!
+
+At last we got under cover. Following a gully, the squadron reached a
+little wood, behind which it was able to re-form. The sweating horses
+snorted loudly. The men, sullen-mouthed and dejected, fell in without
+a word and dressed the line.
+
+In the fading light the roll was called by a non-commissioned officer
+in a subdued voice, whilst I looked on distressfully at the sad
+results of the useless charge. And yet our losses were not
+great--three troopers only, slightly wounded, who, far from grumbling
+at their mishap, seemed proud of the blood that stained their tunics
+and their hands. The men whose horses had fallen had already come up
+jogging heavily over the field of lucerne that stretched out before
+us. One man alone was absent; Paquin, a good little fellow, energetic
+and well disciplined, whose good humour I found especially attractive
+both under fire and in camp. But he would come in, no doubt. Cahard,
+his bed-fellow, told me that his horse had stumbled and thrown him. He
+thought he had even seen him get up again directly the charge had
+passed.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant, ... mon Lieutenant_, your horse is wounded."
+
+I had dismounted in a moment, and tears came to my eyes. I had
+forgotten the anger and impatience that "Tourne-Toujours'" savage
+temper had so often caused me. What had they done to my brave and
+noble companion-in-arms? A bullet had struck him inside the left thigh
+and, penetrating it, had made a horrible wound, as large as my hand,
+from which the blood was streaming all down his leg. Two other bullets
+had hit him, one in the flank, the other in the loins, leaving two
+small red holes. The noble animal had brought me back safely, and
+then, as he stood still on his four trembling legs, his neck raised,
+his nostrils dilated, his ears pricked, he fixed his eyes on the
+distance and seemed to look approaching death in the face. Poor
+'Tourne-Toujours,' you could not divine the pain I felt as I patted
+you, as gently as I should touch a little suffering child!
+
+But I had to shake off the sadness that wrung my heart. The day was
+gradually sinking, and Paquin had not come in. Two of the men quickly
+put my saddle on the horse of one of the wounded troopers. Whilst
+Surgeon-Major P., in the growing dusk, attended to the seriously
+wounded men stretched on the grass, I made up my mind to go out and
+see whether my little Chasseur was not still lying out on the scene of
+the charge.
+
+"Cahard, Finet, Mouniette, Vallée, I want you."
+
+At a gentle trot we sallied out from the cover of the wood. My four
+men, dispersed at wide intervals to my right and left, stood up in
+their stirrups from time to time to get a better view.
+
+The guns were silent. Now and again one or two isolated shots were
+heard. Night had almost fallen. On the horizon a long reddish streak
+of light still gave a feeble glow. Everything was becoming blurred and
+mysterious. In front of us stretched the disquieting mass of the wood
+that so lately had rained death on us. Above our heads flocks of black
+birds were wheeling and croaking.
+
+"Paquin!... Paquin!... Paquin!..."
+
+My Chasseurs shouted their comrade's name; but no voice answered. We
+were certainly on the ground the squadron had ridden over. Every now
+and then we came across the body of a horse, marking our mournful
+course. A poor mare with a broken leg neighed feebly, as if appealing
+for help to her stable-companions.
+
+"Paquin!... Paquin!... Paquin!..."
+
+No response. We had to turn back and rejoin the others. War has many
+of those moments of pain when we have to control our feelings--forget
+those we love, those who are suffering, those who are dying--and think
+of nothing but our regiment, our squadron, our troop. Paquin's name
+would be marked on the roll as "missing"--a solemn word which means so
+many things, a word that leaves a little hope, but gives rise to so
+many fears.
+
+Over the fields, under a brilliant moon, the squadron retired in
+silence. Those who have served in war know that solemn moment when,
+after a day's fighting, each corps arrives at its appointed place of
+rest. It is the moment when in normal life nature falls asleep in the
+peace of evening. It is the moment when in villages and farms lights
+appear in the lower windows, behind which the family is seated around
+the steaming soup-tureen after the day's work.
+
+It is some time now since we have tasted the exquisite peace of those
+moments. Instead, we have grown used to hearing over the wide country
+a monotonous and barbarous uproar caused by the thousands of cannon,
+limbers, vans, and vehicles of every kind which are the very life of
+an army. All these things rumble along methodically in the dark,
+clanking and creaking, towards a goal invisible and yet sure. Above
+this huge chaos voices rise in various keys: soldiers astray asking
+their road; van-drivers urging on their foot-sore teams; words of
+command given by leaders striving, in the dark, to prevent confusion
+among their units. This is the reverse of the shield of battle, the
+moment when we feel weariness of mind and body and the infinite
+sadness of remembering those who are no more....
+
+Away in the distance two villages were in flames, luridly lighting up
+some corners of the scene. That evening seemed to me sadder and more
+distressing than ever....
+
+
+
+
+III. RECONNOITRING COURGIVAULT
+
+
+
+        _September 5th._
+
+
+The provisional brigade which had just been formed, with our regiment
+and the _Chasseurs d'Afrique_ (African Light Cavalry), was paraded at
+dawn by our Colonel, who had taken command of it. The united regiments
+had been formed up under cover of a line of ridges, on the summit of
+which the watchful scouts stood out against the sky, looking north.
+The sun was already shining on the motley picture formed by the light
+uniforms of the dismounted troopers and the motionless rows of horses.
+They were all half asleep still.
+
+The Colonel had drawn up the officers of the brigade in front of the
+squadrons. He held a paper in his hand and read it to us in a resonant
+voice, full of unfamiliar vibrations. On hearing the first few
+sentences we drew closer around him as by instinct. We could not
+believe our ears. It was the first time we had heard anything like it
+since the outbreak of the war.
+
+When he had finished we were all amazed. Had we not been told the day
+before--when, together with the ---- Corps, we crossed the Grand Morin
+closely pressed by the enemy's advance guard--had we not been told
+that we were going to retire to the Seine? And now in a few noble,
+simple words the Commander-in-Chief told us that the trials of that
+hideous retreat were over, and that the day had come to take the
+offensive. He asked us all to do our duty to the death and promised us
+victory.
+
+We returned to our squadrons in animated groups. Our delight was
+quickly communicated to the troops, who understood at once. The men
+exchanged jests and promises of fabulous exploits. They had already
+forgotten the fatigues of the fortnight's retreat. What did they care
+if their horses could hardly carry them further, and if many of them
+would be incapable of galloping?
+
+What did it matter?
+
+My fellow-officers and I were already making wonderful plans. Those of
+d'A., who had just finished his course of instruction as lieutenant at
+Saumur with honours, comprised vast movements of complicated strategy.
+They culminated in a prodigious but inevitable envelopment of the
+German armies, De F., more prosaic than the other, dreamt of
+Pantagruelian repasts liberally furnished with Rhine wines. O., a
+sub-lieutenant, just fresh from the Military College--which he had
+left with a No. 1, mind you--seemed like a young colt broken loose;
+his delight knew no bounds. As for our captain, Captain de la N., our
+kind and sympathetic chief, he was transfigured. The horrors of the
+retreat had affected him painfully, but the few lines that had been
+read to us had sufficed to restore all his joyous ardour.
+
+"Captain, the Colonel wants an officer."
+
+"Hurrah!" It was my turn for duty.... Just a few words of
+congratulation, some hands stretched out to me, and I went, leaving a
+general feeling of envy behind me. Here was I in the presence of the
+Colonel, who, with a map in his hand and surrounded by the superior
+officers, explained in a few short sentences what he required of me.
+
+"Take the direction of Courgivault. Reconnoitre and find out whether
+the village is occupied. You will report to me on the road which leads
+straight from here to the village. The brigade will follow you in an
+hour by the same road. I am sending two other parties towards such and
+such villages."
+
+And a few minutes afterwards I was on the road to Courgivault.
+
+I chose from my troop a corporal and four reliable fellows who had
+already given a good account of themselves. In advance I sent
+Vercherin, as scout, well mounted on his horse "Cabri," whose powerful
+haunches stood out above the tall oats. I had full confidence in his
+vigilance and his shrewdness. I knew his clear blue eyes, and that, if
+there were anything to be seen, he would see it better than any one
+else. I knew also that I should have no need to spur his zeal.
+
+On either side of me Corporal Madelaine, Finet, a sapper, Lemaître,
+and my faithful orderly, Wattrelot, rode along in silence in extended
+order at a considerable distance from one another. We had learnt by
+experience since the beginning of the campaign. We were on our guard
+now against Prussian bullets. We knew what ravages they made directly
+our troopers were imprudent enough to cluster together. Thus we ran
+fewer chances of being taken by surprise.
+
+The weather was splendid. How delightful, thought I, would it have
+been to walk over the fields, on a morning like this, with a gun under
+my arm, behind a good dog, in quest of partridges or a hare. But I had
+other game in view--no doubt more dangerous, but how much more
+exciting!
+
+The air was wonderfully clear, without the least trace of mist. The
+smallest detail of hedge and ditch could be easily distinguished. Our
+lungs breathed freely. We foresaw that the heat would be oppressive in
+a few hours' time, but the fresh air of the night still lingered, and
+bright pearls of dew still lay on the lucerne and stubble. What a joy
+to be alive in such delicious surroundings, with the hope of victory
+in one's heart!
+
+I fancy that those who have not been in this war will not be able to
+understand me, for I have not the skill to explain clearly what I feel
+by means of written words. A more practised pen than mine is needed
+for such a task, a mind more accustomed to analyse feelings.
+
+I seem to have within me the inspiration of a strange power that makes
+me light as air, and inclined to talk aloud to myself. And if I wanted
+to speak I certainly should not find the words I wanted. Perhaps it is
+that I simply want to shout, to cry "Hurrah!" again and again. It must
+be that, for I find myself clenching my teeth instinctively to prevent
+myself from giving way to such an untimely outburst.
+
+Nevertheless, it would be a relief to be able to shout at the top of
+my voice and sing hymns of glory confronting the enemy. I should like
+to hear the whole army following my example behind me, to hear all the
+bands and all the trumpets accompanying our advance with those
+matchless war-songs which thrill the soul and bring tears to the eyes.
+
+Here I was, on the contrary, in conditions of absolute calm, of the
+most impressive silence conceivable. Until that day the country, at
+that hour of the day, had echoed with the innumerable noises made by
+an army in retreat. Thousands of cannon, limbers, and convoys had been
+passing along all the roads and all practicable by-ways monotonously
+and ceaselessly. Often, too, the first shots exchanged by the cavalry
+scouts of both the hostile armies could be heard.
+
+We heard nothing that day. In front nothing stirred: the country
+seemed deserted; the fields forsaken. Not a living creature showed
+itself.
+
+Behind us, too, there was complete silence. But I knew that an entire
+army was there, waiting for us to send information, before advancing
+to the fight. That information would direct its blows.... I knew my
+brigade was behind that rise in the ground, and that all, officers and
+troopers alike, were impatient to rush upon my tracks to the attack. I
+knew that behind them, lying by sections in the plough-land, thousands
+and thousands of infantrymen had their eyes fixed in the direction I
+was taking, and that hundreds and hundreds of guns were ready to pour
+out death. But that disciplined multitude was silent and, as it were,
+holding its breath, waiting for the order that was to hurl it forward.
+I felt in excellent spirits.
+
+It was upon _me_, and upon a few comrades, that the confidence of so
+many soldiers rested. It was to be by _our_ directions that the
+regiments were to rush forward, some here, some there, carrying death
+and receiving death with, for the first time, the certainty of
+conquering; since for the first time the Commander-in-Chief had said
+that conquer they must. And not for an instant had I any fear of not
+being equal to my task. On the contrary, it seemed to me that I had
+been destined from all eternity to command this first offensive
+reconnaissance of the campaign in France.... I felt my men's hearts
+beating close to mine and in unison with mine.
+
+I had consulted my map before breaking into a trot, and had noticed
+that the road leading to Courgivault passed through two woods, not
+very deep, but of considerable extent. I soon came in sight of one of
+them, at about 500 yards distance, below a ridge which we had just
+passed. I called out to Vercherin, who had begun to spur his horse
+towards the wood, to stop. I knew that numbers of men had fallen by
+having acted in this way--a way we have at manoeuvres, when the enemy
+are our comrades with white badges on their caps, and when harmless
+blank cartridges are used instead of bullets. We had very soon learnt
+from the Germans themselves the way to reconnoitre a wood or a
+village, and also how they must be held.
+
+How much more dashing it would have been, more in the light cavalry
+style, to ride full gallop, brandishing my sword, with my five little
+Chasseurs into the nearest copse! But I knew then that if it were
+occupied by the enemy their men would be lying down, one with the
+soil, using the trees and bushes as cover, till the last moment. Then
+not one of us would have come out alive.
+
+We were reduced to employing against them their own tactics of mounted
+infantry. The good old times of hussar charges are past--gone,
+together with plumes, pelisses waving in the wind, Hungarian braiding,
+and sabretaches. It would be senseless to continue to be a horseman in
+order to fight men who are no longer cavalrymen and do not wish to be
+so. We should fight at a disadvantage, and since the opening of the
+campaign too many brave soldiers have paid with their lives for their
+delight in epic fights _à la_ Lasalle.
+
+I searched the edge of the wood carefully with my field-glasses.
+Before entering it I wanted to be quite sure whether any movement
+could be discovered, whether any of the brushwood showed signs of
+being drawn aside by sharpshooters too eager for a shot. My men were
+on the watch, crouching in attitudes that would have pleased Neuville,
+their carbines ready, looking with all their eyes and listening with
+all their ears. Nothing! I called Vercherin with a low whistle. The
+silence was such that he heard it. He understood the sign I made him,
+and, holding his carbine high, he went slowly towards the wood and got
+into it quickly by the road.
+
+My heart beat for a moment when I saw my scout getting near the thick
+border-line of trees; but now I breathed again. We went in after him,
+each one by a different opening, and we passed through it as quickly
+as the horses' legs and the difficulties of the ground would allow. On
+arriving at the further side I was glad to see my four companions
+emerging, almost at the same moment, from the thick woody tangle. I
+could see their grave and confident faces turned towards me. On the
+ridge in front of us, near a solitary tree, stood Vercherin, clear
+against the sky and motionless.
+
+We had soon rejoined him, and from this height we saw on the next hill
+the second wood which hid the village of Courgivault from our view,
+about a kilometre further off. I feared very much that this second
+barrier might be used by the enemy as a formidable line of defence,
+and on that account I ordered the approach to be made with still
+greater precautions than before. But, as in the first case, we found
+it empty, and passed through without let or hindrance.
+
+I expected to see Courgivault at once, but a rise in the ground hid it
+still. I took advantage of this natural cover for getting my men
+forward without risking a shot. Then, still preceded by Vercherin, we
+debouched on the plateau on which the village stood.
+
+Those who have found themselves in a similar situation know by
+experience the sudden emotion that is felt when one sees a few
+hundred yards off the objective of one's mission, the decisive point
+one has to reach, cost what it may; the point where one is almost sure
+to find the enemy in hiding, where one has a suspicion that he sees
+one, is watching one, silently following all one's movements, and only
+waiting for the opportunity of picking one off by an unerring shot.
+
+I stopped my men for a moment. Surrounded by green meadows and
+stubble-fields dotted with apple-trees, lay the grey outskirts of the
+village It was a very ordinary collection of houses, some of them big
+farms, others humble cottages. The tiled roofs formed a reddish mass,
+and above them rose the squat church tower. With my glasses I could
+distinguish the clock-dial, and could see the time--a quarter past
+six.
+
+But this clock seemed to be the only thing in the village with any
+life in it. I looked in vain into the gardens and orchards, which
+formed a belt of flowers and foliage, for signs of the peaceful
+animation of country life. And yet it was the time of day when one
+usually sees housewives coming out of the cowsheds, with their sleeves
+tucked up and their feet in clogs, carrying pails full of fresh
+milk--the time when the heavy carts and reaping machines lumber slowly
+along the brown roads on their way to the day's work. Was it the war
+that had driven away all those poor village folk, or was it the rough
+fist of the Teuton that kept them prisoners locked up in their cellars
+and threatened with revolvers?
+
+And yet, from where I stood, nothing could lead me to suppose that the
+village was occupied by the enemy. I could not distinguish any work of
+defence. There did not seem to be any barricade protecting the
+entrance. No sentinel was visible at the corners of the stacks or
+under the trees.
+
+To the south of the village, pointing in our direction, the imposing
+bulk of a large farm protruded, like the prow of a ship. It seemed to
+form an advanced bastion of a fortress, represented by Courgivault.
+Its walls were high and white. At the end a strong round tower was
+planted, roofed with slates; and this enhanced the likeness to a
+miniature donjon. The road we had followed, winding between the
+fields, passed, so far as we could judge, in front of its principal
+entrance. Opposite this entrance there was apparently another road at
+right angles to the first, its direction marked by a line of trees
+which bordered it. Along this road, separated by short intervals, a
+dozen big stacks had the appearance of a threatening line of battle
+facing us, so as to bar our approach to the village.
+
+All these things were steeped in the same atmosphere of silence, which
+certainly had a more tragic effect than the din of battle. I was
+impressed with the idea that the two armies had withdrawn in opposite
+directions, and that we were left behind, forgotten, at 100 kilometres
+distance from both of them.
+
+But we had to come to the point. At a sign from me Vercherin reached
+the first tree of a long row of poplars. The row started from the farm
+and bordered the road we were following up to about 100 yards from
+the outer wall. By slipping along from one tree to another he would be
+able to get near in comparative safety. Suddenly I saw him stop
+quickly and, standing up in his stirrups, look straight ahead towards
+the stacks.
+
+There was no need for him to make any sign to me. I understood that he
+saw something, and I galloped up to him at once. He was as calm as
+usual, only his blue eyes were a little more dilated, and he spoke
+more rapidly, with an accent I had not heard before.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, ... there behind that stack, it seemed to me ... I
+thought I saw a head rise above the grass...."
+
+I looked in the direction he pointed to with his carbine, which he
+held at arm's length. I saw nothing but the silent and peaceful
+village; I had the same impression of a hateful and depressing void.
+And, strange to say, our two horses, whose reins had been hanging
+loose on their necks, appeared to be suddenly seized with a
+simultaneous terror, and both at once turned right round. I managed
+to bring mine back by applying the spur, and while Vercherin, who was
+carried further, came back slowly, I used my glasses again, to make a
+closer inspection of all the points of the village.
+
+Then, at the very moment that I was putting the glasses to my eyes, I
+saw, at less than 100 yards distance, a whole line of sharpshooters,
+dressed in grey, rise quickly in front of me. For one short moment a
+terrible pang shot through us. How many were there? Perhaps 300. And
+almost at the same time a formidable volley of rifle shots rang out.
+They had been watching us for a long time. Lying in the grass that
+lined the road leading to the farm or else behind the stacks, with the
+admirable discipline which makes them so formidable, they had carried
+out their orders. Not one of them had shown himself. The _Hauptmann_
+(captain) alone, no doubt, put up his head from time to time in order
+to judge the favourable moment for ordering them to fire. It was he,
+no doubt, very fortunately for us, who had been perceived by
+Vercherin just for one moment. If it had not been for the prudence
+which we had gained by experience not one of us would have escaped.
+Fortunately every one of my men had kept the place exactly that I had
+assigned him. Not one of them flinched under the storm. And yet,
+Heaven knows what sinister music the bullets played around our ears!
+We had to be off.
+
+I made a sign which was quickly understood. We all turned and galloped
+off towards the little depression we had emerged from just before. The
+bullets accompanied us with their hateful hissing, which made us duck
+our heads instinctively. But inwardly I rejoiced at their eagerness to
+lay us low, for in their hurry they aimed badly.
+
+We had almost reached our shelter when I suddenly saw to the right of
+me "Ramier," Lemaître's horse, fall like a log. As I was trying to
+stop my mare, who showed an immoderate desire to put herself out of
+danger, I saw both horse and rider struggling for a moment on the
+ground, forming a confused mixture of hoofs in the air and waving
+arms. Then "Ramier" got up and set off alone, neighing sadly, and with
+a limping trot that did not look very promising.
+
+But Lemaître was already on his legs, putting his crushed shako
+straight on his head. A bit stunned, he seemed to collect his ideas
+for an instant, and then I saw his good-natured ruddy face turned
+towards me. It lit up with a broad grin.
+
+"Any damage, old fellow?" I asked.
+
+"Nothing broken, sir."
+
+"Hurry up, then."
+
+And there was Lemaître, striding along with his short legs and heavy
+boots, jumping ditches and banks with a nimbleness of which I declare
+I should not have thought him capable. It is curious to note the
+agility the report of a rifle volley lends to the legs of a dismounted
+trooper. Lemaître came in to the shelter in the valley as soon as I
+did; and almost at the same time Finet, the sapper, brought in his old
+road-companion "Ramier," which he had been able to catch. It was
+painful to see the poor animal; his lameness had already become more
+marked. He could only get along with great difficulty, and his eyes
+showed he was in pain.
+
+I glanced hurriedly at the spot where the bullet had struck him. The
+small hole could hardly be seen against the brown skin, just at the
+point of the left buttock.
+
+"Just wait here for us; I shall be back in a moment."
+
+I wanted to see if to the east of the village I could note anything
+interesting, and I turned round towards my other troopers, whose
+horses were panting behind us. I was horrified to see Corporal
+Madelaine's face streaming with blood.
+
+"It is nothing, sir ...; it passed in front of my nose."
+
+He wiped his face with the back of his hand. It had indeed been grazed
+by a bullet. One half-inch more, and the good fellow's nose would have
+been carried off. Fortunately the skin was hardly broken. Madelaine
+went on:
+
+"It's nothing; ... but my mare...."
+
+He had dismounted, and with a look of distress showed me his horse's
+blood-stained thigh. "Attraction" was the name of his pretty and
+delicate little grey mare, which he loved and cared for passionately.
+A bullet had pierced her thigh right through, and the blood had flowed
+down her leg. I calmed him by saying, "Come, come; it will be nothing.
+Go on foot behind that wood, and get quietly under cover with
+Lemaître. I will soon come and join you."
+
+And I went off with Vercherin, Finet, and Wattrelot. I tried to get
+round to the right of Courgivault. But now that the first shots had
+been fired we were not allowed to come nearer. As soon as we appeared
+a violent fusillade burst from the outskirts of the village, which
+forced us to beat a rapid retreat. There was no longer any doubt about
+it; Courgivault was occupied, and occupied in strength.
+
+Under the shelter of a bank I quickly dismounted, and Wattrelot took
+my horse's bridle. Whilst I knelt on one knee and on the other wrote
+my report for the Colonel, Vercherin and Finet, at an interval of 100
+yards, kept a good look-out on the ridge for the enemy's movements. I
+handed my message to Wattrelot:
+
+"Take this to the Colonel, and quickly. I will wait here for the
+brigade."
+
+I then rode slowly to the corner of the wood, where Madelaine and
+Lemaître were posted, whilst Wattrelot went off at a trot across the
+stubble. But a sad sight was awaiting me.
+
+Lemaître was standing in great grief over poor "Ramier," lying inert
+on the ground and struggling feebly with death. His eyes were already
+dull and his legs convulsed. Every now and then he shuddered
+violently.
+
+I looked at Lemaître, who felt as if he were losing his best friend.
+And, indeed, is not our horse our best friend when we are
+campaigning--the friend that serves us well to the very last, that
+saves us time and again from death, and carries us until he can carry
+us no longer? I dismounted and threw the reins to Lemaître:
+
+"Don't grieve, my good fellow; it is a fine end for your 'Ramier.' He
+might, like so many others, have died worn out with work or suffering
+under some hedgerow. He has a soldier's death. All we can do is to cut
+short his sufferings and send him quickly to rejoin his many good
+comrades in the paradise of noble animals. For they have their
+paradise, I am sure."
+
+But Lemaître hardly seemed convinced. He shook his head sadly, and
+said:
+
+"Oh, _mon Lieutenant_! I shall never be able to replace him. Such a
+good animal! such a fine creature! He jumped so well.... And his coat
+was always so beautiful; he was so sleek and so easy to keep.... No, I
+shall never find another like him."
+
+"Oh! yes, you will."
+
+However, I must confess my hand trembled as I drew my revolver. One
+horse the less in a troop is somewhat the same as one child the less
+in a family. And, besides, it means one trooper unmounted and the loss
+of a sword in battle. Lemaître was right. "Ramier" was a good old
+servant, one of the kind that never goes lame, can feed on anything or
+on nothing, and never hurts anybody. It was hard to put an end to him;
+but since he was done for....
+
+I put the muzzle of my revolver into his ear. I did not wish him to
+feel the cold metal; but his whole body shuddered, and his eye,
+lighting up for a moment, seemed to reproach me. Paff! A short, sharp
+report, and "Ramier" quivered for a moment. Then his sufferings
+ceased, and his stiffening carcase added one more to the many that
+strewed the country.
+
+Whilst Lemaître slung his heavy package on his shoulders and went off
+to return to the regiment with Corporal Madelaine, who was leading
+"Attraction," I went back to my observation post, not far from Finet
+and Vercherin. Silence and gloom still hung over Courgivault.
+
+Suddenly, behind me, coming out of the wood, I saw a cavalry troop in
+extended order, riding in our direction. They were _Chasseurs
+d'Afrique_. I recognised them by the large numbers of white horses,
+which made light patches upon the dark green of the thicket, and
+almost at the same moment a dull report resounded in the distance. A
+curious humming noise was heard above our heads, and a shell fell and
+burst at the foot of the stacks in the possession of the Prussian
+infantry. It came from one of our batteries of 75-millimetre guns,
+which was already getting the range of Courgivault.
+
+My message had reached the Colonel. The battle of the Marne had begun.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Under a superbly clear sky, lit up by myriads of stars, the brigade,
+in a high state of delight, crossed the battlefield on returning to
+camp. Above our heads the last shells sent by the enemy were bursting
+in bouquets of fire. We paid no attention to them. Meeting some
+battalions of infantry on their way to reinforce the line, we were
+asked for news, and shouted: "Courgivault, Montceau ... taken, lost,
+then retaken with the bayonet by the brave infantry of the M.
+Division. Enemy's regiments annihilated by our artillery, which has
+done magnificently...."
+
+Little by little the firing died away along the whole line. Fires,
+started by the shells, lit up the battlefield on every side, like
+torches set ablaze for our glory. All hearts were filled with joy. It
+hovered over the blood-stained country, from which arose a kind of
+intoxication that took possession of our souls.
+
+How splendid is the evening of a first victory!
+
+
+
+
+IV. THE JAULGONNE AFFAIR
+
+
+On September 9, at about eight o'clock in the evening, our advanced
+scouts entered Montigny-les-Condé at the moment when the last dragoons
+of the Prussian Guard were leaving it at full speed. Our pursuit was
+stopped by the night, which was very dark. Large threatening clouds
+were moving across the sky, making it impossible to see ten paces
+ahead. Whilst the captains were hastily posting guards all round the
+village, whilst the lieutenants were erecting barricades at all the
+outlets and setting sentries over them, the quartermasters had all the
+barns and stables thrown open. With the help of the inhabitants they
+portioned out, as well as they could, the insufficient accommodation
+among the men and the horses of the squadrons. In each troop camp
+fires were lighted under shelter of the walls so that the enemy should
+not see them.
+
+What a dinner we had that evening! It was in a large room with a low
+open roof supported by small beams. The walls were smoke-blackened and
+dirty. On a chest placed near the door I can see still a big pile of
+ration loaves, thrown together anyhow; and leaning over the hearth of
+the large fireplace, lit up by the wood fire, was an unknown man who
+was stirring something in a pot. Round the large table a score of
+hungry and jaded but merry officers were fraternally sharing some
+pieces of meat which the man took out of the pot.
+
+The Captain and I ate out of the same plate and drank out of the same
+metal cup, for crockery was scarce. The poor woman of the house ran
+round the table, consumed by her eagerness to make everybody
+comfortable. And in the farthest corner, away from the light, a very
+old peasant, with a dazed look and haggard eyes, was watching the
+unexpected scene. The company heartily cheered Captain C. for his
+cleverness in finding and bringing to light, from some nook or other,
+a large pitcher of rough wine.
+
+For three days we had been pursuing and fighting the German army, and
+we were tired out; but we had not felt it until the evening on
+stopping to give our poor horses a little rest. Before the last
+mouthful had been swallowed several of us were already snoring with
+their heads on their arms upon the table.
+
+The rest were talking about the situation. The enemy was retreating
+rapidly on the Marne. He must have crossed it now, leaving as cover
+for his retreat the division of the Cavalry of the Guard which our
+brigade had been fighting unceasingly ever since the battle of
+September 6. Would they have time to blow up all the bridges behind
+them? Should we be obliged to wait until our sappers had built new
+ones before we could resume our pursuit?
+
+We were particularly anxious about two fine officers that our Colonel
+had just sent out that night on a reconnaissance--F., of the
+_Chasseurs d'Afrique_, and my old friend O., of our squadron. We
+wondered anxiously whether they would be able to perform their
+task--to get at all costs as far as the Marne, and let us know by dawn
+whether the river could be crossed either at Mont Saint Père,
+Jaulgonne, Passy-sur-Marne, or Dormans. Nothing could have been more
+hazardous than these expeditions, made on a dark night across a
+district still occupied by the enemy.
+
+The night was short. Before day dawned the horses were saddled and the
+men ready to mount. And as soon as the first rays of morning filtered
+through, my squadron, which had been told off as advance guard of the
+brigade, rapidly descended the steep slopes which commanded the small
+town of Condé. A.'s troop led. My business was to reconnoitre the
+eastern part of the town with mine, whilst F., with his troop, was to
+see to the western quarters.
+
+With sabres drawn, our Chasseurs distributed themselves briskly, by
+squads, through the streets of the old city. The horses' hoofs
+resounded cheerily on the paved streets between the old grey houses.
+The inhabitants ventured out upon their doorsteps, in spite of the
+early hour, with some hesitation at first, but glad indeed when they
+saw our light-blue uniforms; they cheered, crying: "They are gone!...
+they are gone!" But some old folk replied more calmly to my questions:
+"_Monsieur l'Officier_, have a care. They were here an hour ago with a
+large number of horses and guns. There was even a general, with his
+whole staff, lodged at the great house up there.... We would not swear
+that some of them are not there still."
+
+I collected my troop, and then went quickly to the château which stood
+at the northern entrance of Condé. It was rather a fine building, but
+I had not time to notice its architectural style. Haste was necessary,
+for the brigade behind me was due to arrive. As far as I remember, the
+château formed a harmonious whole, and the different parts of it
+showed up cheerfully against the dark foliage of the park, which was
+still glittering after the night's rain. The building was in the form
+of a horseshoe, and in the centre there was a kind of courtyard
+bordered by two rows of orange trees in tubs.
+
+I at once posted two guards, one on the road to provide against any
+surprise and the other at the park entrance to prevent egress, in case
+any fugitive should attempt to pass. Then, with the rest of my men, I
+rode through the large gilded iron gates at a trot. In the avenue
+which led to the house two men were standing motionless. One of them,
+dressed in black and clean-shaven, appeared to be some old servant of
+the family, the other must have been one of the gardeners. Their pale
+faces and red eyes showed that they had had little sleep that night.
+
+"Well, my friend," said I to one of them, "is there anybody left at
+your place?"
+
+"Sir," he answered, "I couldn't tell you; for I have not set foot in
+the house since they left it. What I do know is that they feasted all
+night and got horribly drunk. They have drunk the whole cellar dry,
+and I shouldn't be surprised if some of them are still under the
+table."
+
+But when I asked him to come in with me, to act as guide for our
+visit, he refused with a look of horror. He trembled all over at the
+thought of seeing perchance one of the guests who had been forced upon
+him. As there was no time to be lost, I told my men to dismount at
+once, and gave orders to one corporal to search the right wing of the
+building, to another to reconnoitre the left wing. I myself undertook
+to see about the central block with the rest of my troop. We had to
+make haste, so I instructed my subordinates to go quickly through the
+different rooms and not to inspect them in detail.
+
+The entrance door was wide open. Taking my revolver in my hand, I
+entered the hall, which was in indescribable disorder. Orderlies had
+evidently slept and had their meals there, for the stone floor was
+littered with straw, and empty bottles, sardine-boxes, and pieces of
+bread were lying about. But when I opened the door of the dining-room
+I could not help pausing for a moment to look at the strange sight
+before me. The grey light of that September morning came in through
+four large windows and shone dimly upon the long table. The officers
+of the Guard had certainly made their arrangements well. They had
+levied contribution upon all the silver plate that could be found,
+which was hardly necessary, for, as they had arrived too late to have
+a proper meal prepared, they had to be content with what they had
+brought with them. The contrast between the rich plate, some of it
+broken, the empty silver dishes, and the empty tins of preserved meat
+was strange indeed. But they had solaced themselves in the cellar.
+Innumerable bottles, both empty and full, were piled upon the
+furniture. Costly glasses of all shapes and sizes, some empty, others
+still half full, were standing about in every direction. The white
+tablecloth was soiled with large purple stains. The floor was littered
+with bits of smashed glass. By the table, the chairs that had been
+pushed back or overturned showed the number of drinkers to have been
+about ten. An acrid smell of tobacco and wine hung about this scene
+of an overnight orgy.
+
+One thing I specially remember: the sight of an officer's cap, with a
+red band, hanging from one of the branches of the large chandelier in
+the centre of the room. And I could not help picturing to my mind the
+head of the man it had belonged to, some _Rittmeister_, with an
+eyeglass, fat pink cheeks and neck bulging over the collar of his
+tunic. What a pity he had been able to decamp! That is the kind of
+countenance we should so much have liked to see closer and face to
+face.
+
+But I could not wait. We rushed hastily through drawing-rooms turned
+upside down, and bedrooms where the beds still bore traces of summary
+use by heavy bodies. But we found no forgotten drunkard in them.
+
+My two corporals were already waiting for us when we returned to the
+courtyard. They had not found any one in their search. Quickly we
+mounted, and passed rapidly out by the gilded gates. The old servant
+and the gardener were still on the same spot, standing silent and
+depressed. They said not a word to us, nor did they make any sign;
+they seemed to be completely unhinged and incapable of understanding
+what had happened.
+
+I had hardly returned to the squadron when I saw a sight I can never
+forget. At a turn in the road three horsemen came towards us covered
+with blood. I recognised F., the officer of _Chasseurs d'Afrique_, who
+had been sent out to reconnoitre the evening before. He had lost his
+cap, and had his head bound up with a blood-stained handkerchief. His
+left arm was likewise slung in an improvised bandage tied round his
+neck. He was followed by two men who were also covered with wounds.
+Their eyes shone bright and resolute in their feverish faces. One of
+them, having no scabbard, was still holding his sword, which was
+twisted and stained with blood. We pulled up instinctively and
+saluted.
+
+"I haven't been able to reach the Marne," said F., with disappointment
+in his voice. "But, being fired upon by their outposts in the dark,
+we charged and got through, and then charged through two villages
+under a hail of bullets; and again we had to charge their outposts to
+get back. You see, ... I have brought back two men out of eight, and
+all my horses have been killed.... These horses"--pointing to his
+own--"are those of three Uhlans we killed so as not to have to come
+home on foot."
+
+Certainly they were not riding the pretty little animals that make
+such excellent mounts for our _Chasseurs d'Afrique_, but were perched
+on three big mares with the heavy German equipment.
+
+"But," F. repeated in a tone of vexation, "I wasn't able to get to the
+Marne.... There were too many of them for us."
+
+We pressed his unwounded hand warmly. Poor F.! Brave fellow! Not many
+days afterwards he was to meet a glorious death charging once more,
+with three Chasseurs, to rescue one of his men who had been wounded. A
+more perfect type of cavalryman--I might say, of knight--was never
+seen. He sleeps now, riddled with lance wounds, in the plains of
+Champagne.
+
+We had hardly left him when we caught sight of the reconnoitring party
+of my comrade O., and were overjoyed to find that he had come back
+unscathed with all his men. And yet he had had to face a fair number
+of dangers--attacks by cyclists and pursuit by cavalry. At Crézancy,
+where he arrived at three o'clock in the morning, he found the village
+occupied and strongly held. There is only one bridge over the railway
+there, and that is at the other end of the village. By good luck he
+was able to get hold of one of the inhabitants; and he forced him, by
+holding his revolver to his head, to guide him by all sorts of byways
+so as to make a circuit without attracting attention and get to the
+bridge. There he set forward at a gallop, and passed, in spite of
+being fired on by the guard. At last he reached the Marne. The only
+bridge he found intact for crossing the river was the bridge at
+Jaulgonne, a slender, fragile suspension-bridge, but one that we
+should be very glad to find if there was still time to use it. He then
+hurried back through the woods, but not without having to run the
+gauntlet of rifle fire several times more. He brought back information
+which was to guide our advance.
+
+It was seen at once that there was not a minute to lose. The Captain
+detached me immediately, with my troop, to act as a flank-guard along
+the line of wooded crests by which the road on the right was
+commanded, whilst F., with his troop, crossed the Surmelin and the
+railway which runs alongside of it, and went to carry out the same
+task on the other side of the valley.
+
+My job was difficult enough. In fact, the heights, which look down
+upon the course of the Surmelin to the east, consist of a series of
+ridges separated by narrow ravines at right angles to the river, and
+these we had to cross to continue our route towards the north. The
+enemy seemed to have withdrawn completely from this region, and the
+cannon fire in the distance towards the east could hardly be heard.
+At last, at about seven o'clock in the morning, we debouched upon the
+valley of the Marne.
+
+Whilst I sent some troopers along the road which winds by the Surmelin
+to keep in touch with my Captain, I carefully inspected the right bank
+of the Marne with my glasses. The scene would have tempted a painter,
+and the labours of war do not prevent one from enjoying the charm of
+such delightful pictures. The sun was gradually dispersing the mist of
+the sullen morning, and was beginning to gild the wooded heights which
+look down upon the two banks of the river. Everywhere a calm was
+reigning, which seemed to promise a day of exquisite beauty. We might
+have fancied that we were bent on some peaceful rural work favoured by
+a radiant autumn morning. The Marne in this region winds in graceful
+curves. It flows limpid and clear through a narrow valley carpeted
+with green meadows and bordered, right and left, by gentle hills
+dotted with woods. At our feet, peeping from the poplars and beeches
+on the bank, we saw the white houses of dainty villages--Chartèves,
+Jaulgonne, Varennes, and Barzy.
+
+I directed my attention more particularly towards Jaulgonne, because
+it was in that direction that the attempt to cross the river would be
+made. The heights immediately above Jaulgonne rise steeply on the
+north bank, and almost stand in the river. On the other hand, to the
+south, on our side, the left bank of the Marne is bordered by
+extensive meadows crossed by the railway and the high-road to Épernay.
+The position therefore would have been very strong for the Germans, if
+they had crossed to the other side of the river, for we should have
+been obliged, before we could reach the bridge, to traverse a vast
+open expanse which they could have kept under the fire of their
+artillery. My Chasseurs, prompt to grasp the reason of things,
+scrutinised the opposite bank no less intently than I. No movement
+could be seen; nothing suggested the presence of troops among the
+russet thickets which covered the sides of the silent hill. Could
+they have already retired farther off? Could they have abandoned this
+formidable position without any attempt to defend it?
+
+At that moment one of my Chasseurs appeared, coming by the steep path
+which led from the road to the wooded ridge on which we were. His
+horse was panting, for the declivity was stiff, and he had had to
+hasten. He brought me orders.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, the Captain has sent me to tell you to join him as
+quickly as possible at the other end of the bridge. The first troop
+has already crossed, but some of the enemy's horse have been seen on
+the other side of the village."
+
+As he said these words we heard some firing in the distance, which
+sounded very distinct and sharp in the radiant peace of that beautiful
+September morning. "Come, so much the better," thought I. "We have
+engaged them. We shall have a good time." My men had already begun to
+joke and to be more alert and abrupt in their movements. It was a
+kind of joyous reaction which always affects troopers when they begin
+to hear the guns and look forward to a good hard ride in which they,
+like the rest of us, are always certain of getting the best of it.
+
+In single file we went quickly down towards the plain by the stony,
+slippery path. We soon reached the high-road, and then turned to the
+left and came upon the long causeway bordered by poplars which led to
+the bridge. Quite close to the bank I saw a small group of dismounted
+cavalrymen, and soon recognised our Colonel with his Brigade Staff. He
+was giving his orders to the Lieutenant-Colonel commanding the
+_Chasseurs d'Afrique_. I went up to him to report, and learnt that the
+first squadron had already crossed the river and occupied the village
+on the other side. Some parties of German cavalry had been seen on the
+neighbouring heights.
+
+I got ready to rejoin my comrades at once. But patience was required
+if the Marne was to be crossed. The bridge appeared to be a delicate
+sort of toy hovering over the water. How could they dream of sending
+thousands of men, horses, and guns over a thing so slender that it
+looked as though it were supported by the fragile meshes of a spider's
+web? Captain D. gave me the Colonel's precise orders: not to pass more
+than four troopers at a time, and these at walking pace.
+
+Taking the initiative in the movement, I started with my first four
+Chasseurs. The bridge rang strangely under our horses' hoofs, and
+seemed to me to oscillate in an alarming manner. Fortunately the enemy
+was not on the other side; if he had been, our passage would have cost
+us dear.
+
+As I was making these reflections a violent fusillade burst out from
+the edge of the woods overlooking Jaulgonne to the east. It must have
+been directed upon the village, for no bullets whistled around us, so
+it was probably our first squadron engaging the German cavalry. When I
+got to the other end of the bridge my impatience increased. It was
+torture to think of the time it would take to collect my thirty men
+and hurry forward to help the others; and I noticed the same
+impatience in my men's looks. Those who were on the bridge, walking
+slowly and gently across, seemed to implore me to let them trot; but I
+pretended not to understand, and the horses' feet continued to trample
+heavily over the echoing bridge. At last all my men were over.
+
+We fell in and reached Jaulgonne at a trot. On passing through it we
+found several of the inhabitants on their doorsteps:
+
+"_Monsieur l'Officier_, ... _Monsieur l'Officier_, will they come back
+again?"
+
+"Never!" I shouted, with conviction.
+
+I stopped an orderly, who told me that the German cavalry were firing
+on the exit from the town. How many of them he could not say, as they
+were hidden in the woods. He told me, too, that the first squadron was
+holding all the entrances to the north and east of the village except
+the one on the river bank on the road to Marcilly, where my comrade F.
+had posted his troop. I decided then to put myself at the disposal of
+the party defending the chief exit from the village, the one that
+opened into the road to Fismes. It was the most important one, for it
+was in that direction that the Germans were retiring.
+
+The village had been prevented from spreading further to the north by
+the heights, which formed an abrupt barrier. It is built astride the
+road to Fismes, which thus becomes its principal, if not its only,
+street. I had then to go right through Jaulgonne before I could get
+out of it in the direction of the firing. I soon did this, and found
+the horses of the first squadron massed in the short alleys leading
+out of the main street. I ordered my troop to dismount in a yard much
+too small and very inconvenient. But the first thing to do was to
+clear the causeway and shelter our horses from bullets, which might
+enfilade the street if the fighting bore away towards the left. Then,
+whilst a non-commissioned officer collected the squads for the action
+on foot, I ran as far as the furthest houses of the village to
+reconnoitre the ground and get orders.
+
+I spied Major P. in a sheltered nook, still mounted, and he told me
+of his anxiety about the situation. The enemy riflemen were invisible,
+and were riddling the outskirts of the village, while we were unable
+to reply; and some guns had been seen which were being got into
+position. He advised me to go and see the captain of the first
+squadron, who had been ordered to defend that entrance of the village,
+and to place myself at his disposal in case of need.
+
+Whilst we were talking, my troop, led by its non-commissioned officer,
+came to the place where we were, edging along by the walls. The men,
+calm and smiling, with their carbines ready, waited in silence for the
+signal to advance. I signed to them to wait a little longer, and then
+going round the wall I found myself suddenly in the thick of the fray.
+I must say the reception I got startled me. The bullets came rattling
+in hundreds, chipping the walls and cutting branches from the trees.
+On our side there was absolute silence. Our men, on their knees or
+lying flat behind any cover they could find, did not reply, as they
+could see nothing, and waited stoically under the shower of bullets
+until their adversaries chose to advance.
+
+I looked for Captain de L., who commanded the first squadron. There he
+was, standing with his face to the enemy, and his hands in his
+pockets, quietly giving his orders to a non-commissioned officer. On
+my asking him if he wanted me, he explained the situation: the enemy,
+numbers unknown, was occupying the woods overlooking Jaulgonne to the
+east. It was impossible for us to debouch just yet. The essential
+thing was to hold the village, and consequently the bridge, until our
+infantry could come up. He told me that the first troop of my
+squadron, led by Lieutenant d'A., had just advanced, in extended
+order, into the vineyards, orchards, and fields stretching between the
+road and the river. He was going to reconnoitre the woods and see what
+kind of force was holding it.
+
+"You see, dear fellow, for the present I don't want the help of your
+carbines; I have my whole squadron here, and they can't get a shot.
+So long as the enemy sticks to the wood all we can do is to wait and
+keep our powder dry."
+
+I put my troop under shelter in a small yard, and directed my
+non-commissioned officer to keep in touch with me, in case I might
+want him. Then I went back to the outskirts of the village to examine
+the ground. I then joined my friend S. behind a large heap of faggots:
+he commanded the nearest troop of the first squadron, and we could not
+help laughing at the curious situation--being formed up for battle,
+fronting the enemy, under a hail of bullets, and not able to see
+anything.
+
+During the campaign S. had become a philosopher, and he deserved some
+credit for it; for the great moral and physical sufferings we had
+endured must have been even still more insupportable to him than to
+any of us. In the regiment, S. was considered preeminently the Society
+officer. He went to all the receptions, all the afternoon teas, all
+the bridge parties, all the dinners. He was an adept at tennis and
+golf and a first-rate shot. His elegance was proverbial, and the
+beautiful cut of his tunics, breeches, jackets, and coats was
+universally admired. The way his harness was kept and the shape of his
+high boots were a marvel. To say all this is to give some idea of the
+change he suddenly experienced in his habits and his tastes during
+those demoralising days of retreat and merciless hours of pursuit.
+But, in spite of all, he had kept his good humour and never lost his
+gay spirits. He still accompanied his talk with elaborate gestures,
+and seemed to be just as much at ease behind his heap of wood,
+bombarded with bullets, as in the best appointed drawing-room. His
+clothes were stained and patched, his beard had begun to grow, and yet
+under this rough exterior the polished man of the world could always
+be divined.
+
+He explained the beginnings of the affair with perfect clearness and
+self-possession; how the scouts sent up to the ridge by d'A. and
+driven off by the Germans had fallen back upon Jaulgonne; how the
+first squadron had come to barricade and defend the village, and in
+what anxiety they were waiting to know what had become of d'A.'s
+troop, which had started out to reconnoitre the wood.
+
+We hoisted ourselves to the top of the faggot-stack and peeped over
+carefully. The glaring white road wound up the flank of the slope
+between fields dotted with apple trees. At a distance of 800 yards in
+front of us stretched the dark border of the wood, from which the
+fusillade was coming. To our right, at the edge of the water, on the
+road leading to Marcilly, F. must have been able to see the enemy, for
+we could distinctly hear the crackle of his carbines.
+
+Our attention was drawn to a man of F.'s troop running along under the
+wall, bending almost double to escape the attention of the sniper, and
+endeavouring to screen himself behind the high grass. As soon as he
+came near enough we called out:
+
+"What is it?"
+
+"The Lieutenant has sent me to say that the enemy has just placed
+some guns in position up there, in the opening of the wood."
+
+Saying which, he pointed vaguely in a direction where we could see
+nothing. However, we knew that F. would not have warned us if he had
+not been quite certain of the fact, so for some unpleasant minutes we
+wondered what the enemy's objective was. We longed to know, at once,
+where the projectiles were going to burst. Would it be on F.'s troop,
+or on the bridge, or on the infantry, which, perhaps, were beginning
+to debouch, or, perhaps, on that portion of the brigade that had
+remained dismounted on the left bank, drawn up for action? The
+uncertainty was worse than the danger itself. But we were not long in
+doubt. Two shrieks of flying shells! Two explosions about 300 yards in
+front of us! Two puffs of white smoke rising above the green fields!
+This showed they had an objective we had not considered, namely,
+d'A.'s troop, for the shrapnel had burst in the direction he had just
+taken with his men.
+
+Our anxiety did not last long. We soon made out our Chasseurs, coming
+back quietly, not running, and in good order. They took to the ditch,
+a fairly deep one, which ran along on the left side of the road, and
+covered them up to the middle. The German shells were badly aimed, and
+exploded either in front of them or higher up on the hillside. But our
+anxiety became more intense every minute. Had a shell fallen on the
+road or in the ditch, we should have seen those brave fellows knocked
+over, mown down, cut to pieces, by the hail of bullets. When we are
+fighting ourselves we hardly have time to think about our neighbours
+in this way. We have our own cares, and our first thought is the
+safety of the men who form our little family, the troop. But when one
+is safe, or fairly so, it is torture to watch comrades advancing under
+the enemy's fire without any protection. At that moment the Germans
+were concentrating their fire upon that small line of men we were
+looking at, 200 yards away from us. The shells succeeded one another
+uninterruptedly, but without any greater precision. We watched our
+friends coming nearer until they had almost reached our barricade, and
+noticed that two of the Chasseurs were being supported by their
+comrades. In our anxiety, we got up out of shelter, but d'A. shouted:
+"It's nothing; only scratches...."
+
+At last they got in, and whilst our good and indefatigable
+Assistant-Surgeon P. took charge of the wounded men we pressed round
+the officer and questioned him as to what he had seen. "Are there many
+of them?" "Was there any infantry?" we asked. But his daring
+reconnaissance had not been very fruitful. He had had to stop when the
+artillery had opened fire on him, and had not been able to see how
+many adversaries we had to deal with.
+
+Acting on the advice of Major P., our Captain, who had just rejoined
+us with the third troop, gave orders to mount. We were only in the way
+here, where there were too many defenders already, so recrossed the
+bridge to put ourselves at the Colonel's disposal. I led with my
+troop, and we passed through Jaulgonne by the main street. The
+inhabitants thought we were beating a retreat and became uneasy. Some
+women uttered cries, begging us not to leave them at the mercy of the
+enemy. We had to calm them by saying that they need not fear, that we
+were still holding the Germans, that our infantry would soon arrive,
+and that in an hour the foe would have decamped.
+
+To tell the truth, we were not quite so sure of it ourselves. The
+enemy was in some force, and he had guns. Our infantry had at least 15
+kilometres to march before their advance guard even could debouch on
+the bridge at Jaulgonne. If they had not started before dawn they
+would not arrive before eleven o'clock, and it was then barely nine.
+The German artillery was already beginning to fire upon the village.
+
+Suddenly, as we reached the market-place, we saw a group of three
+dismounted Chasseurs emerging from an alley that ran down steeply to
+the Marne. They belonged to F.'s troop. Two of them were supporting
+the third, whom we at once recognised. It was Laurent, a fine fellow,
+and a favourite with the whole squadron. It went to our hearts to see
+him. His left eye was nothing but a red patch, from which blood was
+flowing freely, drenching his clothing. He was moaning softly and,
+blinded by the blood, allowed himself to be led like a child. The
+corporal with him explained: "A bullet went in just over his eye. I
+don't know if the eye itself was hit."
+
+The Captain sprang off his horse. "Cheer up, Laurent, it shall be
+attended to at once. Perhaps it will be nothing, my man. Come with me,
+we will take you to the Red Cross ambulance close by."
+
+Then between his groans the wounded man said a thing I shall not
+easily forget: "_Mon Capitaine_, ... haven't they taken away their
+guns yet?"
+
+He still took an interest in the battle. I heard afterwards that F.
+had sighted the German guns, and that the fire of his troop had been
+directed upon them. Laurent would have liked to hear that they had
+been driven away. He was carried off to the ambulance. I went on
+towards the bridge; the cannon and rifle fire still raged fiercely,
+but none of the shots reached the bank where we were. We had to repeat
+the trying process of crossing the swaying bridge by fours at walking
+pace. I led off with four troopers. It was not so tedious this time,
+as my eyes were distracted by the view of the green meadows on the
+opposite side.
+
+The Colonel had disposed the brigade in such a way that he could
+concentrate his fire upon the bridge and the opposite bank in case we
+could not maintain our position there. A squadron on our left,
+concealed in a sand quarry, was directing its fire upon the heights
+where the German artillery was posted. Both up and down stream the
+_Chasseurs d'Afrique_ lined the river banks, making use of every scrap
+of cover. Peeping out over trunks of fallen trees, banks, and ditches
+inquisitive heads could be seen wearing the khaki _taconnet_. But my
+troubles were not yet over. Just as I was going to step ashore from
+the bridge, Captain D. brought me the Colonel's orders to recross the
+river with my whole squadron and occupy a clump of houses to the left
+of the bridge. It was evidently a wise precaution. Although no firing
+had come from this direction, it was quite possible that some of the
+enemy might have slipped through the woods that come half-way down the
+slopes. But I did not expect such a bad time as I was going to have.
+
+At the very moment when I was turning back, and was beginning the
+hateful passage for the third time, the enemy gunners, changing their
+objective, aimed at the bridge, and the shrapnel bullets began their
+disturbing music once more. Could any situation be more execrable than
+ours--to be upon a bridge as thin as a thread, hanging as by a miracle
+over a deep river, to see this bridge enfiladed by heavy musketry fire
+and to be obliged to walk our horses over the 200 yards which
+separated one bank from the other? If we had been on foot, so that we
+could have run and expended our strength in getting under
+cover--since we could not use it to defend ourselves--we should not
+have complained. But to be mounted on good horses, which in a few
+galloping strides could have carried us behind the rampart of houses,
+and to be obliged to hold them back instead of spurring them on, was
+very unpleasant, and made us feel foolish.
+
+I looked at the four brave Chasseurs in front of me. They
+instinctively put up their shoulders as high as they could as if to
+hide their heads between them. But not one of them increased his pace.
+Not one of them looked round at me to beg me to give orders for a
+quicker advance. And what a concert was going on all the time! Whilst
+the horses' hoofs were beating out low and muffled notes, the bullets
+flew above us and around us, with shrill cracklings and whistlings
+which were anything but harmonious. Happily the firing was distant and
+disgracefully bad, for at the pace we were travelling we must have
+offered a very convenient mark. Another 20 yards! Ten more! At last
+we were safely under cover!
+
+I communicated the Colonel's orders to the Captain, who came to join
+us, and directed us to occupy the little garden of a fair-sized house
+situated just on the edge of the Marne and the most advanced of the
+small group of buildings on the left-hand side of the bridge. After
+lodging the horses in an alley between the house and an adjoining
+shanty I went to reconnoitre my ground. The house was a rustic
+restaurant, which in the summer no doubt afforded the inhabitants an
+object for a walk. On passing along the terrace leading to the river I
+found the disorder usual in places that have been occupied by the
+Germans; tables overturned, bottles broken, the musty smell of empty
+casks, and broken crockery.
+
+The little garden did not offer much protection for my men. However,
+crouching behind a kind of breastwork of earth, which shut it off from
+the woods, they were able, at least, to hide themselves from view. I
+at once posted my sharpshooters, sent out a patrol on foot as far as
+the entrance to the wood, and then turned my attention to what was
+happening near the bridge.
+
+Whilst I was busy carrying out the Captain's orders I had not noticed
+that the situation had undergone a decided change, and that our
+chances of being able to complete our task thoroughly had increased
+considerably. The German guns were no longer aiming at the village.
+Their fire had become more rapid, and their shrapnel flew hissing over
+the brigade. We could see them bursting much further off, on the other
+side of the water, in the direction of the woods crowning the heights
+whence, in the morning, I had admired the smiling landscape. I
+inferred then that the advance guard of our corps was debouching. In
+half an hour it would be there, and the German cavalry, we felt sure,
+would not hold out much longer.
+
+But our fine infantry had done more than this. They had, no doubt,
+found good roads, or perhaps the German gunners, hypnotised by the
+village, had not spied them. For I had now the pleasure of witnessing
+one of the most exhilarating spectacles I had seen since the opening
+of the campaign.
+
+From where I stood on the bank I could see the thin line of the bridge
+above. I did not think that any one would risk crossing it now that it
+was known to be a mark for the enemy's fire, but suddenly I saw five
+men appear and begin to cross it. I could distinguish them perfectly;
+they were infantry soldiers, an officer and four men. The officer
+walked first, calmly, with a stick under his right arm, and in his
+left hand a map which formed a white patch on his blue coat, and
+behind him the men, in single file, bending slightly under their
+knapsacks, their caps pushed back and holding their rifles, marched
+firmly and steadily. They might have been on parade. Their legs could
+be distinguished for a moment against the blue sky. Their step was so
+regular that I could not help counting: one, two; one, two, as their
+feet struck the bridge. But just at the moment when the little group
+had got half-way across, a hiss, followed by a deafening explosion,
+made our hearts beat, and we heard the curious noise made by
+innumerable bullets and pieces of shell striking the water. The
+Germans had seen our infantry beginning to cross the river, and they
+were now pouring their fire upon the bridge. I looked again at the
+men, and saw they were there, all five of them, still marching with
+the same cool, resolute step: one, two; one, two. Ah! the brave
+fellows! How I wanted to cheer them, to shout "Bravo!" But they were
+too far off, and the noise of the fusillade would have prevented them
+from hearing me.
+
+No sooner had they reached the bank than another little group stepped
+on to the narrow bridge, and then, after them, another; and each was
+saluted by one or two shells, with the same heavy rain of bullets
+falling into the water. But Providence protected our soldiers. The
+outline of the bridge was very slight, and the gunners of the German
+cavalry divisions were sorry marksmen. Their projectiles always burst
+either too far or too near, too high or too low. And as soon as a
+hundred men had got across, and the first sharpshooters had clambered
+up the heights that rise sheer from the river and begun to debouch
+upon the plateau, there was a sudden silence. The enemy's cavalry had
+given way, and our _corps d'armée_ was free to pass the Marne by the
+bridge of Jaulgonne.
+
+The entire battalion of the advance guard then began to pour over the
+bridge on their way to the plateau. Our brigade was quickly got
+together, and our Chasseurs hastened to water their horses. Out came
+the nosebags from the saddlebags. A few minutes later no one would
+have suspected that fighting had taken place at this spot. The men
+hurriedly got their snack, for we knew the halt would not last long,
+and that the pursuit had to be pushed till daylight failed. Our troop
+was in good heart and thankful that the squadron's losses had been so
+small. F. had just seen Laurent, the one wounded Chasseur of his
+troop, and said the doctors hoped to save his eye; so we had no reason
+to grumble.
+
+Saddlebags were now being buckled and horses rebridled. I was to go
+forward to replace the troop that had led the advance guard. The
+Colonel sent for me and ordered me to proceed at once along the road
+to Fismes, search the outskirts of the village carefully, and take up
+a position on the heights overlooking the valley.
+
+My troop got away quickly, and I rejoiced again at the sight of my
+fellows, radiant at the thought of having a dash at the enemy. We had
+to hasten and get ahead of the foremost parties of infantry, which
+also halted now for a meal. I detached my advance scouts. Their eager
+little horses set off at a gallop along the white road, and I was
+delighted to see the ease and decision with which my Chasseurs flashed
+out their swords. They seemed to say, "Come along, come along ...; we
+are ready." As for me, I rode on in quiet confidence, knowing that I
+had in front of me eyes keen enough to prevent any surprise.
+
+One squad climbed nimbly up the ridge to the left. The horses
+scrambled up the steep ground, dislodging stones and clods of earth.
+They struggled with straining hocks hard to get up, and seemed to
+challenge each other for a race to the top. Their riders, in extended
+order, showed as patches of red and blue against the grey stubble. Up
+they went, further and further, and then disappeared over the crest.
+Only one was still visible, but this one was my guarantee that I had
+good eyes, keen and alert, on my left. Should any danger threaten from
+that quarter I knew well that he would pass on to me the signal
+received from his corporal, and I should only have to gallop to the
+top to judge of the situation myself. I could see the man against the
+blue sky, the whole outline of his body and that of his horse; the
+equipment and harness, the curved sword, the graceful neck, the sinewy
+legs, the heavy pack. I recognised the rider and knew the name of his
+horse. They were both of the right sort. Yes, I felt quite easy about
+my left.
+
+On the right the ground dropped sheer to a narrow valley, at the
+bottom of which flowed a stream of clear water. Among the green trees
+were glittering patches here and there, on which the sun threw
+metallic reflections. And on the other side rose heights covered by
+the forest of Riz. On the edge of this forest I could see the stately
+ruins of a splendid country mansion. I questioned a boy who was
+standing on the side of the road, looking at us half timidly, half
+gladly.
+
+"Tell me, child, who burnt that château over there?"
+
+"_M'sieur_, _they_ did; and they took everything away--all the
+beautiful things. They even carried everything off on big carts, and
+then they set fire to the house. But everything isn't burnt, and a lot
+of them came back again this morning with some horses, and they went
+on looking for things."
+
+I sent off another squad towards the château, telling them first to
+follow the edge of the wood and to be careful how they approached it.
+The men got into the wood by the spaces in the bank along the road and
+scattered in the thickets that dotted the side of the spur we were
+turning. I was thus protected on my right.
+
+I went up at a trot to the place where the road reached the plateau,
+and just as I was on the point of reaching it we were met by a crowd
+of village folk--men, women, and children--coming along, looking
+radiant. I saw some of them questioning my advance scouts and pointing
+in the direction of the north-east. It was the whole population of Le
+Charmel that had come out to meet us.
+
+Le Charmel is a small village that stands at the meeting of two roads,
+one leading towards Fismes, the other towards Fère-en-Tardenois. It
+has the appearance of hanging on to the hillside, for whilst the road
+to Fère-en-Tardenois continues to follow the plateau, that to Fismes
+dips abruptly at this place and disappears in the valley. The houses
+of Le Charmel are perched between these two roads. Thus the people of
+the village had a good view of the enemy's retreat, and everybody
+wanted to have his say about it. I turned to a tall man, lean and
+tanned, with a grizzled moustache, who had something still of a
+military air, and seemed to be calmer than the others around him. From
+him I was able to get some fairly clear information.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, it was like this.... They went off this morning
+early, with a great number of cannons and horses. The artillery went
+straight on towards Fismes by the road. The cavalry cut across the
+fields, and disappeared over the ridge you see over there on the other
+side of the valley. Then towards eight o'clock some of them came back.
+How many? Well, two or three regiments perhaps, and some guns; and
+they went down again towards Jaulgonne. I believe they wanted to
+destroy the bridge. But just as they got to the turn of the hill, pan!
+pan!--they were fired at. Then, of course, we got back to our houses
+and shut them up, as the guns began to fire. But when we heard no more
+reports we came out again, and saw them making off across the fields
+like the others and in the same direction. But it is quite possible
+that some of them stayed in the woods, or in the farms, on the other
+side of the forest of Riz...."
+
+He was interrupted by my non-commissioned officer:
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, the scouts ... they are signalling to you...."
+
+I galloped up to them, when they pointed out to me, at about 1,500
+yards distance, on the opposite ridge, a small group of cavalrymen
+near a stack, and, on the side of the slope, a patrol of German
+dragoons, pacing slowly with lances lowered and stopping every now and
+then facing in our direction.
+
+I took my glasses and looked carefully at the stack. And then I saw a
+sight which sent a shiver of joy through me. The horsemen had
+dismounted and put their horses behind the stack. Three of the men
+then separated themselves from the rest and formed a little group. I
+could not distinguish their uniforms, but saw very clearly that they
+were looking through their glasses at us. Now and again they put their
+heads together, and consulted the map, as it seemed. A man then came
+out from behind the stack on foot, and could be distinctly seen,
+against the sky, sticking into the ground by his side a square pennon
+which flapped gently in the breeze. As far as I could see it was half
+black and half white. There could be no doubt that we were confronting
+a Staff. So the division was not far off; it had halted, and perhaps
+intended this time to fight at close quarters. I told my men what I
+thought, and they were overjoyed at the idea that, after all, there
+was a hope of realising our dream. There was not one of them who
+doubted that the Division of the Guards had been kind enough to stop
+its flight, and that our brave light brigade would attack it without
+any hesitation and cut it to pieces. I dismounted quickly, and lost
+not a moment in drawing up my report. I wrote down what I had seen and
+what I had learnt from the inhabitants and then called one of my
+Chasseurs:
+
+"To the Colonel, full gallop!"
+
+At the touch of the spur the little chestnut turned sharp round and
+flew down the dusty road like a whirlwind. Meanwhile I carefully
+posted my men, threw out scouts over the plateau and up to the forest
+of Fère, and formed patrols under my non-commissioned officers. I then
+took up my observation post under a large tree which, to judge by its
+venerable look, must have seen many generations pass and many other
+wars. The village folk collected around me in such numbers that I was
+obliged to have them thrust back by my men to Le Charmel. To console
+them I said: "You must go away. The enemy will take you for armed
+troops and fire guns at you."
+
+I kept my eye upon my "Staff," and wished my glasses could help me to
+distinguish more clearly what men I had to deal with. I longed to see
+what they were like--to examine the faces of these haughty _Reiters_
+who for the last four days had been fleeing before us and always
+refusing a real encounter. I fancied that among them might be found
+that _Rittmeister_ with the bulging neck and pink cheeks, who, after
+the orgy of that night at the Château de Condé, had left behind him
+the cap that I had found hanging from the chandelier in the
+dining-room. How I longed to see the brigade debouch, and to receive
+instructions from the Colonel!
+
+I had not long to wait. My messenger soon came back, trotting up the
+road from Jaulgonne. But the instructions were not what I had
+expected. I was to stay where I was until further orders, to continue
+to observe the enemy, and keep a look-out in his direction.
+
+I learnt some details from the man. The greater part of the infantry
+had already crossed the bridge, and there was also some artillery on
+this side of the river. As he said this a clatter of wheels and chains
+caused me to turn my head, and I saw behind us, in the stubble-fields
+of the plateau, two batteries of 75's taking up positions. Ah! ah! we
+were going to send them our greetings then, a salute to the pompous
+General over there, and to his aide-de-camp, the stiff and obsequious
+_Rittmeister_, whom I imagined to be at his side. I looked on gaily
+with my Chasseurs at the laying of the guns. How we all loved that
+good little gun, which had so often come up to lend us the support of
+its terrible projectiles at critical moments! And those good fellows
+the gunners loved it too; the men we saw jumping nimbly down from
+their limber, quickly unhitching their piece, and pointing it with
+tender care towards the enemy.
+
+Standing on a bank, with his glasses to his eyes, the officer in
+command gave his orders which were passed from man to man by the
+markers. And then suddenly we heard four loud, sharp reports behind
+us. The whistling of the shells, which almost grazed our heads, was
+impressive, and, though we knew there was no danger, we instinctively
+ducked. But we recovered ourselves at once to see what effect they had
+produced.
+
+What a pity! They had fallen a bit short. We distinctly saw four small
+white puffs on the side of the hill just below the group of German
+officers. Ah! They didn't wait for another! I saw them make off in hot
+haste whilst the troopers, stationed behind the stack, galloped off
+the horses. The man with the flag was the last to go, closing the
+procession with rather more dignity. But in ten seconds the whole lot
+had decamped, and the only men we could see were the dragoons of the
+patrol, who rode back to the ridge at full speed.
+
+But just as they reached it the second battery opened fire, and this
+time the sighting was just right. The four white puffs appeared
+exactly over the spot where the Staff had stood a minute before--two
+to the right and two to the left of the stack. And all we now saw of
+the patrol was two riderless horses galloping madly towards the woods.
+Then the two batteries pounded away with a will.
+
+When I had received orders to resume the forward movement and my good
+Chasseurs had taken up the pursuit again, the gunners had lengthened
+their range with mathematical precision, and the shells burst on the
+farther side of the ridge. I took a grim pleasure in imagining what
+must have been happening there, where, no doubt, the division was
+drawn up, and whilst I continued to direct my vigilant and expert
+scouts I amused myself by picturing the brilliant troopers of the
+Prussian Guard in headlong flight.
+
+
+
+
+V. LOW MASS AND BENEDICTION
+
+
+One morning in the middle of September, 1914, as we raised our heads
+at about six o'clock from the straw on which we had slept, I and my
+friend F. had a very disagreeable surprise: we heard in the darkness
+the gentle, monotonous noise of water falling drop by drop from the
+pent-house roof on to the road.
+
+Arriving at Pévy the evening before, just before midnight, we had
+found refuge in a house belonging to a peasant. The hostess, a good
+old soul of eighty, had placed at our disposal a small bare room paved
+with tiles, in which our orderlies had prepared a sumptuous bed of
+trusses of straw. The night had been delightful, and we should have
+awaked in good spirits had it not been for the distressing fact
+noticed by my friend.
+
+"It is raining," said F.
+
+I could not but agree with him. Those who have been soldiers, and
+especially cavalrymen, know to the full how dispiriting is the sound
+of those few words: "It is raining."
+
+"It is raining" means your clothes will be saturated; your cloak will
+be drenched, and weigh at least forty pounds; the water will drip from
+your shako along your neck and down your back; above all, your high
+boots will be transformed into two little pools in which your feet
+paddle woefully. It means broken roads, mud splashing you up to the
+eyes, horses slipping, reins stiffened, your saddle transformed into a
+hip-bath. It means that the little clean linen you have brought with
+you--that precious treasure--in your saddlebags, will be changed into
+a wet bundle on which large and indelible yellow stains have been made
+by the soaked leather.
+
+But it was no use to think of all this. The orders ran: "Horses to be
+saddled, and squadron ready to mount, at 6.30." And they had to be
+carried out.
+
+It was still dark. I went out into the yard, after pulling down my
+campaigning cap over my ears. Well, after all, the evil was less than
+I had feared. It was not raining, but drizzling. The air was mild, and
+there was not a breath of wind. When once our cloaks were on it would
+take some hours for the wet to reach our shirts. At the farther end of
+the yard some men were moving about round a small fire. Their shadows
+passed to and fro in front of the ruddy light. They were making
+coffee--_jus_, as they call it--that indispensable ration in which
+they soak bread and make a feast without which they think a man cannot
+be a good soldier.
+
+I ran to my troop through muddy alleys, skipping from side to side to
+avoid the puddles. Daylight appeared, pale and dismal. A faint smell
+rose from the sodden ground.
+
+"Nothing new, _mon Lieutenant_," were the words that greeted me from
+the sergeant, who then made his report. I had every confidence in him;
+he had been some years in the service, and knew his business. Small
+and lean, and tightly buttoned into his tunic, in spite of all our
+trials he was still the typical smart light cavalry non-commissioned
+officer. I knew he had already gone round the stables, which he did
+with a candle in his hand, patting the horses' haunches and looking
+with a watchful eye to see whether some limb had not been hurt by a
+kick or entangled in its tether.
+
+In the large yard of the abandoned and pillaged farm, where the men
+had been billeted they were hurrying to fasten the last buckles and
+take their places in the ranks. I quickly swallowed my portion of
+insipid lukewarm coffee, brought me by my orderly; then I went to get
+my orders from the Captain, who was lodged in the market-square. No
+word had yet been received from the Colonel, who was quartered at the
+farm of Vadiville, two kilometres off. Patience! We had been used to
+these long waits since the army had been pulled up before the
+formidable line of trenches which the Germans had dug north of Reims.
+They were certainly most disheartening; but it could not be helped,
+and it was of no use to complain. I turned and went slowly up the
+steep footpath that led to my billet.
+
+Pévy is a poor little village, clinging to the last slopes of a line
+of heights that runs parallel to the road from Reims to Paris. Its
+houses are huddled together, and seem to be grouped at the foot of the
+ridges for protection from the north wind. The few alleys which
+intersect the village climb steeply up the side of the hill. We were
+obliged to tramp about in the sticky mud of the main road waiting for
+our orders.
+
+Passing the church, it occurred to me to go and look inside. Since the
+war had begun we had hardly had any opportunity of going into the
+village churches we had passed. Some of them were closed because the
+parish priests had left for the army, or because the village had been
+abandoned to the enemy. Others had served as marks for the artillery,
+and now stood in the middle of the villages, ruins loftier and more
+pitiable than the rest.
+
+The church of Pévy seemed to be clinging to the side of the hill, and
+was approached by a narrow stairway of greyish stone, climbing up
+between moss-grown walls. I first passed through the modest little
+churchyard, with its humble tombs half hidden in the grass, and read
+some of the simple inscriptions:
+
+"Here lies ... Here lies ... Pray for him...."
+
+The narrow pathway leading to the porch was almost hidden in the turf,
+and as I walked up it my boots brushed the drops from the grass. The
+damp seemed to be getting into my bones, for it was still drizzling--a
+fine persistent drizzle. Behind me the village was in mist; the roofs
+and the maze of chimney tops were hardly distinguishable.
+
+Passing through a low, dark porch, I opened the heavy door studded
+with iron nails, and entered the church, and at once experienced a
+feeling of relaxation, of comfort and repose. How touching the little
+sanctuary of Pévy seemed to me in its humble simplicity!
+
+Imagine a kind of hall with bare walls, the vault supported by two
+rows of thick pillars. The narrow Gothic windows hardly allowed the
+grey light to enter. There were no horrible cheap modern stained
+windows, but a multitude of small white rectangular leaded panes. All
+this was simple and worn; but to me it seemed to breathe a noble and
+touching poetry. And what charmed me above all was that the pale light
+did not reveal walls covered with the horrible colour-wash we are
+accustomed to see in most of our village churches.
+
+This church was an old one, a very old one. Its style was not very
+well defined, for it had no doubt been built, damaged, destroyed,
+rebuilt and repaired by many different generations. But those who
+preserved it to the present day had avoided the lamentable plastering
+which disfigures so many others. The walls were built with fine large
+stones, on which time had left its melancholy impress. There was no
+grotesque painting on them to mar their quiet beauty, and the dim
+light that filtered through at that early hour gave them a vague soft
+glow.
+
+No pictures or ornaments disfigured the walls. The "Stations of the
+Cross" were the only adornment, and they were so simple and childish
+in their execution that they were no doubt the work of some rustic
+artist. And even this added a touching note to a harmonious whole.
+
+But my attention was attracted by a slight noise, a kind of soft and
+monotonous murmur, coming from the altar. The choir was almost in
+darkness, but I could distinguish the six stars of the lighted
+candles. In front of the tabernacle was standing a large white shadowy
+form, almost motionless and like a phantom. At the bottom of the steps
+another form was kneeling, bowed down towards the floor; it did not
+stir as I approached. I went towards the choir on tip-toe, very
+cautiously. I felt that I, a profane person, was committing a
+sacrilege by coming to disturb those two men praying there all alone
+in the gloom of that sad morning. A deep feeling of emotion passed
+through me, and I felt so insignificant in their presence and in the
+mysterious atmosphere of the place that I knelt down humbly, almost
+timidly, in the shadow of one of the great pillars near the altar.
+
+Then I could distinguish my fellow-worshippers better. A priest was
+saying mass. He was young and tall, and his gestures as he officiated
+were slow and dignified. He did not know that some one was present
+watching him closely; so it could not be supposed that he was speaking
+and acting to impress a congregation, and yet he had a way of
+kneeling, of stretching out his arms and of looking up to the humble
+gilded cross in front of him, that revealed all the ardour of fervent
+prayers. Occasionally he turned towards the back of the church to
+pronounce the ritual words. His face was serious and kindly, framed in
+a youthful beard--the face of an apostle, with the glow of faith in
+his eyes. And I was surprised to see underneath his priest's vestments
+the hems of a pair of red trousers, and feet shod in large muddy
+military boots.
+
+The kneeling figure at the bottom of the steps now stood out more
+distinctly. The man was wearing on his shabby infantry coat the white
+armlet with the red cross. He must have been a priest, for I could
+distinguish some traces of a neglected tonsure among his brown hair.
+
+The two repeated, in a low tone by turns, words of prayer, comfort,
+repentance, or supplication, harmonious Latin phrases, which sounded
+to me like exquisite music. And as an accompaniment in the distance,
+in the direction of Saint Thierry and Berry-au-Bac, the deep voice of
+the guns muttered ceaselessly.
+
+For the first time in the campaign I felt a kind of poignant
+melancholy. For the first time I felt small and miserable, almost a
+useless thing, compared with those two fine priestly figures who were
+praying in the solitude of this country church for those who had
+fallen and were falling yonder under shot and shell.
+
+How I despised and upbraided myself at such moments! What a profound
+disgust I felt for the follies of my garrison life, its gross
+pleasures and silly excesses! I was ashamed of myself when I reflected
+that death brushed by me every day, and that I might disappear to-day
+or to-morrow, after so many ill-spent and unprofitable days.
+
+Without any effort, and almost in spite of myself, pious words came
+back to my lips--those words that my dear mother used to teach me on
+her knee years and years ago. And I felt a quiet delight in the almost
+forgotten words that came back to me:
+
+"Forgive us our trespasses.... Pray for us, poor sinners...."
+
+It seemed to me that I should presently go away a better man and a
+more valiant soldier. And, as though to encourage and bless me, a
+faint ray of sunshine came through the window.
+
+_"Ite, missa est...."_ The priest turned round; and this time I
+thought his eyes rested upon me, and that the look was a benediction
+and an absolution.
+
+But suddenly I heard in the alley close by a great noise of people
+running and horses stamping, and a voice crying:
+
+"Mount horses!... Mount horses!"
+
+I was sorry to leave the little church of Pévy; I should so much have
+liked to wait until those two priests came out, to speak to them, and
+talk about other things than war, massacres and pillage. But duty
+called me to my men, my horses, and to battle.
+
+Shortly afterwards, as I passed at the head of my troop in front of
+the large farm where the ambulance of the division was quartered, I
+saw my abbé coming out of a barn, with his sleeves tucked up and his
+_képi_ on the side of his head. He was carrying a large pail of milk.
+I recognised his clear look, and had no doubt that he recognised me
+too, for as our eyes met he gave me a kindly smile.
+
+My heart was lighter as I went forward, and my soul was calmer.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+For the last six days we had been quartered at Montigny-sur-Vesle, a
+pretty little village half-way up a hillside on the heights, 20
+kilometres to the west of Reims. There we enjoyed a little rest for
+the first time in the campaign. On our front the struggle was going on
+between the French and German trenches, and the employment of cavalry
+was impossible. All the regiment had to do was to supply daily two
+troops required to ensure the connection between the two divisions of
+the army corps.
+
+What a happiness it was to be able at last to enjoy almost perfect
+rest! What a delight to lie down every evening in a good bed; not to
+get up before seven o'clock; to find our poor horses stabled at last
+on good litter in the barns, and to see them filling out daily and
+getting sleeker!
+
+For our mess we had the good luck to find a most charming and simple
+welcome at the house of good Monsieur Cheveret. That kind old
+gentleman did everything in his power to supply us with all the
+comforts he could dispose of. And he did it all with such good grace
+and such a pleasant smile that we felt at ease and at home at once.
+Madame Cheveret, whom we at once called "Maman Cheveret," was an
+alert little old lady who trotted about all day long in quest of
+things to do for us. She put us up in the dining-room, and helped our
+cook to clean the vegetables and to superintend the joints and sweets.
+For Gosset, the bold Chasseur appointed to preside over our mess
+arrangements, was a professional in the culinary art, and excelled in
+making everything out of nothing; so, with the help of Maman Cheveret,
+he accomplished wonders, and the result of it all was that we began to
+be enervated by the delights of this new Capua. And how thoroughly we
+enjoyed it!
+
+We shared our Eden with two other squadrons of our regiment, a section
+of an artillery park, and a divisional ambulance. We prayed Heaven to
+grant us a long stay in such a haven of repose.
+
+Now one morning, after countless ablutions with hot water and a clean
+shave, I was going, with brilliantly shining boots, down the steep
+footpath which led to the little house of our good Monsieur Cheveret,
+when my attention was drawn to a small white notice posted on the door
+of the church. It ran:
+
+
+         "THIS EVENING AT SIX O'CLOCK,
+   BENEDICTION OF THE MOST HOLY SACRAMENT."
+
+
+It occurred to me at once that this happy idea had been conceived by
+the Chaplain of the Ambulance, for until then the church had been kept
+locked, as the young parish priest had been called up by the
+mobilisation. I made haste to tell our Captain and my comrades the
+good news, and we all determined to be present at the Benediction that
+evening.
+
+At half-past five our ears were delighted by music such as we had not
+been accustomed to hear for a very long time. In the deepening
+twilight some invisible hand was chiming the bells of the little
+church. How deliciously restful they were after the loud roar of the
+cannon and the rattle of the machine-guns! Who would have thought that
+such deep, and also such solemn, notes could come from so small a
+steeple? It stirred the heart and brought tears to the eyes, like
+some of Chopin's music. Those bells seemed to speak to us, they seemed
+to call us to prayer and preach courage and virtue to us.
+
+At the end of the shady walk I was passing down--whose trees formed a
+rustling wall on either side--appeared the little church, with its
+slender steeple. It stood out in clear relief, a dark blue, almost
+violet silhouette against the purple background made by the setting
+sun. Some dark human forms were moving about and collecting around the
+low arched doorway. Perhaps these were the good old women of the
+district who had come to pray in this little church which had remained
+closed to them for nearly two months. I fancied I could distinguish
+them from where I was, dignified and erect in their old-fashioned
+mantles.
+
+But as soon as I got closer to them I found I was mistaken. It was not
+aged and pious women who were hurrying to the church door, but a group
+of silent artillerymen wrapped in their large blue caped cloaks. The
+bells shook out their solemn notes, and seemed to be calling others to
+come too; and I should have been glad if their voices had been heard,
+for I was afraid the Chaplain's appeal would hardly be heeded and that
+the benches of the little church would be three-parts empty.
+
+But on gently pushing the door open I found at once that my fears were
+baseless. The church was in fact too small to hold all the soldiers,
+who had come long before the appointed hour as soon as they heard the
+bells begin. And now that I had no fears about the church being empty
+I wondered how I was going to find a place myself. I stood on the
+doorstep, undecided, on tip-toe, looking over the heads of all those
+standing men to see whether there was any corner unoccupied where I
+could enjoy the beauty of the unexpected sight in peace.
+
+The nave was almost dark. The expense of lighting, had no doubt to be
+considered, for for several days past no candle or taper was to be
+had for money. And no doubt the kindness of a motorist of the Red
+Cross had been appealed to for the supply of all the candles which lit
+up the altar. This was indeed resplendent. The vestry had been
+ransacked for candlesticks, and the tabernacle was surrounded by a
+splendid aureole of light. All this increased the touching impression
+I felt on entering.
+
+Against the brilliant background of the choir stood out the black
+forms of several hundreds of men standing and looking towards the
+altar. Absolute silence reigned over the whole congregation of
+soldiers. And yet no discipline was enforced; there was no superior
+present to impose a show of devotion. Left to themselves, they all
+understood what they had to do. They crowded together, waiting in
+silence and without any impatience for the ceremony to begin.
+
+Suddenly a white figure came towards me through the crowded ranks of
+soldiers. He extended his arms in token of welcome, and I at once
+recognised the Chaplain in his surplice. His face was beaming with
+pleasure, and his eyes shone behind his spectacles. He appeared to be
+supremely happy.
+
+"This way, _Monsieur l'Officier_, this way. I have thought of
+everything. You must have the seat of honour. Follow me."
+
+I followed the holy man, who elbowed a way for me up the crowded
+aisle. He had reserved all the choir-stalls for the officers. Before
+the war they had been occupied, at high mass, by the clergy, the
+choir, and the principal members of the congregation. He proudly
+showed me into one of them, and I felt rather embarrassed at finding
+myself suddenly in a blaze of light between an artillery lieutenant
+and a surgeon-major.
+
+The low vestry door now opened and a very unexpected procession
+appeared. In front of a bearded priest walked four artillerymen in
+uniform. One of them carried a censer, and another the incense-box.
+The other two walked in front of them, arms crossed and eyes front.
+The whole procession knelt before the altar with perfect precision,
+and I saw beneath the priest's vestments muddy gaiters of the same
+kind as those worn by the gunners.
+
+At the same time we heard, quite close to us, strains of music which
+seemed to us celestial. In the dim light I had not noticed the
+harmonium, but now I could distinguish the artist who was enchanting
+us by his skill in drawing sweet sounds from a poor worn instrument.
+He was an artillery captain. At once all eyes were turned towards him;
+we were all enraptured. None of us dared to hope that we should lift
+our voices in the hymns.
+
+The organist seemed unconscious of his surroundings. The candle placed
+near the keyboard cast a strange light upon the most expressive of
+heads. Against the dark background of the church the striking features
+of a noble face were thrown into strong relief: a forehead broad and
+refined, an aristocratic nose, a fair moustache turned up at the ends,
+and, notably, two fine blue eyes, which, without a glance at the
+fingers on the keys, were fixed on the vaulted roof as though seeking
+inspiration there.
+
+The Chaplain, turning to the congregation, then said:
+
+"My friends, we will all join in singing the _O Salutaris_."
+
+The harmonium gave the first notes, and I braced myself to endure the
+dreadful discords I expected from this crowd of soldiers--mostly
+reservists--who, I supposed, had come together that evening mainly out
+of curiosity.
+
+Judge of my astonishment! At first only a few timid voices joined the
+Chaplain's. But after a minute or so a marvel happened. From all those
+chests came a volume of sound such as I could hardly have believed
+possible. Who will say then that our dear France has lost her Faith?
+Who can believe it? Every one of these men joined in singing the hymn,
+and not one of them seemed ignorant of the Latin words. It was a
+magnificent choir, under a lofty vault, chanting with the fervour of
+absolute sincerity. There was not one discordant note, not one voice
+out of tune, to spoil its perfect harmony.
+
+Who can believe that men, many of them more than thirty years old,
+would remember all the words unless they had been brought up in the
+faith of their ancestors and still held it?
+
+I could not help turning to look at them. In the light of the candles
+their faces appeared to be wonderfully transfigured. Not one of them
+expressed irony or even indifference. What a fine picture it would
+have made for a Rembrandt! The bodies of the men were invisible in the
+darkness of the nave, and their heads alone emerged from the gloom.
+The effect was grand enough to fascinate the most sceptical of
+painters; it soothed and charmed one and wiped out all the miseries
+that the war had left in its wake. Men like these would be equal to
+anything, ready for anything; and I myself should much have liked to
+see a Monsieur Homais hidden away in some corner of that church.
+
+Meanwhile the sacred Office was proceeding at the altar. At any other
+time we might have smiled at the sight of that soldier-priest served
+by choristers of thirty-five in uniform; at that ceremony it was
+inexpressibly touching and attractive, and it was especially
+delightful to see how carefully and precisely each performed his
+function that the ceremony might not lack its accustomed pomp.
+
+When the singing had ceased the Chaplain went up to the holy table. In
+a voice full of feeling he tried to express his gratitude and
+happiness to all those brave fellows. I should not imagine him to be a
+brilliant speaker at the best of times, but on that occasion the
+worthy man was completely unintelligible. His happiness was choking
+him. He tried in vain to find the words he wanted, used the wrong
+ones, and only confused himself by trying to get them right. But
+nobody had the least desire to laugh when, to conclude his address, he
+said with a sigh of relief:
+
+"And now we will tell twenty beads of the rosary; ten for the success
+of our arms, and the other ten in memory of soldiers who have died on
+the field of honour.... _Hail! Mary, full of grace_...."
+
+I looked round the church once more, and every one's lips were moving
+silently accompanying the priest's words. Opposite us I saw the
+artillery captain take a rosary out of his pocket and tell the beads
+with dreamy eyes; and when the Chaplain came to the sentence "Holy
+Mary, Mother of God, ..." hundreds of voices burst forth, deep and
+manly voices, full of fervour which seemed to proclaim their faith in
+Him Who was present before them on the altar, and also to promise
+self-sacrifice and devotion to that other sacred thing, their Country.
+
+Then, after the _Tantum ergo_ had been sung with vigour, the priest
+held up the monstrance, and I saw all those soldiers with one accord
+kneel down on the stone floor and bow their heads. The silence was
+impressive; not a word, not a cough, and not a chair moved. I had
+never seen such devotion in any church. Some spiritual power was
+brooding over the assemblage and bowing all those heads in token of
+submission and hope. Good, brave soldiers of France, how we love and
+honour you at such moments, and what confidence your chiefs must feel
+when they lead such men to battle!
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+We sat at table around the lamp, and good Maman Cheveret had just
+brought in the steaming soup. Right away towards the east we heard the
+dull roll of the cannon. Good Monsieur Cheveret had just brought up
+from his cellar a venerable bottle of his best Burgundy, and, at the
+invitation of the Captain, he sat down to drink a glass with us,
+smoking his cherry-wood pipe and listening with delight to our merry
+chat.
+
+Gosset was in his kitchen next door preparing a delicious piece of
+beef _à la mode_ and at the same time telling the admiring Maman
+Cheveret about his exploits of the past month.
+
+We heard the men of the first troop cracking their jokes in the yard
+as they ate their rations and emptied their pannikin of wine under a
+brilliant moon.
+
+Down in the valley on the banks of the murmuring Vesle, songs and
+laughter floated up to us from the artillery park.
+
+And the village itself, shining under the starlit sky, seemed bathed
+in an atmosphere of cheerfulness, courage and confidence.
+
+
+
+
+VI. A TRAGIC NIGHT IN THE TRENCHES
+
+
+
+        _November 3, 1914._
+
+
+Imagine a little tiled room, some 16 feet by 9, in which for over a
+fortnight passing soldiers have been living, sleeping, and eating;
+imagine the furniture overturned, the broken crockery strewn on the
+floor, the doors and drawers of the cupboards pulled out, their modest
+contents scattered to the four corners of the house; add to this
+windows without glass, doors broken in, rubbish of every kind lying
+about, brought no one can tell whence or how; and yet note that one or
+two chromo-lithographs, a few photographs of friends and relatives and
+certain familiar objects, still cling to the walls, evoking the life
+that animated this home but a short time ago, and you will get some
+idea of the place where my Major, my comrades of the squadron and I
+were lodged on that memorable November evening.
+
+It was five o'clock, and night was already falling, the cold, damp,
+misty night of Flanders following on a dreary autumn day. Outside the
+guns were roaring far away. The Battle of the Yser was going on.
+
+Our regiment had just been brought by rail from the Reims district,
+where it was, to the North of France, and thence to Belgium. Our
+chiefs had said: "You must leave your horses, you must forget that you
+ever were cavalrymen, you must make up your minds cheerfully to your
+new calling and become infantrymen for the time being. We are short of
+infantry here, and the Germans are trying to rush Dunkirk and Calais.
+Your country relies upon you to stop them." Our good Chasseurs left
+their horses at Elverdinghe, 10 kilometres from here. They came on
+foot, hampered by their heavy cavalry cloaks, dragging their riding
+boots through the atrocious mud of the ruined roads, carrying in their
+packs, together with their ration of bread and tinned meat, the huge
+load of one hundred and twenty cartridges; they arrived here in the
+firing line, and quite simply, as if they had never been accustomed to
+anything else, did wonders there and then.
+
+Yesterday, I grieve to say, I was not at the head of my troop. I was
+unable to take part in the epic battle round Bixschoote, the poor
+Belgian village which was retaken and then abandoned by us for the
+twentieth time. I was not present at the heroic death of the gallant
+and charming Colonel d'A., of the ---- Chasseurs, the author of those
+heart-stirring pages--and among them "The Charge"--which bring tears
+to the eyes of every cavalryman. He died facing the enemy, leading his
+regiment to the attack under terrific fire, and when his men carried
+him away they ranged themselves round him to make a rampart of their
+bodies for the chief they adored. I was not able to share the danger
+of my young comrade, Second-Lieutenant J., who fell bravely at the
+head of his marksmen, in the middle of my beloved regiment, in which
+fresh gaps have been made by the enemy's bullets. My seniority had
+marked me out as officer of _liaison_ to the General commanding our
+division. But this morning at dawn I came back to take my place in the
+firing line, and I think I shall be able to make up for lost time.
+
+The day has been absolutely quiet, however. After the fighting of the
+day before, and a night of sleeplessness and incessant alarms in the
+trenches, three of our squadrons, mine among them, were relieved
+before dawn and placed in reserve. They found billets in little
+forsaken farms some 600 yards from the firing line. Our men rested as
+well as they could all day, making beds of the scanty supplies of
+straw they found, washing themselves in pools, and renewing their
+strength in order to relieve the troops which had remained in the
+trenches; a squadron of our regiment, a squadron of the ----
+Chasseurs, and a section of infantry Chasseurs.
+
+Seated on a broken box, I was doing my best to write a letter, while
+Major B. and my brother officers O. and F., together with Captain de
+G., of the third squadron, took their seats at a rickety table and
+began a game of bridge. Here, by the way, is a thing passing the
+understanding of the profane, I mean the non-bridge player. This is
+the extraordinary, I might almost say the immoderate, attraction which
+the initiated find in this game, even at the height of a campaign.
+What inexhaustible joys it must offer to make its adepts profit by the
+briefest moments of respite in a battle to settle down anywhere and
+anyhow and give themselves up to their mysterious practices!
+
+I pause for a moment in my letter-writing to enjoy the sight, which
+has its special charm. Two or three kilometres off, towards
+Steenstraate, the cannon were working away furiously, while only a few
+paces from our shanty a section of our 75's was firing incessantly
+over the wood upon Bixschoote; overhead we heard the unpleasant roar
+of the big German shells; and in the midst of the racket I saw my
+bridge players dragging their table over to the broken window. Day was
+dying, and we had not seen a gleam of sunshine since morning. The sky
+was grey--a thick, dirty grey; it seemed to be very low, close upon
+us, and I felt that the night would come by slow degrees without any
+of those admirable symphonies of colour that twilight sometimes brings
+to battlefields, making the combatant feel that he is ending his day
+in apotheosis.
+
+But those four seemed to hear nothing. In the grey light I watched the
+refined profile of the Major bending over the cards just dealt by F.
+He no doubt has to speak first, for the three others looked at him, in
+motionless silence, as if they were expecting some momentous
+utterance. Then suddenly, accompanied by the muffled roar of the
+battle music, the following colloquy took place, a colloquy full of
+traps and ambushes, I suppose, for the four officers cast suspicious
+and inquisitorial glances at each other over their cards:
+
+
+    "One spade."
+    "Two hearts."
+    "Two no trumps."
+    "I double."
+    "Your turn, Major."
+
+
+But all of a sudden paf! paf! The four players had thrown down their
+cards, and we all looked at each other without a word. Suddenly we had
+just heard above us that strange and indefinable crackle made by
+bullets fired at close range as they tear through the air just above
+one. No doubt was possible; something extraordinary was happening near
+the trenches, for the crackling increased mightily, and hundreds and
+hundreds of bullets began to whistle round us. F. sent the table
+rolling to the other end of the room with a kick, and we all rushed
+out after the Major.
+
+There is no more depressing moment in warfare than when one finds
+oneself exposed to violent fire from the enemy without being able to
+see whence it comes, or what troops are firing, and what is its
+objective. Obviously the attack was not directed against us, for
+between the trenches and the houses where we were there was a thick
+wood which entirely concealed us from the sight of the enemy. But on
+the other hand the shots could not have been fired from the trenches
+the Germans had hitherto occupied opposite us, for had they been the
+bullets must have passed high over our heads, and we should have heard
+only the characteristic whistle of shots fired at long range.
+
+For a moment, only a moment, we were full of dread. What had happened?
+What had become of the comrades who were in the firing-line? Grouped
+together in the little enclosure bordered with quick-set hedges where
+there were still traces of what had been the kitchen-garden of our
+farm, we strained our eyes to see without uttering a word. In front of
+us was the dark line of the wood. We scrutinised it sharply, this
+silent mass of trees and bushes on which autumn had already laid the
+most splendid colours of its palette. In spite of the dull light, what
+an admirable background it made to the melancholy picture of the
+devastated landscape! First, quite close to the ground, was a tangle
+of bushes and brambles, its russet foliage forming a kind of
+impenetrable screen, which, in bright sunshine, would have been a
+curtain of purple and gold. Then, pointing up into the misty sky, came
+the denuded trunks of the trees, surrounded by a maze of myriads of
+delicate branches, their ramifications stretching a violet-tinted veil
+across the sky. In spite of the tragic present I could not but admire
+the marvellous setting Nature offered for the drama in which we were
+destined to be the actors.
+
+The bullets continued their infernal music, whistling in thousands
+over our heads. At the same time the fire of the German mortars
+redoubled in intensity, and their great "coal-boxes" (big shells)
+burst with a deafening din a few hundred yards behind us, seeking to
+silence our guns. These, concealed in a hollow, answered vigorously.
+
+But what did it all mean? What was happening? We longed to shout, to
+call, to implore some one to answer us, to tell us what had been
+taking place behind the thick curtain of the wood. But the curtain
+remained impenetrable.
+
+In the few seconds we spent below that deserted house in the little
+trampled garden-close, under the rain of bullets that was falling
+around us, one dread oppressed us, and lay so heavy on our hearts that
+it made us dumb and incapable of exchanging our thoughts, or, rather,
+the one thought that haunted us all. "What has become of the second
+squadron? What has become of our Colonel, who had stayed in command?
+What has become of all our dear fellows there on the other side of the
+wood?" Uncertainty is indeed the worst of all miseries, because it
+makes its victims believe and imagine every horror.
+
+From our post we could see at the windows and doors of the little
+houses scattered among the fields the anxious and inquiring faces of
+our men. They, too, were tortured by uncertainty. They stood huddled
+together, looking in our direction, waiting for a sign or an order.
+
+Suddenly our doubts were dissipated.
+
+"To arms!" cried our Major, in a ringing voice that echoed above the
+crackling of the bullets and was heard by the whole squadron.
+
+He had no need to repeat the order. In the twinkling of an eye my
+troop had formed behind me, in squads. My men waited in absolute
+silence, their eyes fixed upon me, kneeling on one knee, and leaning
+on their rifles. I seemed to hear all their hearts beating in unison
+with mine; and knew their wills ready to second mine.
+
+The Major gave the word of command. We disposed our men in skirmishing
+order in the ditch of the road that passed in front of our farm,
+parallel with the skirts of the wood. Our squadrons thus formed a line
+of from 300 to 400 yards, capable of holding the enemy in check for
+some time, if they had succeeded in taking our trenches and were
+already pushing through the thicket. Kneeling on the road behind them,
+I looked at my men. They were lying flat on the ground on the slope of
+the ditch; they had loaded their rifles, and I could not distinguish
+the slightest trace of fear or even of emotion in any one of them.
+
+They were all looking straight before them trying to see whether some
+helmeted soldier were emerging from the bushes in the gathering
+shadow. What splendid soldiers the war has fashioned for us! They are
+no longer merely the diligent and conscientious cavalrymen we took
+pleasure in commanding, and whose smartness we admired in peace time.
+The stern experience of the battlefield has hardened, strengthened and
+ennobled them. Their faces are manlier; their discipline, far from
+relaxing, has become more thorough; their courage has developed, and,
+in most of them, now verges on temerity.
+
+I have had two new men in my troop for a short time: Ladoucette and
+Roger. They are Territorials, men of from thirty-eight to forty, who,
+wearying of the depôt and envying their juniors in the field, asked
+and obtained leave to rejoin the regiment at the Front. They
+fascinated me at once by their high spirits, their jovial chaff, and
+the cheerfulness with which they undertook the most laborious tasks.
+But I had not yet seen them under fire.
+
+I looked about for them in the line of skirmishers. I tried to
+distinguish them among all the backs and necks lying before me. And I
+very soon guessed that they were at the extreme right of the troop,
+for I heard smothered laughter at that corner; evidently Ladoucette
+was cracking some of the highly-spiced jokes characteristic of him.
+Yes, I saw his head lifted above the grass on the slope, his bristling
+moustache, his brilliant eyes, and sarcastic mouth. I could not hear
+what he was saying, for the firing was still furious, but I saw from
+the smiling faces of his neighbours that he had, as usual, found the
+right word for the occasion, the word that provokes laughter under
+bullet fire and makes men forget danger. Not far from him his
+inseparable chum, Roger, guffawed appreciatively, and seemed to be
+enjoying himself thoroughly. I rejoiced to think that I had got two
+first-rate recruits, worthy to fight side by side with the fine
+fellows of my brave troop.
+
+Suddenly a dark figure emerged from the wood, then two more, then
+another three, then more. Was it the enemy? Without waiting for the
+word of command some of the men pointed their rifles at the mysterious
+shadows running in single file towards us.
+
+
+        "Don't fire! Don't fire!"
+
+
+We had, fortunately, recognised the uniform of our infantry Chasseurs.
+But this increased rather than allayed our anxiety. We naturally
+imagined the direst catastrophes and feared the most terrible
+consequences when we saw those in whom we had trusted, those who
+occupied the trenches nearest to Bixschoote, beating a retreat. The
+first of the fugitives came up to us. They seemed completely
+demoralised. Haggard, ragged, and black with dust, they crossed the
+road at a run. We tried in vain to stop them. As they passed us they
+shouted something unintelligible, of which we could catch nothing but
+the words:
+
+"They're coming, ... they're coming."
+
+Together with O., I succeeded in stopping two men, who were going
+along less rapidly, supporting a wounded comrade who was groaning and
+dragging himself on one leg.
+
+"Our flank was turned; there are thousands of them. They came through
+the village and enfiladed us. We had a great many killed ... our
+officer wounded. We must get back further to the rear."
+
+As they went off haltingly with their comrade, whose groans were
+pitiable to hear, the tall figure of a lieutenant of foot Chasseurs
+rose suddenly before us. He looked like a ghost, and for a moment we
+thought he was about to fall, an exhausted mass, at our feet. His face
+was covered with blood. The red mask in which the white of the eyes
+formed two brilliant spots was horrible to see. His torn tunic and all
+his clothing were saturated with blood. He was gesticulating wildly
+with the revolver he clutched in his hands, and seemed absolutely
+distraught.
+
+As he passed the Major seized him by the arm:
+
+"Halt! halt! Look here, you must rally your men. We can put up a good
+defence here."
+
+The officer wrenched himself free, and went off with hasty strides,
+calling to us without turning his head:
+
+"I know what I must do.... We can't hold a line here.... I am going to
+form up by the artillery."
+
+Two more men came by, depressed and silent, bent down by the weight of
+their knapsacks. They crossed the ditches by the roadside with
+difficulty, and were presently lost to sight in the fields amidst the
+gathering shadows.
+
+There was no laughter now in our ranks. The same thought was in every
+mind, the same despair chilled every heart. The Germans must have
+taken our trenches, and our brave comrades had all chosen to die
+rather than to retreat. And the enemy must be there before us, in that
+wood; they must be stealing up to us noiselessly. I fancied I could
+see them, gliding from tree to tree, holding their rifles high, trying
+to deaden the sound of their footsteps among the dead leaves.
+Presently they would reach the dark line that stretched before us,
+mute and mysterious; they would mass their dense reserves in the rear,
+and suddenly thousands of lightning flashes would illuminate the
+fringe of the thicket. I looked at my men again. There was no sign of
+wavering; not a word was spoken; their faces looked a little pale in
+the waning light. Above us thousands of shells and bullets filled the
+air with their strange and terrible music.
+
+A man came out of the wood and walked quietly towards us. It was not
+light enough to distinguish his uniform, but his calm and placid
+bearing was in marked contrast to that of the infantry Chasseurs. He
+must have recognised the little group formed by the Major, my
+comrades, and myself in the middle of the road, for he made straight
+for us.
+
+When he got to within twenty paces of us we recognised to our joy
+Sergeant Madelin, a non-commissioned officer of our second squadron,
+the squadron that had stayed in the trenches with the Colonel and the
+machine-gun section. I cannot describe the relief we felt at the sight
+of him. Though we could not tell what he was going to say, his
+attitude dispelled our fears at once. He gazed at us with wide
+astonished eyes from under the peak of his shako, and came on quietly,
+as if he were taking a walk, his hands in his pockets, murmuring in a
+tone of stupefaction:
+
+"What on earth is the matter?"
+
+"Well, really, this is a little too much!" exclaimed the Major;
+"that's just what _we_ want _you_ to tell _us_!"
+
+"But I have nothing to tell you, Major. The trench of the infantry
+Chasseurs was taken. We are all right. But the Colonel has sent me to
+say that there are signs of a German counter-attack on the left, and
+he wants you to reinforce him on that side with your three
+squadrons."
+
+He spoke so calmly and with such an air of astonishment that we all
+felt inclined to laugh. Madelin had already given proof of his
+courage, he had even been mentioned in orders for his valour, but we
+had never seen him so placidly good-humoured under fire as on this
+occasion. All our fears were at once put to flight, and we thought
+only of one thing; to fly to the help of our comrades and win our
+share of glory.
+
+
+        "Forward!"
+
+
+The officers had advanced in front of the line of skirmishers. All the
+men sprang up in an instant, and the three squadrons dashed forward
+full speed.
+
+But at the exact moment when our men, springing out of the ditches,
+began their advance towards the wood, the enemy's artillery,
+shortening its range, began to pour a perfect hail of shrapnel on our
+line. It was now almost pitch dark, and there was something infernal
+in the scene. The shells were bursting at a considerable height above
+us, some in front, some behind. They made a horrible kind of music.
+There must have been at least two batteries at work upon us, for we
+could no longer distinguish even the three characteristic shots of the
+German batteries in _rafale_ fire. The noise was incessant, and each
+shell as it burst illumined a small section of the battlefield for a
+second. It just showed a tree trunk, a bit of wall, a strip of hedge,
+and then the darkness fell again over this point, while another was
+illuminated by the crash of a new explosion.
+
+At one moment a sudden horror gripped me. To my left a shrapnel shell
+fell full on the line of the third squadron. This time the flash of
+the explosion had not only lighted up a corner of landscape; I had had
+a glimpse of a terrible sight.
+
+You must imagine the intense and rapid light cast by a burning
+magnesium wire, accompanied by a deafening noise, and in this brief
+light the figures of several men, weirdly illuminated, in the
+attitudes induced by the terror of certain death, and you will get a
+faint impression of what I saw. Then, suddenly, everything fell back
+into darkness, a darkness that seemed more intense than before after
+the glare of the explosion. I dimly discerned bodies on the ground,
+and shadows bending over them.
+
+I did not stop, but I heard the voice of the Major calmly giving
+orders:
+
+
+        "Pick him up! Gently...."
+
+
+But the wounded man shrieked, refusing to allow himself to be touched;
+his limbs, no doubt, were shattered. No matter! Forward! Forward! We
+rushed on towards the wood, where we hoped to get some protection from
+the avalanche of shells. A voice called out names behind me:
+
+"Corporal David killed! Sergeant Flosse wounded; leg broken."
+
+My men were running forward so impetuously that presently they were on
+a level with me. What fine fellows! I half regretted that some hostile
+troop was not waiting for us ambushed in the wood. We might have had a
+splendid fight! But would there have been a fight at all? Would the
+Prussians have ventured to measure themselves against these
+dare-devils, whom danger excites instead of depressing? Well, we were
+at the edge of the wood at last, waiting till the Major came up with
+us.
+
+Leaning against the trees, my Chasseurs took breath after their race.
+I passed swiftly along the line to make sure that all my men were
+safe. They were all there, and I was relieved to find that I had no
+losses to deplore. The joys and sorrows of war had forged a bond
+between us that nothing could break. I had soon learnt to know each
+one of them, with his virtues and his faults, and I felt them to be,
+without exception, worthy fellows and brave soldiers. Each time death
+struck down one of them, I suffered as at the loss of a beloved
+brother, and I believe they repaid my affection for them by perfect
+trust.
+
+The Major had now rejoined us. We were not to lose a moment in
+responding to our Colonel's summons, and we were to remember that our
+comrades of the second squadron were bearing the brunt of the enemy's
+attack alone.
+
+
+        "Forward!"
+
+
+We resumed our headlong advance. It was more difficult in the darkness
+of the wood than on the soft earth of the fields. We stumbled over
+roots, and got entangled in brambles; men fell, picked themselves up
+again, and went on with an oath. There was no more chaff; all minds
+were strung up to fever pitch, and strength was giving out, while the
+storm of shrapnel continued overhead, cropping the branches, and
+lighting up the tangle of leafless trees and bushes at intervals as if
+with fireworks.
+
+Suddenly I heard on my right, not far behind me, screams and calls for
+help, rising above the turmoil of battle. I saw my men stop for a
+moment, looking round. But they hurried on again at my orders without
+a word.
+
+
+        "Forward!"
+
+
+Time was precious. Every minute might be fatal to our brothers in
+arms. We could now hear the familiar sound of our cavalry carbines
+quite close to us. We were approaching the trenches where the second
+squadron was making its heroic stand.
+
+
+        "Forward! Forward!"
+
+
+We were all breathless from our frantic rush. But no one thought of
+slackening speed. I turned round to some one who was trotting behind
+me. It was my non-commissioned officer. Without a moment's loss of
+time he had run to see what had caused the cries we had heard, and now
+he had come back at the double to report to me.
+
+"Sir, in the third troop, Sergeant Lagaraldi...."
+
+"Well?"
+
+"He's killed, ... and Corporal Durand too!"
+
+"Ah!"
+
+"And there are many wounded."
+
+I made no answer. Oh! it was horrible! Two poor fellows so full of
+life and spirits not an hour ago! In spite of myself I could not help
+thinking for a few minutes of the two shattered, quivering bodies
+lying among the grasses of the forest. But I thrust away the gruesome
+vision resolutely. We could only think of doing our duty at this
+supreme moment. Later we would remember the dead, weep for them, and
+pray for them.
+
+The darkness was no longer so dense. The tangle of trees in front of
+us was less thick, the branches seemed to be opening out, we were near
+the edge of the wood. And at the same time, in spite of the mad
+beating of my heart and the buzzing in my ears, I was conscious that
+the cannonade had ceased, at least in our direction, and that the
+bullets were no longer coming so thickly. The German attack was
+probably relaxing; there was to be a respite. So much the better! It
+would enable us to pass from the wood to the trenches without much
+danger, thanks to the darkness.
+
+We had arrived! One by one our men slipped into the communication
+trench. What a sense of well-being and of rest we all had! The little
+passage in the earth, so uninviting as a rule, seemed to us as
+desirable as the most sumptuous palace. We drew breath at last. We
+felt almost safe. But still, there was no time to be lost.
+
+While the Major hurried off to take the Colonel's orders I climbed up
+on the parapet. Night had now fallen completely, but the moon was
+rising. Indeed, it would have been almost as light as day but for a
+slight mist which was spreading a diaphanous veil before our eyes. In
+the foreground to the right I could barely guess the dim outline of
+the battered mill and the burnt farm flanking the trench occupied by
+the foot Chasseurs. Further off, however, I could vaguely distinguish
+the row of trees that marked the first line of German trenches, about
+250 yards away from us. To the left the mist had a reddish tinge. No
+doubt yet another house was burning in the unhappy village of
+Bixschoote.
+
+There was a sudden silence in this little corner of the great
+battlefield, as if our arrival in the firing line had been a
+prearranged signal. On our right, too, the intensity of the fire upon
+the trenches occupied by the ---- Territorials diminished. To the
+left, on the other hand, the gun fire and rifle fire were incessant
+in the direction of the bridge of Steenstraate, defended by the ----
+Brigade of mounted Chasseurs. It seemed evident that the Germans,
+having failed in their attempt to cross the Yser canal near us, were
+making a fresh effort further to the north. However, it is not safe to
+rely too absolutely even upon the most logical deductions, for very
+often the event upsets the most careful calculations and frustrates
+the wisest plans.
+
+The moon was now shining with extraordinary brilliance, and the fog,
+far from veiling its lustre, seemed to make it more disconcerting.
+Persons assumed strange forms and the shapes of things were modified
+or exaggerated. Our dazzled eyes were mocked by depressing
+hallucinations; the smallest objects took on alarming proportions, and
+whenever a slight breeze stirred the foliage of the beetroot field in
+front of us we imagined we saw a line of snipers advancing.
+
+I had great difficulty in preventing my men from firing. It was
+necessary to eke out our cartridges with the utmost care, for, owing
+to some mistake in the transmission of orders, our supplies had not
+been replenished since the day before, and we had used a great many in
+the fighting round Bixschoote. A like prudence was not, however,
+observed all along the line, for every now and then the trenches would
+be suddenly illuminated at a point where for a few seconds a useless
+volley would ring out. Then everything relapsed into darkness and
+immobility.
+
+Towards Steenstraate, too, the firing seemed to be dying down. I
+looked at my watch. It was half-past six. This was the hour when as a
+rule our men began to feel hungry, and when in each troop the
+Chasseurs would set out, pannikin in hand, towards the smoking
+saucepan where the cook awaited them wielding his ladle with an
+important air. But on this particular evening no one thought of
+eating. We seemed all to feel that our work was not yet over, and that
+we had still a weighty task on hand. It was certainly not the moment
+to light fires and make soup; no doubt the Prussians were brewing
+something for us of a different kind, and it would never do not to
+return their compliments promptly.
+
+Ready? Yes, we were ready. I turned and looked back into the trench.
+All my brave fellows were standing, their eyes turned to me, and
+seemed bent on divining by my attitude or gestures any new effort I
+might be about to ask of them. The pale light of the moonbeams struck
+full on their faces, leaving their bodies shrouded in the darkness of
+the trench. What a strange and comforting spectacle it was! In every
+eye I read calm courage and absolute confidence.
+
+Whenever I feel weary or depressed, inclined to curse the slowness of
+our advance and the thousand miseries of war, I need only do what I
+did that evening. I need only turn to my Chasseurs and look into their
+eyes without a word; there I read so many noble and touching things
+that I am ashamed to have felt a momentary weakness.
+
+They do not ask the why and the wherefore of things. They live from
+day to day, weighed down by hard work. To them the actual fighting is
+a rest and a delight. As soon as it is over they have to resume the
+hard life of cavalrymen on active service, spend all their time
+looking after their horses, fetching rations and forage, often from a
+considerable distance, cleaning harness and arms, and every night
+contriving some sort of quarters for themselves and their beasts in
+the squalor of half-destroyed or abandoned villages, quarters they
+must leave on the morrow. Yet nothing seems to depress them. They
+preserve all the eagerness of the first few days and that imperishable
+French gaiety which is an additional weapon for our troops.
+
+That evening I felt them vibrating in unison with me more keenly than
+ever.
+
+There was little doubt that I should have to appeal to their courage
+again presently, for something unusual was happening in front of us.
+It was maddening not to be able to pierce the luminous mist, behind
+which the enemy would be able to form up and take new positions
+without our knowledge. Down behind the line of willows we could now
+barely distinguish, we were aware of mysterious sounds, making a kind
+of distant murmur. They must come from the rattle of arms, orders
+given in whispers, footsteps slipping on the fat soil of plough-lands.
+Listening heads craned over our parapets. Each man was trying to hear,
+to understand, to see, and to divine, and each felt intuitively that
+the enemy was about to renew his assault. The most absolute silence
+and the most impressive calm reigned in our trenches. Yes, we were
+ready for them! Let them come!
+
+Then suddenly from the enemy's camp there rose a solemn, harmonious
+hymn sung by hundreds of manly voices. We could not distinguish the
+words uttered in the barbarian tongue. But the music was perfectly
+audible, and I must confess that nothing caused me so much surprise
+throughout this eventful evening. With what ardour and unanimity, and
+also, I am bound to admit, with what art, these men proclaimed their
+faith before rushing on death! One could imagine no more magnificent
+temple for the prayers of soldiers about to offer up their lives than
+the spacious firmament above and the luminous night around. We
+listened, touched and delighted. The hymn continued for some time, and
+the music seemed to me noble and inspiring; the voices were true and
+the execution admirable. But, above all, the singing conveyed a
+disturbing impression of disciplined and ordered piety. To what
+lengths these men carry their love of command and obedience!
+
+Suddenly the hymn broke off abruptly in a formidable uproar, above
+which rose thousands of voices shouting:
+
+"Hurrah! Hurrah! Cavalry! Cavalry!"
+
+Then, dominating the tumult, we heard their trumpets sounding the
+short, monotonous notes of the Prussian charge.
+
+I leaped back into the trench.
+
+
+        "Independent fire!"
+
+
+The whole French line burst into a violent and deafening fusillade.
+Each man seemed full of blind rage, of an exasperated lust for
+destruction. I saw them take aim rapidly, press the trigger, and
+reload in feverish haste. I was deafened and bewildered by the
+terrible noise of the firing in the narrow confines of the trench. To
+our left, the machine-gun section of my friend F. kept up an infernal
+racket.
+
+But the German line had suddenly dropped to the ground. I could barely
+distinguish a swarm of grey shadows running about in the fog. Then not
+a single dark figure was visible on the pale background of the tragic
+scene. How many of the bodies we could no longer make out must have
+been lying lifeless, and how horrible their proximity must have been
+to the living stretched side by side with them!
+
+Our men had ceased firing of their own accord, and a strange silence
+had succeeded to the deafening din. What was about to happen? Would
+they dare to come on again? We hoped so with all our hearts, for we
+felt that if we could keep our men in hand, and prevent them from
+firing at random, the enemy could never get at us. But, above all, it
+was essential to economise our ammunition, for if we were short of
+cartridges, what resistance could we offer to a bayonet charge with
+our little carbines reduced to silence?
+
+The Germans must have been severely shaken, for they seemed afraid to
+resume the attack. Nothing was moving in the bare plain that stretched
+before us. During this respite an order came from the officer in
+command, passing from mouth to mouth:
+
+"Hand it on: No firing without the word of command."
+
+Then silence fell on our trenches, heavy and complete as on the
+landscape before us. Suddenly, on the place where the enemy's riflemen
+had thrown themselves on the ground, we saw a slim shadow rise and
+stand. The man had got up quietly, as if no danger threatened him.
+And, in spite of everything, it was impossible not to admire the
+gallantry of his act. He stood motionless for a second, leaning on his
+sword or a stick; then he raised his arm slowly, and a hoarse voice
+yelled:
+
+
+        "_Auf!_" [Up!]
+
+
+Other voices repeated the word of command, and were answered by
+renewed "hurrahs!" Then the heavy line of riflemen sprang up and again
+rushed towards us:
+
+
+        "Fire! Fire!"
+
+
+Once more our trenches belched forth their infernal fire. We could now
+plainly see numbers of them fall; then they suddenly threw themselves
+on the ground just as before. But instead of crouching motionless
+among the beetroot they began to answer our fire. Innumerable bullets
+whistled about us. I noted with joy that my men remained perfectly
+steady; they were aiming and firing deliberately, whereas at other
+points the fusillade was so violent that it cannot have been
+efficacious. I was very glad not to have to reprove my brave
+Chasseurs, for the uproar was so terrific that my voice would not have
+carried beyond the two men nearest to me. I calculated the number of
+cartridges each of them must have in reserve; twenty-five, perhaps
+thirty. How would it all end? I was just thinking of ordering my troop
+to cease firing, in order to reserve my ammunition for a supreme
+effort, if this should be necessary.
+
+But something happened which checked this decision. F.'s machine-guns
+must have worked fearful havoc among our assailants, for suddenly,
+without a cry and without an order, we saw them rise and make off
+quickly right and left in the fog.
+
+
+        "Silence!"
+
+
+I was obliged to intervene to subdue the joyous effervescence caused
+in my troop. The men began to discuss their impressions in tones of
+glee that might have become dangerous. Ladoucette's voice was heard,
+as usual, above the din, calling upon his absent wife to admire his
+exploits:
+
+"Madame Ladoucette, if you could have seen that!"
+
+But we had to be on the _qui vive_. The German attack had been
+checked, but it might be renewed.
+
+We were fully alive to the courage and tenacity of our enemies.
+
+I could distinguish nothing ahead in the increasingly thick white fog.
+All I could hear was the sound of pickaxes on the ground and the thud
+of falling clods. The enemy had, no doubt, decided not to attack again
+and were digging new trenches. They no longer uttered their
+contemptuous guttural cries of "Cavalry! Cavalry!" They had learnt to
+their cost that these French cavalrymen, at the sight of whom their
+own are so ready to turn back, could hold their own equally well
+against German infantry. I thought we might count on a little respite.
+The battlefield was silent, save for the faint cries occasionally
+uttered by the wounded.
+
+I hastily detached two troopers to man the listening-posts, and they
+slipped away silently. Then, as our Captain had unfortunately been
+summoned to Elverdinghe that day on special duty, I went to look for
+the Major to make my report to him. My men had seated themselves on
+the rough ledges cut in the slope of the trench, their carbines
+between their knees, and were talking together in low tones. As I
+passed a friendly smile lit up their faces. I walked slowly along the
+narrow trench, careful not to tread on the feet of the talkers.
+
+As I approached a point where the trench, following the direction of
+the wood, formed an abrupt angle, I heard two familiar voices
+exchanging the following words:
+
+
+        "Fifty-two!... Tierce major...; three aces!"
+        "Capital!"
+
+
+This was really the limit! I turned the corner and came upon Major B.
+and F. seated on the ledge, quietly playing cards by the brilliant
+moonlight. As their tiny retreat could not accommodate four players,
+they were solacing themselves with a game of piquet.
+
+Oh, all you who are of necessity far from the scene of conflict, good
+Frenchmen and valiant Frenchwomen, how I should have liked you to see
+this picture! No doubt you often wonder whether those who are
+defending your homes against the accursed invader will be able to bear
+the sufferings of this war to the bitter end; you fear that they may
+be losing their good humour and their dashing spirits; you imagine
+them brooding with careworn faces and anxious souls when, the
+excitement of the encounter dying down, they think of what the morrow
+may bring forth. How I wish you could have seen Major B. and the
+gallant Lieutenant F. playing piquet in the trench where they had just
+repulsed a furious German attack, which might have been renewed at any
+moment!
+
+I left them to go on with their game, and went in search of my comrade
+O. I found him in the middle of his troop, talking amicably with his
+men. After the enemy had ceased firing he had sent a party of sappers
+to dig the graves of the two non-commissioned officers who had fallen
+in the wood. We retired into a corner of the trench, and there he told
+me of the grief he felt at this loss, a grief he was doing his best to
+hide, so as not to injure the _moral_ of his troop. Lagaraldi had
+just got his promotion, and was a soldier of the highest promise;
+Durand was the model corporal, clean, cheerful, and active. And, even
+if they had been but mediocre troopers, I knew too well what we
+officers feel when we lose even a passable Chasseur, to wonder at the
+melancholy of my charming young comrade.
+
+Time went on, and there were no signs of a fresh attack. The enemy's
+artillery seemed to be neglecting us, and to be bent upon the
+destruction of the Boesinghe bridge, by which we had crossed the Yser.
+His great shells flew over our heads with a sinister roar, and a few
+seconds later we heard the explosion far behind us. The German
+trenches in front of us were silent. A single shot fired at intervals
+alone reminded us that they were not forsaken.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, it's all ready."
+
+A corporal had come out of the wood to tell O. that the graves were dug.
+When we had sent word to our chiefs, and placed our non-commissioned
+officers in temporary command, our strange, sad procession of mourners
+left the trenches and slipped through the thicket in single file. There
+were four officers, the Lieutenant-Colonel, Major B., O., and myself and
+four non-commissioned officers. It would have been dangerous to deplete
+the firing line further.
+
+With heavy hearts we retraced our steps through the wood we had so
+lately passed through in all the exaltation of our advance. We knew
+the moral anguish we were about to feel in rendering this last service
+to our young brothers-in-arms. It was unhappily by no means the first
+time we had held such a ceremony, but never had I been present at one
+in such tragic circumstances, nor in such impressive surroundings. We
+hurried along, almost running in our anxiety to return quickly to our
+men. The branches caught at us and slashed our faces, the dead leaves
+and twigs crackled under our tread. Above us the shells still sang
+their funeral song.
+
+We had now come in sight of the burial-ground. In the moonlight, at
+the edge of the wood close to the spot where our gallant fellows had
+fallen, we could distinguish newly-dug earth, and four silent men
+standing beside it, their tunics thrown off, leaning on spade and
+pickaxe. It was there.
+
+In a little ravaged garden-plot, at the foot of great trees which
+would guard these graves, they had dug two holes, which, by night,
+looked extraordinarily deep and dark.
+
+Ought we to lament or to envy the touching and simple burial rite of
+soldiers? To me, nothing could be more beautiful than such a last
+resting-place. Why should we desire richer tombs, sepulchral stones,
+and sculptured monuments? We are all equal upon that field of death,
+the battlefield at the close of day. And there can be no fitter shroud
+for him who has fallen on that field than his soldier's cloak. A
+little earth that will be grass-grown and flower-spangled again in the
+spring, a simple cross of rough wood, a name, a regimental number, a
+date--all this is better than the most splendid obsequies. And what
+can be more touching than the poor little bunches of wild flowers
+which the friends of the dead gather on the banks of ditches, and
+which are to be seen days afterwards, faded and yet so fair, hanging
+on the humble crosses? Such was to be the portion of Lagaraldi and
+Durand. Why should we pity them? We will weep for them, we will not
+pity them.
+
+They were there, lying side by side in their cloaks, the turned-up
+capes of which shrouded their heads, and we bared our own in silence.
+Each of us, consciously or unconsciously, breathed a prayer, each set
+his teeth and tried to restrain his tears.
+
+But we were not destined to pray in peace to the end. At the moment
+when the Lieutenant-Colonel was about to express our sorrow and
+pronounce the last farewell the enemy's mortars, suddenly changing
+their objective, began to bombard the part of the wood on the edge of
+which we were standing.
+
+What was their idea? Did they think our reserves were massed in the
+wood? However this may have been, a formidable avalanche descended
+above and around us. The first salvo literally cleared the wood close
+by us. A great tree, cut through the middle, bent over for an instant
+and then rolled gently to the ground with a great crackling of broken
+boughs. At the same time the German bullets began to whistle round us
+by thousands, apparently determined to draw us into their frenzied
+saraband. Death seemed for a moment inevitable. We could not hesitate;
+we had to take cover, or to be mown down by shot or shell.
+
+Then--I shall remember the gruesome moment to my dying hour--we all
+leaped into the only available shelter--crouching together in the
+newly-dug graves. We were just in time.
+
+Bullets flew past us; the great "coal-boxes" burst without
+intermission. The uproar was tremendous, beyond anything we had ever
+heard. It would be impossible to describe the horror of those minutes.
+Those graves, all too spacious for the poor bodies we were about to
+commit to them, were too small to shelter us. We pressed one against
+the other in the strangest positions, hiding our heads between the
+shoulders of those who were lying in front of us; we thought every
+moment that the network of projectiles would be drawn more tightly
+round us, and that one would fall into our holes, transforming them
+into a ghastly charnel-house.
+
+This idea occurred to me suddenly and obsessed me. Yes, yes, presently
+the great snorting, whistling, pitiless thing would fall between O.
+and me. We should feel nothing; there would be no pain. We should be
+only a little heap of bloody clay, and to-morrow at daybreak our
+comrades would but have to throw a few spadefuls of earth upon it.
+They would put a plain wooden cross above, with our names and ranks,
+the number of our regiment, a date: "November 3, 1914." And it would
+be better than any sumptuous monument.
+
+
+        "Hush! Listen!"
+
+
+Between two explosions, in spite of the noise of the German bullets,
+we distinctly heard the crack of our carbines.
+
+
+        "Our men are fighting!"
+
+
+We all understood, and with one bound we were up and running
+frantically through the wood. How was it that none of us were killed?
+How did we manage to escape the shells and bullets which were cropping
+the branches and felling the trees around us? I shall never understand
+or forget this experience.
+
+When at last we sprang breathless into our trench after what had
+seemed an interminable race, the tumult had died down again and only
+occasional shots broke the nocturnal calm. The reason of the sudden
+renewal of the fighting was given at once by F.
+
+"Bravo!" he cried; "we have retaken the infantry Chasseurs' trench!"
+
+This was a great consolation to us, for we were all full of regret at
+the loss of this little piece of ground. It had prevented us from
+feeling quite satisfied with our day.
+
+Now all was well. Our task was accomplished.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+On the following day, November 4, at three in the morning, a battalion
+of the ---- Regiment of the Line came to relieve us. It formed part
+of that glorious 20th Corps, which has covered itself with glory ever
+since the beginning of the war, and fought all along the front from
+Lorraine to Flanders, always arriving at the moment when picked men
+were needed to make a last desperate effort. It had come up that
+evening, and was at once on the spot.
+
+In the cold, luminous night, the heavily laden infantrymen defiled
+into the narrow trench, calm, silent, and serious.
+
+The officer who was to take my place presented himself smartly, as if
+on the parade-ground.
+
+"Lieutenant X."
+
+I gave my name.
+
+"My dear fellow," he said, "I am delighted to shake hands with you.
+Allow me to say how much we all admire your regiment. Your General has
+just told us how your Chasseurs have behaved. Accept my
+congratulations. We could not have done better ourselves. The cavalry
+is certainly taking first place as a fighting force. Your regiment is
+to be mentioned in despatches, and you deserve it. Good-night. Good
+luck!"
+
+"Thank you! Good luck!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Once more we passed through the wood to take up our position in
+reserve. Our men were beginning to feel the fatigue of those two days
+without sleep and almost without rest.
+
+But joy, stronger than bodily fatigue, predominated. It hovered over
+our harassed troops. Above all, they were proud of having been
+appreciated and congratulated by their brothers-in-arms of the crack
+corps which is the admiration of the whole army.
+
+Each man forgot his tortured nerves, his aching head, his weary legs,
+repeating to himself the magic words:
+
+"Your regiment is to be mentioned in despatches!"
+
+
+
+
+VII. SISTER GABRIELLE
+
+
+It was a very dark night. How were we to find our way about the little
+unknown town of Elverdinghe, near which our regiment had just been
+quartered? We could hardly make out the low houses with closed windows
+and long roofs of thatch or slate, and kept stumbling on the greasy
+and uneven cobble-stones. Now and again the corner of a street or the
+angle of a square was lit up dimly by a ray of light filtering through
+half-closed shutters. I went along haphazard, preceded by my friend B.
+We were quite determined to find beds, and to sleep in peace.
+
+After our four days' fighting near Bixschoote we had been sent to the
+rear, ten kilometres away from the line of fire, to get twenty-four
+hours' rest; had arrived at nightfall, and found much difficulty in
+putting up our men and horses in the small farms around the town. But
+no sooner had they all found places, no sooner had the horses got
+their nose-bags on and the kitchen fires been lighted, than B., who
+was always anxious about the comforts of his board and lodging, said
+to me:
+
+"There is only one thing for us to do. We are to rest. We must find a
+bed and a well-furnished table. I had rather go to bed an hour later,
+and sleep between sheets after a good meal, than lie down at once on
+straw with an empty stomach. Listen to me. Let us go on to that nice
+Belgian town over there, only a few steps farther. It is hardly ten
+o'clock. It will be devilish bad luck if we can't find a good supper
+and good quarters. We need not trouble about anything else. Let us
+think first of serious matters."
+
+So we started for the little town which seemed to be wrapped in sleep.
+We knocked at the doors, but not one opened; no doubt the houses were
+all full of soldiers. No one offered us any hospitality, in spite of
+all B.'s objurgations, now beseeching, now imperious. In despair, I
+suggested at last that we should go back to our squadron, and lie down
+by our horses; but B. would not hear of it, and still clung to his
+idea: to have a good dinner, and sleep in a bed.
+
+Just then, we saw a dark figure creeping noiselessly along under the
+wall. B. at once went up to it, and caught it by the arm. It was a
+poor old woman, carrying a basket and a jug of milk. Said he:
+
+"_Madame, madame_, have pity on two poor weary, half-starved
+soldiers...."
+
+But she couldn't give us any information. Speaking in bad French,
+interspersed with Flemish, she gave us to understand that the little
+town was full of troops, and, at that hour, everybody was asleep.
+
+"And what is there in that large white building, where the windows are
+alight?"
+
+The good woman explained that it was a convent, where nuns took in the
+old people of the country. They could not give lodging to soldiers.
+But B. had already made up his mind; that was where we were to sleep.
+Leaving the old woman aghast, he went with long strides to the iron
+railing which surrounded a little garden in front of the convent. I
+tried in vain to make him understand that we could not invade these
+sacred precincts.
+
+"Leave it to me," he said, "I'll speak to them."
+
+He pushed the iron gate, which opened with a creak, and I shut it
+after him. I felt somewhat uneasy as I followed B., who crossed the
+garden with a rapid stride. I felt uneasy at the thought of his
+essentially military eloquence, and of the use to which he proposed to
+put it. But I knew, too, that he was not easily induced to abandon a
+resolution he had once taken. True, he did not often make one, but
+this time he seemed to be carrying out a very definite plan. The best
+thing was to submit, and await the result of his attempt. We went up
+three steps, and felt for the knocker. "Here it is," said B., and he
+lifted it and knocked hard. What a dismal sound it made in that
+sleeping town! I felt as though we had just committed an act of
+sacrilege. We listened, and heard, through the door, the noise of
+chairs dragged over the stone floor; then a light footstep
+approaching, a sound of keys and bolts, and the door was gently opened
+and held ajar.
+
+"Sister," said B., with a bow, "what we are doing is, I know, most
+unusual; but we are dying of hunger and very tired, and, so far,
+nobody has been willing to open their door to us. Could we not have
+something to eat here, and sleep in a bed?"
+
+The Sister looked at us and appeared not to understand. However, I was
+more at ease when I saw she was neither frightened nor displeased. She
+was a very old nun, dressed in black, and held in her hand a little
+lamp which flickered in the night breeze. Her face was furrowed with
+deep wrinkles, and her skinny hand, held before the lamp, seemed
+transparent. She made up her mind at once. Her face lit up with a kind
+smile, and she signed to us to come in, with words which were probably
+friendly. This was a supposition, for the worthy nun only spoke
+Flemish, and we could not understand anything she said. She carefully
+pushed the bolts again, placed her lamp on the floor, and made a sign
+to us to wait. Then she went away with noiseless steps, and we were
+left alone.
+
+"You see," said B., "it is all going swimmingly. Now that we have got
+in, you must leave everything to me."
+
+The flickering lamp lighted the hall dimly. The walls were bare, and
+there was no furniture but some rush chairs set in a line against the
+partition. Opposite the door, there was a simple wooden crucifix, and
+the stretched-out arms seemed to bid us welcome. A perfume of hot soup
+came from the door the old Sister had just shut.
+
+"I say!" said B., "did you smell it? I believe it is cabbage soup, and
+if so, I shall take a second helping."
+
+"Just wait a bit," I replied; "I'll wager they are going to turn us
+out."
+
+From the other side of the door, by which the portress had just
+disappeared, we heard a voice calling:
+
+"Sister Gabrielle!... Sister Gabrielle!..."
+
+And a moment after, the same door opened, and another nun came in very
+quietly, and rather embarrassed, as it seemed to me. She came towards
+us.
+
+Sister Gabrielle, your modesty will certainly suffer from all the good
+I am going to say of you.... But I am wrong, you will not suffer, for
+you certainly will never read the pages I have scribbled during the
+course of this war, at odd times, as I could, in bivouacs and billets.
+But I have vowed to keep a written record of the pictures which have
+charmed or moved me most during this campaign. If I ever survive it, I
+want to be able to read them again in my latter days. I want to have
+them read by those who belong to me, and to try to show them what kind
+of life we led during those unforgettable days. And it is not always
+the battles which leave the most lively impressions. How many
+delightful things one could relate that have happened outside the
+sphere of action! What memories of nights passed in the strangest
+places, as the chances of the march decreed, nights of bitterness
+during the retreat, nights of fever during the advance, nights of
+depression in the trenches! What kindly welcomes, what beautiful and
+what noble figures one might describe!
+
+Sister Gabrielle, as you will never read this, and as your modesty
+will not suffer, let me tell the story of the welcome my friend B. and
+I received that evening at the Convent of Elverdinghe.
+
+Sister Gabrielle came towards us. How pretty she was, in the coif that
+framed her face! How large her blue eyes looked! They really were so,
+but a touch of excitement made them seem larger still. Above all, she
+had an enchanting smile, a smile of such kindness that we at once felt
+at ease and sure of obtaining what we wanted. She spoke in a sweet and
+musical voice, hesitating just a little in her choice of words,
+although she spoke French very correctly.
+
+"The Sister Superior has sent me to you," she said, "because I am the
+only one here who can speak French.... _Messieurs les officiers_,
+welcome."
+
+She said it quite simply, and stood quite straight in her black dress,
+her arms hanging beside her. She might have been a picture of other
+days, an illuminated figure from a missal. We looked at each other and
+smiled too, happy to find so unexpected a welcome. B. was now quite
+self-possessed.
+
+"Sister Gabrielle," he said, "see what a wretched state we are in; our
+clothes covered with mud, our faces not washed since I don't know
+when. We have just gone four days without sleep, almost without food,
+and we have never stopped fighting. Could you not take in two weary,
+famished soldiers for one night?"
+
+Sister Gabrielle retained her wonderful smile. Without moving her
+arms, she slightly raised her two hands, which showed white against
+the black cloth of her dress. Those hands seemed to say: "I should
+like to very much, but I cannot." And at the same time the smile
+said: "We ought not to, but it shall be managed nevertheless."
+
+"Come," she said; "in any case, we can give you something to eat."
+
+And she took up the little lamp. She went first, opened the door at
+the end of the passage, and we followed her, delighted. We were
+dazzled as we came into this new room by the brilliance of the lamps
+that lit it. It was the convent kitchen. How clean and bright
+everything was! The copper saucepans shone resplendently. The black
+and white pavement looked like an ivory chessboard. Two Sisters were
+sitting peeling vegetables which they threw into a bowl of water. An
+enormous pot, on the well-polished stove, was humming its inviting
+monotone. It was this pot which exhaled the delicious smell that had
+greeted us when we entered the house. The whole picture recalled one
+of Bail's appetising canvases. The two Sisters raised their eyes,
+looked at us and--yes, they smiled too. B., feeling eloquent, wanted
+to make a speech; but Sister Gabrielle hurried us on:
+
+"Come, come," she said. "It is not worth while; they wouldn't
+understand you."
+
+She opened another door, and we went into a small rectangular room.
+Whilst our guide hastened to light the lamp hanging above the table,
+we laid our kits on the window-sill: our revolvers, shakoes, binocular
+glasses and map-cases; and how tarnished and dirty the things were,
+after those three months of war! We ourselves felt fairly ashamed to
+be seen in such a state. Our coats worn and stained, our breeches
+patched, our huge boots covered with mud, all formed a strange
+contrast to the room we were in. It was provided throughout with large
+cupboards in the walls, the doors of which reached to the ceiling.
+These doors were of polished wood, and shone like a mirror. The floor
+was like another mirror. That indefatigable chatterer B. began another
+speech:
+
+"Sister, please excuse the costumes of fighting men. We must look like
+ruffians, but we are honest folk. If our faces do not inspire much
+confidence, it is simply because our stomachs are so empty. And no one
+more resembles a vagabond than a poor wretch who is dying with hunger.
+You will not know us again after we have had a few words with the pot
+which gave out such a savoury smell as we passed."
+
+Sister Gabrielle did not cease to smile. With wonderful rapidity and
+skill she opened one of the cupboards, and, from the piles of linen,
+picked out a checkered red and white tablecloth with which she covered
+the table. In a moment she had arranged places for two, opposite each
+other.
+
+"Sit down," she said, "and rest. I will go and fetch you something to
+eat."
+
+B. followed her to the door.
+
+"Sister Gabrielle," he said, "we have found a Paradise."
+
+But she had already shut the door, and we heard her in the kitchen
+stimulating the zeal of the other two nuns in Flemish. We sat down,
+delighted. What a long time since we had enjoyed such comfort!
+Everything there seemed designed to charm our eyes and rest our minds.
+There was no noise in the street, and the convent itself would have
+seemed wrapped in sleep had it not been for the voices in the next
+room. But the distant roar of the guns still went on, and seemed to
+make our respite still more enjoyable.
+
+We hardly heard Sister Gabrielle when she came in and put down the
+steaming soup before us. The delicate perfume of the vegetables made
+our mouths water. For many days past we had had nothing to eat but our
+rations of tinned meat, and all that time we had not been able to
+light a fire to cook anything at all. So we fell to eagerly upon our
+well-filled plates. B. even lost the power of speech for the moment.
+
+Meanwhile the pretty little Sister, without appearing to look at us,
+was cutting bread, and then she brought a jug of golden beer. What a
+treat it was! Why couldn't it be like this every day? In that case
+the campaign would have seemed almost like a picnic. Whilst I was
+eating I could not help admiring Sister Gabrielle; she looked so
+refined in her modest black clothes. Her slightest movements were as
+harmonious as those of an actress on the stage. But she was natural in
+all she did, and the grace of every movement was instinctive. As she
+placed before us an imposing-looking _omelette au lard_, that rascal
+B., who had already swallowed two plates of soup and four large
+glasses of beer, began to maunder thus:
+
+"Sister Gabrielle, ... Sister Gabrielle, I don't want to go away
+to-morrow. I want to end my days here with the old people you look
+after. Look at me. I am getting old too, and have been severely tried
+by life. Why shouldn't I stay where I am? I should have a nice little
+bed in the old people's dormitory, with nice white sheets, go to bed
+every evening on the stroke of eight, and you, Sister, would come and
+tuck me up. I should sleep, and eat cabbage soup, and drink good
+beer--your health. Sister!--and I shouldn't think any more about
+anything at all.... How nice it would be! No more uniform to strap you
+up after a good dinner; no more shako to squeeze your temples; no more
+bullets whistling past you; no more 'coal-boxes' to upset your whole
+system, and every evening a bed, ... a nice bed, ... and to think
+about nothing!..."
+
+"Hush! Listen," said Sister Gabrielle with a finger on her lips.
+
+At that moment the noise of the firing became louder. The Germans had
+no doubt just made a night attack either on Bixschoote or on
+Steenstraate, and now every piece was firing rapidly all along the
+line. So fast did the reports follow one another that they sounded
+like a continuous growl. However, the noise seemed to be dominated by
+the reports that came from a battery of heavy guns ("long 120's") two
+kilometres from Elverdinghe, which made all the windows of the convent
+rattle, I shuddered as I thought of those thousands of shells,
+hurtling through the darkness for miles to reduce so many living
+human beings to poor broken and bleeding things. And I pictured to
+myself our Prussians of Bixschoote sprawling on the ground, with their
+teeth set and their heads hidden among the beetroot, waiting until the
+hurricane had passed, to get up again and rush forward with their
+bayonets, cheering! Sister Gabrielle had the same thought, no doubt.
+She looked still whiter than before under her white coif, and clasping
+her hands and lowering her eyes, she said in a low voice:
+
+"_Mon Dieu, ... Mon Dieu!_ ... It is horrible!"
+
+"Sister Gabrielle," continued the incorrigible B., "don't let us talk
+of such things. Let us rather discuss this omelette, a dish worthy of
+the gods, and the bacon in it, the savour of which might imperil a
+saint. Sister Gabrielle, you tempt us this evening to commit the sin
+of gluttony, which is the most venial of all sins. And I will bear the
+burden of it manfully."
+
+I kicked B. under the table, to stop his incongruous remarks. But
+Sister Gabrielle seemed not to have listened to him. She went on
+serving us smilingly; changed our plates, and brought us ham and
+cheese. B. went on devouring everything that was put before him; but
+this did not put a stop to his divagations.
+
+"Tell me, Sister Gabrielle, you are not going to turn us out of the
+house now, are you? It would be an offence against God, who commands
+us to pity travellers. And we are poor wretched travellers. If you
+drive us away, we shall have to sleep on the grass by the roadside,
+with stones for our pillows. No, you couldn't treat us so cruelly. I
+feel sure that in a few minutes you will show me the bed in the
+dormitory you will keep for me when I come to take up my quarters with
+you after the war."
+
+Sister Gabrielle's smile had disappeared. For the first time, she
+seemed really distressed. She stopped in front of B., and looked at
+him with her large clear eyes. She made the same gesture as before;
+lifted up both her hands, in token of powerlessness, and seemed to be
+thinking how she could avoid hurting our feelings. Then she said, in a
+disheartened tone:
+
+"But we have not a single spare bed."
+
+A long silence followed this sentence, which seemed to plunge B. into
+despair. The guns continued their ominous booming, making the windows
+rattle terribly. I too thought now that it would be dreadful to leave
+the house, go and look for our troops in the dark, and put our men to
+the inconvenience of making room for us on their straw, so I too
+looked at Sister Gabrielle imploringly. All at once she seemed to have
+decided what to do. She began by opening one of the cupboards in the
+wall, took out of it two small glasses with long tapering stems, and
+placed them before us, with a goodly bottle of Hollands. She had
+recovered her exquisite smile, and she hurried, for she seemed anxious
+to put her idea into execution.
+
+"There, drink. It's good Hollands, ... and we give it to our poor old
+people on festivals."
+
+"Thank you. Sister, thank you."
+
+But she had already run out of the room, and we were left there, happy
+enough, sipping our glass of Hollands, and enjoying the luxurious
+peace that surrounded us. The guns seemed to be further off; we only
+heard a distant growling in the direction of Yprès. Our eyelids began
+to droop, and it was almost a pleasure to feel the weariness of our
+limbs and heads, for now we felt sure that Sister Gabrielle would not
+send us away.
+
+She came back into the room, with a candle in her hand.
+
+"Come," she said.
+
+She was now quite rosy, and seemed ashamed, as though she were
+committing a fault. We followed her, enchanted, and went back through
+the kitchen, now dark and deserted. The flickering light of the candle
+was reflected here and there on the curves of the copper pots and
+glass bowls. The house was sleeping. We crossed the hall, and went up
+a broad wooden staircase, polished and shining.
+
+What a strange party we were, the youthful Sister, going in front,
+treading so softly, and we two soldiers, dusty, tattered and squalid,
+trying to make as little noise as possible with our heavy hobnailed
+boots! The nun's rosary clinked at each step against a bundle of keys
+that hung from her girdle.
+
+I was walking last and enjoying the curious picture. The light fell
+only on Sister Gabrielle. As she turned on the landing, the feeble ray
+from below threw her delicate features into relief: her fine nose, her
+childish mouth, with its constant smile; our own shadows appeared upon
+the wall in fantastic shapes. Certainly we had never yet received so
+strange and unexpected a welcome.
+
+We passed a high oak door, surmounted by a cross and a pediment with a
+Latin inscription. Sister Gabrielle crossed herself and bowed her
+head.
+
+"The chapel," she said in a low voice.
+
+And she went quickly on to the accompaniment of her clinking rosary
+and keys. As we began to go up the second flight of stairs B. resumed
+his monologue in a whisper:
+
+"Sister Gabrielle, ... Sister Gabrielle, you are an angel from
+Paradise. Surely God can refuse you nothing. You will pray for me this
+evening, won't you? for I am a great sinner."
+
+"Oh, yes, of course I shall pray for you," she answered, softly, as
+she turned towards us.
+
+We came out on a long passage, bare and whitewashed. Half a dozen
+doors could be distinguished at regular intervals, all alike. Sister
+Gabrielle opened one of them, and we followed her in. We found
+ourselves in a small room, austerely furnished with two little iron
+bedsteads, two little deal tables, and two rush chairs. Above each bed
+there was a crucifix, with a branch of box attached to it. Each table
+had a tiny white basin and a tiny water-jug. All this was very nice,
+and amply sufficient for us. Everything was clean, bright, and
+polished.
+
+"Thank you, Sister; we shall be as comfortable as possible. But, one
+thing, we shall sleep like tops. Will there be any one to wake us?"
+
+"At what time do you want to get up?"
+
+"At six, Sister, punctually, as soldiers must, you know."
+
+"Oh! then I will see to it. We have Mass at four o'clock every
+morning."
+
+"At four o'clock!" exclaimed B. "Every morning! Very well, Sister, to
+show you we are not miscreants, wake us at half-past three, and we
+will go to Mass too."
+
+"But it isn't allowed. It is our Mass, in our chapel. No, no, you must
+sleep.... Get to bed quickly. Good-night. I will wake you at six
+o'clock."
+
+"Good-night, Sister Gabrielle; good-night.... We shall be so
+comfortable. You see, you had some spare beds, after all."
+
+"Oh, yes, we had. One can always manage somehow."
+
+And she went off, shutting the door behind her.
+
+And now B. and I thought of nothing but the luxury of sleeping in a
+bed. How delightful it would be after our sleepless nights in the fogs
+of the trenches!
+
+But what was that noise resounding through the convent? What was that
+knocking and those wailing cries? There was some one at the door,
+hammering at the knocker, some one weeping and sobbing in the dark. I
+opened my window, and leant out. But the front door had already been
+opened, and a figure slipped in hurriedly. The sobs came up the stairs
+to our door, and women's voices, Sister Gabrielle's voice, speaking
+Flemish, then another voice, sounding like a death-rattle, trying in
+vain to pronounce words through choking sobs. How horrible that
+monotonous, inconsolable, continual wail was! It went on for a short
+time, and then doors were opened and shut, the voices died away, and
+suddenly the noise ceased.
+
+B. had already got into bed, and, from under the sheets, he begged me,
+in a voice muffled by the bed-clothes, to put the candle out quickly.
+But I was haunted by that moaning, though I could not hear it any
+longer. I wanted to know what tragedy had caused those sobs. I could
+not doubt that the horrible war was at the bottom of it. And yet we
+were a long way from the firing line. My curiosity overcame my
+fatigue. I put on my jacket and went out, taking the candle with me. I
+ran down the two staircases, and my footsteps seemed to wake dismal
+echoes in the silent convent.
+
+Just as I came to the hall Sister Gabrielle also arrived, with a small
+lantern in her hand. I must have frightened her, for she started and
+gave a little scream. But she soon recovered, and guessed what had
+disturbed me. She told me all about it in a few simple sentences; a
+poor woman had fled from her village, carrying her little girl of
+eighteen months. As she was running distractedly along the road from
+Lizerne to Boesinghe a German shell had fallen, and a fragment of it
+had killed her baby in her arms. She had just come six kilometres in
+the dark, clasping the little corpse to her breast in an agony of
+despair. She got to Elverdinghe, and knocked at the door of the
+convent, knowing that there she would find a refuge. And all along the
+road she had passed convoys, relief troops and despatch-riders; but
+she took no heed of them; she was obsessed by one thought; to find a
+shelter for the remains of what had been the joy and hope of her life.
+
+"Just come," said Sister Gabrielle. "I will let you see her. We have
+put the poor little body in the mortuary chamber, and Sister Elizabeth
+is watching there."
+
+I followed Sister Gabrielle, who opened a small door, and went down a
+few steps; we crossed a paved court. Her lantern and my candle cast
+yellowish gleams upon the high walls of the buildings. Heavy drops of
+rain were falling, making a strange noise on the stones. And a kind of
+anguish seized me when I again heard the continuous wailing of the
+unhappy mother. Sister Gabrielle opened a low door very gently, and we
+went in.
+
+I must confess that I had been much less moved when, after the first
+day of the Battle of the Marne, we passed through a wood where our
+artillery had reduced a whole German regiment to a shapeless mass of
+human fragments. Here I realised all the horror of war. That men
+should kill each other in defence of their homes is conceivable
+enough, and I honour those who fall. But it passes all understanding
+why the massacre should include these poor weak and innocent
+creatures. And sights such as the one I saw in that little mortuary
+chapel inspire a fierce thirst for vengeance.
+
+On a kind of large table, covered with a white cloth, the poor body
+was laid out. It bore no trace of any wound, and the little white face
+seemed to be smiling. The good nuns had covered the shabby clothes
+with an embroidered cloth. Upon that they had crossed the little
+hands, which seemed to be clasping a tiny crucifix. And over the whole
+they had strewn an armful of flowers. On each side they had placed
+silver candlesticks, and the reddish candle-light made golden
+reflections in the curly locks of the little corpse. Crouching on the
+ground by the side of it, I saw a shapeless heap of clothes which
+seemed to be shaken by convulsive spasms. It was from this heap that
+the monotonous wailing came. It was the young mother, weeping for her
+little one. One felt that nothing could console her, and that words
+would only increase her suffering. Besides, she had not even raised
+her head when we went in. It was best to leave her alone, since they
+say that tears bring comfort.
+
+On the other side a young Sister was kneeling at a _prie-Dieu_,
+telling her rosary. Sister Gabrielle knelt down on the ground beside
+her. I longed to do something to lessen that grief, and help the poor
+woman a little. She must have come there in a state of destitution:
+her clothes revealed her poverty. But I durst not disturb either her
+mourning or their prayers, and I came out quietly on tiptoe.
+
+Outside, the rain, which was now falling heavily, refreshed my fevered
+head somewhat. I crossed the courtyard quickly; but my candle went
+out, and I had some trouble in relighting it, which was very
+necessary, as I had to find my way in a maze of doors and passages. At
+last I reached my staircase, and passed the landing and the Sisters'
+chapel. I heard a distant clock strike midnight, went up another
+storey, and opened our door noiselessly. I thought that B. would
+perhaps be waiting for me impatiently, anxious to learn the reason of
+all the noise.
+
+But B. was snoring with the bed-clothes over his ears.
+
+At six o'clock some one knocked at our door, and I opened my eyes.
+Daylight showed faintly through the only window. I wondered where I
+was, and suddenly remembered ... Elverdinghe ... the convent....
+
+"Is it you, Sister Gabrielle?" I asked.
+
+"Oh, yes, it's I. Get up. I have been knocking for more than an hour."
+
+B. sat up in his bed. I did the same, and told him what I had seen the
+evening before. He shook his head mournfully, and concluded:
+
+"Well, ... it's war.... I hope they'll have a good breakfast ready for
+us."
+
+We hurried through our dressing and ablutions, for we had to get back
+quickly to our quarters. As we came out of our room, lively and
+refreshed, we met Sister Gabrielle, who seemed to have been waiting
+for us. She asked us how we had slept, and, to stop the flood of
+eloquence that B. was on the point of letting loose, she said:
+
+"That's right. You shall thank me later on. Come down now; your
+breakfast is waiting for you. It will get cold."
+
+But, on passing the chapel, B. would insist on seeing it. Sister
+Gabrielle hesitated a moment, and then gave way, as you would to a
+child for the sake of peace. She opened the outer door, and smiled
+indulgently, as if anxious to humour all our whims. We passed through
+an anteroom, and then entered the chapel. It was quite small, only
+large enough to hold about twenty people. The walls were white,
+without any ornament, and panelled up to about the height of a man.
+The altar was extremely simple, and decorated with a few flowers. Some
+rush chairs completed the plenishings of the sanctuary where the good
+Sisters of Elverdinghe assembled every morning at four o'clock for
+prayers.
+
+And, as we came out of this humble chapel, I noticed two mattresses,
+laid in a corner of the little anteroom.
+
+"Who sleeps here, then, Sister?" I asked.
+
+Sister Gabrielle turned as red as a poppy. I had to repeat my question
+twice, when, lowering her eyes, she answered:
+
+"Sister Elizabeth--Sister Elizabeth ... and I."
+
+"Sister Gabrielle, ... Sister Gabrielle, then that little room and
+those two little beds where we slept, were yours?"
+
+"Hush! Please come to breakfast at once."
+
+And, light as a bird, she disappeared down the staircase, so quickly
+that her black veil floated high above her, as though to hide her
+confusion.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+And we saw no more of Sister Gabrielle. It was a very old woman--one
+of the inmates--who brought us our hot milk and coffee, our brown
+bread and fresh butter, in the dining-room with the high cupboards of
+polished wood. She explained that at this hour the nuns were busy
+attending to their old folk. It was of no use begging to see our
+little hostess again. We were told it would be against the rules, and
+we felt that the curtain had now indeed fallen upon this charming act
+of the weary tragedy.
+
+Only, just as we were passing out of the convent gate for the last
+time, the old lady put into our hands a big packet of provisions
+wrapped up in a napkin. She had brought it hidden under her apron.
+
+"Here, she told me to give you this, and ... to say that she will pray
+for you."
+
+Our hearts swelled as we heard the heavy door close behind us. And
+whilst we went away silently along the broken, muddy road, we thought
+of the sterling hearts that are hidden under the humble habits of a
+convent.
+
+Sister Gabrielle! I shall never forget you. Never will your delicate
+features fade from my memory. And I seem to see you still, going up
+the great wooden staircase, lit up by the flickering flame of the
+candle, when you and Sister Elizabeth gave up your beds so simply and
+unostentatiously to the two unknown soldiers.
+
+
+
+
+VIII. CHRISTMAS NIGHT
+
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant mon Lieutenant_, it's two o'clock."
+
+My faithful Wattrelot held the flickering candle just in front of my
+eyes to rouse me. What torture it is to be snatched from sleep at such
+an early hour! It would not be anything in summer; but it was the 24th
+of December, and it was my turn to go on duty in the trenches. A nice
+way of keeping Christmas!... I turned over in my bed, trying to avoid
+that light that tormented me; I collected my thoughts, which had
+wandered far away whilst I was asleep, and had been replaced by
+exquisite dreams, dreams of times of peace, of welfare, of good cheer,
+and of gentle warmth.
+
+Then I remembered: I had to take command of a detachment of a hundred
+troopers of the regiment, who were to replace the hundred now in the
+trenches. It was nearly a month since we had joined our Army Corps
+near R., and every other day the regiment had to furnish the same
+number of men to occupy a sector of the trenches. It was my turn, on
+the 24th of December, to replace my brother-officer and good friend
+Lieutenant de la G., who had occupied the post since the 22nd.
+
+I had forgotten all this.... How cold it was! Brrr!...
+
+Whilst Wattrelot was taking himself off I braced myself for the
+necessary effort of getting out of the warm sheets. Like a coward, I
+kept on allowing myself successive respites, vowing to rise heroically
+after each.
+
+"I will get up as soon as Wattrelot has reached the landing of the
+first floor.... I will get up when I hear him walking on the pavement
+of the hall, ... or rather when I hear the entrance-door shut, and his
+boots creaking on the gravel path...."
+
+But every noise was hushed. Wattrelot was already some way off, and I
+still shied at this act, which, after all, was inevitable: to get out
+of bed in a little ice-cold room at two o'clock in the morning.
+Through the window, which had neither shutter nor curtain, I saw a
+small piece of the sky, beautifully clear, in which myriads of stars
+were twinkling. The day before, when I came in to go to bed, it was
+freezing hard. That morning the frost, I thought, must be terrible.
+
+"Come, up!" With a bound I was on the ground, and rushed at once to
+the little pitch-pine washstand. Rapid ablutions would wake me up
+thoroughly. Horror! The water in the jug was frozen. Oh! not very
+deeply, no doubt; but all the same I had to break a coating of ice
+that had formed on the surface. However, I was happy to feel more
+nimble after having washed my face. Quick! Two warm waistcoats under
+my jacket, my large cloak with its cape, my fur gloves, my campaigning
+cap pulled over my ears, and there I was, with a candle in my hand,
+going down the grand staircase of the château.
+
+For I was quartered in a château. The very word makes one think of a
+warm room, well upholstered, well furnished, with soft carpets and
+comfortable armchairs. But, alas! it was nothing of the sort.... The
+good lady whose house it was had provided for all contingencies; the
+family rooms had been prudently dismantled and double-locked. A
+formidable _concierge_ had the keys, and I was happy indeed when I
+found the butler's room in the attics. His bed, with its white sheets,
+seemed to me very desirable. And then, as we say in time of peace, one
+must take things as they come.
+
+The open hall-door let in a wave of cold air, which struck cold on my
+face. But I had not a minute to lose. The detachment was to start at
+half-past two punctually, and it had, no doubt, already formed up in
+the market-place. I hurried into the street. The tall pines of the
+park stood out black against the silver sky, whilst the bare branches
+of the other trees formed thousands of arabesques and strange patterns
+all round. Not the slightest noise was to be heard in the limpid,
+diaphanous night, in which the air seemed as pure and rare as on the
+summits of lofty mountains. Under my footsteps the gravel felt soft,
+but, once I had got outside the iron gate, I found myself on ground as
+hard as stone. The mud formed by recent rains and the ruts hollowed by
+streams of convoys had frozen, and the road was a maze of furrows and
+inequalities which made me stumble again and again.
+
+In front of the Hôtel des Lacs a certain number of the men had already
+lined up, in front of their horses. Huddled in their cloaks, with
+collars turned up, they were stamping their feet and blowing into
+their hands. It must have been real torture for them too to come out
+of their straw litter, where they were sleeping so snugly a few
+moments before, rolled up in their blankets. They had got a liking for
+the kind of comfort peculiar to the campaigner, and had invented a
+thousand and one ingenious methods of improving the arrangements of
+their novel garrison. Sleeping parties had been gradually organised,
+and sets of seven or eight at a time enjoyed delightful nights,
+stretched on their clean straw. Many of them would certainly not be
+able to get to sleep if they suddenly found themselves in a real bed.
+And then it is less difficult to get up when one has gone to bed with
+one's clothes on, and when the room is not very warm. Not one of them
+complained; not one of them grumbled. We can always count on our brave
+fellows.
+
+"All present, _mon Lieutenant!_"
+
+It was the senior non-commissioned officers of the two squadrons
+assembled there who reported. Every one had got up and equipped
+himself at the appointed hour; not one was missing at roll-call; they
+had all assembled of their own accord; the corporals had not needed to
+knock at door after door to wake the sleepers. Our Chasseurs had very
+quickly established simple customs and rules of their own which
+ensured the regularity of the service without written orders. This
+intelligent and spontaneous discipline is one of the most admirable
+features of this campaign. It has grown up by degrees, without any
+special orders or prescriptions from above, with the result that the
+hardest labours are carried out almost without supervision, because
+each man understands the end in view and the grim necessities which it
+involves.
+
+They understood at once that this early hour was the only one at which
+the relief could be effected. And every other day, just as on that
+December morning, twenty-five men out of each squadron get up at
+half-past one, equip themselves, and saddle their horses, whilst the
+cooks warm up a good cup of coffee for each man. Then, without any
+hurry, but at the exact moment, they form up in fighting order at the
+appointed spot, and when the officer arrives, in the dark, rain, wind,
+snow, or frost, he is sure of receiving the same report:
+
+"All present, _mon Lieutenant!_"
+
+Quick! Mount. We shall feel the cold less trotting over the hardened
+roads this bright night and under this brilliant moon. Two and two, in
+silence, we issued from the village in the direction of R. I knew that
+I should find a little further on, at the cross-roads where the
+crucifix stands, the fifty men of the first half-regiment and
+Second-Lieutenant de G., who serves under me.
+
+Yes, there he was, coming to meet me on the hard road. It was a joy to
+me that chance had given me this jolly fellow for my trench companion.
+I hardly knew him, for he had not been with us more than a few days.
+Taken from the Military College directly war was declared, he had
+first been sent to a reserve squadron, and had only just been
+appointed to an active regiment. But I already knew, through my
+comrades of the first squadron, that he was a daring soldier and a
+merry companion. So much the better, I thought. War is a sad thing,
+and one must learn to take it gaily. A plague on gloomy spirits and
+long faces! True, we can no longer wage the picturesque war of the
+"good old days." We shall never know another Fontenoy, or Rivoli, or
+Eylau. But that is no reason why we should lose the jovial humour of
+our forefathers. Thank Heaven! we have preserved their qualities of
+dash and bravery. But it is more difficult to keep a smiling face in
+this hideous mole warfare, which is imposed even upon us troopers. All
+the more reason for liking and admiring the cheery officers who keep
+our spirits up, and G. is one of them.
+
+We shook hands without speaking, for it seemed to us that if we opened
+our mouths the frost would get into our bodies and freeze them, and we
+set off at a sharp trot along the narrow by-road which, crossing the
+high-road to Paris, leads to C. There we should have to leave our
+horses, cross the zone of the enemy's artillery fire, and get to the
+trenches on foot. The horses snorted with pleasure, happy to warm
+themselves by rapid movement. Some of them indulged in merry capers,
+which were repressed, not too gently, by their more sedate riders.
+Their hoofs struck the uneven ground with a metallic ring which must
+have echoed far; and the clink of bits and stirrups also disturbed the
+sleeping country. Before us the road ran straight amidst the dark
+fields, a long pale grey ribbon. No one thought of laughing or
+talking; sleep seemed still to hover over the column, and every one
+knew that the two days of trench duty would be long and hard to get
+through even if the Prussians left us in peace.
+
+We passed a cross, which shone white on the side of the road under the
+pale light of the moon, and saluted it. We had known it from the first
+days, and had its inscription by heart:
+
+
+       80 NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICERS,
+          CORPORALS, AND SOLDIERS
+     OF THE 39TH AND 74TH REGIMENTS OF
+                 INFANTRY,
+             KILLED IN ACTION.
+               PRAY FOR THEM.
+
+
+We dimly discerned the modest wreaths of green leaves, now faded and
+yellow, and the little nosegays of withered flowers attached to the
+arms of this cross, left there after the departure of the regiment and
+undisturbed by any sacrilegious hand.
+
+We crossed the Paris road, with its double row of trees, which, in the
+night, appeared gigantic, and, after answering the challenge of the
+Territorial guarding the approach to C., we entered the village.
+
+It appeared to be completely empty, and yet there were two battalions
+of the ---- Territorials quartered there. The moon seemed to be
+amusing itself by casting the shadows of the houses on one side of the
+street upon the walls of the other side in fantastic shapes.
+
+"Dismount."
+
+We had reached the spot where we were to leave our horses. The men
+quickly unbuckled the blankets which were to help them to endure the
+weary hours of the following night. They slung them over their
+shoulders, and we set off towards the towing-path of the canal. We
+went very slowly, as we had at least seven or eight kilometres before
+us, and a walk of eight kilometres for troopers laden and dressed as
+we were is no light matter.
+
+We found the towing-path. Walking at that hour of the night is
+certainly not very alluring. However, the view was not lacking in
+grandeur. On either side of the canal the dark silhouettes of tall
+trees stood out against the sky. Their shadows were reflected in the
+water, which gleamed with a metallic lustre in the moonshine. How calm
+and silent it was! Who would have thought we were at war? Not a
+cannon-shot, not a rifle-shot, disturbed the peace of the night. Yet,
+as a rule, there were no long intervals between the reports which
+reminded us of the serious work on hand.
+
+That day it seemed as though some agreement had been come to by both
+sides to stop killing or trying to kill. However touching such an
+agreement might be, it would also be somewhat disturbing, for one must
+always beware of an enemy who resorts so freely to tricks and traps of
+every kind. It was as well not to celebrate Christmas too obtrusively.
+Besides, I did not think we were the only ones keeping vigil at that
+hour.
+
+From time to time we passed small groups of infantry, haggard, dusty,
+and heavily laden, marching in ranks with their arms slung, by threes
+or fours, without speaking, striding slowly, as though they were
+trying to measure the length of the road. Some of them were carrying
+curious objects fastened to sticks: pots or big cans, perhaps baskets.
+Where they were going or what they were doing we did not ask. Every
+man has his own job; if those fellows were going that way they had
+their orders, and nobody troubled himself about their object. All was
+well. The clattering of the Chasseurs on the uneven road lent a little
+life to the picture. Perhaps they were talking together; but, if so,
+it was in an undertone, a whisper almost.
+
+And suddenly the enemy let us know that he was also keeping watch. Far
+ahead of us, near C., a rocket went up into the clear sky and then
+fell slowly, very slowly, in the form of an intensely brilliant ball,
+lighting up all the surrounding country wonderfully. We knew them
+well, those formidable German rockets, which seemed as though they
+would never go out and shed a pallid and yet blinding light. We knew
+that as soon as they were lighted everybody who happened to be within
+range of the enemy's rifle fire had at once to lie flat on the ground,
+and not move or raise his head so long as the light was burning.
+Otherwise shots would be fired from all directions, mowing down the
+vegetation and cutting up the earth all around him. This time we were
+well outside the range, and we watched the dazzling star in front of
+us without halting.
+
+"The shepherds' star," said G. solemnly.
+
+Strange shepherds indeed must they have been who carried carbines as
+their crooks, and were provided with cartridges enough to send a
+hundred and twenty of their fellow-creatures into the next world. The
+star seemed to hang for a moment some yards from the ground; then
+slowly, slowly, as though exhausted by its effort, it fell to the
+ground and went out. The night seemed less clear and less diaphanous.
+
+We had now reached the glass-works and it was there that we were to
+leave our cooks. No one would have supposed that this large factory
+lay idle, and that the hundreds of workmen employed there were
+dispersed. On the contrary, it seemed to have retained all the
+animation of the prosperous enterprise it had been before the war.
+
+It was a large square of massive buildings, almost a miniature town,
+planted on the side of the canal, like an outlying bastion of the
+suburbs of R. The low white walls, crowned with tiles, had the stunted
+appearance of military works. But a nearer view gave rather the
+illusion of the life in a busy factory at night-time. The gateway
+opened on a courtyard, with furnace fires shining here and there.
+Shadowy forms passed backwards and forwards, enlivening the dim scene
+with the bustle of a hive. Men came out by fives or sixes, laden with
+different kinds of burdens, and disappeared into the darkness, making
+for mysterious goals. In front of the open gate other figures were
+unloading heavy cases from vans. These quondam glass-works were now a
+depôt for the Army Supply service, and a huge kitchen, which
+administered and fed the whole sector of trenches, of which ours
+formed a part.
+
+The Germans knew this. So every day and many times a day their guns
+fired a few salvoes of shells on the huge quadrilateral. But our good
+troopers were none the worse. Instead of working in the large
+buildings, part of which had already been destroyed by shells, they
+utilised the vast basements of the factory. There were the stores, and
+there they had their kitchens, where they worked day and night to
+supply their comrades in the trenches with the hot abundant food which
+twice a day made them forget for a few minutes the hardships of the
+cold, the rain, and the mud.
+
+Our column halted under the bleak wall. At the wide gateway a sentinel
+was on duty, standing motionless, muffled in a heavy grey cloak; and
+through it our cooks passed, disappearing into the darkness, under the
+guidance of the _liaison_ orderly of the preceding detachment. Whilst
+waiting for his return from the journey through the labyrinth our
+Chasseurs had a short rest before beginning the most difficult part of
+their journey--the last stage on the way to the trenches we were to
+occupy.
+
+I took the opportunity of talking with an infantry captain who was
+there, walking up and down with his face buried in a thick muffler and
+his hands in the pockets of his heavy overcoat, on the sleeves of
+which three small pieces of gold lace were just discernible.
+
+"_Eh bien, mon Capitaine!_ Anything new?"
+
+"Oh! nothing, except my opinion that you will not be disturbed either
+to-day or to-morrow. Since yesterday evening they have not fired one
+shot, and they were singing hymns till midnight. You may be pretty
+sure they'll redouble their _Oremus_ this Christmas night, so you may
+sleep soundly."
+
+"Unless all this is merely a feint, and to-night ..."
+
+"Yes, you're right, unless to-night ..."
+
+The column started, and, guided by the _liaison_ orderly, we followed
+the high-road for some hundred yards. The shells had transformed it
+into a series of gorges, peaks, ravines, and hills. We had to jump
+over big branches cut from the trees by the projectiles. It was a road
+that would not be a cheerful one on moonless nights. Fortunately for
+us, that particular night was extremely bright. Everything around us
+could be distinguished; we could even divine about fifteen hundred
+yards to our right the "solitary tree," the famous tree, standing
+alone in the middle of the vast bare plain, which marked the centre of
+our sector of trenches, and where I knew I should find the "dug-out"
+belonging to the officers of our regiment. I was very much tempted to
+jump the ditch at the side of the road and cut across the fields to
+the final point of our march. It would have taken about twenty
+minutes, and have saved us the long difficult journey through the
+communication trench. But our orders were very precise: we were not to
+take short cuts even on dark nights, much less on starlit nights. Our
+chiefs do well to be cautious on our behalf, for it is certain that,
+though fully alive to the danger of such a route, there was not one of
+my hundred fellows who would have hesitated to dash across country
+just to save himself a few hundred yards.
+
+We came to the mouth of the approach trench, four or five huge steps
+cut in the chalky clay. The frost had made them slippery, and we had
+to keep close to the edge of the bank to avoid stumbling. Behind me I
+heard some of the men sliding down heavily, and a din of mess-tins
+rolling away amidst laughter and jokes. "A merry heart goes all the
+way," and I knew my Chasseurs would soon pick themselves up and make
+up for lost time. This was essential, for the approach trench had
+ramifications and unexpected cross-passages which might have led a
+laggard astray.
+
+We went forward slowly. The communication trench was at right angles
+to the enemy's trenches. To prevent him from enfilading it with his
+shells, it had been cut in zigzags. And I hardly know of a more
+laborious method of progression than that of taking ten paces to the
+right, making a sharp turn, and then again taking ten paces to the
+left, and so on, in order to cover a distance which, as the crow
+flies, would not be more than fifteen hundred yards. The passage was
+so narrow that we touched the walls on either side. The moonlight
+could not reach the ground we trod on, and we stumbled incessantly
+over the holes and inequalities caused by the late rains and hardened
+by the frost. Now and again we slid over ice that had formed on the
+little pools through which our comrades had been paddling two days
+before. And this was some consolation for the severity of the frost,
+preferable a hundred times to the horrors of the rain.
+
+At last we debouched into our trenches, where our predecessors were
+impatiently waiting for us. Two days and two nights is a long time to
+go without sleeping, without washing, without having any other view
+than the walls of earth that shut you in. They were all eager to go
+back over the same road they had come by two days before, to get to
+their horses again, their quarters, their friends--in short, their
+home. So we found them quite ready to go, blankets rolled up and slung
+over their shoulders, and knapsacks in their places under their
+cloaks.
+
+Whilst the non-commissioned officers of each squadron went to relieve
+the men at the listening posts, I brushed past the men lined up
+against the wall, and went towards the "solitary tree," which seemed
+to be stretching out its gaunt arms to protect our retreat. I had to
+turn to the right in a narrow passage which went round the tree, and
+ended in three steep steps cut in the earth, down which I had to go to
+reach the dug-out.
+
+My old friend La G. was waiting for me at the bottom of this den,
+stretched on two chairs, warming his feet at a tiny iron stove perched
+upon a heap of bricks. By the light of the one candle he looked
+imposing and serious. His tawny beard, which he had allowed to grow
+since the war, spread like a fan over his chest, and gave him a look
+of Henri IV. I knew that this formidable exterior concealed the
+merriest companion and the most delightful sly joker that ever lived.
+So I was not much impressed by his thoughtful brow and his dreamy eye.
+
+"Well, what's the news?" I asked.
+
+"We are all freezing," he replied.
+
+I rather suspected it. Besides this fact, which we had discovered
+before him, La G. could only confirm what the infantry captain had
+told me shortly before:
+
+"You are going to have a most restful night, my dear fellow; and I
+advise you to have a Christmas manger arranged at the foot of the
+'solitary tree,' and at midnight to sing 'Christians, awake,' in
+chorus.... We know some hymns as well as the Germans."
+
+I had no lack of desire to put this proposal into action, but such
+pious customs as these would not perhaps have been quite in harmony
+with the tactical ideas of our commanding officer. Still I promised
+La G. I would do my best for the realisation of his dream.
+
+"Good-bye and good luck!" he said.
+
+"Good-bye," I replied.
+
+And he went away into the darkness. At the end of the little passage
+that led to the trench I could see the men who had just been relieved
+passing in single file going towards the communication trench by which
+we had come. Their dark forms defiled in closely and rapidly. Having
+completed their task, they were happy to be free to get back to their
+squadrons, and as they passed they cracked their jokes at the others
+who had to stay. These answered back, but not in the most amiable
+manner. Then, little by little, silence settled down upon the scene.
+Every man was at his post: some kept watch, others walked about at the
+bottom of the trench or busied themselves with repairing or improving
+the indifferent shelters their predecessors had left them.
+
+G. had gone to take the watch on which the junior officers of the
+units defending the sector relieved each other every three hours. So
+there I was alone, alone in the midst of my brave Chasseurs, with the
+duty of guarding those five hundred yards of trenches--a very small
+piece at that time of the immense French line. Behind us thousands of
+our fellows were sleeping in perfect confidence, relying upon the thin
+rampart we formed in front of them; and farther away still there were
+millions of Frenchmen and Frenchwomen, who, under their family roof or
+under that of their hosts, were resting in peace because of our
+sleepless nights, our limbs stiffened by the cold, our carbines
+pointed through the loopholes of the trenches.
+
+Thus were we to celebrate the merry festival of Christmas. There was
+no doubt that far away among those who were keeping the sacred vigil
+more than one would think of us and sympathise with us.... No doubt
+many a one among us would feel a touch of sadness that evening,
+thinking of his home. But none, not one, I felt sure, would wish to
+quit his post to get away from the Front. Military honour! glorious
+legacy of our ancestors! Who could have foreseen that it would be
+implanted so naturally and so easily in the young souls of our
+soldiers? Within their youthful bodies the same hearts were already
+beating as those of the immortal veterans of the epic days of France.
+Men are fashioned by war.
+
+Ten o'clock came on Christmas Eve to find that our day had passed in
+almost absolute calm. It had been a glorious winter day, a day of
+bright sunshine and pure clear air. The Germans had hardly fired at
+all. A few cannon-shots only had replied to our artillery, which let
+off its heavy guns every now and then upon their positions from the
+heights behind us.
+
+And then night came. B. and I had just finished our frugal meal. We
+had promised to pay a visit to the Territorials who occupied the
+trenches right and left of ours. Our Chasseurs had been posted in that
+particular section so that in case of attack they might form a solid
+base for the Territorials to rely upon. They did not conceal their
+confidence in our men or their admiration for them; and their officers
+had no scruples in asking for our advice when difficult cases arose.
+In fact, that very afternoon the captain commanding the company to our
+right had come to my dug-out to arrange with me about the patrols that
+had to be sent that night in advance of the line.
+
+Wrapped in our cloaks, we came out of our warm retreat. The night was
+just like the previous one, starlit, bright, and frosty, a true
+Christmas night for times of peace. In our trenches one half of the
+men were awake, in obedience to orders. Carbines were loaded and
+placed in the loopholes, and the guns were trained upon the enemy. In
+front of us, at the end of the narrow passages which led out to the
+listening posts, I knew that our sentries were alert with eye and ear,
+crouching in their holes in pairs. No one could approach the broad
+network of wire which protected us without being immediately perceived
+and shot. At the bottom of the trenches the men on watch were talking
+softly together and stamping on the ground to combat the intense
+cold.
+
+Those who were at rest, lying close together at the bottom of the
+little dug-outs they had made for themselves in the bank, were
+sleeping or trying to sleep. More than one of them had succeeded, for
+resounding snores could be heard behind the blankets, pieces of tent
+canvas and sacking, and all the various rags with which they had
+ingeniously stuffed up the entrances to their rustic alcoves. One
+wondered how they could have overcome the sufferings the cold must
+have caused them so far as to be able to sleep calmly. The five months
+of war had hardened their bodies and accustomed them to face cold,
+heat, rain, dust, or mud, with impunity. In this hard school, better
+than in any other, men of iron are fashioned, who last out a whole
+campaign and are capable of the supreme effort when the hour comes.
+
+We arrived at the Territorials' trench.
+
+"_Bon-soir, mon cher camarade._"
+
+It was the Second-Lieutenant whom I met at the entrance. He was a man
+of forty-two, thin, pale, and bearded. In the shadow his eyes shone
+strangely. Under the skirts of his great-coat he had his hands buried
+in his trouser pockets. His elbows stuck out from his body, his knees
+were bent, his teeth chattered, and he was gently knocking his heels
+together.
+
+"It isn't warm, eh?" I asked.
+
+"Oh, no; and then, you see, this sort of work is hardly the thing for
+fellows of our age. Our blood isn't warm enough, and, however you
+cover yourself up, there's always a chink by which the cold gets in.
+The worst of all is one's hands and feet; and there's nothing to be
+done for it. Wouldn't it be much better to trust to us, give us the
+order to fix bayonets and drive those Boches out of their trenches
+over there? You'd see if the Territorials couldn't do it as well as
+the Regulars.... And then one would have a chance of getting warm."
+
+I felt sure that he spoke the truth, and that his opinion was shared
+by the majority of his companions. But our good comrades of the
+Territorial Force have no conception of the vigour, the suppleness,
+and of the fulness of youth required to charge up to the enemy's line
+under concentrated fire and to cut the complex network of barbed wire
+that bars the road. Our chiefs were well advised in placing these
+troops where they were, in those lines of trenches scientifically
+constructed and protected, where their courage and tenacity would be
+invaluable in case of attack, and where they would know better than
+any others how to carry out the orders given to us: "Hold on till
+death." Leave to the young soldiers the sublime and perilous task of
+rushing upon the enemy when he is hidden behind the shelter of his
+_fougades_, his parapets, and his artificial brambles; and entrust to
+the brave Territorials the more obscure but not less glorious work of
+mounting guard along our front.
+
+I could make them out in the moonlight, standing silent and alert, in
+groups of two or three. Perched on the ledge of earth which raised
+them to the height of the parapet, they had their eyes wide open in
+the darkness, looking towards the enemy. Their loaded rifles were
+placed in front of them, between two clods of hardened earth. They
+neither complained nor uttered a word, but suffered nobly. They
+understand that they must. Ah! where now were the fine tirades of
+pothouse orators and public meetings? Where now were the oaths to
+revolt, the solemn denials and the blasphemies pronounced against the
+Fatherland? All was forgotten, wiped out from the records. If we could
+have questioned those men who stood there shivering, chilled to the
+bone, watching over the safety of the country, not one of them,
+certainly, would have confessed that he was ever one of the renegades
+of yore. And yet if one were to search among the bravest, among the
+most resigned, among the best, thousands of them would be discovered.
+Heaven grant that this miracle, wrought by the war, may be prolonged
+far beyond the days of the struggle, and then we shall not think that
+our brothers' blood has been spilt in vain.
+
+We brushed past them, but they did not even turn round. Eyes, mind,
+and will were absorbed in the dark mystery of the silent landscape
+stretching out before them. But the night, though it was so bright,
+gave everything a strange appearance; transformed all living things
+and increased their size; made the stones, the stacks, and the trees
+move, as it seemed to our weary eyes; cast fitful shadows where there
+were none; and made us hear murmurs which sounded like the muffled
+tramp of troops marching cautiously. Those men watched because they
+felt that there was always the danger of a surprise attack, of a
+sudden rush of Teutons who had crawled up through the grass of the
+fields. They had piled on their backs empty sacks, blankets, and old
+rags, for warmth, and wound their mufflers two or three times round
+their necks; they had taken all possible precautions for carrying out
+their duty to the very last. And although our hearts had been
+hardened by the unprecedented miseries of this war, we were seized
+with pity and admiration. Presently one of them turned round and said
+to us:
+
+"Hallo! They are lighting up over there now."
+
+I jumped up on to the ledge and saw, in fact, lights shining in three
+different places some way off. After looking attentively I guessed the
+meaning of this quite unusual illumination in the rear of the
+trenches. The lights came from some large fir-trees, placed there
+under cover of night, and beautifully lighted up. With my glasses I
+could make them out distinctly, and even the figures dancing round
+them; and we could hear their voices and shouts of merriment. How well
+they had arranged the whole thing! They had even gone as far as to
+light up their Christmas trees with electricity, so as to prevent our
+gunners from using them as an easy target. In fact, every few minutes
+all the lights on a tree were suddenly put out, and only appeared some
+minutes afterwards.
+
+We had thrilled instinctively. Suddenly there arose, all over the wide
+plain, solemn and melodious singing. We still remembered singing of a
+similar kind we had recently heard at Bixschoote on a tragic occasion;
+and here were the same tuneful voices again, singing a hymn of the
+same kind as those they sang further to the north before shouting
+their hurrahs for the attack. But we did not fear anything of that
+kind now. We had the impression that this singing was not a special
+prayer in front of our little sector of trenches, but that it was
+general, and extended without limits over the whole of our provinces
+violated by the enemy: over Champagne, Lorraine, and Picardy,
+resounding from the North Sea to the Rhine.
+
+The Territorial trench was full of noiseless animation. The men came
+up out of their little dug-outs without a word, and the whole company
+was soon perched upon the ledge. There was a silence among our men, as
+if each man felt uneasy or perhaps jealous of what was going on over
+there. Then, as if to order, along the line of the German trenches
+other hymns rang out, and one choir seemed to answer the other. The
+singing became general. Quite close to us, in the trenches themselves,
+in the distance, round their brightly lighted trees, to the right, to
+the left, it resounded, softened by the distance. What a stirring,
+nay, grandiose, impression those hymns made, floating over the vast
+field of death! I felt intuitively that all this had been arranged
+long before, that they might celebrate their Christmas with religious
+calm and peace.
+
+At any other time, no doubt, many a clumsy joke would have been made,
+and no little abuse hurled at the singers. But all that has been
+changed. I divined some regret among our brave fellows that we were
+not taking part in a similar festival. Was it not Christmas Eve? Had
+we not been obliged by our duty to give up the delightful family
+gathering which reunites us yearly around the symbolic Yule-log? This
+year our mothers, our sisters, and our children were keeping up the
+time-honoured and pious custom alone. Why did not our larger family of
+to-day join in singing together around lighted fir-trees? Our
+Territorials did not speak; but their thoughts flew away from the
+trenches, and the regrets of all were fused in a common feeling of
+melancholy.
+
+Little by little the singing died away, and absolute silence fell once
+more upon the country.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I went with G. as far as his watch-post. He had to resume his duty as
+officer of the watch from eleven o'clock in the evening to two o'clock
+in the morning. The post consisted of a kind of small blockhouse,
+strongly built and protected by two casemates with machine-guns placed
+so as to command the enemy's trenches. A machine-gunner was always on
+guard, and could call the others, at the slightest alarm, to work the
+gun. These men were quartered in a kind of tunnel hollowed out close
+by, and at the first signal would have been ready to open fire with
+their terrible engines of destruction. In the centre of the
+block-house a padded sentry-box was arranged made of a number of
+sand-bags, in which, by means of a loophole, the officer of the watch
+could observe the whole sector entrusted to us; and by means of a
+telephone station, close at hand, he could communicate at any moment
+with the commander of the sector at the glass-works.
+
+G. had put on the goatskin coat handed to him by the officer he
+relieved. This officer was a Second-Lieutenant of Territorials, and
+looked completely frozen.
+
+"Here, my dear fellow," he said, "I leave you the goatskin provided
+for the use of the officer on duty. I should have liked to give it you
+well warmed, but I feel like an icicle myself."
+
+G. was nevertheless glad to have it. After wishing him good luck, I
+left him to get back to my hut, for, in spite of my cloak, the frost
+was taking hold of me too. The faithful Wattrelot had done his best to
+keep our little stove going. Profiting by La G.'s example, I
+stretched myself on two chairs, with my feet towards the fire. I
+gradually got warmer, and at the same time somewhat melancholy. What a
+curious Christmas Eve! Certainly I had never passed one in such a
+place. The walls were made of a greyish, friable earth, which still
+showed the marks of the pick that had been used for the excavation.
+The furniture was simple and not very comfortable. At the back was the
+bed, made out of a little straw already well tossed over by a number
+of sleepers. This straw was kept in by a plank fixed to the ground and
+forming the side of the modest couch. Against the wall, opposite the
+stove, was the table. This table, which had to serve for writing and
+feeding, and perhaps for a game of cards, this table, which was
+required to fill the part of all the tables of all the rooms of any
+house, was, strange to say, a night-table. I wondered who had brought
+it there, and who had chosen it. But, such as it was, it served its
+purpose pretty well. We used it for dinner, and found it almost
+comfortable, and upon it I signed a number of reports and orders.
+Together with the two chairs, the stove, the bed, and some nails to
+hang my clothes on, that table completed the furniture of the "home"
+where I meditated on that December night. The candle, stuck in a
+bottle, flickered at the slightest breath, and threw strange shadows
+on the walls.
+
+It was the hour of solitude and silence, the hour of meditation and of
+sadness too now and then. That evening dark thoughts were flying about
+in that smoky den, assailing me in crowds, and taking possession of my
+mind; I could not drive them away. It was one of those moments--those
+very fleeting moments!--when courage seems to fail, and one gives way
+with a kind of bitter satisfaction. I remembered that months and
+months had passed since I had seen any of those belonging to me, and I
+conjured up in my mind the picture of the Christmas Eve they were
+keeping, too, at that same hour, at the other end of France. And the
+dear, good friends I had left in Paris and in Rouen--where were they
+at that moment? What were they doing? Were they thinking of me? How I
+should have liked to enjoy the wonderful power possessed by certain
+heroes in the Arabian Nights, which would have allowed me to see at
+that moment a vision of the loved ones far away. Were they talking
+about me, sitting together round the fire? I thought that this war had
+been a splendid thing to us Chasseurs as long as we were fighting as
+cavalry, scouring the plains, searching the woods, galloping in
+advance of our infantry, and bringing them information which enabled
+them to deal their blows or parry those of the enemy, trying to come
+up with the Prussian cavalry which fled before us. But this trench
+warfare, this warfare in which one stays for days and days in the same
+position, in which ground is gained yard by yard, in which artifice
+tries to outdo artifice, in which each side clings to the ground it
+has won, digs into it, buries itself in it, and dies in it sooner than
+give it up! What warfare for cavalry! We have devoted ourselves to it
+with all our hearts, and the chiefs who have had us under their
+orders have never failed to commend us; but at times we feel very
+weary, and during inaction and solitude our imaginations begin to
+work. Then we recall our regiment in full gallop over field and plain;
+we hear the clank of swords and bits; we see once more the flash of
+the blades, the motley line of the horses; we evoke the well-known
+figures of our chiefs on their chargers. That night my mind became
+more restless than ever before; it broke loose, it leapt away, and
+lived again the unforgettable stages of this war: Charleroi, Guise,
+the Marne, the defence of the Jaulgonne bridge, Montmirail, Reims, ...
+Belgium, Bixschoote; and then it fell back into the gloomy dug-out
+where the flame of the single candle traced disquieting shadows on the
+wall.
+
+Suddenly a cold breath of air blew into my retreat. The door opened
+abruptly, and at the top of the steps a man, stooping over the floor
+of the passage, called me in an undertone:
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, come and see.... Something is happening...."
+
+With a bound, I sprang from my shelter and climbed up the ledge.
+
+"Listen, _mon Lieutenant_."
+
+That night in the trenches was destined to overwhelm me with
+astonishment, and this one surpassed all that I could imagine. I
+should like to be able to impart the extraordinary impression I felt;
+but one would have to have been there that night to be capable of
+realising it. Over that vast and silent plain, in which everything
+seemed to sleep and where no other sound was heard, there resounded
+from afar a voice whose notes, in spite of the distance, reached our
+ears. What an extraordinary thing it was! That song, vibrating through
+the boundless night, made our hearts beat and stirred us more than the
+most perfectly ordered concert given by the most famous singers.
+
+And it was another hymn, unknown to us, coming from the German
+trenches far away on our left. The singer must have been standing out
+in the fields on the edge of their line; he must have been moving,
+coming towards us, and passing slowly along all the enemy's positions,
+for his voice came gradually nearer, and became louder and clearer.
+Every now and then it ceased, and then hundreds of other voices
+responded in chorus with some phrases which formed the refrain of the
+hymn. Then the soloist began again and came still nearer to us. He
+must have come from a considerable distance, for our Chasseurs had
+already heard him some time before they decided to call me. Who could
+this man have been, who must have been sent along the front of the
+troops to pray, whilst each German company waited for him, so as to
+join with him in prayer? Some minister, no doubt, who had come to
+remind the soldiers of the sanctity of that night and the solemnity of
+the hour.
+
+Soon we heard the voice coming from the trenches straight in front of
+us. In spite of the brightness of the night, we could not distinguish
+the singer, for the two lines at that point were four hundred yards
+apart. But he was certainly not hiding himself, for his deep voice
+would never have sounded so rich and clear to us had he been singing at
+the bottom of their trenches. Again it ceased. And then the Germans
+directly in front of us, the soldiers occupying the works opposite
+ours, those men whom we were bound to kill so soon as they appeared,
+and whose duty it was to shoot us so soon as we showed ourselves--those
+men calmly took up the refrain of the hymn, with its sweet and
+mysterious words. They too must have come to the edge of their trench
+and struck up their hymn with their faces towards us, for their notes
+came to us clearly and distinctly.
+
+I looked along the line of our trench. All our men too were awake and
+looking on. They had all got on to the ledge, and several had left the
+trench and were in the field, listening to the unexpected concert. No
+one was offended by it; no one laughed at it. Rather was there a trace
+of regret in the attitudes and the faces of those who were nearest to
+me. And yet it would have been such a simple matter to put an end to
+that scene; a volley fired by the troop there, and it would all stop,
+and drop back into the quiet of other nights. But nobody thought of
+such a thing. There was not one of our Chasseurs who would not have
+considered it a sacrilege to fire upon those praying soldiers. We felt
+indeed that there are hours when one can forget that one is there to
+kill. This would not prevent us from doing our duty immediately
+afterwards.
+
+The voice drew farther away, and retreated slowly and majestically
+towards the trenches situated at the place known as the "Troopers of
+C.'s" ground, where our two lines approached each other within a
+distance of fifty yards. How much more touching the sight must have
+been from there! I wished my post had been in that direction, so that
+I might have been present at the scene, might have heard the words and
+distinguished the figure of the pastor walking along the parapets
+made for hurling out death, and blessing those who the next day might
+be no more.
+
+Ping! A shot was heard....
+
+The stupid bullet which had perhaps found its mark? At once there was
+dead silence, not a cry, not an oath, not a groan. Some one had
+thought he was doing well by firing on that man. A pity! We should
+gain nothing by preventing them from keeping Christmas in their own
+way, and it would have been a nobler thing to reserve our blows for
+other hecatombs. I know that the barbarians would not have hesitated
+had they been in our place, and that so many of our priests had fallen
+under their strokes that they could not reasonably have reproached us.
+There are people who will say that our hatred should embrace
+everything German; that we should be implacable towards everything
+bearing that name, and spare none of the execrated race which has been
+the cause of so many tears, so much blood, so much mourning. Never
+mind!... I think in this case it would have been better not to have
+shot....
+
+A shot fired, not far from us, on our left brought me up from my
+shelter. It seemed strange after the complete calm of that night. It
+was seven o'clock. The sun was magnificent, and had already bathed the
+deserted plain, the fields, the heights of S., and the ruined village.
+In the distance, towards the east, the towers of the cathedral of R.
+stood out proudly against the golden sky. I looked and saw all my
+Chasseurs standing on the ledges watching with interest a scene which
+seemed to be going on in front of the trenches occupied on our left by
+the Territorials.
+
+I got up by the side of one of them, and he explained to me what was
+happening.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, it's the infantry fellows who have just killed a
+hare that ran between the two lines, and they're going to fetch
+it...."
+
+And in fact I saw this strange sight: two men had gone out in full
+daylight from their trenches and were advancing with hesitating steps
+towards the enemy's. Behind them were a hundred inquisitive heads,
+looking out above the embrasures arranged between the sacks of earth.
+A few soldiers, who had come out of the trench, were even sitting on
+the bank of chalky earth. It was certainly such a scene as I had
+hardly expected to witness. What was the captain of the company
+occupying the trench doing?
+
+But my astonishment became stupefaction when I saw the hundreds of
+heads that fringed the enemy's trenches. I at once sent G. and a
+non-commissioned officer with the following order to all our men:
+
+"No one is to show himself.... Every man to his fighting post!...
+Carbines loaded and ready to fire!"
+
+The Germans opposite became suspicious on seeing our line so silent,
+and no man showing himself; they, too, waited on the alert behind
+their loopholes. But along the rest of their front their men kept on
+coming out from their trenches unarmed, and making merry and friendly
+gestures. I became uneasy, and wondered how this unexpected comedy
+might end. Ought I to have those men fired upon who were not quite
+opposite to us, and whose opponents seemed rather inclined to make a
+Christmas truce?
+
+Our two infantrymen had come to the spot where the hare had fallen,
+very nearly half-way between the French and the German lines. One of
+them stooped down and got up again proudly brandishing his victim in
+the enemy's faces. At once there was a burst of applause from the
+German lines. They called out: "Kameraden! Kameraden!"
+
+This was going too far. I saw two unarmed Prussians leave their trench
+and come forward, with their hands raised towards the two Frenchmen,
+so I consulted G.: "Ought we to fire? I confess it would be rather
+unpleasant for me to order our fellows to fire upon these unarmed men.
+On the other hand, can we allow the least intercourse between the
+barbarous nation that is still treading our soil and our good
+brothers-in-arms who are pouring out their blood every day to
+reconquer it?"
+
+Fortunately, the officer who commanded the Saint Thierry artillery,
+and who had observed this scene with his glasses, spared me a
+decision which would have been painful to me.
+
+Pong! Pong! Pong! Pong!
+
+Four shells passed, hissing, over our heads, and burst with admirable
+precision two hundred yards above the German trenches. The artillery
+officer seemed to have placed with a delicate hand the four little
+white puffs of smoke which, equidistant from each other, appeared to
+mark out the bounds in the heavens of the frontier line he wished to
+forbid the enemy to pass on the earth. The Germans did not fail to
+understand this graceful warning. With cries of rage and protest, they
+ran back to their shelters, and our Frenchmen did the same.
+
+And, as though to mark the intentional kindness of what he had just
+done, hardly had the last of the spiked helmets disappeared behind the
+parapets, when again the same hissing noise was heard, and, pong!
+pong! pong! pong! four shells dropped, this time full upon the whitish
+line formed along the green plain by the upturned earth of their
+trenches. In the midst of the smoke, earth and rubbish of all kinds
+were seen flying. Our Chasseurs cried "Bravo!" Everyone felt that the
+best solution had been found, and rejoiced at this termination of the
+brief Christmas truce.
+
+And now our minds were free to rejoice in the great day itself in
+company with our good troopers. In the night there had arrived, well
+packed in smart hampers, the bottles of champagne which Major B. had
+presented to his men, and we were looking forward to the time, only a
+few hours hence, when the soup would be upon the table, and we should
+keep our Christmas by letting off the corks in the direction of the
+German trenches.
+
+Our young fellow-officers were already anticipating this peaceful
+salvo, which would certainly be heard by the enemy.
+
+
+
+
+Bradbury, Agnew, & Co. Ld., Printers, London and Tonbridge.
+
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+    +--------------------------------------------------------------+
+    | Typographical errors corrected in text:                      |
+    |                                                              |
+    |    Page 163: Péry corrected to Pévy                          |
+    +--------------------------------------------------------------+
+
+
+
+***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN THE FIELD (1914-1915)***
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+<h1 class="pg">The Project Gutenberg eBook, In the Field (1914-1915), by Marcel Dupont,
+Translated by H. W. Hill</h1>
+<pre>
+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 <a href = "http://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a></pre>
+<p>Title: In the Field (1914-1915)</p>
+<p>       The Impressions of an Officer of Light Cavalry</p>
+<p>Author: Marcel Dupont</p>
+<p>Release Date: April 14, 2006  [eBook #18177]</p>
+<p>Language: English</p>
+<p>Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1</p>
+<p>***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN THE FIELD (1914-1915)***</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<h4 class="pg">E-text prepared by Jeannie Howse, Thierry Alberto, Henry Craig,<br />
+               and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team<br />
+               (<a href="http://www.pgdp.net/">http://www.pgdp.net/</a>)<br />
+               from page images generously made available by<br />
+               Internet Archive<br />
+               (<a href="http://www.archive.org/">http://www.archive.org/</a>)</h4>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<table border="0" cellpadding="10" style="background-color: #ccccff;">
+  <tr>
+    <td valign="top">
+      Note:
+    </td>
+    <td>
+      Images of the original pages are available through
+	  Internet Archive. See
+      <a href="http://www.archive.org/details/InTheField">
+      http://www.archive.org/details/InTheField</a>
+    </td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<div class="tr">
+<p class="cen" style="font-weight: bold;">Transcriber's Note:</p>
+<br />
+<p class="noin">Any obvious typographical errors have been corrected in this text.<br />
+For a complete list, please see the <a href="#TN">bottom of this document</a>.</p>
+</div>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+
+<h1>IN THE FIELD</h1>
+<h2>(1914-1915)</h2>
+<h3>THE IMPRESSIONS OF AN OFFICER<br />
+OF LIGHT CAVALRY</h3>
+<br />
+<br />
+<h5>BY</h5>
+<br />
+<h2>MARCEL DUPONT</h2>
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<h3>TRANSLATED BY H. W. HILL</h3>
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<h5>LONDON<br />
+WILLIAM HEINEMANN</h5>
+
+<hr />
+<br />
+<br />
+
+<h5><i>London: William Heinemann, 1916.</i></h5>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+<br />
+
+<h4>TO<br />
+<br />
+GENERAL CHERFILS<br />
+<br />
+A TRIBUTE OF<br />
+<br />
+SINCERE GRATITUDE</h4>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_ix" id="Page_ix">[Pg ix]</a></span><br />
+
+<h3>PREFACE</h3>
+<br />
+
+<p>In the following pages the reader will find no tactical studies, no
+military criticism, no vivid picture of a great battle. I have merely
+tried to make a written record of some of the hours I have lived
+through during the course of this war. A modest Lieutenant of
+Chasseurs, I cannot claim to form any opinion as to the operations
+which have been carried out for the last nine months on an immense
+front. I only speak of things I have seen with my own eyes, in the
+little corner of the battlefield occupied by my regiment.</p>
+
+<p>It occurred to me that if I should come out of the deathly struggle
+safe and sound, it would be a pleasure to me some day to read over
+these notes of battle or bivouac. I thought, further, that my people
+would be interested in them. So I tried to set down my impressions in
+my intervals of leisure. Days of misery, days of joy, days of
+battle.... <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_x" id="Page_x">[Pg x]</a></span>What volumes one might write, if one were to follow our
+squadrons day by day in their march!</p>
+
+<p>I preferred to choose among many memories. I did not wish to compose
+memoirs, but only to evoke the most tragic or the most touching
+moments of my campaign. And, indeed, I have had only too many from
+which to choose.</p>
+
+<p>I shall rejoice if I have been able to revive some phases of the
+tragedy in which we were the actors for my brothers-in-arms.</p>
+
+<p>Further, I gladly offer these "impressions" to any non-combatants they
+may interest. They must not look for the talents of a great
+story-teller, nor the thrilling interest of a novel. All they will
+find is the simple tale of an eyewitness, the unschooled effort of a
+soldier more apt with the sword than with the pen.</p>
+
+<p class="right">M.D.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+
+<div class="block">
+<p><i>The Editor of SOLDIERS' TALES will be glad to read diaries or</i><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_xi" id="Page_xi">[Pg xi]</a></span>
+<i>notebooks of those returning, in any capacity whatsoever, from the
+Front with a view to inclusion in the Series. Contributions must
+be strictly truthful and should be written with no effort at fine
+writing. They are intended to tell truthfully the experiences and
+the feelings of the writers. They should be sent by registered
+post to the Editor, "Soldiers' Tales," 21, Bedford Street, W.C.,
+and they may be accompanied by sketches and photographs. All
+contributions printed will be well paid for. Contributions should
+be of 30,000 words and upwards in length.</i></p>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="toc" id="toc"></a><hr />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_xii" id="Page_xii">[Pg xii]</a></span><br />
+
+<h3>CONTENTS</h3>
+<br />
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" width="70%" summary="Table of Contents">
+  <tr>
+  <td width="10%" class="tdr"><span style="font-size: 80%;">CHAP.</span></td>
+  <td width="70%">&nbsp;</td>
+  <td width="20%" class="tdr"><span style="font-size: 80%;">PAGE</span></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdrp"><a href="#Chapter_I">I.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">How I went to the Front</td>
+  <td class="tdr">1</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdrp"><a href="#Chapter_II">II.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">The First Charge</td>
+  <td class="tdr">57</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdrp"><a href="#Chapter_III">III.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Reconnoitring Courgivault</td>
+  <td class="tdr">76</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdrp"><a href="#Chapter_IV">IV.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">The Jaulgonne Affair</td>
+  <td class="tdr">102</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdrp"><a href="#Chapter_V">V.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Low Mass and Benediction</td>
+  <td class="tdr">152</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdrp"><a href="#Chapter_VI">VI.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">A Tragic Night in the Trenches</td>
+  <td class="tdr">178</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdrp"><a href="#Chapter_VII">VII.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Sister Gabrielle</td>
+  <td class="tdr">226</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+  <td class="tdrp"><a href="#Chapter_VIII">VIII.</a></td>
+  <td class="tdlsc">Christmas Night</td>
+  <td class="tdr">258</td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="Chapter_I" id="Chapter_I"></a><hr />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[Pg 1]</a></span><br />
+
+<h3>I. HOW I WENT TO THE FRONT<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+<br />
+
+<p>The train was creeping along slowly in the soft night air. Seated on a
+truss of hay in the horse-box with my own two horses and that of my
+orderly, Wattrelot, I looked out through the gap left by the unclosed
+sliding door. How slowly we were going! How often we stopped! I got
+impatient as I thought of the hours we were losing whilst the other
+fellows were fighting and reaping all the glory. Station after station
+we passed; bridges, level crossings, tunnels. Everywhere I saw
+soldiers guarding the line and the bayonets of the old chassep&ocirc;ts
+glinting in the starlight. Now and again the train would suddenly pull
+up for some mysterious reason. The three horses, frightened at being
+brought into collision with each other, made the van echo to the
+thunder of their hoofs as they slipped, stamped, and recovered their
+balance. I got up to calm them with soothing <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[Pg 2]</a></span>words and caresses. By
+the light of the wretched lantern swinging and creaking above the door
+I could see their three heads, with pricked ears and uneasy eyes. They
+were breathing hard and could not understand why they had been brought
+away from their comfortable stable with its thick litter of clean
+straw. <i>They</i> were not thinking about the war, but they seemed to
+understand that their good times were over, that they would have to
+resign themselves to all sorts of discomforts, march unceasingly, pass
+nights in camps under the pouring rain, keep their heavy equipment on
+their backs for many days together, and not always get food when they
+were hungry.</p>
+
+<p>Then the train would set off again with a noise of tightened couplings
+and creaking waggons. Whilst I was mechanically looking out at the
+darkness, dotted here and there with the coloured lights of the
+signals placed along the line, my straying thoughts would wander to
+the fields of battle and try to picture the scene on my arrival at the
+Front.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[Pg 3]</a></span>It was the 28th of August, nearly a month after the order had been
+given for mobilisation. And the armies had been fighting for some days
+already. What had happened? We could only glean part of the truth from
+the short official announcements. We knew there had been hard fighting
+at Charleroi, at Dinant, and in the direction of Nancy. But the result
+had not been defined. I thought I could guess, however, that these
+battles had not been decisive, but that they had cost both sides dear.
+I was tempted to rejoice, fool that I was, to think that the first
+great victories would not be won before I joined my regiment. I had
+not yet been able to console myself for the ill-fortune that prevented
+me from starting with the squadrons of the first line. And yet I had
+to submit to regulations. The colonel was inflexible, and answered my
+entreaties by quoting the inexorable rule: In every cavalry regiment
+the sixth lieutenant in order of seniority must stay at the dep&ocirc;t to
+help the major and the captain of the 5th squadron. They must
+assemble, equip, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[Pg 4]</a></span>and train the reserve squadrons of the regiment.</p>
+
+<p>I shall never forget what those days were to me. Days of overwhelming
+work, when, in a tropical heat, I was busy from sunrise to sunset,
+entering the names of thousands of men, registering the horses, giving
+certificates, and providing food for the lot. It needed some skill to
+find billets for them all; the horses were lodged in stables, riding
+establishments and yards, the men in every corner and nook of the vast
+district. It was tiresome work, and would have been almost impossible
+but for the general goodwill and admirable discipline. But all the
+time I was thinking of the fellows away in Belgium boldly
+reconnoitring the masses of Germans and coming into contact with the
+enemy.</p>
+
+<p>At last, at eleven o'clock on the 28th of August, the colonel's
+telegram came ordering me to go at once and replace my young friend,
+Second-Lieutenant de C., seriously wounded whilst reconnoitring. At
+six o'clock in the evening I had packed my food, strapped on <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</a></span>my kit,
+and got my horses into the train. I set off with a light heart, and my
+fellow-officers of the Reserve and of the Territorials, who were still
+at the dep&ocirc;t, came to see me off.</p>
+
+<p>But how slowly the train travelled, and what a long way off our little
+garrison town in the west seemed to me when I thought of the firing
+line out towards the north! I made up my mind to try to imitate my
+faithful Wattrelot, who had been snoring in peace for ever so long. I
+stretched myself on the golden straw and waited impatiently for the
+dawn, dozing and dreaming.</p>
+
+<p>At about eight o'clock in the morning the train stopped at the
+concentration station of N. What a crowd, and yet what order and
+precision in this formidable traffic! All the commissariat trains for
+the army muster here before being sent off to different parts of the
+Front. The numerous sidings were all covered with long rows of trucks.
+In every direction engines getting up steam were panting and puffing.
+In the middle of this hurly-burly men were on the move, some of them
+calm, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</a></span>jaded and patient. These were the railwaymen, who went about in
+a business-like way, pushing railway vans, counting packages, carrying
+papers, checking lists, and giving information politely and willingly.
+The rest were soldiers, lost, bewildered in the midst of this
+entanglement of lines which seemed inextricable. They were asking each
+other questions, swearing, laughing, protesting, and then they got
+into a train and were promptly hauled out and sent to another. But,
+with all this, there was no disorder, no lack of discipline.
+Everywhere the same admirable composure reigned that I had already
+noticed at the station of my little garrison town.</p>
+
+<p>With Wattrelot's help, I tidied myself up for a visit to the military
+authorities of the station. After many difficulties, and after passing
+through the hands of a number of sentries and orderlies on duty, I
+came into the presence of a kindly captain, to whom I stated my case:
+"These are my marching orders, Captain; I am to join the &mdash;&mdash; Light
+Cavalry. Do you know where it is just now?"</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</a></span>The captain raised his hands to Heaven with a look of despair: "How am
+I to know where any regiment is now? You can't expect it. All I can do
+for you is to couple your truck on to the commissariat train of your
+army corps. It will take you as far as the terminus, and there you
+must see what you can do."</p>
+
+<p>I went back to my horses. After various excursions hither and thither
+which took up the whole morning I at last managed to get my horse-box
+coupled to the train. Wattrelot and I, together with the Territorial
+section that served as guard, were the only passengers. The whole
+train was composed of vans stuffed with food supplies and mysterious
+cases, packed into some separate vans carefully sealed. Our departure
+was fixed for two o'clock, and meanwhile I had a chat with the
+Territorial lieutenant who commanded our escort. I tried to find out
+from him what had happened at the Front. He did not know any more than
+I did, and merely told me how sorry he was for his own ill-luck: "You
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</a></span>know, our job is no joke. We start after luncheon, travel all the rest
+of the day and part of the night, sleep where we can, and the next day
+we go back again in the empty train. It takes still longer to get
+back. And the day after we begin all over again."</p>
+
+<p>And the worthy man quietly folded his hands on the "fair roundness" of
+his figure. He looked a good sort of fellow. He did his job
+conscientiously; put his men into the third-class compartments
+assigned to them; saw that they had their cartridges, and gave them
+some fatherly counsel; and then he invited me into the second-class
+compartment reserved for him. But I declined, as I preferred to travel
+with my horses. The train jolted off. The heat was tropical. We had
+pushed our sliding-door wide open, and, seated on our packages, we
+contemplated the smiling summer landscape as it passed slowly before
+us. And I came to the conclusion that we had found out the pleasantest
+way of travelling:&mdash;to have a railway carriage to yourself, where you
+can stand up, walk about and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span>lie down; to go at a pace that allows
+you to enjoy the scenery of the countries you pass through; and to be
+able to linger and admire such and such a view, such and such a
+country mansion or monument of olden days! That is a hundred times
+better than the shaking and rush of a <i>train de luxe</i>.</p>
+
+<p>I was delighted and touched by the sympathetic interest shown in us by
+the people. Everywhere old men, women and children waved their
+handkerchiefs and called out, "Good luck!... Good luck!"</p>
+
+<p>The worthy Territorials answered back as best they could. One felt
+that all hearts were possessed with one and the same thought, wish,
+and hope,&mdash;the hearts of the men who were going slowly up to battle,
+and those of the people who watched them pass and sent their good
+wishes with them.</p>
+
+<p>At one station where we stopped a group of girls dressed in white were
+waiting on the platform under the burning rays of the sun. With
+simplicity, grace, and charming smiles they distributed chocolate,
+bread, and fruit <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span>to all the men. The good fellows were so touched
+that tears came to their eyes. One of them, an elderly man with a
+small grey pointed beard, could not help saying: "But <i>we</i> aren't
+going to fight, you know. We are only here to take care of the train."</p>
+
+<p>"That doesn't matter. That doesn't matter. Take it all the same. You
+are soldiers, like the others.... <i>Vive la France!</i>" And all the
+thirty Territorials, in deep and solemn tones, repeated "<i>Vive la
+France!</i>"</p>
+
+<p>What a change had come over these men who, people feared, were ripe
+for revolt, undisciplined, and reckless! What kindness and grace in
+the women who stay at home and suffer! An old railwayman said to me:
+"It has been like that, Sir, from the first day of the mobilisation.
+These girls pass their days and nights at the station. It is really
+very good of them, for they won't make anything by it." The old
+working man was right: "They won't make anything by it." And yet I am
+sure that many soldiers who have passed that station on their way to
+the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span>Front will keep the same grateful remembrance that I still have.
+I shall never forget the group of girls in white on the sunny platform
+of the little station; I shall never forget the simple grace with
+which they prevailed upon the men to accept the good things they
+offered and even forced upon them. I thanked them as best I could, but
+awkwardly enough, trying to interpret the thoughts of all those
+soldiers. And when the train had started again on its panting course,
+I felt sorry I had not been more eloquent in my speech; that I had
+already forgotten the name of the little station, and never thought of
+asking the names of our benefactresses.</p>
+
+<p>We were now getting near the fighting zone, and I already felt that
+there was a change in the state of mind of the people. They still
+called out to us: "Good luck!... Good luck!" But earlier in the day
+this greeting had been given with smiles and merry gestures; now it
+was uttered in a serious and solemn tone. At the station gates and the
+level crossings, the eyes of the women who looked <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span>at us were more sad
+and profound. They fixed themselves upon ours, and seemed to speak to
+us. And even when their lips did not move their eyes still said "Good
+luck!... Good luck!"</p>
+
+<p>We saw motor cars rushing along the roads, and could distinguish the
+armbands on the men's sleeves, and rifles in the cars or lying in the
+hoods. And yet daily life was going on as usual. There were workers in
+the fields, tradespeople on the doorsteps of their shops, groups of
+peasants just outside the hamlets. But yet a peculiar state of mind
+was evident in each one of these people who were going on with their
+daily work. And all these accumulated cares, all these stirred
+imaginations, produced a strange atmosphere which infected everything,
+seemed to impregnate the air we breathed, and quenched the gaiety of
+the men in our train. Wattrelot and I were overcome by a kind of
+religious emotion; we felt as though we were already breathing the air
+of battle.</p>
+
+<p>At about six o'clock we arrived at the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span>station of L., where the train
+stopped for a few minutes. The platforms were crowded with Staff
+officers. A soldier assured me that the chief Headquarters were here.
+I wanted to question some one and try to get some authoritative
+information as to what was happening at the Front. It seemed to me
+that I had a right to know, now that I was on the point of becoming
+one of the actors in the tragedy in progress a few leagues off. But
+directly I came up to these officers I felt my assurance fail me. They
+looked disturbed and anxious. There was none of that merry animation
+that had reigned in the interior and that I had expected to find
+everywhere.</p>
+
+<p>And then a strange and ridiculous fear came over me; the fear of being
+looked upon as an intruder by these well-informed men who knew
+everything. I imagined that they would spurn me with scorn, or that I
+should cause them pain by forcing them to tell me truths people do not
+like to repeat. It also occurred to me that I was too insignificant a
+person to confront men so high in office, and that I <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span>should appear
+importunate if I disturbed their reflections. But I was now quite sure
+that the official announcements had not told us all. Without having
+heard one word, I felt that things were not going so well as we had
+hoped, as every day in our little town in the west we tried
+passionately to divine the truth, devouring the few newspapers that
+reached us.</p>
+
+<p>A pang shot through me. I now felt alone and lost amongst these men
+who seemed strangers to me. Crossing the rails, I got back to our
+train, drawn up at some distance from the platforms. The sun was on
+the horizon. In the red sky two monoplanes passed over our heads at no
+great height. The noise of their engines made everybody look up. They
+were flying north. And I felt a desire to rush upwards and overtake
+one of them and take my seat close to the pilot, behind the propeller
+which was spinning round and sending the wind of its giddy speed into
+his face. I longed to be able to lift myself into the air above the
+battlefields, and there, suspended in <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span>space, try to make out the
+movements of the clashing nations.</p>
+
+<p>I resolved to have a talk with the engine-driver of a train returning
+to Paris empty. He told me in a few words that the French army was
+retreating rapidly, that it had already recrossed the Belgian
+frontier, and that at that moment it was fighting on French soil. He
+told me this simply, with a touch of sadness in his voice, shaking his
+head gently. He added no comments of his own, and I did not feel equal
+to any reply. Full of foreboding, I returned to my train and
+Wattrelot. He had heard what the engine-driver had told me, and he
+said not a word, but looked out into the distance at the fiery sky. We
+sat down side by side and said nothing.</p>
+
+<p>So we were retreating. Then all our calculations and dreams were
+shattered. All the fine plans we officers had sketched out together
+were folly. We were wasting time when, bending over our maps, we
+foresaw a skilful advance on the heels of Belgium's invaders, followed
+by a huge victory, dearly bought, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span>perhaps, but one that would upset
+the German Colossus at a single blow. The whole thing was an illusion.
+And I thought what a fool I had been. I thought of my regiment. How
+much of it was there left? How many of those good fellows were lying
+dead on foreign soil? How many friends should I never see again? For I
+imagined things to be worse than they really were. I felt absolutely
+despondent. What my mind conjured up was no longer a retreat in good
+order but a rout.</p>
+
+<p>The train had begun to move again. The sun had set, and over the
+horizon there was but a streak of pale yellow sky lighting up the
+country. I sat down in the open doorway with my legs dangling outside,
+and as I breathed the first few whiffs of fresh air I felt somewhat
+relieved. The calm around was such as to make one forget that we were
+at war. Darkness came on by degrees.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly my heart began to beat faster, and I rose with a nervous
+movement. Wattrelot too had started up from the straw he had <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span>been
+lying on. We both exclaimed in one breath: "Cannon!" It was a mere
+distant growl, hardly audible, and yet it was distinct enough to be a
+subdued accompaniment to the thousand noises a train makes as it goes
+along. We could not distinguish the shots, but gradually the dull
+sound became louder and seemed to be wafted towards us by a gust of
+air. Then it seemed to be further off again, and almost to die away,
+and again to get louder. There is no other earthly sound like it. A
+thunderstorm as it dies away is the only thing that could suggest the
+impression we felt. It sends a kind of shiver all over the surface of
+the body. Even our horses felt it. Their three heads were raised
+uneasily, their eyes shone in the twilight, and they snorted noisily
+through their dilated nostrils.</p>
+
+<p>Leaning out, I saw the heads of the Territorials thrust out of the
+windows. They, too, had heard the mysterious and stirring music. No
+one spoke or joked. Their bodies, stretching out into space, seemed to
+be asking <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span>questions and imploring to know the truth. We came nearer
+to the sounds of the guns and could now distinguish the shots
+following one another at short intervals. The air seemed to be shaken,
+and we might have thought we were but a few paces off.</p>
+
+<p>The train had pulled up sharply in the open country. It was still
+light enough for us to make out the landscape&mdash;meadows covered with
+long pale grass, bordered by willows and tall poplar trees gently
+swaying in the evening breeze. In the background a thick wood shut in
+the view. The railway line curved away to the right and was lost to
+view in the growing darkness. Now that the train was motionless the
+impressive voice of the cannon could be heard more distinctly. The
+long luminous trails of the search-lights passed over the sky at
+intervals.</p>
+
+<p>Impatient at the delay, I got down and walked along the line to the
+engine. It had stopped at a level crossing. At the side of the closed
+barrier, on the doorstep of her hut, with the light shining upon her,
+sat the wife <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span>of the gatekeeper, a child in her arms. She was a young
+woman, fair and pale. She seemed somewhat uneasy, and yet had no idea
+of quitting her post. She was talking in a low voice to the engine
+driver and stoker of our train. I tried to get some information from
+her. "<i>Mon Dieu, monsieur</i>," she said, "I know nothing, except that
+the guns have been firing all day long since yesterday, and even at
+times during the night. The sound comes chiefly from the direction of
+G. Some soldiers, who went by just now with carts, told me the
+Prussians got into the town yesterday, but that it was to be retaken
+to-day; and that there were a great many dead and wounded."</p>
+
+<p>My hopes revived a little. I saw at once in my mind the German attack
+stopped on the river Oise, our armies recovering, drawing together and
+driving the enemy back across the frontier. Our engine-driver
+explained to me that we had come quite close to the terminus, but that
+we should have to wait some time before we could get in. Other <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span>trains
+had to be unloaded and shunted to make room.</p>
+
+<p>I went back to my van. Night had fallen, and it must have been about
+nine o'clock. The guns had suddenly ceased firing. Our lantern had
+burnt itself out, and the rest of our wait was made more tedious by
+darkness. An empty train passed us, and then silence fell once more
+upon the spot where we waited anxiously to be allowed to go forward
+towards our brothers-in-arms. Oh! how I longed to join them, even if
+it were only in the middle of a bloody and difficult retreat; how I
+longed to be delivered from my solitude!</p>
+
+<p>At last, at about eleven o'clock, the train set off again without
+whistling, and very slowly. It went along timidly, so to speak, and as
+though it was afraid of coming into some unknown region which might be
+full of mysteries and ambuscades. In the distance I saw some signal
+lamps waved, and suddenly we stopped. What I then saw astounded me. I
+had thought we should draw up at a large platform where gangs of men
+would be waiting, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span>in perfect order, to unload the train, sort out the
+packages, and pile them up in their appointed places for the carts to
+take them quietly away.</p>
+
+<p>Instead of this the train stopped at some little distance from a small
+station standing by itself in the open country. I could make out some
+buildings, badly lighted, and around them a crowd of shadowy forms
+moving about. And drawn up alongside of our train were countless
+vehicles of all sorts and kinds in indescribable disorder, made all
+the more confusing by the darkness. Some of them were drawn up in some
+sort of a line. Others tried to edge themselves in and get a vacant
+place among the entanglement of wheels and horses. The drivers were
+abusing each other in forcible language. Every now and again there was
+an outburst of laughter interspersed with oaths.</p>
+
+<p>All this time officials were running down the platform with papers in
+their hands, trying to read what was chalked on the vans. Enquiries
+and shouts were heard:</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span>"Where is the bread?"</p>
+
+<p>"Over here."</p>
+
+<p>"No, it's not."</p>
+
+<p>"Where is the officer in charge?"</p>
+
+<p>Matches were struck. The few lighted lanterns there were were snatched
+from one hand by another. And in spite of all this apparent disorder
+the work went rapidly forward. Men climbed in through the open doors.
+Sacks and heavy cases were passed along. Porters, bending under their
+loads, slipped through the maze of vans and carts to the one they
+wanted and deposited their burdens.</p>
+
+<p>After giving Wattrelot orders to prevent any one from invading our
+horse-box I slipped out and went towards the station office to look
+for the military commissary. I had great difficulty in making my way
+through the crowd of men who seemed to be rushing to take the train by
+assault in the darkness. Then I had to avoid breaking my neck in
+getting across the maze of rails, the signal wires, and the open
+ditches.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span>I got to the station. A number of wounded were there lying on the
+platforms; about a hundred of them, with their clothes torn, and
+covered with dust. They presented a sad picture. They were, it is
+true, only slightly wounded; but it cuts one to the heart to see
+soldiers in that plight, hauled out upon the ground without straw to
+lie upon or any doctor to attend to them. However, they had all had
+first-aid dressings. Below the bandages that bound their heads their
+feverish eyes gleamed in the light of the lanterns. Their bandaged
+arms were supported by pieces of linen tied behind their necks.
+Several of them were sitting on baskets, casks and packages of all
+kinds, and they were talking eagerly. Each man was relating, with
+plenty of gesticulation, the great deeds he had taken part in or seen.
+As I passed, I heard scraps of their conversation: "They were in the
+first line of houses.... Then, old chap, our lieutenant rushed
+forward.... You should have seen them scuttle...."</p>
+
+<p>I was delighted to see that the <i>moral</i> of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span>those fine fellows didn't
+seem in the least affected. To hear them you would have thought the
+Germans had been driven back at all points.</p>
+
+<p>I got a porter to tell me where the military commissary was. He
+pointed out an Artillery lieutenant, in a cap with a white band,
+talking to a group of officers. I introduced myself, and asked him if
+he knew anything about the state of affairs. Like everybody else, he
+could only give me very vague information. "However," he added, "I can
+confirm what you have heard about G. The First Corps has just retaken
+the town, which was defended by the Prussian Guard. It appears that
+our fellows were wonderful, and that the enemy has suffered enormous
+losses. However"&mdash;the lieutenant's voice trembled slightly, and the
+shrug of his shoulders betrayed his despair&mdash;"I have orders to
+evacuate the station, with all my men and my papers, so soon as the
+last train has been unloaded. I am to fall back towards L. How is one
+to understand what all this means?"</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span>We looked at each other, without a word. Everybody felt dejected and
+doubtful. Not to understand!... To have to obey without understanding
+why! It was the first time I had really felt the grandeur of military
+service. You must have a soul stoutly tempered to carry out an
+order&mdash;no matter what, even if that order seems incomprehensible to
+you. There must have been in that corner of France, on the edge of
+that frontier which we had sworn should never be violated&mdash;there must
+have been thousands of officers, thousands of soldiers who would have
+given their lives rather than yield up one inch of ground. Then why
+abandon that station? Why say so bluntly, "To-morrow you will have no
+need to go so far north to bring supplies. We shall come nearer to
+you; <i>we</i> shall withdraw ..."?</p>
+
+<p>There I was again, allowing my mind to wander and to suffer. I tried
+to learn by what means I could get some information about my regiment.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, it's very simple," said the Artillery <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span>lieutenant, very kindly.
+"Your commissariat officer will certainly have to come with his convoy
+to fetch supplies. Try to get hold of him. He will tell you all about
+it."</p>
+
+<p>I grasped his hand and went off, glad indeed at the thought of seeing
+my regiment's uniform once more. And Providence seemed to guide me,
+for I thought I saw the very man I was looking for in the little
+booking office. But I had some difficulty in recognising him. He
+looked aged and worn. His beard had grown quite grey. Bending over the
+sill of the ticket office, he was in the act of spreading the contents
+of a box of sardines upon a slice of bread. Yes, it was he. How tired
+and disheartened he looked! I pushed the door open and rushed in:</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Bonjour! Comment va?</i>"</p>
+
+<p>"Ah!... It's you! What have you come here for, my poor fellow? Ah!
+Things aren't looking very rosy...."</p>
+
+<p>I plied him with questions, and he answered in short incoherent
+sentences:</p>
+
+<p>"Charleroi? Don't talk of it!... Our <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span>men? Grand!... A hecatomb....
+Then ... the retreat ... day and night.... The Germans daren't.... Ah!
+a nice business, isn't it? We're retreating."</p>
+
+<p>He told me where the regiment was, in a huge farm a long way off. He
+said he could take my canteen in one of his vans. As for me, I should
+have to manage as best I could next day to join my comrades. It would
+take some time to get my horses detrained, as the only platform was
+still being used for the vans not yet unloaded. "Thanks," said I.
+"Well, it's quite simple. To-morrow I go straight towards the cannon.
+Good-night." And I went off to finish my sleepless night, lying beside
+my horses. With my eyes fixed on the chink of the door, I waited, hour
+after hour, for the daylight....</p>
+
+<p>When dawn broke I had already got Wattrelot and a couple of railwaymen
+who were still in the station to bring my horse-box up to the
+platform. The three horses were quickly saddled and ready to start.
+The freshness of the morning and the joy of feeling <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span>firm ground under
+their feet again made them uncommonly lively. Indeed, Wattrelot came
+near feeling the effects of their good spirits somewhat uncomfortably
+as he was getting into the saddle.</p>
+
+<p>At last we started at a quick trot along a white and dusty road which
+led straight across fields still bathed in shadow. I went first in the
+direction my friend had vaguely indicated the night before. Wattrelot
+followed, leading my spare horse. The horses' footsteps resounded
+strangely in this unknown country where nothing else could be heard.
+Were we really at war? Everything seemed, on the contrary, to breathe
+perfect tranquillity. What a change from the feverish bustle of the
+station the evening before!</p>
+
+<p>We rode through a rich and fertile countryside. The fields stretched
+out one after another without end, covering the rounded flanks of the
+undulating ground with their stubble, dotted with stacks and golden
+sheaves. A few hedges and some clumps of trees broke the monotony of
+the landscape. Here <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span>and there farms of imposing proportions appeared
+among the foliage. No shots were to be heard, nor any sound of
+marching troops. And this made me so uneasy that I began to wonder
+whether something had not happened during the night to shift the scene
+of the fighting without my knowledge. But I was about to see something
+which was to remind me, better than the noise of cannon, that the
+scene of the strife was not far off.</p>
+
+<p>As the daylight became gradually brighter we distinguished figures
+moving round some straw-stacks&mdash;folks who had collected there to pass
+the night sheltered as much as possible from the cold and the morning
+dew. I thought they were soldiers who had lost touch with their
+regiments and had taken their brief night's rest in the open air. But
+I soon saw my mistake. As by enchantment, as soon as the first rays of
+the sun appeared the sleepers got up, and I saw that they were
+civilians, mostly women and children. They were the unfortunate
+country-folk who had fled before the barbarian hordes. They had
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span>preferred to forsake their homes, to leave them to the invader, rather
+than fall into his hands. They had fled, carrying with them the most
+precious things they possessed. They had come away not knowing where
+they would stop, nor where they could pass the night. And as soon as
+the twilight came and found them exhausted on the interminable roads,
+they had dropped down by the stacks grateful for a humble bed of
+straw. There they had stretched their aching limbs, the mothers had
+carefully made up little beds for their babies, families had nestled
+closely together, and often whole villages had gathered in the same
+fields and around the same stacks.</p>
+
+<p>And when the daylight appeared they had got up hurriedly and the roads
+were already crowded with mournful pilgrims seeking refuge further and
+further inland. I must confess that I had not expected to see such a
+sight. It made my heart ache. I was seized with a fury and longed to
+be able to rush upon the enemy, drive him back across the frontier,
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span>and restore the dwellings forsaken by these poor folks.</p>
+
+<p>What human being, however cold-hearted, could help feeling deep pity
+at the sight of those poor, weak and inoffensive creatures fleeing
+before invasion? There were pitiable sights on every hand. A mother
+pushing a perambulator containing several small children, whilst five
+or six others were hanging on to her dress or trotting along around
+her. Poor invalids, dragged, pushed, carried by all possible means,
+sooner than be left in the hands of the Prussians. Old men helped
+along by boys; infants carried by old men. And as they passed they all
+cast a look of distress at the officer who rode quickly by, averting
+his eyes. I thought I saw a reproach in those glances: they seemed to
+say to me: "Why haven't you been able to defend us? Why have you let
+them come into our country? See how we are suffering. Look at our
+little children, who cannot walk any further. Where are we to go now
+that, by your fault, we have left the homes of our childhood, and of
+our <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[Pg 32]</a></span>fathers and our fathers' fathers? Is that what war is?" I urged
+on my horse to get them out of my sight and to reach the fighting line
+as quickly as I could.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly the report of a gun sounded straight in front of me. Further
+off a few rifle shots were audible, and then guns again, accompanied
+by concentrated rifle fire. A kind of shiver passed through my whole
+body.</p>
+
+<p>My first battle! I was going to take part in my first battle! I felt
+really mad and intoxicated at the thought of at last realising the
+dream of my life. But other feelings were mingled with it. I
+reflected: "What effect will it have upon me? I expect I shall come
+into the middle of the fight when I get over that ridge. Shall I duck
+my head when I hear the bullets whistling and the shrapnel bursting
+around me? I am determined to play the man. I know Wattrelot is close
+by, trotting behind me. He mustn't see the least symptom of
+nervousness in me."</p>
+
+<p>The noise of the guns became louder. "By the way!... I wonder what
+Wattrelot <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[Pg 33]</a></span>feels like!" I turned to look at him, and found his face a
+bit pale; but directly he saw me glance at his blue north-country
+eyes, his face lit up with a broad smile.</p>
+
+<p>"Here we are, sir."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, Wattrelot, here we are. I'm sure you don't know what fear is!"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! no, sir."</p>
+
+<p>"That's all right. Forward then! To the guns!"</p>
+
+<p>We passed through a hamlet full of waggons and motors. Some orderlies
+were loading them up with rations and boxes. On one of these I
+happened to see the number of my own army corps. "I'm all right then,"
+thought I, and turned to an adjutant of the Army Service Corps, who
+was superintending the work.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you know where the Staff of the &mdash;&mdash; Corps is?" I asked.</p>
+
+<p>The man shrugged his shoulders to show that he didn't, and that he
+didn't care. What did it matter to him? His job was to get the goods
+loaded, forget nothing, and then <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[Pg 34]</a></span>to go to his appointed post where he
+would have to wait for further orders to unload his stuff in the
+evening. He had enough to do. What did anything else matter to him?
+However, he pointed in a vague manner: "They went over there...."</p>
+
+<p>Off I started again over the wide undulating plain. The noise of the
+cannonade became louder and louder, and I now perceived traces of the
+work of death. At a turning of the road there were a couple of dead
+horses that had been dragged into the ditch. I cannot say how painful
+the sight was to me. Apparently a dead horse at the seat of war is a
+trifle, and no doubt I should very soon see it with indifference. But
+these were the first I had seen, and I could not help casting a glance
+of pity at them. Poor beasts! A month before they had been showing off
+their fine points in the well-kept stables of the artillery barracks.
+When I saw them their stiffened corpses bore traces of all their
+sufferings. Their harness had rubbed great sores in their flesh, in
+more places than one. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[Pg 35]</a></span>Their glazed eyes seemed to be still appealing
+for pity. They had fallen down exhausted, finding it impossible to
+keep up with their fellows. They had been quickly unharnessed, so as
+not to block up the road; had been dragged on to the sunburnt grass,
+and it was there no doubt the death-agony that had already lasted for
+some hours had come to an end.</p>
+
+<p>We went on, and, in the distance, here and there on the plain, which
+now stretched before us for miles, we saw more of them. I wondered how
+it was that so many horses had fallen in so short a time. It was not a
+month since mobilisation had been ordered, and hardly ten days since
+operations had begun. What a huge effort then the army must already
+have made!</p>
+
+<p>But I soon forgot the poor beasts, for we were nearing the scene of
+the struggle. Behind the shelter of every swell in the ground were
+ammunition waggons. I went up to one of these and was astonished at
+what I saw. The limbers, which are always <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[Pg 36]</a></span>so smart in the
+barrack-yard, with their grey paint, were covered with a thick coating
+of dust or of hardened mud. The horses, dirty and thin, seemed ready
+to drop. Their necks were covered with sores, and they were hanging
+their heads to eat, but seemed not to have strength enough to take
+their food. Drivers and non-commissioned officers were sprawling
+about, sleeping heavily. Their cadaverous faces, beards of a week's
+growth and drawn features showed even in their sleep how exhausted
+they were. I could hardly recognise the original colour of their dingy
+uniforms under the accumulation of stains and dust.</p>
+
+<p>It was now eight o'clock in the morning. The sunshine was beating hot
+upon the sleepers, but they seemed indifferent to this. They had
+simply pulled the peaks of their caps over their eyes and were snoring
+away, with their noses in the air and their mouths open. Beasts and
+men together formed a group of creatures that seemed utterly depressed
+and worn out. I could never have believed it possible to sleep under
+such <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[Pg 37]</a></span>conditions, with the guns booming unceasingly in all directions.</p>
+
+<p>I went up the nearest ridge and thence got a glimpse of a corner of
+the battle. I had expected to see a sight similar to that which had
+delighted us at man[oe]uvres; troops massed in all the depressions of
+the ground, battalions advancing in good order along the roads, and
+mounted men galloping about on the higher ground. But there was
+nothing of the sort.</p>
+
+<p>In front of me, about 600 yards off, and under cover of the brow of a
+hill carpeted with russet stubble, I saw two batteries of artillery,
+firing their guns. I looked intently. The pieces were in perfect line
+and the gunners at their posts. The shots were fired at regular
+intervals and with cool deliberation. The gunners took their time, and
+seemed to be working very casually. I had expected to see them fairly
+excited: the men running under a hail of shells, teams brought up at a
+gallop as soon as a few salvoes had been fired, and the guns whirled
+off at full speed and lined up in <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[Pg 38]</a></span>battery again some hundreds of
+yards further off.</p>
+
+<p>On the contrary, these guns seemed to be planted there for good. The
+limbers, which were massed to the rear under cover of a slope, looked
+very much like the sections of munitions I had seen just before. The
+men were sleeping in the shadows of their horses, and the horses were
+asleep on their feet in their appointed places. The only man standing
+was a stout-looking adjutant who was walking up and down with his
+hands in his pockets. With his eyes on the ground he seemed to be
+counting his steps. And meanwhile, the two batteries went on firing
+salvoes of four at a time. When one was finished there was a pause of
+two or three minutes. Then the other battery took it up.</p>
+
+<p>But Wattrelot interrupted my reverie: "Look over there, sir.... <i>&Ccedil;a
+barde!</i>" I looked in the direction he was pointing out. And now I no
+longer felt the uneasy feeling that had come over me at the sight of
+what was going on here. Above a height that <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[Pg 39]</a></span>overtopped the hill on
+which I was, and about 1,500 yards away, the German shells were
+bursting incessantly. We could distinctly hear the sharp sound of the
+explosions. In the clear blue of the sky they made little white puffs
+which vanished gradually and were replaced by others. Their gunners
+could not have been firing with the same coolness as ours, for the
+white puffs increased in number. The noise they were making on the
+spot must have been deafening. From where I was we heard the
+explosions following one upon another without intermission.</p>
+
+<p>But what was most thrilling was to watch one of our own batteries in
+action under this avalanche of projectiles. The slope on which it was
+placed was in shadow still. Against this blue-grey background short
+flames could be seen flashing for a second at the muzzles of the guns.
+And the four reports reached us almost at the same moment. The gunners
+could be seen just as calm under fire as the others here. The German
+shells, that tried <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[Pg 40]</a></span>to scatter death among them, burst too high. They
+were trying to annihilate this battery, which was no doubt causing
+terrible ravages among their men. But the broken fragments fell wide,
+and our gunners worked their pieces gallantly. This was something that
+more than made up for my touch of disappointment at first. My hope
+revived, and I started off at a trot straight in front of me, getting
+past the ridge, under cover of which the pair of batteries were plying
+their guns.</p>
+
+<p>No sooner had I gained the further slope than I understood that what I
+had seen hitherto was only the background of the battle. From this
+spot a violent rifle fire was heard in every direction. In the meadows
+were a large number of infantry sections crouching behind every
+available bit of cover. On the opposite slope long lines of
+skirmishers were deployed. And dotted about everywhere, above their
+heads, rose puffs of smoke&mdash;white, black, and yellow&mdash;the German
+shells bursting. The noise of them was incessant, and the spot where
+we were seemed to me <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[Pg 41]</a></span>very quiet, in spite of the firing of the two
+batteries close behind us.</p>
+
+<p>Everything was wonderfully coloured by the sunshine. The red trousers
+of the soldiers, lying in the grass, showed up brightly. The mess-tins
+on their knapsacks and the smallest metal objects&mdash;buttons,
+bayonet-hilts, belt-buckles&mdash;glittered at every movement. On my left,
+in a dip of ground with a little river running down it, a gay little
+village seemed to be overflowing with troops. I rode towards it in
+haste, hoping to find a Staff there which could give me some
+information.</p>
+
+<p>The streets were, in fact, full of infantry, lying about or sitting
+along the houses on both sides. In the middle of the main road was a
+crowd of galloping orderlies, cyclists and motor-cyclists. I felt
+rather bewildered in all this bustle. However, these people seemed to
+know where they were going. They were, no doubt, carrying orders or
+information. And yet I could see no chief officer who appeared to be
+busying himself about the action or directing anything. Those <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[Pg 42]</a></span>who
+were not sleeping were chatting in little groups. The soldiers of
+different arms were all mixed together, which had, perhaps, a
+picturesque effect, but was disconcerting.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly I heard some one call me by my name. I turned round and
+hesitated a moment before I recognised in an artillery captain with a
+red beard, a former friend who had been a lieutenant in a horse
+battery at Lun&eacute;ville. Yes, it was he. I recognised him by his grey
+eyes, his hooked nose, and his ringing voice.</p>
+
+<p>"Eh, <i>mon cher!</i> What are you doing here? You look fresh and fit!...
+What are you looking for? You seem to be at sea."</p>
+
+<p>I explained my position to him, and asked him to tell me what had
+happened.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! that would take too long. Your fellows were at Charleroi with us;
+they had some experiences! But hang it if I know what they are doing
+with us. We beat them yesterday, my friend. Our men and our guns did
+wonders. And now there's talk of our retreating further south. I
+don't <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[Pg 43]</a></span>understand it all. Ah! we have seen some hot work, and you will
+make a rough beginning.... Looking for your regiment, are you? I
+haven't seen it yet to-day. But you see that Staff right over there
+behind those stacks?... Yes, where those shells are bursting....
+That's General T. He can help you; only, you see, he's not exactly in
+clover. T. has been splendid; always under fire, cheering on his men.
+They say he wants to get killed so as not to see the retreat...."</p>
+
+<p>I knew General T. well. He commanded a brigade in our garrison town of
+R. And a kindly chief he was, clear-minded, frank, and plain-spoken. I
+soon made up my mind to go to him and see what help I could get to
+enable me to rejoin my regiment. It would be a pleasure, too, to see
+him again.</p>
+
+<p>I measured the distance with my eye&mdash;a kilometre, perhaps. There was
+no road, and to go across the fields would not be very easy, as there
+were walls and hedges round the meadows. I took the other way out of
+the village, and just as Wattrelot and I were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[Pg 44]</a></span>leaving it we saw some
+wounded men arriving. They came slowly, helped along by their
+comrades, and there were such a number of them that they blocked the
+road. Those faces tied up with bandages clotted with perspiration,
+dust, and blood; those coats hanging open; those shirts torn, and
+showing lint and bandages reddened with blood; those poor bandaged
+feet that had to be kept off the ground&mdash;all this made a painful
+impression on me. No doubt this was because I was not accustomed to
+such sights, for others hardly took any notice of it.</p>
+
+<p>"The ambulance! Where is the ambulance?" cried the men who were
+helping them along.</p>
+
+<p>"At the station," answered some soldiers, hardly looking round; "go
+straight on, and turn to the left when you get to the market-place."</p>
+
+<p>And the sad procession went its way. I jumped the ditch at the side of
+the road, and struck across the fields, spurring straight for General
+T. At that moment the rifle fire <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[Pg 45]</a></span>became more violent. Some forward
+movement was certainly beginning, for the infantry sections, that were
+lying in cover at the bottom of the valley, began to climb up the
+slope of the ridge on which I was galloping. Suddenly my horse swerved
+sharply. He had just almost trodden upon a body lying on the other
+side of the low wall of loose stones that I had just jumped. I drew
+rein. A sob burst from my lips. Oh! I did not expect to see that so
+suddenly. A score of corpses lay scattered on that sloping
+stubble-field. They were Zouaves. They seemed almost to have been
+placed there deliberately, for the bodies were lying at about an equal
+distance from one another. They must have fallen there the day before
+during an attack, and night had come before it had been possible to
+bury them. Their rifles were still by their side, with the bayonets
+fixed. The one nearest to us was lying with his face to the ground and
+was still grasping his weapon. He was a handsome fellow, thin and
+dark. No wound was visible, but his face was strikingly pale <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[Pg 46]</a></span>under
+the red <i>ch&eacute;chia</i> which had been pulled down over his ears.</p>
+
+<p>I looked at Wattrelot. The good fellow's eyes were filled with tears.
+"Come!" thought I, "we must not give way like this."</p>
+
+<p>"Wattrelot, my friend, we shall see plenty more. You know, they were
+brave fellows who have been killed doing their duty. We must not pity
+them...."</p>
+
+<p>Wattrelot did not answer. I galloped off again towards the big rick by
+which stood General T.'s Staff. I had already forgotten what I had
+seen, and my attention was fixed upon that small group of men standing
+motionless near the top of the ridge. German shells kept bursting over
+them from time to time. We were now about 100 yards off, so I left
+Wattrelot and my spare horse hidden behind a shattered hovel and went
+alone towards the rick.</p>
+
+<p>But just as I was coming up to it I heard a curious hissing noise
+which lasted about the twentieth part of a second, and, above my
+head&mdash;how high I could not quite <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[Pg 47]</a></span>tell&mdash;vrran!... vrran!&mdash;two shells
+exploded with a tremendous noise. I ducked my head instinctively and
+tried to make myself as small as possible on my horse. A thought
+passed through my mind like a flash: "Here we are! Why on earth did I
+come up here? My campaign will have been a short one!" And then this
+other thought followed: "But I'm not hit! That's all their shells can
+do! I shan't trouble to duck in future."</p>
+
+<p>And yet I was disagreeably impressed: a soldier who had been holding a
+horse just before about 30 yards from me ran down the slope, whilst
+the horse was struck dead and lay in a pool of blood, his body torn
+open.</p>
+
+<p>But I was now close to the officers composing the Staff of the T.
+Brigade. They came towards me, supposing, probably, that I was
+bringing some information or an order. One of them was known to me, an
+infantry captain who had been in garrison at R. with me. We shook
+hands, and I explained the object of this unusual visit. He replied:</p>
+
+<p>"Your regiment? You will find it to the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[Pg 48]</a></span>left of the Army Corps. It's
+the regiment that ensures our <i>liaison</i> with the &mdash;&mdash; Corps."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, Captain, it seems our troops are advancing. Things are going
+well!"</p>
+
+<p>He shrugged his shoulders sharply. His eyes were hard and sombre as he
+gazed fixedly at the horizon in the direction of the enemy, and then
+said in an exasperated tone:</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly, they are advancing. See those lines of skirmishers working
+along there to the right of the village. And those others further off,
+there where you see those puffs of yellow smoke. But that won't
+prevent us from beginning our retreating movement at noon. There are
+express orders. We must move together with the whole army. We shall
+sleep to-night 20 kilometres from here ... and not in the right
+direction!"</p>
+
+<p>We looked at one another in silence. I didn't like to ask any further
+questions, nor to express my disappointment and the angry feeling that
+was becoming stronger in me. The sight of General T. calmed me at
+once. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[Pg 49]</a></span>It seemed to tell me what my duty was, and to impose silent
+obedience and firm faith in our chiefs.</p>
+
+<p>Standing alone, 100 yards in advance of his officers, whom he had told
+to remain concealed behind the enormous stack, the General was
+observing the struggle. He stood perfectly still, with his back
+slightly bent and his hands behind him. He had allowed his beard to
+grow, and it formed a white patch on his slightly tanned face. In
+front of him, at some little distance, two shells had just burst,
+falling short. The General had not stirred. He looked like a statue of
+sadness and of duty. I had thought of going and introducing myself;
+but I now felt that I was too insignificant a being to intrude myself
+upon a chief who was watching the advance of his brave soldiers, as a
+father watches over his children.</p>
+
+<p>I turned and went away, quietly and slowly, with a feeling of
+oppression.</p>
+
+<p>So I made my way back again, skirting the firing line behind the
+ridge, often obliged to pull up to allow troops to pass to reinforce
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[Pg 50]</a></span>the line. Now and then it seemed that the fighting had ceased at the
+spot I happened to be in, but I soon found myself again in the thick
+of the artillery and rifle fire. On all the roads I crossed there was
+a continual stream of wounded men limping along and stretcher-bearers
+carrying mutilated bodies. The heat had become tropical. It was nearly
+twelve o'clock. My head began to swim. My shako seemed gradually to
+get tighter and to press on my temples till they were ready to burst.
+I thought I should never find my regiment&mdash;never....</p>
+
+<p>I came to a small village, and decided to stop and get some food for
+ourselves and for my horses, as they showed signs of distress. There,
+too, the streets were full of infantry, but, to my astonishment, none
+of them belonged to any of the regiments of my Corps. So I supposed I
+had passed its left wing without knowing it. Bad luck! I rode up the
+steep alleys, looking for some inn where I could put up, but all the
+inns were filled with hot, footsore soldiers, who seemed <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[Pg 51]</a></span>thankful for
+a moment's rest. They were sitting about wherever there was any shade
+to be found. With their coats unbuttoned, their neckties undone and
+shirts open, they were trying to recover their vigour by greedily
+devouring hunks of bread they had in their wallets, spread with the
+contents of their preserved meat tins.</p>
+
+<p>At the door of the vicarage, near the pretty little church which could
+be seen from the surrounding country, I saw an old priest who was
+distributing bottles of white wine to an eager crowd of troopers. I
+heard him say in a gentle voice:</p>
+
+<p>"Here, my lads, take what there is. If the Prussians come, I don't
+want them to find a drop left."</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Merci, ... merci, Monsieur le Cur&eacute;</i>."</p>
+
+<p>All at once there was a frightful explosion quite close to us, which
+made the whole church-square quiver. A German "coal-box" had fallen on
+to the roof of the church, making an enormous hole in it, out of which
+came a thick cloud of horrible yellow smoke. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[Pg 52]</a></span>A shower of wreckage
+fell all around us and made a curious noise. The windows of all the
+houses came clattering down in shivers. In a twinkling the little
+square in front of the vicarage was empty. A few men who were wounded
+fled moaning. The rest slung their rifles and went off quickly in a
+line close under the shelter of the houses. I was left alone face to
+face with the white-haired priest who still held a bottle of golden
+wine in his hand. We looked at each other greatly distressed.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Tenez, Monsieur l'Officier</i>," he said suddenly; "take some more of
+this. I am going to break all the remaining bottles, so that they
+shall not drink any of it.... Ah! the savages! Ah! the wretches!... My
+church!... My poor church!..."</p>
+
+<p>And he went across his little garden quickly, without listening to my
+thanks. I handed the bottle to Wattrelot, who stuffed it into his
+wallet with a smile of satisfaction.</p>
+
+<p>But a second "coal-box" soon followed the first. It was certainly not
+the place to stay in, so I decided to be off and postpone <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[Pg 53]</a></span>my luncheon
+until I could find a rather more sheltered dining-room. As I left the
+village I saw one of our batteries moving briskly away. It was the one
+that had been in action close to the village, and had probably been
+the target of the German gunners. It went rapidly down the slope. The
+drivers brandished their whips and brought them down upon the haunches
+of their jaded animals. They had to make haste, for the position had
+become untenable. The German guns were concentrating their fire on the
+hapless village and the neighbouring ridge. The formidable shells
+burst in threes. The ground shook. It was evident that very soon
+nothing would be left there but ruins.</p>
+
+<p>I resumed my wanderings. I saw then that what the captain had told me
+was true. The retreating movement was beginning to be obvious. Whilst
+the firing grew more intense along the whole line small parties of
+infantry marched across the fields in an opposite direction to the one
+they had taken two hours previously.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[Pg 54]</a></span>So we were beating a retreat. However, I had seen it with my own eyes;
+not only had we held our ground along the whole line, but at several
+points our soldiers were making headway. And then suddenly, and
+without any apparent reason, we had to withdraw. It was enough to make
+one mad. We had to retreat over the soil of our France and give it up,
+little by little, to the hordes which followed on our heels.... I had
+slackened rein, and was allowing my horse to go as he liked over the
+country strewn with troops. He seemed to understand what was
+happening, and with his head lowered, as though he did it reluctantly,
+he slowly followed the direction the immense army was taking. I was
+seized with a deep feeling of hopelessness. I doubted everything; our
+men, of whose bravery and tenacity I had just seen proof; and our
+leaders, whose courage I knew. My head seemed to be on fire.</p>
+
+<p>But I heard a ringing voice behind me, calling me by my name. I
+turned, and my sadness gave way to joy as I recognised two <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[Pg 55]</a></span>light-blue
+tunics with red collars. I had found the uniform of my regiment! and
+my hope revived. I felt I was no longer alone, and that we might yet
+accomplish great things.</p>
+
+<p>In front of a score of our Chasseurs rode two good friends of mine,
+Lieutenant B. and Lieutenant of Reserve de C. What a pleasure it was
+to shake their hands, and to see their bronzed faces and dusty
+garments.</p>
+
+<p>We now went on together, chatting merrily. C. knew the village where
+the regiment was to be billeted. We went straight for it at a trot. It
+was there that, at nightfall, I was going to find my chiefs again, my
+comrades and my men; and I should at last take my part in the
+fighting. I could not know what the days to follow had in store for
+me, but I did know that none could be so cruel for me as the day when
+I went to the Front. I was now in the bosom of my military family, and
+I looked forward to taking my share of danger at the head of the brave
+Chasseurs I knew so well. Doubtless I should now know <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[Pg 56]</a></span>where we were
+going; why we had to advance, and why to retire.</p>
+
+<p>It seems that moral suffering is less keen when it can be shared with
+others. I shall never suffer again what I suffered that day.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="Chapter_II" id="Chapter_II"></a><hr />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[Pg 57]</a></span><br />
+
+<h3>II. THE FIRST CHARGE<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+<br />
+
+<p class="right"><i>September 4.</i></p>
+
+<p>Six o'clock in the evening.</p>
+
+<p>The atmosphere was heavy and stifling. The regiment had been formed
+into two columns, to the right and the left of the high-road from
+Vauchamps to Montmirail. The men, tired out, their faces black with
+dust, had hardly dismounted when they threw themselves on the ground
+and slept in a field of cut corn. The officers chatted together in
+groups to keep themselves awake. Nights are short when you are on
+campaign. The bivouac was pitched at midnight and was to be struck at
+three o'clock in the morning.</p>
+
+<p>And since six o'clock the battle had been raging, for the enemy had
+engaged our rearguard almost immediately. This had happened each day
+of that unforgettable retreat, begun at the Sambre and pushed beyond
+the Marne. Each day we had had <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[Pg 58]</a></span>to fight. Each day the enemy was
+repulsed. Each day we were obliged to retire.</p>
+
+<p>Brother-soldiers!&mdash;you who came through those painful hours&mdash;shall you
+ever forget them? Shall you ever forget the anguish that wrung your
+hearts when, as the sun was sinking, you, who had seen so many of your
+comrades fall, had to give up a further portion of our sweet France;
+to deliver up some of our lovely hamlets, some of our fields, our
+orchards, our gardens, some of our vineyards, to the barbarians?...
+You were ordered to do so. We have learnt, since then, how important
+such sacrifices were. But, at the time, we did not know ... and doubt
+came into our minds. We passed through cruel days, and nothing will
+ever efface the impression of physical and moral prostration that
+overcame us then.</p>
+
+<p>The regiment was sleeping&mdash;tired out.</p>
+
+<p>Alone, calm, phlegmatic, the Colonel kept watch, standing in the
+middle of the road. With his pipe between his teeth, beneath his ruddy
+drooping moustache, his cap pulled over <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[Pg 59]</a></span>his eyes, his arms crossed on
+his light-blue tunic, he seemed to be the ever-watchful shepherd of
+that immense flock. At such moments the chief must be able to seem
+unconscious of the self-abandonment, the disorder and the exhaustion
+of his men. Human powers have their limits. They had been expended for
+days without stint. Every moment of cessation from actual fighting had
+to be a moment of repose. The important thing is that the chief should
+keep watch. Brave little Chasseurs! sleep in peace; your Colonel is
+watching over you.</p>
+
+<p>I looked at the men of my troop, on the ground in front of their
+horses. How could I recognise the smart, brilliantly accoutred
+horsemen, whose uniforms used to make such a gay note in the
+old-fashioned streets of the little garrison town?</p>
+
+<p>Under the battered shakoes with their shapeless peaks, the tanned and
+emaciated faces looked like masks of wax. Youthful faces had been
+invaded by beards which made them look like those of men of thirty <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[Pg 60]</a></span>or
+more. The dust of roads and fields, raised by horses, waggons, and
+limbers, had settled on them, showing up their wrinkles and getting
+into eyes, noses, and moustaches.</p>
+
+<p>Their clothes, patched as chance allowed during a halt under some
+hedge, were enamels of many-coloured pieces. A few more days of such
+unremitting war, and we should have vied with the glorious
+tatterdemalions of the armies of Italy and of the Sambre et Meuse, as
+Raffet paints them.</p>
+
+<p>With their noses in the air, their mouths open, their eyes half shut,
+my Chasseurs lay stretched out among the legs of their horses and
+slept heavily. Poor horses! Poor, pretty creatures, so delicate, so
+fiery, in their glossy summer coats! They had followed their masters'
+fortunes. How many of them had already fallen under the Prussian
+bullets; how many had been left dying of exhaustion or starvation
+after our terrible rides! They seemed to sleep, absorbed in some
+miserable dream of nothing but burdens to carry, blows <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[Pg 61]</a></span>to bear, and
+wounds to suffer. They were hanging their heads, but had not even the
+strength to crop the green blades growing here and there among the
+stalks of corn.</p>
+
+<p>I felt uneasy, wondering whether they would still be equal to an
+effort for the fight that was always likely and always desired.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly, from the ridge some 800 yards behind us, coming down like a
+bolt, I saw a horse, at full gallop. Its rider was gesticulating
+wildly. Strange to say, though not a word had been said, as though
+awakened by an electric current, every man had got up and had fixed
+his astonished eyes on the newcomer. He was an artillery
+non-commissioned officer; his face was crimson, his hair unkempt, his
+cap had come off his head and was dangling behind by the chin-strap.
+With a violent jerk he pulled up his foaming horse for a second:
+"Where is the Colonel&mdash;the Colonel?" With one voice the whole squadron
+replied: "There, on the road. What's the matter?"</p>
+
+<p>He had already set off again at full speed, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[Pg 62]</a></span>had reached the Colonel,
+and was bending down towards him. Even at that distance we could hear
+some of his words: "Uhlans ... near the woods, ... our guns, our
+teams...."</p>
+
+<p>Then it was like a miracle. Without any word of command, without any
+sign, in a moment the whole regiment was on horseback, sword in hand.
+The Colonel alone had remained standing. With the greatest calmness he
+asked the sergeant in an undertone for some information; and the man
+answered him with emphatic gestures. All eyes were fixed upon the
+group. Everybody waited breathlessly for the order which was going to
+be given and repeated by five hundred voices, by five hundred men
+drunk with joy.</p>
+
+<p>We believed the glorious hour was at last come, which we had been
+awaiting with so much impatience since the opening of the campaign.
+The charge! That indescribable thing which is the <i>raison d'&ecirc;tre</i> of
+the trooper, that sublime act which pierces, rends, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[Pg 63]</a></span>and crushes by a
+furious onslaught&mdash;wild gallop, with uplifted sword, yelling mouth,
+and frenzied eyes. The charge! The charge of our great ancestors, of
+those demi-gods, Murat, Lasalle, Cur&eacute;ly, Kellermann and so many
+others! The charge we had been asking for, with all our hearts, ever
+since the opening of the campaign, and which had always been denied
+us!</p>
+
+<p>Ah! that famous German cavalry, that set up its doctrine of pushing
+the attack to the death, what hatred and what contempt had we
+conceived for them! We had one desire, and one only&mdash;to measure
+ourselves with them. And every time we had seen their squadrons the
+result had been either that they had turned and retired in good order
+behind their lines of infantry, or they had drawn us into some
+ambuscade under the pitiless fire of their deadly machine-guns.</p>
+
+<p>Were we at last to meet them and measure our swords with their lances?</p>
+
+<hr />
+
+<p>The regiment moved off in one body behind <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[Pg 64]</a></span>the Colonel, who, riding a
+big chestnut horse and as calm as at man[oe]uvres, led us at a gentle
+trot skirting the little clumps of trees that dotted the plain. A
+troop had gone forward in a halo of glittering dust to act as an
+advance guard.</p>
+
+<p>Our horses seemed to have understood what we were about. Or was it we
+who had passed on to them the fighting spirit that fired us? I felt
+behind me the thrill that ran through my men. The first rank could not
+manage to keep the correct distance, the yard and a half, which ought
+to separate it from its leader. Even the corporal in the centre
+allowed his horse to graze the haunches of mine, "Tourne-Toujours," my
+gallant charger, the fiery thoroughbred which had so often maddened me
+at the riding schools of the regiment and at man[oe]uvres, by his
+savageness and the shaking he gave me. "Tourne-Toujours" gave evident
+signs of excitement. By his pawing the ground every now and then he,
+an officer's horse, seemed to resent the close proximity of mere troop
+horses. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[Pg 65]</a></span>And certainly, under ordinary circumstances, I should have
+fallen foul of the rider imprudent enough to ride close to his heels.
+But on that occasion I merely laughed in my sleeve, knowing that in a
+few minutes, when the charge had begun, "Tourne-Toujours" would soon
+have made them all keep their proper distance, and something more.</p>
+
+<p>I took a pleasure in looking at the faces of the men of the third
+squadron, whose troops were riding in column abreast of us. Their
+chins were raised, their eyes wide open, intent, under the shade of
+their cap-peaks, upon the slightest irregularities of the ground
+ahead. Their hands grasped their sword-hilts tightly. Major B.,
+leaning well forward, and riding between the two squadrons, was
+practising some furious cutting-strokes. What a grand fight it was
+going to be! How we should rejoice to see the curved sabres of our
+comrades rising against the clear sky to slash down upon the leather
+<i>schapskas</i> of our foe! We waited for the word that was to let loose
+the pent-up energy of all those tense muscles.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[Pg 66]</a></span>A trooper came back from the advance guard at full speed, and brought
+up his horse with the spur beside the Colonel. He reported in short
+sentences, which we could not hear. The Colonel turned towards our
+Captain, who was behind him, leaning forward over his horse, all
+attention, with his sword lowered, receiving the orders given in an
+undertone. We only heard the last sentence: "I shall support you with
+the rest of the regiment."</p>
+
+<p>"Thank Heaven!" thought I; "it is we; it is our dear squadron that is
+to have the honour of attacking first." Every man pulled himself
+together. Every man felt conscious of all the glory in store for us.
+Every man prepared to perform exploits which, we felt sure, would
+astonish the rest of the regiment, of the army, and of France.
+Forward! Forward! Forward!</p>
+
+<p>The troops had already ridden past the Colonel at an easy gallop, and
+we suddenly found ourselves strangely isolated in that vast tract of
+country which, a few minutes before, we had passed over in a body.
+There was a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[Pg 67]</a></span>succession of yellow or green fields, with here and there
+some leafy thicket. On our left, surrounded by orchards, rose the grey
+and massive buildings of the farm of Bel-Air. In front of us, some few
+hundred yards off, there was a dark line of wood, the lower part of
+which was hidden from us by a slight rise in the ground.</p>
+
+<p>Hardly had the first troop reached the top of the brow when some shots
+were fired at us. We at once understood. Again we were to be deprived
+of the pleasure of measuring ourselves with their Uhlans at close
+quarters. We saw distinctly on the edge of the wood, kneeling and
+ready to fire, some fifty sharp-shooters in grey uniform and round
+caps without peaks. We recognised them easily.</p>
+
+<p>It was one of their cyclist detachments that had slipped into the wood
+and had been quietly waiting for us with rifles levelled. As usual,
+their cavalry had retired under cover of their line.</p>
+
+<p>What did it matter to us? The wood was <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[Pg 68]</a></span>not thick enough to prevent
+our horses from getting through, and the temptation to let the fellows
+have a taste of our steel was too strong. I rejoiced at the thought of
+seeing their heavy boots scuttle away through the trees. I resolved to
+have a thrust at the skirts of their tunics, to help them on a bit.</p>
+
+<p>The Captain understood the general feeling. "Form up!" he cried.</p>
+
+<p>In a twinkling a moving wall had been formed, to the music of merrily
+clinking stirrups and scabbards and jangling metal; and the gallop
+towards the wood began.</p>
+
+<p>Just at that moment its skirts were outlined by a circle of fire, and
+a violent fusillade rang out. Bullets whistled in all directions, and
+behind me I heard the heavy sound of men and horses falling on the
+hard ground. In my troop a horse without a rider broke away and came
+galloping towards me. What did it matter? Forward! Forward!</p>
+
+<p>We were about 200 yards off. We spurred our horses and got into our
+stride.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly a horrible fear took the place <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[Pg 69]</a></span>of the martial joy that had
+urged us to the fight. We were all struck by the same discouragement,
+the same feeling of impotence, the same conviction of the uselessness
+of our sacrifice. We had just realised that the edge of the wood was
+surrounded with wire, and that it was behind this impassable barrier
+that the Prussians were calmly firing at us as at a target. What was
+to be done? How could we get at them and avenge our fellows who had
+fallen? For one second a feeling of horror and impotent rage passed,
+like a deep wave, over the squadron. The bullets whistled past us.</p>
+
+<p>But the Captain adopted the wisest course. He saw that retreat was
+necessary. He had, behind him, more than a hundred human lives, and
+felt they must be saved for better and more useful sacrifices. With a
+voice that rose above the noise of the firing, he shouted: "Follow me,
+in open order!" And he spurred in an oblique direction towards the
+nearest depression in the ground. But the movement was badly carried
+out. The <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[Pg 70]</a></span>men, disheartened, instead of spreading out like a flight of
+sparrows, rushed off in so compact a body that some more horses were
+knocked over by the Prussian bullets. How long those few seconds
+seemed to us! I wondered by what sort of miracle it was that we did
+not lose more men. But what an uncanny tune the innumerable bullets
+made in our ears as they pursued us like angry bees!</p>
+
+<p>At last we got under cover. Following a gully, the squadron reached a
+little wood, behind which it was able to re-form. The sweating horses
+snorted loudly. The men, sullen-mouthed and dejected, fell in without
+a word and dressed the line.</p>
+
+<p>In the fading light the roll was called by a non-commissioned officer
+in a subdued voice, whilst I looked on distressfully at the sad
+results of the useless charge. And yet our losses were not
+great&mdash;three troopers only, slightly wounded, who, far from grumbling
+at their mishap, seemed proud of the blood that stained their tunics
+and their hands. The <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[Pg 71]</a></span>men whose horses had fallen had already come up
+jogging heavily over the field of lucerne that stretched out before
+us. One man alone was absent; Paquin, a good little fellow, energetic
+and well disciplined, whose good humour I found especially attractive
+both under fire and in camp. But he would come in, no doubt. Cahard,
+his bed-fellow, told me that his horse had stumbled and thrown him. He
+thought he had even seen him get up again directly the charge had
+passed.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Mon Lieutenant, ... mon Lieutenant</i>, your horse is wounded."</p>
+
+<p>I had dismounted in a moment, and tears came to my eyes. I had
+forgotten the anger and impatience that "Tourne-Toujours'" savage
+temper had so often caused me. What had they done to my brave and
+noble companion-in-arms? A bullet had struck him inside the left thigh
+and, penetrating it, had made a horrible wound, as large as my hand,
+from which the blood was streaming all down his leg. Two other bullets
+had hit <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[Pg 72]</a></span>him, one in the flank, the other in the loins, leaving two
+small red holes. The noble animal had brought me back safely, and
+then, as he stood still on his four trembling legs, his neck raised,
+his nostrils dilated, his ears pricked, he fixed his eyes on the
+distance and seemed to look approaching death in the face. Poor
+'Tourne-Toujours,' you could not divine the pain I felt as I patted
+you, as gently as I should touch a little suffering child!</p>
+
+<p>But I had to shake off the sadness that wrung my heart. The day was
+gradually sinking, and Paquin had not come in. Two of the men quickly
+put my saddle on the horse of one of the wounded troopers. Whilst
+Surgeon-Major P., in the growing dusk, attended to the seriously
+wounded men stretched on the grass, I made up my mind to go out and
+see whether my little Chasseur was not still lying out on the scene of
+the charge.</p>
+
+<p>"Cahard, Finet, Mouniette, Vall&eacute;e, I want you."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[Pg 73]</a></span>At a gentle trot we sallied out from the cover of the wood. My four
+men, dispersed at wide intervals to my right and left, stood up in
+their stirrups from time to time to get a better view.</p>
+
+<p>The guns were silent. Now and again one or two isolated shots were
+heard. Night had almost fallen. On the horizon a long reddish streak
+of light still gave a feeble glow. Everything was becoming blurred and
+mysterious. In front of us stretched the disquieting mass of the wood
+that so lately had rained death on us. Above our heads flocks of black
+birds were wheeling and croaking.</p>
+
+<p>"Paquin!... Paquin!... Paquin!..."</p>
+
+<p>My Chasseurs shouted their comrade's name; but no voice answered. We
+were certainly on the ground the squadron had ridden over. Every now
+and then we came across the body of a horse, marking our mournful
+course. A poor mare with a broken leg neighed feebly, as if appealing
+for help to her stable-companions.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[Pg 74]</a></span>"Paquin!... Paquin!... Paquin!..."</p>
+
+<p>No response. We had to turn back and rejoin the others. War has many
+of those moments of pain when we have to control our feelings&mdash;forget
+those we love, those who are suffering, those who are dying&mdash;and think
+of nothing but our regiment, our squadron, our troop. Paquin's name
+would be marked on the roll as "missing"&mdash;a solemn word which means so
+many things, a word that leaves a little hope, but gives rise to so
+many fears.</p>
+
+<p>Over the fields, under a brilliant moon, the squadron retired in
+silence. Those who have served in war know that solemn moment when,
+after a day's fighting, each corps arrives at its appointed place of
+rest. It is the moment when in normal life nature falls asleep in the
+peace of evening. It is the moment when in villages and farms lights
+appear in the lower windows, behind which the family is seated around
+the steaming soup-tureen after the day's work.</p>
+
+<p>It is some time now since we have tasted the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[Pg 75]</a></span>exquisite peace of those
+moments. Instead, we have grown used to hearing over the wide country
+a monotonous and barbarous uproar caused by the thousands of cannon,
+limbers, vans, and vehicles of every kind which are the very life of
+an army. All these things rumble along methodically in the dark,
+clanking and creaking, towards a goal invisible and yet sure. Above
+this huge chaos voices rise in various keys: soldiers astray asking
+their road; van-drivers urging on their foot-sore teams; words of
+command given by leaders striving, in the dark, to prevent confusion
+among their units. This is the reverse of the shield of battle, the
+moment when we feel weariness of mind and body and the infinite
+sadness of remembering those who are no more....</p>
+
+<p>Away in the distance two villages were in flames, luridly lighting up
+some corners of the scene. That evening seemed to me sadder and more
+distressing than ever....</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="Chapter_III" id="Chapter_III"></a><hr />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[Pg 76]</a></span><br />
+
+<h3>III. RECONNOITRING COURGIVAULT<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+<br />
+
+
+<p class="right"><i>September 5th.</i></p>
+
+<p>The provisional brigade which had just been formed, with our regiment
+and the <i>Chasseurs d'Afrique</i> (African Light Cavalry), was paraded at
+dawn by our Colonel, who had taken command of it. The united regiments
+had been formed up under cover of a line of ridges, on the summit of
+which the watchful scouts stood out against the sky, looking north.
+The sun was already shining on the motley picture formed by the light
+uniforms of the dismounted troopers and the motionless rows of horses.
+They were all half asleep still.</p>
+
+<p>The Colonel had drawn up the officers of the brigade in front of the
+squadrons. He held a paper in his hand and read it to us in a resonant
+voice, full of unfamiliar vibrations. On hearing the first few
+sentences we drew closer around him as by instinct. We could not
+believe our ears. It was the first time <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[Pg 77]</a></span>we had heard anything like it
+since the outbreak of the war.</p>
+
+<p>When he had finished we were all amazed. Had we not been told the day
+before&mdash;when, together with the &mdash;&mdash; Corps, we crossed the Grand Morin
+closely pressed by the enemy's advance guard&mdash;had we not been told
+that we were going to retire to the Seine? And now in a few noble,
+simple words the Commander-in-Chief told us that the trials of that
+hideous retreat were over, and that the day had come to take the
+offensive. He asked us all to do our duty to the death and promised us
+victory.</p>
+
+<p>We returned to our squadrons in animated groups. Our delight was
+quickly communicated to the troops, who understood at once. The men
+exchanged jests and promises of fabulous exploits. They had already
+forgotten the fatigues of the fortnight's retreat. What did they care
+if their horses could hardly carry them further, and if many of them
+would be incapable of galloping?</p>
+
+<p>What did it matter?</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[Pg 78]</a></span>My fellow-officers and I were already making wonderful plans. Those of
+d'A., who had just finished his course of instruction as lieutenant at
+Saumur with honours, comprised vast movements of complicated strategy.
+They culminated in a prodigious but inevitable envelopment of the
+German armies, De F., more prosaic than the other, dreamt of
+Pantagruelian repasts liberally furnished with Rhine wines. O., a
+sub-lieutenant, just fresh from the Military College&mdash;which he had
+left with a No. 1, mind you&mdash;seemed like a young colt broken loose;
+his delight knew no bounds. As for our captain, Captain de la N., our
+kind and sympathetic chief, he was transfigured. The horrors of the
+retreat had affected him painfully, but the few lines that had been
+read to us had sufficed to restore all his joyous ardour.</p>
+
+<p>"Captain, the Colonel wants an officer."</p>
+
+<p>"Hurrah!" It was my turn for duty.... Just a few words of
+congratulation, some hands stretched out to me, and I went, leaving a
+general feeling of envy behind me. Here <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[Pg 79]</a></span>was I in the presence of the
+Colonel, who, with a map in his hand and surrounded by the superior
+officers, explained in a few short sentences what he required of me.</p>
+
+<p>"Take the direction of Courgivault. Reconnoitre and find out whether
+the village is occupied. You will report to me on the road which leads
+straight from here to the village. The brigade will follow you in an
+hour by the same road. I am sending two other parties towards such and
+such villages."</p>
+
+<p>And a few minutes afterwards I was on the road to Courgivault.</p>
+
+<p>I chose from my troop a corporal and four reliable fellows who had
+already given a good account of themselves. In advance I sent
+Vercherin, as scout, well mounted on his horse "Cabri," whose powerful
+haunches stood out above the tall oats. I had full confidence in his
+vigilance and his shrewdness. I knew his clear blue eyes, and that, if
+there were anything to be seen, he would see it better than any one
+else. I knew also that I should have no need to spur his zeal.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[Pg 80]</a></span>On either side of me Corporal Madelaine, Finet, a sapper, Lema&icirc;tre,
+and my faithful orderly, Wattrelot, rode along in silence in extended
+order at a considerable distance from one another. We had learnt by
+experience since the beginning of the campaign. We were on our guard
+now against Prussian bullets. We knew what ravages they made directly
+our troopers were imprudent enough to cluster together. Thus we ran
+fewer chances of being taken by surprise.</p>
+
+<p>The weather was splendid. How delightful, thought I, would it have
+been to walk over the fields, on a morning like this, with a gun under
+my arm, behind a good dog, in quest of partridges or a hare. But I had
+other game in view&mdash;no doubt more dangerous, but how much more
+exciting!</p>
+
+<p>The air was wonderfully clear, without the least trace of mist. The
+smallest detail of hedge and ditch could be easily distinguished. Our
+lungs breathed freely. We foresaw that the heat would be oppressive in
+a few hours' time, but the fresh air of the night still <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[Pg 81]</a></span>lingered, and
+bright pearls of dew still lay on the lucerne and stubble. What a joy
+to be alive in such delicious surroundings, with the hope of victory
+in one's heart!</p>
+
+<p>I fancy that those who have not been in this war will not be able to
+understand me, for I have not the skill to explain clearly what I feel
+by means of written words. A more practised pen than mine is needed
+for such a task, a mind more accustomed to analyse feelings.</p>
+
+<p>I seem to have within me the inspiration of a strange power that makes
+me light as air, and inclined to talk aloud to myself. And if I wanted
+to speak I certainly should not find the words I wanted. Perhaps it is
+that I simply want to shout, to cry "Hurrah!" again and again. It must
+be that, for I find myself clenching my teeth instinctively to prevent
+myself from giving way to such an untimely outburst.</p>
+
+<p>Nevertheless, it would be a relief to be able to shout at the top of
+my voice and sing hymns of glory confronting the enemy. I <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[Pg 82]</a></span>should like
+to hear the whole army following my example behind me, to hear all the
+bands and all the trumpets accompanying our advance with those
+matchless war-songs which thrill the soul and bring tears to the eyes.</p>
+
+<p>Here I was, on the contrary, in conditions of absolute calm, of the
+most impressive silence conceivable. Until that day the country, at
+that hour of the day, had echoed with the innumerable noises made by
+an army in retreat. Thousands of cannon, limbers, and convoys had been
+passing along all the roads and all practicable by-ways monotonously
+and ceaselessly. Often, too, the first shots exchanged by the cavalry
+scouts of both the hostile armies could be heard.</p>
+
+<p>We heard nothing that day. In front nothing stirred: the country
+seemed deserted; the fields forsaken. Not a living creature showed
+itself.</p>
+
+<p>Behind us, too, there was complete silence. But I knew that an entire
+army was there, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[Pg 83]</a></span>waiting for us to send information, before advancing
+to the fight. That information would direct its blows.... I knew my
+brigade was behind that rise in the ground, and that all, officers and
+troopers alike, were impatient to rush upon my tracks to the attack. I
+knew that behind them, lying by sections in the plough-land, thousands
+and thousands of infantrymen had their eyes fixed in the direction I
+was taking, and that hundreds and hundreds of guns were ready to pour
+out death. But that disciplined multitude was silent and, as it were,
+holding its breath, waiting for the order that was to hurl it forward.
+I felt in excellent spirits.</p>
+
+<p>It was upon <i>me</i>, and upon a few comrades, that the confidence of so
+many soldiers rested. It was to be by <i>our</i> directions that the
+regiments were to rush forward, some here, some there, carrying death
+and receiving death with, for the first time, the certainty of
+conquering; since for the first time the Commander-in-Chief had said
+that conquer <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[Pg 84]</a></span>they must. And not for an instant had I any fear of not
+being equal to my task. On the contrary, it seemed to me that I had
+been destined from all eternity to command this first offensive
+reconnaissance of the campaign in France.... I felt my men's hearts
+beating close to mine and in unison with mine.</p>
+
+<p>I had consulted my map before breaking into a trot, and had noticed
+that the road leading to Courgivault passed through two woods, not
+very deep, but of considerable extent. I soon came in sight of one of
+them, at about 500 yards distance, below a ridge which we had just
+passed. I called out to Vercherin, who had begun to spur his horse
+towards the wood, to stop. I knew that numbers of men had fallen by
+having acted in this way&mdash;a way we have at man[oe]uvres, when the
+enemy are our comrades with white badges on their caps, and when
+harmless blank cartridges are used instead of bullets. We had very
+soon learnt from the Germans themselves the way to reconnoitre a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[Pg 85]</a></span>wood
+or a village, and also how they must be held.</p>
+
+<p>How much more dashing it would have been, more in the light cavalry
+style, to ride full gallop, brandishing my sword, with my five little
+Chasseurs into the nearest copse! But I knew then that if it were
+occupied by the enemy their men would be lying down, one with the
+soil, using the trees and bushes as cover, till the last moment. Then
+not one of us would have come out alive.</p>
+
+<p>We were reduced to employing against them their own tactics of mounted
+infantry. The good old times of hussar charges are past&mdash;gone,
+together with plumes, pelisses waving in the wind, Hungarian braiding,
+and sabretaches. It would be senseless to continue to be a horseman in
+order to fight men who are no longer cavalrymen and do not wish to be
+so. We should fight at a disadvantage, and since the opening of the
+campaign too many brave soldiers have paid with their lives for their
+delight in epic fights <i>&agrave; la</i> Lasalle.</p>
+
+<p>I searched the edge of the wood carefully <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[Pg 86]</a></span>with my field-glasses.
+Before entering it I wanted to be quite sure whether any movement
+could be discovered, whether any of the brushwood showed signs of
+being drawn aside by sharpshooters too eager for a shot. My men were
+on the watch, crouching in attitudes that would have pleased Neuville,
+their carbines ready, looking with all their eyes and listening with
+all their ears. Nothing! I called Vercherin with a low whistle. The
+silence was such that he heard it. He understood the sign I made him,
+and, holding his carbine high, he went slowly towards the wood and got
+into it quickly by the road.</p>
+
+<p>My heart beat for a moment when I saw my scout getting near the thick
+border-line of trees; but now I breathed again. We went in after him,
+each one by a different opening, and we passed through it as quickly
+as the horses' legs and the difficulties of the ground would allow. On
+arriving at the further side I was glad to see my four companions
+emerging, almost at the same moment, from the thick woody tangle. I
+could see their grave <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[Pg 87]</a></span>and confident faces turned towards me. On the
+ridge in front of us, near a solitary tree, stood Vercherin, clear
+against the sky and motionless.</p>
+
+<p>We had soon rejoined him, and from this height we saw on the next hill
+the second wood which hid the village of Courgivault from our view,
+about a kilometre further off. I feared very much that this second
+barrier might be used by the enemy as a formidable line of defence,
+and on that account I ordered the approach to be made with still
+greater precautions than before. But, as in the first case, we found
+it empty, and passed through without let or hindrance.</p>
+
+<p>I expected to see Courgivault at once, but a rise in the ground hid it
+still. I took advantage of this natural cover for getting my men
+forward without risking a shot. Then, still preceded by Vercherin, we
+debouched on the plateau on which the village stood.</p>
+
+<p>Those who have found themselves in a similar situation know by
+experience the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[Pg 88]</a></span>sudden emotion that is felt when one sees a few
+hundred yards off the objective of one's mission, the decisive point
+one has to reach, cost what it may; the point where one is almost sure
+to find the enemy in hiding, where one has a suspicion that he sees
+one, is watching one, silently following all one's movements, and only
+waiting for the opportunity of picking one off by an unerring shot.</p>
+
+<p>I stopped my men for a moment. Surrounded by green meadows and
+stubble-fields dotted with apple-trees, lay the grey outskirts of the
+village It was a very ordinary collection of houses, some of them big
+farms, others humble cottages. The tiled roofs formed a reddish mass,
+and above them rose the squat church tower. With my glasses I could
+distinguish the clock-dial, and could see the time&mdash;a quarter past
+six.</p>
+
+<p>But this clock seemed to be the only thing in the village with any
+life in it. I looked in vain into the gardens and orchards, which
+formed a belt of flowers and foliage, for signs of the peaceful
+animation of country life. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[Pg 89]</a></span>And yet it was the time of day when one
+usually sees housewives coming out of the cowsheds, with their sleeves
+tucked up and their feet in clogs, carrying pails full of fresh
+milk&mdash;the time when the heavy carts and reaping machines lumber slowly
+along the brown roads on their way to the day's work. Was it the war
+that had driven away all those poor village folk, or was it the rough
+fist of the Teuton that kept them prisoners locked up in their cellars
+and threatened with revolvers?</p>
+
+<p>And yet, from where I stood, nothing could lead me to suppose that the
+village was occupied by the enemy. I could not distinguish any work of
+defence. There did not seem to be any barricade protecting the
+entrance. No sentinel was visible at the corners of the stacks or
+under the trees.</p>
+
+<p>To the south of the village, pointing in our direction, the imposing
+bulk of a large farm protruded, like the prow of a ship. It seemed to
+form an advanced bastion of a fortress, represented by Courgivault.
+Its walls were high and white. At the end a strong round <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[Pg 90]</a></span>tower was
+planted, roofed with slates; and this enhanced the likeness to a
+miniature donjon. The road we had followed, winding between the
+fields, passed, so far as we could judge, in front of its principal
+entrance. Opposite this entrance there was apparently another road at
+right angles to the first, its direction marked by a line of trees
+which bordered it. Along this road, separated by short intervals, a
+dozen big stacks had the appearance of a threatening line of battle
+facing us, so as to bar our approach to the village.</p>
+
+<p>All these things were steeped in the same atmosphere of silence, which
+certainly had a more tragic effect than the din of battle. I was
+impressed with the idea that the two armies had withdrawn in opposite
+directions, and that we were left behind, forgotten, at 100 kilometres
+distance from both of them.</p>
+
+<p>But we had to come to the point. At a sign from me Vercherin reached
+the first tree of a long row of poplars. The row started from the farm
+and bordered the road we were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[Pg 91]</a></span>following up to about 100 yards from
+the outer wall. By slipping along from one tree to another he would be
+able to get near in comparative safety. Suddenly I saw him stop
+quickly and, standing up in his stirrups, look straight ahead towards
+the stacks.</p>
+
+<p>There was no need for him to make any sign to me. I understood that he
+saw something, and I galloped up to him at once. He was as calm as
+usual, only his blue eyes were a little more dilated, and he spoke
+more rapidly, with an accent I had not heard before.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Mon Lieutenant</i>, ... there behind that stack, it seemed to me ... I
+thought I saw a head rise above the grass...."</p>
+
+<p>I looked in the direction he pointed to with his carbine, which he
+held at arm's length. I saw nothing but the silent and peaceful
+village; I had the same impression of a hateful and depressing void.
+And, strange to say, our two horses, whose reins had been hanging
+loose on their necks, appeared to be suddenly seized with a
+simultaneous terror, and both at once turned right <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[Pg 92]</a></span>round. I managed
+to bring mine back by applying the spur, and while Vercherin, who was
+carried further, came back slowly, I used my glasses again, to make a
+closer inspection of all the points of the village.</p>
+
+<p>Then, at the very moment that I was putting the glasses to my eyes, I
+saw, at less than 100 yards distance, a whole line of sharpshooters,
+dressed in grey, rise quickly in front of me. For one short moment a
+terrible pang shot through us. How many were there? Perhaps 300. And
+almost at the same time a formidable volley of rifle shots rang out.
+They had been watching us for a long time. Lying in the grass that
+lined the road leading to the farm or else behind the stacks, with the
+admirable discipline which makes them so formidable, they had carried
+out their orders. Not one of them had shown himself. The <i>Hauptmann</i>
+(captain) alone, no doubt, put up his head from time to time in order
+to judge the favourable moment for ordering them to fire. It was he,
+no doubt, very fortunately for us, who had been <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[Pg 93]</a></span>perceived by
+Vercherin just for one moment. If it had not been for the prudence
+which we had gained by experience not one of us would have escaped.
+Fortunately every one of my men had kept the place exactly that I had
+assigned him. Not one of them flinched under the storm. And yet,
+Heaven knows what sinister music the bullets played around our ears!
+We had to be off.</p>
+
+<p>I made a sign which was quickly understood. We all turned and galloped
+off towards the little depression we had emerged from just before. The
+bullets accompanied us with their hateful hissing, which made us duck
+our heads instinctively. But inwardly I rejoiced at their eagerness to
+lay us low, for in their hurry they aimed badly.</p>
+
+<p>We had almost reached our shelter when I suddenly saw to the right of
+me "Ramier," Lema&icirc;tre's horse, fall like a log. As I was trying to
+stop my mare, who showed an immoderate desire to put herself out of
+danger, I saw both horse and rider struggling for a moment on the
+ground, forming a confused <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[Pg 94]</a></span>mixture of hoofs in the air and waving
+arms. Then "Ramier" got up and set off alone, neighing sadly, and with
+a limping trot that did not look very promising.</p>
+
+<p>But Lema&icirc;tre was already on his legs, putting his crushed shako
+straight on his head. A bit stunned, he seemed to collect his ideas
+for an instant, and then I saw his good-natured ruddy face turned
+towards me. It lit up with a broad grin.</p>
+
+<p>"Any damage, old fellow?" I asked.</p>
+
+<p>"Nothing broken, sir."</p>
+
+<p>"Hurry up, then."</p>
+
+<p>And there was Lema&icirc;tre, striding along with his short legs and heavy
+boots, jumping ditches and banks with a nimbleness of which I declare
+I should not have thought him capable. It is curious to note the
+agility the report of a rifle volley lends to the legs of a dismounted
+trooper. Lema&icirc;tre came in to the shelter in the valley as soon as I
+did; and almost at the same time Finet, the sapper, brought in his old
+road-companion "Ramier," which he had been able <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[Pg 95]</a></span>to catch. It was
+painful to see the poor animal; his lameness had already become more
+marked. He could only get along with great difficulty, and his eyes
+showed he was in pain.</p>
+
+<p>I glanced hurriedly at the spot where the bullet had struck him. The
+small hole could hardly be seen against the brown skin, just at the
+point of the left buttock.</p>
+
+<p>"Just wait here for us; I shall be back in a moment."</p>
+
+<p>I wanted to see if to the east of the village I could note anything
+interesting, and I turned round towards my other troopers, whose
+horses were panting behind us. I was horrified to see Corporal
+Madelaine's face streaming with blood.</p>
+
+<p>"It is nothing, sir ...; it passed in front of my nose."</p>
+
+<p>He wiped his face with the back of his hand. It had indeed been grazed
+by a bullet. One half-inch more, and the good fellow's nose would have
+been carried off. Fortunately <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[Pg 96]</a></span>the skin was hardly broken. Madelaine
+went on:</p>
+
+<p>"It's nothing; ... but my mare...."</p>
+
+<p>He had dismounted, and with a look of distress showed me his horse's
+blood-stained thigh. "Attraction" was the name of his pretty and
+delicate little grey mare, which he loved and cared for passionately.
+A bullet had pierced her thigh right through, and the blood had flowed
+down her leg. I calmed him by saying, "Come, come; it will be nothing.
+Go on foot behind that wood, and get quietly under cover with
+Lema&icirc;tre. I will soon come and join you."</p>
+
+<p>And I went off with Vercherin, Finet, and Wattrelot. I tried to get
+round to the right of Courgivault. But now that the first shots had
+been fired we were not allowed to come nearer. As soon as we appeared
+a violent fusillade burst from the outskirts of the village, which
+forced us to beat a rapid retreat. There was no longer any doubt about
+it; Courgivault was occupied, and occupied in strength.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[Pg 97]</a></span>Under the shelter of a bank I quickly dismounted, and Wattrelot took
+my horse's bridle. Whilst I knelt on one knee and on the other wrote
+my report for the Colonel, Vercherin and Finet, at an interval of 100
+yards, kept a good look-out on the ridge for the enemy's movements. I
+handed my message to Wattrelot:</p>
+
+<p>"Take this to the Colonel, and quickly. I will wait here for the
+brigade."</p>
+
+<p>I then rode slowly to the corner of the wood, where Madelaine and
+Lema&icirc;tre were posted, whilst Wattrelot went off at a trot across the
+stubble. But a sad sight was awaiting me.</p>
+
+<p>Lema&icirc;tre was standing in great grief over poor "Ramier," lying inert
+on the ground and struggling feebly with death. His eyes were already
+dull and his legs convulsed. Every now and then he shuddered
+violently.</p>
+
+<p>I looked at Lema&icirc;tre, who felt as if he were losing his best friend.
+And, indeed, is not our horse our best friend when we are
+campaigning&mdash;the friend that serves us well to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[Pg 98]</a></span>the very last, that
+saves us time and again from death, and carries us until he can carry
+us no longer? I dismounted and threw the reins to Lema&icirc;tre:</p>
+
+<p>"Don't grieve, my good fellow; it is a fine end for your 'Ramier.' He
+might, like so many others, have died worn out with work or suffering
+under some hedgerow. He has a soldier's death. All we can do is to cut
+short his sufferings and send him quickly to rejoin his many good
+comrades in the paradise of noble animals. For they have their
+paradise, I am sure."</p>
+
+<p>But Lema&icirc;tre hardly seemed convinced. He shook his head sadly, and
+said:</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, <i>mon Lieutenant</i>! I shall never be able to replace him. Such a
+good animal! such a fine creature! He jumped so well.... And his coat
+was always so beautiful; he was so sleek and so easy to keep.... No, I
+shall never find another like him."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! yes, you will."</p>
+
+<p>However, I must confess my hand trembled as I drew my revolver. One
+horse the less in <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[Pg 99]</a></span>a troop is somewhat the same as one child the less
+in a family. And, besides, it means one trooper unmounted and the loss
+of a sword in battle. Lema&icirc;tre was right. "Ramier" was a good old
+servant, one of the kind that never goes lame, can feed on anything or
+on nothing, and never hurts anybody. It was hard to put an end to him;
+but since he was done for....</p>
+
+<p>I put the muzzle of my revolver into his ear. I did not wish him to
+feel the cold metal; but his whole body shuddered, and his eye,
+lighting up for a moment, seemed to reproach me. Paff! A short, sharp
+report, and "Ramier" quivered for a moment. Then his sufferings
+ceased, and his stiffening carcase added one more to the many that
+strewed the country.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst Lema&icirc;tre slung his heavy package on his shoulders and went off
+to return to the regiment with Corporal Madelaine, who was leading
+"Attraction," I went back to my observation post, not far from Finet
+and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[Pg 100]</a></span>Vercherin. Silence and gloom still hung over Courgivault.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly, behind me, coming out of the wood, I saw a cavalry troop in
+extended order, riding in our direction. They were <i>Chasseurs
+d'Afrique</i>. I recognised them by the large numbers of white horses,
+which made light patches upon the dark green of the thicket, and
+almost at the same moment a dull report resounded in the distance. A
+curious humming noise was heard above our heads, and a shell fell and
+burst at the foot of the stacks in the possession of the Prussian
+infantry. It came from one of our batteries of 75-millimetre guns,
+which was already getting the range of Courgivault.</p>
+
+<p>My message had reached the Colonel. The battle of the Marne had begun.</p>
+
+<hr />
+
+<p>Under a superbly clear sky, lit up by myriads of stars, the brigade,
+in a high state of delight, crossed the battlefield on returning to
+camp. Above our heads the last shells sent by the enemy were bursting
+in bouquets <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[Pg 101]</a></span>of fire. We paid no attention to them. Meeting some
+battalions of infantry on their way to reinforce the line, we were
+asked for news, and shouted: "Courgivault, Montceau ... taken, lost,
+then retaken with the bayonet by the brave infantry of the M.
+Division. Enemy's regiments annihilated by our artillery, which has
+done magnificently...."</p>
+
+<p>Little by little the firing died away along the whole line. Fires,
+started by the shells, lit up the battlefield on every side, like
+torches set ablaze for our glory. All hearts were filled with joy. It
+hovered over the blood-stained country, from which arose a kind of
+intoxication that took possession of our souls.</p>
+
+<p>How splendid is the evening of a first victory!</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="Chapter_IV" id="Chapter_IV"></a><hr />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[Pg 102]</a></span><br />
+
+<h3>IV. THE JAULGONNE AFFAIR<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+<br />
+
+
+<p>On September 9, at about eight o'clock in the evening, our advanced
+scouts entered Montigny-les-Cond&eacute; at the moment when the last dragoons
+of the Prussian Guard were leaving it at full speed. Our pursuit was
+stopped by the night, which was very dark. Large threatening clouds
+were moving across the sky, making it impossible to see ten paces
+ahead. Whilst the captains were hastily posting guards all round the
+village, whilst the lieutenants were erecting barricades at all the
+outlets and setting sentries over them, the quartermasters had all the
+barns and stables thrown open. With the help of the inhabitants they
+portioned out, as well as they could, the insufficient accommodation
+among the men and the horses of the squadrons. In each troop camp
+fires were lighted under shelter of the walls so that the enemy should
+not see them.</p>
+
+<p>What a dinner we had that evening! It was <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[Pg 103]</a></span>in a large room with a low
+open roof supported by small beams. The walls were smoke-blackened and
+dirty. On a chest placed near the door I can see still a big pile of
+ration loaves, thrown together anyhow; and leaning over the hearth of
+the large fireplace, lit up by the wood fire, was an unknown man who
+was stirring something in a pot. Round the large table a score of
+hungry and jaded but merry officers were fraternally sharing some
+pieces of meat which the man took out of the pot.</p>
+
+<p>The Captain and I ate out of the same plate and drank out of the same
+metal cup, for crockery was scarce. The poor woman of the house ran
+round the table, consumed by her eagerness to make everybody
+comfortable. And in the farthest corner, away from the light, a very
+old peasant, with a dazed look and haggard eyes, was watching the
+unexpected scene. The company heartily cheered Captain C. for his
+cleverness in finding and bringing to light, from some nook or other,
+a large pitcher of rough wine.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[Pg 104]</a></span>For three days we had been pursuing and fighting the German army, and
+we were tired out; but we had not felt it until the evening on
+stopping to give our poor horses a little rest. Before the last
+mouthful had been swallowed several of us were already snoring with
+their heads on their arms upon the table.</p>
+
+<p>The rest were talking about the situation. The enemy was retreating
+rapidly on the Marne. He must have crossed it now, leaving as cover
+for his retreat the division of the Cavalry of the Guard which our
+brigade had been fighting unceasingly ever since the battle of
+September 6. Would they have time to blow up all the bridges behind
+them? Should we be obliged to wait until our sappers had built new
+ones before we could resume our pursuit?</p>
+
+<p>We were particularly anxious about two fine officers that our Colonel
+had just sent out that night on a reconnaissance&mdash;F., of the
+<i>Chasseurs d'Afrique</i>, and my old friend O., of our squadron. We
+wondered anxiously whether they would be able to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[Pg 105]</a></span>perform their
+task&mdash;to get at all costs as far as the Marne, and let us know by dawn
+whether the river could be crossed either at Mont Saint P&egrave;re,
+Jaulgonne, Passy-sur-Marne, or Dormans. Nothing could have been more
+hazardous than these expeditions, made on a dark night across a
+district still occupied by the enemy.</p>
+
+<p>The night was short. Before day dawned the horses were saddled and the
+men ready to mount. And as soon as the first rays of morning filtered
+through, my squadron, which had been told off as advance guard of the
+brigade, rapidly descended the steep slopes which commanded the small
+town of Cond&eacute;. A.'s troop led. My business was to reconnoitre the
+eastern part of the town with mine, whilst F., with his troop, was to
+see to the western quarters.</p>
+
+<p>With sabres drawn, our Chasseurs distributed themselves briskly, by
+squads, through the streets of the old city. The horses' hoofs
+resounded cheerily on the paved streets between the old grey houses.
+The inhabitants <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[Pg 106]</a></span>ventured out upon their doorsteps, in spite of the
+early hour, with some hesitation at first, but glad indeed when they
+saw our light-blue uniforms; they cheered, crying: "They are gone!...
+they are gone!" But some old folk replied more calmly to my questions:
+"<i>Monsieur l'Officier</i>, have a care. They were here an hour ago with a
+large number of horses and guns. There was even a general, with his
+whole staff, lodged at the great house up there.... We would not swear
+that some of them are not there still."</p>
+
+<p>I collected my troop, and then went quickly to the ch&acirc;teau which stood
+at the northern entrance of Cond&eacute;. It was rather a fine building, but
+I had not time to notice its architectural style. Haste was necessary,
+for the brigade behind me was due to arrive. As far as I remember, the
+ch&acirc;teau formed a harmonious whole, and the different parts of it
+showed up cheerfully against the dark foliage of the park, which was
+still glittering after the night's rain. The building was in the form
+of a horseshoe, and in the centre <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[Pg 107]</a></span>there was a kind of courtyard
+bordered by two rows of orange trees in tubs.</p>
+
+<p>I at once posted two guards, one on the road to provide against any
+surprise and the other at the park entrance to prevent egress, in case
+any fugitive should attempt to pass. Then, with the rest of my men, I
+rode through the large gilded iron gates at a trot. In the avenue
+which led to the house two men were standing motionless. One of them,
+dressed in black and clean-shaven, appeared to be some old servant of
+the family, the other must have been one of the gardeners. Their pale
+faces and red eyes showed that they had had little sleep that night.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, my friend," said I to one of them, "is there anybody left at
+your place?"</p>
+
+<p>"Sir," he answered, "I couldn't tell you; for I have not set foot in
+the house since they left it. What I do know is that they feasted all
+night and got horribly drunk. They have drunk the whole cellar dry,
+and I shouldn't be surprised if some of them are still under the
+table."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[Pg 108]</a></span>But when I asked him to come in with me, to act as guide for our
+visit, he refused with a look of horror. He trembled all over at the
+thought of seeing perchance one of the guests who had been forced upon
+him. As there was no time to be lost, I told my men to dismount at
+once, and gave orders to one corporal to search the right wing of the
+building, to another to reconnoitre the left wing. I myself undertook
+to see about the central block with the rest of my troop. We had to
+make haste, so I instructed my subordinates to go quickly through the
+different rooms and not to inspect them in detail.</p>
+
+<p>The entrance door was wide open. Taking my revolver in my hand, I
+entered the hall, which was in indescribable disorder. Orderlies had
+evidently slept and had their meals there, for the stone floor was
+littered with straw, and empty bottles, sardine-boxes, and pieces of
+bread were lying about. But when I opened the door of the dining-room
+I could not help pausing for a moment to look at the strange sight
+before me. The grey light of that <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[Pg 109]</a></span>September morning came in through
+four large windows and shone dimly upon the long table. The officers
+of the Guard had certainly made their arrangements well. They had
+levied contribution upon all the silver plate that could be found,
+which was hardly necessary, for, as they had arrived too late to have
+a proper meal prepared, they had to be content with what they had
+brought with them. The contrast between the rich plate, some of it
+broken, the empty silver dishes, and the empty tins of preserved meat
+was strange indeed. But they had solaced themselves in the cellar.
+Innumerable bottles, both empty and full, were piled upon the
+furniture. Costly glasses of all shapes and sizes, some empty, others
+still half full, were standing about in every direction. The white
+tablecloth was soiled with large purple stains. The floor was littered
+with bits of smashed glass. By the table, the chairs that had been
+pushed back or overturned showed the number of drinkers to have been
+about ten. An acrid smell of tobacco and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[Pg 110]</a></span>wine hung about this scene
+of an overnight orgy.</p>
+
+<p>One thing I specially remember: the sight of an officer's cap, with a
+red band, hanging from one of the branches of the large chandelier in
+the centre of the room. And I could not help picturing to my mind the
+head of the man it had belonged to, some <i>Rittmeister</i>, with an
+eyeglass, fat pink cheeks and neck bulging over the collar of his
+tunic. What a pity he had been able to decamp! That is the kind of
+countenance we should so much have liked to see closer and face to
+face.</p>
+
+<p>But I could not wait. We rushed hastily through drawing-rooms turned
+upside down, and bedrooms where the beds still bore traces of summary
+use by heavy bodies. But we found no forgotten drunkard in them.</p>
+
+<p>My two corporals were already waiting for us when we returned to the
+courtyard. They had not found any one in their search. Quickly we
+mounted, and passed rapidly out by the gilded gates. The old servant
+and the gardener were still on the same spot, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[Pg 111]</a></span>standing silent and
+depressed. They said not a word to us, nor did they make any sign;
+they seemed to be completely unhinged and incapable of understanding
+what had happened.</p>
+
+<p>I had hardly returned to the squadron when I saw a sight I can never
+forget. At a turn in the road three horsemen came towards us covered
+with blood. I recognised F., the officer of <i>Chasseurs d'Afrique</i>, who
+had been sent out to reconnoitre the evening before. He had lost his
+cap, and had his head bound up with a blood-stained handkerchief. His
+left arm was likewise slung in an improvised bandage tied round his
+neck. He was followed by two men who were also covered with wounds.
+Their eyes shone bright and resolute in their feverish faces. One of
+them, having no scabbard, was still holding his sword, which was
+twisted and stained with blood. We pulled up instinctively and
+saluted.</p>
+
+<p>"I haven't been able to reach the Marne," said F., with disappointment
+in his voice. "But, being fired upon by their outposts in <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[Pg 112]</a></span>the dark,
+we charged and got through, and then charged through two villages
+under a hail of bullets; and again we had to charge their outposts to
+get back. You see, ... I have brought back two men out of eight, and
+all my horses have been killed.... These horses"&mdash;pointing to his
+own&mdash;"are those of three Uhlans we killed so as not to have to come
+home on foot."</p>
+
+<p>Certainly they were not riding the pretty little animals that make
+such excellent mounts for our <i>Chasseurs d'Afrique</i>, but were perched
+on three big mares with the heavy German equipment.</p>
+
+<p>"But," F. repeated in a tone of vexation, "I wasn't able to get to the
+Marne.... There were too many of them for us."</p>
+
+<p>We pressed his unwounded hand warmly. Poor F.! Brave fellow! Not many
+days afterwards he was to meet a glorious death charging once more,
+with three Chasseurs, to rescue one of his men who had been wounded. A
+more perfect type of cavalryman&mdash;I might say, of knight&mdash;was never
+seen. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[Pg 113]</a></span>He sleeps now, riddled with lance wounds, in the plains of
+Champagne.</p>
+
+<p>We had hardly left him when we caught sight of the reconnoitring party
+of my comrade O., and were overjoyed to find that he had come back
+unscathed with all his men. And yet he had had to face a fair number
+of dangers&mdash;attacks by cyclists and pursuit by cavalry. At Cr&eacute;zancy,
+where he arrived at three o'clock in the morning, he found the village
+occupied and strongly held. There is only one bridge over the railway
+there, and that is at the other end of the village. By good luck he
+was able to get hold of one of the inhabitants; and he forced him, by
+holding his revolver to his head, to guide him by all sorts of byways
+so as to make a circuit without attracting attention and get to the
+bridge. There he set forward at a gallop, and passed, in spite of
+being fired on by the guard. At last he reached the Marne. The only
+bridge he found intact for crossing the river was the bridge at
+Jaulgonne, a slender, fragile suspension-bridge, but one that we
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[Pg 114]</a></span>should be very glad to find if there was still time to use it. He then
+hurried back through the woods, but not without having to run the
+gauntlet of rifle fire several times more. He brought back information
+which was to guide our advance.</p>
+
+<p>It was seen at once that there was not a minute to lose. The Captain
+detached me immediately, with my troop, to act as a flank-guard along
+the line of wooded crests by which the road on the right was
+commanded, whilst F., with his troop, crossed the Surmelin and the
+railway which runs alongside of it, and went to carry out the same
+task on the other side of the valley.</p>
+
+<p>My job was difficult enough. In fact, the heights, which look down
+upon the course of the Surmelin to the east, consist of a series of
+ridges separated by narrow ravines at right angles to the river, and
+these we had to cross to continue our route towards the north. The
+enemy seemed to have withdrawn completely from this region, and the
+cannon fire in the distance towards the east could hardly <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[Pg 115]</a></span>be heard.
+At last, at about seven o'clock in the morning, we debouched upon the
+valley of the Marne.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst I sent some troopers along the road which winds by the Surmelin
+to keep in touch with my Captain, I carefully inspected the right bank
+of the Marne with my glasses. The scene would have tempted a painter,
+and the labours of war do not prevent one from enjoying the charm of
+such delightful pictures. The sun was gradually dispersing the mist of
+the sullen morning, and was beginning to gild the wooded heights which
+look down upon the two banks of the river. Everywhere a calm was
+reigning, which seemed to promise a day of exquisite beauty. We might
+have fancied that we were bent on some peaceful rural work favoured by
+a radiant autumn morning. The Marne in this region winds in graceful
+curves. It flows limpid and clear through a narrow valley carpeted
+with green meadows and bordered, right and left, by gentle hills
+dotted with woods. At our feet, peeping from the poplars and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[Pg 116]</a></span>beeches
+on the bank, we saw the white houses of dainty villages&mdash;Chart&egrave;ves,
+Jaulgonne, Varennes, and Barzy.</p>
+
+<p>I directed my attention more particularly towards Jaulgonne, because
+it was in that direction that the attempt to cross the river would be
+made. The heights immediately above Jaulgonne rise steeply on the
+north bank, and almost stand in the river. On the other hand, to the
+south, on our side, the left bank of the Marne is bordered by
+extensive meadows crossed by the railway and the high-road to &Eacute;pernay.
+The position therefore would have been very strong for the Germans, if
+they had crossed to the other side of the river, for we should have
+been obliged, before we could reach the bridge, to traverse a vast
+open expanse which they could have kept under the fire of their
+artillery. My Chasseurs, prompt to grasp the reason of things,
+scrutinised the opposite bank no less intently than I. No movement
+could be seen; nothing suggested the presence of troops among the
+russet thickets which covered the sides of the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[Pg 117]</a></span>silent hill. Could
+they have already retired farther off? Could they have abandoned this
+formidable position without any attempt to defend it?</p>
+
+<p>At that moment one of my Chasseurs appeared, coming by the steep path
+which led from the road to the wooded ridge on which we were. His
+horse was panting, for the declivity was stiff, and he had had to
+hasten. He brought me orders.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Mon Lieutenant</i>, the Captain has sent me to tell you to join him as
+quickly as possible at the other end of the bridge. The first troop
+has already crossed, but some of the enemy's horse have been seen on
+the other side of the village."</p>
+
+<p>As he said these words we heard some firing in the distance, which
+sounded very distinct and sharp in the radiant peace of that beautiful
+September morning. "Come, so much the better," thought I. "We have
+engaged them. We shall have a good time." My men had already begun to
+joke and to be more alert and abrupt in their movements. It was a
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[Pg 118]</a></span>kind of joyous reaction which always affects troopers when they begin
+to hear the guns and look forward to a good hard ride in which they,
+like the rest of us, are always certain of getting the best of it.</p>
+
+<p>In single file we went quickly down towards the plain by the stony,
+slippery path. We soon reached the high-road, and then turned to the
+left and came upon the long causeway bordered by poplars which led to
+the bridge. Quite close to the bank I saw a small group of dismounted
+cavalrymen, and soon recognised our Colonel with his Brigade Staff. He
+was giving his orders to the Lieutenant-Colonel commanding the
+<i>Chasseurs d'Afrique</i>. I went up to him to report, and learnt that the
+first squadron had already crossed the river and occupied the village
+on the other side. Some parties of German cavalry had been seen on the
+neighbouring heights.</p>
+
+<p>I got ready to rejoin my comrades at once. But patience was required
+if the Marne was to be crossed. The bridge appeared to be a delicate
+sort of toy hovering over the water. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[Pg 119]</a></span>How could they dream of sending
+thousands of men, horses, and guns over a thing so slender that it
+looked as though it were supported by the fragile meshes of a spider's
+web? Captain D. gave me the Colonel's precise orders: not to pass more
+than four troopers at a time, and these at walking pace.</p>
+
+<p>Taking the initiative in the movement, I started with my first four
+Chasseurs. The bridge rang strangely under our horses' hoofs, and
+seemed to me to oscillate in an alarming manner. Fortunately the enemy
+was not on the other side; if he had been, our passage would have cost
+us dear.</p>
+
+<p>As I was making these reflections a violent fusillade burst out from
+the edge of the woods overlooking Jaulgonne to the east. It must have
+been directed upon the village, for no bullets whistled around us, so
+it was probably our first squadron engaging the German cavalry. When I
+got to the other end of the bridge my impatience increased. It was
+torture to think of the time it would take to collect my thirty men
+and hurry forward to help the others; <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[Pg 120]</a></span>and I noticed the same
+impatience in my men's looks. Those who were on the bridge, walking
+slowly and gently across, seemed to implore me to let them trot; but I
+pretended not to understand, and the horses' feet continued to trample
+heavily over the echoing bridge. At last all my men were over.</p>
+
+<p>We fell in and reached Jaulgonne at a trot. On passing through it we
+found several of the inhabitants on their doorsteps:</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Monsieur l'Officier</i>, ... <i>Monsieur l'Officier</i>, will they come back
+again?"</p>
+
+<p>"Never!" I shouted, with conviction.</p>
+
+<p>I stopped an orderly, who told me that the German cavalry were firing
+on the exit from the town. How many of them he could not say, as they
+were hidden in the woods. He told me, too, that the first squadron was
+holding all the entrances to the north and east of the village except
+the one on the river bank on the road to Marcilly, where my comrade F.
+had posted his troop. I decided then to put myself at the disposal of
+the party defending the chief exit from the village, the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[Pg 121]</a></span>one that
+opened into the road to Fismes. It was the most important one, for it
+was in that direction that the Germans were retiring.</p>
+
+<p>The village had been prevented from spreading further to the north by
+the heights, which formed an abrupt barrier. It is built astride the
+road to Fismes, which thus becomes its principal, if not its only,
+street. I had then to go right through Jaulgonne before I could get
+out of it in the direction of the firing. I soon did this, and found
+the horses of the first squadron massed in the short alleys leading
+out of the main street. I ordered my troop to dismount in a yard much
+too small and very inconvenient. But the first thing to do was to
+clear the causeway and shelter our horses from bullets, which might
+enfilade the street if the fighting bore away towards the left. Then,
+whilst a non-commissioned officer collected the squads for the action
+on foot, I ran as far as the furthest houses of the village to
+reconnoitre the ground and get orders.</p>
+
+<p>I spied Major P. in a sheltered nook, still <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122">[Pg 122]</a></span>mounted, and he told me
+of his anxiety about the situation. The enemy riflemen were invisible,
+and were riddling the outskirts of the village, while we were unable
+to reply; and some guns had been seen which were being got into
+position. He advised me to go and see the captain of the first
+squadron, who had been ordered to defend that entrance of the village,
+and to place myself at his disposal in case of need.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst we were talking, my troop, led by its non-commissioned officer,
+came to the place where we were, edging along by the walls. The men,
+calm and smiling, with their carbines ready, waited in silence for the
+signal to advance. I signed to them to wait a little longer, and then
+going round the wall I found myself suddenly in the thick of the fray.
+I must say the reception I got startled me. The bullets came rattling
+in hundreds, chipping the walls and cutting branches from the trees.
+On our side there was absolute silence. Our men, on their knees or
+lying flat behind any cover they could find, did not reply, as they
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[Pg 123]</a></span>could see nothing, and waited stoically under the shower of bullets
+until their adversaries chose to advance.</p>
+
+<p>I looked for Captain de L., who commanded the first squadron. There he
+was, standing with his face to the enemy, and his hands in his
+pockets, quietly giving his orders to a non-commissioned officer. On
+my asking him if he wanted me, he explained the situation: the enemy,
+numbers unknown, was occupying the woods overlooking Jaulgonne to the
+east. It was impossible for us to debouch just yet. The essential
+thing was to hold the village, and consequently the bridge, until our
+infantry could come up. He told me that the first troop of my
+squadron, led by Lieutenant d'A., had just advanced, in extended
+order, into the vineyards, orchards, and fields stretching between the
+road and the river. He was going to reconnoitre the woods and see what
+kind of force was holding it.</p>
+
+<p>"You see, dear fellow, for the present I don't want the help of your
+carbines; I have my whole squadron here, and they can't <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[Pg 124]</a></span>get a shot.
+So long as the enemy sticks to the wood all we can do is to wait and
+keep our powder dry."</p>
+
+<p>I put my troop under shelter in a small yard, and directed my
+non-commissioned officer to keep in touch with me, in case I might
+want him. Then I went back to the outskirts of the village to examine
+the ground. I then joined my friend S. behind a large heap of faggots:
+he commanded the nearest troop of the first squadron, and we could not
+help laughing at the curious situation&mdash;being formed up for battle,
+fronting the enemy, under a hail of bullets, and not able to see
+anything.</p>
+
+<p>During the campaign S. had become a philosopher, and he deserved some
+credit for it; for the great moral and physical sufferings we had
+endured must have been even still more insupportable to him than to
+any of us. In the regiment, S. was considered preeminently the Society
+officer. He went to all the receptions, all the afternoon teas, all
+the bridge parties, all the dinners. He was an <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[Pg 125]</a></span>adept at tennis and
+golf and a first-rate shot. His elegance was proverbial, and the
+beautiful cut of his tunics, breeches, jackets, and coats was
+universally admired. The way his harness was kept and the shape of his
+high boots were a marvel. To say all this is to give some idea of the
+change he suddenly experienced in his habits and his tastes during
+those demoralising days of retreat and merciless hours of pursuit.
+But, in spite of all, he had kept his good humour and never lost his
+gay spirits. He still accompanied his talk with elaborate gestures,
+and seemed to be just as much at ease behind his heap of wood,
+bombarded with bullets, as in the best appointed drawing-room. His
+clothes were stained and patched, his beard had begun to grow, and yet
+under this rough exterior the polished man of the world could always
+be divined.</p>
+
+<p>He explained the beginnings of the affair with perfect clearness and
+self-possession; how the scouts sent up to the ridge by d'A. and
+driven off by the Germans had fallen back upon Jaulgonne; how the
+first squadron <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[Pg 126]</a></span>had come to barricade and defend the village, and in
+what anxiety they were waiting to know what had become of d'A.'s
+troop, which had started out to reconnoitre the wood.</p>
+
+<p>We hoisted ourselves to the top of the faggot-stack and peeped over
+carefully. The glaring white road wound up the flank of the slope
+between fields dotted with apple trees. At a distance of 800 yards in
+front of us stretched the dark border of the wood, from which the
+fusillade was coming. To our right, at the edge of the water, on the
+road leading to Marcilly, F. must have been able to see the enemy, for
+we could distinctly hear the crackle of his carbines.</p>
+
+<p>Our attention was drawn to a man of F.'s troop running along under the
+wall, bending almost double to escape the attention of the sniper, and
+endeavouring to screen himself behind the high grass. As soon as he
+came near enough we called out:</p>
+
+<p>"What is it?"</p>
+
+<p>"The Lieutenant has sent me to say that <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[Pg 127]</a></span>the enemy has just placed
+some guns in position up there, in the opening of the wood."</p>
+
+<p>Saying which, he pointed vaguely in a direction where we could see
+nothing. However, we knew that F. would not have warned us if he had
+not been quite certain of the fact, so for some unpleasant minutes we
+wondered what the enemy's objective was. We longed to know, at once,
+where the projectiles were going to burst. Would it be on F.'s troop,
+or on the bridge, or on the infantry, which, perhaps, were beginning
+to debouch, or, perhaps, on that portion of the brigade that had
+remained dismounted on the left bank, drawn up for action? The
+uncertainty was worse than the danger itself. But we were not long in
+doubt. Two shrieks of flying shells! Two explosions about 300 yards in
+front of us! Two puffs of white smoke rising above the green fields!
+This showed they had an objective we had not considered, namely,
+d'A.'s troop, for the shrapnel had burst in the direction he had just
+taken with his men.</p>
+
+<p>Our anxiety did not last long. We soon <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[Pg 128]</a></span>made out our Chasseurs, coming
+back quietly, not running, and in good order. They took to the ditch,
+a fairly deep one, which ran along on the left side of the road, and
+covered them up to the middle. The German shells were badly aimed, and
+exploded either in front of them or higher up on the hillside. But our
+anxiety became more intense every minute. Had a shell fallen on the
+road or in the ditch, we should have seen those brave fellows knocked
+over, mown down, cut to pieces, by the hail of bullets. When we are
+fighting ourselves we hardly have time to think about our neighbours
+in this way. We have our own cares, and our first thought is the
+safety of the men who form our little family, the troop. But when one
+is safe, or fairly so, it is torture to watch comrades advancing under
+the enemy's fire without any protection. At that moment the Germans
+were concentrating their fire upon that small line of men we were
+looking at, 200 yards away from us. The shells succeeded one another
+uninterruptedly, but without any <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[Pg 129]</a></span>greater precision. We watched our
+friends coming nearer until they had almost reached our barricade, and
+noticed that two of the Chasseurs were being supported by their
+comrades. In our anxiety, we got up out of shelter, but d'A. shouted:
+"It's nothing; only scratches...."</p>
+
+<p>At last they got in, and whilst our good and indefatigable
+Assistant-Surgeon P. took charge of the wounded men we pressed round
+the officer and questioned him as to what he had seen. "Are there many
+of them?" "Was there any infantry?" we asked. But his daring
+reconnaissance had not been very fruitful. He had had to stop when the
+artillery had opened fire on him, and had not been able to see how
+many adversaries we had to deal with.</p>
+
+<p>Acting on the advice of Major P., our Captain, who had just rejoined
+us with the third troop, gave orders to mount. We were only in the way
+here, where there were too many defenders already, so recrossed the
+bridge to put ourselves at the Colonel's <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[Pg 130]</a></span>disposal. I led with my
+troop, and we passed through Jaulgonne by the main street. The
+inhabitants thought we were beating a retreat and became uneasy. Some
+women uttered cries, begging us not to leave them at the mercy of the
+enemy. We had to calm them by saying that they need not fear, that we
+were still holding the Germans, that our infantry would soon arrive,
+and that in an hour the foe would have decamped.</p>
+
+<p>To tell the truth, we were not quite so sure of it ourselves. The
+enemy was in some force, and he had guns. Our infantry had at least 15
+kilometres to march before their advance guard even could debouch on
+the bridge at Jaulgonne. If they had not started before dawn they
+would not arrive before eleven o'clock, and it was then barely nine.
+The German artillery was already beginning to fire upon the village.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly, as we reached the market-place, we saw a group of three
+dismounted Chasseurs emerging from an alley that ran down steeply to
+the Marne. They belonged to F.'s troop. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[Pg 131]</a></span>Two of them were supporting
+the third, whom we at once recognised. It was Laurent, a fine fellow,
+and a favourite with the whole squadron. It went to our hearts to see
+him. His left eye was nothing but a red patch, from which blood was
+flowing freely, drenching his clothing. He was moaning softly and,
+blinded by the blood, allowed himself to be led like a child. The
+corporal with him explained: "A bullet went in just over his eye. I
+don't know if the eye itself was hit."</p>
+
+<p>The Captain sprang off his horse. "Cheer up, Laurent, it shall be
+attended to at once. Perhaps it will be nothing, my man. Come with me,
+we will take you to the Red Cross ambulance close by."</p>
+
+<p>Then between his groans the wounded man said a thing I shall not
+easily forget: "<i>Mon Capitaine</i>, ... haven't they taken away their
+guns yet?"</p>
+
+<p>He still took an interest in the battle. I heard afterwards that F.
+had sighted the German guns, and that the fire of his troop had been
+directed upon them. Laurent would <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[Pg 132]</a></span>have liked to hear that they had
+been driven away. He was carried off to the ambulance. I went on
+towards the bridge; the cannon and rifle fire still raged fiercely,
+but none of the shots reached the bank where we were. We had to repeat
+the trying process of crossing the swaying bridge by fours at walking
+pace. I led off with four troopers. It was not so tedious this time,
+as my eyes were distracted by the view of the green meadows on the
+opposite side.</p>
+
+<p>The Colonel had disposed the brigade in such a way that he could
+concentrate his fire upon the bridge and the opposite bank in case we
+could not maintain our position there. A squadron on our left,
+concealed in a sand quarry, was directing its fire upon the heights
+where the German artillery was posted. Both up and down stream the
+<i>Chasseurs d'Afrique</i> lined the river banks, making use of every scrap
+of cover. Peeping out over trunks of fallen trees, banks, and ditches
+inquisitive heads could be seen wearing the khaki <i>taconnet</i>. But my
+troubles were not yet <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[Pg 133]</a></span>over. Just as I was going to step ashore from
+the bridge, Captain D. brought me the Colonel's orders to recross the
+river with my whole squadron and occupy a clump of houses to the left
+of the bridge. It was evidently a wise precaution. Although no firing
+had come from this direction, it was quite possible that some of the
+enemy might have slipped through the woods that come half-way down the
+slopes. But I did not expect such a bad time as I was going to have.</p>
+
+<p>At the very moment when I was turning back, and was beginning the
+hateful passage for the third time, the enemy gunners, changing their
+objective, aimed at the bridge, and the shrapnel bullets began their
+disturbing music once more. Could any situation be more execrable than
+ours&mdash;to be upon a bridge as thin as a thread, hanging as by a miracle
+over a deep river, to see this bridge enfiladed by heavy musketry fire
+and to be obliged to walk our horses over the 200 yards which
+separated one bank from the other? If we had been on foot, so that we
+could have run <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[Pg 134]</a></span>and expended our strength in getting under
+cover&mdash;since we could not use it to defend ourselves&mdash;we should not
+have complained. But to be mounted on good horses, which in a few
+galloping strides could have carried us behind the rampart of houses,
+and to be obliged to hold them back instead of spurring them on, was
+very unpleasant, and made us feel foolish.</p>
+
+<p>I looked at the four brave Chasseurs in front of me. They
+instinctively put up their shoulders as high as they could as if to
+hide their heads between them. But not one of them increased his pace.
+Not one of them looked round at me to beg me to give orders for a
+quicker advance. And what a concert was going on all the time! Whilst
+the horses' hoofs were beating out low and muffled notes, the bullets
+flew above us and around us, with shrill cracklings and whistlings
+which were anything but harmonious. Happily the firing was distant and
+disgracefully bad, for at the pace we were travelling we must have
+offered a very convenient mark. Another <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135">[Pg 135]</a></span>20 yards! Ten more! At last
+we were safely under cover!</p>
+
+<p>I communicated the Colonel's orders to the Captain, who came to join
+us, and directed us to occupy the little garden of a fair-sized house
+situated just on the edge of the Marne and the most advanced of the
+small group of buildings on the left-hand side of the bridge. After
+lodging the horses in an alley between the house and an adjoining
+shanty I went to reconnoitre my ground. The house was a rustic
+restaurant, which in the summer no doubt afforded the inhabitants an
+object for a walk. On passing along the terrace leading to the river I
+found the disorder usual in places that have been occupied by the
+Germans; tables overturned, bottles broken, the musty smell of empty
+casks, and broken crockery.</p>
+
+<p>The little garden did not offer much protection for my men. However,
+crouching behind a kind of breastwork of earth, which shut it off from
+the woods, they were able, at least, to hide themselves from view. I
+at once posted my sharpshooters, sent out a patrol on <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136">[Pg 136]</a></span>foot as far as
+the entrance to the wood, and then turned my attention to what was
+happening near the bridge.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst I was busy carrying out the Captain's orders I had not noticed
+that the situation had undergone a decided change, and that our
+chances of being able to complete our task thoroughly had increased
+considerably. The German guns were no longer aiming at the village.
+Their fire had become more rapid, and their shrapnel flew hissing over
+the brigade. We could see them bursting much further off, on the other
+side of the water, in the direction of the woods crowning the heights
+whence, in the morning, I had admired the smiling landscape. I
+inferred then that the advance guard of our corps was debouching. In
+half an hour it would be there, and the German cavalry, we felt sure,
+would not hold out much longer.</p>
+
+<p>But our fine infantry had done more than this. They had, no doubt,
+found good roads, or perhaps the German gunners, hypnotised by the
+village, had not spied them. For I <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[Pg 137]</a></span>had now the pleasure of witnessing
+one of the most exhilarating spectacles I had seen since the opening
+of the campaign.</p>
+
+<p>From where I stood on the bank I could see the thin line of the bridge
+above. I did not think that any one would risk crossing it now that it
+was known to be a mark for the enemy's fire, but suddenly I saw five
+men appear and begin to cross it. I could distinguish them perfectly;
+they were infantry soldiers, an officer and four men. The officer
+walked first, calmly, with a stick under his right arm, and in his
+left hand a map which formed a white patch on his blue coat, and
+behind him the men, in single file, bending slightly under their
+knapsacks, their caps pushed back and holding their rifles, marched
+firmly and steadily. They might have been on parade. Their legs could
+be distinguished for a moment against the blue sky. Their step was so
+regular that I could not help counting: one, two; one, two, as their
+feet struck the bridge. But just at the moment when the little group
+had got half-way across, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[Pg 138]</a></span>a hiss, followed by a deafening explosion,
+made our hearts beat, and we heard the curious noise made by
+innumerable bullets and pieces of shell striking the water. The
+Germans had seen our infantry beginning to cross the river, and they
+were now pouring their fire upon the bridge. I looked again at the
+men, and saw they were there, all five of them, still marching with
+the same cool, resolute step: one, two; one, two. Ah! the brave
+fellows! How I wanted to cheer them, to shout "Bravo!" But they were
+too far off, and the noise of the fusillade would have prevented them
+from hearing me.</p>
+
+<p>No sooner had they reached the bank than another little group stepped
+on to the narrow bridge, and then, after them, another; and each was
+saluted by one or two shells, with the same heavy rain of bullets
+falling into the water. But Providence protected our soldiers. The
+outline of the bridge was very slight, and the gunners of the German
+cavalry divisions were sorry marksmen. Their projectiles always burst
+either too far or too <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[Pg 139]</a></span>near, too high or too low. And as soon as a
+hundred men had got across, and the first sharpshooters had clambered
+up the heights that rise sheer from the river and begun to debouch
+upon the plateau, there was a sudden silence. The enemy's cavalry had
+given way, and our <i>corps d'arm&eacute;e</i> was free to pass the Marne by the
+bridge of Jaulgonne.</p>
+
+<p>The entire battalion of the advance guard then began to pour over the
+bridge on their way to the plateau. Our brigade was quickly got
+together, and our Chasseurs hastened to water their horses. Out came
+the nosebags from the saddlebags. A few minutes later no one would
+have suspected that fighting had taken place at this spot. The men
+hurriedly got their snack, for we knew the halt would not last long,
+and that the pursuit had to be pushed till daylight failed. Our troop
+was in good heart and thankful that the squadron's losses had been so
+small. F. had just seen Laurent, the one wounded Chasseur of his
+troop, and said the doctors hoped to save his eye; so we had no reason
+to grumble.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140">[Pg 140]</a></span>Saddlebags were now being buckled and horses rebridled. I was to go
+forward to replace the troop that had led the advance guard. The
+Colonel sent for me and ordered me to proceed at once along the road
+to Fismes, search the outskirts of the village carefully, and take up
+a position on the heights overlooking the valley.</p>
+
+<p>My troop got away quickly, and I rejoiced again at the sight of my
+fellows, radiant at the thought of having a dash at the enemy. We had
+to hasten and get ahead of the foremost parties of infantry, which
+also halted now for a meal. I detached my advance scouts. Their eager
+little horses set off at a gallop along the white road, and I was
+delighted to see the ease and decision with which my Chasseurs flashed
+out their swords. They seemed to say, "Come along, come along ...; we
+are ready." As for me, I rode on in quiet confidence, knowing that I
+had in front of me eyes keen enough to prevent any surprise.</p>
+
+<p>One squad climbed nimbly up the ridge to the left. The horses
+scrambled up the steep <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[Pg 141]</a></span>ground, dislodging stones and clods of earth.
+They struggled with straining hocks hard to get up, and seemed to
+challenge each other for a race to the top. Their riders, in extended
+order, showed as patches of red and blue against the grey stubble. Up
+they went, further and further, and then disappeared over the crest.
+Only one was still visible, but this one was my guarantee that I had
+good eyes, keen and alert, on my left. Should any danger threaten from
+that quarter I knew well that he would pass on to me the signal
+received from his corporal, and I should only have to gallop to the
+top to judge of the situation myself. I could see the man against the
+blue sky, the whole outline of his body and that of his horse; the
+equipment and harness, the curved sword, the graceful neck, the sinewy
+legs, the heavy pack. I recognised the rider and knew the name of his
+horse. They were both of the right sort. Yes, I felt quite easy about
+my left.</p>
+
+<p>On the right the ground dropped sheer to a narrow valley, at the
+bottom of which flowed <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142">[Pg 142]</a></span>a stream of clear water. Among the green trees
+were glittering patches here and there, on which the sun threw
+metallic reflections. And on the other side rose heights covered by
+the forest of Riz. On the edge of this forest I could see the stately
+ruins of a splendid country mansion. I questioned a boy who was
+standing on the side of the road, looking at us half timidly, half
+gladly.</p>
+
+<p>"Tell me, child, who burnt that ch&acirc;teau over there?"</p>
+
+<p>"<i>M'sieur</i>, <i>they</i> did; and they took everything away&mdash;all the
+beautiful things. They even carried everything off on big carts, and
+then they set fire to the house. But everything isn't burnt, and a lot
+of them came back again this morning with some horses, and they went
+on looking for things."</p>
+
+<p>I sent off another squad towards the ch&acirc;teau, telling them first to
+follow the edge of the wood and to be careful how they approached it.
+The men got into the wood by the spaces in the bank along the road and
+scattered in the thickets that dotted the side <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[Pg 143]</a></span>of the spur we were
+turning. I was thus protected on my right.</p>
+
+<p>I went up at a trot to the place where the road reached the plateau,
+and just as I was on the point of reaching it we were met by a crowd
+of village folk&mdash;men, women, and children&mdash;coming along, looking
+radiant. I saw some of them questioning my advance scouts and pointing
+in the direction of the north-east. It was the whole population of Le
+Charmel that had come out to meet us.</p>
+
+<p>Le Charmel is a small village that stands at the meeting of two roads,
+one leading towards Fismes, the other towards F&egrave;re-en-Tardenois. It
+has the appearance of hanging on to the hillside, for whilst the road
+to F&egrave;re-en-Tardenois continues to follow the plateau, that to Fismes
+dips abruptly at this place and disappears in the valley. The houses
+of Le Charmel are perched between these two roads. Thus the people of
+the village had a good view of the enemy's retreat, and everybody
+wanted to have his say about it. I turned to a tall man, lean and
+tanned, with a grizzled moustache, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[Pg 144]</a></span>who had something still of a
+military air, and seemed to be calmer than the others around him. From
+him I was able to get some fairly clear information.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Mon Lieutenant</i>, it was like this.... They went off this morning
+early, with a great number of cannons and horses. The artillery went
+straight on towards Fismes by the road. The cavalry cut across the
+fields, and disappeared over the ridge you see over there on the other
+side of the valley. Then towards eight o'clock some of them came back.
+How many? Well, two or three regiments perhaps, and some guns; and
+they went down again towards Jaulgonne. I believe they wanted to
+destroy the bridge. But just as they got to the turn of the hill, pan!
+pan!&mdash;they were fired at. Then, of course, we got back to our houses
+and shut them up, as the guns began to fire. But when we heard no more
+reports we came out again, and saw them making off across the fields
+like the others and in the same direction. But it is quite possible
+that some of them stayed in the woods, or in the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[Pg 145]</a></span>farms, on the other
+side of the forest of Riz...."</p>
+
+<p>He was interrupted by my non-commissioned officer:</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Mon Lieutenant</i>, the scouts ... they are signalling to you...."</p>
+
+<p>I galloped up to them, when they pointed out to me, at about 1,500
+yards distance, on the opposite ridge, a small group of cavalrymen
+near a stack, and, on the side of the slope, a patrol of German
+dragoons, pacing slowly with lances lowered and stopping every now and
+then facing in our direction.</p>
+
+<p>I took my glasses and looked carefully at the stack. And then I saw a
+sight which sent a shiver of joy through me. The horsemen had
+dismounted and put their horses behind the stack. Three of the men
+then separated themselves from the rest and formed a little group. I
+could not distinguish their uniforms, but saw very clearly that they
+were looking through their glasses at us. Now and again they put their
+heads together, and consulted the map, as it seemed. A man then came
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[Pg 146]</a></span>out from behind the stack on foot, and could be distinctly seen,
+against the sky, sticking into the ground by his side a square pennon
+which flapped gently in the breeze. As far as I could see it was half
+black and half white. There could be no doubt that we were confronting
+a Staff. So the division was not far off; it had halted, and perhaps
+intended this time to fight at close quarters. I told my men what I
+thought, and they were overjoyed at the idea that, after all, there
+was a hope of realising our dream. There was not one of them who
+doubted that the Division of the Guards had been kind enough to stop
+its flight, and that our brave light brigade would attack it without
+any hesitation and cut it to pieces. I dismounted quickly, and lost
+not a moment in drawing up my report. I wrote down what I had seen and
+what I had learnt from the inhabitants and then called one of my
+Chasseurs:</p>
+
+<p>"To the Colonel, full gallop!"</p>
+
+<p>At the touch of the spur the little chestnut turned sharp round and
+flew down the dusty <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147">[Pg 147]</a></span>road like a whirlwind. Meanwhile I carefully
+posted my men, threw out scouts over the plateau and up to the forest
+of F&egrave;re, and formed patrols under my non-commissioned officers. I then
+took up my observation post under a large tree which, to judge by its
+venerable look, must have seen many generations pass and many other
+wars. The village folk collected around me in such numbers that I was
+obliged to have them thrust back by my men to Le Charmel. To console
+them I said: "You must go away. The enemy will take you for armed
+troops and fire guns at you."</p>
+
+<p>I kept my eye upon my "Staff," and wished my glasses could help me to
+distinguish more clearly what men I had to deal with. I longed to see
+what they were like&mdash;to examine the faces of these haughty <i>Reiters</i>
+who for the last four days had been fleeing before us and always
+refusing a real encounter. I fancied that among them might be found
+that <i>Rittmeister</i> with the bulging neck and pink cheeks, who, after
+the orgy of that <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148">[Pg 148]</a></span>night at the Ch&acirc;teau de Cond&eacute;, had left behind him
+the cap that I had found hanging from the chandelier in the
+dining-room. How I longed to see the brigade debouch, and to receive
+instructions from the Colonel!</p>
+
+<p>I had not long to wait. My messenger soon came back, trotting up the
+road from Jaulgonne. But the instructions were not what I had
+expected. I was to stay where I was until further orders, to continue
+to observe the enemy, and keep a look-out in his direction.</p>
+
+<p>I learnt some details from the man. The greater part of the infantry
+had already crossed the bridge, and there was also some artillery on
+this side of the river. As he said this a clatter of wheels and chains
+caused me to turn my head, and I saw behind us, in the stubble-fields
+of the plateau, two batteries of 75's taking up positions. Ah! ah! we
+were going to send them our greetings then, a salute to the pompous
+General over there, and to his aide-de-camp, the stiff and obsequious
+<i>Rittmeister</i>, whom I imagined to be at his side. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[Pg 149]</a></span>I looked on gaily
+with my Chasseurs at the laying of the guns. How we all loved that
+good little gun, which had so often come up to lend us the support of
+its terrible projectiles at critical moments! And those good fellows
+the gunners loved it too; the men we saw jumping nimbly down from
+their limber, quickly unhitching their piece, and pointing it with
+tender care towards the enemy.</p>
+
+<p>Standing on a bank, with his glasses to his eyes, the officer in
+command gave his orders which were passed from man to man by the
+markers. And then suddenly we heard four loud, sharp reports behind
+us. The whistling of the shells, which almost grazed our heads, was
+impressive, and, though we knew there was no danger, we instinctively
+ducked. But we recovered ourselves at once to see what effect they had
+produced.</p>
+
+<p>What a pity! They had fallen a bit short. We distinctly saw four small
+white puffs on the side of the hill just below the group of German
+officers. Ah! They didn't wait for another! I saw them make off in hot
+haste <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[Pg 150]</a></span>whilst the troopers, stationed behind the stack, galloped off
+the horses. The man with the flag was the last to go, closing the
+procession with rather more dignity. But in ten seconds the whole lot
+had decamped, and the only men we could see were the dragoons of the
+patrol, who rode back to the ridge at full speed.</p>
+
+<p>But just as they reached it the second battery opened fire, and this
+time the sighting was just right. The four white puffs appeared
+exactly over the spot where the Staff had stood a minute before&mdash;two
+to the right and two to the left of the stack. And all we now saw of
+the patrol was two riderless horses galloping madly towards the woods.
+Then the two batteries pounded away with a will.</p>
+
+<p>When I had received orders to resume the forward movement and my good
+Chasseurs had taken up the pursuit again, the gunners had lengthened
+their range with mathematical precision, and the shells burst on the
+farther side of the ridge. I took a grim pleasure in imagining what
+must have been happening <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[Pg 151]</a></span>there, where, no doubt, the division was
+drawn up, and whilst I continued to direct my vigilant and expert
+scouts I amused myself by picturing the brilliant troopers of the
+Prussian Guard in headlong flight.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="Chapter_V" id="Chapter_V"></a><hr />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[Pg 152]</a></span><br />
+
+<h3>V. LOW MASS AND BENEDICTION<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+<br />
+
+<p>One morning in the middle of September, 1914, as we raised our heads
+at about six o'clock from the straw on which we had slept, I and my
+friend F. had a very disagreeable surprise: we heard in the darkness
+the gentle, monotonous noise of water falling drop by drop from the
+pent-house roof on to the road.</p>
+
+<p>Arriving at P&eacute;vy the evening before, just before midnight, we had
+found refuge in a house belonging to a peasant. The hostess, a good
+old soul of eighty, had placed at our disposal a small bare room paved
+with tiles, in which our orderlies had prepared a sumptuous bed of
+trusses of straw. The night had been delightful, and we should have
+awaked in good spirits had it not been for the distressing fact
+noticed by my friend.</p>
+
+<p>"It is raining," said F.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[Pg 153]</a></span>I could not but agree with him. Those who have been soldiers, and
+especially cavalrymen, know to the full how dispiriting is the sound
+of those few words: "It is raining."</p>
+
+<p>"It is raining" means your clothes will be saturated; your cloak will
+be drenched, and weigh at least forty pounds; the water will drip from
+your shako along your neck and down your back; above all, your high
+boots will be transformed into two little pools in which your feet
+paddle woefully. It means broken roads, mud splashing you up to the
+eyes, horses slipping, reins stiffened, your saddle transformed into a
+hip-bath. It means that the little clean linen you have brought with
+you&mdash;that precious treasure&mdash;in your saddlebags, will be changed into
+a wet bundle on which large and indelible yellow stains have been made
+by the soaked leather.</p>
+
+<p>But it was no use to think of all this. The orders ran: "Horses to be
+saddled, and squadron ready to mount, at 6.30." And they had to be
+carried out.</p>
+
+<p>It was still dark. I went out into the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154">[Pg 154]</a></span>yard, after pulling down my
+campaigning cap over my ears. Well, after all, the evil was less than
+I had feared. It was not raining, but drizzling. The air was mild, and
+there was not a breath of wind. When once our cloaks were on it would
+take some hours for the wet to reach our shirts. At the farther end of
+the yard some men were moving about round a small fire. Their shadows
+passed to and fro in front of the ruddy light. They were making
+coffee&mdash;<i>jus</i>, as they call it&mdash;that indispensable ration in which
+they soak bread and make a feast without which they think a man cannot
+be a good soldier.</p>
+
+<p>I ran to my troop through muddy alleys, skipping from side to side to
+avoid the puddles. Daylight appeared, pale and dismal. A faint smell
+rose from the sodden ground.</p>
+
+<p>"Nothing new, <i>mon Lieutenant</i>," were the words that greeted me from
+the sergeant, who then made his report. I had every confidence in him;
+he had been some years in the service, and knew his business. Small
+and lean, and tightly buttoned into his tunic, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[Pg 155]</a></span>in spite of all our
+trials he was still the typical smart light cavalry non-commissioned
+officer. I knew he had already gone round the stables, which he did
+with a candle in his hand, patting the horses' haunches and looking
+with a watchful eye to see whether some limb had not been hurt by a
+kick or entangled in its tether.</p>
+
+<p>In the large yard of the abandoned and pillaged farm, where the men
+had been billeted they were hurrying to fasten the last buckles and
+take their places in the ranks. I quickly swallowed my portion of
+insipid lukewarm coffee, brought me by my orderly; then I went to get
+my orders from the Captain, who was lodged in the market-square. No
+word had yet been received from the Colonel, who was quartered at the
+farm of Vadiville, two kilometres off. Patience! We had been used to
+these long waits since the army had been pulled up before the
+formidable line of trenches which the Germans had dug north of Reims.
+They were certainly most disheartening; but it could not be helped,
+and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156">[Pg 156]</a></span>it was of no use to complain. I turned and went slowly up the
+steep footpath that led to my billet.</p>
+
+<p>P&eacute;vy is a poor little village, clinging to the last slopes of a line
+of heights that runs parallel to the road from Reims to Paris. Its
+houses are huddled together, and seem to be grouped at the foot of the
+ridges for protection from the north wind. The few alleys which
+intersect the village climb steeply up the side of the hill. We were
+obliged to tramp about in the sticky mud of the main road waiting for
+our orders.</p>
+
+<p>Passing the church, it occurred to me to go and look inside. Since the
+war had begun we had hardly had any opportunity of going into the
+village churches we had passed. Some of them were closed because the
+parish priests had left for the army, or because the village had been
+abandoned to the enemy. Others had served as marks for the artillery,
+and now stood in the middle of the villages, ruins loftier and more
+pitiable than the rest.</p>
+
+<p>The church of P&eacute;vy seemed to be clinging <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[Pg 157]</a></span>to the side of the hill, and
+was approached by a narrow stairway of greyish stone, climbing up
+between moss-grown walls. I first passed through the modest little
+churchyard, with its humble tombs half hidden in the grass, and read
+some of the simple inscriptions:</p>
+
+<p>"Here lies ... Here lies ... Pray for him...."</p>
+
+<p>The narrow pathway leading to the porch was almost hidden in the turf,
+and as I walked up it my boots brushed the drops from the grass. The
+damp seemed to be getting into my bones, for it was still drizzling&mdash;a
+fine persistent drizzle. Behind me the village was in mist; the roofs
+and the maze of chimney tops were hardly distinguishable.</p>
+
+<p>Passing through a low, dark porch, I opened the heavy door studded
+with iron nails, and entered the church, and at once experienced a
+feeling of relaxation, of comfort and repose. How touching the little
+sanctuary of P&eacute;vy seemed to me in its humble simplicity!</p>
+
+<p>Imagine a kind of hall with bare walls, the vault supported by two
+rows of thick <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[Pg 158]</a></span>pillars. The narrow Gothic windows hardly allowed the
+grey light to enter. There were no horrible cheap modern stained
+windows, but a multitude of small white rectangular leaded panes. All
+this was simple and worn; but to me it seemed to breathe a noble and
+touching poetry. And what charmed me above all was that the pale light
+did not reveal walls covered with the horrible colour-wash we are
+accustomed to see in most of our village churches.</p>
+
+<p>This church was an old one, a very old one. Its style was not very
+well defined, for it had no doubt been built, damaged, destroyed,
+rebuilt and repaired by many different generations. But those who
+preserved it to the present day had avoided the lamentable plastering
+which disfigures so many others. The walls were built with fine large
+stones, on which time had left its melancholy impress. There was no
+grotesque painting on them to mar their quiet beauty, and the dim
+light that filtered through at that early hour gave them a vague soft
+glow.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[Pg 159]</a></span>No pictures or ornaments disfigured the walls. The "Stations of the
+Cross" were the only adornment, and they were so simple and childish
+in their execution that they were no doubt the work of some rustic
+artist. And even this added a touching note to a harmonious whole.</p>
+
+<p>But my attention was attracted by a slight noise, a kind of soft and
+monotonous murmur, coming from the altar. The choir was almost in
+darkness, but I could distinguish the six stars of the lighted
+candles. In front of the tabernacle was standing a large white shadowy
+form, almost motionless and like a phantom. At the bottom of the steps
+another form was kneeling, bowed down towards the floor; it did not
+stir as I approached. I went towards the choir on tip-toe, very
+cautiously. I felt that I, a profane person, was committing a
+sacrilege by coming to disturb those two men praying there all alone
+in the gloom of that sad morning. A deep feeling of emotion passed
+through me, and I felt so insignificant in their presence and in the
+mysterious <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[Pg 160]</a></span>atmosphere of the place that I knelt down humbly, almost
+timidly, in the shadow of one of the great pillars near the altar.</p>
+
+<p>Then I could distinguish my fellow-worshippers better. A priest was
+saying mass. He was young and tall, and his gestures as he officiated
+were slow and dignified. He did not know that some one was present
+watching him closely; so it could not be supposed that he was speaking
+and acting to impress a congregation, and yet he had a way of
+kneeling, of stretching out his arms and of looking up to the humble
+gilded cross in front of him, that revealed all the ardour of fervent
+prayers. Occasionally he turned towards the back of the church to
+pronounce the ritual words. His face was serious and kindly, framed in
+a youthful beard&mdash;the face of an apostle, with the glow of faith in
+his eyes. And I was surprised to see underneath his priest's vestments
+the hems of a pair of red trousers, and feet shod in large muddy
+military boots.</p>
+
+<p>The kneeling figure at the bottom of the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[Pg 161]</a></span>steps now stood out more
+distinctly. The man was wearing on his shabby infantry coat the white
+armlet with the red cross. He must have been a priest, for I could
+distinguish some traces of a neglected tonsure among his brown hair.</p>
+
+<p>The two repeated, in a low tone by turns, words of prayer, comfort,
+repentance, or supplication, harmonious Latin phrases, which sounded
+to me like exquisite music. And as an accompaniment in the distance,
+in the direction of Saint Thierry and Berry-au-Bac, the deep voice of
+the guns muttered ceaselessly.</p>
+
+<p>For the first time in the campaign I felt a kind of poignant
+melancholy. For the first time I felt small and miserable, almost a
+useless thing, compared with those two fine priestly figures who were
+praying in the solitude of this country church for those who had
+fallen and were falling yonder under shot and shell.</p>
+
+<p>How I despised and upbraided myself at such moments! What a profound
+disgust I <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162">[Pg 162]</a></span>felt for the follies of my garrison life, its gross
+pleasures and silly excesses! I was ashamed of myself when I reflected
+that death brushed by me every day, and that I might disappear to-day
+or to-morrow, after so many ill-spent and unprofitable days.</p>
+
+<p>Without any effort, and almost in spite of myself, pious words came
+back to my lips&mdash;those words that my dear mother used to teach me on
+her knee years and years ago. And I felt a quiet delight in the almost
+forgotten words that came back to me:</p>
+
+<p>"Forgive us our trespasses.... Pray for us, poor sinners...."</p>
+
+<p>It seemed to me that I should presently go away a better man and a
+more valiant soldier. And, as though to encourage and bless me, a
+faint ray of sunshine came through the window.</p>
+
+<p><i>"Ite, missa est...."</i> The priest turned round; and this time I
+thought his eyes rested upon me, and that the look was a benediction
+and an absolution.</p>
+
+<p>But suddenly I heard in the alley close <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[Pg 163]</a></span>by a great noise of people
+running and horses stamping, and a voice crying:</p>
+
+<p>"Mount horses!... Mount horses!"</p>
+
+<p>I was sorry to leave the little church of P&eacute;vy; I should so much have
+liked to wait until those two priests came out, to speak to them, and
+talk about other things than war, massacres and pillage. But duty
+called me to my men, my horses, and to battle.</p>
+
+<p>Shortly afterwards, as I passed at the head of my troop in front of
+the large farm where the ambulance of the division was quartered, I
+saw my abb&eacute; coming out of a barn, with his sleeves tucked up and his
+<i>k&eacute;pi</i> on the side of his head. He was carrying a large pail of milk.
+I recognised his clear look, and had no doubt that he recognised me
+too, for as our eyes met he gave me a kindly smile.</p>
+
+<p>My heart was lighter as I went forward, and my soul was calmer.</p>
+
+<hr />
+
+<p>For the last six days we had been quartered at Montigny-sur-Vesle, a
+pretty little village half-way up a hillside on the heights, 20
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[Pg 164]</a></span>kilometres to the west of Reims. There we enjoyed a little rest for
+the first time in the campaign. On our front the struggle was going on
+between the French and German trenches, and the employment of cavalry
+was impossible. All the regiment had to do was to supply daily two
+troops required to ensure the connection between the two divisions of
+the army corps.</p>
+
+<p>What a happiness it was to be able at last to enjoy almost perfect
+rest! What a delight to lie down every evening in a good bed; not to
+get up before seven o'clock; to find our poor horses stabled at last
+on good litter in the barns, and to see them filling out daily and
+getting sleeker!</p>
+
+<p>For our mess we had the good luck to find a most charming and simple
+welcome at the house of good Monsieur Cheveret. That kind old
+gentleman did everything in his power to supply us with all the
+comforts he could dispose of. And he did it all with such good grace
+and such a pleasant smile that we felt at ease and at home at once.
+Madame <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[Pg 165]</a></span>Cheveret, whom we at once called "Maman Cheveret," was an
+alert little old lady who trotted about all day long in quest of
+things to do for us. She put us up in the dining-room, and helped our
+cook to clean the vegetables and to superintend the joints and sweets.
+For Gosset, the bold Chasseur appointed to preside over our mess
+arrangements, was a professional in the culinary art, and excelled in
+making everything out of nothing; so, with the help of Maman Cheveret,
+he accomplished wonders, and the result of it all was that we began to
+be enervated by the delights of this new Capua. And how thoroughly we
+enjoyed it!</p>
+
+<p>We shared our Eden with two other squadrons of our regiment, a section
+of an artillery park, and a divisional ambulance. We prayed Heaven to
+grant us a long stay in such a haven of repose.</p>
+
+<p>Now one morning, after countless ablutions with hot water and a clean
+shave, I was going, with brilliantly shining boots, down the steep
+footpath which led to the little house of our <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[Pg 166]</a></span>good Monsieur Cheveret,
+when my attention was drawn to a small white notice posted on the door
+of the church. It ran:</p>
+
+<p class="cen sc" style="padding: 1em;">"This Evening at Six O'clock,<br />
+Benediction of the Most Holy Sacrament."</p>
+
+<p>It occurred to me at once that this happy idea had been conceived by
+the Chaplain of the Ambulance, for until then the church had been kept
+locked, as the young parish priest had been called up by the
+mobilisation. I made haste to tell our Captain and my comrades the
+good news, and we all determined to be present at the Benediction that
+evening.</p>
+
+<p>At half-past five our ears were delighted by music such as we had not
+been accustomed to hear for a very long time. In the deepening
+twilight some invisible hand was chiming the bells of the little
+church. How deliciously restful they were after the loud roar of the
+cannon and the rattle of the machine-guns! Who would have thought that
+such deep, and also such solemn, notes could come from so small a
+steeple? It <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[Pg 167]</a></span>stirred the heart and brought tears to the eyes, like
+some of Chopin's music. Those bells seemed to speak to us, they seemed
+to call us to prayer and preach courage and virtue to us.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of the shady walk I was passing down&mdash;whose trees formed a
+rustling wall on either side&mdash;appeared the little church, with its
+slender steeple. It stood out in clear relief, a dark blue, almost
+violet silhouette against the purple background made by the setting
+sun. Some dark human forms were moving about and collecting around the
+low arched doorway. Perhaps these were the good old women of the
+district who had come to pray in this little church which had remained
+closed to them for nearly two months. I fancied I could distinguish
+them from where I was, dignified and erect in their old-fashioned
+mantles.</p>
+
+<p>But as soon as I got closer to them I found I was mistaken. It was not
+aged and pious women who were hurrying to the church door, but a group
+of silent artillerymen <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[Pg 168]</a></span>wrapped in their large blue caped cloaks. The
+bells shook out their solemn notes, and seemed to be calling others to
+come too; and I should have been glad if their voices had been heard,
+for I was afraid the Chaplain's appeal would hardly be heeded and that
+the benches of the little church would be three-parts empty.</p>
+
+<p>But on gently pushing the door open I found at once that my fears were
+baseless. The church was in fact too small to hold all the soldiers,
+who had come long before the appointed hour as soon as they heard the
+bells begin. And now that I had no fears about the church being empty
+I wondered how I was going to find a place myself. I stood on the
+doorstep, undecided, on tip-toe, looking over the heads of all those
+standing men to see whether there was any corner unoccupied where I
+could enjoy the beauty of the unexpected sight in peace.</p>
+
+<p>The nave was almost dark. The expense of lighting, had no doubt to be
+considered, for for several days past no candle or taper <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169">[Pg 169]</a></span>was to be
+had for money. And no doubt the kindness of a motorist of the Red
+Cross had been appealed to for the supply of all the candles which lit
+up the altar. This was indeed resplendent. The vestry had been
+ransacked for candlesticks, and the tabernacle was surrounded by a
+splendid aureole of light. All this increased the touching impression
+I felt on entering.</p>
+
+<p>Against the brilliant background of the choir stood out the black
+forms of several hundreds of men standing and looking towards the
+altar. Absolute silence reigned over the whole congregation of
+soldiers. And yet no discipline was enforced; there was no superior
+present to impose a show of devotion. Left to themselves, they all
+understood what they had to do. They crowded together, waiting in
+silence and without any impatience for the ceremony to begin.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly a white figure came towards me through the crowded ranks of
+soldiers. He extended his arms in token of welcome, and I at once
+recognised the Chaplain in his <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170">[Pg 170]</a></span>surplice. His face was beaming with
+pleasure, and his eyes shone behind his spectacles. He appeared to be
+supremely happy.</p>
+
+<p>"This way, <i>Monsieur l'Officier</i>, this way. I have thought of
+everything. You must have the seat of honour. Follow me."</p>
+
+<p>I followed the holy man, who elbowed a way for me up the crowded
+aisle. He had reserved all the choir-stalls for the officers. Before
+the war they had been occupied, at high mass, by the clergy, the
+choir, and the principal members of the congregation. He proudly
+showed me into one of them, and I felt rather embarrassed at finding
+myself suddenly in a blaze of light between an artillery lieutenant
+and a surgeon-major.</p>
+
+<p>The low vestry door now opened and a very unexpected procession
+appeared. In front of a bearded priest walked four artillerymen in
+uniform. One of them carried a censer, and another the incense-box.
+The other two walked in front of them, arms crossed and eyes front.
+The whole procession knelt before the altar with perfect precision,
+and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171">[Pg 171]</a></span>I saw beneath the priest's vestments muddy gaiters of the same
+kind as those worn by the gunners.</p>
+
+<p>At the same time we heard, quite close to us, strains of music which
+seemed to us celestial. In the dim light I had not noticed the
+harmonium, but now I could distinguish the artist who was enchanting
+us by his skill in drawing sweet sounds from a poor worn instrument.
+He was an artillery captain. At once all eyes were turned towards him;
+we were all enraptured. None of us dared to hope that we should lift
+our voices in the hymns.</p>
+
+<p>The organist seemed unconscious of his surroundings. The candle placed
+near the keyboard cast a strange light upon the most expressive of
+heads. Against the dark background of the church the striking features
+of a noble face were thrown into strong relief: a forehead broad and
+refined, an aristocratic nose, a fair moustache turned up at the ends,
+and, notably, two fine blue eyes, which, without a glance at the
+fingers on the keys, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172">[Pg 172]</a></span>were fixed on the vaulted roof as though seeking
+inspiration there.</p>
+
+<p>The Chaplain, turning to the congregation, then said:</p>
+
+<p>"My friends, we will all join in singing the <i>O Salutaris</i>."</p>
+
+<p>The harmonium gave the first notes, and I braced myself to endure the
+dreadful discords I expected from this crowd of soldiers&mdash;mostly
+reservists&mdash;who, I supposed, had come together that evening mainly out
+of curiosity.</p>
+
+<p>Judge of my astonishment! At first only a few timid voices joined the
+Chaplain's. But after a minute or so a marvel happened. From all those
+chests came a volume of sound such as I could hardly have believed
+possible. Who will say then that our dear France has lost her Faith?
+Who can believe it? Every one of these men joined in singing the hymn,
+and not one of them seemed ignorant of the Latin words. It was a
+magnificent choir, under a lofty vault, chanting with the fervour of
+absolute sincerity. There was not one <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173">[Pg 173]</a></span>discordant note, not one voice
+out of tune, to spoil its perfect harmony.</p>
+
+<p>Who can believe that men, many of them more than thirty years old,
+would remember all the words unless they had been brought up in the
+faith of their ancestors and still held it?</p>
+
+<p>I could not help turning to look at them. In the light of the candles
+their faces appeared to be wonderfully transfigured. Not one of them
+expressed irony or even indifference. What a fine picture it would
+have made for a Rembrandt! The bodies of the men were invisible in the
+darkness of the nave, and their heads alone emerged from the gloom.
+The effect was grand enough to fascinate the most sceptical of
+painters; it soothed and charmed one and wiped out all the miseries
+that the war had left in its wake. Men like these would be equal to
+anything, ready for anything; and I myself should much have liked to
+see a Monsieur Homais hidden away in some corner of that church.</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile the sacred Office was proceeding <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174">[Pg 174]</a></span>at the altar. At any other
+time we might have smiled at the sight of that soldier-priest served
+by choristers of thirty-five in uniform; at that ceremony it was
+inexpressibly touching and attractive, and it was especially
+delightful to see how carefully and precisely each performed his
+function that the ceremony might not lack its accustomed pomp.</p>
+
+<p>When the singing had ceased the Chaplain went up to the holy table. In
+a voice full of feeling he tried to express his gratitude and
+happiness to all those brave fellows. I should not imagine him to be a
+brilliant speaker at the best of times, but on that occasion the
+worthy man was completely unintelligible. His happiness was choking
+him. He tried in vain to find the words he wanted, used the wrong
+ones, and only confused himself by trying to get them right. But
+nobody had the least desire to laugh when, to conclude his address, he
+said with a sigh of relief:</p>
+
+<p>"And now we will tell twenty beads of the rosary; ten for the success
+of our arms, and the other ten in memory of soldiers who have <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175">[Pg 175]</a></span>died on
+the field of honour.... <i>Hail! Mary, full of grace</i>...."</p>
+
+<p>I looked round the church once more, and every one's lips were moving
+silently accompanying the priest's words. Opposite us I saw the
+artillery captain take a rosary out of his pocket and tell the beads
+with dreamy eyes; and when the Chaplain came to the sentence "Holy
+Mary, Mother of God, ..." hundreds of voices burst forth, deep and
+manly voices, full of fervour which seemed to proclaim their faith in
+Him Who was present before them on the altar, and also to promise
+self-sacrifice and devotion to that other sacred thing, their Country.</p>
+
+<p>Then, after the <i>Tantum ergo</i> had been sung with vigour, the priest
+held up the monstrance, and I saw all those soldiers with one accord
+kneel down on the stone floor and bow their heads. The silence was
+impressive; not a word, not a cough, and not a chair moved. I had
+never seen such devotion in any church. Some spiritual power was
+brooding over the assemblage and bowing all those <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176">[Pg 176]</a></span>heads in token of
+submission and hope. Good, brave soldiers of France, how we love and
+honour you at such moments, and what confidence your chiefs must feel
+when they lead such men to battle!</p>
+
+<hr />
+
+<p>We sat at table around the lamp, and good Maman Cheveret had just
+brought in the steaming soup. Right away towards the east we heard the
+dull roll of the cannon. Good Monsieur Cheveret had just brought up
+from his cellar a venerable bottle of his best Burgundy, and, at the
+invitation of the Captain, he sat down to drink a glass with us,
+smoking his cherry-wood pipe and listening with delight to our merry
+chat.</p>
+
+<p>Gosset was in his kitchen next door preparing a delicious piece of
+beef <i>&agrave; la mode</i> and at the same time telling the admiring Maman
+Cheveret about his exploits of the past month.</p>
+
+<p>We heard the men of the first troop cracking their jokes in the yard
+as they ate their rations and emptied their pannikin of wine under a
+brilliant moon.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177">[Pg 177]</a></span>Down in the valley on the banks of the murmuring Vesle, songs and
+laughter floated up to us from the artillery park.</p>
+
+<p>And the village itself, shining under the starlit sky, seemed bathed
+in an atmosphere of cheerfulness, courage and confidence.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="Chapter_VI" id="Chapter_VI"></a><hr />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178">[Pg 178]</a></span><br />
+
+<h3>VI. A TRAGIC NIGHT IN THE TRENCHES<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+<br />
+
+<p class="right"><i>November 3, 1914.</i></p>
+
+<p>Imagine a little tiled room, some 16 feet by 9, in which for over a
+fortnight passing soldiers have been living, sleeping, and eating;
+imagine the furniture overturned, the broken crockery strewn on the
+floor, the doors and drawers of the cupboards pulled out, their modest
+contents scattered to the four corners of the house; add to this
+windows without glass, doors broken in, rubbish of every kind lying
+about, brought no one can tell whence or how; and yet note that one or
+two chromo-lithographs, a few photographs of friends and relatives and
+certain familiar objects, still cling to the walls, evoking the life
+that animated this home but a short time ago, and you will get some
+idea of the place where my Major, my comrades of the squadron and I
+were lodged on that memorable November evening.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179">[Pg 179]</a></span>It was five o'clock, and night was already falling, the cold, damp,
+misty night of Flanders following on a dreary autumn day. Outside the
+guns were roaring far away. The Battle of the Yser was going on.</p>
+
+<p>Our regiment had just been brought by rail from the Reims district,
+where it was, to the North of France, and thence to Belgium. Our
+chiefs had said: "You must leave your horses, you must forget that you
+ever were cavalrymen, you must make up your minds cheerfully to your
+new calling and become infantrymen for the time being. We are short of
+infantry here, and the Germans are trying to rush Dunkirk and Calais.
+Your country relies upon you to stop them." Our good Chasseurs left
+their horses at Elverdinghe, 10 kilometres from here. They came on
+foot, hampered by their heavy cavalry cloaks, dragging their riding
+boots through the atrocious mud of the ruined roads, carrying in their
+packs, together with their ration of bread and tinned meat, the huge
+load of one hundred and twenty cartridges; they arrived <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180">[Pg 180]</a></span>here in the
+firing line, and quite simply, as if they had never been accustomed to
+anything else, did wonders there and then.</p>
+
+<p>Yesterday, I grieve to say, I was not at the head of my troop. I was
+unable to take part in the epic battle round Bixschoote, the poor
+Belgian village which was retaken and then abandoned by us for the
+twentieth time. I was not present at the heroic death of the gallant
+and charming Colonel d'A., of the &mdash;&mdash; Chasseurs, the author of those
+heart-stirring pages&mdash;and among them "The Charge"&mdash;which bring tears
+to the eyes of every cavalryman. He died facing the enemy, leading his
+regiment to the attack under terrific fire, and when his men carried
+him away they ranged themselves round him to make a rampart of their
+bodies for the chief they adored. I was not able to share the danger
+of my young comrade, Second-Lieutenant J., who fell bravely at the
+head of his marksmen, in the middle of my beloved regiment, in which
+fresh gaps have been made by the enemy's bullets. My seniority had
+marked <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181">[Pg 181]</a></span>me out as officer of <i>liaison</i> to the General commanding our
+division. But this morning at dawn I came back to take my place in the
+firing line, and I think I shall be able to make up for lost time.</p>
+
+<p>The day has been absolutely quiet, however. After the fighting of the
+day before, and a night of sleeplessness and incessant alarms in the
+trenches, three of our squadrons, mine among them, were relieved
+before dawn and placed in reserve. They found billets in little
+forsaken farms some 600 yards from the firing line. Our men rested as
+well as they could all day, making beds of the scanty supplies of
+straw they found, washing themselves in pools, and renewing their
+strength in order to relieve the troops which had remained in the
+trenches; a squadron of our regiment, a squadron of the &mdash;&mdash;
+Chasseurs, and a section of infantry Chasseurs.</p>
+
+<p>Seated on a broken box, I was doing my best to write a letter, while
+Major B. and my brother officers O. and F., together with Captain de
+G., of the third squadron, took their <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182">[Pg 182]</a></span>seats at a rickety table and
+began a game of bridge. Here, by the way, is a thing passing the
+understanding of the profane, I mean the non-bridge player. This is
+the extraordinary, I might almost say the immoderate, attraction which
+the initiated find in this game, even at the height of a campaign.
+What inexhaustible joys it must offer to make its adepts profit by the
+briefest moments of respite in a battle to settle down anywhere and
+anyhow and give themselves up to their mysterious practices!</p>
+
+<p>I pause for a moment in my letter-writing to enjoy the sight, which
+has its special charm. Two or three kilometres off, towards
+Steenstraate, the cannon were working away furiously, while only a few
+paces from our shanty a section of our 75's was firing incessantly
+over the wood upon Bixschoote; overhead we heard the unpleasant roar
+of the big German shells; and in the midst of the racket I saw my
+bridge players dragging their table over to the broken window. Day was
+dying, and we had not seen a gleam of sunshine since morning. The sky
+was grey&mdash;a thick, dirty <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183">[Pg 183]</a></span>grey; it seemed to be very low, close upon
+us, and I felt that the night would come by slow degrees without any
+of those admirable symphonies of colour that twilight sometimes brings
+to battlefields, making the combatant feel that he is ending his day
+in apotheosis.</p>
+
+<p>But those four seemed to hear nothing. In the grey light I watched the
+refined profile of the Major bending over the cards just dealt by F.
+He no doubt has to speak first, for the three others looked at him, in
+motionless silence, as if they were expecting some momentous
+utterance. Then suddenly, accompanied by the muffled roar of the
+battle music, the following colloquy took place, a colloquy full of
+traps and ambushes, I suppose, for the four officers cast suspicious
+and inquisitorial glances at each other over their cards:</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"One spade."<br />
+"Two hearts."<br />
+"Two no trumps."<br />
+"I double."<br />
+"Your turn, Major."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_184" id="Page_184">[Pg 184]</a></span>But all of a sudden paf! paf! The four players had thrown down their
+cards, and we all looked at each other without a word. Suddenly we had
+just heard above us that strange and indefinable crackle made by
+bullets fired at close range as they tear through the air just above
+one. No doubt was possible; something extraordinary was happening near
+the trenches, for the crackling increased mightily, and hundreds and
+hundreds of bullets began to whistle round us. F. sent the table
+rolling to the other end of the room with a kick, and we all rushed
+out after the Major.</p>
+
+<p>There is no more depressing moment in warfare than when one finds
+oneself exposed to violent fire from the enemy without being able to
+see whence it comes, or what troops are firing, and what is its
+objective. Obviously the attack was not directed against us, for
+between the trenches and the houses where we were there was a thick
+wood which entirely concealed us from the sight of the enemy. But on
+the other hand the shots could not <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185">[Pg 185]</a></span>have been fired from the trenches
+the Germans had hitherto occupied opposite us, for had they been the
+bullets must have passed high over our heads, and we should have heard
+only the characteristic whistle of shots fired at long range.</p>
+
+<p>For a moment, only a moment, we were full of dread. What had happened?
+What had become of the comrades who were in the firing-line? Grouped
+together in the little enclosure bordered with quick-set hedges where
+there were still traces of what had been the kitchen-garden of our
+farm, we strained our eyes to see without uttering a word. In front of
+us was the dark line of the wood. We scrutinised it sharply, this
+silent mass of trees and bushes on which autumn had already laid the
+most splendid colours of its palette. In spite of the dull light, what
+an admirable background it made to the melancholy picture of the
+devastated landscape! First, quite close to the ground, was a tangle
+of bushes and brambles, its russet foliage forming a kind of
+impenetrable <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_186" id="Page_186">[Pg 186]</a></span>screen, which, in bright sunshine, would have been a
+curtain of purple and gold. Then, pointing up into the misty sky, came
+the denuded trunks of the trees, surrounded by a maze of myriads of
+delicate branches, their ramifications stretching a violet-tinted veil
+across the sky. In spite of the tragic present I could not but admire
+the marvellous setting Nature offered for the drama in which we were
+destined to be the actors.</p>
+
+<p>The bullets continued their infernal music, whistling in thousands
+over our heads. At the same time the fire of the German mortars
+redoubled in intensity, and their great "coal-boxes" (big shells)
+burst with a deafening din a few hundred yards behind us, seeking to
+silence our guns. These, concealed in a hollow, answered vigorously.</p>
+
+<p>But what did it all mean? What was happening? We longed to shout, to
+call, to implore some one to answer us, to tell us what had been
+taking place behind the thick curtain of the wood. But the curtain
+remained impenetrable.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_187" id="Page_187">[Pg 187]</a></span>In the few seconds we spent below that deserted house in the little
+trampled garden-close, under the rain of bullets that was falling
+around us, one dread oppressed us, and lay so heavy on our hearts that
+it made us dumb and incapable of exchanging our thoughts, or, rather,
+the one thought that haunted us all. "What has become of the second
+squadron? What has become of our Colonel, who had stayed in command?
+What has become of all our dear fellows there on the other side of the
+wood?" Uncertainty is indeed the worst of all miseries, because it
+makes its victims believe and imagine every horror.</p>
+
+<p>From our post we could see at the windows and doors of the little
+houses scattered among the fields the anxious and inquiring faces of
+our men. They, too, were tortured by uncertainty. They stood huddled
+together, looking in our direction, waiting for a sign or an order.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly our doubts were dissipated.</p>
+
+<p>"To arms!" cried our Major, in a ringing <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_188" id="Page_188">[Pg 188]</a></span>voice that echoed above the
+crackling of the bullets and was heard by the whole squadron.</p>
+
+<p>He had no need to repeat the order. In the twinkling of an eye my
+troop had formed behind me, in squads. My men waited in absolute
+silence, their eyes fixed upon me, kneeling on one knee, and leaning
+on their rifles. I seemed to hear all their hearts beating in unison
+with mine; and knew their wills ready to second mine.</p>
+
+<p>The Major gave the word of command. We disposed our men in skirmishing
+order in the ditch of the road that passed in front of our farm,
+parallel with the skirts of the wood. Our squadrons thus formed a line
+of from 300 to 400 yards, capable of holding the enemy in check for
+some time, if they had succeeded in taking our trenches and were
+already pushing through the thicket. Kneeling on the road behind them,
+I looked at my men. They were lying flat on the ground on the slope of
+the ditch; they had loaded their rifles, and I could not distinguish
+the slightest <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_189" id="Page_189">[Pg 189]</a></span>trace of fear or even of emotion in any one of them.</p>
+
+<p>They were all looking straight before them trying to see whether some
+helmeted soldier were emerging from the bushes in the gathering
+shadow. What splendid soldiers the war has fashioned for us! They are
+no longer merely the diligent and conscientious cavalrymen we took
+pleasure in commanding, and whose smartness we admired in peace time.
+The stern experience of the battlefield has hardened, strengthened and
+ennobled them. Their faces are manlier; their discipline, far from
+relaxing, has become more thorough; their courage has developed, and,
+in most of them, now verges on temerity.</p>
+
+<p>I have had two new men in my troop for a short time: Ladoucette and
+Roger. They are Territorials, men of from thirty-eight to forty, who,
+wearying of the dep&ocirc;t and envying their juniors in the field, asked
+and obtained leave to rejoin the regiment at the Front. They
+fascinated me at once by their high spirits, their jovial chaff, and
+the cheerfulness <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_190" id="Page_190">[Pg 190]</a></span>with which they undertook the most laborious tasks.
+But I had not yet seen them under fire.</p>
+
+<p>I looked about for them in the line of skirmishers. I tried to
+distinguish them among all the backs and necks lying before me. And I
+very soon guessed that they were at the extreme right of the troop,
+for I heard smothered laughter at that corner; evidently Ladoucette
+was cracking some of the highly-spiced jokes characteristic of him.
+Yes, I saw his head lifted above the grass on the slope, his bristling
+moustache, his brilliant eyes, and sarcastic mouth. I could not hear
+what he was saying, for the firing was still furious, but I saw from
+the smiling faces of his neighbours that he had, as usual, found the
+right word for the occasion, the word that provokes laughter under
+bullet fire and makes men forget danger. Not far from him his
+inseparable chum, Roger, guffawed appreciatively, and seemed to be
+enjoying himself thoroughly. I rejoiced to think that I had got two
+first-rate recruits, worthy to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_191" id="Page_191">[Pg 191]</a></span>fight side by side with the fine
+fellows of my brave troop.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly a dark figure emerged from the wood, then two more, then
+another three, then more. Was it the enemy? Without waiting for the
+word of command some of the men pointed their rifles at the mysterious
+shadows running in single file towards us.</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"Don't fire! Don't fire!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>We had, fortunately, recognised the uniform of our infantry Chasseurs.
+But this increased rather than allayed our anxiety. We naturally
+imagined the direst catastrophes and feared the most terrible
+consequences when we saw those in whom we had trusted, those who
+occupied the trenches nearest to Bixschoote, beating a retreat. The
+first of the fugitives came up to us. They seemed completely
+demoralised. Haggard, ragged, and black with dust, they crossed the
+road at a run. We tried in vain to stop them. As they passed us they
+shouted something unintelligible, of which we could catch nothing but
+the words:</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_192" id="Page_192">[Pg 192]</a></span>"They're coming, ... they're coming."</p>
+
+<p>Together with O., I succeeded in stopping two men, who were going
+along less rapidly, supporting a wounded comrade who was groaning and
+dragging himself on one leg.</p>
+
+<p>"Our flank was turned; there are thousands of them. They came through
+the village and enfiladed us. We had a great many killed ... our
+officer wounded. We must get back further to the rear."</p>
+
+<p>As they went off haltingly with their comrade, whose groans were
+pitiable to hear, the tall figure of a lieutenant of foot Chasseurs
+rose suddenly before us. He looked like a ghost, and for a moment we
+thought he was about to fall, an exhausted mass, at our feet. His face
+was covered with blood. The red mask in which the white of the eyes
+formed two brilliant spots was horrible to see. His torn tunic and all
+his clothing were saturated with blood. He was gesticulating wildly
+with the revolver he clutched in his hands, and seemed absolutely
+distraught.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_193" id="Page_193">[Pg 193]</a></span>As he passed the Major seized him by the arm:</p>
+
+<p>"Halt! halt! Look here, you must rally your men. We can put up a good
+defence here."</p>
+
+<p>The officer wrenched himself free, and went off with hasty strides,
+calling to us without turning his head:</p>
+
+<p>"I know what I must do.... We can't hold a line here.... I am going to
+form up by the artillery."</p>
+
+<p>Two more men came by, depressed and silent, bent down by the weight of
+their knapsacks. They crossed the ditches by the roadside with
+difficulty, and were presently lost to sight in the fields amidst the
+gathering shadows.</p>
+
+<p>There was no laughter now in our ranks. The same thought was in every
+mind, the same despair chilled every heart. The Germans must have
+taken our trenches, and our brave comrades had all chosen to die
+rather than to retreat. And the enemy must be there before us, in that
+wood; they must be <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_194" id="Page_194">[Pg 194]</a></span>stealing up to us noiselessly. I fancied I could
+see them, gliding from tree to tree, holding their rifles high, trying
+to deaden the sound of their footsteps among the dead leaves.
+Presently they would reach the dark line that stretched before us,
+mute and mysterious; they would mass their dense reserves in the rear,
+and suddenly thousands of lightning flashes would illuminate the
+fringe of the thicket. I looked at my men again. There was no sign of
+wavering; not a word was spoken; their faces looked a little pale in
+the waning light. Above us thousands of shells and bullets filled the
+air with their strange and terrible music.</p>
+
+<p>A man came out of the wood and walked quietly towards us. It was not
+light enough to distinguish his uniform, but his calm and placid
+bearing was in marked contrast to that of the infantry Chasseurs. He
+must have recognised the little group formed by the Major, my
+comrades, and myself in the middle of the road, for he made straight
+for us.</p>
+
+<p>When he got to within twenty paces of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_195" id="Page_195">[Pg 195]</a></span>us we recognised to our joy
+Sergeant Madelin, a non-commissioned officer of our second squadron,
+the squadron that had stayed in the trenches with the Colonel and the
+machine-gun section. I cannot describe the relief we felt at the sight
+of him. Though we could not tell what he was going to say, his
+attitude dispelled our fears at once. He gazed at us with wide
+astonished eyes from under the peak of his shako, and came on quietly,
+as if he were taking a walk, his hands in his pockets, murmuring in a
+tone of stupefaction:</p>
+
+<p>"What on earth is the matter?"</p>
+
+<p>"Well, really, this is a little too much!" exclaimed the Major;
+"that's just what <i>we</i> want <i>you</i> to tell <i>us</i>!"</p>
+
+<p>"But I have nothing to tell you, Major. The trench of the infantry
+Chasseurs was taken. We are all right. But the Colonel has sent me to
+say that there are signs of a German counter-attack on the left, and
+he wants you to reinforce him on that side with your three
+squadrons."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_196" id="Page_196">[Pg 196]</a></span>He spoke so calmly and with such an air of astonishment that we all
+felt inclined to laugh. Madelin had already given proof of his
+courage, he had even been mentioned in orders for his valour, but we
+had never seen him so placidly good-humoured under fire as on this
+occasion. All our fears were at once put to flight, and we thought
+only of one thing; to fly to the help of our comrades and win our
+share of glory.</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"Forward!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The officers had advanced in front of the line of skirmishers. All the
+men sprang up in an instant, and the three squadrons dashed forward
+full speed.</p>
+
+<p>But at the exact moment when our men, springing out of the ditches,
+began their advance towards the wood, the enemy's artillery,
+shortening its range, began to pour a perfect hail of shrapnel on our
+line. It was now almost pitch dark, and there was something infernal
+in the scene. The shells were bursting at a considerable height above
+us, some in front, some behind. They made a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_197" id="Page_197">[Pg 197]</a></span>horrible kind of music.
+There must have been at least two batteries at work upon us, for we
+could no longer distinguish even the three characteristic shots of the
+German batteries in <i>rafale</i> fire. The noise was incessant, and each
+shell as it burst illumined a small section of the battlefield for a
+second. It just showed a tree trunk, a bit of wall, a strip of hedge,
+and then the darkness fell again over this point, while another was
+illuminated by the crash of a new explosion.</p>
+
+<p>At one moment a sudden horror gripped me. To my left a shrapnel shell
+fell full on the line of the third squadron. This time the flash of
+the explosion had not only lighted up a corner of landscape; I had had
+a glimpse of a terrible sight.</p>
+
+<p>You must imagine the intense and rapid light cast by a burning
+magnesium wire, accompanied by a deafening noise, and in this brief
+light the figures of several men, weirdly illuminated, in the
+attitudes induced by the terror of certain death, and you will get a
+faint impression of what I saw. Then, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_198" id="Page_198">[Pg 198]</a></span>suddenly, everything fell back
+into darkness, a darkness that seemed more intense than before after
+the glare of the explosion. I dimly discerned bodies on the ground,
+and shadows bending over them.</p>
+
+<p>I did not stop, but I heard the voice of the Major calmly giving
+orders:</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"Pick him up! Gently...."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>But the wounded man shrieked, refusing to allow himself to be touched;
+his limbs, no doubt, were shattered. No matter! Forward! Forward! We
+rushed on towards the wood, where we hoped to get some protection from
+the avalanche of shells. A voice called out names behind me:</p>
+
+<p>"Corporal David killed! Sergeant Flosse wounded; leg broken."</p>
+
+<p>My men were running forward so impetuously that presently they were on
+a level with me. What fine fellows! I half regretted that some hostile
+troop was not waiting for us ambushed in the wood. We might have had a
+splendid fight! But would there have been a fight at all? Would the
+Prussians <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_199" id="Page_199">[Pg 199]</a></span>have ventured to measure themselves against these
+dare-devils, whom danger excites instead of depressing? Well, we were
+at the edge of the wood at last, waiting till the Major came up with
+us.</p>
+
+<p>Leaning against the trees, my Chasseurs took breath after their race.
+I passed swiftly along the line to make sure that all my men were
+safe. They were all there, and I was relieved to find that I had no
+losses to deplore. The joys and sorrows of war had forged a bond
+between us that nothing could break. I had soon learnt to know each
+one of them, with his virtues and his faults, and I felt them to be,
+without exception, worthy fellows and brave soldiers. Each time death
+struck down one of them, I suffered as at the loss of a beloved
+brother, and I believe they repaid my affection for them by perfect
+trust.</p>
+
+<p>The Major had now rejoined us. We were not to lose a moment in
+responding to our Colonel's summons, and we were to remember that our
+comrades of the second squadron were bearing the brunt of the enemy's
+attack alone.</p>
+
+<div class="block"><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_200" id="Page_200">[Pg 200]</a></span>
+<p class="noin">"Forward!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>We resumed our headlong advance. It was more difficult in the darkness
+of the wood than on the soft earth of the fields. We stumbled over
+roots, and got entangled in brambles; men fell, picked themselves up
+again, and went on with an oath. There was no more chaff; all minds
+were strung up to fever pitch, and strength was giving out, while the
+storm of shrapnel continued overhead, cropping the branches, and
+lighting up the tangle of leafless trees and bushes at intervals as if
+with fireworks.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly I heard on my right, not far behind me, screams and calls for
+help, rising above the turmoil of battle. I saw my men stop for a
+moment, looking round. But they hurried on again at my orders without
+a word.</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"Forward!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Time was precious. Every minute might be fatal to our brothers in
+arms. We could now hear the familiar sound of our cavalry carbines
+quite close to us. We were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_201" id="Page_201">[Pg 201]</a></span>approaching the trenches where the second
+squadron was making its heroic stand.</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"Forward! Forward!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>We were all breathless from our frantic rush. But no one thought of
+slackening speed. I turned round to some one who was trotting behind
+me. It was my non-commissioned officer. Without a moment's loss of
+time he had run to see what had caused the cries we had heard, and now
+he had come back at the double to report to me.</p>
+
+<p>"Sir, in the third troop, Sergeant Lagaraldi...."</p>
+
+<p>"Well?"</p>
+
+<p>"He's killed, ... and Corporal Durand too!"</p>
+
+<p>"Ah!"</p>
+
+<p>"And there are many wounded."</p>
+
+<p>I made no answer. Oh! it was horrible! Two poor fellows so full of
+life and spirits not an hour ago! In spite of myself I could not help
+thinking for a few minutes of the two shattered, quivering bodies
+lying among the grasses of the forest. But I thrust away the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_202" id="Page_202">[Pg 202]</a></span>gruesome
+vision resolutely. We could only think of doing our duty at this
+supreme moment. Later we would remember the dead, weep for them, and
+pray for them.</p>
+
+<p>The darkness was no longer so dense. The tangle of trees in front of
+us was less thick, the branches seemed to be opening out, we were near
+the edge of the wood. And at the same time, in spite of the mad
+beating of my heart and the buzzing in my ears, I was conscious that
+the cannonade had ceased, at least in our direction, and that the
+bullets were no longer coming so thickly. The German attack was
+probably relaxing; there was to be a respite. So much the better! It
+would enable us to pass from the wood to the trenches without much
+danger, thanks to the darkness.</p>
+
+<p>We had arrived! One by one our men slipped into the communication
+trench. What a sense of well-being and of rest we all had! The little
+passage in the earth, so uninviting as a rule, seemed to us as
+desirable as the most sumptuous palace. We drew breath at <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_203" id="Page_203">[Pg 203]</a></span>last. We
+felt almost safe. But still, there was no time to be lost.</p>
+
+<p>While the Major hurried off to take the Colonel's orders I climbed up
+on the parapet. Night had now fallen completely, but the moon was
+rising. Indeed, it would have been almost as light as day but for a
+slight mist which was spreading a diaphanous veil before our eyes. In
+the foreground to the right I could barely guess the dim outline of
+the battered mill and the burnt farm flanking the trench occupied by
+the foot Chasseurs. Further off, however, I could vaguely distinguish
+the row of trees that marked the first line of German trenches, about
+250 yards away from us. To the left the mist had a reddish tinge. No
+doubt yet another house was burning in the unhappy village of
+Bixschoote.</p>
+
+<p>There was a sudden silence in this little corner of the great
+battlefield, as if our arrival in the firing line had been a
+prearranged signal. On our right, too, the intensity of the fire upon
+the trenches occupied by the &mdash;&mdash; Territorials diminished. To the
+left, on the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_204" id="Page_204">[Pg 204]</a></span>other hand, the gun fire and rifle fire were incessant
+in the direction of the bridge of Steenstraate, defended by the &mdash;&mdash;
+Brigade of mounted Chasseurs. It seemed evident that the Germans,
+having failed in their attempt to cross the Yser canal near us, were
+making a fresh effort further to the north. However, it is not safe to
+rely too absolutely even upon the most logical deductions, for very
+often the event upsets the most careful calculations and frustrates
+the wisest plans.</p>
+
+<p>The moon was now shining with extraordinary brilliance, and the fog,
+far from veiling its lustre, seemed to make it more disconcerting.
+Persons assumed strange forms and the shapes of things were modified
+or exaggerated. Our dazzled eyes were mocked by depressing
+hallucinations; the smallest objects took on alarming proportions, and
+whenever a slight breeze stirred the foliage of the beetroot field in
+front of us we imagined we saw a line of snipers advancing.</p>
+
+<p>I had great difficulty in preventing my men from firing. It was
+necessary to eke <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_205" id="Page_205">[Pg 205]</a></span>out our cartridges with the utmost care, for, owing
+to some mistake in the transmission of orders, our supplies had not
+been replenished since the day before, and we had used a great many in
+the fighting round Bixschoote. A like prudence was not, however,
+observed all along the line, for every now and then the trenches would
+be suddenly illuminated at a point where for a few seconds a useless
+volley would ring out. Then everything relapsed into darkness and
+immobility.</p>
+
+<p>Towards Steenstraate, too, the firing seemed to be dying down. I
+looked at my watch. It was half-past six. This was the hour when as a
+rule our men began to feel hungry, and when in each troop the
+Chasseurs would set out, pannikin in hand, towards the smoking
+saucepan where the cook awaited them wielding his ladle with an
+important air. But on this particular evening no one thought of
+eating. We seemed all to feel that our work was not yet over, and that
+we had still a weighty task on hand. It was certainly not the moment
+to light fires and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_206" id="Page_206">[Pg 206]</a></span>make soup; no doubt the Prussians were brewing
+something for us of a different kind, and it would never do not to
+return their compliments promptly.</p>
+
+<p>Ready? Yes, we were ready. I turned and looked back into the trench.
+All my brave fellows were standing, their eyes turned to me, and
+seemed bent on divining by my attitude or gestures any new effort I
+might be about to ask of them. The pale light of the moonbeams struck
+full on their faces, leaving their bodies shrouded in the darkness of
+the trench. What a strange and comforting spectacle it was! In every
+eye I read calm courage and absolute confidence.</p>
+
+<p>Whenever I feel weary or depressed, inclined to curse the slowness of
+our advance and the thousand miseries of war, I need only do what I
+did that evening. I need only turn to my Chasseurs and look into their
+eyes without a word; there I read so many noble and touching things
+that I am ashamed to have felt a momentary weakness.</p>
+
+<p>They do not ask the why and the wherefore <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_207" id="Page_207">[Pg 207]</a></span>of things. They live from
+day to day, weighed down by hard work. To them the actual fighting is
+a rest and a delight. As soon as it is over they have to resume the
+hard life of cavalrymen on active service, spend all their time
+looking after their horses, fetching rations and forage, often from a
+considerable distance, cleaning harness and arms, and every night
+contriving some sort of quarters for themselves and their beasts in
+the squalor of half-destroyed or abandoned villages, quarters they
+must leave on the morrow. Yet nothing seems to depress them. They
+preserve all the eagerness of the first few days and that imperishable
+French gaiety which is an additional weapon for our troops.</p>
+
+<p>That evening I felt them vibrating in unison with me more keenly than
+ever.</p>
+
+<p>There was little doubt that I should have to appeal to their courage
+again presently, for something unusual was happening in front of us.
+It was maddening not to be able to pierce the luminous mist, behind
+which the enemy would be able to form up and take <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_208" id="Page_208">[Pg 208]</a></span>new positions
+without our knowledge. Down behind the line of willows we could now
+barely distinguish, we were aware of mysterious sounds, making a kind
+of distant murmur. They must come from the rattle of arms, orders
+given in whispers, footsteps slipping on the fat soil of plough-lands.
+Listening heads craned over our parapets. Each man was trying to hear,
+to understand, to see, and to divine, and each felt intuitively that
+the enemy was about to renew his assault. The most absolute silence
+and the most impressive calm reigned in our trenches. Yes, we were
+ready for them! Let them come!</p>
+
+<p>Then suddenly from the enemy's camp there rose a solemn, harmonious
+hymn sung by hundreds of manly voices. We could not distinguish the
+words uttered in the barbarian tongue. But the music was perfectly
+audible, and I must confess that nothing caused me so much surprise
+throughout this eventful evening. With what ardour and unanimity, and
+also, I am bound to admit, with what art, these men proclaimed their
+faith before <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_209" id="Page_209">[Pg 209]</a></span>rushing on death! One could imagine no more magnificent
+temple for the prayers of soldiers about to offer up their lives than
+the spacious firmament above and the luminous night around. We
+listened, touched and delighted. The hymn continued for some time, and
+the music seemed to me noble and inspiring; the voices were true and
+the execution admirable. But, above all, the singing conveyed a
+disturbing impression of disciplined and ordered piety. To what
+lengths these men carry their love of command and obedience!</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly the hymn broke off abruptly in a formidable uproar, above
+which rose thousands of voices shouting:</p>
+
+<p>"Hurrah! Hurrah! Cavalry! Cavalry!"</p>
+
+<p>Then, dominating the tumult, we heard their trumpets sounding the
+short, monotonous notes of the Prussian charge.</p>
+
+<p>I leaped back into the trench.</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"Independent fire!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The whole French line burst into a violent and deafening fusillade.
+Each man seemed <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_210" id="Page_210">[Pg 210]</a></span>full of blind rage, of an exasperated lust for
+destruction. I saw them take aim rapidly, press the trigger, and
+reload in feverish haste. I was deafened and bewildered by the
+terrible noise of the firing in the narrow confines of the trench. To
+our left, the machine-gun section of my friend F. kept up an infernal
+racket.</p>
+
+<p>But the German line had suddenly dropped to the ground. I could barely
+distinguish a swarm of grey shadows running about in the fog. Then not
+a single dark figure was visible on the pale background of the tragic
+scene. How many of the bodies we could no longer make out must have
+been lying lifeless, and how horrible their proximity must have been
+to the living stretched side by side with them!</p>
+
+<p>Our men had ceased firing of their own accord, and a strange silence
+had succeeded to the deafening din. What was about to happen? Would
+they dare to come on again? We hoped so with all our hearts, for we
+felt that if we could keep our men in hand, and prevent them from
+firing at random, the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_211" id="Page_211">[Pg 211]</a></span>enemy could never get at us. But, above all, it
+was essential to economise our ammunition, for if we were short of
+cartridges, what resistance could we offer to a bayonet charge with
+our little carbines reduced to silence?</p>
+
+<p>The Germans must have been severely shaken, for they seemed afraid to
+resume the attack. Nothing was moving in the bare plain that stretched
+before us. During this respite an order came from the officer in
+command, passing from mouth to mouth:</p>
+
+<p>"Hand it on: No firing without the word of command."</p>
+
+<p>Then silence fell on our trenches, heavy and complete as on the
+landscape before us. Suddenly, on the place where the enemy's riflemen
+had thrown themselves on the ground, we saw a slim shadow rise and
+stand. The man had got up quietly, as if no danger threatened him.
+And, in spite of everything, it was impossible not to admire the
+gallantry of his act. He stood motionless for a second, leaning on his
+sword or a stick; then he <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_212" id="Page_212">[Pg 212]</a></span>raised his arm slowly, and a hoarse voice
+yelled:</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"<i>Auf!</i>" [Up!]</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Other voices repeated the word of command, and were answered by
+renewed "hurrahs!" Then the heavy line of riflemen sprang up and again
+rushed towards us:</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"Fire! Fire!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Once more our trenches belched forth their infernal fire. We could now
+plainly see numbers of them fall; then they suddenly threw themselves
+on the ground just as before. But instead of crouching motionless
+among the beetroot they began to answer our fire. Innumerable bullets
+whistled about us. I noted with joy that my men remained perfectly
+steady; they were aiming and firing deliberately, whereas at other
+points the fusillade was so violent that it cannot have been
+efficacious. I was very glad not to have to reprove my brave
+Chasseurs, for the uproar was so terrific that my voice would not have
+carried beyond the two men nearest to me. I calculated the number of
+cartridges <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_213" id="Page_213">[Pg 213]</a></span>each of them must have in reserve; twenty-five, perhaps
+thirty. How would it all end? I was just thinking of ordering my troop
+to cease firing, in order to reserve my ammunition for a supreme
+effort, if this should be necessary.</p>
+
+<p>But something happened which checked this decision. F.'s machine-guns
+must have worked fearful havoc among our assailants, for suddenly,
+without a cry and without an order, we saw them rise and make off
+quickly right and left in the fog.</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"Silence!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>I was obliged to intervene to subdue the joyous effervescence caused
+in my troop. The men began to discuss their impressions in tones of
+glee that might have become dangerous. Ladoucette's voice was heard,
+as usual, above the din, calling upon his absent wife to admire his
+exploits:</p>
+
+<p>"Madame Ladoucette, if you could have seen that!"</p>
+
+<p>But we had to be on the <i>qui vive</i>. The German attack had been
+checked, but it might be renewed.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_214" id="Page_214">[Pg 214]</a></span>We were fully alive to the courage and tenacity of our enemies.</p>
+
+<p>I could distinguish nothing ahead in the increasingly thick white fog.
+All I could hear was the sound of pickaxes on the ground and the thud
+of falling clods. The enemy had, no doubt, decided not to attack again
+and were digging new trenches. They no longer uttered their
+contemptuous guttural cries of "Cavalry! Cavalry!" They had learnt to
+their cost that these French cavalrymen, at the sight of whom their
+own are so ready to turn back, could hold their own equally well
+against German infantry. I thought we might count on a little respite.
+The battlefield was silent, save for the faint cries occasionally
+uttered by the wounded.</p>
+
+<p>I hastily detached two troopers to man the listening-posts, and they
+slipped away silently. Then, as our Captain had unfortunately been
+summoned to Elverdinghe that day on special duty, I went to look for
+the Major to make my report to him. My men had seated themselves on
+the rough ledges cut in the slope of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_215" id="Page_215">[Pg 215]</a></span>the trench, their carbines
+between their knees, and were talking together in low tones. As I
+passed a friendly smile lit up their faces. I walked slowly along the
+narrow trench, careful not to tread on the feet of the talkers.</p>
+
+<p>As I approached a point where the trench, following the direction of
+the wood, formed an abrupt angle, I heard two familiar voices
+exchanging the following words:</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"Fifty-two!... Tierce major...; three aces!"<br />
+"Capital!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>This was really the limit! I turned the corner and came upon Major B.
+and F. seated on the ledge, quietly playing cards by the brilliant
+moonlight. As their tiny retreat could not accommodate four players,
+they were solacing themselves with a game of piquet.</p>
+
+<p>Oh, all you who are of necessity far from the scene of conflict, good
+Frenchmen and valiant Frenchwomen, how I should have liked you to see
+this picture! No doubt you often wonder whether those who are
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_216" id="Page_216">[Pg 216]</a></span>defending your homes against the accursed invader will be able to bear
+the sufferings of this war to the bitter end; you fear that they may
+be losing their good humour and their dashing spirits; you imagine
+them brooding with careworn faces and anxious souls when, the
+excitement of the encounter dying down, they think of what the morrow
+may bring forth. How I wish you could have seen Major B. and the
+gallant Lieutenant F. playing piquet in the trench where they had just
+repulsed a furious German attack, which might have been renewed at any
+moment!</p>
+
+<p>I left them to go on with their game, and went in search of my comrade
+O. I found him in the middle of his troop, talking amicably with his
+men. After the enemy had ceased firing he had sent a party of sappers
+to dig the graves of the two non-commissioned officers who had fallen
+in the wood. We retired into a corner of the trench, and there he told
+me of the grief he felt at this loss, a grief he was doing his best to
+hide, so as not to injure the <i>moral</i> of his troop. Lagaraldi <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_217" id="Page_217">[Pg 217]</a></span>had
+just got his promotion, and was a soldier of the highest promise;
+Durand was the model corporal, clean, cheerful, and active. And, even
+if they had been but mediocre troopers, I knew too well what we
+officers feel when we lose even a passable Chasseur, to wonder at the
+melancholy of my charming young comrade.</p>
+
+<p>Time went on, and there were no signs of a fresh attack. The enemy's
+artillery seemed to be neglecting us, and to be bent upon the
+destruction of the Boesinghe bridge, by which we had crossed the Yser.
+His great shells flew over our heads with a sinister roar, and a few
+seconds later we heard the explosion far behind us. The German
+trenches in front of us were silent. A single shot fired at intervals
+alone reminded us that they were not forsaken.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Mon Lieutenant</i>, it's all ready."</p>
+
+<p>A corporal had come out of the wood to tell O. that the graves were dug.
+When we had sent word to our chiefs, and placed our non-commissioned
+officers in temporary command, our strange, sad procession of mourners
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_218" id="Page_218">[Pg 218]</a></span>left the trenches and slipped through the thicket in single file. There
+were four officers, the Lieutenant-Colonel, Major B., O., and myself and
+four non-commissioned officers. It would have been dangerous to deplete
+the firing line further.</p>
+
+<p>With heavy hearts we retraced our steps through the wood we had so
+lately passed through in all the exaltation of our advance. We knew
+the moral anguish we were about to feel in rendering this last service
+to our young brothers-in-arms. It was unhappily by no means the first
+time we had held such a ceremony, but never had I been present at one
+in such tragic circumstances, nor in such impressive surroundings. We
+hurried along, almost running in our anxiety to return quickly to our
+men. The branches caught at us and slashed our faces, the dead leaves
+and twigs crackled under our tread. Above us the shells still sang
+their funeral song.</p>
+
+<p>We had now come in sight of the burial-ground. In the moonlight, at
+the edge of the wood close to the spot where our gallant <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_219" id="Page_219">[Pg 219]</a></span>fellows had
+fallen, we could distinguish newly-dug earth, and four silent men
+standing beside it, their tunics thrown off, leaning on spade and
+pickaxe. It was there.</p>
+
+<p>In a little ravaged garden-plot, at the foot of great trees which
+would guard these graves, they had dug two holes, which, by night,
+looked extraordinarily deep and dark.</p>
+
+<p>Ought we to lament or to envy the touching and simple burial rite of
+soldiers? To me, nothing could be more beautiful than such a last
+resting-place. Why should we desire richer tombs, sepulchral stones,
+and sculptured monuments? We are all equal upon that field of death,
+the battlefield at the close of day. And there can be no fitter shroud
+for him who has fallen on that field than his soldier's cloak. A
+little earth that will be grass-grown and flower-spangled again in the
+spring, a simple cross of rough wood, a name, a regimental number, a
+date&mdash;all this is better than the most splendid obsequies. And what
+can be more touching than the poor little bunches of wild flowers
+which the friends of the dead <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_220" id="Page_220">[Pg 220]</a></span>gather on the banks of ditches, and
+which are to be seen days afterwards, faded and yet so fair, hanging
+on the humble crosses? Such was to be the portion of Lagaraldi and
+Durand. Why should we pity them? We will weep for them, we will not
+pity them.</p>
+
+<p>They were there, lying side by side in their cloaks, the turned-up
+capes of which shrouded their heads, and we bared our own in silence.
+Each of us, consciously or unconsciously, breathed a prayer, each set
+his teeth and tried to restrain his tears.</p>
+
+<p>But we were not destined to pray in peace to the end. At the moment
+when the Lieutenant-Colonel was about to express our sorrow and
+pronounce the last farewell the enemy's mortars, suddenly changing
+their objective, began to bombard the part of the wood on the edge of
+which we were standing.</p>
+
+<p>What was their idea? Did they think our reserves were massed in the
+wood? However this may have been, a formidable avalanche descended
+above and around us. The first salvo literally cleared the wood close
+by us. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_221" id="Page_221">[Pg 221]</a></span>A great tree, cut through the middle, bent over for an instant
+and then rolled gently to the ground with a great crackling of broken
+boughs. At the same time the German bullets began to whistle round us
+by thousands, apparently determined to draw us into their frenzied
+saraband. Death seemed for a moment inevitable. We could not hesitate;
+we had to take cover, or to be mown down by shot or shell.</p>
+
+<p>Then&mdash;I shall remember the gruesome moment to my dying hour&mdash;we all
+leaped into the only available shelter&mdash;crouching together in the
+newly-dug graves. We were just in time.</p>
+
+<p>Bullets flew past us; the great "coal-boxes" burst without
+intermission. The uproar was tremendous, beyond anything we had ever
+heard. It would be impossible to describe the horror of those minutes.
+Those graves, all too spacious for the poor bodies we were about to
+commit to them, were too small to shelter us. We pressed one against
+the other in the strangest positions, hiding our heads between the
+shoulders of those who were lying in <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_222" id="Page_222">[Pg 222]</a></span>front of us; we thought every
+moment that the network of projectiles would be drawn more tightly
+round us, and that one would fall into our holes, transforming them
+into a ghastly charnel-house.</p>
+
+<p>This idea occurred to me suddenly and obsessed me. Yes, yes, presently
+the great snorting, whistling, pitiless thing would fall between O.
+and me. We should feel nothing; there would be no pain. We should be
+only a little heap of bloody clay, and to-morrow at daybreak our
+comrades would but have to throw a few spadefuls of earth upon it.
+They would put a plain wooden cross above, with our names and ranks,
+the number of our regiment, a date: "November 3, 1914." And it would
+be better than any sumptuous monument.</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"Hush! Listen!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Between two explosions, in spite of the noise of the German bullets,
+we distinctly heard the crack of our carbines.</p>
+
+<div class="block">
+<p class="noin">"Our men are fighting!"</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>We all understood, and with one bound <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_223" id="Page_223">[Pg 223]</a></span>we were up and running
+frantically through the wood. How was it that none of us were killed?
+How did we manage to escape the shells and bullets which were cropping
+the branches and felling the trees around us? I shall never understand
+or forget this experience.</p>
+
+<p>When at last we sprang breathless into our trench after what had
+seemed an interminable race, the tumult had died down again and only
+occasional shots broke the nocturnal calm. The reason of the sudden
+renewal of the fighting was given at once by F.</p>
+
+<p>"Bravo!" he cried; "we have retaken the infantry Chasseurs' trench!"</p>
+
+<p>This was a great consolation to us, for we were all full of regret at
+the loss of this little piece of ground. It had prevented us from
+feeling quite satisfied with our day.</p>
+
+<p>Now all was well. Our task was accomplished.</p>
+
+<hr />
+
+<p>On the following day, November 4, at three in the morning, a battalion
+of the &mdash;&mdash; <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_224" id="Page_224">[Pg 224]</a></span>Regiment of the Line came to relieve us. It formed part
+of that glorious 20th Corps, which has covered itself with glory ever
+since the beginning of the war, and fought all along the front from
+Lorraine to Flanders, always arriving at the moment when picked men
+were needed to make a last desperate effort. It had come up that
+evening, and was at once on the spot.</p>
+
+<p>In the cold, luminous night, the heavily laden infantrymen defiled
+into the narrow trench, calm, silent, and serious.</p>
+
+<p>The officer who was to take my place presented himself smartly, as if
+on the parade-ground.</p>
+
+<p>"Lieutenant X."</p>
+
+<p>I gave my name.</p>
+
+<p>"My dear fellow," he said, "I am delighted to shake hands with you.
+Allow me to say how much we all admire your regiment. Your General has
+just told us how your Chasseurs have behaved. Accept my
+congratulations. We could not have done better ourselves. The cavalry
+is certainly taking first place as a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_225" id="Page_225">[Pg 225]</a></span>fighting force. Your regiment is
+to be mentioned in despatches, and you deserve it. Good-night. Good
+luck!"</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you! Good luck!"</p>
+
+<hr />
+
+<p>Once more we passed through the wood to take up our position in
+reserve. Our men were beginning to feel the fatigue of those two days
+without sleep and almost without rest.</p>
+
+<p>But joy, stronger than bodily fatigue, predominated. It hovered over
+our harassed troops. Above all, they were proud of having been
+appreciated and congratulated by their brothers-in-arms of the crack
+corps which is the admiration of the whole army.</p>
+
+<p>Each man forgot his tortured nerves, his aching head, his weary legs,
+repeating to himself the magic words:</p>
+
+<p>"Your regiment is to be mentioned in despatches!"</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="Chapter_VII" id="Chapter_VII"></a><hr />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_226" id="Page_226">[Pg 226]</a></span><br />
+
+<h3>VII. SISTER GABRIELLE<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+<br />
+
+<p>It was a very dark night. How were we to find our way about the little
+unknown town of Elverdinghe, near which our regiment had just been
+quartered? We could hardly make out the low houses with closed windows
+and long roofs of thatch or slate, and kept stumbling on the greasy
+and uneven cobble-stones. Now and again the corner of a street or the
+angle of a square was lit up dimly by a ray of light filtering through
+half-closed shutters. I went along haphazard, preceded by my friend B.
+We were quite determined to find beds, and to sleep in peace.</p>
+
+<p>After our four days' fighting near Bixschoote we had been sent to the
+rear, ten kilometres away from the line of fire, to get twenty-four
+hours' rest; had arrived at nightfall, and found much difficulty in
+putting up our men and horses in the small farms around the town. But
+no sooner had they all found <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_227" id="Page_227">[Pg 227]</a></span>places, no sooner had the horses got
+their nose-bags on and the kitchen fires been lighted, than B., who
+was always anxious about the comforts of his board and lodging, said
+to me:</p>
+
+<p>"There is only one thing for us to do. We are to rest. We must find a
+bed and a well-furnished table. I had rather go to bed an hour later,
+and sleep between sheets after a good meal, than lie down at once on
+straw with an empty stomach. Listen to me. Let us go on to that nice
+Belgian town over there, only a few steps farther. It is hardly ten
+o'clock. It will be devilish bad luck if we can't find a good supper
+and good quarters. We need not trouble about anything else. Let us
+think first of serious matters."</p>
+
+<p>So we started for the little town which seemed to be wrapped in sleep.
+We knocked at the doors, but not one opened; no doubt the houses were
+all full of soldiers. No one offered us any hospitality, in spite of
+all B.'s objurgations, now beseeching, now <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_228" id="Page_228">[Pg 228]</a></span>imperious. In despair, I
+suggested at last that we should go back to our squadron, and lie down
+by our horses; but B. would not hear of it, and still clung to his
+idea: to have a good dinner, and sleep in a bed.</p>
+
+<p>Just then, we saw a dark figure creeping noiselessly along under the
+wall. B. at once went up to it, and caught it by the arm. It was a
+poor old woman, carrying a basket and a jug of milk. Said he:</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Madame, madame</i>, have pity on two poor weary, half-starved
+soldiers...."</p>
+
+<p>But she couldn't give us any information. Speaking in bad French,
+interspersed with Flemish, she gave us to understand that the little
+town was full of troops, and, at that hour, everybody was asleep.</p>
+
+<p>"And what is there in that large white building, where the windows are
+alight?"</p>
+
+<p>The good woman explained that it was a convent, where nuns took in the
+old people of the country. They could not give lodging to soldiers.
+But B. had already made up his mind; that was where we were to sleep.
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_229" id="Page_229">[Pg 229]</a></span>Leaving the old woman aghast, he went with long strides to the iron
+railing which surrounded a little garden in front of the convent. I
+tried in vain to make him understand that we could not invade these
+sacred precincts.</p>
+
+<p>"Leave it to me," he said, "I'll speak to them."</p>
+
+<p>He pushed the iron gate, which opened with a creak, and I shut it
+after him. I felt somewhat uneasy as I followed B., who crossed the
+garden with a rapid stride. I felt uneasy at the thought of his
+essentially military eloquence, and of the use to which he proposed to
+put it. But I knew, too, that he was not easily induced to abandon a
+resolution he had once taken. True, he did not often make one, but
+this time he seemed to be carrying out a very definite plan. The best
+thing was to submit, and await the result of his attempt. We went up
+three steps, and felt for the knocker. "Here it is," said B., and he
+lifted it and knocked hard. What a dismal sound it made in that
+sleeping town! I felt as though we had just <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_230" id="Page_230">[Pg 230]</a></span>committed an act of
+sacrilege. We listened, and heard, through the door, the noise of
+chairs dragged over the stone floor; then a light footstep
+approaching, a sound of keys and bolts, and the door was gently opened
+and held ajar.</p>
+
+<p>"Sister," said B., with a bow, "what we are doing is, I know, most
+unusual; but we are dying of hunger and very tired, and, so far,
+nobody has been willing to open their door to us. Could we not have
+something to eat here, and sleep in a bed?"</p>
+
+<p>The Sister looked at us and appeared not to understand. However, I was
+more at ease when I saw she was neither frightened nor displeased. She
+was a very old nun, dressed in black, and held in her hand a little
+lamp which flickered in the night breeze. Her face was furrowed with
+deep wrinkles, and her skinny hand, held before the lamp, seemed
+transparent. She made up her mind at once. Her face lit up with a kind
+smile, and she signed to us to come in, with words which were probably
+friendly. This was a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_231" id="Page_231">[Pg 231]</a></span>supposition, for the worthy nun only spoke
+Flemish, and we could not understand anything she said. She carefully
+pushed the bolts again, placed her lamp on the floor, and made a sign
+to us to wait. Then she went away with noiseless steps, and we were
+left alone.</p>
+
+<p>"You see," said B., "it is all going swimmingly. Now that we have got
+in, you must leave everything to me."</p>
+
+<p>The flickering lamp lighted the hall dimly. The walls were bare, and
+there was no furniture but some rush chairs set in a line against the
+partition. Opposite the door, there was a simple wooden crucifix, and
+the stretched-out arms seemed to bid us welcome. A perfume of hot soup
+came from the door the old Sister had just shut.</p>
+
+<p>"I say!" said B., "did you smell it? I believe it is cabbage soup, and
+if so, I shall take a second helping."</p>
+
+<p>"Just wait a bit," I replied; "I'll wager they are going to turn us
+out."</p>
+
+<p>From the other side of the door, by which <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_232" id="Page_232">[Pg 232]</a></span>the portress had just
+disappeared, we heard a voice calling:</p>
+
+<p>"Sister Gabrielle!... Sister Gabrielle!..."</p>
+
+<p>And a moment after, the same door opened, and another nun came in very
+quietly, and rather embarrassed, as it seemed to me. She came towards
+us.</p>
+
+<p>Sister Gabrielle, your modesty will certainly suffer from all the good
+I am going to say of you.... But I am wrong, you will not suffer, for
+you certainly will never read the pages I have scribbled during the
+course of this war, at odd times, as I could, in bivouacs and billets.
+But I have vowed to keep a written record of the pictures which have
+charmed or moved me most during this campaign. If I ever survive it, I
+want to be able to read them again in my latter days. I want to have
+them read by those who belong to me, and to try to show them what kind
+of life we led during those unforgettable days. And it is not always
+the battles which leave the most lively impressions. How many
+delightful things one could relate that have <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_233" id="Page_233">[Pg 233]</a></span>happened outside the
+sphere of action! What memories of nights passed in the strangest
+places, as the chances of the march decreed, nights of bitterness
+during the retreat, nights of fever during the advance, nights of
+depression in the trenches! What kindly welcomes, what beautiful and
+what noble figures one might describe!</p>
+
+<p>Sister Gabrielle, as you will never read this, and as your modesty
+will not suffer, let me tell the story of the welcome my friend B. and
+I received that evening at the Convent of Elverdinghe.</p>
+
+<p>Sister Gabrielle came towards us. How pretty she was, in the coif that
+framed her face! How large her blue eyes looked! They really were so,
+but a touch of excitement made them seem larger still. Above all, she
+had an enchanting smile, a smile of such kindness that we at once felt
+at ease and sure of obtaining what we wanted. She spoke in a sweet and
+musical voice, hesitating just a little in her choice of words,
+although she spoke French very correctly.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_234" id="Page_234">[Pg 234]</a></span>"The Sister Superior has sent me to you," she said, "because I am the
+only one here who can speak French.... <i>Messieurs les officiers</i>,
+welcome."</p>
+
+<p>She said it quite simply, and stood quite straight in her black dress,
+her arms hanging beside her. She might have been a picture of other
+days, an illuminated figure from a missal. We looked at each other and
+smiled too, happy to find so unexpected a welcome. B. was now quite
+self-possessed.</p>
+
+<p>"Sister Gabrielle," he said, "see what a wretched state we are in; our
+clothes covered with mud, our faces not washed since I don't know
+when. We have just gone four days without sleep, almost without food,
+and we have never stopped fighting. Could you not take in two weary,
+famished soldiers for one night?"</p>
+
+<p>Sister Gabrielle retained her wonderful smile. Without moving her
+arms, she slightly raised her two hands, which showed white against
+the black cloth of her dress. Those hands seemed to say: "I should
+like to very <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_235" id="Page_235">[Pg 235]</a></span>much, but I cannot." And at the same time the smile
+said: "We ought not to, but it shall be managed nevertheless."</p>
+
+<p>"Come," she said; "in any case, we can give you something to eat."</p>
+
+<p>And she took up the little lamp. She went first, opened the door at
+the end of the passage, and we followed her, delighted. We were
+dazzled as we came into this new room by the brilliance of the lamps
+that lit it. It was the convent kitchen. How clean and bright
+everything was! The copper saucepans shone resplendently. The black
+and white pavement looked like an ivory chessboard. Two Sisters were
+sitting peeling vegetables which they threw into a bowl of water. An
+enormous pot, on the well-polished stove, was humming its inviting
+monotone. It was this pot which exhaled the delicious smell that had
+greeted us when we entered the house. The whole picture recalled one
+of Bail's appetising canvases. The two Sisters raised their eyes,
+looked at us and&mdash;yes, they smiled too. B., feeling eloquent, wanted
+to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_236" id="Page_236">[Pg 236]</a></span>make a speech; but Sister Gabrielle hurried us on:</p>
+
+<p>"Come, come," she said. "It is not worth while; they wouldn't
+understand you."</p>
+
+<p>She opened another door, and we went into a small rectangular room.
+Whilst our guide hastened to light the lamp hanging above the table,
+we laid our kits on the window-sill: our revolvers, shakoes, binocular
+glasses and map-cases; and how tarnished and dirty the things were,
+after those three months of war! We ourselves felt fairly ashamed to
+be seen in such a state. Our coats worn and stained, our breeches
+patched, our huge boots covered with mud, all formed a strange
+contrast to the room we were in. It was provided throughout with large
+cupboards in the walls, the doors of which reached to the ceiling.
+These doors were of polished wood, and shone like a mirror. The floor
+was like another mirror. That indefatigable chatterer B. began another
+speech:</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_237" id="Page_237">[Pg 237]</a></span>"Sister, please excuse the costumes of fighting men. We must look like
+ruffians, but we are honest folk. If our faces do not inspire much
+confidence, it is simply because our stomachs are so empty. And no one
+more resembles a vagabond than a poor wretch who is dying with hunger.
+You will not know us again after we have had a few words with the pot
+which gave out such a savoury smell as we passed."</p>
+
+<p>Sister Gabrielle did not cease to smile. With wonderful rapidity and
+skill she opened one of the cupboards, and, from the piles of linen,
+picked out a checkered red and white tablecloth with which she covered
+the table. In a moment she had arranged places for two, opposite each
+other.</p>
+
+<p>"Sit down," she said, "and rest. I will go and fetch you something to
+eat."</p>
+
+<p>B. followed her to the door.</p>
+
+<p>"Sister Gabrielle," he said, "we have found a Paradise."</p>
+
+<p>But she had already shut the door, and we heard her in the kitchen
+stimulating the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_238" id="Page_238">[Pg 238]</a></span>zeal of the other two nuns in Flemish. We sat down,
+delighted. What a long time since we had enjoyed such comfort!
+Everything there seemed designed to charm our eyes and rest our minds.
+There was no noise in the street, and the convent itself would have
+seemed wrapped in sleep had it not been for the voices in the next
+room. But the distant roar of the guns still went on, and seemed to
+make our respite still more enjoyable.</p>
+
+<p>We hardly heard Sister Gabrielle when she came in and put down the
+steaming soup before us. The delicate perfume of the vegetables made
+our mouths water. For many days past we had had nothing to eat but our
+rations of tinned meat, and all that time we had not been able to
+light a fire to cook anything at all. So we fell to eagerly upon our
+well-filled plates. B. even lost the power of speech for the moment.</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile the pretty little Sister, without appearing to look at us,
+was cutting bread, and then she brought a jug of golden beer. What a
+treat it was! Why couldn't it be <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_239" id="Page_239">[Pg 239]</a></span>like this every day? In that case
+the campaign would have seemed almost like a picnic. Whilst I was
+eating I could not help admiring Sister Gabrielle; she looked so
+refined in her modest black clothes. Her slightest movements were as
+harmonious as those of an actress on the stage. But she was natural in
+all she did, and the grace of every movement was instinctive. As she
+placed before us an imposing-looking <i>omelette au lard</i>, that rascal
+B., who had already swallowed two plates of soup and four large
+glasses of beer, began to maunder thus:</p>
+
+<p>"Sister Gabrielle, ... Sister Gabrielle, I don't want to go away
+to-morrow. I want to end my days here with the old people you look
+after. Look at me. I am getting old too, and have been severely tried
+by life. Why shouldn't I stay where I am? I should have a nice little
+bed in the old people's dormitory, with nice white sheets, go to bed
+every evening on the stroke of eight, and you, Sister, would come and
+tuck me up. I should sleep, and eat cabbage soup, and drink good
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_240" id="Page_240">[Pg 240]</a></span>beer&mdash;your health. Sister!&mdash;and I shouldn't think any more about
+anything at all.... How nice it would be! No more uniform to strap you
+up after a good dinner; no more shako to squeeze your temples; no more
+bullets whistling past you; no more 'coal-boxes' to upset your whole
+system, and every evening a bed, ... a nice bed, ... and to think
+about nothing!..."</p>
+
+<p>"Hush! Listen," said Sister Gabrielle with a finger on her lips.</p>
+
+<p>At that moment the noise of the firing became louder. The Germans had
+no doubt just made a night attack either on Bixschoote or on
+Steenstraate, and now every piece was firing rapidly all along the
+line. So fast did the reports follow one another that they sounded
+like a continuous growl. However, the noise seemed to be dominated by
+the reports that came from a battery of heavy guns ("long 120's") two
+kilometres from Elverdinghe, which made all the windows of the convent
+rattle, I shuddered as I thought of those thousands of shells,
+hurtling through <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_241" id="Page_241">[Pg 241]</a></span>the darkness for miles to reduce so many living
+human beings to poor broken and bleeding things. And I pictured to
+myself our Prussians of Bixschoote sprawling on the ground, with their
+teeth set and their heads hidden among the beetroot, waiting until the
+hurricane had passed, to get up again and rush forward with their
+bayonets, cheering! Sister Gabrielle had the same thought, no doubt.
+She looked still whiter than before under her white coif, and clasping
+her hands and lowering her eyes, she said in a low voice:</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Mon Dieu, ... Mon Dieu!</i> ... It is horrible!"</p>
+
+<p>"Sister Gabrielle," continued the incorrigible B., "don't let us talk
+of such things. Let us rather discuss this omelette, a dish worthy of
+the gods, and the bacon in it, the savour of which might imperil a
+saint. Sister Gabrielle, you tempt us this evening to commit the sin
+of gluttony, which is the most venial of all sins. And I will bear the
+burden of it manfully."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_242" id="Page_242">[Pg 242]</a></span>I kicked B. under the table, to stop his incongruous remarks. But
+Sister Gabrielle seemed not to have listened to him. She went on
+serving us smilingly; changed our plates, and brought us ham and
+cheese. B. went on devouring everything that was put before him; but
+this did not put a stop to his divagations.</p>
+
+<p>"Tell me, Sister Gabrielle, you are not going to turn us out of the
+house now, are you? It would be an offence against God, who commands
+us to pity travellers. And we are poor wretched travellers. If you
+drive us away, we shall have to sleep on the grass by the roadside,
+with stones for our pillows. No, you couldn't treat us so cruelly. I
+feel sure that in a few minutes you will show me the bed in the
+dormitory you will keep for me when I come to take up my quarters with
+you after the war."</p>
+
+<p>Sister Gabrielle's smile had disappeared. For the first time, she
+seemed really distressed. She stopped in front of B., and looked at
+him with her large clear eyes. She <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_243" id="Page_243">[Pg 243]</a></span>made the same gesture as before;
+lifted up both her hands, in token of powerlessness, and seemed to be
+thinking how she could avoid hurting our feelings. Then she said, in a
+disheartened tone:</p>
+
+<p>"But we have not a single spare bed."</p>
+
+<p>A long silence followed this sentence, which seemed to plunge B. into
+despair. The guns continued their ominous booming, making the windows
+rattle terribly. I too thought now that it would be dreadful to leave
+the house, go and look for our troops in the dark, and put our men to
+the inconvenience of making room for us on their straw, so I too
+looked at Sister Gabrielle imploringly. All at once she seemed to have
+decided what to do. She began by opening one of the cupboards in the
+wall, took out of it two small glasses with long tapering stems, and
+placed them before us, with a goodly bottle of Hollands. She had
+recovered her exquisite smile, and she hurried, for she seemed anxious
+to put her idea into execution.</p>
+
+<p>"There, drink. It's good Hollands, ... <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_244" id="Page_244">[Pg 244]</a></span>and we give it to our poor old
+people on festivals."</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you. Sister, thank you."</p>
+
+<p>But she had already run out of the room, and we were left there, happy
+enough, sipping our glass of Hollands, and enjoying the luxurious
+peace that surrounded us. The guns seemed to be further off; we only
+heard a distant growling in the direction of Ypr&egrave;s. Our eyelids began
+to droop, and it was almost a pleasure to feel the weariness of our
+limbs and heads, for now we felt sure that Sister Gabrielle would not
+send us away.</p>
+
+<p>She came back into the room, with a candle in her hand.</p>
+
+<p>"Come," she said.</p>
+
+<p>She was now quite rosy, and seemed ashamed, as though she were
+committing a fault. We followed her, enchanted, and went back through
+the kitchen, now dark and deserted. The flickering light of the candle
+was reflected here and there on the curves of the copper pots and
+glass bowls. The house was sleeping. We crossed the hall, and went <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_245" id="Page_245">[Pg 245]</a></span>up
+a broad wooden staircase, polished and shining.</p>
+
+<p>What a strange party we were, the youthful Sister, going in front,
+treading so softly, and we two soldiers, dusty, tattered and squalid,
+trying to make as little noise as possible with our heavy hobnailed
+boots! The nun's rosary clinked at each step against a bundle of keys
+that hung from her girdle.</p>
+
+<p>I was walking last and enjoying the curious picture. The light fell
+only on Sister Gabrielle. As she turned on the landing, the feeble ray
+from below threw her delicate features into relief: her fine nose, her
+childish mouth, with its constant smile; our own shadows appeared upon
+the wall in fantastic shapes. Certainly we had never yet received so
+strange and unexpected a welcome.</p>
+
+<p>We passed a high oak door, surmounted by a cross and a pediment with a
+Latin inscription. Sister Gabrielle crossed herself and bowed her
+head.</p>
+
+<p>"The chapel," she said in a low voice.</p>
+
+<p>And she went quickly on to the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_246" id="Page_246">[Pg 246]</a></span>accompaniment of her clinking rosary
+and keys. As we began to go up the second flight of stairs B. resumed
+his monologue in a whisper:</p>
+
+<p>"Sister Gabrielle, ... Sister Gabrielle, you are an angel from
+Paradise. Surely God can refuse you nothing. You will pray for me this
+evening, won't you? for I am a great sinner."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, yes, of course I shall pray for you," she answered, softly, as
+she turned towards us.</p>
+
+<p>We came out on a long passage, bare and whitewashed. Half a dozen
+doors could be distinguished at regular intervals, all alike. Sister
+Gabrielle opened one of them, and we followed her in. We found
+ourselves in a small room, austerely furnished with two little iron
+bedsteads, two little deal tables, and two rush chairs. Above each bed
+there was a crucifix, with a branch of box attached to it. Each table
+had a tiny white basin and a tiny water-jug. All this was very nice,
+and amply sufficient for us. Everything was clean, bright, and
+polished.</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, Sister; we shall be as <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_247" id="Page_247">[Pg 247]</a></span>comfortable as possible. But, one
+thing, we shall sleep like tops. Will there be any one to wake us?"</p>
+
+<p>"At what time do you want to get up?"</p>
+
+<p>"At six, Sister, punctually, as soldiers must, you know."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! then I will see to it. We have Mass at four o'clock every
+morning."</p>
+
+<p>"At four o'clock!" exclaimed B. "Every morning! Very well, Sister, to
+show you we are not miscreants, wake us at half-past three, and we
+will go to Mass too."</p>
+
+<p>"But it isn't allowed. It is our Mass, in our chapel. No, no, you must
+sleep.... Get to bed quickly. Good-night. I will wake you at six
+o'clock."</p>
+
+<p>"Good-night, Sister Gabrielle; good-night.... We shall be so
+comfortable. You see, you had some spare beds, after all."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, yes, we had. One can always manage somehow."</p>
+
+<p>And she went off, shutting the door behind her.</p>
+
+<p>And now B. and I thought of nothing <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_248" id="Page_248">[Pg 248]</a></span>but the luxury of sleeping in a
+bed. How delightful it would be after our sleepless nights in the fogs
+of the trenches!</p>
+
+<p>But what was that noise resounding through the convent? What was that
+knocking and those wailing cries? There was some one at the door,
+hammering at the knocker, some one weeping and sobbing in the dark. I
+opened my window, and leant out. But the front door had already been
+opened, and a figure slipped in hurriedly. The sobs came up the stairs
+to our door, and women's voices, Sister Gabrielle's voice, speaking
+Flemish, then another voice, sounding like a death-rattle, trying in
+vain to pronounce words through choking sobs. How horrible that
+monotonous, inconsolable, continual wail was! It went on for a short
+time, and then doors were opened and shut, the voices died away, and
+suddenly the noise ceased.</p>
+
+<p>B. had already got into bed, and, from under the sheets, he begged me,
+in a voice muffled by the bed-clothes, to put the candle out quickly.
+But I was haunted by that moaning, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_249" id="Page_249">[Pg 249]</a></span>though I could not hear it any
+longer. I wanted to know what tragedy had caused those sobs. I could
+not doubt that the horrible war was at the bottom of it. And yet we
+were a long way from the firing line. My curiosity overcame my
+fatigue. I put on my jacket and went out, taking the candle with me. I
+ran down the two staircases, and my footsteps seemed to wake dismal
+echoes in the silent convent.</p>
+
+<p>Just as I came to the hall Sister Gabrielle also arrived, with a small
+lantern in her hand. I must have frightened her, for she started and
+gave a little scream. But she soon recovered, and guessed what had
+disturbed me. She told me all about it in a few simple sentences; a
+poor woman had fled from her village, carrying her little girl of
+eighteen months. As she was running distractedly along the road from
+Lizerne to Boesinghe a German shell had fallen, and a fragment of it
+had killed her baby in her arms. She had just come six kilometres in
+the dark, clasping the little corpse to her breast in an agony of
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_250" id="Page_250">[Pg 250]</a></span>despair. She got to Elverdinghe, and knocked at the door of the
+convent, knowing that there she would find a refuge. And all along the
+road she had passed convoys, relief troops and despatch-riders; but
+she took no heed of them; she was obsessed by one thought; to find a
+shelter for the remains of what had been the joy and hope of her life.</p>
+
+<p>"Just come," said Sister Gabrielle. "I will let you see her. We have
+put the poor little body in the mortuary chamber, and Sister Elizabeth
+is watching there."</p>
+
+<p>I followed Sister Gabrielle, who opened a small door, and went down a
+few steps; we crossed a paved court. Her lantern and my candle cast
+yellowish gleams upon the high walls of the buildings. Heavy drops of
+rain were falling, making a strange noise on the stones. And a kind of
+anguish seized me when I again heard the continuous wailing of the
+unhappy mother. Sister Gabrielle opened a low door very gently, and we
+went in.</p>
+
+<p>I must confess that I had been much less moved when, after the first
+day of the Battle <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_251" id="Page_251">[Pg 251]</a></span>of the Marne, we passed through a wood where our
+artillery had reduced a whole German regiment to a shapeless mass of
+human fragments. Here I realised all the horror of war. That men
+should kill each other in defence of their homes is conceivable
+enough, and I honour those who fall. But it passes all understanding
+why the massacre should include these poor weak and innocent
+creatures. And sights such as the one I saw in that little mortuary
+chapel inspire a fierce thirst for vengeance.</p>
+
+<p>On a kind of large table, covered with a white cloth, the poor body
+was laid out. It bore no trace of any wound, and the little white face
+seemed to be smiling. The good nuns had covered the shabby clothes
+with an embroidered cloth. Upon that they had crossed the little
+hands, which seemed to be clasping a tiny crucifix. And over the whole
+they had strewn an armful of flowers. On each side they had placed
+silver candlesticks, and the reddish candle-light made golden
+reflections in the curly locks of the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_252" id="Page_252">[Pg 252]</a></span>little corpse. Crouching on the
+ground by the side of it, I saw a shapeless heap of clothes which
+seemed to be shaken by convulsive spasms. It was from this heap that
+the monotonous wailing came. It was the young mother, weeping for her
+little one. One felt that nothing could console her, and that words
+would only increase her suffering. Besides, she had not even raised
+her head when we went in. It was best to leave her alone, since they
+say that tears bring comfort.</p>
+
+<p>On the other side a young Sister was kneeling at a <i>prie-Dieu</i>,
+telling her rosary. Sister Gabrielle knelt down on the ground beside
+her. I longed to do something to lessen that grief, and help the poor
+woman a little. She must have come there in a state of destitution:
+her clothes revealed her poverty. But I durst not disturb either her
+mourning or their prayers, and I came out quietly on tiptoe.</p>
+
+<p>Outside, the rain, which was now falling heavily, refreshed my fevered
+head somewhat. I crossed the courtyard quickly; but my <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_253" id="Page_253">[Pg 253]</a></span>candle went
+out, and I had some trouble in relighting it, which was very
+necessary, as I had to find my way in a maze of doors and passages. At
+last I reached my staircase, and passed the landing and the Sisters'
+chapel. I heard a distant clock strike midnight, went up another
+storey, and opened our door noiselessly. I thought that B. would
+perhaps be waiting for me impatiently, anxious to learn the reason of
+all the noise.</p>
+
+<p>But B. was snoring with the bed-clothes over his ears.</p>
+
+<p>At six o'clock some one knocked at our door, and I opened my eyes.
+Daylight showed faintly through the only window. I wondered where I
+was, and suddenly remembered ... Elverdinghe ... the convent....</p>
+
+<p>"Is it you, Sister Gabrielle?" I asked.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, yes, it's I. Get up. I have been knocking for more than an hour."</p>
+
+<p>B. sat up in his bed. I did the same, and told him what I had seen the
+evening before. He shook his head mournfully, and concluded:</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_254" id="Page_254">[Pg 254]</a></span>"Well, ... it's war.... I hope they'll have a good breakfast ready for
+us."</p>
+
+<p>We hurried through our dressing and ablutions, for we had to get back
+quickly to our quarters. As we came out of our room, lively and
+refreshed, we met Sister Gabrielle, who seemed to have been waiting
+for us. She asked us how we had slept, and, to stop the flood of
+eloquence that B. was on the point of letting loose, she said:</p>
+
+<p>"That's right. You shall thank me later on. Come down now; your
+breakfast is waiting for you. It will get cold."</p>
+
+<p>But, on passing the chapel, B. would insist on seeing it. Sister
+Gabrielle hesitated a moment, and then gave way, as you would to a
+child for the sake of peace. She opened the outer door, and smiled
+indulgently, as if anxious to humour all our whims. We passed through
+an anteroom, and then entered the chapel. It was quite small, only
+large enough to hold about twenty people. The walls were white,
+without any ornament, and panelled up to about the height of a man.
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_255" id="Page_255">[Pg 255]</a></span>The altar was extremely simple, and decorated with a few flowers. Some
+rush chairs completed the plenishings of the sanctuary where the good
+Sisters of Elverdinghe assembled every morning at four o'clock for
+prayers.</p>
+
+<p>And, as we came out of this humble chapel, I noticed two mattresses,
+laid in a corner of the little anteroom.</p>
+
+<p>"Who sleeps here, then, Sister?" I asked.</p>
+
+<p>Sister Gabrielle turned as red as a poppy. I had to repeat my question
+twice, when, lowering her eyes, she answered:</p>
+
+<p>"Sister Elizabeth&mdash;Sister Elizabeth ... and I."</p>
+
+<p>"Sister Gabrielle, ... Sister Gabrielle, then that little room and
+those two little beds where we slept, were yours?"</p>
+
+<p>"Hush! Please come to breakfast at once."</p>
+
+<p>And, light as a bird, she disappeared down the staircase, so quickly
+that her black veil floated high above her, as though to hide her
+confusion.</p>
+
+<hr />
+
+<p>And we saw no more of Sister Gabrielle. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_256" id="Page_256">[Pg 256]</a></span>It was a very old woman&mdash;one
+of the inmates&mdash;who brought us our hot milk and coffee, our brown
+bread and fresh butter, in the dining-room with the high cupboards of
+polished wood. She explained that at this hour the nuns were busy
+attending to their old folk. It was of no use begging to see our
+little hostess again. We were told it would be against the rules, and
+we felt that the curtain had now indeed fallen upon this charming act
+of the weary tragedy.</p>
+
+<p>Only, just as we were passing out of the convent gate for the last
+time, the old lady put into our hands a big packet of provisions
+wrapped up in a napkin. She had brought it hidden under her apron.</p>
+
+<p>"Here, she told me to give you this, and ... to say that she will pray
+for you."</p>
+
+<p>Our hearts swelled as we heard the heavy door close behind us. And
+whilst we went away silently along the broken, muddy road, we thought
+of the sterling hearts that are hidden under the humble habits of a
+convent.</p>
+
+<p>Sister Gabrielle! I shall never forget you. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_257" id="Page_257">[Pg 257]</a></span>Never will your delicate
+features fade from my memory. And I seem to see you still, going up
+the great wooden staircase, lit up by the flickering flame of the
+candle, when you and Sister Elizabeth gave up your beds so simply and
+unostentatiously to the two unknown soldiers.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+<a name="Chapter_VIII" id="Chapter_VIII"></a><hr />
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_258" id="Page_258">[Pg 258]</a></span><br />
+
+<h3>VIII. CHRISTMAS NIGHT<span class="totoc"><a href="#toc">ToC</a></span></h3>
+<br />
+
+
+<p>"<i>Mon Lieutenant mon Lieutenant</i>, it's two o'clock."</p>
+
+<p>My faithful Wattrelot held the flickering candle just in front of my
+eyes to rouse me. What torture it is to be snatched from sleep at such
+an early hour! It would not be anything in summer; but it was the 24th
+of December, and it was my turn to go on duty in the trenches. A nice
+way of keeping Christmas!... I turned over in my bed, trying to avoid
+that light that tormented me; I collected my thoughts, which had
+wandered far away whilst I was asleep, and had been replaced by
+exquisite dreams, dreams of times of peace, of welfare, of good cheer,
+and of gentle warmth.</p>
+
+<p>Then I remembered: I had to take command of a detachment of a hundred
+troopers of the regiment, who were to replace the hundred now in the
+trenches. It was nearly a month since we had joined our Army <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_259" id="Page_259">[Pg 259]</a></span>Corps
+near R., and every other day the regiment had to furnish the same
+number of men to occupy a sector of the trenches. It was my turn, on
+the 24th of December, to replace my brother-officer and good friend
+Lieutenant de la G., who had occupied the post since the 22nd.</p>
+
+<p>I had forgotten all this.... How cold it was! Brrr!...</p>
+
+<p>Whilst Wattrelot was taking himself off I braced myself for the
+necessary effort of getting out of the warm sheets. Like a coward, I
+kept on allowing myself successive respites, vowing to rise heroically
+after each.</p>
+
+<p>"I will get up as soon as Wattrelot has reached the landing of the
+first floor.... I will get up when I hear him walking on the pavement
+of the hall, ... or rather when I hear the entrance-door shut, and his
+boots creaking on the gravel path...."</p>
+
+<p>But every noise was hushed. Wattrelot was already some way off, and I
+still shied at this act, which, after all, was inevitable: to get out
+of bed in a little ice-cold room at two <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_260" id="Page_260">[Pg 260]</a></span>o'clock in the morning.
+Through the window, which had neither shutter nor curtain, I saw a
+small piece of the sky, beautifully clear, in which myriads of stars
+were twinkling. The day before, when I came in to go to bed, it was
+freezing hard. That morning the frost, I thought, must be terrible.</p>
+
+<p>"Come, up!" With a bound I was on the ground, and rushed at once to
+the little pitch-pine washstand. Rapid ablutions would wake me up
+thoroughly. Horror! The water in the jug was frozen. Oh! not very
+deeply, no doubt; but all the same I had to break a coating of ice
+that had formed on the surface. However, I was happy to feel more
+nimble after having washed my face. Quick! Two warm waistcoats under
+my jacket, my large cloak with its cape, my fur gloves, my campaigning
+cap pulled over my ears, and there I was, with a candle in my hand,
+going down the grand staircase of the ch&acirc;teau.</p>
+
+<p>For I was quartered in a ch&acirc;teau. The very word makes one think of a
+warm room, well upholstered, well furnished, with soft <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_261" id="Page_261">[Pg 261]</a></span>carpets and
+comfortable armchairs. But, alas! it was nothing of the sort.... The
+good lady whose house it was had provided for all contingencies; the
+family rooms had been prudently dismantled and double-locked. A
+formidable <i>concierge</i> had the keys, and I was happy indeed when I
+found the butler's room in the attics. His bed, with its white sheets,
+seemed to me very desirable. And then, as we say in time of peace, one
+must take things as they come.</p>
+
+<p>The open hall-door let in a wave of cold air, which struck cold on my
+face. But I had not a minute to lose. The detachment was to start at
+half-past two punctually, and it had, no doubt, already formed up in
+the market-place. I hurried into the street. The tall pines of the
+park stood out black against the silver sky, whilst the bare branches
+of the other trees formed thousands of arabesques and strange patterns
+all round. Not the slightest noise was to be heard in the limpid,
+diaphanous night, in which the air seemed as pure and rare as on the
+summits of lofty <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_262" id="Page_262">[Pg 262]</a></span>mountains. Under my footsteps the gravel felt soft,
+but, once I had got outside the iron gate, I found myself on ground as
+hard as stone. The mud formed by recent rains and the ruts hollowed by
+streams of convoys had frozen, and the road was a maze of furrows and
+inequalities which made me stumble again and again.</p>
+
+<p>In front of the H&ocirc;tel des Lacs a certain number of the men had already
+lined up, in front of their horses. Huddled in their cloaks, with
+collars turned up, they were stamping their feet and blowing into
+their hands. It must have been real torture for them too to come out
+of their straw litter, where they were sleeping so snugly a few
+moments before, rolled up in their blankets. They had got a liking for
+the kind of comfort peculiar to the campaigner, and had invented a
+thousand and one ingenious methods of improving the arrangements of
+their novel garrison. Sleeping parties had been gradually organised,
+and sets of seven or eight at a time enjoyed delightful nights,
+stretched on <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_263" id="Page_263">[Pg 263]</a></span>their clean straw. Many of them would certainly not be
+able to get to sleep if they suddenly found themselves in a real bed.
+And then it is less difficult to get up when one has gone to bed with
+one's clothes on, and when the room is not very warm. Not one of them
+complained; not one of them grumbled. We can always count on our brave
+fellows.</p>
+
+<p>"All present, <i>mon Lieutenant!</i>"</p>
+
+<p>It was the senior non-commissioned officers of the two squadrons
+assembled there who reported. Every one had got up and equipped
+himself at the appointed hour; not one was missing at roll-call; they
+had all assembled of their own accord; the corporals had not needed to
+knock at door after door to wake the sleepers. Our Chasseurs had very
+quickly established simple customs and rules of their own which
+ensured the regularity of the service without written orders. This
+intelligent and spontaneous discipline is one of the most admirable
+features of this campaign. It has grown up by degrees, without any
+special orders or prescriptions <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_264" id="Page_264">[Pg 264]</a></span>from above, with the result that the
+hardest labours are carried out almost without supervision, because
+each man understands the end in view and the grim necessities which it
+involves.</p>
+
+<p>They understood at once that this early hour was the only one at which
+the relief could be effected. And every other day, just as on that
+December morning, twenty-five men out of each squadron get up at
+half-past one, equip themselves, and saddle their horses, whilst the
+cooks warm up a good cup of coffee for each man. Then, without any
+hurry, but at the exact moment, they form up in fighting order at the
+appointed spot, and when the officer arrives, in the dark, rain, wind,
+snow, or frost, he is sure of receiving the same report:</p>
+
+<p>"All present, <i>mon Lieutenant!</i>"</p>
+
+<p>Quick! Mount. We shall feel the cold less trotting over the hardened
+roads this bright night and under this brilliant moon. Two and two, in
+silence, we issued from the village in the direction of R. I knew that
+I should <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_265" id="Page_265">[Pg 265]</a></span>find a little further on, at the cross-roads where the
+crucifix stands, the fifty men of the first half-regiment and
+Second-Lieutenant de G., who serves under me.</p>
+
+<p>Yes, there he was, coming to meet me on the hard road. It was a joy to
+me that chance had given me this jolly fellow for my trench companion.
+I hardly knew him, for he had not been with us more than a few days.
+Taken from the Military College directly war was declared, he had
+first been sent to a reserve squadron, and had only just been
+appointed to an active regiment. But I already knew, through my
+comrades of the first squadron, that he was a daring soldier and a
+merry companion. So much the better, I thought. War is a sad thing,
+and one must learn to take it gaily. A plague on gloomy spirits and
+long faces! True, we can no longer wage the picturesque war of the
+"good old days." We shall never know another Fontenoy, or Rivoli, or
+Eylau. But that is no reason why we should lose the jovial humour of
+our forefathers. Thank Heaven! we have <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_266" id="Page_266">[Pg 266]</a></span>preserved their qualities of
+dash and bravery. But it is more difficult to keep a smiling face in
+this hideous mole warfare, which is imposed even upon us troopers. All
+the more reason for liking and admiring the cheery officers who keep
+our spirits up, and G. is one of them.</p>
+
+<p>We shook hands without speaking, for it seemed to us that if we opened
+our mouths the frost would get into our bodies and freeze them, and we
+set off at a sharp trot along the narrow by-road which, crossing the
+high-road to Paris, leads to C. There we should have to leave our
+horses, cross the zone of the enemy's artillery fire, and get to the
+trenches on foot. The horses snorted with pleasure, happy to warm
+themselves by rapid movement. Some of them indulged in merry capers,
+which were repressed, not too gently, by their more sedate riders.
+Their hoofs struck the uneven ground with a metallic ring which must
+have echoed far; and the clink of bits and stirrups also disturbed the
+sleeping country. Before us the road ran straight amidst the dark
+fields, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_267" id="Page_267">[Pg 267]</a></span>a long pale grey ribbon. No one thought of laughing or
+talking; sleep seemed still to hover over the column, and every one
+knew that the two days of trench duty would be long and hard to get
+through even if the Prussians left us in peace.</p>
+
+<p>We passed a cross, which shone white on the side of the road under the
+pale light of the moon, and saluted it. We had known it from the first
+days, and had its inscription by heart:</p>
+
+<h4>80 NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICERS,<br />
+CORPORALS, AND SOLDIERS<br />
+OF THE 39TH AND 74TH REGIMENTS OF<br />
+INFANTRY,<br />
+KILLED IN ACTION.<br />
+PRAY FOR THEM.</h4>
+
+<p>We dimly discerned the modest wreaths of green leaves, now faded and
+yellow, and the little nosegays of withered flowers attached to the
+arms of this cross, left there after the departure of the regiment and
+undisturbed by any sacrilegious hand.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_268" id="Page_268">[Pg 268]</a></span>We crossed the Paris road, with its double row of trees, which, in the
+night, appeared gigantic, and, after answering the challenge of the
+Territorial guarding the approach to C., we entered the village.</p>
+
+<p>It appeared to be completely empty, and yet there were two battalions
+of the &mdash;&mdash; Territorials quartered there. The moon seemed to be
+amusing itself by casting the shadows of the houses on one side of the
+street upon the walls of the other side in fantastic shapes.</p>
+
+<p>"Dismount."</p>
+
+<p>We had reached the spot where we were to leave our horses. The men
+quickly unbuckled the blankets which were to help them to endure the
+weary hours of the following night. They slung them over their
+shoulders, and we set off towards the towing-path of the canal. We
+went very slowly, as we had at least seven or eight kilometres before
+us, and a walk of eight kilometres for troopers laden and dressed as
+we were is no light matter.</p>
+
+<p>We found the towing-path. Walking at <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_269" id="Page_269">[Pg 269]</a></span>that hour of the night is
+certainly not very alluring. However, the view was not lacking in
+grandeur. On either side of the canal the dark silhouettes of tall
+trees stood out against the sky. Their shadows were reflected in the
+water, which gleamed with a metallic lustre in the moonshine. How calm
+and silent it was! Who would have thought we were at war? Not a
+cannon-shot, not a rifle-shot, disturbed the peace of the night. Yet,
+as a rule, there were no long intervals between the reports which
+reminded us of the serious work on hand.</p>
+
+<p>That day it seemed as though some agreement had been come to by both
+sides to stop killing or trying to kill. However touching such an
+agreement might be, it would also be somewhat disturbing, for one must
+always beware of an enemy who resorts so freely to tricks and traps of
+every kind. It was as well not to celebrate Christmas too obtrusively.
+Besides, I did not think we were the only ones keeping vigil at that
+hour.</p>
+
+<p>From time to time we passed small groups <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_270" id="Page_270">[Pg 270]</a></span>of infantry, haggard, dusty,
+and heavily laden, marching in ranks with their arms slung, by threes
+or fours, without speaking, striding slowly, as though they were
+trying to measure the length of the road. Some of them were carrying
+curious objects fastened to sticks: pots or big cans, perhaps baskets.
+Where they were going or what they were doing we did not ask. Every
+man has his own job; if those fellows were going that way they had
+their orders, and nobody troubled himself about their object. All was
+well. The clattering of the Chasseurs on the uneven road lent a little
+life to the picture. Perhaps they were talking together; but, if so,
+it was in an undertone, a whisper almost.</p>
+
+<p>And suddenly the enemy let us know that he was also keeping watch. Far
+ahead of us, near C., a rocket went up into the clear sky and then
+fell slowly, very slowly, in the form of an intensely brilliant ball,
+lighting up all the surrounding country wonderfully. We knew them
+well, those formidable German <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_271" id="Page_271">[Pg 271]</a></span>rockets, which seemed as though they
+would never go out and shed a pallid and yet blinding light. We knew
+that as soon as they were lighted everybody who happened to be within
+range of the enemy's rifle fire had at once to lie flat on the ground,
+and not move or raise his head so long as the light was burning.
+Otherwise shots would be fired from all directions, mowing down the
+vegetation and cutting up the earth all around him. This time we were
+well outside the range, and we watched the dazzling star in front of
+us without halting.</p>
+
+<p>"The shepherds' star," said G. solemnly.</p>
+
+<p>Strange shepherds indeed must they have been who carried carbines as
+their crooks, and were provided with cartridges enough to send a
+hundred and twenty of their fellow-creatures into the next world. The
+star seemed to hang for a moment some yards from the ground; then
+slowly, slowly, as though exhausted by its effort, it fell to the
+ground and went out. The night seemed less clear and less diaphanous.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_272" id="Page_272">[Pg 272]</a></span>We had now reached the glass-works and it was there that we were to
+leave our cooks. No one would have supposed that this large factory
+lay idle, and that the hundreds of workmen employed there were
+dispersed. On the contrary, it seemed to have retained all the
+animation of the prosperous enterprise it had been before the war.</p>
+
+<p>It was a large square of massive buildings, almost a miniature town,
+planted on the side of the canal, like an outlying bastion of the
+suburbs of R. The low white walls, crowned with tiles, had the stunted
+appearance of military works. But a nearer view gave rather the
+illusion of the life in a busy factory at night-time. The gateway
+opened on a courtyard, with furnace fires shining here and there.
+Shadowy forms passed backwards and forwards, enlivening the dim scene
+with the bustle of a hive. Men came out by fives or sixes, laden with
+different kinds of burdens, and disappeared into the darkness, making
+for mysterious goals. In front of the open gate other figures were
+unloading heavy cases from <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_273" id="Page_273">[Pg 273]</a></span>vans. These quondam glass-works were now a
+dep&ocirc;t for the Army Supply service, and a huge kitchen, which
+administered and fed the whole sector of trenches, of which ours
+formed a part.</p>
+
+<p>The Germans knew this. So every day and many times a day their guns
+fired a few salvoes of shells on the huge quadrilateral. But our good
+troopers were none the worse. Instead of working in the large
+buildings, part of which had already been destroyed by shells, they
+utilised the vast basements of the factory. There were the stores, and
+there they had their kitchens, where they worked day and night to
+supply their comrades in the trenches with the hot abundant food which
+twice a day made them forget for a few minutes the hardships of the
+cold, the rain, and the mud.</p>
+
+<p>Our column halted under the bleak wall. At the wide gateway a sentinel
+was on duty, standing motionless, muffled in a heavy grey cloak; and
+through it our cooks passed, disappearing into the darkness, under the
+guidance of the <i>liaison</i> orderly of the preceding <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_274" id="Page_274">[Pg 274]</a></span>detachment. Whilst
+waiting for his return from the journey through the labyrinth our
+Chasseurs had a short rest before beginning the most difficult part of
+their journey&mdash;the last stage on the way to the trenches we were to
+occupy.</p>
+
+<p>I took the opportunity of talking with an infantry captain who was
+there, walking up and down with his face buried in a thick muffler and
+his hands in the pockets of his heavy overcoat, on the sleeves of
+which three small pieces of gold lace were just discernible.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Eh bien, mon Capitaine!</i> Anything new?"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! nothing, except my opinion that you will not be disturbed either
+to-day or to-morrow. Since yesterday evening they have not fired one
+shot, and they were singing hymns till midnight. You may be pretty
+sure they'll redouble their <i>Oremus</i> this Christmas night, so you may
+sleep soundly."</p>
+
+<p>"Unless all this is merely a feint, and to-night ..."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, you're right, unless to-night ..."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_275" id="Page_275">[Pg 275]</a></span>The column started, and, guided by the <i>liaison</i> orderly, we followed
+the high-road for some hundred yards. The shells had transformed it
+into a series of gorges, peaks, ravines, and hills. We had to jump
+over big branches cut from the trees by the projectiles. It was a road
+that would not be a cheerful one on moonless nights. Fortunately for
+us, that particular night was extremely bright. Everything around us
+could be distinguished; we could even divine about fifteen hundred
+yards to our right the "solitary tree," the famous tree, standing
+alone in the middle of the vast bare plain, which marked the centre of
+our sector of trenches, and where I knew I should find the "dug-out"
+belonging to the officers of our regiment. I was very much tempted to
+jump the ditch at the side of the road and cut across the fields to
+the final point of our march. It would have taken about twenty
+minutes, and have saved us the long difficult journey through the
+communication trench. But our orders were very precise: we were not to
+take short cuts even <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_276" id="Page_276">[Pg 276]</a></span>on dark nights, much less on starlit nights. Our
+chiefs do well to be cautious on our behalf, for it is certain that,
+though fully alive to the danger of such a route, there was not one of
+my hundred fellows who would have hesitated to dash across country
+just to save himself a few hundred yards.</p>
+
+<p>We came to the mouth of the approach trench, four or five huge steps
+cut in the chalky clay. The frost had made them slippery, and we had
+to keep close to the edge of the bank to avoid stumbling. Behind me I
+heard some of the men sliding down heavily, and a din of mess-tins
+rolling away amidst laughter and jokes. "A merry heart goes all the
+way," and I knew my Chasseurs would soon pick themselves up and make
+up for lost time. This was essential, for the approach trench had
+ramifications and unexpected cross-passages which might have led a
+laggard astray.</p>
+
+<p>We went forward slowly. The communication trench was at right angles
+to the enemy's trenches. To prevent him from enfilading it <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_277" id="Page_277">[Pg 277]</a></span>with his
+shells, it had been cut in zigzags. And I hardly know of a more
+laborious method of progression than that of taking ten paces to the
+right, making a sharp turn, and then again taking ten paces to the
+left, and so on, in order to cover a distance which, as the crow
+flies, would not be more than fifteen hundred yards. The passage was
+so narrow that we touched the walls on either side. The moonlight
+could not reach the ground we trod on, and we stumbled incessantly
+over the holes and inequalities caused by the late rains and hardened
+by the frost. Now and again we slid over ice that had formed on the
+little pools through which our comrades had been paddling two days
+before. And this was some consolation for the severity of the frost,
+preferable a hundred times to the horrors of the rain.</p>
+
+<p>At last we debouched into our trenches, where our predecessors were
+impatiently waiting for us. Two days and two nights is a long time to
+go without sleeping, without washing, without having any other view
+than <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_278" id="Page_278">[Pg 278]</a></span>the walls of earth that shut you in. They were all eager to go
+back over the same road they had come by two days before, to get to
+their horses again, their quarters, their friends&mdash;in short, their
+home. So we found them quite ready to go, blankets rolled up and slung
+over their shoulders, and knapsacks in their places under their
+cloaks.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst the non-commissioned officers of each squadron went to relieve
+the men at the listening posts, I brushed past the men lined up
+against the wall, and went towards the "solitary tree," which seemed
+to be stretching out its gaunt arms to protect our retreat. I had to
+turn to the right in a narrow passage which went round the tree, and
+ended in three steep steps cut in the earth, down which I had to go to
+reach the dug-out.</p>
+
+<p>My old friend La G. was waiting for me at the bottom of this den,
+stretched on two chairs, warming his feet at a tiny iron stove perched
+upon a heap of bricks. By the light of the one candle he looked
+imposing and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_279" id="Page_279">[Pg 279]</a></span>serious. His tawny beard, which he had allowed to grow
+since the war, spread like a fan over his chest, and gave him a look
+of Henri IV. I knew that this formidable exterior concealed the
+merriest companion and the most delightful sly joker that ever lived.
+So I was not much impressed by his thoughtful brow and his dreamy eye.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, what's the news?" I asked.</p>
+
+<p>"We are all freezing," he replied.</p>
+
+<p>I rather suspected it. Besides this fact, which we had discovered
+before him, La G. could only confirm what the infantry captain had
+told me shortly before:</p>
+
+<p>"You are going to have a most restful night, my dear fellow; and I
+advise you to have a Christmas manger arranged at the foot of the
+'solitary tree,' and at midnight to sing 'Christians, awake,' in
+chorus.... We know some hymns as well as the Germans."</p>
+
+<p>I had no lack of desire to put this proposal into action, but such
+pious customs as these would not perhaps have been quite in harmony
+with the tactical ideas of our commanding <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_280" id="Page_280">[Pg 280]</a></span>officer. Still I promised
+La G. I would do my best for the realisation of his dream.</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye and good luck!" he said.</p>
+
+<p>"Good-bye," I replied.</p>
+
+<p>And he went away into the darkness. At the end of the little passage
+that led to the trench I could see the men who had just been relieved
+passing in single file going towards the communication trench by which
+we had come. Their dark forms defiled in closely and rapidly. Having
+completed their task, they were happy to be free to get back to their
+squadrons, and as they passed they cracked their jokes at the others
+who had to stay. These answered back, but not in the most amiable
+manner. Then, little by little, silence settled down upon the scene.
+Every man was at his post: some kept watch, others walked about at the
+bottom of the trench or busied themselves with repairing or improving
+the indifferent shelters their predecessors had left them.</p>
+
+<p>G. had gone to take the watch on which the junior officers of the
+units defending the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_281" id="Page_281">[Pg 281]</a></span>sector relieved each other every three hours. So
+there I was alone, alone in the midst of my brave Chasseurs, with the
+duty of guarding those five hundred yards of trenches&mdash;a very small
+piece at that time of the immense French line. Behind us thousands of
+our fellows were sleeping in perfect confidence, relying upon the thin
+rampart we formed in front of them; and farther away still there were
+millions of Frenchmen and Frenchwomen, who, under their family roof or
+under that of their hosts, were resting in peace because of our
+sleepless nights, our limbs stiffened by the cold, our carbines
+pointed through the loopholes of the trenches.</p>
+
+<p>Thus were we to celebrate the merry festival of Christmas. There was
+no doubt that far away among those who were keeping the sacred vigil
+more than one would think of us and sympathise with us.... No doubt
+many a one among us would feel a touch of sadness that evening,
+thinking of his home. But none, not one, I felt sure, would wish to
+quit his post to get away from the Front. Military <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_282" id="Page_282">[Pg 282]</a></span>honour! glorious
+legacy of our ancestors! Who could have foreseen that it would be
+implanted so naturally and so easily in the young souls of our
+soldiers? Within their youthful bodies the same hearts were already
+beating as those of the immortal veterans of the epic days of France.
+Men are fashioned by war.</p>
+
+<p>Ten o'clock came on Christmas Eve to find that our day had passed in
+almost absolute calm. It had been a glorious winter day, a day of
+bright sunshine and pure clear air. The Germans had hardly fired at
+all. A few cannon-shots only had replied to our artillery, which let
+off its heavy guns every now and then upon their positions from the
+heights behind us.</p>
+
+<p>And then night came. B. and I had just finished our frugal meal. We
+had promised to pay a visit to the Territorials who occupied the
+trenches right and left of ours. Our Chasseurs had been posted in that
+particular section so that in case of attack they might form a solid
+base for the Territorials to rely upon. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_283" id="Page_283">[Pg 283]</a></span>They did not conceal their
+confidence in our men or their admiration for them; and their officers
+had no scruples in asking for our advice when difficult cases arose.
+In fact, that very afternoon the captain commanding the company to our
+right had come to my dug-out to arrange with me about the patrols that
+had to be sent that night in advance of the line.</p>
+
+<p>Wrapped in our cloaks, we came out of our warm retreat. The night was
+just like the previous one, starlit, bright, and frosty, a true
+Christmas night for times of peace. In our trenches one half of the
+men were awake, in obedience to orders. Carbines were loaded and
+placed in the loopholes, and the guns were trained upon the enemy. In
+front of us, at the end of the narrow passages which led out to the
+listening posts, I knew that our sentries were alert with eye and ear,
+crouching in their holes in pairs. No one could approach the broad
+network of wire which protected us without being immediately perceived
+and shot. At the bottom of the trenches the men on watch were talking
+softly <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_284" id="Page_284">[Pg 284]</a></span>together and stamping on the ground to combat the intense
+cold.</p>
+
+<p>Those who were at rest, lying close together at the bottom of the
+little dug-outs they had made for themselves in the bank, were
+sleeping or trying to sleep. More than one of them had succeeded, for
+resounding snores could be heard behind the blankets, pieces of tent
+canvas and sacking, and all the various rags with which they had
+ingeniously stuffed up the entrances to their rustic alcoves. One
+wondered how they could have overcome the sufferings the cold must
+have caused them so far as to be able to sleep calmly. The five months
+of war had hardened their bodies and accustomed them to face cold,
+heat, rain, dust, or mud, with impunity. In this hard school, better
+than in any other, men of iron are fashioned, who last out a whole
+campaign and are capable of the supreme effort when the hour comes.</p>
+
+<p>We arrived at the Territorials' trench.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Bon-soir, mon cher camarade.</i>"</p>
+
+<p>It was the Second-Lieutenant whom I met <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_285" id="Page_285">[Pg 285]</a></span>at the entrance. He was a man
+of forty-two, thin, pale, and bearded. In the shadow his eyes shone
+strangely. Under the skirts of his great-coat he had his hands buried
+in his trouser pockets. His elbows stuck out from his body, his knees
+were bent, his teeth chattered, and he was gently knocking his heels
+together.</p>
+
+<p>"It isn't warm, eh?" I asked.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, no; and then, you see, this sort of work is hardly the thing for
+fellows of our age. Our blood isn't warm enough, and, however you
+cover yourself up, there's always a chink by which the cold gets in.
+The worst of all is one's hands and feet; and there's nothing to be
+done for it. Wouldn't it be much better to trust to us, give us the
+order to fix bayonets and drive those Boches out of their trenches
+over there? You'd see if the Territorials couldn't do it as well as
+the Regulars.... And then one would have a chance of getting warm."</p>
+
+<p>I felt sure that he spoke the truth, and that his opinion was shared
+by the majority of his <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_286" id="Page_286">[Pg 286]</a></span>companions. But our good comrades of the
+Territorial Force have no conception of the vigour, the suppleness,
+and of the fulness of youth required to charge up to the enemy's line
+under concentrated fire and to cut the complex network of barbed wire
+that bars the road. Our chiefs were well advised in placing these
+troops where they were, in those lines of trenches scientifically
+constructed and protected, where their courage and tenacity would be
+invaluable in case of attack, and where they would know better than
+any others how to carry out the orders given to us: "Hold on till
+death." Leave to the young soldiers the sublime and perilous task of
+rushing upon the enemy when he is hidden behind the shelter of his
+<i>fougades</i>, his parapets, and his artificial brambles; and entrust to
+the brave Territorials the more obscure but not less glorious work of
+mounting guard along our front.</p>
+
+<p>I could make them out in the moonlight, standing silent and alert, in
+groups of two or three. Perched on the ledge of earth which <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_287" id="Page_287">[Pg 287]</a></span>raised
+them to the height of the parapet, they had their eyes wide open in
+the darkness, looking towards the enemy. Their loaded rifles were
+placed in front of them, between two clods of hardened earth. They
+neither complained nor uttered a word, but suffered nobly. They
+understand that they must. Ah! where now were the fine tirades of
+pothouse orators and public meetings? Where now were the oaths to
+revolt, the solemn denials and the blasphemies pronounced against the
+Fatherland? All was forgotten, wiped out from the records. If we could
+have questioned those men who stood there shivering, chilled to the
+bone, watching over the safety of the country, not one of them,
+certainly, would have confessed that he was ever one of the renegades
+of yore. And yet if one were to search among the bravest, among the
+most resigned, among the best, thousands of them would be discovered.
+Heaven grant that this miracle, wrought by the war, may be prolonged
+far beyond the days of the struggle, and then we shall not <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_288" id="Page_288">[Pg 288]</a></span>think that
+our brothers' blood has been spilt in vain.</p>
+
+<p>We brushed past them, but they did not even turn round. Eyes, mind,
+and will were absorbed in the dark mystery of the silent landscape
+stretching out before them. But the night, though it was so bright,
+gave everything a strange appearance; transformed all living things
+and increased their size; made the stones, the stacks, and the trees
+move, as it seemed to our weary eyes; cast fitful shadows where there
+were none; and made us hear murmurs which sounded like the muffled
+tramp of troops marching cautiously. Those men watched because they
+felt that there was always the danger of a surprise attack, of a
+sudden rush of Teutons who had crawled up through the grass of the
+fields. They had piled on their backs empty sacks, blankets, and old
+rags, for warmth, and wound their mufflers two or three times round
+their necks; they had taken all possible precautions for carrying out
+their duty to the very last. And although our hearts had been
+hardened <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_289" id="Page_289">[Pg 289]</a></span>by the unprecedented miseries of this war, we were seized
+with pity and admiration. Presently one of them turned round and said
+to us:</p>
+
+<p>"Hallo! They are lighting up over there now."</p>
+
+<p>I jumped up on to the ledge and saw, in fact, lights shining in three
+different places some way off. After looking attentively I guessed the
+meaning of this quite unusual illumination in the rear of the
+trenches. The lights came from some large fir-trees, placed there
+under cover of night, and beautifully lighted up. With my glasses I
+could make them out distinctly, and even the figures dancing round
+them; and we could hear their voices and shouts of merriment. How well
+they had arranged the whole thing! They had even gone as far as to
+light up their Christmas trees with electricity, so as to prevent our
+gunners from using them as an easy target. In fact, every few minutes
+all the lights on a tree were suddenly put out, and only appeared some
+minutes afterwards.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_290" id="Page_290">[Pg 290]</a></span>We had thrilled instinctively. Suddenly there arose, all over the wide
+plain, solemn and melodious singing. We still remembered singing of a
+similar kind we had recently heard at Bixschoote on a tragic occasion;
+and here were the same tuneful voices again, singing a hymn of the
+same kind as those they sang further to the north before shouting
+their hurrahs for the attack. But we did not fear anything of that
+kind now. We had the impression that this singing was not a special
+prayer in front of our little sector of trenches, but that it was
+general, and extended without limits over the whole of our provinces
+violated by the enemy: over Champagne, Lorraine, and Picardy,
+resounding from the North Sea to the Rhine.</p>
+
+<p>The Territorial trench was full of noiseless animation. The men came
+up out of their little dug-outs without a word, and the whole company
+was soon perched upon the ledge. There was a silence among our men, as
+if each man felt uneasy or perhaps jealous of what was going on over
+there. Then, as <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_291" id="Page_291">[Pg 291]</a></span>if to order, along the line of the German trenches
+other hymns rang out, and one choir seemed to answer the other. The
+singing became general. Quite close to us, in the trenches themselves,
+in the distance, round their brightly lighted trees, to the right, to
+the left, it resounded, softened by the distance. What a stirring,
+nay, grandiose, impression those hymns made, floating over the vast
+field of death! I felt intuitively that all this had been arranged
+long before, that they might celebrate their Christmas with religious
+calm and peace.</p>
+
+<p>At any other time, no doubt, many a clumsy joke would have been made,
+and no little abuse hurled at the singers. But all that has been
+changed. I divined some regret among our brave fellows that we were
+not taking part in a similar festival. Was it not Christmas Eve? Had
+we not been obliged by our duty to give up the delightful family
+gathering which reunites us yearly around the symbolic Yule-log? This
+year our mothers, our sisters, and our children were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_292" id="Page_292">[Pg 292]</a></span>keeping up the
+time-honoured and pious custom alone. Why did not our larger family of
+to-day join in singing together around lighted fir-trees? Our
+Territorials did not speak; but their thoughts flew away from the
+trenches, and the regrets of all were fused in a common feeling of
+melancholy.</p>
+
+<p>Little by little the singing died away, and absolute silence fell once
+more upon the country.</p>
+
+<hr />
+
+<p>I went with G. as far as his watch-post. He had to resume his duty as
+officer of the watch from eleven o'clock in the evening to two o'clock
+in the morning. The post consisted of a kind of small blockhouse,
+strongly built and protected by two casemates with machine-guns placed
+so as to command the enemy's trenches. A machine-gunner was always on
+guard, and could call the others, at the slightest alarm, to work the
+gun. These men were quartered in a kind of tunnel hollowed out close
+by, and at the first signal would have been ready to open fire with
+their <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_293" id="Page_293">[Pg 293]</a></span>terrible engines of destruction. In the centre of the
+block-house a padded sentry-box was arranged made of a number of
+sand-bags, in which, by means of a loophole, the officer of the watch
+could observe the whole sector entrusted to us; and by means of a
+telephone station, close at hand, he could communicate at any moment
+with the commander of the sector at the glass-works.</p>
+
+<p>G. had put on the goatskin coat handed to him by the officer he
+relieved. This officer was a Second-Lieutenant of Territorials, and
+looked completely frozen.</p>
+
+<p>"Here, my dear fellow," he said, "I leave you the goatskin provided
+for the use of the officer on duty. I should have liked to give it you
+well warmed, but I feel like an icicle myself."</p>
+
+<p>G. was nevertheless glad to have it. After wishing him good luck, I
+left him to get back to my hut, for, in spite of my cloak, the frost
+was taking hold of me too. The faithful Wattrelot had done his best to
+keep our little stove going. Profiting by La G.'s example, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_294" id="Page_294">[Pg 294]</a></span>I
+stretched myself on two chairs, with my feet towards the fire. I
+gradually got warmer, and at the same time somewhat melancholy. What a
+curious Christmas Eve! Certainly I had never passed one in such a
+place. The walls were made of a greyish, friable earth, which still
+showed the marks of the pick that had been used for the excavation.
+The furniture was simple and not very comfortable. At the back was the
+bed, made out of a little straw already well tossed over by a number
+of sleepers. This straw was kept in by a plank fixed to the ground and
+forming the side of the modest couch. Against the wall, opposite the
+stove, was the table. This table, which had to serve for writing and
+feeding, and perhaps for a game of cards, this table, which was
+required to fill the part of all the tables of all the rooms of any
+house, was, strange to say, a night-table. I wondered who had brought
+it there, and who had chosen it. But, such as it was, it served its
+purpose pretty well. We used it for dinner, and found it almost
+comfortable, and upon <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_295" id="Page_295">[Pg 295]</a></span>it I signed a number of reports and orders.
+Together with the two chairs, the stove, the bed, and some nails to
+hang my clothes on, that table completed the furniture of the "home"
+where I meditated on that December night. The candle, stuck in a
+bottle, flickered at the slightest breath, and threw strange shadows
+on the walls.</p>
+
+<p>It was the hour of solitude and silence, the hour of meditation and of
+sadness too now and then. That evening dark thoughts were flying about
+in that smoky den, assailing me in crowds, and taking possession of my
+mind; I could not drive them away. It was one of those moments&mdash;those
+very fleeting moments!&mdash;when courage seems to fail, and one gives way
+with a kind of bitter satisfaction. I remembered that months and
+months had passed since I had seen any of those belonging to me, and I
+conjured up in my mind the picture of the Christmas Eve they were
+keeping, too, at that same hour, at the other end of France. And the
+dear, good friends I had left in Paris and in Rouen&mdash;where were <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_296" id="Page_296">[Pg 296]</a></span>they
+at that moment? What were they doing? Were they thinking of me? How I
+should have liked to enjoy the wonderful power possessed by certain
+heroes in the Arabian Nights, which would have allowed me to see at
+that moment a vision of the loved ones far away. Were they talking
+about me, sitting together round the fire? I thought that this war had
+been a splendid thing to us Chasseurs as long as we were fighting as
+cavalry, scouring the plains, searching the woods, galloping in
+advance of our infantry, and bringing them information which enabled
+them to deal their blows or parry those of the enemy, trying to come
+up with the Prussian cavalry which fled before us. But this trench
+warfare, this warfare in which one stays for days and days in the same
+position, in which ground is gained yard by yard, in which artifice
+tries to outdo artifice, in which each side clings to the ground it
+has won, digs into it, buries itself in it, and dies in it sooner than
+give it up! What warfare for cavalry! We have devoted ourselves to it
+with all our <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_297" id="Page_297">[Pg 297]</a></span>hearts, and the chiefs who have had us under their
+orders have never failed to commend us; but at times we feel very
+weary, and during inaction and solitude our imaginations begin to
+work. Then we recall our regiment in full gallop over field and plain;
+we hear the clank of swords and bits; we see once more the flash of
+the blades, the motley line of the horses; we evoke the well-known
+figures of our chiefs on their chargers. That night my mind became
+more restless than ever before; it broke loose, it leapt away, and
+lived again the unforgettable stages of this war: Charleroi, Guise,
+the Marne, the defence of the Jaulgonne bridge, Montmirail, Reims, ...
+Belgium, Bixschoote; and then it fell back into the gloomy dug-out
+where the flame of the single candle traced disquieting shadows on the
+wall.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly a cold breath of air blew into my retreat. The door opened
+abruptly, and at the top of the steps a man, stooping over the floor
+of the passage, called me in an undertone:</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_298" id="Page_298">[Pg 298]</a></span>"<i>Mon Lieutenant</i>, come and see.... Something is happening...."</p>
+
+<p>With a bound, I sprang from my shelter and climbed up the ledge.</p>
+
+<p>"Listen, <i>mon Lieutenant</i>."</p>
+
+<p>That night in the trenches was destined to overwhelm me with
+astonishment, and this one surpassed all that I could imagine. I
+should like to be able to impart the extraordinary impression I felt;
+but one would have to have been there that night to be capable of
+realising it. Over that vast and silent plain, in which everything
+seemed to sleep and where no other sound was heard, there resounded
+from afar a voice whose notes, in spite of the distance, reached our
+ears. What an extraordinary thing it was! That song, vibrating through
+the boundless night, made our hearts beat and stirred us more than the
+most perfectly ordered concert given by the most famous singers.</p>
+
+<p>And it was another hymn, unknown to us, coming from the German
+trenches far away <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_299" id="Page_299">[Pg 299]</a></span>on our left. The singer must have been standing out
+in the fields on the edge of their line; he must have been moving,
+coming towards us, and passing slowly along all the enemy's positions,
+for his voice came gradually nearer, and became louder and clearer.
+Every now and then it ceased, and then hundreds of other voices
+responded in chorus with some phrases which formed the refrain of the
+hymn. Then the soloist began again and came still nearer to us. He
+must have come from a considerable distance, for our Chasseurs had
+already heard him some time before they decided to call me. Who could
+this man have been, who must have been sent along the front of the
+troops to pray, whilst each German company waited for him, so as to
+join with him in prayer? Some minister, no doubt, who had come to
+remind the soldiers of the sanctity of that night and the solemnity of
+the hour.</p>
+
+<p>Soon we heard the voice coming from the trenches straight in front of
+us. In spite of the brightness of the night, we could not <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_300" id="Page_300">[Pg 300]</a></span>distinguish
+the singer, for the two lines at that point were four hundred yards
+apart. But he was certainly not hiding himself, for his deep voice
+would never have sounded so rich and clear to us had he been singing at
+the bottom of their trenches. Again it ceased. And then the Germans
+directly in front of us, the soldiers occupying the works opposite
+ours, those men whom we were bound to kill so soon as they appeared,
+and whose duty it was to shoot us so soon as we showed ourselves&mdash;those
+men calmly took up the refrain of the hymn, with its sweet and
+mysterious words. They too must have come to the edge of their trench
+and struck up their hymn with their faces towards us, for their notes
+came to us clearly and distinctly.</p>
+
+<p>I looked along the line of our trench. All our men too were awake and
+looking on. They had all got on to the ledge, and several had left the
+trench and were in the field, listening to the unexpected concert. No
+one was offended by it; no one laughed at it. Rather was there a trace
+of regret in the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_301" id="Page_301">[Pg 301]</a></span>attitudes and the faces of those who were nearest to
+me. And yet it would have been such a simple matter to put an end to
+that scene; a volley fired by the troop there, and it would all stop,
+and drop back into the quiet of other nights. But nobody thought of
+such a thing. There was not one of our Chasseurs who would not have
+considered it a sacrilege to fire upon those praying soldiers. We felt
+indeed that there are hours when one can forget that one is there to
+kill. This would not prevent us from doing our duty immediately
+afterwards.</p>
+
+<p>The voice drew farther away, and retreated slowly and majestically
+towards the trenches situated at the place known as the "Troopers of
+C.'s" ground, where our two lines approached each other within a
+distance of fifty yards. How much more touching the sight must have
+been from there! I wished my post had been in that direction, so that
+I might have been present at the scene, might have heard the words and
+distinguished the figure of the pastor walking along the parapets
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_302" id="Page_302">[Pg 302]</a></span>made for hurling out death, and blessing those who the next day might
+be no more.</p>
+
+<p>Ping! A shot was heard....</p>
+
+<p>The stupid bullet which had perhaps found its mark? At once there was
+dead silence, not a cry, not an oath, not a groan. Some one had
+thought he was doing well by firing on that man. A pity! We should
+gain nothing by preventing them from keeping Christmas in their own
+way, and it would have been a nobler thing to reserve our blows for
+other hecatombs. I know that the barbarians would not have hesitated
+had they been in our place, and that so many of our priests had fallen
+under their strokes that they could not reasonably have reproached us.
+There are people who will say that our hatred should embrace
+everything German; that we should be implacable towards everything
+bearing that name, and spare none of the execrated race which has been
+the cause of so many tears, so much blood, so much mourning. Never
+mind!... I think in this case it would have been better not to have
+shot....</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_303" id="Page_303">[Pg 303]</a></span>A shot fired, not far from us, on our left brought me up from my
+shelter. It seemed strange after the complete calm of that night. It
+was seven o'clock. The sun was magnificent, and had already bathed the
+deserted plain, the fields, the heights of S., and the ruined village.
+In the distance, towards the east, the towers of the cathedral of R.
+stood out proudly against the golden sky. I looked and saw all my
+Chasseurs standing on the ledges watching with interest a scene which
+seemed to be going on in front of the trenches occupied on our left by
+the Territorials.</p>
+
+<p>I got up by the side of one of them, and he explained to me what was
+happening.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Mon Lieutenant</i>, it's the infantry fellows who have just killed a
+hare that ran between the two lines, and they're going to fetch
+it...."</p>
+
+<p>And in fact I saw this strange sight: two men had gone out in full
+daylight from their trenches and were advancing with hesitating steps
+towards the enemy's. Behind them were a hundred inquisitive heads,
+looking out above the embrasures arranged between the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_304" id="Page_304">[Pg 304]</a></span>sacks of earth.
+A few soldiers, who had come out of the trench, were even sitting on
+the bank of chalky earth. It was certainly such a scene as I had
+hardly expected to witness. What was the captain of the company
+occupying the trench doing?</p>
+
+<p>But my astonishment became stupefaction when I saw the hundreds of
+heads that fringed the enemy's trenches. I at once sent G. and a
+non-commissioned officer with the following order to all our men:</p>
+
+<p>"No one is to show himself.... Every man to his fighting post!...
+Carbines loaded and ready to fire!"</p>
+
+<p>The Germans opposite became suspicious on seeing our line so silent,
+and no man showing himself; they, too, waited on the alert behind
+their loopholes. But along the rest of their front their men kept on
+coming out from their trenches unarmed, and making merry and friendly
+gestures. I became uneasy, and wondered how this unexpected comedy
+might end. Ought I to have those men fired upon who were not quite
+opposite to us, and whose <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_305" id="Page_305">[Pg 305]</a></span>opponents seemed rather inclined to make a
+Christmas truce?</p>
+
+<p>Our two infantrymen had come to the spot where the hare had fallen,
+very nearly half-way between the French and the German lines. One of
+them stooped down and got up again proudly brandishing his victim in
+the enemy's faces. At once there was a burst of applause from the
+German lines. They called out: "Kameraden! Kameraden!"</p>
+
+<p>This was going too far. I saw two unarmed Prussians leave their trench
+and come forward, with their hands raised towards the two Frenchmen,
+so I consulted G.: "Ought we to fire? I confess it would be rather
+unpleasant for me to order our fellows to fire upon these unarmed men.
+On the other hand, can we allow the least intercourse between the
+barbarous nation that is still treading our soil and our good
+brothers-in-arms who are pouring out their blood every day to
+reconquer it?"</p>
+
+<p>Fortunately, the officer who commanded the Saint Thierry artillery,
+and who had observed this scene with his glasses, spared <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_306" id="Page_306">[Pg 306]</a></span>me a
+decision which would have been painful to me.</p>
+
+<p>Pong! Pong! Pong! Pong!</p>
+
+<p>Four shells passed, hissing, over our heads, and burst with admirable
+precision two hundred yards above the German trenches. The artillery
+officer seemed to have placed with a delicate hand the four little
+white puffs of smoke which, equidistant from each other, appeared to
+mark out the bounds in the heavens of the frontier line he wished to
+forbid the enemy to pass on the earth. The Germans did not fail to
+understand this graceful warning. With cries of rage and protest, they
+ran back to their shelters, and our Frenchmen did the same.</p>
+
+<p>And, as though to mark the intentional kindness of what he had just
+done, hardly had the last of the spiked helmets disappeared behind the
+parapets, when again the same hissing noise was heard, and, pong!
+pong! pong! pong! four shells dropped, this time full upon the whitish
+line formed along the green plain by the upturned earth of their
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_307" id="Page_307">[Pg 307]</a></span>trenches. In the midst of the smoke, earth and rubbish of all kinds
+were seen flying. Our Chasseurs cried "Bravo!" Everyone felt that the
+best solution had been found, and rejoiced at this termination of the
+brief Christmas truce.</p>
+
+<p>And now our minds were free to rejoice in the great day itself in
+company with our good troopers. In the night there had arrived, well
+packed in smart hampers, the bottles of champagne which Major B. had
+presented to his men, and we were looking forward to the time, only a
+few hours hence, when the soup would be upon the table, and we should
+keep our Christmas by letting off the corks in the direction of the
+German trenches.</p>
+
+<p>Our young fellow-officers were already anticipating this peaceful
+salvo, which would certainly be heard by the enemy.</p>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+<br />
+
+<h5>BRADBURY, AGNEW, &amp; CO. LD., PRINTERS, LONDON AND TONBRIDGE.</h5>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<hr />
+<br />
+<br />
+
+<div class="tr">
+<p class="cen"><a name="TN" id="TN"></a>Typographical errors corrected in text:</p>
+<br />
+<p class="noin">Page 163: P&eacute;ry corrected to P&eacute;vy</p>
+</div>
+
+<br />
+<br />
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<p>***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN THE FIELD (1914-1915)***</p>
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+The Project Gutenberg eBook, In the Field (1914-1915), by Marcel Dupont,
+Translated by H. W. Hill
+
+
+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 www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+
+
+
+Title: In the Field (1914-1915)
+       The Impressions of an Officer of Light Cavalry
+
+
+Author: Marcel Dupont
+
+
+
+Release Date: April 14, 2006  [eBook #18177]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN THE FIELD (1914-1915)***
+
+
+E-text prepared by Jeannie Howse, Thierry Alberto, Henry Craig, and the
+Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team
+(http://www.pgdp.net/) from page images generously made available by
+Internet Archive (http://www.archive.org/)
+
+
+
+Note: Images of the original pages are available through
+      Internet Archive. See
+      http://www.archive.org/details/InTheField
+
+
+    +------------------------------------------------------------+
+    | Transcriber's Note:                                        |
+    |                                                            |
+    | Any obvious typographical errors have been corrected in    |
+    | this text. For a complete list, please see the bottom of   |
+    | this document.                                             |
+    |                                                            |
+    +------------------------------------------------------------+
+
+
+
+
+
+IN THE FIELD (1914-1915)
+
+The Impressions of an Officer of Light Cavalry
+
+by
+
+MARCEL DUPONT
+
+Translated by H. W. Hill
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+London
+William Heinemann
+London: William Heinemann, 1916.
+
+
+
+
+
+TO
+
+GENERAL CHERFILS
+
+A TRIBUTE OF
+
+SINCERE GRATITUDE
+
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE
+
+
+In the following pages the reader will find no tactical studies, no
+military criticism, no vivid picture of a great battle. I have merely
+tried to make a written record of some of the hours I have lived
+through during the course of this war. A modest Lieutenant of
+Chasseurs, I cannot claim to form any opinion as to the operations
+which have been carried out for the last nine months on an immense
+front. I only speak of things I have seen with my own eyes, in the
+little corner of the battlefield occupied by my regiment.
+
+It occurred to me that if I should come out of the deathly struggle
+safe and sound, it would be a pleasure to me some day to read over
+these notes of battle or bivouac. I thought, further, that my people
+would be interested in them. So I tried to set down my impressions in
+my intervals of leisure. Days of misery, days of joy, days of
+battle.... What volumes one might write, if one were to follow our
+squadrons day by day in their march!
+
+I preferred to choose among many memories. I did not wish to compose
+memoirs, but only to evoke the most tragic or the most touching
+moments of my campaign. And, indeed, I have had only too many from
+which to choose.
+
+I shall rejoice if I have been able to revive some phases of the
+tragedy in which we were the actors for my brothers-in-arms.
+
+Further, I gladly offer these "impressions" to any non-combatants they
+may interest. They must not look for the talents of a great
+story-teller, nor the thrilling interest of a novel. All they will
+find is the simple tale of an eyewitness, the unschooled effort of a
+soldier more apt with the sword than with the pen.
+
+
+         M.D.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+  _The Editor of SOLDIERS' TALES will be glad to read diaries or
+  notebooks of those returning, in any capacity whatsoever, from the
+  Front with a view to inclusion in the Series. Contributions must
+  be strictly truthful and should be written with no effort at fine
+  writing. They are intended to tell truthfully the experiences and
+  the feelings of the writers. They should be sent by registered
+  post to the Editor, "Soldiers' Tales," 21, Bedford Street, W.C.,
+  and they may be accompanied by sketches and photographs. All
+  contributions printed will be well paid for. Contributions should
+  be of 30,000 words and upwards in length._
+
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+
+CHAP.                                                    PAGE
+
+   I. HOW I WENT TO THE FRONT                              1
+
+  II. THE FIRST CHARGE                                    57
+
+ III. RECONNOITRING COURGIVAULT                           76
+
+  IV. THE JAULGONNE AFFAIR                               102
+
+   V. LOW MASS AND BENEDICTION                           152
+
+  VI. A TRAGIC NIGHT IN THE TRENCHES                     178
+
+ VII. SISTER GABRIELLE                                   226
+
+VIII. CHRISTMAS NIGHT                                    258
+
+
+
+
+
+I. HOW I WENT TO THE FRONT
+
+
+The train was creeping along slowly in the soft night air. Seated on a
+truss of hay in the horse-box with my own two horses and that of my
+orderly, Wattrelot, I looked out through the gap left by the unclosed
+sliding door. How slowly we were going! How often we stopped! I got
+impatient as I thought of the hours we were losing whilst the other
+fellows were fighting and reaping all the glory. Station after station
+we passed; bridges, level crossings, tunnels. Everywhere I saw
+soldiers guarding the line and the bayonets of the old chassepots
+glinting in the starlight. Now and again the train would suddenly pull
+up for some mysterious reason. The three horses, frightened at being
+brought into collision with each other, made the van echo to the
+thunder of their hoofs as they slipped, stamped, and recovered their
+balance. I got up to calm them with soothing words and caresses. By
+the light of the wretched lantern swinging and creaking above the door
+I could see their three heads, with pricked ears and uneasy eyes. They
+were breathing hard and could not understand why they had been brought
+away from their comfortable stable with its thick litter of clean
+straw. _They_ were not thinking about the war, but they seemed to
+understand that their good times were over, that they would have to
+resign themselves to all sorts of discomforts, march unceasingly, pass
+nights in camps under the pouring rain, keep their heavy equipment on
+their backs for many days together, and not always get food when they
+were hungry.
+
+Then the train would set off again with a noise of tightened couplings
+and creaking waggons. Whilst I was mechanically looking out at the
+darkness, dotted here and there with the coloured lights of the
+signals placed along the line, my straying thoughts would wander to
+the fields of battle and try to picture the scene on my arrival at the
+Front.
+
+It was the 28th of August, nearly a month after the order had been
+given for mobilisation. And the armies had been fighting for some days
+already. What had happened? We could only glean part of the truth from
+the short official announcements. We knew there had been hard fighting
+at Charleroi, at Dinant, and in the direction of Nancy. But the result
+had not been defined. I thought I could guess, however, that these
+battles had not been decisive, but that they had cost both sides dear.
+I was tempted to rejoice, fool that I was, to think that the first
+great victories would not be won before I joined my regiment. I had
+not yet been able to console myself for the ill-fortune that prevented
+me from starting with the squadrons of the first line. And yet I had
+to submit to regulations. The colonel was inflexible, and answered my
+entreaties by quoting the inexorable rule: In every cavalry regiment
+the sixth lieutenant in order of seniority must stay at the depot to
+help the major and the captain of the 5th squadron. They must
+assemble, equip, and train the reserve squadrons of the regiment.
+
+I shall never forget what those days were to me. Days of overwhelming
+work, when, in a tropical heat, I was busy from sunrise to sunset,
+entering the names of thousands of men, registering the horses, giving
+certificates, and providing food for the lot. It needed some skill to
+find billets for them all; the horses were lodged in stables, riding
+establishments and yards, the men in every corner and nook of the vast
+district. It was tiresome work, and would have been almost impossible
+but for the general goodwill and admirable discipline. But all the
+time I was thinking of the fellows away in Belgium boldly
+reconnoitring the masses of Germans and coming into contact with the
+enemy.
+
+At last, at eleven o'clock on the 28th of August, the colonel's
+telegram came ordering me to go at once and replace my young friend,
+Second-Lieutenant de C., seriously wounded whilst reconnoitring. At
+six o'clock in the evening I had packed my food, strapped on my kit,
+and got my horses into the train. I set off with a light heart, and my
+fellow-officers of the Reserve and of the Territorials, who were still
+at the depot, came to see me off.
+
+But how slowly the train travelled, and what a long way off our little
+garrison town in the west seemed to me when I thought of the firing
+line out towards the north! I made up my mind to try to imitate my
+faithful Wattrelot, who had been snoring in peace for ever so long. I
+stretched myself on the golden straw and waited impatiently for the
+dawn, dozing and dreaming.
+
+At about eight o'clock in the morning the train stopped at the
+concentration station of N. What a crowd, and yet what order and
+precision in this formidable traffic! All the commissariat trains for
+the army muster here before being sent off to different parts of the
+Front. The numerous sidings were all covered with long rows of trucks.
+In every direction engines getting up steam were panting and puffing.
+In the middle of this hurly-burly men were on the move, some of them
+calm, jaded and patient. These were the railwaymen, who went about in
+a business-like way, pushing railway vans, counting packages, carrying
+papers, checking lists, and giving information politely and willingly.
+The rest were soldiers, lost, bewildered in the midst of this
+entanglement of lines which seemed inextricable. They were asking each
+other questions, swearing, laughing, protesting, and then they got
+into a train and were promptly hauled out and sent to another. But,
+with all this, there was no disorder, no lack of discipline.
+Everywhere the same admirable composure reigned that I had already
+noticed at the station of my little garrison town.
+
+With Wattrelot's help, I tidied myself up for a visit to the military
+authorities of the station. After many difficulties, and after passing
+through the hands of a number of sentries and orderlies on duty, I
+came into the presence of a kindly captain, to whom I stated my case:
+"These are my marching orders, Captain; I am to join the ---- Light
+Cavalry. Do you know where it is just now?"
+
+The captain raised his hands to Heaven with a look of despair: "How am
+I to know where any regiment is now? You can't expect it. All I can do
+for you is to couple your truck on to the commissariat train of your
+army corps. It will take you as far as the terminus, and there you
+must see what you can do."
+
+I went back to my horses. After various excursions hither and thither
+which took up the whole morning I at last managed to get my horse-box
+coupled to the train. Wattrelot and I, together with the Territorial
+section that served as guard, were the only passengers. The whole
+train was composed of vans stuffed with food supplies and mysterious
+cases, packed into some separate vans carefully sealed. Our departure
+was fixed for two o'clock, and meanwhile I had a chat with the
+Territorial lieutenant who commanded our escort. I tried to find out
+from him what had happened at the Front. He did not know any more than
+I did, and merely told me how sorry he was for his own ill-luck: "You
+know, our job is no joke. We start after luncheon, travel all the rest
+of the day and part of the night, sleep where we can, and the next day
+we go back again in the empty train. It takes still longer to get
+back. And the day after we begin all over again."
+
+And the worthy man quietly folded his hands on the "fair roundness" of
+his figure. He looked a good sort of fellow. He did his job
+conscientiously; put his men into the third-class compartments
+assigned to them; saw that they had their cartridges, and gave them
+some fatherly counsel; and then he invited me into the second-class
+compartment reserved for him. But I declined, as I preferred to travel
+with my horses. The train jolted off. The heat was tropical. We had
+pushed our sliding-door wide open, and, seated on our packages, we
+contemplated the smiling summer landscape as it passed slowly before
+us. And I came to the conclusion that we had found out the pleasantest
+way of travelling:--to have a railway carriage to yourself, where you
+can stand up, walk about and lie down; to go at a pace that allows
+you to enjoy the scenery of the countries you pass through; and to be
+able to linger and admire such and such a view, such and such a
+country mansion or monument of olden days! That is a hundred times
+better than the shaking and rush of a _train de luxe_.
+
+I was delighted and touched by the sympathetic interest shown in us by
+the people. Everywhere old men, women and children waved their
+handkerchiefs and called out, "Good luck!... Good luck!"
+
+The worthy Territorials answered back as best they could. One felt
+that all hearts were possessed with one and the same thought, wish,
+and hope,--the hearts of the men who were going slowly up to battle,
+and those of the people who watched them pass and sent their good
+wishes with them.
+
+At one station where we stopped a group of girls dressed in white were
+waiting on the platform under the burning rays of the sun. With
+simplicity, grace, and charming smiles they distributed chocolate,
+bread, and fruit to all the men. The good fellows were so touched
+that tears came to their eyes. One of them, an elderly man with a
+small grey pointed beard, could not help saying: "But _we_ aren't
+going to fight, you know. We are only here to take care of the train."
+
+"That doesn't matter. That doesn't matter. Take it all the same. You
+are soldiers, like the others.... _Vive la France!_" And all the
+thirty Territorials, in deep and solemn tones, repeated "_Vive la
+France!_"
+
+What a change had come over these men who, people feared, were ripe
+for revolt, undisciplined, and reckless! What kindness and grace in
+the women who stay at home and suffer! An old railwayman said to me:
+"It has been like that, Sir, from the first day of the mobilisation.
+These girls pass their days and nights at the station. It is really
+very good of them, for they won't make anything by it." The old
+working man was right: "They won't make anything by it." And yet I am
+sure that many soldiers who have passed that station on their way to
+the Front will keep the same grateful remembrance that I still have.
+I shall never forget the group of girls in white on the sunny platform
+of the little station; I shall never forget the simple grace with
+which they prevailed upon the men to accept the good things they
+offered and even forced upon them. I thanked them as best I could, but
+awkwardly enough, trying to interpret the thoughts of all those
+soldiers. And when the train had started again on its panting course,
+I felt sorry I had not been more eloquent in my speech; that I had
+already forgotten the name of the little station, and never thought of
+asking the names of our benefactresses.
+
+We were now getting near the fighting zone, and I already felt that
+there was a change in the state of mind of the people. They still
+called out to us: "Good luck!... Good luck!" But earlier in the day
+this greeting had been given with smiles and merry gestures; now it
+was uttered in a serious and solemn tone. At the station gates and the
+level crossings, the eyes of the women who looked at us were more sad
+and profound. They fixed themselves upon ours, and seemed to speak to
+us. And even when their lips did not move their eyes still said "Good
+luck!... Good luck!"
+
+We saw motor cars rushing along the roads, and could distinguish the
+armbands on the men's sleeves, and rifles in the cars or lying in the
+hoods. And yet daily life was going on as usual. There were workers in
+the fields, tradespeople on the doorsteps of their shops, groups of
+peasants just outside the hamlets. But yet a peculiar state of mind
+was evident in each one of these people who were going on with their
+daily work. And all these accumulated cares, all these stirred
+imaginations, produced a strange atmosphere which infected everything,
+seemed to impregnate the air we breathed, and quenched the gaiety of
+the men in our train. Wattrelot and I were overcome by a kind of
+religious emotion; we felt as though we were already breathing the air
+of battle.
+
+At about six o'clock we arrived at the station of L., where the train
+stopped for a few minutes. The platforms were crowded with Staff
+officers. A soldier assured me that the chief Headquarters were here.
+I wanted to question some one and try to get some authoritative
+information as to what was happening at the Front. It seemed to me
+that I had a right to know, now that I was on the point of becoming
+one of the actors in the tragedy in progress a few leagues off. But
+directly I came up to these officers I felt my assurance fail me. They
+looked disturbed and anxious. There was none of that merry animation
+that had reigned in the interior and that I had expected to find
+everywhere.
+
+And then a strange and ridiculous fear came over me; the fear of being
+looked upon as an intruder by these well-informed men who knew
+everything. I imagined that they would spurn me with scorn, or that I
+should cause them pain by forcing them to tell me truths people do not
+like to repeat. It also occurred to me that I was too insignificant a
+person to confront men so high in office, and that I should appear
+importunate if I disturbed their reflections. But I was now quite sure
+that the official announcements had not told us all. Without having
+heard one word, I felt that things were not going so well as we had
+hoped, as every day in our little town in the west we tried
+passionately to divine the truth, devouring the few newspapers that
+reached us.
+
+A pang shot through me. I now felt alone and lost amongst these men
+who seemed strangers to me. Crossing the rails, I got back to our
+train, drawn up at some distance from the platforms. The sun was on
+the horizon. In the red sky two monoplanes passed over our heads at no
+great height. The noise of their engines made everybody look up. They
+were flying north. And I felt a desire to rush upwards and overtake
+one of them and take my seat close to the pilot, behind the propeller
+which was spinning round and sending the wind of its giddy speed into
+his face. I longed to be able to lift myself into the air above the
+battlefields, and there, suspended in space, try to make out the
+movements of the clashing nations.
+
+I resolved to have a talk with the engine-driver of a train returning
+to Paris empty. He told me in a few words that the French army was
+retreating rapidly, that it had already recrossed the Belgian
+frontier, and that at that moment it was fighting on French soil. He
+told me this simply, with a touch of sadness in his voice, shaking his
+head gently. He added no comments of his own, and I did not feel equal
+to any reply. Full of foreboding, I returned to my train and
+Wattrelot. He had heard what the engine-driver had told me, and he
+said not a word, but looked out into the distance at the fiery sky. We
+sat down side by side and said nothing.
+
+So we were retreating. Then all our calculations and dreams were
+shattered. All the fine plans we officers had sketched out together
+were folly. We were wasting time when, bending over our maps, we
+foresaw a skilful advance on the heels of Belgium's invaders, followed
+by a huge victory, dearly bought, perhaps, but one that would upset
+the German Colossus at a single blow. The whole thing was an illusion.
+And I thought what a fool I had been. I thought of my regiment. How
+much of it was there left? How many of those good fellows were lying
+dead on foreign soil? How many friends should I never see again? For I
+imagined things to be worse than they really were. I felt absolutely
+despondent. What my mind conjured up was no longer a retreat in good
+order but a rout.
+
+The train had begun to move again. The sun had set, and over the
+horizon there was but a streak of pale yellow sky lighting up the
+country. I sat down in the open doorway with my legs dangling outside,
+and as I breathed the first few whiffs of fresh air I felt somewhat
+relieved. The calm around was such as to make one forget that we were
+at war. Darkness came on by degrees.
+
+Suddenly my heart began to beat faster, and I rose with a nervous
+movement. Wattrelot too had started up from the straw he had been
+lying on. We both exclaimed in one breath: "Cannon!" It was a mere
+distant growl, hardly audible, and yet it was distinct enough to be a
+subdued accompaniment to the thousand noises a train makes as it goes
+along. We could not distinguish the shots, but gradually the dull
+sound became louder and seemed to be wafted towards us by a gust of
+air. Then it seemed to be further off again, and almost to die away,
+and again to get louder. There is no other earthly sound like it. A
+thunderstorm as it dies away is the only thing that could suggest the
+impression we felt. It sends a kind of shiver all over the surface of
+the body. Even our horses felt it. Their three heads were raised
+uneasily, their eyes shone in the twilight, and they snorted noisily
+through their dilated nostrils.
+
+Leaning out, I saw the heads of the Territorials thrust out of the
+windows. They, too, had heard the mysterious and stirring music. No
+one spoke or joked. Their bodies, stretching out into space, seemed to
+be asking questions and imploring to know the truth. We came nearer
+to the sounds of the guns and could now distinguish the shots
+following one another at short intervals. The air seemed to be shaken,
+and we might have thought we were but a few paces off.
+
+The train had pulled up sharply in the open country. It was still
+light enough for us to make out the landscape--meadows covered with
+long pale grass, bordered by willows and tall poplar trees gently
+swaying in the evening breeze. In the background a thick wood shut in
+the view. The railway line curved away to the right and was lost to
+view in the growing darkness. Now that the train was motionless the
+impressive voice of the cannon could be heard more distinctly. The
+long luminous trails of the search-lights passed over the sky at
+intervals.
+
+Impatient at the delay, I got down and walked along the line to the
+engine. It had stopped at a level crossing. At the side of the closed
+barrier, on the doorstep of her hut, with the light shining upon her,
+sat the wife of the gatekeeper, a child in her arms. She was a young
+woman, fair and pale. She seemed somewhat uneasy, and yet had no idea
+of quitting her post. She was talking in a low voice to the engine
+driver and stoker of our train. I tried to get some information from
+her. "_Mon Dieu, monsieur_," she said, "I know nothing, except that
+the guns have been firing all day long since yesterday, and even at
+times during the night. The sound comes chiefly from the direction of
+G. Some soldiers, who went by just now with carts, told me the
+Prussians got into the town yesterday, but that it was to be retaken
+to-day; and that there were a great many dead and wounded."
+
+My hopes revived a little. I saw at once in my mind the German attack
+stopped on the river Oise, our armies recovering, drawing together and
+driving the enemy back across the frontier. Our engine-driver
+explained to me that we had come quite close to the terminus, but that
+we should have to wait some time before we could get in. Other trains
+had to be unloaded and shunted to make room.
+
+I went back to my van. Night had fallen, and it must have been about
+nine o'clock. The guns had suddenly ceased firing. Our lantern had
+burnt itself out, and the rest of our wait was made more tedious by
+darkness. An empty train passed us, and then silence fell once more
+upon the spot where we waited anxiously to be allowed to go forward
+towards our brothers-in-arms. Oh! how I longed to join them, even if
+it were only in the middle of a bloody and difficult retreat; how I
+longed to be delivered from my solitude!
+
+At last, at about eleven o'clock, the train set off again without
+whistling, and very slowly. It went along timidly, so to speak, and as
+though it was afraid of coming into some unknown region which might be
+full of mysteries and ambuscades. In the distance I saw some signal
+lamps waved, and suddenly we stopped. What I then saw astounded me. I
+had thought we should draw up at a large platform where gangs of men
+would be waiting, in perfect order, to unload the train, sort out the
+packages, and pile them up in their appointed places for the carts to
+take them quietly away.
+
+Instead of this the train stopped at some little distance from a small
+station standing by itself in the open country. I could make out some
+buildings, badly lighted, and around them a crowd of shadowy forms
+moving about. And drawn up alongside of our train were countless
+vehicles of all sorts and kinds in indescribable disorder, made all
+the more confusing by the darkness. Some of them were drawn up in some
+sort of a line. Others tried to edge themselves in and get a vacant
+place among the entanglement of wheels and horses. The drivers were
+abusing each other in forcible language. Every now and again there was
+an outburst of laughter interspersed with oaths.
+
+All this time officials were running down the platform with papers in
+their hands, trying to read what was chalked on the vans. Enquiries
+and shouts were heard:
+
+"Where is the bread?"
+
+"Over here."
+
+"No, it's not."
+
+"Where is the officer in charge?"
+
+Matches were struck. The few lighted lanterns there were were snatched
+from one hand by another. And in spite of all this apparent disorder
+the work went rapidly forward. Men climbed in through the open doors.
+Sacks and heavy cases were passed along. Porters, bending under their
+loads, slipped through the maze of vans and carts to the one they
+wanted and deposited their burdens.
+
+After giving Wattrelot orders to prevent any one from invading our
+horse-box I slipped out and went towards the station office to look
+for the military commissary. I had great difficulty in making my way
+through the crowd of men who seemed to be rushing to take the train by
+assault in the darkness. Then I had to avoid breaking my neck in
+getting across the maze of rails, the signal wires, and the open
+ditches.
+
+I got to the station. A number of wounded were there lying on the
+platforms; about a hundred of them, with their clothes torn, and
+covered with dust. They presented a sad picture. They were, it is
+true, only slightly wounded; but it cuts one to the heart to see
+soldiers in that plight, hauled out upon the ground without straw to
+lie upon or any doctor to attend to them. However, they had all had
+first-aid dressings. Below the bandages that bound their heads their
+feverish eyes gleamed in the light of the lanterns. Their bandaged
+arms were supported by pieces of linen tied behind their necks.
+Several of them were sitting on baskets, casks and packages of all
+kinds, and they were talking eagerly. Each man was relating, with
+plenty of gesticulation, the great deeds he had taken part in or seen.
+As I passed, I heard scraps of their conversation: "They were in the
+first line of houses.... Then, old chap, our lieutenant rushed
+forward.... You should have seen them scuttle...."
+
+I was delighted to see that the _moral_ of those fine fellows didn't
+seem in the least affected. To hear them you would have thought the
+Germans had been driven back at all points.
+
+I got a porter to tell me where the military commissary was. He
+pointed out an Artillery lieutenant, in a cap with a white band,
+talking to a group of officers. I introduced myself, and asked him if
+he knew anything about the state of affairs. Like everybody else, he
+could only give me very vague information. "However," he added, "I can
+confirm what you have heard about G. The First Corps has just retaken
+the town, which was defended by the Prussian Guard. It appears that
+our fellows were wonderful, and that the enemy has suffered enormous
+losses. However"--the lieutenant's voice trembled slightly, and the
+shrug of his shoulders betrayed his despair--"I have orders to
+evacuate the station, with all my men and my papers, so soon as the
+last train has been unloaded. I am to fall back towards L. How is one
+to understand what all this means?"
+
+We looked at each other, without a word. Everybody felt dejected and
+doubtful. Not to understand!... To have to obey without understanding
+why! It was the first time I had really felt the grandeur of military
+service. You must have a soul stoutly tempered to carry out an
+order--no matter what, even if that order seems incomprehensible to
+you. There must have been in that corner of France, on the edge of
+that frontier which we had sworn should never be violated--there must
+have been thousands of officers, thousands of soldiers who would have
+given their lives rather than yield up one inch of ground. Then why
+abandon that station? Why say so bluntly, "To-morrow you will have no
+need to go so far north to bring supplies. We shall come nearer to
+you; _we_ shall withdraw ..."?
+
+There I was again, allowing my mind to wander and to suffer. I tried
+to learn by what means I could get some information about my regiment.
+
+"Well, it's very simple," said the Artillery lieutenant, very kindly.
+"Your commissariat officer will certainly have to come with his convoy
+to fetch supplies. Try to get hold of him. He will tell you all about
+it."
+
+I grasped his hand and went off, glad indeed at the thought of seeing
+my regiment's uniform once more. And Providence seemed to guide me,
+for I thought I saw the very man I was looking for in the little
+booking office. But I had some difficulty in recognising him. He
+looked aged and worn. His beard had grown quite grey. Bending over the
+sill of the ticket office, he was in the act of spreading the contents
+of a box of sardines upon a slice of bread. Yes, it was he. How tired
+and disheartened he looked! I pushed the door open and rushed in:
+
+"_Bonjour! Comment va?_"
+
+"Ah!... It's you! What have you come here for, my poor fellow? Ah!
+Things aren't looking very rosy...."
+
+I plied him with questions, and he answered in short incoherent
+sentences:
+
+"Charleroi? Don't talk of it!... Our men? Grand!... A hecatomb....
+Then ... the retreat ... day and night.... The Germans daren't.... Ah!
+a nice business, isn't it? We're retreating."
+
+He told me where the regiment was, in a huge farm a long way off. He
+said he could take my canteen in one of his vans. As for me, I should
+have to manage as best I could next day to join my comrades. It would
+take some time to get my horses detrained, as the only platform was
+still being used for the vans not yet unloaded. "Thanks," said I.
+"Well, it's quite simple. To-morrow I go straight towards the cannon.
+Good-night." And I went off to finish my sleepless night, lying beside
+my horses. With my eyes fixed on the chink of the door, I waited, hour
+after hour, for the daylight....
+
+When dawn broke I had already got Wattrelot and a couple of railwaymen
+who were still in the station to bring my horse-box up to the
+platform. The three horses were quickly saddled and ready to start.
+The freshness of the morning and the joy of feeling firm ground under
+their feet again made them uncommonly lively. Indeed, Wattrelot came
+near feeling the effects of their good spirits somewhat uncomfortably
+as he was getting into the saddle.
+
+At last we started at a quick trot along a white and dusty road which
+led straight across fields still bathed in shadow. I went first in the
+direction my friend had vaguely indicated the night before. Wattrelot
+followed, leading my spare horse. The horses' footsteps resounded
+strangely in this unknown country where nothing else could be heard.
+Were we really at war? Everything seemed, on the contrary, to breathe
+perfect tranquillity. What a change from the feverish bustle of the
+station the evening before!
+
+We rode through a rich and fertile countryside. The fields stretched
+out one after another without end, covering the rounded flanks of the
+undulating ground with their stubble, dotted with stacks and golden
+sheaves. A few hedges and some clumps of trees broke the monotony of
+the landscape. Here and there farms of imposing proportions appeared
+among the foliage. No shots were to be heard, nor any sound of
+marching troops. And this made me so uneasy that I began to wonder
+whether something had not happened during the night to shift the scene
+of the fighting without my knowledge. But I was about to see something
+which was to remind me, better than the noise of cannon, that the
+scene of the strife was not far off.
+
+As the daylight became gradually brighter we distinguished figures
+moving round some straw-stacks--folks who had collected there to pass
+the night sheltered as much as possible from the cold and the morning
+dew. I thought they were soldiers who had lost touch with their
+regiments and had taken their brief night's rest in the open air. But
+I soon saw my mistake. As by enchantment, as soon as the first rays of
+the sun appeared the sleepers got up, and I saw that they were
+civilians, mostly women and children. They were the unfortunate
+country-folk who had fled before the barbarian hordes. They had
+preferred to forsake their homes, to leave them to the invader, rather
+than fall into his hands. They had fled, carrying with them the most
+precious things they possessed. They had come away not knowing where
+they would stop, nor where they could pass the night. And as soon as
+the twilight came and found them exhausted on the interminable roads,
+they had dropped down by the stacks grateful for a humble bed of
+straw. There they had stretched their aching limbs, the mothers had
+carefully made up little beds for their babies, families had nestled
+closely together, and often whole villages had gathered in the same
+fields and around the same stacks.
+
+And when the daylight appeared they had got up hurriedly and the roads
+were already crowded with mournful pilgrims seeking refuge further and
+further inland. I must confess that I had not expected to see such a
+sight. It made my heart ache. I was seized with a fury and longed to
+be able to rush upon the enemy, drive him back across the frontier,
+and restore the dwellings forsaken by these poor folks.
+
+What human being, however cold-hearted, could help feeling deep pity
+at the sight of those poor, weak and inoffensive creatures fleeing
+before invasion? There were pitiable sights on every hand. A mother
+pushing a perambulator containing several small children, whilst five
+or six others were hanging on to her dress or trotting along around
+her. Poor invalids, dragged, pushed, carried by all possible means,
+sooner than be left in the hands of the Prussians. Old men helped
+along by boys; infants carried by old men. And as they passed they all
+cast a look of distress at the officer who rode quickly by, averting
+his eyes. I thought I saw a reproach in those glances: they seemed to
+say to me: "Why haven't you been able to defend us? Why have you let
+them come into our country? See how we are suffering. Look at our
+little children, who cannot walk any further. Where are we to go now
+that, by your fault, we have left the homes of our childhood, and of
+our fathers and our fathers' fathers? Is that what war is?" I urged
+on my horse to get them out of my sight and to reach the fighting line
+as quickly as I could.
+
+Suddenly the report of a gun sounded straight in front of me. Further
+off a few rifle shots were audible, and then guns again, accompanied
+by concentrated rifle fire. A kind of shiver passed through my whole
+body.
+
+My first battle! I was going to take part in my first battle! I felt
+really mad and intoxicated at the thought of at last realising the
+dream of my life. But other feelings were mingled with it. I
+reflected: "What effect will it have upon me? I expect I shall come
+into the middle of the fight when I get over that ridge. Shall I duck
+my head when I hear the bullets whistling and the shrapnel bursting
+around me? I am determined to play the man. I know Wattrelot is close
+by, trotting behind me. He mustn't see the least symptom of
+nervousness in me."
+
+The noise of the guns became louder. "By the way!... I wonder what
+Wattrelot feels like!" I turned to look at him, and found his face a
+bit pale; but directly he saw me glance at his blue north-country
+eyes, his face lit up with a broad smile.
+
+"Here we are, sir."
+
+"Yes, Wattrelot, here we are. I'm sure you don't know what fear is!"
+
+"Oh! no, sir."
+
+"That's all right. Forward then! To the guns!"
+
+We passed through a hamlet full of waggons and motors. Some orderlies
+were loading them up with rations and boxes. On one of these I
+happened to see the number of my own army corps. "I'm all right then,"
+thought I, and turned to an adjutant of the Army Service Corps, who
+was superintending the work.
+
+"Do you know where the Staff of the ---- Corps is?" I asked.
+
+The man shrugged his shoulders to show that he didn't, and that he
+didn't care. What did it matter to him? His job was to get the goods
+loaded, forget nothing, and then to go to his appointed post where he
+would have to wait for further orders to unload his stuff in the
+evening. He had enough to do. What did anything else matter to him?
+However, he pointed in a vague manner: "They went over there...."
+
+Off I started again over the wide undulating plain. The noise of the
+cannonade became louder and louder, and I now perceived traces of the
+work of death. At a turning of the road there were a couple of dead
+horses that had been dragged into the ditch. I cannot say how painful
+the sight was to me. Apparently a dead horse at the seat of war is a
+trifle, and no doubt I should very soon see it with indifference. But
+these were the first I had seen, and I could not help casting a glance
+of pity at them. Poor beasts! A month before they had been showing off
+their fine points in the well-kept stables of the artillery barracks.
+When I saw them their stiffened corpses bore traces of all their
+sufferings. Their harness had rubbed great sores in their flesh, in
+more places than one. Their glazed eyes seemed to be still appealing
+for pity. They had fallen down exhausted, finding it impossible to
+keep up with their fellows. They had been quickly unharnessed, so as
+not to block up the road; had been dragged on to the sunburnt grass,
+and it was there no doubt the death-agony that had already lasted for
+some hours had come to an end.
+
+We went on, and, in the distance, here and there on the plain, which
+now stretched before us for miles, we saw more of them. I wondered how
+it was that so many horses had fallen in so short a time. It was not a
+month since mobilisation had been ordered, and hardly ten days since
+operations had begun. What a huge effort then the army must already
+have made!
+
+But I soon forgot the poor beasts, for we were nearing the scene of
+the struggle. Behind the shelter of every swell in the ground were
+ammunition waggons. I went up to one of these and was astonished at
+what I saw. The limbers, which are always so smart in the
+barrack-yard, with their grey paint, were covered with a thick coating
+of dust or of hardened mud. The horses, dirty and thin, seemed ready
+to drop. Their necks were covered with sores, and they were hanging
+their heads to eat, but seemed not to have strength enough to take
+their food. Drivers and non-commissioned officers were sprawling
+about, sleeping heavily. Their cadaverous faces, beards of a week's
+growth and drawn features showed even in their sleep how exhausted
+they were. I could hardly recognise the original colour of their dingy
+uniforms under the accumulation of stains and dust.
+
+It was now eight o'clock in the morning. The sunshine was beating hot
+upon the sleepers, but they seemed indifferent to this. They had
+simply pulled the peaks of their caps over their eyes and were snoring
+away, with their noses in the air and their mouths open. Beasts and
+men together formed a group of creatures that seemed utterly depressed
+and worn out. I could never have believed it possible to sleep under
+such conditions, with the guns booming unceasingly in all directions.
+
+I went up the nearest ridge and thence got a glimpse of a corner of
+the battle. I had expected to see a sight similar to that which had
+delighted us at manoeuvres; troops massed in all the depressions of
+the ground, battalions advancing in good order along the roads, and
+mounted men galloping about on the higher ground. But there was
+nothing of the sort.
+
+In front of me, about 600 yards off, and under cover of the brow of a
+hill carpeted with russet stubble, I saw two batteries of artillery,
+firing their guns. I looked intently. The pieces were in perfect line
+and the gunners at their posts. The shots were fired at regular
+intervals and with cool deliberation. The gunners took their time, and
+seemed to be working very casually. I had expected to see them fairly
+excited: the men running under a hail of shells, teams brought up at a
+gallop as soon as a few salvoes had been fired, and the guns whirled
+off at full speed and lined up in battery again some hundreds of
+yards further off.
+
+On the contrary, these guns seemed to be planted there for good. The
+limbers, which were massed to the rear under cover of a slope, looked
+very much like the sections of munitions I had seen just before. The
+men were sleeping in the shadows of their horses, and the horses were
+asleep on their feet in their appointed places. The only man standing
+was a stout-looking adjutant who was walking up and down with his
+hands in his pockets. With his eyes on the ground he seemed to be
+counting his steps. And meanwhile, the two batteries went on firing
+salvoes of four at a time. When one was finished there was a pause of
+two or three minutes. Then the other battery took it up.
+
+But Wattrelot interrupted my reverie: "Look over there, sir.... _Ca
+barde!_" I looked in the direction he was pointing out. And now I no
+longer felt the uneasy feeling that had come over me at the sight of
+what was going on here. Above a height that overtopped the hill on
+which I was, and about 1,500 yards away, the German shells were
+bursting incessantly. We could distinctly hear the sharp sound of the
+explosions. In the clear blue of the sky they made little white puffs
+which vanished gradually and were replaced by others. Their gunners
+could not have been firing with the same coolness as ours, for the
+white puffs increased in number. The noise they were making on the
+spot must have been deafening. From where I was we heard the
+explosions following one upon another without intermission.
+
+But what was most thrilling was to watch one of our own batteries in
+action under this avalanche of projectiles. The slope on which it was
+placed was in shadow still. Against this blue-grey background short
+flames could be seen flashing for a second at the muzzles of the guns.
+And the four reports reached us almost at the same moment. The gunners
+could be seen just as calm under fire as the others here. The German
+shells, that tried to scatter death among them, burst too high. They
+were trying to annihilate this battery, which was no doubt causing
+terrible ravages among their men. But the broken fragments fell wide,
+and our gunners worked their pieces gallantly. This was something that
+more than made up for my touch of disappointment at first. My hope
+revived, and I started off at a trot straight in front of me, getting
+past the ridge, under cover of which the pair of batteries were plying
+their guns.
+
+No sooner had I gained the further slope than I understood that what I
+had seen hitherto was only the background of the battle. From this
+spot a violent rifle fire was heard in every direction. In the meadows
+were a large number of infantry sections crouching behind every
+available bit of cover. On the opposite slope long lines of
+skirmishers were deployed. And dotted about everywhere, above their
+heads, rose puffs of smoke--white, black, and yellow--the German
+shells bursting. The noise of them was incessant, and the spot where
+we were seemed to me very quiet, in spite of the firing of the two
+batteries close behind us.
+
+Everything was wonderfully coloured by the sunshine. The red trousers
+of the soldiers, lying in the grass, showed up brightly. The mess-tins
+on their knapsacks and the smallest metal objects--buttons,
+bayonet-hilts, belt-buckles--glittered at every movement. On my left,
+in a dip of ground with a little river running down it, a gay little
+village seemed to be overflowing with troops. I rode towards it in
+haste, hoping to find a Staff there which could give me some
+information.
+
+The streets were, in fact, full of infantry, lying about or sitting
+along the houses on both sides. In the middle of the main road was a
+crowd of galloping orderlies, cyclists and motor-cyclists. I felt
+rather bewildered in all this bustle. However, these people seemed to
+know where they were going. They were, no doubt, carrying orders or
+information. And yet I could see no chief officer who appeared to be
+busying himself about the action or directing anything. Those who
+were not sleeping were chatting in little groups. The soldiers of
+different arms were all mixed together, which had, perhaps, a
+picturesque effect, but was disconcerting.
+
+Suddenly I heard some one call me by my name. I turned round and
+hesitated a moment before I recognised in an artillery captain with a
+red beard, a former friend who had been a lieutenant in a horse
+battery at Luneville. Yes, it was he. I recognised him by his grey
+eyes, his hooked nose, and his ringing voice.
+
+"Eh, _mon cher!_ What are you doing here? You look fresh and fit!...
+What are you looking for? You seem to be at sea."
+
+I explained my position to him, and asked him to tell me what had
+happened.
+
+"Oh! that would take too long. Your fellows were at Charleroi with us;
+they had some experiences! But hang it if I know what they are doing
+with us. We beat them yesterday, my friend. Our men and our guns did
+wonders. And now there's talk of our retreating further south. I
+don't understand it all. Ah! we have seen some hot work, and you will
+make a rough beginning.... Looking for your regiment, are you? I
+haven't seen it yet to-day. But you see that Staff right over there
+behind those stacks?... Yes, where those shells are bursting....
+That's General T. He can help you; only, you see, he's not exactly in
+clover. T. has been splendid; always under fire, cheering on his men.
+They say he wants to get killed so as not to see the retreat...."
+
+I knew General T. well. He commanded a brigade in our garrison town of
+R. And a kindly chief he was, clear-minded, frank, and plain-spoken. I
+soon made up my mind to go to him and see what help I could get to
+enable me to rejoin my regiment. It would be a pleasure, too, to see
+him again.
+
+I measured the distance with my eye--a kilometre, perhaps. There was
+no road, and to go across the fields would not be very easy, as there
+were walls and hedges round the meadows. I took the other way out of
+the village, and just as Wattrelot and I were leaving it we saw some
+wounded men arriving. They came slowly, helped along by their
+comrades, and there were such a number of them that they blocked the
+road. Those faces tied up with bandages clotted with perspiration,
+dust, and blood; those coats hanging open; those shirts torn, and
+showing lint and bandages reddened with blood; those poor bandaged
+feet that had to be kept off the ground--all this made a painful
+impression on me. No doubt this was because I was not accustomed to
+such sights, for others hardly took any notice of it.
+
+"The ambulance! Where is the ambulance?" cried the men who were
+helping them along.
+
+"At the station," answered some soldiers, hardly looking round; "go
+straight on, and turn to the left when you get to the market-place."
+
+And the sad procession went its way. I jumped the ditch at the side of
+the road, and struck across the fields, spurring straight for General
+T. At that moment the rifle fire became more violent. Some forward
+movement was certainly beginning, for the infantry sections, that were
+lying in cover at the bottom of the valley, began to climb up the
+slope of the ridge on which I was galloping. Suddenly my horse swerved
+sharply. He had just almost trodden upon a body lying on the other
+side of the low wall of loose stones that I had just jumped. I drew
+rein. A sob burst from my lips. Oh! I did not expect to see that so
+suddenly. A score of corpses lay scattered on that sloping
+stubble-field. They were Zouaves. They seemed almost to have been
+placed there deliberately, for the bodies were lying at about an equal
+distance from one another. They must have fallen there the day before
+during an attack, and night had come before it had been possible to
+bury them. Their rifles were still by their side, with the bayonets
+fixed. The one nearest to us was lying with his face to the ground and
+was still grasping his weapon. He was a handsome fellow, thin and
+dark. No wound was visible, but his face was strikingly pale under
+the red _chechia_ which had been pulled down over his ears.
+
+I looked at Wattrelot. The good fellow's eyes were filled with tears.
+"Come!" thought I, "we must not give way like this."
+
+"Wattrelot, my friend, we shall see plenty more. You know, they were
+brave fellows who have been killed doing their duty. We must not pity
+them...."
+
+Wattrelot did not answer. I galloped off again towards the big rick by
+which stood General T.'s Staff. I had already forgotten what I had
+seen, and my attention was fixed upon that small group of men standing
+motionless near the top of the ridge. German shells kept bursting over
+them from time to time. We were now about 100 yards off, so I left
+Wattrelot and my spare horse hidden behind a shattered hovel and went
+alone towards the rick.
+
+But just as I was coming up to it I heard a curious hissing noise
+which lasted about the twentieth part of a second, and, above my
+head--how high I could not quite tell--vrran!... vrran!--two shells
+exploded with a tremendous noise. I ducked my head instinctively and
+tried to make myself as small as possible on my horse. A thought
+passed through my mind like a flash: "Here we are! Why on earth did I
+come up here? My campaign will have been a short one!" And then this
+other thought followed: "But I'm not hit! That's all their shells can
+do! I shan't trouble to duck in future."
+
+And yet I was disagreeably impressed: a soldier who had been holding a
+horse just before about 30 yards from me ran down the slope, whilst
+the horse was struck dead and lay in a pool of blood, his body torn
+open.
+
+But I was now close to the officers composing the Staff of the T.
+Brigade. They came towards me, supposing, probably, that I was
+bringing some information or an order. One of them was known to me, an
+infantry captain who had been in garrison at R. with me. We shook
+hands, and I explained the object of this unusual visit. He replied:
+
+"Your regiment? You will find it to the left of the Army Corps. It's
+the regiment that ensures our _liaison_ with the ---- Corps."
+
+"Well, Captain, it seems our troops are advancing. Things are going
+well!"
+
+He shrugged his shoulders sharply. His eyes were hard and sombre as he
+gazed fixedly at the horizon in the direction of the enemy, and then
+said in an exasperated tone:
+
+"Certainly, they are advancing. See those lines of skirmishers working
+along there to the right of the village. And those others further off,
+there where you see those puffs of yellow smoke. But that won't
+prevent us from beginning our retreating movement at noon. There are
+express orders. We must move together with the whole army. We shall
+sleep to-night 20 kilometres from here ... and not in the right
+direction!"
+
+We looked at one another in silence. I didn't like to ask any further
+questions, nor to express my disappointment and the angry feeling that
+was becoming stronger in me. The sight of General T. calmed me at
+once. It seemed to tell me what my duty was, and to impose silent
+obedience and firm faith in our chiefs.
+
+Standing alone, 100 yards in advance of his officers, whom he had told
+to remain concealed behind the enormous stack, the General was
+observing the struggle. He stood perfectly still, with his back
+slightly bent and his hands behind him. He had allowed his beard to
+grow, and it formed a white patch on his slightly tanned face. In
+front of him, at some little distance, two shells had just burst,
+falling short. The General had not stirred. He looked like a statue of
+sadness and of duty. I had thought of going and introducing myself;
+but I now felt that I was too insignificant a being to intrude myself
+upon a chief who was watching the advance of his brave soldiers, as a
+father watches over his children.
+
+I turned and went away, quietly and slowly, with a feeling of
+oppression.
+
+So I made my way back again, skirting the firing line behind the
+ridge, often obliged to pull up to allow troops to pass to reinforce
+the line. Now and then it seemed that the fighting had ceased at the
+spot I happened to be in, but I soon found myself again in the thick
+of the artillery and rifle fire. On all the roads I crossed there was
+a continual stream of wounded men limping along and stretcher-bearers
+carrying mutilated bodies. The heat had become tropical. It was nearly
+twelve o'clock. My head began to swim. My shako seemed gradually to
+get tighter and to press on my temples till they were ready to burst.
+I thought I should never find my regiment--never....
+
+I came to a small village, and decided to stop and get some food for
+ourselves and for my horses, as they showed signs of distress. There,
+too, the streets were full of infantry, but, to my astonishment, none
+of them belonged to any of the regiments of my Corps. So I supposed I
+had passed its left wing without knowing it. Bad luck! I rode up the
+steep alleys, looking for some inn where I could put up, but all the
+inns were filled with hot, footsore soldiers, who seemed thankful for
+a moment's rest. They were sitting about wherever there was any shade
+to be found. With their coats unbuttoned, their neckties undone and
+shirts open, they were trying to recover their vigour by greedily
+devouring hunks of bread they had in their wallets, spread with the
+contents of their preserved meat tins.
+
+At the door of the vicarage, near the pretty little church which could
+be seen from the surrounding country, I saw an old priest who was
+distributing bottles of white wine to an eager crowd of troopers. I
+heard him say in a gentle voice:
+
+"Here, my lads, take what there is. If the Prussians come, I don't
+want them to find a drop left."
+
+"_Merci, ... merci, Monsieur le Cure_."
+
+All at once there was a frightful explosion quite close to us, which
+made the whole church-square quiver. A German "coal-box" had fallen on
+to the roof of the church, making an enormous hole in it, out of which
+came a thick cloud of horrible yellow smoke. A shower of wreckage
+fell all around us and made a curious noise. The windows of all the
+houses came clattering down in shivers. In a twinkling the little
+square in front of the vicarage was empty. A few men who were wounded
+fled moaning. The rest slung their rifles and went off quickly in a
+line close under the shelter of the houses. I was left alone face to
+face with the white-haired priest who still held a bottle of golden
+wine in his hand. We looked at each other greatly distressed.
+
+"_Tenez, Monsieur l'Officier_," he said suddenly; "take some more of
+this. I am going to break all the remaining bottles, so that they
+shall not drink any of it.... Ah! the savages! Ah! the wretches!... My
+church!... My poor church!..."
+
+And he went across his little garden quickly, without listening to my
+thanks. I handed the bottle to Wattrelot, who stuffed it into his
+wallet with a smile of satisfaction.
+
+But a second "coal-box" soon followed the first. It was certainly not
+the place to stay in, so I decided to be off and postpone my luncheon
+until I could find a rather more sheltered dining-room. As I left the
+village I saw one of our batteries moving briskly away. It was the one
+that had been in action close to the village, and had probably been
+the target of the German gunners. It went rapidly down the slope. The
+drivers brandished their whips and brought them down upon the haunches
+of their jaded animals. They had to make haste, for the position had
+become untenable. The German guns were concentrating their fire on the
+hapless village and the neighbouring ridge. The formidable shells
+burst in threes. The ground shook. It was evident that very soon
+nothing would be left there but ruins.
+
+I resumed my wanderings. I saw then that what the captain had told me
+was true. The retreating movement was beginning to be obvious. Whilst
+the firing grew more intense along the whole line small parties of
+infantry marched across the fields in an opposite direction to the one
+they had taken two hours previously.
+
+So we were beating a retreat. However, I had seen it with my own eyes;
+not only had we held our ground along the whole line, but at several
+points our soldiers were making headway. And then suddenly, and
+without any apparent reason, we had to withdraw. It was enough to make
+one mad. We had to retreat over the soil of our France and give it up,
+little by little, to the hordes which followed on our heels.... I had
+slackened rein, and was allowing my horse to go as he liked over the
+country strewn with troops. He seemed to understand what was
+happening, and with his head lowered, as though he did it reluctantly,
+he slowly followed the direction the immense army was taking. I was
+seized with a deep feeling of hopelessness. I doubted everything; our
+men, of whose bravery and tenacity I had just seen proof; and our
+leaders, whose courage I knew. My head seemed to be on fire.
+
+But I heard a ringing voice behind me, calling me by my name. I
+turned, and my sadness gave way to joy as I recognised two light-blue
+tunics with red collars. I had found the uniform of my regiment! and
+my hope revived. I felt I was no longer alone, and that we might yet
+accomplish great things.
+
+In front of a score of our Chasseurs rode two good friends of mine,
+Lieutenant B. and Lieutenant of Reserve de C. What a pleasure it was
+to shake their hands, and to see their bronzed faces and dusty
+garments.
+
+We now went on together, chatting merrily. C. knew the village where
+the regiment was to be billeted. We went straight for it at a trot. It
+was there that, at nightfall, I was going to find my chiefs again, my
+comrades and my men; and I should at last take my part in the
+fighting. I could not know what the days to follow had in store for
+me, but I did know that none could be so cruel for me as the day when
+I went to the Front. I was now in the bosom of my military family, and
+I looked forward to taking my share of danger at the head of the brave
+Chasseurs I knew so well. Doubtless I should now know where we were
+going; why we had to advance, and why to retire.
+
+It seems that moral suffering is less keen when it can be shared with
+others. I shall never suffer again what I suffered that day.
+
+
+
+
+II. THE FIRST CHARGE
+
+
+
+        _September 4._
+
+
+Six o'clock in the evening.
+
+The atmosphere was heavy and stifling. The regiment had been formed
+into two columns, to the right and the left of the high-road from
+Vauchamps to Montmirail. The men, tired out, their faces black with
+dust, had hardly dismounted when they threw themselves on the ground
+and slept in a field of cut corn. The officers chatted together in
+groups to keep themselves awake. Nights are short when you are on
+campaign. The bivouac was pitched at midnight and was to be struck at
+three o'clock in the morning.
+
+And since six o'clock the battle had been raging, for the enemy had
+engaged our rearguard almost immediately. This had happened each day
+of that unforgettable retreat, begun at the Sambre and pushed beyond
+the Marne. Each day we had had to fight. Each day the enemy was
+repulsed. Each day we were obliged to retire.
+
+Brother-soldiers!--you who came through those painful hours--shall you
+ever forget them? Shall you ever forget the anguish that wrung your
+hearts when, as the sun was sinking, you, who had seen so many of your
+comrades fall, had to give up a further portion of our sweet France;
+to deliver up some of our lovely hamlets, some of our fields, our
+orchards, our gardens, some of our vineyards, to the barbarians?...
+You were ordered to do so. We have learnt, since then, how important
+such sacrifices were. But, at the time, we did not know ... and doubt
+came into our minds. We passed through cruel days, and nothing will
+ever efface the impression of physical and moral prostration that
+overcame us then.
+
+The regiment was sleeping--tired out.
+
+Alone, calm, phlegmatic, the Colonel kept watch, standing in the
+middle of the road. With his pipe between his teeth, beneath his ruddy
+drooping moustache, his cap pulled over his eyes, his arms crossed on
+his light-blue tunic, he seemed to be the ever-watchful shepherd of
+that immense flock. At such moments the chief must be able to seem
+unconscious of the self-abandonment, the disorder and the exhaustion
+of his men. Human powers have their limits. They had been expended for
+days without stint. Every moment of cessation from actual fighting had
+to be a moment of repose. The important thing is that the chief should
+keep watch. Brave little Chasseurs! sleep in peace; your Colonel is
+watching over you.
+
+I looked at the men of my troop, on the ground in front of their
+horses. How could I recognise the smart, brilliantly accoutred
+horsemen, whose uniforms used to make such a gay note in the
+old-fashioned streets of the little garrison town?
+
+Under the battered shakoes with their shapeless peaks, the tanned and
+emaciated faces looked like masks of wax. Youthful faces had been
+invaded by beards which made them look like those of men of thirty or
+more. The dust of roads and fields, raised by horses, waggons, and
+limbers, had settled on them, showing up their wrinkles and getting
+into eyes, noses, and moustaches.
+
+Their clothes, patched as chance allowed during a halt under some
+hedge, were enamels of many-coloured pieces. A few more days of such
+unremitting war, and we should have vied with the glorious
+tatterdemalions of the armies of Italy and of the Sambre et Meuse, as
+Raffet paints them.
+
+With their noses in the air, their mouths open, their eyes half shut,
+my Chasseurs lay stretched out among the legs of their horses and
+slept heavily. Poor horses! Poor, pretty creatures, so delicate, so
+fiery, in their glossy summer coats! They had followed their masters'
+fortunes. How many of them had already fallen under the Prussian
+bullets; how many had been left dying of exhaustion or starvation
+after our terrible rides! They seemed to sleep, absorbed in some
+miserable dream of nothing but burdens to carry, blows to bear, and
+wounds to suffer. They were hanging their heads, but had not even the
+strength to crop the green blades growing here and there among the
+stalks of corn.
+
+I felt uneasy, wondering whether they would still be equal to an
+effort for the fight that was always likely and always desired.
+
+Suddenly, from the ridge some 800 yards behind us, coming down like a
+bolt, I saw a horse, at full gallop. Its rider was gesticulating
+wildly. Strange to say, though not a word had been said, as though
+awakened by an electric current, every man had got up and had fixed
+his astonished eyes on the newcomer. He was an artillery
+non-commissioned officer; his face was crimson, his hair unkempt, his
+cap had come off his head and was dangling behind by the chin-strap.
+With a violent jerk he pulled up his foaming horse for a second:
+"Where is the Colonel--the Colonel?" With one voice the whole squadron
+replied: "There, on the road. What's the matter?"
+
+He had already set off again at full speed, had reached the Colonel,
+and was bending down towards him. Even at that distance we could hear
+some of his words: "Uhlans ... near the woods, ... our guns, our
+teams...."
+
+Then it was like a miracle. Without any word of command, without any
+sign, in a moment the whole regiment was on horseback, sword in hand.
+The Colonel alone had remained standing. With the greatest calmness he
+asked the sergeant in an undertone for some information; and the man
+answered him with emphatic gestures. All eyes were fixed upon the
+group. Everybody waited breathlessly for the order which was going to
+be given and repeated by five hundred voices, by five hundred men
+drunk with joy.
+
+We believed the glorious hour was at last come, which we had been
+awaiting with so much impatience since the opening of the campaign.
+The charge! That indescribable thing which is the _raison d'etre_ of
+the trooper, that sublime act which pierces, rends, and crushes by a
+furious onslaught--wild gallop, with uplifted sword, yelling mouth,
+and frenzied eyes. The charge! The charge of our great ancestors, of
+those demi-gods, Murat, Lasalle, Curely, Kellermann and so many
+others! The charge we had been asking for, with all our hearts, ever
+since the opening of the campaign, and which had always been denied
+us!
+
+Ah! that famous German cavalry, that set up its doctrine of pushing
+the attack to the death, what hatred and what contempt had we
+conceived for them! We had one desire, and one only--to measure
+ourselves with them. And every time we had seen their squadrons the
+result had been either that they had turned and retired in good order
+behind their lines of infantry, or they had drawn us into some
+ambuscade under the pitiless fire of their deadly machine-guns.
+
+Were we at last to meet them and measure our swords with their lances?
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The regiment moved off in one body behind the Colonel, who, riding a
+big chestnut horse and as calm as at manoeuvres, led us at a gentle
+trot skirting the little clumps of trees that dotted the plain. A
+troop had gone forward in a halo of glittering dust to act as an
+advance guard.
+
+Our horses seemed to have understood what we were about. Or was it we
+who had passed on to them the fighting spirit that fired us? I felt
+behind me the thrill that ran through my men. The first rank could not
+manage to keep the correct distance, the yard and a half, which ought
+to separate it from its leader. Even the corporal in the centre
+allowed his horse to graze the haunches of mine, "Tourne-Toujours," my
+gallant charger, the fiery thoroughbred which had so often maddened me
+at the riding schools of the regiment and at manoeuvres, by his
+savageness and the shaking he gave me. "Tourne-Toujours" gave evident
+signs of excitement. By his pawing the ground every now and then he,
+an officer's horse, seemed to resent the close proximity of mere troop
+horses. And certainly, under ordinary circumstances, I should have
+fallen foul of the rider imprudent enough to ride close to his heels.
+But on that occasion I merely laughed in my sleeve, knowing that in a
+few minutes, when the charge had begun, "Tourne-Toujours" would soon
+have made them all keep their proper distance, and something more.
+
+I took a pleasure in looking at the faces of the men of the third
+squadron, whose troops were riding in column abreast of us. Their
+chins were raised, their eyes wide open, intent, under the shade of
+their cap-peaks, upon the slightest irregularities of the ground
+ahead. Their hands grasped their sword-hilts tightly. Major B.,
+leaning well forward, and riding between the two squadrons, was
+practising some furious cutting-strokes. What a grand fight it was
+going to be! How we should rejoice to see the curved sabres of our
+comrades rising against the clear sky to slash down upon the leather
+_schapskas_ of our foe! We waited for the word that was to let loose
+the pent-up energy of all those tense muscles.
+
+A trooper came back from the advance guard at full speed, and brought
+up his horse with the spur beside the Colonel. He reported in short
+sentences, which we could not hear. The Colonel turned towards our
+Captain, who was behind him, leaning forward over his horse, all
+attention, with his sword lowered, receiving the orders given in an
+undertone. We only heard the last sentence: "I shall support you with
+the rest of the regiment."
+
+"Thank Heaven!" thought I; "it is we; it is our dear squadron that is
+to have the honour of attacking first." Every man pulled himself
+together. Every man felt conscious of all the glory in store for us.
+Every man prepared to perform exploits which, we felt sure, would
+astonish the rest of the regiment, of the army, and of France.
+Forward! Forward! Forward!
+
+The troops had already ridden past the Colonel at an easy gallop, and
+we suddenly found ourselves strangely isolated in that vast tract of
+country which, a few minutes before, we had passed over in a body.
+There was a succession of yellow or green fields, with here and there
+some leafy thicket. On our left, surrounded by orchards, rose the grey
+and massive buildings of the farm of Bel-Air. In front of us, some few
+hundred yards off, there was a dark line of wood, the lower part of
+which was hidden from us by a slight rise in the ground.
+
+Hardly had the first troop reached the top of the brow when some shots
+were fired at us. We at once understood. Again we were to be deprived
+of the pleasure of measuring ourselves with their Uhlans at close
+quarters. We saw distinctly on the edge of the wood, kneeling and
+ready to fire, some fifty sharp-shooters in grey uniform and round
+caps without peaks. We recognised them easily.
+
+It was one of their cyclist detachments that had slipped into the wood
+and had been quietly waiting for us with rifles levelled. As usual,
+their cavalry had retired under cover of their line.
+
+What did it matter to us? The wood was not thick enough to prevent
+our horses from getting through, and the temptation to let the fellows
+have a taste of our steel was too strong. I rejoiced at the thought of
+seeing their heavy boots scuttle away through the trees. I resolved to
+have a thrust at the skirts of their tunics, to help them on a bit.
+
+The Captain understood the general feeling. "Form up!" he cried.
+
+In a twinkling a moving wall had been formed, to the music of merrily
+clinking stirrups and scabbards and jangling metal; and the gallop
+towards the wood began.
+
+Just at that moment its skirts were outlined by a circle of fire, and
+a violent fusillade rang out. Bullets whistled in all directions, and
+behind me I heard the heavy sound of men and horses falling on the
+hard ground. In my troop a horse without a rider broke away and came
+galloping towards me. What did it matter? Forward! Forward!
+
+We were about 200 yards off. We spurred our horses and got into our
+stride.
+
+Suddenly a horrible fear took the place of the martial joy that had
+urged us to the fight. We were all struck by the same discouragement,
+the same feeling of impotence, the same conviction of the uselessness
+of our sacrifice. We had just realised that the edge of the wood was
+surrounded with wire, and that it was behind this impassable barrier
+that the Prussians were calmly firing at us as at a target. What was
+to be done? How could we get at them and avenge our fellows who had
+fallen? For one second a feeling of horror and impotent rage passed,
+like a deep wave, over the squadron. The bullets whistled past us.
+
+But the Captain adopted the wisest course. He saw that retreat was
+necessary. He had, behind him, more than a hundred human lives, and
+felt they must be saved for better and more useful sacrifices. With a
+voice that rose above the noise of the firing, he shouted: "Follow me,
+in open order!" And he spurred in an oblique direction towards the
+nearest depression in the ground. But the movement was badly carried
+out. The men, disheartened, instead of spreading out like a flight of
+sparrows, rushed off in so compact a body that some more horses were
+knocked over by the Prussian bullets. How long those few seconds
+seemed to us! I wondered by what sort of miracle it was that we did
+not lose more men. But what an uncanny tune the innumerable bullets
+made in our ears as they pursued us like angry bees!
+
+At last we got under cover. Following a gully, the squadron reached a
+little wood, behind which it was able to re-form. The sweating horses
+snorted loudly. The men, sullen-mouthed and dejected, fell in without
+a word and dressed the line.
+
+In the fading light the roll was called by a non-commissioned officer
+in a subdued voice, whilst I looked on distressfully at the sad
+results of the useless charge. And yet our losses were not
+great--three troopers only, slightly wounded, who, far from grumbling
+at their mishap, seemed proud of the blood that stained their tunics
+and their hands. The men whose horses had fallen had already come up
+jogging heavily over the field of lucerne that stretched out before
+us. One man alone was absent; Paquin, a good little fellow, energetic
+and well disciplined, whose good humour I found especially attractive
+both under fire and in camp. But he would come in, no doubt. Cahard,
+his bed-fellow, told me that his horse had stumbled and thrown him. He
+thought he had even seen him get up again directly the charge had
+passed.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant, ... mon Lieutenant_, your horse is wounded."
+
+I had dismounted in a moment, and tears came to my eyes. I had
+forgotten the anger and impatience that "Tourne-Toujours'" savage
+temper had so often caused me. What had they done to my brave and
+noble companion-in-arms? A bullet had struck him inside the left thigh
+and, penetrating it, had made a horrible wound, as large as my hand,
+from which the blood was streaming all down his leg. Two other bullets
+had hit him, one in the flank, the other in the loins, leaving two
+small red holes. The noble animal had brought me back safely, and
+then, as he stood still on his four trembling legs, his neck raised,
+his nostrils dilated, his ears pricked, he fixed his eyes on the
+distance and seemed to look approaching death in the face. Poor
+'Tourne-Toujours,' you could not divine the pain I felt as I patted
+you, as gently as I should touch a little suffering child!
+
+But I had to shake off the sadness that wrung my heart. The day was
+gradually sinking, and Paquin had not come in. Two of the men quickly
+put my saddle on the horse of one of the wounded troopers. Whilst
+Surgeon-Major P., in the growing dusk, attended to the seriously
+wounded men stretched on the grass, I made up my mind to go out and
+see whether my little Chasseur was not still lying out on the scene of
+the charge.
+
+"Cahard, Finet, Mouniette, Vallee, I want you."
+
+At a gentle trot we sallied out from the cover of the wood. My four
+men, dispersed at wide intervals to my right and left, stood up in
+their stirrups from time to time to get a better view.
+
+The guns were silent. Now and again one or two isolated shots were
+heard. Night had almost fallen. On the horizon a long reddish streak
+of light still gave a feeble glow. Everything was becoming blurred and
+mysterious. In front of us stretched the disquieting mass of the wood
+that so lately had rained death on us. Above our heads flocks of black
+birds were wheeling and croaking.
+
+"Paquin!... Paquin!... Paquin!..."
+
+My Chasseurs shouted their comrade's name; but no voice answered. We
+were certainly on the ground the squadron had ridden over. Every now
+and then we came across the body of a horse, marking our mournful
+course. A poor mare with a broken leg neighed feebly, as if appealing
+for help to her stable-companions.
+
+"Paquin!... Paquin!... Paquin!..."
+
+No response. We had to turn back and rejoin the others. War has many
+of those moments of pain when we have to control our feelings--forget
+those we love, those who are suffering, those who are dying--and think
+of nothing but our regiment, our squadron, our troop. Paquin's name
+would be marked on the roll as "missing"--a solemn word which means so
+many things, a word that leaves a little hope, but gives rise to so
+many fears.
+
+Over the fields, under a brilliant moon, the squadron retired in
+silence. Those who have served in war know that solemn moment when,
+after a day's fighting, each corps arrives at its appointed place of
+rest. It is the moment when in normal life nature falls asleep in the
+peace of evening. It is the moment when in villages and farms lights
+appear in the lower windows, behind which the family is seated around
+the steaming soup-tureen after the day's work.
+
+It is some time now since we have tasted the exquisite peace of those
+moments. Instead, we have grown used to hearing over the wide country
+a monotonous and barbarous uproar caused by the thousands of cannon,
+limbers, vans, and vehicles of every kind which are the very life of
+an army. All these things rumble along methodically in the dark,
+clanking and creaking, towards a goal invisible and yet sure. Above
+this huge chaos voices rise in various keys: soldiers astray asking
+their road; van-drivers urging on their foot-sore teams; words of
+command given by leaders striving, in the dark, to prevent confusion
+among their units. This is the reverse of the shield of battle, the
+moment when we feel weariness of mind and body and the infinite
+sadness of remembering those who are no more....
+
+Away in the distance two villages were in flames, luridly lighting up
+some corners of the scene. That evening seemed to me sadder and more
+distressing than ever....
+
+
+
+
+III. RECONNOITRING COURGIVAULT
+
+
+
+        _September 5th._
+
+
+The provisional brigade which had just been formed, with our regiment
+and the _Chasseurs d'Afrique_ (African Light Cavalry), was paraded at
+dawn by our Colonel, who had taken command of it. The united regiments
+had been formed up under cover of a line of ridges, on the summit of
+which the watchful scouts stood out against the sky, looking north.
+The sun was already shining on the motley picture formed by the light
+uniforms of the dismounted troopers and the motionless rows of horses.
+They were all half asleep still.
+
+The Colonel had drawn up the officers of the brigade in front of the
+squadrons. He held a paper in his hand and read it to us in a resonant
+voice, full of unfamiliar vibrations. On hearing the first few
+sentences we drew closer around him as by instinct. We could not
+believe our ears. It was the first time we had heard anything like it
+since the outbreak of the war.
+
+When he had finished we were all amazed. Had we not been told the day
+before--when, together with the ---- Corps, we crossed the Grand Morin
+closely pressed by the enemy's advance guard--had we not been told
+that we were going to retire to the Seine? And now in a few noble,
+simple words the Commander-in-Chief told us that the trials of that
+hideous retreat were over, and that the day had come to take the
+offensive. He asked us all to do our duty to the death and promised us
+victory.
+
+We returned to our squadrons in animated groups. Our delight was
+quickly communicated to the troops, who understood at once. The men
+exchanged jests and promises of fabulous exploits. They had already
+forgotten the fatigues of the fortnight's retreat. What did they care
+if their horses could hardly carry them further, and if many of them
+would be incapable of galloping?
+
+What did it matter?
+
+My fellow-officers and I were already making wonderful plans. Those of
+d'A., who had just finished his course of instruction as lieutenant at
+Saumur with honours, comprised vast movements of complicated strategy.
+They culminated in a prodigious but inevitable envelopment of the
+German armies, De F., more prosaic than the other, dreamt of
+Pantagruelian repasts liberally furnished with Rhine wines. O., a
+sub-lieutenant, just fresh from the Military College--which he had
+left with a No. 1, mind you--seemed like a young colt broken loose;
+his delight knew no bounds. As for our captain, Captain de la N., our
+kind and sympathetic chief, he was transfigured. The horrors of the
+retreat had affected him painfully, but the few lines that had been
+read to us had sufficed to restore all his joyous ardour.
+
+"Captain, the Colonel wants an officer."
+
+"Hurrah!" It was my turn for duty.... Just a few words of
+congratulation, some hands stretched out to me, and I went, leaving a
+general feeling of envy behind me. Here was I in the presence of the
+Colonel, who, with a map in his hand and surrounded by the superior
+officers, explained in a few short sentences what he required of me.
+
+"Take the direction of Courgivault. Reconnoitre and find out whether
+the village is occupied. You will report to me on the road which leads
+straight from here to the village. The brigade will follow you in an
+hour by the same road. I am sending two other parties towards such and
+such villages."
+
+And a few minutes afterwards I was on the road to Courgivault.
+
+I chose from my troop a corporal and four reliable fellows who had
+already given a good account of themselves. In advance I sent
+Vercherin, as scout, well mounted on his horse "Cabri," whose powerful
+haunches stood out above the tall oats. I had full confidence in his
+vigilance and his shrewdness. I knew his clear blue eyes, and that, if
+there were anything to be seen, he would see it better than any one
+else. I knew also that I should have no need to spur his zeal.
+
+On either side of me Corporal Madelaine, Finet, a sapper, Lemaitre,
+and my faithful orderly, Wattrelot, rode along in silence in extended
+order at a considerable distance from one another. We had learnt by
+experience since the beginning of the campaign. We were on our guard
+now against Prussian bullets. We knew what ravages they made directly
+our troopers were imprudent enough to cluster together. Thus we ran
+fewer chances of being taken by surprise.
+
+The weather was splendid. How delightful, thought I, would it have
+been to walk over the fields, on a morning like this, with a gun under
+my arm, behind a good dog, in quest of partridges or a hare. But I had
+other game in view--no doubt more dangerous, but how much more
+exciting!
+
+The air was wonderfully clear, without the least trace of mist. The
+smallest detail of hedge and ditch could be easily distinguished. Our
+lungs breathed freely. We foresaw that the heat would be oppressive in
+a few hours' time, but the fresh air of the night still lingered, and
+bright pearls of dew still lay on the lucerne and stubble. What a joy
+to be alive in such delicious surroundings, with the hope of victory
+in one's heart!
+
+I fancy that those who have not been in this war will not be able to
+understand me, for I have not the skill to explain clearly what I feel
+by means of written words. A more practised pen than mine is needed
+for such a task, a mind more accustomed to analyse feelings.
+
+I seem to have within me the inspiration of a strange power that makes
+me light as air, and inclined to talk aloud to myself. And if I wanted
+to speak I certainly should not find the words I wanted. Perhaps it is
+that I simply want to shout, to cry "Hurrah!" again and again. It must
+be that, for I find myself clenching my teeth instinctively to prevent
+myself from giving way to such an untimely outburst.
+
+Nevertheless, it would be a relief to be able to shout at the top of
+my voice and sing hymns of glory confronting the enemy. I should like
+to hear the whole army following my example behind me, to hear all the
+bands and all the trumpets accompanying our advance with those
+matchless war-songs which thrill the soul and bring tears to the eyes.
+
+Here I was, on the contrary, in conditions of absolute calm, of the
+most impressive silence conceivable. Until that day the country, at
+that hour of the day, had echoed with the innumerable noises made by
+an army in retreat. Thousands of cannon, limbers, and convoys had been
+passing along all the roads and all practicable by-ways monotonously
+and ceaselessly. Often, too, the first shots exchanged by the cavalry
+scouts of both the hostile armies could be heard.
+
+We heard nothing that day. In front nothing stirred: the country
+seemed deserted; the fields forsaken. Not a living creature showed
+itself.
+
+Behind us, too, there was complete silence. But I knew that an entire
+army was there, waiting for us to send information, before advancing
+to the fight. That information would direct its blows.... I knew my
+brigade was behind that rise in the ground, and that all, officers and
+troopers alike, were impatient to rush upon my tracks to the attack. I
+knew that behind them, lying by sections in the plough-land, thousands
+and thousands of infantrymen had their eyes fixed in the direction I
+was taking, and that hundreds and hundreds of guns were ready to pour
+out death. But that disciplined multitude was silent and, as it were,
+holding its breath, waiting for the order that was to hurl it forward.
+I felt in excellent spirits.
+
+It was upon _me_, and upon a few comrades, that the confidence of so
+many soldiers rested. It was to be by _our_ directions that the
+regiments were to rush forward, some here, some there, carrying death
+and receiving death with, for the first time, the certainty of
+conquering; since for the first time the Commander-in-Chief had said
+that conquer they must. And not for an instant had I any fear of not
+being equal to my task. On the contrary, it seemed to me that I had
+been destined from all eternity to command this first offensive
+reconnaissance of the campaign in France.... I felt my men's hearts
+beating close to mine and in unison with mine.
+
+I had consulted my map before breaking into a trot, and had noticed
+that the road leading to Courgivault passed through two woods, not
+very deep, but of considerable extent. I soon came in sight of one of
+them, at about 500 yards distance, below a ridge which we had just
+passed. I called out to Vercherin, who had begun to spur his horse
+towards the wood, to stop. I knew that numbers of men had fallen by
+having acted in this way--a way we have at manoeuvres, when the enemy
+are our comrades with white badges on their caps, and when harmless
+blank cartridges are used instead of bullets. We had very soon learnt
+from the Germans themselves the way to reconnoitre a wood or a
+village, and also how they must be held.
+
+How much more dashing it would have been, more in the light cavalry
+style, to ride full gallop, brandishing my sword, with my five little
+Chasseurs into the nearest copse! But I knew then that if it were
+occupied by the enemy their men would be lying down, one with the
+soil, using the trees and bushes as cover, till the last moment. Then
+not one of us would have come out alive.
+
+We were reduced to employing against them their own tactics of mounted
+infantry. The good old times of hussar charges are past--gone,
+together with plumes, pelisses waving in the wind, Hungarian braiding,
+and sabretaches. It would be senseless to continue to be a horseman in
+order to fight men who are no longer cavalrymen and do not wish to be
+so. We should fight at a disadvantage, and since the opening of the
+campaign too many brave soldiers have paid with their lives for their
+delight in epic fights _a la_ Lasalle.
+
+I searched the edge of the wood carefully with my field-glasses.
+Before entering it I wanted to be quite sure whether any movement
+could be discovered, whether any of the brushwood showed signs of
+being drawn aside by sharpshooters too eager for a shot. My men were
+on the watch, crouching in attitudes that would have pleased Neuville,
+their carbines ready, looking with all their eyes and listening with
+all their ears. Nothing! I called Vercherin with a low whistle. The
+silence was such that he heard it. He understood the sign I made him,
+and, holding his carbine high, he went slowly towards the wood and got
+into it quickly by the road.
+
+My heart beat for a moment when I saw my scout getting near the thick
+border-line of trees; but now I breathed again. We went in after him,
+each one by a different opening, and we passed through it as quickly
+as the horses' legs and the difficulties of the ground would allow. On
+arriving at the further side I was glad to see my four companions
+emerging, almost at the same moment, from the thick woody tangle. I
+could see their grave and confident faces turned towards me. On the
+ridge in front of us, near a solitary tree, stood Vercherin, clear
+against the sky and motionless.
+
+We had soon rejoined him, and from this height we saw on the next hill
+the second wood which hid the village of Courgivault from our view,
+about a kilometre further off. I feared very much that this second
+barrier might be used by the enemy as a formidable line of defence,
+and on that account I ordered the approach to be made with still
+greater precautions than before. But, as in the first case, we found
+it empty, and passed through without let or hindrance.
+
+I expected to see Courgivault at once, but a rise in the ground hid it
+still. I took advantage of this natural cover for getting my men
+forward without risking a shot. Then, still preceded by Vercherin, we
+debouched on the plateau on which the village stood.
+
+Those who have found themselves in a similar situation know by
+experience the sudden emotion that is felt when one sees a few
+hundred yards off the objective of one's mission, the decisive point
+one has to reach, cost what it may; the point where one is almost sure
+to find the enemy in hiding, where one has a suspicion that he sees
+one, is watching one, silently following all one's movements, and only
+waiting for the opportunity of picking one off by an unerring shot.
+
+I stopped my men for a moment. Surrounded by green meadows and
+stubble-fields dotted with apple-trees, lay the grey outskirts of the
+village It was a very ordinary collection of houses, some of them big
+farms, others humble cottages. The tiled roofs formed a reddish mass,
+and above them rose the squat church tower. With my glasses I could
+distinguish the clock-dial, and could see the time--a quarter past
+six.
+
+But this clock seemed to be the only thing in the village with any
+life in it. I looked in vain into the gardens and orchards, which
+formed a belt of flowers and foliage, for signs of the peaceful
+animation of country life. And yet it was the time of day when one
+usually sees housewives coming out of the cowsheds, with their sleeves
+tucked up and their feet in clogs, carrying pails full of fresh
+milk--the time when the heavy carts and reaping machines lumber slowly
+along the brown roads on their way to the day's work. Was it the war
+that had driven away all those poor village folk, or was it the rough
+fist of the Teuton that kept them prisoners locked up in their cellars
+and threatened with revolvers?
+
+And yet, from where I stood, nothing could lead me to suppose that the
+village was occupied by the enemy. I could not distinguish any work of
+defence. There did not seem to be any barricade protecting the
+entrance. No sentinel was visible at the corners of the stacks or
+under the trees.
+
+To the south of the village, pointing in our direction, the imposing
+bulk of a large farm protruded, like the prow of a ship. It seemed to
+form an advanced bastion of a fortress, represented by Courgivault.
+Its walls were high and white. At the end a strong round tower was
+planted, roofed with slates; and this enhanced the likeness to a
+miniature donjon. The road we had followed, winding between the
+fields, passed, so far as we could judge, in front of its principal
+entrance. Opposite this entrance there was apparently another road at
+right angles to the first, its direction marked by a line of trees
+which bordered it. Along this road, separated by short intervals, a
+dozen big stacks had the appearance of a threatening line of battle
+facing us, so as to bar our approach to the village.
+
+All these things were steeped in the same atmosphere of silence, which
+certainly had a more tragic effect than the din of battle. I was
+impressed with the idea that the two armies had withdrawn in opposite
+directions, and that we were left behind, forgotten, at 100 kilometres
+distance from both of them.
+
+But we had to come to the point. At a sign from me Vercherin reached
+the first tree of a long row of poplars. The row started from the farm
+and bordered the road we were following up to about 100 yards from
+the outer wall. By slipping along from one tree to another he would be
+able to get near in comparative safety. Suddenly I saw him stop
+quickly and, standing up in his stirrups, look straight ahead towards
+the stacks.
+
+There was no need for him to make any sign to me. I understood that he
+saw something, and I galloped up to him at once. He was as calm as
+usual, only his blue eyes were a little more dilated, and he spoke
+more rapidly, with an accent I had not heard before.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, ... there behind that stack, it seemed to me ... I
+thought I saw a head rise above the grass...."
+
+I looked in the direction he pointed to with his carbine, which he
+held at arm's length. I saw nothing but the silent and peaceful
+village; I had the same impression of a hateful and depressing void.
+And, strange to say, our two horses, whose reins had been hanging
+loose on their necks, appeared to be suddenly seized with a
+simultaneous terror, and both at once turned right round. I managed
+to bring mine back by applying the spur, and while Vercherin, who was
+carried further, came back slowly, I used my glasses again, to make a
+closer inspection of all the points of the village.
+
+Then, at the very moment that I was putting the glasses to my eyes, I
+saw, at less than 100 yards distance, a whole line of sharpshooters,
+dressed in grey, rise quickly in front of me. For one short moment a
+terrible pang shot through us. How many were there? Perhaps 300. And
+almost at the same time a formidable volley of rifle shots rang out.
+They had been watching us for a long time. Lying in the grass that
+lined the road leading to the farm or else behind the stacks, with the
+admirable discipline which makes them so formidable, they had carried
+out their orders. Not one of them had shown himself. The _Hauptmann_
+(captain) alone, no doubt, put up his head from time to time in order
+to judge the favourable moment for ordering them to fire. It was he,
+no doubt, very fortunately for us, who had been perceived by
+Vercherin just for one moment. If it had not been for the prudence
+which we had gained by experience not one of us would have escaped.
+Fortunately every one of my men had kept the place exactly that I had
+assigned him. Not one of them flinched under the storm. And yet,
+Heaven knows what sinister music the bullets played around our ears!
+We had to be off.
+
+I made a sign which was quickly understood. We all turned and galloped
+off towards the little depression we had emerged from just before. The
+bullets accompanied us with their hateful hissing, which made us duck
+our heads instinctively. But inwardly I rejoiced at their eagerness to
+lay us low, for in their hurry they aimed badly.
+
+We had almost reached our shelter when I suddenly saw to the right of
+me "Ramier," Lemaitre's horse, fall like a log. As I was trying to
+stop my mare, who showed an immoderate desire to put herself out of
+danger, I saw both horse and rider struggling for a moment on the
+ground, forming a confused mixture of hoofs in the air and waving
+arms. Then "Ramier" got up and set off alone, neighing sadly, and with
+a limping trot that did not look very promising.
+
+But Lemaitre was already on his legs, putting his crushed shako
+straight on his head. A bit stunned, he seemed to collect his ideas
+for an instant, and then I saw his good-natured ruddy face turned
+towards me. It lit up with a broad grin.
+
+"Any damage, old fellow?" I asked.
+
+"Nothing broken, sir."
+
+"Hurry up, then."
+
+And there was Lemaitre, striding along with his short legs and heavy
+boots, jumping ditches and banks with a nimbleness of which I declare
+I should not have thought him capable. It is curious to note the
+agility the report of a rifle volley lends to the legs of a dismounted
+trooper. Lemaitre came in to the shelter in the valley as soon as I
+did; and almost at the same time Finet, the sapper, brought in his old
+road-companion "Ramier," which he had been able to catch. It was
+painful to see the poor animal; his lameness had already become more
+marked. He could only get along with great difficulty, and his eyes
+showed he was in pain.
+
+I glanced hurriedly at the spot where the bullet had struck him. The
+small hole could hardly be seen against the brown skin, just at the
+point of the left buttock.
+
+"Just wait here for us; I shall be back in a moment."
+
+I wanted to see if to the east of the village I could note anything
+interesting, and I turned round towards my other troopers, whose
+horses were panting behind us. I was horrified to see Corporal
+Madelaine's face streaming with blood.
+
+"It is nothing, sir ...; it passed in front of my nose."
+
+He wiped his face with the back of his hand. It had indeed been grazed
+by a bullet. One half-inch more, and the good fellow's nose would have
+been carried off. Fortunately the skin was hardly broken. Madelaine
+went on:
+
+"It's nothing; ... but my mare...."
+
+He had dismounted, and with a look of distress showed me his horse's
+blood-stained thigh. "Attraction" was the name of his pretty and
+delicate little grey mare, which he loved and cared for passionately.
+A bullet had pierced her thigh right through, and the blood had flowed
+down her leg. I calmed him by saying, "Come, come; it will be nothing.
+Go on foot behind that wood, and get quietly under cover with
+Lemaitre. I will soon come and join you."
+
+And I went off with Vercherin, Finet, and Wattrelot. I tried to get
+round to the right of Courgivault. But now that the first shots had
+been fired we were not allowed to come nearer. As soon as we appeared
+a violent fusillade burst from the outskirts of the village, which
+forced us to beat a rapid retreat. There was no longer any doubt about
+it; Courgivault was occupied, and occupied in strength.
+
+Under the shelter of a bank I quickly dismounted, and Wattrelot took
+my horse's bridle. Whilst I knelt on one knee and on the other wrote
+my report for the Colonel, Vercherin and Finet, at an interval of 100
+yards, kept a good look-out on the ridge for the enemy's movements. I
+handed my message to Wattrelot:
+
+"Take this to the Colonel, and quickly. I will wait here for the
+brigade."
+
+I then rode slowly to the corner of the wood, where Madelaine and
+Lemaitre were posted, whilst Wattrelot went off at a trot across the
+stubble. But a sad sight was awaiting me.
+
+Lemaitre was standing in great grief over poor "Ramier," lying inert
+on the ground and struggling feebly with death. His eyes were already
+dull and his legs convulsed. Every now and then he shuddered
+violently.
+
+I looked at Lemaitre, who felt as if he were losing his best friend.
+And, indeed, is not our horse our best friend when we are
+campaigning--the friend that serves us well to the very last, that
+saves us time and again from death, and carries us until he can carry
+us no longer? I dismounted and threw the reins to Lemaitre:
+
+"Don't grieve, my good fellow; it is a fine end for your 'Ramier.' He
+might, like so many others, have died worn out with work or suffering
+under some hedgerow. He has a soldier's death. All we can do is to cut
+short his sufferings and send him quickly to rejoin his many good
+comrades in the paradise of noble animals. For they have their
+paradise, I am sure."
+
+But Lemaitre hardly seemed convinced. He shook his head sadly, and
+said:
+
+"Oh, _mon Lieutenant_! I shall never be able to replace him. Such a
+good animal! such a fine creature! He jumped so well.... And his coat
+was always so beautiful; he was so sleek and so easy to keep.... No, I
+shall never find another like him."
+
+"Oh! yes, you will."
+
+However, I must confess my hand trembled as I drew my revolver. One
+horse the less in a troop is somewhat the same as one child the less
+in a family. And, besides, it means one trooper unmounted and the loss
+of a sword in battle. Lemaitre was right. "Ramier" was a good old
+servant, one of the kind that never goes lame, can feed on anything or
+on nothing, and never hurts anybody. It was hard to put an end to him;
+but since he was done for....
+
+I put the muzzle of my revolver into his ear. I did not wish him to
+feel the cold metal; but his whole body shuddered, and his eye,
+lighting up for a moment, seemed to reproach me. Paff! A short, sharp
+report, and "Ramier" quivered for a moment. Then his sufferings
+ceased, and his stiffening carcase added one more to the many that
+strewed the country.
+
+Whilst Lemaitre slung his heavy package on his shoulders and went off
+to return to the regiment with Corporal Madelaine, who was leading
+"Attraction," I went back to my observation post, not far from Finet
+and Vercherin. Silence and gloom still hung over Courgivault.
+
+Suddenly, behind me, coming out of the wood, I saw a cavalry troop in
+extended order, riding in our direction. They were _Chasseurs
+d'Afrique_. I recognised them by the large numbers of white horses,
+which made light patches upon the dark green of the thicket, and
+almost at the same moment a dull report resounded in the distance. A
+curious humming noise was heard above our heads, and a shell fell and
+burst at the foot of the stacks in the possession of the Prussian
+infantry. It came from one of our batteries of 75-millimetre guns,
+which was already getting the range of Courgivault.
+
+My message had reached the Colonel. The battle of the Marne had begun.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Under a superbly clear sky, lit up by myriads of stars, the brigade,
+in a high state of delight, crossed the battlefield on returning to
+camp. Above our heads the last shells sent by the enemy were bursting
+in bouquets of fire. We paid no attention to them. Meeting some
+battalions of infantry on their way to reinforce the line, we were
+asked for news, and shouted: "Courgivault, Montceau ... taken, lost,
+then retaken with the bayonet by the brave infantry of the M.
+Division. Enemy's regiments annihilated by our artillery, which has
+done magnificently...."
+
+Little by little the firing died away along the whole line. Fires,
+started by the shells, lit up the battlefield on every side, like
+torches set ablaze for our glory. All hearts were filled with joy. It
+hovered over the blood-stained country, from which arose a kind of
+intoxication that took possession of our souls.
+
+How splendid is the evening of a first victory!
+
+
+
+
+IV. THE JAULGONNE AFFAIR
+
+
+On September 9, at about eight o'clock in the evening, our advanced
+scouts entered Montigny-les-Conde at the moment when the last dragoons
+of the Prussian Guard were leaving it at full speed. Our pursuit was
+stopped by the night, which was very dark. Large threatening clouds
+were moving across the sky, making it impossible to see ten paces
+ahead. Whilst the captains were hastily posting guards all round the
+village, whilst the lieutenants were erecting barricades at all the
+outlets and setting sentries over them, the quartermasters had all the
+barns and stables thrown open. With the help of the inhabitants they
+portioned out, as well as they could, the insufficient accommodation
+among the men and the horses of the squadrons. In each troop camp
+fires were lighted under shelter of the walls so that the enemy should
+not see them.
+
+What a dinner we had that evening! It was in a large room with a low
+open roof supported by small beams. The walls were smoke-blackened and
+dirty. On a chest placed near the door I can see still a big pile of
+ration loaves, thrown together anyhow; and leaning over the hearth of
+the large fireplace, lit up by the wood fire, was an unknown man who
+was stirring something in a pot. Round the large table a score of
+hungry and jaded but merry officers were fraternally sharing some
+pieces of meat which the man took out of the pot.
+
+The Captain and I ate out of the same plate and drank out of the same
+metal cup, for crockery was scarce. The poor woman of the house ran
+round the table, consumed by her eagerness to make everybody
+comfortable. And in the farthest corner, away from the light, a very
+old peasant, with a dazed look and haggard eyes, was watching the
+unexpected scene. The company heartily cheered Captain C. for his
+cleverness in finding and bringing to light, from some nook or other,
+a large pitcher of rough wine.
+
+For three days we had been pursuing and fighting the German army, and
+we were tired out; but we had not felt it until the evening on
+stopping to give our poor horses a little rest. Before the last
+mouthful had been swallowed several of us were already snoring with
+their heads on their arms upon the table.
+
+The rest were talking about the situation. The enemy was retreating
+rapidly on the Marne. He must have crossed it now, leaving as cover
+for his retreat the division of the Cavalry of the Guard which our
+brigade had been fighting unceasingly ever since the battle of
+September 6. Would they have time to blow up all the bridges behind
+them? Should we be obliged to wait until our sappers had built new
+ones before we could resume our pursuit?
+
+We were particularly anxious about two fine officers that our Colonel
+had just sent out that night on a reconnaissance--F., of the
+_Chasseurs d'Afrique_, and my old friend O., of our squadron. We
+wondered anxiously whether they would be able to perform their
+task--to get at all costs as far as the Marne, and let us know by dawn
+whether the river could be crossed either at Mont Saint Pere,
+Jaulgonne, Passy-sur-Marne, or Dormans. Nothing could have been more
+hazardous than these expeditions, made on a dark night across a
+district still occupied by the enemy.
+
+The night was short. Before day dawned the horses were saddled and the
+men ready to mount. And as soon as the first rays of morning filtered
+through, my squadron, which had been told off as advance guard of the
+brigade, rapidly descended the steep slopes which commanded the small
+town of Conde. A.'s troop led. My business was to reconnoitre the
+eastern part of the town with mine, whilst F., with his troop, was to
+see to the western quarters.
+
+With sabres drawn, our Chasseurs distributed themselves briskly, by
+squads, through the streets of the old city. The horses' hoofs
+resounded cheerily on the paved streets between the old grey houses.
+The inhabitants ventured out upon their doorsteps, in spite of the
+early hour, with some hesitation at first, but glad indeed when they
+saw our light-blue uniforms; they cheered, crying: "They are gone!...
+they are gone!" But some old folk replied more calmly to my questions:
+"_Monsieur l'Officier_, have a care. They were here an hour ago with a
+large number of horses and guns. There was even a general, with his
+whole staff, lodged at the great house up there.... We would not swear
+that some of them are not there still."
+
+I collected my troop, and then went quickly to the chateau which stood
+at the northern entrance of Conde. It was rather a fine building, but
+I had not time to notice its architectural style. Haste was necessary,
+for the brigade behind me was due to arrive. As far as I remember, the
+chateau formed a harmonious whole, and the different parts of it
+showed up cheerfully against the dark foliage of the park, which was
+still glittering after the night's rain. The building was in the form
+of a horseshoe, and in the centre there was a kind of courtyard
+bordered by two rows of orange trees in tubs.
+
+I at once posted two guards, one on the road to provide against any
+surprise and the other at the park entrance to prevent egress, in case
+any fugitive should attempt to pass. Then, with the rest of my men, I
+rode through the large gilded iron gates at a trot. In the avenue
+which led to the house two men were standing motionless. One of them,
+dressed in black and clean-shaven, appeared to be some old servant of
+the family, the other must have been one of the gardeners. Their pale
+faces and red eyes showed that they had had little sleep that night.
+
+"Well, my friend," said I to one of them, "is there anybody left at
+your place?"
+
+"Sir," he answered, "I couldn't tell you; for I have not set foot in
+the house since they left it. What I do know is that they feasted all
+night and got horribly drunk. They have drunk the whole cellar dry,
+and I shouldn't be surprised if some of them are still under the
+table."
+
+But when I asked him to come in with me, to act as guide for our
+visit, he refused with a look of horror. He trembled all over at the
+thought of seeing perchance one of the guests who had been forced upon
+him. As there was no time to be lost, I told my men to dismount at
+once, and gave orders to one corporal to search the right wing of the
+building, to another to reconnoitre the left wing. I myself undertook
+to see about the central block with the rest of my troop. We had to
+make haste, so I instructed my subordinates to go quickly through the
+different rooms and not to inspect them in detail.
+
+The entrance door was wide open. Taking my revolver in my hand, I
+entered the hall, which was in indescribable disorder. Orderlies had
+evidently slept and had their meals there, for the stone floor was
+littered with straw, and empty bottles, sardine-boxes, and pieces of
+bread were lying about. But when I opened the door of the dining-room
+I could not help pausing for a moment to look at the strange sight
+before me. The grey light of that September morning came in through
+four large windows and shone dimly upon the long table. The officers
+of the Guard had certainly made their arrangements well. They had
+levied contribution upon all the silver plate that could be found,
+which was hardly necessary, for, as they had arrived too late to have
+a proper meal prepared, they had to be content with what they had
+brought with them. The contrast between the rich plate, some of it
+broken, the empty silver dishes, and the empty tins of preserved meat
+was strange indeed. But they had solaced themselves in the cellar.
+Innumerable bottles, both empty and full, were piled upon the
+furniture. Costly glasses of all shapes and sizes, some empty, others
+still half full, were standing about in every direction. The white
+tablecloth was soiled with large purple stains. The floor was littered
+with bits of smashed glass. By the table, the chairs that had been
+pushed back or overturned showed the number of drinkers to have been
+about ten. An acrid smell of tobacco and wine hung about this scene
+of an overnight orgy.
+
+One thing I specially remember: the sight of an officer's cap, with a
+red band, hanging from one of the branches of the large chandelier in
+the centre of the room. And I could not help picturing to my mind the
+head of the man it had belonged to, some _Rittmeister_, with an
+eyeglass, fat pink cheeks and neck bulging over the collar of his
+tunic. What a pity he had been able to decamp! That is the kind of
+countenance we should so much have liked to see closer and face to
+face.
+
+But I could not wait. We rushed hastily through drawing-rooms turned
+upside down, and bedrooms where the beds still bore traces of summary
+use by heavy bodies. But we found no forgotten drunkard in them.
+
+My two corporals were already waiting for us when we returned to the
+courtyard. They had not found any one in their search. Quickly we
+mounted, and passed rapidly out by the gilded gates. The old servant
+and the gardener were still on the same spot, standing silent and
+depressed. They said not a word to us, nor did they make any sign;
+they seemed to be completely unhinged and incapable of understanding
+what had happened.
+
+I had hardly returned to the squadron when I saw a sight I can never
+forget. At a turn in the road three horsemen came towards us covered
+with blood. I recognised F., the officer of _Chasseurs d'Afrique_, who
+had been sent out to reconnoitre the evening before. He had lost his
+cap, and had his head bound up with a blood-stained handkerchief. His
+left arm was likewise slung in an improvised bandage tied round his
+neck. He was followed by two men who were also covered with wounds.
+Their eyes shone bright and resolute in their feverish faces. One of
+them, having no scabbard, was still holding his sword, which was
+twisted and stained with blood. We pulled up instinctively and
+saluted.
+
+"I haven't been able to reach the Marne," said F., with disappointment
+in his voice. "But, being fired upon by their outposts in the dark,
+we charged and got through, and then charged through two villages
+under a hail of bullets; and again we had to charge their outposts to
+get back. You see, ... I have brought back two men out of eight, and
+all my horses have been killed.... These horses"--pointing to his
+own--"are those of three Uhlans we killed so as not to have to come
+home on foot."
+
+Certainly they were not riding the pretty little animals that make
+such excellent mounts for our _Chasseurs d'Afrique_, but were perched
+on three big mares with the heavy German equipment.
+
+"But," F. repeated in a tone of vexation, "I wasn't able to get to the
+Marne.... There were too many of them for us."
+
+We pressed his unwounded hand warmly. Poor F.! Brave fellow! Not many
+days afterwards he was to meet a glorious death charging once more,
+with three Chasseurs, to rescue one of his men who had been wounded. A
+more perfect type of cavalryman--I might say, of knight--was never
+seen. He sleeps now, riddled with lance wounds, in the plains of
+Champagne.
+
+We had hardly left him when we caught sight of the reconnoitring party
+of my comrade O., and were overjoyed to find that he had come back
+unscathed with all his men. And yet he had had to face a fair number
+of dangers--attacks by cyclists and pursuit by cavalry. At Crezancy,
+where he arrived at three o'clock in the morning, he found the village
+occupied and strongly held. There is only one bridge over the railway
+there, and that is at the other end of the village. By good luck he
+was able to get hold of one of the inhabitants; and he forced him, by
+holding his revolver to his head, to guide him by all sorts of byways
+so as to make a circuit without attracting attention and get to the
+bridge. There he set forward at a gallop, and passed, in spite of
+being fired on by the guard. At last he reached the Marne. The only
+bridge he found intact for crossing the river was the bridge at
+Jaulgonne, a slender, fragile suspension-bridge, but one that we
+should be very glad to find if there was still time to use it. He then
+hurried back through the woods, but not without having to run the
+gauntlet of rifle fire several times more. He brought back information
+which was to guide our advance.
+
+It was seen at once that there was not a minute to lose. The Captain
+detached me immediately, with my troop, to act as a flank-guard along
+the line of wooded crests by which the road on the right was
+commanded, whilst F., with his troop, crossed the Surmelin and the
+railway which runs alongside of it, and went to carry out the same
+task on the other side of the valley.
+
+My job was difficult enough. In fact, the heights, which look down
+upon the course of the Surmelin to the east, consist of a series of
+ridges separated by narrow ravines at right angles to the river, and
+these we had to cross to continue our route towards the north. The
+enemy seemed to have withdrawn completely from this region, and the
+cannon fire in the distance towards the east could hardly be heard.
+At last, at about seven o'clock in the morning, we debouched upon the
+valley of the Marne.
+
+Whilst I sent some troopers along the road which winds by the Surmelin
+to keep in touch with my Captain, I carefully inspected the right bank
+of the Marne with my glasses. The scene would have tempted a painter,
+and the labours of war do not prevent one from enjoying the charm of
+such delightful pictures. The sun was gradually dispersing the mist of
+the sullen morning, and was beginning to gild the wooded heights which
+look down upon the two banks of the river. Everywhere a calm was
+reigning, which seemed to promise a day of exquisite beauty. We might
+have fancied that we were bent on some peaceful rural work favoured by
+a radiant autumn morning. The Marne in this region winds in graceful
+curves. It flows limpid and clear through a narrow valley carpeted
+with green meadows and bordered, right and left, by gentle hills
+dotted with woods. At our feet, peeping from the poplars and beeches
+on the bank, we saw the white houses of dainty villages--Charteves,
+Jaulgonne, Varennes, and Barzy.
+
+I directed my attention more particularly towards Jaulgonne, because
+it was in that direction that the attempt to cross the river would be
+made. The heights immediately above Jaulgonne rise steeply on the
+north bank, and almost stand in the river. On the other hand, to the
+south, on our side, the left bank of the Marne is bordered by
+extensive meadows crossed by the railway and the high-road to Epernay.
+The position therefore would have been very strong for the Germans, if
+they had crossed to the other side of the river, for we should have
+been obliged, before we could reach the bridge, to traverse a vast
+open expanse which they could have kept under the fire of their
+artillery. My Chasseurs, prompt to grasp the reason of things,
+scrutinised the opposite bank no less intently than I. No movement
+could be seen; nothing suggested the presence of troops among the
+russet thickets which covered the sides of the silent hill. Could
+they have already retired farther off? Could they have abandoned this
+formidable position without any attempt to defend it?
+
+At that moment one of my Chasseurs appeared, coming by the steep path
+which led from the road to the wooded ridge on which we were. His
+horse was panting, for the declivity was stiff, and he had had to
+hasten. He brought me orders.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, the Captain has sent me to tell you to join him as
+quickly as possible at the other end of the bridge. The first troop
+has already crossed, but some of the enemy's horse have been seen on
+the other side of the village."
+
+As he said these words we heard some firing in the distance, which
+sounded very distinct and sharp in the radiant peace of that beautiful
+September morning. "Come, so much the better," thought I. "We have
+engaged them. We shall have a good time." My men had already begun to
+joke and to be more alert and abrupt in their movements. It was a
+kind of joyous reaction which always affects troopers when they begin
+to hear the guns and look forward to a good hard ride in which they,
+like the rest of us, are always certain of getting the best of it.
+
+In single file we went quickly down towards the plain by the stony,
+slippery path. We soon reached the high-road, and then turned to the
+left and came upon the long causeway bordered by poplars which led to
+the bridge. Quite close to the bank I saw a small group of dismounted
+cavalrymen, and soon recognised our Colonel with his Brigade Staff. He
+was giving his orders to the Lieutenant-Colonel commanding the
+_Chasseurs d'Afrique_. I went up to him to report, and learnt that the
+first squadron had already crossed the river and occupied the village
+on the other side. Some parties of German cavalry had been seen on the
+neighbouring heights.
+
+I got ready to rejoin my comrades at once. But patience was required
+if the Marne was to be crossed. The bridge appeared to be a delicate
+sort of toy hovering over the water. How could they dream of sending
+thousands of men, horses, and guns over a thing so slender that it
+looked as though it were supported by the fragile meshes of a spider's
+web? Captain D. gave me the Colonel's precise orders: not to pass more
+than four troopers at a time, and these at walking pace.
+
+Taking the initiative in the movement, I started with my first four
+Chasseurs. The bridge rang strangely under our horses' hoofs, and
+seemed to me to oscillate in an alarming manner. Fortunately the enemy
+was not on the other side; if he had been, our passage would have cost
+us dear.
+
+As I was making these reflections a violent fusillade burst out from
+the edge of the woods overlooking Jaulgonne to the east. It must have
+been directed upon the village, for no bullets whistled around us, so
+it was probably our first squadron engaging the German cavalry. When I
+got to the other end of the bridge my impatience increased. It was
+torture to think of the time it would take to collect my thirty men
+and hurry forward to help the others; and I noticed the same
+impatience in my men's looks. Those who were on the bridge, walking
+slowly and gently across, seemed to implore me to let them trot; but I
+pretended not to understand, and the horses' feet continued to trample
+heavily over the echoing bridge. At last all my men were over.
+
+We fell in and reached Jaulgonne at a trot. On passing through it we
+found several of the inhabitants on their doorsteps:
+
+"_Monsieur l'Officier_, ... _Monsieur l'Officier_, will they come back
+again?"
+
+"Never!" I shouted, with conviction.
+
+I stopped an orderly, who told me that the German cavalry were firing
+on the exit from the town. How many of them he could not say, as they
+were hidden in the woods. He told me, too, that the first squadron was
+holding all the entrances to the north and east of the village except
+the one on the river bank on the road to Marcilly, where my comrade F.
+had posted his troop. I decided then to put myself at the disposal of
+the party defending the chief exit from the village, the one that
+opened into the road to Fismes. It was the most important one, for it
+was in that direction that the Germans were retiring.
+
+The village had been prevented from spreading further to the north by
+the heights, which formed an abrupt barrier. It is built astride the
+road to Fismes, which thus becomes its principal, if not its only,
+street. I had then to go right through Jaulgonne before I could get
+out of it in the direction of the firing. I soon did this, and found
+the horses of the first squadron massed in the short alleys leading
+out of the main street. I ordered my troop to dismount in a yard much
+too small and very inconvenient. But the first thing to do was to
+clear the causeway and shelter our horses from bullets, which might
+enfilade the street if the fighting bore away towards the left. Then,
+whilst a non-commissioned officer collected the squads for the action
+on foot, I ran as far as the furthest houses of the village to
+reconnoitre the ground and get orders.
+
+I spied Major P. in a sheltered nook, still mounted, and he told me
+of his anxiety about the situation. The enemy riflemen were invisible,
+and were riddling the outskirts of the village, while we were unable
+to reply; and some guns had been seen which were being got into
+position. He advised me to go and see the captain of the first
+squadron, who had been ordered to defend that entrance of the village,
+and to place myself at his disposal in case of need.
+
+Whilst we were talking, my troop, led by its non-commissioned officer,
+came to the place where we were, edging along by the walls. The men,
+calm and smiling, with their carbines ready, waited in silence for the
+signal to advance. I signed to them to wait a little longer, and then
+going round the wall I found myself suddenly in the thick of the fray.
+I must say the reception I got startled me. The bullets came rattling
+in hundreds, chipping the walls and cutting branches from the trees.
+On our side there was absolute silence. Our men, on their knees or
+lying flat behind any cover they could find, did not reply, as they
+could see nothing, and waited stoically under the shower of bullets
+until their adversaries chose to advance.
+
+I looked for Captain de L., who commanded the first squadron. There he
+was, standing with his face to the enemy, and his hands in his
+pockets, quietly giving his orders to a non-commissioned officer. On
+my asking him if he wanted me, he explained the situation: the enemy,
+numbers unknown, was occupying the woods overlooking Jaulgonne to the
+east. It was impossible for us to debouch just yet. The essential
+thing was to hold the village, and consequently the bridge, until our
+infantry could come up. He told me that the first troop of my
+squadron, led by Lieutenant d'A., had just advanced, in extended
+order, into the vineyards, orchards, and fields stretching between the
+road and the river. He was going to reconnoitre the woods and see what
+kind of force was holding it.
+
+"You see, dear fellow, for the present I don't want the help of your
+carbines; I have my whole squadron here, and they can't get a shot.
+So long as the enemy sticks to the wood all we can do is to wait and
+keep our powder dry."
+
+I put my troop under shelter in a small yard, and directed my
+non-commissioned officer to keep in touch with me, in case I might
+want him. Then I went back to the outskirts of the village to examine
+the ground. I then joined my friend S. behind a large heap of faggots:
+he commanded the nearest troop of the first squadron, and we could not
+help laughing at the curious situation--being formed up for battle,
+fronting the enemy, under a hail of bullets, and not able to see
+anything.
+
+During the campaign S. had become a philosopher, and he deserved some
+credit for it; for the great moral and physical sufferings we had
+endured must have been even still more insupportable to him than to
+any of us. In the regiment, S. was considered preeminently the Society
+officer. He went to all the receptions, all the afternoon teas, all
+the bridge parties, all the dinners. He was an adept at tennis and
+golf and a first-rate shot. His elegance was proverbial, and the
+beautiful cut of his tunics, breeches, jackets, and coats was
+universally admired. The way his harness was kept and the shape of his
+high boots were a marvel. To say all this is to give some idea of the
+change he suddenly experienced in his habits and his tastes during
+those demoralising days of retreat and merciless hours of pursuit.
+But, in spite of all, he had kept his good humour and never lost his
+gay spirits. He still accompanied his talk with elaborate gestures,
+and seemed to be just as much at ease behind his heap of wood,
+bombarded with bullets, as in the best appointed drawing-room. His
+clothes were stained and patched, his beard had begun to grow, and yet
+under this rough exterior the polished man of the world could always
+be divined.
+
+He explained the beginnings of the affair with perfect clearness and
+self-possession; how the scouts sent up to the ridge by d'A. and
+driven off by the Germans had fallen back upon Jaulgonne; how the
+first squadron had come to barricade and defend the village, and in
+what anxiety they were waiting to know what had become of d'A.'s
+troop, which had started out to reconnoitre the wood.
+
+We hoisted ourselves to the top of the faggot-stack and peeped over
+carefully. The glaring white road wound up the flank of the slope
+between fields dotted with apple trees. At a distance of 800 yards in
+front of us stretched the dark border of the wood, from which the
+fusillade was coming. To our right, at the edge of the water, on the
+road leading to Marcilly, F. must have been able to see the enemy, for
+we could distinctly hear the crackle of his carbines.
+
+Our attention was drawn to a man of F.'s troop running along under the
+wall, bending almost double to escape the attention of the sniper, and
+endeavouring to screen himself behind the high grass. As soon as he
+came near enough we called out:
+
+"What is it?"
+
+"The Lieutenant has sent me to say that the enemy has just placed
+some guns in position up there, in the opening of the wood."
+
+Saying which, he pointed vaguely in a direction where we could see
+nothing. However, we knew that F. would not have warned us if he had
+not been quite certain of the fact, so for some unpleasant minutes we
+wondered what the enemy's objective was. We longed to know, at once,
+where the projectiles were going to burst. Would it be on F.'s troop,
+or on the bridge, or on the infantry, which, perhaps, were beginning
+to debouch, or, perhaps, on that portion of the brigade that had
+remained dismounted on the left bank, drawn up for action? The
+uncertainty was worse than the danger itself. But we were not long in
+doubt. Two shrieks of flying shells! Two explosions about 300 yards in
+front of us! Two puffs of white smoke rising above the green fields!
+This showed they had an objective we had not considered, namely,
+d'A.'s troop, for the shrapnel had burst in the direction he had just
+taken with his men.
+
+Our anxiety did not last long. We soon made out our Chasseurs, coming
+back quietly, not running, and in good order. They took to the ditch,
+a fairly deep one, which ran along on the left side of the road, and
+covered them up to the middle. The German shells were badly aimed, and
+exploded either in front of them or higher up on the hillside. But our
+anxiety became more intense every minute. Had a shell fallen on the
+road or in the ditch, we should have seen those brave fellows knocked
+over, mown down, cut to pieces, by the hail of bullets. When we are
+fighting ourselves we hardly have time to think about our neighbours
+in this way. We have our own cares, and our first thought is the
+safety of the men who form our little family, the troop. But when one
+is safe, or fairly so, it is torture to watch comrades advancing under
+the enemy's fire without any protection. At that moment the Germans
+were concentrating their fire upon that small line of men we were
+looking at, 200 yards away from us. The shells succeeded one another
+uninterruptedly, but without any greater precision. We watched our
+friends coming nearer until they had almost reached our barricade, and
+noticed that two of the Chasseurs were being supported by their
+comrades. In our anxiety, we got up out of shelter, but d'A. shouted:
+"It's nothing; only scratches...."
+
+At last they got in, and whilst our good and indefatigable
+Assistant-Surgeon P. took charge of the wounded men we pressed round
+the officer and questioned him as to what he had seen. "Are there many
+of them?" "Was there any infantry?" we asked. But his daring
+reconnaissance had not been very fruitful. He had had to stop when the
+artillery had opened fire on him, and had not been able to see how
+many adversaries we had to deal with.
+
+Acting on the advice of Major P., our Captain, who had just rejoined
+us with the third troop, gave orders to mount. We were only in the way
+here, where there were too many defenders already, so recrossed the
+bridge to put ourselves at the Colonel's disposal. I led with my
+troop, and we passed through Jaulgonne by the main street. The
+inhabitants thought we were beating a retreat and became uneasy. Some
+women uttered cries, begging us not to leave them at the mercy of the
+enemy. We had to calm them by saying that they need not fear, that we
+were still holding the Germans, that our infantry would soon arrive,
+and that in an hour the foe would have decamped.
+
+To tell the truth, we were not quite so sure of it ourselves. The
+enemy was in some force, and he had guns. Our infantry had at least 15
+kilometres to march before their advance guard even could debouch on
+the bridge at Jaulgonne. If they had not started before dawn they
+would not arrive before eleven o'clock, and it was then barely nine.
+The German artillery was already beginning to fire upon the village.
+
+Suddenly, as we reached the market-place, we saw a group of three
+dismounted Chasseurs emerging from an alley that ran down steeply to
+the Marne. They belonged to F.'s troop. Two of them were supporting
+the third, whom we at once recognised. It was Laurent, a fine fellow,
+and a favourite with the whole squadron. It went to our hearts to see
+him. His left eye was nothing but a red patch, from which blood was
+flowing freely, drenching his clothing. He was moaning softly and,
+blinded by the blood, allowed himself to be led like a child. The
+corporal with him explained: "A bullet went in just over his eye. I
+don't know if the eye itself was hit."
+
+The Captain sprang off his horse. "Cheer up, Laurent, it shall be
+attended to at once. Perhaps it will be nothing, my man. Come with me,
+we will take you to the Red Cross ambulance close by."
+
+Then between his groans the wounded man said a thing I shall not
+easily forget: "_Mon Capitaine_, ... haven't they taken away their
+guns yet?"
+
+He still took an interest in the battle. I heard afterwards that F.
+had sighted the German guns, and that the fire of his troop had been
+directed upon them. Laurent would have liked to hear that they had
+been driven away. He was carried off to the ambulance. I went on
+towards the bridge; the cannon and rifle fire still raged fiercely,
+but none of the shots reached the bank where we were. We had to repeat
+the trying process of crossing the swaying bridge by fours at walking
+pace. I led off with four troopers. It was not so tedious this time,
+as my eyes were distracted by the view of the green meadows on the
+opposite side.
+
+The Colonel had disposed the brigade in such a way that he could
+concentrate his fire upon the bridge and the opposite bank in case we
+could not maintain our position there. A squadron on our left,
+concealed in a sand quarry, was directing its fire upon the heights
+where the German artillery was posted. Both up and down stream the
+_Chasseurs d'Afrique_ lined the river banks, making use of every scrap
+of cover. Peeping out over trunks of fallen trees, banks, and ditches
+inquisitive heads could be seen wearing the khaki _taconnet_. But my
+troubles were not yet over. Just as I was going to step ashore from
+the bridge, Captain D. brought me the Colonel's orders to recross the
+river with my whole squadron and occupy a clump of houses to the left
+of the bridge. It was evidently a wise precaution. Although no firing
+had come from this direction, it was quite possible that some of the
+enemy might have slipped through the woods that come half-way down the
+slopes. But I did not expect such a bad time as I was going to have.
+
+At the very moment when I was turning back, and was beginning the
+hateful passage for the third time, the enemy gunners, changing their
+objective, aimed at the bridge, and the shrapnel bullets began their
+disturbing music once more. Could any situation be more execrable than
+ours--to be upon a bridge as thin as a thread, hanging as by a miracle
+over a deep river, to see this bridge enfiladed by heavy musketry fire
+and to be obliged to walk our horses over the 200 yards which
+separated one bank from the other? If we had been on foot, so that we
+could have run and expended our strength in getting under
+cover--since we could not use it to defend ourselves--we should not
+have complained. But to be mounted on good horses, which in a few
+galloping strides could have carried us behind the rampart of houses,
+and to be obliged to hold them back instead of spurring them on, was
+very unpleasant, and made us feel foolish.
+
+I looked at the four brave Chasseurs in front of me. They
+instinctively put up their shoulders as high as they could as if to
+hide their heads between them. But not one of them increased his pace.
+Not one of them looked round at me to beg me to give orders for a
+quicker advance. And what a concert was going on all the time! Whilst
+the horses' hoofs were beating out low and muffled notes, the bullets
+flew above us and around us, with shrill cracklings and whistlings
+which were anything but harmonious. Happily the firing was distant and
+disgracefully bad, for at the pace we were travelling we must have
+offered a very convenient mark. Another 20 yards! Ten more! At last
+we were safely under cover!
+
+I communicated the Colonel's orders to the Captain, who came to join
+us, and directed us to occupy the little garden of a fair-sized house
+situated just on the edge of the Marne and the most advanced of the
+small group of buildings on the left-hand side of the bridge. After
+lodging the horses in an alley between the house and an adjoining
+shanty I went to reconnoitre my ground. The house was a rustic
+restaurant, which in the summer no doubt afforded the inhabitants an
+object for a walk. On passing along the terrace leading to the river I
+found the disorder usual in places that have been occupied by the
+Germans; tables overturned, bottles broken, the musty smell of empty
+casks, and broken crockery.
+
+The little garden did not offer much protection for my men. However,
+crouching behind a kind of breastwork of earth, which shut it off from
+the woods, they were able, at least, to hide themselves from view. I
+at once posted my sharpshooters, sent out a patrol on foot as far as
+the entrance to the wood, and then turned my attention to what was
+happening near the bridge.
+
+Whilst I was busy carrying out the Captain's orders I had not noticed
+that the situation had undergone a decided change, and that our
+chances of being able to complete our task thoroughly had increased
+considerably. The German guns were no longer aiming at the village.
+Their fire had become more rapid, and their shrapnel flew hissing over
+the brigade. We could see them bursting much further off, on the other
+side of the water, in the direction of the woods crowning the heights
+whence, in the morning, I had admired the smiling landscape. I
+inferred then that the advance guard of our corps was debouching. In
+half an hour it would be there, and the German cavalry, we felt sure,
+would not hold out much longer.
+
+But our fine infantry had done more than this. They had, no doubt,
+found good roads, or perhaps the German gunners, hypnotised by the
+village, had not spied them. For I had now the pleasure of witnessing
+one of the most exhilarating spectacles I had seen since the opening
+of the campaign.
+
+From where I stood on the bank I could see the thin line of the bridge
+above. I did not think that any one would risk crossing it now that it
+was known to be a mark for the enemy's fire, but suddenly I saw five
+men appear and begin to cross it. I could distinguish them perfectly;
+they were infantry soldiers, an officer and four men. The officer
+walked first, calmly, with a stick under his right arm, and in his
+left hand a map which formed a white patch on his blue coat, and
+behind him the men, in single file, bending slightly under their
+knapsacks, their caps pushed back and holding their rifles, marched
+firmly and steadily. They might have been on parade. Their legs could
+be distinguished for a moment against the blue sky. Their step was so
+regular that I could not help counting: one, two; one, two, as their
+feet struck the bridge. But just at the moment when the little group
+had got half-way across, a hiss, followed by a deafening explosion,
+made our hearts beat, and we heard the curious noise made by
+innumerable bullets and pieces of shell striking the water. The
+Germans had seen our infantry beginning to cross the river, and they
+were now pouring their fire upon the bridge. I looked again at the
+men, and saw they were there, all five of them, still marching with
+the same cool, resolute step: one, two; one, two. Ah! the brave
+fellows! How I wanted to cheer them, to shout "Bravo!" But they were
+too far off, and the noise of the fusillade would have prevented them
+from hearing me.
+
+No sooner had they reached the bank than another little group stepped
+on to the narrow bridge, and then, after them, another; and each was
+saluted by one or two shells, with the same heavy rain of bullets
+falling into the water. But Providence protected our soldiers. The
+outline of the bridge was very slight, and the gunners of the German
+cavalry divisions were sorry marksmen. Their projectiles always burst
+either too far or too near, too high or too low. And as soon as a
+hundred men had got across, and the first sharpshooters had clambered
+up the heights that rise sheer from the river and begun to debouch
+upon the plateau, there was a sudden silence. The enemy's cavalry had
+given way, and our _corps d'armee_ was free to pass the Marne by the
+bridge of Jaulgonne.
+
+The entire battalion of the advance guard then began to pour over the
+bridge on their way to the plateau. Our brigade was quickly got
+together, and our Chasseurs hastened to water their horses. Out came
+the nosebags from the saddlebags. A few minutes later no one would
+have suspected that fighting had taken place at this spot. The men
+hurriedly got their snack, for we knew the halt would not last long,
+and that the pursuit had to be pushed till daylight failed. Our troop
+was in good heart and thankful that the squadron's losses had been so
+small. F. had just seen Laurent, the one wounded Chasseur of his
+troop, and said the doctors hoped to save his eye; so we had no reason
+to grumble.
+
+Saddlebags were now being buckled and horses rebridled. I was to go
+forward to replace the troop that had led the advance guard. The
+Colonel sent for me and ordered me to proceed at once along the road
+to Fismes, search the outskirts of the village carefully, and take up
+a position on the heights overlooking the valley.
+
+My troop got away quickly, and I rejoiced again at the sight of my
+fellows, radiant at the thought of having a dash at the enemy. We had
+to hasten and get ahead of the foremost parties of infantry, which
+also halted now for a meal. I detached my advance scouts. Their eager
+little horses set off at a gallop along the white road, and I was
+delighted to see the ease and decision with which my Chasseurs flashed
+out their swords. They seemed to say, "Come along, come along ...; we
+are ready." As for me, I rode on in quiet confidence, knowing that I
+had in front of me eyes keen enough to prevent any surprise.
+
+One squad climbed nimbly up the ridge to the left. The horses
+scrambled up the steep ground, dislodging stones and clods of earth.
+They struggled with straining hocks hard to get up, and seemed to
+challenge each other for a race to the top. Their riders, in extended
+order, showed as patches of red and blue against the grey stubble. Up
+they went, further and further, and then disappeared over the crest.
+Only one was still visible, but this one was my guarantee that I had
+good eyes, keen and alert, on my left. Should any danger threaten from
+that quarter I knew well that he would pass on to me the signal
+received from his corporal, and I should only have to gallop to the
+top to judge of the situation myself. I could see the man against the
+blue sky, the whole outline of his body and that of his horse; the
+equipment and harness, the curved sword, the graceful neck, the sinewy
+legs, the heavy pack. I recognised the rider and knew the name of his
+horse. They were both of the right sort. Yes, I felt quite easy about
+my left.
+
+On the right the ground dropped sheer to a narrow valley, at the
+bottom of which flowed a stream of clear water. Among the green trees
+were glittering patches here and there, on which the sun threw
+metallic reflections. And on the other side rose heights covered by
+the forest of Riz. On the edge of this forest I could see the stately
+ruins of a splendid country mansion. I questioned a boy who was
+standing on the side of the road, looking at us half timidly, half
+gladly.
+
+"Tell me, child, who burnt that chateau over there?"
+
+"_M'sieur_, _they_ did; and they took everything away--all the
+beautiful things. They even carried everything off on big carts, and
+then they set fire to the house. But everything isn't burnt, and a lot
+of them came back again this morning with some horses, and they went
+on looking for things."
+
+I sent off another squad towards the chateau, telling them first to
+follow the edge of the wood and to be careful how they approached it.
+The men got into the wood by the spaces in the bank along the road and
+scattered in the thickets that dotted the side of the spur we were
+turning. I was thus protected on my right.
+
+I went up at a trot to the place where the road reached the plateau,
+and just as I was on the point of reaching it we were met by a crowd
+of village folk--men, women, and children--coming along, looking
+radiant. I saw some of them questioning my advance scouts and pointing
+in the direction of the north-east. It was the whole population of Le
+Charmel that had come out to meet us.
+
+Le Charmel is a small village that stands at the meeting of two roads,
+one leading towards Fismes, the other towards Fere-en-Tardenois. It
+has the appearance of hanging on to the hillside, for whilst the road
+to Fere-en-Tardenois continues to follow the plateau, that to Fismes
+dips abruptly at this place and disappears in the valley. The houses
+of Le Charmel are perched between these two roads. Thus the people of
+the village had a good view of the enemy's retreat, and everybody
+wanted to have his say about it. I turned to a tall man, lean and
+tanned, with a grizzled moustache, who had something still of a
+military air, and seemed to be calmer than the others around him. From
+him I was able to get some fairly clear information.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, it was like this.... They went off this morning
+early, with a great number of cannons and horses. The artillery went
+straight on towards Fismes by the road. The cavalry cut across the
+fields, and disappeared over the ridge you see over there on the other
+side of the valley. Then towards eight o'clock some of them came back.
+How many? Well, two or three regiments perhaps, and some guns; and
+they went down again towards Jaulgonne. I believe they wanted to
+destroy the bridge. But just as they got to the turn of the hill, pan!
+pan!--they were fired at. Then, of course, we got back to our houses
+and shut them up, as the guns began to fire. But when we heard no more
+reports we came out again, and saw them making off across the fields
+like the others and in the same direction. But it is quite possible
+that some of them stayed in the woods, or in the farms, on the other
+side of the forest of Riz...."
+
+He was interrupted by my non-commissioned officer:
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, the scouts ... they are signalling to you...."
+
+I galloped up to them, when they pointed out to me, at about 1,500
+yards distance, on the opposite ridge, a small group of cavalrymen
+near a stack, and, on the side of the slope, a patrol of German
+dragoons, pacing slowly with lances lowered and stopping every now and
+then facing in our direction.
+
+I took my glasses and looked carefully at the stack. And then I saw a
+sight which sent a shiver of joy through me. The horsemen had
+dismounted and put their horses behind the stack. Three of the men
+then separated themselves from the rest and formed a little group. I
+could not distinguish their uniforms, but saw very clearly that they
+were looking through their glasses at us. Now and again they put their
+heads together, and consulted the map, as it seemed. A man then came
+out from behind the stack on foot, and could be distinctly seen,
+against the sky, sticking into the ground by his side a square pennon
+which flapped gently in the breeze. As far as I could see it was half
+black and half white. There could be no doubt that we were confronting
+a Staff. So the division was not far off; it had halted, and perhaps
+intended this time to fight at close quarters. I told my men what I
+thought, and they were overjoyed at the idea that, after all, there
+was a hope of realising our dream. There was not one of them who
+doubted that the Division of the Guards had been kind enough to stop
+its flight, and that our brave light brigade would attack it without
+any hesitation and cut it to pieces. I dismounted quickly, and lost
+not a moment in drawing up my report. I wrote down what I had seen and
+what I had learnt from the inhabitants and then called one of my
+Chasseurs:
+
+"To the Colonel, full gallop!"
+
+At the touch of the spur the little chestnut turned sharp round and
+flew down the dusty road like a whirlwind. Meanwhile I carefully
+posted my men, threw out scouts over the plateau and up to the forest
+of Fere, and formed patrols under my non-commissioned officers. I then
+took up my observation post under a large tree which, to judge by its
+venerable look, must have seen many generations pass and many other
+wars. The village folk collected around me in such numbers that I was
+obliged to have them thrust back by my men to Le Charmel. To console
+them I said: "You must go away. The enemy will take you for armed
+troops and fire guns at you."
+
+I kept my eye upon my "Staff," and wished my glasses could help me to
+distinguish more clearly what men I had to deal with. I longed to see
+what they were like--to examine the faces of these haughty _Reiters_
+who for the last four days had been fleeing before us and always
+refusing a real encounter. I fancied that among them might be found
+that _Rittmeister_ with the bulging neck and pink cheeks, who, after
+the orgy of that night at the Chateau de Conde, had left behind him
+the cap that I had found hanging from the chandelier in the
+dining-room. How I longed to see the brigade debouch, and to receive
+instructions from the Colonel!
+
+I had not long to wait. My messenger soon came back, trotting up the
+road from Jaulgonne. But the instructions were not what I had
+expected. I was to stay where I was until further orders, to continue
+to observe the enemy, and keep a look-out in his direction.
+
+I learnt some details from the man. The greater part of the infantry
+had already crossed the bridge, and there was also some artillery on
+this side of the river. As he said this a clatter of wheels and chains
+caused me to turn my head, and I saw behind us, in the stubble-fields
+of the plateau, two batteries of 75's taking up positions. Ah! ah! we
+were going to send them our greetings then, a salute to the pompous
+General over there, and to his aide-de-camp, the stiff and obsequious
+_Rittmeister_, whom I imagined to be at his side. I looked on gaily
+with my Chasseurs at the laying of the guns. How we all loved that
+good little gun, which had so often come up to lend us the support of
+its terrible projectiles at critical moments! And those good fellows
+the gunners loved it too; the men we saw jumping nimbly down from
+their limber, quickly unhitching their piece, and pointing it with
+tender care towards the enemy.
+
+Standing on a bank, with his glasses to his eyes, the officer in
+command gave his orders which were passed from man to man by the
+markers. And then suddenly we heard four loud, sharp reports behind
+us. The whistling of the shells, which almost grazed our heads, was
+impressive, and, though we knew there was no danger, we instinctively
+ducked. But we recovered ourselves at once to see what effect they had
+produced.
+
+What a pity! They had fallen a bit short. We distinctly saw four small
+white puffs on the side of the hill just below the group of German
+officers. Ah! They didn't wait for another! I saw them make off in hot
+haste whilst the troopers, stationed behind the stack, galloped off
+the horses. The man with the flag was the last to go, closing the
+procession with rather more dignity. But in ten seconds the whole lot
+had decamped, and the only men we could see were the dragoons of the
+patrol, who rode back to the ridge at full speed.
+
+But just as they reached it the second battery opened fire, and this
+time the sighting was just right. The four white puffs appeared
+exactly over the spot where the Staff had stood a minute before--two
+to the right and two to the left of the stack. And all we now saw of
+the patrol was two riderless horses galloping madly towards the woods.
+Then the two batteries pounded away with a will.
+
+When I had received orders to resume the forward movement and my good
+Chasseurs had taken up the pursuit again, the gunners had lengthened
+their range with mathematical precision, and the shells burst on the
+farther side of the ridge. I took a grim pleasure in imagining what
+must have been happening there, where, no doubt, the division was
+drawn up, and whilst I continued to direct my vigilant and expert
+scouts I amused myself by picturing the brilliant troopers of the
+Prussian Guard in headlong flight.
+
+
+
+
+V. LOW MASS AND BENEDICTION
+
+
+One morning in the middle of September, 1914, as we raised our heads
+at about six o'clock from the straw on which we had slept, I and my
+friend F. had a very disagreeable surprise: we heard in the darkness
+the gentle, monotonous noise of water falling drop by drop from the
+pent-house roof on to the road.
+
+Arriving at Pevy the evening before, just before midnight, we had
+found refuge in a house belonging to a peasant. The hostess, a good
+old soul of eighty, had placed at our disposal a small bare room paved
+with tiles, in which our orderlies had prepared a sumptuous bed of
+trusses of straw. The night had been delightful, and we should have
+awaked in good spirits had it not been for the distressing fact
+noticed by my friend.
+
+"It is raining," said F.
+
+I could not but agree with him. Those who have been soldiers, and
+especially cavalrymen, know to the full how dispiriting is the sound
+of those few words: "It is raining."
+
+"It is raining" means your clothes will be saturated; your cloak will
+be drenched, and weigh at least forty pounds; the water will drip from
+your shako along your neck and down your back; above all, your high
+boots will be transformed into two little pools in which your feet
+paddle woefully. It means broken roads, mud splashing you up to the
+eyes, horses slipping, reins stiffened, your saddle transformed into a
+hip-bath. It means that the little clean linen you have brought with
+you--that precious treasure--in your saddlebags, will be changed into
+a wet bundle on which large and indelible yellow stains have been made
+by the soaked leather.
+
+But it was no use to think of all this. The orders ran: "Horses to be
+saddled, and squadron ready to mount, at 6.30." And they had to be
+carried out.
+
+It was still dark. I went out into the yard, after pulling down my
+campaigning cap over my ears. Well, after all, the evil was less than
+I had feared. It was not raining, but drizzling. The air was mild, and
+there was not a breath of wind. When once our cloaks were on it would
+take some hours for the wet to reach our shirts. At the farther end of
+the yard some men were moving about round a small fire. Their shadows
+passed to and fro in front of the ruddy light. They were making
+coffee--_jus_, as they call it--that indispensable ration in which
+they soak bread and make a feast without which they think a man cannot
+be a good soldier.
+
+I ran to my troop through muddy alleys, skipping from side to side to
+avoid the puddles. Daylight appeared, pale and dismal. A faint smell
+rose from the sodden ground.
+
+"Nothing new, _mon Lieutenant_," were the words that greeted me from
+the sergeant, who then made his report. I had every confidence in him;
+he had been some years in the service, and knew his business. Small
+and lean, and tightly buttoned into his tunic, in spite of all our
+trials he was still the typical smart light cavalry non-commissioned
+officer. I knew he had already gone round the stables, which he did
+with a candle in his hand, patting the horses' haunches and looking
+with a watchful eye to see whether some limb had not been hurt by a
+kick or entangled in its tether.
+
+In the large yard of the abandoned and pillaged farm, where the men
+had been billeted they were hurrying to fasten the last buckles and
+take their places in the ranks. I quickly swallowed my portion of
+insipid lukewarm coffee, brought me by my orderly; then I went to get
+my orders from the Captain, who was lodged in the market-square. No
+word had yet been received from the Colonel, who was quartered at the
+farm of Vadiville, two kilometres off. Patience! We had been used to
+these long waits since the army had been pulled up before the
+formidable line of trenches which the Germans had dug north of Reims.
+They were certainly most disheartening; but it could not be helped,
+and it was of no use to complain. I turned and went slowly up the
+steep footpath that led to my billet.
+
+Pevy is a poor little village, clinging to the last slopes of a line
+of heights that runs parallel to the road from Reims to Paris. Its
+houses are huddled together, and seem to be grouped at the foot of the
+ridges for protection from the north wind. The few alleys which
+intersect the village climb steeply up the side of the hill. We were
+obliged to tramp about in the sticky mud of the main road waiting for
+our orders.
+
+Passing the church, it occurred to me to go and look inside. Since the
+war had begun we had hardly had any opportunity of going into the
+village churches we had passed. Some of them were closed because the
+parish priests had left for the army, or because the village had been
+abandoned to the enemy. Others had served as marks for the artillery,
+and now stood in the middle of the villages, ruins loftier and more
+pitiable than the rest.
+
+The church of Pevy seemed to be clinging to the side of the hill, and
+was approached by a narrow stairway of greyish stone, climbing up
+between moss-grown walls. I first passed through the modest little
+churchyard, with its humble tombs half hidden in the grass, and read
+some of the simple inscriptions:
+
+"Here lies ... Here lies ... Pray for him...."
+
+The narrow pathway leading to the porch was almost hidden in the turf,
+and as I walked up it my boots brushed the drops from the grass. The
+damp seemed to be getting into my bones, for it was still drizzling--a
+fine persistent drizzle. Behind me the village was in mist; the roofs
+and the maze of chimney tops were hardly distinguishable.
+
+Passing through a low, dark porch, I opened the heavy door studded
+with iron nails, and entered the church, and at once experienced a
+feeling of relaxation, of comfort and repose. How touching the little
+sanctuary of Pevy seemed to me in its humble simplicity!
+
+Imagine a kind of hall with bare walls, the vault supported by two
+rows of thick pillars. The narrow Gothic windows hardly allowed the
+grey light to enter. There were no horrible cheap modern stained
+windows, but a multitude of small white rectangular leaded panes. All
+this was simple and worn; but to me it seemed to breathe a noble and
+touching poetry. And what charmed me above all was that the pale light
+did not reveal walls covered with the horrible colour-wash we are
+accustomed to see in most of our village churches.
+
+This church was an old one, a very old one. Its style was not very
+well defined, for it had no doubt been built, damaged, destroyed,
+rebuilt and repaired by many different generations. But those who
+preserved it to the present day had avoided the lamentable plastering
+which disfigures so many others. The walls were built with fine large
+stones, on which time had left its melancholy impress. There was no
+grotesque painting on them to mar their quiet beauty, and the dim
+light that filtered through at that early hour gave them a vague soft
+glow.
+
+No pictures or ornaments disfigured the walls. The "Stations of the
+Cross" were the only adornment, and they were so simple and childish
+in their execution that they were no doubt the work of some rustic
+artist. And even this added a touching note to a harmonious whole.
+
+But my attention was attracted by a slight noise, a kind of soft and
+monotonous murmur, coming from the altar. The choir was almost in
+darkness, but I could distinguish the six stars of the lighted
+candles. In front of the tabernacle was standing a large white shadowy
+form, almost motionless and like a phantom. At the bottom of the steps
+another form was kneeling, bowed down towards the floor; it did not
+stir as I approached. I went towards the choir on tip-toe, very
+cautiously. I felt that I, a profane person, was committing a
+sacrilege by coming to disturb those two men praying there all alone
+in the gloom of that sad morning. A deep feeling of emotion passed
+through me, and I felt so insignificant in their presence and in the
+mysterious atmosphere of the place that I knelt down humbly, almost
+timidly, in the shadow of one of the great pillars near the altar.
+
+Then I could distinguish my fellow-worshippers better. A priest was
+saying mass. He was young and tall, and his gestures as he officiated
+were slow and dignified. He did not know that some one was present
+watching him closely; so it could not be supposed that he was speaking
+and acting to impress a congregation, and yet he had a way of
+kneeling, of stretching out his arms and of looking up to the humble
+gilded cross in front of him, that revealed all the ardour of fervent
+prayers. Occasionally he turned towards the back of the church to
+pronounce the ritual words. His face was serious and kindly, framed in
+a youthful beard--the face of an apostle, with the glow of faith in
+his eyes. And I was surprised to see underneath his priest's vestments
+the hems of a pair of red trousers, and feet shod in large muddy
+military boots.
+
+The kneeling figure at the bottom of the steps now stood out more
+distinctly. The man was wearing on his shabby infantry coat the white
+armlet with the red cross. He must have been a priest, for I could
+distinguish some traces of a neglected tonsure among his brown hair.
+
+The two repeated, in a low tone by turns, words of prayer, comfort,
+repentance, or supplication, harmonious Latin phrases, which sounded
+to me like exquisite music. And as an accompaniment in the distance,
+in the direction of Saint Thierry and Berry-au-Bac, the deep voice of
+the guns muttered ceaselessly.
+
+For the first time in the campaign I felt a kind of poignant
+melancholy. For the first time I felt small and miserable, almost a
+useless thing, compared with those two fine priestly figures who were
+praying in the solitude of this country church for those who had
+fallen and were falling yonder under shot and shell.
+
+How I despised and upbraided myself at such moments! What a profound
+disgust I felt for the follies of my garrison life, its gross
+pleasures and silly excesses! I was ashamed of myself when I reflected
+that death brushed by me every day, and that I might disappear to-day
+or to-morrow, after so many ill-spent and unprofitable days.
+
+Without any effort, and almost in spite of myself, pious words came
+back to my lips--those words that my dear mother used to teach me on
+her knee years and years ago. And I felt a quiet delight in the almost
+forgotten words that came back to me:
+
+"Forgive us our trespasses.... Pray for us, poor sinners...."
+
+It seemed to me that I should presently go away a better man and a
+more valiant soldier. And, as though to encourage and bless me, a
+faint ray of sunshine came through the window.
+
+_"Ite, missa est...."_ The priest turned round; and this time I
+thought his eyes rested upon me, and that the look was a benediction
+and an absolution.
+
+But suddenly I heard in the alley close by a great noise of people
+running and horses stamping, and a voice crying:
+
+"Mount horses!... Mount horses!"
+
+I was sorry to leave the little church of Pevy; I should so much have
+liked to wait until those two priests came out, to speak to them, and
+talk about other things than war, massacres and pillage. But duty
+called me to my men, my horses, and to battle.
+
+Shortly afterwards, as I passed at the head of my troop in front of
+the large farm where the ambulance of the division was quartered, I
+saw my abbe coming out of a barn, with his sleeves tucked up and his
+_kepi_ on the side of his head. He was carrying a large pail of milk.
+I recognised his clear look, and had no doubt that he recognised me
+too, for as our eyes met he gave me a kindly smile.
+
+My heart was lighter as I went forward, and my soul was calmer.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+For the last six days we had been quartered at Montigny-sur-Vesle, a
+pretty little village half-way up a hillside on the heights, 20
+kilometres to the west of Reims. There we enjoyed a little rest for
+the first time in the campaign. On our front the struggle was going on
+between the French and German trenches, and the employment of cavalry
+was impossible. All the regiment had to do was to supply daily two
+troops required to ensure the connection between the two divisions of
+the army corps.
+
+What a happiness it was to be able at last to enjoy almost perfect
+rest! What a delight to lie down every evening in a good bed; not to
+get up before seven o'clock; to find our poor horses stabled at last
+on good litter in the barns, and to see them filling out daily and
+getting sleeker!
+
+For our mess we had the good luck to find a most charming and simple
+welcome at the house of good Monsieur Cheveret. That kind old
+gentleman did everything in his power to supply us with all the
+comforts he could dispose of. And he did it all with such good grace
+and such a pleasant smile that we felt at ease and at home at once.
+Madame Cheveret, whom we at once called "Maman Cheveret," was an
+alert little old lady who trotted about all day long in quest of
+things to do for us. She put us up in the dining-room, and helped our
+cook to clean the vegetables and to superintend the joints and sweets.
+For Gosset, the bold Chasseur appointed to preside over our mess
+arrangements, was a professional in the culinary art, and excelled in
+making everything out of nothing; so, with the help of Maman Cheveret,
+he accomplished wonders, and the result of it all was that we began to
+be enervated by the delights of this new Capua. And how thoroughly we
+enjoyed it!
+
+We shared our Eden with two other squadrons of our regiment, a section
+of an artillery park, and a divisional ambulance. We prayed Heaven to
+grant us a long stay in such a haven of repose.
+
+Now one morning, after countless ablutions with hot water and a clean
+shave, I was going, with brilliantly shining boots, down the steep
+footpath which led to the little house of our good Monsieur Cheveret,
+when my attention was drawn to a small white notice posted on the door
+of the church. It ran:
+
+
+         "THIS EVENING AT SIX O'CLOCK,
+   BENEDICTION OF THE MOST HOLY SACRAMENT."
+
+
+It occurred to me at once that this happy idea had been conceived by
+the Chaplain of the Ambulance, for until then the church had been kept
+locked, as the young parish priest had been called up by the
+mobilisation. I made haste to tell our Captain and my comrades the
+good news, and we all determined to be present at the Benediction that
+evening.
+
+At half-past five our ears were delighted by music such as we had not
+been accustomed to hear for a very long time. In the deepening
+twilight some invisible hand was chiming the bells of the little
+church. How deliciously restful they were after the loud roar of the
+cannon and the rattle of the machine-guns! Who would have thought that
+such deep, and also such solemn, notes could come from so small a
+steeple? It stirred the heart and brought tears to the eyes, like
+some of Chopin's music. Those bells seemed to speak to us, they seemed
+to call us to prayer and preach courage and virtue to us.
+
+At the end of the shady walk I was passing down--whose trees formed a
+rustling wall on either side--appeared the little church, with its
+slender steeple. It stood out in clear relief, a dark blue, almost
+violet silhouette against the purple background made by the setting
+sun. Some dark human forms were moving about and collecting around the
+low arched doorway. Perhaps these were the good old women of the
+district who had come to pray in this little church which had remained
+closed to them for nearly two months. I fancied I could distinguish
+them from where I was, dignified and erect in their old-fashioned
+mantles.
+
+But as soon as I got closer to them I found I was mistaken. It was not
+aged and pious women who were hurrying to the church door, but a group
+of silent artillerymen wrapped in their large blue caped cloaks. The
+bells shook out their solemn notes, and seemed to be calling others to
+come too; and I should have been glad if their voices had been heard,
+for I was afraid the Chaplain's appeal would hardly be heeded and that
+the benches of the little church would be three-parts empty.
+
+But on gently pushing the door open I found at once that my fears were
+baseless. The church was in fact too small to hold all the soldiers,
+who had come long before the appointed hour as soon as they heard the
+bells begin. And now that I had no fears about the church being empty
+I wondered how I was going to find a place myself. I stood on the
+doorstep, undecided, on tip-toe, looking over the heads of all those
+standing men to see whether there was any corner unoccupied where I
+could enjoy the beauty of the unexpected sight in peace.
+
+The nave was almost dark. The expense of lighting, had no doubt to be
+considered, for for several days past no candle or taper was to be
+had for money. And no doubt the kindness of a motorist of the Red
+Cross had been appealed to for the supply of all the candles which lit
+up the altar. This was indeed resplendent. The vestry had been
+ransacked for candlesticks, and the tabernacle was surrounded by a
+splendid aureole of light. All this increased the touching impression
+I felt on entering.
+
+Against the brilliant background of the choir stood out the black
+forms of several hundreds of men standing and looking towards the
+altar. Absolute silence reigned over the whole congregation of
+soldiers. And yet no discipline was enforced; there was no superior
+present to impose a show of devotion. Left to themselves, they all
+understood what they had to do. They crowded together, waiting in
+silence and without any impatience for the ceremony to begin.
+
+Suddenly a white figure came towards me through the crowded ranks of
+soldiers. He extended his arms in token of welcome, and I at once
+recognised the Chaplain in his surplice. His face was beaming with
+pleasure, and his eyes shone behind his spectacles. He appeared to be
+supremely happy.
+
+"This way, _Monsieur l'Officier_, this way. I have thought of
+everything. You must have the seat of honour. Follow me."
+
+I followed the holy man, who elbowed a way for me up the crowded
+aisle. He had reserved all the choir-stalls for the officers. Before
+the war they had been occupied, at high mass, by the clergy, the
+choir, and the principal members of the congregation. He proudly
+showed me into one of them, and I felt rather embarrassed at finding
+myself suddenly in a blaze of light between an artillery lieutenant
+and a surgeon-major.
+
+The low vestry door now opened and a very unexpected procession
+appeared. In front of a bearded priest walked four artillerymen in
+uniform. One of them carried a censer, and another the incense-box.
+The other two walked in front of them, arms crossed and eyes front.
+The whole procession knelt before the altar with perfect precision,
+and I saw beneath the priest's vestments muddy gaiters of the same
+kind as those worn by the gunners.
+
+At the same time we heard, quite close to us, strains of music which
+seemed to us celestial. In the dim light I had not noticed the
+harmonium, but now I could distinguish the artist who was enchanting
+us by his skill in drawing sweet sounds from a poor worn instrument.
+He was an artillery captain. At once all eyes were turned towards him;
+we were all enraptured. None of us dared to hope that we should lift
+our voices in the hymns.
+
+The organist seemed unconscious of his surroundings. The candle placed
+near the keyboard cast a strange light upon the most expressive of
+heads. Against the dark background of the church the striking features
+of a noble face were thrown into strong relief: a forehead broad and
+refined, an aristocratic nose, a fair moustache turned up at the ends,
+and, notably, two fine blue eyes, which, without a glance at the
+fingers on the keys, were fixed on the vaulted roof as though seeking
+inspiration there.
+
+The Chaplain, turning to the congregation, then said:
+
+"My friends, we will all join in singing the _O Salutaris_."
+
+The harmonium gave the first notes, and I braced myself to endure the
+dreadful discords I expected from this crowd of soldiers--mostly
+reservists--who, I supposed, had come together that evening mainly out
+of curiosity.
+
+Judge of my astonishment! At first only a few timid voices joined the
+Chaplain's. But after a minute or so a marvel happened. From all those
+chests came a volume of sound such as I could hardly have believed
+possible. Who will say then that our dear France has lost her Faith?
+Who can believe it? Every one of these men joined in singing the hymn,
+and not one of them seemed ignorant of the Latin words. It was a
+magnificent choir, under a lofty vault, chanting with the fervour of
+absolute sincerity. There was not one discordant note, not one voice
+out of tune, to spoil its perfect harmony.
+
+Who can believe that men, many of them more than thirty years old,
+would remember all the words unless they had been brought up in the
+faith of their ancestors and still held it?
+
+I could not help turning to look at them. In the light of the candles
+their faces appeared to be wonderfully transfigured. Not one of them
+expressed irony or even indifference. What a fine picture it would
+have made for a Rembrandt! The bodies of the men were invisible in the
+darkness of the nave, and their heads alone emerged from the gloom.
+The effect was grand enough to fascinate the most sceptical of
+painters; it soothed and charmed one and wiped out all the miseries
+that the war had left in its wake. Men like these would be equal to
+anything, ready for anything; and I myself should much have liked to
+see a Monsieur Homais hidden away in some corner of that church.
+
+Meanwhile the sacred Office was proceeding at the altar. At any other
+time we might have smiled at the sight of that soldier-priest served
+by choristers of thirty-five in uniform; at that ceremony it was
+inexpressibly touching and attractive, and it was especially
+delightful to see how carefully and precisely each performed his
+function that the ceremony might not lack its accustomed pomp.
+
+When the singing had ceased the Chaplain went up to the holy table. In
+a voice full of feeling he tried to express his gratitude and
+happiness to all those brave fellows. I should not imagine him to be a
+brilliant speaker at the best of times, but on that occasion the
+worthy man was completely unintelligible. His happiness was choking
+him. He tried in vain to find the words he wanted, used the wrong
+ones, and only confused himself by trying to get them right. But
+nobody had the least desire to laugh when, to conclude his address, he
+said with a sigh of relief:
+
+"And now we will tell twenty beads of the rosary; ten for the success
+of our arms, and the other ten in memory of soldiers who have died on
+the field of honour.... _Hail! Mary, full of grace_...."
+
+I looked round the church once more, and every one's lips were moving
+silently accompanying the priest's words. Opposite us I saw the
+artillery captain take a rosary out of his pocket and tell the beads
+with dreamy eyes; and when the Chaplain came to the sentence "Holy
+Mary, Mother of God, ..." hundreds of voices burst forth, deep and
+manly voices, full of fervour which seemed to proclaim their faith in
+Him Who was present before them on the altar, and also to promise
+self-sacrifice and devotion to that other sacred thing, their Country.
+
+Then, after the _Tantum ergo_ had been sung with vigour, the priest
+held up the monstrance, and I saw all those soldiers with one accord
+kneel down on the stone floor and bow their heads. The silence was
+impressive; not a word, not a cough, and not a chair moved. I had
+never seen such devotion in any church. Some spiritual power was
+brooding over the assemblage and bowing all those heads in token of
+submission and hope. Good, brave soldiers of France, how we love and
+honour you at such moments, and what confidence your chiefs must feel
+when they lead such men to battle!
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+We sat at table around the lamp, and good Maman Cheveret had just
+brought in the steaming soup. Right away towards the east we heard the
+dull roll of the cannon. Good Monsieur Cheveret had just brought up
+from his cellar a venerable bottle of his best Burgundy, and, at the
+invitation of the Captain, he sat down to drink a glass with us,
+smoking his cherry-wood pipe and listening with delight to our merry
+chat.
+
+Gosset was in his kitchen next door preparing a delicious piece of
+beef _a la mode_ and at the same time telling the admiring Maman
+Cheveret about his exploits of the past month.
+
+We heard the men of the first troop cracking their jokes in the yard
+as they ate their rations and emptied their pannikin of wine under a
+brilliant moon.
+
+Down in the valley on the banks of the murmuring Vesle, songs and
+laughter floated up to us from the artillery park.
+
+And the village itself, shining under the starlit sky, seemed bathed
+in an atmosphere of cheerfulness, courage and confidence.
+
+
+
+
+VI. A TRAGIC NIGHT IN THE TRENCHES
+
+
+
+        _November 3, 1914._
+
+
+Imagine a little tiled room, some 16 feet by 9, in which for over a
+fortnight passing soldiers have been living, sleeping, and eating;
+imagine the furniture overturned, the broken crockery strewn on the
+floor, the doors and drawers of the cupboards pulled out, their modest
+contents scattered to the four corners of the house; add to this
+windows without glass, doors broken in, rubbish of every kind lying
+about, brought no one can tell whence or how; and yet note that one or
+two chromo-lithographs, a few photographs of friends and relatives and
+certain familiar objects, still cling to the walls, evoking the life
+that animated this home but a short time ago, and you will get some
+idea of the place where my Major, my comrades of the squadron and I
+were lodged on that memorable November evening.
+
+It was five o'clock, and night was already falling, the cold, damp,
+misty night of Flanders following on a dreary autumn day. Outside the
+guns were roaring far away. The Battle of the Yser was going on.
+
+Our regiment had just been brought by rail from the Reims district,
+where it was, to the North of France, and thence to Belgium. Our
+chiefs had said: "You must leave your horses, you must forget that you
+ever were cavalrymen, you must make up your minds cheerfully to your
+new calling and become infantrymen for the time being. We are short of
+infantry here, and the Germans are trying to rush Dunkirk and Calais.
+Your country relies upon you to stop them." Our good Chasseurs left
+their horses at Elverdinghe, 10 kilometres from here. They came on
+foot, hampered by their heavy cavalry cloaks, dragging their riding
+boots through the atrocious mud of the ruined roads, carrying in their
+packs, together with their ration of bread and tinned meat, the huge
+load of one hundred and twenty cartridges; they arrived here in the
+firing line, and quite simply, as if they had never been accustomed to
+anything else, did wonders there and then.
+
+Yesterday, I grieve to say, I was not at the head of my troop. I was
+unable to take part in the epic battle round Bixschoote, the poor
+Belgian village which was retaken and then abandoned by us for the
+twentieth time. I was not present at the heroic death of the gallant
+and charming Colonel d'A., of the ---- Chasseurs, the author of those
+heart-stirring pages--and among them "The Charge"--which bring tears
+to the eyes of every cavalryman. He died facing the enemy, leading his
+regiment to the attack under terrific fire, and when his men carried
+him away they ranged themselves round him to make a rampart of their
+bodies for the chief they adored. I was not able to share the danger
+of my young comrade, Second-Lieutenant J., who fell bravely at the
+head of his marksmen, in the middle of my beloved regiment, in which
+fresh gaps have been made by the enemy's bullets. My seniority had
+marked me out as officer of _liaison_ to the General commanding our
+division. But this morning at dawn I came back to take my place in the
+firing line, and I think I shall be able to make up for lost time.
+
+The day has been absolutely quiet, however. After the fighting of the
+day before, and a night of sleeplessness and incessant alarms in the
+trenches, three of our squadrons, mine among them, were relieved
+before dawn and placed in reserve. They found billets in little
+forsaken farms some 600 yards from the firing line. Our men rested as
+well as they could all day, making beds of the scanty supplies of
+straw they found, washing themselves in pools, and renewing their
+strength in order to relieve the troops which had remained in the
+trenches; a squadron of our regiment, a squadron of the ----
+Chasseurs, and a section of infantry Chasseurs.
+
+Seated on a broken box, I was doing my best to write a letter, while
+Major B. and my brother officers O. and F., together with Captain de
+G., of the third squadron, took their seats at a rickety table and
+began a game of bridge. Here, by the way, is a thing passing the
+understanding of the profane, I mean the non-bridge player. This is
+the extraordinary, I might almost say the immoderate, attraction which
+the initiated find in this game, even at the height of a campaign.
+What inexhaustible joys it must offer to make its adepts profit by the
+briefest moments of respite in a battle to settle down anywhere and
+anyhow and give themselves up to their mysterious practices!
+
+I pause for a moment in my letter-writing to enjoy the sight, which
+has its special charm. Two or three kilometres off, towards
+Steenstraate, the cannon were working away furiously, while only a few
+paces from our shanty a section of our 75's was firing incessantly
+over the wood upon Bixschoote; overhead we heard the unpleasant roar
+of the big German shells; and in the midst of the racket I saw my
+bridge players dragging their table over to the broken window. Day was
+dying, and we had not seen a gleam of sunshine since morning. The sky
+was grey--a thick, dirty grey; it seemed to be very low, close upon
+us, and I felt that the night would come by slow degrees without any
+of those admirable symphonies of colour that twilight sometimes brings
+to battlefields, making the combatant feel that he is ending his day
+in apotheosis.
+
+But those four seemed to hear nothing. In the grey light I watched the
+refined profile of the Major bending over the cards just dealt by F.
+He no doubt has to speak first, for the three others looked at him, in
+motionless silence, as if they were expecting some momentous
+utterance. Then suddenly, accompanied by the muffled roar of the
+battle music, the following colloquy took place, a colloquy full of
+traps and ambushes, I suppose, for the four officers cast suspicious
+and inquisitorial glances at each other over their cards:
+
+
+    "One spade."
+    "Two hearts."
+    "Two no trumps."
+    "I double."
+    "Your turn, Major."
+
+
+But all of a sudden paf! paf! The four players had thrown down their
+cards, and we all looked at each other without a word. Suddenly we had
+just heard above us that strange and indefinable crackle made by
+bullets fired at close range as they tear through the air just above
+one. No doubt was possible; something extraordinary was happening near
+the trenches, for the crackling increased mightily, and hundreds and
+hundreds of bullets began to whistle round us. F. sent the table
+rolling to the other end of the room with a kick, and we all rushed
+out after the Major.
+
+There is no more depressing moment in warfare than when one finds
+oneself exposed to violent fire from the enemy without being able to
+see whence it comes, or what troops are firing, and what is its
+objective. Obviously the attack was not directed against us, for
+between the trenches and the houses where we were there was a thick
+wood which entirely concealed us from the sight of the enemy. But on
+the other hand the shots could not have been fired from the trenches
+the Germans had hitherto occupied opposite us, for had they been the
+bullets must have passed high over our heads, and we should have heard
+only the characteristic whistle of shots fired at long range.
+
+For a moment, only a moment, we were full of dread. What had happened?
+What had become of the comrades who were in the firing-line? Grouped
+together in the little enclosure bordered with quick-set hedges where
+there were still traces of what had been the kitchen-garden of our
+farm, we strained our eyes to see without uttering a word. In front of
+us was the dark line of the wood. We scrutinised it sharply, this
+silent mass of trees and bushes on which autumn had already laid the
+most splendid colours of its palette. In spite of the dull light, what
+an admirable background it made to the melancholy picture of the
+devastated landscape! First, quite close to the ground, was a tangle
+of bushes and brambles, its russet foliage forming a kind of
+impenetrable screen, which, in bright sunshine, would have been a
+curtain of purple and gold. Then, pointing up into the misty sky, came
+the denuded trunks of the trees, surrounded by a maze of myriads of
+delicate branches, their ramifications stretching a violet-tinted veil
+across the sky. In spite of the tragic present I could not but admire
+the marvellous setting Nature offered for the drama in which we were
+destined to be the actors.
+
+The bullets continued their infernal music, whistling in thousands
+over our heads. At the same time the fire of the German mortars
+redoubled in intensity, and their great "coal-boxes" (big shells)
+burst with a deafening din a few hundred yards behind us, seeking to
+silence our guns. These, concealed in a hollow, answered vigorously.
+
+But what did it all mean? What was happening? We longed to shout, to
+call, to implore some one to answer us, to tell us what had been
+taking place behind the thick curtain of the wood. But the curtain
+remained impenetrable.
+
+In the few seconds we spent below that deserted house in the little
+trampled garden-close, under the rain of bullets that was falling
+around us, one dread oppressed us, and lay so heavy on our hearts that
+it made us dumb and incapable of exchanging our thoughts, or, rather,
+the one thought that haunted us all. "What has become of the second
+squadron? What has become of our Colonel, who had stayed in command?
+What has become of all our dear fellows there on the other side of the
+wood?" Uncertainty is indeed the worst of all miseries, because it
+makes its victims believe and imagine every horror.
+
+From our post we could see at the windows and doors of the little
+houses scattered among the fields the anxious and inquiring faces of
+our men. They, too, were tortured by uncertainty. They stood huddled
+together, looking in our direction, waiting for a sign or an order.
+
+Suddenly our doubts were dissipated.
+
+"To arms!" cried our Major, in a ringing voice that echoed above the
+crackling of the bullets and was heard by the whole squadron.
+
+He had no need to repeat the order. In the twinkling of an eye my
+troop had formed behind me, in squads. My men waited in absolute
+silence, their eyes fixed upon me, kneeling on one knee, and leaning
+on their rifles. I seemed to hear all their hearts beating in unison
+with mine; and knew their wills ready to second mine.
+
+The Major gave the word of command. We disposed our men in skirmishing
+order in the ditch of the road that passed in front of our farm,
+parallel with the skirts of the wood. Our squadrons thus formed a line
+of from 300 to 400 yards, capable of holding the enemy in check for
+some time, if they had succeeded in taking our trenches and were
+already pushing through the thicket. Kneeling on the road behind them,
+I looked at my men. They were lying flat on the ground on the slope of
+the ditch; they had loaded their rifles, and I could not distinguish
+the slightest trace of fear or even of emotion in any one of them.
+
+They were all looking straight before them trying to see whether some
+helmeted soldier were emerging from the bushes in the gathering
+shadow. What splendid soldiers the war has fashioned for us! They are
+no longer merely the diligent and conscientious cavalrymen we took
+pleasure in commanding, and whose smartness we admired in peace time.
+The stern experience of the battlefield has hardened, strengthened and
+ennobled them. Their faces are manlier; their discipline, far from
+relaxing, has become more thorough; their courage has developed, and,
+in most of them, now verges on temerity.
+
+I have had two new men in my troop for a short time: Ladoucette and
+Roger. They are Territorials, men of from thirty-eight to forty, who,
+wearying of the depot and envying their juniors in the field, asked
+and obtained leave to rejoin the regiment at the Front. They
+fascinated me at once by their high spirits, their jovial chaff, and
+the cheerfulness with which they undertook the most laborious tasks.
+But I had not yet seen them under fire.
+
+I looked about for them in the line of skirmishers. I tried to
+distinguish them among all the backs and necks lying before me. And I
+very soon guessed that they were at the extreme right of the troop,
+for I heard smothered laughter at that corner; evidently Ladoucette
+was cracking some of the highly-spiced jokes characteristic of him.
+Yes, I saw his head lifted above the grass on the slope, his bristling
+moustache, his brilliant eyes, and sarcastic mouth. I could not hear
+what he was saying, for the firing was still furious, but I saw from
+the smiling faces of his neighbours that he had, as usual, found the
+right word for the occasion, the word that provokes laughter under
+bullet fire and makes men forget danger. Not far from him his
+inseparable chum, Roger, guffawed appreciatively, and seemed to be
+enjoying himself thoroughly. I rejoiced to think that I had got two
+first-rate recruits, worthy to fight side by side with the fine
+fellows of my brave troop.
+
+Suddenly a dark figure emerged from the wood, then two more, then
+another three, then more. Was it the enemy? Without waiting for the
+word of command some of the men pointed their rifles at the mysterious
+shadows running in single file towards us.
+
+
+        "Don't fire! Don't fire!"
+
+
+We had, fortunately, recognised the uniform of our infantry Chasseurs.
+But this increased rather than allayed our anxiety. We naturally
+imagined the direst catastrophes and feared the most terrible
+consequences when we saw those in whom we had trusted, those who
+occupied the trenches nearest to Bixschoote, beating a retreat. The
+first of the fugitives came up to us. They seemed completely
+demoralised. Haggard, ragged, and black with dust, they crossed the
+road at a run. We tried in vain to stop them. As they passed us they
+shouted something unintelligible, of which we could catch nothing but
+the words:
+
+"They're coming, ... they're coming."
+
+Together with O., I succeeded in stopping two men, who were going
+along less rapidly, supporting a wounded comrade who was groaning and
+dragging himself on one leg.
+
+"Our flank was turned; there are thousands of them. They came through
+the village and enfiladed us. We had a great many killed ... our
+officer wounded. We must get back further to the rear."
+
+As they went off haltingly with their comrade, whose groans were
+pitiable to hear, the tall figure of a lieutenant of foot Chasseurs
+rose suddenly before us. He looked like a ghost, and for a moment we
+thought he was about to fall, an exhausted mass, at our feet. His face
+was covered with blood. The red mask in which the white of the eyes
+formed two brilliant spots was horrible to see. His torn tunic and all
+his clothing were saturated with blood. He was gesticulating wildly
+with the revolver he clutched in his hands, and seemed absolutely
+distraught.
+
+As he passed the Major seized him by the arm:
+
+"Halt! halt! Look here, you must rally your men. We can put up a good
+defence here."
+
+The officer wrenched himself free, and went off with hasty strides,
+calling to us without turning his head:
+
+"I know what I must do.... We can't hold a line here.... I am going to
+form up by the artillery."
+
+Two more men came by, depressed and silent, bent down by the weight of
+their knapsacks. They crossed the ditches by the roadside with
+difficulty, and were presently lost to sight in the fields amidst the
+gathering shadows.
+
+There was no laughter now in our ranks. The same thought was in every
+mind, the same despair chilled every heart. The Germans must have
+taken our trenches, and our brave comrades had all chosen to die
+rather than to retreat. And the enemy must be there before us, in that
+wood; they must be stealing up to us noiselessly. I fancied I could
+see them, gliding from tree to tree, holding their rifles high, trying
+to deaden the sound of their footsteps among the dead leaves.
+Presently they would reach the dark line that stretched before us,
+mute and mysterious; they would mass their dense reserves in the rear,
+and suddenly thousands of lightning flashes would illuminate the
+fringe of the thicket. I looked at my men again. There was no sign of
+wavering; not a word was spoken; their faces looked a little pale in
+the waning light. Above us thousands of shells and bullets filled the
+air with their strange and terrible music.
+
+A man came out of the wood and walked quietly towards us. It was not
+light enough to distinguish his uniform, but his calm and placid
+bearing was in marked contrast to that of the infantry Chasseurs. He
+must have recognised the little group formed by the Major, my
+comrades, and myself in the middle of the road, for he made straight
+for us.
+
+When he got to within twenty paces of us we recognised to our joy
+Sergeant Madelin, a non-commissioned officer of our second squadron,
+the squadron that had stayed in the trenches with the Colonel and the
+machine-gun section. I cannot describe the relief we felt at the sight
+of him. Though we could not tell what he was going to say, his
+attitude dispelled our fears at once. He gazed at us with wide
+astonished eyes from under the peak of his shako, and came on quietly,
+as if he were taking a walk, his hands in his pockets, murmuring in a
+tone of stupefaction:
+
+"What on earth is the matter?"
+
+"Well, really, this is a little too much!" exclaimed the Major;
+"that's just what _we_ want _you_ to tell _us_!"
+
+"But I have nothing to tell you, Major. The trench of the infantry
+Chasseurs was taken. We are all right. But the Colonel has sent me to
+say that there are signs of a German counter-attack on the left, and
+he wants you to reinforce him on that side with your three
+squadrons."
+
+He spoke so calmly and with such an air of astonishment that we all
+felt inclined to laugh. Madelin had already given proof of his
+courage, he had even been mentioned in orders for his valour, but we
+had never seen him so placidly good-humoured under fire as on this
+occasion. All our fears were at once put to flight, and we thought
+only of one thing; to fly to the help of our comrades and win our
+share of glory.
+
+
+        "Forward!"
+
+
+The officers had advanced in front of the line of skirmishers. All the
+men sprang up in an instant, and the three squadrons dashed forward
+full speed.
+
+But at the exact moment when our men, springing out of the ditches,
+began their advance towards the wood, the enemy's artillery,
+shortening its range, began to pour a perfect hail of shrapnel on our
+line. It was now almost pitch dark, and there was something infernal
+in the scene. The shells were bursting at a considerable height above
+us, some in front, some behind. They made a horrible kind of music.
+There must have been at least two batteries at work upon us, for we
+could no longer distinguish even the three characteristic shots of the
+German batteries in _rafale_ fire. The noise was incessant, and each
+shell as it burst illumined a small section of the battlefield for a
+second. It just showed a tree trunk, a bit of wall, a strip of hedge,
+and then the darkness fell again over this point, while another was
+illuminated by the crash of a new explosion.
+
+At one moment a sudden horror gripped me. To my left a shrapnel shell
+fell full on the line of the third squadron. This time the flash of
+the explosion had not only lighted up a corner of landscape; I had had
+a glimpse of a terrible sight.
+
+You must imagine the intense and rapid light cast by a burning
+magnesium wire, accompanied by a deafening noise, and in this brief
+light the figures of several men, weirdly illuminated, in the
+attitudes induced by the terror of certain death, and you will get a
+faint impression of what I saw. Then, suddenly, everything fell back
+into darkness, a darkness that seemed more intense than before after
+the glare of the explosion. I dimly discerned bodies on the ground,
+and shadows bending over them.
+
+I did not stop, but I heard the voice of the Major calmly giving
+orders:
+
+
+        "Pick him up! Gently...."
+
+
+But the wounded man shrieked, refusing to allow himself to be touched;
+his limbs, no doubt, were shattered. No matter! Forward! Forward! We
+rushed on towards the wood, where we hoped to get some protection from
+the avalanche of shells. A voice called out names behind me:
+
+"Corporal David killed! Sergeant Flosse wounded; leg broken."
+
+My men were running forward so impetuously that presently they were on
+a level with me. What fine fellows! I half regretted that some hostile
+troop was not waiting for us ambushed in the wood. We might have had a
+splendid fight! But would there have been a fight at all? Would the
+Prussians have ventured to measure themselves against these
+dare-devils, whom danger excites instead of depressing? Well, we were
+at the edge of the wood at last, waiting till the Major came up with
+us.
+
+Leaning against the trees, my Chasseurs took breath after their race.
+I passed swiftly along the line to make sure that all my men were
+safe. They were all there, and I was relieved to find that I had no
+losses to deplore. The joys and sorrows of war had forged a bond
+between us that nothing could break. I had soon learnt to know each
+one of them, with his virtues and his faults, and I felt them to be,
+without exception, worthy fellows and brave soldiers. Each time death
+struck down one of them, I suffered as at the loss of a beloved
+brother, and I believe they repaid my affection for them by perfect
+trust.
+
+The Major had now rejoined us. We were not to lose a moment in
+responding to our Colonel's summons, and we were to remember that our
+comrades of the second squadron were bearing the brunt of the enemy's
+attack alone.
+
+
+        "Forward!"
+
+
+We resumed our headlong advance. It was more difficult in the darkness
+of the wood than on the soft earth of the fields. We stumbled over
+roots, and got entangled in brambles; men fell, picked themselves up
+again, and went on with an oath. There was no more chaff; all minds
+were strung up to fever pitch, and strength was giving out, while the
+storm of shrapnel continued overhead, cropping the branches, and
+lighting up the tangle of leafless trees and bushes at intervals as if
+with fireworks.
+
+Suddenly I heard on my right, not far behind me, screams and calls for
+help, rising above the turmoil of battle. I saw my men stop for a
+moment, looking round. But they hurried on again at my orders without
+a word.
+
+
+        "Forward!"
+
+
+Time was precious. Every minute might be fatal to our brothers in
+arms. We could now hear the familiar sound of our cavalry carbines
+quite close to us. We were approaching the trenches where the second
+squadron was making its heroic stand.
+
+
+        "Forward! Forward!"
+
+
+We were all breathless from our frantic rush. But no one thought of
+slackening speed. I turned round to some one who was trotting behind
+me. It was my non-commissioned officer. Without a moment's loss of
+time he had run to see what had caused the cries we had heard, and now
+he had come back at the double to report to me.
+
+"Sir, in the third troop, Sergeant Lagaraldi...."
+
+"Well?"
+
+"He's killed, ... and Corporal Durand too!"
+
+"Ah!"
+
+"And there are many wounded."
+
+I made no answer. Oh! it was horrible! Two poor fellows so full of
+life and spirits not an hour ago! In spite of myself I could not help
+thinking for a few minutes of the two shattered, quivering bodies
+lying among the grasses of the forest. But I thrust away the gruesome
+vision resolutely. We could only think of doing our duty at this
+supreme moment. Later we would remember the dead, weep for them, and
+pray for them.
+
+The darkness was no longer so dense. The tangle of trees in front of
+us was less thick, the branches seemed to be opening out, we were near
+the edge of the wood. And at the same time, in spite of the mad
+beating of my heart and the buzzing in my ears, I was conscious that
+the cannonade had ceased, at least in our direction, and that the
+bullets were no longer coming so thickly. The German attack was
+probably relaxing; there was to be a respite. So much the better! It
+would enable us to pass from the wood to the trenches without much
+danger, thanks to the darkness.
+
+We had arrived! One by one our men slipped into the communication
+trench. What a sense of well-being and of rest we all had! The little
+passage in the earth, so uninviting as a rule, seemed to us as
+desirable as the most sumptuous palace. We drew breath at last. We
+felt almost safe. But still, there was no time to be lost.
+
+While the Major hurried off to take the Colonel's orders I climbed up
+on the parapet. Night had now fallen completely, but the moon was
+rising. Indeed, it would have been almost as light as day but for a
+slight mist which was spreading a diaphanous veil before our eyes. In
+the foreground to the right I could barely guess the dim outline of
+the battered mill and the burnt farm flanking the trench occupied by
+the foot Chasseurs. Further off, however, I could vaguely distinguish
+the row of trees that marked the first line of German trenches, about
+250 yards away from us. To the left the mist had a reddish tinge. No
+doubt yet another house was burning in the unhappy village of
+Bixschoote.
+
+There was a sudden silence in this little corner of the great
+battlefield, as if our arrival in the firing line had been a
+prearranged signal. On our right, too, the intensity of the fire upon
+the trenches occupied by the ---- Territorials diminished. To the
+left, on the other hand, the gun fire and rifle fire were incessant
+in the direction of the bridge of Steenstraate, defended by the ----
+Brigade of mounted Chasseurs. It seemed evident that the Germans,
+having failed in their attempt to cross the Yser canal near us, were
+making a fresh effort further to the north. However, it is not safe to
+rely too absolutely even upon the most logical deductions, for very
+often the event upsets the most careful calculations and frustrates
+the wisest plans.
+
+The moon was now shining with extraordinary brilliance, and the fog,
+far from veiling its lustre, seemed to make it more disconcerting.
+Persons assumed strange forms and the shapes of things were modified
+or exaggerated. Our dazzled eyes were mocked by depressing
+hallucinations; the smallest objects took on alarming proportions, and
+whenever a slight breeze stirred the foliage of the beetroot field in
+front of us we imagined we saw a line of snipers advancing.
+
+I had great difficulty in preventing my men from firing. It was
+necessary to eke out our cartridges with the utmost care, for, owing
+to some mistake in the transmission of orders, our supplies had not
+been replenished since the day before, and we had used a great many in
+the fighting round Bixschoote. A like prudence was not, however,
+observed all along the line, for every now and then the trenches would
+be suddenly illuminated at a point where for a few seconds a useless
+volley would ring out. Then everything relapsed into darkness and
+immobility.
+
+Towards Steenstraate, too, the firing seemed to be dying down. I
+looked at my watch. It was half-past six. This was the hour when as a
+rule our men began to feel hungry, and when in each troop the
+Chasseurs would set out, pannikin in hand, towards the smoking
+saucepan where the cook awaited them wielding his ladle with an
+important air. But on this particular evening no one thought of
+eating. We seemed all to feel that our work was not yet over, and that
+we had still a weighty task on hand. It was certainly not the moment
+to light fires and make soup; no doubt the Prussians were brewing
+something for us of a different kind, and it would never do not to
+return their compliments promptly.
+
+Ready? Yes, we were ready. I turned and looked back into the trench.
+All my brave fellows were standing, their eyes turned to me, and
+seemed bent on divining by my attitude or gestures any new effort I
+might be about to ask of them. The pale light of the moonbeams struck
+full on their faces, leaving their bodies shrouded in the darkness of
+the trench. What a strange and comforting spectacle it was! In every
+eye I read calm courage and absolute confidence.
+
+Whenever I feel weary or depressed, inclined to curse the slowness of
+our advance and the thousand miseries of war, I need only do what I
+did that evening. I need only turn to my Chasseurs and look into their
+eyes without a word; there I read so many noble and touching things
+that I am ashamed to have felt a momentary weakness.
+
+They do not ask the why and the wherefore of things. They live from
+day to day, weighed down by hard work. To them the actual fighting is
+a rest and a delight. As soon as it is over they have to resume the
+hard life of cavalrymen on active service, spend all their time
+looking after their horses, fetching rations and forage, often from a
+considerable distance, cleaning harness and arms, and every night
+contriving some sort of quarters for themselves and their beasts in
+the squalor of half-destroyed or abandoned villages, quarters they
+must leave on the morrow. Yet nothing seems to depress them. They
+preserve all the eagerness of the first few days and that imperishable
+French gaiety which is an additional weapon for our troops.
+
+That evening I felt them vibrating in unison with me more keenly than
+ever.
+
+There was little doubt that I should have to appeal to their courage
+again presently, for something unusual was happening in front of us.
+It was maddening not to be able to pierce the luminous mist, behind
+which the enemy would be able to form up and take new positions
+without our knowledge. Down behind the line of willows we could now
+barely distinguish, we were aware of mysterious sounds, making a kind
+of distant murmur. They must come from the rattle of arms, orders
+given in whispers, footsteps slipping on the fat soil of plough-lands.
+Listening heads craned over our parapets. Each man was trying to hear,
+to understand, to see, and to divine, and each felt intuitively that
+the enemy was about to renew his assault. The most absolute silence
+and the most impressive calm reigned in our trenches. Yes, we were
+ready for them! Let them come!
+
+Then suddenly from the enemy's camp there rose a solemn, harmonious
+hymn sung by hundreds of manly voices. We could not distinguish the
+words uttered in the barbarian tongue. But the music was perfectly
+audible, and I must confess that nothing caused me so much surprise
+throughout this eventful evening. With what ardour and unanimity, and
+also, I am bound to admit, with what art, these men proclaimed their
+faith before rushing on death! One could imagine no more magnificent
+temple for the prayers of soldiers about to offer up their lives than
+the spacious firmament above and the luminous night around. We
+listened, touched and delighted. The hymn continued for some time, and
+the music seemed to me noble and inspiring; the voices were true and
+the execution admirable. But, above all, the singing conveyed a
+disturbing impression of disciplined and ordered piety. To what
+lengths these men carry their love of command and obedience!
+
+Suddenly the hymn broke off abruptly in a formidable uproar, above
+which rose thousands of voices shouting:
+
+"Hurrah! Hurrah! Cavalry! Cavalry!"
+
+Then, dominating the tumult, we heard their trumpets sounding the
+short, monotonous notes of the Prussian charge.
+
+I leaped back into the trench.
+
+
+        "Independent fire!"
+
+
+The whole French line burst into a violent and deafening fusillade.
+Each man seemed full of blind rage, of an exasperated lust for
+destruction. I saw them take aim rapidly, press the trigger, and
+reload in feverish haste. I was deafened and bewildered by the
+terrible noise of the firing in the narrow confines of the trench. To
+our left, the machine-gun section of my friend F. kept up an infernal
+racket.
+
+But the German line had suddenly dropped to the ground. I could barely
+distinguish a swarm of grey shadows running about in the fog. Then not
+a single dark figure was visible on the pale background of the tragic
+scene. How many of the bodies we could no longer make out must have
+been lying lifeless, and how horrible their proximity must have been
+to the living stretched side by side with them!
+
+Our men had ceased firing of their own accord, and a strange silence
+had succeeded to the deafening din. What was about to happen? Would
+they dare to come on again? We hoped so with all our hearts, for we
+felt that if we could keep our men in hand, and prevent them from
+firing at random, the enemy could never get at us. But, above all, it
+was essential to economise our ammunition, for if we were short of
+cartridges, what resistance could we offer to a bayonet charge with
+our little carbines reduced to silence?
+
+The Germans must have been severely shaken, for they seemed afraid to
+resume the attack. Nothing was moving in the bare plain that stretched
+before us. During this respite an order came from the officer in
+command, passing from mouth to mouth:
+
+"Hand it on: No firing without the word of command."
+
+Then silence fell on our trenches, heavy and complete as on the
+landscape before us. Suddenly, on the place where the enemy's riflemen
+had thrown themselves on the ground, we saw a slim shadow rise and
+stand. The man had got up quietly, as if no danger threatened him.
+And, in spite of everything, it was impossible not to admire the
+gallantry of his act. He stood motionless for a second, leaning on his
+sword or a stick; then he raised his arm slowly, and a hoarse voice
+yelled:
+
+
+        "_Auf!_" [Up!]
+
+
+Other voices repeated the word of command, and were answered by
+renewed "hurrahs!" Then the heavy line of riflemen sprang up and again
+rushed towards us:
+
+
+        "Fire! Fire!"
+
+
+Once more our trenches belched forth their infernal fire. We could now
+plainly see numbers of them fall; then they suddenly threw themselves
+on the ground just as before. But instead of crouching motionless
+among the beetroot they began to answer our fire. Innumerable bullets
+whistled about us. I noted with joy that my men remained perfectly
+steady; they were aiming and firing deliberately, whereas at other
+points the fusillade was so violent that it cannot have been
+efficacious. I was very glad not to have to reprove my brave
+Chasseurs, for the uproar was so terrific that my voice would not have
+carried beyond the two men nearest to me. I calculated the number of
+cartridges each of them must have in reserve; twenty-five, perhaps
+thirty. How would it all end? I was just thinking of ordering my troop
+to cease firing, in order to reserve my ammunition for a supreme
+effort, if this should be necessary.
+
+But something happened which checked this decision. F.'s machine-guns
+must have worked fearful havoc among our assailants, for suddenly,
+without a cry and without an order, we saw them rise and make off
+quickly right and left in the fog.
+
+
+        "Silence!"
+
+
+I was obliged to intervene to subdue the joyous effervescence caused
+in my troop. The men began to discuss their impressions in tones of
+glee that might have become dangerous. Ladoucette's voice was heard,
+as usual, above the din, calling upon his absent wife to admire his
+exploits:
+
+"Madame Ladoucette, if you could have seen that!"
+
+But we had to be on the _qui vive_. The German attack had been
+checked, but it might be renewed.
+
+We were fully alive to the courage and tenacity of our enemies.
+
+I could distinguish nothing ahead in the increasingly thick white fog.
+All I could hear was the sound of pickaxes on the ground and the thud
+of falling clods. The enemy had, no doubt, decided not to attack again
+and were digging new trenches. They no longer uttered their
+contemptuous guttural cries of "Cavalry! Cavalry!" They had learnt to
+their cost that these French cavalrymen, at the sight of whom their
+own are so ready to turn back, could hold their own equally well
+against German infantry. I thought we might count on a little respite.
+The battlefield was silent, save for the faint cries occasionally
+uttered by the wounded.
+
+I hastily detached two troopers to man the listening-posts, and they
+slipped away silently. Then, as our Captain had unfortunately been
+summoned to Elverdinghe that day on special duty, I went to look for
+the Major to make my report to him. My men had seated themselves on
+the rough ledges cut in the slope of the trench, their carbines
+between their knees, and were talking together in low tones. As I
+passed a friendly smile lit up their faces. I walked slowly along the
+narrow trench, careful not to tread on the feet of the talkers.
+
+As I approached a point where the trench, following the direction of
+the wood, formed an abrupt angle, I heard two familiar voices
+exchanging the following words:
+
+
+        "Fifty-two!... Tierce major...; three aces!"
+        "Capital!"
+
+
+This was really the limit! I turned the corner and came upon Major B.
+and F. seated on the ledge, quietly playing cards by the brilliant
+moonlight. As their tiny retreat could not accommodate four players,
+they were solacing themselves with a game of piquet.
+
+Oh, all you who are of necessity far from the scene of conflict, good
+Frenchmen and valiant Frenchwomen, how I should have liked you to see
+this picture! No doubt you often wonder whether those who are
+defending your homes against the accursed invader will be able to bear
+the sufferings of this war to the bitter end; you fear that they may
+be losing their good humour and their dashing spirits; you imagine
+them brooding with careworn faces and anxious souls when, the
+excitement of the encounter dying down, they think of what the morrow
+may bring forth. How I wish you could have seen Major B. and the
+gallant Lieutenant F. playing piquet in the trench where they had just
+repulsed a furious German attack, which might have been renewed at any
+moment!
+
+I left them to go on with their game, and went in search of my comrade
+O. I found him in the middle of his troop, talking amicably with his
+men. After the enemy had ceased firing he had sent a party of sappers
+to dig the graves of the two non-commissioned officers who had fallen
+in the wood. We retired into a corner of the trench, and there he told
+me of the grief he felt at this loss, a grief he was doing his best to
+hide, so as not to injure the _moral_ of his troop. Lagaraldi had
+just got his promotion, and was a soldier of the highest promise;
+Durand was the model corporal, clean, cheerful, and active. And, even
+if they had been but mediocre troopers, I knew too well what we
+officers feel when we lose even a passable Chasseur, to wonder at the
+melancholy of my charming young comrade.
+
+Time went on, and there were no signs of a fresh attack. The enemy's
+artillery seemed to be neglecting us, and to be bent upon the
+destruction of the Boesinghe bridge, by which we had crossed the Yser.
+His great shells flew over our heads with a sinister roar, and a few
+seconds later we heard the explosion far behind us. The German
+trenches in front of us were silent. A single shot fired at intervals
+alone reminded us that they were not forsaken.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, it's all ready."
+
+A corporal had come out of the wood to tell O. that the graves were dug.
+When we had sent word to our chiefs, and placed our non-commissioned
+officers in temporary command, our strange, sad procession of mourners
+left the trenches and slipped through the thicket in single file. There
+were four officers, the Lieutenant-Colonel, Major B., O., and myself and
+four non-commissioned officers. It would have been dangerous to deplete
+the firing line further.
+
+With heavy hearts we retraced our steps through the wood we had so
+lately passed through in all the exaltation of our advance. We knew
+the moral anguish we were about to feel in rendering this last service
+to our young brothers-in-arms. It was unhappily by no means the first
+time we had held such a ceremony, but never had I been present at one
+in such tragic circumstances, nor in such impressive surroundings. We
+hurried along, almost running in our anxiety to return quickly to our
+men. The branches caught at us and slashed our faces, the dead leaves
+and twigs crackled under our tread. Above us the shells still sang
+their funeral song.
+
+We had now come in sight of the burial-ground. In the moonlight, at
+the edge of the wood close to the spot where our gallant fellows had
+fallen, we could distinguish newly-dug earth, and four silent men
+standing beside it, their tunics thrown off, leaning on spade and
+pickaxe. It was there.
+
+In a little ravaged garden-plot, at the foot of great trees which
+would guard these graves, they had dug two holes, which, by night,
+looked extraordinarily deep and dark.
+
+Ought we to lament or to envy the touching and simple burial rite of
+soldiers? To me, nothing could be more beautiful than such a last
+resting-place. Why should we desire richer tombs, sepulchral stones,
+and sculptured monuments? We are all equal upon that field of death,
+the battlefield at the close of day. And there can be no fitter shroud
+for him who has fallen on that field than his soldier's cloak. A
+little earth that will be grass-grown and flower-spangled again in the
+spring, a simple cross of rough wood, a name, a regimental number, a
+date--all this is better than the most splendid obsequies. And what
+can be more touching than the poor little bunches of wild flowers
+which the friends of the dead gather on the banks of ditches, and
+which are to be seen days afterwards, faded and yet so fair, hanging
+on the humble crosses? Such was to be the portion of Lagaraldi and
+Durand. Why should we pity them? We will weep for them, we will not
+pity them.
+
+They were there, lying side by side in their cloaks, the turned-up
+capes of which shrouded their heads, and we bared our own in silence.
+Each of us, consciously or unconsciously, breathed a prayer, each set
+his teeth and tried to restrain his tears.
+
+But we were not destined to pray in peace to the end. At the moment
+when the Lieutenant-Colonel was about to express our sorrow and
+pronounce the last farewell the enemy's mortars, suddenly changing
+their objective, began to bombard the part of the wood on the edge of
+which we were standing.
+
+What was their idea? Did they think our reserves were massed in the
+wood? However this may have been, a formidable avalanche descended
+above and around us. The first salvo literally cleared the wood close
+by us. A great tree, cut through the middle, bent over for an instant
+and then rolled gently to the ground with a great crackling of broken
+boughs. At the same time the German bullets began to whistle round us
+by thousands, apparently determined to draw us into their frenzied
+saraband. Death seemed for a moment inevitable. We could not hesitate;
+we had to take cover, or to be mown down by shot or shell.
+
+Then--I shall remember the gruesome moment to my dying hour--we all
+leaped into the only available shelter--crouching together in the
+newly-dug graves. We were just in time.
+
+Bullets flew past us; the great "coal-boxes" burst without
+intermission. The uproar was tremendous, beyond anything we had ever
+heard. It would be impossible to describe the horror of those minutes.
+Those graves, all too spacious for the poor bodies we were about to
+commit to them, were too small to shelter us. We pressed one against
+the other in the strangest positions, hiding our heads between the
+shoulders of those who were lying in front of us; we thought every
+moment that the network of projectiles would be drawn more tightly
+round us, and that one would fall into our holes, transforming them
+into a ghastly charnel-house.
+
+This idea occurred to me suddenly and obsessed me. Yes, yes, presently
+the great snorting, whistling, pitiless thing would fall between O.
+and me. We should feel nothing; there would be no pain. We should be
+only a little heap of bloody clay, and to-morrow at daybreak our
+comrades would but have to throw a few spadefuls of earth upon it.
+They would put a plain wooden cross above, with our names and ranks,
+the number of our regiment, a date: "November 3, 1914." And it would
+be better than any sumptuous monument.
+
+
+        "Hush! Listen!"
+
+
+Between two explosions, in spite of the noise of the German bullets,
+we distinctly heard the crack of our carbines.
+
+
+        "Our men are fighting!"
+
+
+We all understood, and with one bound we were up and running
+frantically through the wood. How was it that none of us were killed?
+How did we manage to escape the shells and bullets which were cropping
+the branches and felling the trees around us? I shall never understand
+or forget this experience.
+
+When at last we sprang breathless into our trench after what had
+seemed an interminable race, the tumult had died down again and only
+occasional shots broke the nocturnal calm. The reason of the sudden
+renewal of the fighting was given at once by F.
+
+"Bravo!" he cried; "we have retaken the infantry Chasseurs' trench!"
+
+This was a great consolation to us, for we were all full of regret at
+the loss of this little piece of ground. It had prevented us from
+feeling quite satisfied with our day.
+
+Now all was well. Our task was accomplished.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+On the following day, November 4, at three in the morning, a battalion
+of the ---- Regiment of the Line came to relieve us. It formed part
+of that glorious 20th Corps, which has covered itself with glory ever
+since the beginning of the war, and fought all along the front from
+Lorraine to Flanders, always arriving at the moment when picked men
+were needed to make a last desperate effort. It had come up that
+evening, and was at once on the spot.
+
+In the cold, luminous night, the heavily laden infantrymen defiled
+into the narrow trench, calm, silent, and serious.
+
+The officer who was to take my place presented himself smartly, as if
+on the parade-ground.
+
+"Lieutenant X."
+
+I gave my name.
+
+"My dear fellow," he said, "I am delighted to shake hands with you.
+Allow me to say how much we all admire your regiment. Your General has
+just told us how your Chasseurs have behaved. Accept my
+congratulations. We could not have done better ourselves. The cavalry
+is certainly taking first place as a fighting force. Your regiment is
+to be mentioned in despatches, and you deserve it. Good-night. Good
+luck!"
+
+"Thank you! Good luck!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Once more we passed through the wood to take up our position in
+reserve. Our men were beginning to feel the fatigue of those two days
+without sleep and almost without rest.
+
+But joy, stronger than bodily fatigue, predominated. It hovered over
+our harassed troops. Above all, they were proud of having been
+appreciated and congratulated by their brothers-in-arms of the crack
+corps which is the admiration of the whole army.
+
+Each man forgot his tortured nerves, his aching head, his weary legs,
+repeating to himself the magic words:
+
+"Your regiment is to be mentioned in despatches!"
+
+
+
+
+VII. SISTER GABRIELLE
+
+
+It was a very dark night. How were we to find our way about the little
+unknown town of Elverdinghe, near which our regiment had just been
+quartered? We could hardly make out the low houses with closed windows
+and long roofs of thatch or slate, and kept stumbling on the greasy
+and uneven cobble-stones. Now and again the corner of a street or the
+angle of a square was lit up dimly by a ray of light filtering through
+half-closed shutters. I went along haphazard, preceded by my friend B.
+We were quite determined to find beds, and to sleep in peace.
+
+After our four days' fighting near Bixschoote we had been sent to the
+rear, ten kilometres away from the line of fire, to get twenty-four
+hours' rest; had arrived at nightfall, and found much difficulty in
+putting up our men and horses in the small farms around the town. But
+no sooner had they all found places, no sooner had the horses got
+their nose-bags on and the kitchen fires been lighted, than B., who
+was always anxious about the comforts of his board and lodging, said
+to me:
+
+"There is only one thing for us to do. We are to rest. We must find a
+bed and a well-furnished table. I had rather go to bed an hour later,
+and sleep between sheets after a good meal, than lie down at once on
+straw with an empty stomach. Listen to me. Let us go on to that nice
+Belgian town over there, only a few steps farther. It is hardly ten
+o'clock. It will be devilish bad luck if we can't find a good supper
+and good quarters. We need not trouble about anything else. Let us
+think first of serious matters."
+
+So we started for the little town which seemed to be wrapped in sleep.
+We knocked at the doors, but not one opened; no doubt the houses were
+all full of soldiers. No one offered us any hospitality, in spite of
+all B.'s objurgations, now beseeching, now imperious. In despair, I
+suggested at last that we should go back to our squadron, and lie down
+by our horses; but B. would not hear of it, and still clung to his
+idea: to have a good dinner, and sleep in a bed.
+
+Just then, we saw a dark figure creeping noiselessly along under the
+wall. B. at once went up to it, and caught it by the arm. It was a
+poor old woman, carrying a basket and a jug of milk. Said he:
+
+"_Madame, madame_, have pity on two poor weary, half-starved
+soldiers...."
+
+But she couldn't give us any information. Speaking in bad French,
+interspersed with Flemish, she gave us to understand that the little
+town was full of troops, and, at that hour, everybody was asleep.
+
+"And what is there in that large white building, where the windows are
+alight?"
+
+The good woman explained that it was a convent, where nuns took in the
+old people of the country. They could not give lodging to soldiers.
+But B. had already made up his mind; that was where we were to sleep.
+Leaving the old woman aghast, he went with long strides to the iron
+railing which surrounded a little garden in front of the convent. I
+tried in vain to make him understand that we could not invade these
+sacred precincts.
+
+"Leave it to me," he said, "I'll speak to them."
+
+He pushed the iron gate, which opened with a creak, and I shut it
+after him. I felt somewhat uneasy as I followed B., who crossed the
+garden with a rapid stride. I felt uneasy at the thought of his
+essentially military eloquence, and of the use to which he proposed to
+put it. But I knew, too, that he was not easily induced to abandon a
+resolution he had once taken. True, he did not often make one, but
+this time he seemed to be carrying out a very definite plan. The best
+thing was to submit, and await the result of his attempt. We went up
+three steps, and felt for the knocker. "Here it is," said B., and he
+lifted it and knocked hard. What a dismal sound it made in that
+sleeping town! I felt as though we had just committed an act of
+sacrilege. We listened, and heard, through the door, the noise of
+chairs dragged over the stone floor; then a light footstep
+approaching, a sound of keys and bolts, and the door was gently opened
+and held ajar.
+
+"Sister," said B., with a bow, "what we are doing is, I know, most
+unusual; but we are dying of hunger and very tired, and, so far,
+nobody has been willing to open their door to us. Could we not have
+something to eat here, and sleep in a bed?"
+
+The Sister looked at us and appeared not to understand. However, I was
+more at ease when I saw she was neither frightened nor displeased. She
+was a very old nun, dressed in black, and held in her hand a little
+lamp which flickered in the night breeze. Her face was furrowed with
+deep wrinkles, and her skinny hand, held before the lamp, seemed
+transparent. She made up her mind at once. Her face lit up with a kind
+smile, and she signed to us to come in, with words which were probably
+friendly. This was a supposition, for the worthy nun only spoke
+Flemish, and we could not understand anything she said. She carefully
+pushed the bolts again, placed her lamp on the floor, and made a sign
+to us to wait. Then she went away with noiseless steps, and we were
+left alone.
+
+"You see," said B., "it is all going swimmingly. Now that we have got
+in, you must leave everything to me."
+
+The flickering lamp lighted the hall dimly. The walls were bare, and
+there was no furniture but some rush chairs set in a line against the
+partition. Opposite the door, there was a simple wooden crucifix, and
+the stretched-out arms seemed to bid us welcome. A perfume of hot soup
+came from the door the old Sister had just shut.
+
+"I say!" said B., "did you smell it? I believe it is cabbage soup, and
+if so, I shall take a second helping."
+
+"Just wait a bit," I replied; "I'll wager they are going to turn us
+out."
+
+From the other side of the door, by which the portress had just
+disappeared, we heard a voice calling:
+
+"Sister Gabrielle!... Sister Gabrielle!..."
+
+And a moment after, the same door opened, and another nun came in very
+quietly, and rather embarrassed, as it seemed to me. She came towards
+us.
+
+Sister Gabrielle, your modesty will certainly suffer from all the good
+I am going to say of you.... But I am wrong, you will not suffer, for
+you certainly will never read the pages I have scribbled during the
+course of this war, at odd times, as I could, in bivouacs and billets.
+But I have vowed to keep a written record of the pictures which have
+charmed or moved me most during this campaign. If I ever survive it, I
+want to be able to read them again in my latter days. I want to have
+them read by those who belong to me, and to try to show them what kind
+of life we led during those unforgettable days. And it is not always
+the battles which leave the most lively impressions. How many
+delightful things one could relate that have happened outside the
+sphere of action! What memories of nights passed in the strangest
+places, as the chances of the march decreed, nights of bitterness
+during the retreat, nights of fever during the advance, nights of
+depression in the trenches! What kindly welcomes, what beautiful and
+what noble figures one might describe!
+
+Sister Gabrielle, as you will never read this, and as your modesty
+will not suffer, let me tell the story of the welcome my friend B. and
+I received that evening at the Convent of Elverdinghe.
+
+Sister Gabrielle came towards us. How pretty she was, in the coif that
+framed her face! How large her blue eyes looked! They really were so,
+but a touch of excitement made them seem larger still. Above all, she
+had an enchanting smile, a smile of such kindness that we at once felt
+at ease and sure of obtaining what we wanted. She spoke in a sweet and
+musical voice, hesitating just a little in her choice of words,
+although she spoke French very correctly.
+
+"The Sister Superior has sent me to you," she said, "because I am the
+only one here who can speak French.... _Messieurs les officiers_,
+welcome."
+
+She said it quite simply, and stood quite straight in her black dress,
+her arms hanging beside her. She might have been a picture of other
+days, an illuminated figure from a missal. We looked at each other and
+smiled too, happy to find so unexpected a welcome. B. was now quite
+self-possessed.
+
+"Sister Gabrielle," he said, "see what a wretched state we are in; our
+clothes covered with mud, our faces not washed since I don't know
+when. We have just gone four days without sleep, almost without food,
+and we have never stopped fighting. Could you not take in two weary,
+famished soldiers for one night?"
+
+Sister Gabrielle retained her wonderful smile. Without moving her
+arms, she slightly raised her two hands, which showed white against
+the black cloth of her dress. Those hands seemed to say: "I should
+like to very much, but I cannot." And at the same time the smile
+said: "We ought not to, but it shall be managed nevertheless."
+
+"Come," she said; "in any case, we can give you something to eat."
+
+And she took up the little lamp. She went first, opened the door at
+the end of the passage, and we followed her, delighted. We were
+dazzled as we came into this new room by the brilliance of the lamps
+that lit it. It was the convent kitchen. How clean and bright
+everything was! The copper saucepans shone resplendently. The black
+and white pavement looked like an ivory chessboard. Two Sisters were
+sitting peeling vegetables which they threw into a bowl of water. An
+enormous pot, on the well-polished stove, was humming its inviting
+monotone. It was this pot which exhaled the delicious smell that had
+greeted us when we entered the house. The whole picture recalled one
+of Bail's appetising canvases. The two Sisters raised their eyes,
+looked at us and--yes, they smiled too. B., feeling eloquent, wanted
+to make a speech; but Sister Gabrielle hurried us on:
+
+"Come, come," she said. "It is not worth while; they wouldn't
+understand you."
+
+She opened another door, and we went into a small rectangular room.
+Whilst our guide hastened to light the lamp hanging above the table,
+we laid our kits on the window-sill: our revolvers, shakoes, binocular
+glasses and map-cases; and how tarnished and dirty the things were,
+after those three months of war! We ourselves felt fairly ashamed to
+be seen in such a state. Our coats worn and stained, our breeches
+patched, our huge boots covered with mud, all formed a strange
+contrast to the room we were in. It was provided throughout with large
+cupboards in the walls, the doors of which reached to the ceiling.
+These doors were of polished wood, and shone like a mirror. The floor
+was like another mirror. That indefatigable chatterer B. began another
+speech:
+
+"Sister, please excuse the costumes of fighting men. We must look like
+ruffians, but we are honest folk. If our faces do not inspire much
+confidence, it is simply because our stomachs are so empty. And no one
+more resembles a vagabond than a poor wretch who is dying with hunger.
+You will not know us again after we have had a few words with the pot
+which gave out such a savoury smell as we passed."
+
+Sister Gabrielle did not cease to smile. With wonderful rapidity and
+skill she opened one of the cupboards, and, from the piles of linen,
+picked out a checkered red and white tablecloth with which she covered
+the table. In a moment she had arranged places for two, opposite each
+other.
+
+"Sit down," she said, "and rest. I will go and fetch you something to
+eat."
+
+B. followed her to the door.
+
+"Sister Gabrielle," he said, "we have found a Paradise."
+
+But she had already shut the door, and we heard her in the kitchen
+stimulating the zeal of the other two nuns in Flemish. We sat down,
+delighted. What a long time since we had enjoyed such comfort!
+Everything there seemed designed to charm our eyes and rest our minds.
+There was no noise in the street, and the convent itself would have
+seemed wrapped in sleep had it not been for the voices in the next
+room. But the distant roar of the guns still went on, and seemed to
+make our respite still more enjoyable.
+
+We hardly heard Sister Gabrielle when she came in and put down the
+steaming soup before us. The delicate perfume of the vegetables made
+our mouths water. For many days past we had had nothing to eat but our
+rations of tinned meat, and all that time we had not been able to
+light a fire to cook anything at all. So we fell to eagerly upon our
+well-filled plates. B. even lost the power of speech for the moment.
+
+Meanwhile the pretty little Sister, without appearing to look at us,
+was cutting bread, and then she brought a jug of golden beer. What a
+treat it was! Why couldn't it be like this every day? In that case
+the campaign would have seemed almost like a picnic. Whilst I was
+eating I could not help admiring Sister Gabrielle; she looked so
+refined in her modest black clothes. Her slightest movements were as
+harmonious as those of an actress on the stage. But she was natural in
+all she did, and the grace of every movement was instinctive. As she
+placed before us an imposing-looking _omelette au lard_, that rascal
+B., who had already swallowed two plates of soup and four large
+glasses of beer, began to maunder thus:
+
+"Sister Gabrielle, ... Sister Gabrielle, I don't want to go away
+to-morrow. I want to end my days here with the old people you look
+after. Look at me. I am getting old too, and have been severely tried
+by life. Why shouldn't I stay where I am? I should have a nice little
+bed in the old people's dormitory, with nice white sheets, go to bed
+every evening on the stroke of eight, and you, Sister, would come and
+tuck me up. I should sleep, and eat cabbage soup, and drink good
+beer--your health. Sister!--and I shouldn't think any more about
+anything at all.... How nice it would be! No more uniform to strap you
+up after a good dinner; no more shako to squeeze your temples; no more
+bullets whistling past you; no more 'coal-boxes' to upset your whole
+system, and every evening a bed, ... a nice bed, ... and to think
+about nothing!..."
+
+"Hush! Listen," said Sister Gabrielle with a finger on her lips.
+
+At that moment the noise of the firing became louder. The Germans had
+no doubt just made a night attack either on Bixschoote or on
+Steenstraate, and now every piece was firing rapidly all along the
+line. So fast did the reports follow one another that they sounded
+like a continuous growl. However, the noise seemed to be dominated by
+the reports that came from a battery of heavy guns ("long 120's") two
+kilometres from Elverdinghe, which made all the windows of the convent
+rattle, I shuddered as I thought of those thousands of shells,
+hurtling through the darkness for miles to reduce so many living
+human beings to poor broken and bleeding things. And I pictured to
+myself our Prussians of Bixschoote sprawling on the ground, with their
+teeth set and their heads hidden among the beetroot, waiting until the
+hurricane had passed, to get up again and rush forward with their
+bayonets, cheering! Sister Gabrielle had the same thought, no doubt.
+She looked still whiter than before under her white coif, and clasping
+her hands and lowering her eyes, she said in a low voice:
+
+"_Mon Dieu, ... Mon Dieu!_ ... It is horrible!"
+
+"Sister Gabrielle," continued the incorrigible B., "don't let us talk
+of such things. Let us rather discuss this omelette, a dish worthy of
+the gods, and the bacon in it, the savour of which might imperil a
+saint. Sister Gabrielle, you tempt us this evening to commit the sin
+of gluttony, which is the most venial of all sins. And I will bear the
+burden of it manfully."
+
+I kicked B. under the table, to stop his incongruous remarks. But
+Sister Gabrielle seemed not to have listened to him. She went on
+serving us smilingly; changed our plates, and brought us ham and
+cheese. B. went on devouring everything that was put before him; but
+this did not put a stop to his divagations.
+
+"Tell me, Sister Gabrielle, you are not going to turn us out of the
+house now, are you? It would be an offence against God, who commands
+us to pity travellers. And we are poor wretched travellers. If you
+drive us away, we shall have to sleep on the grass by the roadside,
+with stones for our pillows. No, you couldn't treat us so cruelly. I
+feel sure that in a few minutes you will show me the bed in the
+dormitory you will keep for me when I come to take up my quarters with
+you after the war."
+
+Sister Gabrielle's smile had disappeared. For the first time, she
+seemed really distressed. She stopped in front of B., and looked at
+him with her large clear eyes. She made the same gesture as before;
+lifted up both her hands, in token of powerlessness, and seemed to be
+thinking how she could avoid hurting our feelings. Then she said, in a
+disheartened tone:
+
+"But we have not a single spare bed."
+
+A long silence followed this sentence, which seemed to plunge B. into
+despair. The guns continued their ominous booming, making the windows
+rattle terribly. I too thought now that it would be dreadful to leave
+the house, go and look for our troops in the dark, and put our men to
+the inconvenience of making room for us on their straw, so I too
+looked at Sister Gabrielle imploringly. All at once she seemed to have
+decided what to do. She began by opening one of the cupboards in the
+wall, took out of it two small glasses with long tapering stems, and
+placed them before us, with a goodly bottle of Hollands. She had
+recovered her exquisite smile, and she hurried, for she seemed anxious
+to put her idea into execution.
+
+"There, drink. It's good Hollands, ... and we give it to our poor old
+people on festivals."
+
+"Thank you. Sister, thank you."
+
+But she had already run out of the room, and we were left there, happy
+enough, sipping our glass of Hollands, and enjoying the luxurious
+peace that surrounded us. The guns seemed to be further off; we only
+heard a distant growling in the direction of Ypres. Our eyelids began
+to droop, and it was almost a pleasure to feel the weariness of our
+limbs and heads, for now we felt sure that Sister Gabrielle would not
+send us away.
+
+She came back into the room, with a candle in her hand.
+
+"Come," she said.
+
+She was now quite rosy, and seemed ashamed, as though she were
+committing a fault. We followed her, enchanted, and went back through
+the kitchen, now dark and deserted. The flickering light of the candle
+was reflected here and there on the curves of the copper pots and
+glass bowls. The house was sleeping. We crossed the hall, and went up
+a broad wooden staircase, polished and shining.
+
+What a strange party we were, the youthful Sister, going in front,
+treading so softly, and we two soldiers, dusty, tattered and squalid,
+trying to make as little noise as possible with our heavy hobnailed
+boots! The nun's rosary clinked at each step against a bundle of keys
+that hung from her girdle.
+
+I was walking last and enjoying the curious picture. The light fell
+only on Sister Gabrielle. As she turned on the landing, the feeble ray
+from below threw her delicate features into relief: her fine nose, her
+childish mouth, with its constant smile; our own shadows appeared upon
+the wall in fantastic shapes. Certainly we had never yet received so
+strange and unexpected a welcome.
+
+We passed a high oak door, surmounted by a cross and a pediment with a
+Latin inscription. Sister Gabrielle crossed herself and bowed her
+head.
+
+"The chapel," she said in a low voice.
+
+And she went quickly on to the accompaniment of her clinking rosary
+and keys. As we began to go up the second flight of stairs B. resumed
+his monologue in a whisper:
+
+"Sister Gabrielle, ... Sister Gabrielle, you are an angel from
+Paradise. Surely God can refuse you nothing. You will pray for me this
+evening, won't you? for I am a great sinner."
+
+"Oh, yes, of course I shall pray for you," she answered, softly, as
+she turned towards us.
+
+We came out on a long passage, bare and whitewashed. Half a dozen
+doors could be distinguished at regular intervals, all alike. Sister
+Gabrielle opened one of them, and we followed her in. We found
+ourselves in a small room, austerely furnished with two little iron
+bedsteads, two little deal tables, and two rush chairs. Above each bed
+there was a crucifix, with a branch of box attached to it. Each table
+had a tiny white basin and a tiny water-jug. All this was very nice,
+and amply sufficient for us. Everything was clean, bright, and
+polished.
+
+"Thank you, Sister; we shall be as comfortable as possible. But, one
+thing, we shall sleep like tops. Will there be any one to wake us?"
+
+"At what time do you want to get up?"
+
+"At six, Sister, punctually, as soldiers must, you know."
+
+"Oh! then I will see to it. We have Mass at four o'clock every
+morning."
+
+"At four o'clock!" exclaimed B. "Every morning! Very well, Sister, to
+show you we are not miscreants, wake us at half-past three, and we
+will go to Mass too."
+
+"But it isn't allowed. It is our Mass, in our chapel. No, no, you must
+sleep.... Get to bed quickly. Good-night. I will wake you at six
+o'clock."
+
+"Good-night, Sister Gabrielle; good-night.... We shall be so
+comfortable. You see, you had some spare beds, after all."
+
+"Oh, yes, we had. One can always manage somehow."
+
+And she went off, shutting the door behind her.
+
+And now B. and I thought of nothing but the luxury of sleeping in a
+bed. How delightful it would be after our sleepless nights in the fogs
+of the trenches!
+
+But what was that noise resounding through the convent? What was that
+knocking and those wailing cries? There was some one at the door,
+hammering at the knocker, some one weeping and sobbing in the dark. I
+opened my window, and leant out. But the front door had already been
+opened, and a figure slipped in hurriedly. The sobs came up the stairs
+to our door, and women's voices, Sister Gabrielle's voice, speaking
+Flemish, then another voice, sounding like a death-rattle, trying in
+vain to pronounce words through choking sobs. How horrible that
+monotonous, inconsolable, continual wail was! It went on for a short
+time, and then doors were opened and shut, the voices died away, and
+suddenly the noise ceased.
+
+B. had already got into bed, and, from under the sheets, he begged me,
+in a voice muffled by the bed-clothes, to put the candle out quickly.
+But I was haunted by that moaning, though I could not hear it any
+longer. I wanted to know what tragedy had caused those sobs. I could
+not doubt that the horrible war was at the bottom of it. And yet we
+were a long way from the firing line. My curiosity overcame my
+fatigue. I put on my jacket and went out, taking the candle with me. I
+ran down the two staircases, and my footsteps seemed to wake dismal
+echoes in the silent convent.
+
+Just as I came to the hall Sister Gabrielle also arrived, with a small
+lantern in her hand. I must have frightened her, for she started and
+gave a little scream. But she soon recovered, and guessed what had
+disturbed me. She told me all about it in a few simple sentences; a
+poor woman had fled from her village, carrying her little girl of
+eighteen months. As she was running distractedly along the road from
+Lizerne to Boesinghe a German shell had fallen, and a fragment of it
+had killed her baby in her arms. She had just come six kilometres in
+the dark, clasping the little corpse to her breast in an agony of
+despair. She got to Elverdinghe, and knocked at the door of the
+convent, knowing that there she would find a refuge. And all along the
+road she had passed convoys, relief troops and despatch-riders; but
+she took no heed of them; she was obsessed by one thought; to find a
+shelter for the remains of what had been the joy and hope of her life.
+
+"Just come," said Sister Gabrielle. "I will let you see her. We have
+put the poor little body in the mortuary chamber, and Sister Elizabeth
+is watching there."
+
+I followed Sister Gabrielle, who opened a small door, and went down a
+few steps; we crossed a paved court. Her lantern and my candle cast
+yellowish gleams upon the high walls of the buildings. Heavy drops of
+rain were falling, making a strange noise on the stones. And a kind of
+anguish seized me when I again heard the continuous wailing of the
+unhappy mother. Sister Gabrielle opened a low door very gently, and we
+went in.
+
+I must confess that I had been much less moved when, after the first
+day of the Battle of the Marne, we passed through a wood where our
+artillery had reduced a whole German regiment to a shapeless mass of
+human fragments. Here I realised all the horror of war. That men
+should kill each other in defence of their homes is conceivable
+enough, and I honour those who fall. But it passes all understanding
+why the massacre should include these poor weak and innocent
+creatures. And sights such as the one I saw in that little mortuary
+chapel inspire a fierce thirst for vengeance.
+
+On a kind of large table, covered with a white cloth, the poor body
+was laid out. It bore no trace of any wound, and the little white face
+seemed to be smiling. The good nuns had covered the shabby clothes
+with an embroidered cloth. Upon that they had crossed the little
+hands, which seemed to be clasping a tiny crucifix. And over the whole
+they had strewn an armful of flowers. On each side they had placed
+silver candlesticks, and the reddish candle-light made golden
+reflections in the curly locks of the little corpse. Crouching on the
+ground by the side of it, I saw a shapeless heap of clothes which
+seemed to be shaken by convulsive spasms. It was from this heap that
+the monotonous wailing came. It was the young mother, weeping for her
+little one. One felt that nothing could console her, and that words
+would only increase her suffering. Besides, she had not even raised
+her head when we went in. It was best to leave her alone, since they
+say that tears bring comfort.
+
+On the other side a young Sister was kneeling at a _prie-Dieu_,
+telling her rosary. Sister Gabrielle knelt down on the ground beside
+her. I longed to do something to lessen that grief, and help the poor
+woman a little. She must have come there in a state of destitution:
+her clothes revealed her poverty. But I durst not disturb either her
+mourning or their prayers, and I came out quietly on tiptoe.
+
+Outside, the rain, which was now falling heavily, refreshed my fevered
+head somewhat. I crossed the courtyard quickly; but my candle went
+out, and I had some trouble in relighting it, which was very
+necessary, as I had to find my way in a maze of doors and passages. At
+last I reached my staircase, and passed the landing and the Sisters'
+chapel. I heard a distant clock strike midnight, went up another
+storey, and opened our door noiselessly. I thought that B. would
+perhaps be waiting for me impatiently, anxious to learn the reason of
+all the noise.
+
+But B. was snoring with the bed-clothes over his ears.
+
+At six o'clock some one knocked at our door, and I opened my eyes.
+Daylight showed faintly through the only window. I wondered where I
+was, and suddenly remembered ... Elverdinghe ... the convent....
+
+"Is it you, Sister Gabrielle?" I asked.
+
+"Oh, yes, it's I. Get up. I have been knocking for more than an hour."
+
+B. sat up in his bed. I did the same, and told him what I had seen the
+evening before. He shook his head mournfully, and concluded:
+
+"Well, ... it's war.... I hope they'll have a good breakfast ready for
+us."
+
+We hurried through our dressing and ablutions, for we had to get back
+quickly to our quarters. As we came out of our room, lively and
+refreshed, we met Sister Gabrielle, who seemed to have been waiting
+for us. She asked us how we had slept, and, to stop the flood of
+eloquence that B. was on the point of letting loose, she said:
+
+"That's right. You shall thank me later on. Come down now; your
+breakfast is waiting for you. It will get cold."
+
+But, on passing the chapel, B. would insist on seeing it. Sister
+Gabrielle hesitated a moment, and then gave way, as you would to a
+child for the sake of peace. She opened the outer door, and smiled
+indulgently, as if anxious to humour all our whims. We passed through
+an anteroom, and then entered the chapel. It was quite small, only
+large enough to hold about twenty people. The walls were white,
+without any ornament, and panelled up to about the height of a man.
+The altar was extremely simple, and decorated with a few flowers. Some
+rush chairs completed the plenishings of the sanctuary where the good
+Sisters of Elverdinghe assembled every morning at four o'clock for
+prayers.
+
+And, as we came out of this humble chapel, I noticed two mattresses,
+laid in a corner of the little anteroom.
+
+"Who sleeps here, then, Sister?" I asked.
+
+Sister Gabrielle turned as red as a poppy. I had to repeat my question
+twice, when, lowering her eyes, she answered:
+
+"Sister Elizabeth--Sister Elizabeth ... and I."
+
+"Sister Gabrielle, ... Sister Gabrielle, then that little room and
+those two little beds where we slept, were yours?"
+
+"Hush! Please come to breakfast at once."
+
+And, light as a bird, she disappeared down the staircase, so quickly
+that her black veil floated high above her, as though to hide her
+confusion.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+And we saw no more of Sister Gabrielle. It was a very old woman--one
+of the inmates--who brought us our hot milk and coffee, our brown
+bread and fresh butter, in the dining-room with the high cupboards of
+polished wood. She explained that at this hour the nuns were busy
+attending to their old folk. It was of no use begging to see our
+little hostess again. We were told it would be against the rules, and
+we felt that the curtain had now indeed fallen upon this charming act
+of the weary tragedy.
+
+Only, just as we were passing out of the convent gate for the last
+time, the old lady put into our hands a big packet of provisions
+wrapped up in a napkin. She had brought it hidden under her apron.
+
+"Here, she told me to give you this, and ... to say that she will pray
+for you."
+
+Our hearts swelled as we heard the heavy door close behind us. And
+whilst we went away silently along the broken, muddy road, we thought
+of the sterling hearts that are hidden under the humble habits of a
+convent.
+
+Sister Gabrielle! I shall never forget you. Never will your delicate
+features fade from my memory. And I seem to see you still, going up
+the great wooden staircase, lit up by the flickering flame of the
+candle, when you and Sister Elizabeth gave up your beds so simply and
+unostentatiously to the two unknown soldiers.
+
+
+
+
+VIII. CHRISTMAS NIGHT
+
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant mon Lieutenant_, it's two o'clock."
+
+My faithful Wattrelot held the flickering candle just in front of my
+eyes to rouse me. What torture it is to be snatched from sleep at such
+an early hour! It would not be anything in summer; but it was the 24th
+of December, and it was my turn to go on duty in the trenches. A nice
+way of keeping Christmas!... I turned over in my bed, trying to avoid
+that light that tormented me; I collected my thoughts, which had
+wandered far away whilst I was asleep, and had been replaced by
+exquisite dreams, dreams of times of peace, of welfare, of good cheer,
+and of gentle warmth.
+
+Then I remembered: I had to take command of a detachment of a hundred
+troopers of the regiment, who were to replace the hundred now in the
+trenches. It was nearly a month since we had joined our Army Corps
+near R., and every other day the regiment had to furnish the same
+number of men to occupy a sector of the trenches. It was my turn, on
+the 24th of December, to replace my brother-officer and good friend
+Lieutenant de la G., who had occupied the post since the 22nd.
+
+I had forgotten all this.... How cold it was! Brrr!...
+
+Whilst Wattrelot was taking himself off I braced myself for the
+necessary effort of getting out of the warm sheets. Like a coward, I
+kept on allowing myself successive respites, vowing to rise heroically
+after each.
+
+"I will get up as soon as Wattrelot has reached the landing of the
+first floor.... I will get up when I hear him walking on the pavement
+of the hall, ... or rather when I hear the entrance-door shut, and his
+boots creaking on the gravel path...."
+
+But every noise was hushed. Wattrelot was already some way off, and I
+still shied at this act, which, after all, was inevitable: to get out
+of bed in a little ice-cold room at two o'clock in the morning.
+Through the window, which had neither shutter nor curtain, I saw a
+small piece of the sky, beautifully clear, in which myriads of stars
+were twinkling. The day before, when I came in to go to bed, it was
+freezing hard. That morning the frost, I thought, must be terrible.
+
+"Come, up!" With a bound I was on the ground, and rushed at once to
+the little pitch-pine washstand. Rapid ablutions would wake me up
+thoroughly. Horror! The water in the jug was frozen. Oh! not very
+deeply, no doubt; but all the same I had to break a coating of ice
+that had formed on the surface. However, I was happy to feel more
+nimble after having washed my face. Quick! Two warm waistcoats under
+my jacket, my large cloak with its cape, my fur gloves, my campaigning
+cap pulled over my ears, and there I was, with a candle in my hand,
+going down the grand staircase of the chateau.
+
+For I was quartered in a chateau. The very word makes one think of a
+warm room, well upholstered, well furnished, with soft carpets and
+comfortable armchairs. But, alas! it was nothing of the sort.... The
+good lady whose house it was had provided for all contingencies; the
+family rooms had been prudently dismantled and double-locked. A
+formidable _concierge_ had the keys, and I was happy indeed when I
+found the butler's room in the attics. His bed, with its white sheets,
+seemed to me very desirable. And then, as we say in time of peace, one
+must take things as they come.
+
+The open hall-door let in a wave of cold air, which struck cold on my
+face. But I had not a minute to lose. The detachment was to start at
+half-past two punctually, and it had, no doubt, already formed up in
+the market-place. I hurried into the street. The tall pines of the
+park stood out black against the silver sky, whilst the bare branches
+of the other trees formed thousands of arabesques and strange patterns
+all round. Not the slightest noise was to be heard in the limpid,
+diaphanous night, in which the air seemed as pure and rare as on the
+summits of lofty mountains. Under my footsteps the gravel felt soft,
+but, once I had got outside the iron gate, I found myself on ground as
+hard as stone. The mud formed by recent rains and the ruts hollowed by
+streams of convoys had frozen, and the road was a maze of furrows and
+inequalities which made me stumble again and again.
+
+In front of the Hotel des Lacs a certain number of the men had already
+lined up, in front of their horses. Huddled in their cloaks, with
+collars turned up, they were stamping their feet and blowing into
+their hands. It must have been real torture for them too to come out
+of their straw litter, where they were sleeping so snugly a few
+moments before, rolled up in their blankets. They had got a liking for
+the kind of comfort peculiar to the campaigner, and had invented a
+thousand and one ingenious methods of improving the arrangements of
+their novel garrison. Sleeping parties had been gradually organised,
+and sets of seven or eight at a time enjoyed delightful nights,
+stretched on their clean straw. Many of them would certainly not be
+able to get to sleep if they suddenly found themselves in a real bed.
+And then it is less difficult to get up when one has gone to bed with
+one's clothes on, and when the room is not very warm. Not one of them
+complained; not one of them grumbled. We can always count on our brave
+fellows.
+
+"All present, _mon Lieutenant!_"
+
+It was the senior non-commissioned officers of the two squadrons
+assembled there who reported. Every one had got up and equipped
+himself at the appointed hour; not one was missing at roll-call; they
+had all assembled of their own accord; the corporals had not needed to
+knock at door after door to wake the sleepers. Our Chasseurs had very
+quickly established simple customs and rules of their own which
+ensured the regularity of the service without written orders. This
+intelligent and spontaneous discipline is one of the most admirable
+features of this campaign. It has grown up by degrees, without any
+special orders or prescriptions from above, with the result that the
+hardest labours are carried out almost without supervision, because
+each man understands the end in view and the grim necessities which it
+involves.
+
+They understood at once that this early hour was the only one at which
+the relief could be effected. And every other day, just as on that
+December morning, twenty-five men out of each squadron get up at
+half-past one, equip themselves, and saddle their horses, whilst the
+cooks warm up a good cup of coffee for each man. Then, without any
+hurry, but at the exact moment, they form up in fighting order at the
+appointed spot, and when the officer arrives, in the dark, rain, wind,
+snow, or frost, he is sure of receiving the same report:
+
+"All present, _mon Lieutenant!_"
+
+Quick! Mount. We shall feel the cold less trotting over the hardened
+roads this bright night and under this brilliant moon. Two and two, in
+silence, we issued from the village in the direction of R. I knew that
+I should find a little further on, at the cross-roads where the
+crucifix stands, the fifty men of the first half-regiment and
+Second-Lieutenant de G., who serves under me.
+
+Yes, there he was, coming to meet me on the hard road. It was a joy to
+me that chance had given me this jolly fellow for my trench companion.
+I hardly knew him, for he had not been with us more than a few days.
+Taken from the Military College directly war was declared, he had
+first been sent to a reserve squadron, and had only just been
+appointed to an active regiment. But I already knew, through my
+comrades of the first squadron, that he was a daring soldier and a
+merry companion. So much the better, I thought. War is a sad thing,
+and one must learn to take it gaily. A plague on gloomy spirits and
+long faces! True, we can no longer wage the picturesque war of the
+"good old days." We shall never know another Fontenoy, or Rivoli, or
+Eylau. But that is no reason why we should lose the jovial humour of
+our forefathers. Thank Heaven! we have preserved their qualities of
+dash and bravery. But it is more difficult to keep a smiling face in
+this hideous mole warfare, which is imposed even upon us troopers. All
+the more reason for liking and admiring the cheery officers who keep
+our spirits up, and G. is one of them.
+
+We shook hands without speaking, for it seemed to us that if we opened
+our mouths the frost would get into our bodies and freeze them, and we
+set off at a sharp trot along the narrow by-road which, crossing the
+high-road to Paris, leads to C. There we should have to leave our
+horses, cross the zone of the enemy's artillery fire, and get to the
+trenches on foot. The horses snorted with pleasure, happy to warm
+themselves by rapid movement. Some of them indulged in merry capers,
+which were repressed, not too gently, by their more sedate riders.
+Their hoofs struck the uneven ground with a metallic ring which must
+have echoed far; and the clink of bits and stirrups also disturbed the
+sleeping country. Before us the road ran straight amidst the dark
+fields, a long pale grey ribbon. No one thought of laughing or
+talking; sleep seemed still to hover over the column, and every one
+knew that the two days of trench duty would be long and hard to get
+through even if the Prussians left us in peace.
+
+We passed a cross, which shone white on the side of the road under the
+pale light of the moon, and saluted it. We had known it from the first
+days, and had its inscription by heart:
+
+
+       80 NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICERS,
+          CORPORALS, AND SOLDIERS
+     OF THE 39TH AND 74TH REGIMENTS OF
+                 INFANTRY,
+             KILLED IN ACTION.
+               PRAY FOR THEM.
+
+
+We dimly discerned the modest wreaths of green leaves, now faded and
+yellow, and the little nosegays of withered flowers attached to the
+arms of this cross, left there after the departure of the regiment and
+undisturbed by any sacrilegious hand.
+
+We crossed the Paris road, with its double row of trees, which, in the
+night, appeared gigantic, and, after answering the challenge of the
+Territorial guarding the approach to C., we entered the village.
+
+It appeared to be completely empty, and yet there were two battalions
+of the ---- Territorials quartered there. The moon seemed to be
+amusing itself by casting the shadows of the houses on one side of the
+street upon the walls of the other side in fantastic shapes.
+
+"Dismount."
+
+We had reached the spot where we were to leave our horses. The men
+quickly unbuckled the blankets which were to help them to endure the
+weary hours of the following night. They slung them over their
+shoulders, and we set off towards the towing-path of the canal. We
+went very slowly, as we had at least seven or eight kilometres before
+us, and a walk of eight kilometres for troopers laden and dressed as
+we were is no light matter.
+
+We found the towing-path. Walking at that hour of the night is
+certainly not very alluring. However, the view was not lacking in
+grandeur. On either side of the canal the dark silhouettes of tall
+trees stood out against the sky. Their shadows were reflected in the
+water, which gleamed with a metallic lustre in the moonshine. How calm
+and silent it was! Who would have thought we were at war? Not a
+cannon-shot, not a rifle-shot, disturbed the peace of the night. Yet,
+as a rule, there were no long intervals between the reports which
+reminded us of the serious work on hand.
+
+That day it seemed as though some agreement had been come to by both
+sides to stop killing or trying to kill. However touching such an
+agreement might be, it would also be somewhat disturbing, for one must
+always beware of an enemy who resorts so freely to tricks and traps of
+every kind. It was as well not to celebrate Christmas too obtrusively.
+Besides, I did not think we were the only ones keeping vigil at that
+hour.
+
+From time to time we passed small groups of infantry, haggard, dusty,
+and heavily laden, marching in ranks with their arms slung, by threes
+or fours, without speaking, striding slowly, as though they were
+trying to measure the length of the road. Some of them were carrying
+curious objects fastened to sticks: pots or big cans, perhaps baskets.
+Where they were going or what they were doing we did not ask. Every
+man has his own job; if those fellows were going that way they had
+their orders, and nobody troubled himself about their object. All was
+well. The clattering of the Chasseurs on the uneven road lent a little
+life to the picture. Perhaps they were talking together; but, if so,
+it was in an undertone, a whisper almost.
+
+And suddenly the enemy let us know that he was also keeping watch. Far
+ahead of us, near C., a rocket went up into the clear sky and then
+fell slowly, very slowly, in the form of an intensely brilliant ball,
+lighting up all the surrounding country wonderfully. We knew them
+well, those formidable German rockets, which seemed as though they
+would never go out and shed a pallid and yet blinding light. We knew
+that as soon as they were lighted everybody who happened to be within
+range of the enemy's rifle fire had at once to lie flat on the ground,
+and not move or raise his head so long as the light was burning.
+Otherwise shots would be fired from all directions, mowing down the
+vegetation and cutting up the earth all around him. This time we were
+well outside the range, and we watched the dazzling star in front of
+us without halting.
+
+"The shepherds' star," said G. solemnly.
+
+Strange shepherds indeed must they have been who carried carbines as
+their crooks, and were provided with cartridges enough to send a
+hundred and twenty of their fellow-creatures into the next world. The
+star seemed to hang for a moment some yards from the ground; then
+slowly, slowly, as though exhausted by its effort, it fell to the
+ground and went out. The night seemed less clear and less diaphanous.
+
+We had now reached the glass-works and it was there that we were to
+leave our cooks. No one would have supposed that this large factory
+lay idle, and that the hundreds of workmen employed there were
+dispersed. On the contrary, it seemed to have retained all the
+animation of the prosperous enterprise it had been before the war.
+
+It was a large square of massive buildings, almost a miniature town,
+planted on the side of the canal, like an outlying bastion of the
+suburbs of R. The low white walls, crowned with tiles, had the stunted
+appearance of military works. But a nearer view gave rather the
+illusion of the life in a busy factory at night-time. The gateway
+opened on a courtyard, with furnace fires shining here and there.
+Shadowy forms passed backwards and forwards, enlivening the dim scene
+with the bustle of a hive. Men came out by fives or sixes, laden with
+different kinds of burdens, and disappeared into the darkness, making
+for mysterious goals. In front of the open gate other figures were
+unloading heavy cases from vans. These quondam glass-works were now a
+depot for the Army Supply service, and a huge kitchen, which
+administered and fed the whole sector of trenches, of which ours
+formed a part.
+
+The Germans knew this. So every day and many times a day their guns
+fired a few salvoes of shells on the huge quadrilateral. But our good
+troopers were none the worse. Instead of working in the large
+buildings, part of which had already been destroyed by shells, they
+utilised the vast basements of the factory. There were the stores, and
+there they had their kitchens, where they worked day and night to
+supply their comrades in the trenches with the hot abundant food which
+twice a day made them forget for a few minutes the hardships of the
+cold, the rain, and the mud.
+
+Our column halted under the bleak wall. At the wide gateway a sentinel
+was on duty, standing motionless, muffled in a heavy grey cloak; and
+through it our cooks passed, disappearing into the darkness, under the
+guidance of the _liaison_ orderly of the preceding detachment. Whilst
+waiting for his return from the journey through the labyrinth our
+Chasseurs had a short rest before beginning the most difficult part of
+their journey--the last stage on the way to the trenches we were to
+occupy.
+
+I took the opportunity of talking with an infantry captain who was
+there, walking up and down with his face buried in a thick muffler and
+his hands in the pockets of his heavy overcoat, on the sleeves of
+which three small pieces of gold lace were just discernible.
+
+"_Eh bien, mon Capitaine!_ Anything new?"
+
+"Oh! nothing, except my opinion that you will not be disturbed either
+to-day or to-morrow. Since yesterday evening they have not fired one
+shot, and they were singing hymns till midnight. You may be pretty
+sure they'll redouble their _Oremus_ this Christmas night, so you may
+sleep soundly."
+
+"Unless all this is merely a feint, and to-night ..."
+
+"Yes, you're right, unless to-night ..."
+
+The column started, and, guided by the _liaison_ orderly, we followed
+the high-road for some hundred yards. The shells had transformed it
+into a series of gorges, peaks, ravines, and hills. We had to jump
+over big branches cut from the trees by the projectiles. It was a road
+that would not be a cheerful one on moonless nights. Fortunately for
+us, that particular night was extremely bright. Everything around us
+could be distinguished; we could even divine about fifteen hundred
+yards to our right the "solitary tree," the famous tree, standing
+alone in the middle of the vast bare plain, which marked the centre of
+our sector of trenches, and where I knew I should find the "dug-out"
+belonging to the officers of our regiment. I was very much tempted to
+jump the ditch at the side of the road and cut across the fields to
+the final point of our march. It would have taken about twenty
+minutes, and have saved us the long difficult journey through the
+communication trench. But our orders were very precise: we were not to
+take short cuts even on dark nights, much less on starlit nights. Our
+chiefs do well to be cautious on our behalf, for it is certain that,
+though fully alive to the danger of such a route, there was not one of
+my hundred fellows who would have hesitated to dash across country
+just to save himself a few hundred yards.
+
+We came to the mouth of the approach trench, four or five huge steps
+cut in the chalky clay. The frost had made them slippery, and we had
+to keep close to the edge of the bank to avoid stumbling. Behind me I
+heard some of the men sliding down heavily, and a din of mess-tins
+rolling away amidst laughter and jokes. "A merry heart goes all the
+way," and I knew my Chasseurs would soon pick themselves up and make
+up for lost time. This was essential, for the approach trench had
+ramifications and unexpected cross-passages which might have led a
+laggard astray.
+
+We went forward slowly. The communication trench was at right angles
+to the enemy's trenches. To prevent him from enfilading it with his
+shells, it had been cut in zigzags. And I hardly know of a more
+laborious method of progression than that of taking ten paces to the
+right, making a sharp turn, and then again taking ten paces to the
+left, and so on, in order to cover a distance which, as the crow
+flies, would not be more than fifteen hundred yards. The passage was
+so narrow that we touched the walls on either side. The moonlight
+could not reach the ground we trod on, and we stumbled incessantly
+over the holes and inequalities caused by the late rains and hardened
+by the frost. Now and again we slid over ice that had formed on the
+little pools through which our comrades had been paddling two days
+before. And this was some consolation for the severity of the frost,
+preferable a hundred times to the horrors of the rain.
+
+At last we debouched into our trenches, where our predecessors were
+impatiently waiting for us. Two days and two nights is a long time to
+go without sleeping, without washing, without having any other view
+than the walls of earth that shut you in. They were all eager to go
+back over the same road they had come by two days before, to get to
+their horses again, their quarters, their friends--in short, their
+home. So we found them quite ready to go, blankets rolled up and slung
+over their shoulders, and knapsacks in their places under their
+cloaks.
+
+Whilst the non-commissioned officers of each squadron went to relieve
+the men at the listening posts, I brushed past the men lined up
+against the wall, and went towards the "solitary tree," which seemed
+to be stretching out its gaunt arms to protect our retreat. I had to
+turn to the right in a narrow passage which went round the tree, and
+ended in three steep steps cut in the earth, down which I had to go to
+reach the dug-out.
+
+My old friend La G. was waiting for me at the bottom of this den,
+stretched on two chairs, warming his feet at a tiny iron stove perched
+upon a heap of bricks. By the light of the one candle he looked
+imposing and serious. His tawny beard, which he had allowed to grow
+since the war, spread like a fan over his chest, and gave him a look
+of Henri IV. I knew that this formidable exterior concealed the
+merriest companion and the most delightful sly joker that ever lived.
+So I was not much impressed by his thoughtful brow and his dreamy eye.
+
+"Well, what's the news?" I asked.
+
+"We are all freezing," he replied.
+
+I rather suspected it. Besides this fact, which we had discovered
+before him, La G. could only confirm what the infantry captain had
+told me shortly before:
+
+"You are going to have a most restful night, my dear fellow; and I
+advise you to have a Christmas manger arranged at the foot of the
+'solitary tree,' and at midnight to sing 'Christians, awake,' in
+chorus.... We know some hymns as well as the Germans."
+
+I had no lack of desire to put this proposal into action, but such
+pious customs as these would not perhaps have been quite in harmony
+with the tactical ideas of our commanding officer. Still I promised
+La G. I would do my best for the realisation of his dream.
+
+"Good-bye and good luck!" he said.
+
+"Good-bye," I replied.
+
+And he went away into the darkness. At the end of the little passage
+that led to the trench I could see the men who had just been relieved
+passing in single file going towards the communication trench by which
+we had come. Their dark forms defiled in closely and rapidly. Having
+completed their task, they were happy to be free to get back to their
+squadrons, and as they passed they cracked their jokes at the others
+who had to stay. These answered back, but not in the most amiable
+manner. Then, little by little, silence settled down upon the scene.
+Every man was at his post: some kept watch, others walked about at the
+bottom of the trench or busied themselves with repairing or improving
+the indifferent shelters their predecessors had left them.
+
+G. had gone to take the watch on which the junior officers of the
+units defending the sector relieved each other every three hours. So
+there I was alone, alone in the midst of my brave Chasseurs, with the
+duty of guarding those five hundred yards of trenches--a very small
+piece at that time of the immense French line. Behind us thousands of
+our fellows were sleeping in perfect confidence, relying upon the thin
+rampart we formed in front of them; and farther away still there were
+millions of Frenchmen and Frenchwomen, who, under their family roof or
+under that of their hosts, were resting in peace because of our
+sleepless nights, our limbs stiffened by the cold, our carbines
+pointed through the loopholes of the trenches.
+
+Thus were we to celebrate the merry festival of Christmas. There was
+no doubt that far away among those who were keeping the sacred vigil
+more than one would think of us and sympathise with us.... No doubt
+many a one among us would feel a touch of sadness that evening,
+thinking of his home. But none, not one, I felt sure, would wish to
+quit his post to get away from the Front. Military honour! glorious
+legacy of our ancestors! Who could have foreseen that it would be
+implanted so naturally and so easily in the young souls of our
+soldiers? Within their youthful bodies the same hearts were already
+beating as those of the immortal veterans of the epic days of France.
+Men are fashioned by war.
+
+Ten o'clock came on Christmas Eve to find that our day had passed in
+almost absolute calm. It had been a glorious winter day, a day of
+bright sunshine and pure clear air. The Germans had hardly fired at
+all. A few cannon-shots only had replied to our artillery, which let
+off its heavy guns every now and then upon their positions from the
+heights behind us.
+
+And then night came. B. and I had just finished our frugal meal. We
+had promised to pay a visit to the Territorials who occupied the
+trenches right and left of ours. Our Chasseurs had been posted in that
+particular section so that in case of attack they might form a solid
+base for the Territorials to rely upon. They did not conceal their
+confidence in our men or their admiration for them; and their officers
+had no scruples in asking for our advice when difficult cases arose.
+In fact, that very afternoon the captain commanding the company to our
+right had come to my dug-out to arrange with me about the patrols that
+had to be sent that night in advance of the line.
+
+Wrapped in our cloaks, we came out of our warm retreat. The night was
+just like the previous one, starlit, bright, and frosty, a true
+Christmas night for times of peace. In our trenches one half of the
+men were awake, in obedience to orders. Carbines were loaded and
+placed in the loopholes, and the guns were trained upon the enemy. In
+front of us, at the end of the narrow passages which led out to the
+listening posts, I knew that our sentries were alert with eye and ear,
+crouching in their holes in pairs. No one could approach the broad
+network of wire which protected us without being immediately perceived
+and shot. At the bottom of the trenches the men on watch were talking
+softly together and stamping on the ground to combat the intense
+cold.
+
+Those who were at rest, lying close together at the bottom of the
+little dug-outs they had made for themselves in the bank, were
+sleeping or trying to sleep. More than one of them had succeeded, for
+resounding snores could be heard behind the blankets, pieces of tent
+canvas and sacking, and all the various rags with which they had
+ingeniously stuffed up the entrances to their rustic alcoves. One
+wondered how they could have overcome the sufferings the cold must
+have caused them so far as to be able to sleep calmly. The five months
+of war had hardened their bodies and accustomed them to face cold,
+heat, rain, dust, or mud, with impunity. In this hard school, better
+than in any other, men of iron are fashioned, who last out a whole
+campaign and are capable of the supreme effort when the hour comes.
+
+We arrived at the Territorials' trench.
+
+"_Bon-soir, mon cher camarade._"
+
+It was the Second-Lieutenant whom I met at the entrance. He was a man
+of forty-two, thin, pale, and bearded. In the shadow his eyes shone
+strangely. Under the skirts of his great-coat he had his hands buried
+in his trouser pockets. His elbows stuck out from his body, his knees
+were bent, his teeth chattered, and he was gently knocking his heels
+together.
+
+"It isn't warm, eh?" I asked.
+
+"Oh, no; and then, you see, this sort of work is hardly the thing for
+fellows of our age. Our blood isn't warm enough, and, however you
+cover yourself up, there's always a chink by which the cold gets in.
+The worst of all is one's hands and feet; and there's nothing to be
+done for it. Wouldn't it be much better to trust to us, give us the
+order to fix bayonets and drive those Boches out of their trenches
+over there? You'd see if the Territorials couldn't do it as well as
+the Regulars.... And then one would have a chance of getting warm."
+
+I felt sure that he spoke the truth, and that his opinion was shared
+by the majority of his companions. But our good comrades of the
+Territorial Force have no conception of the vigour, the suppleness,
+and of the fulness of youth required to charge up to the enemy's line
+under concentrated fire and to cut the complex network of barbed wire
+that bars the road. Our chiefs were well advised in placing these
+troops where they were, in those lines of trenches scientifically
+constructed and protected, where their courage and tenacity would be
+invaluable in case of attack, and where they would know better than
+any others how to carry out the orders given to us: "Hold on till
+death." Leave to the young soldiers the sublime and perilous task of
+rushing upon the enemy when he is hidden behind the shelter of his
+_fougades_, his parapets, and his artificial brambles; and entrust to
+the brave Territorials the more obscure but not less glorious work of
+mounting guard along our front.
+
+I could make them out in the moonlight, standing silent and alert, in
+groups of two or three. Perched on the ledge of earth which raised
+them to the height of the parapet, they had their eyes wide open in
+the darkness, looking towards the enemy. Their loaded rifles were
+placed in front of them, between two clods of hardened earth. They
+neither complained nor uttered a word, but suffered nobly. They
+understand that they must. Ah! where now were the fine tirades of
+pothouse orators and public meetings? Where now were the oaths to
+revolt, the solemn denials and the blasphemies pronounced against the
+Fatherland? All was forgotten, wiped out from the records. If we could
+have questioned those men who stood there shivering, chilled to the
+bone, watching over the safety of the country, not one of them,
+certainly, would have confessed that he was ever one of the renegades
+of yore. And yet if one were to search among the bravest, among the
+most resigned, among the best, thousands of them would be discovered.
+Heaven grant that this miracle, wrought by the war, may be prolonged
+far beyond the days of the struggle, and then we shall not think that
+our brothers' blood has been spilt in vain.
+
+We brushed past them, but they did not even turn round. Eyes, mind,
+and will were absorbed in the dark mystery of the silent landscape
+stretching out before them. But the night, though it was so bright,
+gave everything a strange appearance; transformed all living things
+and increased their size; made the stones, the stacks, and the trees
+move, as it seemed to our weary eyes; cast fitful shadows where there
+were none; and made us hear murmurs which sounded like the muffled
+tramp of troops marching cautiously. Those men watched because they
+felt that there was always the danger of a surprise attack, of a
+sudden rush of Teutons who had crawled up through the grass of the
+fields. They had piled on their backs empty sacks, blankets, and old
+rags, for warmth, and wound their mufflers two or three times round
+their necks; they had taken all possible precautions for carrying out
+their duty to the very last. And although our hearts had been
+hardened by the unprecedented miseries of this war, we were seized
+with pity and admiration. Presently one of them turned round and said
+to us:
+
+"Hallo! They are lighting up over there now."
+
+I jumped up on to the ledge and saw, in fact, lights shining in three
+different places some way off. After looking attentively I guessed the
+meaning of this quite unusual illumination in the rear of the
+trenches. The lights came from some large fir-trees, placed there
+under cover of night, and beautifully lighted up. With my glasses I
+could make them out distinctly, and even the figures dancing round
+them; and we could hear their voices and shouts of merriment. How well
+they had arranged the whole thing! They had even gone as far as to
+light up their Christmas trees with electricity, so as to prevent our
+gunners from using them as an easy target. In fact, every few minutes
+all the lights on a tree were suddenly put out, and only appeared some
+minutes afterwards.
+
+We had thrilled instinctively. Suddenly there arose, all over the wide
+plain, solemn and melodious singing. We still remembered singing of a
+similar kind we had recently heard at Bixschoote on a tragic occasion;
+and here were the same tuneful voices again, singing a hymn of the
+same kind as those they sang further to the north before shouting
+their hurrahs for the attack. But we did not fear anything of that
+kind now. We had the impression that this singing was not a special
+prayer in front of our little sector of trenches, but that it was
+general, and extended without limits over the whole of our provinces
+violated by the enemy: over Champagne, Lorraine, and Picardy,
+resounding from the North Sea to the Rhine.
+
+The Territorial trench was full of noiseless animation. The men came
+up out of their little dug-outs without a word, and the whole company
+was soon perched upon the ledge. There was a silence among our men, as
+if each man felt uneasy or perhaps jealous of what was going on over
+there. Then, as if to order, along the line of the German trenches
+other hymns rang out, and one choir seemed to answer the other. The
+singing became general. Quite close to us, in the trenches themselves,
+in the distance, round their brightly lighted trees, to the right, to
+the left, it resounded, softened by the distance. What a stirring,
+nay, grandiose, impression those hymns made, floating over the vast
+field of death! I felt intuitively that all this had been arranged
+long before, that they might celebrate their Christmas with religious
+calm and peace.
+
+At any other time, no doubt, many a clumsy joke would have been made,
+and no little abuse hurled at the singers. But all that has been
+changed. I divined some regret among our brave fellows that we were
+not taking part in a similar festival. Was it not Christmas Eve? Had
+we not been obliged by our duty to give up the delightful family
+gathering which reunites us yearly around the symbolic Yule-log? This
+year our mothers, our sisters, and our children were keeping up the
+time-honoured and pious custom alone. Why did not our larger family of
+to-day join in singing together around lighted fir-trees? Our
+Territorials did not speak; but their thoughts flew away from the
+trenches, and the regrets of all were fused in a common feeling of
+melancholy.
+
+Little by little the singing died away, and absolute silence fell once
+more upon the country.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I went with G. as far as his watch-post. He had to resume his duty as
+officer of the watch from eleven o'clock in the evening to two o'clock
+in the morning. The post consisted of a kind of small blockhouse,
+strongly built and protected by two casemates with machine-guns placed
+so as to command the enemy's trenches. A machine-gunner was always on
+guard, and could call the others, at the slightest alarm, to work the
+gun. These men were quartered in a kind of tunnel hollowed out close
+by, and at the first signal would have been ready to open fire with
+their terrible engines of destruction. In the centre of the
+block-house a padded sentry-box was arranged made of a number of
+sand-bags, in which, by means of a loophole, the officer of the watch
+could observe the whole sector entrusted to us; and by means of a
+telephone station, close at hand, he could communicate at any moment
+with the commander of the sector at the glass-works.
+
+G. had put on the goatskin coat handed to him by the officer he
+relieved. This officer was a Second-Lieutenant of Territorials, and
+looked completely frozen.
+
+"Here, my dear fellow," he said, "I leave you the goatskin provided
+for the use of the officer on duty. I should have liked to give it you
+well warmed, but I feel like an icicle myself."
+
+G. was nevertheless glad to have it. After wishing him good luck, I
+left him to get back to my hut, for, in spite of my cloak, the frost
+was taking hold of me too. The faithful Wattrelot had done his best to
+keep our little stove going. Profiting by La G.'s example, I
+stretched myself on two chairs, with my feet towards the fire. I
+gradually got warmer, and at the same time somewhat melancholy. What a
+curious Christmas Eve! Certainly I had never passed one in such a
+place. The walls were made of a greyish, friable earth, which still
+showed the marks of the pick that had been used for the excavation.
+The furniture was simple and not very comfortable. At the back was the
+bed, made out of a little straw already well tossed over by a number
+of sleepers. This straw was kept in by a plank fixed to the ground and
+forming the side of the modest couch. Against the wall, opposite the
+stove, was the table. This table, which had to serve for writing and
+feeding, and perhaps for a game of cards, this table, which was
+required to fill the part of all the tables of all the rooms of any
+house, was, strange to say, a night-table. I wondered who had brought
+it there, and who had chosen it. But, such as it was, it served its
+purpose pretty well. We used it for dinner, and found it almost
+comfortable, and upon it I signed a number of reports and orders.
+Together with the two chairs, the stove, the bed, and some nails to
+hang my clothes on, that table completed the furniture of the "home"
+where I meditated on that December night. The candle, stuck in a
+bottle, flickered at the slightest breath, and threw strange shadows
+on the walls.
+
+It was the hour of solitude and silence, the hour of meditation and of
+sadness too now and then. That evening dark thoughts were flying about
+in that smoky den, assailing me in crowds, and taking possession of my
+mind; I could not drive them away. It was one of those moments--those
+very fleeting moments!--when courage seems to fail, and one gives way
+with a kind of bitter satisfaction. I remembered that months and
+months had passed since I had seen any of those belonging to me, and I
+conjured up in my mind the picture of the Christmas Eve they were
+keeping, too, at that same hour, at the other end of France. And the
+dear, good friends I had left in Paris and in Rouen--where were they
+at that moment? What were they doing? Were they thinking of me? How I
+should have liked to enjoy the wonderful power possessed by certain
+heroes in the Arabian Nights, which would have allowed me to see at
+that moment a vision of the loved ones far away. Were they talking
+about me, sitting together round the fire? I thought that this war had
+been a splendid thing to us Chasseurs as long as we were fighting as
+cavalry, scouring the plains, searching the woods, galloping in
+advance of our infantry, and bringing them information which enabled
+them to deal their blows or parry those of the enemy, trying to come
+up with the Prussian cavalry which fled before us. But this trench
+warfare, this warfare in which one stays for days and days in the same
+position, in which ground is gained yard by yard, in which artifice
+tries to outdo artifice, in which each side clings to the ground it
+has won, digs into it, buries itself in it, and dies in it sooner than
+give it up! What warfare for cavalry! We have devoted ourselves to it
+with all our hearts, and the chiefs who have had us under their
+orders have never failed to commend us; but at times we feel very
+weary, and during inaction and solitude our imaginations begin to
+work. Then we recall our regiment in full gallop over field and plain;
+we hear the clank of swords and bits; we see once more the flash of
+the blades, the motley line of the horses; we evoke the well-known
+figures of our chiefs on their chargers. That night my mind became
+more restless than ever before; it broke loose, it leapt away, and
+lived again the unforgettable stages of this war: Charleroi, Guise,
+the Marne, the defence of the Jaulgonne bridge, Montmirail, Reims, ...
+Belgium, Bixschoote; and then it fell back into the gloomy dug-out
+where the flame of the single candle traced disquieting shadows on the
+wall.
+
+Suddenly a cold breath of air blew into my retreat. The door opened
+abruptly, and at the top of the steps a man, stooping over the floor
+of the passage, called me in an undertone:
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, come and see.... Something is happening...."
+
+With a bound, I sprang from my shelter and climbed up the ledge.
+
+"Listen, _mon Lieutenant_."
+
+That night in the trenches was destined to overwhelm me with
+astonishment, and this one surpassed all that I could imagine. I
+should like to be able to impart the extraordinary impression I felt;
+but one would have to have been there that night to be capable of
+realising it. Over that vast and silent plain, in which everything
+seemed to sleep and where no other sound was heard, there resounded
+from afar a voice whose notes, in spite of the distance, reached our
+ears. What an extraordinary thing it was! That song, vibrating through
+the boundless night, made our hearts beat and stirred us more than the
+most perfectly ordered concert given by the most famous singers.
+
+And it was another hymn, unknown to us, coming from the German
+trenches far away on our left. The singer must have been standing out
+in the fields on the edge of their line; he must have been moving,
+coming towards us, and passing slowly along all the enemy's positions,
+for his voice came gradually nearer, and became louder and clearer.
+Every now and then it ceased, and then hundreds of other voices
+responded in chorus with some phrases which formed the refrain of the
+hymn. Then the soloist began again and came still nearer to us. He
+must have come from a considerable distance, for our Chasseurs had
+already heard him some time before they decided to call me. Who could
+this man have been, who must have been sent along the front of the
+troops to pray, whilst each German company waited for him, so as to
+join with him in prayer? Some minister, no doubt, who had come to
+remind the soldiers of the sanctity of that night and the solemnity of
+the hour.
+
+Soon we heard the voice coming from the trenches straight in front of
+us. In spite of the brightness of the night, we could not distinguish
+the singer, for the two lines at that point were four hundred yards
+apart. But he was certainly not hiding himself, for his deep voice
+would never have sounded so rich and clear to us had he been singing at
+the bottom of their trenches. Again it ceased. And then the Germans
+directly in front of us, the soldiers occupying the works opposite
+ours, those men whom we were bound to kill so soon as they appeared,
+and whose duty it was to shoot us so soon as we showed ourselves--those
+men calmly took up the refrain of the hymn, with its sweet and
+mysterious words. They too must have come to the edge of their trench
+and struck up their hymn with their faces towards us, for their notes
+came to us clearly and distinctly.
+
+I looked along the line of our trench. All our men too were awake and
+looking on. They had all got on to the ledge, and several had left the
+trench and were in the field, listening to the unexpected concert. No
+one was offended by it; no one laughed at it. Rather was there a trace
+of regret in the attitudes and the faces of those who were nearest to
+me. And yet it would have been such a simple matter to put an end to
+that scene; a volley fired by the troop there, and it would all stop,
+and drop back into the quiet of other nights. But nobody thought of
+such a thing. There was not one of our Chasseurs who would not have
+considered it a sacrilege to fire upon those praying soldiers. We felt
+indeed that there are hours when one can forget that one is there to
+kill. This would not prevent us from doing our duty immediately
+afterwards.
+
+The voice drew farther away, and retreated slowly and majestically
+towards the trenches situated at the place known as the "Troopers of
+C.'s" ground, where our two lines approached each other within a
+distance of fifty yards. How much more touching the sight must have
+been from there! I wished my post had been in that direction, so that
+I might have been present at the scene, might have heard the words and
+distinguished the figure of the pastor walking along the parapets
+made for hurling out death, and blessing those who the next day might
+be no more.
+
+Ping! A shot was heard....
+
+The stupid bullet which had perhaps found its mark? At once there was
+dead silence, not a cry, not an oath, not a groan. Some one had
+thought he was doing well by firing on that man. A pity! We should
+gain nothing by preventing them from keeping Christmas in their own
+way, and it would have been a nobler thing to reserve our blows for
+other hecatombs. I know that the barbarians would not have hesitated
+had they been in our place, and that so many of our priests had fallen
+under their strokes that they could not reasonably have reproached us.
+There are people who will say that our hatred should embrace
+everything German; that we should be implacable towards everything
+bearing that name, and spare none of the execrated race which has been
+the cause of so many tears, so much blood, so much mourning. Never
+mind!... I think in this case it would have been better not to have
+shot....
+
+A shot fired, not far from us, on our left brought me up from my
+shelter. It seemed strange after the complete calm of that night. It
+was seven o'clock. The sun was magnificent, and had already bathed the
+deserted plain, the fields, the heights of S., and the ruined village.
+In the distance, towards the east, the towers of the cathedral of R.
+stood out proudly against the golden sky. I looked and saw all my
+Chasseurs standing on the ledges watching with interest a scene which
+seemed to be going on in front of the trenches occupied on our left by
+the Territorials.
+
+I got up by the side of one of them, and he explained to me what was
+happening.
+
+"_Mon Lieutenant_, it's the infantry fellows who have just killed a
+hare that ran between the two lines, and they're going to fetch
+it...."
+
+And in fact I saw this strange sight: two men had gone out in full
+daylight from their trenches and were advancing with hesitating steps
+towards the enemy's. Behind them were a hundred inquisitive heads,
+looking out above the embrasures arranged between the sacks of earth.
+A few soldiers, who had come out of the trench, were even sitting on
+the bank of chalky earth. It was certainly such a scene as I had
+hardly expected to witness. What was the captain of the company
+occupying the trench doing?
+
+But my astonishment became stupefaction when I saw the hundreds of
+heads that fringed the enemy's trenches. I at once sent G. and a
+non-commissioned officer with the following order to all our men:
+
+"No one is to show himself.... Every man to his fighting post!...
+Carbines loaded and ready to fire!"
+
+The Germans opposite became suspicious on seeing our line so silent,
+and no man showing himself; they, too, waited on the alert behind
+their loopholes. But along the rest of their front their men kept on
+coming out from their trenches unarmed, and making merry and friendly
+gestures. I became uneasy, and wondered how this unexpected comedy
+might end. Ought I to have those men fired upon who were not quite
+opposite to us, and whose opponents seemed rather inclined to make a
+Christmas truce?
+
+Our two infantrymen had come to the spot where the hare had fallen,
+very nearly half-way between the French and the German lines. One of
+them stooped down and got up again proudly brandishing his victim in
+the enemy's faces. At once there was a burst of applause from the
+German lines. They called out: "Kameraden! Kameraden!"
+
+This was going too far. I saw two unarmed Prussians leave their trench
+and come forward, with their hands raised towards the two Frenchmen,
+so I consulted G.: "Ought we to fire? I confess it would be rather
+unpleasant for me to order our fellows to fire upon these unarmed men.
+On the other hand, can we allow the least intercourse between the
+barbarous nation that is still treading our soil and our good
+brothers-in-arms who are pouring out their blood every day to
+reconquer it?"
+
+Fortunately, the officer who commanded the Saint Thierry artillery,
+and who had observed this scene with his glasses, spared me a
+decision which would have been painful to me.
+
+Pong! Pong! Pong! Pong!
+
+Four shells passed, hissing, over our heads, and burst with admirable
+precision two hundred yards above the German trenches. The artillery
+officer seemed to have placed with a delicate hand the four little
+white puffs of smoke which, equidistant from each other, appeared to
+mark out the bounds in the heavens of the frontier line he wished to
+forbid the enemy to pass on the earth. The Germans did not fail to
+understand this graceful warning. With cries of rage and protest, they
+ran back to their shelters, and our Frenchmen did the same.
+
+And, as though to mark the intentional kindness of what he had just
+done, hardly had the last of the spiked helmets disappeared behind the
+parapets, when again the same hissing noise was heard, and, pong!
+pong! pong! pong! four shells dropped, this time full upon the whitish
+line formed along the green plain by the upturned earth of their
+trenches. In the midst of the smoke, earth and rubbish of all kinds
+were seen flying. Our Chasseurs cried "Bravo!" Everyone felt that the
+best solution had been found, and rejoiced at this termination of the
+brief Christmas truce.
+
+And now our minds were free to rejoice in the great day itself in
+company with our good troopers. In the night there had arrived, well
+packed in smart hampers, the bottles of champagne which Major B. had
+presented to his men, and we were looking forward to the time, only a
+few hours hence, when the soup would be upon the table, and we should
+keep our Christmas by letting off the corks in the direction of the
+German trenches.
+
+Our young fellow-officers were already anticipating this peaceful
+salvo, which would certainly be heard by the enemy.
+
+
+
+
+Bradbury, Agnew, & Co. Ld., Printers, London and Tonbridge.
+
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+    +--------------------------------------------------------------+
+    | Typographical errors corrected in text:                      |
+    |                                                              |
+    |    Page 163: Pery corrected to Pevy                          |
+    +--------------------------------------------------------------+
+
+
+
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