of the mighty naval guns. The rocks around their howitzer were torn by
lyddite, and the ground strewn with shrapnel bullets.

"The British say we are trained German gunners. Quite a compliment to
Germany!" said one youngster laughingly.

"And I," said another, inflating his chest, "am a French or Russian
expert! Dear me, how we must have surprised them!"

They showed me how they crushed their coffee by beating it on a flat
stone. Their staple food was bully beef and hard biscuits.

"If only we had some cigarettes," they said, "how gay we should be! Last
week we got some sugar, enough for two days; we are so sick of black,
bitter coffee!"

A severe thunderstorm now broke overhead, and as I had to go on duty
that night I took leave of my friends. They had no tents, and had to
find the best shelter they could under tarpaulins stretched between the
rocks.

Riding along, I soon found my raincoat soaked through. The water began
to rush along the path, and the loud, incessant pealing of the thunder
and the rapidly succeeding and fearfully vivid lightning flashes so
terrified my horse that it refused to move a step. Dismounting, I led
the animal through the blinding rain for upwards of an hour, when I
reached camp, to find the outpost already gone. I took off my streaming
garments, and turned into my warm bed. At midnight the flap of the tent
was opened, and I was ordered to turn out and stand guard. Our effects
were still at Volksrust. Drawing on a soaking wet pair of heavy corduroy