intelligence. I fell into a kind of semi-conscious state. Suddenly the
whistle blew for lunch. How quickly the last twenty-seven minutes seemed
to have passed!

It was good to have an hour's rest before us. As for the afternoon,
well, there was no need to think about it, for it was still a long way
off. Besides, somehow or other, the afternoons always seemed to pass
more quickly than the mornings. Moreover, we had paraded an hour earlier
than usual, so perhaps we would also stop work an hour earlier.

"'Urry up an' dror yer tea," our Sergeant shouted. "Yer only gettin'
'alf an hour fur yer dinner--we've got ter git the job done ter-day."

"Why didn' yer tell us it was a task job? Gorblimy--we ain't done 'alf
of it! We won't get 'ome afore five or six o'clock ter-night."

"_I_ can't 'elp it, 'tain't _my_ fault. Yer've got ter git it done,
them's me orders!"

There was vociferous grumbling and swearing that continued while we
formed a queue and filed past a man who poured tea in our mugs from
three large dixies.

We sat down by the stacks wherever we could find shelter from the wind.
We were still hot and perspiring after our morning's labours. We ate our
rations in silence, for the resentful shouting had died down and had
given way to a sullen quiet.

When we had finished our meal we stared vacantly at the snowflakes that
were blown over the top of the stack above our heads and whirled round