It must have been about five o'clock when he received a message to
concentrate on the main road. On the way he was accosted by a woman
perfectly distraught with grief, who explained that two days ago her
little son had disappeared into "ce bois là" never to come out again.

"Si votre fils vive encore, il reviendra, bien sûr, Madame. S'il est
mort, moi, je ne peux pas vous aider." Terrible to relate, the sight of
such grief annoyed rather than saddened him.

The advance was continued until it was quite dark, when the Battalion
denuded the usual hayrick, and "dossed down" in the usual stubble
field.




CHAPTER XIX

AN ADVANCED-GUARD ACTION


At about eleven o'clock the next morning his Company Commander--the
Captain was leading as the Major was now second in command of the
Battalion--told the Subaltern to ride back to the transport wagons and
get some fresh maps and some chocolate which he had left in one of the
carts. It was pleasant to get a ride, and to rest one's feet for awhile,
so he took his time in getting back to the transport.

No sooner had he reached the wagons than a gun boomed. He thought
nothing of that, however. Guns were always going off, at the oddest