y
accent--rather confused them. Happily one of them spoke a little
English, and, with that and my little French, satisfactory explanations
were made.

I affected no secrecy about my object, and asked them frankly if it
would be possible for pictures of their regiment to be taken. One of
them promised to speak to the Commandant about it. I begged them not to
trouble about it, however, as really all I wanted was a hint as to when
and where an engagement was probable, and then I would manage to be
there.

They shrugged their shoulders in a most grimly expressive way.

"If you do that it will be at your own risk," they said.

I gladly accepted the risk, and they then told me of one or two vantage
points in the district from which I might manage to see something of the
operations, taking my chance, of course, of anything happening near
enough to be photographed, as they could not, and quite rightly would
not, say anything as to the plans for the future.

It was not quite midday. I had at least four hours of daylight, and I
determined not to lose them. It was obvious that my stay in St. Die
would be very brief at the best. I hired a sledge and persuaded the
driver to take me part of the way at least to the nearest point which
the officers had mentioned.

But neither he nor his horse liked the way the shells were coming
around, and at last even his avarice refused to be stimulated further at
the expense of his courage. So I strapped on my skis, thankful for my
earlier experience with them, and sped towards a wood which French
soldiers were clearing of German snipers. I managed to get one or two
good incidents there, though occasional uncertainty about my skis
spoiled other fine scenes, and in my haste to move from one spot to
another, I once went head over heels into a snowdrift many feet deep.

The ludicrous spectacle that I must have cut only occurred to me
afterwards, and the utterly inappropriate nature of such an incident
within sight of men who were battling in life and death grip was a
reflection for calmer moments. I do not mind confessing that my sole
thought during the whole of that afternoon was my camera and my films.
The lust of battle was in me too. I had overcome great difficulties to
obtain not merely kinema-pictures, but actual vivid records of the Great
War, scenes that posterity might look upon as true representations of
the struggle their forefathers waged. Military experts may argue as to
whether