undance; and the boys bought some apples, and sat down by the
little feeder of the Moselle which passes through the village, and
watched it tumbling past on its way to join the main stream, a few
miles below Epinal.

In a quarter of an hour, they were again on the march. In another
five miles they reached Fontaine, lying a little off the road to
their right. They had now marched ten miles, and Major Tempe
ordered a halt for three hours. A piece of level ground was chosen,
arms were piled, blankets and haversacks taken off, and then
preparations began for their first meal. Men were sent off with
kettles, for water. Others went up to the village with cans for
wine--or beer for, in Alsace, beer is more common than wine. Tim
took the horse out of the shafts, and gave him some oats. Some of
the men were sent from each company to fetch wood, and the old
soldiers prepared for the important operation of cooking.

Several little fireplaces were made, with stones and turf, open on
the side facing the wind. In these sticks were placed and, when
they were fairly alight, the saucepans--each holding the allowance
of ten men--were placed on them. In these the meat--cut up in
pieces of about half a pound--was placed; with pepper, salt,
onions, rice, and potatoes peeled and cut up, and the whole filled
up with water.

When the preparations were finished, the men threw themselves down
under the shade of some trees; and smoked and chatted until, in
about an hour, the cooking was complete. Each man then brought up
his tin canteen, and received his portion of soup in the deep side,
and his meat and vegetables in the shallow can. The bread had
already been cut up. The tin drinking pots which, with knives,
forks, and spoons, were carried in the canteens, were filled with
beer and, with much laughing and fun, each man sat down on the
grass, or scattered rocks, to eat his breakfast.

Many of the villagers had come down; and these brought, for the
most part, little presents: a few apples, a little fresh cheese, or
a bunch of grapes. It was a merry meal, and the boys agreed that it
was the jolliest picnic that they had ever been at.

At two o'clock the bugle sounded. The cooking things were packed up
and placed in the cart again; the blankets and haversacks slung on,
and the rifles shouldered and, with many a good wish from the
peasants, they marched forward again.

Eight miles further marching brought them to the end of their day's
jour