was our first set meal since 5.30 A.M.
breakfast, there was a period of steady, quiet, happy munching. One
cigarette, then the colonel tucked himself up in his valise, and in
three minutes was deep in his first sleep for three successive nights.

"I'll tell you what I'm going to do," I said to Bushman when we got in
our tent. "I'm going to take my clothes off and put on pyjamas. You
never know these days when you'll get another chance."

I had pulled off my jacket, when I heard a jingling sound outside and
French voices. Looking out, I saw a couple of troops of French cavalry
picketing their tall leggy horses on the village green. I just had time
to rush out and prevent two troopers stabling their officers' chargers
in the cart-shed where the colonel was resting. They seemed startled
when I whispered that it was "mon colonel" who lay there, but they
apologised with the politeness of their race, and I pointed out a much
better stable higher up the street.

About 3 A.M. the piquet woke me to introduce an artillery officer with
a Caledonian accent, who asked if I could tell him where a brigade I
knew nothing at all about were quartered in the village. The next thing
I remember was the colonel's servant telling me the colonel was up and
wanted me immediately.

VIII. A LAST FIFTY ROUNDS

5.30 A.M.: "No orders have reached me from Division yet," said the
colonel, shaving as he talked, his pocket mirror precariously poised on
a six-inch nail stuck in one of the props that held up the roof of his
cart-shed boudoir. "And I'm still waiting for reports from A and D that
they've arrived at the positions I gave them on the orders sent out
last night. I want you to go off and find the batteries. I will wait
here for orders from Division. Have your breakfast first. You'll find
the batteries somewhere along that contour," pointing with the little
finger of the hand that held the safety razor to a 1/100,000th map on
his bed.

Again I realised as I set out, followed by my groom, that the Boche had
moved forward during the night. The village we had occupied at 11 P.M.
was now within range of his guns. Two 5.9's dropped even at that moment
within 200 yards of our horses. Moreover, I hadn't ridden far along the
main street before I met some of our divisional infantry. A company
commander told me that the French had come through and relieved them.
His brigadier had arrived at Commenchon at 4 A.M., and was lying
down--in the w