, no, _no_," said the old warrior passionately.

The Portuguese went to the shambles.

CHAPTER IV

A BUSINESS MAN IN THE ARMY

"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable
one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore
all progress depends on the unreasonable man."--G. B. Shaw (in
_A Revolutionist's Handbook_).

Colonel Musgrave of the R.A.S.C. had been instructed to
superintend the supply and transport arrangements of the Portuguese
Division, and Lieutenant Barefoot, in charge of a Labour Company, had
been detailed to assist him.

"These men," he explained to Colonel Musgrave, "are all Southampton
dockers. In peace time I am their employer, and Sergeant Scott over
there is their foreman. They tell me your Labour Companies have often
shown rather poor discipline. There's no fear of anything like that
with my men; they have been chosen with care, and look up to me as if
I were a king. Scott, my sergeant, can do anything; neither he nor my
men ever drink a drop. As for me, I am a real business man, and I
intend to introduce new methods into the army."

Barefoot was fifty years old; he had a bald head shaped like an egg.
He had just enlisted to serve his King and country, and was
overflowing with goodwill.

The next morning twenty of his men were dead-drunk, two were absent
at roll-call, and Sergeant Scott had a scar on his nose which seemed
to be the result of a somewhat sudden encounter with mother earth.

"No matter," said the worthy N.C.O., "Barefoot is an ass, and never
notices anything."

Next day the first batch of Portuguese troops arrived. British tugs
towed the huge transports round the tiny harbour with graceful ease,
and the decks seethed with masses of troops. The harbour captain and
the _Ponts et Chaussees_ engineer were loud in protest against these
wonders, as being "contrary to the ideas of the Service." The wharves
were filled with motor lorries, mountains of pressed hay, sacks of
oats and boxes of biscuits.

Colonel Musgrave, who was to take charge of this treasure-store,
began to make his plan of campaign.

"To-morrow, Friday," he said, "there will be a parade on the wharf at
7 a.m. I shall hold an inspection myself before work is begun."

On Friday morning at seven, Barefoot, his labourers and the lorries
were all paraded on the wharf in excellent order. At eight the
colonel got up, had his bath and shaved. Then he partook of egg