er; and I can't understand their jibber-jabber, but
it's plain enough to see that they are grumpy and don't like it, and the
way they goes on screwing up those bits of paper and lighting up and
smoking away is enough to make you ill to watch them. 'Tain't as if
they were good honest pipes. Why, they must smoke as much paper as they
do 'bacco. Think their captain is going to give it up as a bad job?"

"No, Punch."

"Well, anyhow, I think you might ask him to take us out with him a bit.
If you don't like to do it on account of yourself, because, as you say,
he might think it ungrateful, you put it all on to me. Look here. You
says, if you can put it into French, as you wouldn't mind it a bit. You
says as it's your comrade as wants to stretch his legs awful bad. Yes,
and you tell him this too, that I keeps on worrying you about having
pins and needles in my back."

"Stuff, Punch!"

"That it ain't, honour bright. It's lying on my back so much up there
in that there cock-loft. It all goes dead-like where the bullet went
in. It's just as if it lay there still, and swelled up nearly as big as
a cannon ball, and that lump goes all dead and dumb in needles and pins
like for ever so long. There, you try it on him that way. You say I'm
so sick of it as never was."

"And it was only yesterday, Punch, you told me that you were thoroughly
happy and contented here, and the country was so beautiful and we were
living so well that you didn't mind if we stayed here for months."

"'Twaren't yesterday. It was the day before the day before that. You
have got all the time mixed up. I don't know where you would have been
if I hadn't counted up."

"Well, never mind when it was. You can't deny that you said something
like that."

"Ah, but I wasn't so tired then. I am all right again now, and so are
you, and I want to be at it. Who's going to be contented shut-up here
like a prisoner?"

"Not bad sort of imprisonment, Punch."

"Oh no, that's all right enough, comrade; but I want to get back to our
chaps. They'll be crossing us off as killed and wounded, and your
people at home will be thinking you are dead. I want to get back to the
fighting again. Why, if we go on like this, one of these days they will
be sarving out the promotions, and then where do we come in? I say, the
captain didn't come to see us last week. Think he will to-night?"

"I hope so, and bring us news."

"So do I. But isn't it about time th