glowing red against
the sun, escorting them, with their darling in their midst; while from
their deep chests they shouted war songs in Sabir, with all the wild and
riotous delight that the triumph of victory and the glow of bloodshed
roused in those who combined in them the fire of France and the
fanaticism of Islamism--an irresistible union.

Though the nights were now cold, and before long even the advent of
snow might be looked for, the days were hot and even scorching still.
Cigarette and her Spahis took no heed of it; they were desert born
and bred; and she was well-nigh invulnerable to heat as any little
salamander. But, although they were screened as well as they could be
under an improvised awning, the wounded men suffered terribly. Gnats and
mosquitoes and all the winged things of the African air tormented them,
and tossing on the dry, hot straw they grew delirious; some falling
asleep and murmuring incoherently, others lying with wide-open eyes of
half-senseless, straining misery. Cigarette had known well how it would
be with them; she had accompanied such escorts many a time; and ever and
again when they halted she dismounted and came to them, and mixed wine
with some water that she had slung a barrel of to her saddle, and gave
it to them, and moved their bandages, and spoke to them with a soft,
caressing consolation that pacified them as if by some magic. She had
led them like a young lion on to the slaughter in the past day; she
soothed them now with a gentleness that the gentlest daughter of the
Church could not have surpassed.

The way was long; the road ill formed, leading for the most part across
a sear and desolate country, with nothing to relieve its barrenness
except long stretches of the great spear-headed reeds. At noon the heat
was intense; the little cavalcade halted for half an hour under the
shade of some black, towering rocks which broke the monotony of the
district, and commenced a more hilly and more picturesque portion of the
country. Cigarette came to the side of the temporary ambulance in which
Cecil was placed. He was asleep--sleeping for once peacefully, with
little trace of pain upon his features, as he had slept the previous
night. She saw that his face and chest had not been touched by the
stinging insect-swarm; he was doubly screened by a shirt hung above him
dexterously on some bent sticks.

"Who has done that?" thought Cigarette. As she glanced round she
saw--without any linen