poral, he was well known throughout
the army. Pioche--"

"Pioche!" cried I, in agony; "is this Pioche?"

"Here," said the wounded man, hearing the name, and answering as if on
parade,--"here, mon commandant! but too faint, I 'm afraid, for duty.
I feel weak to-day," said he, as he pressed his hand upon his side, and
then slowly sank back against the rock, and dropped his arms at either
side.

"Come," said I, "we must lose no time. Let us carry him to the rear. If
nothing else can be done, he 'll meet with care--"

"Hush! mon lieutenant! don't let him hear you speak of that. He stormed
and swore so much when the ambulance passed, and they wanted to bring
him along, that it brought on a coughing fit, just like what you saw,
and he lay in a faint for half an hour after. He vows he 'll never stir
from where he is. Truth is, Commandant," said he, in the lowest whisper,
"he is determined to die. When his squadron fell back from the Russian
square, he rode on their bayonets, and cut at the men while the
artillery was playing all about him. He told me this morning he 'd never
leave the field."

"Poor fellow! what was the meaning of this sad resolution?"

"_Ma foi!_ a mere trifle, after all," said the other, shrugging his
shoulders, and making a true French grimace of contempt. "You 'll smile
when I tell you; but he takes it to heart, poor fellow. His mistress has
been false to him,--no great matter that, you 'd say,--but so it is, and
nothing more. See how still he lies now! is he sleeping?"

"I fear not; he looks exhausted from loss of blood. Come, we must have
him out of this; here comes my orderly to assist us. If we carry him to
the road I 'll find a carriage of some sort."

I said this in a tone of command, to silence any scruples he might
still have about obeying his comrade in preference to the orders of an
officer. He obeyed with the instinct of discipline, and proceeded to
fold his cloak in such a manner that we could carry the wounded man
between us.

The poor corporal, too weak to resist us, faint from bleeding and
semi-stupid, suffered himself to be lifted upon the cloak, and never
uttered a word or a cry as we bore him along between us.

We had not proceeded far when we came up with a convoy, conducting
several carts with the wounded to the convent of Reygern, which had now
been fitted up as an hospital. On one of these we secured a place for
our poor friend, and walked along beside him towards the conv