nto a half-listless mood, while, as we have
just seen him, he stood among his comrades in front of his regiment
smoking his cigarette. Now, however, the French appeared to be
advancing from the other side of the ravine. Their batteries came
nearer, their shells began to fly across the gorge and strike behind
the German cannon. One burst amid the division of infantry, killing
and wounding several soldiers. Another demolished a gun and made havoc
among those who served it. The short sharp whistle of bullets even
began to mingle with the peculiar shrill wailing sound of the sugarloaf
shot, and on the plateau beyond, slender lines of infantry, diverging
very far apart, could be seen moving swiftly onward. They ran forward,
flung themselves down, there was a succession of sudden flashes, little
clouds of white smoke rose, a confusing medley of sharp, rattling
reports followed, contrasting disagreeably with the deep, rolling
thunder of the artillery; then the men were on their feet again,
rushing on, no longer in a perfectly straight line, some in advance,
others a little behind, with their faces turned towards the sun,
beneath whose rays the red breeches flamed in a vivid, bloody hue, and
buttons, bayonets, all polished bits of metal alternately flashed and
vanished.

The force of artillery was too weak to risk an advance. The colonel
who commanded the batteries ordered some shrapnels to be thrown among
the advancing lines of French infantry, and was about to move his
cannon a little farther back, when an aide dashed up from the right and
reported that he had ridden on in advance of the 38th brigade of
infantry, one regiment was close behind him, the other was marching as
rapidly as possible, and would soon arrive. "Hurrah! Hurrah!" shouted
artillerymen, infantry, and dragoons at the top of their voices.
"Hurrah! Hurrah!" came back from the distance, and a regiment of
infantry, headed by a colonel and a general, advanced at a rapid march
in broad, deep columns from the poplar-bordered road across the
pathless meadow. The group of officers exchanged greetings with the
new arrivals, the general received reports, quickly made himself
acquainted with the situation of affairs, and issued orders, signals
echoed, in an instant the masses of infantry separated, lines of
riflemen darted forward and hurried to the edge of the ravine, down
whose slope they were seen running a few minutes later. A second and
third rank foll