unning and bring them back to a sense of duty to their
country."

The irritating titter of the bell in the closet off the library only
increased his defiance of facts beyond control. He went to the long
distance with a reply to the premier's inquiry ready to his lips.

"We got into the enemy's works but had to fall back temporarily," he
said.

"Temporarily! What do you mean?" demanded the premier.

"I mean that we have only begun to attack!" declared Westerling. He
liked that sentence. It sounded like the shibboleth of a great leader in
a crisis. "I shall assault again to-morrow night."

"Then your losses were not heavy?"

"No, not relatively. To-morrow night we press home the advantage we
gained to-night."

"But you have been so confident each time. You still think that--"

"That I mean to win! There is no stopping half-way."

"Well, I'll still try to hold the situation here," replied the premier.
"But keep me informed."

Drugged by his desperate stubbornness, Westerling was believing in his
star again when he returned to the library. All the greater his success
for being won against scepticism and fears! He summoned his chiefs of
divisions, who came with the news that the Browns had taken the very
redoubt from which the head of the Gray charge had started; but there
they had stopped.

"Of course! Of course they stopped!" exclaimed Westerling. "They are not
mad. A few are not going to throw themselves against superior
numbers--our superior numbers beaten by our own panic! Lanstron is not a
fool. You'll find the Browns back in their old position, working like
beavers to make new defences in the morning. Meanwhile, we'll get that
mob of ours into shape and find out what made them lose their nerve.
To-morrow night we shall have as many more behind them. We are going to
attack again!"

The staff exchanged glances of amazement, and Turcas, his dry voice
crackling like parchment, exclaimed:

"Attack again? At the same point?"

"Yes--the one place to attack!" said Westerling. "The rest of our line
has abundant reserves; a needless number for anything but the offensive.
We'll leave enough to hold and draw off the rest to Engadir at once."

"But their dirigibles! A surprising number of them are over our lines,"
Bellini, the chief of intelligence, had the temerity to say.

"You will send our planes and dirigibles to bring down theirs!"
Westerling commanded.

"I have--every last one; but they outnumber us!"