ld behind the enemy's
wood, where it being evident that the foe had no reserves, Bann began
once more to write.

Now we heard Kirby's voice, who having led the company along the road,
and finding himself plainly behind the enemy's fire, was putting the men,
in squad columns, into the wood to search them out. We climbed the wire
fence and followed through the densest undergrowth, where poor Corder,
stumbling behind and having to protect his glasses, often found himself
quite out of sight of the man in front. But we were too late. We heard
shouts ahead, the firing ceased, and when we desperately broke through
the last of the thicket and found ourselves in the open, there stood a
line of men with white bands on their hats (the sign of the opposing
forces) quietly regarding us. Rumor said that they were captured, and
Squad 9, being first on the ground, was feeling proud of their work. Then
the rumor ran that not only was the enemy not captured, but we were
killed. Squad 9 was cursing, "not loud but deep," when the captain came
along and was passionately appealed to. "We got them," he assured us.
"They were firing away from us when we broke through the wood. A single
picket on that flank, firing a single shot on seeing us, would have saved
them. And besides, we have their horses. Sergeant Barker has just come in
reporting that he has the bunch." Satisfied, we marched out to our
present resting-place.

The cavalry has just emerged from their unsuccessful ambush, with the two
machine guns, and have started northward in a hurry, an umpire warning
them, "You have only five minutes before we start after you." The men
around me are laughing and talking, well content, and I have just seen
the major congratulating the captain on a brisk piece of work.

(In camp again, and settled for the night at our old tents, the weather
having cleared.)

A cavalryman (by the way, there was pointed out to me today the fellow
with the broken jaw, jouncing along with the rest, and looking neither
thin nor pale) a cavalryman has just settled down to discuss the skirmish
with us. "We got some beautiful shots at you fellows. In our first
position we let the point of I company walk by, and then fired into them
at about fifty yards. I company drove us, and then we settled in that
little wood, with the machine guns. I company's flanking patrol came
right up to the edge of the woods without seeing us. We let them go by
and then fired into you. Didn't y