similar mission.

For no one can tell what may happen in No Man's Land--that section
belonging to neither side, before and between the front-line trenches of
the opposing armies.

"With that star as my guide, I am certain that we have not turned from
the proper direction," Lieutenant Mackinson whispered, as they came to a
halt in a secluded spot that seemed as safe from attack as from
observation. "We have passed the fifth hill. Fifteen more minutes should
bring us to the place which Major Jones indicated on the map. It is a
sort of natural trench. If we reach it all right we are to string a
wire from there to our first observation trench to the northwest of it.
I believe that the same place has been used for the same purpose before,
during the long time that all this has been contested ground. An outpost
there can observe and report every activity of the enemy in daylight,
without himself being seen."

They began again to creep forward, now flat upon their stomachs, and
only raising themselves from the ground a little way, but at infrequent
intervals, in order to make sure of their position and that they were
not being watched.

"Listen!" hissed Frank Hoskins, who was a little to the left of where
the others were snaking their way along.

They all stopped moving, almost stopped breathing.

"What was it?" Lieutenant Mackinson barely breathed, after several
minutes of silence.

Hoskins crawled nearer before he spoke.

"How near are we, Lieutenant?" he asked:

"I should say about a hundred yards."

"Look straight ahead of us when the next rocket goes up," Hoskins
suggested.

They had not long to wait for one of the great sky torches to come
sailing over the side of the German trench, but from a considerable
distance ahead of them.

"Did you notice anything?" Hoskins asked.

"I didn't," whispered the lieutenant. "Did you?"

"I thought I saw half a dozen men," said Joe.

"We'll wait, then, and see," said Lieutenant Mackinson.

In a moment another rocket went up, this time from the American-French
side, and it clearly showed what Joe and Frank both had seen.

Six, perhaps seven or eight, men were crawling along, headed toward
them.

"They are making for the same place," said Jerry.

"Exactly," replied the lieutenant. "It means that we have got to fight
for it. We will have some advantage if we can beat them to the
protection of the base of that hummock."

As rapidly as possible they started forwar