finally impressed by what his chum said. "General Anton von Berthold--if
we find out that is his first name it would settle it for me. And then
we could perhaps learn from one of the prisoners we find in the barbed
wire stockade something about his goings-on, where he's putting up at
present, and all that, you know."

"And in the meantime don't you think Jeanne would like something to
eat?" asked Tom. "How could she ever have managed to make her way
through the Boche lines, and get to where you ran across her?"

"I've tried to find out," Jack told him. "She mentions something about
being taken by a neighbor after that man carried her sister away on his
horse. They told her that her mother had died, and been buried. Then
one day she was taken, hidden under a load of forage, and carried miles
away. When she was put down in the end they told her she could soon find
the Americans, who were near by. But she had wandered about in the
forest for nearly a whole day before I came on her."

"Well, let's skirmish for something to eat. Our chef is a good friend of
yours, Jack; suppose you go around and tell him what's doing. He'll not
refuse to let you have something for a poor little girl. Take Jeanne
along with you. She'll win Erastus over without fail by one of her
smiles."

"I'll do it, though I hardly think it necessary. The poor little thing
must be awfully tired, too. But I'll carry her, I did that most of the
journey here. Then to get some gas and start back to where Morgan is
sitting on our plane, waiting for me to come."

"Here, you get busy with that gas and I'll manage the grub part of the
programme! If Erastus declines to fork over I'll choke him. But I know
he can't refuse when he sees her," and Tom jerked his thumb backward
while saying this toward Jeanne, now sitting on a friendly stump looking
about her with interest at the bustling scene.

Jack hurried away to secure a can of gasoline, while Tom took Jeanne by
the hand and led her toward the air squadron's camp kitchen, or
"chuck-wagon."

Erastus, the cook, was as usual about that hour as busy as a bee. With
so many hungry men to provide for when meal time came around, he hardly
found a minute to call his own.

It chanced, however, that Tom, as well as Jack, had become a favorite
with the cook, and he always had a cheery word for either of the young
air pilots.

"Ah, there, Sergeant, where'd you get the skirt?" he remarked, giving
little Jeanne several