the french and allied forces were located in a range of wooded hills running north and south along the east bank of the meuse. they had fortified steeply terraced slopes with successive rows of trenches, permitting line above line of infantry to fire against an advancing enemy.
at the foot of the hillside is the village of vignueilles, a little stone-built town that had been shot into ruins by artillery. a boy from this village, who had taken refuge with the soldiers on the high[83] ground, found a former playmate when he met henri. this boy’s father had once been employed as a gardener by the trouvilles.
as billy said, “they jabbered french until they made him tired.”
the new friend had the given name of joseph, but henri called him “reddy.” billy called him a “muff,” because he could not understand half that the new boy said.
but joseph, or reddy, by any name was just now a tower of strength, even if the tower was only five feet three inches up from the ground.
as leon, the little belgian, served at ypres, so reddy was going to prove a big help in the adventure at hand.
he had chased rabbits into almost every hole in these hills, and in the woods he could travel even beyond the german frontier by as many different routes as he counted fingers on his hands.
billy, henri and reddy were in close conference all day, so quiet, and so cautious, for the once, in their movements, that the sergeant wavered between suspicion and anxiety, the first because he thought his charges must be up to something, and the second for the reason that he feared they were going to be ill.
he might have imagined relief from anxiety by thinking the boys were tremendously hungry had[84] he seen their frequent trips during the day to the places where provisions were stored.
had he seen them, however, taking several small safety lanterns from the ammunition department, suspicion would have stood first in his mind.
“the tunnel begins at a point 500 yards directly west of fort les paroches, and it is called ‘point of rocks,’” henri reading the notes and following with a pin point the lines of the little map that francois had given him.
the mentioned fort had been silenced only the day before by german mortars, and its location was now marked by a huge mound of black, plowed up earth.
“that’s only three miles from here.”
reddy was eager to show his knowledge of the neighborhood.
henri passed reddy’s statements on to billy in english.
“‘bowlders laid in the form of a cross show the place of entrance,’” henri continuing to read.
“‘stone slab at foot of cross. remove stone and find iron ring in oak cover. lift cover and find stone steps.’”
“seems simple enough if we had a derrick.”
billy was still doubtful.
“the only thing i fear,” said henri, paying no attention to billy’s pert remark, “is that with time[85] the markings may be wiped out by changes of earth formation, forest growth or the like.”
“no,” quickly advised reddy, “if it’s the place that i’ve seen there are still a lot of rocks there.”
“i suppose you could find the place for us, couldn’t you, reddy?” asked henri.
“yes! yes!”
reddy was on his feet to furnish proof without further delay.
“we can get there through the ravine,” he was in a hurry to add.
“when the sergeant goes to inspect the outposts, then, let’s make the break.”
billy was catching the spirit of the occasion.
so it was while good sergeant scott was performing a military duty the boys shouldered their well filled knapsacks, and, with reddy leading, in the dusk succeeded in eluding the sentry first in the way.
the cunning of reddy as a woodsman was wonderfully shown by the manner in which he took to the brush and the way he avoided notice. it seemed hardly any time at all before the boys were silently picking their way, shadow-like, in the depths of the pitch-dark ravine.
they had heard no challenge until billy planted his foot on a fallen twig, which cracked like a pistol shot.
“who goes there?”
[86]
sharp question, in french, from above.
down went the boys flat on the ground, concealed by overhanging bushes.
the sentry repeated the challenge.
all as silent as the grave.
the boys scarcely breathed. they knew the guard was one of the allied forces, but yet they had no desire to take issue with him. even if he only turned them back to quarters their chances of getting away again would be few and far between. the sergeant would see to that.
some ten minutes passed. it seemed longer to the truants in the ravine.
then, as if satisfied that the noise was without menace, the sentry resumed his pace, and the boys flitted on as if shod with velvet.
the path took an upward turn, and reddy nudged his companions to a halt.
“we’re there,” he whispered.
