CHAPTER XVI
ALDERHAME'S GOOD SHOT
A BARRAGE of shrapnel put up by the retreating enemy urged uponSetley the necessity for taking cover. There was now no need forfurther offensive work. The British infantry had occupied sufficientfront for them to consolidate. To proceed further before thehowitzers and heavy guns could be moved up to cover the advance wasinjudicious. It could be done. The Tommies, in their enthusiasm,would have pressed on miles ahead, but prudence on the part of thecool and calculating staff officers forbade such a step.
"All aboard," ordered Ralph, and with a double crew, the captured Huncolonel and the shell-shocked dispatch rider in addition, hislandship ambled sedately to the rear, making light of the showers ofshrapnel bullets that rattled ineffectually upon her metal hide.
Beyond the barrage she passed columns of fresh troops hurryingforward to hold the ground gained, the men cheering the shell-splayedTank with the greatest enthusiasm. Other columns were overtaken,going in the opposite direction--immense droves of muddy, dejected,hungry Huns and a constant stream of British wounded, some lyingmotionless upon stretchers, others being supported by their lesswounded comrades or else hobbling along unaided save for theassistance of a rifle used as a crutch. Even in their pain thegallant Tommies cheered the returning landship, and exchanged jestswith those of the crew who in their exuberance had climbed upon hercurved roof.
Guns, too, were going in both directions, the British heavies as fastas gangs of skilled men laid sections of railway lines--the workproceeding at a rate that would astonish even the most hustlingYankee. British horses, too, were making for the rear, draggingcaptured German artillery, floundering gallantly through the mud asif conscious of sharing in the glory of the day.
Ralph's task was not complete with the "housing" of his Tank underits canvas cover. His report had to be written up and sent in, he hadto attend a supplementary tactical conference in order to beacquainted with the general scheme of operations for the morrow.Prisoners had to be interrogated, maps studied--in short, sheer hardmental work following upon a task of hard and arduous activity, untilutterly fagged he was glad to snatch a few hours' rest beforerenewing a close acquaintance with the Huns.
He fell into a deep dreamless slumber, that even the ceaselessthunder of the guns, that hurled their terrible missiles upon theGerman positions, failed to disturb.
Just after midnight Setley was roused by a hand shaking his shoulder.Sitting up, yet sufficiently cautious to avoid bumping his headagainst the beams of the dug-out, he found Danvers by the side of thebundle of straw that formed his bed.
"A plane has been strafing us," announced his brother-officer."'Fraid some of the plums dropped precious close to our buses. Comealong and see if there's any damage."
Setley went out, shivering in the cold night air. It was a starlessnight. The lurid flash of the guns lighted the horizon and threwvague shadows across the crater-pitted ground that a few dayspreviously had been the No Man's Land of the contending forces. Itwas now three miles to the rear of the advancing British line.
A crowd of officers and men wearing steel helmets and great-coatspoured across the ground, all making towards the spot where the Tankswere "parked."
"All right, sir," Setley heard one of the sentries report to thesenior major. "They did fall a bit close, sir, but not near enough todo any damage."
"Thank goodness!" ejaculated Ralph, but to satisfy himself heapproached the landship under his command. Not even the canvascovering was injured, although two Tanks in the vicinity had hadtheir wrappings torn off by the blast of the exploding bomb.
"The fellow evidently knows where the Tanks are," observed Danvers."Deucedly funny how these Huns find out things behind our lines, andyet not a single enemy airman has ventured over in daylight for thelast week. Eh, what's that?"
A Tommy, hurrying past, had shouted some information to a pal.Halting, he repeated the news to the subaltern, speaking with a grimrelish.
"'E dropped two bombs, sir, smack into No. 9 Advance Cage, sir. Neverseen such a blessed mess in all me life. I'll allow there are acouple o' hundred prisoners snuffed out. Anyway, they've gotsomething to be thankful for. Their carcases won't be used for pigs'food."
"That knocks your information theory on the head," observed Ralph."The airman evidently trusted to luck and it played a shabby trick onthe prisoners."
"Not at all," said Danvers stoutly. "He was trying for the Tanks. Thefact that a cage was within five hundred yards of them didn't troublehim at all. Cannon fodder, you see; once these Huns are prisonersthey cease to count in the estimation of the German High Command.That's why it is not advisable to commit reprisals upon prisoners.Such a step wouldn't affect the Huns in the slightest. It's a safecard to bombard their 'open' towns by way of reprisals. That makesthem squeal."
"Let's be getting back," suggested Ralph, stifling a yawn.
"Wish I could," rejoined his companion, consulting the luminous dialof his watch. "Unfortunately I'm down for duty at one-thirty."
"What's up, then?" enquired Setley.
"Over there," replied Danvers, pointing towards the front trenches."They've had a squad from a Labour Battalion hard at it, digging apath for my bus. I was warned to be there at the time I mentioned.Wanted to hang on all the while, but there was that strafed officialenquiry."
"I'll go with you," suggested Ralph.
"You're dog tired," objected his chum.
"Not at all," protested Setley. "I'll go. It'll give me an appetitefor breakfast, don't you see. I heard that there was to be avariation from the almost everlasting bully beef. There's bacon,Danvers, actually bacon."
"Good!" exclaimed the subaltern. "Let's hope it won't be like thelast I tasted. The stuff must have chummed up with the dead end of apoison gas shell. Ugh! It put me off entirely."
"Know the way?" asked Ralph.
"Rather," was the confident reply. "And I guess we won't be lonely.There's plenty of life along the path--and death, too," he addedgravely. "We'll follow the track of the Tank."
The well-defined path flattened out by the tractors of Setley's Tankon its return journey afforded a sure guide, although the compressedmud was covered with two or three inches of water. Nevertheless thetwo officers proceeded with caution; there was no knowing whether ahostile shell or two had pitched after the landship's return, inwhich case there was a possibility of tumbling into five or six feetof icy-cold water that had drained into the recently formed crater.
"Fritz is still getting badly strafed." observed Danvers, for theguns were thundering unceasingly. The horizon facing the twosubalterns was one series of lurid flashes as the British shellspounded the German lines. Haig was taking no unnecessary risks. Hewas not a leader to needlessly sacrifice his men in costly frontalattacks in close formation. That was a German method of militarywarfare that had not been accepted by other nations as an essentialto success.
There was a certain mistiness in the air. The stars were obscured.The faint breeze hardly disturbed the huge clouds of orange-tintedsmoke that stood out clearly against the darkness. Away in thedistance a huge conflagration showed that the British shells had setfire to a German "dump," or else the Huns were up to their latestdisplay of _kultur_--setting fire to a village before "voluntarilyretiring to fresh positions."
Contrary to Danvers' expectations their journey was not overburdenedwith company. The reliefs had gone; the wounded had been carried off.A few "sanitary squads," searching in the darkness, were the only menthey met during the first mile of the way.
An aeroplane droned overhead. Neither of the subalterns paid muchheed to it. Aviators [unreadable text] night and day were as commonas [unreadable text] in the early autumn. Ralph [unreadable text]ver,that it was flying low, its [unreadable text] silhouetted against theglare on the sky-line.
"Beastly cold job," remarked Danvers. "All[unreadable text] in summer, but on anight like this----"
"He's planing down," said Setley. "He's shut off his motor."
"So he
is," agreed Ralph's companion. "Wonder why? I shouldn't thinka fellow would make a landing here for choice."
They plodded on for another two hundred yards. Suddenly a gutturalvoice shouted, "_Wer da?_"
"Huns!" whispered Ralph. Both officers drew their revolvers.
"Are you in need of assistance?" asked Setley in German.
"No, but repairs will take two hours," was the reply. Then, after apause, "How far am I from Douai?"
Setley thought fit to enlighten the Hun, who had evidently lost hisbearings in addition to sustaining damage to his machine. Byenquiring for Douai, where the Germans had an aviation ground, theBoche had given himself away.
"Quite an impossible distance, Herr Aviatiker," responded Ralph."Meanwhile, you are our prisoner. Surrender instantly."
Even then the German failed to grasp the significance of theposition.
"Surrender yourselves," he retorted, and placing a whistle to hislips he blew three short blasts. "Our patrols will be up at once,Englishmen," he added, "so do not give increasing trouble."
Another airman joined the first--the observer most likely. Dark formswere approaching. These gave the Huns mistaken confidence, for bothbegan blazing away with their revolvers at Setley and his companion,who, dropping on one knee, promptly returned the compliment.
"Hullo!" bawled an unmistakably English voice. "What's the rumpus?"
"German airmen," shouted Ralph in reply.
"Then they're booked," rejoined the speaker.
The disconcerting nature of their blunder completely astounded thelost airmen. Without attempting to set fire to their machine theyturned and bolted. Neither of the opposing parties had been hit inthe exchange of pistol shots. Revolver firing at sixty yards on amisty night is not conducive to accurate aim, but with a riflematters are placed on a different footing.
The foremost of the approaching squad let rip. Three flashes andthree reports as one stabbed the darkness. One of the fugitivespitched forward on his face; the other stumbled for a dozen yards andthen rolled sideways to the ground.
"Well done, Alderhame!" exclaimed Ralph.
"Dash my stars!" ejaculated the ex-actor. "I hardly expected to runacross you--'upon the vasty fields of France.'"
"What are you doing here?" asked Setley.
"Ration party, sir," replied Sergeant Alderhame. "We were hurryingalong because we were taking a cheese ration up to our chaps. Thecheese was lively when we started, so we wanted to get the stuff upbefore it walked off. There's Ginger Anderson sitting on top of onelot."
The men were all from the Wheatshires. The supplies they werebringing up were conveyed in specially constructed wheelbarrows withbroad flanges to enable them to traverse soft ground. Until a narrowgauge tramway was laid down this was the best means of gettingrations up to the firing line.
"I'll have a look at our birds, sir," continued Alderhame. "I'mcurious to know where they were winged."
"Be careful," cautioned Ralph. "They may be lying doggo."
"Trust me for that, sir," was the rejoinder, then telling his squadto temporarily abandon their highly scented cargo he ordered hem toextend and surround the place where the two airmen had fallen.
The pilot was stone dead, with a bullet-wound through the centre ofhis back. The observer, hit in the thigh and shoulder, had faintedthrough loss of blood. "Ripping shot that one of mine!" exclaimedAlderhame enthusiastically. "Jolly rummy, though, I can't helpfeeling like a sportsman on the moors and it's a human being I'vebrought down."
"But a bloomin' Boche," added Ginger the materialist. "One the lessan' no cause to feed 'im."
By the aid of his electric torch Ralph examined the pockets of thedead pilot, who under his leather coat wore an Iron Cross. Papersfound in his possession showed that the two men were crack Hun fliersand had set out purposely with the intention of bombing the Tanks. Inaddition the disconcerting information was forthcoming that the enemyhad learnt the precise spot in which the landships were parked, andsince no hostile machines had been over during daylight it wasreasonable to conclude a spy had given the news.
"By Jupiter! I'd like to nip the fellow," remarked Danvers, as thetwo officers resumed their way. "Smart chap that, sergeant."
"One of my old chums in the Wheatshires," said Ralph. "A decent chap,only he has the bad habit of flinging Shakespeare at your head everyhalf minute. I'm rather keen on getting him transferred to the TankSection, but haven't had the chance to work it yet."
"A handy man behind a machine-gun, I should fancy. Hullo! That was abeauty."
A terrific burst of light, followed by half a dozen minor explosions,occasioned Danver's exclamation. Something, far behind the Germanlines, had "gone up." The British artillery were doing good work thatnight.
Floundering past gaping shell-holes, for as they approached thesupport trenches the craters were more numerous, the two officersarrived at the scene of the Tank's misadventure.
"Getting along famously, sir," announced Danvers' sergeant. "Theselabour chaps have been slogging in like greased lightning. Anotherquarter of an hour, sir, and we'll be ready to start."
A great change had taken place in the land topography since themorning. The pitfall lay exposed in all its nakedness--a wide yawningcavity of which three sides were as steep and smooth as aconcrete-faced wall. The third had been attacked by the labourtroops--picked navvies of magnificent physique and thoroughly skilledin the art of digging.
Earth had been cut away until a slope of thirty degrees formed aninclined plane from the normal surface to the floor of the pit. Thefinishing touches were being made, thick planks being put down toform a corduroy road up the newly made path.
Members of the Tank's crew had also been hard at work fitting newtreads to parts of the tractor bands. Considering the fall the heavymass had come off lightly, for the injury to the wheels was the onlymaterial damage.
Danvers surveyed his command with great satisfaction.
"I'm quite attached to the old bus," he confided to Ralph. "Of coursethey would have given me another if this one had been properlystrafed, but it's simply great to get her into working order again."
"All ready, sir," reported the sergeant. The two officers entered thesteel box. The motors were purring gently and rhythmically. Amid thecheers of the excavating squad the Tank moved slowly yet surely upthe incline, and, gaining the shell-pitted ground, waddled sedatelyfor her base.
"Now for a few hours' sleep," said Danvers.
Ralph stifled a yarn.
"Yes," he admitted, glancing at his wristwatch. "It's now ten minutespast three--we've done pretty well. At five we start our day's work,and from all accounts it's going to be a hot time."