CHAPTER XIX
THE MINED TUNNEL
A DOZEN wellnigh breathless Huns, with greasy uniform and batteredequipment, struggling to dive into the cellar in which Ralph's Tankhad become a "fixture," roused the crew to action.
The Germans, with their intimate local knowledge, expected to find asafe retreat, until, to their consternation, they were confronted bythe blunt nose of the stranded landship and covered by two maximsthat could be brought to bear upon them although unable to be trainedover the pile of rubble that lay betwixt the Tank and the street.
"Hands up!" shouted Ralph.
The order was obeyed instantly.
"Ye vos Sachsen!" called out an imploring voice. "Mercy, Kamerad."
The statement was a false one, and Setley knew it.
"You are Prussians," he replied; "but we'll give you quarter. Keepyour hands up. The first man who lowers his arms will be shot."
Keeping close to the bows of the landship the crowd of now terrifiedHuns obeyed the instructions. Throwing open the armoured door,Corporal Anderson and two others of the crew emerged from the Tankand deftly removed the prisoners side-arms and ammunition. This done,they stood by to warn any parties of British bombers who in the heatof the pursuit might hurl their devastating missiles into the cellar.
In the midst of his task Anderson spotted one man's hand stealthilyapproaching his pocket.
"Wot 'ave you got there, old sport?" enquired the corporal, grippingthe Hun's wrist. "Search 'im, Smutty," he added, addressing one ofthe Tommies.
The private did so, and discovered a small automatic pistol.
"So that's the bloomin' game, eh?" enquired Ginger. "Let 'im go,Smutty. Now, look to yourself, Fritz. I'm a-goin' to dot you one."
The German evidently understood, and clenching his fists stood on hisguard. The next instant he was flat on his back, contemplating thesuperb display of a galaxy of stars that danced before hisfast-closing eyes.
"What's up, Ginger?" asked Alderhame, and, glancing keenly at one ofthe prisoners, suddenly lapsed into his unbreakable habit of quotingthe bard:
"O world, thy slippery turns. Friends now fast sworn Unseparable, shall within this hour, On a dissension of a doit, break out To bitterest enmity."
To which the prisoner replied, in a faultless English accent:
"Alderhame! I little thought to see you here. Let me see: only threeyears and six months ago we were on the boards together in _Much Adoabout Nothing_."
"And now," added Alderhame, "we're producing _Measure for Measure._"
"I hope it will be _All's Well that Ends Well,_" rejoined the German."I'm properly fed up with this war, and will be glad to be out ofit."
"You will be--in a prison camp in England," the sergeant assured him."We'll see that you are sent under escort to the rear. Unless yourown guns cop you there'll be nothing to fear. What made the crowd ofyou make a dive for this cellar?"
"I don't mind telling you now," he said, in a low voice. "There's atunnel. That Tank has blocked up the entrance. It communicates withour reserve lines, and the whole place is heavily mined. I wouldadvise you to clear out as soon as possible, for when our people havewaited sufficiently long to enable our troops to withdraw--the fewthat are left, that is--the village will be blown to atoms."
Strong-nerved though he was, the ex-actor felt a cold shiver in theneighbourhood of his spine. The possibility of being in closeproximity to a quantity of high explosive that would explode by theact of touching a key--and more than likely a Hun was at that veryinstant toying with the electric battery that would fire thecharge--was enough to make any man blench.
With an effort he pulled himself together.
"All right," he said, addressing his former brother actor and presentenemy. "I'll send you out under escort. Yes, the whole crowd of you,I mean."
Obtaining Second-Lieutenant Setley's permission, Alderhame despatchedthe prisoners under the charge of Corporal Anderson and two men. Themoment they had gone Alderhame imparted the grave news to hissuperior officer.
"Send a man to warn the Divisional Officer of the troops holding thevillage," ordered Ralph. "We'll have to abandon the Tank, I fancy."
At an order the crew hurriedly prepared to leave the shelter of thestranded landship, but before they could do so a terrific concussionshook the already tottering walls of the cellar, and an avalanche ofbricks from the upper part of the walls descended with a crash,completely cutting off their retreat.
"Pleasant," remarked Ralph. "With a mine somewhere under you and H.E.shells dropping overhead, and unable to get out of this hole, life isa bit exciting. No, Alderhame; no more Shakespeare, please. We'll tryand find the tunnel to which your German acquaintance referred. Bythe by, who is he?"
"He was in the same Repertoire Company with me," replied theex-actor. "It was in those dim and distant days before the war, yet Iremember how we parted."
He paused reflectively. Setley looked at him enquiringly.
"Well?" he asked tentatively.
"It was just before Treasury--that is, the weekly pay-day. Heborrowed a sovereign--maybe you recollect what that is, or was: acircular flat disc of shining gold, for which one had to display acertain amount of affection. He cleared out shortly afterwards, and Ihaven't seen that Jimmy o' Goblin since--and don't expect to.However, sir, he's done us a good turn warning us about the mine,though it were to save his own skin."
In the intense gloom the crew of the Tank sought for the entrance ofthe tunnel. Cautiously loosening brickwork and removing piles ofrubble they at length found the object of their quest--a long,narrow, concreted passage that was originally intended for acommunication between the vast subterranean rooms under the village.
"Be careful, sir," cautioned Sergeant Alderhame, as Ralph flashed hiselectric torch. "There might be some Huns lurking down here."
"Hardly," objected Setley. "It seemed to be common knowledge amongstthe Prussians that the place is mined. They'll keep clear. Thetrouble is, I take it, to discover and disconnect the electric wiresbefore they spring the whole show."
The subaltern and his men hastened down the passage. If ever therewas a race against time this was. At eighty paces from the mouthfurther progress was barred by a formidable barrier of sand-bags--the"tamping" by which the main force of the explosion would be divertedfrom what would otherwise be the easiest path--an horizontaldirection along the tunnel.
"We'll have to shift that lot," said Ralph encouragingly. "All handstogether, lads."
It was a tough task, for five yards' thickness of sand-bags had to beremoved before the mine chamber was reached. It was a nerve-rackingtask when the huge store of explosive stood revealed in the glare ofan electric torch. At any moment the stuff might explode.
"It'll save the sanitary squad a job if it does," remarked one of themen grimly, "Anyway, it's a mighty quick death--none of that rottenhanging about."
Five minutes later more work resulted in the discovery of twoinsulated wires that met in a metal box containing the primer. With asigh of relief Ralph severed the wires. Unless there were more setsthe immediate danger was over.
All this time the place was trembling under the concussion of heavyshells overhead. Presently with remarkable suddenness the shellingceased.
"What does it mean, I wonder?" thought Ralph. "It can't be that ourfellows have been compelled to give ground. We must endeavour to getout of this hole and see what's doing."
Bidding the men bring a small quantity of the explosive with them,Setley retraced his way. During his absence more rubble had fallen,and the roof of the Tank was covered with a tightly jammed mass ofbroken bricks.
"Looks healthy, sir," commented Alderhame.
"Yes," agreed Ralph. "It seems as if we are to stop here until we aredug out, unless we can contrive to blow away this mass of rubble.Unfortunately, I am not expert in the art of the use of explosives."
"There's one of our fellows who used to be a quarryman," announcedthe sergeant. "I'll get him."
/> In answer to his call, a little sharp-featured Welshman steppedforward.
"Yes," he replied, in a shrill falsetto. "I have blasted stone forthe last three years. I do not know what strength this stuff has, butwe'll try."
Taking about seven pounds of the explosive the Welshman rammed it ina cavity in the wall of rubble, filled in the mouth with sand-bagsbrought from the mine gallery, and laid a fuse of cordite, obtainedby opening half a dozen cartridges.
"All ready, sir," he reported. "Get back all of you. I'll fire it.It'll burn for thirty seconds, I guess, and that'll be enough for meto hook it."
The rest of the crew entered the Tank, the door being left open forthe brave Welshman to gain shelter before the explosion.
Presently a match flickered in the gloom, followed by the sizzling ofthe sticks of cordite, which burned with comparative slowness whennot under pressure.
With a furious bound the Welshman leapt into the Tank, his headbutting into the stomach of a comrade who was holding the door inreadiness to slam it the moment the man had gained shelter.
Even in the midst of danger the two began mutual recriminations, theWelshman asking "what the silly idiot meant by getting in his way,"the other retorting by requesting him in future to use his eyes tosee where he was going.
The argument ended with the terrific roar of the explosion, the soundintensified in the confined space. Fragments of the brickwork rattledon the Tank's armoured snout, clouds of acrid-smelling smoke waftedinto the crowded interior of the landship, but the object wasachieved.
Opening the door, Ralph saw sunlight filtering through the dust-ladenatmosphere. Making his way along the new exit, he cautiouslyreconnoitred. The street was practically empty, save for the corpsesthat littered the ground and a group of staff officers who hadevidently just emerged from taking cover.
"Confound you, sir!" roared a portly major-general. "What game do youthink you're playing? Do you know you nearly blew us sky-high?Confound you, again!"
Setley waited until the irate officer had spoken his mind; then,saluting, made a brief report of his discovery.
"There you are, Richards; I told you so," exclaimed the staffofficer, turning to one of his entourage. "The place is mined.Suppose it's safe now?"
"I think so, sir," replied Ralph.
"It may come in handy against the Von der Golz Redoubt, in case ourmen fail to secure a footing," observed the major addressed asRichards.
"There's no failure about it," snapped the major-general. "Send anorderly to the officer commanding the Royal Engineer detachment andrequest him to take steps to remove the explosive from the minechamber. And what were you doing there?" he added, directing hisattention to Setley. Evidently an explanation at least was necessaryto justify the explosion that had all but settled a group of staffofficers.
"Tank, eh? What made you turn her into a cellar? Didn't know? Well,you jolly well ought to. At a time when every available Tank isrequired in front of the Von der Golz Redoubt you topple the ballything into a cellar."
Ralph was heartily glad to find himself dismissed from the presenceof the peppery staff officer. He felt considerably ill-used. Insteadof receiving a word of thanks for his resourcefulness in saving thecaptured position from being blown to hits, he had been "rapped overthe knuckles."
"Here's a pioneer section just arrived, sir," reported SergeantAlderhame. "If you saw the company commander perhaps he would spareenough men to help us dig a way out. It won't take much work, Ithink. The rubble has been well sifted by the bursting charge."
The officer readily consented to assist in the salvage operations.After all, the Tank had settled on the floor of the cellar, which wasabout eight feet below the ground-level. Before she had come to astandstill she had given forward for nearly five yards, and the wholeof this space was now filled in with bricks and mortar, forming afairly steep gradient.
Working strenuously for twenty minutes the fatigue party succeeded inlevelling the slope sufficiently to enable the Tank to back.Fortunately, the motors and tractor-bands were intact. The mountingof one of the quickfirers was damaged beyond repair, the other wasput in order by the crew.
Amidst the cheers of the men the Tank climbed, stern-foremost, out ofher place of imprisonment and gained the shell-pitted street.
An orderly, doubling towards the British lines, stopped by the sideof the freed machine.
"Can you push forward, sir?" he asked. "The infantry are being heldup. There are only five Tanks left in action."