this time mortally wounded. He knew that the end was near and his
thoughts went back to his parents, to his home in the little village
which he had left to go to war only a short time before.

"Rene roused himself with a supreme effort and again began to roll
toward the trench.

"Stretcher bearers, observing his plight, ran to his rescue,
themselves unmindful of the storm of steel that was sweeping the plain
back of the trenches. They tenderly picked the child up and bore him
safely to the trench, where he was placed in a first-aid station in a
bomb-proof dugout.

"'Tell monsieur le Capitaine that I have orders for him--important
orders,' gasped the little soldier. 'Tell him to come quickly, for I
shall not long be able to tell him what I have to say.'

"The captain, having been hurriedly summoned, hastened to the dugout.
He gathered the dying lad tenderly in his arms, and, placing an ear
close to the boy's lips, received from Rene the orders of the colonel,
down to the last detail.

"The final word of these orders was Rene's last. He died in the arms
of the captain, who tenderly laid him down.

"'Thus dies another hero of France,' murmured the officer, striding
from the dugout, making no effort to hide the tears that were
trickling down both cheeks.

"This little hero, my friends, offers a lesson in courage and devotion