"'See, the road is there to the left,' finally said the little guide.
It leads to the bridge which we shall cross and take a short cut in
that way. Thus, my officer, we may reach Etain before the Boches do.'

"'That will be fine,' said the captain.

"'Yes, monsieur. But what if the Boches should change their mind and
wait for us? Surely you will not blame the little Lucien? He cannot
read the mind of a Boche when the Boche is out of sight.'

"'No, we shall not blame you. You have told us well and we are
grateful, but what you say gives me a thought. We shall halt and send
out scouts.'

"This was done immediately. A short distance ahead of them were a
number of farm buildings. Trees were scattered all about, giving
plenty of shade, which the troops were quick to take advantage of.

"A scout came running back toward the resting detachment.

"'The Prussians are coming!' he shouted.

"Lucien made a mad dash for a tree nearby, up which he shinned and hid
far up in the foliage. There were brief smiles, but the soldiers had
other things to think of at that moment. The French moved forward
about five hundred yards and began digging themselves in; in other
words, digging temporary trenches.

"The Germans already had begun shooting, the French quickly
retaliating. The former were in larger numbers than the French captain