第 13 页

other day, are hid up in some village in the woods, four or five

miles from here; no doubt with the intention of making an attempt

to blow up the tunnel. The idea is a daring one and, if the plan

had succeeded, it would have done us incalculable harm. As it is,

we are safe; and tomorrow night we shall, I believe, make an

expedition, and sweep the woods clear of these troublesome gentry.

"These franc tireurs will be mischievous if we do not give them a

sharp lesson. The general's proclamation gave notice that every one

of them taken would be shot, and our colonel is just the man to

carry out the order."

"This is indeed important," the major said. "But how did we get the

information? Is it certain?"

"Quite certain. A scoundrel of a schoolmaster at Grunsdorf--a

village somewhere up in the woods--turned traitor; and sent a

letter to the general, bargaining that he should be taken on as a

spy, at some fabulous salary, and offering to begin by leading the

troops to the village where these franc tireurs are hidden."

"An infamous scoundrel!" the major said warmly. "Of course, one

cannot refuse to deal with traitors, when the information is of

importance; but one longs to put a pistol bullet into them. Badly

as the French have come out in many particulars, since the war

began, there is not one which gives me such a mean idea of them as

the number of offers which have been sent in to supply information,

and betray their countrymen."

"Put on your boots, Percy," Ralph said, in a low voice. "It is time

for us to be off. Don't hurry; and above all, if they should take

it into their heads to address us suddenly in French, or English,

don't start or seem to notice."

The major was, however, so absorbed in the information he had

received--and so confident that the English, in which it had been

told, would be unintelligible to anyone who might overhear it--that

he paid no attention to the boys who--one of them limping

badly--went slowly down the street; stopping, occasionally, to look

in at the shop windows. It was not until they were fairly outside

the town, and out of sight of the German sentries, that they either

spoke or quickened their pace.

"The franc tireurs of Dijon may thank their lucky stars that they

sent down spies to Saverne today, Percy; and especially that we, of

all the members of the corps, were selected. If we had not been

where we were, just at that moment, and if we had not understood

English, it would have been all up with the corps, and no mistake."

"What an infamous scoundrel, as the major said, that schoolmaster

must be, Ralph! What do you think the commandant will do?"

"He has nothing to do but to retreat, as quickly as we can go,

Percy; but if it costs him half the corps, I hope he will hang that

schoolmaster, before he goes."

"I hope so, too," Percy said; and scarcely another word was spoken,

until they reached the village.

It was still early, scarcely two o'clock, and Major Tempe was

drilling the whole corps--the two detached companies having arrived

that morning--when the boys, having again put on uniform,

approached him.

Major Tempe nodded to them, as they came up.

"You are back early," he said. "You are excused from drill. I will

see you at my quarters, when it is over."

"If you please, major," Ralph said, respectfully, "you had better

dismiss the men, at once. We have news of the highest importance to

tell you."

The major looked surprised but, seeing by the boys' faces that the

news was very serious, he at once dismissed the men; telling them

to keep near, as they might be wanted. Then, calling his officers,

he proceeded at once with the Barclays towards his quarters.

"Excuse me, major," Ralph said, "but instead of going to your

quarters, would you move to some open space, where we can speak

without a possibility of being overheard by anyone?"

Still more surprised, Major Tempe led the way to some felled trees

at the edge of the forest, a short distance from the village. Here

he sat down, and motioned to the others to do the same. Ralph then

told his story, interrupted many times by exclamations of rage,

upon the part of his auditors; and giving full credit to Percy for

his idea of the plan by which, unnoticed, they had managed to get

within hearing of the German officers. The fury of the French

officers knew no bounds. They gesticulated, they stamped up and

down, they swore terribly, they were ready to cry from sheer rage.

Major Tempe, alone, uttered no remark during the whole narration.

When it was concluded, he sat silent for a minute or two; with his

lips pressed together, and a look of deep indignation on his face.

Then he rose, and said in a solemn tone:

"As sure as the sun shines, and as sure as my name is Edward Tempe,

so sure shall that schoolmaster, of Grunsdorf, be hung before

tomorrow morning!

"Lieutenant Ribouville, order the assembly to be sounded, and form

the men here in hollow square.

"Messieurs Barclay, you will fall in with your company."

A little surprised--and hurt that the commandant had said no word

of commendation to them, for the service they had performed--the

boys hurried off to their quarters, to get their rifles.

"Sure, Master Ralph, and what is the matter, at all?" Tim Doyle

said, as they entered. "Sure the major, honest man, must have gone

off his head, entirely! Scarcely had we finished our male, and

began to smoke the first pipe in aise and comfort, when the bugle

blows for parade.

"'Confound the bugle!' says I, and I shoved me pipe aside, and put

on my belt and fell in.

"Hardly had we begun the maneuvers when your honors arrived and

said a word, private, to the major. The words weren't out of your

mouth before he dismisses us from drill.

"'Botheration!' says I, 'is there no pace for the wicked?'

"Back I comes again, and takes off me belt and piles me firelock;

and before I had got three draws at me pipe, and was just beginning

to enjoy the creetur when, crack! and there goes the assimbly

again. Sure and the major, honest man, has lost his head entirely;

and it's a pity, for he is an illegant man, and a good officer,

says I."

"Come along, Tim," Ralph said, laughing, "else you'll be late for

parade. You will hear all about it in time, I have no doubt."

In five minutes the men were all assembled in a hollow square, two

deep, facing the officers in the center The men saw at once, by the

faces of Major Tempe and the officers, that something very serious

had happened; and they had no sooner taken their places than there

was a deep hush of expectancy, for it was evident that the

commandant was about to address them.

"My men," he said, after a pause of a minute or two, "a great

calamity has happened; and a still greater one would have happened,

had we not providentially received warning in time. It had been

resolved--as you would have heard this evening, had all gone

well--that tonight we should attack the German sentries, and blow

up the rock tunnel of Saverne. The affair would have been hot, but

it would have been a vital service to France; and the franc tireurs

of Dijon would have merited, and obtained, the thanks of all

France. It was for the purpose of the attack that the two companies

detached from us were recalled.

"All promised well for success. Two of your number had been down

into Saverne, in disguise, and had brought us full information

respecting the force and disposition of the enemy. All was

prepared, the chance of success favorable, and the force the enemy

could have brought against us was no larger than our own. We should

have saved France, and immortalized ourselves.

"At the present moment there are two thousand five hundred men in

Saverne. Tomorrow night this village is to be attacked, and every

franc tireur found here put to the sword."

A cry of surprise and rage broke from the men.

"And how, think you, has the change been wrought? By treachery!"

Those cries of rage were renewed.

"By treachery! A Frenchman has been found, base and vile enough to

sell us to Prussia. All hope of success is over, and we have only

to retreat."

"Who is he? Who is he?" burst from the infuriated men. "Death to

the traitor! Death to the traitor!"

"Yes, men, death to the traitor!" the major said, solemnly. "It is

the schoolmaster of Grunsdorf who has sold you to the Prussians;

who wrote that letter to their general, telling him of your

intentions, which has caused these great reinforcements to be sent;

and who has offered to guide a force to surround us, tomorrow

night."

Another low cry of horror and indignation broke from the men.

"Is it your opinion that this man has deserved death?"

"Yes," was the unanimous answer.

"Then he dies," Major Tempe said, solemnly. "You were to have been

his victims; you are his judges.

"Grunsdorf is three miles from here, in the woods, not far from

Saverne. A party will be told off, presently, who will be charged

with the execution of this sentence.

"I have now another duty. The corps has been saved from

destruction. You--all of us--have been preserved from death by the

intelligence and courage of two of your number.

"Ralph and Percy Barclay, stand forward!"

The two boys stepped two paces forward into the hollow square.

"Selected by me," continued Major Tempe, "for the duty, from their

perfect acquaintance with German; they, upon their first visit to

Saverne, obtained all the information required. Upon their second

visit, this morning--finding the enemy had been immensely

reinforced--they perceived the extreme importance of discovering

the reason for the arrival of the reinforcements, and their

intention. With a coolness and tact which does them the greatest

credit, they contrived to arrive, and to remain within hearing of,

a number of officers; and then learned the whole particulars of the

treachery of this man, and of the intention of our enemies. So

important was the secret judged that the Germans were afraid of

telling it in German, or in French, lest they might be overheard.

To prevent the possibility of this, they conversed in English; and

the consequence is that we are saved, almost by a miracle.

"Ralph and Percy Barclay, your names will be inserted in the order

of the day, being the first of the corps to whom that honor has

been given; and I hereby offer you, in the name of myself, my

officers, and the whole corps, my hearty thanks for your courage,

coolness, and devotion.

"The parade is dismissed. The men will assemble at five o'clock, in

full marching order, with all necessaries and accouterments."

As Major Tempe ceased speaking, the men broke up from the order in

which they had been standing, and crowded round the young Barclays;

shaking them by the hand, patting them on the shoulder, and

congratulating them heartily upon the service that they had

rendered, and upon the terms in which their commandant had thus

publicly acknowledged it.

At five o'clock the corps assembled again in heavy marching order

and, after inspection, the second, third, and fourth companies

marched off; with their officers, who alone knew their destination,

at their head. Major Tempe remained on the ground, with the first

company. After waiting for a few minutes, they were marched off in

the direction which the others had taken but--after getting out of

sight of the village, and fairly entering the forest--they turned

sharp off, and took the direction of Saverne.

Chapter 8: The Traitor.

After the company had marched for half an hour, a halt was called,

and their commandant said:

"I daresay you have all guessed the object which we have in view.

We are going to carry out the sentence pronounced by the whole

corps. We are going to have that schoolmaster--that traitor--who

has sold our lives to the Prussians; and who--which is of

infinitely greater importance--has done immense injury to France,

by betraying our intention of blowing up the tunnel. That traitor I

intend to have, tonight; and if I have him, I will hang him, as

sure as fate.

"This lane which we are following leads to Grunsdorf; which,

according to the information I collected before leaving, cannot be

above a mile distant. Now, we must be cautious. It is quite

possible that a detachment of the enemy may have been sent up to

the village, and in that case we might catch a Tartar. Even if

there are no Germans there, we must be cautious, or the bird will

escape. We neither know him, nor the house he lives in and--as he

would naturally guess that his treachery had been discovered, and

that we had come for him--he would slip out into the forest, the

instant he saw the first bayonet approaching. It is essential,

therefore, that we should obtain accurate information of the state

of affairs, and of the position of this traitor's house.

"In another half hour it will be dusk. The Barclays have again

volunteered to go in, and find out what we require. They will go on

at once; and in an hour we will follow, and remain concealed, just

outside the village, until they return.

"Sergeant, you will go forward with them, and agree upon the place

where we shall remain hid, until they join us.

"Now, my lads, you have already received your instructions. Change

your things, and go forward at once."

The distance was farther than they had expected, and it was nearly

dark before the boys entered Grunsdorf. There was no one moving in

the quiet village, for a fine rain was falling as the boys walked

slowly along.

"There is no one to ask, Percy. We must go into the public house,

as arranged, and ask where the priest's house is. It would not do