a sergeant, who formed them up in two ranks behind the prisoner and
his escort. And they also stood exceeding still.

The President read the order convening the court, and, as he recited
each officer's name and regiment, the owner acknowledged it with "Here,
sir." When he came to the prisoner's name he looked up and said, "Is
that your name and number?" The escort nudged the prisoner, who recalled
his attention from the wall with an immense effort and said "Yes, sir."

"Captain Herbert appears as prosecutor and takes his place." As the
ritual prescribed by the Red Book was religiously gone through, the
prisoner continued to stare at the wall above the President's head, and
the rain rattled against the window-panes with intermittent violence.
Having finished his recital, the President rose, and with him all the
members of the court rose also. He took a Bible in his hand and faced
the Judge-Advocate, who exhorted him that he should "well and truly try
the accused before the court according to the evidence," and that he
would duly administer justice according to the Army Act now in force,
without partiality, favour, or affection.... "So help you God." As the
colonel raised the book to his lips he chanted the antiphon "So help me
God." And the Judge-Advocate proceeded to swear the other members of the
court, individually or collectively, three subalterns who were jointly
and severally sworn holding the book together with a quaint solemnity,
as though they were singing hymns at church out of a common hymn-book.
Then the Judge-Advocate was in turn sworn by the President with his own
peculiar oath of office, and did faithfully and with great earnestness
promise that he would neither divulge the sentence, nor disclose nor
discover any votes or opinions as to the same. Which being done, and the
President having ordered the military policeman to march out the
evidence, the sergeant in charge cried "Left turn. Quick march. Left
wheel," and the little cloud of witnesses vanished through the doorway.

The President proceeded to read the charge-sheet:--

"_The accused, No. , Sergeant John Stokes, 2nd Battalion
Downshire Regiment, is charged with Misbehaving before the enemy in
such a manner as to show cowardice, in that he at , on
October 3rd, 1914, when on patrol, and when under the enemy's fire,
did run away._"

All this time the prisoner had been studying the wall, his eyes
travelling f