nly to turn
faint a moment later. He sat down on the hill-side and supported his
aching head in his hands.

Again the sergeant-major swore violently. In despair he looked up for a
moment from the terrible medley and noted the gun-leader still staring
down into the hollow with vacant eyes.

"You fellow!" he shouted, "it's no time to go to sleep, at any rate!"
With admirable clearness he gave his orders: "Ride as fast as your
beast will go, and fetch the doctor and the veterinary surgeon! And
ambulance-orderlies as well!" And immediately afterwards he added: "And
send the team belonging to gun five here, and report the mess we're
in!" For the service must not suffer, and the gun should be brought up
to the line of fire as soon as possible.

The corporal galloped away and was soon out of sight.

Heppner now approached the entangled heap of bodies from the other
side. He then set himself to extricate the lead horses from the
different parts of the harness that trammeled them, and helped them to
get up. They appeared to be uninjured, shook themselves and moved
restlessly to and fro. He made the lead-driver take them to one side,
and then turned to the centre horses. Inoslavsky gave him a helping
hand. The near centre horse was uninjured, but Eidechse had a gaping
wound in the buttock. Wolf had to hold her by the snaffle, and found it
difficult to manage her. The near wheeler got up readily; but the Turk,
beneath whose body Sickel was writhing in agony, was badly hurt. The
near hind fetlock seemed to be crushed. At last the gelding managed to
raise himself a little on his fore-legs, and at the same moment
Truchsess dragged out the wheel-driver from under the saddle. Sickel
made a weak attempt to stand up, but fell back in a swoon.

The sergeant-major wiped the perspiration from his brow. Damnation!
That had been a bad piece of work! He looked round him: three men and
two horses knocked out of time. Well, it might have been even worse.

Klitzing's was the most serious case. The clerk still lay there
motionless, and only the blood-stained froth at his mouth, stirring as
he breathed, showed there was still life in the motionless body. The
sergeant-major went up to the unconscious man and carefully placed his
head on the haversack. He had never been able to endure this sickly
fellow, but, by Jove, what he had done that day was first-class! It
was grand! Would he never recover from his swoon? Heppner took a
brandy-flask fro