ne hand while he rubbed
his chin thoughtfully with the other.

"Where is the officer from General Dashwood?" he inquired suddenly, and
word was passed for Dennis.

The divisional general looked him up and down for a moment, and his brow
cleared. "If you are not wanted immediately I should like you to carry
a query for me to the officer commanding the brigade on the right of the
division," he said. "There is something I do not quite understand in his
report, and unfortunately, the field wire has broken down somewhere and
we can't get through to him. Is your machine in order?"

"Yes, sir," said Dennis, and the general turned to a shorthand clerk.

"Just take this down, will you? And type it out quickly," he said, and
he rapidly dictated to the man.

"Captain Thompson," he said when he had finished, "kindly explain to
this officer how he is to reach Donaldson," and the staff captain took
the young lieutenant to the large scale map at the end of the room,
where everything was marked out in squares, each numbered and lettered.

The captain was lucid, and Dennis quick of intelligence, and in less
than five minutes from entering the room he was turning his cycle round
and darting off on his new mission.

CHAPTER VI

A Terrible Adventure at Dawn

The Divisional Headquarters had been fixed at a spot where several roads
branched off like the sticks of a fan, and the one Dennis followed was a
typical French chaussee, paved down the centre and bordered on either
side by tall trees.

It had been a good deal cut up by the passage of distribution columns,
but its surface was fairly free from shell holes, and he covered the
distance without much difficulty, a slight drizzle blowing in his face
as he hung low over the handle-bars with his eyes fixed on the acetylene
beam in front of him.

A man riding in the opposite direction whizzed past with a shout of,
"Cheer-oh!" and he was not challenged until he drew near the brigade.

"Thought there was something wrong with the wire," said the C.O. "I've
been trying to get through for the last half-hour."

"A wiring party went out just before I left, sir, to look for the
damage," said Dennis.

"Very well, take this back to the general--that will tell him all he
wants to know," and Dennis retraced his way, rather enjoying the ride,
although it had not proved particularly exciting so far.

But the excitement was to come. Overhead the scream and whistle of our
shells neve