, drawn by
bufferloes, was packed wi' sick, the dyin' was left in 'ospital with
orderleys and a sawbones to keep 'em company. They must ha' 'eard us
marchin', marchin' away--them poor, animated corpses, with jest the
regilation number o' gasps between 'em and eternity--but most on us was
too busy to think on abstrac' things at sich a time."

"How about Jenkins?" I asked, seeing that my friend's mind had gone
wool-gathering over the whole panorama of the war.

"Oh, 'e was safe enough; 'e took a turn for the better at the last
moment, and they moved 'im into the arabas along with the rest, but
Jones looked 'iself badly enough. 'E comes to me the nex' night and
brings this 'ere lock of 'air in 'is 'and.

"'If I'm took,' sez 'e, 'give it to Jim and tell 'im to wear it on 'is
'eart for the love of "Carrots" as was.'

"I put the 'air in my 'aversack careless-like, and gave 'im a drink o'
rum neat, which was better nor talk. It kippers the cholera out o' one
fine.

"'The likes of you and me is always spared,' sez I, a-larfin'; 'rubbish
ain't marketable aloft.'

"And spared 'e was, and would 'ave been to this day, along with this
'ere lumber, but for 'is cussed fool'ardiness....

"Things was lively for a bit afore and after the victory o' the Alma,
the pertikilars of which I have reported to you. I scarce clapped eyes
on Jones or Jenkins, but they was engaged in skirmishin' along with the
rest of us.

"On the day that Captain Nolan came a-gallopin' in with that there
momentous paper, Jones sez to me, 'There's somethin' up,' and we saw
Lord Lucan and Lord Cardigan a-lookin' at them guns. The enemy had
ranged 'em across the walley about a mile and a-'arf orf, with a field
batt'ry on the 'ill on our left front, and another between the redoubts
and the walley on our right. Captain Nolan was a-pointin', and the
generals was a-confabulatin'. Then we was told to mount and move orf at
a trot. The first thing that 'appens was poor Captain Nolan a-gettin'
shot almost afore we broke into a gallop. 'E was struck by a bit o'
shell, and d'rectly after the guns began a-playin' on us all, and the
air was 'eavy with groans and curses and screams of men and 'orses
a-fallin' to right and left like nine-pins. Jenkins and Jones was with
me on the right of the line, Jenkins as blue as a corpse, and Jones
flushed and savage-like, avoidin' as best 'e could the 'orses without
riders as still kept pace with us, and the press of men and beasts