"

"Good work, boy," says the Colonel, rising and shaking the runner's
hand. "You got here damn quick. Did you come by the Lincoln trench?"

"No, sir, I came over the top from the battalion post. Would have been
here quicker, but two of us had to carry back one boy to that point
before I could get relieved."

"Wounded?"

"No, sir,--dead."

"Who was it?" asks the young lieutenant.

"Private Kater, sir, my squad mate."

As the sergeant raised his hand in parting salute, all of us saw
suspended from his right wrist a most formidable weapon, apparently of
his own construction. It was a pick handle with a heavy iron knob on one
end and the same end cushioned with a mass of barbed wire rolled up like
a ball of yarn. He smiled as he noticed our gaze.

"It's the persuader, sir," he said. "We all carried them."

He had hardly quitted the door when another heavily breathing figure
with shirt half torn off by barbed wire appeared.

"K Company got there, sir; beg pardon, sir. I mean sir, Sergeant Wiltur
reports, sir, with message from Liaison officer. All groups reached the
objectives. They left their dugouts blazing and brought back one machine
gun and three prisoners."

"Very good, Sergeant," said the Colonel. "Orderly, get some coffee for
these runners."

"I'd like to see the doctor first, sir," said the runner with the torn
shirt. "Got my hand and arm cut in the wire."

"Very well," said the Colonel, turning to the rest of the party, "I knew
my boys would bring back bacon."

More footsteps on the entrance stairway and two men entered carrying
something between them. Sweat had streaked through the charcoal coating
on their faces leaving striped zebra-like countenances.

"Lieutenant Burlon's compliments, sir," said the first man. "Here's one
of their machine guns."

"Who got it?" inquired the Colonel.

"Me and him, sir."

"How did you get it?"

"We just rolled 'em off it and took it."

"Rolled who off of it?"

"Two Germans, sir."

"What were they doing all that time?"

"Why, sir, they weren't doing anything. They were dead."

"Oh, very well, then," said the Colonel. "How did you happen to find the
machine gun?"

"We knew where it was before we went over, sir," said the man simply.
"We were assigned to get it and bring it back. We expected we'd have to
fight for it, but I guess our barrage laid out the crew. Anyhow we
rushed to the position and found them dead."

"All right," said the Colonel, "