ver your white face some
day, holding your hand, or smoothing your brow, in the approved V. A. D.
manner."

"Oh, shut up, doc," said Barry with quite unusual curtness. "She's not
that kind of a girl."

"Ah, who knows!" said the doctor. "Who knows!"

At the railway station, the battalion was halted, awaiting the making
up of their train, the departure of which was delayed by the incoming
hospital train from up the line. They had not long to wait.

"Here she is, boys!" called out a soldier. And into the station slowly
rolled that hospital train, with its freight of wounded men, mutilated,
maimed, broken. Its windows were crowded with faces, white as their
swathings, worn, spent, deep-lined, from which looked forth eyes,
indifferent, staring, but undaunted and indomitable.

Gradually, with stately movement, as befitted its noble burden, the
train came to rest immediately opposite the battalion. With grave,
fascinated, horror-stricken faces the men of the battalion stood rigid
and voiceless gazing at that deeply moving spectacle. Before their eyes
were being paraded the tragic, pathetic remnants of a gallant regiment,
which but a few weeks before had stood where they now stood, vital
with life, tingling with courage. At their country's bidding they had
ascended that Holy Mount of Sacrifice, to offer upon the altar of the
world's freedom their bodies as a living sacrifice unto God, holy and
acceptable. Now, their offering being made, they were being borne back
helpless, bruised, shattered but unconquered and eternally glorious.

Silently the two companies gazed at each other across the intervening
space. Then from the window of the train a soldier thrust a bandaged
head and bandaged arm.

"Hello there, Canada!" he cried, waving the arm. Instantly, as if he
had touched a hidden spring, from the battalion's thousand throats there
broke a roar of cheers that seemed to rock the rafters of the station
building.

Again, again, and yet again! As if they could never exhaust the burden
of their swelling emotions, they roared forth their cheers, waving caps
and rifles high in the air, while down their cheeks poured, unheeded and
unhindered, a rain of tears.

"Canada! Canada! Canada!" they cried. "Oh, you Canadians! Alberta!
Alberta!"

Feebly came the answering cheers, awkwardly waved the bandaged hands and
arms.

Then the battalion broke ranks and flinging rifles and kitbags to the
ground, they rushed across the tracks,