enignant Monsieur Gaussin and
the neat Annette, and hurried to their horses.

"A good fellow that Weber," said Carstairs as they swung into their
saddles. "I hope we'll swing Alsace and Lorraine too, back into France
for him."

"If it's done," said Wharton, "England will claim that she did it."

"A perfectly justifiable claim."

Wharton turned upon John a look of despair.

"Can you ever change a single idea of theirs?" he asked. "They're quite
sure they've done everything."

"There's one race," said John, "to whom they yield."

"I never heard of it."

"Oh yes, you have. When Sandy of the long red locks comes down from the
high hills London capitulates at once. Don't you know, Wharton, that
Great Britain and all her colonies are ruled by the Scotch?"

Carstairs broke into a hearty laugh.

"You have me there, Wharton," he said. "Certainly we're ruled by the
Scotch. We have to let them do it or they'd make the country so
disagreeable there'd be no living in it. Jove, but I wish I could hear
the bagpipes now and see a hundred thousand of their red heads coming
over the hills. It's such fine country around here that they'd never let
the Germans have it."

"I like them too," said John. "They're brave men and they speak a sort
of English."

Carstairs laughed.

"Don't criticize their English unless you want a fight," he said. "A man
is often proudest of what he lacks."

"Just so, Carstairs, and I've often wondered too why so few of the
English can speak their own language."

"Shut up, Scott! You've joined Wharton and two against one is not fair.
Confound this rain! I wish it would stop! I'm getting wet and cold
again. Here the road forks, and Weber said he came down from the north."

"And since he got a bullet in the arm the northern road is bad for us,"
said Wharton. "If you two agree we'll turn to the west."

"The west for us," said John and Carstairs together.

The country was hillier and more wooded than usual, but they saw little
of it, as it was enveloped in a cloud of rain and mist. Nor did they
meet any other travelers on the road, a fact which did not surprise
them, as the whole region was now almost deserted by everybody save
soldiers.

The high spirits they had accumulated at the inn were soon dissipated.
It was impossible to remain gay, when one was sodden through and
through. The rain came down, as if it meant to do so forever, and all
the valleys were filled with mists and vapors. But the