f the house and was dragging it
away from the post where it entered the grounds. But now Paul
explained.

"Do you remember that several of the crosses on those maps we found
were right over there?" he asked, pointing in a direction east of the
burned house.

"Y--es," said Arthur, with an effort to remember. "Oh, yes, I do, now!"

"Well, that means that there will be a battery there. Do you see how
it's screened? The woods hide it completely. It doesn't make any
difference to the Germans that they can't see their target--they've got
a fixed range, because they know just where the forts are, and they'll
get the range of anything else from their aeroplanes."

"Yes, I see that."

"Well, I think this battery is likely to turn out to be the most
important one on this side. I think that they will depend on it to
silence Boncelles and Embourg. We haven't many aeroplanes and it's
going to be mighty hard for our people in the forts to tell what the
effect of their shell fire is, and to correct the range, especially if
the Germans use comparatively light guns that they can move about, as I
think they will. Now do you see?"

"Not quite--"

"Suppose we stay here in the garage? There's a chance that they may
let us, isn't there? Well, if they do, we can see whatever goes on,
with a little care. And if we have a buried telephone wire leading to
Boncelles we can report just what happens when a shell is fired, and
they can correct their aim. That's why I want to dig a trench for that
wire from some distance outside the grounds here, and run it under the
garage--into the pit, you know."

"Oh, now I see! You mean we would stay here and pretend not to have
any idea of what's going on, while we were really sending information
to the forts?"

"Yes. Now the first thing we've got to do is to tap that wire and tell
them in Liege what we are doing, so that they can give us direct
connection with Boncelles. Then we'll try to hide the wire, so that
the Germans won't find it."

Now the mysterious errand Paul had had in Liege was explained. He had
brought with him all he thought he could use of a lot of wire and
telephone instruments that one of their fellow scouts had used in
setting up a miniature telephone exchange of his own, with wires
connecting his house with that of some of his chums.

"We'd better dig the trench and bury the wire first because we've got
to be very careful in filling it up again, so that no one