, too, got
one through the shoulder from a sniper, and he's gone to England. The
colonel was with him at the O.P., and tried to get the sniper
afterwards with a rifle."

"How is the colonel?" I asked.

"Oh, he's going very strong; active as ever. Colonel ---- is back from
leave and doing C.R.A. now. We're under the --th Division at the
moment."

"You remember Colonel ---- who got the V.C. in the Retreat," he went
on; "he was killed on August 8th--went out to clear up a machine-gun
pocket.... Damned nice fellow, wasn't he?"

We reached a narrow road, crowded with battery ammunition waggons going
up to the new positions. Darkness had descended, and when you got off
the road to avoid returning vehicles it was necessary to walk warily
to escape tumbling into shell-holes. "The blighters have got a new way
of worrying us now," went on the adjutant. "They've planted land-mines
all over the place, particularly near tracks. Lead-horses are always
liable to put a foot against the wire that connects with the mine, and
when the thing goes off some one is nearly always hurt. D Battery had a
nasty experience this afternoon. Kelly tried to take a section forward,
and the Boche spotted them and shelled them to blazes. As they came
back to get away from observation one of the teams disturbed a
land-mine. The limber was blown up, and one driver and two horses were
killed.... Look here, if we move off in this direction we ought to save
time; the railway must be over there and the place for our Headquarters
is not far from it, in a trench where the O.P. used to be."

We found ourselves on some shell-torn ground that was cut up also by
short spans of trenches. One part of it looked exactly like another,
and after ten minutes or so we decided that we were wandering to no
purpose. "There are some old German gun-pits close by," panted the
adjutant in further explanation of the place we were seeking. All at
once I saw a thin shaft of light, and blundered my way towards it. It
proved to be a battery mess, made in a recess of a trench, with a stout
tarpaulin drawn tight over the entrance. I hailed the occupants through
the tarpaulin, and on their invitation scrambled a passage inside. A
young captain and two subalterns listened to what I had to say, and
gave me map co-ordinates of the spot on which we now were. When I
mentioned German gun-pits the captain responded with more helpful
suggestions. "It's difficult finding your way across count