e coming up now.

"Corporal," called Captain Freeman, "my compliments to Lieutenant
Prescott, and tell him that I want the whole line to move forward as
rapidly as possible. Our only safety, now, lies in getting as quickly as
possible off this road and into an open country."

Prescott received the order, and right loyally responded. As often as
possible the Gatling, now up with the advance, was given an opportunity
to cool.

Within twenty minutes after the opening of the attack the Moro spirit
was broken for the time. They had had more than a hundred men killed and
wounded, and that was all the brown men could stand for the first onset.

"Don't pursue any further," ordered Captain Freeman, well up with the
advance by this time. "Let the rascals get away if they don't interfere
with our advance. We'll have them at hand to fight when we're ready,
Lieutenant. What we must do now is to get a place where we can fortify
ourselves and look after our wounded."

"We've a heavy list, I fear, sir."

"Heavy enough," replied Captain Freeman gravely.

There was no further opposition to the advance of the regulars, who,
despite the great inferiority of their numbers, had made the brown men
respect their fighting grit and prowess. Within ten minutes after
Captain Freeman's order to abandon the chase there was no visible
evidence that there were any Moros in the neighboring mountains.

"March to the right, and take that hill yonder in quick time,
Lieutenant Prescott," directed Captain Freeman.

"Very good, sir."

"Follow the lieutenant, you men with the Gatling," ordered the
commanding officer, and Hal and his comrades covered the ground as
quickly as they could. No opposition was offered to their taking the
hill. Here the first regulars to arrive dropped down panting, though
Prescott, Hal and Noll remained standing and vigilant. Slowly the rest
of the column climbed the hill. After a brief rest the men were set to
work fortifying the crest of this little rise of ground.

No trench is ever dug, by a wise commander, at the exact top of a hill,
but always at a point a little below, which is called the "military
crest." If the trench were on the top of the hill, every time the men
raised themselves to fire, their heads and trunks would stand out too
clearly defined against the sky-line, and make them easy marks for an
enemy below.

Up on the top of the hill, however, was a depression in the ground. Into
this space the transp