ad made necessary the destruction of
the letter, and at his dictation the commander wrote down the orders,
which the lad repeated to him exactly as they had been written in the
letter. Henri's mission had been faithfully carried out.

"'France has need of such as you,' said the commander approvingly.
'What shall you do now?'

"'I must return to my troops and make my report to my commanding
officer,' was the simple reply. 'I shall wait for the night before
starting, for the Boches this time cannot be so easily fooled.
Remember, I still have the orders in my stomach. Would it not be sad
if the Boches discovered them and took them from me?' Henri grinned
and the commander laughed heartily.

"Henri's return journey was made without disaster, though several
times he narrowly missed being captured. Late on the following morning
the plucky boy reached his regiment and made his report to his
colonel, who warmly commended the child for his patriotism and
courage."

CHAPTER IX

GENE AND THE BAVARIAN DRAGOONS

"The story of Gene and the Bavarian dragoons, is one of the best, to
my mind, that has developed in this war," said Captain Favor,
beginning a new story. "Such quick thinking as hers in the face of an
emergency, is very rare in a child, which makes Gene's achievement
stand out so prominently.

"Gene's mother had been ill for months. She had been bedridden all
that time, leaving to the little girl the heavy work of the home, for
the father, too, was in poor health. Gene, though only ten years of
age, was a resolute and capable child, as you will see when I tell you
the story of how she won two little battles of her own.

"After the battle of the Marne the Prussians were pressing northward,
venting their rage on the defenseless inhabitants, killing many such
and carrying others away with them. It was desperate business that
these brutal Prussians were engaged in. Finding themselves unable to
whip the Allied soldiers, they sought to terrorize old men, women and
children.

"Gene's home was situated at the edge of a village, and though they
knew the Germans were headed in their direction, they thought the
soldiers would take pity on their sad condition and leave them alone.

"One day, however, a company of Bavarian dragoons entered the
outskirts of the village and halted before the child's home. Tying
their horses, they entered the house and began a systematic search of
it. They ripped up carpets and tore be