end the remainder of a
second winter in the trenches. He gave it to me as his opinion that
life in the Ypres salient was abominable beyond description, and that
no man could stand three winters of it. I wanted to ask him questions
about military matters, and I might have got some light and leading
from him if I had. But somehow we drifted away from the subject and
talked about County Mayo, about boats, about islands, and other
pleasant things.

M., recovering rapidly from his seasickness, proved his worth the
moment we set foot on dry land. He discovered the M.L.O., who seemed
a little surprised that we should have taken the trouble to look him
up. We left him, and M., still buoyant, found another official known
as an R.T.O. He is a man of enormous importance, a controller of the
destinies of stray details like ourselves. He told us that we should
reach our destination--perhaps I should say our first objective--if
we took a train from the _Gare Centrale_ at 6 p.m. We had a good look
at the _Gare Centrale_, to make sure that we should know it again.

Then M. led me off to find a censor. Censors, though I did not know
it then, are very shy birds and conceal their nests with the cunning
of reed warblers. Hardly any one has ever seen a censor. But M. found
one, and we submitted to his scrutiny letters which we had succeeded
in writing. After that I insisted on getting something to eat. I had
breakfasted at an unholy hour. I had crossed the sea. I had endured
great mental strain. I had tramped the streets of an exceedingly
muddy town in a downpour of rain. I felt that I must have food and if
possible, wine. M. is indifferent to food and hardly ever tastes
wine. But he is a kind-hearted man. He agreed to eat with me, though
I am sure he would much rather have looked up another official or
two, perhaps introduced himself to the Base Commandant.

We went to an hotel, the largest and most imposing in the town, but,
as I discovered months afterwards, quite the worst. There I found
another friend. Or rather, another friend found me. He was a young
man in the uniform of the R.A.M.C. and he rushed at me from the far
end of a large _salon_. I am ashamed to say that I neither recognised
him nor knew his name when he told it to me. But there was no doubt
of his friendly feelings. He asked me where I was going. I told him,
"G.H.Q." It appeared that he had just come from G.H.Q. in a motor.
How he came to have control of a motor I do n