hts in strange regions.

"What's your temperature?" asked Stoner.

"Blimey, it's the correct thing now, but it didn't arf go up and
down," said Bill sitting down on the dug-out chair, our only one since
a shell dropped through the roof. Some days before B Company had held
the dug-out and two of the boys were killed. "It's no fun the
'orspital I can tell yer."

"What sort of disease is Pyraxis?" asked Goliath. (p. 274)

"It's not 'arf bad, if you've got it bad, and it's not good when
you've it only 'arf bad," said Bill, adding, "I mean that if I 'ad it
bad I would get off to blighty, but my case was only a light one, not
so bad as Ted Vittle. 'E's not back yet, maybe it's a trip across the
Channel for 'im. 'E was real bad when 'e walked down with me to
Mazingarbe. I was rotten too, couldn't smoke. It was sit down and rest
for fifteen minutes then walk for five. Mazingarbe is only a mile and
an 'arf from the dressing-station and it took us three hours to get
down; from there we took the motor-ambulance to the clearing hospital.
There was a 'ot bath there and we were put to bed in a big 'ouse,
blankets, plenty of them and a good bed. 'Twas a grand place to kip
in. Bad as I was, I noticed that."

"No stand-to at dawn?" I said.

"Two 'ours before dawn we 'ad to stand-to in our blankets, matey,"
said Bill. "The Germans began to shell the blurry place and 'twas up
to us to 'op it. We went dozens of us to the rear in a 'bus. Shook us!
We were rattled about like tins on cats' tails and dumped down at
another 'orsp about breakfast time. My tempratoor was up more (p. 275)
than ever there; I almost burst the thremometur. And Ted! Blimey, yer
should 'ave seen Ted! Lost to the wide, 'e was. 'E could 'ardly speak;
but 'e managed to give me his mother's address and I was to write 'ome
a long letter to 'er when 'e went West."

"Allowed to 'ave peace in that place! No fear; the Boches began to
shell us, and they sent over fifty shells in 'arf an 'our. All troops
were ordered to leave the town and we went with the rest to a 'orsp
under canvas in X----.

"A nice quiet place X---- was, me and Ted was along with two others in
a bell-tent and 'ere we began to get better. Our clothes were taken
from us, all my stuff and two packets of fags and put into a locker. I
don't know what I was thinking of when I let the fags go. There was
one feller as had two francs in his trousers' pocket when 'e gave 'is
trousers in