rinking more than was good for them, and
they paid no attention to them beyond acknowledging their salutes.

One of the young officers pounded loudly on the table and demanded wine
immediately. The proprietor arose from the table where the lads sat and
hastened to attend to the wants of his customers himself, and soon
several bottles of wine were upon the table.

The proprietor filled the glasses of the young officers, and then, at a
nod from one of them, approached the table where the lads sat and poured
out two more glasses of the sparkling fluid, which he placed before Hal
and Chester.

The French officers at the other table rose, each with his glass in his
hand; then one of them looked toward Hal and Chester, and the latter,
realizing that the young Frenchman was about to propose a toast, also got
to their feet; but instead of holding their wine glasses aloft, the
glasses which they raised held nothing more than water.

The young Frenchman gave his toast.

"France!" he said gravely.

Each man raised his glass to his lips and drained it, but Hal and
Chester drank the toast in clear, cold water. As the first Frenchman
returned his glass to the table, he noticed that the wine before Hal and
Chester remained untouched. His face turned a dull red, and he
approached the lads.

"And why does not monsieur drink with us?" he demanded in a harsh voice,
thrusting his face toward Chester. "Can it be that you are spies?"

"No," said Chester, taking a step backward; "we are not spies. We
are British officers, and we drank your toast in water. We do not
drink wine."

"British officers!" repeated the Frenchman. "Then how comes it that you
wear the uniforms of French lieutenants?"

"That," replied Chester quietly, "is none of your business."

"None of my business!" echoed the Frenchman. "_Mon Dieu_! And what if I
make it some of my business, eh?"

"If I were you," said Chester, "I wouldn't think of such a thing."

The Frenchman took a step backward at the menace in the lad's tone; but
the other French officers now gathered about, and these reenforcements
apparently lent him courage.

"So!" he exclaimed. "It is that we are not good enough to drink
with you, eh?"

"No," replied Chester; "we simply don't drink. That is all. We appreciate
your courtesy in thinking of us, and we drank your toast in water, which
is the strongest drink we ever touch."

Hal, who up to this time had remained silent in his chair, now rose