The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1894-02-10


thyselt Of it in as many weeks
| strobe forward.
Five louis for that hammer anc
a score of nails.
The military smith dropped the
hoof from his lap, came to attention
and saluted But he looked at me
queerly and answered nothing. |
could see he thought me mad. Very
likely excitement had made me look
so.
Ten louis. There is the money in
gold.
My officer the things are yours.
Steel spikes brittle rods that
would snap off short, would have
been better. But time was growing
narrow and l must take what offered
These soft bent nails would serve my
purpose. And now for the river. The
current was swift, and | could not
swim stroke. l must 60 up stream
and trust to find some tree trunk or
wooden balk that would aid me in
floating down.
On the matters that happened
after this | cannot speak with any
minuteness. To think back at the
whole time seems like blurred
dream broken by snatches of dead
sleep. | know l gained my point on
the river bank, some miles above
the village and entered the water
there finding it chill as ice. l think
it was small fence gate that aided
my passage.
can only recollect clearly that
the thing l chung to was terribly
unstable, and that on being landed
by chance eddy on strip of shoal
l lay there ior fully half an hour
listening to sentry plodding past
and past through the mud 10
yards away unable to move a limb.
Then Igathered strength; and crawl
ing not only from caution, but through
sheer helplessness, made my stealthy
way still farther along the shore.
Four batteries commanded the
approaches to the bridge. Two
were on either flank to deliver a
converging fire; two one above the
other where in direct line with it
SO that the causeway could be swept
from end to end.
1t was in the lower of these last
that I found myseit--by what route
come cannot say. Only then my
senses seemed to return to ne. |
was lying in an embrasure. Over
head was the round black chase OF
60 FOUNDER. | crawled further and
looked down the line. Six more guns
loomed through the night, making
seven in all.
The rain was coming down in
torrents, sending up spurts of mud.
There where men within a dozen
yards, wakeful men, and then, and
not before, did it flash upon me
that my farriers hammer was a
useless weapon. Fool that was to
bring it. Idiot Imust have been
to forget that the first clink would
awaken the redoubt. My lifef No
pah ! l didn't count that. But it
would mean only one gun spiked
efectually if so much. l drew back
into the embraSure and knitted
my forehead atresh. The right
thought was tardv but it came. |
drew off my boot 1t was new and it
was heavy badinage that had been
poured out by my comrades over its
heaviness. The strong sewed heel
would drive like calkers mallet.
Then | got to work. The guns were
loaded and primed. The locks were
covered with leather aprons. | used
Infinite caution. crawling like cat,
crouching in deepest shadows, stop
ping, making detours, not for mere
life's sake, be it understood, but be-
cause life was wanted for work yet un-
done.
The seven guns were put out of
action, and still the night was dark,
and the Austrians were ignorant behind
the curtain of rain. And then to the
upper battery. Two, four, eight guns !!
Three spiked, and the night began
to gray. Three more, and men were
stirring, | got reckless and sprang
openly at another. The air was filling
with shouts and sinking powder smoke
and crashes and the red flash of can
non.
The French were advancing 10 the
storm in the wet, gray dawn. Both
hankiug batteries. since manned had
opened upon them, but of the guns
which had direct command of the
bridge only one spoke.
Into the roar of artillery the wind
brought up yells and oaths and bub-
bling shrieks. And then the eagles
came through the smoke. There was
no stopping that rush.
Somehow I found myself among
comrades, fighting with claw backed
farrer's hammer, knowing nothing of
order O. reason or how these things
came to pass, but heated only by an
insane desire to kill and kill and kill!
And then | grappled with man who
was struggling off with a flag, and
wrestled with him in a crimson slough,
and choked him down into it, while
heavily shod feet trampled madly on
both of US. And afterward there was
more shouting and cheering, and
mighty hand claps between my shoul-
der blades, and the old major gave me
cognac out of a silver hask-cognac