Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-08-05

and walked to a fort he had not dreamed of
| being able to get into 1t was luck-pure
| luck.
The other case was told to me by a
French army doctor. Il have just held the
| hand of a brave dying men, he said. He
| had crawled across the frontier with great
| difficulty, being in the last stages of disease
and starvation. When found he could
scarcely make himself understood, but the
| night before lie died he managed to tell US
| this much. He, officer of the French
army, had disguised himself as an Alsatian
peasant and sought work in the neighbor-
hood of the new German works that
| threaten the entrance to the Moselle valley.
| He spoke German perfectly, and as an
| Alsatian from beyond Belfort, he was not
near enough to his pretended home for in
curry. He had to make himself ragged and
| dirty. He lived in q peasants hut, and
after several months got himself employed
to carry wood into the fortress. Little by
| little he paced distances, made rude
| sketches with nail on his boot legs and
| located the water supply. He had just ar
| ranged-at great peril-a hiding place in a
| pile of wood from which he might emerge
| at night to make an attempt on the artil-
| lery, kept with great secrecy in a CORFU
gated iron shed. when he was taken down
| with fever. Nervous exhaustion helped the
! fever. He did not dare call in a doctor. who
| would see his white skin underneath his
PEASANTS clothes. So he determined to
make off while he had strength. The notes
| were too valuable to be lost. He saved
thefn. He crawled into France with them
| before he died
| Aid of a Wife.
| According to French ideas, the easiest
| way to get into a German fortress is to
send your wife. One of my friends, charged
| to report on the system of defense of an
| important secteur in the neighborhood of
| Metz came back twice in haste without the
| slightest information. The third time he
| took his gay and pretty wife along. She
l aa1 IN rNlD fhn
| try's good and, installed in the town near
| est to the fort d'arret which their goal,
! she put on her most pensive air and made
| herself look pale and interesting. Her hus-
| band, on the other hand assumed the role
! of a well-fed, somnolent, good-natured,
! wine-drinking silly, born to be deceived.
| Together they began to frequent the terrace
| of the little casino where the German Off
GERS met every afternoon. The German off,
| GERS read them with ease. The lady had
| been i'll and they were travelling for their
| health. Did her dark eyes shine from her
| fair, pale face at them with something like
| demure coquetry? Perhaps. But they
| could not make her acquaintance. She was
not for them.
The general was tall stout man, who
| had been handsome in his youth. One day,
| when horseback riding, the pretty French
| lady managed to slip off the animal and
| faint just at the moment when the general
met them. The general jumped from his
horse, and, throwing the bride to his or
derby, caught the frai1 creature and revived
her. Her husband thanked him and she
gave him shy look of gratitude. The next
morning he sent a lieutenant to inquire
about her health. She sent word back that
she was pretty well, and the acquaintance
ship was made Asked to lunch one day,
the dashing general-who lost no time-took
the occasion of her husbands momentary
absence to make a formal declaration. And
she said neither yes nor no.
IF / We're little stronger l could take
| long horseback rides she ventured But
1 am still a little weak. Where could we
go? Always along that same old prone
nader
But no. replied the ardent general,
there is no lack of pretty roads. The one
that leads to @ is splendid
$50 it is, but where could we take lunch?"
1T was the generals chance. why,
that's the road that leads up to the fort
ress. You could take lunch with us there!"
Along the road, where every passing SOL
der did them military honors. the little CO.
quette wthstood the warriors enterprises
| with all kinds of silly questions. What is
| that mound for?" and why are those nice
! trees being cut DOWN." After lunch she
showed that she was really frightened-for
| the general had drunk bottle of cham
| NO, let's get out into the air little
while" she pleaded. Then he took her
round the works, into all kinds of out-of-the
| way hooks, she fencing with him always.
When he would ask her something per-
| sonal she would put him off with Tell me,
general, what's in that shed?'
THE guns. Would you not like to see
them?'
| In the dark shed they played around the
| formidable cannons Of the future. When
| he begged to kiss her hand, she asked him
| what this lever meant and why they had
that screw there.
Why insist? My friend returned to Paris
| with good report upon that fort d'arret-
| A fort d'arret means one of those exterior,
| outlying works meant only to Withstand
| the enemy time Even if captured it
would not involve the integrity of the de-
| Tense. To tell the truth, my friend was a
| little grumpy as he rode with his pretty
| wife to Paris. "Only a fort d'arret.' he
murmured bitterly.
But she smiled at him with a charming
reinsurance. Exactly. Only a fort dar-
| retI'' she answered. And he heaved great
| sigh of relief.
You have heard of the heroes of war.
| These are the heroes of peace,
| STERLING HELLO.