Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1904-12-31
Ao,x HERE is a muttered rulnor

Rop moment at the crest or the
hill, suddenly the scattering sound OF
rifle fire snaps the stiffness OF the morn
ing air. The noise pulls me mp with
jerk. My half-hnished sentence ends
abruptly, and ! feel shock within
me as OF a tug upon my heartstrihgs'
The talk has ceased on the instant.
A curious silence falls upon MS, broken
only by a hOarsely whispered were
In a." from q comrnde.
NV emotions are hard to analyze. IL
il not exactly fear / feel. but rather II
kind OF uncomfortable expectancy. !
dare not look my fellows In the face.
TO do so would seem, feel, like i'm
pertlent curiosity. But furtive glance
shows me each man holt upright In
his place, with features set and hard.
The chatter Of n Maxim upon the left
swells tatO a gathering chorus, the IT.
regular rattle of the rifle fire. In the
cold gray of dawn II Is n chilling. dead
" sound. Then, with n thunder OF
thuddIng hoOfs, staff officer galsops
| up.
"Walk-march!" The sharp COM
mand acts like spark that fires the
stlfrened frame to life. "Trot,' and,
with n Jingle. Jingle Of accoutrcments'
the tennis, their wicked-loOking guns
Topping behind them, plunge downward
| 10 the plain. The battery Is itself
| again. Action Qulckens the sluggish
pulse, and in the excitement of the de-
| fahhnp nf tho Maxim
falls OH deaf ears.
| At the bottom of the slope Is an awk'
ward gully, through which the teams
| scamper helter-skelter and come mp
with a gallop on the level under a
heavy fire. action front" In trice
the guns are wheeled round and IN
limbered.
Now for the first time l begin to be
conscious of the fire under which we
are acting. All around l see little
spurts of dust kicked up from the
ground by some invisible agency like
gobbets of dry sand thrown mp by th"
impact of colossal raindrops.
Gladly would depart but that n
sense of shame would Keep me, even
were escape possible, Mt my post IL
needs greater courage to openly NY
than to stay.
Yet it is not physical fear that lays
hold of me. To feel that one must
needs confront an actual, tangible foe,
1t Is rather q mental terror with which
these invisible missiles of death fill me
There is no. combating them. They
come from nowhere, as 1t seems, and
no man can say where they may hna
their billet. am helpless. l can but
stand still in my place, waiting. with
sickening expectancy, to see whether
I shall be hit.
A gunner beside me falls. 1t Is sud
len and quick. Without warning, his
arms are flung wildly up into the air
and, with hideOus, gurgling grOan, he
rollapses. For few seconds his limbs
Jerk convulsively, his hands tearing at
the tufts of grass, and his teeth say
qgely biting the dust. AS suddenly, the
movements cease, and the corpse lies
where it dropped. My gorge rises, and
all things squirm within me.
1t happened once In South Africa
that during an action the General II
command, walking round his DISPOSE
tons on tOV Of inspection. came
upon a gun that had temporarily beer
ordered vut As aatinn Sn~t~d on tfr'
trail, scOrning cover, was a gunner
deep in the blushing pages of a well
known sporting contemporary. The
General paused and gaZed for n mo
ment. Then he turned 10 the staff
officer who accompanied him: "MOderr
warfarew he remarked, pointing to thu
unconscious gunner, and passed on.
Think of the infantryman, lynn
prone for hours, 1t may be in the same
place, while the bullets fly, twangin.
over his PROSTATE body. He dare no
disObey orders by raising his head
With his eye to the ground he look!
along the level of the plain to where
the skyline rims 1t, or the hills from
which the enemy's fire Is coming in
close it, For foreground he has some
coarse grass, the blades Of which Ii,
idly tries to count again and again; ant
for middle distance the inartistic boots
perhaps-if in close Order-Of a com
rade lying some few feet ahead to RICH
or left.
Seadlness under fire, however, I!
not the only thing which the soldier
must learn. War holds other things
TO shatter the toughest Of nerves. W.
speak not OF certain sights and sounds
which those who have witnessed ant
heard them will recall to mind. Thi
Is not the place to paint too wildly tn
horrors Of battlefield and hospital. Blu
heaven grant the soldier may neve
have to face charge of cavalry. TT
stand and watch the wild rOut of de
mOniac horsemen sweeping onward
to hear the swelling thunder OF hoof
as the vengeful horde rushes dow
upon him; to catch with unfalterinl
eye the CLINT of bare steel brandishet
fiercely-these are the things at whicl
the stoutest heart may quail.
Worse still the foot soldiers pligh
when the square of which he forms
part breaks up IN disorder and stay
not to receive the shock of the charge
Panic seiZes him. His self control |
gone. Reason deserts him. Flight
flight, flight. Is the one idea that rage
in his mind.
Like a startled hare he turns AN
fiees-whlther he knows not. Hot-foo
the cavalry pursue. He hears tn
thudding Of the hoOfs behind him. and
screaming in his agony Of terror, b
fings away rife, bandolier and belt i
his blind endeavOr to escape. LOude
and louder drum the thudding hOOfs i
his ears. AS he stumbles on he throw
a glance OF terror over his shoulder
; His pursuer is on him now. He see
J the snorting nOstrils and bloodsh0t ey
Of the giant war horse as 1t seems
prance about him, and peering aroun
, its neck Me fierce face of his enem!
with grim, set features, distorted int
. | - e.;,kkf,,l lnnl Of n uap,