Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-05-07

through all the strands, and the way was
open. On he dashed, not even looking
to see who followed. Blndly he knew
that Kokan was near him, still calling. He
was 50 tired he could hardly lift his feet,
and yet he kept on running, always run
ming UP that death-swept slope. Now
the men knew the secret of the wires, and
there was small delay. Soichi heard the
machine-guns rattle as he had heard the
typhoon rains beat on the slate roof of
his fathers house. The guns sent their
shells shrieking over the slope, carrying
away his mates in groups. He saw them
fall into the pits, stumble and throw
forward, go down all about him. Still
the prize was not his. He went on.
Then, without warning the world came
to its end. The whooping and whistling,
the shrieking and singing of shells and
bullets ceased, and with far-off muffled
roar the solid earth rose beneath him and
hurled him headlong forward, him and
Kokan together. He wondered, curl
ously, as he was in the air, if it was to be
the trick of his fate that he and Kokan
were to win death together. Then he
fell and for an instant neither saw nor
HcdI Il llOl lclI llOl thought ~ VOICE Call
ing in tones he knew brought him back to
himself, and the cla1nor of the horrible
maelstrom. Itwas Kokan shouting to him:
Come on, Eta! You fight to-day like
Samurai!"
The quick blood 1eaped in him at the
taunt, and he sprang to his feet. Behind
him, as he rose, he caught glimpse of
the great hole where the mine had ex-
ploded, and beyond it, down the slope,
men going -guardsmen, his own
Guards! The horror and shame of it
overwhelmed him, and he turned and
began to run again, on up the hill. Some
thing was the matter with his head-he
did not know what, nor did he care. He
and Kokan ere left, and if all the rest
stopped they two would go on. He
shouted in answer to his Lieutenant and
strove to overtake him. With his fathers
sword flashing over his head, the Samurai
boy ran, shouted, staggered, went down.
Of all the charge Soichi was left alone.
Yet he went on. The Russians in the
trenches cheered him and held their fire,
too brave to murder the brave. And in
the sudden hush Soichi heard Kokan
calling again:
Come here Samurai am wounded
Take me back"
Samurai! Kokan had called him Sam
urai! All in daze Soichi obeyed, thrust
his arms under those of the wounded
Lieutenant, heaved him up on his back
and staggered slowly down the hill He
walked like one in a dream, neither seeing
nor caring where he stepped, and yet by
miracle not falling And when some of
the men in the trenches, more ruthless
than others, fired again, he shifted Kokan
in front of him lest he be thought to
shield himself by his burden.
He was halfway down when suddenly
the trenches burst into fire again and he
saw his Guards coming back. The re-
serves were up. The charge was renewed.
Methodically he looked about him, found
a pit, carefully laid the wounded Lieu
tenant there out of danger, turned and
headed the new assault
Oh, how tired he wasl How hard it
was to keep his legs moving! And yet he
must. This was the day he was to die
glorious death. Back again by the nine
wrought hollow, the fresh men up with
hin, now and come Of them ahead Ono