Camas Prairie chronicle. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1901-1917, 1911-10-06


Ing all over the limited region we oc.
eupied with orders to find the farm
ana the girl. Each and every one re-
turned with the information that
there was no dairy farm within the
picket lines and the girl could not be
found.
Il received summons to report in
person at headquarters, and the gen.
eral questioned me and cross aues-
toned me, making me very uncom-
Portable. He even got out of me the
fact that l had tried to look through
one Of the eggs and found only dark
ness.
WAS it the same weight as the
others?' asked the general.
Il could detect no difference
Are you sure the girl was not a
man in girls clothesr
Il remembered her walk and hest
gated.
Come. out with 1t. You suspect
that she WASP
"'She had mans stride
THAT will do. BY your stupidity
you have permitted a spy to pass
through our lines and become ac-
quainted with our weakness. Besides.
there are small bodies Of Prussians
on every side Of us. If we had not
them SO separated that they can't
communicate, by concerted move
ment they could crush u.s.
But. general l protested, the
people hereabout are all French and
loyal This girl spoke excellent
French
Peasants do not speak excellent
French he replied impatiently. That
will do; you may CO.
Il had hardly left his headquarters
before flag of truce was announced
waiting without the picket line for
admission. Its commandant was
taken to the general and presented a
demand for our capitulation. He told
our general just what forces were in
oar vicinity and that they had every
road by which we might escape &C.
cupied. By. concerted action, which
had been agreed upon. they could
capture us.
"Our general declined to surrender,
and at midnight we made dash for
escape. Nearly half of our number
were killed or wounded. / tried my
best to get shot. for felt sure had
by my stupidity permitted spy to
walk from one Prussian force straight
through our lines to another bearing a
communication and the news Of our
weakness. But though exposed my
self while the fighting was most des-
perate l was not even scratched.
1.-The remnant of our force surren-
dered, and the next morning having
stacked our arms, we were marched
before the Prussian generals who had
combined for our destruction. An aid
on the staff of one of them, coming
up to me with leer ON his face, said
in the same excellent French the peas.
ant girl had used
Hello, comrade. What's the price
Of eggs today?
"'Ah,' l replied. you are the peas
ant girl who sold me those eggs. Was
there message In the one tried to
look through
Indeed there was. and your get
ting hold of it, feared, would undo
me. Had you held on to that egg
you would not now have been here
and l would have swung at the end
Of a rope
"It weighed the same as the others
sand did that
"'Where did you learn French?'
"'At Partisan school,
1--WE were marching during this brief
dialogue. and at this point the man
dropped away from me.
ITO make matters worse I received
an offer from the Prussians of an
immediate exchange as a recognition
Of the service | had done them. / re-
piled that the only exchange | would
accept would be from earth to para
disc"
The colonel paused. and his chin
sank on his breast. Presently he con-
cluded:
From that day, general. I have
been a snubbed man in the army.
Whenever a time for my promotion
came round some excuse was found
for putting another IN my place. I'm
fortunately, since then, France has
been at peace. and l have had no OPP
portunity to redeem my stupidity or
get myself killed"
Rather call 1t misfortune" inter
rupted the general.
"No: 1t was stupidity. At any rate,
I shall never forgive myself any more
than France will forgive me for fail
ing to see light through an egg with.
out cracking It. My failure In the
army was my own fault.
"Since that episode have always
had a repulsion for an egg. have
never eaten one from that day to this,
and the sight Of eggs is painful to me.
I have disliked to give you the reason
why will not eat them at your table,
but have done so that you may excuse
my impoliteness In not partaking of
what you have provided for me-"
"Colonel.r said the general after
passing some moments in thought.
"what you call stupidity Is fate. I. a
much younger man than you. was the
the butt Of my class at st. Cyr. Now
| am a general officer. while you, an
honor man, are still a colonel. And
whv3 Fate threw an obstacle in your