The daily sentinel., 1913-10-20

sword belt. The noise aroused Rem
gifo. Leaning on one elbow. the
drunkard fixed filmy eyes on the
commander of the forlorn hope Then
he picked his flask from the ground
beside him and put 1t to his lips.
TO your-success," he said thickly.
Thanks"
Trench walked away, followed by
the sergeant.
one hundred men, with Trench at
their head, slipped down the face
of the ridge nearest to La Victoria,
while the light of dawn was still not
much more than an uncertain gray
The young American was struck by
the cheeriness of his command; from
the faces of its component parts no
body could have guessed the nature
of the job which lay before the forlorn
hope. The average Venezuelan SOL
dier knows little about most things
and nothing about fear.
Reaching the foot of the ridges, the
men began to pick their way over a
hollow which lay between the hill,
their objective. The pace was slow.
1t behooyed Trench not to get out of
touch with the main attack OF OIL
wares on La Victoria; not to take the
redoubt on the hilltop while the gov
ernment commander in the city was
sNii Stili'lClitly Dy
bles of his own to snatch the position
back again. Hence, when the Amer
lean and his soldiers reached the first
spur of the hill, dawn was we'll ad-
vanced. Trench glanced at the hill
top. 1t gave no sign.
Quietly now." he ordered. The SOL
diers began to climb.
They climbed through underbrush,
man high, which whipped back at the
faces of those who DtIGhpi uid
II it We're an ally OF the redoubt over
head. After a few hundreds yards of
toilsome going, Trench looked back
over his shoulder. on the ridge, the
ragged men Of Olivares' army were
drawn up. Drums were beating and
trumpets blaring for the attack.
Then. from somewhere above his
head. came a roar and a flash; some
thing screamed through the air,
bound for the ridge.
They've walked up" muttered the
sergeant. The next one will prob
ably be for us, captain"
1t was. 1t came shrieking down
from the hilltop. just as the forlorn
hope reached the edge of the under
brush. dropped into the very center
of knot of men, and blew them to
fragments.
Now for it," cried the sergeant
between closed Jaws.
AS he spoke. the sun burst out of
the east in full glory. The light of a
dazzling morning flooded ridge and
hillslope. city and redoubt Trench
looked about him once. The sunshine
seemed very bright, the sky very
blue.
Then he waved his sword frantical-
iy. called for the charge, and dashed
up the cleared hillside, followed by
his men.
From the crest above them came
fash after flash. roar after roar.
Again and again Trench heard the
screaming of the shells mingle with
the incessant rattle of musketry and
yelling of defiance. Again and again
earth and stones and bushes. in front
and on both sides of him. were fiuns
straight up into the air; and once,
as he was scrambling toward little
mound. 1t suddenly broke off from
the hillside, and Trench. leaping for
ward. found hole instead of a
mound, and fell into 1t on hands and
knees and face. When he scrambled
out again there was blood on his
clothing, for in the hole was a man
who was dead. Sometimes Trench
ran alone: sometimes others painted
and shouted by his side; and always