Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-02-14

! You deserted the post! sn0rted u
eyes sir, colonel" replied Jimmy,
He held up four fingers of his right
hand.
Four he said. weakly.
'Yah-four," said Jimmy, speculat-
ing as to the sanity of his jailer
They've a battery, said Rawley in
voice that grated; that gets the
planes at any distance. Four-Lordi
And they've got to send men up that
hill tonight on their bellies-the way
they did at San Juan"
Tonight? Volunteers-to map the
hill?" asked Jimmy in a whisper
'Yes-and it's coming" replied
Rawley. Well be tangling with 'em
in forty-eight hours, I'm afraid he
muttered
Afraid" scoffed Jimmy when he
was alone. Great Cod Afraid!
Those fellows don't"
He looked through the one window
for a long, long time.
The swift night settled down and
the hum of the camp diminished to a.
drone. Activity was in the air It
made living tense.
1.-The MOON said Jimmy to himself,
twill rise after midnight. And it's a
cinch,"
He went to the corner of the one
room and squatted on the floor. With
a stick he jabbed at the mud between
the big adobe bricks. 1t crumbled
easily under the attack In a half
hour the brick was loose. He worked
a second block loose: then the one
one above the two An hour later he
stuck his head and shoulders out, put
his ear against the ground to hear
better the tread of the sentry, chose
his time well, and slipped into the
night. Carefully he cTawled between
the tents; cautiously he picked his
way to avoid lights, He worked
away from his own regiment and
passed through the camp of another.
An hour went by, and he COM
menced to fear that the moon would
Illustrate all his efforts. At last he
left the man-infested area behind and
crept on faster
WELL" he told himself, "a man
never did anything who stayed putt"
Jimmy crawled on his hands and
knees for what he guessed was 300
yards Then he arose, stretched him
self with great breath, slapped his
chest gently with the palms of his
hands, smiled up at the stars and
commenced to walk. carefully, cat
like. For a half-hour he Travelled
slowly, choosing every foothold, He
glanced behind him and laughed soft
ly-if nervously-as he saw the camp
lights receding slowly into the dis
lance At last he crossed a little
stream that babbled down a rocky
bed. For little while he followed
the road, and then, when the moon
showed its yellow rim above the hills
to the east, he struck out across the
almost barren country.
Lieutenant James Crogan, alone be-
tween two hostile armies, breakfast
ed on prickly pear scraping the mi
mute barbs off with a sharp stone He
drank from a water hole, crept under
"a bush and settled down to wait the
long day through. He could see the
hilltop from where he lay. could see
things that looked like flies swarming
, over it.
He saw squads of men come down
the hill and wander about crafty,
though with purpose. Spinning
webs of barbed wire, he was certain.
lie saw two treeless belts. one three
quarters of the way up the hill and
the other right at the top.
Night came after centuries of wait
ing, and he left his shelter He
walked a mile. perhaps Then he
crouched and crawled at tines sell
com standing erect. Always he kept
his eyes on the wavering lights above
him; at FREQUENT intervals he paused
and strained his ears. The
lights died out. one at time,
and bugles blew the army be-
for him to sleep. He went on.
From the top of the rise above him
shot a binding eye of light. 1t
pierced the distance to the northwar1
for an instant, settled to the ground
, with a jerk and swept in a gigantic
are over the country slowly, securing
the open places. illuminating the
r brush. Jimmy dropped Just before 1t
reached him. fiattened his face in the
, sand. He could see the white glar}
7 all about him for a time. Then it be
came dark again and he looked UP to
+ see the finger Of white drilling the
r night far away.
Q The man took "A long chance on the
. open country and made a cautious
g run for IT, He went quietly until his
2 foot slipped and he went down, bang
. ing his head on a rock The blow
+ made him dizzy and the noise he madt
{ terrified him. But he got up and
e stumbled along in the darkness, ready
to flop to the ground the instant thu
y searchlight turned his way again. He
ii gained the timbered stretch that was
$ above and breathed easier. 1t wa
o more difficult to travel, of course, fol
the brush was stiff and thick, but ht
= was under cover. at least. Jimmy
reached out to draw aside what, II
- the darkness, looked like a vine. Th'
| points of barbed wire dug into TIN
l flesh OF his hands and he stood very
| still for a long time, listening FOL
| footsteps. Once more came the fingel
of light and he squatted in the bushes
while it made the stunted forest glow
With great difficulty Jimm!
wormed his way through the wire
1t cut his clothing and it pricket
his flesh, but he did not heed. o.
he went again, making every "
take him nearer the crest of the hi
and making every motion as nea
noiseless as was possible. H
worked his way through another wir
net worse than the first. Then tn
light came back and he lay still 70
long time. Perhaps 1t was a fortu
nate thing that he did not feel com
PEELED to lay still, for he heard some
thing-a faint and regular sound. II
| pressed his ear to the ground an
strained to listen. 1t grew stronger
stopped. receded, and died away
After time it came back agaiI
growing stronger, but not stronl
stopping. and after deliberate ir
| tcrval. rcsuming, only to die off. Al