The Press., 1915-05-05

We fOun0 It much upset, put noe
 ruin. The officers had occupied it. and,
 though they had left the furniture topsy turvy. the house itself except for
 being perforated by few cannon balls
 was not injured. We lighted candles
 and set to work to make the house
 habitable. Fortunately it was summer,
 and we did not suffer from the pas
 sage of air through the holes in the
 walls.
 Clochette and I, being the only young
 persons present other than the chfl- dren, did most of the work and got the
 premises in tolerable shape. except for cleanliness, which would require more time and effort. Then Clochette took me to one of the buildings, beneath which provisions had been concealed, and selecting what was needed we re- turned to the others, and Clochette got up a supper which was seasoned with hunger, and all ate ravenously.
 Being the only man on the premises fit for service, and these people relying upon me alone for aid and comfort, did not go to bed with the others, but securing a fowling piece for defense stationed myself on the porch to watch, for grim visaged war was about us, and did not know at what moment I might be called upon to pro- tect my charges. The firing grew less toward midnight, but here and there in every direction the heavens were lit with light that indicated some house was being destroyed, and heaven only knew what dreadful calamities were being visited upon those who dwelt therein.
 Now and again l heard voices of those who were probably stragglers and likely marauders who were out for pillage. Coming upon the build ings which were in ruins, they passed on. The house in which my flock was sleeping, being as dark as the rest, was fortunately not visited. I was sitting in chair, with my gun resting on the porch, nodding, when I felt light touch on my shoulder.
 You are very kind," said a voice which I knew to be Clochette's. 'I will relieve you for a time. Go in and
  the finest people in the world.''
 I told her that I preferred to watch. When I asked her if there were any more arms on the place she replied that she knew of none excepting a revolver which she drew from under the skirt of her dress, and which she told me she had kept there from the time the tide of battle began to roll l over the vineyard. She would not go to bed. so I drew chair for her, and ! we sat together on guard.
 Clochette was the daughter of the of the vineyard. Among | the women was her mother. and the | others were mostly her relatives. She I had evidently been the dependence of | the party before my arrival, and even | now was unable to throw off the re- sponsibility resting upon her. And yet l she was especially feminine. Sitting l there together, whenever a yell. a curse | or a shriek rang out in the night she | drew near me and shuddered, while I. though I dreaded what might at any | happen, spoke in tones of as- surance that I might so far as possible | keep up her courage.
 During the night we met with vari- ous causes for especial terror. One l | remember for the narrow escape we made. Half dozen stragglers, all evi- | dently drunk, came through the vine l yard. My companion and I withdrew behind some latticework. where we were well concealed. The men passed l the house and stopped before it. | heard them discussing whether or not | there was any loot within, and for | some time we were in doubt whether | or not they would come up on to the Il porch where We were preparatory to breaking in. If they had done so they would have undoubtedly discovered us. and the consequences would have been terrible.
 The few hours we passed between midnight and dawn, though terrifying, were in some respects the most pleas ing and in all respects the most inn Dortant of my life. I had spent long ! periods in proximity with young girls without being drawn to them. This one 1 met at evening and with the first gray streak of dawn she was all in all to me. We had sat together amid he booming of distant guns, the burn Ing of homes, the passing and repass- ng near us of those who were bent on the work of war. Before morning we belonged to each other.
 Clochette soon after left the fighting zone and left it with her. I wrote up just one incident in wars wake, but it was not published in the paper I brought back bride