Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1918-07-31
cuAPTER XXIV-Continued.

p
IN his left, in the darkness, ne coulu
.,ro ont the shadOwy forms OF trees
l lD,rrling on his hands and knees, stop
and cronchlng with fear at each
p LsaiI hurst he finally reached an old
, ,.sbsrd and covered at the base OF a
,bot-scarred apple tree.
He remained there all night, listen
,,g 70 the sound of the guns and ever
n9ving, praying that his useless LIE
would be spared.
As dawn began to break, he could
5iscarn little dark objects prOtruding
f-,m the ground all about him. Curl
osi+v mastered his fear and he crawled
fl one Of the objects, and there, in the
uncertain light, he read on a little
wooden cross:
apte H. S. Wheaton, No. 1910, LIST
TondoD Regt. +. &. Killed in action.
Anrf %. 1916. r, I. P" Crest in
PeaCe).
When II dawned on him that he had
bpan hiding all right in a cemetery
his reason seemed to leave him, and
mad desire to be free from it all made
him rush madIy away, falling over lit
de wooden crosses, smashing some and
+r9mpIing others under his feet.
In his flight he came to an old
French dugout. half caved in and par
tally filed with Shiny and filthy wa
ter.
Like a fox being chased by the
hounds ne ducked into this hole, and
threw himself on a pile of old empty
2ndbagS, wet and widowed. Then
ulconSciOuSnesS.
On the next day, he came to; far
distant voices sounded in his ears.
Opening his eyes, in the entrance of
the dugout he saw a corporal and two
men with fixed bayonets.
The corporal was addressing him:
Get up, you white-Iivered Brighter
Curse you and the day you ever joined
D company, spelling their fine rec
ord! It'll be you up against the wall,
and d good job too. Get hold of him,
men, and if he makes a break, give him
he bayonet, and send it home, the cow
2Flly sneak. Come on, you, move,
we've been booking for you long
enough"
Lloyd, trembling and weakened by
dis long fast, tottered out. assisted by
aSodieT on each side of him.
Ihey took him before the captain,
out could get nothing out of him but;
For Gods sake, sir, don't have me
SHOT, don't have me shot!"
The captain, utterly disguised with
a'n' sent him under escort to division
eeacQuarters for trial by court-mar-
"a- charged with desertion under fire.
Laey shoot deSerters in France.
During his trial Lloyd sat as one
C-ta' and could put nothing forward
~ his defense, only an occasional
'ont have me Shotw
Ills sentence was passed: ITO be
:, %0' at 3: SS o'clock in the morning of
"a! Is 1916" This meant that he
'4u only one more day to live.
he did not realize the awfuIness of
~ sentence; his brain seemed para
S15u he knew nothing of his trip.
Slef guard, in a motor lorry to the
- l1l0oagsed guardroom in the village,
l,s ,5'e ne was dumped on the floor and
~ ~ while sentry with a fixed bayo-
Entrance. - - u" u INC
-. pI''y beef. water and biscuits were
m oes'ue MIN for his supper.
- --e sentry, seeing that he ate moth
s =, came inside and shook him by the
,-,u'F' saying in a kind voice:
H.. 1AeeIo laddie, better eat some
n So-, lou.n feel better. Don't give
po nope You'll be pardoned before
sa. u'ns. I know the way they run
So. ss minsS. They're only irving TO
So . you that's ALL Come now. that's
a .ooo lad, eat something. ItII make
= world look different to YOU"
-. good-hearted sentry knew bo
so-bt 9-os about the pardon. He knew
u Poor lad. - NH '''e eOulu save
sOrss X ~. Is.ened eagerly to his sentry's
A0za ,-@ anu believed them. A look of
s,gv I anne into his eyes, and he raven
a'e the meal beside him.
kip c sDou. an hours time, the chap
ksye ne 10 see him, but Lloyd would
Na, 10 o- - OF him. he wanted no par
NJ he was to De pardoned, POI
seDIr artillery behind the lines sud
'p'Aea up with everything they