The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1919-02-15

| u euCu 1t seemed certain QoaLn TO
seek him in the face of the fire of the
| enemy, and hence his comrades lay
there plying him. but helpless, whilst
the life of the sergeant ebbed away in
a crimson stream. Suddenly soldier
had leaped over the trench and made
his way to the wounded man, disdain-
| ing apparently even to stoop before
the hail of death screaming about him.
| VOLTA! Look! it is Jean Francois"
| Soldier Jean Noir had shouted.
And so it was Swiftly he made his
way to the wounded sergeant; gently
he lifted him to his shoulder and stag
gered to the trench, where a dozen
willing hands bore his body to the hos
| pital. Then whilst he lay, white and
! trembling, still the air rang with
! cheers for Jean Francois.
That very day the General had pub
| licly praised Jean Francois.
You are a brave man, though may
hap somewhat reckless" said he;
why did you not crawl to the SER
geant instead of running?'
II did not think of it. I was too
much afraid answered Jean Fran
| co.'s.
| Afraid" asked his commander;
then why did you go at ALP
| Because it was my duty" replied
the soldier, blushing furiously Then
he added shyly: Besides, the man
might have died and | knew he was
unshriven."
'Humph. queer reason for a sol
der, SURELY" said the General as he
turned away. Nevertheless, he was
not displeased, for General Joinville,
like all truly brave men, feared God.
So the army was pleased to a man,
| when in the General Orders for the
day, the following appeared: Soldier
Jean Francois, for gallantry in action,
is promoted to the rank Of sergeant
and will in future carry the colors of
his regiment France has need of men
who dare because it is their duty"
Not less easily had the captaincy of
Jean Francois been earned A ire
mendous battle had been raging from
early morning until late in the after
noon, and only one obstacle stood in the
way Of victory for the arms of France
A battery, perched on an eminence,
| was so we'll manned by the Germans,
that it rendered fruitless all attempts
of General Joinville to flank his foe.
! Finally he had ridden up to Colonel
Lefevre and cried:
Colonel, those guns must be 81
| of
mem"
The Colonel merely bowed and his
jaws set in the firm lines that told he
would obey or die fighting. He waved
his sword and pointed to the battery.
His men answered with a cheer and
dashed forward On, on they went,
whilst leaden storm Of death rained
round them. Up, upward and forward
they went. Already third of the men
had fallen, but onward still they went.
The fire of the Germans, however, was
too much for mere flesh and blood to
stand: SO thought Jean Francois, who
with madly beating heart, and pale,
bloodless lips, bore the standard of
the regiment before the climbing men.
At last, half way up the slope, the
regiment wavered, broke and fed, to
a man. No not to a man, for far up
the slope, the Colonel, vainly trying
| with prayers, threats and entreaties to
rally his fleeing men, beheld a solitary
figure. 1t was Jean Francois with the
flag. - rs
Behold, cowards." cried the Col
onel; Jean Francois disdains to flee:
and will you leave him thus alone?
Flee, dastards, if you will! l go with
| Jean Francois to conquer or to die!"
/ That speech turned the tide. Shame
facedly the men came back; slowly,
| doggedly they marched up the slope;
quickly they leaped over the entrench-
ments, and with q courage rendered
fierce by recent shame, they smote the
opposing gunners to the earth. And
among the leaders, pale, trembling,
frightened, was Jean Francois, doing
his duty still.
From a distant hill the General had
seen all. This time, however, he said
nothing. But as they, swept past the
| dismantled guns, in the charge that
won the day, he was thinking of Jean
Francois. Therefore it caused little
surprise to his comrades, a few days
| later, a commission as captain ar
rived for Jean Francois, with orders to
report at once to the headquarters of
his commander. From that day he
had been attached to the personal
staff of General Joinville, who treated
| him rather as son than as a sub
ordinate
Nevertheless Jean Francois was
heartily ashamed of himself Jean
| Francois, you are still as much a cow
ard as ever" he told himself, as he
sat in the outer tent of the General
that night, while the latter strove to
snatch brief repose. The morrow
vast to bring hard and bloody work.
For several months the Germans had
been sending their shells into Verdun,
and General Joinville had been or
dered with his division from the south
to cooperate with the British from the
north, in an endeavor to crush the
enemy between. The enemy, however,
refused to be crushed. Instead they
had fallen in force upon General Join
vile in an attempt to cripple his army
before he could make a junction with
the English. In the doughty old Cen