Cavalier County farmers press. (Langdon, N.D.) 1920-1921, 1920-08-19

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the French did upon that day.
1t was wonderful to see them, for.
as they came onward, they got ahead
of their own guns, so that they had
no longer any help from them. while
they got in front Of the two batteries
which had been on either side Of us
all day. Every gun had their. range
to a foot, and we saw long red lines
scored right down the dark column as
it advanced. So near were they, and
so closely did they march, that every
shot plowed through ten files Of them,
and vet they closed up, and came on
with a swing and dash that was fine
to see. Their head was turned straight
for ourselves, while the Ninety-ffth
overlapped them on one side and the
~ffty-second on the other.
I shall always think that, If we had
waited So, the Guard would have
broken us, for how could a four-deep
line stand against such q column? But
at that moment Colburne, the colonel
OF the Fifty-second, swung his right
flank around so as to bring it. on the
side Of the column, which brought the
Frenchmen to a halt. Their front line
was forty PAGES from us at the mo-
ment, and we had a good look at them.
1t was funny to me to remember that
/ had always thought OF Frenchmen as
small men, for there was not one Of
that first company who could not have
picked me up as IL I had been a child,
and their great, hats made them look
taller yet. They were hard, wizened,
wtry fellows, too; with fierce, puckered
eyes and bristling mustaches-old. sol
diers who had fought and fought week
In, week out, for many a year. Ana
then. as'I stood with a finger upon
the trigger, waiting for the word to
fire, my eye fell upon the mounted Ola.
cer, with his hat upon his sword, and
] saw that 1t. was, De Lissac. az n
I saw 1t, and Jim did, toe.e / heard
q shout, and saw. him rush forward
madly at the French column. And,
as quick as a thought. the, whole
brigade took their cue from him, off,
GERS and all, and flung themselves
upon the Guard in front, while our
comrades charged them on the tanks.
We had been waiting for the order,
M they all thought now that it had
been given; but, you may take my
word for it, Jim Horscroft was the
real leader Of the brigade when we
charged the Old Guard.
God knows what happened during
that mad five minutes. / remember
putting my musket against q blue-coat,
and pulling the trigger, and that the
man could not fall, because he was SO
wedged in the. crowd; but I saw q
horrld blotch upon the CLOTH. and a thin
curl Of smoke from it, as If it had
taken fire. Then I found myself
thrown up against two big Frenchmen
and so squeezed together, the three OF
us. that we could not raise a weapon
One Of them, a fellow with a very
large nose, got his hand up to my
throat, and,I felt that I was a chicken
in his grasp. Rendezvous, ceuuin
rendezvous" said he, and then sud
denly doubled up with a scream, fol
some one had stabbed him in the bow.
els with a bayonet. There was very
little firing after the first sputter, but
there was the crash of butt against
barrel, the short cries Of stricken men
and the roaring Of the officers. AnG
then, suddenly, they began to give
ground, slowly, s%ullenly, step by step
but still to give ground. All, it was
worth all we had gone through, the
thrill of that moment, when we fell
that they were going to break. There
was n Frenchman before me, 6
sharp-faced, dark-eyed man, who wa:
loading and firing as quietly as If HI
were at practice, dwelling upon hi!
aim, and looking round first to try an(
pick off an officer. I remember that /
struck me that to kill so cool a man a
that would be a good service, and
rushed at him, and drove my bayone
into him. He turned as I struck him
and fired full into my face, and tn,
bullet left a veal across my cheel
which will mark me to my dying day
1 LlppCu oNSI Till DIS he Ioll, ana
two others tumbling over me, I wa;
half smothered in the heap. When a
last / struggled out and cleared m,
eyes, which were full of powder, I say
that the column had fairly broken
and was %shredding into groups of mel
who were either running for their lives
or fighting back to back, in a vain at
tempt to check the brigade, which wa
still sweeping onward. Ny face fel
as if a red-hot iron had been lai,
across 1t, but I had the use of m,
limbs SO, jumping over the litter 0
dead and mangled men, I scampere,
after my regiment, and fell in upol
the right flank.
Old Major Elliott was here, limpin
along, for his horse had been shot, Blu
none the worse in himself. He say
me come up, and nodded, but it wa
too busy a time, for words. The brl
gade was still advancing, but the ger
eral rode in front OF me, with his chi
upon his shoulder. looking back at tn
British position,
'sThere is no general advance" sal
Il 49, 20 fGYD-L y-.E- - 90 gr9EH