Middletown transcript., 1920-09-18
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"Au7toe !t''#E ADVENTURES SHERLOCK |44o-1e,.
CHAPTER Xl-Continued.

CHAPTER xl-Continued.
~
We we're early risers ut that time
and the whole brigade was usually un
der arms at the first flush Of dawn
One morning-it was the sixteenth o.
June-we had just formed up. and
General Adams had ridden up to give
some order to Colonel Reynell. within
musket-length of where Stood
when suddenly they both stood staring
along the Brussels road. None OF US
dared move our heads. but every eye
In the regiment whisked round, and
there we saw an officer, with the cock
ade Of a generals aide-de-camp. thun-
dering down the road as hard as
great dapple-gray horse could carry
him. He bent his face over it's name,
and flogged at its neck with the slack
Of the bride, as though he rode for
very life.
"Hullo, Reynell," says the general.
''This begins to look like business.
What do you make of it?' They both
cantered their horses forward. ana
Adams tore open the dispatch which
the messenger handed to him. The en-
velop had not touched the ground be-
fore he turned. waving the letter over
his head as If 1t had been a saber.
"Dismiss!' he cried. General pa
rade and march in half an hour"
Then, in an instant, all was buzz and
hustle, and the news on every lip. Ma
poleon had crossed the frontier the
day before, had pushed the Prussians
before him, and was already deep In
the country to the east Of US with a
hundred and fifty thousand men.
Away we scuttled to gather our things
together and have our breakfast, and
in an hour we had marched off and left
Ath and the Bender behind us forever
There was good need for haste. Tor
the Prusslans had sent no news to
Wellington of what was doing, and
though he had rushed from Brussels
at the first whisper of it. like good
old mastiff from its kennel, it was hard
to see how he could come up in time
to help the Prussians.
It was a bright, warm morning. and
as the brigade tramped down the broad
Belgian road the dust rolled up from
it like the smoke of battery. l tell
you that we blessed the man that plant
ed the poplars along the sides, for
their shadow was better than drink to
us. Over across the fields. both to the
right and the left, were other roads.
one quite close and the other mile
or more from US. A column of infan-
try was marching down the near one,
and 1t was fair race between us. for
we were each walking for all we were
worth. There was such a wreath Of
dust round them that we could only
see the gun barrels and the bearskins
breaking out here and there, with the
head and shoulders of a mounted Off
Ger coming out above the cloud. and
the flutter of the colors. 1t was bri-
gade Of the Guards, but we could not
tell which, for we had two Of them
with us in the campaign. On the far
road there was also dust and to spare.
but through 1t there flashed every now
and then long twinkle of brightness.
like hundred silver beads threaded
in line. and the breeze brought down
such snarling, changing. clashing
kind of music as had never listened
to. If l had been left to myself it
would have been long before I knew
what it was. but our corporals and
sergeants were all old soldiers. and I
had one trudging along with his hal
bert at my elbow, who was full Of
precept and advice.
"That's heavy horse" said he. "You
see that double twinkle. That means
they. have helmet as we'll as cuirass.
It's the Royals or the Enniskillens or
the Household. You can hear their
cymbals and kettles. The French heav-
les are too good for us. They have ten
to our one, and good men, too. You've
got to shoot at their faces, or else
at their horses. Mind you that when
you see them coming. or else you'll
find four-foot sword stuck through
your liver to teach you better. Hark!
bark! bark! there's the old music
again!"
And as he spoke there came the
low grVmbling of a cannonade away
somewhere to the east Of us, deep and
hoarse, like roar of some blood
daubed beast that thrives on the lives
Of men. At the same instant there
was shouting Of "Heh heh: heh !" from
behind. and somebody roared, Let the
guns get through" Looking back. I
saw the rear companies split suddenly
in two and hurl themselves down o.,
either side into the ditch. while six
cream-colored horses. galloping twG
and two. with their bellies to the
ground. came laundering through the
gap with fine twelve-pound gun
whirling and "reaking behind them.
Following were another and another,
four-and-twenty in all. flying past US
with such din and clatter. the blue
coated men clinging on to the guns
and the tumbrils. the drivers cursing
and cracking their whips. the names
flying. the mops and buckets clanking,
and the whole air filled with the heavy
rumble and the jingling of chains.
There was roar from the bitches and
a shout from the gunners. and we saw
a rolling gray cloud before us, with
score Of BUSHES breaking through the
shadow. Then we closed up again,
while the growing ahead Of us grew
louder and deeper than ever.
There's three batteries there" said
the sergeant. "There's Bulfs and
Webber Smiths, but the other is new.
There's some more on ahead Of us,
for here's the track of a nine-nounder