The Boy Allies On the Firing Line.

by Clair W. Hayes.

CHAPTER I.

TERRIBLE ODDS.

"Feels pretty good to be back in harness, doesn't it, Hal?" asked Chester, as, accompanied by a small body of men, they rode slowly along.

"Great!" replied his friend enthusiastically. "And it looks as if we were to see action soon."

"Yes, it does look that way."

The little body of British troopers, only forty-eight of them all told, with Hal Paine and Chester Crawford as their guides, were reconnoitering ten miles in advance of the main army along the river Marne in the great war between Germany and the allied armies. For several hours they had been riding slowly without encountering the enemy, when, suddenly, as the little squad topped a small hill and the two boys gained an un.o.bstructed view of the little plain below, Hal pulled up his horse with an exclamation.

Quickly he threw up his right hand and the little troop came to an abrupt halt.

"Germans!" he said laconically.

"And thousands of 'em," said Chester. "They haven't seen us yet. What is best to be done?"

The answer to this question came from the enemy. Several flashes of fire broke out along the German front, and the boys involuntarily ducked their heads as bullets sped whizzing past them.

"Well, they have seen us now," said Hal; then turning to the men: "To the woods," pointing with his sword to a dense forest on his right.

Rapidly the little body of men disappeared among the trees.

"Up in the trees," ordered Hal, "and pick them off as they come!"

Swiftly the troopers leaped from their horses and climbed up among the branches. Here all could easily command a view of the oncoming German horde.

Rapidly the enemy advanced, firing volley after volley as they approached; then, at a word from Hal, the British poured forth their answer. And such an answer! Before the aim of these few British troopers, accounted among the best marksmen in the world, the Teuton cavalry went down in heaps.

There was a perceptible slackening in the speed of the approaching hors.e.m.e.n. Then, as the English continued their work, firing with machine-like precision and deadly accuracy, the Germans came to a halt.

"What are they stopping for?" cried Chester. "There are enough of them to overwhelm us!"

"I believe they fear a trap," replied Hal. "They are afraid we are trying to ambush them with a larger force. We must keep up the delusion if we expect to get away."

So saying, he ordered the men to the ground, and the little force advanced to the extreme edge of the woods. So far not a man had been even wounded, for the Germans, unable to see that their foe had climbed into the trees, had aimed too low.

From the edge of the woods the British poured several volleys, and then, as the enemy finally began an advance, they retreated slowly, firing as they flitted from tree to tree.

Apparently, Hal had rightly guessed the cause of the enemy's indecision. They advanced slowly and warily; and when they finally gained the edge of the woods there was not a Briton in sight; but from further in among the trees the leaden messengers of death still struck the Germans, and man after man fell in his tracks.

Now the man nearest Chester threw up his arms and with a cry fell to the ground. The lad made as if to go to his a.s.sistance, but Hal stayed him with a word, and the little body of English continued their retreat, firing as they went.

Suddenly the pursued emerged from the woods into the open. A distance of half a mile lay between them and the next clump of trees. In this half a mile there was nothing that would afford shelter; and the Germans were approaching nearer every second.

Hal did not hesitate.

"We shall have to make a dash for it!" he cried. "One more volley, men, and then run!"

One more death-dealing volley was delivered at close range, and then the little troop of English turned and fled. But they had traversed scarcely half the distance when the Germans reached the edge of the woods, and poured a volley into them.

Hal groaned as men fell on all sides of him. But still those who were left ran on. At length they reached the friendly shelter of the trees, but half their number lay behind, either dead or dying.

Once more, screened from the enemy, Hal halted the men.

"We may as well fight it out here," he told them. "We will hold them off if we can, and if not we must retreat slowly, keeping behind whatever cover offers."

A faint cheer went up from the handful who were left, and they turned determinedly to face their foes. They did not waste their fire. As the Germans came again into view, the British rifles cracked. Their marksmanship was superb, and rather than face this deadly fire the enemy halted.

Then began a game of hide and seek, with death the penalty for all who were seen. The firing was only at intervals now. Wherever a German arm or leg showed itself, a British rifle sounded and a German was accounted for.

For almost half an hour the game continued; and it was kept up until darkness fell. Fearing that it was the intent of the British to lure them into the hands of a strong force, the Germans did not attempt a charge, but contented themselves with trying to pick off their foes as they flitted from one tree to another.

But if the Germans had suffered, so had the English. Of the little troop of fifty, there now remained, besides Hal and Chester, but ten men. The two boys seemed to bear charmed lives, for neither had been struck once. They had exposed themselves to all dangers as well as had the troopers, but fortunately no German bullets had reached them.

And still the few English fought on. Now that darkness had fallen and two more men had dropped, Hal ordered those who were left to make a last dash for life. He sprang from behind the tree which had sheltered him, and Chester and the few remaining troopers joined him. Then they turned and sped as rapidly as the darkness would permit in the direction of their own lines.

Now that the fire of the English had ceased entirely, the Germans halted, puzzled. It was impossible for their officers to tell whether the enemy had all been killed, or whether the silence heralded the approach of a larger force. Their indecision undoubtedly saved the lives of Hal and Chester and the eight troopers, for had the Germans advanced they would have experienced little difficulty in killing or capturing them.

Silently but swiftly the ten forms dashed through the woods, and when at length they once more emerged into the open country they were completely exhausted.

"Well, I guess we are safe, what is left of us, at any rate," said Chester as they halted to take a much needed rest. "It's terrible to think of those poor fellows we left behind."

"It is, indeed," replied Hal; "but I don't think they would complain.

The British soldier is not that kind."

"You are right," agreed Chester. "And each accounted for more than one of his country's foes before he went down. Were you hit, Hal?"

"No. Were you?"

"No. But come, we had better be pushing on again."

With the loss of their comrades still preying upon their minds, the little troop continued on its way; and while they are hurrying onward we shall take time to introduce Hal and Chester more fully to those who have not met them before, and to relate how it came about that they were serving in such an important capacity with the British army in France.

CHAPTER II.

TWO YOUNG LIEUTENANTS.

St.u.r.dy American lads, young though they were, Hal Paine and Chester Crawford had, when this story opens, already seen considerable military service. Each had received his baptism of fire during the heroic defense of the Belgian city of Liege, which had held out for days against the overwhelming horde of Teutons.