At the appointed time the two boys made their way to General French's headquarters.

"I have an important piece of work that must be done, and which will be attended with grave danger; are you willing to undertake it?" asked the British commander, coming to the point without preliminaries.

"We shall do our best, sir," replied Hal.

"Good! The enemy has retreated beyond Meaux. To-morrow I shall try and drive him farther. It is absolutely necessary that our movements be not antic.i.p.ated. As you see we have lost many officers. I want you to lead one hundred men to a position just this side of the bridge. The enemy must not be allowed to cross. One hundred men can hold the bridge as well as ten thousand. The men to go with you have been selected. They have volunteered for this duty. Captain Lee will show you where to find them. Hold the bridge! That is all!"

The two lads saluted and took their departure. They found Captain Lee, and with him were soon at the head of the little band of men who had volunteered to hold the bridge at Meaux against the whole German army, if necessary.

It was still dark, and it was a quiet little band that advanced through the British lines to take up their positions at the extreme front. A long range artillery duel was still in progress in spite of the darkness, but little damage was being done by either side.

Having retreated beyond Meaux, the Germans had unlimbered their artillery again and the British were replying. The little band of English, with Hal and Chester in lead, advanced to the edge of the bridge described by General French, and there took up their positions.

The bridge was very narrow, hardly wide enough for five men to walk abreast. On the British end the approach curved, making it impossible for one coming from the other direction to see what was at the other end. It was indeed a strategic point for defense. The river was high and thus precluded any attempt to ford it.

All night long the little band of men lay at the bridge, ready for battle on a moment's notice. All night long the sh.e.l.ls of both the Germans and British flew screaming overhead; but none dropped near them.

With the first faint glow of the approaching day the little band of British were awake. At Hal's suggestion they cut down trees, and dragged them to the end of the bridge, forming a barricade. Behind this they lay down.

It was almost noon before the man stationed to watch the approach to the bridge dropped quickly over the barricade and reported:

"They are coming!"

"All right," replied Hal. "We're ready for 'em!"

Under Hal's direction, a single line of rifles, twenty-five in all, appeared through the cracks of the barricade. The others had been divided into three bodies--each containing twenty-five men--each body directly behind the others. These were instructed to fill up the gaps made by the German fire. Thus, as each man in the front rank fell, his place would immediately be filled by another, the second by the third, the third by the fourth, so providing twenty-five men fell the front line would be still intact, although the fourth line would have disappeared.

Hal and Chester took their places just in the rear of the first line, where they could see what was going on and direct the fighting.

"Do not fire until they come into sight around the turn," Capt. Lee instructed his men. "Then mow them down, and make every shot count!"

Joking and humming to themselves, the men prepared for action. The first line poked their rifles through the barricade and lay down behind them. All was in readiness to repulse the attack.

Suddenly the first Germans appeared around the turn in the bridge, marching five abreast.

"Fire!" cried the captain, and the British rifles broke into flame.

Five Germans tumbled to the bridge.

A sudden idea struck Hal.

"There's no use wasting five bullets on each German," he told his men.

"Let the five men on the left each pick out a man. The rest reserve your fire unless one of our men go down, then the one nearest him take his man, and so on!"

The second five Germans were too close behind their comrades, who had just fallen, to arrest their steps in time to avoid the British fire.

Five shots rang out as they came into view, and again five Germans fell. So far not a shot had been fired by the Germans. But now five more came around the turn with a rush, followed by five more, and still another five.

The first five dropped in a heap, but from the second five came a burst of flame and the crack of rifles. Two men behind the barricade dropped, one of whom was Capt. Lee. But the Germans paid dearly for their rash attack.

In less time than it takes to tell it, ten more Germans had bitten the dust. Then they drew off.

"Good work, men!" cried Chester. "We can hold them off indefinitely,"

he added to Hal.

"Looks like it," was Hal's reply. "But if they make a concerted rush we shall have our hands full. How is Capt. Lee?"

"Very bad," answered one of the men. "I am afraid he's done for."

And now the Germans came on again. The first five met the same fate that had overtaken their comrades, but behind them came more, and still more.

As each German rounded the turn in the bridge his rifle cracked, and continued to crack until he fell. Men inside the barricade also were beginning to fall fast now, and the reserve lines were being drawn upon more rapidly each minute.

Hal and Chester, crouching down, directed the defense. In spite of the fearful havoc wrought by the British fire, the Germans came on. The bridge was piled high with dead and wounded, but the enemy did not hesitate.

Their officers urged them on without regard for life, and bravely went to death with them. Rifles cracked in a steady roar and men on both sides fell rapidly. But each Englishman, sheltered as he was behind the barricade, accounted for at least several of the enemy before he himself went to his death.

Now the defenders had dwindled to fifty, and still there was no cessation of the German a.s.sault. The heaped up bodies of dead now formed a barricade for the Germans, and they advanced and fell behind them, using their dead companions as shields. Ten or fifteen rows deep they stood behind their dead, and poured volley after volley into the defenders.

The British reserved their fire as much as possible, but whenever a German head showed above the barricade of bodies a rifle cracked and almost every time a German fell.

All afternoon the fighting continued, the Germans, because of the fierce fire of the remaining English and hampered by their own dead, being unable to rush the defenders.

There were less than twenty-five of the British unwounded. Hal and Chester had both been struck, Hal on the arm and Chester on the shoulder. But neither was badly hurt.

"Hadn't we better retreat, sir?" asked one soldier of Hal, when there was a let up in the firing.

"What chance would we have?" demanded Hal. "The minute we broke and ran we would be shot down like dogs."

"Then we might surrender."

"Surrender! Never! We were ordered to hold the bridge and we will hold it as long as we can."

The man subsided, and Hal turned his face toward the foe again. There was a sudden silence. The Germans drew off.

"Wonder what that means?" demanded Hal of Chester. "They certainly are not going to give up. I wonder what they are up to now?"

"I can't imagine," replied Chester. "But they have something up their sleeves."

"Well, we'll soon see," said Hal.

But he was mistaken; for just as the first German again appeared around the turn, to be struck down by a British bullet, there was a sudden deafening roar from the rear, and turning suddenly Hal and Chester and the few brave soldiers who were left raised a feeble cheer.

Coming forward at a rapid trot were several squadrons of British cavalry, and far behind could be seen columns upon columns of infantry, advancing swiftly.

"Hurrah!" shouted Hal. "Saved! Hurrah!"

"Hurrah!" repeated Chester, and completely worn out, he tumbled over in a heap.