Part 43 (1/2)
”When do we begin, do you think?”
”In two or three days at latest. You have not seen a great battle yet, Barclay.”
”No,” Ralph said, ”nor shall I see much of it, now; for the country is so perfectly flat that it will be impossible to get anything like a general view of it. Do you know, colonel, I feel a good deal more comfortable than I did during my last journey between Tours and Orleans; for although I thought that we should manage, somehow, to get through into Paris; still, I could not conceal from myself that it was a very serious undertaking.
”How bitterly cold it is.”
”It is, indeed,” Colonel Tempe a.s.sented. ”Being upon the staff we shall, no doubt, manage to get a roof of some sort over our heads; but for the sentries it must be terrible. The tents d'abri--if the men can sc.r.a.pe away the snow, and get an armful of straw to lie on--are snug enough; the men lie close together, and share their blankets.”
Half an hour after arriving at Orleans, Colonel Tempe and Ralph were riding out upon the north road; followed by Tim Doyle, and the colonel's orderly. The frost was keen, but the afternoon was bright and clear; and as they cantered along the road--beaten flat and hard, with the enormous traffic--their spirits rose, and Ralph regretted that Percy was not there to share in his enjoyments.
Colonel Tempe shook his head when the wish was mentioned.
”No, no, Barclay, it is far better as it is. You are young enough, in all conscience, for this iron work of war; your brother has done far more than a man's share already, and will find it difficult enough to go back as a schoolboy. He has escaped thus far, almost by a miracle; but he was looking shaken, and worn. I am glad that he is not here.”
Three hours' riding took them to the little village near which General Chanzy was quartered. The Sixteenth Corps lay to the left of the French army, facing the Germans; who held the line of villages of Guillonville, Terminiers, and Conier. It was already dark when they arrived. The general's quarters were in a chateau, a quarter of a mile distant from the village. When they reached it, they were at once shown in; and found General Chanzy leaning over a map, which he was trying to examine by the light of a solitary candle.
”How are you, colonel?” he asked, shaking hands with him heartily--for they were old friends. ”I am very glad you have come.
There is plenty to do, and few to do it; at least, very few indeed who know anything about their work.
”Who have you here?”
”Allow me to introduce Captain Barclay, general. Freysinet has attached him to your staff. He served with me in the Vosges, distinguished himself greatly, and won his lieutenancy and the Cross. Since then he has been into Paris. No doubt you saw the account of his swimming the Seine, with his brother.”
”Of course, of course,” General Chanzy said, warmly. ”I am very glad to have you with me, Captain Barclay. You will not be long before you are at work, for the affair is just beginning. I have just got news that there has been some sharp fighting, today, at Beaurre la Rolande.”
”With what results, sir?” Colonel Tempe asked.
”We gained a great deal of ground, in the morning,” General Chanzy said; ”but they brought up reinforcements, and no material advantage is claimed.
”And now,” the general went on, ”as to quarters, you must s.h.i.+ft for yourselves. Beds are out of the question; but you will find some empty rooms upstairs and, fortunately, there is a little straw in the stable. The outhouses are extensive, and you will be able to get your horses under shelter. I should advise you to see about them, at once. In an hour we shall have something to eat. I cannot call it dining.
”Captain Barclay, will you kindly see to these matters? I shall be glad to go through this map, at once, with Colonel Tempe.”
Ralph at once obeyed the order, much pleased with his new commander. General Chanzy was a man to inspire confidence in all those who served under his orders. He was a young man, for a general; but was very bald, and had a quiet and thoughtful air which made him look older than he was. He was a man of few words; and had a sharp, steady look which seemed to master, at once, the important points of anything that was said to him. When he smiled, the whole of his face seemed to light up.
”Just the man to serve under,” Ralph thought to himself. ”Cool, self possessed, and with an eye that will see a weak point in a moment.
”Is my orderly still at the door?” he asked a soldier in the pa.s.sage.
”Yes, sir; two orderlies, with the four horses.”
”Can you get me a light of any sort?” Ralph asked. ”I want to go round to the stables, and get the horses somewhere in shelter.”
”I will get you a lantern, sir,” the man said. ”But I fear that you will find the place all crowded; but of course, you can turn some of them out.”
The orderly accompanied Ralph, with a lantern, across the yard; Tim and Colonel Tempe's orderly following. Round the yard were many cavalry horses, tied to pegs; driven in close by the wall of the stables, so as to give them some little shelter from the intense cold. The poor animals stood, side touching side, for warmth.
The orderly opened the door of one of the stables; and Ralph entered, and looked round by the light of the lantern. The horses were ranged together in the stalls, as closely as they could stand; while the rest of the area was completely covered with cavalry soldiers, some sitting up smoking and talking, others already wrapped in their cloaks and stretched at full length.
A sergeant, seeing the marks of Ralph's rank, at once rose to his feet and saluted.