Part 2 (1/2)
”Surre, we ain't. Didn't we just put one overr on 'em?”
”We looped our trail,” explained Tom to the puzzled girl. ”If they're after us at all they probably went north on a blind trail. We monkeyed the trees all the way through this woods near here.”
”He means we didn't touch the ground,” explained Archer.
”We made seven footprints getting across the road to the fence and then we washed 'em away by chucking sticks. And, anyway, we crossed the road backwards so they'd think we were going the other way. There ain't much danger--not tonight, anyway.”
Again the girl looked from one to the other and then explained to her father as best she could.
”You are wonderful,” she said simply. ”We shall win ze war now.”
”I was working as a mess boy on a transport,” said Tom; ”we brought over about five thousand soldiers. That's how I got acquainted with Frenchy--I mean Armand----”
”Yes!” she cried, and at the mention of Armand old Pierre could scarcely keep his seat.
”He came with some soldiers from Illinois. That's out west. He was good-natured and all the soldiers jollied him. But he always said he didn't mind that because they were all going to fight together to get Alsace back. Jollying means making fun of somebody--kind of,” Tom added.
”Oh, zat iss what he say?” Florette cried. ”Zat iss my brother--Armand--yess!”
She explained to her parents and then advanced upon Tom, who retreated to his second line of defence behind a chair to save himself from the awful peril of a grateful caress.
”He told me all about how your father fought in the Franco-Prussian War,” Tom went on, ”and he gave me this b.u.t.ton and he said it was made from a cannon they used and----”
”Ah, yess, I know!” Florette exclaimed delightedly.
”He said if I should ever happen to be in Alsace all I'd have to do would be to show it to any French people and they'd help me. He said it was a kind of--a kind of a vow all the French people had--that the Germans didn't know anything about. And 'specially families that had men in the Franco-Prussian War. He told me how he escaped, too, and got to America, and about how he hit the German soldier that came to arrest you for singing the _Ma.r.s.eillaise_.”
The girl's face colored with anger, and yet with pride.
”Mostly what we came here for,” Tom added in his expressionless way, ”was to get some food and get rested before we start again. We're going through Switzerland to join the Americans--and if you'll wait a little while you can sing the _Ma.r.s.eillaise_ all you want.”
Something in his look and manner as he sat there, uncouth and forlorn, sent a thrill through her.
”Zey are all like you?” she repeated. ”Ze Americans?”
”Your brother and I got to be pretty good friends,” said Tom simply; ”he talked just like you. When we got to a French port--I ain't allowed to tell you the name of it--but when we got there he went away on the train with all the other soldiers, and he waved his hand to me and said he was going to win Alsace back. I liked him and I liked the way he talked. He got excited, like----”
”Ah, yess--my bruzzer!”
”So now he's with General Pers.h.i.+ng. It seemed funny not to see him after that. I thought about him a lot. When he talked it made me feel more patriotic and proud, like.”
”Yess, yess,” she urged, the tears standing in her eyes.
”Sometimes you sort of get to like a feller and you don't know why. He would always get so excited, sort of, when he talked about France or Uncle Sam that he'd throw his cigarette away. He wasted a lot of 'em.
He said everybody's got two countries, his own and France.”
”Ah, yess,” she exclaimed.