Part 15 (1/2)

”What a wonderful thing these inventions are!” thought Sam, as he tied his horse to a tree and advanced crouching toward the battery. The lieutenant pointed out to him the position of the brigadier-general, some distance back on the right under cover of the jungle, and told him of a path that would take him there. Sam was not slow to follow his directions, for just then a sh.e.l.l exploded close by. He soon found the general surrounded by his staff on a partially wooded hill, from which, however, they could command the field with their gla.s.ses.

Bullets were flying about them, and an occasional sh.e.l.l sailed over their heads, but the general seemed perfectly at home. He took the orders, opened them and read them.

”That's strange,” said he. ”Last night I understood that I was to make for that pa.s.s between the hills there on the left, and now I'm ordered to take the first turning to the right. I don't understand it. Do you know anything about it?”

”No, sir.”

”Well, he must have changed his mind. Or else it was a bluff to keep his plans from leaking out. Tell the general that I will carry out his orders at once.”

Sam inquired of the members of the staff where he would be likely to find the 43d Volunteers, to whose colonel his other orders were directed, but they had no information, except that in the morning that regiment had been stationed farther over on the right. Sam started out again, guiding himself as best he could by a compa.s.s which he had in his pocket. He selected the paths which seemed most promising, but the jungle between was impenetrable on horseback. The firing on the extreme right seemed to be farther in the rear, and he made his way in that direction. Again he came out at the edge of the woods, and to his surprise saw a battalion of the enemy at a short distance from him. He turned his horse, stuck his spurs into him, and went back along the path to the rear at a full run, while a shower of bullets fell around him. He still kept on working to the right in the direction of the firing which he heard in front of him. At last in a hollow of the jungle he came upon a Red Cross station, one of those advance temporary relief posts where the wounded who are too much injured to be taken at once to the rear are treated. Twenty or thirty men were lying in a row, some of them on their coats, others on the bare ground. Two surgeons were doing what they could in the line of first aid to the injured, binding up arms and legs, dressing wounds, and trying to stop the flow of blood from arteries. Two soldiers were lifting a wounded man on a stretcher so that he might be carried to the rear, and he was groaning with agony. Every one of the patients was blotched in one place or another with blood, and some of them were lying in pools of the crimson fluid. Sam felt a little sick at his stomach. Two men came in with another stretcher, bringing a wounded man from the front. The man gave a convulsive start as they set him down.

”A bullet's just hit him in the head,” said one of the men. ”I'm glad it wasn't me.”

One of the doctors looked at the wounded man.

”He's dead,” he said. ”d.a.m.n you, what do you mean by bringing dead men here?”

The two bearers took up their load again and dropped it out of sight in the bushes. Sam did not like to interrupt the doctors, who were overtasked, so he dismounted and tried to find a wounded man well enough to answer his questions. One man at the end of the row looked less pale than the rest, and he asked him where he could find the 43d.

”That's my regiment, sir,” he replied, as a twig, cut off by a bullet, fell on his face. ”You'd better lie down here, sir; you'll be shot if you don't. A lot of the wounded have been hit here again.”

Sam sat down by his side.

”Our regiment is over that way,” he said, pointing in the direction of the firing. ”I don't know where the colonel is. We haven't seen him for hours. The lieutenant-colonel is down with fever. I think the major's in command. You ought to find him at the front. We've been falling back, and the firing sounds nearer than it did. I'm afraid the enemy will catch us here.”

Sam did not wait to hear anything further, but, leaving his horse tied to a tree, he ran toward the front. He found many soldiers skulking along the path, and they directed him to the major. He discovered him sitting on the ground behind a stone wall.

”Here, major, are your orders. I understand you're in command.”

”Not much,” said the major. ”The colonel's in command. You'd better find him.”

”Where is he?”

”I'm sure I don't know. I haven't seen him since six o'clock.”

”But this is your regiment, isn't it?”

”Well, yes. It's part of it.”

Just then a young captain came running up from the front, and cried out to his major:

”Major, we're having a hard time of it there. Won't you come up and take charge? I'm afraid they'll force us back.”

”No,” said the major, ”I won't. I'm going back there to that last village. It's a much better place to defend. Besides I'm not feeling well. You fellows can stay here if you like. I shan't order the regiment back, but I'll go back and get ready for them there. We ought to have trenches there, you know,” and he got up and walked rapidly off down the road. The captain turned to Sam.

”I beg your pardon, captain,” said he, ”but what are we to do? Our officers have given out, and we're a new regiment and haven't any experience. Won't you take command?”

Sam was by no means satisfied in his mind that he would behave much better than the major, but here was an opportunity that he could not afford to lose.

”I'll see what I can do,” said he. ”Let's see what the orders are.”

He opened the doc.u.ment and saw that it was a direction to keep on to the front until they arrived before the town of San Diego, which they were to a.s.sault and capture.