"Don't worry about that, mate," one of the troopers answered. "Their chums is certain to come over and see to that, for these Russians ain't bad chaps when you take 'em all round, and I hear they're as kind as possible to one another." An hour later the party rode into camp and caused quite a sensation. "Why, Corporal Western, we gave you up for lost!" said the adjutant of the Grenadiers, coming out to meet them. "We made sure you had been killed or captured, and now you turn up with prisoners. How has it happened?" "Quite simply, sir," Phil answered, with a smile. "We were left behind when the shaft of our cart broke, and then we took the wrong road. This morning we were attacked, and beat off five Cossacks. Then others appeared, and just as we were thinking of giving in, a patrol of dragoons rode up." "Giving in!" exclaimed Sam in high disdain from his elevated seat. "Tell you what it is, sir. That Corporal Western don't know when the time to hoist the white flag arrives. He meant sticking to it, so we just backed him up." "Whoever was the cause of your holding on, my lads, it's much the same in the end," exclaimed the officer heartily. "You have done well, and your names shall be mentioned to the colonel. Now you had better see what the cooks have left, while the doctors take your wounded comrade in charge." Handing the cart over to the quarter-master, Tony followed Phil to the cook's fire, and both were soon devouring a meal of bully beef and bread, for they were almost famished, having been too much engaged and too highly excited to eat while threatened by the Cossacks. They found the Allies encamped a few miles from the River Alma, and almost in sight of the Russian position. "It'll be hot work to-morrow," said one of the sergeants that evening, as they sat wrapped in their blankets round the fire. "The enemy has chosen a splendid position along the heights the other side of the river, and I expect our job will be to turn him out. It will be a big fight, or I'm mistaken, and as we shall all have plenty to do I'm for turning-in at once and getting as long a sleep as I can. Good-night, you chaps! Corporal Western, you'll have them three stripes this time to-morrow if you do only half as well as you and your two mates did to-day." The stalwart sergeant laid his blanket on the ground, rolled himself in it, and, placing his head on his haversack, was very soon in a deep sleep, untroubled by the fact that to-morrow might be his last day on earth. As for Phil and Tony, they sat up an hour or more longer, chatting over past events and the probabilities of the next day's fight, never dreaming that it was destined to be on historical one, and one in which the mettle of British troops was to be tested and found of the staunchest, by as fierce a storm of shot and shell as ever assailed an army. CHAPTER TEN. THE GLORIOUS ALMA.