The officer was right. A quarter of an hour later the first drops began to fall, and in less than an hour the downpour became a perfect deluge. Close beside the railroad some of the soldiers had found a quantity of driftwood, and of this they proceeded to make shelters to keep off the water. It looked as if the battalion was in for a bad night of it, but how bad no one yet knew. Darkness had scarcely settled down when a staff officer dashed up on a horse covered with foam. “Is that Major Morris’s command?” came to the picket from out of the gloom and the rain. “Yes.” “Tell him I have a message from the colonel.” Word was passed, and the major went out to meet the messenger. “You must proceed to Tien-Tsin without delay, Major Morris,” said the staff officer. “The foreign section is suffering an extra heavy bombardment. A force of Japanese and French will soon be along this way, and orders are for you to attach yourself to that body.” “I will do all I can, Captain Drake,” answered the major. And, knowing the staff officer well, he continued, “What does this mean, anyway?” “It means that the Old Harry is to pay at Tien-Tsin. All told, the Allies have but twelve thousand men there; while the attacking force is said to number twenty to thirty thousand, and is being constantly increased. The Chinese regulars have joined the Boxers.” “And how many men have we on the road?” “The Allies had four thousand; but some extra Japanese and German troops have just arrived, and they are to be pushed forward to-night, if possible. But I must be going. If I am not mistaken, here come the Japanese and French I mentioned now.” A steady tramping through the rain and darkness could be heard, and soon came a cry from the picket line. The major rode forward to investigate in person, and soon found himself confronted by a Japanese officer of a rank equal to his own. The Japanese officer was uniformed most gorgeously, and rode a black steed that the major easily saw was a thoroughbred. “Yes, we shall march straight to Tien-Tsin,” said the Japanese, in excellent English. “I was told of your command, and shall be pleased to have your company. I shall keep to the right of the railroad so long as the enemy remains under cover. The French are going to keep to the left.” “Then we will continue close to the river,” answered Major Morris; and, saluting, he rode off. Necessary orders were at once issued; and again Gilbert found himself on the march. The forward movement continued until long after midnight, when, too tired out to go another step, the battalion was stopped by the commander. The French detachment, consisting of six hundred men, likewise halted. But the Japanese would not stop, and went off with their steady, tripping step, in a manner to astonish everybody. “By Jove, I believe they could march for a week without stopping,” was Captain Banner’s comment. “They seem to be all bone and muscle.”