On this single trip they attended, or gave first aid to thirty, but only the most severely injured were taken into the van, which now turned and quickly speeded along the narrow road to the field hospital. Reaching this station the men were carefully taken out, their wounds re-examined, and carried into a temporary shelter for a second operation or treatment. A huge van then arrived from the southwest. Carefully and tenderly eight men were placed on the cots within, the boys being delegated to assist. When the order was given to leave, the boys remained in the van, as it started out on its journey, but they didn't have the least idea where it was bound, although you may be sure they were curious to know. After every one had settled down,--that is, if such a thing as quiet and comfort were possible in a van load of wounded men, Ralph turned to the surgeon, and said. "Where are we going?" "To Paris, if we can get through," was the reply. The van had a wonderful set of springs, so that, although it was necessary hour after hour to go through fields, instead of traveling along the road, there was little discomfort to the wounded men. "Why are the men being taken to Paris?" asked Alfred. "So as to relieve the emergency station behind the battle front," explained the surgeon. "That is one thing; the other is, that the great German forces are driving in our comparatively small army, until the Paris forts are reached. There they will be stopped, and we must take our wounded with us, and out of the reach of the enemy." At Dammartin they saw the first Red Cross railway van,--an entire train load, filled with wounded from the emergency stations, and here also they were joined by fifteen vans taking the wounded on to the city. It was thus a fortunate stroke for the boys that they undertook to help the field hospital workers, for it directly assisted them in their effort to reach the end of their journey. Traveling was slow, and many detours were necessary, so it was not until the fourth day of September that they caught sight of the walls of Paris, and they soon had the pleasure of driving over the beautiful smooth streets again. They went directly to the center of the city, passed down the rue de l'Opera, through the Place de la Concorde, and over the bridge to a hospital near the Place des Invalides. Their charges in the van were soon provided for, and carried into comfortable berths. As they were leaving the ward, they heard a weak voice calling: "Ralph; Alfred." They were startled, and turned around with wondering glances. A nurse motioned to them, and pointed toward a figure with bandaged head and arms. They approached. "You don't know me, I suppose?" said the voice. "No,--no," said Ralph. "I believe it's Tom," said Alfred. "Right," said the voice. The boys knelt down at his side at once. "How did it happen?" asked Alfred. "Well, they got me first; but I brought down two of them before I was hit," Tom told them.