"A detachment of French soldiers were secreted in the house, where they had been waiting for some days for this very opportunity, knowing that the Prussians were headed that way. Yet, though the German commander had been deceived, little Jeanne had not told him an untruth. She knew the French soldiers had been at the farmhouse three days before, for she had taken food to them, but she did not know of her own knowledge that they still were there. If she did not tell the officer the whole truth it was because he had not asked her, and for the sake of her beloved France she would not volunteer information that would aid the Germans. "'Betrayed!' raged the Prussian when he saw how neatly he had been tricked. He groaned when a volley rang out from the house and several of his lancers fell. "His men made a frantic rush for their horses; then, when they discovered that the gate was locked and that they were caught, they threw up their hands and surrendered to the foe that they had not yet seen. "The French made everyone of the lancers a prisoner. Several had been wounded, but none was killed. "Credit was given to little Jeanne for placing the lancers in the hands of the French soldiers, for had she not done this the French would have attacked the Prussians in the open and might have lost many men in the fight that would have followed. "For her part in this fine capture little Jeanne in time received a letter from the President of the French Republic, thanking her in the name of France for her quick wit and for her heroism." CHAPTER VIII THE CHILD DESPATCH BEARER "You already have heard of some of the heroic little despatch bearers of France," said Captain Favor. "I shall now tell you of little Henri, one of the bravest and most resourceful of them all. "Despatch carrying is a desperate business, all of it exposing the bearers to enemy fire at least part of the time, for most of the work of these brave men is in the open where the enemy can see them. Some go on foot, others on fast motorcycles. Ordinarily they travel in pairs, so that in case one be killed the other may take the message and hasten on with it to its destination. Henri, however, traveled alone. "The Germans, at some distance from the principal battle line and at one end of it, had advanced several miles into French territory, and, spreading out, had covered considerable ground. They were making themselves a nuisance, as they usually did, and a French force was sent in to drive them back. The French, too, had spread out and the officer in command, after becoming a little more familiar with conditions, had made his plans. "'Now,' said the French colonel, 'what I wish is a man of undoubted courage, familiar with all this surrounding country, to carry letters to the commanders of our various units.' "'I fear you will not find such a man,' answered one of his lieutenants. 'All the men of this section, of course, are fighting.'