Lights flickered along the train. Stores were tossed off in quick order, camp sites selected, police parties immediately prepared latrines, and the guard was posted. Then, the immediate requirements being attended to, the men rolled up in their blankets on the hard earth to get such sleep as they could. "Who were all those hombres[#] surrounding us before we crossed the big bridge, Sergeant?" asked Dick, pulling his knapsack into a more comfortable position beneath his head. [#] Hombres--Men. "They was the chief army of the rebels in these parts," replied Dorlan. "When we stopped back there we were right in the middle of the biggest town in Nicaragua, and the one where all the trouble starts. The people of Leon are always ready to revolute with the hope of makin’ it the capital instead of Managua, and bein’ on the only railroad from the capital city to the seaport, Corinto, they’re in a foine place to control things. The nearest Federal troops are at a place called La Paz, about twenty-three kilometers from here." "How long is a kilometer, Sergeant?" questioned one of the men. "It’s about five-eighths of a mile, so La Paz would be about fourteen miles south of here. From there on the Federal troops hold the railroad to the southern outskirts of Managua, and as this line goes on to Granada, I figure it’s up to us to do considerable of work yet, for they say that we’ll never get through the rebel lines beyond the capital without a fight. However, so far things seem to be goin’ pretty slick." "Do you know how many troops there are in Leon, Sergeant?" "About two or three thousand, so they say, and they didn’t want us to pass through there to-night, but finally consented. The Adjutant told me the leaders were pretty ugly about it, but as you see they finally gave in, and here we are." "Now we are here what are we going to do?" inquired Dick. "This battalion’s goin’ to camp right here and watch these fellers in Leon; the rest of them behind us will go on through when they come up and help the outfit that’s ahead. All the telegraph and telephone lines are down between here and La Paz Centro. The rebs have cut ’em, and we can’t get word of what’s goin’ on up ahead; but we’ll know by to-morrow night. Now, quit yer askin’ of questions. It’s three o’clock in the mornin’, and reveille’s set for five A.M. Ye always want to get all the sleep ye can on campaign, for ye can’t never tell what’s a-goin’ to be happenin’ the next minute. Good-night, boys," and Sergeant Dorlan rolled over, his snores soon announcing he had followed his own excellent advice, but it was a long time before Dick’s eyes closed in slumber, and it seemed as though the notes of reveille awakened him even before he had succeeded in getting the time-quoted "forty winks."