"Stay as you are. It's not worth getting you fired at!" "And what about you, sir!" Lamalou remarked. "Oh, I'm taboo!" The other gazed at him. The captain repeated: "They can't do me any harm to-day!" He smiled, his moustache bristling slyly. Then, turning to one of his companions: "Pleased with your N.C.O.'s, Henriot?" "Very much pleased, sir! Dreher and Guillaumin especially have done remarkably well!..." "I was sure of it." They went off. Guillaumin whispered: "All over us, isn't he?" He was joking, but I felt that he was touched and proud, dear chap that he was. * * * * * This rest did us both harm and good. Good, because we recovered from our exhaustion. We had a drink and a bite. Harm, because we softened and no one wanted to go on again. An intermittent firing went on. Pffmm...! A bullet!... another!... and another!... Judsi pretended to catch them. We heard that a man had just been killed in Ravelli's platoon, a bullet through his head. Confound it! We bent down. It was oppressively hot. Then the artillery started off again. The order was passed along to lie down and protect our heads with our packs. The cartridge-pouches caused us agony. We stayed like that for nearly three-quarters of an hour. The men grew restless, and would rather have done a bolt, even forwards. I was the only one, I believe, to prefer the fatigue and less risk. Henriot came to warn us to be ready. We were. Some of the men readjusted their belts and straps. A company on our right, the 23rd, was starting. Bouguet, who was watching it, exclaimed: "Lawks. They're going down like ninepins!" Guillaumin gave me a short lecture. All the theories they had taught us at the "Peloton" were out of date, all the supposed lessons of the Russo-Japanese war! The movements now must be carried out in established formations, sections for preference. The advantage of it was that the men felt they had support. Yes, but what a target they offered for the machine-guns in ambush. Whom should I see appearing at my side but De Valpic, who crawled up. "I wanted to come and wish you good luck," he said simply. "Very nice of you!" Lifting up my water-bottle, I said: "Have a drink?" "No thanks, Frémont gave me some water." I was surprised. I had thought that that was the errand he had come on. But I was mistaken. He went away again. It was a purely friendly proceeding. The order to start was delayed. Even I began to get impatient. Guillaumin, who had gone off, reappeared and confided in me that there had been great excitement. The captain had just discovered Descroix tearing off his stripes. "What an idea!" "On the pretext that N.C.O.'s are marked particularly." "Well?" "It turned out badly. The captain called him ... a coward. He defended himself and contended that there was no need for him to get himself killed for nothing!"