[12] "Poilu" means hairy, and conveys the sense of shaggy strength. [13] The Germans are called "Boches" by the French and "Huns" by the British. The origin of the word "Boche" is disputed; the word "Hun" is used to denote ruthless barbarity. CHAPTER V THE DISPATCH-RIDER "Do you suppose," said Horace, after the veteran had gone, "that they'd let me join in the fight? It may begin any time, some one said." "You wouldn't be any use," the hunchback answered, shaking his head. "What could you do?" "I could try the cavalry, I ride pretty well," suggested the boy. "I used to live on a ranch when I was a kid." His companion smiled indulgently. "What do you know of bugle calls? What practice have you had with a saber? How much do you know about cavalry maneuvers? Why, boy, you'd bungle up a cavalry charge so badly that the kindest thing they could do would be to tie your hands together and let the horse do all the work." Horace looked crestfallen but he knew his comrade was in the right. "I'd like to be in the artillery, too," he said, "but I don't know anything about guns, and that's a fact. But the infantry?" "You'd be no better there," Croquier answered frankly. "You couldn't even pack your kit. You don't understand the orders. You've never drilled. You don't know the first thing about it. With continuous work eight hours a day, it takes at least two years to make a real soldier. You don't know how to use a single weapon. You couldn't fix a bayonet. You don't know the workings of a Lebel rifle, which, by the way, is the only repeating rifle used in modern armies." "What are all the rest?" "Magazine rifles." "What's the difference?" This time Croquier was at fault. He called to a soldier who was strolling near by, smoking his pipe. "As a matter of fact," the soldier said, when the question was put to him, "all magazine rifles are repeaters, though they are not called so. The Lebel is an old type and has a tube fitted in the rifle under the barrel, the cartridge being fed onto the carrier by a spiral spring and plunger, the advancing bolt carrying the cartridge into the chamber." "And the other armies, what gun have they got?" "Germans and Belgians have a Mauser, Austrians use a Mannlicher--and the British have a short Lee-Enfield. All of them have magazines under the bolt way for containing cartridges and can be loaded with a clip, which is quicker." "Which is the best?" "The Lee-Enfield, by far, so the experts say," the rifleman answered, "because it's shorter, easier to handle, and carries ten cartridges in its magazine against the Mauser's five. But," and he patted his rifle affectionately, "I like my Lebel better than any of them, maybe because I'm used to it. The Mannlicher, though, is very accurate. It's a good weapon for sniping." "This lad," the hunchback remarked, "wants to jump right into the fighting-line without joining the army or ever having handled a gun."