“Easy as pie,” said Slippery, lighting a cigarette and puffing affectedly towards the ceiling. “I met up with a guy, a second loot, in the Knickerbocker Bar. We gets drunk together, an' goes on a party with two girls I know. In the morning I get up bright an' early, and now I've got five thousand francs, a leave slip and a silver cigarette case, an' Lootenant J. B. Franklin's runnin' around sayin' how he was robbed by a Paris whore, or more likely keepin' damn quiet about it. That's my system.” “But, gosh darn it, I don't see how you can go around with a guy an' drink with him, an' then rob him,” cried Al from the bed. “No different from cleaning a guy up at craps.” “Well?” “An' suppose that feller knew that I was only a bloody private. Don't you think he'd have turned me over to the M. P.'s like winkin'?” “No, I don't think so,” said Al. “They're juss like you an me, skeered to death they'll get in wrong, but they won't light on a feller unless they have to.” “That's a goddam lie,” cried Chrisfield. “They like ridin' yer. A doughboy's less'n a dawg to 'em. Ah'd shoot anyone of 'em lake Ah'd shoot a nigger.” Andrews was watching Chrisfield's face; it suddenly flushed red. He was silent abruptly. His eyes met Andrews's eyes with a flash of fear. “They're all sorts of officers, like they're all sorts of us,” Al was insisting. “But you damn fools, quit arguing,” cried Smiddy. “What the hell are we goin' to do? It ain't safe here no more, that's how I look at it.” They were silent. At last Chrisfield said: “What you goin' to do, Andy?” “I hardly know. I think I'll go out to St. Germain to see a boy I know there who works on a farm to see if it's safe to take a job there. I won't stay in Paris. Then there's a girl here I want to look up. I must see her.” Andrews broke off suddenly, and started walking back and forth across the end of the room. “You'd better be damn careful; they'll probably shoot you if they catch you,” said Slippery. Andrews shrugged his shoulders. “Well, I'd rather be shot than go to Leavenworth for twenty years, Gawd! I would,” cried Al. “How do you fellers eat here?” asked Slippery. “We buy stuff an' the dawg-faced girl cooks it for us.” “Got anything for this noon?” “I'll go see if I can buy some stuff,” said Andrews. “It's safer for me to go out than for you.” “All right, here's twenty francs,” said Slippery, handing Andrews a bill with an offhand gesture. Chrisfield followed Andrews down the stairs. When they reached the passage at the foot of the stairs, he put his hand on Andrews's shoulder and whispered: “Say, Andy, d'you think there's anything in that revolution business? Ah hadn't never thought they could buck the system thataway.” “They did in Russia.” “Then we'd be free, civilians, like we all was before the draft. But that ain't possible, Andy; that ain't possible, Andy.” “We'll see,” said Andrews, as, he opened the door to the bar.