"Well, since you've been ordered among the non-combatants," continued Cortland, after turning slightly and espying the grinning face of Private Hal Overton, "I think the scout who captured your shoes may as well return them. But hold on. I see two other men of your company on the wagons." Again Corporal Raynes grinned sheepishly. "Yes, sir! they had their rifles taken, and so are no longer combatants in a military sense. My rifle is missing also, sir." "My, my, my!" murmured Captain Cortland in a tone of mock commiseration. "Then the scout who plundered you all may as well return all the property. But of course, Corporal, you and the two other men will continue to be non-combatants as long as the sham fighting lasts." "Those are Captain Freeman's orders, sir." Again Captain Cortland turned toward Hal Overton, nodding a signal. Hal stepped away briskly, but came back bearing the pair of shoes, the rifles and the canteens. "Private Overton is the scout who entered your lines alone and brought about the discomfiture of C Company," Captain Cortland announced, smilingly. The captain walked away while Corporal Raynes, sitting on the ground, drew on his shoes and laced them, while a lot of B Company's men stood about and grinned over his discomfiture. "Corporal, you're sure good sleepers over in C Company," laughed Private Hyman. "You fellows want to look out that, some night, you don't get taken in by a lot of amateur hunters from New York." "Great guns, what's going to happen to the regular Army, when it's getting so that a whole company of infantry can't guard its own property?" another B Company man wanted to know. Corporal Raynes and his two comrades had to stand a lot of good-natured joshing from the crowding men of B Company. When he stood up, Raynes turned to Hal Overton. "Rookie," he growled, "you want to look out hard in the future. I'll pay you back for this in kind. Just remember, kid, that Corporal Raynes wasn't born yesterday!" Hal laughed good-humoredly. He didn't know, at that moment, that not many hours would pass ere Corporal Raynes would find his opportunity. Twenty minutes after the wagon train had pulled out, B Company started cautiously through the country ahead. It was B Company's task to advance through a supposedly hostile country; C Company's part in the under-taking was either to annihilate B, or to capture the company. It was ten o'clock that morning ere B and C came in touch. The point and scouting squad ran into one platoon of C. "Deploy your men and take cover," ordered Lieutenant Prescott, who was in charge of the advance. "Each corporal regulate the firing of his squad. Jam the fire in hard whenever you are sure you locate the enemy." Bang! Bang! Bang! As fast as the squads reached their places on the line, each man some nine feet from his nearest fellows, the firing of blank ammunition ripped out fast and hard. There was all the excitement of actual warfare, except that no soldier was actually hit.