Full resolution (JPEG) - On this page / på denna sida - IV. A Day at Eclisfontaine
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
Below is the raw OCR text
from the above scanned image.
Do you see an error? Proofread the page now!
Här nedan syns maskintolkade texten från faksimilbilden ovan.
Ser du något fel? Korrekturläs sidan nu!
This page has never been proofread. / Denna sida har aldrig korrekturlästs.
A DAY AT ECLISFONTAINE 103
At the edge of a ditch we saw two wounded soldiers sitting.
They shouted and gesticulated to us to stop. We asked them
what they wanted. It turned out as usual that they wanted
a lift, they had not the strength to go any further. We pointed
out, as they could see for themselves, that we had no room.
Oh, that did not matter. They could sit on the knees of a
couple of others. And they squeezed into the car. We now
had a complement of twelve persons in a car made for six.
One of the new arrivals was quite a character. He began by
telling us that the Crown Prince had shaken hands with him
that very day at Romagne and had asked him how he felt.
Later on he told us that he had been in the storming party
at St. André. He had even overheard his Colonel, as the day
of St. André broke, say to the General in Command :
" This
will be a bloody day’s work." And the Chief had answered :
" Are you afraid ?
" But the Colonel was not afraid. When
the time came he led the way and was immediately shot.
The young soldier, on the other hand, had come through
without a scratch. To-day he had been relieved of a couple
of toes, a loss which did not seem to affect his good spirits
in the least. He chatted away almost unconsciously, but he
had quite forgotten how many of his foes had come into
contact with his bayonet. The part he had not liked was
when the French shot from trees. It was like shooting game.
At last we arrived home and the sentries at Madame du
Vernier’s iron gates looked surprised at the curious company
I had brought with me. In the hall I asked a footman to let
me see Herr von Behr—for I had arrived an hour late, but
that could not be helped. The Crown Prince and his suite
had finished supper, but remained at table to keep me com-
pany whilst between the mouthfuls I recounted my impressions
of this eventful day.
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
