"I had not thought of that, Percy. Yes, that would be very serious," and Ralph thought, for some time. "It seems a risk, this, Percy; but I can see no plan, except to draw their fire."
"How do you mean?" Percy asked, puzzled.
"You see, Percy, our idea before was to get down to the sh.o.r.e, to put our dummy into the water, and to let it float down a hundred yards--the length of its string--and then to start ourselves, holding the other end of the string, in hopes that--if the sentries are really sharply on the lookout--they would see the dummy, instead of us, as it will be a much more conspicuous object; especially as we intended to do as much diving as we could, and our movements forward would jerk the dummy"s string, and make him bob, like a man swimming. If they once caught sight of it, they would be too busy firing at it to look about for anyone else.
"Well now, I think that instead of giving up the dummy altogether--as we might have done, now that the snow has come on--we must let it float gently down, for seventy or eighty yards; and then throw a stone into the water by it, so as to draw the attention of the sentry. Or--if the sentries are pretty far apart--one of us might make a great splash in the water, when the dummy is floating; and then run back before the sentry gets up, and get into the water quietly, higher up. Their fire will act as a guide to us."
"We had better start soon, Ralph. It may take us an hour, or even two, to get down to the water; for we must go along like ghosts, so as not to alarm the sentries; and we shall have walls to get over, and all sorts of difficulties."
"All right, Percy. I do not see the use of waiting. We shall not get any warmer, by stopping here. It"s like having a tooth out.
One"s got to do it, and the sooner it"s done, the better.
"Now for our bundles."
They went downstairs into a cellar--where the light could not be seen from outside--struck a light, and lit a candle. The first thing taken out of the bundle was the dummy--a net, rather larger than a man"s head, tightly filled with corks; with a cord, a hundred yards in length, attached. Next were two complete suits, made of white calico; with caps, with long flaps of the same material. Next were two large rolls of India rubber webbing, about six inches wide, which they had brought from Tours with them.
"I can"t think that that will be any good, Ralph."
"It will, indeed, Percy. The water will, of course, soak through; but what gets in will remain in, and the heat of the body will warm it, a good deal. I can a.s.sure you, it will be a great deal warmer than having the icy water flowing past you."
Both boys now took off their coats and waistcoats, put on a warm flannel jersey over their flannel shirts, and then wound the bandages of India rubber round each other"s bodies. They began under the arms; drawing the webbing tight, as they wound it round, so that its natural elasticity caused each turn to press tightly upon the turn above, which it overlapped. This bandage was continued down to the lower part of the body. Then they put on the life belts. Over them they put their suits of white calico, white shoes with India rubber soles, the white caps, and swimming gloves.
They then put the "dummy" in a pillow case, which they had bought for it at Versailles. Before putting on their caps, they fastened the quills with the dispatches in their hair. In a belt, underneath their jackets, each carried a heavy revolver.
"This India rubber stuff regularly squeezes me, Ralph."
"All the better, Percy. You will feel the benefit of it, when you are in the water, believe me."
The boys now knelt down together, and asked for protection through the peril which they were about to encounter. A few minutes later they rose, grasped each other"s hand; and then--blowing out the light--groped their way upstairs, opened a window which led into the garden, and stepped out.
The wind was blowing strongly. Snowflakes were being whisked hither and thither, like spray from a wave. Had it not been for the gleam from the snow-covered ground, it would have been impossible to see ten paces, here. As it was, it was intensely dark.
"It"s lucky that it"s downhill, Percy, or we should never find our way to the water"s edge. If we keep descending, we must be there, at last."
Before starting, the boys went a few paces from each other; and were pleased to find that their white costumes suited admirably as, between the driving snow and the white sheet upon the ground, they could not make each other out at more than eight or ten yards, even when they knew exactly where they stood. They now began to descend the hill, very carefully, step by step. The snow upon the ground made walking much more easy than it otherwise would have been.
Their footsteps--m.u.f.fled alike by the India-rubber soles, and the snow upon which they walked--were inaudible, even to themselves.
They had several walls to climb, and the noiseless India-rubber soles were of good service, here. Several times they could hear the sentries, beating their feet upon the ground to warm them; but in no case were they near enough to see them.
At last, after an hour and a half--spent in pa.s.sing the three hundred yards which separated them from the river--they reached, in safety, the wall of the road which runs along by the river. Here the sentries were pacing along at distances of thirty or forty yards apart. The white houses, upon the opposite side of the road, could be faintly seen; and the boys moved along until opposite an opening between them, by which they could get through to the river.
Looking over the wall, they could watch the sentries and--choosing their time when one had just pa.s.sed, so that his back would be turned towards them--he no sooner disappeared in the darkness than they dropped noiselessly into the road, ran across the street, climbed a low railing, and stood in a garden which reached down to the river.
They stood watching, for some time, to a.s.sure themselves that no sentry was placed in the garden; but at last they stole forwards and stood at the end of the garden, with the river at their feet.
The snow--which was at their backs--was falling faster than ever.
The river deepened rapidly from the wall; but the water was low enough for anyone to get along on the sloping side--faced with rough stone--between the foot of the wall and the water.
The boys got over the wall, took the dummy from the bag and, holding one end of the cord, put it quietly into the water; and allowed it to float down, about sixty yards.
"Now, Percy," Ralph said, "you get ready to slip into the water, as quietly as possible, the moment you hear a splash. I will leave this bag here, so as to know exactly where you have gone in and--as the rope is plenty long enough--you keep hold of it here, at sixty yards from the dummy; and I will fasten the slack end to the stone so that, when I go in, I have only to hold the rope in my hand, to be able to join you. I will take this heavy coping stone in my hand; will crawl along on this shelving bank, till I arrive at the dummy; and will then throw the stone in, and run back at full speed, and be in the water a few seconds after you are."
"All right, Ralph, I understand. Keep your pistol c.o.c.ked in your hand, as you go."
Ralph crept quietly along, under the wall, until he saw the dummy floating at the edge of the water, a few feet below him. He rose on his feet, to throw in the stone; when he heard a deep exclamation behind him and, looking round, he saw a dark figure within two feet of him. Another moment, and the sentry would have brought his rifle to his shoulder--for he sprang back, giving a loud shout--but Ralph wheeled round instantaneously, threw up his revolver, and fired at the sentinel"s body.
He saw him fall; turned round, hurled the heavy stone with a loud splash into the water, and then--crawling low under the wall--ran at full speed back again. As he did so, two sentries in the garden over his head fired, in the direction of the splash in the water; and shouts were heard all along the bank.
In another instant Ralph grasped the line, and slid down the snowy slopes into the water; entering so quietly that no sound, whatever, betrayed his entry. It was icy cold, and almost took away his breath. Twenty strokes, and he joined Percy.
"All right, old man, they can"t see us now."
"You are not hit, are you, Ralph?" Percy gasped.
"No, it was my revolver. I had to shoot a sentry, to save my life.
It"s lucky we have got these life belts on, for I am sure we should never get across."
"There! There!" was shouted, in German. "I see his head bobbing up and down," and eight or ten rifle shots were fired, from the garden where the sentry had fallen, in the direction of the dummy.
The boys swam on desperately, then Ralph said:
"You can slip the string now, Percy. The dummy has done its work.
It must be quite out of sight from the bank.
"Do not you feel the benefit of the India rubber?"
"Yes," Percy said, "I am warm enough, in the body; but my legs are in agony, from the cold. These gloves are helping us on, though, at a great rate."
"Well, there is one blessing," Ralph said, "we can"t miss the way, now."
As he spoke, a heavy fire of musketry opened from the French, upon the other side. Alarmed at the sudden fire on the part of the Germans, they fired at the flashes of their guns and, fresh reinforcements coming up on either side, a heavy exchange of musketry shots took place across the river; partially over the boys" heads, but princ.i.p.ally a hundred yards lower down the stream, in the direction where the dummy was seen by the Germans.
The boys swam with long, steady, noiseless strokes.
"We must be halfway across," Ralph said.
"I am getting deadly cold, all over, Ralph. I can"t sink, of course; but I shall freeze to death, before I reach the opposite bank."
"No, no, Percy," Ralph said, as cheerily as he could; though he felt, himself, that the intense cold was rapidly overcoming his strength. "Keep up your heart. Strike as hard as you can. The more you exert yourself, the better."
In another minute or two, Ralph found he was leaving Percy behind, and slackened his speed.
"Goodbye, Ralph. My legs are all cramped up, and my arms are numbed. I can"t swim another stroke. It is all up with me," he said, faintly. "G.o.d bless you. Don"t stop with me; you can do no good, and your only chance is to go on."
Ralph, however, put one hand upon Percy"s life belt, and struck out for sh.o.r.e; but he felt that it was hopeless. Frightful pains were shooting through his limbs, and he breathed what he believed to be a last prayer; when a boom like thunder, a few yards off, galvanized him into life again--for he saw the gunboat, which they had seen in the morning, only a few yards distant. She had just fired a gun, loaded with grape, in the direction of the Germans who were firing. She was still at anchor, and the stream was drifting them down fast upon her.
"Help!" Ralph shouted. "Help! We are drowning, and have dispatches Throw a rope, quick!"
"Where are you?" answered a voice.
"Here, close to you, just abreast," Ralph shouted.