CHAPTER IX.

A PROBLEM AT PORODIM-TURNED OUT BY THE GRAND DUKE -THE CZAR'S PERMIT-A PRESENT TO OSMAN-A BARRICADE OF BULLOCK WAGGONS THE LAST CHARGE GENERAL SKOBELEFF-THE FLAG OF TRUCE-TEWFIK BEY -THE END INEVITABLE-OSMAN WOUNDED-HIS SURRENDER-THE GENTLER SEX-THE HOLY RED CROSS

(POEM)—-QUALITY OF OSMAN'S MEN-CAMBRIDGE STUDIO, .—THE PIPE OF PEACE-BONES!

S.W.

HAPPILY that fickle jade Memory inclines-as a rule—in her retrospective glances to the sunny side of past events. Though, once or twice in our lives, most of us have experienced, at some time or other, a sense of utter dejectedness which we may never forget; of course, innumerable causes, physical and mental, bring about such conditions, and it might be argued that the latter is more depressing than the former. On this occasion, however, a combination of these seemed to affect us, for, as night wore on, we found ourselves in that rapidlyaccumulating snowdrift, becoming more benumbed and incapable each moment.

As far as the eye could penetrate into the black, starless night, might be seen that white canopy which so effectually prevented the possibility of our knowing in what direction to go, even were locomotion-by some superhuman effort-possible at all. The silence, too, became appalling, every moment the prospect of a coming end to all things being more evident.

At first we fought against the intensity of the cold; then we struggled with that fatal drowsiness, which, like some intangible creeping thing, settled upon us, till we felt nature rapidly giving way under the subtle influence which such intense cold produces. Truly, it was a night which we could neither of us easily forget.

Up to this point we had literally been ploughing our way; our horses, dead beat before we had traversed four miles of our route, now refused to move. We were at a standstill, utterly, helplessly, and almost hopelessly snowed up. Fortunately we both had a fair supply of brandy in our flasks, but this amongst

four was soon exhausted. The horses being unhitched, and a quantity of sacking having been wrapped about them, the captain's servant, in company with the drosky driver, coiled themselves up underneath the ramshackle vehicle. As far as

myself and fellow-traveller were concerned, we were reduced to making a night of it, as best we could, in the open conveyance. Then came the renewed dread of sleep and its fatal consequences; to provide against this, we roused the other two, who were already half-stupefied, and explained to them the necessity for one always being awake, so as to arouse, after a short interval of rest, the remaining three, and thus providing, as far as possible, against what seemed, despite all our precautions, to be almost inevitable.

I was not only the first to suggest adopting this course, but, curiously enough-for, in fairness to the other two, we drew lots the first on duty. I lit my pipe, and for about half-anhour tramped backwards and forwards in front of that curious group of les misérables. Presently I heard the distant tinkling of bells, sledge or drosky bells, coming nearer and nearer, yet never near enough to be within hail; then, when they sounded loudest, the tinkling would be wafted in another direction, and they would become fainter and fainter, till again all was silent -silent, ay, as death itself. They were probably going--as we had also gone-in circles, which I understand is common in such cases.

The captain next took my place. Though wrapped in a huge fur coat, I was nearly perished, and seemed to drop off to sleep with the suddenness of one who had taken some strong opiate. Then we in turn aroused the men, and so on, through that seemingly interminable night, the stillness of which was only relieved by the occasional howl of a distant wolf or the uncanny screech of a half-famished night bird.

However, as the longest night must have an end, so morning at last dawned, and a gruesome dawning it was too, for when the first streak of daylight lit up the eastern sky, we were literally unable to put one foot before the other. Our chests were painfully congested, and, though all young, we were bent almost double, and stooped like four decrepit octogenarians. It was with the greatest difficulty we re-attached the horses, they being almost as dead beat as ourselves. At last, with our united assistance, the drosky man was again hoisted upon his seat, and we continued our way, at a funereal rate, we knew not whither.

Hope, however, was revived as the morning advanced, for we descried at some distance a scattered collection of mud

huts on a slight elevation. Towards these we made the best of our way; nor were we a moment too soon, we were on the verge of collapse-in an utterly exhausted state. On our arrival, the Bulgarian villagers did all that lay in their power to revive us, and happily, at a sort of cabaret in the village, vodki was obtainable; of this we partook in large doses, one of which, under other circumstances, would have made us intoxicated, but which now took some time before ordinary animation was restored at all. We ascertained that we were about ten or twelve English miles out of our course, but, after having thoroughly rested, we found comparatively little difficulty, in broad daylight, in finding our destination, where ambulance doctors made up for lost time by building us up again with restoratives.

Now, on my return to Porodim, two days later, there was a certain air of mystery about Coningsby which was not a little disconcerting; and sure enough he presently confided in me his doubts with reference to our being able to hold on in our present quarters.

It appeared that certain envious sutlers had been throwing out hints that our supply-waggon was a delusion and a snare; that, in short, we were no better than we ought to be; and had even gone so far as to give information at headquarters with reference to us as interlopers. Indeed, his suspicions were too well founded, for that very night the commandant de place at Porodim came to our hut, and told us, in excellent French, that the double part we had been playing had been discovered, and, further, by command of the Grand Duke, we were to clear out at daybreak. We professed to be totally ignorant of the French language, so avoided further discussion of what we felt would be a hopeless argument. Being quite satisfied, however, that he had made himself thoroughly understood, he retired, leaving us to speculate through the long hours of the night as to what our next move should be.

At daybreak we were aroused by thundering blows with the butt-ends of muskets at our cabin door; the commandant had returned, bringing with him six Cossacks as an escort, to see us-in homely language-off the premises. Thus, having no alternative, we had to get together, as well as we could in the short time allowed us, our baggage, horses, servants, and

stores, and precede those wily horsemen who had been appointed to see us well out of camp.

No sooner, however, were we left alone, and those Cossacks were well out of sight, than we made for the Roumanian lines, hoping we might there find more favour; but we discovered afterwards we were actually being watched from the roof of a squat Bulgarian church tower by no less a personage than the

Grand Duke himself, from whom a Cossack messenger came to say-again in French-that, although His Royal Highness admired British persistency, he intended to exercise Russian vigilance, and that the bearer of the message should be our guide, en route for the Danube, to the next village.

Ours had not been by any means an easy part to play. When in Porodim we were nothing if not camp-followers, while,