Boy Allies in the Trenches; Or, Midst Shot and Shell Along the Aisne

by Clair W. Hayes

  CHAPTER V.

  ANTHONY STUBBS, WAR CORRESPONDENT.

  "Now, what in the name of all that's wonderful do you suppose is thematter with him?" ejaculated Chester.

  Hal shrugged his shoulders expressively.

  "You've got me," he admitted; "but by the look of him he's notrunning for fun."

  "Right," agreed Captain Anderson; "but whatever is on his trail will haveto travel pretty lively to catch him. Look at him come!"

  As the stranger dashed toward them, head hanging and arms working likepistons, the three friends suddenly broke into a loud laugh. A morecomical-looking specimen of humanity would be hard to imagine. Thefriends looked him over carefully as he came on.

  Large he was, there could be no mistake about that, but he seemed to beabout as wide as he was long. Hal and Chester took in his dimensionswith an appraising eye. Stout and chubby, he must have weighed all of200 pounds, and his height, the lads saw, could not be more than fivefeet four.

  As he tore down the road as fast as his peculiar build would permit, hedid not once raise his head, and therefore did not perceive the Britishtroops in his path. The lads could see that his face was red, and that hewas puffing and snorting from lack of breath. Not perceiving the men whobarred his path, he would have dashed right in among them had not Halbrought him to a sudden stop with a word of command.

  "Halt!" he cried.

  With a gasp of amazement the man halted and gazed at the British asthough bewildered. One look he gave them and then exclaimed in a shrillpiping voice, in English:

  "You are surrounded! Run, Anthony, run!"

  He suited the action to the word, and, turning in his tracks, ran,puffing and blowing, in the direction from which he had come.

  In spite of his merriment at this comical sight, Hal put spurs to hishorse and dashed after him. The others did likewise. Hearing the soundsof pursuit, the little stout man redoubled his efforts and puffed on likean engine.

  Hal ranged his horse alongside of him, and, restraining his laughter,shouted in a stern tone:

  "Halt! or you are a dead man!"

  The little man needed no further warning. He stopped so quickly that Halrode on beyond him, while those behind were able to check their horsesbarely in time to keep from riding over him.

  Hal leaped to the ground, and stood over the stranger, who lay panting onthe earth where he had fallen the moment he stopped running.

  "Who are you?" demanded Hal. "What are you doing here?"

  The little man struggled in vain to reply; but he gasped so wildly forbreath that for a moment he was unable to utter a word. Then, as he stillpanted, his eye fell upon the uniforms of the British troopers. He was onhis feet in a moment.

  "I thought you were Germans!" he exclaimed. "Great Caesar's ghost! Ididn't think I could run another step, but I did; and here I was runningfrom you fellows. What do you mean by chasing an American citizen downthe road?"

  He paused and glared at Hal wrathfully. The latter could controlhis merriment no longer, and burst into a hearty laugh. The othersdid likewise.

  The little man drew himself up indignantly.

  "I say!" he exclaimed, "what are you fellows laughing at me for?"

  Hal ceased laughing, and his face took on a stern expression.

  "Who are you?" he asked briefly. "A spy, eh?"

  "A spy! Me a spy?" exclaimed the man. "Great Caesar's ghost, no;I'm no spy."

  "Who are you, then?" demanded Hal.

  The stranger drew himself up to his full height--and he was still almostas broad as he was long, folded his arms and said proudly:

  "I am Anthony Stubbs, sir, war correspondent of the _New York Gazette_,sir; and I am here in search of news."

  "News, eh?" said Hal. "It is my belief that you are in search ofinformation to turn over to the Germans."

  "You are mistaken, sir," replied Anthony, somewhat uncomfortably, thelads could see. "I assure you on the honor of a Stubbs that I am what Irepresent myself to he."

  Hal could keep a straight face no longer. So comical was the little manin his ruffled dignity that the boy was forced to laugh.

  "All right, Mr. Stubbs," he said at last, "I believe you; but tell me,what were you running from when you bumped into us?"

  "I wasn't running, sir," was the reply. "I heard a large force of theenemy in a field just out of the woods, and I was merely hurrying to aplace where I could get a look at them."

  "Well, you were hurrying at a pretty good gait," said Hal. "But tell me,is the enemy in force?"

  "I didn't see any of them," said Stubbs, "but by the sounds of theirhorses' hoofs, I should say they were in force, sir."

  "Where?" demanded Hal, somewhat anxiously.

  "Straight ahead, sir," replied Stubbs, pointing down the road.

  "We thank you, Mr. Stubbs," said Hal, "and we shall now leave you togather your news while we proceed to reconnoiter."

  "And leave me here?" cried Stubbs.

  "Why, certainly. You are paid to get the news for your paper, are younot?"

  "But I'm not paid to be shot by the Germans," replied Stubbs vehemently."Take me with you."

  How much truth there was in Stubbs' account of a large force of the enemyapproaching, Hal, of course, did not know. But the little man appeared sogreatly worried that Hal was moved to motion him to one of the sparehorses, which had followed the troop.

  Stubbs clambered into the saddle with difficulty, and, once astride theanimal, he maneuvered so as to get right in among the British cavalrymen,who smiled tolerantly as they surrounded him. Then, at a word from Hal,the troop moved forward at a slow trot.

  They rode for perhaps fifteen minutes, and so far Hal had seen no signsof an enemy, nor was there any evidence that a large force had passedthat way recently. He turned to Stubbs.

  "I see no sign of the enemy," he said. "Where were they?"

  Stubbs motioned to the left.

  "Beyond the woods, there, in an open field," he replied. "I didn't seethem, but I heard 'em, all right. They are probably lying in ambush, andwe shall all be killed."

  Hal halted his men, and, dismounting, plunged into the woods toinvestigate. At the edge of the woods he came upon a field, and there hesaw the "enemy" or at least what had caused Stubbs' fright. He broke intoa loud laugh, and hurried back.

  "I have found the enemy," he said quietly. "Come, men, I shall showthem to you."

  All dismounted, and Hal led the way, Stubbs following protestingly. Atthe edge of the woods Hal stopped, and, taking Stubbs by the arm, ledhim forward.

  "There," he said, pointing, "is the enemy; and I don't believe theychased you very far."

  Stubbs looked and gasped, then mumbled:

  "I wonder, I wonder--"

  For the objects upon which his eyes rested, the movements of which hadsent him scurrying down the road in fear for his life, were nothing morethan a drove of about a dozen sheep, which, thrashing about in the field,had led Stubbs to suspect the presence of the Germans.

  Stubbs, after the one look, turned and strode majestically to where thehorses had been left. The laughter of the troopers rankled in his earsand his face was a dull red. He was mounted when Hal, Chester and theothers returned.

  "Stubbs," said Hal, as they rode forward again, "you could have whippedall those fellows yourself."

  "Well," replied Stubbs, "they might have been Germans."

  He lapsed into silence.

  Night was fast falling when the British came in sight of a little house,and Hal decided that they would stop there and commandeer something toeat. Accordingly they rode up to the door, where Hal, before dismounting,hailed those within with a shout.

  A woman appeared in the door, and learning what the British required,invited them to dismount and enter. This they did, and soon sat down to asubstantial repast, Stubbs with them. The war correspondent now becametalkative, and entertained with an account of his adventures.

  Upon learning that Hal and Chester were American lads, the little man'spleasure knew n
o bounds.

  "I knew it!" he exclaimed. "I knew it the minute I set eyes on you."

  "Perhaps that is why you were in such a hurry to get back down the road,"said Chester.

  "No, no," was the reply. "I knew you were Americans, but I feared, forthe moment, that you might be fighting with the Germans."

  "Well," said Chester shortly, "I don't imagine you will find manyAmericans in the German ranks."

  "I want to tell you boys," said Stubbs, "that I appreciate your saving mefrom falling into the hands of the enemy, where I might have been kept aprisoner for years."

  "We didn't save you from anything," said Hal.

  "I know, I know," said Stubbs, "but you might have done so. I want totell you that I appreciate it and that Anthony Stubbs is your friend forlife; and the friendship of such a man is not to be laughed at."

  The little man's face was so serious that the lads even forbore to smile.

  "We thank you for your friendship," said Hal quietly, "and I assureyou that it will not be laughed at. Friendships are not to betreated lightly."

  "I knew you would see it that way," was the response. "If at any time Ican be of service to you, command me."

  He arose and made them the bow of a cavalier.

  The meal finished, Hal pushed back his chair and arose.

  "We might as well be on our way," he said. "Come."

  They left the room and made their way to the place where they had tiedtheir horses. Hal started back with a cry of surprise.

  The horses were not there, but upon the ground, a bullet wound in hisforehead, lay the man whom Hal had left to guard them.