THE ROUT

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3199, 25 September 1917, Page 7

THE ROUT

WBEN BRITISH SOLDIERS RAN, FOR THEIR UVES teOW SOME WASPS CLEARED A TRENCH ■ [The following story, by Patrick ilacGill. author of "The Great Push;" • etc, is authorised by the War Office for. publication, and forwarded on by -the itoyql Colonial Institute.] .... : te "I've..never been.in a retreat," said ~ ahey, D.C.M., the red-haired Irishman, •ae he gazed round the crowded cafe Xiahey's regiment was billeted in tf little •1 rench' village, well to the rear of the lighting line, and now that the.dayVwork y!BB' at an end the inen '.were jjnjoying .themselves, and Gahey was talking. "I was at Mons," lie'said; "but that '.■vrasn't a, retreat; 'Twas /a crab-fight all '.the time with u3.. We haii our backs to Safety and our bay'nets id the enemy. Jllan! we wor just like a clever boxer in the.ring, who goes baok-a step in get' mors f9fce into hie Idlow jWlen he goes for his man- agiii.. No, iMons was not a retreat, arid Ive jjever teen in a retreat, tor I. niver' put me iback to. the inimy." . , • A young man named.'Spudhole, who sat By a table near the window, fixed a pair ■OS quizzing eyes on Gahey. ■ • "'Ear ole Ginger, the bloorriin" Irish |.Bounder!".he laughed, addressing the re•wark to the. room. "Never ran away,, endeed! Blimey!', .'."'' '.' ~v . ■".. ; "Call me a liar if ye like,'/ said ("Gabey. "But prove yer words, ye limb Sv perdition! Prove them!" :''•■; . "Hβ can do that," said a third man, 'Jtt-liose .name was Bowdy Bennere. ."So. itean I, for. what about the day that we ift-ere chased.out of the Cologne sector a ago."' - •■ ";' ....... .. • ; ... .."Glory bfe!" exclaimed Gahey. ' "I'm lout! I apologise; Lay me on the floor, jthe two iv ye, and let all • the,. ammunition boots in the room-dance a six-hand-lieel on mybody . . . I have retreated.. .. «nd I had the r wind up. all the time t'hen * . . Wait'and let "me tellyees all about

St." ■ .■:'....•.' ..;: :-. .■.-■.,•;" ' ■ I Gahey held up a big hand,as if .to'.stop ith'e 'conversation of -the.. house, .and

jphihged into the story. -.' ". • "'Twas up at Vimy in the Cologno Sector that we wor, and it was a day Vs 3iot as hell. I mind Bowdy goin' into ithe dug-out to have a bit iy a Seen, and ■Kpudhole was sittin' on the floor iv-the , .frinch sewuig a button on his gfoyback. 4fe, meself, I had taken me'.puttees .oft', : 'end I was scrapin' the dry muck-from ..them with me clasp-knife. Well, a shell Jburst out in .front iv us on No. Man's '.iLand, .and Spudhple ups with his hand , /' So • hia\ neok, and : says:.- 'I've -■ copped • a. ■packet'this time.Gahey, and it's givin' 4ne jyp.' ■ ." . ■;■ ' : : ';.-. .... .."... ■"I bent down to help-him.yand as I idid I felt a pain en me- own jawj and the . that was ■ responsible for.it flew iTaway and hung over-'the dug-out .buzzin'' ,< Jike a rogue." i ■■'■'''. ~ • ■"'lfs , wasps!' said Spudhole, gettin' ■io his feet. 'We'll clear out iv it.round . jfche corner.'"- ■'•.'■ ■..•:., ' "But before we could; gel away, out Joomes Bowdy from the. dug-out, and the [pesta were festooned ; round.'.his fiozens. iv them.: '<: .'■*■;■-.■>■■; , V'.'God!' he screephwl, etrikin'. ouit with ■fois two'hands.''l'm stung to death.' , I Btuck me-head'into a.nestiv the swine! Xrit put, ye'vermin! Git out! Git.out! , ' ,jand so sayin' he'ran round 'the' corner j toe and Spudhole followin'! ■ We came Snto the nest bay and there was Section )i eittin'.down to their breakfaet, a good .breakfast,'for the'post had cpnie up-and . eaVcels were bulky. , \ . '."■:'... . \ '.. "^TVhat.the blazes is.this at all? , , they •yelled when they saw us. conim'i wavin' ,onr arms .'over. "ouriheads.'■ '.'l.sujppose' ihey're tfyin' to work their tickets, thesp ,'.&lbkes.'-'.'-' ; .'" ": • ■. I-'.V'' '.'" ' "Then a man that was ehouitin the .■loudest, eaid : somethin' that' was not .good ito hear, when a wasp flew past us :vv.d' itnng him on the tip iv the. nose. Then the-wee baste made the.rounds iv the party,-and as soon as a man got a sting jh'e was oS'. But the,man who waited to pick up the sultana cake and the tin :Sv sardines had the-ihap of ..-.the 'world jhowin' in big colours on his face for a Vhole fortnight afterwards. - .'- ■_ "A narrer crooked trench filled .with i.Vasp's is not a healthy locality. The insects, bad'cess to thim, out-manoeurred ■us.at every turn. • They came.up from behind, and they flew ahead and'waited for us round every corner: Yo would 'think that-they wor allactin' accordin |to plan, just likeJerrye in a retreat/ ■ "Some . of the men sought shelter in the dug-outs, but the wasps followed them in and drove them out again. When we met the first officer.ho stood for a mojnent with one foot in' the trench and one on the iirestop, and looked- at , us in' bstonishment. Tl"> wasps soon put an ,end to his astonishment, ,whea two iv them 'lighted on his ear, and after that 'the officer was. runnm' for hie life, just 'like one iy ouirselvea. ;; ' ;"But poor old Spudhole," said Gahey, ifixing his eyes on the men at the. table, ? 'he was well in the dith. He had hie i'ehirt off to eew the button on it, and the ..wasps seemed to like his white skin... " 'That's another one! I heard. him shout more than once. 'That's umpty . eleven stings now. . I've always said • that I didn't hold with a war like this pne. Bombs and bullets, whizz-banga land pip-squeaks, and. now these dirty wqpses! . Thafs another one now! 'E pniped me from the rim iv me cap, the Jbloomin' Boche!- And there's another!

'E took me at the rear, where I should have a patch on me trousers.'- I couldn't keep from laughiu' to hear Spudholo goiu' on like that. But my laughiu* soon came to an end, because I hadn't got me puttees on. A wasp went up tie leg iv me trousers, and began its gadget on the thick iv me thigh. I got etung seven times before I could squeeze it to death. v . '' _ "All at once I heard Spudhole shout: 'I've got a plan now, and I'll soon get rid- iv them all.' It was in a. bay that he was when ho said this. Them that was there when we came had cleared out, leavin' their breakfast overturned to the side iv a brazier. A newspaper w,as afire, and Spudhole caught the paper and held it up in front iv his face. This kept the wasps back for a minit. T3ut what'e , tho good.ir it?' said Spudhole, when the flames died doivn. Tβ stung behind" -and roasted in tront,' and throwin' the paper away, he ran off. "Twas fun.at the beginnin', but when we rushed in on a Highland battalion that was holdin' the trench on our light 'twas glor-i-ous! That was the first time that the Scotch ever knew that their legs, wor go naked, Gi, they wor angry, as- angry witli us as they, wor with the wasps! , ■ "But 'by'this time the wasps wor'gettin' a, bit tired i the game. Also a, lot iv them stayed to feast on the jam and marmalade that was left behind in. the trenoh. We killed 1 the stragglers that followed us as far as tfcie Scotchies, and then we went back and counter-attacked all the way along. But we did not go next or near the dug-out where they had their nest till it was nigjit. Then Spudholei,went in and".emptied a mess-tin iv boilih'- water over the divile. And that finished the job. ; "So that was a retreat," Gahey concluded. ■ "And, thank God, it was tne only tetreat iv the. kind that iver l:was in! 1 ' .. - . ■