THE RIGHT-OF-WAY

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 201, 14 May 1918, Page 5

THE RIGHT-OF-WAY

AMMUNITION FOR THEGUNS

RUNNING THE GAUNTLET j

(By Major C. J. C. Street, author of | "With the Guns," etc., per favour of ' tho Royal Colonial Institute.) ; Tho officer on duty in the British Siege Park sat in the office, cursing hie luck. It was a glorious summer afternoon, . i much too line to spend listening for telephone calls that inquired pOtulantly how ; many sparo sparking-plugs he had, and why he had not shown them on Army Form Z9999. Besides, tlio British bat- ; teries were busy, their distant reports making the- windows shake round ,him. I How much better if would ho lo be able j to take out a motor-cycle and go, up and / visit them I : j Suddenly (he telephone buzzed, and ho / took it up wearily. "Yes, Banana," ho / said. -.'

"h that Banana? Bundook wants to ' j speak to you. Hold on, I'll switch you \ through." Then a pause, and in a ; few seconds a distant voice, "Hullo, ; lianana? Bnndook .sneaking. We've got a big shoot on. Will you send up i a couple of hundred Jupiter at onco? i Take care how you go, the balloons are ', up, and they'll turn on you if they see , . you." " i

"Very good," replied the officer on. duty. "I'll send them up at once. You shall hiivo them within a couple of hours." He put down the instrument ; and turned to the orderly at his side. ! "Toll tho sergeant in charge of Bun- ■ dook's column I want him," ho said. t^l Five minutes later a siring of lorries, T\ laden with ,•>>]) in million /or the big howit- ' J zcra composing the battery of which Bun. j dook was tho code word, filed out of the j yard, under the charge of an Army Ser- 1 vice Corps sergeant. Artillery ammuni- ] tion takes precedence on ih« roads, and j as soon as they were clear of tho Siege j Park and on the high, rCad they put on i th>ir best speed. A lorry at the front is :■ always tuned up to tho last inch, and i there was no fear of trouble in- broad i daylight, whatever fipesd they reached. ; They had a dozen miles of piacticallr -\ unshelled road to cover before fhey ap-"■■'•'■" | proached the battery position, and over ! (his they swung in fino style. It was i not until they reached the turning off \ the main road Ijiat (here was any hint . of adventure, 'ifien the military polios ! man at the corner held up his hand, and ■ the convoy came to halt. i "Sorry, sergoant," said the policeiiyn, ! "but you can t po alonj; here till-dSrk." j "Ammunition," replied tho sergeant ; laconically, jiroducing his pass. "Liko 1. to see it?"

"No, that's all right," said the police, man. "Thought you was engineer stores for tho dump. If you must go down, you'd letter 'op it, the balloon can see you every inch of the way."

"We'll our chance," replied the sergeant. '"Thank you, all tho same." Tfien lo the driver at his side, "Lot her tip. Jimmy."

The side road was not so well surfaced as the main road they had left, bearing as it did the frequent trace of roughlyfilled in sholl-holes. The lorries bumped and swayed at their best pace, turned a bend in the road, and there, directly facing them, was the Gorman kite-bal-loon, probably up for tho express purpose or.' sniping traffic on that particular road.

It could not ho helped, there was no \ other way round, there was nothing for ! it: but to push on and trnst to luck. ; They covered a quarter of a mile with- j out anything happoning, when suddenly '< a bang and a puff of black smoko came • from the road ahoad. : "Small stuff, thank heaven!" said tho sergeant. "loot's hope he'il try and bng ' us on tho wing! I'm afraid he's no sportsman, though." The sergeant was right. Instead of taking pot-shots at the moving convoy the German battery settled down con- ■ tentedly to barrage a particular point ■' in tho road, knowing that tho lorries must slay where they were, in wlijsli case they could be destroyed at leisure, or i run the guuntlet. Tho sorgeant had Jio doubts of the proper course to pursue. ■ -"Now then, Jimmy," ho said, "übip up Ihe old '/jus! Vi'e'vo sot (o set through that barrage somehow. ; Jn a couple of nerve-racking minutes i they were in the middlo of falling shell. • A terrific shock seemed to lift the lorry , off tho road, the driver gave a gasp, and ; the wheel spun ruuud towards tho ditch. ! Will) a supremo effort the sergeant ; seized the .steering-wheel and wrenched. ; it round. The machinery was undamaged, and the lorry kept on its way. : In a few reconds they wcro out of tho barrage, and fivo minutes later they were : under wvtr, cut of sight of the balloon. ' The sergeant lmltedj and leapt out of his scat to look round. Tho rest of the convoy wore ranged safely, behind him, ; one of iJi9 lorries with its tilt torn off, j another with n great gash in the wood- -; work of its side. ! "Thonk God!" exclaimed tho sergeant i fervently. "What about yoii, Jimmy,my, . lad?" The driver climbed painfully out of . his seal, leaving a pool of blood beliind ' him. "Got it in tha shoulder, I. think, sergeant," he said. i Tho sergeant; opened tho jagged rent in j the man's coat, to find a rather nnsly flesh wound is liis shoulder. He took out his field-dressing, and tied up tho ; wounded shoulder carefully and | methodically. "It's not bo bad," he said cheerfully, i "but it'll just about get yon to Blighty, : my son. We'll B nt y°" sent: *° " 10 I li'irst Aid Post ns soon as ever wo reach i tho Buttery. You R et : '"side; I'll drive ; the 'bus. Away we go again; its only ] half a mile further." ;