Snipe

esence of mind he held his right arm aloft wit

aordinarily protracted, and then he alighted, unhurt, on

lay, his heart beating furiously and his

d there was a greasy smell in the still air, emanating from some lubricant u

e much of me left," he muttered, gathering himself up and remembe

his tattered tunic, and, drawing it out, he pressed the

have a positive genius. The chalk had been excavated for trench building, the walls w

f rifles that were stored in the place, but he saw enough to convince him that

but the steel door resisted all his efforts to open it, and though h

e a minute inspection of the vast dug-out without finding any means of egress, until he came

somewhere not far away. At first he thought there must be some hidden ventilation sh

his light in the direction of the current. "Sur

strange hieroglyphics, and then he stood still, for there was

, and the floor was marked with the print of heavy

uldn't fit these French chambers," he thought, examining the commandant's second revolver, which had only one charg

faced by the pioneers' shovels, and he

allery, which he followed for sixty or seventy yards, and then switched off his torch as a loud explosion, n

netrated an enemy sap, but now he knew that s

red along the passage. A faint light filtered

s wind has given me a bloodshot eye, and I am shivering. Will

his heels. Dennis made out the outline of the sniper stretched at full length on a blanket, his rifle in front of him on a wooden stand,

d his last cartridge, and the messen

, but Dennis was upon him, and, locked in a terrible emb

d his opponent rolled over and over, and he strained every

head well fixed under the sniper's jaw, effectually preventing any words leaving his lips. Instead there came a stream of weir

h for the stouter man, and at last, pinning him down in a corner, where he panted quite out of breath, Dennis withdrew his

Dennis. "Perhaps you don't know that we've taken yo

the polite reply. "All

under control. "Judging from your official statements, and your Bethmann-Hollweg, Germany hasn

tache, the ends of whi

ond of talking about," he said ironically. "I've been here for a mo

oot no more," sa

uddenly stiffening his spine and almost

back again. He had slid the French officer's empty revolver into its case, and as the man blinked at him w

aid, and he saw a wave of terr

he cried, but as he spoke the beam of da

he English trench and looking from the outside like an innocent, natural crevice. Immediately behind it was a steel grating, firmly embedded in the sides of the tunnel,

ace looked in, and a voice, which Dennis inst

oud. As you can't come art and I can't come in, 'ere's a litt

voice, but he was too late. Harry Hawke had already drawn

d eternity, but bracing his foot against the side of the tunnel,

and as the end of the passage was blown into the open air, the steel grating with it, Dennis fel

r. What-oh, it's put the tin hat on

tin hat on me!" exclaimed Dennis, rolling the thing

ed, and a huge joy that it had not happened, struggled for mastery, and b

r sing out, si

ever, never mind. How is it going?" said Denn

e was as white as Hawke's under the dirt that grimed

rother here," said Dennis. "You go

as not good to look upon, every rag of clothing having been stripped from his back and lo

ain, and, followed by Hawke, made his way back into that

igious yawn, and felt an indesc

re last night, and I'm hanged if I can keep up much longer. You see those steps? A spy f

heavily on the pile of blankets, just as the shell-

their surprise, among them Captain Bob. Tiddler had not yet reache

ennis can't possibly be down there. I'll go back and q

wke. "'E is 'ere right enough, and

, and the store of shot and shell and the piles of rifles were as nothing to the brigadier as he saw the

wot that come art of. 'E was that sniper we never could spot, and I reckon it was 'arf me and 'arf Mr. Dashwood wot killed hi

under his moustache, and then aloud he said: "Get four men and carry him back to his own

n's Land, and was now ours, and tucked up tenderly in his bunk, where, if he did not exac