Only，theothersdidnotknowofit，wouldneverhearofit。IfPetersucceededhemighttellthetale，butmostlikelyhewaslyingdeadsomewhereintheno—man’s—landbetweenthelines。Weshouldneverbeheardofagainanymore，butourworkremained。SirWalterwouldknowthat，andhewouldtellourfewbelongingsthatwehadgoneoutinourcountry’sservice。
Wewereinthe_castrolagain，sittingundertheparapets。ThesamethoughtsmusthavebeeninSandy’smind，forhesuddenlylaughed。
’It’saqueerending，Dick。Wesimplyvanishintotheinfinite。IftheRussiansgetthroughtheywillneverrecognizewhatisleftofusamongsomuchofthewreckageofbattle。Thesnowwillsooncoverus，andwhenthespringcomestherewillonlybeafewbleachedbones。UponmysoulitisthekindofdeathIalwayswanted。’AndhequotedsoftlytohimselfaverseofanoldScotsballad:
’Mony’stheaneforhimmaksmane，Butnanesallkenwharheisgane。
Owerhiswhitebanes，whentheyarebare，Thewindsallblawforevermair。’
’Butourworklives，’Icried，withasuddengreatgaspofhappiness。
’It’sthejobthatmatters，notthementhatdoit。Andourjob’sdone。Wehavewon，oldchap—wonhandsdown—andthereisnogoingbackonthat。Wehavewonanyway;andifPeterhashadasliceofluck，we’vescoopedthepool……Afterall，weneverexpectedtocomeoutofthisthingwithourlives。’
Blenkiron，withhislegstuckoutstifflybeforehim，washummingquietlytohimself，asheoftendidwhenhefeltcheerful。Hehadonlyonesong，’JohnBrown’sBody’;usuallyonlyalineatatime，butnowhegotasfarasthewholeverse:
’HecapturedHarper’sFerry，withhisnineteenmensotrue，AndhefrightenedoldVirginnytillshetrembledthroughandthrough。
Theyhunghimforatraitor，themselvesthetraitorcrew，Buthissoulgoesmarchingalong。’
’Feelinggood？’Iasked。
’Fine。I’mabouttheluckiestmanonGod’searth，Major。I’vealwayswantedtogetintoabigshow，butIdidn’tseehowitwouldcomethewayofahomelycitizenlikeme，livinginasteam—warmedhouseandgoingdowntowntomyofficeeverymorning。IusedtoenvymyolddadthatfoughtatChattanooga，andneverforgottotellyouaboutit。ButIguessChattanoogawaslikeascrapinaBowerybarcomparedtothis。WhenImeettheoldmaninGloryhe’llhavetolistensometome。’
ItwasjustafterBlenkironspokethatwegotareminderofStumm’spresence。Thegunwaswelllaid，forashellplumpedonthenearedgeofthecastro。ItmadeanendofoneoftheCompanionswhowasonguardthere，badlywoundedanother，andafragmentgashedmythigh。Wetookrefugeintheshallowcave，butsomewildshootingfromtheeastsidebroughtusbacktotheparapets，forwefearedanattack。Nonecame，noranymoreshells，andonceagainthenightwasquiet。
IaskedBlenkironifhehadanynearrelatives。
’Why，no，exceptasister’sson，acollege—boywhohasnoneedofhisuncle。It’sfortunatethatwethreehavenowives。Ihaven’tanyregrets，neither，forI’vehadamightydealoutoflife。IwasthinkingthismorningthatitwasapityIwasgoingoutwhenIhadjustgotmyduo—denumtolistentoreason。ButIreckonthat’sanotherofmymercies。ThegoodGodtookawaythepaininmystomachsothatImightgotoHimwithaclearheadandathankfulheart。’
’We’reluckyfellows，’saidSandy;’we’veallhadourwhack。
WhenIrememberthegoodtimesI’vehadIcouldsingahymnofpraise。We’velivedlongenoughtoknowourselves，andtoshapeourselvesintosomekindofdecency。Butthinkofthoseboyswhohavegiventheirlivesfreelywhentheyscarcelyknewwhatlifemeant。Theywerejustatthebeginningoftheroad，andtheydidn’tknowwhatdrearybitslaybeforethem。Itwasallsunshinyandbright—coloured，andyettheygaveitupwithoutamoment’sdoubt。
Andthinkofthemenwithwivesandchildrenandhomesthatwerethebiggestthingsinlifetothem。Forfellowslikeustoshirkwouldbeblackcowardice。It’ssmallcreditforustostickitout。
Butwhenthoseothersshuttheirteethandwentforward，theywereblessedheroes……’
Afterthatwefellsilent。Aman’sthoughtsatatimelikethatseemtobedouble—powered，andthememorybecomesverysharpandclear。Idon’tknowwhatwasintheothers’minds，butIknowwhatfilledmyown……
Ifancyitisn’tthemenwhogetmostoutoftheworldandarealwaysbuoyantandcheerfulthatmostfeartodie。Ratheritistheweak—enginedsoulswhogoaboutwithdulleyes，thatclingmostfiercelytolife。Theyhavenotthejoyofbeingalivewhichisakindofearnestofimmortality……IknowthatmythoughtswerechieflyaboutthejollythingsthatIhadseenanddone;notregret，butgratitude。Thepanoramaofbluenoonsontheveldunrolleditselfbeforeme，andhunter’snightsinthebush，thetasteoffoodandsleep，thebitterstimulusofdawn，thejoyofwildadventure，thevoicesofoldstaunchfriends。Hithertothewarhadseemedtomakeabreakwithallthathadgonebefore，butnowthewarwasonlypartofthepicture。Ithoughtofmybattalion，andthegoodfellowsthere，manyofwhomhadfallenontheLoosparapets。Ihadneverlookedtocomeoutofthatmyself。ButIhadbeenspared，andgiventhechanceofagreaterbusiness，andIhadsucceeded。Thatwasthetremendousfact，andmymoodwashumblegratitudetoGodandexultantpride。Deathwasasmallpricetopayforit。AsBlenkironwouldhavesaid，Ihadgotgoodvalueinthedeal。
Thenightwasgettingbittercold，ashappensbeforedawn。Itwasfrostagain，andthesharpnessofitwokeourhunger。Igotouttheremnantsofthefoodandwineandwehadalastmeal。I
rememberwepledgedeachotheraswedrank。
’WehaveeatenourPassoverFeast，’saidSandy。’Whendoyoulookfortheend？’
’Afterdawn，’Isaid。’Stummwantsdaylighttogetthefullsavourofhisrevenge。’
Slowlytheskypassedfromebonytogrey，andblackshapesofhilloutlinedthemselvesagainstit。Awindblewdownthevalley，bringingtheacridsmellofburning，butsomethingtooofthefreshnessofmorn。Itstirredstrangethoughtsinme，andwoketheoldmorningvigourofthebloodwhichwasnevertobemineagain。ForthefirsttimeinthatlongvigilIwastornwithasuddenregret。
’Wemustgetintothecavebeforeitisfulllight，’Isaid。’Wehadbetterdrawlotsforthetwotogo。’
ThechoicefellononeoftheCompanionsandBlenkiron。
’Youcancountmeout，’saidthelatter。’Ifit’syourwishtofindamantobealivewhenourfriendscomeuptocounttheirspoil，I
guessI’mtheworstofthelot。I’dprefer，ifyoudon’tmind，tostayhere。I’vemademypeacewithmyMaker，andI’dliketowaitquietlyonHiscall。I’llplayagameofPatiencetopassthetime。’
Hewouldtakenodenial，sowedrewagain，andthelotfelltoSandy。
’IfI’mthelasttogo，’hesaid，’IpromiseIdon’tmiss。Stummwon’tbelonginfollowingme。’
Heshookhandswithhischeerysmile，andheandtheCompanionslippedovertheparapetinthefinalshadowsbeforedawn。
BlenkironspreadhisPatiencecardsonaflatrock，anddealtouttheDoubleNapoleon。Hewasperfectlycalm，andhummedtohimselfhisonlytune。FormyselfIwasdrinkinginmylastdraughtofthehillair。Mycontentmentwasgoing。Isuddenlyfeltbitterlyloathtodie。
SomethingofthesamekindmusthavepassedthroughBlenkiron’shead。Hesuddenlylookedupandasked，’SisterAnne，SisterAnne，doyouseeanybodycoming？’
Istoodclosetotheparapet，watchingeverydetailofthelandscapeasshownbytherevealingdaybreak。UpontheshouldersofthePalantuken，snowdriftslippedovertheedgesofthecliffs。I
wonderedwhentheywouldcomedownasavalanches。Therewasakindofcroftononehillside，andfromahutthesmokeofbreakfastwasbeginningtocurl。Stumm’sgunnerswereawakeandapparentlyholdingcouncil。Fardownonthemainroadaconvoywasmoving—Iheardthecreakofthewheelstwomilesaway，fortheairwasdeathlystill。
Then，asifaspringhadbeenloosed，theworldsuddenlyleapedtoahideouslife。Withagrowlthegunsopenedroundallthehorizon。Theywereespeciallyfiercetothesouth，wherea_rafalebeatasIhadneverhearditbefore。TheoneglanceIcastbehindmeshowedthegapinthehillschokedwithfumesanddust。
Butmyeyeswereonthenorth。FromErzerumcitytalltonguesofflameleapedfromadozenquarters。Beyond，towardstheopeningoftheEuphratesglen，therewasthesharpcrackoffield—guns。I
strainedeyesandears，madwithimpatience，andIreadtheriddle。
’Sandy，’Iyelled，’Peterhasgotthrough。TheRussiansareroundtheflank。Thetownisburning。GlorytoGod，we’vewon，we’vewon！’
AndasIspoketheearthseemedtosplitbesideme，andIwasflungforwardonthegravelwhichcoveredHildavonEinem’sgrave。
AsIpickedmyselfup，andtomyamazementfoundmyselfuninjured，IsawBlenkironrubbingthedustoutofhiseyesandarrangingadisorderedcard。Hehadstoppedhumming，andwassingingaloud:
’HecapturedHarper’sFerry，withhisnineteenmensotrueAndhefrightenedoldVirginny……’
’Say，Major，’hecried，’Ibelievethisgameofmineiscomingout。’
Iwasnowprettywellmad。ThethoughtthatoldPeterhadwon，thatwehadwonbeyondourwildestdreams，thatifwediedtherewerethosecomingwhowouldexacttheuttermostvengeance，rodemybrainlikeafever。IsprangontheparapetandwavedmyhandtoStumm，shoutingdefiance。Rifleshotscrackedoutfrombehind，andIleapedbackjustintimeforthenextshell。
Thechargemusthavebeenshort，foritwasabadmiss，landingsomewhereontheglacis。Thenextwasbetterandcrashedonthenearparapet，carvingagreatholeintherocky_kranz。Thistimemyarmhunglimp，brokenbyafragmentofstone，butIfeltnopain。
Blenkironseemedtobearacharmedlife，forhewassmotheredindust，butunhurt。Heblewthedustawayfromhiscardsverygingerlyandwentonplaying。
’SisterAnne，’heasked，’doyouseeanybodycoming？’
Thencameadudwhichdroppedneatlyinsideonthesoftground。
Iwasdeterminedtobreakfortheopenandchancetheriflefire，forifStummwentonshootingthe_castrolwascertaindeath。IcaughtBlenkironroundthemiddle，scatteringhiscardstothewinds，andjumpedovertheparapet。
’Don’tapologize，SisterAnne，’saidhe。’Thegamewasasgoodaswon。ButforGod’ssakedropme，forifyouwavemelikethebanneroffreedomI’llgetpluggedsureandgood。’
Myonethoughtwastogetcoverforthenextminutes，forIhadaninstinctthatourvigilwasnearitsend。ThedefencesofErzerumwerecrumblinglikesand—castles，anditwasaproofofthetensenessofmynervesthatIseemedtobedeaftothesound。Stummhadseenuscrosstheparapet，andhestartedtosprinkleallthesurroundingsofthe_castrol。BlenkironandIlaylikeaworking—partybetweenthelinescaughtbymachine—guns，takingapullonourselvesasbestwecould。Sandyhadsomekindofcover，butwewereonthebarefartherslope，andtheriflemenonthatsidemighthavehadusattheirmercy。
Butnoshotscamefromthem。AsIlookedeast，thehillside，whichalittlebeforehadbeenheldbyourenemies，wasasemptyasthedesert。AndthenIsawonthemainroadasightwhichforasecondtimemademeyelllikeamaniac。Downthatglencameathrongofmenandgallopinglimbers—acrazy，jostlingcrowd，spreadingawaybeyondtheroadtothesteepslopes，andleavingbehinditmanyblackdotstodarkenthesnows。ThegatesoftheSouthhadyielded，andourfriendswerethroughthem。
AtthatsightIforgotallaboutourdanger。Ididn’tgiveacentforStumm’sshells。Ididn’tbelievehecouldhitme。Thefatewhichhadmercifullypreservedusforthefirsttasteofvictorywouldseeusthroughtotheend。
IrememberbundlingBlenkironalongthehilltofindSandy。Butournewswasanticipated。Fordownourownside—glencamethesamebrokentumultofmen。More;forattheirbacks，farupatthethroatofthepass，Isawhorsemen—thehorsemenofthepursuit。
OldNicholashadflunghiscavalryin。
Sandywasonhisfeet，withhislipssetandhiseyeabstracted。Ifhisfacehadn’tbeenburnedblackbyweatheritwouldhavebeenpaleasadish—clout。Amanlikehimdoesn’tmakeuphismindfordeathandthenbegivenhislifeagainwithoutbeingwrenchedoutofhisbearings。Ithoughthedidn’tunderstandwhathadhappened，soIbeathimontheshoulders。
’Man，d’yousee？’Icried。’TheCossacks！TheCossacks！God！
Howthey’retakingthatslope！They’reintothemnow。Byheaven，we’llridewiththem！We’llgetthegunhorses！’
AlittleknollpreventedStummandhismenfromseeingwhatwashappeningfartheruptheglen，tillthefirstwaveoftheroutwasonthem。Hehadgoneonbombardingthe_castrolanditsenvironswhiletheworldwascrackingoverhishead。Thegunteamwasinthehollowbelowtheroad，anddownthehillamongtheboulderswecrawled，Blenkironaslameasaduck，andmewithalimpleftarm。
Thepoorbeastswerestrainingattheirpicketsandsniffingthemorningwind，whichbroughtdownthethickfumesofthegreatbombardmentandtheindescribablebabblingcriesofabeatenarmy。
Beforewereachedthemthatmaddenedhordehadsweptdownonthem，menpantingandgaspingintheirflight，manyofthembloodyfromwounds，manytotteringinthefirststagesofcollapseanddeath。Isawthehorsesseizedbyadozenhands，andadesperatefightfortheirpossession。Butaswehaltedthereoureyeswerefixedonthebatteryontheroadaboveus，forrounditwasnowsweepingthevanoftheretreat。
Ihadneverseenaroutbefore，whenstrongmencometotheendoftheirtetherandonlytheirbrokenshadowsstumbletowardstherefugetheyneverfind。NomorehadStumm，poordevil。Ihadnoill—willleftforhim，thoughcomingdownthathillIwasratherhopingthatthetwoofusmighthaveafinalscrap。Hewasabruteandabully，but，byGod！hewasaman。I
heardhisgreatroarwhenhesawthetumult，andthenextIsawwashismonstrousfigureworkingatthegun。Heswungitsouthandturneditonthefugitives。
Butheneverfiredit。Thepresswasonhim，andthegunwassweptsideways。Hestoodup，afoothigherthananyofthem，andheseemedtobetryingtochecktherushwithhispistol。Thereispowerinnumbers，eventhougheveryunitisbrokenandfleeing。
ForasecondtothatwildcrowdStummwastheenemy，andtheyhadstrengthenoughtocrushhim。Thewaveflowedroundandthenacrosshim。Isawthebutt—endsofriflescrashonhisheadandshoulders，andthenextsecondthestreamhadpassedoverhisbody。
ThatwasGod’sjudgementonthemanwhohadsethimselfabovehiskind。
Sandygrippedmyshoulderandwasshoutinginmyear:
’They’recoming，Dick。Lookatthegreydevils……Oh，Godbethanked，it’sourfriends！’
Thenextminuteweweretumblingdownthehillside，Blenkironhoppingononelegbetweenus。IhearddimlySandycrying，’Oh，welldoneourside！’andBlenkirondeclaimingaboutHarper’sFerry，butIhadnovoiceatallandnowishtoshout。Iknowthetearswereinmyeyes，andthatifIhadbeenleftaloneIwouldhavesatdownandcriedwithpurethankfulness。Forsweepingdowntheglencameacloudofgreycavalryonlittlewiryhorses，acloudwhichstayednotfortherearofthefugitives，butsweptonlikeaflightofrainbows，withthesteeloftheirlance—headsglitteringinthewintersun。TheywereridingforErzerum。
RememberthatforthreemonthswehadbeenwiththeenemyandhadneverseenthefaceofanAllyinarms。Wehadbeencutofffromthefellowshipofagreatcause，likeafortsurroundedbyanarmy。Andnowweweredelivered，andtherefellaroundusthewarmjoyofcomradeshipaswellastheexultationofvictory。
Weflungcautiontothewinds，andwentstarkmad。Sandy，stillinhisemeraldcoatandturban，wasscramblingupthefartherslopeofthehollow，yellinggreetingsineverylanguageknowntoman。
Theleadersawhim，withawordcheckedhismenforamoment—
itwasmarvelloustoseethehorsesreinedininsuchabreak—neckride—andfromthesquadronhalfadozentroopersswunglooseandwheeledtowardsus。Thenamaninagreyovercoatandasheepskincapwasonthegroundbesideuswringingourhands。
’Youaresafe，myoldfriends’—itwasPeter’svoicethatspoke—
’Iwilltakeyoubacktoourarmy，andgetyoubreakfast。’
’No，bytheLord，youwon’t，’criedSandy。’We’vehadtheroughendofthejobandnowwe’llhavethefun。LookafterBlenkironandthesefellowsofmine。I’mgoingtoridekneebykneewithyoursportsmenforthecity。’
Peterspokeaword，andtwooftheCossacksdismounted。ThenextIknewIwasmixedupinthecloudofgreycoats，gallopingdowntheroadupwhichthemorningbeforewehadstrainedtothe_castrol。
Thatwasthegreathourofmylife，andtolivethroughitwasworthadozenyearsofslavery。WithabrokenleftarmIhadlittleholdonmybeast，soItrustedmynecktohimandlethimhavehiswill。Blackwithdirtandsmoke，hatless，withnokindofuniform，I
wasawilderfigurethananyCossack。IsoonwasseparatedfromSandy，whohadtwohandsandabetterhorse，andseemedresolutetopressforwardtotheveryvan。Thatwouldhavebeensuicideforme，andIhadallIcoulddotokeepmyplaceinthebunchIrodewith。
But，GreatGod！whatanhouritwas！Therewaslooseshootingonourflank，butnothingtotroubleus，thoughthegunteamofsomeAustrianhowitzer，strugglingmadlyatabridge，gaveusabitofatussle。Everythingflittedpastmelikesmoke，orlikethemadfinaleofadreamjustbeforewaking。Iknewthelivingmovementunderme，andthecompanionshipofmen，butalldimly，foratheartIwasalone，grapplingwiththerealizationofanewworld。I
felttheshadowsofthePalantukenglenfading，andthegreatburstoflightasweemergedonthewidervalley。Somewherebeforeuswasapallofsmokeseamedwithredflames，andbeyondthedarknessofstillhigherhills。AllthattimeIwasdreaming，crooningdaftcatchesofsongtomyself，sohappy，sodeliriouslyhappythatI
darednottrytothink。IkeptmutteringakindofprayermadeupofBiblewordstoHimwhohadshownmeHisgoodnessinthelandoftheliving。
Butaswedrewoutfromtheskirtsofthehillsandbeganthelongslopetothecity，Iwoketoclearconsciousness。Ifeltthesmellofsheepskinandlatheredhorses，andaboveallthebittersmelloffire。DowninthetroughlayErzerum，nowburninginmanyplaces，andfromtheeast，pastthesilentforts，horsemenwereclosinginonit。Iyelledtomycomradesthatwewerenearest，thatwewouldbefirstinthecity，andtheynoddedhappilyandshoutedtheirstrangewar—cries。AswetoppedthelastridgeIsawbelowmethevanofourcharge—adarkmassonthesnow—whilethebrokenenemyonbothsideswereflingingawaytheirarmsandscatteringinthefields。
Intheveryfront，nownearingthecityramparts，wasoneman。
Hewaslikethepointofthesteelspearsoontobedrivenhome。IntheclearmorningairIcouldseethathedidnotweartheuniformoftheinvaders。Hewasturbanedandrodelikeonepossessed，andagainstthesnowIcaughtthedarksheenofemerald。AsherodeitseemedthatthefleeingTurkswerestrickenstill，andsankbytheroadsidewitheyesstrainedafterhisunheedingfigure……
ThenIknewthattheprophecyhadbeentrue，andthattheirprophethadnotfailedthem。Thelong—lookedforrevelationhadcome。Greenmantlehadappearedatlasttoanawaitingpeople。