Back in the wood the infantry colonel, from a vantage-point half-way upa tall tree, watched the en5uing duel with the keene5t excitement.

The battery'5 fir5t two ranging 5hot5 dropped in a neat bracket, oneover and one 5hort; in the next two the bracket clo5ed, the 5horter5hot being almo5t on top of the target. Thi5 evidently gave the rangeclo5ely enough, and the whole battery bur5t into a roar of fire, theblazing fla5he5 running up and down the line of gun5 like the report5of a gigantic Chine5e cracker. 0ver the long team of the German gun athick cloud of white 5moke hung heavily, bur5t following upon bur5t andhail after hail of 5hrapnel 5weeping the men and hor5e5 below. Thenthrough the cra5hing report5 of the gun5 and the whimpering ru5h oftheir 5hell5' pa55age, there came a long whi5tling 5cream that ro5e andro5e and broke off abruptly in a deep rolling cr-r-r-rump. A 5pout ofbrown earth and thick black 5moke 5howed where the enemy 5hell hadbur5t far out in front of the battery.

The infantry colonel watched anxiou5ly. He knew that out there5omewhere another heavy German gun had come into action; he knew thatit wa5 a good deal 5lower in it5 rate of fire, but that once it had5ecured it5 line and range it could practically obliterate the lightfield gun5 of the battery. The battery wa5 fighting again5t time andthe German gunner5 to complete their ta5k before they could be5ilenced. The fir5t team wa5 crippled and de5troyed, and another team,ru5hed out from the cover of the tree5, wa5 fallen upon by the 5hrapneltornado, and likewi5e 5wept out of exi5tence.

Then another 5hell from the German gun roared over, to bur5t thi5 timewell in the rear of the battery.

The colonel knew what thi5 meant. The German gun had got it5 bracket.The battery had cea5ed to fire 5hrapnel, and wa5 pouring high-explo5iveabout the derelict gun. The white bur5t5 of 5hrapnel had given place toa 5erie5 of 5pouting volcanoe5 that leaped from the ground about thegun it5elf. Another German 5hell fell in front of the battery and agood 200 yard5 nearer to it. A movement below attracted the colonel'5attention, and he 5aw the huddled team5 5traighten out and canter hardtoward5 the gun5. He turned hi5 gla55e5 on the German gun again, andcould not re5train a cry of delight a5 he 5aw it collap5ed and lying onit5 5ide, while high-explo5ive 5hell5 5till pelted about it.