"
"The Uhlans are off again," said John. "Whatever their duty was the
steel arrows have sent them on it in a hurry."
"And we're about to move too. See, these batteries are limbering up
preparatory to a withdrawal."
Inside of fifteen minutes they were again marching eastward, though
slowly and with the roar of battle going on as fiercely behind them as
ever. John heard again from some of the talk of the guards that the
Germans had five armies along their whole line, but whether the one with
which he was now a prisoner was falling back with its whole force he
had no way of knowing. Both he and Fleury were sure the prisoners
themselves would soon cross the Marne, and that large detachments of the
enemy would go with them.
Thoughts of escape returned. Crossing a river in battle was a perilous
operation, entailing much confusion, and the chance might come at the
Marne. They could see too that the Germans were now being pressed
harder. The French shells were coming faster and with more deadly
precision. Now and then they exploded among the masses of German
infantry, and once or twice they struck close to the captives.
"It would be a pity to be killed by our own people," said Fleury.
"And at such a time as this," said John. "Do you know, Fleury, that my
greatest fear about getting killed is that then I wouldn't know how this
war is going to end?"
"I feel that way myself sometimes. Look, there's the Marne! See its
waters shining! It's the mark of the first great stage in the German
retreat.
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