Within your hearts be writ
This single-line memorial_:--
He did his duty--and his bit!
NOTE
The reader is hereby cautioned against regarding this narrative as an
official history of the Great War.
The following pages are merely a record of some of the personal
adventures of a typical regiment of Kitchener's Army.
The chapters were written from day to day, and published from month to
month. Consequently, prophecy is occasionally falsified, and opinions
moderated, in subsequent pages.
The characters are entirely fictitious, but the incidents described
all actually occurred.
BOOK ONE
BLANK CARTRIDGES
The First Hundred Thousand
I
AB OVO
"Squoad--'_Shun!_ Move to the right in fours. Forrm--_fourrrs!_"
The audience addressed looks up with languid curiosity, but makes no
attempt to comply with the speaker's request.
"Come away now, come away!" urges the instructor, mopping his brow.
"Mind me: on the command 'form fours,' odd numbers will stand fast;
even numbers tak' a shairp pace to the rear and anither to the right.
Now--forrm _fourrs!_"
The squad stands fast, to a man. Apparently--nay, verily--they are all
odd numbers.
The instructor addresses a gentleman in a decayed Homburg hat, who is
chewing tobacco in the front rank.
"Yous, what's your number?"
The ruminant ponders.
"Seeven fower ought seeven seeven," he announces, after a prolonged
mental effort.
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