That was the natural way in which Bumpus greeted his chum as he stared up into the smiling face of the ambulance driver.
“Where’ve you been, Bumpus?” demanded the other.
“Oh! it’s too long a story for me to try to spin right now, Giraffe, except to say I’ve had a truly wonderful experience since I lost my way in the dark last night. But please tell me what you’re doing on this ambulance; and I declare if you haven’t got a Red Cross band around your sleeve in the bargain! Whee! this beats anything I’ve struck yet. Tell me about it, and are the other fellows working this same way too, Giraffe?”
“Nixey, Bumpus, I’m the only driver of the lot just now,” the other replied; “but all the same they’re doing something to help out. You see, while we were trudging along the road a bit ago this ambulance caught up with us. The driver had been struck with a piece of flying shell and was bleeding terribly, one of his arms being badly torn. He was getting white about the gills, too, from loss of blood, though gamely sticking to his job.”
“Oh! my stars!” commented the eager listener, filled with sympathy for the valiant man who had refused to leave his post on account of a wound.
“Well, he nearly fell from the seat when he brought the ambulance to a stop in front of us. Fact is, Thad and myself just managed to catch him in our arms as he toppled over. Here, you can see the mess he left. Well, Thad and Allan got busy right away. They’re fixing him up right now alongside the road a little ways on there. I knew it was up to me to get these poor chaps to the city, so I jumped at the chance. And now I oughtn’t to spend another second jawing here while they need so much attention. I’m coming back again, and Thad said to look for them at the field hospital. So-long, Bumpus; keep going straight on and you’ll find the boys.”
With that the energetic Giraffe once more started the ambulance ahead at a rapid pace. Fortunately he knew more or less about motors and doubtless would be able to handle the machine as well as the next one. And once in Paris he could easily find his way to a hospital by following some other vehicle that also carried wounded French heroes from the field of battle.
Bumpus, left there on the road, looked after him for a full minute.
“Shucks!” he was muttering to himself in evident bitter disappointment, “why didn’t I think quick enough to ask Giraffe to try and look my mother up while in the city so as to tell her I was safe? Just like my slow-moving wits, after all. But then that would be selfish in me, I guess, because think of the poor chaps who’d have to wait so much longer before they could receive proper medical attention. It’s just as well I didn’t ask him.”
With that conclusion Bumpus wheeled and once more started along the road. He increased his pace almost to a run, so eager was he to come upon Thad and Allan before they finished dressing the wounds of the unfortunate ambulance driver and put him aboard some passing van.