Even Bumpus no longer felt that horrid squeamishness such as had attacked him at first. They say “familiarity breeds contempt,” but while this would hardly apply in the present case, at least it hardened the stout boy’s nerves to a wonderful extent, so that he could even do some of the bandaging himself.
The battle meanwhile ebbed and flowed by turns. They could not tell how things were going, though at times loud yellings came floating to their ears, as though one side or the other might have found cause for rejoicing. Thad had some reason for believing that the French must be holding their ground wonderfully well; at least he had seen no direct signs of a retreat.
Batteries now and then swept past to take fresh positions. They respected that magical flag flying there on the rise, though doubtless many a captain of a gun thought what a splendid position that would be to shell the distant lines of the enemy. Such an act, though, would have been contrary to all recognized rules of civilized warfare. They must scrupulously observe these so as to avoid giving the German batteries the slightest excuse for turning their guns in this quarter and raining fresh ruin and death upon the inmates of the emergency field hospital.
Once during another little lull in the almost constant succession of patients the noted American surgeon stepped over to where the three scouts were busily engaged. He gave them what he undoubtedly meant to be a smile of encouragement, although his face was so grim with his terrible work that it seemed almost out of place.
“I want to commend you boys for your ability in care of ordinary wounds,” he told Thad as he came up after glancing at the splendid way in which the bandage had been placed around a torn arm. “It does great credit to the organization to which you belong. I never dreamed it could be doing such a grand work among our boys over in America. After this I shall have only words of commendation for the Boy Scout movement. It has come to stay as the greatest uplift ever devised for the rising generation.”
Thad reddened under this eloquent praise. It was certainly worth all the trouble they had endured just to hear this splendid professional man utter such words.
“I only wish,” continued the tired surgeon, after Thad had thanked him as best he was able, “that I had the time to hear your story, for I’m very sure it must be worth listening to; perhaps later on I may do so while resting. But here comes another batch of poor fellows needing attention. Keep right on doing as you are, my boys. Grateful France will thank you for every wound you bind up.”
With that he left them and resumed his grewsome labors. Other cases came to the three chums from time to time; in fact, they were kept constantly employed, for a constant stream of injured continued to flow to the field hospital. Those German guns wrought terrific damage with their accurately placed fire, and when batallions of the blue came in contact with others wearing the Kaiser’s gray and the machine guns spat out their deadly hail the list of casualties mounted higher and higher as the day wore on.
Bumpus, in the midst of his work, found occasion to wonder how Giraffe might be coming on. Had he managed to reach the hospital in Paris and deliver his human freight, and would he start back again toward the front along that congested road to once more receive an allotment of the freshly wounded?
And then Bumpus indulged in rainbow chasing or building air castles when he allowed himself to imagine an accidental meeting on the streets of Paris between Giraffe and his sick mother, Mrs. Hawtree.