“Unless I’m away off my guess,” said Giraffe, wagging that long head of his in a wise fashion, “there’s bound to be a shift of base here pretty soon. I can see signs of it right now. And why not, when the scene is going to change, with the whole German army in full retreat to the north?”
“Oh! please tumble in here, Giraffe, like a good fellow,” pleaded Bumpus, who of old knew how fond the other was of talking, once he got upon a subject like that; “you can buzz me all you want, while we’re on the move. I don’t see how I’m going to stand the delay much longer.”
Giraffe did not make any reply, but climbed aboard and settled himself in what space the stout chum could afford to give him. He and Bumpus always managed pretty well, for as Giraffe was fond of saying jokingly, they were like a choice strip of breakfast bacon, since they represented the “fat and the lean of it.”
Now Thad had started, and Giraffe must needs squirm around so as to catch one last look at the wonderful picture, which he wished to impress upon his mind “for keeps,” as he put it.
Of course they did not expect to return over the same road they had taken when heading for the place. While the bombardment had long ago ceased, at the same time the condition of the road might be very bad in places. Besides, there was no necessity for doing this, since their friend the colonel had marked out another course for them to pursue.
Giraffe got busy almost as soon as they had covered the first half mile. Leaning forward, he asked Thad for the little road map which the officer had given him.
“I’ll tell you why I want to look at the same again,” Giraffe went on to say, as he took it from Thad. “Seemed to me there was a cross-road that would take us over to that main line where I met you. And, you see, Thad, I’m familiar with that same, having navigated it twice. If we could make it handy to strike over there I’d like to act as guide to the expedition, you know.”
“Figure it out for yourself, Giraffe,” Thad told him. “I’m willing to do it, if we think the road looks good to us. One way is as easy as another, so long as we keep our heads about us and don’t go astray.”
“Oh! I surely hope now nothing like that does come along,” sighed Bumpus; “I’ve had enough of getting lost, for this trip, anyhow.”
“Don’t worry,” Giraffe told him, “we’ll get there O. K., you can depend on that. We haven’t many more miles to go before we strike the outskirts of Paris, for the Germans got almost within big gunshot of the place, you know, before they were forced to swing around.”