On his first trip to Star Ranch, Phil Lawrence had become enamored of Belle Endicott, and the happiness of his chums made him exceedingly anxious regarding his own future. He sent an earnest telegram to Belle; and a little later met that young lady in New York City and there got her to promise something which was in every degree highly satisfactory to the shipowner’s son.
From Camp Hickory the young civil engineers entrained for an American port, and there went aboard one of the big army transports, as related in the last volume of this series, entitled, “Dave Porter Under Fire.”
This transport was attacked by two submarines, but escaped injury, and a little later the young soldiers found themselves on French soil. Here they went into intensive training for a number of weeks and were then sent to the front.
While in the training camp at home Dave and the others had made the acquaintance of a French widow, who had suffered much because of the war and because of the doings of a German spy, named Rudolph Holtzmann. The poor widow’s two children had been lost during the first upheaval of war in Alsace-Lorraine, and to add to her misery she was later on robbed by the spy, who had been boarding with her.
All the “fighting engineers,” as they were affectionately termed, had had some strenuous adventures during those first few weeks on the firing line. They had been set to building roadways and bridges, and had been under fire on more than one occasion. Then, during a brief respite in their work, Dave had gotten word concerning Rudolph Holtzmann, and, with the aid of the French authorities, had succeeded in cornering this rascal and had discovered the whereabouts of the Widow Carot’s missing children.
Dave, Roger, and Phil had been cited in the orders of the day for bravery, and a little later Dave had been made a sergeant of the engineers, while Roger and Phil became corporals.
“You’re getting up in the world, Dave,” had been Roger’s comment. “First thing you know, you’ll be a lieutenant or a captain.”
“Time enough for that, Roger,” Dave answered. “I think you’ve got just as good a chance as I have. In fact, I can’t understand why they didn’t make you and Phil sergeants as well as myself.”
“Oh, we didn’t do as much as you did,” the senator’s son had answered. “You always were a natural-born leader.”
“Oh, cut it, Roger!” Dave had cried. Nevertheless, he knew that his chum was sincere in what he said, and he was correspondingly pleased. At heart Roger was one of the best fellows in the world, and it was with intense satisfaction that Dave had learned the young man was one day to become his only sister’s husband.