"Yes, he's got something out of it!"
"The men seem to be losing their spirit—there's no doubt of it!" exclaimed the colonel, more aloud to himself than to Fracasse, after a while.
"No wonder!" replied Fracasse. Martinet though he was, he spoke in grumbling loyalty to his soldiers. "What kind of spirit is there in doing the work of navvies? Spirit! No soldiers ever fought better—in invasion, at least. Look at our losses! Spirit! Westerling drives us in. He thinks we can climb Niagara Falls! He—"
"Stop! You're talking like an anarchist!" snapped the colonel. "How can the men have spirit when you feel that way?"
"I shall continue to obey orders and do my duty, sir!" replied Fracasse. "And they will, too, or I'll know the reason why."
There was a silence, but at length the colonel exploded:
"I suppose Westerling knows what he is doing!"
"Still, we must go on! We must win!"
"Yes, the offensive always wins in the end. We must go on!"
"And once we have the range—yes, once we've won one vital position—the men will recover their enthusiasm and be crying: 'On to the capital!'"