"Hadn't we better wheel the machine round the corner of the wood?" suggested Kenneth. "We don't know but that some Germans may come up at any moment."
"Come along then," said Pariset.
But they had hardly moved the machine three yards when they heard the clatter of hoofs, and a patrol of Uhlans came dashing round a bend in the road. Neither hedge nor dyke bordered the field, and the Uhlans rode straight across it towards the aeroplane.
"We are in for it!" said Pariset, hastily adjusting his bandage. "For goodness' sake try to bluff it out."
Kenneth went hot and cold; his brain seemed paralysed; and when the Uhlans reined up a few yards away he had cudgelled his wits in vain for something to say. A lead was given him by the lieutenant in command.
"Do you want any help, Herr Captain?" he said. "I saw you come down suddenly, and guessed there was something wrong."
"Thanks; it is a mere trifle," replied Kenneth somewhat breathlessly. "Two of the sparking plugs need cleaning. In five minutes we shall be up again."
He bent down to assist Pariset, who had turned his back and was unscrewing the plugs.
"Have you been hit?" asked the lieutenant, noticing the bandage.
"No, luckily; he ought to have gone to the dentist long ago, but couldn't bear the idea of losing a moment at a time like this. A swollen jaw is very painful; you can't eat with any comfort. The only thing to do is to bandage it tightly. But he'll have to go to the dentist."