The right front wheel had been crushed to splinters, the axle was bent, and the machine was wedged so far under a split edge of the granite as to be, for the time at least, totally useless.
"Better go back to where we were first," Lieutenant Mackinson said at last. "We'll take the pack-set with us, and we can probably advise headquarters of our predicament with that, and also inform them of the progress of the enemy movement."
Wearily they turned about, each man loaded down with the necessities that they had to take with them from the wrecked tractor. It was nearing night when they reached the apex of the mountain again, and their first desire was to see whether the Germans had entirely passed around the mountain.
So far as they could see they had!
But the Boches had done more than that. Their heavy guns were being sent around either side of the base of the mountain, each quota being part of a good-sized army. But they were sending another strong detachment up and over the mountain itself!
And the first section of it was less than a mile below, spreading out in such a way that while a part of it would come over the top, other parts would go around either side, and they would be fan-like in shape, forming a virtual comb in the search for any enemies who might be lurking there.
"The pack-set!" ordered the lieutenant. In a very short time it was set up, and Jerry was grinding the crank to generate power while the officer flashed out the headquarters call.
In a moment a message began to come: "J-X. J-X. J-X. J-X."
Lieutenant Mackinson nervously began tapping the key again, but the only reply was the insistent call for J-X, which was the code call for themselves.
"No use," said the young officer at last. "We can catch them, with their stronger range, but we haven't radius enough to send to them."