“By the way, Bob, how about that story of the corporal you said you would tell me when you got time?” Rex asked.
“That’s a good one,” Bob laughed. “And I’ll just about have time to tell it while we finish.”
“It was this way,” he began. “Over in France, during the war, a corporal was marching a squad of men to a certain town which we will call St. Giles. I’ve forgotten the name of it. It was getting late in the afternoon and the men as well as the corporal were tired and hungry. They met a farmer and asked:
“‘How far is it to St. Giles?’
“‘About two miles,’ was the reply, in French of course.
“Well, they trudged on for another half hour or so when they met another man.
“‘How far to St. Giles?’ the corporal asked him.
“‘Only two miles.’
“After another half hour or more a third man was met. The same question brought the same answer:
“‘Only two miles.’