The Americans turned away from the view, which even the growling of the distant guns and the war rockets could not rob of a peaceful grandeur, and continued their march.
Very soon a singularly picturesque and interesting scene appeared before their eyes. On the slopes of the opposite ridges was an immense encampment of soldiers—a little tented city, as it were. Row after row of tents stood out pale and ghost-like in the moonlight, and from innumerable camp-fires hazy columns of smoke floated upward, to lose themselves against the steely-blue tones of the sky. Here and there tethered horses, no doubt belonging to the artillery, could be seen, though but few of the poilus were visible.
"Charming!" exclaimed Dunstan. "Perhaps that is the very place to which our soldier visitor belongs."
"Perhaps," agreed Chase. "But I'm not going to do any more wondering to-night."
"At any rate we have a story to tell that will set all the fellows at the section to wondering," laughed the aviator's son.
Down the incline they went, branching off about a quarter of an hour later into a military highway, though, owing to the clearness of the night, there was little traffic moving in either direction. Now and again, however, they heard the steady, rhythmic tramp of marching feet and encountered small bodies of troops passing along. The moonlight glistened on rifles and accouterments, and its rays were strong enough to disclose dogged, grave expressions on the faces of these poilus, some of whom, perhaps before very long, would take their places on the firing line.
A railway ran by the side of the road, and occasionally miniature locomotives and trains journeyed past, the puffing of the engines blending with numerous other sounds which came over the air.
The ambulanciers did not hurry, and as every sentry stationed along the road brought them to a halt by a demand to see their passes, the hour was quite late when they finally saw the picturesque outlines of the Hotel de la Palette looming up in the distance.
"We've had quite a day of it," quoth Don.
"We've had quite a night of it," said Chase.