“But he did us the greatest service one man can do for another,” remarked Roger.  “He saved our lives, fellows!  Don’t forget that!”

“No,” agreed Jimmy in a low voice.  “Whatever happens we must never forget that.”

They trudged on in silence a little longer, and then Franz broke out with: 

“And speaking of wondering, Jimmy, what do you suppose has become of Sergeant Maxwell?”

“And your money, Blazes,” added Bob.

“Our money,” corrected his chum.  “Haven’t I told you that the five thousand francs is the joint property of the five Brothers.”

“All right—­have it your own way—­anything if or a quiet life!” said Bob, quickly.  “I was just wondering, that’s all.”

“I have been wondering, too,” admitted Jimmy.  “The disappearance of Maxwell and the cash is almost as much of a mystery as is Captain Frank Dickerson.”

Twice that day, as they tramped along, seeking in vain for the American lines, they saw small parties of German soldiers.  And on both occasions the Khaki Boys were fortunate enough to sight the enemy first, so they could conceal themselves in patches of woods.

They were now in a country where there were larger tracts of forest, and after coming out of one of these thickets Bob remarked.

“Fellows, do you know what I think?”

“Do you, really?” chafed Roger.

“Do I really what?” asked Bob, a bit disconcerted.

“Think!” exclaimed his chum.  “I thought you’d given that up.”

“This war is enough to make a chap give it up,” Bob agreed.  “But seriously, fellows, I think we’re lost—­that we’ve been going around in a circle, and we aren’t any nearer our lines than when we were at the red mill.  Not so near, in fact, for there we knew that some of the doughboys were not more than a mile away.  But here—­”

“Bob, I shouldn’t be surprised but what you are right!” exclaimed Jimmy.  “It does seem funny that, with all our traveling, we haven’t come to the American lines.  They can’t be so far away as all this.  I guess we must have traveled in a circle.  Pity we haven’t a compass.”

“Can’t you steer by the sun?” asked Franz.  “We started south, and if we keep the rising sun on our left and the setting sun on our right, we’re bound to go south.”

“The trouble was yesterday that we didn’t see the sun after we started hiking,” declared Jimmy.  “It’s all right now—­we’re surely going south.  But how long we can keep it up there’s no telling.”

“Well, then, as long as we know we’re going in the right direction now, let’s double quick and cover as much ground as we can straight away, before we get turned around again,” suggested Roger.

His plan was voted a good one, and the tired young soldiers hurried on.  But to their chagrin it soon became cloudy, and then a mist settled down obscuring every gleam of sunshine, and they had to depend on their sense of direction, which, truth to tell, was not very accurate.