“Besides, there are too many rich and influential people who have shouted, ‘Let us save France!—­and begin by saving ourselves!’ On the declaration of war, there was a big rush to get out of it, that’s what there was, and the strongest succeeded.  I noticed myself, in my little corner, it was especially those that jawed most about patriotism previously.  Anyway, as the others were saying just now, if they get into a funk-hole, the worst filthiness they can do is to make people believe they’ve run risks.  ’Cos those that have really run risks, they deserve the same respect as the dead.”

“Well, what then?  It’s always like that, old man; you can’t change human nature.”

“It can’t be helped.  Grouse, complain?  Tiens! talking about complaining, did you know Margoulin?”

“Margoulin?  The good sort that was with us, that they left to die at le Crassier because they thought he was dead?”

“Well, he wanted to make a complaint.  Every day he talked about protesting against all those things to the captain and the commandant.  He’d say after breakfast, ’I’ll go and say it as sure as that pint of wine’s there.’  And a minute later, ’If I don’t speak, there’s never a pint of wine there at all.’  And if you were passing later you’d hear him again, ’Tiens! is that a pint of wine there?  Well, you’ll see if I don’t speak!  Result—­he said nothing at all.  You’ll say, ‘But he got killed.’  True, but previously he had God’s own time to do it two thousand times if he’d dared.”

“All that, it makes me ill,” growled Blaire, sullen, but with a flash of fury.

“We others, we’ve seen nothing—­seeing that we don’t see anything—­but if we did see—!”

“Old chap,” Volpatte cried, “those depots—­take notice of what I say—­you’d have to turn the Seine, the Garonne, the Rhone and the Loire into them to clean them.  In the interval, they’re living, and they live well, and they go to doze peacefully every night, every night!”

The soldier held his peace.  In the distance he saw the night as they would pass it—­cramped up, trembling with vigilance in the deep darkness, at the bottom of the listening-hole whose ragged jaws showed in black outline all around whenever a gun hurled its dawn into the sky.

Bitterly said Cocon:  “All that, it doesn’t give you any desire to die.”

“Yes, it does,” some one replies tranquilly.  “Yes, it does.  Don’t exaggerate, old kipper-skin.”

______

[note 1:] Thirty or thirty-one years old in 1914.—­Tr.

[note 2:] A-shape badges worn on the left arm to indicate the duration of service at the front.—­Tr.

[note 3:] Soldiers voluntarily enlisted in ordinary times for three. four, or five years.  Those enlisted for four or five year’ have the right to choose their arm of the service, subject to conditions.—­

10

Argoval

The twilight of evening was coming near from the direction of the country, and a gentle breeze, soft as a whisper, came with it.