CHAPTER V.
ON THE ROAD TO CALAIS.
"What's this I see ahead there, boys? Looks like there might be someother motorcycle fellows around these regions, though I guess they'veleft their mounts behind."
It was Hanky Panky who said this. They had halted at a wayside spring torefresh themselves, for the road was proving pretty dusty.
At noon the three boys had swung through Ostend on the Belgian coast.The famous watering place did not look just the same as on othersummers, when tens of thousands visited it for the sport to be enjoyedin the sea. True, it was swarming with people, but in the main soldierswalked the sands, and there was a decidedly martial air to the placegenerally given up to gaiety.
The boys had, of course, been stopped quite frequently. With war in theland this was only to be expected. Still the papers they carried alwayswon the day, and they were allowed to proceed. This could hardly bewondered at when one of those little documents was written wholly byKing Albert himself, and contained an express desire that the bearer andhis friends should be given every possible courtesy by loyal Belgians,as they had proved their friendship for the little kingdom to theutmost.
Then later on the motorcycle trio knew they were on French soil, forthey had been stopped by a patrol in the famous blue tunics of therepublican army. Once more had their passports been scanned, and after alittle consultation, in which Rod was able to mingle a few sentences, hespeaking French, they were saluted respectfully by the patrol, andallowed to proceed.
After that they had arrived at Dunkirk, where later on hundreds ofthousands of British soldiers were destined to be landed.
Once through this city the boys headed on south, aiming to reach Calaisbefore evening came. So far nothing serious had hindered their forwardprogress, and all of them felt light-hearted indeed.
Then had come the halt at the cool wayside spring; and it was afterdrinking their fill of the delightful water, thanks to a gourd some kindperson had supplied, that Hanky Panky announced his discovery.
Josh took a look, and then burst out into a loud laugh.
"Why, if you're going to believe because a fellow wears khaki he mustown a motorcycle," he told the other, "you'll have the whole countryfull of spinning machines. Those are British soldiers, Hanky; TommyAtkins, you know, come over to France to give a helping hand to keep theGermans out of Paris."
"Sure they are," grinned the other; "as if we didn't spy a lot of thesame up at Dunkirk when we slipped through. I was only guying you, Josh.But we must be near Calais, don't you think, Rod?"
"Only a few miles more and we'll get there," the leader advised him."Like as not there's a regiment of Britishers camped near by, ready tostart off in the direction of Paris when trains can be supplied."
"Huh! they'll need all the hands they can muster to hold back that armywe saw passing through Brussels, I wager," said Josh.[1]
"Hundreds of thousands of Germans, if there was one," added Hanky Panky;"why, they passed on the dog-trot for hours all that afternoon; and inthe morning the drab-colored line was still moving steadily through thecity, headed south."
"There, those two men are going down the road now, in the same directionwe are," Josh went on to say; "I'd like to come up with them, and hear afew words in my own mother tongue. Let me tell you I'm tired oflistening to only German, Flemish and French."
The two soldiers, hearing the splutter of the motorcycles behind them,drew to one side of the road so as to allow the trio of boys to pass.Instead of doing this the chums dismounted and saluted.
"We're three Americans boys who got caught in the whirl of the war onthe border of the Rhine country," Rod hastened to explain. "We've had apretty warm experience getting through Belgium with our machines, but bygreat good luck managed to do so. Now we want to get to the front wherethe fighting is going on. We've a good reason for wishing to do that,you see. Where is your camp, may I ask, fellows?"
The two young Britishers exchanged surprised looks. Evidently theyhardly knew whether to believe Rod or not, his story seemed soremarkable. Still they must have been favorably impressed with hislooks, as nearly every person was, for presently they smiled broadly,and insisted on shaking hands with each of the motorcycle boys.
"Our camp is about a mile ahead, and alongside the road," one of themhastened to explain; "you will be held up there, unless you sheer off ona little side road that lies just beyond that batch of squatty trees."
Evidently this was intended as a gentle hint. Rod, however, onlylaughed.
"Thanks for the tip, my friend," he said gaily; "but we mean to spendthe night in Calais, and will be only too glad to meet your commandingofficer. We have papers he will be pleased to see; and there isn't ageneral on French soil but who would gladly let us pass on therecommendations we carry."
"When do you expect to start for the front?" asked Josh just then, aswith his companions he prepared to move on.
"We have received notice that a train will be ready for us an hour aftersundown; and let me tell you we are highly pleased to know it," came thereply, accompanied with a good-natured smile.
"What is the news from the front?" continued Josh eagerly.
"A tremendous battle is on before Paris," replied the Britisher. "VonKluck has swung around from the northwest, and is trying to envelope thecity with his forces, while two other armies are bearing down from thenorth and northeast. It will be all the French can do to hold them back.Most of us expect that Paris will fall inside of a few days. But we'refair wild to get in the ruck, and strike a blow at the Kaiser'ssoldiers. He's called the British a contemptible little army, you mustknow."
"Here's hoping that you do have that pleasure!" called Josh as he turnedand looked back over his shoulder, for the three boys had started alongthe road; "and my dearest wish is that I get on the ground before allthe scrapping is over."
A short time afterwards and they arrived at the place where the regimentof khaki-clad Britisher regulars was in a temporary camp. They wereawaiting the summons to take their train when it was made up, and bewhirled off to the scene of carnage, where tens of thousands of men onboth sides were fated to be killed and wounded before three more sunshad set.
Rod expected to be held up, and therefore was not in the least surprisedwhen a patrol stepped into the road, motioning to the three lads tohalt. They were soon taken to the place where several officers satlooking over a map of Paris and its environs, where they fully expectedto be in action before another twenty-four hours had passed.
The British officers eyed them with more or less wonder, and not alittle suspicion in the bargain, for they soon realized that the boyswere not English, as they had at first supposed; and ugly rumorsconcerning clever German spies had already begun to pass current in theranks of the Allies.
When Rod gave a brief account of all their adventures, from the timethey heard the first news of how war had been declared against Russiaand France by Germany, all of them were deeply interested. And theyscanned the wonderful paper bearing the signature of King Albert witheager eyes, for already had the monarch of the dauntless little Belgiannation become an heroic figure over across the Channel, on account ofhis defiance to the Kaiser's demand that he allow the German army tomarch through neutral territory in order to swoop down on Paris.
After a very pleasant ten minutes with the British officers the boyspassed on toward Calais, followed by the best of wishes.
"No use talking," Josh was heard to say, "blood is thicker than water,after all. I've got some English and Scotch and Irish blood in me, andthat's why my heart is with the cause of the Allies. I suppose if I'dhad German ancestors I'd be just as much for their cause; but all thesame I am not."
Shortly afterwards they arrived in Calais, and put up at an innrecommended by one of the officers as being decent and reasonable.Calais was already in the throes of the war, for the streets werecrowded with marching soldiers; and artillery trains could be seenmoving this way and that, as they were being loaded on flat cars to betaken to the fro
nt.
The boys expected to pass the night there, getting such sleep as waspossible, considering the confusion that prevailed. In the morning, ifall were well, they could make an early start in the direction of Paris,expecting to find splendid roads all of the way, and with nothing todelay them, unless it were the fact that moving armies clogged thethoroughfares so that a passage was impossible.
After they had had their supper they wandered forth to look around alittle, because on account of meaning to get away so early they knewthere would be no opportunity to do this in the morning.
All of them felt rather tired, however, and it was not long before HankyPanky voiced the general sentiment when he suggested that sleep wouldfill the bill better than anything else he knew of.
They had a room with two beds, and as Josh was a restless sleeper he wasgiven the single cot. It may have been about one or two in the morningwhen Rod awoke, oppressed with the conviction that there was somethingmoving in the room, which suggestion sent a thrill through his wholebeing, and aroused him thoroughly.
[Footnote 1: See "The Big Five Motorcycle Boys Under Fire."]