CHAPTER VI.
GETTING NEAR THE WAR ZONE.
"Hold on to your horses, everybody!" called out Merritt, as he lookedback toward the bridge from which they had now managed to press quite alittle distance.
Merritt somehow did not seem to be very much astonished at what Rob hadsaid. It might be he himself had entertained suspicions along those samelines.
They had heard that the determined Belgians were engaged in throwing allthe obstacles possible in the way of an advance in force on the part ofthe invaders. If only cavalry were to be dealt with, the defenders ofthe soil had faith in their ability to take care of all that could besent against them; but it was known to be a fact that the artillery armwas what the Germans meant to depend on more than anything else in thiswar for conquest.
If bridges and culverts were destroyed in every direction before theenemy could take possession of the roads, it would be next to impossibleto move the great siege guns until some sort of strong temporarystructure had been built in place of the stone and steel fabrics thatwere blown up.
And so, for days, there had been reports drifting in to Antwerp thatcertain bridges had been marked for destruction. Those who sallied forthin armored cars to speed over the country, and play havoc with theirMaxim guns, found it necessary to revise their map of the district everynight so as to conform to the new changes that had been wrought.
It was hardly ten seconds after Merritt told them to keep a firm grip onthe bridles of their horses that the boys on looking back saw the bridgesuddenly rear itself in the air. Then came a terrifying boom that madethe very ground under their feet quiver; and, in a moment later, inplace of the fine bridge lay a horrible gap, from which smoke and dustwas arising in sickening clouds.
Tubby was as white as a sheet. The others could hear the big sigh withwhich he drew in a gulp of air.
"I want to say right here," he started to remark solemnly, "that I'mthankful I've got such a cracking good nose for queer odors. Think whatmight have happened to us if I hadn't begun to sniff around, and madeRob take notice. All that pile of stuff would have buried us out ofsight. And the horses knew, sure they did. That explains why they actedso funny all the while. But isn't it a shame to see how they had tosmash that splendid bridge!"
"Don't forget that this is war, Tubby," Merritt told him, "and to hinderthe enemy from coming up, anything is allowable."
"But that's going to block our going on, I take it," ventured Tubby,watching Anthony, who showed evidences of having been considerablyexcited by the explosion, though Tubby could not tell whether it wasfear that influenced the man, or an overmastering desire to join thearmy, and engage in some of this obstructive work himself.
"Oh! that doesn't follow," Rob assured him. "I noticed that the riverwas shallow just now; and I imagined I could see the old ford that usedto answer before this bridge was ever thought of. We can get acrosswithout swimming. You forded the Rio Grande once upon a time, Tubby, andsuch a little bug stream as this shouldn't phase you a bit."
"Oh! count on me going wherever the rest of you lead," retorted Tubby,with a blustering air, as though he did not want anyone to think him atall timid.
"We might as well go back now," remarked Rob, "and see about gettingover. If the mine has been exploded, there shouldn't be any danger; Iwant to try that ford."
It was found that though the bridge was wrecked pretty badly, thegreatest damage was to the span, and not so much to the anchorages orpiers. In time another arch could be built--should peace ever come tothis distracted land--when men would be able to once more "beat theirswords into ploughshares," and start to rebuilding what had beendestroyed.
"Follow after me," Rob told them, as he started to urge his horse acrosswhere he could see the old ford had been.
Little of the material from the wrecked bridge had been thrown to anydistance, so the ford was not blocked. The horses still displayed moreor less restlessness, as though they could not understand that, withsuch a smell of choking gases in the air, the danger was all over. Thethree boys, however, had had considerable experience in handling balkyanimals, and knew just how to urge them on.
Once on the other side, they started up the bank. As they arrived at theroad, having crossed the abyss, they saw a crowd of men hurrying towardthe spot. They were partly Belgian soldiers, it turned out, along withsome civilians, possibly men versed in explosives or strategy to beemployed to delay the advance of the German artillery.
Of course, they were very much excited at meeting the boys. The khakiuniforms seemed to soften their anger to some extent, but one whoappeared to be in authority started to scold them for walking soblindly into a trap.
Through the guide Rob hastened to explain how it came they had notsuspected the truth. Then as questions began to follow, he also told whoand what they were, even mentioning something concerning theirself-imposed mission into the danger zone of the fighting.
When the precious passport, written out by the good burgomaster, wasshown, it had an additional soothing effect. The man in charge of thesquad of destruction smiled and nodded as he perused the document,written in French.
"He say burgomaster his uncle!" explained Antonio, after the other hadhanded the paper back, and made some remark.
"Well, now, that's what I call fine. Tell him we're glad we got out fromunder that bridge in time," said Rob, "and also that we think he made aclean sweep of the job."
This seemed to please the Belgian officer, for he insisted on shakinghands all around. Feeling that they were now free to proceed, the scoutsresumed their journey along the road that led to Brussels; probably,wholly in the hands of the invaders further on toward the capital, sincerumor had it that immense numbers of German troops were daily beingmoved toward Ghent.
"All of which only goes to show how necessary it is to be constantly onthe watch while you're in a country that's fighting for its life,"Merritt remarked to his companions as they lost sight of the ruinedbridge.
"If only we had eyes in the back of our heads, we might get along a heapbetter, I think," grumbled Tubby, as his horse awkwardly stumbled oversome small object, and gave him a shock.
"It was a close call, all right," acknowledged Merritt, "and has soberedour guide a whole lot, I notice. He listens to every far-off boom now,as though something might be drawing him. But the morning is wearingaway, so I suggest that we stop at the very first village we come to,and see if we can beg, buy, or steal something to eat. I'm hungry as abear."
"Oh! bless you, Merritt, for those kind words!" called out Tubby. "I'vefelt a vacuum down around my belt line for two hours back. Whoa!there!" he added, as his horse stumbled again. "Want to break my neck,you animated skeleton? He knocks his hoofs together every third step hetakes. No wonder they didn't grab him for the cavalry; he'd have fallenall over himself in the first charge."
Coming to a little hamlet, the boys found a house where they couldsecure something in the way of a lunch. Even at this early stage in thewar, however, prudent hotel keepers realized that times were going to behard, and that it would be the part of wisdom to conceal all the storespossible against a rainy day, or the raids of such invaders who might bebilleted upon the villagers.
Here the boys remained between one and two hours, since the day wasunusually hot, and their mounts were not in the best of condition forstanding hard service.
Some of the good people had left for safer quarters, which would meanAntwerp, of course,--deemed impossible of capture at that day on accountof its wonderful defenses. A group gathered in front of the littlehotel, and questioned Anthony as to who the three boys in the uniform ofscouts might be, and of the nature of their mission that tempted them toinvade a region being made desolate by war.
Anthony himself knew very little on that score; but since it would notlook well for him to admit this fact, it is possible he "drew the longbow" to some extent. He may even have told all sorts of fairy storiesabout the boys being English agents sent over to learn facts inconnection with the movements of the G
erman army, so that a strong forceof the allies from across the Channel could be hastily dispatched to thescene, and chase the haughty Germans back across the Rhine.
Some idea like this the boys found very prevalent all through theirjourney. The Belgians seemed to believe the English were getting awonderful surprise ready with which to stagger the enemy. If they couldhave only known how an army had to be built up step by step in the greatisland country, they might have felt less confidence, and perhaps shownmore discretion in attacking the invaders.
Rob suspected something of this sort when he saw the way the villagersobserved him and two chums, staring at them as though they werecuriosities.
"Makes you feel like some punkins, to have all these people watch everylittle thing you do, and get out of your way so quick when you go tomake a move, don't it?" remarked Tubby, evidently tickled over theattention shown them.
"I don't just like it, to tell you the truth," admitted Merritt.
"Oh! you're too modest by half, Merritt!" jeered the fat scout.
"It isn't that, Tubby," explained the other. "Rob here says he believesour guide is spreading the report that we're English messengers, sentahead to pick up news about the Germans, so they can be smashed when theBritish army gets here."
"Well, what of that?" demanded his friend. "It isn't so _very_ dreadfulthat I can see, to be mistaken for a Johnny Bull."
"You'll change your tune, my boy," Rob told him, "if the Germans shouldcome along and nab us. We'll soon see how you begin to roar out thatyou're a Yankee, as true-blue as they make them."
"Oh! but they wouldn't know anything about that!" declared Tubby, thoughshowing signs of increasing dismay at the same time.
"You never can tell," he was told by Rob. "The ways of these smartGermans are past finding out. They've got spies everywhere. Right nowthere may be some secret sympathizer with the Fatherland in that bunchclose by, taking in all that silly Anthony has been saying."
"Gingersnaps and popguns!" gasped Tubby, "if that's really so I guesswe'd better muzzle our guide in a hurry. Where's he gone to, do youthink, Rob? It was all of half an hour ago that I saw him last, talkingto the crowd."
"I was wondering about that myself," said Merritt. "If we expect to begetting along about this time, we ought to look Anthony up."
"You take a turn that way, and I'll step into the taproom of the inn, tosee if he is there," remarked Rob, who had a slight frown on his faceas he spoke, as if he might not be wholly satisfied with the way inwhich their guide was acting.
Five minutes later Rob and Merritt joined Tubby at the same time.
"Nothing doing in my section," remarked Merritt, "except that I'm afraidsomebody has swiped one of our nags, for I could only count three horseshitched there."
"Then, that settles it!" said Rob positively.
"Settles what?" piped up Tubby.
"Anthony has basely deserted us, and taken to the back road!" Rob toldthem. "I feared as much from what the little inn proprietor let out; butwhat you say clinches the thing. Our guide is a mile or more on the wayback to Antwerp by now!"