The American army was moving toward Sedan. Already the Yankee forces advancing from the south and west had occupied St. Aigan and invested Maisoncelle, Stonne and Sommauthe. The enemy had contested every inch of the ground, but the Americans were not to be denied. The Forty-second division, better known as the Rainbow Division, under command of Major-General Charles D. Rhodes, and the Second division, regular army troops, commanded by Major-General John A. Lejeune, were showing the way.
On either side of these forces were the Seventy-seventh and the Eighty-second divisions, commanded respectively by Major-General Robert Alexander and Major-General George P. Duncan.
In these American units advancing upon Sedan were represented fighting men from all sections of the United States.
The Forty-second was composed of former National Guardsmen from the various states, the Seventy-seventh recruited chiefly from New York City, and the Eighty-second, composed of Georgians, Tennesseeans and Alabamans. The Second division, as has been said, was a regular army unit.
It was with the Forty-second division that Hal and Chester found themselves when the advance began. Attached to the staff of Colonel O'Neil of the third regiment, Thirty-second division, commanded by Major-General William C. Haan, they had been sent to General Rhodes with dispatches just before the advance began.
It was the night of the second of November, 1918, and the Americans were forging ahead in spite of the lateness of the hour—midnight. This was one feature of Yankee fighting that the Germans were never able to understand. The German is a methodical man. Even in the art of war he is governed to no small degree by habit. Ordinarily the Germans did not fight at night. With the coming of darkness, as a rule, it had been their custom to postpone further actions till the morrow.
Now, however, they were forced to give up some of these customs. When American forces advanced they continued their work whether it was night or day. Consequently, the Germans had found themselves forced either to fight or run.
The Germans were fighting tonight. All day they had been retreating, but now, less than a dozen miles from the city of Sedan, they were making a desperate stand.
The voices of the great guns shattered the night; huge rockets and other signal flares lighted up the darkness. Dimly could be heard the crash of machine gun fire and the rattle of the rifles at points where the fighting was close.
All day Hal and Chester had been kept on the jump, carrying dispatches to the various regimental commanders. At midnight, there appeared little likelihood they would gain a much needed rest before morning. General Rhodes, realizing the advantage won earlier in the day, was determined to press it to the utmost. Over his field telephone he kept in touch with developments in other parts of the field. There, he learned, the Germans also were giving ground.
The advance guard of the Forty-second was now a few miles to the north of Maisoncelle, which had been captured late in the evening. General Rhodes determined upon a bold stroke.
He summoned Hal, who stood at attention beside Chester, in the general's quarters.
"Major Paine!" he called.
Hal approached and saluted.
"My compliments to Colonel English," continued General Rhodes, "and order him to assume command of the First, Second, Third and Tenth regiments and make a detour toward Pouilly. Inform him that I will make a greater show of force to the south, and have him close in on the enemy from the east. I am informed that the German positions there have been weakened. We may catch the enemy in a trap. That is all."
Hal saluted, swung on his heel and departed hastily. Outside, he sprang into a small army automobile, which was among a number of other cars standing idle pending necessity of use by dispatch bearers, and soon was speeding through the darkness.
Half an hour later he was received by Colonel English, who heard his orders in silence.
"Inform the general that I shall move at once," said the colonel.
Hal saluted and returned to headquarters.
Already, without waiting to hear the result of Hal's mission, General Rhodes had given orders for a more rapid advance all along the line.
The clear notes of many bugles sounded from various parts of the field. Regimental commanders gave necessary instructions to their subordinates and the advance of the American forces gained in momentum.
Half an hour later Hal found himself on the road again bearing instructions to Colonel English. He overtook the colonel two miles from where he had found him last. The colonel was riding along in the midst of his men, in a large army automobile. He motioned Hal to a seat beside him.
"I am instructed to go with you, sir," said Hal, "and carry back word of any imminent danger."
"Very well," said the colonel. "Make yourself at home."
From time to time Colonel English summoned aides whom he dispatched to other parts of the field with instructions. Suddenly he turned to Hal.
"It strikes me," he said, "that the general is risking a whole lot on this move. If the enemy is in greater strength at Pouilly than we suppose, our position will be critical."
"I would imagine that the general's information is authentic," returned Hal. "Otherwise he would not have ordered you to Pouilly."
"You are probably right," said Colonel English; "but at the same time I have a feeling that all is not well."
Hal shrugged his shoulders, a movement that was not discernable to Colonel English in the darkness.
"Well," the lad said, "we'll let the boches know we are there at all events."
"Right," agreed Colonel English.
There was silence after that except for the plodding feet of the infantry and the noise of the horses that composed the single troop of cavalry with the expedition. Also, the sharp crack of machine guns in other parts of the field and the voices of the distant big guns could be heard.
"According to my calculations," said Colonel English to Hal an hour later, "we should now be within three miles of Pouilly. I shall order a halt here and make a reconnaisance."
He did so; and the troops sat there in the darkness for perhaps an hour while a young lieutenant and ten men went ahead to get the lay of the land.
"All quiet ahead, sir," the lieutenant reported on his return. "I went as close to the enemy as I dared. He apparently is expecting no attack from this direction. The village should be captured with ease by a surprise assault."
"You were not, of course, able to ascertain the approximate strength of the enemy, lieutenant?"
"No, sir; I dared not approach too close."
"Very good, lieutenant."
The young officer saluted and returned to his station.
"Well," said Colonel English to Hal, "it seems that my fears were groundless. We'll go forward."
Silently the Americans crept along the dark road—or as silently as it is possible for a mass of men and horses to creep. Machine guns were dragged along as silently as possible, and the few field pieces that were the main reliance of the little force also were hauled with extreme caution.
Less than a half a mile from the village itself, Colonel English swung his field pieces into position to cover the advance of his men. It was not his intention to alarm the enemy by opening a bombardment of the village, but he overlooked nothing that would protect his men.
Under cover of the silent guns, which were ready for action at a moment's notice, the Americans crept forward. A short distance ahead Hal could see here and there a faint light, which indicated that the whole village was not asleep. Also, the lad knew, German sentinels were on guard; and there was little possibility that the Americans could enter the town without discovery.
"By Jove!" the lad muttered to himself. "I don't like to sit back here while all this is going on."
He turned to Colonel English.
"Colonel," he said, "I wonder if you will permit me to take a hand in the attack? I assure you that I am no novice at the game."
The colonel considered the point a moment.
"All right," he said at last, "but mind that you do not expose yourself needlessly. You must remember that General Rhodes looks to you for a report on the pending engagement. Here, I'll give you instructions for Lieutenant Colonel Johnson, of the Fourth regiment. That will enable you to get into the midst of things. You may remain with the regiment as long as you see fit, remembering only that I wish you to report to me an hour after daylight."
"Very well, sir," said Hal.
He leaped lightly from the colonel's automobile, appropriated a horse from a trooper who stood near and dashed forward in the darkness.
Colonel Johnson's force was some distance ahead, and it was perhaps fifteen minutes later that Hal came up with him. He gave the instructions that Colonel English had confided in him, and then said:
"Colonel, if you don't mind I'll stay with you through this battle."
Colonel Johnson would have protested, but Hal continued with a smile:
"I have the permission of Colonel English, sir. I hope that I may be of some assistance to you. Do not hesitate to call upon me for any piece of work that you may wish accomplished."
Colonel Johnson shrugged.
"Help yourself," he said, "and don't worry. If I've need of your services you may be sure I won't hesitate to ask for them."
The march continued in silence.
Suddenly the sound that Hal had been expecting came. It was the blast of a great gun, close at hand. The advance of the Americans had been discovered. Colonel English took his decision instantly.
"Charge!" he cried.
The Americans went forward with a wild yell.