Page:No More Parades (Albert & Charles Boni).djvu/69

 "What's that? Dual Ah, I see you're there, Mackenzie Feeling well  feeling fit, eh?"

The whole hut stood silent. His anger at the waste of time made Tietjens say:

"If you understand, sir, we are a unit whose principal purpose is drawing things to equip drafts with" This fellow was delaying them atrociously. He was brushing his knees with a handkerchief! "I've had," Tietjens said, "a man killed on my hands this afternoon because we have to draw tin-hats for my orderly room from Dublin on an A.F.B. Canadian from Aldershot Killed here We've only just mopped up the blood from where you're standing"

The cavalry colonel exclaimed:

"Oh, good gracious me" jumped a little and examined his beautiful shining knee-high aircraft boots. "Killed Here But there'll have to be a court of inquiry You certainly are most unfortunate, Captain Tietjens Always these mysterious Why wasn't your man in a dug-out?  Most unfortunate We cannot have casualties among the Colonial troops Troops from the Dominions, I mean"

Tietjens said grimly:

"The man was from Pontardulias not from any Dominion One of my orderly room We are forbidden on pain of court martial to let any but Dominion Expeditionary Force men go into the dug-outs My Canadians were all there It's an A.C.I. local of the eleventh of November"

The Staff Officer said:

"It makes of course, a difference Only a Glamorganshire? You say Oh, well But these mysterious "