It was a long journey from Vierzon to Dijon. At Bourges Ralph had taken advantage of a delay of some hours--necessitated by the fact that no train was going--to get some suitable clothes, instead of the peasant's suit in which he had traversed the lines. He had, of course, brought his papers with him; so that he had no difficulty, whatever, in getting on by the train. But the train itself made but slow work of it. Bourbaki had passed west only the week before, with all his army, upon his march to the relief of Belfort; and the railway was completely choked. However, Ralph was not inclined to grumble at the cause of his delay; for it was only upon Bourbaki's approach that the Germans had evacuated Dijon--which was now held by Garibaldi's irregulars, and a considerable force of Mobiles.
So great were the delays that it was evening when the train reached Dijon. Ralph had scarcely stepped out on to the platform when Percy bounded upon him, and threw his arms round his neck.
"Dear, dear old Ralph! Thank God you are back again."
"My dear Percy, where did you spring from?"
"I have been home five days. I was still down at Marseilles, when I heard that Dijon was open again; and I came straight up.
"And how are you, Ralph?"
"Oh, I am getting all right again. How are they all, at home?"
"Well--quite well--but dreadfully anxious about you."
By this time the boys were out of the station, and were walking homeward.
"But you have not told me how you happened to be at the station."
"Well, I was waiting there, just on the chance of seeing you. Mamma was so dreadfully anxious about you that I wanted to do something. At any rate, I could not sit quiet at home. There are never more than two trains with passengers in a day, sometimes only one; so I have been staying down in the town, most of the days since I came home--having paid one of the railway people to send me word, directly the train was telegraphed as starting from Dole."
"How long is it since my letter arrived?"
"Nearly three weeks, Ralph; fortunately it came four or five days before a letter from Tempe, saying that he feared you were killed. Not having heard again, they were terribly anxious."
"I had no means of writing," Ralph said. "The English ambulance--through whom my letter was sent--moved down to Vendome, the very day after I wrote; and I had no other way of sending my letter."
"I said it was something of that sort. I pointed out to them that it was evident, by what you said, that the fever had passed off, and that you only wanted strength; but that being in hiding, of course, you could not write. I gave you three weeks to get strong enough to start, and four or five days to manage to get through the lines; so that by my calculation you were just due, when you arrived.
"It has pulled you down, Ralph, very much. I wish I had been there to nurse you."
"Thank you, Percy. Fortunately I did fall into very good hands, and was well looked after. I hope papa has not been over anxious about me?"
"I think he has been nervous, Ralph; but he did not show it, but talked cheerfully to keep up mamma and Milly."
"And are you quite strong again, Percy?"
"Yes, I think I am nearly as strong as ever, Ralph.
"There, we are just at the house, now. You had better wait outside; while I go in and let them know, gradually, that you are home. I came in like a fool, suddenly, and mamma fainted--she says for the first time in her life--and Milly went into hysterics, and cried and laughed so wildly that you might have heard her in Dijon. She frightened me nearly out of my senses."
Ralph remained, accordingly, outside the door; while Percy went in alone. The others had finished tea.
"You are a little late, Percy," Mrs. Barclay said. "We gave you twenty minutes' law. It is not the least matter, your being late; but I do not think it is wise to be out, these bitter nights, until you are quite strong."
"I am quite strong, mamma, as strong as ever," Percy laughed; but his laugh was, in spite of himself, a little unnatural.
His father looked sharply up.
Percy sat down, and drank a little of the tea his mother handed to him.
"I waited for the train to come in," he said, "and--of course it may not be so--but I heard of someone who, by the description, seemed to be Ralph."
"What was it, Percy, what was it?" Milly cried; while her mother gazed at him with a pale face, and appealing eyes.
"Don't agitate yourself, mamma dear--you see, it may not be true, after all--but among the people in the train was one who had come straight from Bourges. I spoke to him, and he said that he had heard--by a friend who had come straight from Vierzon--that a young officer had just arrived there, in disguise; who had been wounded, and in hiding, ever since the capture of Orleans. You know, mamma, it is just the time I calculated he would be coming; and from the fact of his being a young staff officer, and in disguise, I have very little doubt it is Ralph."
Captain Barclay rose from his seat and--standing for a moment behind his wife's chair--looked at Percy, and then at the door, inquiringly. Percy nodded.
Captain Barclay leaned over, and kissed his wife
"Thank God, dear, for all His mercies! Another day or two, and we shall be having him home."
"Thank God, indeed!" Mrs. Barclay said; "but though I hope--though I try to think it was him--perhaps it was not, perhaps--"
"No, mamma," Percy said, "from some particulars he gave, and from what he said, I feel almost sure--I may say I am quite sure--it is Ralph. I would not say so, you know, unless I felt very certain."
Mrs. Barclay felt that he would not, and fell into her husband's arms, crying softly with happiness.
Milly was no longer in the room. She had caught the glance between her father and Percy, and had rightly interpreted it. She had risen to her feet, but a warning gesture from Captain Barclay had checked the cry of gladness on her lips; and she had stolen quietly from the room, closed the door noiselessly, had flown to the front door and out into the road beyond, and was now crying happily in Ralph's arms.
"And when do you think he can get here, Richard?" Mrs. Barclay asked her husband.
"Soon, dear--quite soon," he answered. "He may come tomorrow. He would be certain to come almost as quickly as the news."
"Oh, how happy I am!" Mrs. Barclay said. "Thank God for His mercies! To think that, tomorrow, I may have both my boys back again."
"Will there be another train in, tonight, Percy?" Captain Barclay asked.
"Quite possibly," Percy said; "indeed, indeed,"--and he hesitated--"you see, I walked up fast; it is just possible that he may have arrived by this train."
Mrs. Barclay understood now.
"He is come," she exclaimed, looking up. "I know it, now."
Captain Barclay took her up in his arms.
"You can bear it, can't you, Melanie? Yes, dear, he has come."
Percy saw that it was safe now. He went to the door, and opened it. Ralph was standing outside, in readiness; and in another moment his mother was in his arms.
Later in the evening, Captain Barclay said to Ralph:
"I suppose tomorrow you will obtain a medical certificate, and write to General Chanzy: saying that you are alive, but unable to rejoin?"
"Yes," Ralph answered, "I suppose that will be the best plan. I must have a month's rest."
"That means, my dear boy, that you will not have to go out any more. Another month will see the end of the struggle--or at any rate, if the end has not absolutely arrived, it will be unmistakable.
"The game is, I am convinced, altogether lost. A fortnight ago, I had still hope. Chanzy and Bourbaki had each an army, nearly or quite equal to that of Prince Frederick Charles. He could not attack one in force, without leaving the road to Paris open to the other.
"Bourbaki has come upon this mad expedition to the east; and you will see Prince Frederick Charles will throw his whole strength upon Chanzy, crush him, and then attend to Bourbaki. Bourbaki may relieve Belfort, but in that corner of France what is he to do? Prussian reinforcements are coming down to Werder, every day. Troops are marching on this town from Paris and, if Bourbaki is not wonderfully quick, we shall have another Sedan here.
"After the defeat of these, the last two armies of France, it would be madness to continue the war. Paris must surrender, for there would be no further possibility of relief; and there would be no advantage, whatever, in enduring further sufferings.
"No, my boys, I said 'Go' when I thought that there was a possibility of saving France. You have done your duty--more than your duty. It would be worse than folly--it would be wickedness--to voluntarily put your lives into danger, when success has ceased to be possible. I should be the last man to hinder you from what was your duty. I said 'Go' before, when few fathers would have said so. I would say 'Go' again, now, if your duty called you; but as you can both obtain sick leave, for another six weeks, I say take that leave. Do not do more than your duty, for heroism is now of no use to France."
"I agree with you altogether, papa," Ralph said. "I have seen, and had, quite enough fighting for my lifetime. Of course, if the war goes on Percy and I, as officers, must return to our duty, but I am willing to obtain all the sick leave I can get; for although I still believe in the individual bravery of the French soldiers, I am quite convinced that it is altogether out of the question that--with their want of organization, want of generals, want of officers, want of discipline, want of everything--they can drive out the magnificent armies of Germany.
"Has Percy got his leave extended?"
"Yes," Percy said; "I am fairly well, but I am still shaky. I have not quite got over that swim; and the surgeon said, without my applying for it, that I must have prolonged rest so, at the end of the month, he extended it for two months longer.
"I thoroughly agree with you both. We have had quite enough of it. We shall always have the satisfaction that we did our duty to France, and our rank; and these ribbons,"--and he touched the rosette of the legion of honor, in his buttonhole--"will prove that we have distinguished ourselves. We have had great good fortune, hitherto; it might turn, next time."
And so it was settled that the boys should remain at home, for the next two months; by which time they agreed, with their father, the resistance would be fairly worn out. Ralph wrote to General Chanzy, relating the whole circumstances of his absence. General Chanzy wrote in reply--in spite of the demands upon his time--saying how pleased he was that Ralph had escaped, as he had quite gi............