I took to the water first. It was up to my shoulders and the bottom was muddy. I went across to try it without any of our possessions with me. It was lucky I did so, as at the other side of the stream I got into very bad mud and had a hard job to get out of it. By dint1 of half swimming, half clambering among the thick reeds on the edge of the river I managed to get over, [185]but I had found out the best way to tackle it, and went back to the other side quite easily.
Taking the bulk of our possessions tied roughly together on the big bag with me, I got safely across and deposited them on the other side by my second trip.
Another journey, and all our gear was across. Fox being a heavy man could naturally do none of this work as the mud was too treacherous2. As it was, in attempting to cross himself, he got badly stuck near the bed of reeds on the other side.
With my hand to help him and by making use of the reeds with arms and body, he struggled clear at last, by no means sorry to be on firm ground again.
Quickly dressing3 ourselves we got away in very little time, and made rapid progress.
Our map was very faulty in its description of this part of the country. Villages had sprung up lately perhaps, and as it was an old map they were not included in it.
The main result of this to us was that [186]we discovered here at unexpected moments villages and collections of farms in front of us. We took them all as they came, driven to great speed by the threat of having to reduce our food rations5. As usual our canine6 foes7 advertised our movements everywhere, but we had become thoroughly8 used to them by now, and took little or no notice of them.
The sign-posts at the road-junctions in this particularly old-world district were very ancient, often written in old German characters. To read them it was frequently necessary for me to mount on Fox's shoulders in order to get a closer look at blurred9 and faded words.
These villages, seen as they were by the light of a nearly full-moon, gave one the impression of being extremely beautiful. The houses were all old. Bulging10 walls, practically all containing supports and cross-pieces of old timber, and low eaves were common.
[187]It was a very out-of-the-way track we had chosen, and one wondered whether we had unwittingly come across a collection of something quite out of the ordinary in the way of old-fashioned villages. I should like to have seen them by day. I expect some of these old places could produce a very fine collection of really old furniture if they were searched by a connoisseur11.
While creeping through a village we got a bad fright in the early hours of the morning. Without warning we heard the ringing of a high-noted bell quite close to us.
The mystery of this was rather alarming until we solved it.
A few yards farther on we passed an old church in the side of the road; from the windows of this a faint light was shining. The bell rang again, and we located the sound as having come from the church. Evidently an all-night mass for the dead must have been in progress.
On clearing the village we seemed to leave [188]civilisation behind us and entered an area of wild moorland. At first here and there quaint-looking houses were dotted about, but even these we left behind in our rush westwards over this moor12.
Saturday, 30th June. By this time it was fairly light and we had covered a great distance in a very short space of time. A hiding-place was forthcoming when we decided13 to rest, and with a plentiful14 supply of water not very far away we managed at last to get a good hot drink before sleeping.
The wildness of the country and the need for speed moved us on again at about 3 p.m. Excellent water was abundant in all the low land in this undulating moorland district, and after a good drink we felt very strong in preparation for what we decided must be a great march before we rested again.
While following a rough track over the heather-covered slopes, a young hare foolishly sat down in a tuft of heather a short distance ahead of us. This we proceeded to stalk, [189]and thinking of the possible food supply in front of us we went very carefully for it. I took a detour15 round it so as to occupy its attention, while Fox, armed with a water-bottle held by the strap16, warily17 approached it direct. He got to within two yards of it before up it got.
A wild swipe with the water-bottle missed it by six inches. The hare galloped18 off, while our water-bottle let its valuable contents run out rapidly. However, Master Hare had not apparently19 had enough of it, for he again squatted20 in a tuft some two hundred yards farther on. The same plan of attack was carried out, and again Fox got to within striking distance.
This time, feeling that the strap had only retarded21 the attack, he hurled22 the whole thing at the hare, narrowly missing it, but this time scaring it so much that it disappeared in the distance at a great pace.
At about 10 p.m. we got near a village we had been making for, with the object of [190]striking a road. This village, although nothing very important, proved to be the point of concentration of roads and tracks crossing the moor. In making a careful detour round the northern outskirts23 of it we suddenly came upon three men in dark clothes, standing24 on one of these tracks. Turning sharply to the north we made for a wood a mile or so away, and watching them carefully out of the corners of our eyes we slunk along rapidly. They did not really follow us, although they took a few paces in our direction.
Having gained the wood we made a circle through it and were able to come back to the vicinity of the village well away from the three men. We could still see them, but then we knew where to look and they would have had to be visual marvels25 to see us, peeping as we were over the top of the corn, which was plentiful all round this village. At last we got on to our right road, which led us to the end of the moorland [191]and eventually landed us in a swampy26 bottom cut up with dykes27 and small streams. Here we floundered about in a hopeless manner in the darkness. Feeling thoroughly tired and cold owing to the rain which had begun to descend28 an hour or so previously29, we got into a cowshed and decided to have as many hot drinks, etc., as we could manage, and push ahead as soon as we could see sufficiently30 well to do so without wasting time. I think we had about three brews31 each. It was marvellous the effect this had on us. We both felt absolutely fresh again, and quite strong enough for another long stretch before sleeping.
Sunday, 1st July. When sufficiently light we set off, passing a village in the daylight, the track leading out of this difficult country being easily found now, though it had eluded32 all our efforts during the hours of darkness.
A large hill lay before us, and we decided to go to the top of it so as to get from there [192]a view of the country which lay before us. It was a stiff climb and we reaped our reward. A magnificent view greeted us. It was indeed a sight of the promised land, as we remarked at the time.
This hill was the last piece of high ground, or for the matter of that of any ground not dead flat, on the way to the frontier.
We could see the valley of the Ems and the funnels33 of a steamer which we knew must be on the river itself.
The flat country had an almost sea-like appearance, spreading as it did to a regular horizon, where the country became a misty34 grey line.
A twenty minutes' rest here, and on we went.
We were feeling our feet badly again now, and decided to rest on the lower slopes of the hills. On the way down we put up a fox. We had been extremely surprised all along at the scarcity35 of game in the wild country we had traversed.
The Worst Pieces of Boggy36 Ground
"FOX LED THEM OVER THE WORST PIECES OF BOGGY GROUND HE COULD FIND" (page 211).ToList
[193]Beyond a few deer, our hare, a black-cock, and a few duck which we heard in a corn-field, absolutely nothing else showed itself or gave any sign of its existence. As we had gone quietly for the greater part of the distance, it was astonishing that we should have surprised no rabbits out feeding in the early mornings.
We came to the conclusion that, from an English standpoint, there is little or no game in these parts of Germany.
At 5 a.m., finding a good thick copse of small fir-trees, we lay up for a rest. We were now about six miles from the river Ems, which again was some ten miles from the frontier. We decided that the Ems and the frontier itself should be crossed on the same night.
Therefore, in order to allow enough time for such a large programme, we must cross the Ems at the beginning of the night; this meant that the six miles which lay before us now before arriving at the river, [194]had to be done before dark. We proposed to move forward at 5 p.m. A good rest and a large meal worked wonders on our tired bodies, and we felt fit for our last great effort by the hour selected.
Before moving off, however, we decided to make a "cache" of all our superfluous37 luggage, taking with us only food for twenty-four hours, with a bottle of milk each as an emergency ration4, and the water-bottles. The remainder, which was not much now, we hid carefully in case we failed and had to come back for reserve food.
The bag we also left, as that stamps the escaped prisoner more than anything else. We each now had a bundle done up with a coloured handkerchief.
The wild country still stretched westwards until it gave place to a wet valley cut up into rough hay-fields and meadows of rank grass. While walking quietly along a rough grass road here, we suddenly saw a cart with two men in it come out of a field behind a [195]hay-stack some four hundred yards from us. Deciding that to avoid them, when they must have already seen us, would be a very suspicious act, we walked straight ahead. When level with them the old man driving shouted out something to us; we stopped and he repeated his sentence. For the life of me I couldn't make out a single word he said. He had a squeaky voice and spoke38 a vile39 patois40, but it sounded like no language I had ever heard.
His third attempt to make us understand something had no more success, but Fox, who hardly knew a word of German, walked two paces towards him and shouted "Yah"! "Yah"! With that we walked off, leaving the old man and his youthful companion gaping41 at us.
We discussed the matter as we walked away, and both came to the conclusion that he had used the word "Landsturm." From this we made up a nice theory. We imagined that the old man had thought that we had [196]been called up for Landsturm service, and were trudging42 off to the nearest town with our bundles in our hands to join up. They still stood and looked at us, and we had our beautiful theory badly smashed a minute or two later. We suddenly came to the end of the cart-track and found a ditch full of water bordered with a barbed wire fence in front of us. As they were still looking at us, we followed the ditch down for a short distance and then crossed it without hesitation43, hoping to give the impression that we knew what we were about.
They drove on then, and we turned our thoughts to other matters. Some distance further on we came across a youth of about sixteen who was in charge of a flock of sheep. When we were quite close to him his dog must have done something to upset the youth's Hunnish temper, as the beast got a fearful hiding.
Blow after blow, accompanied with torrents44 of Hun oaths, were rained on the wretched [197]animal's back by this child of Kultur, who was armed with a heavy stick. To interfere45 would have been madness on our part, so we passed on. For the next mile we could hear the poor beast's howls.
A swampy mile or so had now to be covered, and then we got on to the edge of a fir wood, which ran down to a road and railway. These we reached and crossed safely, finding ourselves once again in farmland and a country of hedges and dykes. When we judged that we had still a mile or so to do before striking the river we halted and had our last meal, hidden under a good thick bush which constituted part of a hedge at the side of a rough track.
Setting out at 10 p.m., before it was really dusk, we followed a grass track westwards and very nearly got ourselves caught by a piece of carelessness.
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1
dint
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| n.由于，靠；凹坑 | |
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treacherous
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| adj.不可靠的，有暗藏的危险的；adj.背叛的，背信弃义的 | |
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dressing
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| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
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ration
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| n.定量(pl.)给养，口粮；vt.定量供应 | |
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rations
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| 定量( ration的名词复数 )； 配给量； 正常量； 合理的量 | |
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canine
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| adj.犬的，犬科的 | |
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7
foes
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| 敌人，仇敌( foe的名词复数 ) | |
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8
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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9
blurred
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| v.（使）变模糊( blur的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）难以区分；模模糊糊；迷离 | |
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10
bulging
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| 膨胀； 凸出（部）； 打气； 折皱 | |
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11
connoisseur
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| n.鉴赏家，行家，内行 | |
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12
moor
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| n.荒野，沼泽；vt.(使)停泊；vi.停泊 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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plentiful
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| adj.富裕的，丰富的 | |
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15
detour
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| n.绕行的路，迂回路；v.迂回，绕道 | |
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strap
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| n.皮带，带子；v.用带扣住，束牢；用绷带包扎 | |
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warily
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| adv.留心地 | |
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galloped
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| （使马）飞奔，奔驰( gallop的过去式和过去分词 )； 快速做[说]某事 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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squatted
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| v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的过去式和过去分词 )；非法擅自占用（土地或房屋）；为获得其所有权；而占用某片公共用地。 | |
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retarded
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| a.智力迟钝的，智力发育迟缓的 | |
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hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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outskirts
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| n.郊外，郊区 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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marvels
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| n.奇迹( marvel的名词复数 )；令人惊奇的事物（或事例）；不平凡的成果；成就v.惊奇，对…感到惊奇( marvel的第三人称单数 ) | |
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26
swampy
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| adj.沼泽的，湿地的 | |
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dykes
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| abbr.diagonal wire cutters 斜线切割机n.堤( dyke的名词复数 )；坝；堰；沟 | |
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descend
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| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
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previously
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| adv.以前，先前（地） | |
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sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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31
brews
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| n.（尤指某地酿造的）啤酒( brew的名词复数 )；酿造物的种类；（茶）一次的冲泡量；（不同思想、环境、事件的）交融v.调制( brew的第三人称单数 )；酝酿；沏（茶）；煮（咖啡） | |
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eluded
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| v.（尤指机敏地）避开( elude的过去式和过去分词 )；逃避；躲避；使达不到 | |
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funnels
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| 漏斗( funnel的名词复数 )； （轮船，火车等的）烟囱 | |
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misty
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| adj.雾蒙蒙的，有雾的 | |
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scarcity
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| n.缺乏，不足，萧条 | |
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boggy
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| adj.沼泽多的 | |
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superfluous
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| adj.过多的，过剩的，多余的 | |
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38
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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39
vile
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| adj.卑鄙的，可耻的，邪恶的；坏透的 | |
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40
patois
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| n.方言；混合语 | |
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41
gaping
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| adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大 | |
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42
trudging
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| vt.& vi.跋涉，吃力地走（trudge的现在分词形式） | |
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43
hesitation
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| n.犹豫，踌躇 | |
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44
torrents
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| n.倾注；奔流( torrent的名词复数 )；急流；爆发；连续不断 | |
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45
interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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