CHAPTER XXVII. THE BOYS GO GUN HUNTING.

 The French had been massing their troops by forest paths, from Verdun and Toul, to throw them against the Germans in desperate endeavors to break the lines which protected the sites for the German heavy siege artillery¹ and the Austrian automobile² batteries of twelve-inch siege guns.

To join in this movement the command of Colonel Bainbridge was preparing.

For days the French aviators³ had repeatedly scrutinized⁵ every acre of land looking for a concealed⁶ battery of growlers, snugly⁷ hidden in a wood on the rolling heights of the Cote Lorraine. These aviators had failed to mark a find.

The conference that the boys had witnessed at headquarters, when summoned by Colonel Bainbridge, had to do with this battery problem. They had then heard mention of the doings and failure[128] of the flying corps⁸, but further had not been taken into the confidence of the officers.

When the sergeant⁹ directed them to get their bundles, Billy and Henri began to hope that they might run into an opportunity to once again get near a flying-machine, if not into one.

“I’d like to get above ground once more, for sure I’ve had enough underground work lately to last me a lifetime.”

The desire of Billy to do some lofty sailing was twin with the wish that haunted Henri.

“Let’s volunteer to scout¹⁰ for that battery,” urged the latter, aroused by his chum’s suggestion.

“No use,” was Billy’s discouraging reply. “The colonel won’t stand for it.”

“But, maybe he would, after all,” reasoned Henri, “if we put it up to him the right way. His own son was in that branch of the service.”

“If you can convince the colonel, well and good.”

Billy appeared to think that there was a conspiracy¹¹ afloat to keep him tied fast to the ground.

“I’m going to make the try,” said Henri, “as soon as we join the other force.”

He did make the try next day, and finally persuaded the colonel that under the constant battery fire Billy and himself would be at least as safe in the air as on the march.

“Just think, colonel, what a chance for us to do something worth while, and do it the only way we[129] can. As soldiers we don’t count. As aviators we’re the lucky number.”

When the French commander heard that one of our Aviator⁴ Boys had an idea that his eyes were better than those of the military flyers, he amusedly assented¹² to the proposition, but only because of the fact that there was a shortage just then in the aviation corps—two of them only the day before having sailed in the way of a shell from one of the big mortars¹³ of the enemy.

“It’s our job!”

This was the joyful¹⁴ announcement of Henri to his flying partner.

The next argument was with the sergeant, but he, too, was compelled to throw up his hands in surrender.

The French aviator who directed the corps told Henri that their detail was for “artillery reconnaissance.”

When Henri translated the name of their job to Billy, the latter said that “gun hunting” would serve just as well, and it could be spoken in one breath. “I haven’t enlisted¹⁵ on either side, mind you,” added Billy. “I am just aching to fly—that’s all.”

The French outfit¹⁶ included a machine “built for two,” and of a make with which the boys were familiar.

The only instructions given the amateur scouts¹⁷ related to the direction of the mysterious shelling[130] point from which so much damage had been inflicted¹⁸ upon the Allies without an open chance to retaliate¹⁹.

For the treasure the colonel had agreed to act as banker, and, as a balm to Reddy’s wounded feelings, when he rebelled at separation from his friends, that youngster was assigned to duty as special messenger within the lines.

Again our Aviator Boys listened to the vibration²⁰ of the a?roplane, the rattle²¹, roar and hum of the motor, the music that soothes²² the nerves of every practiced airman.

The boys hit the high grade at 8,000 feet, and circled in huge ellipses²³ between the allied²⁴ troops and the positions hostile to them.

Henri had been given a powerful field glass, and he was faithfully using it in acute observation. The roar of the a?rial travel was so loud in the quiet of the upper air that it drowned the occasional thunder of the big guns, which fire could be marked by sight if not by hearing.

A few moments of sweeping²⁵ flight, and the young aviators were looking down on the wood mapped as suspicious.

They hovered²⁶ about, while Henri worked the field glasses to the limit, but to no avail.

“Let her down a bit!” he yelled to Billy.

Billy cut the height a thousand feet or so.

[131]

Nothing but tree-tops was in sight.

“More yet!” shouted Henri.

Dangerously near now, if there was a hidden battery below.

Henri bent²⁷ further over the frame of the machine, with the glasses aimed at a certain point, which had suddenly become of special interest to him. He had seen something that was not a tree-top.

The glasses revealed the location of the battery. The guns, two in this particular position, stood behind a screen of thickly branching trees, the muzzles²⁸ pointing toward a round opening in this leafy roof. The crew as suddenly discovered their visitors, and instantly, as busy as bees, sprang to their posts.

“Turn her loose!” screamed Henri in Billy’s ear, and Billy did “turn her loose,” up and away.

The gunners were not quick enough to catch this winged target, but they burned a couple of large holes in the air in trying.

Billy drove the a?roplane into a protecting cloud that closed white and moist around them.

Twenty minutes later the excited flyers told their story to the colonel.

“That ride was a bully²⁹ treat,” declared Billy; “but really I’d like to have stopped in a chummy way with those fellows on the hill long enough to[132] see them work the guns. They’re some hustlers with the big irons, I tell you.”

“Next time you can send in your card,” laughed Henri.

1 artillery   

n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队)

参考例句：

• This is a heavy artillery piece.这是一门重炮。
• The artillery has more firepower than the infantry.炮兵火力比步兵大。

2 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

3 aviators   

飞机驾驶员，飞行员( aviator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Analysis on Sickness Status of 1149 Aviators during Recuperation. 飞行员1149例疗养期间患病情况分析。
• In America the whole scale is too big, except for aviators. 在美国整个景象的比例都太大了，不过对飞行员来说是个例外。

4 aviator   

n.飞行家，飞行员

参考例句：

• The young aviator bragged of his exploits in the sky.那名年轻的飞行员吹嘘他在空中飞行的英勇事迹。
• Hundreds of admirers besieged the famous aviator.数百名爱慕者围困那个著名飞行员。

5 scrutinized   

v.仔细检查，详审( scrutinize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The jeweler scrutinized the diamond for flaws. 宝石商人仔细察看钻石有无瑕庇 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Together we scrutinized the twelve lemon cakes from the delicatessen shop. 我们一起把甜食店里买来的十二块柠檬蛋糕细细打量了一番。 来自英汉文学 - 盖茨比

6 concealed   

a.隐藏的，隐蔽的

参考例句：

• The paintings were concealed beneath a thick layer of plaster. 那些画被隐藏在厚厚的灰泥层下面。
• I think he had a gun concealed about his person. 我认为他当时身上藏有一支枪。

7 snugly   

adv.紧贴地；贴身地；暖和舒适地；安适地

参考例句：

• Jamie was snugly wrapped in a white woolen scarf. 杰米围着一条白色羊毛围巾舒适而暖和。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The farmyard was snugly sheltered with buildings on three sides. 这个农家院三面都有楼房，遮得很严实。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

9 sergeant   

n.警官，中士

参考例句：

• His elder brother is a sergeant.他哥哥是个警官。
• How many stripes are there on the sleeve of a sergeant?陆军中士的袖子上有多少条纹？

10 scout   

n.童子军，侦察员；v.侦察，搜索

参考例句：

• He was mistaken for an enemy scout and badly wounded.他被误认为是敌人的侦察兵，受了重伤。
• The scout made a stealthy approach to the enemy position.侦察兵偷偷地靠近敌军阵地。

11 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

12 assented   

同意，赞成( assent的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The judge assented to allow the prisoner to speak. 法官同意允许犯人申辩。
• "No," assented Tom, "they don't kill the women -- they're too noble. “对，”汤姆表示赞同地说，“他们不杀女人——真伟大！

13 mortars   

n.迫击炮( mortar的名词复数 )；砂浆；房产；研钵

参考例句：

• They could not move their heavy mortars over the swampy ground. 他们无法把重型迫击炮移过那片沼泽地。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Where the hell are his mortars? 他有迫击炮吗？ 来自教父部分

14 joyful   

adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的

参考例句：

• She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。
• They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

15 enlisted   

adj.应募入伍的v.（使）入伍， （使）参军( enlist的过去式和过去分词 )；获得（帮助或支持）

参考例句：

• enlisted men and women 男兵和女兵
• He enlisted with the air force to fight against the enemy. 他应募加入空军对敌作战。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

16 outfit   

n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装

参考例句：

• Jenney bought a new outfit for her daughter's wedding.珍妮为参加女儿的婚礼买了一套新装。
• His father bought a ski outfit for him on his birthday.他父亲在他生日那天给他买了一套滑雪用具。

17 scouts   

侦察员[机，舰]( scout的名词复数 )； 童子军； 搜索； 童子军成员

参考例句：

• to join the Scouts 参加童子军
• The scouts paired off and began to patrol the area. 巡逻人员两个一组，然后开始巡逻这个地区。

18 inflicted   

把…强加给，使承受，遭受( inflict的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• They inflicted a humiliating defeat on the home team. 他们使主队吃了一场很没面子的败仗。
• Zoya heroically bore the torture that the Fascists inflicted upon her. 卓娅英勇地承受法西斯匪徒加在她身上的酷刑。

19 retaliate   

v.报复，反击

参考例句：

• He sought every opportunity to retaliate against his enemy.他找机会向他的敌人反击。
• It is strictly forbidden to retaliate against the quality inspectors.严禁对质量检验人员进行打击报复。

20 vibration   

n.颤动，振动；摆动

参考例句：

• There is so much vibration on a ship that one cannot write.船上的震动大得使人无法书写。
• The vibration of the window woke me up.窗子的震动把我惊醒了。

21 rattle   

v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓

参考例句：

• The baby only shook the rattle and laughed and crowed.孩子只是摇着拨浪鼓，笑着叫着。
• She could hear the rattle of the teacups.她听见茶具叮当响。

22 soothes   

v.安慰( soothe的第三人称单数 )；抚慰；使舒服；减轻痛苦

参考例句：

• Fear grasps, love lets go. Fear rankles, love soothes. 恐惧使人痛心，爱使痛苦减轻。 来自互联网
• His loe celebrates her victories and soothes her wounds. 他的爱庆祝她的胜利，也抚平她的创伤。 来自互联网

23 ellipses   

n.椭园，省略号；椭圆( ellipse的名词复数 )；（语法结构上的）省略( ellipsis的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The planets move around the sun in ellipses. 各行星围绕太阳按椭圆形运转。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Summations are almost invariably indicated ellipses instead of the more prevalent sigma notation. 在表示“连加”的式子中，几乎一成不变地使用省略号来代替更为流行的“∑”符号。 来自辞典例句

24 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

25 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

26 hovered   

鸟( hover的过去式和过去分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫

参考例句：

• A hawk hovered over the hill. 一只鹰在小山的上空翱翔。
• A hawk hovered in the blue sky. 一只老鹰在蓝色的天空中翱翔。

27 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

28 muzzles   

枪口( muzzle的名词复数 )； （防止动物咬人的）口套； （四足动物的）鼻口部； （狗）等凸出的鼻子和口

参考例句：

• Several muzzles at once aimed at the fleeing birds in the air. 好几支猎枪的枪口，同时瞄准了这些空中猎物。 来自汉英文学 - 散文英译
• All gun-ports were open and the muzzles peeped wickedly from them. 所有的炮眼都开着，炮口不怀好意地从炮眼里向外窥探。

29 bully   

n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮

参考例句：

• A bully is always a coward.暴汉常是懦夫。
• The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。