...
Once Trenchard, treading very softly as though every one around him
were asleep, came across and talked to me.
"You know," he said in a whisper, "this isn't at all what I expected."
"You needn't whisper," I answered irritably, "that battery's making
such a noise that I can't hear anything you say."
"Yes, isn't it!" he said with a little sigh. "It's very unpleasant
indeed. Do you think Semyonov's forgotten us? We've been here a good
many hours and we aren't doing very much."
"No," I answered. "We're doing nothing except get sick headaches."
There was a pause, then he said:
"Where is everything?"
"Everything?--What?"
"Well, the battle, for instance!"
"Oh, that's down the hill, I suppose. We're trying to cross the river
and they're trying to prevent us."
"Yes," he answered. "But that isn't exactly what I mean.... It's hard
to explain, but even if we were to see our soldiers trying to cross
the river and the Austrians trying to prevent them that wouldn't
be--well, wouldn't be exactly the real thing, would it? It would only
be a kind of side-show, rather unimportant like that dead man there!"
But my headache prevented my interest in his speculations.
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