Accept the gift
I make thee of my strength, my hopes, my joys and my sorrows, of all my
being, filled with the passion of thee. Pardon thy children their errors
of past days. Cover them with thy glory--put them to sleep in thy flag.
Rise, victorious and renewed, upon their graves. Let our holocaust save
thee--_Patrie, Patrie_!"
An utterance which for tragic sincerity and passion may well compare
with the letter of an English officer I printed at the end of
_England's Effort_.
On they go, into the snow and the mist, the small sturdy soldiers, bound
northwards for those great and victorious attacks on the Craonne
plateau, and the Chemin des Dames, which were to follow so close on our
own British victory on the Vimy Ridge. They pass the two ladies in the
motor car, looking at us with friendly, laughing eyes, and disappear
into the storm.
Then we move on to the northern edge of the battle-field, and at Rosoy
we turn south towards Meaux, passing Vareddes to our left. The weather
clears a little, and from the high ground we are able to see Meaux to
the west, lying beside its great river, than which our children's
children will greet no more famous name.
Pages:
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182