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Article THE MASON. ← Page 6 of 23 →
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The Mason.
caparisoned ; while the poles of their late resting-place were being struck . Just as they were preparing to mount , a party of Cossacks were perceived crossing the plain at full speed towards them . " Fall in ! " exclaimed the major , in that steady tone of command which the old soldier hears and
obeys with confidence . " Count , " he continued , " your life is of value to the emperor—to our country—you must fly , and leave us to make good your retreat . " " But will that be honourable ? " demanded Lauriston : half anxious to be gone and yet ashamed to desert his brave
companions . " Under any other circumstances , perhaps not , " replied the major ; " but you are in possession of information necessary for the safety of the army : —at all risks , your life must be preserved , whatever may become of ours . Florent ,
with corporals Jaques and Prerinet , will accompany you—I cannot spare more—they are the only two married men of our party , and deserve the chance—farewell!—no time is to be lost !" Lauriston instantly followed the advice of his companion ;
and accompanied by the young lieutenant and the two men , commenced his retreat . The old soldier formed his little party in the hollow lately occupied by the tent , which was protected on three sides by the embankment of snow thrown up in clearing the ground ; his number amounted to eighteen men , besides Adolphe
and himself . " How many do you count ? " enquired the veteran of his companion , as the enemy gained upon them : " my eyes are so dazzled by the snow , I can scarce see ten yards before me . " " About thirty , " replied Adolphe , coolly : " we shall have warm work of it—they are here ! "
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Mason.
caparisoned ; while the poles of their late resting-place were being struck . Just as they were preparing to mount , a party of Cossacks were perceived crossing the plain at full speed towards them . " Fall in ! " exclaimed the major , in that steady tone of command which the old soldier hears and
obeys with confidence . " Count , " he continued , " your life is of value to the emperor—to our country—you must fly , and leave us to make good your retreat . " " But will that be honourable ? " demanded Lauriston : half anxious to be gone and yet ashamed to desert his brave
companions . " Under any other circumstances , perhaps not , " replied the major ; " but you are in possession of information necessary for the safety of the army : —at all risks , your life must be preserved , whatever may become of ours . Florent ,
with corporals Jaques and Prerinet , will accompany you—I cannot spare more—they are the only two married men of our party , and deserve the chance—farewell!—no time is to be lost !" Lauriston instantly followed the advice of his companion ;
and accompanied by the young lieutenant and the two men , commenced his retreat . The old soldier formed his little party in the hollow lately occupied by the tent , which was protected on three sides by the embankment of snow thrown up in clearing the ground ; his number amounted to eighteen men , besides Adolphe
and himself . " How many do you count ? " enquired the veteran of his companion , as the enemy gained upon them : " my eyes are so dazzled by the snow , I can scarce see ten yards before me . " " About thirty , " replied Adolphe , coolly : " we shall have warm work of it—they are here ! "