“We shall have to have it in our messroom.  I believe it’s up there now.”

“Well, that won’t hurt us.”

“What’ll hurt us is this.  It’ll be sent out before we are.  McClane was here hours ago.  He’s been to Head Quarters.”

Sutton’s gloom deepened.  “How do you know?”

“President says so.”

They went, following the matron, up the grey, tessellated stairs; at each landing the long, grey corridors were tunnels for the passage of strange smells, ether and iodine and carbolic and the faint odour of drains, seeking their outlet at the well of the staircase.

On the third floor, at the turn of the corridor, a small vestibule between two glass doors led to a room flooded with a blond light from the south.  Beyond the glass doors, their figures softened by the deep, doubled shimmer of the panes, they saw the little man in shabby tweeds, the two women, and the seven other men.  This, Madame explained, was Dr. Donald McClane’s Field Ambulance Corps.  You could see it had thought it was the only one.  As they entered they met the swoop of two beautiful, indignant eyes, a slow turning and abrupt stiffening of shoulders; the movement of the group was palpable, a tremor of hostility and resentment.

It lasted with no abatement while Madame, standing there in her gaunt Flemish graciousness, murmured names.  “Mrs. Rankin—­” Mrs. Rankin nodded insolently and turned away.  “Miss Bartrum—­” Miss Bartrum, the rather charming one, bowed, drawing the shadow of grave eyebrows over sweet eyes.  “Dr. Donald McClane—­” As he bowed the Commandant’s stare arched up at them, then dropped, suddenly innocent, suddenly indifferent.

They looked around.  Madame and her graciousness had gone.  Nobody made a place for them at the two long tables set together in the middle of the room.  The McClane Corps had spread itself over all the chairs and benches, in obstinate possession.  They passed out through the open French windows on to the balcony.

It looked south over the railway towards the country where they thought the fighting must be.  They could see the lines where the troop trains ran, going northwest and southeast, and the railway station and post office all in one long red-brick building that had a flat roof with a crenellated parapet.  Grass grew on the roof.  And beyond the black railway lines miles upon miles of flat open country, green fields, rows of poplars standing up in them very straight; little woods; here and there a low rise bristling and dark with trees.  The fighting must be over there.  Under the balcony the white street ran southeastward, and scouting cars and ammunition wagons and long lines of troops were all going that way.

While they talked they remained aware of the others.  They could see McClane rubbing his hands; they heard his brief laugh that had no amusement in it, and his voice saying, “Anyhow, we’ve got in first.”

When they came back into the room they found the tables drawn apart with a wide space between.  The Belgian orderlies were removing plates and cups from one to the other, establishing under the Commandant’s directions a separate mess.  By tea-time two chauffeurs had added themselves to the McClane Corps.