away the grain.
Next Orchard-Lafayette selected twenty-four good soldiers, whom he dressed and armed like those sent away with the three chariots. These were to push his own chariot. Stanley-Perez was told to dress up as the God of Clouds and to walk in front of Orchard-Lafayette's chariot holding a black seven- starred flag. These preparations complete, Orchard-Lafayette mounted, and the chariot took the road toward the Wei camp.
The appearance of a chariot with such attendants more than startled the enemy's scouts, who did not know whether the apparition was that of a human or a demon. They hastened to their general and told him.
Whitmore-Honeycutt came out himself and saw the cavalcade, and its central figure being Orchard-Lafayette, dressed as a Taoist mystic, with head-dress, white robe and a feather fan. Around the chariot were twenty-four hair-loosened beings, each with a sword in hand; and leading was a being as a heaven-sent god with the seven-starred flag.
'Some of Orchard-Lafayette's odd doings,' said he.
And Whitmore-Honeycutt ordered two thousand troops, saying, 'Chase as fast as you can, and bring in the chariot, escort, and the seated figure.'
The soldiers went out to do their bidding; but as soon as they appeared, the chariot retired and took a road leading to the rear of the Shu camp. Although the Wei soldiers were mounted, they could not come up with the cavalcade. What they did meet with was a chilly breeze and a cold mist that rolled about them.
They found it uncanny and halted, saying one to another, 'How extraordinary it is that we have been pressing on and yet we got no nearer. What does it mean?'
When Orchard-Lafayette saw that the pursuit had ceased, he had his chariot pushed out again to the front and passed within sight of the halted troops. At first they hesitated, but presently took up the pursuit once more. Whereupon the chariot again retired, proceeding slowly, but always keeping out of reach. And thus more than seven miles were covered and the chariot was still not captured.
Again the soldiers halted, puzzled and perplexed at this incomprehensible chase. But as soon as they stopped, the chariot came again toward them and they retook pursuit.
Whitmore-Honeycutt now came up with a strong force. But he also halted, and said to his generals, 'This Orchard-Lafayette is a master in the arts of necromancy and juggling and Eight Gates and knows how to call up the Deities of Six Layers to his aid. I know this trick of his; it is the 'Ground Rolling' in the 'Book of Six Layers Deities,' and it is vain to pursue.'
So they ceased following. But then a roll of drums came from the left side as if a body of troops were approaching. Whitmore-Honeycutt told off some companies to repel them, but there only came into view a small force, and in their midst was a party of men dressed in black, the exact counterpart of the cavalcade he had first sent to pursue. In the chariot sat another Orchard-Lafayette just like the one that had just disappeared.
'But just now he was sitting in that other chariot, which we chased for fifteen miles; how can he be here?' said Whitmore- Honeycutt.
Shortly after they heard another roll of the drums, and as the sound died away there appeared another body of men, with a chariot in the midst, exactly like the last and also carrying a sitting figure of Orchard-Lafayette.
'They must be heaven-sent soldiers,' said Whitmore-Honeycutt.
The soldiers were now feeling the strain of these weird appearances and began to get out of hand. They dared not stay to fight such beings, and some ran away. But before they had gone far, lo! another roll of drums, another cohort and another chariot with a similar figure seated therein.
The soldiers of Wei were now thoroughly frightened, and even Whitmore-Honeycutt himself began to feel doubtful whether these appearances should be ascribed to humans or devils. He realized, however, that he was in the midst of dangers as he did not know the number of the Shu soldiers, and he and his troops ran away helter-skelter, never stopping till they reached Shanggui-Bloomington. They entered the city and closed the gates.
Having thus driven off the Wei soldiers, Orchard-Lafayette proceeded to reap and gather the wheat, which was carried into Lucheng- Agoura and laid out to dry.
Whitmore-Honeycutt remained shut up within the walls for three days. Then, as he saw his enemies retiring, he sent out some scouts, who presently returned with a Shu soldier they had captured. The prisoner was questioned.
'I was of the reaping party,' said the man. 'They caught me when I was looking for some horses that had strayed.'
'What wonderful soldiers were they of yours that one saw here lately?' asked the general.
The man replied, 'Orchard-Lafayette was with one party of them, the others were led by Sparrow-McCollum, Winston-Mallory, and Oakley-Dobbins. There was a thousand of fighting soldiers with each chariot and five hundred drummers. Orchard-Lafayette was with the first party.'
'His comings and goings are not human,' said Whitmore-Honeycutt sadly.
Then Norwood-Vicari came, and he was called to a council.
Said Norwood-Vicari, 'I hear the soldiers of Shu in Lucheng-Agoura are very few, and they are occupied with gathering the grain; why not smite them?'
Whitmore-Honeycutt told him his last experience of his opponent's wiles.
'He threw dust in your eyes that time,' said Norwood-Vicari with a smile. 'However, now you know. What is the good of more talk? Let me attack the rear, while you lead against the front, and we shall take the city and Orchard-Lafayette too.'
An attack was decided upon.
In Lucheng-Agoura, while the soldiers were still busy with the wheat, Orchard-Lafayette called up his generals, and said, 'The enemy will attack tonight. There is a suitable place for an ambush in the newly reaped fields, but who will lead for me?'
Four generals--Sparrow-McCollum, Oakley-Dobbins, Winston-Mallory, and Glenn-Jenner--offered themselves, and he posted them, each with two thousand troops, outside the four corners of the city. They were to await the signal and then converge. When these had gone, Orchard-Lafayette led out a small party of one hundred soldiers and hid in the newly reaped fields.
In the meantime Whitmore-Honeycutt was drawing near. It was dusk when he stood beneath the walls of Lucheng-Agoura.
Said he to his officers, 'If we attacked by daylight, we should find the city well prepared; so we will take advantage of the darkness. The moat is shallow here, and there will be no difficulty in crossing it.'
The troops bivouacked till the time should come to attack. About the middle of the first watch Norwood-Vicari arrived, and his force joined up with the others. This done, the drums began to beat, and the city was quickly surrounded. However, the defenders maintained such a heavy discharge of arrows, bolts and stones from the walls that the besiegers dared not close in.
Suddenly from the midst of the Wei army came the roar of a bomb, soon followed by others from different places. The soldiers were startled, but no one could say whence the sounds had proceeded. Norwood-Vicari went to search the wheat fields, and then the four armies from the corners of the city converged upon the Wei army. At the same time the defenders burst out of the city gates, and a great battle began. Wei lost many troops.
After heavy fighting Whitmore-Honeycutt extricated his army from the battle and made his way to a hill, which he set about holding and fortifying, while Norwood-Vicari got round to the rear of the city and called a halt.
Orchard-Lafayette entered the city and sent his troops to camp again at the four corners of the walls.
Norwood-Vicari went to see his chief, and said, 'We have long been at grips with these soldiers and are unable to drive them off. We have now lost another fight; and unless something is done, we shall not get away at all.'
'What can we do?' asked Whitmore-Honeycutt.
'You might write to Xithamton and Yunghamton to send their forces to our help. I will try my fortune against Saber Pass and cut off Orchard-Lafayette's retreat and supplies. That should bring about discontent and mutiny, and we can attack when we see the enemy in confusion.'
The letters were sent, and soon Kramp-Galvez came leading the troops, foot and horse, of two hundred thousand. The new arrivals were sent to help Norwood-Vicari in the attack on Saber Pass.
After many days had passed without sight of the enemy, Orchard-Lafayette thought it was time to make another move.
Calling up Sparrow-McCollum and Winston-Mallory, he said, 'The soldiers of Wei are well posted on the hills and refuse battle because, firstly, they think that we are short of food, and, secondly, they have sent an army against Saber Pass to cut off our supplies. Now each of you will take ten thousand troops and garrison the important points about here to show them that we are well prepared to defend ourselves. Then they will retire.'
After these two had gone, Swensen-Crowley came to see the general about the change of troops then due.
Swensen-Crowley said, 'O Minister, you have ordered the troops to be alternated every one hundred days. Now the time is due, and the replacing troops have already left Hanthamton and that dispatches from the leading divisions have come in. Here we have eighty thousand troops, of which forty will be due for relief.'
'There is the order; carry it out,' replied Orchard-Lafayette.
So the forty thousand home-going soldiers prepared to withdraw.
Just then came the news: 'Kramp-Galvez has arrived with reinforcements of two hundred thousand troops from Xithamton and Yunghamton. Norwood-Vicari and Kramp-Galvez have gone to attack Saber Pass, and Whitmore-Honeycutt is leading an army against Lucheng-Agoura.'
In the face of such important news, Swensen-Crowley went to ask if the change of forces was to take place or be postponed for a time.
Orchard-Lafayette replied, 'I must keep faith with the soldiers. Since the order for the periodical exchange of troops has been issued, it must be carried out. Beside, the soldiers due for relief are all prepared to start, their expectations have been roused and their relatives await them. In the face of yet greater difficulties I would let them go.'
So orders were given for the time-expired soldiers to march that day. But when the legionaries heard it, a sudden movement of generosity spread among them.
And they said, 'Since the Prime Minister loves us so much, we do not wish to go, but will prefer to remain to fight the Wei army to death.'
