"Good morning, sergeant major," said Major Bayne. "Captain Dunbar, this
is Sergeant Major Hackett."
Again came the salute, with a barely perceptible diminution of snap, as
befitted a less formal occasion.
"Sergeant major," said Barry, "I would give a great deal to be able to
do that."
"Wot's that, sir?" enquired the sergeant major.
"That salute of yours."
"Quite easy wen you knaow 'ow!" permitting himself a slight smile.
"You are doing some bayonet-fighting, I see, sergeant major," said Major
Bayne.
"Yes, sir, goin' to do a bit, sir," replied the sergeant major.
"Very well, carry on!"
And the sergeant major "carried on," putting into his work and into his
every movement and utterance an unbelievable amount of concentrated and
even vicious energy.
On the bayonet-fighting ground, the first line of the enemy was
represented by sacks stuffed with straw, hung upon a frame, the
second by stuffed sacks deposited on the parapet of a trench. In
bayonet-fighting the three points demanding special emphasis are the
"guarding" of the enemy's attack, a swift bayonet thrust and an equally
swift recovery, each operation, whether in case of a living enemy or in
the stuffed effigy, being attended with considerable difficulty.
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