the relief passed, and food and ammunition were brought up.

The communicating trench zig-zagged, as did the front-line ones, to provide greater safety, and the boys finally gave up trying to guess in which direction they were going. All they could see was the sky above their heads.

Suddenly, however, the trench widened, and they saw another crossing it. At this point, too, there was what seemed to be a rough door, made of planks nailed together.

"This is your dugout," said the leading officer, indicating that Ned, Bob, and Jerry, with some others, were to remain there, while he led the rest farther on.

"Glad you've come," remarked a haggard-looking officer, who was to be relieved by the commander of the squad in which were the three chums.

"Has Fritz been bothering you?" asked Lieutenant Anderson, who was in charge of the relief.

"Has he? Well, rather! And then some! You have my permission to stay as long as you please! Come on, boys!" and he led his war-weary men back to a rest billet.

"Make yourselves at home, fellows," said the lieutenant. "And wipe your feet before you come in," he added with a laugh, as he looked down at his muddy boots.

The passwords had been given and received. The other relief party had passed on to allow other worn-out men to get some rest. Ned, Bob, and Jerry looked about them. They were in a dirt ditch, filled here and there with puddles of water from the last rain, and the clouds still hung in the sky.

"Where are the German trenches?" asked Ned.

"Where? Right in front of us--over there," and the lieutenant pointed. "Wait, I'll show you, and everybody get this, and take a lesson from it!" he added.

He held up a steel helmet on the end of a stick. In an instant it went spinning off and fell at his feet in the trench. He picked it up, pointing grimly to a neat little hole through it and said:

"That's what will happen to any one of you if he sticks his head up. You're in the front-line trench. Don't forget it!"

Chapter XI
A Night Patrol

Every one who saw the heavy steel hat so neatly pierced by the swift bullet was impressed by the object lesson, as the lieutenant had 

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