Dominique did not hear him. A ball cut his
shoulder; another wounded his arm, but he continued to fire.
There were two more dead men. The mangled mattresses no longer stopped
the windows. The last discharge seemed as if it would have carried
away the mill. The position had ceased to be tenable. Nevertheless, the
captain said firmly:
"Hold your ground for half an hour more!"
Now he counted the minutes. He had promised his chiefs to hold the enemy
in check there until evening, and he would not give an inch before the
hour he had fixed on for the retreat. He preserved his amiable air and
smiled upon Francoise to reassure her. He had picked up the gun of a
dead soldier and himself was firing.
Only four soldiers remained in the hall. The Prussians appeared in
a body on the other side of the Morelle, and it was clear that they
intended speedily to cross the river. A few minutes more elapsed. The
stubborn captain would not order the retreat. Just then a sergeant
hastened to him and said:
"They are upon the highway; they will take us in the rear!"
The Prussians must have found the bridge. The captain pulled out his
watch and looked at it.
"Five minutes longer," he said. "They cannot get here before that time!"
Then at six o'clock exactly he at last consented to lead his men out
through a little door which opened into a lane.
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