“The German attempts at spying are amazingly daring near Toulon. Attempt
follows attempt with an incredible indifference to the sudden death
which follows capture,” writes a correspondent.
“One of the patrol thought he saw a movement down among the vines on the
side of a deserted road and knew that something was wrong. He
immediately gave a hail. As there was no reply he fired two shots among
the vines. Some one gave a scream, and the soldier ran up with his
bayonet at the ready.
“Three men jumped out from among the vines and one of them fired twice
at him with a revolver or automatic pistol. He was not hit and went
right at them with his bayonet, firing again as he ran. He killed one
man. More soldiers ran up and they chased the two men that were left
down the deserted road to the little bay. There was a small petrol
launch lying close in shore. Immediately afterward the launch put her
bow around and went out to sea.
“But that’s not the most dramatic part of this evening’s business. It
was suspected that more men had come ashore from the launch. A general
alarm was sent out immediately. This precaution was well justified, for
two men were caught trying to blow up one of the railway bridges.
“These two men were given exactly one minute to prepare themselves. They
were shoved against the pier of the bridge and the firing party shot
them from so close a distance that one man’s clothes caught fire. He
didn’t seem to know that he was hit at first, for he started trying to
put out the places where his coat and vest were burning. Then he went
down plump on the ground. The other man died instantly.
“When the German was trying to put out his burning clothes just before
he slipped down he kept saying in broken English (not German, mind you),
‘I vill burn! I vill burn!’ He seemed quite unable to realize he was
shot.”