Our assault had been a muddle from the start. Delays, artillery-men who could not obey their orders to hold off firing, a signal that we never heard . . . And now it happened that the supporting companies of the Royals had no sooner cleared the trenches than their ranks shook under a fire of grape, -- and from our own guns. There was no cure but to dash through it and take the chances, while Major Frazer, waving his sword, called on his men to follow him at the double!

Author Biography

Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch (1863 - 1944) was a Cornish writer who published using the pseudonym Q. Although a prolific novelist, he is remembered mainly for the monumental publication The Oxford Book Of English Verse 1250-1900 (later extended to 1918) and for his literary criticism. He influenced many who never met him, including American writer Helene Hanff, author of 84, Charing Cross Road and its sequel, Q's Legacy. His Oxford Book of English Verse was a favorite of John Mortimer's fictional character Horace Rumpole.