He grasped his canteen and took a long swallow of the warmed water.
A sentence with variations went up and down the line.

"Well, we 've helt 'em back.

We 've helt 'em back; derned if we haven't." The men said it blissfully, leering at each other with dirty smiles.
The youth turned to look behind him and off to the right and off to the left.

He experienced the joy of a man who at last finds leisure in which to look about him.
Under foot there were a few ghastly forms motionless.

They lay twisted in fantastic contortions.