I was surprised to discover on looking at my watch that it was only eleven o'clock; we had been, it seemed to me, hours crossing that plain.

"It's a silly thing," I said to Trenchard, "but it would take quite a lot to get me to drive back over that again." He nodded his head.

We drove over a bridge, up a little hill and were in the rough moonlit square of O----, our destination.

Almost immediately we were climbing the dark rickety stairs of our dwelling.

There were lights, shouts of welcome, Molozov our chief, sisters, doctors, students, the room almost filled with a table covered with food--cold meat, boiled eggs, sausage, jam, sweets, and of course a huge samovar.
I can only say that never once, during my earlier experience with the Otriad, had I been so rejoiced to see lights and friendly faces.