They were almost directly above the Germans and
the latter were at a great disadvantage; for they could not return the
fire of the French without pausing in their mad rush; and when they did
pause and bring their rifles to bear upon the windows above, there were
no French heads to be seen there.
But when they dashed on again, the French heads reappeared and again the
Germans fell in large numbers.
But the losses of the French by this time, in spite of the comparative
safety afforded by their position, had been extremely heavy, considering
the size of the original force. Chester, in the basement, still had
suffered no casualties, but fully a third of the men on the two floors
above had been killed or wounded.
And there had been no time to care for these wounded, except for the
brief respites occasioned by the retreat of the Germans. Now that the
fighting was on again the wounded were left to shift for themselves; and
the air was filled with moans and groans.
The Germans in front of the house again had tried in vain to force a
passage of the doorway, choked with their own dead and dying. This had
failed, for the French, under the direction of Captain Leroux, had poured
in such a galling fire that the Germans dropped as fast as they appeared
in the doorway.
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