Chapter 25 Chapter Sixteen (Part 1)

Drogheda got a radio.The progress of civilization has finally come to Killambo with the Australian Broadcasting Commission radio station, and there is finally something to rival public telephone lines in crowd delight.The radio was an ugly contraption in a walnut box. It stood on a neat little cabinet in the parlor, and the dry car batteries that supplied the power were hidden in the sideboard below. Every morning, Mrs. Smith, Fee and Meggie would turn it on for the news and weather forecast from the Killambo area; every evening, Fee and Meggie would turn it on for the Australian Broadcasting Commission's national news.How strange it was to connect the border districts together in an instant.To hear news of floods, floods, and rains in every part of the country, to hear political turmoil in Europe and Australia, without old Bluey Williams and his old papers.

On Friday, September 1, the news that Hitler had invaded Poland was reported on the national broadcast. Only Fee and Meggie heard the news at home, and neither of them paid attention.There had been speculation about Europe for months; besides, Europe was in another hemisphere and had nothing to do with Drogheda;But on Sunday, September 3rd, all the men came back from the paddock to hear Father Wattie Thomas say Mass.Men are very interested in Europe.It hadn't occurred to Fee and Meggie to tell them Friday's news, but Father Watty, who might have heard it, hurried off for Neringam. As usual, people turned on the radio in the evening to listen to the national news.But instead of the pleasing Oxford voice of the announcer, it was the gentle, unmistakable Australian voice of Prime Minister Robert Gordon Menzies.

"My fellow Australians, it is my duty with sadness to inform you formally that the Kingdom of Great Britain has declared war on Germany because of Germany's insistence on her aggression against Poland, with the consequence that Australia has joined the war... "It can be considered that Hitler's ambition was not only to bring under his rule the whole German people, but also to bring under such rule all countries that could be conquered by force, and if this situation continued , there would be no security in Europe and no peace in the world... There can be no doubt that wherever Great Britain is, there will be all the people of the Commonwealth...

"The regime on which we stand, which is our ancestral state, will be best aided by the continuation of our production, by the continuation of our sidelines and commerce and the assurance of employment - which is our strength - .I know that no matter what feelings we are experiencing right now, Australia is ready to see the war through. "The merciful and merciful God may promise that the world will soon be free from this suffering." There was a long silence in the drawing room, broken by the shortwave voice of Neville Chamberlain addressing the British people through the microphone; Fee and Meggie looked at the men of the house.

"If you count Frank, there are six of us," Bob said, breaking the silence. "We're all on the land except Frank, which means they won't want us to serve. As for the stockmen we have, I reckon half a dozen would go. Two would stay." "I want to go!" said Jack, his eyes shining. "And me," said Hughie eagerly. "And us." Jens represented himself and Patsy, who was not good at expressing himself. But they all looked at Bob, who was the leader. "We need to clear things up," he said. "Wool is a staple of war, not just for clothing. It's used to pack munitions and explosives, and I'm sure it's used in all sorts of weird stuff we've never heard of; plus we have beef cattle , can be used as food, old wethers and ewes can be skinned, boiled glue, fat and lanolin - these are war materials.

"So, we can't go, we can't leave Drogheda and let it go, whatever we want to do. As the war goes on, it's going to be very difficult for us to replace the stockmen we're going to lose. The drought is in its third year, and we Our job is here, on Drogheda. It's less exciting than going into battle, but it's essential. We'll do what we can here to the best of our meager strength." The man's face is pulled down, while the woman's face is shining. "What if the war takes longer than Pig Iron Bob says?" asked Hughie, calling up the Prime Minister's well-known epithet.

Bob thought wistfully, his weather-beaten face lined with lines. "If things get serious and the battles are long hours of work, then I think if we can get two stockmen, we'll have two Clearys left. If Meggie's willing to come back for proper management Work, just work in the inner paddock. It's going to be tough, we can't handle it in a good year, but in a dry year like this, I reckon five men plus Meggie a week You can run Drogheda in seven days. But that's asking too much of Meggie, and she has two young children." "Bob, it's the only way it's going to be if it has to be," said Meggie. "Mrs. Smith won't mind taking the trouble to keep an eye on Justine and Dane. Just send me your word for Drogheda's delivery and I'll get on my horse and manage the inner paddock."

"At that time, we were the only two people who could be saved." Jens said with a smile on his face. "No, it's Hughie and me," said Jack quickly. "It stands to reason that it should be Jens and Patsy," Bob said slowly. "You are the youngest, and you have the least experience as cattlemen, but none of us have experience as soldiers. You are only sixteen, boys." "By the time it got serious, we were 17," Jens said. "We'll look bigger than we do now, so if we can get a letter from you and prove it to Harry Gough, we'll enlist without trouble."

"Well, no one's leaving right now anyway. Let's see if we can boost Drogheda's production in a year of drought and rabbits." Meggie left the room in silence and went upstairs to the nursery.Dane and Justine were asleep, each in a white-painted crib.She didn't pay attention to her daughter, but stood beside her son, looking down at him for a long time. "Thank God, you're still a kid," she said. It was almost a year before the war disturbed the small world of Drogheda.During the year the stockmen left one by one, and the rabbits continued to multiply, and Bob fought valiantly to bring the ranch's books into line with the war effort.However, in early June 1940, news came that the British Expeditionary Force had withdrawn from the European continent from Dunkirk; thousands of volunteers poured in to join the second batch of Royal Australian Armed Forces. Center, among them are Jens and Patsy.

For four years, the life of galloping horses in the paddock in four seasons has made the faces of the twins look childish. The crow's feet around the eyes and the lines on both sides of the nose that hang down to the mouth make them always look so calm and calm.They presented their letters, which were accepted without further ado.The jungle dwellers enlisted in great numbers.They are usually excellent marksmanship, understand the value of military orders, and can bear hardships and stand hard work. Jens and Patsy were serving in Dubbo, but the barracks were at Ingleburn, outside Sydney, so they all went to see them off in the night mail.At the time of the draft, Eden's youngest son, Cormac Carmichael, was on the same train and to the same barracks for the same reason.So the two families packed their children's comfort bags in a first-class compartment, and stood awkwardly around, wishing to cry, or kiss them, do something memorable.But the Britons refrained themselves from that peculiar reluctance to show emotion.The big steam locomotive C-36 roared sadly, and the station master blew his whistle.

Meggie leaned forward awkwardly and hurriedly kissed her brothers, and then Cormac, who looked exactly like his big brother Connor.Bob, Jack, and Hughie shook the hands of the three young men vigorously, and Mrs. Smith burst into tears. Everyone was eager to kiss them and hug them, but she was the only one who did it.Iloh Carmichael, his wife, and the still-mature, still-pretty daughter who still lived with him were equally prim, and then all went outside the platform at Killy Station, where the train's buffer With a jerk, the weapon started to move forward slowly. "Good-bye, good-bye!" they all shouted, waving white bandannas.Until the train became a smoking line in the distant afterglow of the setting sun. At the joint request of Jens and Passy, ​​they were drafted into the inexperienced and inadequately trained Australian Ninth Division and sailed to Egypt in early 1941.They were just in time for the Benghazi rout.General Erwin Rommel, who had just arrived and was pivotal on one end of the Axis seesaw, made his first move to quickly turn things around, sweeping across North Africa.While the British Army was shamefully withdrawing into Egypt in the new Afrika Korps, the 9th AU Division was sent to occupy and hold Tobruk, the outpost facing the Axis-occupied zone.The only way this plan could work was that the land was connected to the sea, and as long as the British ships had access to the Mediterranean, it could be resupplied.The bastards of Tobruk stayed here for eight months, withstood Rommel's now and then, all-out assault on them.He couldn't drive them away. ① A port city in Libya--Annotation ② Erwin Rommel (1891--19444), Field Marshal of Fascist Germany.He joined the National Socialist Party in his early years and was a general of the SS. In 1940, he organized the African Army and commanded the German-Italian coalition forces to invade North Africa.Known as the "Lonely Desert". Suicide in July 1944. -- Annotation ③ A Port City in Libya--Annotation "Do you know why you're here?" Private Cole asked, licking a note and lazily rolling a cigarette. Sergeant Bob Malui pushed up his Tilloo hat so that he could look down at his questioner from under the brim. "Bah, I don't know." He bared his teeth and said.This is a question that keeps coming up. "Well, it's better than being in a goddam conservatory with white boots on," said Private James Cleary, pulling his brother's shorts down so he could comfortably put them on. legs on his soft, warm belly "Yeah, but you don't need a gun in the conservatory," retorted Cole, flicking the dead cigarette at a lizard in the sun. "I know that, man," said Bob, rearranging his hat over his eyes. "I'd rather be shot than fucked up to death." They were comfortably housed in a dry, dark shelter facing the minefield and the barbed wire fence that cut off the southwestern corner of the ring; The only tiny place in the region.A large 0.5 caliber Browning machine gun was with them in the hole, and next to it were boxes of ammunition; yet, no one seemed to have the energy or interest in the possibility of attack. .Their rifles leaned against the wall, their bayonets gleaming coldly in the Tobruk sun.There were buzzing (口营)(口营) flies everywhere, but these four men were all from the Australian bushland, so the heat, dryness, and flies in Tobduk and North Africa did not surprise them. "Jens, it's like you're twins," Cole said, throwing pebbles at the lizard, which didn't seem to move. "You look at rice like a pair of candy sticks sticking together." "You're jealous." Jens grinned, and tapped Patsy's stomach. "Pasy's the best pillow in Tobruk." "Yeah, that's all very well for you, but what about poor Patsy? Say, Happ, talk!" Bob teased. Patsy smiled, showing his white teeth, but as usual, he remained silent.Everyone tried to get him to talk, but none of them succeeded except to hear a "yes" or a "no."So, like the taciturn Marquez brothers, almost everyone called them Hap. "Have you heard the news?" Cole asked suddenly. "What news?" "The Motildas of the 7th Division were routed eighteen percent at Halfaya. In the desert, only guns can beat the Motildas. These stupid fools were attacked by densely packed tanks. attack." ①This term is the pet name of the Australian vagrants for the bundle of things they carry, and also refers to the vagrants. Here, it refers to the officers and soldiers of the Seventh Division. -- Annotation "Oh yes, let's talk about something else!" Bob said skeptically. "I'm a sergeant and don't hear any gossip. You're a private and you're full of gossip. Come on man, the Germans ain't got what it takes to beat Mortilda." "I got it from the commander in Mortilda's tent; I heard it on the radio, that's right," Cork insisted. For a while, no one spoke. For everyone in a besieged outpost like Tobruk, to make him believe blindly that there was enough push on his side to get him through was a necessary.Kohl's news was not well received, also because Tobjank's soldiers did not take Rommel seriously.They withstood his full force against them, for they believed that the Australian warriors were invincible except for the Tungkhas, and with ninety percent confidence they would certainly prove invincible. ①The main resident of Nepal, known for his toughness. -- Annotation "Dogs," Jens said. "In North Africa, what we need are more Australians." The chorus of approval was interrupted by an explosion near the bunker, blowing away several lizards, and four soldiers were shoved onto machine guns and rifles. "Damn Dago's grenade," Bob said, glancing at the rifle, "if it's a special Hitler bomb. We're gonna be fucked, don't you think so, Patsy, eh ?" ① A derogatory term for dark-skinned Italians or Spanish and Portuguese people--Annotation At the beginning of the military crusade, after this exhausting, ill-fated and seemingly futile siege, the Australian Ninth Division was withdrawn by sea to Cairo, but just as the Ninth Division was captured By the time of the siege of Tobruk, the steadily dwindling British army in North Africa had formed the Eighth Army, whose new commander was General Bernard Law Montgomery. Fee wore a little silver brooch in the shape of a rising sun, the emblem of the International Federation of Women; and on the two chains beneath the brooch was a silver bar in which she set two gold stars, each star representing a son in the army.It reassures those she meets that she, too, is doing her part for the country.Since Meggie's husband and son were not in the army, she was not eligible to wear this bra.A letter had come from Luke telling her that he would continue cutting cane, and he thought she might want to know about him when she feared he might join the army.There was no indication in the letter that he remembered what she had said that morning at the Ingame Hotel.She smiled, shook her head wearily, and threw the letter into Fee's wastebasket.As she did so, she wondered whether Fee was worried about her two sons who had joined the army.What are her real thoughts about this war?Even though Fee wore the brooch every day, all day, she never said a word. Sometimes, a letter arrives from Egypt.When it was read, it was already in dilapidated condition, because the censors had cut neat rectangular holes in it whenever they came across place names or team numbers.It was such a nerve-wracking business to read the letters, to piece together letters that were practically invisible, but they were too busy doing it for the time being: as long as there were letters Come, the children are still alive. It didn't rain.As if divine wind and rain conspired to wither hope, 1940 marked the fifth year of a catastrophic drought.Meggie, Bob, Jack, Hughie and Fay are desperate.Drogheda had enough money in the bank account to buy the essential feed to keep the sheep alive, but most of the sheep would not eat the feed.Every flock has a natural leader; as long as they can manage to get the leader to eat, the others are expected to eat.But sometimes, even if the flock sees the head sheep chewing the feed, the other sheep are not affected. So Drogheda had to bleed too, and it was a disgusting thing.The grass was all dead, and the earth was a cracked black wasteland, only the woods shone gray and dun, and they armed themselves with knives and rifles; saw an animal fall, and slit its throat , let it die quickly without the other sheep seeing it.Bob added some more cattle and bought fodder to feed them, sustaining Drogheda's hard work for the war effort.Cattle are not profitable due to the high price of feed.Faraway agricultural areas have been hit as hard by the lack of rain as distant pastoral areas.The crop yields were pitifully low.But, having orders from Rome, they could do what they could, no matter the cost. What Meggie hated most was the time she spent working in the paddock.Drogheda has managed to retain only one stockman, and there is no replacement at present; what Australia lacks most is manpower.So Meggie would be out in the paddock seven days a week unless Bob noticed her restlessness and fatigue and gave her a sunny day off.But if Bob gave her time off, it meant he was working harder himself.So she tried her best not to show her depression.It never occurred to her to use the child as an excuse for refusing to ride out to work in the paddock.The children were well cared for, and Bob needed her much more than the children needed her.Nor did she have the insight to understand the children's need for her; it was selfish to think that she longed to be with them when they were lovingly and skillfully cared for.It was selfish, she told herself, and she had no such assurance that she could tell herself that she held as special a place in her children's hearts as they did in hers.So she galloped through the paddocks, not checking on them until after they were in bed for weeks. Whenever Meggie saw Dane, her heart would churn.He was a handsome boy, and when Fee took him into town even strangers on Killy Street commented on his beauty.His habitual expression was that of a smile, and his nature was a curious combination of quietness, deepness, and an unmistakable sense of luck.He does not seem to have experienced the usual pains of the child in the development of character and in the acquisition of knowledge.He rarely gets people or things wrong, and nothing irritates or overwhelms him.To his mother, his closeness to Ralph terrified her sometimes.But obviously no one noticed this.It had been a long time since Ralph had left Kiri.Though Dane was of the same face and average build, there was one great difference which helped to conceal the truth; his hair was not black like Ralph's, but pale blond; not wheat or It was golden like the setting sun, but the color of a Drogheda meadow, golden with silvery white and a hint of beige. Justine had liked the little brother from the moment she saw him, and nothing was too good or too bad for Dane to disrespect or honor him.Once he started to walk, she never left his side.Meggie was very pleased with this, and worried that Mrs. Smith or the maids were too old to watch the little doll with satisfyingly keen eyes.On a rare Sunday off, Meggie held her daughter on her lap and talked about taking care of Dane. "I can't look after him here at the Manor myself," she said, "so it's up to you, Justine, he's your little brother, and you must keep an eye on him at all times, and keep him out of danger or trouble. " Those light-colored eyes are very intelligent, and there is no such thing as the typical distracted expression of a 4-year-old child.Justine nodded confidently. "Don't worry, Mom," she said briskly. "I'll keep an eye on him for you." "If only I could look after him myself." Meggie sighed. "I don't want to," said the daughter smugly. "I'd rather watch Dane by myself. So don't worry about it. I won't let anything happen to him." Meggie did not find this reassurance a consolation.There was nothing she could do about the precocious little thing who wanted to steal her son from her.While Justine was faithfully guarding Dane, she had to go back to the paddock and was chased away by her own daughter.The daughter is really hateful, who does she look like?Neither Luke nor herself.Not like Fay either. At least she's smiling these days. It wasn't until she was four that she discovered the funny things, perhaps because of Dane, who had been laughing since he was a baby.She laughed because he laughed.Meggie's children were always following each other's example.But it was infuriating to see them get along just fine without their mom around.Eyes, this frustrating inner conflict is over.Meggie thought he'd grow up and know what he was supposed to do with me.He will always be closer to Justine.Why does something unexpected happen every time I think I have control over my destiny?I didn't need this war or this drought, but it happened to me. Perhaps Drogheda had been better off having such a difficult time.If the situation had been easier, Jack and Hughie would have gone to the second draft.As it happened, they had no choice but to work honestly and salvage as much as they could from what could be called an extraordinary drought.Drought has hit more than a million square miles of agricultural and pastoral land, from Victoria in the south to the waist-deep Mitchell Meadows in the north. However, the war has diverted attention from the drought.With the family's twins in North Africa, the people at the estate track with anguish and anxiety the tumultuous battle that engulfed Libya.Their tradition is the tradition of the working class, so they are enthusiastic supporters of the Labor Party and loathe the current government.The current government is called the Liberal Party, but it is actually a Conservative Party.They were ecstatic when Robert Gordon Menzies stepped down in August 1941, acknowledging his inability to govern.When Labor leader John Curtin was asked to form a government on October 3, it was the best news Drogheda had heard in years. Throughout 1940 and 1941, unease about Japan grew, especially after Roosevelt and Churchill cut off its oil supplies.Europe was so far away that Hitler would have to send his troops twelve thousand miles to invade Australia.But Japan is in Asia, and part of this yellow peril hangs like a pendulum about to fall over the rich, empty, sparsely populated heart of Australia.So no one in Australia was surprised when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, they were just waiting for it to go down somewhere.War is suddenly imminent, and it may even be in their backyard.There is no deep ocean between Australia and Japan, only some large islands and narrow seas. On Christmas Day 1941, Hong Kong fell; but it was all reassured that NEC would never succeed in taking Singapore.Then came the news of the Japanese landing in Malaysia and the Philippines; the huge flat-fire guns in the huge naval base at the tip of the Malaya peninsula were constantly training at sea, and the fleet was ready for Japan.However, on February 8, 1942, the Japanese crossed the narrow Johor Strait, landed on the north side of the island of Singapore, and swept across the vulnerable city guarded by guns. Singapore fell without struggling. . Later, another piece of big news spread!All Australian troops in North Africa are returning home.Prime Minister Curtin steadfastly resisted Churchill's egotistical rage, insisting that Australia first recall the Australians.The 6th and 7th Australian Divisions soon embarked on ships in Alexandria; the 9th Division, which had been resting in Cairo because of the fierce fighting at Tobruk, also returned home as soon as the ships allowed.Fee smiled, and Meggie was ecstatic.Jens and Patsy are going home. But they just didn't come back.While the Ninth Division waited for the support ships, the seesaw tilted again: the Eighth Army had all returned from Benghazi.Prime Minister Churchill and Premier Ke Qian made a deal.The 9th Australian Division would remain in North Africa in exchange for sending an American division to defend Australia.The poor soldiers are so overwhelmed by the decisions made in the office that they can't even attach themselves to their own country. But it was a serious blow to Australia.It was found that Motherland ① took all her chickens from the Far East, and even the fat and promising chickens of Australia were helpless. ① Refers to the United Kingdom, because Australians are descendants of the British. -- Annotation On the night of October 23, 1842, there was silence in the desert, and Passillo leaned back slightly to find his brother leaning on his shoulder like a child in the dark.Jens put his arms around him and sat there together, keeping love silent.Sergeant Bob Malloy gave Private Lil Stewart a nudge and a toothy grin. "A pair of sticky candies," he said. "Fuck you," Jens said. "Hey, Harp, say something," Cole muttered. In the darkness, Patsy smiled at him like an angel, opened his mouth, and imitated Hap Marquez's voice vividly.A few yards away, everyone hissed and told Patsy to shut up; now it was on alert that nothing should happen. "Christ, this waiting is killing me," sighed Bob. Patsy opened his voice and said, "It's the silence that kills me!" "Your tricks are so fucking annoying, I'll kill!" Cole said hoarsely, reaching for the bayonet. "For Christ's sake, be quiet!" came the major's whisper. "Which bloody fool is yelling?" "Passy," said six or seven voices in unison. A roar of affirmative laughter drifted across the minefields and the major was silenced by a series of subdued, hideous curses.Malloy glanced at his watch. The minute hand read exactly 9:40pm. 882 British guns and howitzers opened fire.The sky was spinning, the earth was throbbing and expanding, and I couldn't even sit still, and the one after another pounding continued non-stop.The mind-piercing sound did not subside for a second.Plugging your fingers in your ears doesn't help; the loud bang is coming from the ground, through the bones and straight into your head.The officers and soldiers of the Ninth Division who had stayed in the trenches could imagine what Rommel's forward troops were like.It is usually possible to identify the model and specification of the gun.But tonight, their steel throats fired in unison with a single voice, and kept roaring. The fire of the howitzer is not the same as the light of the day, but like the fire of the sun; a large rolling smoke is like rolling smoke, going up thousands of feet; Flames danced from the exploding boxes and burning vehicles, reflecting the rising smoke red.Everything in Montgomery's hands was aimed at the minefields -- artillery, howitzers, and mortars.Everything in Montgomery's hands was firing as fast as the sweaty artillerymen could.The peons loaded the chambers of their guns like crazy birds; the barrels heated up; and the time to unload and reload grew shorter and shorter while the artillerymen's minds had gone.Crazy, all crazy, they serve their field guns with an unchanging program. It was beautiful and wonderful--the most extraordinary moment in the life of the artilleryman, which was constantly relived by the artillerymen in their sleep and waking in the days when the sudden return of peace followed. moments, yearning to live again those fifteen minutes of Montgomery's cannon roaring. Silence, silent but absolute silence was broken by waves that swelled the eardrums.They broke the intolerable silence.Exactly five minutes to ten.The officers and soldiers of the Ninth Division jumped out of the trenches and moved forward on the deserted land.They loaded bayonets, fumbled for clips, opened safety, checked canteens, rations, watches and helmets.Check that the shoelaces are fastened, and check where the heavy machine guns are placed.It is easy to see in the terrible glow of fire, in the hot sand melted into glass.But a curtain of dust hangs between them and the enemy and keeps them safe.It was safe and sound at this moment, but every time they reached the edge of a minefield, they stopped and waited. At exactly 10:00 p.m. Sergeant Malloy put his whistle between his lips, and the sharp whistle rose and fell through the ranks; the major shouted the order to advance.The two-mile-wide front of the Ninth Division stepped into the minefield, and the guns behind them fired again, booming.They saw what they were going for.As in daylight, the howitzers aimed at the nearest field, and the shells exploded a few yards ahead of them.At three-minute intervals, the range of artillery fire was extended by a hundred yards; each time it advanced a hundred yards, luckily it encountered only anti-tank mines or S-mines, and the skirmishers had been blown out of sight by Montgomery's artillery. .There were still Germans and Italians in the positions, machine gun emplacements, 50mm small guns and mortars.Sometimes people step on unexploded S-mines, before it has time to blow people in half, with time to see it pop out of the sand. No time to think, no time to do anything but huddle there while the cannon fires, advance a hundred yards every three minutes, and pray.Noises, flashes, dust, smoke, fear that makes people tremble.The minefield was not over yet, and was about two or three miles wide from one side of them to the other.Sometimes, between brief intervals between bombardments, there was a faint shriek of wind in the gritty hot air; to the left of the Australian Ninth Division, the 51st Scottish Highland Division was led by a bagpiper for each company The commander, slowly passing through the minefield.To a Scot there is the most moving attraction in the world to be led into battle by a bagpiper, and to an Australian it has the greatest inspiring and consoling power.But, to a German or an Italian, the bagpipes make them very angry. This battle lasted for 12 days, and 12 days of fighting is not too short.The Ninth Division got off to a good start; their casualties were relatively light in the first few days through the minefields and into the Rommel-occupied zone. "You know, I'd rather be shot than a minesweeper," Cole Stewart said, leaning on the shovel. "I don't think so, man; I think they're gorgeous," growled his sergeant major. "They wait behind the goddamn lines until we're done with everything, and then they're waddling around with goddamn minesweepers to clear the shitty trails for those goddamn tanks." "Bob, it's not the tank that's faulty, it's the big bosses that are out of control," Jens said, patting the dirt on his section of the new trench with the flat of the shovel. "Christ, though, I wish they'd decided to keep us in one place for just a short while! I dug more than a goddamn anteater in the first five days." "Keep digging, man," said Bob without sympathy. "Hey, look!" Cole called, pointing to the sky. Eighteen RAF light bombers flew over the cliff in standard aviation school formation and dropped a batch of bombs on the Germans and Italians with great accuracy. "Fucking pretty," said Sergeant Bob Malloy, head on the long neck looking up at the sky. 三天之后，他死了。在一次冒失的推进中，一大块弹片削去了他的一只胳膊和半个身子，除了从他嘴里把留在那里的哨子拔下来之外，谁都没有时间停下来。现在，人们就像一群苍蝇似地前进着，疲劳得已无法保持初期那种警惕性和敏捷了。但是，他们坚守的是一块多么凄楚荒漠的土地，面对着一支战绩赫赫的部队的精华，进行一场艰苦的保卫战。对于他们来说，除了进行一场沉默、执拗、拒绝被战胜的战斗之外，什么都顾不上了。 在坦克部队向南突击的同时，第九师顶住了格拉夫·冯·斯庞尼克和朗格豪森的部队，隆美尔终于被击败了。到11月8日时，他试图在埃及境外重整残部，而蒙哥马利则受命指挥整个战场。第二次阿拉曼战役是一次十分重要的战术胜利；隆美尔被迫丢下了大量的坦克、大炮和装备。"火炬行动"可以更安全地从摩洛哥和阿尔及利亚向东推进了。"沙漠之狐"仍在顽强战斗着，但是他的大部分实力都断送在了阿拉曼。北非战区最大的、最有决定意义的战斗打响了，而阿拉曼的陆军元师蒙哥马利子爵是胜利者。 第二次阿拉曼战役是澳大利亚第九师在北非的最后一战。他们终于要回家，到新几内亚岛和日本人对垒去。从1941年3月起，他们或多或少总是处在最前线，训练不足，装备缺乏；但是，现在都满载着只有第四印度师才能超过的荣誉重返乡井。詹斯和帕西安然无恙，毫毛未损地随着第九师回来了。 certainly.回国去。回德罗海达去，他们是满怀兴奋的。鲍勃开着车到基里把他们从贡的维底开来的列车上接了下来。第九师就驻扎在布里斯班，经过丛林地区的训练之后将开往新几内亚岛。当罗尔斯汽车飞快地转过车道时，所有的女人都走出草坪，等候着他们。杰克和休吉稍迟了一步，但是他们也同样渴望见到他们的小弟弟。德罗海达的每一只愿意活下去的羊都能逃脱死刑，但今天是例外。因为今天是节日啊。 汽车停下，他们走了出来，可是居然没有人动一动。他们的样子变化太大了。大沙漠中呆了两年使他们最初穿上的那套军衣已经全完蛋了；他们换了一身丛林绿的新军装，看上去判若两人。他们似乎长高了几英寸。他们确实长高了。过去两年他们是在远离德罗海达的地方成长的，已经比哥哥们高了。他们不再是孩子，而是大人了，尽管是和鲍勃、杰克、休吉的气质不一样的大人。艰难困苦，闻战辄喜，和充满了暴亡横死的生活赋予了他们某种德罗海达决不能赋予的气质。北非干燥的阳光把他们晒成了赤褐色，儿时的皮色已经尽脱。是的，可以相信，这两个穿着简朴的军服、有朝日的国际妇女同盟标志的帽子耷拉在左耳边的男人曾经杀过人。他们那蓝色的眼睛和帕迪一样，可是悲伤之色更重，没有他那种温和。 "我的孩子，我的孩子呀！"史密斯太太哭喊着，跑向他们，泪流满面。不，他们干过什么事她不在乎，不管他们有多大变化，仍然是她的小宝宝。她曾为他们洗洗涮涮，换尿布，喂吃的。替他们擦干泪水，吻过他们的伤口，使他们觉得好受一些。只是现在他们受过的那些伤，她已经没有能力去治愈了。 随后，所有的人都围住了他们，英国人的那种自我克制被抛到一边去了。他们大笑着，哭着，甚至连可怜的菲也拍着他们的后背，竭力笑着。接着史密斯太太吻他们的是梅吉、明妮、凯特；妈妈不好意思地紧紧抱着他们，杰克和休吉也不说话，只是紧紧地摸着他们手。德罗海达的人是决不会体验到重返故里是什么滋味，决不会体验到他们是多么渴望又是多么畏惧这一时刻的到来。 看这对孪生子吃东西时那样子吧！军队里绝没有这样的食物，他们笑着说道。小巧玲珑的粉色和白色的蛋糕，浸巧克力的薄饼中卷着椰肉，带斑点的蒸小红肠布丁，撒着水果片和德罗海达母牛产的奶油的酥皮糕。他们早年的胃口被勾起来了。史密斯太太一口咬定他们会病上一个星期的，可是由于他们没完成了地喝着茶水，把食物冲了下去。他们似乎在消化方面没有碰到会何麻烦。 "和沃格面包有点不一样吧，呃，帕西？" "yes." "沃格是什么意思呀？" "沃格是一个阿拉伯人，沃普是一个意大利人，对吧，帕西？" "right." 这太平凡了。他们很乐意说话，或至少詹斯愿意说话。说起北非，一扯就是好几全钟头：城市呀，人民呀，食物呀，开罗的博物馆呀，运输舰甲板上的生活呀，宿营军帐的生活呀。但是，一说到真正的战斗是怎么回事，加撒拉、班加西、托布鲁克是怎么回事的时候，任你提多少问题，除了得到含糊其辞或顾左言右的回答之外，什么也休想问出来。后来，在战争结束的时候，女人们发现说起这些时，情况总是这样的；参加过激烈战斗的男人们总是绝口不提这些战斗。拒绝参加退役军人俱乐部和社团，根本不想和那些使人永远无法忘记这场战争的团体打任何交道。 德罗海达为他们举行了一次宴会。同在第九师的阿拉斯泰尔·麦克奎恩也回家了，因此，鲁德纳·胡尼施牧场也理所当然地举行了一次宴会。多米尼克·奥罗克的两个最小的儿子正在新几内亚的第六师，尽管他们不能出席，比班一比班牧场还是举行了宴会。这个地区的每一个有子参军的庄园都想为第九师的三个孩子平安转回而庆贺一番。女人们和姑娘们成群地围着他们，可是克利里家的凯施英雄们却试图抓住一切机会逃之夭夭，在任何一个战场上他们都没这样慌过神。 事实上，詹斯和帕西似乎根本不想和女人有什么瓜葛，他们想和鲍勃、杰克和休吉呆在一起。后半夜，女人们都睡觉之后，他们坐下来，和适才被迫留在后面的哥哥们说着话；他们那烦恼、惊惶的心才松了下来。他们骑着马跑遍了德罗海达那些被烤干的牧场--大旱已经是第七个年头了--他们很高兴穿便装。 尽管这片土地是这样的贫瘠，这样的令人苦恼，但是对詹斯和帕西来说，它却有一种难以言喻的动人之处。绵羊使人心旷神怡，花园中迟放的玫瑰散发着一股令人乐不可支的清香。不知怎的，他们不得不深深地吸收着这永远不会忘怀的一切，因为他们每一次离家是无忧无虑而去的。他们这次再离去的时候，将把这一切每时每刻珍藏在记忆中，要把德罗海达的玫瑰和几株珍贵的德罗海达的草叶夹在皮夹子里。他们对非既和善又怜悯，而对梅吉，史密斯太太明妮和凯特却充满了爱，对她们十分温柔。她们是他们真正的母亲。 最让梅吉欣喜难抑的是他们喜爱戴恩的那种方式。他们和他一玩就是几个钟头，带着他骑马，和他一起纵声大笑，把他在草坪上滚来滚去。朱丝婷好像怕他们；而他俩则怯于和任何女性接触，他们怯于和任何一个女性，不管是不认识的，还是认识的、此外，可怜的朱丝婷对他们独占的戴恩，和他一起作伴，嫉妒得发狂，因为这就是意味着没有人和她一起玩了。 "梅吉，他是个了不起的小家伙。"有一天，在梅吉走到外面的游廊里时，詹斯对她说道；他正坐一把藤椅中看着帕西和戴恩在草地上玩。 "是呀，他是个小美男子，对吗？"她微微一笑，坐在了能看到她最小的弟弟的地方。她的眼睛中含着传爱的柔情；他们曾经也是她的小宝宝啊。"怎么回事，詹斯？能告诉我吗？" 他抬眼望着她，由于一种深深的痛苦而显得可怜，但是，他却摇了摇头，好像没有兴趣似的。"不，梅吉，这不是一件能对女人讲的事。" "等这一切都结束，你结婚之后，你会怎么办呢？连你的妻子都不想告诉吗？" "我们结婚？我不这么想。战争把一个男人的一切都拿去了。我们曾渴望去打仗，可现在我们明智多了。我们要是结了婚，就会有孩子，要孩子干什么呢？看着他们长大，被推出去干我们已经干过的事，去见我们已经见过的东西吗？" "别这样，詹斯，别这样！" 他的眼光随着她的眼光转向了快活得咯咯大笑的戴恩：帕西正上下举着他。 "千万别让他离开德罗海达，梅吉。在德罗达，他不会受到任保伤害的。"詹斯说道。 德·布里克萨特大主教从漂亮、高大的走廊里跑了过去，没有在意那些吃惊地转过来看他的面孔。他冲进了红衣主教的房间，猛地收住了脚步、红衣主教大人正在招待波兰流亡政府主教廷大使帕皮先生。 "嗨，拉尔夫！怎么啦？" "事情发生了，维图里奥·墨索里尼被推翻啦。" "亲爱的耶稣啊！教皇知道了吗？" "我亲自给卡斯泰尔·甘多尔福打了电话，尽管电台随时都会获得这个消息。是德军司令部的一个朋友打电话告诉我的。" "我真希望教皇陛下已经把细软都打点好了，帕皮先生极隐约地带着一种打趣的口吻说道。 "要是我们把他乔装成一个芳济各会①的托钵僧，他也许会脱，别无他法。"拉尔夫大主教急匆匆地说。"凯瑟林已经把城市围得铁桶一般了。" ①一译"法兰西斯派"，亦称"小兄弟会"。天主教托钵修会主要派别之一，麻衣赤脚，云游各地。 -- Annotation 他无论如何是不会走的。"维图里奥红衣主教说道。 帕皮先生站了起来。"阁下，我得离开您了。我是一个德国人的敌国政府代表。要是教皇陛下不安全的话，我也就有危险了。我的房子里还有一些文件，我得去照料一下。" 一本正经的外交官离开了，留下了两个教士。 "他是在这儿为他们那受到残害的人民说情吗？" "是的，可怜的人，他是这样关心他们。" "我们就不吗？" "我当然关心。拉尔夫！但是，局势比他了解的要困难。" "实际情况是，他得不到信任。" "拉尔夫！"