@@@@@He was still a rookie, he told himself; a
@@@@@He was still a rookie, he told himself; a veteran would have remembered to protect it
Water was dripping from Toglio's big fleshy noseHe moved his heavy jaw and shouted"Think your tent'll hold?"
"Don't know," Goldstein roared The four men were cramped in the hole even though they were squatting on their heelsRidges watched his feet sink into the mud, and wished he was not wearing shoesMan's jus' more fussed tryin' to keep 'em dry than the whole thing's worth, he thoughtA rill of water kept running into the tent along the ridgepole and trickling onto his bent kneeHis clothing was so cold that the drops of water seemed warm
A tremendous gust of wind bellied under the tent, blew it out like a balloon, and then the ridgepole snapped, tearing a rent in the ponchoThe tent fell upon the four men like a wet sheet, and they struggled stupidly under it for a few seconds before the wind began to strip it awayWyman got the giggles, and began to feel around helplesslyHe lost his balance and sat down in the mud, struggling feebly under the folds of the tentHe felt as if caught in a sack, and he subsided into helpless laughterToo weak to punch my way out of a paper bag, he said to himself, and this made everything seem even more ludicrous"Where are you?" he shouted, and then the folds of the tent filled out again like a sail, ripped loose completely, and went eddying and twisting through the airA little piece of the poncho had been left on one of the stakes, and it flapped in the galeThe four men stood up in the hole, and then crouched before the force of the windThey could still see the sun just above the horizon in one clear swatch of sky that seemed infinite miles awayThe rain was very cold now, almost frigid, and they shudderedAlmost all the tents were down in the bivouac area, and here and there a soldier would go skittering through the mud, staggering from the force of the wind with the odd jerking motions of a man walking in a motion picture when the film is unwinding too rapidly"Christ, I'm freezin'," Toglio shouted
"Let's get out of here," Wyman saidHe was covered with mud and his lips were chattering"Goddam rain," he