@@@@@It held together, but he was not 4
@@@@@It held together, but he was not satisfied"Give me the belt to your pants," he told themHe worked busily for a few minutes and when he had done, the stretcher was a rectangle formed by the two poles and the two struts, with the blanket and poncho substituting for a canvasUnderneath them, the belts were fastened diagonally like stays to keep the stretcher poles from shearing"I think that oughta hold," he mutteredHe frowned and looked up to see most of the platoon gathered in a circle about Roth
Roth was completely absorbed in the birdEach time it would open its tiny beak and try to bite his finger, he would feel a protective pangIts jaws were so weakIts entire body would flutter and vibrate from the effort, and yet there was hardly any pressure at all on his fingerIn his hand, its body was warm with a delicate musky odor, reminiscent of face powderDespite himself he would bring the bird up to his nose and sniff it, touching his lips against its soft feathersIts eyes were so bright and alertRoth had fallen in love with the bird immediatelyAnd all the frustrated affection he had stored for months seemed to pour out toward the birdHe fondled it, breathed its bouquet, examined its injured wing, filled with tenderness toward itHe felt exactly the same joy he knew when his child had plucked at the hairs on his chestAnd back of it, not quite conscious, he was also enjoying the interest of the men who had crowded around him to lookFor once he was the focus of attention
He could not have picked a worse time to antagonize Croft
Croft was sweating from the labor of making the stretcher; when he finished, all the difficulties of the patrol were nagging at him againAnd deep within him his rage was alive again, flaringEverything was wrong, and Roth played with a bird, while nearly half the platoon stood about watching
His anger was too vivid for him to thinkHe strode across the hollow, and stopped before the group around R
