Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1883-07-28

I 'hle-like face changed from playful
3 irony to grave courtesy, and hi:
3 words were gentle and wonderfully
gracious.
Colonel Lenoir," he said, "do
not think, because | have not hith-
erto spoken to you, that / have not
watched you to-day. | came up tO
the field as you began your advance,
aud had you been driven back
, Lannes must have been cut to
pieces, and L could only have saved
the wreck, not won the battle. You
have saved the army to-day. mon
sieur, and the Emperor of the
French thanks you for it,"
Gabriel stood before the emperor,
his head bowed, and, for the first
time in two years, began to feel the
singular charm which surrounded
that great man, alike with Caesar
and Hannibal in classic days.
81 only did my duty, SIRE" he
muttered, for he was unable to speak
loud.
"That is true; and if all my Off
GERS did their duty, should never
have had to say Egypt is no longer
French Colonel, are you much
attached to your regiment"'
Gabriel flushed with pride.
''Sire, they would die for me /
for Them"
"That is unfortunate, for l am
about to part you from each other"
CasSe Tete uttered grOan, and
then turned crimson at his own
temerity and pretended to be cough
/ hn la of hn
emperor followed him with a
freezing look, and went on:
l am about to part you from each
| other. / have directed Berthier to
appoint you to the vacancy caused
by the death of General Me5serac,
i'll the corps of heavy cavalry, and
you will assume command of that
division at once. have further in
structed the Grand Chancellor,
Prince Cambaeeres, that you are
created Count of Friedland with
the estates of the late Duke of Wild
hausen in SaXe-Gotha, which are
now confiscated. You Will receive
your patent by the first post. In
the mean time, count, (laying en-
phasis on the title) il you apply to
Nansonty, he will, l doubt not,
give you leave of absence. We
shall have no more fighting this
year, and the Russians will make
peace in few weeks. GOod-evening
gelleJdL."
And before the astonished young
man could gather, his senses to CO.
herent thanks, the emperor had lift
ed his hat formally, and was can'er-
ing slowly away.
CaSSe Tete was the first to break |
the silence that ensued.
Suddenly tearing off his helmet, /
he flung it high in the air, caught |
it again, and began to yell at the /
top of his voice dancing around all |
the time:
"Viye PEmpereur Vive 'lEm-
pereur! Vive lc General, C0mte |
de Friedland! Hurrah Hurr9h
Hurrah"
lie made such Il noise that Gabri-
el called sharply to him:
"Hush, Casse Tete Don't be
fool, or rll not take you with me-"
Casse Tete stopped dancing and
put on his helmet again, but his face
Was rippling all over with smiles rs
he said:
"Your honor wouldn't know what
to do without me, monsieur lie
comte. Oh, my general, how hap
py | am. If we only had few
barrels of wine we'd have the whole
regiment roaring drunk, to night in
honor of the Count of Friedland.
Isn't it glorious, my general? And
Il leave of absence, too! We can 20
back to Paris, and you can see mad
anne, and / can see Babette. Hur-
rah |! / can't help it,"
And off went the helmet again,
while Casse Tete tried to turn
in his Joy, coming fiat
on his back with clatter that
brought him to his senses, and call
ed out u derisive laugh from the
whole body of the Deaths Heads,
who were making their soup fifty
yards off. .....
Case Tete got up again looking
foolish, and without another word
set to work making another pot of
soup, while his commander thought
fully finished his own, which had
grown cold during the brief visit of
the emperor.
He was thinking over the words
of his chief that he could have u
leave of absence.
That meant that he might 20 to
Paris to visit his wife for the first
time since their stolen marriage.
Could he go? A cloud still rested
on the fame of IneZ, cloud OF su5-
piciOn caused by the words OF a
3landerer and he felt he could not ,
return to Paris till he had met that /;
Slanderer and forceClhim to eat his
words or pay for them with his lie. .
BrOoding over this one disturb
ance of his otherwise happy lot, he
was reused from his reverie by the
of all the officers of his ;
regiment in body. q
News flies quickly in camp; they ,
lad seen the emperor speaking to .
heir colonel had heard rumOr OF .
MS promotion, and had come all :
ogether to express their joy at his !,
rood fortune and their grief at part :
ng with him.
Old Major CrOcasse, now head of ,
he regiment, but who had been :,
sergeant when he joined
he regiment as a recruit, had been =,
elling the rest the singular words =
he young man had used when ask !
III why he joined their regiment.
"I remember it as yesterday, my
he said before them all
'and how l thought you We're only
You said you would stay f
n the Deaths Heads till you were i
'ur colonel, and you have kept {,
vour word. Now you are leaving {
IS, but the rest of what you prophe- }
led has not come true" 9
"And what was that, major, ask :
d the young man smiling. i,
"That when you were colonel / c
hOuld be a general of division. t
lou have reached that before me-" o
"Never mind, major. You know /
hat my promotion gives you two o
teps and the other two are soon a
AIKEN in these days. We may yet Il
ave to give the Austrians one more b
esson, and you will then have your $
il
Gabriel was right. France was
Ot yet quite at the head OF Europe, d
nd it was two years later, at Wag- o
am, that Colonel CrocasSe, of the r,
Deaths Heads, gained his generals p
paulettes at the head of a regiment /
which had not single man with -
lue eyes or light hair in its ranks. c
iabriel LenOir had been the first Il
nd last who had staid in the corps, r,
nd he had earned his place by hard -