Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1889-07-18

pauvre diable! there's something un'
derneath it all. He carries heavy
heart under that bolS brave face if
mistake not. -
HE is bod sodat To the backbone.
l hope the bullets won't whish him off
as quickly as he seems TO desire. We
can i'll spare men now"
Think you it will come to siegep"
"Dieu de dieu-yes. These cursed
German brutes are hemming us in on
every side
The talk grew graver, the icsts less
| bOisterous, while the man whom they
discussed stood motionless in the star
light, his musket resting against his
shoulder, his eyes fixed on the far-off
walls of the fair city so soon to be the
prey of the foe.
The fearless, dauntless soldier had
been through many a hot skirmish,
had served well, and learned quickly,
and borne the arduous unremitting
work of trying campaigns and close
discipline, with u cool bravery that
had won him both respect and
| liking from comrades and superiors.
They did not quite understand. They
could not quite comprehend his moods
of silence-his strange unsocial CRAWL
| ty-his utter reticence respecting his
own past life, of which no one knew
or could ascertain anything.
1t held some mystery, some sorrow,
that they surmised; but of its nature
he never spoke, and after time they
ceased to inquire. The noise, the
clang, and tumult of war, the ever
present excitement of danger, all these
were too constantly around and about
them to allow OF much leisure for
speculation or gossip. They accept
ed him among the fraternity as one of
whom they could trust, honor and re-
spect, even il no warmer feeling were
permitted, and for that he was alone
TO blame, since he allowed of no clos
er approach to confidence or regard
than he himself sought, and that was
as little as well might be without alb
solute offense.
Times were terrible now in France.
The war fever was at its height.
Men grew drunk with bloodshed
as with wine. Ficrcest hatred
to the conqueror glowed in
every breast, and each day the hopes
of victory grew fainter, the dread con-
quest sharper. And amidst all the
turmoil and anxiety and danger, one
man moved as though he bore a
charmed life, only saying to himself:
"Oh, that death were possible."
But though near often, it yet passed
him by taking, with that strange IA.
tality that makes life at once so strik
! ing and so sad, lives beside him,
around him-lives, loved, happy,
young, hopeful, and yet leaving his
unframed, TO bear the burden of a
hidden woe that haunted every hour of
his existence.
A life of hardship, discipline, suffer-
ing, was his daily portion, but for all
external discomfort he cared but little.
scarcely felt or noticed it. Hunger,
WEAKNESS, coarse food, ceaseless toll,
terrible danger, all these looked but
trilies to eyes that had grown blind
with one hours shattered bliss. with
the agony of doubt that had turned
| love to madness.
But the war-fre awoke in him at
last and became the one thing that
kept him from utter despair. Severe
campaigning, hot skirmishes and in
cessant watchfulness, all the demands
on his time and attention that each
day rendered more necessary. these
| brought him excitement, and gave
him the utter disregard and rockies s.
ness as to life and danger that awoke
the involuntary admiration OF his COM
rades.
Pierre Leroux was a man with the
born instincts of soldier, and his
previous quiet uneventful life in no
way untitled him for his present ex-
periences. It's necessities called many
latent faculties into play, and taught
him the two great lessons OF
! life-patience and endurance;
and this man, who bu few
months before had known no greater
anxiety than the failure of a crop or
the drought Of season, now bore
privations as calmly, and risked death
as recklessly, as the hardest soldier
who had spent a lifetime in the SER
vice of war and the toll of camps.
Tonight, when the carousal was
over, and the soldiers slept for the
few brief hours that were alone per-
mitted, he stood as sentinel over the
little troop.
The air was chilly-there was no
light, for moon and stars were shroud-
ed by gray heavy clouds. With ears
alert, and eyes keen and sharp as
long habit could make them, he paced
to and fro in that ceaseless monoton-
Gus round that is SO wearisomc even to
the trained soldier. The darkness
deepened, and the wind grew fiercer.
Into his brain stole the thoughts that
could still so necessarily torture and
perplex him. Into his heart came the
memory of that night when the wom-
an he loved had crouched at his feet,
and with the pallor OF guilt on her
face and yet the denial of guilt on her
lips, had prayed him TO believe her in
nOcent. Innocent! He almost laugh
ed as he thought of ii. A week-old
vile would not steal AWAY throuob