Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1889-11-09

saw that he had stumbled on some piece
on garrison gossip.
"Never mind" he said, with kindly
laugh. 81 don't want to drag any stories
out by the roots. The doctor can doubt
less explain It all in good season."
"Well, Col. Brainard." answered Bel
knap. bulkily, ito tell the truth, | really
don't know anything about it. and |
don't know any one who does, though ]
have heard some woman talk about the
post. The relations between DIR. Quin
and some of the officers of the Eleventh
were rather strained, and he Is some.
what reserved and secretivc man. The
stories were set afloat here last fall, and
we had to hear more or less of them un-
| I'll the Eleventh went away this spring
| We know only that DIR. Quin has been
to Dunravcn and the rest of us haven't
Possibly some of the Eleventh were
piqucd because they had no such luck.
or perhaps their ladies did not like it be-
cause Quin wouldn't tell them anything
about what he saw. At all events, he
| refused to talk on the subject at all. and
allowed people to draw their own con
| clusions."
"He probably told his post com
mander," suggested Lieut.. Farnham,
who, AS acting adiutant of the post and
an aspirant for the adjutancy of the
regiment, thought 1t good opportunity
of putting in word as indicative of
what he considered the bounden duty of
an officer under like circumstances.
"Wcll, no. l fancy not" replied Bel
knap. About the only thing we really
do know is that, in "A somewhat angry
interview last fall, Col Stratton forbade
DR.. Quin's leaving the post or going to
! Dunraven without his express permis-
| sion. | happened to be in the office at
the time"
! WAS it before or after that he was
| said to go there so often?' asked Farm
ham.
"Wcll, both" answered Bel khap, re-
luctantly. But understand me, Mr..
Farnham, know nothing whatever of
the matter
81 should not suppose that Col. STRAIT
ton would care to restrict his post sur
geon from going thither if they needed
his professional services" said Col. Brai-
nard, pleasantly.
|
entity" answered Belknap "Col. Strat.
ton said that IL was not on professional
| grounds that he went and thereby seemed
to widen the breach between them. DR..
| Quin would not speak to the colonel after
that, except when duty required it"
The conversation changed here, and
| little more was said but Col. Brainard
could not help thinking of a matter that
he carefully kept to himself 1t was not
bis custom to require his officers to ask
permission to leave the garrison Tor u rae
or hunt when they were to be absent
from no duty, and only by day. Here it
was midnight, as he thought it over, and
the doctor had not returned. neither had
he mentioned his desire to ride away
although he had been with the colonel
well nigh an hour before parade, True,
he had sent the doctor word 10 go and
join Lieut.. Perry at the gato of Dun
raven, and that would account for his
detention: but he knew that the surgeon
was several miles away from his post and
his patients at the moment that message
was sent
Meantime, Perry, too, was having "A
tcommunion with himself, and finding it
iall vexation Of spirit. All the way
Ihome the memory of that sweet English
face was uppermost in his thoughts. lie
had been startled at the sight of young
land fair woman at Dunraven, he had
| felt Il sense of inexpicable rejoicing
when she said TO him, 81 am Miss Matt.
land;" it would have Jared hir; to know
that she was wife; he was happy kneel,
ing by the side of the beautiful girl he
! had never seen before that evening, and
delighted that he could be Of service to
! lAeF.-All this ~+ts- retrospect worth frr~
dulging; but then arose tho black shadow
on his vision. How came Or Qun
striding in there as though native and
10 the manner borny"-how came he To
call her "Gadys?" Perry had been
pondering over this matter for full half
an hour ON the homeward ride before lao
bethought him of Mrs. Lawrence's re-
marks about the signal lights. One
thing led To another in his recollection of
her talk. The doctor answered the sig
nails, no one else; the doctor and no one
else was received at Dunrayen; the doc
tor had declined 10 answer any questions
about the people at the ranch, had been
silent and mysterious, yet frequent in
| his visits. And then, more than all
what was that Mrs. Lawrence said or in.
timated that Mrs Quin, "such lovely
woman, too" had taken her children and
left him early that spring, and all on ac-
count of somebody or something con.
nected with Dunrayen Ranch? Good
heayensl 1t could not ba GLADYS. "
And yet
Instead of taking a bath and going to
bed, Mr.. Perry poked his head into
Parkes bachelor chamber as he reached
the little cottage they shared in common.
No Gladys disturbed the juniors dreams,
apparently, for he was breathing rsgu-
larly, sleeping the sleep of the Just; and
SO, finding no one to talk to and being in
no mood TO go to bed at an hour so com
paratively early when he had SO much to
think about, Perry filed pipe and
perched himself in big chair by the
window seat, intending to think it all
over again. He was beginning to hate
that doctor; he would have chafed at the
idea of any bachelors being before him
in an acquaintance with Gladys Maitland,
but married man knowing her so well
as to make his wife jealous and himself
indifferent to that fact-knowing her so
well as 10 drive "such lovely woman,
too" into taking her children and quit
ting the marital roof--that was too much
of bad thing. and Perry was sore dis,
comfited. He got up, impatient and rest,
less, passed out to the little piazza in
front of his quarters, and began pacing
up and down, the glow from his corncob
pipe making fiery trail in the darkness.
He would have been glad to go back 70
the colonel and keen watch with him,