Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1890-06-20


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She seized a wrop and stepped to the door
UdY.
MIR. Hayne was up and around again.
The springtime was coming, and the
prairie roads were COOL and dry, and
the doctor bad told him he must live in
the open air awhile and ride and walk
and drive. He stood ia no want of
mounts" for three or four of his cav
airy friends were ready to lend him a
saddle horse any day. MIR. and Mrs.
Hurley, after making many pleasant &C
quaintances, had gone on to Denver,
and Capt Buxton was congratulating
himself that he, at least, had not run
foul of the engineers powerful fists
Buxton was not in arrest. for the case
had proved singular poser" 1t oc.
CURED during the temporary absence
of the colonel; he could not well place
the captain under arrest for things he
had done when acting as post cOmman-
der. In obedience to his orders from
department headquarters, he made his
report of the affair." and indicated that
Capt BuXton's conduct had been mex
cusable Ravner had done nothing but,
as was proved, reluctantly obey the cap
tain's orders, so he could not be tried.
Hayne, who had committed one Of the
most serious crimes in the military cata-
logue-that of drawing and raising a
weapon against an officer who was in
discharge of his duty (Raynel), had the
sympathy of the whole command. and
nobody would prefer charges against
him. The general decided to have the
report 90 up to division headquarters.
and thence it went with its varied com
mcnts and Endorsements to Washington:
and now court Of inquiry was talked
Of. Meantime poor beWildercd Buxton
was let severely alone. What made him
utterly miserable was the fact that in
his own regiment, the til, nobody
spoke of it except as something that
everybody knew was sure to happen the
moment he got in command. If it had
mt been that 'twould have been something
else. The only certainty was that Hux-
ton would never lose chance of making
an ass of himself.
Instead Of being furious with linn, the
whole reEimcnt-otlicers and men-sim-
ply ridiculed and laughed at him. lie
had talked of preferring charges against
Blake for characterization, and asked the
adjutant what he thought of it. 1t was
the first time he had spoken to the adiu-
tant for weeks, and the adjutant rushed
out of the Office to tell the crowd to come
in and ''hcar Buttons latest" 1t began
to look as though nothing serious would
ever come of the affair until Rayner re-
appeared and people saw how very i'll he
was. DR.. Poase had been consulted;
and it was settled that he as well as his
wife must go away for several months
and have complete rest and change. 1t
was decided that they would leave by
the list of May. All this Mr.. Hayne
heard through his kind friend, Mrs.
Waldron.
One day when he first began to sit up.
and before he had been out at all, she
came and sat with him in his sunshinv
parlor. There had been a silence for a
moment as she looked around upon the
few pictures and upon that baroness and
GOODNESS which, do what he will, no man
can eradicate from his abiding place I'M
I'll he calls in the defr and dainty hand of
woman.
81 snail be so glad when you have a
wife, Mr.. Hayne! was her quiet com,
ment.
80 shall l, Mrs. Waldron," was the
response.
and isn't it high time we were begin
ming to hear Of a choice? Forgive my
but that was the very mat
ter Of which the mayor ana l Were UaIk-
ing as he brought me over"
There is something to be done first,
Mrs. Waldron," he answered. Il cannot |
offer any woman a cloudcd name. 1t is
not enough that people should begin to |
believe that | was innocent and my per
secutors utterly in error, if not perjured. |
| must be able to show who was the real |
culprit, and that is not easy. The doctor |
and thought we saw n way not long |
ago; but it proved delusive." And he |
sighed deeply. 81 had expected to see |
the major about it the very day he got |
chance to talk"
"Mr. Hayne," she said, impulsively, |
"a woman's intuition is not always at |
fault. Tell me if you believe that any |
one on the post has any inkling of the |
truth. have a reason for asking"
81 did think it possible, Mrs. Waldron. |
| cannot be certain now; and it's too late, |
GLOW, too late? What's too later
lie paused a moment, a deeper shadow
than usual on his face; then he lifted his !
head and looked fairly at her
81 should not have said that, Mrs.
Waldron. 1t can never be too late. But |
what mean is that-just now spoke of
Offering no woman a clouded name.
Even if it T~re unclouded, l could not
offer it where | would"
because you have heard of the en-