Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1891-02-21

Eyes, sir; and they told me he was
here, at Capt. Lanes. Corp. Brent is
took worse, sir, and the steward thinks
the doctor ought to see him. He's wrld
like and raving."
mabel dear, I'll be back in mo-
ment," said Lane, reappearing at the
parlor door. Don't wait for me: I'm
going to see if the doctor is at Hearn's.
They went away together Corp. Brent
is reported worse"
Throwing his cavalry circular" over
his shoulders Lane stepped forth into
the night. 1t was moonless and pitchy
dark. The lamps around the quad
rangle We're burning brightly, but hard
ly sufficed to illumine more than a
small sphere in the surrounding gloom.
Across the wide valley distant rudy
spark showed where some farm home
stead was still alive; and far away to
the westward the electric lights, SWING
ing high over the thoroughfares of the
thriving town, shone with keen, cold
luster, and We're mirrored in some deep,
unruffied pool of the stream. Turning
his back on these the captain trudged
briskly down the walk, the hospital at
tendant following, ana opened the little
gate some fifty yards from his own. AS
he surmised, the doctor was here, for his
voice, and Kenyon's, too, could be heard
before Lane tapped at the door.
Come in" shouted Hearn in answer
to the signal, and the captain entered
You are asked for at the hospital.
Doctor ThaH- D,.ant &c oil
At this the medical man dropped the
cigar he had but half smoked and left
the room. Lane was for going with
him, but Hearn begged him to stay:
mo time like the present, captain, and
| want you to see the papers in the celo-
brated case of Braire VS.. Hearn while
Maj. Kenyon is here. I'll beg Mrs.
Lanes pardon in the morning. and not
detain you more than minute"
Standing against the wall in the midst
of what had been old Blauvelt's sitting
room was plain wooden table with a
| pigeonholed desk upon it, the lid Of
which, turned down. made the writing
shelf. In the pigeonholes were numer-
Gus folded papers, well filed envelopes.
packages of tobacco. a brier root pipe. G
pair of shoulderstraps, several pairs OF
gloves, some fishing tackle, some carte
de-visite sized photographs. damaged
saberknot and the inevitable accumula-
ton of odds and ends with which a
subaltern's field desk is apt to be lit
tered. But the pigeonholes had been
quite Systematically labeled There
were compartments bearing the legends
letters unanswered" letters an.
swered." personals. ""bills paid, bills
unpaid" Doth impartially occupied
pay accounts" maps" field notes. e
| etc.
Il never knew the necessity of having
some sort of system about these matters
until after the experience | have been
telling you of. captain. and | am in
debted to dear old Rawlins for it. You
never met him, did you. Maj. Kenyon
! mo, except just for a moment in the
Shenandoah valley during the war. he
was commanding his regiment then"
"Yes, and lived to be shot down in
cold blood by lot of ambuscadinc
Apaches nearly a quarter of a century
after, and-nothing but a captain of cav
airy"
He had some little property here il
town at one time, said Kenyon. THAT
was nearly ten years ago though. and il
went at a sacrifice, I'm told Perhaps il
was while he was a local taxpayer thai
he got to know your Hebrew friend OF
today"
He never told me what he knew OF
him. beyond the mere fact that he was
dishonest and born mischief maker
But the moment he took that case NJ
for me Schonberg dropped it. For some
reason the jew was afraid of the ole
man, as every one called Rawlins"
Hearn was turning over in his hanC
as he spoke package of folded papers
held together by elastic snaps. Remov
ing the upper band, he began looking
over the docketing at the top of eact
paper.
"Rawlins himself Endorsed this par
ticular packet for me and showed IN,
how it should be DONE" he said Nv,
often thought that if we could drop ou
a little slice of the mathematical cours,
at the Point, and have some coaching il
this sort of thing, how much bette
fitted we should be for the every day
duties of life. Now. L Why. thi
is odd. certainly had those papers il
this very packet not three weeks ago.
saw them the day l moved in here.
remember overhauling this very desk al
the time"
Nervously ne ran through the packag,
again. his fingers rapidly turning tn,
folded pages, his face paling with sud
den apprehension.
"There was a lettar here from Capt
Rawlins, two receipts OF Schonberg'
and the letter from Mrs. Braine. al
bundled up together, and the indorse
ment of each in Rawlins' handwriting.
Then he threw down the packet anC
began pulling out the papers in othe
pigeonholes. Kenyon and Lane standin.
silently by In vain he searched No
vestige of the desired proofs could b,
found. 1t was with a white face anC
eyes that were full of trouble that h.
I