Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1892-11-04

hurry. ma
lie said quietly: The Boy has been
alone by himself for ono two. five
fourteen hours nowl tell you. l
don't feel easy
When we came to the Canal En-
gineers Rest House tho major called
for the boys servant but there was
no answer. Then we went up to the
house calling for the boy by name
there was no answer
"Oh. he $ out shooting" said l.
just then saw tn ough one OF the
windows little hurricane. lamp burn
ing This was at four in the after
noon. We both stopped dead in the
veranda holding our breath TO catch
eve sound; and we heard. inside
the room. the ''brr-brr-brr" OF n
multitude OF flies The ma or said
nothing. but he took of his helmet
and we entered very softly.
The Boy was dead on the charpoy
In the center OF the bare lime washed
room. lie had shot his band nearly
to pieces with his revolver. Tho gun
cases were still strapped, so was the
bedding and on the table lay The
Boy writing case with photographs
He had gone away to die Like a poi
soned rat
The ma or said to himself softly:
Poor boy Poor poor devil!' Then
he turned away from the bed and
said: Il want your help in this ousi-
ness"
The Boy must have spent half the
night in writing TO his people and 10
his colonel and to girl at home. and
as soon Is he had finished must have
shot himself for he had been dead
long time when we came in.
| read all lie had written and passed
over each sheet to the ma, or as l
finished it.
We saw from his accounts how very
seriously he had taken everything.
lie wrote about disgrace which he
was unable TO bear 'iudeiible
shame - criminal folly wasted
life and 50 on; besides a lot OF pri-
vate things 10 his father and mother
much too sacred TO put into print
, The letter to the girl at home was the
most pitilul OF all and | choked as
read it
1t was utterly impossible to let the
letters 60 home. They would have
broken his fathers heart and killed
his mother after killing her belief in
/ her son.
AT last tho major dried his eyes
openly and said Mice sort OF thing
to spring on an English family! What
shall we do?"
i sa d knowing what the major had
brought ne out for: The Boy died
OF cholera We were with him at the
time We can't commit ourselves TO
half measures Come along"
Then began one OF the most grimly
comic scenes ! have ever taken part
in-the concOcton OF Big written
Q. bolstered with evidence to sooth
The Boys people at home ! began
the rough draft OF letter the
ma or throwing in Limits here and
there while he gathered up all the
stuff The Boy had written and burnt
it in the fireplace. In due course
got the draft 10 my salts action. set
ting forth how The boy was the pat
tern of all virtues beloved by h s
reg ment with every promise OF a
great career before him. and SO on;
how we had helped him through the
sickness-it was no time Tor little lies
you understand-and how he had died
without pain. ! choked while was
putting down these things and think
ing OF the poor people VINO would read
them. hen / laughed at the gro
tesqueness OF the affair and the
laughter mixed itself up with the
choke and the ma. or said that we
both wanted drinks
/ am afraid to say how much whisky
we drank before the letter was finished.
1t had not the least effect on us Then
we took off The Boys watch. locket
and rings.
Lastly. the major SAID: I'VE must
send lock of hair too. A woman
values that"
But there were reasons why we
could not find lock tit To send The
Boy was backhaired and SO was the
ma or. luckily. l cut of piece o.
the MAJORS hair above the tempt
with a kni Q aud put into the packet
we were making. The laughng-Ht
had to stop. The MAJOR was nearly
as bad. and we both knew that the
worst part Oi the work was to come.
We sealed up the packet photo
graphs loeket seals rings letter and
lock OF hair with the boys sealing
wax and the boys seal
Then the major sad: For God g
sake let 8 get Outside-away from tho
room-and think"
1t took us four hour hard work IN
make the grave AS we worked we
argued out whether it was right to
say as much as we remembered oil
the Burial of the Dead. We compro.
missed things by saying the Lord g
Prayer with private uno DIAL prayer
for the peace Of the soul OF The 30 !.
Then we filed in the grave and went
into tho veranda-not the house tic
lie down to sleep. We we're dead
tired.
When wo awoke the major said.
YEARLY: I'VE cant go back till to-
morrow We must give him a dece nj
time to die in. He died early this