Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1892-07-15
"Quite sure" replied the Major

"Qaite sure" replied the Major
judicially. ,
"'Pon honor!" remarked the others
in chorus.
"Well. gentlemen, you have sur!
prised me-" said Macleod, glancin9
from one to the other as IL he could
scarcely believe his ears. sOf course
l believe you-but-if the Colonel
will permit i'll should like to look
myself just to convine my own eyes"
"LOOk away, me boy, chuckeled
the Colonel hoarsely. He was con-
vulsed with delight at his complete
triumph. "Ye'll have to pay for your
peep"
"Well, then, please open your
mouth a little wider, Colonel, and.
will one of you hold,the light? Really,
Colonel. you must excuse me, but I
can't see. You must really let me
open your mouth a little wider"
With these words he actually laid
one sacrilegious hand on the Colonel's
nose and the other on the Colonel's'
chin, and pressed them gently in OPP
posite directions. There was not a
man among ali the reckless crew who
stood around but held his breath
for the moment in anticipation of a
terrible explosion.
The Colonel did not rise and ami.
hilate the audacious Scotchman. lie.
bore this insult like Il lamb. y
The indignity was, howevcs. of the.
very shortest duration. for Macleod
was satisfied with the bricfest glance.
IL have lost" he said quite cheer
fully, sand | owe you an ample apol-
ogy, Colonel. Luckily l have the
notes with mes
He produced his pocketbook:, en-
tractcd two ESQ notes from it. and
handed them to the Colonel.
The latter took them with the most
portcntous gravity. He was clearly
puzzled and uncertain as to the right.
course of action. He puckered up his
face in the most curious wrinkles.
Then he rubbed his most rcflectively.
The humorous side of the question,
however, presented itself very forci-
bly, to him, and he broke into a broad
grin.
''Well," he said, with a loud oar
OF laughter, 'syou are a damned inn
pudent young rascal. But 1 didn't
think that Il Scotchman and his
money were so easily parted"
And amid sympathetic roars from
the entire mess, who thought the
whole thing a capital joke all round,
the Colonel's indignation melted into
intense enjoyment Of his own success
The only person who was unsettled in
his own mind was young F%anshawe,
who could not understand why Mac.
leod should have risked a hundred
pounds in so foolish a way.
III don't think much of that Scotch
chap you sent U.S." wrote the ColcnelI
a few days later, to his old school
fellow, Capt. Fletcher of the Bl;Ies.
100 much brag: too little bottom.
He'll never set the Thames on fire.
Only Il few days ago he actually bet
me a hundred pounds to twenty that
/ had a black roof to my mouth
cheeky young devil! Well, ltook the
bet, just to give him a lesson. You
ought to have seen his face when he
lost. Really, 1 couldn't help roaring
with laughter to see how confident
he had been and how sold he was
You must be a dull lot in the Blues If
he always wins from you. Anyhow, l
have broken the record"
Capt. Fletcher wrote by return of,
post to his old school-fellow, Col.
Dominick Power:
"Confound YOU! Didn't 1 caution
you most pointedly not to bet with
him? Couldn't you have known that
there must have been some deviltry
ON, or a man would not throw away
his money in such Il preposterous
fashion. Before he left us Macleod
laid me n hundred pounds to IL
Thousand that he would pull your nose
in the presence of the mess before he
had been a week in the regiment and
without being contaminated or even
placed under arrest for it, aud I have
just received a round-robin, signed by
all your mess. declaring that he has
won the bet. London Truth.