Waterbury evening Democrat., 1894-07-28
CHAPTER II.

dark A thick veil of clouds overspread the heavens and hid the stars Moon there was none, for the faint silver cres- cent that gleamed for n moment through the swift sailing wisps of vapor had dropped beneath the horizon soon after tattoo, and the mournful strains of 'taps, borne on the rising wind, seem- ed to signal ''extinguish lights" to the entire Armament as well as to Fort Sib- ley. There was a dance of some kind at the quarters of one of the staff officers living far up the row on the southern terrace Chester heard the laughter and chat as the young officers and their con- voy of matroDs and maids came trip ping homeward after midnight. He was a crusty old bachelor, to use his own description, and rarely ventured into these scenes of social gayety, and besides he was officer of the day, and it was theory he was fond of expo Nd- ing to juniors that when on guard no soldier should permit himself to be drawn from the scene of his duties. With his books and his pipe Chester whiled away the lonely hours of the early night and wondered if the wind would blow up rain or disperse the clouds entirely. Toward o'clock q light, bounding footstep approached his door, and the portal flew open as n trim built young fellow, with laughing eyes and an air of cxuberant health and spirits, came briskly in. It was Rollins, the junior second lieutenant of the regiment and Chester's own and only pet-so said the envious others. He was barely n year out of leading strings at the Point and as full of hope and pluck and mis- chief as a colt. Moreover, he was frank and teachable. said Chester, and didn't come to him with the idea that he had nothing to learn and less to do. The boy won upon his gruff captain from the very start, and, to the incredulous de- light of the whole regiment, within six months the old cynic had taken him into his heart and home, and Mir. Rollins occupied pleasant room under Ches- ter's rooftree and was the sole accredited sharer of the captains mess. To a youngster just entering service, whose ambition it was to stick to business and make a record for zeal and efficiency, these were manifest advantages.
 There were men in the regiment to whom such close communion with a
 
 embarrassing, and Mir Collins prcdc- cessor as second licutcnant of Chester s company was one of these. Mir. .Jerrold was a happy man when promotion took him from under the wing of Crusty Jake and landed him in Company B. More than that, it came just at time when, after four years of loneliness and isolation at an up river stockade, his Is. - II with four others from the regiment, were ordered to join headquarters and the band at the most delightful station ill the northwest. Here Mir. Rollins had reported for duty during the previous autumn, and here they were with troops of other arms of the service. enjoying the close proximity of all the good things of civilization.
 Chester looked up, with quizzical smile, as his ''plebc" came in:
 Well, sir. how many dances had you with Sweet Alice. Ben Bolt? Not many, I fancy. with Mir. Jerrold mOnopolizing everything as usual. By gad! some good fellow could make colossal fortune in buying that young man at my valua- tion and selling him at his own" ''Oh, come, now, captain, laughed Rollins, "Jerrold's no such slouch as you make him out. He's lazy, and he likes to spoon, and he puts mp with q good deal of betting from the girls who wouldn't if he could get it?-but he is jolly and big hearted and don't put on any airs-with us, at least-and the mess like him first rate. Faint his fault that he's handsome and a regular lady killer. You must admit that he had a pretty tough four years of it ur there at that cuSscd old Indian grave. yard, and it's only natural he should enjoy getting here, where there are the. aters and concerts and operas and dances and dinncrs''-
 "Yes, dances and dinners and daugh. ters, all delightful, I know. but no cx. cuse for mans neglcCting his mani fest duty, as he iS doing and has been ever since We got here. Any other time l the colonel would have strengthened him out, but no use trying it now, when both women ill his household are as big fools about the man as anybody in town bigger, unless I'm a born idiot" And l Chester rose cXcitcdly.
 II suppose he had Miss Rcnwicl prCt ty much to himself tonight?" he pres ently demanded, looking angrily anG searchingly at his junior, us though halt expecting him to dodge the question:
 ''Oh, yes. Why not? It's pretty evi dent she would rather dance and bt ] with him than with any one else. SC what can fellow do? Of course w asl her to dance and all that, and thinl he wants us to, but cannot help feel ing rather bore to her, even if she i: only Is, and there are plenty of pleas ant girls ill the garrison who don't gCt any too much attention, now we're sC near a big city, and I like to be witt | them"
 "Yes, and it's the right thing for yor to do, youngster That's one trait de spise ill Jerrold. When we were uI there at the stockade two winters az, and Captain Gray's little girl was there he hung around her from morning til night, and the poor little thing fairly beamed and blossomed with delight Look at her now, mani He doesn't gt near her. He hasn't had the decency t, take her a walk, n drive or anything since we got here. He began from tn moment we came with that gang il town He was simply devoted to Mis Beaubien until Alice Berwick came Then he dropped her like hot brick By the eternal, Rollins, he hasn't go off with that old love yet, you mari my words. There's Indian blood in he veins and n look in her eye that make me wriggle sometimes. watched he last night at parade when she drove ou here with that copper faced old squaw her mother. For all her French an | Italian education and her years in NeN York and Paris that girls got will
 streak in her somewhere. She sat ther watching him as the officers marched