The Washington times., 1894-12-30
PARTH-CHAPTER vi.

Yet all along that fateful ridge, now
obscured and confused with thin crossing
smoke drifts from shle firing, like partly
rubbed out slate pencil marks, or else, when
cleared of. those drifts, presenting only an in
dietiagusbable map of zigzag lines OF strag-
CLING wagons and horses. uninteiligibie 10
any eye but his, the sin -ular magnetism ofthe
chief was felt everywhere. Whether it was
shown in the quick closing in of resistance TO
some sharper onset OF the enemy or the more
dogged sand OF inaction under fire. his power
was always dominant.
A word or two of comprehensive direction,
sent through an ade-de-camp, or the sudden
reliefef his dark, watchful. composed face,
uplifted above line OF bayenets, never
failed in their magic. Like all born leaders
he seemed, in these emergencies. to hold a
charmed life, injecting his followers with a
like disbalief in death. Men dropned TO
right and left OF him with serene assurance
in their ghassly faces or a cry OF lie and con-
hdence in their last gasp. Stragglers fell in
and closed up under his passing glance; a
hopeless ineXt.ieable wrangle around an
overturned caisson. at the turn of the road,
resolved itself into an orderly, quiet, delib-
crate clearing away of the impediment. be-
fore the significant waiting of that dark, si-
lent horseman.
Yet under this imperturbable mask he was
keenly conscio Is OF everything; in that ap-
parent concentration there was a sharpening
OF all his senses and his impressibility; he
saw the first trace of doubt or alarm in the
face of subaltern to whom he was giving an
order; tie first touch OF sluggishness in a re-
forming line; the more significant clumsiness
Of living evolution that he knew was clog
ged by the dead bodies of comrades; the
oninols silence of a breastwork; the awful
inertia of some rigidly kneeliDg files beyond,
which still kept their form, but never would
move again; the melting away of skirmish
points; the sudden gaps here and there; the
sickening lncurving of what a moment before
had been straight line-all these he saw in
all their fatal significance.
But even at this moment. coming upon
hasty barricade of over>et commissary wag-
ons, he sioppe5sS glance at a familiar figure
he had seen eAt an hour ago, who now
seemed to be commanding group of strag-
glers and caniSA. followers Mounted on a
wheel. with a receiver in each hand and a
bowie knife between his teeth-theatrical
even In this paroxysm of undoubted courage
glared Jim Hookeri And Clarence Brant,
with the whole responsibility of the field on
his shoulders, even at that desperate moment,
found himself recalling a vivid picture of the
actor Hooker personating the character Of
Red Dick in "Rosalie. the Prairie Flower" as
he had seen him in a California theater five
years before!
II wanted still an hour of the darkness that
would PROBABLY close the fight of that day.
Could he hold out, keeping his offensive po-
sition so long? A hasty council with his off,
GERS showed him that the weakness of their
position had already infected them. They
reminded him that his line OF retreat was
still open-that in the course OF the night the
enemy. although stiH pressing toward the
division center, might yet turn and outfiank
him-or that their strangely delayed supports
might come up before morning. Brant's
glass, however, remained fixed on the main
column still pursuing its way along the ridge.
1t struck him suddenly. however, that the
steady current had stopped, spread ont along
the crest on both sides. and was now at right
angles with its previous course. There
had been a check. The next moment
the thunder OF guns along the whole horizon
and the rising cloud of smoke revealed line
of battle. The division center was engaged.
The opportunity he had 1onged for had come
the desperate chance to throw himself on
their rear and cut his way through the diyis-
ion-but it had come too late.
He looked at his shattered ranks-scarce a
regiment remained. Even as demonstra-
tion. the attack would fail against the
enemy's superior numbers. Nothing clearly
was left to him now but to remain where he
was-within supporting distance. and await
the issue of the hght beyond. He was put