Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1895-03-21

homeward that night and the first,
thing when father and daughter were
left alone old Morgan turned to Con-
ME.
$50 that was what Thornton's letter
was about, was it, COnnie?"
Certainly, father" she replied,
looking straight into his eyes with
those clear brown orbs of hers. "What
else could it have been?" And that was
the last mentioned of the subject be-
tween them.
Each and every one, the men had
shaken hands with their captain and
pledged his health in the foaming beer
old Curran had insisted on setting
up for the occasion. They swore,
soldier-lilze, they'd never let the cap
tain retire; but that was a matter be-
yond their Jurisdiction. Wind and
weather and many a worry laid the
veteran by the heels, and his old
enemy, rheumatism, took fresh and
forcible hold. When D troop rode
away to take the field, poor Morgan
was groaning both in flesh and spirit,
and when late that autumn Schramm
came posting homeward under subppne
to testify in re The People VS.. Lacy,
the chevrons of a sergeant decked his
sleeves in recognition of a ride of
over a hundred miles through Indian
haunted wilds to bear dispatches to
a distant command, but neither cap
tain nor Connie was there to bid him
welcome. The lonely grave out on the
prairie lacked the bunch of wild flow
ers which formerly decked it every
| Sunday morning. The old quarters
down the row were peopled by
| strangers to the German soldier now.
| The sweet face of the gnadige Frau
| 1ein smiled no more from the dormer
window over the veranda; the Nor
gans, one and all, were gone. A retir-
| ing board had pronounced the old
dragon unfit for further service, and
with his own fuel and quarters to fur
nish as best he could, with no more
medical attendance or supplies from
| Uncle Sam, with all the brood to feed
and clothe and educate, without a word
| of aid or welcome from the kinsfolx in
| the east, poor Morgan meekly took his
| discharge and his retired pay, and a
| tiny two-storied cottage in an out-of-
the-way street in Butte, and strove to
set up housekeeping with Connie at
| the head and a Chinese man-of-al1-work
| at the foot of the new establishment.
Rand had been to see them and urged
| their all coming eastward awhile as
his guests at home, but the railroad
company had offered Morgan little
berth which he considered it his duty
to accept at once, and Connie secuted
the idea of her being in need of rest or
change; she could not think of leaving
father; and within the month it seemed
as though her vision were preternatu-
| o1o 3~Nv. x,V.oCorflxy n
could not leave the house at all. It
was at this stage of the proceedings
that as Connie, broom in hand, and an
old silk handkerchief over her head,
was sweeping out the hall one sharp Oc-
tober morning, the Chinaman having
been discharged as the result of a
strike for more wages and less work,
she sent whirl of dust upon the glis-
| tening boots of a statuesque trooper
with hand at salute and blue eyes
beaming in delight at sight Of his
friend the captains daughter.
''Oh, Schr-r-ramn!" she cried, throw
ing down her Bosom and joyously
grasping his gauntleted hand. "Where
did you come from? Come right in;
papa will be so glad!-Here's Schramm
-Sergt. Schramm, daddy dear;" and,
first closing the outer door, she opened
that which led to the, den, and ushered
the sergeant in and watched with
| glistening eyes the greeting of the two
soldiers Schramm must stay and take
luncheon with them. 'sWe are no
longer on duty, lad" said Morgan,
with sad smile, land If you'll have a
bite with us and tell as all about the
old troop it'll be a comfort" And
Comics eyes and lips were
even more insistent- Of came