Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1896-09-29

Ano.eu SIG, vaguely SF2ttIul ZOE even
this admission and desi-ous Of encourag.
ing avowals even thus late and luke
warm.
Yes he went Gu, lyon know, it
seems to me-wasn't it that last night
we danced together at jefferson bar
racks: That WIS every day IF 20 years
ago"
"Ah. WELL" answered Lucretia, you
know it is SO very difficult to reckon
from, because that was the Goth Of Feb
ruary, and that coming only once in
four years. you
'Ha." Wayne laughingly interrupt
ed and then suddenly fell back again
into his old incoming way. "And yet,
you know, there was something want
ed 10 ask you that night. and was SO
coDfOundedly absentminded''-
'Oh. very" said she. for you men.
toned that there was something you
wanted to ask me, and l We been wonder
ing what it could be for 20 years.
do yOu know" said he delightfully."-,
$50 have 1. SO have l." And here he
leaned beamingly over her, and his eye
SAA1SNo ASAi VII ulHklttl ~ tllc tiltl
Of their cord. at was only tonight" he
went Oh, lit came to me that it was
something connected with this ring
my class ring, you know. It's odd l
can't think what it was. Why, your
hand is tremblingr' Coyly she appraised
it to meet the coming ring, and then
again he faltsred.
II remember, was holding the ring
just like this when somebody called to
me that I'd better hurry
Yes" she said breathlessly. In
deed you'd better hurry" But he was
still wandering i'll the PAST
"lt seems to mc-Oh, they'd sounded
| officers call, and that meant the devil
to pay somewhere, don't 70, know. :"
But Lucretia was willing now, dcspond
ent again, for still he went on: You
know, fancied until tie very next day
that Id left the ring here" And, suit
ing the action 20 the word, he slipped it
on her finger. ''And yet the very next
day, when / was Oh scout, found--1
found it here And with that he again
replaced 1T on his own finger. Lucretia's
face was sight to See. There was an
| instant of silence, and then, failing to
note the expression of her face, looking
| INTO the DIM recesses of the past, he
again wandered off.
"Of course l might have known
couldn't have left it on your finger
without even sccing-without even see
ing if it would fit-without'- And
| here he lost the thread of his language
entirely, and. cropping for his glasses,
finding them, distractedly he tried to fit
their spring on Lucretia's finger Fen
ton. who had joined the group Of on
lockers, could stand it no longer Burst
ing into roar of laughter. he came to.
ward them, and, thus INTERRUPTED, poor
Wayne dropped both hand and eyeglass,
madly trying to fit his own ring into his
| own eye and look through that under
the impression that it was mcnocle
What OH earth are You people laugh
ing att lie inquired.
Laughing at: At your trying to
| make spectacle hook of Lucretia' s
hand, you inspired old lunatic," was
Fenton' S unfecling answer. and poor Lu
| cretia, unable to stand the raillery at
the moment, turned and fed to the dress.
ing room, leaving Wayne to confront
his tormentors as best he might.
But while music and laughter reigned
within the wooden walls of tine Assem-.
bly, room and many young hearts were
| able to cast aside for the time being the
oppression that had settled upon the
garrison earlier i'll the evening, and
| while i'll some Of the barracks there
were sounds of merrymaking and Christ.
mas cheer, there was raging i'll many a
breast a storm as wild as that that
whirled the snowdrifts Ill binding
| clouds all around and about the guard.
house, where a score of seasoned troop.
ers, silent, grim and by no means in
love with their task, were keeping
watch and ward over their little batch
Of prisoners, especially Of the covering
wretch who had been slowed away in
the upper room, an utterly friendless
man.
Over across the wind swept parade,
| among the rows of wooden barracks,
| was one building where no laughter
| rang and about which, wary and viei
| liant, three or four noncommissioned
| officers lowered incessantly Here were
| quartered Crow knife's few remaining
comrades of the Indian troop Here Were
gathered already a dozen of his kindred
from Big Roads trarsplanted village,
forbidden by the fury of the storm to re.
turn to their tepees up the valley, ban
ished by the surgeon from the confines
of the hospital, where they would fam
have set up their mournful death song
to the distraction of the patients and re-
fused by the colonel the creature com.
forts they had promptly and thrifty
demanded, except on condition that they
consume them in quiet and decorum al
/ the Indian barracks and deny them.
selves the luxury Of their woe Tomton
and howl Were stilled, therefore, while
the funeral baked meats went from hand
to mouth and disappeared with marvel
Gus rapidity. and indeed but for it's ex
citing effect upon the warriors the colo
| mel might as well have accorded them
the right TO lament after their owl
f! fashion, since the bowling of the tenn
pests would have drowned all human
| wall from within the wooden walls
But while they had promised to hold N,