The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1896-03-18


worst. In this bad, small world Of ours
one knows SO little of tho life of the next
Inan-which after all, is entirely his own
concorn-that ono is not surprised whom a
crash comes. Anything might turn up
any day for any ono. Perhaps tho senior
subaltern had been trapped in his youth.
Men arc crippled that way occasionally.
Wo didn't know. We wanted to hear,
and tho captains wives were as anxious as
we. If he had been trapped, ho was to BIO
excused for the woman from nowhere, in
tho dusty shoes and gray travelling dress,
was very lovely, with black hair and great
eyes full of tears. She was tall, with
flno figure, and her voice had II running
sob in it pitiful to hear AS soon ms the
senior subaltern stood up sho threw her
arms round his neck and called him my
darling" and said she could not bear wait
ing alone i'll England, and his letters were
SO short and cold, and she was his to the
end Of tho world, and would he forgive
herp This did not sound quito like lady's
way OF speaking. 1t was too demonstra-
tive.
Things seemed black indeed, and the
captains wives pcercd under their eye
brows Mt tho senior subaltcrn,. and tho
colonel's face set like the day of Judgment
framed In gray bristlos, aud no ono spoke
for awhile.
Next tho colonel said, very shortly,
"Well, STRIP and the woman sobbed afrosh.
The senior subaltorn was half choked with
tho arms round his neck, but no gaspod
out: Its id lie. 1 mover had u
wife in my life
Don't swear" said tho colonel "Como
into the mess. We must sift this clear
somehow" and ho sighed to himself, for
he believed In his Shikarris, did tho colo
mel.
We troopod into the anteroom under the
full lights, and there we saw how beautiful
the woman was. She stood up in tho mid
die Of us all, sometimes choking with cry
ing, then hard and proud, then holding
out her arms to tho senior subaltern. 1t
was like tho fourth net of tragedy. She
told us how the senior subaltcrn had mar
ricd her when he was homo OH leave Is
months before, and she seemed TO know all
that wo knew, and moro too, of his people
and his pnst life. He was white and ashy
gray, trying now and again to break into
tho torrent of her words, and We, noting
how lovely sho was and what criminal
no looked, esteemed him Il beast Of the
worst kind We felt sorry for him, though
shall never forget tho Indictment of
tho senior subaltcrn by his wife. Nor will
he. 1t was so sudden, rushing out of the
dark unnnnounced into our dull lives
The captains wives stood back. but their
eyes wero alight, and you could SEQ that
they had already convicted and sentenced
the senior subaltorn. Tho colonel seemed
five years older. Ono maj or was shading
his eyes with his hand and Watching tho
woman from underneath it. Another was
chewing his mustache and smiling as IL
no wero witnessing q play. Full In the
open space In the center by the whist tn
blcs the senior subaltcr's terrier was hunt
ing for neas l remember all this as clear
ly as though photograph were in my
hand l remember the look of horror on
the senior subaltern's face. 1t was rather
like seeing man hanged, but much more
interesting.
Finally the woman wound up by saying
the senior subaltern carried a double L. NJ
in tattoo on his loft shoulder. We all knew
that, and to our innocent minds it seemed
to clinch the matter. But one of tho
bachelor majors said very politely, IL pre-
sumo that your marriage certificate would
be more to the purpose"
That reused the woman. She stood up
and sneored at the senior subaltern for
cur and abused the major and the colonel
and all the rest Then she wept, and then
she pulled n paper from her breast, saying
imperially, Take that, and let my hus-
band-my lawfully welded husband-read
it aloud, II he darcl"
There WAS hush, and tho men looked
into each others eyes as the senior subal
tern came forward in dazed and dizzy
way and took the paper. We were wonder
ing rs wo stared whether there was any.
thing against any one of us that might
turn up later on. Tho senior subaltcrn's
throat was dry, but rs he ran his cyc over
the paper he broke out into hoarsc cacklc
OF relief and said to tho woman, You
young blackguard!'
But the woman had fed through door,
and on the paper was written, This is to
certify that l, The Worm, have paid IN
full my debts to the senior subaltern, and,
further, that tho senior subnltorn is my
debtor, by agreement on tho ed OF Fcbru
airy, as by the mess attested, to the extent
of one months captains pay in the lawful
currency of the India empire.
Then deputotion set Off for The
Worm S quarters, and found him, betwixt
and between, unlacing his stays, with tho
hat, wig, serge dress, etc, on the bed. Ho
camo over as he was, and the Shikarris
shouted till the gunners' .mcss sent over to
know If they might haye a share of the
fun. think VIC were all, except the colonel
and the senior subaltcrn, q little disap-
pointed that the scandal had como to moth
ing. But that is human nature
There could be no two words about Tho
Worms acting. 1t leaned as near to a
nasty tragedy rs anything this side Of a
joke can. When most of the subalterns
sat upon him with sofa cushions to find
out why he had not said that acting was
his strong point, he answered very quietly:
II don't think you ever asked me- 1 used
to act at homo yvith INV aictarc J}ut M
acting with girls could account for The
Worms display that night. Personally 1
think 1t was In bad taste, besides being
QAQHerQuS flhnrn iS II cnrt of iac Ii, r,la