Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1896-07-24

the same dull, stupid fellow that he had
ever been.
She came to him one day weeping
and in great distress and told him that
her lover had bccn ordered to Africa
with his regiment. War was looming en-
the horizon, and the work there would
be desperate.
IL know how brave he is" che sob
bed, land 1 know that hc win 20 thcro
with no arm save his own TO stand Le-
tween him and death. l think l would
give the world to know that ihero was
some oue with him who would watch
over him and bring him back 10 ne ut
last.
Tho words were carelessly spoken
said only in Hhc agony Of the moment.
But her herd was on tho poor, foolish
fellows breast, her bands were touching
his, and the words spoke to him trum
pet tonguod, even as a command.
He had no thought in his simple
heart but that he might be Of service to
her and might help this man whom che
loved. The next day William Tucker,
Esq, left the world wherein men had
laughed at him, and Private William
Tucker entered tho regiment which had
been ordered to tho front, aud Of which
Lieutenant Charles Lacey wa one Of
the officers.
. 3 . =
In tho course Of time Private William
Tucker became merged as a nero unit
in the regiment to which he belonged.
and, with a certain latent purpose in his
mind, was glad to lose sight of the
world he had left behind and to take his
place as one Of the rank and file. The
latent purpose was never known-at
least until the ond--but it became a ira
dition among tho rough men with
whom he served that wherever the 1.-the
and active form Of Lieutenant Charles
Lacey was seen in the fight, there, close
beside him, was u grim faced Tommy
Atkins, fighting with a ferceness I'M
known in the character Of the William
Tucker, ESQ, who had disappeared.
AS a matter Of fact, Lacey knew
nothing about who the man was or
whence he came. He had met BIN but
seldom in those old days, and tho fact
Of Private William Tucker was scarcely
n to be remembered.
There came a day when Lacey, with
q mere handful Of men, was sent on a
forced march, i'll an endeavor to join
forces with another camp. Bat tho
march was not a success, and they pres
emily found that they were cut of, in
the midst Of the hills, with the day fast
closing in, and the hostile, yelling war
riors all round them. They closed up
silently with a dim feeling upon them
that there was but small hope, and
fought there steadily and doggedly,
while the light failed.
1t was a certainty from the first Of
their being absolutely outnumbercd,
and they fell one after another, with
those horrible black faces swarming
round them-with 1endish warcries in
their ears, and with only the determi-
nation in their hearts to fight to the last
for the honor of the flag they served.
There was IL gallant young figure
standing there and cheering on his men
and overawing for a moment even those
who swarmed about them. A spear
thrust had reached him at last and he
staggered backward. with a scoro of
weapons leveled at him. But there was
another who sprang in there before him,
with Il dubbed rifle swung madly round
his head-one who knew only that the
man he had sworn in his heart to serve
was lying there beneath him one who
saw only n woman s face in fnroff Eng
land, as it had lain last ON his breast I;
one who l"2w hat they should not
reach the figure at his feet while he had
the power to stand and to fight.
= = y
81 have come back to you, my dar-
ling, Charles Lacey was saying. when
we were cut off there, with a mere
handful of men, 1 little thought l should
ever see your face again. I-of all those
who were with me-alone escaped, al
though my wound took a long time to
heal"
but how did You escape?" she asked
breathlessly, while she chung to him.
"Ihere was q soldier there-a brave
fellow who, for some unknown reason,
had stuck to me through all the cam
paign. They found him lying across me,
with a broken rifle in his hand, and they
told me that his wounds were frightful
enough to have killed half a dozen
men. 1 only found out afterward who
he was. They called him Private Will
liam Tucker. "
He wondered why she wore a black
dress that night at dinner. When he
asked her, she said, with the tears shin
ing in her eyes, that ii was for the sake
Of the dead soldier who had sent him
back to her. illustrated Bits.
What Helmholtz Did.