The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1896-11-05
CHAPTER. Y

! DCCn III the SUarihOuSc. Absent from
check roll call, from lis quarters over
might and from rcvcillo, he had turned
up at sick call With Il battered visapo
and all tho car marks of Il drunken row.
1lo had been hauled up before IL sum
mary court, Major Waync's first duty
after reporting at tho post, and received
sentence Of tino with Il scowling face
and no word of plea for clcmcncy or
promise OF bcttcrmcnt. What cared he
Tor lines! Lie could win moro in u night
th;tl tAcy could stop i'll u month. uo
was out again doing pcnancc with tho
police cart about the post tho day tho
available transportation Camo driving
back from tho railway with u load of
precious freight, and Trooper Graicc,
splitting wood in the majors back yard,
dropped the AK with q savage oath and
turned Il sickly yellow for one minute
when nc heard tho busy tongues of the
domcstics next door proclaiming tho
arrival OF Lieutenant Farrar's mother
and sister The sentry OH duty over
prisoners bado him stop his swearing
and get to work again, for Captain
Lcalo was passing rapidly up the walk
III front, and Lcalc was Il man whose
| eyes wcrc over about linn and whose
cars seemed never to loso sound, but
tho captain merely glanced kcenly at
the soldier with his brace of malcon-
tents and hurried on.
1t WAS Lcalc who opened the door of
the Stunch Concord and assisted thc
ladies to aliGht-Nirs. Fnrrar Ellis (for
the EHllars had returned to the for)
and stranger, Il Ecutlcwoman evident
ly, yet ono who seemed to shrink from
| accepting and or attention and whosc
beautiful blue eyes ever followed Mrs.
Earrar. M. friend, Mrs. Duunton my
older friend, Captain Lcalc, Of whom
you have heard SO Much," were the
words III which these two Wcro made
known to each other, while VIII and
tho servants were tumbling out bags
and rugs and wraps, even as another
ami similar vehicle WAS being unloadcd
i'll front CT the cOlonCl's.
Lcalc dincd cn famillc at tho Farrars'
that evening, viii proudly presiding,
as hccar.c the head of the house and the
foot of t!A tNbic, and bcaming upon his
mother, Who sat facing him and rcioic.
ing i'll his happiness. Very bright and
cozy were the prcttily furnished quar-
{ tors, for, with boundlcss enthusiasm,
the ladies Of the garrison had aided the
young gentleman in making them at
tractivc against tho coming of tho wifo
Of their honOrcd old colonel and his fair
daughter, and right after dinner tho
! visitors began to arrive, welcoming,
army fashion, tho old friends long ell
| dcArcd to all the ether members Of tho
garrison, mon and women both, and,
whilo Mrs. Tarrar and ellis had hosts
OF questions to ask and answer, Captain
loalc found himself interested in cn-
tcr;aining tho stranger, to whom all
this blitho and chccry intercourse, all
tho cordial, hospitablc, homclikc army
ways, wcro SO odd and new. 1t was
tattoo when he rose to leave and met
poor Will without Will, who had
twice gone up to Fcnton's hoping to
steal word or two with Kitty, only to
find that such portion Of post society as
was not gathered about his mother and
sister was congrcgatcd at the colonel's
lind then, fatigucd by tho journey
and showing plainly tho effect of tho
excitement Of her arrival, Mrs Farrar
was induced to seek her room, while
| Ellis remained in the parlor to chat
with others still coming i'll to bid them
welcome home, and not until long after
10 were the lights turned down in No.
s, and not until even later did they
gleam no longer from tho big house Oh
tho edge of tho bluff.
Whatever trcpidatiOn her friend had
felt as to the effect of this return upon
| Mrs. Farrar, it was soon evident that it
was groundcss. Even the day OH which
she returned Lucrctia's call and was re-
ccivod in the familiar rooms, once her
own, she controlled admirably every
sign OF deep emotion. She seemed hap
py in being with Will, her idolzcd boy,
and WAS never tired of watching him as
he strobe on rode away upon his various
duties.
An admirable soldier was Win, as all
tho officers admitted, devoted to his
duties, full OF snap, spirit and cnthusi-
asm, Il fine drill instructor, and teacher
Of the noncOllmiHsioncd officers school,
yet ever handicapped by that cxubcrant
boyishncss and by the fact that to save
their souls the old soldiers and their
families seemed to find it absolutely i'm.
possible ut first to forget him az Mas
thcr Will. Many of the o!d ScrgcantS
and their wives bad como - pay their
respects to Mrs. Fs.rrar, ana to talk, as
shc loved to hear Them talk, Of the Colo
mel they loved SO Wcll and mourncd 50
loyalty. One and all they rcjoiccd IN
saying everything that soldier speech
could frame III praise Of thcir row lieu.
tenant, their boy officer, their coloncl'S
soldicrly son, oven while struggling
against the impulse that ever possessed
them to refer to him rs Maathcr Will,
or, as he hated still moro to be calico.
Master Willio. Little by little the army
punctilio had prevailed. and most OF the
mon had learned to refer to him respect
fully as "thc lieutenant" and 10 brace
mp and salute him with all the gravity
end precision lavihed on Fenton Oh