Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1898-07-14

HalupdeuE" De asked
"Iiear 10 one ,..ll take ne after the
light Mr.. Graves has put ne iu."
May DO so:''
She nodded, and Ards'ey went 6acI to
his seat.
$50 you have refused the entire
army?" he asked. as tAey,talhed home.
Not quite"
The e4,ire department s'
Well, fair percentage Oft" she ad-
mit;ed.
Are sou going TO refuse me?"
Il can't say until YOU are offered"
4 Offer myself new
And I accept YOU Hoys."
Good enough. VIA YOU announce
our engagement tonight at supper?''
AT the risk OF being adiudged insane
yes" y,
Put on this ring unit. l can get YOU
another. Your hands aie not small. Il
will 1tyour middle finger. Now am in
earnest"
80 am |" she sald.
They were very much in earnest, the
event proved, ard the garrison derived
uumiXed pleasure from the total. uu-
conditional, obvious surrender of Miss
HampGen. She was as open .u her in
fatuatior as She had always been i'm ey-
erythiug else. AaG Ardsley was equal
Iy infatuated. lie took back the class
ring and gave her q diamond which
cost him three months pay. They were
altogether happy. So just fortnight
before the Cay arranged foI heir wed
ding, the gods demanded the first pay
ment Oh their loan.
Ardsley was ordered of on "A scout
Miss Hampden was the sort Of u girl
who might have been expected TO take
this reasonably. But she did not She
clung 10 ATdsley and cried like any
lityle girl, and did not behave in the
least like q woman who had seen count.
less scouts. And she let him 90 TO the
wars, remembering her standing with
her arm against the wall and her head
upon her arm, sObbiLg as if her hsart
were utterly broken. BE himself was
moved ana stern. Lo1ing would have
liked 10 remind her that hearts which
were really wrung did not shoN their
pain. He had not yet recovered
A-dsley did not come back from the
scout. He was in fight on what should
have been his wedding day. Others
were killed and their bodies were re
covered and buried, but Ardsley's body
was never found. There was ii ttale that
a fire had been seen on the battIeiie =
the night after the encouut Grand il
the midst OF the fire tree w[ form
which might have' been taat o man
against It. There were indians upeG
around IT, Miss Hampden nevt heard
the story. She never even gu, sscd at
what had happened until 20 years aft
orward.
She was the superb and spiritless wife
of q mighty general, and she was ac-
companying her husband; on a tour Of
inspection in the west. They wese a an
agency one day and were visiting the
tepees. II was the agency of the In
Gians that young ArdSley had fought
two decades before, and the generals
wife was nerving herself not to show
that she remembered this.
The general was examining the trim
kets that hung or string around the
neck of a half-blind squaw.
Here is West Point class ring!" he
exclaimed.
His wife repeated her words of 20
years a-past.
May see it?" che asked, coolly.
She took IL in her hands and turned
it about. She could make out the de-
sign though i seemed 10 have passed
through some heat that had melted it.
There was no doubt IN her mind New
ertheless she looked inside. The heat
had not affected it there, and the in
itials were quito plain even yet.
I'D. A." she said; at was David Ards
ley's ring. The fire did not touch the
letters. l understand now why they
never could tell me which was his
grave"
The general broke the string and
picked up the class ring from among the
scattered baubles. The squaw was chat
tering and whining and clawing around
on the earth. The general held the
ring out to his wife She raised the
dark eyes that had been so bright and
happy the last time it had been held
out to her.
"Can have it?" she asked.
The general put it IN her hand, and
the hand closed over ii.
Thank you," she said.-San Francis
co Argonaut.