The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1899-04-07
THE OLD UNIFORM.
A Story of the ZOuaves.

One Of my desk-mates in the Office
&C the ministry OF war was an ex-non-
commissioned officer, Henri Vidal. He
had lost left arm in the Italian cam
paign, but with his remaining hand he
executed maryels OF caligrRphy--down
to drawing with one pen-stroke a bird
an the flourish Of his signature.
A good fellow, Vidal; the type OF
the upright old soldier, hardly 40, with
a sprinkling of gray in his blonde i'm
perial- he had been in the Zouayes.
We all called him Pere Vidal, more
respectfully than Familiarity, for we all
knew his honor and devotion. He lived
in cheap little lodging at Grenelle,
where on the money of his cross, his
peusiOn and his salary-he managed
TO support his widowed sister and
her three children.
As at that time /, too, was living in
the southern suburb of Paris, often
walked home with Pere Vidal, and l
used to make him tell of his campaigns
as we passed near the military school,
meeting at every step 1T was at the
close of the empire-the splendid uni
forms of the Imperial Guard, green
chasseurs, white lancers and the dark
and magnificent artillery officers, black
and gold, costume worth while get
ting killed in.
As we walked along the hideous
Boulevard de Grenelle he stopped sud
denly before a military old-clothes
ashop-there are many like it in that
quarter-a dirty, sinister den, showing
IN it's window rusted pistols, bowls
full of buttons and furnished epOuletst
in front were hung, amid sordid rags,
a few cd officers uniforms, rain-rotted
and sunburned; with the slope-in al
the waist and the padded shoulders
they had an almost human aspect.
Vidal, Selling my arm with his righ'
hand and turning his gaze on me
raised his stump to point out one OF thu
uniforms, an African officers tunic
with the killed skirt and the tire
gold braids making a figure eight OF
the sleeve.
"'Look!' he said; "that's the uni
form of my old corps, captain
tunic"
Drawing nearer, he made out tn
number engraved on the buttons an
went on with enthusiasm:
"My regiment The First Zouaves!
Suddenly his hand shook, his fac
darkened; dropping his eyes, he mu
INJURED, in horrors stricken voice:
''What if it were his!"
Then brusquely turning the col
about he showed me in the middle
the back little round hole, bordere
by a black rim blood, of course
made one shudder, like the sight OF
wound.
"a nasty scar" I said to Pc
Vidal, who had dropped the garme
and was fastening away. And for
seeing a tale, added to spur him o
4It's not usually in the back that br
lets strike captains of the Zouaves
He apparently did not hear me;
mumbled to himself: "How could
get there? It's long way from t
battlefield of Melegnano to the Bou
ward of Grenelle! Oh, yes, know
the carbon crows that follow the arm
the shippers Of the dead! But W
just there, two steps from the militf
school where the other fellows re
anent is stationed? He must hi
g,assed; he must have recognized
What a ghost!
|'See here, Pere Vidal" said I, '
Ientlv interested, "stop your mutt
ing. and tell me what the riddled tn
recalls to you.
He. looked at me timidly, almost s
piciously Suddenly, with a great
fort, he began:
f'Well, then, here goes for the ste
/ can trust you; you will tell me fra
ly, on your honor, if you think
conduct excusable. Where shal
begin? All, can't give you the OF
mans surname, for he is still livi
but will call him by the name
went under in the regiment-Dry-J
and he deserved it, with his
drinks at the stroke of noon.
"He was sergeant in the Fourt
the Second, my regiment, a g
fighter, but fond of quarrel and d
all the bad habits of the Afr
soldier; brave as bayonet, with
steel-blue eyes and rough red b
on his tanned cheeks. When
tered the regiment Dry-Jean had
re-enlisted. He drew his pay
went on three days spree. He
two companions of the same XII
rolled through the low quarters o
giers in cab, flying tri-color
ing the words, 'It won't last fore
1t did wind up with a knock-t