The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1899-06-23
THE CAPTAINS LAST
LOVE AFFAIR
By Michael Corday

typical habits which kept him In fet-
ters as strong as iron, and would not
permit him to follow the slightest in
impulse.
Every night, after undressing meth
odically, he would hang his dolman
over the back of a chair, lay his trou-
sers lengthwise on the sofa, folding
them carefully in the creases, and wind
his watch and drink glass of water.
Then one good blow of the fist-just
one-upon the feather pillow, and he
would crawl into bed and extinguish the
candle flame between thumb and fore
finger, after having moistened them
for their protection. This was his in
variable method of procedure, per
formed almost mechanically for 20
years past!
The captain closed his eyes and
thought about the events of the day.
He had lost at dominoes and had to
pay for the coffee for two, and that had
angered him just little Then he
sighed, turned over, and fell quickly
asleep. just how long he had been
sleeping he could not tell, but for some
reason he awoke. He lay still for a
moment trying to find reason for the
unusual occurrence.
Everything was as he had left it
when he retired. 1t was not raining
outside, so he determined that it was
mere restlessness, and soon fell into a
doze.
Suddenly there was queer noise
in the next room-a baby was crying.
AS if bothered by an oppressive dream,
the sleeping captain tossed about rest
lessly, muttering under his breath some
thing that sounded like: "Horrid little
imp!"
But the screaming of the child be-
came worse and more penetrating as
the time wore on, until the room
seemed fairly filled with it. Then the
captain found himself wideawake, and
he gave vent to his feelings in a single
strong word. For year he had not
had whole nights rest!
His neighbors were young couple,
a simple lieutenant and his wife. Since
the time of the arrival of baby next
door the Grabbed old bachelor had had
to suffer Its moaning, then its crying,
and now it was old enough to shrek
Justify.
Instead of mending, matters had, in
deed, become still worse since the ba-
by's father, this simple lieutenant y
with his sharp voice and his stupid
baby-talk, had tried to take a hand in
the quieting of the child. His "Where
is baby's hair?" and "Does baby love
papa?" which he would repeat ten OF
twenty times, until the little tot would
point to its head or stroke its papa's
cheeks-oh, how trying it was!
But never before had the crying OF
the child been so piercing as it was
this night. 1t was succession OF
screams of fright; the shrieks of q
child left alone at night, crying until
the little throat was raw, until il
lacked breath to utter another sound
Alarmed and angry at the same time
the captain jumped out of bed, ex
claiming: "Wen, well, what's the mat
ter now?"
Ordinarily, the sharp voice of the
lieutenant or lullaby from the mother
quickly soothed the troubles of the
little tot. This time, however, tht
tears remained undried. The old bach
elor quickly put on his uniform and
went into the hall.
The door Of the adjoining apartment
had by some accident been left ajar;
a lamp was burning brightly on the
xaL l. l. 10 tnnly IL mr.
entered the sleeping-room. Next tt
the large bed stood a cradle, the cur
tains of which the captain threw back
There lay the little tot in tumble O.
cushions, beating the air with her littl'
hands and feet. Her face had become
a dark red from the exertion of yelling
and kicking.
What? The baby all alone? Quick
ly the captain looked through thu
apartment, stepping into the dining
room, the elegantly furnished parlor
the girls room, the kitchen. Not sou
was there! Even the nurse-girl, tha
useless piece of household furniture
was nowhere about.
"Hang It'll" he exclaimed. $50, Will
| the lieutenant and his wife spend tn
| evening at an entertainment, the nurse
girl runs out to flirt with her beau
Humph!"
Quickly he returned to the cradle
put away the lamp, and lifted up tn
little baby, a tiny girl. But she strug
| gled so hard with her legs, and mad
| such violent movements with her littl
body, that the captain was afraid h
might drop her. Quickly he sat on
chair and placed her upon his knees
But she still kept on crying. To quie
her down, the captain got up, held he
before him with outstretched arms, an
began to dance some step which h
invented on the spur of the moment
| 1t resembled the trot of horse NOR
than any known dance.
To complete the effect he sang, keeI
ing time with his fancy step: "Houpls
houpla! tolderolloll!" over and owe
| again.
His efforts to quiet the baby wer
almost crowned with success; sh
sobbed a little less, the tears becam
scarcer and scarcer-the last drop
from an empty vessel!
SUDDENLY she lay quite still; her eye
her expression, her outstretched arm
plainly conveyed a desire for SOM
thing. The captain turned his eyes
the direction of the object coveted b
the little girl; she wanted his cross {
the Legion of Honor. For momen
the red ribbon and the enameled tril
ket seemed to her, as to many othe
babies, the most desirable object in I'll
world. The old bachelor allowed fl