The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1899-03-25
when / opened my eyes nothing waa

When / opened my eyes nothing waA
to be heard but distant musketry. The
zouaves, forming disordered half-ciI-
Gle, were shouting 'Vive rEmpereur!
and brandishing their rifles.
An old general followed by his staff
galloped up. He pulled up his horse.
waved his gilded helmet gayly, and
cried:
Bravo, zouaves! You are the first
soldiers in the world!'
"Ifoundmyself sitting near the wheel,
supporting my poor broken paw, when
suddenly l remembered Dry-Jean's aw-
full crime. At that very instant he
stepped out of the ranks toward the
general. He had lost his fez, and from
big cash on his close-shaven head
ran trickle of blood. Leaning on his
gun with one hand, with the other he
held out an Austrian flag, tattered and
dyed red-a flag he had taken. The gen
eral gazed at him admiringly.
"'Hey, there, Bricourt!' turning to
one of his staff; look at that, If you
please. What men!'
"Whereupon Dry-Jean, in his canaille
voice, spoke up:
"'Quite so, my general. But you
know-the First zouaves-there are
only enough left for once more!'
Il would like to hug you for that!
cried the general; you'll get the cross,
you know and still repeating, what
men!' he said to his aide-de-camp some
! thing 1 didn't understandable no
/ scholar, you know. But l remember
it perfectly: Worthy of Plutarch,
wasn't it, Bricourt?'
sat that very moment the pain was
too much for me and I tainted. You
know the rest. I've often told you how
they sawed off my arm and how
dragged along in delirium for two
months in the hospital. In my sleep
less hours I used to ask myself if il
was my duty to accuse Dry-Jean pub
licly. But could prove it? And then
/ said: He's scoundrel; but he's
brave; he killed Capt, Gentili, but he
took flag from the enemy Finally
in my convalescence, l learned that as
a reward for his courage Dry-Jean had
stepped up into the Zouaves Of the
Guard and had been decorated. All! al
first it gave me a disgust at my OWE
cross which the colonel had pinned or
me in the hospital. Yet Dry-Jean de
served his, too; only his Legion of Hon
or ought to have served as the bulls
eye for the squad detailed to put hin
out of existence.
"It's all far away now. Inever saw
him again; he remained in the service
and l became good civilian. But jus
now, when saw that uniform with it.
bullet-hole-God knows how it GO
there-hanging a stones throw from
the barracks where the murderer is, i
seemed to me that the captain, thu
crime still UNPUBLISHED, was clamorins
for justice"
l did my best to quiet Pere Vidal as
surfing him he had acted for the best
Five days later, on reaching the office
Vidal, handing me a paper folded at
certain paragraph, murmured, gravely
what did l tell you?" read:
Another Victim of ntemperance.-Yes
terday afternoon, on the Boulevard d
Grenele a certain Jean Maliet, known a
Dry-Jean, sergeant in the zouaves of tn
Imperial guard, who with two companion
had been drinking freely, was seized witt
delirium tremens while looking at som
old uniforms hanging in secondhan
down the street, to the terror of all passers
by. The two privates with him had tn
utmost difficulty in securing the mailman
who shouted ceaselessly: I am not muir
derer, took an Austrian flag at Melegna
no! 1t seems that the latter statement
true. Mallet was decorated for this feat
his addiction to drink has alone prevente
him from rising in the ranks. Mallet wa
conducted to the military hospital of Gros
Gallon, whence he will soon be transfcrre
to Clarendon, for it is doubtful if he ca
recover his reason"
AS l returned the paper to Vidal, h
looked at me meaningly, and concluded
capt. Gentili was Corsican-he ha
avenged himself" -Translated for tn
San Francisco Argonaut from tn
French.