Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1900-08-01

| tlOn, Dy tne O0ck OF the OmcerB' row,
over In the foothills across the creek.
Grevilie nailed the top Of q big red
pasteb0ard box to the trunk of q tree,
and Miss Mivart hit 1t once out Of six.
teen times-when she was aiming al
the head of a prairie dog at least twen-
ty feet away to the right. The other
efteen shots were scattered among the
foothills.
| Then hei shoulder hurt her 80 that
she was ready to cry. Greville would
have liked to have her cry upon his
own shoulder, but, as she didn't, he did
some fancy shooting to distract her.
He found a mushroom-can, and threw
1t into the aid and Hlled 1t full OF holes
| She had seen Burton do the same thing
that morning with a tomato-can. In
| fact. from where she sat now. on Q
lichen-covered rock, she could see the
mutilated can glitterng in the sun,
| ed for fresher sensations.e
IN tell you" she said to Greville. as
! he held up the mushroom-can for her
| to inspect the eight holes he had made
with five shots. ''let me toss up youI
hat, and you make a hole through the
1 trademark in the crown"
1t was a nice, new straw hat. Gre
! Vile had sent East for 1t and 1t had
come by stage the day before. 1t had
cost him. express paid, four dollars and
twenty-five cents. This, too. at time
when anything he had left after set
Ting his mess and suffers and tailor's
bills. went into stick pins and candy
and books and music and riding whips
for Miss Mivart. But he took OF the
hat and gave 1t to her without even a
lingering glance at that high-priced
|radem within. And he felt that 1t
was worth four times four dollars and
beventy-ive cents when she picked up
the tattered remains. at last, and ask
ed IL she might have them to hang in
her room.
Then she looked down at her grimy
hand and considered the first finger,
erooking It open and shut. II think
It's going to SWELL" she pOuted. THAT
Is a perfectly awful trigger to pull"
/ Greville did what any man might
! have been expected to do. He caught
the hand and kissed II. Miss Mivart
looked absolutely unconscious Of it.
She might have been ten miles away
herself. Greville. therefore, thought
that she was angry, and his heart was
filed with contrition. Yet he was old
and wise enough to be a first lieuten-
ant. He walked beside her back to the
post in a state Of humble detection she
could not understand. The next morn
ing 1t was Burton's turn. Greville was
over on the range now. vainly trying to
bring his record up to where Burton's
was. This time Miss Mivart fired at a
white pastebOard-box cover. and hit II
three times out OF twenty. She was
jubilant, and so was Burton. because
she was making such progress under
his tuition.
That's an easy carbine to shoot, isn't
it?'' she asked as they wandered home:
'it isn't at all hard to pull the tris-
ger"
Burton glanced al her. and she met
his eyes innocently. ITS Just like any
other trigger" he told her
Yes. of course. And is that the very
Rme carbiEe you use In the competi.
tion-the one you shot with yesterday.
and will use this afternoon when you
finish up"
He told her that 1t was.
WELL" she said. complacently. 81
think I'm doing very nicely. don't you.
hit the target three times. and my
.irst finger doesn't hurt . BIT this
morning."
That afternoon the competition cam.
TO an end, with Burton q good many
POINTS ahead Of Greville. And that
night there was the big hop. 1t had
been understood from the first that the
man who won was to take Miss Mivart
20 the hop. So she went over with
3urton. and gave him one-third Of her
lances. Greville had another third,
and the rest We're open to the post at
large.
Grevllie did not look happy At all. 1t
was not the target record he minded.
He never thought about that. 1t was
having to go down the boardwalk to
the hop-room behind Burton, and to
watch Miss Miyart leaning ON his arm
md looking up into his face from under |
the white mists Of her lace hood. He |
was not consoled at oil when she look.
I'd up into bis own face even more |
swectly at the beginning Of the second |
dance. aad whispered that she was $50 |
sorry"
Now as tic second dance had been
the third was Burton's. That |
was the way II had been arranged. As
;he band began the waltz, Miss Mivart |
stood beside Gravillc In the center of |
quite q group The commanding off, |
Ger was In the group, % was Burton's |
and % was the adjutant.
There were some others a. well. and
nlso some women. Miss Mivaxt may
have chosen that position. or II may
simply have happened %.
Any way. Just as the waltz started,
Burton. light-hearted and light-footed,
came slipping and sliding over the can
floor. and pushing his way
into the midst. "Ours." he said, tri-
But Miss Mivart did not heed him At
once. She was telling them all how
she had learned to shoot a carbine as
well as any one, and they. the men. at
any rate. were hanging on her words.
"Mr. Greville taught me-" she said,
''and SO did Mr.. Burton" This was
the first either had known Of the 9TH
er's part In 1t, and they exchanged
lOOk.) They taught me with their own
carbines. too. The very same ones
they used themselves in the competi-
lion. But EIshot best with Mr.. Burton's
carbine. He must have fxei his rris
ger to pull more easily; 1t was almost
like. what do you call II, . hair-tris-
Easf u