Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1900-12-22

ence and then in a lower voice said,
II amt a fool, gentlemen, n
In that minute a mans brain works
high pressure, and / saw 1t all! l
saw the little game Of the brigadier-
to skulk away in M clothes and leave
me to he captured in his. But / amt
a dog, neither, and / mounted that
horse. gentlemen, and lit out to where
the men were formin'! didn't dare
to speak lest they should know me, but
] waved my sword, and by c.! they
followed me! And the next minute we
was in the thick of It. / a my hat
as full of holes as that ice strainer; i
had q dozen bullets through my coat,
the fringe of my epaulettes was shot
away, out l kept the boys at their
work-and we stopped EN-! Stopped
'em, gentlemen! until we heard the
bugles Of the rest OF our division, hat
all this time had beer rolling that
blasted rear guard over on us! And it
saved the fight! But the next minute
the Johnny Reds made a last dash and
cut me off-and there | was-by c.,
a prisoner! Me that had saved the
fight"
A ripple OF ironical applause went
round as Hooker gloomlly drained his
glass and then held up his hand in
scornful depreciation.
a Sdlu Il Vas Il DllSOllNIs BNllAlSiiANl'
he went on bitterly, but that amt
all! / asked to see Johnston, told him
what l had done, and demanded to be
exchanged for a general officer. He
said, You be id / then sent word
to the division commander In chief,
and told him nov | a saved Grey
oaks when his brigadier ran away. and
he said, You be id I've bin you be
d--ded' from the lowest non com. to
the commander in chief, and when i
was at last e~xchanged-I was ex-
changed, gentlemen, FOR two mules n
a broken wagon. Blu I'm !.ere, gentle
men, as | was thar
why don't you see the president
about it?" asked a bystander IN affect
ed commiseration.
Mr.. Hooker stared contemptuously
at the suggestion, and eXpectorated
his scornful dissent. mot much!" he
said. But I'm going to see the man
that carries him and his cabinet In his
breeches pocket-Senator Boompoint-
en-"
"Boompointer's n big man." contin-
ued his auditor, doubtfully. do you
know him."
Know him?' Mr.. Hooker laughed n
bitter sardonic laugh. We'll, gentle
men, | amt the kin o. man to go in
for family influence, but he added
with gloomy elevation, "considerin'
he's an intimate relation of mine by
marriage, / should say | did"
Brant heard no more; h facing
around of his old companion toward
the bar gave him that opportunity OF
escaping he had been waiting for. The
detection of Hooker and his peculiar
inventions were too characteristic of
him TO excite surprise, and, although
they no longer awakened his good hui
mored tolerance, they were powerless
to affect him in his greater trouble.
Only one thing he learned, that Hooker
knew nothing Of his wife being in camp
as a SPY. The incident would have been
too tempting to escape his dramatic
establishment. And h allusion to
Senator ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS MS II
seemed in Hooker'S mouth-gaVe him q
grim temptation. He had heard OF
BoompoiEter's wonderful power; he
believed that Susy would II could
help him, Clarence, whether she did OF
did not help Hooker. But the neXi
moment he dismissed the Idea with
flushing cheek. How low had he al
ready sunk to ven think of 1t!
1t had been once or twice in his mind
TO seek the president, and, under 6
promise Of secrecy, reveal n part Of his
story. He had heard many anecdotes
of his goodness of heart and generous
tolerance OF all things-but with thi!
was joined-so said contemporaneou'
history--a %flippancy of speech and {
brutality of directnesS, from which
Clarence's sensibility shrank. Would
he see anything'in his wife but a com
mon spy on his army would he SCI
ANYTHING in him but the veal victim
ike many others, of a scheming WON
an? Stories were current in camp anC
congress of the way that this grim hu
morist had, with an opposite anecdot'
or a rugged Illustration, brushed ava!
the most delicate sentiment on tn
subtlest poetry, even as he exposed tn
sham of the Puritanic morality or o
epicurean ethics. Brant had even so
ELECTED an audience. but mad retire,
awkwardly and with his confidence un
spoken be fore the dark, humorous eye
that seemed almost too tolerant of hi
grievance. He had been to leVces an,
his heart had sunk equally before tn
vulgar crowd who seemed to regar,
this man as their own buffoon, or tn
~pompousnesS of position, learning an
dignity which he seemed to delight {
shake II disturb.
One afternoon a few days later, !
sheer listnessness of purpose, he foun
himself again at the white house. Th
president was blNllS 'uhlSllNS W
deputation OF fanatics who, with a pa
thetic simplicity almost equal to hi
own pathetic tolerance, was urging VI
on this ruler Of millions the policy {
an insignificant score, and Brant list
ened to his patient, practical respons
Of facts and logic, clothed In simpl
but sincwy EngliIl, up to the inevita
BILE climax of humorous Illustration
which the young b~rigadier could no
see was necessary to relieve the grin
ness OF his refusal. Flo the first tim
Brant felt the courage to address hin
ana resolved tc wait until the dcputa
ton retired. AS they left the CALLER
he fingered in the antc-room for III
president to appear. But as he did ne
come, afraid of losing his chances, /
returned to the gallery. Alone in h
privacy and shadow, the man he ha
Just left was standing by a column
motionless abstraction, looking oyC
the distant garden. But the kindly HI
morous lace was almost tragic wit
an intensity Of WEAKNESS. Every liz
CT those strong, rustic features was ~
Taxed under a burden which even II
long, lank. angular fgure"-overgrOw
and unfinished as his own west-seen
} cd to be distorted in it's efforts to az
lust itself to, while the dark, deeI
set eyes were distracted with II
| vague prCsciencc of the prophes ar
the martyr. Shocked at that sudde
| change Brant felt his cheek burn wit
| shame. And he was about to brea
l upon that wearied mans unbending
he was about to add his petty burde
l to the shoulders of this western Alta
: He drew back silently and descendt
2 the stairs.
But before he had left the hous
t while mirging with the crowd in OF
t Of the larger rooms, he saw the pres
1 dent reappear beside an importar
5 prcsperous-looking figure, on who
1 the kindly giant was now smiling wi
A humorous federation. He noticed Il
divided attention of the crowd, Il
i name of Senator Boompointer vas u,
on every lip; lie was nearly face
t face with that famous dispenser
q a.l -..c. - -. L..