The sun., 1901-01-03
The Ne0lS 0nd The End.
A Devoted Striker, Two Engage
ments and q Freed Lieutenant.
BY Gwendolen overton.

InfoUgnOut tne department ptralhuorc
was known by the striker lie kept. This
had its disadvantages, but the advan-
tages outweighed. No one could have
realized this better that Strathmore him
self, and yet sometimes he was moved in
the bosom of the mess to complain. 1T
is telling on me-" he would insist. II am
slowly breaking down under the strain. ]
came across something in French book
the other day about how few masters are
worthy to he Wallets. That's what am
striving Ia be, and the failure Is telling
upon me. They used to-" he explained
complacently, they used to say when my
name was mentioned from Dan to Beer
sheba: 'Strathmore, strathmore of the
s'teenth Big, good looking chap =
Strathmore had picked up Chester's man
ner of speech" 'one of the Strathmores
of Boston, isn't he| Now it's 'Strath-
more? That's the chap Chester's strik-
ing forY Oh, yes. think I'll send Ches-
ter back to the troop"
Which, OF course, he never did. Apart
from the fact that he could never have
done without him, he could not have had
the heart.
Chester had been as good a soldier as
he was striker, but he had languished
under barrack rule. Exactly for the rea-
son that he never said so, it was plain
that-he had been used to better things.
1t was so plain that Strathmore would
never have thought of suggesting to
him to become q body servant had not
Chester himself, when desperado's
bullet Ind left the position va
cant, volunteered. AS striker Ches-
ter had many little luXuries that he had
lacked beforc-his own room, his own
bathtub and the run of his masters small
but choice library. With the help of
draperies and blankets that Strathmore
let him haye and with that OF some pot
ted plants he managed upon his own ac-
count he transformed the room into quite
syharitic retreat, and his literary dis
elimination was a thing to wonder at.
He tackled uB colored supplements of the
London Christmas papers, and there was
a photograph-just one-on his mantel.
piece. 1t was Of woman who had soft
eyes and hair and n lovely mouth. Strath-
more ventured to ask who II was one day,
and Chester told him that it was "an
| English woman, sir"
| Now, this was in Texas in the early
| days shortly after the war, in the State
of the Lone Star's palmiest time. There
| poker as well, no pious general having as
yet arisen to bid gambling cease. There
was also some hooting, but OF unattach-
| cd women !, re were sadly few, and
| those that there were We're generally not
very nice. This condition of affairs led
to good many unfortunate things. Any
man prefers even q second rate woman to
none al ALL and any man, being deprived
Of n standard of comparison for length
of time. will come TO think that an ex-
| aIteI an.
That was what happened to Strath.
more. He should have known better.
because his youth had been spent among
women who were lovely in every way.
but the memory Of man is Shorthand he
was lonesome. There should be pro.
vision for this In the regulations. When
a man gets any of the ills that frontier
service Is apt to induce, they bundle lin
off back east on a sick leave. Yet when
which Is infinitely more preiudicial to
the standing OF the seryicc-he reaches
the stage of loneliness whore he would
marry the Witch Of Endor herself rather
than continue to be alone, there is no one
to indorse his application to be sent
somewhere where he can find the proper
sort Of girl.
Strathnore had been In the wilderness
a matter Of five years, and he was grad.
nally. very gradually, lapsing from civili-
eaton. The first intmation of this that
Chester had was that the lieutenant
made unnecessarily frequent calls at a
rahchhouse some ten miles from the res
eryation. Chester knew that girl lived
there-a dreadful girl, who had a plump.
y pretty figure and face, but whose
speech was thing to shudder at, and
whose name, besides being IIalloran.
was Mamie Peare. lie also knew that
Y thnt were not enough to set Strath-
more's teeth on edge he must be in a
very bad way.
All this worried Chester great deal.
Frequent contemplation OF his one pho.
tograph had furnished him with the
standard of comparison which Strath.
more lacked, and he could see what the
outcome Of things as they were going
was bound to be. He explained it TO the
photograph, standing before the mantel
piece with his hands jafnmed deep in his
| trousers pockets and a pucker on his
prov, which was fair TO the line of the
cap ana quite crimson from there down.
II ne marries that freckled face Halo
ran glrl, he said, hell want TO shoot
hlmselr and her the first time lie goes
east '-Chcster cherished a cynical kind
or regret that he hadn't done MS much
| hlmself some time before-"or he'll com.
| promise and take to drink instead. No."
| he nodded his head decisively, ''he shall
! not marry Mamie pearle, not" = he
looked at the picture n long tine-"not
| II have TO marry her myself, which
heaven f0rfendp
The next afternoon he found Strath.
more IN the sitting room and proffered
| most unprecedented request. II shall
| IKE, Sir" be said, Ito be given fur.
F., Tough for week" Slrathmorc consid
cred and frowned. "Nhat'll become Of
me, Chestor?" heasked plaintively. "What
| will dot"
'Iooe has promised 10 take by place,
SIR lie WAS Captain Lacy's striker for
several years, and he knows his duties.
SIR"
stratinore sighed. Every good" he
agreed, with sufficient ly poor grace, 81
eSpee' " make out s'mohow."
Chester went away. feeling contempti-
Die and small, and Srathmore sal and
reflected liSmally that / was emergencies
OF this sort that drove o man to matri
mony lie ought TO lave realized that
when man marries because he thinks
inc woman can be Of Use 10 him. rather
than he to her, he is making a grave
mistake. But he fanciel the vague dis
satisfaction with his present lot was the
yearning Of affection AMI believed more
than ever that lie cared FOR Miss Hallo-
ran quite Il crclitable deal Before Ches-
Ter left the next day he snood in front of
the photograph again. She'll wear curl
papers and his forage cap and cape" he