Waterbury Democrat., 1901-05-25

officer of high rank who had survived the terrors of the day.
 And he, a grave and noble looking veteran, uncovered his head and bowed before her az courtiers bow before their queens.
 HMademoise1le, you saved the hosior of France. Tn the name of Francs. l thank you"
 The tsars rushed swift and hot inAo Cigarettes bright eyes-tears of jey, tears of pride. She was but a child still in much, and she could be moved by the naIne of France as other. ch..l- dren by the name of their mothers
 "Chut! l did nothing" she said rao- idly. T only rode fast.Y
 The frenzlad hurrahs of the men wtso heard her drowned her words. TsHy loved her roc what she had done; tisy loved her better still because she set no count on it.
 .oThe empire will think otherwise 7 said the major of the zouaves. Tell me- my little one, how did you do this thing?"
 Cigarette. balancing sherself with a foot on either shoulder of her support. CTS, gave the salute and answered: ss
 Simply, my commander, very. sim.' ply. I was alone, riding midway be- tween you and the main army-threel leagues, say, from each. was all, alone; only Vole-qui-veut flying with me for fun. met colon. I knew the, man. For the matter of that did him once service-saved his geese and his fowls from burning one winters day in their house, while he wrung his hands and looked on. F Well, hef was full of terror and told me there was fighting yonder-here he meant-so I rode nearer to see. That was just up on sunrise. I 1ismounted and ran up palm there.' And Cigarette pointed to faroff slope crowned with the re- mains of once mighty palm forest. .I got up very high. could see miles round. I saw how things were with you. For the moment I was coming straight to you. Then thought I l should do more service if let the main army know and brought you re-en- l forcement. I rode fast. Dieu! T'rode fast. My horse dropped under me twice, but reached them at last,. and went at once to the general. # He guessed at a glance how things were, and told him to give me my, spahis and let me go. So he did. I got on mare of his own staff, and away we came. It was near thing. If we had been minute later, it had been all up 1 with you" g@sss 1 "True, indeed" muttered the zouave in his beard. "A superb action, my lit- tie one. But did you meet no Arab scouts to stop you?"
 Cigarette laughed.
 "Did not2l Met them by dozens. Some had a shot at me; some had a shot from me. One fellow nearly wing ed me, but I got through them all l somehow. Sapristi! galloped so fast I was very hard to hit flying Those things only require little judgment But some men always are creeping when they should fly and always are scampering when they should saunter, and then they wonder when they make fiasco. Bahr'
 And Cigarette laughed again. 'sMen were such bunglers Duff"
 'Mademoiselle, if all soldiers were like you" answered the major of zouaves curtly, ito command battal- ion would be paradise"
 "All soldiers would do anything I have done," retorted Cigarette, who never took a compliment at the ex- pense of her children" s.They do not l all get the opportunity. Opportunity l is little angel. Some catch him as he goes; some let him pass by forever. You must be quick with him, for he is l like an eel to wriggle away. If you want a good soldier, take that aristo- crat that handsome Victor, sPouf All his officers were down, and how splendidly he led the troop! !. He was going to die with them rather than sur render. Napoleon Cigarette un- covered her curly head reverentially, as at the name of deity" Napoleon would have given him his brigade ere this. If you had seen him kill the | chief!''
 sHe will have justice done him, nev- CT fear. And for you-the cross shall be on your breast, Cigarette if I live over tonight to write my dispatches" l And the major saluted her once more and turned away to view the carnage strewn plain and number the few who remained out of those who had been wakened by the clash of the Arab arms in the gray of the earliest dawn.
 Cigarettes eyes flashed like sun play ing on water, and her flushed cheeks grew scarlet. Since her infancy it had been her dream to have the cross to lie above her little lions heart. It had been the one longing, the one ambition, the one undying desire, of her soul, and, To, she touched it's realization.
 The wild, frantic, tlimultuous cheers and caresses of her soldiery, who could not triumph in her and triumph with her enough to satiate them, recalled her to the actual moment. She sprang down from her elevation and turned on them with rebuke. "Ah, you are making this fuss about me while hun dreds of better soldiers than I lie yon- der. Let us look to them first. s,.We will play the fool afterward.''
 And, although she had ridden 50 miles that day if she had ridden one, though she had eaten nothing since l sunrise and had only had one draft of