The Central Nevadan. [volume] (Battle Mountain, Nev.) 1885-1907, 1903-05-28
loot on either shoulder Of her support

foot on either shoulder Of her support
ers, gave the salute and answered:
"SiInply, my commander, very sim
ply. l was alone, riding midway be-
tween you and the main army-three
leagues, say. from each. l was all
alone; only voIe-quf<veut flying with
me for fun. | met a colon. | knew the
man. For the matter of that I did him
once a -service-saved his geese and his
fowls from burning n winters day
In their house, while he wrung his
hands and looked ON. Well, he was
full of terror and told me there was
fighting yonder-here he meant-so |
rode nearer to see. That was just up
on sunrise. | dismounted and ran up
n palm there" And Cigarette pointed
to a faroff slope crowned with the re-
mains of a once mighty palm forest.
II got up very high. l could see miles
round. | saw how things were with
you. For the moment | was coming
straight to you. Then I thought |
should do more service II | let the main
army know and brought you a re-en-
forcement. | rode fast. DieuI | rode
fast. My horse dropped under me
twice, but l 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. | got on 4
MARI of his own staff, and away we
came. 1t vas a near thing. If we had
been a minute later, 1t had been all up
with you"
"True. indeed muttered the zouave
in his beard. "A superb action, my lit
tie one. But did you meet no Arab
scouts to stop your
Cigarette laughed.
"Did | not? Met them by dozens.
Some had a shot at me; some had q
shot from me. One fellow nearly wing
ed me, but l got through them all
somehow. Sapristi! ! galloped so fast
| was very hard to hit flying. Those
things only require a 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. Ball."
And Cigarette laughed again. "Afen
were such bunglers. OUT"
"Mademoiselle. II oil soldiers were
like you" answered the major of
zouaves CURLY. ito command a battal-
ion would be paradise"
"All soldiers would do anything I
have DONE" retorted Cigarette. who
never took n compliment at the ex-
pense of her children" "They do not
all get the opportunity. Opportunity
Is a little angel. Some catch him as he
goes; some let him pass by forever.
You must be quick with him. for he Is
like an eel to wriggle away. IL you
want a good soldier. take that aristo-
crat that handsome Victor. Poufl
All his officers were down. and how
~splendidly he led the troop! He was
going to die with them rather than sur
render. Napoleon'-and Cigarette un-
covered her curly head rcverentially.
as at the name of a deity-"Napolcon
would have given him his brigade ere
this. II you had seen him Kill tile
chief"
"He will have justice done him. rcf-
err fear. And for you-the cross shall
be on your breast, Cigarette. If l live
over tonight to write my dispatches"
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
Weakened 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 clireks
grew scarlet. Since her infancy Il had
been her dream TO have the cross to le
above her little lions heart. 1t had
been the Il longing, the Il ambition.
the one undying desire, Of her sodi,
and, 10. she touched its realization.
The wild. frantic. tumultrols c.lccrs
and caresses of her soldiefy. who could
not triumph In her ard triumph with
her enough to satiate them. recalled her
to the actual moment. She sprang
down from her elevation and turned
on them with a rebuke. ".Ah. you are
milking this fuss about me while hun.
dreds of better soldiers than I lie yon-
der. Let us look to them first. We
will play the fool afterward."
And. although she had ridden 80
miles that day IL she had ridden one.
though she had eaten nothing since
sunrise and had only had one draft Of
bad water. though she vas tired ard
stiff and bruised and parched with
thirst, Cigarette dashed of as lightly
as a young goat to look for the wound.
ed and the dying men who strewed the
plain far and near
She remembered one whom she had
not seen after that first moment In
which she had given the word to the
squadrons to charge.
1t was a terrible sight-the arid plain.
lying In the scarlet glow OF sunset, COW
cred with dead bodies, with mutilated
limbs. with horses gasplng and with
Ing, with men raving like mad crea-
lures in the torture of their wounds.
She had seen great slaughter often
enough. but even she had not seen any
struggle more close, more murderous,
han this had been. The dead lay by
l,nJI- r-~1,1l n,J A-oA t0.r..I H..