The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1903-03-06
POLLY ATKINS.

Mr.. Drake. was an old-fashioned man,
and his daughter Polly was a new-fash-
ioned girl. -, 49,. ,
II do wish you'd dress more in keeping
with your sex, Polly. AS a girl-with
your face and fgure-you might be the
belle of the county. Why, then, must
you needs. go and turn yourself into a
bad imitation Of a boy?" 49, .
'You are too out-of-date for anything.
father" cried Polly, in resentful tones,
"The woman of. the future will take he,
place beside mar in the reserve forces 81
the empire. See if she won't. And. how
proud l shall feel to know that this, my
humble effort, has done something toward
bringing about the .fulfllment of that
grand IDEAL" she added, with ardent en-.
thusiasm. " -:
The Ladies' Rifle Corps was Miss Polly
brakes. very latest pet hobby, which
she had conceived and taken up with
even more than usual ardor. Some thirty
girls in the neighborhhood had already
been induced by her to enroll themselves
as members, and they used to meet every
week on the rifle range, which the squire
had allowed them to lay out on his
estate, for drill and target practice.
On the whole, they comported them
selves in such a manner as made Polly
distinctly proud of her corps; and she
was now anxious to show them off be-
fore some military expert, whose com
mcndation (she was sure) would serve as
q useful ~eye-opener to her incredufous
father. Hence the idea of the sham fight.
A day CT two afterward the squire
said to his daughter:
come and ~officiate as umpire of your
sham fight"
"That's good, Dad. Who is he?"
''Our old friend, Maj. Merilees."
Polly's face suddenly clouded.
about meeting him again, Polly. He's
forgotten that little affair long ago, bless
You. Indeed, l hear rumors of his being
engaged to another girl"
SIS he? I'm glad of that" answered
Polly, with o~stentatious %unconcern. II
was afraid l might have wrecked his life,
He said I had"
Next evening Maj. Merilees duly ar.
rived. He was a tall, handsome man, of
about 50, Of soldierly bearing and frank,
pleasant manners. Finding himself alone
with Polly in the drawing room before
dinner, he at once took the opportunity
to set her at her ease.
"Lej us both entirely forget the occa-
sion of our last meeting" he said. THAT
is dead and buried. We now meet as
comrades-as fellow workers in a great
national project. I can't tell you how
pleased [ am. Miss Drake, with the
scheme you have taken up. If properly
worked, your Ladies' Rife Corps may be
the germ of the greatest revolution in
matters military that the present age has
seem"
I'm 50 glad to hear you say that, Ma;
Merilees. You, as an expert in such
things. speak with the greatest weight.
My father has lone his best to pooh-pooh
US all along. He"
But why, Miss Drake?"
"Oh! Because he is still welded to the
old fossilized ideas about women. He
says that we should be altogether out of
place on the field of BATTLE"
II can't, for the life of me, see that.
BATTLES are o nowadays by straight
shooting. and women can shoot quite as
straight as men,"
Next day Maj. Merilees and Polly
rode over the ground where the sham
fight vas to take place. The formers
practiced eye quickly noted the favora-
BILE positions for a defending force, and
he proceeded to examine them in detail.
At length he made his selection. It was
q long ridge, lanked on one side by Il
wooded hill, and approached from the
front by a level expanse of grass fields.
"Of course" said the major. "as we are
dealing with such small numbers. both
the attack and the defense must be of a
skeleton character. My idea is that this
ridge should be occupied, in imagination,
by a defending force, and that you with
say q third of your company, should be
posted in that wood there, to cover the
right flank; but that you should careful
ly keep your presence secret from the
attacking force until the last moment,
so that you can enflade them as they adj
vance up the slope. The other two-thirds
Of your company will form the attacking,
force. They will advance against your
right, in line with an imaginary brigade
extended along the whole length of the
position. Of course, they must not be
appraised beforehand that you are posted
in the wood. Indeed, the success or fail
ure of the whole defense will depend
upon your concealing this from them un-
til they are delivering their attack. Do
[ make myself clear?"
Quite: l think it is a splendid plan,'
cried Polly, with enthusiasm.
Next morning arrived. The Ladies'
Corps paraded,. thirty strong, on the lawn
at Drakeworth Hall. Ten of them were
told off under command of Capt. Polly.
to form the defending force, and they
marched away to take up their position.
The remaining twenty under Polly's
lieutenant, a Miss Amy. Mcintosh, then
fell out for about an hour, at the end of
which time, having reassembled, and
having received their general instructions
from Maj. Merilees, they proceeded to
the field of operations. AS O as they
were fairly off the major ordered his
horse to be brought round, and then rode
away by himself to the eminence from
| which he was to watch and criticize the
maneuvers.
Capt. Polly, with her skeleton force of
ten dauntless damsels, had reached and
occupied the wooded hill to the left of
the main position. Here they remained.
living onxtheir faces and TALKING on1v ~