Warren sheaf., 1903-08-06

and children, that troop was Rays
supreme delight. The preliminary
look-over by lantern light had been /
on the move revealed not a steed
amiss, not an item Of equipment
either misplaced or lacking.
AS has been said, Rays senior
subaltern was on detached service. 1
His junior, Mr.. Clayton, had joined
but the year before, and this threw
Mr.. Field in command of the leading
platoon and to the side of the leading
guide. Now, as the senior officer
took the head of column and Mr..
Clayton fell back to the rear, the 81
! lence of the first mile of march was
broken and, though sitting erect in
saddle and forbidden to lounge or
"slouch," the troop began its morn
ing interchange of chaf and com
ment. Every mothers son of them
rejoiced to be once more afield with
chance of stirring work ahead.
Its time to throw out our ad-
vance, Field" said Ray, in kindly, cor
dial tone, as he scanned the low di-
vide still some miles ahead and reined
in beside the stern-faced young sol
; der. "Send Sergeant Scott forward
with three men and the Same number
on each flank-corporals in charge.
| He had more than liked Webb's
! adjutant. He had been his stanchest
friend and supporter among the
, troop and company commanders,
and was eager to befriend him now.
He had expressed no wish to have
him sent on the hurried move, but
i we'll he knew the post commanders
reasons and approved his course.
; Still, now that Field was being re-
moved, for the time at least, from
! the possibility of an entangling al
! lance that might prove disastrous,
In every way in his power Ray meant
| to show the mortified, indeed sorely
angered, officer that his personal re-
gard for him had suffered no change
whatever. If he could succeed in
, winning Fields confidence it might
we'll be that he could bring him to
see that there were good and suff-
cient grounds for the, post command
er's action-that for Fields own
good, in fact, it was a most desirable
move. The soul of loyalty and
square dealing himself, Ray had never
for a moment dreamed that anything
other than a foolish escapade had
occurred-a ride by moonlight, per-
haps, demanded of her devotee by a
thoughtless, thoroughbred coquette,
whose influence over the young fell
low was beginning to mar his use
fulness, if not indeed his future pros
poets. Just what to think of Ma
nette Flower Ray really did not
know. Marion, his beloved better
half, was his unquestioned authority
in all such matters, and it was an
uncommon tenet of that young ma
tron never to condemn until she had
cause. 1nstinctively she shrank from
what she had seen of Miss Flower
; even though her woman's eye re
joiced in the elegance of Miss Flow
er's abundant toilets; and conscious
of her intuitive aversion, she would
utter no word that might later prove
unjust. Oddly enough, that instinct
! est friend and neighbor, Mrs. Blake
but, as yet, the extent of their con
; demnation had found vent only il
the half whimsical, half petulant ex
preston on part of the younger lad,
-Bkke's beautiful wife, 81 wish he
name weren't-so near like mine,
for "Nan" had been her pet nam'
, almost from babyhood. Vaguely con
scious were they both, these lords O
creation, Messrs. Blake and Ray, tha
, ; the ladies of their love did not ap
prove of Miss Flower, but Ray ha'
ridden forth without ever asking o
, knowing why, and so, unknowine
was ill prepared to grapple with tn
problem set before him. It is easie
to stem a torrent with a shingl
than to convince lover that his idc
is shrew. -. -
Without word of reply, Fiel
reined out of column, glanced alon
the double file of his platoon, noe
ded a signal "fall out" to Sergean
Scott, and the men nearest him a
the front, merely said "advanc
guard,' and then proceeded to choos
his corporals and men for f1anker
No need to tell Scott what to dc
He had been leading scouts in Arizt
ma long ere Field had even dreame
of West Point. In five minutes, rit
ing at easy lope, carbines advanced
three little parties of four trooper
each were spreading far out to til
front and flank, guarding the lit
column against the possibility of SUI
den assault from hidden foe.
And at this moment the situate
.r was grave in the extreme. The1
had been bad blood and freque1
collision between the cattleme
herders, "hustlers'' especially hu
. tiers and the hunting parties Of tt
Sioux and the Northern Cheyenn
: who chung to the Big Horn rang
and the superb surrounding count1
Z with almost passionate love and wit