Waterbury evening Democrat., 1903-05-30
| promised you and L..

lie caught up ms rifle and peered out into the darkness in the direc- tion from which the sound had come. The girl seized his arm.
 Don't, don't, it's nothing, nothing" she cried. q heard nothing" They listened moment, all was still.
 ''I must return to my sentry duty, little one," he said, ''T could swear I heard some one, and yet I must be wrong"
 Yes, yes, yes, you are wrong" she cried. There is no one. Don't go yet. Don't go if you love me. Please don't go." h..
 ''But I must, my sweetheart. You would not have me false to my duty, would you?"
 "What does it matter whether you are there or here? Stay here with me-" she pleaded,
 The singularity of her manner and words at last impressed itself upon him.
 "You are not like yourself to- night" he said, watching her closely. T don't understand you tonight"
 In an instant her manner changed. She drew his head down to hers, kissed him and clung to his neck.
 My love, my soldier, my Amefi- cano," she whispered. ''It is because love you so. fear that soon when your regiment goes across the seas to your America you will forget your promise to take me with you and will go back to love some woman of your own race. Tell me will you?''
 "Never while I live will l."
 The moon, which for an instant had been hidden behind cloud, shone forth suddenly and lit the forest with bright light. Tn that light the sentry saw two men scurrying through the trees toward the Aneri- can camp. 'G-
 "Halt," he cried, bringing his rife to his shoulder.
 Touch that trigger and you die," cried some one behind him.
 The sentry wheeled like flash. A couple of yards from him stood an officer in the uniform of the Filipino army. The revolvers he held in each hand were leveled at the tricked soldier.
 Make one move and you die,'' the officer said in half whisper.
 The whole of the fearful situation flashed through the sentrys brain. He saw the result of his neglect of duty. While he had been idling with love affair an attacking party was crossing the lines and preparing to surround the unprotected camp, where his comrades lay sleeping.
 Death would be their portion if that skulking band took them by surprise.
 One shot from the rife upon whose trigger his finger rested would arouse the camp. There was yet time to save the sleeping men-but.
 The sentry looked into the eyes of the Filipino officer. He saw desper- ate determination there. The penalty for firing that shot was death, swift and certain.
 Drop that rife. quick,'' came from the Filipino officer.
 With cry of defiance the sentry leaped at the man, firing his rife US he sprang. Simultaneously two re- volver shots rang out through the forest.
 Come, carissimo, quick, quick, we must fly or that whole pack of Ameri- | can hounds will be on us,'' cried the Filipino officer, catching the girl by the hand and hurrying back into the h1ackness of the forest.
 Fifteen minutes later they rested 1 for a moment in the shelter of hut surrounded on all sides by seem- I ing1y impenetrable forest.
 Did you ever see such nerve. such bravery. Carramba! He fired that cursed warning though he knew I'd kill him. said the Spaniard in the Filipino uniform. "A1l our plans have crumbled and that man did it, curse him. You played your part we'll, though. Those kisses and words of love I heard from behind | the tree were so real they drove mo wild. I am glad the dog is dead. ] You played your part like true patriot E@s -,-,-. ! q would do anything for you Car los," she said, raising her eyes to his with look that the American soldier had never seen. .Q .. A
 sIt's him." said Flanagan, the cor pora1, half an hour later, as he stopped over soldiers cape. and khaki uniform that lay in the mud by big tree at the edge of the Caloocan forest. "It's him, poor boy. Them black devils got i'm. Here's his rife Empty. It was him as fired the shot what warned us. Poor boy. Thank God, there's twinty of them cowardly bushwhacking gugus lying dead out there in the clearing. But If there was a hundred of 'em it wouldn't pay for i'm. God, if they'd got by i'm, there'd be many a empty place at the mess-table in the old company this morning.
 ''Pick i'm up carefully boys, he died B. soldiers death."
 Flanagan, the corporal, was right.
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