The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1904-05-12

| snatched envelope and paper away from
him, and read on:
II have not heard from you or any of
your family for SO long that am famish-
ing for news, and could not resist the
temptation to write you. l should have
yielded to this impulse long ago, but we
have been so constantly on the 60 since
the Spring campaign opened that l never
| had an idea where We would be the next
day ~.
Il guess l can answer where he will be
Tomorrow" muttered Shorty. He'll be
ba ndages."
Now, however" continued Maria, read
ing, that we are ordered to Richmond,
| with a likelihood of staying there some
time. l venture to hope that may hear
from you at very early date, with all
the interesting news of the neighborhood
by far the most interesting will be any
| thing about yourself, whose image is ever
present in my mind
Il rather think I'll give himself some.
| thing else to ccupy his attention. muttered
Shorty.
What contrast this memory 1 have
of your beauty and grace is to the women
| have met since we have come down here
l can not tell you how much more l ap-
preciate you since l saw them. If you
only knew how often l think of you, and
how anxious l am to hear from you, you
| would certainly write me at once"
Here the pen seemed to have been
abruptly dropped, at the startling noise of
Shorty looked unutterabIe things as
Maria ended.
Maria turned to him, saw the thunder
cloud upon his face, and strove to dispel
"You silly boy" she said teasingly,
what makes you look like spell of fall
ing weather.
Amt it plenty to make me look glum
| enough to sour milk, to have another man
| writing love letters to my wife,"
IF it were true. yes. But Mr.. Pilking-
| ton wasn't writing letters to your wife.
He wasn't even writing letters to me-
"Why, Maria" gasped Shorty. "How
| can you say that, with the letters right
| there in your hand?"
mo, indeed. He was writing to Miss
| Maria Klegg. There's no such person.
According to my remembrance, she passed
away very happily, being entirely willing
bloom out again, as Mrs. VIM. Elliott, the
| devoted and faithful wife of a certain SAT-
from haired individual. who is very tired
| and sleepy, and therefore cross"
For reply. Shorty caught her around the
waist and kissed her. He was rapidly
getting over his olden diffdenees.
THAT'S something like" she said ap-
provingly. You're doing better every day.
Well fix this letter."
Picking up the pen she wrote across the
| envelope, Returned to writer. No such
person known at this Office"
| velope together. and then pinned them both
| to the side of the tent, where Capt. Pix
| ington could not fail to notice them.
As she did so she was thinking. A
change in her attitude toward the Captain
came over her. She was womanly enough
| to go over to the side of the man who had
| revealed that she had a place in his heart
and she was now as ready to make ex-
cuses for him as she had been before to be-
! lieve the worst.
"He was writing to me-" she said to her
self, "at the very moment he was
| interrupted. After all. he was thinking
about me, whenever those rascals would
let him. Appearances are against him, but
this shows that he is not so bad as might
| be supposed. A man who keeps the mem
| Dry of good woman in his heart can not
go so very far wrong. He ought to be
given helping hand and led back to the
right path, rather than trampled upon"
Il know just how you feel. Maria, about
staying in place with all these gambling
| things said Shorty, whose jealousy was
not cured by any means, only made less
| can't destroy them, and if We could. is it
Just the thing for you to stay in the tent
of the man of the character of Capt
pilkington?"
20. don't worry about that, WILL" she
answered sweetly. give been thinking it
| over. and changed my mind. Mr.. Pilking-
ton may have been led into this by evil as
sociates, and not be really so much to
blame. 1t seems likely that what he said
about those horrid Lieutenants playing
jokes on him may be true. I have heard
you and ST tell how You were up to Just
such tricks, and how fond you were of
playing them. He said that this was the
ColonePs tent. which he was temporarily
occupying. It's likely all those awful
things belonged to the Colonel and not to
Mr.. Pilkington at all. Just put them away
some place where can't see them, and I'll
think no more about them"