Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1905-07-26

Continued.

life, end long 70: change, and be
cause no chang is SO delightful to
your Gsed-uD exquisite as herd fighting
and deadly peril about your throat"
There is not even the excitement of
malice and emit in their proceed
ings. They do not hate the power
against which they fight, or love the
power for which they are enduring
such untold discomfOrts and dangers.
The struggle over, they would be per
fectly willing to dine with the Russian
general VINO has been fighting against
them for the last few months, and
whose gray head and pale face they
occasionally see from the battlements;
they do not care a snap of their fin
gers for Turkey, her righ,N or her
wrongs
Ii is simply the rough game of war
fare they care for. and they play it
with an earnestness and get cheerful
Hgnt-herteGness that, even more than
their indomitable courage, inspires
awe AMI wonderment in The bewilder-
ed Turks
Bang! bang! shrek the guns, and a
shell flies over the hut. and buries It
self in the town behind.
Those fellows are getting the range
better now" says one of the group,
aCarelessly, as lie turns a spit upon
which is roasting the piece of meat
which Is to serve for the common sup
per Shouldn't wonder if they get
us into focus tomorrow.
"If they 10, we must move" re-
marks second, a fair-haired man,
scarcely more than a boy, whose face
bears long sabercut, which, if he ever
gets back to England, will make his
mother weep bitter tears.
''1ime enough for that" reioins a
third, the heir to a peerage. 1T al
ways takes them fortnight to sight a
position. I'd back one of our gun
ners against six of their men. Who
has the guard tonight?"
Hamilton" replies a short-set man,
who lies full length, staring in the fire,
aud smoking a short pipe, yery pos
s'bly to assuage the pangs of hunger.
AS he speaks the door opens, and a
tall young fellow enters. This is
Charlie Hamilton, whose name is
known to all London as that of the
most exquisite dandy OF the period.
He comes in with a smile on his
powderbegrimed face, a laughing
hight in his blue eyes, his tattered
cloak tightly clasped around him, his
forage cap stuck on one ear.
Did you hear that last one, you fell
lows?' he asks as they look up mot
a bad shot for them. Struck the the
mosque at the corner of the street
just as | was passing Just had time
to swing around the corner, or /
shouldn't have joined the mess tonight.
What is it? Usual bill of fare, sup
pose h, Heaven; what would | give
for good square meal at the Gar
rick Do yCu remember that saint of
duck they used 10 have. Piarpoint?" .
And he st'rs up the short man with
the end of his sword-sheath.
Pierpoint grunts
'Salni of duck" goes on Hamilton,
christening his sworGi5elt and hang
ing it up against the hut. Beautiful
can smell it now. Heigh-ho! Well,
I'm awfully hungry, and l dare say l
shall enjoy this as much as l used to
do the sami in the old times. Is it not
done? Are we all here? Where's
LetchfGrd?"
Down at the magazine" replies
the man who is cooking.
Down at the magazine?" echoes
Hamilton, pausing in MS task of scrap
ing the mud from his booth with a del
fcate pearl-handled pen-knife-bought
in the exquisite days in Piccaiilly-"a
the magazine? Hem! l wish--I wish
he'd be more careful. There was no
occasion for him to mess about there
One of the men could have done that
He lid not seem to think so,'' says
Pierpoint-
Charlie Hamilton bites his lip with
sudden gravity.
He'll get knocked over one of these
fine days" he says, uneasHy. Never
saw such reckless fellow Found him
YESTERDAY on the ramparts, incoming on
the TOP Of one OF the guns, AMI the
sho tand shell flying around him like
butterflies. They were making a tar
get Of him-give you my word Can't
think what's come to him. Used to be
wild, but never played the fool like
this
Pierpoint grins.
Hadn't such good cause, perhaps.
Coins to be married, you know, wants
80 dodge it. perhaps"
Charlie Hamilton smiles, but looks
Nneasily at the circle Of faces.
Joking apart" he says in a low
voice, there is something about
Letchford that ] don't like. Lock here,
you know it was all through me that
he came out here. When the fun be-
gun, | wrote to Vane Vavasour and
Letchford, and asked them 70 come
and take a hand. OF course, Y knew
that Vane wouldn't come; hes not the
fellow for this kind of thing. and of
course, / didn't know that Letchford
was engaged. l shouldn't have writ
ten if / had Nobody could have been
more surprised than l was when he
rode of that morning, for I'd read of
his engagement to Rose VaYasour, and
| should have as soon expected to see
the beauty herself"
What did come for asks some
one.
How the deuce should / know" re-
toTts Charlie Hamilton with a stare.
Wanted change. 1 suppose. He tells