The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1910-09-22

 sound of a shot from away over to
 ward the hospitak-another nearer, an other still nearer-and distant shouts
 and then the blare of the trumpet.
 "Come on! It's fire!' said Ennis
 and sprang in pursuit of the leaders
 ''Fire!' echoed the cry from barrack
 to barrack, as the men poured forth
 into the night. and then Ennis
 rounded the corner and came in full
 view of the wide open parade with the
 long line of quarters beyond his heart
 leaped for his throat in wild dismay.
 .'My God. lieutenant, it's your housep' panted racing trooper. My God!
 And Bob's all aIoneE' sobbed Ennis as
 he sped through the snow.
 All Ennis saw as he came staggering round to the rear of the flaming fur mace that once was house was wild eyed girl being led away by group of sympathetic women. The colonel was bending over& Bob Lanier, just emerg- ing from his third involuntary plunge in the drifts and sputtering objurga- tions on his would be benefactors.
 'In Gods name. Eanier," almost walled the colonel as at last that young gentleman. likewise singed and scorch- ed and dripping, yet preternaturally cool for one just out of 3 blazing hell, found his feet and faced his command er-'tin Gods name, why didn't you jump when they told you? There was nothing but snowdrtfts below
 tgThere was colonel coming" said Bob, with a grin of mingled anguish and satisfaction. ''who held that sort of thing to be breach of arrest"
 As to the origin of the fire, Bob La. nier merely said that he had turned the lights low in the sitting room and. obedient to "Shoe's'' orders, had gone up to his roost, too wrathfu1 and amaz- ed over what had occurred even to think of sleep-to think, in fact, of anything but the colonels words. So absorbed was he as he slowly un- dressed he never noted the sounds from below until his room of a sudden seemed filled with smoke. and. throw hg open the door, he was amazed to find the hallway abIaZe, the stairs inn passable. Running to his dormer win dow. he yelled fire at the top oe his voice. Sentry No. 5 heard ard came running down the back fence, saw the perib let drive shot and gave yell that reused every one st the hospital. poor Rafferty, half craZed, half dressed, coming Ieaping along among the first.
 And there at his back window, chok- ing with smoke and tossing out cloth ing and other belongings, stood MT. Lanier. Some men went searching for ladders up the line of back yards, the post hook and ladder truck being, of course, on the far side of the gar rfson There being no extension and sheds to this little box, as to the lar ger quarters up the line, other men be- gan shouting anS1 Lieutenant Grayson imploring MT. Lanier to jump, for al- ready the flames had burst through the windows below. Then came the episode the regiment laughed over, swore over, talked over. many a long year thereafter. To Grayson's appeal Bob's only answer was calm and de- 1iberate:
 Give, my compliments to the colo mel. will you. and tell him that, my quarters being all ablaze, I'd like an extension of arrestT'
 Then Sumter and Stannard came in tumu1tuous, and ordered him down, and Blake and Curbft and the rest of the card party came tearing after them and berated him for an absurdity and implored him not to be an ass. And then bright tongue of flame licked in through the transom behind him, and the door panels burst from the heat. and all the room at his back suddenly blazed with fre and then went up the cry. from that Nagonized girl. at sound of which Lanier start ed and strove to climb to the little window sill. with lurid sheet tapping down about his head, and then a brace of young Irishmen. Cassidy foremost,
 
 smoking and singeing below them. They reached the blazing caves and burst through the fringe of flame. dragging Bob forth and on to the edge and then tottered all together into that blessed mound of snow be- meath, fast melting in the glare of that fiery furnace.
 And thus were we brought to the of Thursday. the sixth since the eventful night when Miriam Ar holds shriek had alarmed the gar rison; Miriam, whose voice had now been heard a second time, upraised in frantic dread apd appeal. but this time for the young soldier who on the previous Friday night, forgetful of his | arrest. had rushed forth at her cry but this night had to be dragged; 1 who now lay sick from maid 1 enly shame that in one wild appeal to save her lover she had so betrayed | herself.
 With Thursday noon came resump- I lion of telegraphic communication | and the long stalled railway trains l from east and west. With Thursday | afternoon came wires from Arnold. | the father. begging to know had his | daughter started, and back went the 1 electric message that she neither had ] DOT could nor would for a week. full | details by post With Thursday | evening came stacks of belated let ters. with whole bales of newspa- pers,'' said the stage driver. to fol | ow. and with Thursday midnight. long after every one had gone to bed there |