El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-12-29
Honor Regained
BY SackviUe Martin.


= time captain in the 93rd regi-
| ment of infantry stationed at a small
! town in the interior. Cholera was rag
| ing in our camp and many privates
| and officers died from it.
| Everything seemed to depress our
| spirits. Never did / hear a single COM
| plant, though many Of them had to do
/ hard hospital service week after week.
/ When 1 had time, 1 often went to the
| hospital and helped where I could.
/ One night 1 had been working in
! the hospital since 10 in the morning
| and felt terribly EXHAUSTED, when our
| major surgeon came to me and said:
Look here, Mouvielle, this will never
] do You will Immediately go nome
and TO bed. You look as if you were
| just ready to drop
1T is just about the way 1 feel"
replied, land for once 1 shall take your
| advice.
Il said goodnight to the surgeon and
when got home 1 threw. myself on my
| bed. The next thing / remember was
| my orderly shaking me to wake me
up. asked him if 1 was needed at the
hospital.
yes, captain, 1t is sergeant Duval,
speak to you
Thank YOU Jacques, will be with
him in a moment"
l must have slept for some hours for
it was 8 o'clock now. The moon was
shining into the room and for a mo-
ment 1 stood looking into the peace
full night landscape, but my thoughts
wandered TO the little hospital and to
the man who had sent for me.
Poor Duval, He was a splendid SOL
der, who had performed wonders dur
ing the time of the insurrection and
once saved my life at the risk Of his
own, deed for which he had been men
toned in the reports and been re-
warded with the cross of the Legion Of
Honor
was thinking OF this while walking
towards the hospital The surgeon met
me at the door and told me that Duval
was lying in a little room by himself.
Men of this stamp are convinced that
truth is one and Interchangeable to all
people at all times, that it is not to
invent it, but to recover it, that it rests
in the post OF humanity and at the bot
tom Of our conscience.
Go right in to him, Mouvielle," he
said, he asks for you all the time
and am afraid he will not last
very much longer"
I found Duval terribly changed.
There was not the slightest doubt that
he was dying. He seemed to be asleep.
but he heard my steps and suddenly
opened his eyes and sat up in bed
looking at me with a wistful express
sion he whispered hoarsely: God bless
you captain for coming to see me-
Then he stopped short and 1 could see
he was in great pain
do you suffer much" I asked him.
1T is not the pain that hurts me-"
he said slowly. But 1 feel the end
I
tell you
'I must remind you of the time when
entered the regiment. 1 had travelled |
all day from Paris to Marseilles and +;
was almost crushed by a great sor-
row. The new conditions of military
life did not improve matters and in !
the evening I sneaked outside the |
walls. I thought I was alone and knelt !
down to pray, sobbing like child. My I
sobs were heard by p young officer |
who passed and he came up to me and |
asked why / was so sad. / told him |
had lost a dear friend, and he did !
all he could to console me. The next !
day I found out his name. 1t was YOU |
'.And now 1 want to thank you for |
everything you have done for me since !
that dreadful evening, but there is one |
thing / must tell you I said I had |
lost a dear friend. 1t was true, cap !
IL. L
when you found me I had prayed to /
God he would forgive my past and let |
me win back my honor under a new /
name From that day 1 wore the name /
Duval but my real name is Raoul de |
Brissac."
After a long pause he continued.
MY parents belong to an old noble
family in Touraine, where 1 was born. !
Ny mother died Immediately after my /
birth 1 was brought up by my father
until / went to Paris to study law. For
a while 1 worked hard but then be- I
gan to gamble and spent nearly all my
time in nv club One night 1 won
so 900 francs at baccarat. Then luck
changed and when I had lost it all and
1900 francs besides, my friends begged
me to stop. I refused and borrowed
1000 francs from a sportsman present.
lost them and only when / realized
what I had done and left the club.
When 1 finally came home it was Z
o'clock 1 had three hours to get the
the money 1 had lost and borrowed.
I knew my father had an account
At the same bank as I. / forged his
name to a check and had my house
keeper cash 1t.
.'The next day had violent attack
IF brain fever and did not come to for
many days.
Has my father been mere, L asked
ny housekeeper.
Yes she said, / telegraphed for
lim He has been with you for a week
Today the doctor said the danger was
past and he went home.
at understand. In my delirium I had !
old him everything. AS soon as the
loctor told me I might go out my reso-
ution was made. I intended to go
nome, ask my fathers forgiveness and
hen enlist for Tonkin.
~ reached our old home hurried !
through the park and looked through |
he library windows. 1 saw my father ;
lifting inside, his face buried in his |
lands.
Il rushed to his side and begged
i'm to forgive me- He took me into
lis arms and said: My poor boy-my
wn poor boyv
Il told him I wanted to go away and I
egin life over again and his voice was Z
roken when he said:
Ny forgiveness you have. But you
re right you must begin life over Z
gain, you must win back your honor t
He put some bills into my pocket. J G