El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-05-10
The Number Of the Regiment
A short Story.

TIE WAS one of those tramps you
meet so often at harvest time,
- but this particular one looked so
Enthusiastically like a criminal that he
had been shown away from all the
9 farms where he had applied for work
! The oak cane he carried looked more
I like the cudgeI Of a murderer, and IN
/ der the lapel Of his coarse linen coat
which was black and dirty with sweat
and dust, there must surely have been
some prison number OF the penitentiary
from which he had run away.
How old was he2 Misery has no age.
I He was tall and bony. and his walk was
elastic like that OF a young man, but
tnere were gray nalrS IN mis- muStache.
He was not ashamed Of his poverty
de wore his Old shapeless Ielt hat
pushed far back and in his brown, hard
race his eyes, with were blush gray,
Sparkled with courage and he went
baretcoted to save the heavy irOnclad
shoes he carried strapped across his
military knapsack- lie walked with a
firm step and raised head, and there
was something military over his whole
person and bearing He followed a very
narrow, winding path across a grain
Held and the tall stray concealed INN
TO his shoulder
He did not know where this path
would lead him. All around him The
PLAIN stretched as lar as his eye could
reach.
The night before he had reached
large village, where he had wandered
from farm TO farm and asked for work
Everywhere they had looked at him
with an expression which told of the
housewives terror and the answer had
invariably been;
NO, we do not need any heIp."
He still had three sous left so he
bought small piece OF bread and ate
It as he wandered along in the dusk.
"a n 81 Ion ha Z a
ne bent down ana drank from his hand.
When night came, q beautiful June
night with bright stars. b jumped
across neugst law down in a field.
put his kHapSack under his head ana
slept until sunrise.
What he missed the most in those
days OF misery was tobacco.
he woke up in the dammp grass with
Stltf limbs and stood up Crem bling with
cold under his rage ana swOrc. Then
he marched along, again following The
old royal road.
As he walked nc thought Of his
dreadful past Born in a hospital for
the poor. he mad been sent out in the
remembered was, how he trCmbled in
country 10 an old woman, and all he
lear Of her, because ncr hard hands
were always ready 10 box his ears. In
spite Of all, he grew up a strong
nmbeC healthy bOy. who went out TO
gather fircwOOd In the woods with her.
livery DCQy was scared OF her ana
thought her an old witch. and she her
sell was not sure they were not right
she was oread1 ulIy supersJiuoCs ana
when she found in her henhOuse an egg
smaller than the rest. She crushed il
under the heel of her wooden shoe,
convinced that it contained a snake
She sent the boy TO school that he
might learn TO read and write. but his
SchOOImates, sons OF peasants. called
hlm the son or q witch. They had
many fights, but he nearly always came
out victorious.
When he was II years old-his
adopted mother had just died-hc
should never have been able to find a
position had not the carter. who mad
taken the contract TO carry goods from
the railroad to the village, been look
ing Tor stable boy. His wages We're
three francs 4 month and food, which
was no better than that given to the
dog. and he slept in the straw. re
was hated BY all The boys and the girls
leased him because he was aW Hgvard
and bashfuL lie had never been in The
city, InOGSh 1t was only three miles
away Then came the time when he
was examined for military service and
attached 10 the 10Th TCEimenmt
The time he spent N the regiment
was the happicSt OF his life. For the
lirst time he felt what il was to like
oIner people. The uniform was too
heavy In summer and too light n win
ter. out all the soldiers were d. aSsed
like that the food was often repul-
sive. but all the others had % eat sEa
same things. Quite close to him Slept
a Vlsccnt, for mere, TO his great sur
prise, 10 man was better than another
and to get ahead only one vi-tus was
necessary This write came
10 hlIn without any effort. IS ne WIS
bright and Intelligent, he brc-sris a
corporal after years service, and a
year later, he was promoted to scr
geant-
The madness Of one moment had been |
sufficient 10 ruin the remainder of his
life. lie had lust been prOmOreI 10
sergeant major One day he mad mon
cy belonging to the company IN his
pocket he drank one after me ether,
three glasses at absinthe and fell 81 |
love win girl and before he parted
from ner, she mad made him thief ard J
a criminal From that day his life b.
came miserable. He was Dlzcad before |
q court martial, degraded AMI sentenced /
to two years penal servitu e III one cf Z
the African lerions- He returned home
from there, crushed with shame and /
with the everlasting thirst - the AGO.
holist
lie found no man willing 10 help him. 1
he was willing 70 work and did get a
days work row ana then, but most OF |
the time ne was tramping the roads. a |
vagrant, prosecuted by his past When I
he had reached the limit OF stal.va tiOr