The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1913-08-01

Hamlin glanced at the face of the
other. He knew little about him. ex.
cept that he had the reputation of be-
ing capable officer
i will, sir" he responded quickly;
you may never have heard of the af
tair. but l was with Miss Mcdonald
curing a little Indian trouble out on
the trail few months ago"
The officer nodded.
i heard about that; Gaskins brought
her In"
Well, ever since she has seemed
grateful and friendly. You know how
some women are; well, she is that
kind. Tonight she came to me. be.
cause she didn't seem to know whom
else TO go to- and told me of some trou-
bic she was having. realize, Captain
hane. that 1t may seem a bit strange
TO you that young lady like Miss Nc
Donald, an officers daughter, would
turn for help to an enlisted man, but
am telling you only the truth, sir.
You see, she got it into her head
somehow that l was square, and-and,
well, that cared enough to help her"
Wait a minute. Sergeant" broke in
Kane. kindly, realizing the others EN-.
oarrassment. and resting one hand on
his sleeve. You do not need to apollo.
gize for Miss Mcdonald l know some.
thing of what is going on at this post.
although, damn me If I've ever got on
to the straight facts. You mean that
Dupont woman"
Yes, she's concerned in the matter,
but there are others also"
why couldn't the girl tell her ia
| ther?"
That is where the main trouble lies,
Captain. Major Mcdonald seems to
be completely under the control of
Mrs. Dupont. He is apparently afraid
of her for some reason. That is what
Miss Molly spoke to me about. We
were on the side porch at tho hotel
talking while the dancers were at sup
pert was the only opportunity the
girl had to get away-and Mrs. Dupont
and her husband came into the par
Tor"
Her husband? Good Lord, thought
her husband was dead"
He isn't. He's a tin-horn gambler.
known in the saloons as 'Reb,' a big
duffer, wearing black beard"
"All right, go on; don't know him"
We'll, l stepped into the room to
keep the two apart. leaving the girl
alone outside. We had a bit of talk
before | got the room cleared, and
when l went back to the porch, Miss
Molly had gone"
Dropped over the railing to the
ground"
That's what I thought at the time.
sir, but what happened to her after
that? She didn't return to the hotel;
she was not at the dance hall, and
hasn't come back to the post"
The hell you say! Are you sure"
81 am; l searched for her high and
low before left, and she could not get
in here without passing the guard
house."
Kane stared into the Sergeants face
a moment, and then out across the pa
rade ground A yellow light winked
in the Colonels office, occasionally
blotted out by the passing figure Of a
sentry. The officer came to prompt
decision.
The old man is over there yet,
grubbing at some papers. Come on
over, and tell him what you have told
me. | believe the lass will turn up all
right, but it does look rather queer"
The Colonel and the Post Adjutant
were in the little office. busy over a
pile Of papers Both officers glanced
up, resenting the interruption. as Kane
entered, Hamlin following. The for
mer explained the situation briefly,
while the commandant leaned back in
his chair. his keen eyes studying the
younger man.
Very well, Captain Kane" he said
shortly, as the officers story ended.
1--WE shall have to examine into this
of course, hut will probably discover
the whole affair a false alarm. There
is. at present, no necessity for alarm
ing any others. Sergeant, kindly eX-
plain to me why Miss Mcdonald should
have come to you in her DISTRESS?
Hamlin stepped forward, and told
the story again in detail. answering
the Colonel's questions frankly.
This, then, was the only time you
have met since your arrivals"
Yes, siE."
And this Mrs. Dupont? You have
had a previous acquaintance with
herr"
Some years ago.
you consider her dangerous
woman?"
81 know her to be utterly unscrupu-
lous, sir. | am prepared to state that
she is here under false pretenses'
claiming to be a niece of Major NC
Donald's. do not know her real pur-
pose, but am convinced 1t is an evil
one"
The Colonel shook his head DOUBT
fully, glancing at the silent adjutant'
That remains to be proven, Ser
geant. | have, of course, met the lady,
and found her pleasant and agreeable
as a companion Deuced pretty, too;
hey. Benson! Why do you say she
masouera6es as McDonald's Nicer
Because her maiden name was Car
son and the Majors sister married a
man named Counts"
There might have been anotner
marriage. Surely Mcdonald must