Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-08-18
THE EVENING STORY:
An Officer and q Gentleman.
ny OWEN OLIVER.

BY OWEN OLIVER.
There are castles in the British army
| as rigid as the castles of eastern reiigion'
| only they are not worshiped so openly
| The most exclusive of these castles Is the
| regimental. yet Surgeon Major Steel. T.
A. M. c., walked into the messroom OF
the I'd Royal Loamshire as If he were
| being welcomed home.
The barriers between man and man
| break down in the presence OF death
Steel had stood between the battalion and
enteric He had rallied 1t against the
cholera. He had cured it Of half the
| ills that flesh is heir to. He had gone
| under fire with it in the last affair on
the hills. He had gone out Of fire with
the second in command on his back: and,
when he had bound up his friend s
wounds, he had gone back to the fighting
line. lowing to the gallantry of Surgeon
Major Steel" the official report said,
who attended to the wounded under
| fire, there were very few fatal casual
ties among the battalion"
THE life that you save Is yours" and
Steel claimed the battalion for his own.
The mess was ominously quiet that
night A few subalterns were playing
billiards. He could hear the click of the
balls between the woof-woof of the punk
l ans, as ne WAlkeU 1lOuS Tic pdSSd6c'
-Four officers were playing bridge in the
cardroom. He heard the flap of falling
cards as he passed the door. The colonel
and the second in command and the adj
jutant were sitting at the end of the long
messroom. They were Quietest Of ALL
He could hear them pun al two cigarettes
and cigar
The colonel and the second in COM
mand gave him the casual mods OF ia
| miliar friends The adjutant followed
L I.s~ N>1H nv,l hos,
you are young it needs an effort to be
| ordinary upon extraordinary occasions
Steel did not give the usual cOmprehen-
sive nod in return, but shook hands de-
terminedly with each; and then they
knew that he knew.
$50 it's got about" the colonel said
| jerking at his iron gray mustache.
Its got about Steel agreed; 'even
to me-"
at was bound to-" the adjutant OBJ
served. Youth Is always the chorus ia
state the obvious.
II daresay we should have told you,'
| the second in command observed. But
| it's the sort of thing that's easier to tell
your enemies than your friends. you
know"
Steel nodded slowly.
HE was the hardest case in last sea-
sons batch. of enteric,' he remarked,
thoughtfully; nearly slipped through my
fingers"
i
| cried, with a sudden blaze on his red
face.
Il daresay he does"' The second in
commands voice was scarcely audible.
''If you had known what you were
| saving for him" the adjutant began
you are young.
We'll, he didn't slip through. 1 saved
him for-what I've come to find out.
Ask me to have drink. some one-" The
colone! summoned a mess waiter
| large soda"
"Good"' said the colonel
Perhaps that was when the last paline
of the caste barrier went down. Steel did
| not touch intoxicants once year. They
knew, when he ordered the whisky. tina,
| the battalion's trouble had come to him
as his own.
That's what I've come to find out
NSteel repeated. when the tumbier of soda
half of the tiny flask of whisky into it
| II don't believe it," he snapped. and ther
| he drank. II don't believe it, he re.
peated when he had set down the glass
Tie colonel shook his head and sighed
That's what l said at first he re.
marked, as one who noted similarity OF
mind with approval. "You wouldn't be
| lieve it of any one in the battalion, Of
| course, Tell him how 1t came out
Masters He nodded to the adjntant.
L
adjutant explained: but you know that
suppose. l don't believe there's any.
thing that you don't know about US.
heard that the COMPOUNDED auditors were
coming down tomorrow to take the bal
| ance. l used to think that 1t was &
| farce, auditing us! But l thought II
| make sure that everything was all righ
in case We were a few annas out
I'VE never are!" the colonel interrupt
| ed, sharply.
mo, sir. And 1 didn't mean that ".
should be! Well. we shan't be. of course.
"Of course not" Steel agreed. H,
smiled a grim smile. For the auditor,
have no caste. and one gives them &C
| counts, but not secrets.
| "Of course not" The colonel set hi
lips. THE money will be forthcom
ing
Its thirteen hundred and eight,
rupees the adjutant continued; "Abou
| can't explain. and"
That's ALL the colonel.interrupted.
There was a long silence: Steel work
| ed with his finger upon the table, tracinf
II life were a zigzag line. He endet
where the line jumps-to recovery o.
death?
| Il don't believe it," he said again.
| Well said the colonel, bitterly
any one else believing it,: ~ s'0'
you've put that out of my power.
Steel retorted. He spoke as a doctor
speaks to fractions patient. why thu
deuce did you put him under arrest?"
| Because / know my own business,
the colonel replied hotly.
| II know mine," Steel stated.
| There was a marked silence.
| I'VE couldn't hush it up" the secont
in commands quiet voice explained a
last. I'VE can make UP the money. o.
course. We have. But we can't let hin
lescape punishment for what he did,
ing forward and sticking out his OBJ
stinate chin.
The second in command looked thought
full. He was a man who thought; and he
believed in Steel.
He says that he did not know that
it had gone" he observed. Certainly
but" He glanced at the colonel and
the colonel laughed a short laugh, and
looked at Steel.
WELL he said. there's not another
man in India I'd tell. but-but you're one
of us. old chap"
Which Is probably the only case In his
tory when one of the departmental caste
| was adopted into the regimental.
Steel nodded and resumed his drawing
upon the table again. He was tracing
the chart Of Capt. Mortons fever. and
comparing it with another.
| Mrs. Rivers" said the second in com.
mand. is Morton's cousin. think
| think we all like Mrs. Rivers"
| Steel nodded, without stopping his
drawing.
''She reminds you OF English fields. .
he remarked. Green fields and-and
little trickling wretch of river run
Something like that" the second In
command agreed Yes. dare
say you've heard that she's good bit