The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1913-05-28

OF honor revoitod at such q thought.
Not through any curiosity of mine.
however justified by the depth Of my
Own feeling, should she be made the
subject Of idle gossip about the camp.
fire
For, In truth, at this time, unhappy
ss my own situation undeniably vas
and as soldier realized all its
dansers,--I gave 1t but little considera.
Aion. Usually quick OF wit. fertile IN
'expedients, ever ready to take ad.
vantage Of each opportunity. had
taken stock Of all my surroundings.
yet discovered nowhere the slightest
opening for escape. The vigilance Of
the guard, as we'll "a the thorough
manner In which was bound. rend.
cred any such attempt the merest
madness. Realizing this. with the
fatalism OF a veteran I resigned myself
In all patience to what must be. A,
Then 1t was that other thoukhts
came surging upon me In q series Of
interrogatories, which no knowledge l
possessed could possibly answer. Who
was this proud. wornanly woman Who
called herself Edith Brennan! She
had been ut some psins to inform me
thai che was married, yet there was
that about her-her bearing, her man.
ner-which could not In the least
reconcile with that thought. Her ex.
tfems youthfulness made me feel Il
improbable. and the impression re-
,mained with me that she intended to
make some explanation OF her words,
sfhen the coming OF Hungay inter
f!iptsd ~. How; they might be ex-
.tlailsd I could not imagine: I merely
struggled against accepting what I
longed TO believe untrue. And this
lmaN this TsdsrAr raaior, bearing the
Sam name, whom Shs called frank,
who Was he? whss manner Of rsla.
tioAship existed between them! In
their meeting and short intercoufss
lhad noted sewers! things which told
n mvchA--that sns tsArsd. rsspsot>d,
valued him. and that hs WAS not oaly
svAye6 By. but intensely 3salous of
Any rival IN. her good opinion. Yet
their unexpected meeting was sc4rcsly
that Of husband and wife. Wa hs
the one shs sought In hsr night ride
from one FEDERAL camp TO another!
II 90, was he brother. friend, or hus-
bandf What was the bond Of union
s4ilting between these two? Every
wofd spoken macs me fear the last
must be the true solution. -
Huch w>re some OF the qussa,s 4
silsntly struggled with. and thsyf were
rendered more acute by that deepen.
Ing interest which l now confssssd to
myself I was feeling toward her who
inspired them. It may be fashicnablS
newsdays to snssr at love, yet certain
IT, is, th~a ars personality ofe, this
Edith BrsnlAn had reached aSd n.
fluencsd me in those few houfa ws
had been thrown together a. ttst Aee
no other woman had ever done, Poe
sihiy this was 10 because the long
years In camp and field had kept me
isolated from all cultured and refined
womanhood. This may, indeed, have
CAUSED me to be peculiarly susceptible
to the beauty and purity Of this one.
! know not; ! am content 70 give
facts. and leave philosophy to others.
My life has ever been one Of action, Of
intense feeling; and thbre in the read
That day, standing hareheaded "A the
sun. I was clearly conscious 81 but
one changsless fact, that I loved Edith
Brennan with, every throb ,of my
heart. and that there WAS enmity, bit.
ter and upforEiving. between me and
the man within who bore her name.
Whatever he might be to her 70.
1oicsd TO know that hs hated me with
ell the unrsasoning hatred Of Jealousy.
! had read It In his eyes, in his words,
In his manner; and the memory Of its
open manifestation caused mo to
smile. - hoped for an hour when
We should meet alone and face TO
face. How she regarded him I was
unable 40 yet to tell. but his love for
her wss plainly apparent in every
glance and word.
A. was thus thinking. half in
despair and half In hope, tho two
came out from the house together;
and II pleased me TO note how imms-
diately her eyes sought for me. and
how she lifted her hand to shade them
from the glare Of tho sun, 20 that
she might SEQ moro clearly. Her com.
pani0n appeared to ignore my pres.
ence utterly. and gaxsd anxiously up
and down tho road 40 though search.
Ing for something.
Peters" he asked sharply of tho
fellow on guard, where are Sergeant
Steele and the rest Of the sQuad?"
The soldier sddrssssd saiut>d In q
manner that convinced me he was Of
the regular service.
They are resting out of tho sun
In that clump Of bushes down the hill.
sir
Brennan glanced in the direction in
dicated.
Very we'll" he said. "Take your