Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1914-10-01

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 (Copyrisht, 1914, by Charles scribner's Sons,
 IT we forget the war! She bore on the words rather grimly. The change that he had noted between the Marta of the hotel reception-room and the Marta of the moment was not alto gether the work of ten years. It had developed since she was in the capi. tai. In these three weeks war had been brought to her door. She had been under heavy fire. Yet this sub ject of the war was the one which he, as an invader, considered himself bound to avoid.
 We do forget it at tea, don't we?' he asked.
 At least we need not speak of it!" she replied.
 T am staying tonight. I was going to ask if you wouldn't remain on the veranda while I go over these pa pers. lit would be very cozy and pleasant"
 Why, yes" she agreed with evident pleasure.
 Turcas came. in answer to Wester- ling's ring. The orders and sugges- tions on the table seemed to be the product of this lath of man, the vice. chief, but lath of steel, not wood, who appeared a runner trained for a race of intellects in the scratch class. One by one, almost perfunctorily. Westerling gave his assent as he passed the papers to Turcas; while Turcas's dry voice. coming from be- ! tween a narrow opening of the thin lips. gave his reasons with a rapid firer's precision in answer to his chiefs inquiries.
 With each order somewhere along that frontier some unit of great or ganism would respond The reserves from this position would be trans ferred to that: such position would be felt out before dark by reconnois- rapid-frers of the 18th Division would be transferred to the 10th; despite the 37th Brigade's losses, it would still form the advance; General So-and-So would be superseded after his failure of yesterday; Colonel So-and-So would take his place as acting maior-general; more care must be exercised in recom- mendations for bronze crosses, lest their value so depreciate that officers and men would lack incentive to win them
 Marta was having look behind the scenes at the fountainhead of great events. Power! power! The abso- Mte power of the soldier in the saddle, with premier and government and all the institutions of peace only dim background for the processes of war! Opposite her was a man who could make and unmake not only generals but even the destinies of peoples. By every sign he enjoyed his power for its own sake. There must be a chief of the five millions, which were as moving forest of destruction. and here was the chief, his strength reflected in the strong muscles of his short neck as he turned his head to listen trast between Westerling and Lam stron as they faced each other after the wreck of the aeroplane ten years ago; the iron invincibiity of the elders sturdy, mature figure and the alert, high-strung invincibility of the slighter figure of the younger man.
 He had taken up paper thought fully after Turcas withdrew, when he looked up to Marta in answer to a movement i'll her chair. She had bent forward in pose that freed her figure from the chair-back in an outline of parted, showing faint line of the white of her teeth, and he caught her gazing at him in kind of wondering admiration. But she dropped her eye lids instantly and said deliberately, less to him than to herself:
 You have the gift!''
 No tea-tahle f1attery that, he knew; only the reflection of fact whose ex- istence had been borne in on her by observation.
 The gift? How@' he inquired. speaking to the fringe of hair that half hid her lowered face.
 She looked up, smiling brightly.
 You don't know what giftl Not the pianist's. Not the poets! Why, of course. the supreme gift of com mandi The thing that made you chief of staff! And the war goes we'll for you, doesn't it?"
 Delicious m0rsel, this, to a connois- senr in compliments, He tasted it with the same self-satisfied smile that hs had her first prophecy. To her who had then voiced a secret he had shared with no one. as his chest swel1ed with a full breath, he barred another in the delight of the impress sion he had made on her.
 Yes. as you foresaw-as planned!" hs said. Yes. planned all, step by step. till was. chief of stan and ready | convinced the premier that it was time to strilzs and chose the hour to strika; for Hodlapuo was only a con- 2 yanfaut excusa fnr tfia last of all the
 e enbdeetixe enjoyment of the