The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1918-11-15

tOhAhS 1LIIO AA2 -
Crawford. the senior lieutenant. who
had graduated from West Point the
year before, and Captain Kellerman :;
there was his own negro servant, John
son.. with a look of alarm on his ebony
face; and near by We're two men from
the ambulance, carrying an empty
stretcher.
Wallace moaned for water and the
sense of the liquid In his throat, warm
though it was, brought back conscious
ness with a rush.
"Well, we've got YOU said Craw-
ford che%erfully. How are you feel
ing, old man?"
Fine. Have we got S~antiago?"
well, not exactly. but nearly. We've
carried all the trenches. and we're
waiting to get our big guns up. Arm
hurting you?"
NO." said Wallace, sitting a groan.
Say, Crawford, 1 suppose l was de-
liriOus, but I thought there was q kid
here"
AS he spoke he caught sight of Major
Howard emerging from the shack, with
the little girl in his arms, fast asleep.
The major came up to him.
How are you feeling. Wallace?" he
asked. Good! I didn't know you
were a family man, though, till l saw
this kid sleeping in your arms"
you've been inside?" inquired the
lieutenant, looking toward the shack.
The majors face grew very serious.
He nodded.
Her father" said Wallace.
Come, get in with YOU" answered
Major Howard. CURLY, indicating the
ambulance. Mark, supported by the
orderlies. who had placed the stretcher
upon the ground, crawled in and lay
down. He stretched out his arm to-
ward the child. 1t was an unconscious
action, but Major Howard noted it
and, detaching the small arms from
abou his neck. he placed the little
girl in the Stretcher. The little head
dropped upon the lieutenant's arm. As
the ambulance men picked up their
burden two soldiers came out of the
hut, carrying something in a blanket.
They carried it TO the center of the
clearing and set it down beside a hole
which had already been dug.
liz NilI1SO al pass SISncO W Ii
nares," said Wallace to the major.
Major Towards eyes contracted into
narrow Sits. He nodded. Il have it,"
he answered.
81 wonder who he WASP said Wal
lace.
wen decide what to do with the
kid after we get her back to camp"
said the major CURLY. 1t seemed to
Wallace hat he was unwilling to
speculate upon the identity of the dead
man. Lie still, and don't muddle
your brains with thinking, my boy" he
added. wen have you at the base
hospital in next to no time
How many men have we IOst?'
Cant tell you. Quite a few, I'm
afraid. Soames is gon Crawford
and Murray and 1 found ourselves
punched together at the top of the hill,
leading a mixed company of Texas
Rangers and Pennsylvania Dutch.
Wen get them sorted out and sent
home with labels as soon as we can.
Move on, boys"
The jolting stretcher proceeded out
of the scrub and down the hill. Here,
III TIE Opcl. eNtl SIIlIIS was IlIIlOSI as
silent as in the bush, after the days
battle. Under the light of the rising
moon could be seen parties of men
moving over the hillside, straggIers
seeking their regiments, or fatigue par
ties detailed upon the necessary night
work that follows q day Of death. The
noon shone down on huddled forms
scattered for the most part in little
clusters, where shells or machtne-gun-
fire had caught them.
1t seemed an Infinitely long journey.
and every movement of the stretcher
was almost u~nbearable. Wallace shut
his lips tight. He looked at the child
beside him. She moved in her sleep,
feeling for his neck with the little
grimy hands. Her cheek snuggled into
the hollow of his arm. The lieutenant
was c~uriously touched by this uncOn-
scious confidence.
He issued from his ordeal of pain at
last, when the bearers halted in front
of the line of tents that served for a
field hospital. Stretchers by the dozen
were piled about the ground, and more
were arriving constantly. Wounded
men, guided by the sound, came
limping in on the last lap of their
painful journeys. Others, who had ar
rived but had not yet been attended
TO, sat or lay in front of the tents. Or
derlies were scurrying to and fro. Ma.
jor Howard caught one of the regI-
mental surgeons, who looked Mark
over quickly and then picked the child
ont of the Sfrprchpr-
Hello Who's this?" he asked.
Friend of his" said the major, in
dlcating Mark.
she doesn't look like a Cuban young
lady," said the doctor, as he cut away
the sleeve of the tunic.
Her fathers dead. Hit by q shell
on his way from Santiago. 1 think he
was an American" said Mark.
Give her TO me. / ley had one"
said the doctor, suddenly injecting a
~hypodermic into Marks arm.
mot after that" said Mark, vino
ing. Besides, I'm thinking of adopt
ing her myself"
And he wondered what had made
him say that when the thought had
hardly reached his own conscious
ness.