Show o ND IN THE HILIPPJNE5 AfePU BY Gen Cha5oKin6 1 0 jr 1u1 I r COPXRGH J 9fj T Y I w I Synopsis of Preceding Chapters Tho regimental camp on Presidio Heights overlooking San Francisco harbor har-bor is stirred up by rumors or moving orders to Manila and by the arrival from New York of last visitors at headquarters headquar-ters The visitors are in search of a I runaway boy who is believed to nave entered en-tered the army and Lieutenant Gray the most popular young officer in his regiment regi-ment through a supposed acquaintance Kith one of the visiting party Miss Amy Lawrence is envied by his fellows The party escorted by Colonel Armstrong attends at-tends a review on the drill grounds and is disturbed by the sight of a young prisoner pris-oner who breaks away from his guard t near them and by a collision among the carriages Not ten minutes later occurred the collision between the hack and the heels that resulted in the demolition of one and demoralization of the rider of the victor While the latter was led away by the obedient Mr Ellis lest the sight of him should bring on another nervous attack Mrs Garrison was suffering herself to be comforted Her nerves were gone but she had not lost her head Lots of Presidio dames and damsels were up on the heights that day in such vehicles as the post I afforded None appeared in anything so stylish and elegant as the carriage of the prime party She was a new and comparative stranger there and it would vastly enhance her social prestige I pres-tige she argued to be seen in such swell surroundings With a little f tact and management she might even arrange matters so that willy nilly her friends would drive her home instead in-stead of taking Colonel Armstrong back to camp That would be a stroke worth playing She owed Stanley Armstrong a bitter grudge and had nursed it long She had known him ten years and hated him nine of them Where they met and when it really matters not In the army people meet and part in a hundred places when they never expected to meet again She had married mar-ried Frank Garrison in a hand gallop said the garrison chronicles before she had known him two months said the men before he knew her at all said the women She was four years his senior if the chaplain could be believed be-lieved and five months his junior if she could Whatever might have been the discrepancy in their ages at the time of the ceremony no one would suspect the truth who saw them now It was he who looked aged and careworn care-worn and harassed and she who preserved pre-served her youthful bloom and vivacity vivac-ity And now as she reclined as though still too weak and shaken to leave the carriage and return to saddle her quick wits were planning the scheme that would result in her retaining and his losing the coveted seat There was little time to lose Most of the crowd had scattered and she well knew that he was only waiting for her to leave before he would return Almost at the Distant her opportunity came A covered cov-ered wagon reined suddenly alongside and kind and sympathetic voices hailed t her Do let us drive you home Mrs Garrison you must have been terribly shaken She recognized at once the t wife and daughter of a prominent officer offi-cer of the post Oh how kinrt you are she cried I was hoping some one would come Indeed I did get a little wrench And then as she moved with a sudden gasp of pain she clasped Miss Lawrences extended hand Indeed you must not stir Mrs Garrison said the young lady We will drive you home at once Miss Prime and her father were adding their pleas She looked up smiling faintlv I fear I must trouble you she faltered fal-tered Oh how stupid of me But about Stanley ArmstrongI havent even thanked him Ah well he knows Weve beensuch good friends for years dear old fellow CHAPTER V There had beena morning of jubilee in the camp of the Fifth separate brigade and a row in the tents of the I regulars Up to within a fortnight such a state of affairs would have been considered con-sidered abnomnal for the papers would have it that the former were on the verge of dissolution through plague pestilence and fa nine due to the neglect of officials vaguely referred to as the military authorities or the staff while up to the coming of Canker to command sweet accord had reigned in the regular brigade and the volunteers looked on with envy But now a great martial magnate had praised the stalwart stal-wart citizen soldiery whom he had passed in review early in the day and set them to shouting by the announcement announce-ment that as reward for their hard work and assiduous drill they should have their hearts desire and be shipped across the seas to far Manila It had all been settled beforehand at headquarters head-quarters The chief had known for four days that that particular command com-mand would be selected for the next expedition but it tickled the boys to nave it put that way and the home papers would maize so much of it So there was singing and triumph and rejoicing all along the eastern verge of a rocky roughly paved cross street and rank blasphemy across the way To the scandal and sorrow of the teenth infantry some of the recent robberies had been traced to their very doors A commissary sergeant had weakened a cartman had squealed and one of the most popular and attractive at-tractive young soldiers in the whole command was now a prisoner in the guard house charged with criminal knowledge of the whole affair and of being a large recipient of the illgotten money Morton of the adjutants office a private in company K What made it worse was the allega tion that several others noncommissioned noncommis-sioned officers and special duty men were mixed up in the matter and Canker had rasped the whole commissioned commis-sioned force present for duty in his lecture upon the subject and had al mOL < intimated that officers were conniving con-niving at the concealment of the guilt of their sergeants rather than have it leak out thai the felony was commit ted in a company of their command ing ingHe He and Gordon had what was described de-scribed as b redhot row all because Gordon flatly declared that while something some-thing was queer about the case of the young clerk who had money to burn I as the men said hed bet his bottom dollar he wasnt a thief Canker said such language was a reflection on himself him-self as he had personally investigated the case was convinced Mortons guilt could bt establishedand had soj fl ported port-ed to the brigade commander recommending rec-ommending trial by general courtmar tial Indeed he had made out a case against the lad even before he was arrested and returned tor camp Gordon Gor-don asked if he had seen the boy and heard his story Canker reddened and said he hadnt and he didnt mean to and didnt have to Gordon said he had he had talked with the lad fully and freely on his being brought to camp toward 9 oclock and was greatly impressed Im-pressed with his story as would anyone any-one else be who heard it Canker reddened red-dened still more and said he wouldnt allow officers to interview prisoners withQut his authority Ill prefer charges against the next that does it said he And not three hours later Mr Billy Gray sprawling on his campcot striy ing to forget the sorrow of the earlier morning and to memorize a page of paragraphs of army regulatipns was suddenly accosted by an orderly who stood at the front of the tent scratching scratch-ing at the tent flap the camp substitute substi-tute for a ring at the bell A note for the lieutenant said he darting in and then darting out pos I sibly fearful of question It was a queer note I am a total stranger to you but I wore in brighter days the badge of the same society that was yours at the university uni-versity Three of the fraternity are in my companyone is guard and he urged me to write at once to you They know me to be a brother Delt even though I dare not tell my real name What I have to say is that the charge against me is utterly false as I can convince you but could not convince a < jourt I am confined at the moment of all others in my life when it is most vitally important that I should be free Grant me ten minutes interview this afternoon and if I do not prove myself guiltless I will ask no favor but when I do convince you do as you would be I done by Yours in A 3 X GEORGE MORTON Well Ill be blessed said Mr Gray as he rplled out of his gray blanket Heres a state of things Listen to this captain he called to his company com-pany commander Jn the adjoining tent Heres Morton back from fortyeight hours absence without leave brought back by armed guard after sharp resistance re-sistance charged with Lord knows what all wants to tell me his story and piove his innocence You let himalone growled his senior I se-nior Remember what Canker said or I youll go In arrest What call has Morton Mor-ton on you Id like to know i The lad flushed Fraternity was avery a-very sacred thing in the A 2 X It was the most exclusive crowd at the varsity Its membership was pledged to one another by unusual ties It was the hardest society for a fellow to get I into in any one of the seven colleges whereat it flourished and its mystic bonds were not shaken off with the silken silk-en gown and mortar board of undergraduate under-graduate days but followed its membership mem-bership through many a later year It was a society most college men might ask to join in vain Money social station sta-tion influence were powerless Not untIl un-til a student had been under observation observa-tion two whole years and liyas thoroughly thor-oughly known could he hope for a bid to become a Delta Sig Not until another six months of probation could I he sport its colors and not until he formally withdrew frpm its fold in post graduation years could he consider himself absolved from its mild obligations obliga-tions But the boast of the Delta Sig had ever been that no one of its membership had ever turned a deaf ear to a fellow in need of aid Who of its originators ever dreamed of such a thing as its drifting into and becom ing a factor in the affairs of the regu lar army I No wonder Gray stood for a moment J on going to town right after retreat I dining at thePalace an extravagance I I not to be thought of at other times so as to be on hand when the Primes I and Amy Lawrence came downto dinner He had planned it all even to the amount of surprise he was to exhibit ex-hibit when he should discover about when he had finished his own dinner that they were just beginning theirs and the extent and degree of pleasurable pleasur-able emotion he might venture on showing as he hastened over to greet them and accept their offer to be seated with them even if he had been so unkInd un-kind as to dine beforehand solus instead in-stead of with them He had set his heart on having a chat with Miss Lawrence as part recompense for all he had lost that morning and all this he was thinking of while still fumbling over that disturbing note Time was getting short too there was no tellinVr I howmuch longer they might stay Mr Prime had brought his only daughter all that long journey across the continent con-tinent on the assurance that the boy he loved with whom he had quarreled t IA lA4 fi iV CAN OUR HEN SELL LETTERS ASKED THE GENERA AN IMPORTANT PACKAGE HAS BEEN STOLEN FROM MY TENT the paper still in its hands Irresolute even disturbed Not to answer the appeal ap-peal meant to run counter to all the tenets of his fraternity To answer might mean arrest and courtmartial for deliberate disobedience of orders Can ker had no more mercy than an Indian It was barely fortyeight hours since he had been publicly warned by an experienced old captain that he would find no guardian angel in Squeers IL would seriously mar his prospects to start now with Squeers down on him rind as that lynxeyed comman der was ever on watch for infractions of orders Billy well knew that he could not hope to see and talk with the prisoner and Canker not hear of it To ask permission of Canker would I only make matters worse he was sure i to refuse and then reemphasize his orders and redouble his vigilance To I ask the consent of the officer of the i day or the connivance or the officer of I the guard was to invite them to court I arrest and trial on their own account He couldnt do that even to oblige a I brother Del If only NedCraven were 1 I i oflicer of the guard something might j be done he was a college man too II 1 I and though not a Delt but rather of i I a rival he would understand and I j possiblj help Guard mount was held j I r toward dusk and that was four hours 1 j away at least The prisoners note J i and tone were urgent An idea occurred 1 oc-curred to Bills What if he could get Gordon to let him go on this i i very evening It wasnt his tour He had marched off only two days be fore as he well remembered for Canker i had roughed him up and down about that little error in copying the list of prisoners from the report of the previous I pre-vious day Moreover he had counted I and whom in his anger he had sorely rebuked had enlisted there in San Francisco and was serving in a regiment regi-ment at the great camp west of the city He had great hope and confidence he had found the young soldier described and in his bitter disappointment I dis-appointment he declared there was no resemblance to justify the report sent him by the boys own uncle who vowed he had met him with comrades on the main street of the city that the recognition was mutual for the boy had darted around the first corner and escaped His companions were scattered scat-tered by the time Mr Lawrence returned re-turned to the spot after a brief fruitless fruit-less search but private detectives had taken it up and located as they thought young Prime and telegraphed the father in the distant east Now Mr Lawrence was away on business of his own Written assurances assur-ances that he couldnt be mistaken lost weight and < Mr Prime disheartened I was merely waiting the report of an agent who thought he had traced the boy to Tampa In twentyfour hours he might spirit his daughter away on another chase and then there would be no further warrant for Miss Law rences remaining in the city She would return to her lovely home in one of the loveliest of Californian valleys miles away from the raw fogs and chills of the Golden Gate and would be no more seen among the camps That said Billy Gray to himself him-self would take every bit of sunshine from his life All this detail or much ofit he had learned from the fair lips of Miss Lawrence Law-rence herself for Mr Prime and his daughter seemed to shrink from speaking speak-ing of the matter From the first Miss Amy had had to take the youpg gentleman under her personal wing as it were In her desire to aid her uncle and cousin in every way and knowing them to be strangers to the entire camp She had eagerly sent for I him as the first familiar or friendly object ob-ject she saw Then when he came I and was presented and proved to possess I pos-sess little interest to the careworn man I and his anxious and devoted child it devolved upon Miss Lawrence to make much of Billy in proportion as they made little of him and for three days or so the blithe young fellow seemed I fairly to walk on air Moreover she I had taken him into the familyi confidences confi-dences in telling him of the missing son and brother for both her uncle and cousin she said were so sensitive i i about it they could not talk to anyone I except when actually necessary They i had leaned as it were on the general rand r-and on Colonel Armstrong for a day and then seemed to draw away from both They even seemed to take it much amiss that her father had to be absent when they came though they had sent no word until too late of their coming He was on his return might arrive any hour but so might I they go Now if Billy could only discover dis-cover that missing son Then came an inspiration Pencil fog a brief note he gave it to a soldier I of his company and bade him take It Ito I-to the guard tents It told Morton of 1 the colonels orders issued that very Ida I-da and bade him be patienthe hoped I t and believed opportunity would be afforded 1 af-forded for an interview that evening j I Then he hunted up a subaltern of his J own grade whom he knew would probably prob-ably be the detail for officer of the i guard that evening Brooke said j he will you swap tours with me if i Gordons willing I haveId like I mightily to exchange if its all the I same to you Brooke hesitated He had social hopes and aspirations of his own By swapping with Gray he might find i himself doomed to a night in earn > i when he had accepted for some pleasant II pleas-ant function in town Thought you were kean to go in to night right after retreat he hazarded hazard-ed t j It Well 1 was said Gray pulling his j I f drab campaign hat down over his eyes to shut out the glare of the westering I sun But Ive gota new wrinkle I Some bid for Friday Thats your tour isnt it And Brooke began t counting on his fingers Wait till I 1 I look at my notebook Friday Why thats the night of the Burtons card partythought you didnt know them i I dont said Gray glad enough to escape the other question And YQu I j hate card parties you know you do > 1 t fr Its a go Is it Ill see Gordon at once And off he went leaving Brooks to wpnder why he should be so bent on jthe arrangement PiBut Gordon proved an unexpected tpthe plan Cant be dtme Billy jsaid he sententiously Canker watches those < details lIke a hawk He hasnt forgotten you only came off two days ago and if I were to mount you tonight to-night hed mount mewith both feet f Think theres any use in asking > him queried the boy tossing a backward back-ward glance toward Cankers tent J Not unless youre suffering for an I dth r snub That man loves to say no I as much as anygrl I ever asked and I hejddesnt do it to be coaxed either I Best leave it alone Billy I And then the unexpected happened I Into the tent with quick impetuous step came the commanding officer himself I him-self and something had occurred to I jStir that gentleman to the core His I reyes were snapping and his head was high i v I i Mr Gordon said he heres more of this 1i1f rIng business and now I theyre beginning to find out it isnt all In my camp by a damned sight I want that letter copied at once Then with a glance at Gray who had whipped off his cap and was standing in respectful attitude he changed his tone from the querulous half tieble of complaint Whats this youd best leave alone he suddenly demanded There are a dozen thinssyoitfdbest leave alone and a dozenyou would do well to cultivate anjKstudy When I was however I iYer was a lieutenant except in wartime war-time when they amounted to something some-thing J got my professional knowledge knowl-edge in front of the enemynot at any damned charity school Youre here to ask some new indulgence indulg-ence I suppose Want to stay in tpwn over night and fritter away your money and the time the government pays for No sir you cant have my consent YOu will be back in camp at 12 oclock and stop and report your return re-turn to the officer of the guard so that I may know the hour you come in Whos officer of the guard tonight Mr Gordon > se Mr Brooke sir Mr Brooke Why I thought I told you he was to lake those prisoners in town tomorrow He has to testify before be-fore that court in the case of Sergeant Kelly and it saves my sending another Officer and having two of our lieutenants lieuten-ants away from drill and hanging around the Bohemian club Detail somebody else < All right sir answered Gordon I Imperturbably Make any ddds sir r who is detailed Canker had turned to his desk and I was tossing over the papers with nervous ner-vous hand Gray impulsively stepped forward his eyes kindling with hope I It was on the tip of his tongue to I launch into a proffer of his qwn services i I ser-vices for the detail buf Gordon hastily warned him back with a sweep ofthto I hand and a portentious scowl No Ones as bad as the other Next thing J know some of em will be letting let-ting prisoners escape right under my nose making us the laughing stock of these damned malitia volunteers Canker entered service in 61 t as a private pri-vate in a city company that was militia to the tip of its spiketailed coats but he had forgotten it I want these young idlers to understand distinctly by George that the first prisoner that gets away from this post takes some I bodys commission with him Dyou hear that MT Gray And t Canker turned and glared at the bright blue eyes as though he would like to blast their clear fires with the breath of his I disapprobation Has that young fellow fel-low Morton been put in irons yet he suddenly asked whirling on Gordon Gor-don again Think not sir Supplies limited Officer of the day reported half an hour ago every set was in use Sent over to division quartermaster and he answered answer-ed we had a dozen moren we were entitled en-titled to now Wanted to know f we meant to iron the whole regiment > The hell he did raged Canker Ill settle that in short ordejv My horse there orderly Ill be back by four Mr Gordon Fix that detail to suit yourself And so saying the irascible colonel flung himself out of the tent and into his sadie You young idiot said Gordon whirling on Billy the moment the coast was clear You came within an ace of ruining the whole thing Never ask Canker for anything unless its what you wish to be rid of Tell Brooke youre for guard and hes got to go to I town instead Hopping mad as ho himself afterward I after-ward expressed it Colonel Canker had ridden over to have it out with the J quartermaster who had ventured to j comment on his methods but the sight of the commanding general standing alone at the entrance to his private tent his pale face grayer than ever and a world of trouble in his eyes compelled Canker to stop short Two or three orderlies or-derlies were on the run Two aidesde camp Mr Garrison and a comrade were searching through desks and boxes their faces grave and concerned The regimental commander was off his horse in a Second Anything amiss general he asked with soldierly salute sa-lute The general turned slowly toward him Can our men sell letters he said as well as food and forage Do people buy such things A most important im-portant package has been stolen from my tent CHAPTER j The great thoroughfare of that wonderful won-derful l city seated on more than her seven hills and ruling the western world was thronged from curb to curb Gay with bunting and streamers the tall buildings of the rival newspapers and the long facades of hotels and business busi-ness blocks were gayer still with the life and color and enthusiasm that crowded every window Street traffic was blocked Cable cars clanged vainly and the po1ice strove valiantly It was a day given up to but one duty and one purpoe that of giving Godspeed to the soldiery ordered for service in the distant dis-tant Philippines and though they hailed hail-ed from almost every section of the Union except the Pacific slope as though they were her own children with all the hope and faith and pride and patriotism with all the blessings and comforts with which she had loaded the foremost ships that sailed yet happily hap-pily without the tears that flowed when her own gallant regiment was among the firist to lead the way San Francisco turned out en masse to cheer the men from far beyond the Sierras and the Rockies and to see them proudly through the Golden Gate Early in the day the guns of a famous light battery had been trundled decked like some rosecovered chariot at the summer festival of flowers through the winding lanes of eager forms and faces the cannoneers almost dragged I from the ranks by the clasping hands of men and women who seemed powerless I power-less to let go With their little brown carbines tossed jauntily over the broad blue shoulders half a regiment of regular reg-ular cavalry dismounted had gone trudging down to the docks cheered to the gateway of the pier by thousands of citizens who seemed to envy the very recruits who only half uniformed and drilled brought up the rear of the I column Once within the massive wooden portals the guards and sentries I sen-tries holding back the importunate crowd the soldiers flung aside their heavy packs and were marshaled before be-fore an array of tempting tables and there feasted comforted and rejoiced under the ministrations of that marvelous mar-velous successor of the sanitary commission com-mission of the grea civil war Qf the 60s the noble ordetf of the Red Cross There at those tables in the dust and din of the bustling piers in the soot and heat of the railway station in the I jam and turmoil at the ferry houses in the feverhaunted wards pf crowded field hospitals from dawn till dark from dark till dawn toiled week iafter tl week devoted women in every grade I of life the wife of the millionaire the i daughter of the day laborer the gently I born the delicately reared the social I pets and darlings the humble seamstress seam-stress no one too high to stoop to aid I I the departing soldier none too poor or r low to deny him cheer and sympathy The war was still young then Spain had not lowered her riddled standard and sued for peace Two great fleets had been swept from the seas the guns of Santiago were silenced and the stronghold of the Orient was sulking in the shadow of the flag but there was still soldier work to be done and so long as the nation sent its fighting men through her broad and beautiful gates San Francisco and the Red i Cross stood by with eager lavish hands to heap upon the warrior Sons of a score of other states even as upon their own every cheer and comfrort that wealth could purchase or human sympathydevise It was the one feature fea-ture of the war days of 93 that will never be forgotten At one of the flowerdecked tables near the great stage that led to the main deck of the transport a group of blithe young matrons and pretty girls had been busily serving fruit coffee bouillon and substantials to the troopers troop-ers man after man for over two hours There was lively chat and merry war of words goingon at the moment between be-tween half a dozen young officers fvho had had their eyes on that particular table ever since the coming of the I command and were now making the most of their opportunities before the trumpets should sound the assembly and the word be passed to move aboard All the heav baggage and ammunition had at last been swung into the hold the guns of the battery had been lowered aqdisecurely thoked the forecastle head was thronged with the redtrimmed uniforms of the artil lerymen who had already been embarked em-barked and were now jealously clamoring clamor-ing that the troopers should be shutoff shut-off from the further ministrations of the Red Cross and broadly intimating I that it wasnt a fair deal that their rivals should be allowed a whole ad ditional hour of lingering farewells Lingering farewells there certainly were Many a young soldier and many a lass paired off in little joks and corners among the stacks of bales and boxes but at the table nearest the stag ing all seemed gay good humor A merry little woman with strawcol ored hair and pert tiptilted nose and much vivacity and complexion had apparently taken the lead in the war fare of chaff and fun Evidently she was no stranger to most of the officers offi-cers Almost as evidently to a very close observer who stood a few paces away she was no intimate of the group of women who with good right regard eu mat tame as tneir especial and personal per-sonal charge Her Red Cross badge was very new her garb and gloves were just as fresh and spotless She had not been ladling out milk and cream or buttering sandwiches or pinning souvenirs sou-venirs on dusty blue blouses ever since early morning Other faces there showed show-ed through all their smiles and sweetness sweet-ness the traces of long days of unaccustomed unac-customed work and short nights of troubled sleep Marvelous were Mrs Frank Garrisons recuperative powers thought they who saw her brought home in the Primes stylish carriage weak and helpless and shaken after her adventure of the previous day Site had not been at the Presidio week and yet she pervaded it She had never thought of such a thing as the Red Cross until she found it the center of the social firmament after her arrival at San Francisco and here she was the last comer the foremost most fQrward I think some one described It > in their circle at one of the most prominent tables absorbing much oC theattentIon most of the glory and none of the fatigue that should have I been equally shared Byall Adios she gayly cried as the assembly I as-sembly rang out loud and clear and waving their hands and raising their I cnps the officers hastened to join their I commands Adios till we meet in Manila Do you really think of going to the PhllippiSes Mrs Garrison queried a I much olderlooking yet younger Woman wo-man Why we were told the general said that none of his staff would be j i allowed to take their wives Yet there are others laughed Mrs I Garrison waving a dainty handkerchief handker-chief toward the troops now breaking into column of twos and slowly climb ing the stage Who would want to go with thatjblfessed old undertaker Good I by bdn voyage Geordie she cried r blowing a kiss to the lieutenant at the I head of thesecond troop a youth who blushed and looked confused at the attention I at-tention thereby centered upon him and I who would fain have shaken his fist I rather than waved the one unoccupied I hand in perfunctory reply When I go Ill choose a ship with a band and broad decks not any such cramped old I mal boat as the Portland Oh I thought perhaps your husband hus-band began the lady dubiously but with a significant glance at the silent faces about her < Who Frank Garrison Heavens I havent known what it was to have a I husband since that poor dear boy went on staff duty promptly answered the I diminutive center of attraction a merry mer-ry peal of laughter ringing under the dingy archway of the long long roof Why the Portland has onlyone stateroom state-room in it big enough for a bandbox and of course the general has to have that and there isnt a deck where one couple could turn a slow waltz No indeed wait for the next flotilla when our fellows go bands and all Then well see I But surely Mrs Garrison we are r told the war department has positively forbidden officers wives from going on II the transports again began her interrogator in-terrogator a wistful look in Iier tired eyes I know Id give anything to join Mr Dutton The war department has to take orders or-ders quite as often as it gives them Mrs Dutton The thing is to know how to be of the ordergiving side Oh joy she suddenly cried Here are the Primes and Amy Lawrencethen the regiments must be coming And there > Stanley Armstrong To Be Continued |