Democratic Press, Volume 2, Number 63, Decatur, Adams County, 26 December 1895 — Page 8

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CHAPTFR IX. Brown walked to hi* quarters with a light heart With the one exception of Alice Sanford thia had been hi* first conversation with a woman wince his enlistment, and to him It seemed aw a alight raising of the veil to afford him a glimpse of the social life which would again la? his when his term of service should have expired. The llihhl of sunshine his acquaintance with Alice hud east into his dist .steful soldier life was multiplied and intensified by the attentions shown hitn by Mrs. Colby, and it all came to him ns the first rift in the cloud of servitude which must one day melt into the horizon and disappear from the sky of his life. The lady's kind parting words: “I hope to meet you often, Mr. Brown," were yet ringing in his cars when the first sergeant of his troop grasped his hand and • warmly welcomed him back to duty. But an hour after Brown left the Colby quarters Alice Sanford entered, and wus met by Mrs. Colby with a radiant face. “1 have met your hero, my dear girl." she said. "I not only mot him. bff had a long conversation with him in this very room." “O, did you. Mrs. Colby? And may 1 ask what you think of him?” ‘Tie is a very fine appearing young man, and looks to be a model soldier," I she quietly answered. “O, bother the soldier! Leaving Private Brown clear out of the question, how did Mr. Edward Thornton impress you? Isn't he nice?” “I will tell you. my dear, frankly 1 what I think of him. He came here to report to Capt. Colby for duty, and I asked him in to give me an artist's view of my llierdstadt picture which you so much admire. From the discussion of art I led him intoother fields.

and 1 was really astonished at the wide range of his information. Putting Private Brown out of the question, as you Suggested, dear, I found Mr. Thornton a perfect gentleman, courteous and polished in demeanor, highly educated, a fascinating conversationalist, a brainy man of refined tastes—in short, were he to l>e to-day raised to his proper sphere in life I know of nothing that should prevent me from welcoming him to my home and presenting' him to my friends as a gentleman well worthy their acquaintance and esteem." “U, thank you. Mrs. Colby. 1 am so glad you met and like him, for your friendship will greatly lighten the load the poor boy has to bear. And you think he is entirely worthy of my friendship?" ".Mr. Thornton would be, yea But, I Alice, dear, indeed you must not allow your sympathies for him to blind your eyes to his rank in our military world. ou should look upon Private Brown 'll Private Brown, and not what Private Brown should be or might be." "Oh. I hate that barrier of rank!" cried Alice, impulsively. "Mrs. Colby, we are as God made us, and rank or dress cannot change our natures. Is Mr. Thornton as much an honortfJ'le ® an in the garb of a private soldiet’ as he would be in the elegant dress of a axiiety gentleman? Is not his soul as pare while serving as a soldier as it would N‘ had he never strayed from the path df life in which he belongs? Have his refined instincts and noble traits of character been stunted or destroyed by his enlistment?” ‘‘My dear child, there are rules of : military etiquette and discipline which , 1 we, as members of the pailitary world, I should sacredly regard. In military < society, as in military discipline, the lines must be sharply drawn. The men 1 of the ranks must be taught to feel ' that the plane they occupy is beneath 1 the level of those In official life, else there would be no respect for authority and military rules would be but I dead letters. While Edward Thornton chooses to till the shoes of Private , Richard Brown Ije must have no as- 1 pirations above the sphere of lhe pri- 1 vate soldier and, fhnst not Endeavor to

step over the ’dne of social distinction. When his t\, rm of service shall have expired ary t again takes his place in the ranks o f c i v il life—well, that may i **;•’’i**.erent matter, my dear.” en, as you reason, Mrs, Colby, j whr a a jewel falls fromjts setting into , j mud no one must stoop to pick it , r p, yet that same jewel in its proper | surroundings would assume its full . value in anyone's eyes. In other words, j while Private llrown may be an honorJ il ifalf /• • i '’**’• W 7) 1 •/ t An: ?c ’ j>“YOU FORCE ME TO PLAINER WORDS.” able, upright man, our equal in birth, education and manly instincts, we must not recognize him while he is in the ranks, yet were he to be to-day freed from the service fetters we_couldex,-

! tend so Tdm the hand of friendship, and welcome him us an equal into our social circles. The gem loses its value when it falls from its setting into the gutter. Is not your argument a little shaky, Mrs. Colby?" "Alice, my dear child, you force me to plainer words, and I must talk to you as if I were your own mother. In my conversation with Brown to-day I several times mentioned your name, and when I did so I could read him as un open book. Every time your name fell from my lips a new light came into his eyes, his face glowed with increased animation, ami nt one time an umnistel . blc sigh which he vainly endeav•red to suppress caught my attention. Alice, that man Is desperately in love with yon, and your tell-tale eyes while conversing of him too plainly indicate , that there is a growing feeling in your I young heart fur stronger than one of friendship and sympathy for this soldier. My dear child, answer me truly, are you not fulling in love with this man in the ranks'.*” The face of the young girl was red with blushes, and she threw her bead down into the lap of her motherly friend to hide her confusion. Mrs. Colby stroked her hair tenderly, and a smile of intermingled sadness and sympathy lit up her face. After a few moments Alice partly regained her com|>>sure. and raising her head she ( looked with trusting confidence into ' her friend's eyes anti replied: “I—I —don't know, Mrs. Colby. Mr. I Thornton impresses me as no gentleman ever liefore did. I have seen so few gentlemen, you know. He is so gentle, so kind in nature, so manly and j so heroic in bearing the load placed upon his shoulders that I—that I— ! think—a—great—deal— of— him — perhaps."

"My dear girl, 1 feared as much, and that is why 1 hare pointed you to the impassable barrier which lies between you—at present. You must master this growing fondness before it masters you, for love, my child, when once it gains supremacy rules its victims as with a rod of iron, and laughs to a orn the rules of propriety. Think of the • distressing scandal which would agitate the military circles of the whole land were it to become known that the ' Iteloved daughter of one of the most distinguished officers of the army had 1 bestowed her love upon a humble pri- I vate soldier in the ranks. The finger of scorn would Im? pointed at you, dear, ' and your old father, were he to survive i the shock, would resign his proud position and seek to bury himself from the world in obscurity and retirement. You are treading dangerously near the brink of un awful precipice, Altec, and I would lead you away to safer ground." “Oh. you frighten me!" the girl said, with an appealing look. "I cannot smother the emotions which God placed in my soul, cannot change the nature He has given me. and I ladieve it would be wicked to torture my own peace of mind even to preserve unbroken the lines of army social distinction. Mrs. Colby, J confess to you that my eyes have not lasen blinded to the gr<M>ing regard I feel for Mr. Thornton. I have even felt that he might be necessary to my future happiness. Never by word or look lute? he shown me any attention that would indicate that he entertained toward me aught but a feeliug of simple friemlship, and what you have told me of his —of his—thinking a great deal of me comes as a revelation, and, I confess it, a most pleasing one. But, Mrs. Colby, 1 assure you. on my honor, that I have never once thought of the qiilitary knowing aught of any tender feeling which might exist between myself and a private soldier. I did not even intend that you should know it, dearly as I love you, until Private Brown should disappear from life, and Mr. Thornton, with his military service but a memory of the past, should step into our social circles. If this should be brought about, what

then?” “Ah! that might make a wide difference, dear. Now I begin to understand you, and you h ave lifted a great load of apprehension from my heart, j There would be no impropriety in a refined, honorable and worthy gentleman in civil life aspiring to the hand j of the daughter of a military officer. Many do so, and the moat happy re- | suits usually follow. Alice, I know what a woman’s love is. I have felt its all-consuming fire in my own soul, I feel it yet, for Capt Colby and myself are just as fond lovers, and oftentimes just as foolish ones, as we were when our love was sealed with marriage. Now, dear, I will lie your friend and adviser in this matter, if you will so permit. There (kissing her) is the seal of my friendship, and I want you to conflde in me. There is but one pathway leading to your future happiness, and it must not be strayed from. While Edward Thornton remains as Private Brown you must look upon him as but a soldier in the ranks. You must avoid him all you can. and, if it be possible, his discharge from the service must be brought alxiut. I think it can be. When that consummation is reached he may feel at liberty to ’sue for your hand, and should he do so you must refer him to your father. Ills past life must be investigated, for you must remember, dear, that we have but his own unsupported , story regarding himself. There, I t know what you would say. 1 believe 9 in him tw much as you do, but your 1 father would demand the most con- ; vincing proof of his worth before ho

SURPRISED WiU you be when you Mop in at , Falk <X: Erwin’s mid get their prieva on pianos, organa, violin*, guitara tint! mandolins, and th«<ae | prices are for a few daya only. Many have already investigated and purchased, taking advantage of there low prieea during the win- , ter eeaaon. We have a secondhand piano very cheap, and Mill 1 have the 4M5 line of new organs 1 ready for inspection! We also I , , have the coming piana, viz the ' Packard, manufactured al Fort I 1 Wayne! (’nine in and nee ua. iteniemlter we art* selling very low for the holiday trade. Falk \ Ekwin. NOTICE. Stop at Falk & Erwiu’a and secj their tine guitars, violins, mando- ■ line and banjos, and don’t forget to ask for sheet music.

i v.oi ,• u iii'ii t • allow . .i any atI tenti >w. you mu t be p. «ienL If you 1. v. . L other a., I lieve you . I douad a • .’! 1 .Mr. Thi rnto:i • blish ! the fact that he is a man of 1. -or and 1 true worth v. I believe h ■ will, you I need have no fear, my derr rirl. of the future. for love will surmount any i ordinary obstacle that may rise in its path." Alice threw her arms alsiut her i , friend's neck, and ki-s I her fondly. I Then her emotions overcame her. and | burying her face in Mrs. Colby's bosom ; she sobbed like a ehild. Capt. Colby's I step upon the porch aroused her. and going out at the Uick door to avoid | meeting him in her agitated state of mind, she sought her home and the J privacy of her own chamber. CHAPTER X.

Days |>u<-sed. ami save at a distance ' Brown saw nothing of Alice. Day | after day. when not on duty, he repaired with his sketch lx>ok to his usual haunts, but she had wither dis- [ I continued her daily rides<it had chosen ( a new field for that healthful recreation. He could not un lerstaml it, and 1 the clinging fear came upon him that her fatiier had learned of tbeir meetings and. with a strict eye to military propriety, had forbidden the continuance of their friendship. The thought troubled him greatly, and be grew moro:« and reserved in bis intercourse with his comrades. It was believed by his associates that the sting of the disgrace of a court-martial had left a pain- < ' ful wound, and they did all they could j to show him that in tbeir eyes his honor was unsullied by th* act of as- j sault and Ms penalty. It is a custom at military posts of the west that after each day's service on guard duty the cavalry soldier, should he so desire, ie given a ‘‘hunting pass," and is permitted to take his horse and go in quest of game. In his perturbed state of mind sketching had lost its interest to Brown, and after each guard service he would, secure official permission. mount his horse and speed away toward the base of the Magda Una or San Mateo mountains to hunt antelope. One afternoon while retnrning from a hunt he rode slowly down a drww or depression in the plain, his thoughts I busy with Alice Sanford. It had become quite apparent to him that her failure to meet him as of old was of her own connivance, else why, in such lovely weather, had she discontinued her daily gallops down the river? He ehided himself for ever having had the assurance to think tliat he, a private ■oldier, might aspire to the love of the daughter of the commanding officer of one of the most iinportant military | posts in the west, lie began to think ■ that it would have been lietter for his i peace of mind had he never met her. Riding from the draw onto the level of the plain two moving objects caught his eye a mile distant, traveling in the direction of the mountains. Hastily

taking his field-glass from a saddle , pocket he leveled it upon the objects, . and his heart seemed to grow cold and a great lump came into his throat when I be saw Alice and Lieut. Vandeser j riding slowly along side by side, ap- < parently engaged in deep conversation. Here, he thought, was an explanation of why the girl had. avoided him. She ' had become on friendly terms with the lieutenant. Os course he had painted . his assailant in the darkest colors, and I Alice now looked upon her former soldier friend as one unworthy of her notice. Perhaps she had even been led to hate him. Tim thought was maddening, and his breast was rent with painful emotions at the reflection that he might never again hear the loved tones of her voice ur gaze into her soulful eyes. With u sigli that seemed almost a groan of agony he closed the glass and returned it to its ease, and was about to spur his. horse forward when on raising his eyes he saw, but a few rods distant, Cob Sanford riding toward him. Straightening himself in the saddle be awaited the officer’s approach, and as he came up respectfully gave the military salute. The colonel returned the salutation with official dignity and said.: ('ln be Continued Next IPrei) There are many good reasons why you should use One Minute Cough Cure. There are no reasons why you should not, it in need of help. The only harmless medicine that produces immediate results. W H. Nacbtneb,

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