Captain Jinks, Hero

t P

te plume. A life without military trimmings was not to be thought of, and there was no militia at Homeville. Consequently he remained in the Boys' Brigade as long as he could. When at last he saw that he must resign-he was now two-and-twenty-he felt that there was only one course open to him, and that was to join the army; and he broached this plan to his parents. His mother did not like the idea of giving up her only son to such a prof

sual qualifications and his military enthusiasm. A week later he received the answer. His brother informed him that the request could not have come at a more opportune moment, as he had a vacancy to fill and had been on the point of calling a public examinati

m on which obliterated all other feelings. The Boys' Brigade was drawn up at the side of the road and presented arms as he drove by, and he saw in this the promise of greater things. As he sat on the back seat of the wagon by himself behind the driver, he took from his pocket the old original "hero," t

was such a thing as a soldier in the land. What a travesty this was on civilization! How baseless the proud boasts of national greatness when only an insignificant and almost invisible few paid any attention to the claims of military glory! The outlook was indeed dismal, but Sam was no pessimist. Obstacles were in his dictionary "things to be removed." "I shall have a hand in changing all this," he muttered aloud. "When I come home a conquer

on the rocks, and the portraits of generals in the mess-hall, all in turn fascinated him. As a new arrival he was treated with scant courtesy and drilled very hard, but he did not care. Tho his squad-fellows were almost overcome with fatigue, he was always sorry when the drill came to an end. He never had enough of marching and counter-marching, of shouldering and ordering arms. Even the "setting-up" exercises filled him with joy. When cavalry drills began he was still more in his element. His old teamster days now stood him in good stead. In a week he could do anything with a horse,-he un

g that he had just won the battle of Wat

in

s,

Fort Hut. The password is 'Old Gory'; say that, and the sentinel wi

cried Sam. "Is

ake up your snoring friend there, for

to rouse the young man, but finally they both succeeded in dressing in the dark, and hastened away between the tents across the most remote sent

o the enemy

eplied Cleary. "They

such a realm of imagination for the past weeks that the gossip had never really reached his

to haze us, and I wonder why I ever

ere at Hale University for a year or two,

all long ago. The professo

n't do it here. But why has it kept up here wh

t's wearing uniforms. I feel sort of differ

feel as if I were walking on air and

ed Cleary. "But somehow I feel more like hitting a fellow ov

m, "but I really think I do. Do you

class and Saunders of the third who are running the ha

ark with the squeak

he was hazed three years ago. They say it to

silence

w with the crooked nose

l they came back, and they forgot they had left him, and somebody shut the door on his nose by mi

o see the heroic possibilities of hazing. "Do

of c

neral Meriden and all the rest

to be

s spirits s

greatest men, and it must be the right thing to do. Just think of it. Meriden has wal

to it with greater joy than I do," said Cl

woods for a short distance, bound them to a tree out of sight of the rest, and left them there with strict injunctions not to move. It never entered into the head of either of the prisoners that they might disobey this order, and they waited patiently for events to take their course. As far as they could make out by listening

ly ready for you." It was the vo

a question, s

y," respon

hazed at this same

ame place. And while he was waiting

ith awe into

I might-just sit on

ing the rope from the tree and leading Sa

down rev

erved the log

et it decay. It's a sort of historical monument.

eral Jinks sat while awaiting his hazing, and tears of joy rolled softly down over his freckles. He

pen place under the wall where Sam had first seen them. Sam now saw nothing; walking in the steps of Generals Gramp and German, he felt the ecstasy of a Christian martyr. He would not have exchanged his lot with any one in the world. Cleary, however, who possessed a rather mundane spirit, took in the sc

w who looked much older than the others and who spoke in a pe

under the arms, and at the chin and forehead. By tightening these ropes as desired and placing pieces of wood in between, against the back, the hazers made each victim stand with the chest pushed preternaturally forward and the chin and abdomen drawn preternaturally back. Cleary found this position irksome from the start, and soon decidedly painful

abasco bottle," whis

cle from one of the baskets, S

p take it out of

e very same one, and all through his life a

ose to watch its effect upon the victim at the stake. Sam swallowed it as if it had been lemonade. In fact, he was only aware of the honor that he was receiving. H

s, whose deflected nose gave him a sinister expres

rk. "Come, let's give him the tub. This won't

to the middle of the ring, the fait

till standing stiffly as if his body h

e and look in. Do you see that round dent in the middle? That's where

e was in a proper attitude upon his knees

ks," sque

r," answ

now in that tub, and

stand on his head in a foot of water, holding on to the rim of the tub with his hands. His legs waved i

legs!" sho

ook out his watch to time the ordeal. Th

up?" whisper

ark. "But, good heavens!" he added, "take him out-I believe

hey concluded to carry him down to his tent. Using two boards as a stretcher, six of them acted as bearers, and the procession moved toward the camp. Cleary would have been forgotten, had he not asked them to untie him, which they did, and he followed behind, walking most stiffly. As they neared the camp the party separated. Two of the strongest took Sam, whose mind was wandering, to his tent, and Clark made Cleary come and spen

before he turned over to sleep; "it's really a shame to leave that f