elves Southern, under a man named Slade,
are ravaging, but I suppose that you, who see great generals and great
armies daily, are not much concerned about outlaws.

Always keep your feet dry and warm if you can, and never fail to spread
a blanket between you and the damp grass. Give my respects to Colonel
Winchester. Tell him that we hear of him now and then in Kentucky and
that we hear only good. Don't forget about the blanket.

* * * *

There was more, but it was these passages over which Dick lingered
longest.

He read the letter three times--letters were rare in those years, and men
prized them highly--and put it away in his strongest pocket. Colonel
Winchester was standing by the edge of the brook, and Dick, saluting him,
said:

"My mother wishes me to deliver to you her respects and best wishes."

A flush showed through the tan of the colonel's face, and Dick, noticing
it, was startled by a sudden thought. At first his feeling was jealousy,
but it passed in an instant, never to come again. There was no finer man
in the world than Colonel Winchester.

"She is well," he added, "and affairs could go no better at Pendleton."

"I am glad," said Colonel Winchester simply. Then he turned to a man
with very broad shoulders and asked:

"How are the new lads coming on?"

"Very well, sir," replied Sergeant Daniel Whitley. "Some of 'em are a
little awkward yet, and a few are suffering from change of water, but
they're good boys and we can depend on 'em, sir, when the time comes."

"Especially since you have been thrashing 'em into shape for so many days,
sergeant."

"Thank you, sir."

An orderly came with a message for Colonel Winchester, who left at once,
but Dick and the sergeant, his faithful comrade and teacher, stood beside
the stream. They could easily see the bathers farther down, splashing in
the water, pulling one another under, and, now and then, hurling a man
bodily into the pool. They were all boys to the veteran. Many of them
had been trained by him, and his attitude toward them was that of a
school teacher toward his pupils.

"You have ears that hear everything, sergeant," said Dick. "What is this
new movement that I've heard two or three men speak of? Something sudden
they say."

"I've heard too," replied Sergeant Whitley, "but I can't guess it.
Whatever it is, though, it's coming soon. There's a lot of work going on
at a point farther down t