d a
little later, as Captain Buxton was fretfully complaining to his
subaltern of the ill fortune that seemed to overshadow his best efforts,
the latter, thinking to cheer him and to divert his attention from his
trouble, referred to the troop:

"Why, captain, I don't think I ever saw a finer set of men than you
have--anywhere. Now, _there's_ a little fellow who strikes me as being a
perfect light-cavalry soldier." And the lieutenant indicated his young
Irishman.

"You don't mean O'Grady?" asked the captain in surprise.

"Yes, sir,--the very one."

"Why, he's the worst man in the troop."

For a moment Mr. Billings knew not what to say. His captain had spoken
with absolute harshness and dislike in his tone of the one soldier of
all others who seemed to be the most quiet, attentive, and alert of the
troop. He had noticed, too, that the sergeants and the men generally, in
speaking to O'Grady, were wont to fall into a kindlier tone than usual,
and, though they sometimes squabbled among themselves over the choice of
patches of grass for their horses, O'Grady's claim was never questioned,
much less "jumped." Respect for his superior's rank would not permit the
lieutenant to argue the matter; but, desiring to know more about the
case, he spoke again:

"I am very sorry to hear it. His care of his horse and his quiet ways
impressed me so favorably."

"Oh, yes, d--n him!" broke in Captain Buxton. "Horses and whiskey are
the only things on earth he cares for. As to quiet ways, there isn't a
worse devil at large than O'Grady with a few drinks in him. When I came
back from two years' recruiting detail he was a sergeant in the troop. I
never knew him before, but I soon found he was addicted to drink, and
after a while had to 'break' him; and one night when he was raising hell
in the quarters, and I ordered him into the dark cell, he turned on me
like a tiger. By Jove! if it hadn't been for some of the men he would
have killed me,--or I him. He was tried by court-martial, but most of
the detail was made up of infantrymen and staff-officers from Crook's
head-quarters, and, by ----! they didn't seem to think it any sin for a
soldier to threaten to cut his captain's heart out, and Crook himself
gave me a sort of a rap in his remarks on the case, and--well, they just
let O'Grady off scot-free between them, gave him some little fine, and
did more harm than good. He's just as surly and insolent now when I
speak to him as he was tha