FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   48   49   50   51   52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72  
73   74   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   >>   >|  
gh it might be the fault of the Cowles' blood to accept any sort of challenge, it was not our way to regret that so soon as the day following. The grounds for the match had been arranged at the usual place, near to the edge of the military reservation, and here, a half hour before the time set, there began to gather practically all of the young officers about the Post, all the enlisted men who could get leave, with cooks, strikers, laundresses, and other scattered personnel of the barracks. There came as well many civilians from the city, and I was surprised to see a line of carriages, with many ladies, drawn up back of the score. Evidently our little matter was to be made a semi-fashionable affair, and used as another expedient to while away ennui-ridden Army time. My opponent, accompanied by Major Williams, arrived at about the same time that our party reached the grounds. Orme shook hands with me, and declared that he was feeling well, although Williams laughingly announced that he had not been able to make his man go to bed for more than an hour that morning, or to keep him from eating and drinking everything he could lay his hands upon. Yet now his eye was bright, his skin firm, his step light and easy. That the man had a superb constitution was evident, and I knew that my work was cut out for me, for Orme, whatever his profession, was an old one at the game of speedy going. As a man I disliked and now suspected him. As an opponent at any game one was obliged to take account of him. "What boundary do we use, gentlemen?" Orme asked, as he looked out over the field. This question showed his acquaintance, but none the less his confidence and his courtesy as well, for in closely made matches all details are carefully weighed before the issue is joined. "I am more used to the Monaco bounds of eighteen yards," he added, "but whatever is your custom here will please me. I only want to have a notion of your sport." "Our races here have usually been shot at fifty yards bounds," said Stevenson. "As you like," said Orme, "if that pleases Mr. Cowles." "Perfectly," said I, who indeed knew little about the matter. Orme stepped over to the coops where the birds were kept--splendid, iridescent creatures, with long tails, clean, gamy heads and all the colors of the rainbow on their breasts. "By Jove!" he said, "they're rippers for looks, and they should fly a bit, I'm thinking. I have never seen them before, much les
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   48   49   50   51   52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72  
73   74   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
opponent
 

bounds

 
matter
 

Williams

 
Cowles
 
grounds
 
acquaintance
 

showed

 

thinking

 

question


confidence

 

carefully

 

weighed

 

details

 

courtesy

 

closely

 

matches

 

looked

 

speedy

 

disliked


profession

 

suspected

 

obliged

 

gentlemen

 
boundary
 
account
 

rippers

 

pleases

 

Stevenson

 

splendid


iridescent

 
Perfectly
 
stepped
 

eighteen

 

creatures

 

joined

 

Monaco

 

custom

 

rainbow

 
colors

notion
 
breasts
 

challenge

 

civilians

 
barracks
 

personnel

 

strikers

 

laundresses

 

scattered

 
surprised