ey fought
at the Second Manassas, and he knew that there was no panic among them.
Moreover, the North was an inexhaustible storehouse of men and material,
and whenever one soldier fell two grew in his place.

So he strode through the crowded streets, calm of face and manner, and
took his way once more to the hotel, where he had sat and listened to
the talk before the Second Manassas. The lobby was packed with men, and
there was but one topic, the military situation. Would Lee and Jackson
advance, hot upon the heels of their victory? Would Washington fall?
Would McClellan be able to save them? Why weren't the generals of the
North as good as those of the South?

Dick listened to the talk which was for all who might choose to hear. He
did not assume any superior frame of mind, merely because he had fought
in many battles and these men had fought in none. He retained the
natural modesty of youth, and knowing that one who looked on might
sometimes be a better judge of what was happening than the one who took
part, he weighed carefully what they said.

He was in a comfortable chair by the wall, and while he sat there a
heavy man of middle age, whom he remembered well, approached and stood
before him, regarding him with a keen and measuring eye.

"Good morning, Mr. Watson," said Dick politely.

"Ah, it is you, Lieutenant Mason!" said the contractor. "I thought so,
but I was not sure, as you are thinner than you were when I last saw
you. I'll just take this seat beside you."

A man in the next chair had moved and the contractor dropped into it.
Then he crossed his legs, and smoothed the upper knee with a strong, fat
hand.

"You've had quite a trip since I last saw you, Mr. Mason," he said.

"We didn't go so terribly far."

"It's not length that makes a trip. It's what you see and what happens."

"I saw a lot, and a hundred times more than what I saw happened."

The contractor took two fine cigars from his vest pocket and handed one
to Dick.

"No, thank you," said the boy, "I've never learned to smoke."

"I suppose that's because you come from Kentucky, where they raise so
much tobacco. When you see a thing so thick around you, you don't care
for it. Well, we'll talk while I light mine and puff it. And so, young
man, you ran against Lee and Jackson!"

"We did, or they ran against us, which comes to the same thing."

"And got well thrashed. There's no denying it."

"I'm not trying to do so."

"That's right.