o wonder Hastings and Archer were
confident they had Differs "done for" now.

These, the wounded and convalescent, were still at Pawnee hospital
awaiting telegraphic summons from the judge-advocate, but Archer was
already on the ground, and Cranston and Davies and others, reunited,
presumably, the previous morning at Rock Springs Station, were due at
Omaha by this very train for which all hands were waiting. So was
another principal witness, who, however, might decline to testify
because of the danger of self-incrimination. The detectives sent to
Butte the previous day went too late. Langston's trailers were ahead of
them, and deserter Howard, in irons, was being forwarded under charge
of a corporal of infantry from Ransom, arrested two days before in a
restaurant at Butte.

"Verily," said Truman, "there is quite a batch of interesting evidence
trundling over the Union Pacific to-day," and this was before he had
read that significant despatch from Scott.

But when he read and had pondered over it a moment, the captain suddenly
left the company of his fellows and strode away after Leonard, now
gloomily pacing the platform a dozen yards away.

"Man alive!" said he, "if they left last night what could they do but
take this train?"

Leonard nodded, darkly. Then again, after a moment's silence, Truman
spoke.

"Could he have been so mad, do you think, as not to have thought of
that,--of some one being on that train?"

"No one at the fort knew. How was he to suspect when up to yesterday we
all supposed Davies would come down the Yellowstone."

Truman shuddered. "She ought to be in now," said he. "Just think of the
tragedy there may have been."

The train was late,--half an hour late, said the official at the
train-despatcher's office. No, there hadn't been any accident or
excitement up the road that he'd heard of. He really didn't know what
caused it. Did she reach and leave Braska on time? Yes, the delay
occurred this morning somewhere,--began after leaving Kearney.

Then there had been no excitement, no tragedy farther up the road. There
was comfort in that, said Truman. But there had been a sensation at old
Fort Scott, such as these counsellors little dreamed of.

For a brief time after their return from the cantonment Mrs. Davies and
her new friend, Mrs. Plodder, had kept house together. In those days
when so many of our officers were almost constantly in the field, it
became quite the thing for some of the l