nch. "There ain't nothing to be ashamed
of."

"Silence, sir!" cried the officer. "Let your comrade speak for
himself." Then turning to Pen, "Your comrade says there was nothing to
be ashamed of."

"There is not, sir," said Pen gravely.

"Well, then, keep nothing back."

"It was this way, sir," said Pen. "I was educated to be an officer, and
then by a death in my family all my hopes were set aside, and I was
placed in a lawyer's office to become a clerk. I couldn't bear it,
sir."

"And you ran away?"

"No, sir. I appealed again and again for leave to return to my school
and finish my education. My relative refused to listen to me, and I
suppose I did wrong, for I went straight to where they were recruiting
for the Rifle-Regiment, and the sergeant took me at once."

"H'm!" said the officer, looking searchingly in the lad's eyes. "How
came you to join so quiet-looking a regiment?"

Pen smiled rather bitterly.

"It was because my relative, sir, always threw it in my teeth that it
was for the sake of the scarlet uniform that I wanted to join the army."

"H'm!" said the officer. "Now, look here, my lad; I presume you have
had your eyes about you during the time that you were a prisoner, when
you were escaping, and when you were with the _contrabandista_ and had
that adventure with the Spanish gentleman whom you suppose to be the
King. By the way, why did you suppose that he was the King?"

"From the behaviour of his followers, sir, and from what I learned from
the smuggler chief."

"H'm. He was a Spaniard, of course?"

"Yes, sir."

"Do you speak Spanish?"

"No, sir. We conversed in French."

"Do you speak French fluently?"

"Pretty easily, sir; but I am afraid my accent is atrocious."

"But you should hear him talk Latin, sir!" cried Punch eagerly.

"Silence, boy!" snapped out the grey-haired officer; and the chief gave
him a look and a smile.

"Well, he can, sir; that's quite true," cried Punch angrily. "He talked
to the old father, the _padre_, who was a regular friend to us."

"Silence, boy!" said the aquiline-nosed officer sternly now. "Your
comrade can say what he has to say modestly and well. That is a thing
you cannot do, so do not interrupt again."

"All right, sir. No, sir; beg pardon," said Punch.

"Well," continued the officer, looking keenly and searchingly at Pen,
"you should have been able to carry in your mind a pretty good idea of
the country you have passed throu