s now on trial for his life, you see, and before, he was only on trial
for--a----"

"Only for his honor," put in Blake, at the instant. "Very true, colonel,
only for his honor, and we have a singular fashion in our regiment of
looking upon the one as quite as important as the other."

The colonel was wrathy. He was essentially what is called an office
soldier. He had regulations and papers at his fingers' ends; his whole
army existence had been spent in the preservation of his health and the
cultivation of the peaceful branches of his art. No one ever heard of
his shooting, riding, hunting, or taking a risk of any kind. His habits
were methodical as those of the office clock, and his one dissipation
was the billiard-table. His theory of success was founded on common
sense: Take care of your health, avoid dissipation, shun any and all
danger, volunteer for nothing, do only what you are compelled to do,
shift all possible work on somebody else's shoulders, preserve a purely
negative record, and--you are bound to rise to the highest grades in the
army. It must be admitted that the laws of promotion are admirably
calculated to foster just such a line of argument, and that Whaling's
"head was level." Now, though wrathy at Blake, he saw at once that he
had been egregiously deceived as to the evidence to be given by Rallston
on the pending court; it was better policy to avoid all that might look
like persecution of Ray or Ray's friends; he gave a moment of thought to
the matter, and then said,--

"You may go, Mr. Blake, because I desire you and your regiment to
understand that I have no wish to obtrude my ideas of discipline upon
you at such a time. At any other I would not have overlooked your
misconduct."

"At any other time, sir, it probably would not have occurred," said
Blake, still hotly; but the entrance of the detective put an end to the
talk. He still carried the gauntlet in his hand.

"There is no mate to this in that room. What is more, this glove never
belonged to Lieutenant Gleason; it is four sizes too small for him. What
officer or soldier ever wore one like that?" he asked.

It was a worn and rein-soiled gauntlet, originally of white
wash-leather, finely stitched in silk, and with a cuff or gauntlet
heavily stiffened with leather inside; and this cuff instead of being
joined was slashed from wrist to end on the under side, and three little
buttons and straps were used to fasten it snugly to the arm after