beaten. The result was: I
disarmed him four times, hit him thirty times. He disarmed me once
and hit me five times. At the _touche-a-touche_ I touched him in two
places at the same allonge, and threw his foil from him several feet.
He was very angry, though he tried to conceal it."

[Illustration: FRANK E. BROWNELL, WHO KILLED THE ASSASSIN OF COLONEL
ELLSWORTH.

From a photograph in the Civil War collection of Mr. Robert Coster, by
whose permission it is here reproduced.]

Public interest constantly grew in the Zouaves and their young
captain. Large crowds attended every drill. The newspapers began to
report all their proceedings, and to comment upon them with more
or less malevolence; for military companies were treated with scant
respect in Western towns before the war. Ellsworth at last determined
to confront hostile opinion by giving a public exhibition of the
proficiency of his company on the Fourth of July. He was not without
trepidation. The night before the Fourth he wrote: "To-morrow will
be an eventful day to me; to-morrow I have to appear in a conspicuous
position before thousands of citizens--an immense number of whom,
without knowing me except by sight, are prejudiced against me.
To-morrow will demonstrate the truth or falsity of my assertion that
the citizens would encourage military companies if they were worthy
of respect." The result was an overwhelming success; and the young
soldier, after his feast of crackers the next night, wrote in
exultation: "Victory! And thank God!"

The Chicago "Tribune," which had previously been unfriendly to the
little company who were trying to make soldiers of themselves, gave
a long and flattering account of the performance, and said: "We but
express the opinion of all who saw the drill yesterday morning, when
we say this company cannot be surpassed this side of West Point."

Encouraged by this public applause, he brought his company of Zouaves
as near to absolute perfection of drill as was possible; and then,
having tested them in as many competitive contests as were within
reach, he challenged the militia companies of the United States, and
set forth in the summer of 1860 on a tour of the country which was one
unbroken succession of triumphs. He defeated the crack companies in
all the principal Eastern cities, and went back to Chicago one of
the most talked-of men in the country. Hundreds of Zouave companies
started up in his wake, and a very considerable awakenin