themselves freely for the Czar and the country they
loved. The hand-to-hand conflicts became bloody in the extreme,
thousands upon thousands being slaughtered between the rising and the
setting of the sun.

From the seacoast the command to which Gilbert was attached moved to a
small place called Fugi Klan. Here they went into camp for several weeks
and while there were joined by a number of other commands, including
that containing those old soldiers of fortune, Dan Casey and Carl
Stummer, who had served with Gilbert and Ben in Cuba and in the
Philippines.

"Py chiminy, of it ton't done mine heart goot to see you, cabtain!"
exclaimed Carl Stummer, rushing up and giving Gilbert a handshake. "How
you peen, annavay?"

"First rate, Stummer. And how are you, Casey?"

"Sure an' it's meself is as foine as a fiddle," answered the Irishman,
with a broad grin on his freckled face. "It's a great war, ain't it now?
Both soides is fightin' like a pair o' Kilkenny cats, so they are! An'
where is me ould friend, Captain Russell?"

"He was captured by Chunchuses."

"No!" came from both Stummer and Casey, and then they poured in a volley
of questions which were bewildering. Gilbert answered them as best he
could.

"Dot's der vorst ding vot I hear yet alretty!" said Carl Stummer, with a
sad shake of his head. "I vish I got dem Chunchusers--or vot you call
dem--here. I fix 'em, eh, Tan?"

Dan Casey nodded vigorously. "Sure an' we'd be after puttin' a ball
through ivery mother's son of 'em, so we would! Poor Ben Russell! I
loiked him loike a brother!" And the honest Irish sharp-shooter heaved a
long sigh.

Both Casey and Stummer had been having easy times of it for several
weeks, but now they were called upon to go forth with pick and shovel,
to do their share of work in digging intrenchments. This was not so
nice, but they went at the labor without a murmur.

"Sure an' we might as well git into practice," observed Casey, as he
started in with vigor. "Whin the war's over an' we git back to the
States, it may be ourselves as will be workin' fer the corporation in
New York or ilsewhere!"

"Yah, udder puttin' town railroad dracks alretty in der Vest," answered
Carl Stummer. "Dot is," he added, "of I ton't got money enough to puy a
farm."

"'Tis a stock farm I'm wantin'," came from Casey. "Wid horses galore.
There's money for ye, Carl!" And he went to work with added vigor--as if
he expected to turn up the stock farm from the