on:

"He laughed at us; but he won't laugh no moah. God done made 'im to look
lak a man; but he ain't no man. He is a snake an' creeps in de grass.
God sez in his book dat all snakes mus' be killed an'--" the sergeant
took another step; the officer took a step backward, and the crowd
surged forward with a quick, hoarse gasp. Then the terror gripped him,
and turning, the officer made a dash for the door.

Again the circle closed in as the sea surges up upon the land. There
were tossing arms; there was the hissing of breath through clenched
teeth, the sickening thud of blows, and a gurgling cry of mortal agony.
Then the sea surged out again, and there on the floor lay the thing
that had been Lieutenant Roger Williams Perkins.

The ring of negroes stood fast. Their shoulders rose and fell as their
convulsive breaths were indrawn and exhaled. They seemed to be wondering
what had happened. Several raised their hands and observed them
curiously, first one and then the other, as though they were strange
objects never seen before. One placed his fingers to his nose and smelt
them furtively. Another tried to rub off the thick, dark stain, but with
little success. The "moving finger" had written.

When the catastrophe occurred, five or ten of the weak-kneed had rushed
from the building, and even as these guilty ones stood there, there was
a clatter of arms outside. Some one yelled: "the guahd," and they knew
that their deeds had overtaken them.

In the momentary pandemonium that followed, old Sergeant Wilson was
heard calling above the din: "Out with dem lights! Pile de bunks agin'
de doahs an' winders!" They had learned to obey that voice before, in
many a tight place, and now it had its old-time ring. So they went and
did. A saber hilt rattled on the portal. "Open the door! This is the
officer of the guard."

"To hell wiff de officah of de guahd. Open hit yo'se'f!" was bellowed in
reply. The strain was relieved, and the sally was greeted with a wild
yapping from the rest, such as might have risen from a den of trapped
wolves. Several ran to the windows. There was a sputtering volley of
carbine shots, and Troop "B," 19th U.S. Cavalry, was in open mutiny.

Now when a troop of United States cavalry rises against those in
authority, incidents begin to occur at once. The times when such a thing
has happened can be counted on the fingers of one hand, with some digits
to spare. There was, in this case, no room for parley or ex