ard house and
running rapidly around the sentry posts until the sentry pacing near
barracks caught it up and called lustily:

"Post number six. One o'clock, and all's well!"

One man in especial had been stirring on his cot as though trying to
throw off some phantom of dread. Now instantly after the sentry's hail
this stirring sleeper emitted an excited yell.

"Wow! Turn out the guard--post number six!"

Instantly Sergeant Hupner awoke, sitting up on his cot.

"What's the matter with you, you idiot?" growled the disturbed sergeant.

"I've been touched!" wailed the excited voice.

It was the voice of Private William Green, the joke of the squad room,
the man who hoarded his money and carried much of it about with him.

"Go to sleep, William," ordered the sergeant in a more soothing voice.
"I've often told you that one so young shouldn't drink coffee at
supper."

"I've been touched, I tell you!" insisted William Green, now out of his
bed and feeling with frantic hands under the head of the mattress.
"Don't I know? I tell you, my buckskin pouch is gone. Some one was in
this room and got it!"

In a jiffy Sergeant Hupner was out of bed. His groping right hand found
the switch and turned on the electric lights. Then Hupner jumped for his
uniform trousers and drew them on.

"What's wrong, squad room?" called the voice of the alert sentry
outside.

But Hupner first went to the door of the squad room, locked it and
dropped the key in his trousers' pocket. Then the sergeant ran to an
open window.

"I don't believe it's anything worse than a nightmare of one of the men,
sentry. Don't call the guard until I look about a bit."

"Very good, Sergeant."

Then Hupner turned to the cot of Corporal Hal Overton, which was close
to the window.

"Why, Corporal, what ails you?" demanded the sergeant. "You're shaking
and your face has a frightened look."

"I--I have just awakened from a pretty bad dream," Corporal Hal replied
sheepishly. "I'll be over it at once."

"Turn out, Corporal, and you also, Corporal Terry. We've got to
investigate in this room."

Hal instantly thrust a leg out. Something dropped to the floor.

Bang!

"Ow!" wailed Private Green. "It wasn't a dream, after all. I knew it
would go off."

Sergeant Hupner, bending low like a flash, now picked up a revolver from
the floor beside Hal's cot, while Hal himself sat up, staring rather
dazedly at the weapon.

"How did this come to be in your bed, Co