There were five of them—Indian, the Parson, Dewey, Chauncey and Sleepy. They sat in a tent in Company A and at that moment were gazing anxiously at a figure who stood in the doorway1.
"Well?"
"There is hope," said Mark. "Hope for poor Texas."
And then he came in and sat down to tell the story of his interview with the colonel. The plebes listened anxiously; and when he finished they set to work to compose themselves as best they could to wait.
"The answer will come to-night," Mark said, "when they read off the reports. And until then—nothing."
Which just expressed the situation.
The day passed somehow; between police duties and drills, the six were kept busy enough to relieve the suspense2 of waiting. And after supper the battalion3 lined up, the roll was called, and the orders of the following day were read, while Mark and his friends fretted4 and gasped6 with impatience7. There were reports, and finally miscellaneous notices, among them the sick list!
[Pg 111]"Fourth class," read the officer, then halted a moment. "Powers"—every man in the line was straining eyes and ears, half dead with curiosity—then, "excused indefinitely—temporary mental aberration8, caused by heat."
Safe!
And a moment later the line broke ranks, the cadets discussing with added interest the case of that extraordinary plebe. But the six had danced off in joy.
"He's safe! He's safe!" they cried. "Hooray!"
"And now," said Mark, "there's only one thing more. We've got to reform him, make sure he don't do it again!"
"We will," said the others.
It was two days after that, one evening after supper, that the door of the hospital building was opened and Texas came forth9, spruce and handsome in a brand new uniform, looking none the worse for his "sunstroke" treatment—i. e., plenty of cold water, inside and out. Texas felt moderately contented11, too. He had held up the corps12 as he had promised—not a man in the crowd had dared to fire a shot at him. He had a vague recollection of having done something heroic, besides. He saw that every one was staring at him in "admiration13;" in short, our friend Powers was prepared for a rousing and hearty14 reception from the rest of the Seven.
He strode up the company street, not failing to notice[Pg 112] meanwhile that plebes, and old cadets, too, made way for him in awe15 and respect. He stopped at Mark's place, pushed the flap aside, and entered with a rush.
"Oh!" he cried. "Whar be you? How's everybody?"
The first person he saw was Master Dewey, and to him Texas rushed and held out his hand. To his indescribable amazement17 that young gentleman calmly stared at him, and put both his hands behind his back.
"W—w—why!" gasped Texas.
Whereupon Dewey turned upon his heel and walked out of the tent.
Texas was dumfounded. He stared at the others; they were all there except Mark, and they gazed at the intruder in cold indifference18. None of them apparently19 had ever seen him before.
"Look a yere!" demanded Texas at last. "Ain't you fellows a-goin' to speak to me?"
Evidently they were not, for they didn't even answer his question. Texas stood and stared at them for a few moments more, wondering whether he ought not to sail in and do up the crowd. Finally, as the silence grew even more embarrassing, he decided20 to go out and find Mark to learn what on earth was the matter. With this intention he turned and hurriedly left the tent, while the five inmates21 looked at one another and smiled.
[Pg 113]Mark was walking up the street; Texas espied22 him and made a dash for him.
"Hi, Mark!" he roared. "What's the matter with them——"
Texas stopped in alarm; a feather might have laid him flat. Mark, his chum, his tent mate, was staring at him without a sign of recognition! And a moment later Mark turned on his heel and strode away in silence, while Texas gasped, "Great Scott!"
That evening, seated on one of the guns up by Trophy23 Point, was visible a solitary24 figure, looking about as lonely and wretched as a human being can. It was "the Texas madman." Everybody kept a safe distance away from him, and so no one had a chance to notice that the madman's eyes were filled with tears.
"Poor Texas," Mark was thinking. "He'll come to terms pretty soon."
He did, for a fact. That same evening, just before tattoo25, Mark felt a grip upon his arm that made him wince26. He turned and found it was his friend, a look of misery27 upon his face that went to the other's heart.
"Look a-yere, old man," he pleaded. "Won't you—oh, for Heaven's sake, tell me what's the matter?"
"I don't mind telling you," responded Mark, slowly. "You have behaved yourself as no gentleman should, and as no friend of mine shall!"
[Pg 114]"I!" cried Texas, in amazement. "I! What on earth have I done?"
"Done!" echoed Mark. "Didn't you go off and get drunk? For shame, Texas!"
Texas was too dumfounded to say a word. He could only stare and gasp5. Here was a state of affairs indeed!
"Yes!" chimed in Dewey, approaching at this moment. "And you nearly killed dozens of people, too. Mark was within an ace16 of being dismissed; and as for you! why, you'd have been fired long ago if Mark hadn't pleaded for hours with the superintendent28!"
Texas turned his wondering eyes upon Dewey then. He was fairly choking with amazement.
"Do you mean to say," he gasped at last, "that you fellows are mad with me because I got drunk?"
"Exactly," responded Mark.
"And do you mean to tell me that you call that disgraceful conduct?"
"I do. And I mean to tell you, moreover, that you can't be a friend of ours while you do it. I don't know how people feel about such things where you come from, Texas, but I do know that if people up here knew you had been in that condition not a soul would speak to you. There's very little room among decent people for the fellow who thinks it smart to make a fool of himself, and he usually finds it out, too, after it is too late. I never[Pg 115] spent my time hanging around saloons, and I don't think much of fellows that do, either."
Mark could scarcely repress a smile as he watched the effect this brief sermon produced on the astounded29 Texan.
"I wonder what dad would say if he heard that!" was the thought in the latter's mind.
Texas was brought back from this thought rather suddenly to his own situation. For Mark and Dewey both turned away to leave him again.
"Look a-yere, Mark," he cried, seizing him by the arm again. "Look a-yere, ole man, won't you forgive me jest this once. Oh, please!"
And there were tears in the Texan's big gray eyes as he said it.
"But you'll do it again," Mark objected.
"'Deed I won't, man! 'Deed I won't. I'll swear I'll never do it again s'long as I live."
"But will you keep your promise?"
"I never broke one yit as I know," responded Texas with an injured look.
And Mark, rejoicing inwardly at his success, but outwardly very grave and solemn, said that he'd go in and ask the other six about it.
Texas sat with his feet against the tent pole and a pen[Pg 116] in one hand. He held a letter to his father in the other; he was just through writing it, and he was going to read it for the edification of the Banded Seven.
"'Dear Scrap30,'" he began. "You see," added Texas, in an explanatory note, "I call him Scrap sometimes just to make him feel comfortable. All the boys call him that. 'Dear Scrap. This yere is the first letter I've written you since I hit this place. I ain't heard from you, so I don't know whether you got 'lected fo' Congress or not. I been havin' piles o' sport up yere. Took in three quarts 'tother day, an' I held up the hull31 corps on the strength of it. Busted32 two horses' legs, though, an' I reckon you'll have to send on the price. Don't think they'll mount to over a thousan' or two. I've still got my guns——'
"Guns is spelt with one 'n,' ain't it?" Texas inquired, interrupting himself. "I put two—makes it seem bigger and more important, sorter.
"'They're the queerest folks up this way! They gave me thunder fer gittin' drunk, said twarn't gentlemanly. Reckon after you licked a few they'd call you a gentleman all right 'nough! They made me swear off, else they wouldn't let me stay. What do you reckon the boys'll say to that? Had to do it, though—you needn't git mad over it—I'm havin' so much fun a-doin' of the yearlings that I wanted to stay. They kain't one of 'em lick me.'
"I didn't mention you, Mark," Texas added, laughing.[Pg 117] "Cause if I'd told dad that you did lick me, he'd probably want to come up an' try a whack33 himself, jes' to see ef you really could hit hard. Dad won't ever acknowledge that I kin10 do him, though I almost licked him twice, when he got riled. Reckon I'll end this yere letter now. I jest wanted to tell him to send 'long some money.
"Now let's go out and hunt up some o' them old yearlin's."
And that was the beginning of Texas' reformation.
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1
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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2
suspense
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| n.（对可能发生的事）紧张感，担心，挂虑 | |
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3
battalion
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| n.营；部队；大队(的人) | |
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fretted
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| 焦躁的，附有弦马的，腐蚀的 | |
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gasp
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| n.喘息，气喘；v.喘息；气吁吁他说 | |
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6
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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7
impatience
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| n.不耐烦，急躁 | |
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8
aberration
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| n.离开正路，脱离常规，色差 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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10
kin
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| n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的 | |
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contented
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| adj.满意的，安心的，知足的 | |
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corps
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| n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组 | |
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13
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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14
hearty
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| adj.热情友好的；衷心的；尽情的，纵情的 | |
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15
awe
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| n.敬畏，惊惧；vt.使敬畏，使惊惧 | |
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ace
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| n.A牌；发球得分；佼佼者；adj.杰出的 | |
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17
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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inmates
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| n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 ) | |
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espied
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| v.看到( espy的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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trophy
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| n.优胜旗，奖品，奖杯，战胜品，纪念品 | |
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solitary
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| adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士 | |
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tattoo
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| n.纹身，(皮肤上的)刺花纹；vt.刺花纹于 | |
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wince
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| n.畏缩，退避，（因痛苦，苦恼等)面部肌肉抽动；v.畏缩，退缩，退避 | |
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misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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28
superintendent
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| n.监督人，主管，总监；(英国)警务长 | |
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29
astounded
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| v.使震惊(astound的过去式和过去分词)；愕然；愕；惊讶 | |
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30
scrap
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| n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废 | |
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31
hull
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| n.船身；(果、实等的)外壳；vt.去(谷物等)壳 | |
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32
busted
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| adj. 破产了的，失败了的，被降级的，被逮捕的，被抓到的 动词bust的过去式和过去分词 | |
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33
whack
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| v.敲击，重打，瓜分；n.重击，重打，尝试，一份 | |
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