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.But Stannard, with his sturdy troop, was still far afield, scouting the fastnesses of the Mogollon in hopes still of overtaking the marauding band that had ruined Bennett's ranch, murdered its owner, and borne away into the wilds two helpless little settlers for whom a half-crazed, heart-broken woman at Almy was wailing night and day.Turner, following another route and clew, was exploring the Sierra Ancha south of Tonto Creek, and Lieutenant Harris, in fever and torment, was occupying an airy room in the post surgeon's quarters, the object of Bentley's ceaseless care, and of deep solicitude on part of the entire garrison.Borne in the arms of Stannard's men, poor young Mrs.Bennett, raving, had been carried back to the ruins, and thence by ambulance to the post.There now she lay with her reason almost gone, nursed by the hospital steward's wife, and visited frequently by three gentle women, whose hearts were wrung at sight of her grief.Mrs.Stannard sometimes spent hours in the effort to soothe and comfort her.Mrs.Archer was hardly less assiduous, but was beginning now to have anxieties of her own.Lilian, her beloved daughter, fancy free, as the mother had reason to know, up to the time of their coming to this far-away, out-of-the-way station, seemed dangerously near the point of losing her heart to that very attractive and presentable fellow, Willett, the aide-de-camp, and Mrs.Archer did not half like it.When the news was brought in to Almy that Mrs.Bennett had been recaptured, and that Lieutenant Harris was wounded in the fight which scattered her abductors, Willett was the first to mount and away to meet them.It was his orderly who came galloping back for the ambulance, and Willett who, before the arrival of the surgeon, had caused to be rigged up a capital litter on which, later, by easy stages his suffering classmate was borne to the post.Harris was indeed sorely hurt, so sorely that the faintest jar was agony.Harris was weak and pallid from suffering when lifted to his couch in the doctor's quarters, bearing it all with closed eyes and clinching teeth, suppressing every sound.The general was there to bear a hand and speak a word of cheer, all the time wishing it were possible to overtake the courier, by that time nearly twenty-four hours on his way to Prescott, that he might amend the wording of that report.He was for sending a "supplementary" that very evening, but who was there to send? Sanchez was the only available post courier.The scouts were away with the cavalry.Both troops were now afield.Barely a dozen horses were left at the post, and every able-bodied, ambitious cavalryman was with his comrades on the trail.They who remained were the extra duty men, or the weaklings.Moreover, when Archer spoke of it to Willett, the latter very diplomatically argued against it.Wait a day and something worth sending would surely turn up.Two such captains as Stannard and Turner could not fail to accomplish something.They could be counted on to find the hostiles and punish them wherever found.Moreover, as yet, there were only evil tidings to send, for so the wounding of Harris would be regarded, and the recapture of poor Mrs.Bennett without her children would hardly compensate.There was still another thing to be considered, but even Willett balked at saying this.He had said enough to induce Archer to hold his hand another day at least, so why use more ammunition until he had to?Two days, therefore, had gone by without news from the field column or further message to Prescott.Then it was easy to persuade Archer that it was best to wait the return of Sanchez, and, for Willett, those two days, especially the long, exquisite evenings, had been full of­ sweet and thrilling interest."I should be more with Harris, I suppose you are thinking," he had said to Lilian Archer, "and there I would be, but—I cannot rid myself of the feeling that he would rather be alone.He always was peculiar, and I seem to worry rather than to help him.""But you were classmates," said she, "and I thought——""Classmates, yes," he answered, "but never much together.Even classmates, you know, are not always intimates [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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