Hence the
adventure of Harry and St. Clair attracted but little attention.
Shots at long range were fired nearly every night, and sometimes it was
difficult to keep the raw recruits from pulling trigger merely for the
pleasure of hearing the report.
But when Harry and St. Clair related the incident the next morning to
Colonel Talbot, he spoke with gravity.
"There are many young men of birth and family in our army," he said,
"and they must learn that war is a serious business. It is more than
that; it is a deadly business, the most deadly business of all. If the
Yankees had caught you two, it would have served you right."
"They scared us badly enough as it was, sir," said St. Clair.
Colonel Leonidas Talbot smiled slightly.
"That part of it at least will do you good," he said. "You young men
don't know what war is, and you are growing fat and saucy in a pleasant
country in June. But there is something ahead that will take a little
of the starch out of you and teach you sense. No, you needn't look
inquiringly at me, because I'm not going to tell you what it is, but go
get some sleep, which you will need badly, and be ready at four o'clock
this afternoon, because the Invincibles march then and you march with
them.
Pages:
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302