"Captain Foster"s compliments to Lieutenant Overton, who is directed to report on deck to the captain."
"Mr. Overton," announced the superior officer, as soon as his "youngster" appeared on deck, "I am going up to the camp for the day, unless you send me word that I am needed. I have just breakfasted, and the cook of this craft will take your orders as to your own breakfast."
"Have the men breakfasted, sir?" was Hal"s first thought and question.
A really good officer always thinks first of his men.
"They have all breakfasted, Mr. Overton. I do not imagine you will have much to do in the day-time. You have only your boat guard of six men under Sergeant Raney. The water-front patrol I have called in and sent to camp."
Hal ate his breakfast in leisurely fashion. He had slept well and was refreshed, but he believed that he had a long and dull day before him.
And so it proved. The day pa.s.sed on with absolutely nothing to do but eat and lounge, save for the one sentry who watched both boat and sh.o.r.e end.
It was almost dark, and Hal had just seated himself in the cabin to eat his supper when the sentry hailed:
"Lieutenant Overton!"
Hal showed his head at the cabin door.
"A detachment of troops approaching, sir."
"Well, they"re our own men, aren"t they, sentry?" Hal inquired.
"I think not, sir."
Hal stepped back into the cabin, picked up and donned his cap, then stepped out on deck. The approaching troops were on the dock by the time that the young lieutenant had returned to the open.
"Two officers and ten men!" flashed through Hal"s mind.
Then, of a sudden, he felt like giving a whoop of joy. Instead, however, he darted down the gang-plank, then caught himself and walked forward with dignity just as one of the approaching officers called out with military crispness:
"Squad halt! Break ranks!"
"Mr. Prescott! Mr. Holmes!" cried Hal, going up to the two lieutenants who had just arrived.
"Hullo, Overton," responded both newly-arrived officers, extending their hands, while Prescott added:
"By Jove, I didn"t count on finding you here, though I heard that you had won your commission. Where"s Terry?"
"Up at our camp, Mr. Prescott."
"Drop the formal "Mr.," Overton, do," urged Lieutenant Prescott. "We have known each other long enough not to stand on ceremony."
"We"ve known each other in other times," laughed Holmes, "and in much more stirring times, I take it, than these are likely to be."
"Don"t be too sure about the present being tame times," urged Hal. "From what we have seen here so far I believe that we are right in the middle of a district that is heavily engaged in sending arms over into Mexico.
We may have a fight with a lot of these desperate, fanatic Mexican rebels at any moment."
"Let it come, then," laughed Holmes indifferently. "We need a bit of practice, now and then, to keep us in handy touch with our work."
"But how does the Thirty-fourth happen to be down here?" Hal asked curiously.
"Ordered away from Fort Clowdry. That"s all I know," Prescott answered.
"At least B and C companies were sent. We detrained at Spartansburg, eighteen miles from here. The two companies are now about six miles above, save for this little detachment, which was sent down to report to Captain Foster for some co-operation with you on the water."
"Lieutenant," spoke a sergeant of B company, approaching and saluting, "may I ask, sir, whether the men are to eat field rations or whether they"re to be fed on the boat?"
"What do you say, Overton? How much food is there on the boat?"
"I"ll find out from the cook," Hal answered. "Sergeant Kelly, are you going to forget me in that fashion?"
"You"re an officer now, sir," replied Sergeant Kelly, saluting. "I awaited your pleasure, sir, about speaking."
"I can"t see that you"ve changed any, Sergeant," smiled Hal, extending his hand. "But for the difference in some of the stage-settings we might seem to be in the Philippines instead of in Texas."
"This is "G.o.d"s country," sir," replied Kelly, with an air almost of reverence. "There"s nothing in the Philippines as restful to the eye as the meanest stretch in the United States."
Only a few months before while Hal and Noll were still in the Philippines Kelly had been made a corporal. Kelly was one of the staunchest souls in the Army. Many a time had he, with Noll and Hal, braved death side by side when facing the treacherous Moros. Since that time he had won the higher grade of sergeant.
"I"m heartily glad to see you again, Sergeant Kelly," Hal went on.
"Not more, sir, I"ll be bound, than I am to see yourself," rejoined the sergeant.
Then, with a final salute, Kelly fell back, muttering to himself:
""Tis come, the time when I must be saying "sir" to two broths of boys that I"ve cooked bacon and coffee with over the same fire. But I don"t begrudge either boy his honors. The two of them, they"re the best of fine soldiers and true."
Hal hurriedly learned from the tug"s cook that the provisions on board were equal to furnishing all the newly arrived soldiers with breakfast within an hour.
"And can I serve the two officers now with you, if you want, Lieutenant," said the cook.
"Then please do so."
Hal led his two brother-officers to the cabin, where Prescott and Holmes, after having removed their swords and belts, made hasty toilets and seated themselves.
"I imagine a good many more commands will be ordered into the field,"
Prescott continued. "Every few years a lot of discontented fellows over in Mexico start some kind of a revolution, but this present one appears to be the strongest one yet. Colonel North, I know, had a report to the effect that Mexicans enough were waiting on the other side of the river to organize a large army corps as soon as they can get guns enough from this side."
"Any arms captured on this side, yet, that you know of, Overton?"
"No," Hal answered. "But I guess a cargo got across all right. We got this boat, and a lot of cases on board, but the cases have been carted up to camp. If the cases have been opened yet I haven"t heard what they contained."
"Arms or ammunition, or both, undoubtedly," nodded Lieutenant Holmes.
"The Mexicans would hardly go to the trouble of sending a cargo of anything else out in the dead of night."
"Yes; I imagine they were arms, but I don"t want to say so. Captain Foster did find war supplies in two of the cases that he opened, I ought to add. But I guess I"ve been rattled by meeting you two so unexpectedly."
"Getting rattled is a highly unmilitary form of conduct," retorted Prescott, with a look of mock sternness.
While the young officers were still at the table Captain Foster boarded and entered the cabin.