andled the little things with a grim satisfaction. They were
not quite so small as those of the infantry, for the regulation
revolver had a range of ten millimetres. The brass cases had grown a
little dull, so he rubbed them until they shone.

Nothing more was wanting. The duel could take place.

The only remaining difficulties were locality and time; but concerning
these also Heimert soon decided. Sloping up behind the barracks, the
road led straight to an open bit of overhanging ground. There could not
be a better spot. And of course the affair could only take place at
night. He consulted the calendar: in two days there would be a full
moon, so they would have light enough to see each other clearly at ten
paces. The moon rose shortly before ten o'clock; she would be high in
the heavens by midnight.

At daybreak the deputy sergeant-major went about his duty, cool and
punctual as usual, only taking pains to avoid meeting Heppner. He
did not wish to see him until the evening,--or, better still, till
night,--so that the duel might follow immediately upon their interview.
He knew the sergeant-major would not flinch, but would fall in with his
arrangements. Heppner was no coward.

Albina behaved just as usual during the day, and said nothing to her
husband about the kiss. But that, of course, made no difference to
Heimert's plans. He learned from the stablemen that Heppner would be at
the White Horse with Blechschmidt, the sergeant-major of the fifth,
that evening. That was capital. He would catch him as he came home, and
the affair would be arranged in two minutes.

Heimert ate his supper in silence. Albina imagined that he had had
words with the captain or somebody, and did not bother him with
questions. After she had cleared the table, she sat down to read the
sensational _feuilleton_ of the local daily paper, eating pralines all
the while. Then she performed her evening toilet and went to bed. It
was not yet nine o'clock; but that did not matter. She liked lying in
bed.

On the stroke of nine Heimert heard the sergeant-major go out. In the
corridor he caught some of the men larking about without their caps,
and rebuked them sharply. Then he clanked down the stairs, and all was
still.

Heimert carried the lamp to the table in the window and sat down to
write. In order to pass the time until Heppner should return, he was
going to check the shoeing account in his register by the entries in
the ordnance books. In h