cle.

And he was right; a package of letters came presently giving an account
of the events of the last days spent in Philadelphia, the return voyage,
and the joy of the arrival at their own beautiful and happy home.

Ah, as Max read, how he longed to be with them! Yet the concluding
sentences of his father's letter restored him to contentment with things
as they were.

The captain had just received and read the report of his boy's conduct
and academic standing for his first month and was much pleased with it.
He made that very clear to the lad, calling him his dear son, his joy
and pride, and telling him that until he was a father himself he could
never know the joy and happiness such a report of a son's behavior and
improvement of his opportunities could give.

"Ah," thought the boy, "I'll try harder than ever since it gives such
pleasure to my kindest and best of fathers. How glad I am to have the
chance! How thankful I ought to be! I doubt if there was ever a more
fortunate boy than myself."

Max and his room-mate, Hunt, liked each other from the first, and seldom
had the slightest disagreement.

According to the rules they took turns, week about, in keeping their
room in order, each trying to outdo his mate in the thoroughness with
which he attended to all the minutiae of the business.

They were good-natured rivals too in other matters connected with the
course of instruction they were going through: gymnastic exercises,
fencing and boxing, and the drill called fire-quarters, in which the
whole battalion is formed into a fire-brigade, and when the fire-bell is
sounded each cadet hastens to his proper place in the troop, and the
steam fire-engine and hose-carriages belonging to the Academy are
brought out and used as they would be in case some building were in
flames and the cadets were called upon to assist in extinguishing the
blaze.

Max and his chum had become quite expert at that exercise, when one
night they were roused from sleep by the sound of the fire-bell, and
springing up and running to their window saw that a dwelling several
squares from the Academy was in flames.

"It's a real fire this time!" cried Hunt, snatching up a garment and
beginning a very hurried toilet, Max doing the same, "and now we'll have
a chance to show how well we understand the business of putting it out."

"And we must try to do credit to our training here in the Academy,"
added Max.

An hour or more of great excitem