alf a dozen times. At Magenta, the same bullet passed twice
through my body."

"The same bullet?"

"Yes, sir--the same bullet. I'll tell you how it happened. I was in the
heavy artillery there. The bullet of the Russian--"

"The Russian! Why, I thought the battle of Magenta was fought between the
Austrians and the French."

"You are right, my boy. The bullet of the Austrian, I should have said,
passed through my left lung, struck the cannon behind me, bounded back,
and hitting me again, passed through my right lung. When it came out, it
hit my musket, and dropped upon the ground. I picked it up, and have it
at home now."

"Whew!" added Lieutenant Somers in a low whisper. "It's quite warm
to-day," he continued, trying to turn off the remark.

"Very warm, indeed."

"But didn't you fall after the ball had passed through both your lungs?"

"Not at all. I walked five miles to the hospital. On my way, I met the
Emperor Napoleon, who got off his horse, and thanked me for the valor I
had displayed, and conferred on me the medal of the Legion of Honor. I
keep the medal in the same bag with the bullet."

"Then you have actually shaken hands with the Emperor of France?" cried
the amazed lieutenant.

"Yes; and King Victor Emmanuel called to see me in the hospital, where I
was confined for five weeks. At Solferino, both their majesties shook
hands with me, and thanked me again for my services. Being a modest man,
I shouldn't want to say out loud that I saved the day for the French and
Sardinians at Solferino. At any rate, their majesties did the handsome
thing by me on that day."

"I thought you were in the hospital five weeks after Magenta."

"So I was; and well do I remember the little delicacies sent me by the
King of Italy while I lay there on my back. Ah! that Victor Emmanuel is a
noble fellow. At Solferino, he----"

"But how could you have been at Solferino, if you were in the hospital
five weeks?"

"I did not die of my wounds, it is scarcely necessary for me to remark. I
got well."

"But the battle of Solferino was fought on the 20th of June, and that of
Magenta on the 4th of June. There were only twenty days between the
battles."

"You are right, Somers. I have made some mistake in the dates. I never
was good at remembering them. When I was in college, the professors used
to laugh at me for forgetting the date of the Christian Era. By the way,
do you smoke, Somers? Let's go into the smoking-car, and have