ee."

He read over the sergeant's report, and then dictated half-a-dozen
lines, which that officer wrote down as quickly as he could. "I shall
copy it out afterwards," he said, "neat and clean. Go on, my lad, go
on."

Gray dictated a few more lines, which ended the report in a short,
concise manner, and Sergeant Lund's face, which had been all in
corrugations, smoothed itself into a satisfied smile.

"That's beautiful," he said, looking up at the private admiringly. "I
shall copy that all out in a neat hand, and the thing's done. I say,
Gray, how do you do it? Here, what takes me hours, only takes you
minutes; and while it's hard labour to me to get it into shape, you run
it off like string from a ball. Thanky, my lad, thanky. Now what can I
do for you?"

"I want a bayonet and a revolver, with ammunition, directly," said Gray.

"What for?"

"Captain's orders, and private," said Gray, showing Captain Smithers'
card, with a few lines pencilled thereon.

"Right," said the sergeant bluffly. "I'm not an inquisitive man. Come
along, Gray."

He led the way into the part of the fort used as an armoury, and
furnished the required weapons, which Gray proceeded to button up under
his jacket.

"Oh! that's the game is it, my lad?" he said. "Then look here; don't
take those clumsy tools; any one can see that you've got weapons hidden
there. I'll lend you this little revolver; it's handier, and will do
quite as much mischief. You can have this dirk, too, with the belt."

He brought out a handsome little revolver, about half the weight and
size of the heavy military "Colt" previously supplied; and also a
well-made, long, thin dirk, with a thin belt.

"There, my lad!" he said, buckling on the belt under Gray's jacket, and
then thrusting the revolver into a little leather pouch. "There, you
are now fitted up sensibly, and no one would be the wiser. Stop a
moment, you must fill your pocket with cartridges. Let me have those
things back safe, and I hope you won't have to use them; but being
ready, my lad, is half the battle. You know I'm never ill."

"No, sergeant; you have excellent health."

"Right, my lad, I do; and I'll tell you why: I bought the biggest box of
pills I could get before I left London. Four-and-six I gave for it, and
I have never taken one. Diseases come, and they know as well as can be
that I've got that box of big pills--reg'lar boluses--in my kit; and
they say to themselves, `This ma