e
young Captain. He offers no remarks, bein' too good a soldier; but he
never speaks to the Old Man no more, except it's business.

"'"Joe," he says to me, as we rides along, or mebby after we're in camp
at night, "I'll never go back to Texas. I've been disgraced at the
head of my troop an' I'll take no sech record home."

"'"You oughter not talk that a-way, Ed," I'd say, tryin' to get his
sensibilities smoothed down. "If you don't care none for yourse'f or
for your footure, you-all should remember thar's something comin' to
the loved ones at home. Moreover, it's weak sayin' you-all ain't goin'
back to Texas. How be you goin' to he'p it, onless you piles up
shore-enough disgrace by desertin' them lancers of yours?"

"'"Which if we has the luck," says this Captain Edson, "to cross up
with any Yanks who's capable of aimin' low an' shootin' half way troo,
I'll find a way to dodge that goin' back without desertin'."

"'No, I don't make no argyments with him; it's hopeless talkin' to a
gent who's melancholly an' who's pride's been jarred; thar's nothing
but time can fix things up for him. An' I allers allows that this boy
Captain would have emerged from the clouds eventooal, only it happens
he don't get the time. His chance comes too soon; an' he shore plays
it desperate.

"'Our first offishul act after reachin' the Rio Grande is to lay for a
passel of Yank cavalry--thar's two thousand of 'em I reckons. We rides
up on these yere lively persons as we sounds a halt for the evenin'.
It looks like our boogles is a summons, for they comes buttin' into
view through a dry arroya an' out onto the wide green bottoms of the
Rio Grande at the first call. They're about a mile away, an' at sight
of us they begins in a fashion of idle indifference to throw out a line
of battle. They fights on foot, them bloo folks do; dismounting with
every fourth man to hold the hosses. They displays a heap of insolence
for nothin' but cavalry an' no big guns; but as they fights like
infantry an' is armed with Spencer seven-shooters besides, the play
ain't so owdacious neither.

"'Thar's mebby a hour of sun an' I'm feelin' mighty surly as I gets my
battery into line. I'm disgusted to think we've got to fight for our
night's camp, an' swearin' to myse'f in a low tone, so's not to set
profane examples to my men, at the idee that these yere Yanks is that
preecip'tate they can't wait till mornin' for their war-jig. But I
can't he'p myse'f