d hundred yards short if an inch. 'Hullo!' says I, and glances
toward the chap to apologise. If you'll believe me, I'd fairly opened my
mouth to tell 'en that nine times out of ten you weren't such a blamed
fool as you looked, when a glance at his eye told me he hadn' noticed.
The man looked so pleased with everythin', I felt like nudgin' him under
the ribs with a rammer: but I dessay 'twas as well I thought better of it.
The regular forces be terrible on their dignity at times."

Colonel Taubmann had, however, made a note of the Die-hards' marksmanship,
and attempted to tackle Captain Pond on the subject later in the
afternoon--albeit gently--over a cup of tea provided by the Mayoress.

"There is a spirit about your men, Captain--" he began.

"You take sugar?" interposed Captain Pond.

"Thank you: three lumps."

"You find it agrees with you? Now in the Duchy, sir, you'll find it the
rarest exception for anyone to take sugar."

"As I was saying, there is certainly a spirit about your men--"

"Health and spirits, sir! In my experience the two go together.
Health and spirits--the first requisites for success in the military
calling, and both alike indispensable! If a soldier enjoy bad health,
how can he march? If his liver be out of order, if his hand tremble, if
he see black spots before his eyes, with what accuracy will he shoot?
Rheumatism, stone, gout in the system--"

Colonel Taubmann stared. Could he believe his eyes, or had he not, less
than an hour ago, seen the Looe Artillery plumping shot into the barren
sea a good fifty yards short of their target? Could he trust his ears, or
was it in a dream he had listened, just now, to Captain Pond's reasons for
marching his men home at a pace reserved, in other regiments, for
funerals?--"In my judgment, sir, a step of twenty-four to thirty inches is
as much as any man over sixty years of age can indulge in without risk of
overstrain, and even so I should prescribe forty-eight steps a minute as
the maximum. Some criticism has been levelled at me--not perhaps without
excuse--for having enlisted men of that age. It is easy to be wise after
the event, but at the time other considerations weighed with me--as for
instance that the men were sober and steady-going, and that I knew their
ways, which is a great help in commanding a company."

Colonel Taubmann stared and gasped, but held his tongue. There was indeed
a breadth of simplicity about Captain Pond--a seri