coffee-cup on his knee. "Well, Henry,"
he said, "what d'yeh think th' chances are? D'yeh think we'll wallop
'em?"

The youth considered for a moment. "Day-b'fore-yesterday," he finally
replied, with boldness, "you would 'a' bet you'd lick the hull
kit-an'-boodle all by yourself."

His friend looked a trifle amazed. "Would I?" he asked. He pondered.
"Well, perhaps I would," he decided at last. He stared humbly at the
fire.

The youth was quite disconcerted at this surprising reception of his
remarks. "Oh, no, you wouldn't either," he said, hastily trying to
retrace.

But the other made a deprecating gesture. "Oh, yeh needn't mind,
Henry," he said. "I believe I was a pretty big fool in those days." He
spoke as after a lapse of years.

There was a little pause.

"All th' officers say we've got th' rebs in a pretty tight box," said
the friend, clearing his throat in a commonplace way. "They all seem
t' think we've got 'em jest where we want 'em."

"I don't know about that," the youth replied. "What I seen over on th'
right makes me think it was th' other way about. From where I was, it
looked as if we was gettin' a good poundin' yestirday."

"D'yeh think so?" inquired the friend. "I thought we handled 'em
pretty rough yestirday."

"Not a bit," said the youth. "Why, lord, man, you didn't see nothing
of the fight. Why!" Then a sudden thought came to him. "Oh! Jim
Conklin's dead."

His friend started. "What? Is he? Jim Conklin?"

The youth spoke slowly. "Yes. He's dead. Shot in th' side."

"Yeh don't say so. Jim Conklin. . . . poor cuss!"

All about them were other small fires surrounded by men with their
little black utensils. From one of these near came sudden sharp voices
in a row. It appeared that two light-footed soldiers had been teasing
a huge, bearded man, causing him to spill coffee upon his blue knees.
The man had gone into a rage and had sworn comprehensively. Stung by
his language, his tormentors had immediately bristled at him with a
great show of resenting unjust oaths. Possibly there was going to be a
fight.

The friend arose and went over to them, making pacific motions with his
arms. "Oh, here, now, boys, what's th' use?" he said. "We'll be at
th' rebs in less'n an hour. What's th' good fightin' 'mong ourselves?"

One of the light-footed soldiers turned upon him red-faced and violent.
"Yeh needn't come around here with yer preachin'. I s'pose yeh don't
approve 'a