at your orders, sir," responded Hal.

"Then I will take time to play host in what is really Uncle Sam's house.
I will take you over to your quarters myself. Pardon me for a few
moments, while I do some telephoning."

Calling up the quarters of Captain Goodale, Major Tipton said:

"Captain, this is the commanding officer. Your new second lieutenant,
Mr. Terry, is here. He will call upon you at two o'clock this afternoon,
unless you have another engagement for that time. Two is all right, is
it? Thank you, Captain."

Major Tipton then called up Captain Foster, informing him that Mr.
Overton would call upon him at two o'clock that afternoon.

"Now, where is your baggage, gentlemen? At the station, I suppose."

"Yes, sir."

"I will send for one of the battalion quartermaster sergeant's men to
take your checks and have your baggage up here without delay."

A private soon entered, received the baggage checks of the young
officers and departed.

"Now, come along, gentlemen," invited the major, reaching for his
uniform cap. "I will take you over to your quarters at once."

Fort Butler looked like many another army post, in that the reservation
was several hundred acres in extent; that it had well-laid, well-kept
roads, a guard house, parade ground, hospital, administrative buildings,
a barracks for enlisted men and other quarters for the officers. The
post lay in a flat country bordering the river, and the grounds about
the buildings were tastefully laid out.

From the little headquarters building Major Tipton led Hal and Noll in a
somewhat southerly direction toward the officers' quarters. At the
extreme western end of "officers' town" lay a plain, barracks-like
building, with front porch upstairs and down.

"That barn will be your home, gentlemen," announced the major. "And the
building just this side is the one that contains the officers' club."

"Officers' club," otherwise known as "officers' mess," is a term that
might be misunderstood by a civilian. The "club" is where the bachelor
officers eat their meals; other officers on post often eat there, too,
especially in the absence of their families. There are reading and
writing rooms at the "club," and other features that make it a somewhat
pleasant lounging place for young officers in their few leisure hours.
While there is plenty of comfort at an officers' club there are few in
which anything like real luxury is to be found. And, while the civilian
may remai