e said, for needed exercise. Just what had passed
between her aunt and herself was never referred to outside of the
family. Mrs. Ray, it seems, had also heard the childish wail of
distress, had come down to inquire the cause, but not until Priscilla
had succeeded in leading the little sufferer home. Then in the hall,
probably, Marion had picked up the official batch of papers; thought it
something of Sandy's, for open official wrappers of newspaper clippings
are not privileged communications and he who runs upon them may read.
Presumably Mrs. Ray had read, and, if so, the meekest, mildest of women
in her place would have had a rod in pickle for Priscilla when that
energetic maiden returned. It had at least one point in favor of Sandy.
It relieved him from the necessity of "interviewing" his cousin. But for
the life of him Sandy Ray could not be kind or cordial to Priscilla for
many a day. She wrote to him, at her aunt's demand, a letter to be shown
to the colonel commanding, and a portion of this letter appeared in his
returned indorsement. She admitted that the only instance of officers
"carousing" with and tempting the men to drink was when Uncle Will took
her to see the Canteen and sipped his glass of Rhenish when the
sergeants drank his health. "But," was the ingenuous argument, "if Uncle
Will, who is so abstemious and conscientious, could do that much, I
naturally reasoned that others whom I knew to be neither abstemious nor,
in such matters conscientious, would do infinitely more, and therefore
considered my statement justifiable in view of the vital importance of
the matter under discussion." As to the other points in her allegation,
Priscilla had no better or broader foundation. It was one of those
instances of "justifiable vericide" wherein many a worthy woman, and
man, has soothed a protesting conscience with "the end justifies the
means."

But Priscilla had to promise also to write full confession to the
_Banner of Light_, and it was sent registered. Aunt Marion saw to that;
and duly received but never, even in part, was it published--that would
be doing violence to editorial ethics.

At three o'clock that afternoon the colonel's adjutant had called
ceremoniously at the quarters of Major Dwight, and at four o'clock the
colonel's ambulance had followed. Half a thousand eyes, probably,
followed that official vehicle as it whirled away townward, a raging
captain of cavalry being the sole occupant of the interio