oked, he believed Anita had
completely forgotten Broussard. At this, Mrs. Fortescue smiled and
remained as silent as the Sphinx.

The winter was slipping by, and work and study and play went on in the
snow-bound fort, and Colonel Fortescue was congratulating himself upon
the wonderfully good report he could make of his command. There had
not been a man missing in the whole month of February. But one day
Lawrence, the gentleman-ranker, was reported missing.

The Colonel had no illusions concerning broken men and said so to Mrs.
Fortescue.

"The fellow has deserted--that's the way most of the broken men end.
He was in the aviation field yesterday and his going away was not
premeditated, as he did not ask for leave. But something came in the
way of temptation, and he couldn't stand it, and ran away."

The "something" was revealed by Sergeant McGillicuddy, with a pale
face, while he was shut up with the Colonel in his office.

"It's partly my fault, sir," said the Sergeant. "The fellow has been
doing his duty pretty well, and yesterday, on the aviation field, the
aviation orficer was praisin' him for his work. You know, sir, how I
likes the machines and studies 'em at odd times. The flyin' was over
and there wasn't anybody around the sheds but Lawrence and me. I was
lookup at his machine, and, no doubt, botherin' him, an he says
sharp-like:

"'You can't understand these machines. It takes an educated man like
me to understand 'em. They're more complicated than buggies.' That
made me mad, sir, and I says, 'That's no way to speak to your
Sergeant.' 'You go to the devil,' says Lawrence. 'You'll get ten days
in the guard house for that,' I says. Then Lawrence seemed to grow
crazy, all at once. 'Yes,' he shouts, like a lunatic, 'that's a fit
punishment for a gentleman. You'll see to it, Sergeant, that I get ten
days in the guard house, and my wife breakin' her heart with shame, and
the other children tauntin' my boy!' With that, sir, he hit me on the
side of the head with his fist. I was so unprepared that it knocked me
down, but I saw Lawrence runnin' toward the station. I picked myself
up and went and sat down on the bench outside the sheds to think what I
ought to do. I knew, as well as I know now, that Lawrence was runnin'
away, and I had drove him to it. But I swear, sir, before my Colonel
and my God, that I didn't mean to make Lawrence mad, or misuse him in
any way. You know my record, sir."