lub. As for Mrs.
McGillicuddy, she was openly on the side of Kettle and against the
Colonel, and shrewdly surmised exactly what had happened about the
enlistment, and also that Sergeant McGillicuddy was implicated with the
other two sergeants in the outrage. Mrs. McGillicuddy boldly
propounded this theory to Mrs. Fortescue while the latter was dressing
for dinner on the first evening of Kettle's incarceration. The
Colonel, in the next room, going through the same process of dressing,
could hear every word through the open door.

"It's Patrick McGillicuddy that had a hand in it, mum," said Mrs.
McGillicuddy wrathfully. "He's been takin' rises out of the naygur, as
he calls Kettle, for twenty years, and he seen Sergeant Gully and
Sergeant Halligan draggin' poor Kettle along to the riding hall. I
seen Kettle when he run out, and McGillicuddy was a standin' off,
a-laffin' fit to kill himself, and I know that Gully and Halligan has
been jokin' Kettle and makin' him believe he has enlisted in the
aviation corps and will have to go flyin', and Kettle's scared stiff."

"Poor Kettle," said Mrs. Fortescue softly, clasping her pearls about
her white throat. "It's been a sad day to all of us, except the
Colonel. Of course, I never attempt to criticise Colonel Fortescue's
professional conduct, but I do feel lost without Kettle."

"Well, mum," replied Mrs. McGillicuddy, "I haven't been a sergeant's
wife for twenty years without findin' out that nobody can't say a word
about the orficers, but I do think, mum, as three days in the
guardhouse for poor Kettle, who was bamboozled by Tim Gully and Mike
Halligan, is one of the cruelest things a commandin' orficer ever done.
Not that I'm a-criticisin' the Colonel, mum--I wouldn't do such a thing
for the world."

"Nor would I," replied Mrs. Fortescue meekly, and fully conscious of
the Colonel's presence in the next room, shaving himself savagely, "but
three days for such a little thing does seem hard."

Colonel Fortescue ground his teeth and gave himself such a jab with his
razor that the blood came.

This subtle persecution of the Colonel went on, with variations, for
three whole days.

On the Friday when Kettle's time was up he was released and his return
was hailed with open delight by his partisans, Mrs. Fortescue, Mrs.
McGillicuddy and the After-Clap, and with secret relief by the Colonel,
Anita and Sergeant McGillicuddy.

Kettle, on reporting to the Colonel, said solemn