I'm your
superior officer. I'm an officer an' a gentleman--"

"You are not!" replied Standish. "You are a drunken loafer!"

Aintree could not break the silence. Amazement, rage, stupefaction
held him in incredulous wonder. Even Meehan moved uneasily. Between
the officer commanding the infantry and an officer of police, he feared
the lieutenant would not survive.

But he heard the voice of his lieutenant continuing, evenly, coldly,
like the voice of a judge delivering sentence.

"You are a drunken loafer," repeated the boy. "And you know it. And I
mean that to-morrow morning every one on the Zone shall know it. And I
mean to-morrow night every one in the States shall know it. You've
killed a man, or tried to, and I'm going to break you." With his arm he
pointed to Meehan. "Break that man?" he demanded. "For doing his duty,
for trying to stop a murder? Strip him of his shield?" The boy laughed
savagely. "It's you I am going to strip, Aintree," he cried, "you
'hero of Batangas'; I'm going to strip you naked. I'm going to 'cut
the buttons off your coat, and tear the stripes away.' I'm going to
degrade you and disgrace you, and drive you out of the army!" He threw
his note-book on the table. "There's your dossier, Aintree," he said.
"For three months you've been drunk, and there's your record. The
police got it for me; it's written there with dates and the names of
witnesses. I'll swear to it. I've been after you to get you, and I've
got you. With that book, with what you did to-night, you'll leave the
army. You may resign, you may be court-martialled, you may be hung. I
don't give a damn what they do to you, but you will leave the army!"

He turned to Meehan, and with a jerk of the hand signified Aintree.

"Put him in a cell," he said. "If he resists--"

Aintree gave no sign of resisting. He stood motionless, his arms
hanging limp, his eyes protruding. The liquor had died in him, and his
anger had turned chill. He tried to moisten his lips to speak, but his
throat was baked, and no sound issued. He tried to focus his eyes upon
the menacing little figure behind the desk, but between the two lamps
it swayed, and shrank and swelled. Of one thing only was he sure, that
some grave disaster had overtaken him, something that when he came
fully to his senses still would overwhelm him, something he could not
conquer with his fists. His brain, even befuddled as it was, told him
he had been caught by the