u are late to-day."

I was early, but if she had waited, she would of course not know this.

"What has happened, Miss Kate?"

"Come here."

Through my opened door I followed her quick step.

"You were jesting about that this morning,"--she pointed to the picture,
propped open against a book on the mantel; and then, with an effort to
steady her voice,--"you were jesting, and of course you didn't know--but
you shouldn't have jested."

"Can it be you, Miss Kate--can it really be you?"

"It is, it is--couldn't you see? Tell me quickly--don't, don't jest
again!"

"Be sure I shall not. Sit down."

But she stood still, with an arm extended to the picture, and again
implored me: "See--I'm waiting. Where--how--did you get it?"

"Sit down," I said; and this time she obeyed with a little cry of
impatience.

"I'll try to bring it back," I said. "It was that day Sheridan hurried
back to find his army broken--all but beaten. Just at dark there was a
last charge--a charge that was met. I went down in it, hearing yells and
a spitting fire, but feeling only numbness. When I woke up the firing
was far off. Near me I could hear a voice, the voice of a young man, I
thought, wounded like myself. I first took him for one of our men. But
his talk undeceived me. It was the talk of your men, and sorrowful talk.
He was badly hurt; he knew that. But he was sure of life. He couldn't
die there like a brute. He had to go back and he would go back alive and
well; for God was a gentleman, whatever else He was, and above practical
jokes of that sort. Then he seemed to know he was losing strength, and
he cried out for a picture, as if he must at least have that before he
went. Weak as he was, he tried to turn on his side to search for it. 'It
was here a moment ago,' he would say; 'I had it once,' and he tried to
turn again, still crying out for it,--he must not die without it. It
hurt me to hear his voice break, and I made out to roll near him to help
him search. 'We'll find it,' I told him, and he thanked me for my help.
'Look for a square hard case,' he said eagerly. 'It must be here; I had
it after I fell down.' Together we searched the rough ground over in the
dark as well as we could. I was glad enough to help him. I had a picture
like that of my own that I shouldn't have liked to lose. But we were
clumsy searchers, and he seemed to lose hope as he lost strength. Again
he cried out for that picture, but now it was a despairing cry, and