men--just point out that an officer can be kind to his lads and slacken
the discipline a little sensibly without losing tone or touch, but there
must be a proper feeling between officer and man. An officer need not
be a bully and a tyrant, but he must be firm. His men must respect him,
and see that the man who leads them knows his duty and is brave almost
to a fault; and knowing this, every man who is worth his salt will
follow him even to the death if duty calls. It is a grand position,
Archie, my lad--that of being a leader of men--and it is shared with the
General by the youngest subaltern who wears the Queen's scarlet. See
what I mean?"

"Yes, sir," said the lad in a deep, low voice.

"Well, sir," almost shouted the Major, "that's what I was going to say
to you, sir, over a glass of wine to-night, and put it to you that it
was quite time that you, a young man grown, should put away boyish
things and come to an end of tricks and pranks and youthful follies, and
take upon you and show that you are worthy of the great birthright--
manhood, when--confound it all! I was nearly breaking out swearing!--in
comes to me that--hang him!--that overbearing bully--Yah! Tut, tut,
tut, tut, tut!--it put me out dreadfully, and I am speaking in haste,
for Ripsy is a fine, trustworthy man--my best non-com--to complain to me
about you making a chum, a regular companion, of that confounded,
low-bred cockney rascal, Pegg. Hang him! I'll have his peg sharpened
and make him spin in a more upright manner before I have done with him!
Ripsy told me that the fellow was on fatigue-work--takes advantage of
the freedom of his position to sneak off to your quarters to hatch some
prank or mischief or another; and I had to listen to his complaint and--
confound him!--to answer his question, `Is it right for a subaltern to
encourage a low-bred rascal like that to come to his quarters?' What do
you say?"

"It was my fault, sir, entirely."

"Yes; and that's your fault too, Archibald Maine. You take a fancy to
and make a companion of a private who bears the worst character in this
detachment. You see even now, sir, you have made so much of a companion
of him that you are ready to take the blame for his fault."

"In this case rightly, sir," said Archie, speaking with firmness. "I
had jerked your note out of the window, and as the poor fellow passed--"

"Poor fellow!" cried the Major irritably. "There, again!"

"I told him to pick it