LITERATURE.

Globe, Volume VIII, Issue 1056, 15 November 1877, Page 3

LITERATURE.

A REGIMENTAL MARTYR; Or how Gebard St. Hilary was driven into Matrimony.

[London Society.]

Chapter I,

‘ Make hay in St. Hilary’s room to-night. ’ Lieutenant Gerard St Hilary came leisurely down the broad corridor and staircase of the officers’ quarters in the cavalry barracks at Milchester, and crossed the passage leading to the ante-room. As he turned the handle of the door a fragment of the conversation within fell upon his ear— ‘ Make hay in St Hilary’s room to-night,’ * The deuce !’ ejaculated that young gentleman.

* Sentry box him first,’ cried a voice, which he recognised as Captain Gurney’s, a man well up the list of captains, who was old enough to have known better, ‘ and if that doesn’t fetch him, hammer the door in.’ ‘Ha, ha, ha!’ laughed a chorus of voices, under cover of which the intended victim beat a retreat.

* Sentry-box me ! Ah, thank you, Captain Gurney,’ he excalmed, when he reached the shelter of his own room ; ‘ forewarned is forearmed, and I’m on my guard this time.’ Hastily changing his undress for mufti, Mr St Hilary made the best of his way out of barracks, going in the direction of Milcheater.

The regiment of which he was the butt-in chief for practical jokes was the 52ad Dragoons of famous Crimean memory. Perhaps his unfailing good temper made him more subject to this form of wit than would have been the case if he had borne malice and sulked.

An outsider would, perhaps, say, Why did he not report the offenders, and so secure peace ? Any one with the least knowledge of regimental life could tell such a one that for a subaltern to adopt such a course w r ould simply be to limit his career in the army to a very short period. Of course during the process he blustered a good deal, and frequently threatened to tell the chief all about it the very first thing in the morning. Fortunately for his brother officers Gerald St Hilary had a peculiarity. After two a.m. he could not keep his eyes open, and was glad to make any bargiau wffiich would leave him in peace. It w r as invariably the same ; Lieutenant St Hilary, lightly clad, as likely as not soaked with water, standing in the centre of a group of excired comrades in mess-dress, expressing his determination *to have no more of this foolery, by Jove. ’ ‘Go it, Jerry; pile it up, my boy !’ one would cry, amidst the jeers of the bystanders.

* I’m surprised at you, D’Albert,’ poor Jerry would cry, in disgust, ‘ I’ll report you in the morning, upon my soul I will, though you are a captain, J Small heed did the 52d take of these awful threats. Was not the end unchanging? Presently St Hilary would begin to shiver; then Sleep would come dropping her grains of sand into Gerard’s blue eyes, and his comrades knew that then was their time.

‘ Now, Jerry, old man, if you forgive us, you shall go to bed. ’ * Well, let me be quiet,’ was poor Jerry’s answer (it was always the same), ‘ and I’ll say no more about it.’

The gratitude of the rioters was generally shown on these occasions by the careful way in which they tucked Gerard up in bed and reduced his room to something like order. .Alas, only something ! Order generally took days and a visit to the upholsterer’s to effect, with much groaning from Jer. y’s man on the subject of what he called ‘them id j lots.’ Poor Gerard had undergone every possible form of practical joking, and he was become a little tired of it; the trodden worm will turn, and he was thoroughly determined to put a stop to it once for all, though it must be owned he didn’t quite know how to set about it.

However, enough on that head. I will just explain what is meant by ‘sentryboxing’ and ‘making hay,’ and then go on with my story. The doors of an officer’s rooms are usually made of strong material, the hammering in of which is a long process ; in order, therefore, to draw the victim from his lair without his suspecting mischief they knock at his door, and tell him the colonel or major wants him at once, or cry ‘ Fire !’ at the other end of the corridor. If this succeeds, well and good; but on gala nights the sentry box is brought into play. It is placed close against the victim’s door, after the manner of a trap, so that when ne comes out he may go crash against the back of the box. I need not add that the more bruised and angry he is the better pleased his comrades are.

Making hay is simply breaking or turning topsy-turvy everything the intruders can lay their hands upon. The cavalry barracks at Milcbester are about a mile from the town, which is a cathedral city, chielly noted for the beauty of its young ladies and the good tone of its society. In common with most cathedral towns Milcbester is just a little dull. In summer the croquet and lawn-tennis club, and in winter the rink, are the principal places of amusement. To the latter Mr St Hilary made his way, it being, when my story op' us), tho dreary mouth of November. It was an ‘ off ’ day Had the bonny dappled hounds been after their little red-eoated friensd, > aptaiu Gurney would probably have come in too tired and stiff to think of anything beyond his dinner aud his bed; but there was no meet that day, aud thus we have a striking instance of what Satan finds for idle hands, which is not, 1 trust, too severe a rejection on the gentlemen of her Majesty’s army. It was throe o’clock; the rink was full, and a crowd of well-dressed skaters were gliding along to the strains of ‘ Gerleibt and Verloren ’ waits. Gliding, did I say ? Well, some were gliding, but others were shuffling, and many wero obliging ignominously to the iron railing along the wall, while some more courageous ones were trying manfully to pretend that the bumps and falls they got did not hurt at all, aud were in fact rather agreeable than otherwise.

Gerard got his skates ou with all speed, and quickly made his way up and down the gay throng, as though seeking for some particular individual. He was evidently a great favourite with the fair sex, for wherever he Went ho was greeted, with smiles and other little pleasantries. Tall, short, fair, or dyirk, all seemed equally pleased to sec him. There were girls wd gi r*S

in green, in sealskin and sable, in rink hats and Gainsboroughs; and for each and all he had a bright word or compliment, bat he lingered with none.

He did not find the object of his search very readily, for he was a trifle shoTtsierbted, and, as I know from experience, the wearing of an eye-glass confines one’s sight to the space immediately in front. At last his patience was rewarded; wheeling around in great circles came a young lady, who attracted the attention and admiration of all. She was not very tall, rather under than over the middle height, with a graceful figure and carriage, delicate little hands and feet, and a small mignon face, of which the nose was just a wee bit up-turned, and the eyes were brilliant gleaming hazel. Her hair, which was extremely abundant, was twisted round her small shapely head in massive coils, and was of the deepest auburn hue. She was dressed in a rinking costume of prune-coloured serge, and her hat was of the same material. Her waist and throat were clasped by heavy silver belt and necklet.

The name of this young lady was Elinor Warwick. Her father held the appointment of deputy-assistant commissary-general. She liv’d on tbe same side of the town as the barracks were situated, and was, as was natural from her father’s position, on very intimate terms with both the cavalry and infantry officers stationed in Milchester.

The preference was, however, given to the former, and Mr St Hilary enjoyed the distinction of being Miss Warwick’s slave-in-chief. Poor Gerard, slave-in-chief and bntt-in-chief! Not an enviable fate; but the former office he would not have delegated for any consideration, while words will not express Mr St Hilary’s feelings on the subject of the latter.

It was a remarkable fact that, although ladies never could see anything in Miss Warwick, ‘a little pert snub nosed thing,’ she always had three or four men ‘in tow.’ On that afternoon she had a cavalier on either side, while one or two others made up the rear. As she said herself, ‘ The clumsy fellows could never get out of the way ; it was just like skating with outriders.’ Gerard went up, his blue eyes ablaze, and skated alongside of her for si-me distance, to the intense disgust of the man he had supplanted. Miss Elinor had, however, no intention of allowing him to remain there. Her way of showing him favour was by illusing him, yet giving him certain small liberties -which she did not accord to the men she took the most pains to please. One man would say to another when she was ordering Gerard about, ‘ I would not stand that; what a big duffer the fellow is !’

But Gerard would not have exchanged the sweet familiarity of his intercourse with Elinor for all the civil speeches in the world; in fact it was a case of * Betty know’d her man.’

* You’re coming to our ball, Miss Warwick!’ asked he.

‘O, yes, of course,’ she answered, in a quick clear voice.

‘ How many am I to have ?’ pleadingly. ‘ I really don’t know. How many do you want ?’

‘ Every one.’ * Well, but you can’t have them. I’ll give you one quadrille if you like, the third.’ ‘ And four waltzes besides ?’ * No,’ very decisively. ‘ I’ll give you three, if you will make yourself generally useful and agreeable this afternoon; do your duty like a man, you know.’ * May I walk home with you !’ ‘Well—yes.’ ‘I won’t do it for three,’ announced he, leaning forward with a dangerous look in his blue eyes. ‘Four, then,’ said Elinor, in rather a frigtened tone, * And supper.’ ‘Now, Mr St Hilary, you’re asking too much. ‘ It’s not in reason. ’ ‘ And supper,’ repeated our hero firmly, ‘ or I’ll not stir an inch.’ * Well, go away.’ Away he went, having learned <* soldier’s first lesson thoroughly. He managed to keep Miss Warwick in sight, and when she disappeared to be divested of her skates he followed in time to help her into a huge fawn-coloured Ulster, which, as the inhabitants of Milchester remarked, *no one but Miss Warwick would have the courage to wear.’ As the two walked home together through the dreary November fog, Elinor became aware that something was amiss with her companion. More than once he sighed dolefully, and was altogether so different from the Gerard St Hilary whose jolly laugh was heard every two minutes, that she was completely puzzled. * Whatever is the matter, Mr St Hilary V she said, at last.

4 0/ moaned Gerard, with another long sigh, * I’ve got such a dose before me tonight. ’ * A dose ?’ ‘ Yes; the fellows are going to make hay in my room to-night.’ * Make hay!’ repeated Elinor, in a tone of real surprise. 4 What, in November ?’ Then Gerard told her what he had heard, and described the process--4 I assure you, Miss Warwick,’ he said, shaking his head solemnly, 4 that by this time to morrow everything in my room will be smashed to bits.’

‘ What a shame 1’ cried Elinor warmly. ‘ If I were you I’d try—’

‘ 'What ?

lihe reached up to her companion’s ear, and whispered a few words to him ; he burst into a roar of laughter. *By Jove, what a brick you are he cried, forgetting his manners. ‘ I never heard such a splendid idea in all my life. Gad, what a clever girl you must be !’

‘ It’s quite original,’ she responded saucily. ‘ It’s absolutely perfect,’ replied Gerard, * and worthy of you in every way. How they will hop to-night I’ Elinor’s musical treble joined his deeper laugh ; and as she parted from him at the gate of her father’s house, she turned back, and said impressively, * Mind it’s white, and don’t stint the quantity,’ ‘.All right,’ answered'Gerard ; ‘l’ll gat plenty.’

(To he continued.')