Young Captain Jack; Or, The Son of a Soldier

by Jr. Horatio Alger

  CHAPTER XVIII.

  MEETING OF THE COUSINS.

  St. John had come up the garden path quickly, and had failed to noticeHarry Powell, although he had caught sight of a well-known dress whichMarion wore.

  Now, when he saw the young surgeon, his face fell, for he had calculatedupon seeing Marion alone.

  "Excuse me, Marion," he said, "I did not know you had company."

  "Come in, St. John," replied the girl. "Do you not recognize my visitor?It is Dr. Harry Powell."

  "Oh!" St. John was much surprised, and showed it. "How do you do?" hecontinued stiffly.

  "Shake hands. You are cousins," went on Marion, not liking the dark lookwhich had come to St. John's face.

  "Excuse me, but I cannot shake hands with one who wears that uniform,"returned the spendthrift, drawing back. "I am surprised, Marion, to seeyou upon such intimate terms with your country's foe."

  Marion's face flushed, and she bit her lip. Harry Powell set his teethand then smiled coldly.

  "I perceive you wear no uniform at all, St. John," he remarkedpointedly.

  "No. My duty to my mother keeps me at home," stammered St. John.

  "If all who have mothers were to remain at home we would have fewsoldiers."

  "It is a very great trial to me to have to remain at home," went on thehypocrite smoothly. "Yet, to my notion, a man is far better off at homethan to be wearing a Yankee uniform."

  "That is for each man to decide for himself."

  St. John turned to Marion.

  "Does your mother know that Dr. Powell is here?"

  "Yes; she has invited him to dine with us."

  "To dine with you!" exclaimed the spendthrift.

  "Yes, what is wrong about that?" questioned Harry Powell.

  "I thought she was a true and loyal Southern woman."

  "I do not follow you," answered Harry Powell hotly. "The ties of bloodcount for something, even in war times."

  "They do not count for as much as that--to me," said St. John sourly.

  "Then I presume you will not care to stop and dine with us, St. John,"put in Marion.

  "Thank you, no. I will remain another time--when it is more agreeable,Marion."

  So speaking, St. John bowed low to the girl, nodded slightly to theyoung surgeon, and hurried from the place.

  Marion looked at Harry Powell with a face that was crimson.

  "Forget the insult, Harry!" she cried.

  "It is not your fault, Marion. But what a cad St. John is! I never likedhim much. I can easily understand how Jack cannot get along with him."

  "I wish he would join the army. It might make a man of him."

  "I believe he is too cowardly to don a uniform. But come, let us go intothe house, or your mother will wonder what is keeping us."

  When they entered the homestead they found Colonel Stanton taking hisleave. The colonel was perfectly willing to allow the young surgeon toremain.

  "Have a good time, Powell," he said. "And try to convince your worthyrelatives that all Yankees are not the monsters they are painted."

  "He's a downright good fellow!" cried Jack, when the Federal officer haddeparted. "I don't wonder that you like him, Harry."

  "He is a very nice man," said Marion, and to this Mrs. Ruthven noddedaffirmatively.

  Dinner was almost ready to be served, and while they were waiting Marionnoticed that the young surgeon was studying Jack's face closely.

  "What makes you look at Jack so?" she questioned, in a low voice, sothat our hero might not hear.

  "I was studying his face," was the slow reply.

  "Studying his face?"

  "Yes. Marion, did you notice how Colonel Stanton looks?"

  "I did, although not very closely."

  "It seems to me that Jack bears a wonderful resemblance to the colonel."

  "Now you speak of it, I must say you are right," answered Marionthoughtfully. And then, after another pause, she continued: "Is thecolonel a married man?"

  "I hardly think so. I have never heard him speak of a wife or children."

  "Then it is likely that he is a bachelor." And there, for the timebeing, the subject was dropped.

  Despite the fact that the house was surrounded by Federal troops andthat a portion of the homestead was being used as a hospital, the dinnerpassed off in a far from unpleasant manner. Mrs. Ruthven was glad tomeet her nephew once more, and made him tell the story of his service indetail. Not only the lady of the house, but also Marion and Jack, hungupon the young surgeon's words, and Jack's eyes glistened when he heardabout the hard fighting which had been witnessed.

  "Oh, how I wish I had been there! I would have helped to beat the Yankeetroops back!" he cried.

  "You're a born soldier, Jack!" answered Harry Powell. "And I must say Ilike you the better for it. I can't stand such stay-at-homes as St.John."

  "Oh, St. John is a regular--a regular----"

  "Hush, Jack!" interrupted Mrs. Ruthven reprovingly. "He says his motherneeds him at home."

  "And our country needs him at the front," said Marion.

  "We don't need cowards," finished Jack. "Harry, you don't have cowardsin your ranks, do you?"

  "I am afraid all armies have more or less cowards in the ranks," laughedthe young surgeon. "Some fellows would never make soldiers if theyremained in the service a hundred years. Human nature is human naturethe world over, you know."

  "I wonder if Dr. Mackey is a brave man," muttered Jack, but nobody paidattention to this question.

  The repast over, Harry Powell took his leave, but promised to comeagain, if possible, before leaving the vicinity. Marion saw him go withgenuine regret, and blushed painfully when, on watching him hurry downthe road, he suddenly turned and waved his hand toward her.

  "Dear, good cousin Harry," she murmured. "How different from St. John!"

  Two days passed and nothing of importance occurred to disturb theRuthven homestead. On the second day St. John called to see Marion, butshe excused herself by saying she had a headache, which was true,although the ache was not as severe as it might have been.

  As he was leaving the place St. John ran up against Jack, who had beendown to the outskirts of the Federal encampment, watching the soldiersdrill.

  "Hullo, where have you been?" said the spendthrift carelessly.

  "Been down watching the Yankees drill," answered Jack.

  "It seems to me you take an awful interest in those dirty Yankees,"retorted St. John, with a sneer.

  "I take an interest in all soldiers."

  "Then why don't you join them, and evince your interest in somepractical way?"

  "I'd join our troops quick enough, if I was older. I'd be ashamed tostay at home and suck my thumb."

  Jack looked at St. John steadily as he spoke, and this threw thespendthrift into a rage.

  "Do you mean to insult me by that?" he roared.

  "If the shoe fits you can wear it."

  "I'll knock you down for the insult."

  "I don't think you will."

  "Why not?"

  "Perhaps you are not able, that's why."

  "Pooh! Do you think you can stand up against me?"

  "Perhaps I can. Don't forget our encounter on the road."

  "You took a mean advantage of me. I've a good mind to thrash you righthere."

  "You may try it on if you wish, St. John," and so speaking Jack began tothrow off his coat.

  "Will you take back what you said?"

  "What did I say?"

  "Said I was a coward for not becoming a soldier--or about the samething."

  "I won't take back what I think is true."

  "So you dare to say I am a coward?" howled the spendthrift.

  "If you want it in plain words, I do dare to say it, and furthermore, itis true, and you know it. Your plea that you must remain at home is alla sham. When the Yankees came this way you were all ready to run foryour life at the first sign of real danger. You never thought of yourmother at all."

  "Ha! who tol
d you that?"

  "Never mind; I found it out, and that's enough."

  "I--I was suffering from an extremely severe toothache, and hardly knewwhat I was doing that day."

  "I don't believe it."

  "You young rascal! you are growing more impudent every day."

  "I am not a rascal."

  "You are, and an upstart in the bargain. I heard at the village thatsome Confederate surgeon claims you as his son. Is that true?"

  "If it is, it is his business and mine."

  "Well, if you are his son, why don't you get out of here?"

  "I shall not go as long as Mrs. Ruthven wishes me to remain."

  "Does she want you to stay?"

  "Yes."

  "And Marion wants you to?"

  "Yes."

  "It is strange. But if I were you I wouldn't stay where I had no rightto stay," went on St. John insinuatingly.

  "But I have a right here."

  "Indeed!"

  "Yes. The late Colonel Ruthven adopted me, and I am his son by law."

  "Bah! That will count for nothing if this Confederate surgeon can proveyou belong to him."

  "Well, he'll have to prove it first."

  "Of course you won't get out of this nest until you are pushed out,"blustered St. John. "It's too much of a soft thing for you. You ought tobe made to earn your own living."

  This remark made Jack's face grow crimson, and, striding up to St. John,he clenched his fists, at which the young man promptly retreated.

  "I am perfectly willing to work whenever called upon to do so," said ourhero. "But it is not for you to say what I shall do, remember that. Iknow why you wish to get me out of here."

  "Do you, indeed!"

  "I do, indeed, St. John Ruthven. You want to get hold of some of Mrs.Ruthven's property. If I was out of the way, you think she might leaveit all to Marion and to you."

  "Well, I have more of a right to it than you, if it comes to that."

  "But Marion has the best right, and I hope every dollar of it goes toher."

  "Well, that aint here or there. Are you going with your father or not?"

  "He must prove that he is my father first."

  "You won't take his word?"

  "No."

  "Why?"

  "Because I do not like the man," and our hero's face filled with suddenbitterness. What if Dr. Mackey should prove to be his parent, after all?How St. John would rejoice in his discomfiture!

  "I suppose this Dr. Mackey is a very common sort of man," continued thespendthrift, in an endeavor to add to our hero's misery.

  "What do you know about him?"

  "Nothing but what I heard at the village."

  "Is he down there now?"

  "Of course not. He went with our troops."

  Jack drew a sigh of relief. It was likely that the doctor would not showhimself in the neighborhood for some time to come, probably not untilthe Federal troops had departed.

  "I am going to talk to my aunt of this," said St. John suddenly, and,without another word to Jack, turned his steps toward the plantationhome.