cap by way of salute. Then another horseman, after some delay, detached himself from the ranks, joined the big Irishman, and the two came up the avenue together. Mrs. Kilpatrick, by an instinct rather than an impulse of hospitality, prepared to go to the door to receive them, pausing in Jack's room to see that everything was ship-shape. As the two came up the broad, high steps, and delayed a moment on the veranda to remove their waterproofs, Flora, peeping from behind the red curtains in the parlor, saw that the surgeon was both young and stalwart. His brown hair was cut short, and the fierce curl of his mustache was relieved by a pair of gold spectacles, that gave a benign and somewhat ministerial air to features that were otherwise firm and soldier-like. He was not as tall as the Irishman,—few men in all that army were,—but he bore himself more easily and gracefully.
When O'Halloran knocked at the door, Mrs. Kilpatrick opened it without a moment's delay.
"'T is the surgeon, mum, to see the captain."
"Good morning, madam. Dr. Pruden.
