One afternoon toward the end of Ralph’s stay a letter was handed to him. “Hello!” he exclaimed, “here’s a letter from Himski.” A moment later he gave a joyful shout. “Hurrah for you, Tom!” he cried. “You’ve got four stripes. Himski has senior three and adjutant. The other three stripers are Warren, Streeter, and, hello! Billy Bacon gets three—now who’d ever suppose Billy would get anything—and Taylor also. Creelton only gets a buzzard—I’m glad of that; I hope he won’t be in my division; I’d hate to be in his company on any terms.”
Bollup listened with happy eagerness.
“Hooray!” he cried. “Four stripes, by Jiminy, that’s glorious. I’ll have a bully good battalion this coming year; and Himski is to be my adjutant, is he? Well, isn’t that fine? By George, I never was so happy in my life!”
And Bollup looked it. It was indeed an honor that had come to him. “Just watch me next year,” he joyfully cried. “I’ll get a good feed every Sunday at some officer’s house; it will be Mr. Bollup this and Mr. Bollup that from October first till I graduate. The commandant will call me in and invoke my aid to steer the battalion right and I’ll help the old boy so long as he doesn’t spoil any of my fun. Gee whiz, I’m going to have a good time this last year; you can put that statement down in the ship’s log.”
“What does four stripes mean, Thomas?” inquired Colonel Bollup with great interest.
“Four stripes?” repeated Bollup. “Why, it means that your hopeful son is cadet lieutenant-commander, the boss of the ranch, the highest thing a midshipman ever gets to be. That’s what it means, dad.”
“Indeed!” exclaimed the colonel, full of delight; “now in honor of this great event suppose I mix up a real Virginia——”
“Ralph, what did they give you?” interrupted Gladys. “I’m sure if Tom gets four stripes you ought to get six.”
Ralph laughed joyfully. “Thank you, Gladys,” he replied; “I got a clean sleeve, which is more than I deserve. I’m happy enough to have that.”
“Why, your sleeves are never dirty,” remarked Dorothy, thinking she ought to show an intelligent interest in the talk that so absorbed them all; “why, I’ve heard mamma say you’re one of the neatest young men she ever knew.”