“There has been a great mistake made,” he wrote back. “I am willing to do what is right, and both Mr. Bartlett and Lieutenant Pennington shall have all that is coming to them. I hope you will not make the whole affair public. If necessary, I will resign from the company.” And this he did; and other men, who were strictly honest, came to the head of the concern.
“We owe you a great deal, Lieutenant Pennington,” said Amos Bartlett one day, when Gilbert was calling at the home in Tien-Tsin. “You are a smart young man.”
“And a good soldier, too,” put in Mrs. Bartlett.
“Yes, and the best of it is that he is one of our American soldiers,” put in Jennie. “I believe all our American soldiers are brave.”
At this Gilbert felt compelled to smile. “If they are not, they ought to be,” he answered. “It’s an honor to fight for Uncle Sam.”
“It’s a pity Mr. Polk didn’t become a soldier,” observed Mrs. Bartlett.
“He has already told me that he is going to join the army just as soon as he is well enough,” answered Gilbert.
“I am glad to hear it,” came from Amos Bartlett. “It will probably be the making of him.”
Here let us draw to a close this tale of adventures in China. We have been with Gilbert during an exciting time in Manila, along on an interesting journey to Nagasaki and Taku; and we have followed the young lieutenant’s stirring adventures while the Boxers and Chinese troops were being driven first from Tien-Tsin, then from Peitsang, Ho-Si-Wu, and Tung-Chow, and lastly from Pekin and the Imperial City itself. He had had no easy time of it; and now, when Pekin was in the hands of the Allies, and the diplomats of the various nations were trying to arrange for permanent peace, he was perfectly willing to rest, and to attend to the personal affairs which had cropped up so unexpectedly. Many adventures were still in store for him, which will be related in another volume, entitled: “Under the Mikado’s Flag; or, Young Soldiers of Fortune.” In this tale we shall also meet many other old friends, including the Russell brothers and those faithful comrades in arms, Carl Stummer and Dan Casey.