Corporal Hyman turned, with a grinning face, toward the men. But none of them were looking that way at the moment. Every other man in the room appeared interested in some other subject than the new sergeant.
"Go for 'em," muttered Hyman grimly under his breath. "It's a shame for you to have to stand for this sort of thing, kid! Pound 'em into shape. Make 'em stand around for you."
"I will, in matters of discipline and routine, whenever necessary," Sergeant Hal answered, in an equally low voice. "But if the men don't care for me personally that's another matter. I'll never persecute any soldier just because he doesn't like me."
"It's all that cursed misunderstanding over 'Long Green,'" muttered Corporal Hyman. "Of course you can't very well make a yell about it, but I see several fights on my hands from right now on, until I've gotten these buck doughboys licked into a proper appreciation of the new boss of their squad room."
"Don't have any fights on my account, Hyman," urged Sergeant Hal.
"Well, I won't, then," came the dry retort. "I'll have a few good fights on my own account, then, for it's a personal grievance when the men turn down a man that I like."
The conversation was interrupted, at that moment, by the in-coming of First Sergeant Gray.
"I'm glad over your rise, Overton," beamed the first sergeant. "And it has come quickly. I'm here to warn you for guard duty. You'll report at guard mount to-morrow morning as sergeant of the guard."
"That does come rather speedily, doesn't it?" laughed Hal. "Who is to be officer of the day to-morrow?"