And Sarah Jane Stark was as good as her word, and her breakfast was as good as her promises. The pleasant sight of it, and the fragrant odor of it, as they entered the dining-room, was something long to be remembered. When they were all seated she turned abruptly to the sergeant.
“What’s your name?” she asked.
“Anderson,” he replied, “Stanley B. Anderson.”
“Well, Sergeant Anderson, you ask a blessing.”
The young fellow flushed to the tips of his ears.
“I have never done such a thing,” he said. “I beg you will excuse me. At my home my mother always says grace. Will you not say it here?”
“Very well, I will. And I want you all to say ‘amen,’ every one of you.”
So they bowed their heads, and Sarah Jane Stark said:—
“O Lord, make us thankful for this food; confound the enemies of our country, and give us charity in our hearts for all men.”