“I’ve been thinking about joining,” responded Hal. “I’m eighteen now, and I suppose I could get in. I think father would have liked me to be a member.”
“Of course he would. You must apply for admission to the company at once. What about you, Ben?” turning to the other boy.
“Oh, my application’s already in,” replied Ben. “I believe in the military life. It’s splendid discipline for any fellow. Besides, when my country needs soldiers I want to be prepared to fight.”
“Good! That’s the talk!” She clapped her hands again. “Now go to it, Hal. See who gets a commission first, you or Ben. I’ll tell you what I want,” she continued; “I want to see Halpert McCormack captain of Company E, as his father was before him, and Benjamin Barriscale its first lieutenant.”
“Suppose the order of rank should be reversed?” inquired Hal, laughingly.
“It wouldn’t hurt my feelings a great lot,” she retorted. “It’s only because ‘blood is thicker than water,’ and because you’re my only sister’s son, that I want you to be the ranking officer; but if you don’t deserve the honor I hope to goodness you won’t get it!” She consulted her watch and continued: “Well, I must be off. I’ll leave you boys to see that that flag is properly raised. Good-bye, both of you!”
She gave hurried directions to her driver, the car moved forward, and, with a final wave of her hand, she disappeared up the street down which she had so recently come.
The procession had passed by, the soldiers were standing at the foot of the staff at “parade rest,” and the band had already begun to play the opening number of the programme when the two boys, pushing their way through the crowd, reached more nearly the center of activity. Following the music there came an invocation by a local clergyman and a brief address by the mayor. Then the young girls, dressed in white, charged with the duty of actually raising the flag, came forward to perform their patriotic task. Assisted by the chairman of the flag committee, they fastened the colors securely to the halyards and awaited the order to begin hoisting. The company bugler sounded to the color, and the band struck into the first chord of The Star-Spangled Banner. Some one shouted: “Hats off!” and immediately the hat or cap of every man and boy in the assemblage came from his head, the hat or cap of every man and boy save one. Immediately back of Ben and Hal stood a black-haired, dark-eyed young man, apparently of foreign birth or descent. His hat did not come off. He was fairly well dressed, he bore marks of intelligence if not of culture, and there appeared to be no reason why he should not join the rest of the company in doing honor to the national anthem and the national flag. Moreover, from his easy manner and confident look, it soon became apparent that he acted, or failed to act, not from ignorance or inadvertence, but from deliberate choice.
“Take off your hat!” said a man standing beside him.