Looking him straight in the eye—for I was riled by his savage manner—I answered, resentfully and boldly:
"I don't know whether I did or not. I've seen so many fellows like you around town that I've not minded them much."
For the moment my defiant manner served to give me the advantage, and the fellow was so badly stumped that he couldn't answer at once, but turning to his friend and companion, Williams, whom he had brought along as a witness to prove to the boys that he was right in his assertion of my having insulted him, he said:
"Bill, ain't he the fellow?"
Whether it was a disposition on the part of Bill to prevent any outbreak (a crowd was collecting), he mildly answered:
"Well, it looks mighty much like him, but you know we might be mistaken," and, turning to me, said, politely:
"My friend felt sure you were the man we met that night, but, as I had never seen you at home, and it was so dark and crowded there, I can't be certain myself."
At this stage, while I had become too much excited to talk coolly, my friends stepped in and interfered in my behalf, and Bill and Jim walked off with their friends, the latter muttering threats of vengeance.
The little ruffle on the surface, which looked like a "difficulty" on this quiet Sunday evening, created quite a commotion about the quarters. All know how quickly a fight will gather a crowd in camp, and how soon the officers become aware of it.
The serious part of this threatened fight was in the fact, that it served to call general attention to me individually—would bring to the scene not only the officer of the day, but other officers of the regiment, who had been attracted by the gathering crowd.