The old impenetrable expression had dropped over his face with the words. And nobody knows why the sunshine grew dull and the birds’ songs dropped to busy twittering about unimportant things.
“Do you always tell it good-by?” Leigh asked, because she could think of nothing else to say.
“Not always, but this time it’s different. I’m so glad I found you. I should have gone down to Cloverdale, of course, if you hadn’t been here, but this saves time.”
A pink wave swept Leigh’s cheek, but she smiled a pleasant recognition of his thoughtfulness.
“I’ve come home to say good-by because I’m going to enlist in the first Kansas regiment that goes to Cuba to fight the Spaniards. And I must hurry back to Lawrence.”
“Oh, Thaine! What do you mean?”
Leigh’s face was very white.
“Be careful!”
Thaine caught her arm in time to save the light easel from being thrown over.
“Don’t look at me that way, Leigh. Don’t you know that President McKinley has declared war and has called 292 for one hundred and twenty-five thousand volunteers? Four or five thousand from old Kansas. Do you reckon we Jayhawkers will wait till one hundred and twenty thousand have enlisted and trail in on the last five thousand? It would be against all traditions of the rude forefathers of the Sunflower State.”