The trail of blood showed me that his body had been carried out and probably thrown into the river. We could not perform his last request. BENITO. "A-a-a-hum!" "What's that?" was the waking remark made by Captain Randolph Sever, as he slowly turned over on his back to face the owner of the voice which had so dimly penetrated the dreamless slumber resulting from a twenty-four-hour tour on outpost duty. He struggled with his sleep-laden eyes and succeeded in opening one, with which he looked at the intruder, but, on recognizing the Colonel's orderly standing at his side, hastily arose to a sitting posture, and proceeded to rub open the other optic; meanwhile repeating his former question, but this time assuming a manner more in keeping with the dignity of his rank. "Sir, the Colonel presents his compliments, and asks the Captain to step over to regimental headquarters." Having delivered his message, he saluted and disappeared, leaving his weary superior to gather himself into a more military appearance as well as frame of mind. Sever looked at his watch and found that he had slept for just forty-eight minutes and fifteen seconds. He mentally berated the whole outfit. "Stepping over to regimental headquarters" meant a walk of a mile and a half through the relentless hot sun of a tropical country; for the dotting of an "i" or the crossing of a "t," which had carelessly been overlooked by both company commander and clerk. Then would follow the hair-splitting Colonel's permission to step back again. The --th Infantry, arriving at Manila late in the spring of 1899, had taken its turn at doing duty on the outskirts of the city, and was now participating in the nocturnal fights of the interior. It had been at San Fernando de Pampanga for a little more than a month and both officers and men showed the wear and tear of sleepless nights and tropical climate, which tested the hardihood of the stoutest constitution among them. With temper yet ruffled, Captain Sever retraced his steps to his bamboo hut. When he arrived there, he found three of his brother officers in possession. With that hearty and genial tone of good-fellowship which is only used and felt between men who have passed through hardships together, and know the true worth of each other, they greeted him. He confided to them the cause of his unusual exertion after a trying night on outpost duty, and wearily dropped himself onto some ammunition-boxes, which were serving the purpose of a chair. The talk naturally turned to the condition of affairs, but argument waned for lack of an opposing side--the unanimous opinion being that the "gugus" did not and never would know when they were "licked." Sever arose, walked over to a native bed, and began cleaning his revolver, occasionally glancing toward the enemy's lines. Finally he said: "Say, Parsons, I wish you would reach up in that cracker-box above your head and hand me my glasses."