Social problems -- Fiction; War stories; World War, 1914-1918 -- Fiction
They made certain that Jimmie had no weapons, and then they made him
strip to the skin. They searched everything, even prying loose the
soles of his boots; and, of course, one of the first things they
found was the red card in the inside jacket-pocket. “Aha!” cried the
lieutenant.
“That's a card of the Socialist party,” said Jimmie.
“Don't you know that back home men who carry that card are being
sent to jail for twenty years?”
“It ain't fer carryin' the card,” said Jimmie, sturdily.
There was a pause, while Jimmie got his clothes on again. “Now,
Higgins,” said the lieutenant, “you have been caught red-handed in
treason against your country and its flag. The penalty is death.
There is just one way you can escape--by making a clean breast of
everything. Do you understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Then tell me who gave you those leaflets?”
“I'm sorry, sir, I found them in the gutter.”
“You intend to stick to that silly tale?”
“It's the truth, sir.”
“You will protect your fellow-conspirators with your life?”
“I have told you all I know, sir.”
“All right,” said the lieutenant. He took a pair of handcuffs from
the drawer and saw them put on Jimmie. He picked up his sword and
his automatic--and Jimmie, who did not understand military
procedure, stared with fright. But the lieutenant was merely
intending to strap the weapons on to his belt; then he got into his
overcoat and his big fur gloves and his fur hat that covered
everything but his eyes and nose, and ordered Jimmie brought along.
Outside an automobile was waiting, and the officer and the prisoner
and two guards rode to the military jail.
IV
There was terror in the soul of the prisoner, but he did not let
anyone see it. And in the same way Lieutenant Gannet did not let
anyone see the perplexity that was in his soul. He was a military
officer, he had his stern military duty to do, and he was doing it;
but he had never put anybody in handcuffs before, and had never
taken anybody to jail before, and he was almost as much upset about
it as the prisoner.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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