"Keep right after Private Hooper, Sergeant. If he fails again to keep himself as a soldier should, report him to the first sergeant." Hooper's face burned darkly. Even honest Sergeant Hupner flushed. A shiftless soldier is a sore trial to the sergeant responsible for him. Now, at the brisk command, B Company moved off in column of fours. A long practice march followed. While out, the company was halted and drilled searchingly. It was a hard morning's work, B Company returning just in time for dinner. In the afternoon there was another drill. Parade wound up the day. On his return from parade Lieutenant Wright, the adjutant, found in his office mail a letter that caused him a good deal of astonishment. "Watch Private Overton, B. Company, if you want to find a man who knows a lot about the robbery the other night. He has been acting suspiciously, and I have it from a man in his squad room that Overton sometimes talks in his sleep in a way to show that either he was one of the robbers, or else that he knows who they are. "A FRIEND." CHAPTER XIX A SECRET COWARD IF any official notice was taken of that lying anonymous note the rascally writer thereof did not have the satisfaction of discovering it for some time to come. Duties in the battalion went on, as usual, at Fort Clowdry, the next day. Late in the afternoon, however, came a brief battalion drill, followed by the glorious spectacle of dress parade. After the regimental band had played the colors down the line, and the other ceremonies had been observed, Adjutant Wright took his post to publish the orders. These were few, and the reading did not occupy long. As the officer returned the papers to the breast of his coat the men expected to see him step back. Instead, however, the adjutant sharply called: "Battalion, attention! I am directed by the battalion commander to make an inquiry. Each man will pay close heed, and answer if he is able. Has any non-commissioned officer or private in this battalion heard, at any time lately, any man in the same squad room with him talk in his sleep in such a way as to indicate that the man talking in his sleep had any knowledge concerning the men who recently broke into and robbed the battalion commander's quarters? Any man having such knowledge will fall out." There was a tense silence, but the ranks of the first battalion remained intact. "If there is any non-commissioned officer or private who did not fully understand my question, he will fall out," continued the adjutant. Still no man fell out. "If the man who addressed the anonymous letter to the battalion adjutant is present he will step out," continued Lieutenant Wright. Still the ranks remained unbroken. Being at "attention," each man in the four companies was looking fixedly ahead. But curiosity was running wild under all those blue fatigue blouses!