136 WHIP AND SPUR. 



their wearing hats (mine wore caps). The order 

 was peremptory, and was to be enforced even at 

 the cost of cutting the offenders down. Grier- 

 son's adjutant was at my side ; we were all 

 sleeping more or less of the time, but constantly 

 some hatted straggler was detected pushing 

 toward the front, and ordered back, — the ad- 

 jutant being especially sharp-eyed in detecting 

 the mutilated sugar-loaves through the gloom. 

 Finally, close to my right and pushing slowly 

 to the front, in a long-strided walk, came a gray 

 horse with a hatted rider, — an india-rubber pon- 

 cho covering his uniform. I ordered him back ; 

 the adjutant, eager for the enforcement of the 

 order, remonstrated at the man's disobedience; 

 I ordered again, but without result ; the adju- 

 tant ejaculated, " Damn him, cut him down ! " 

 I drew my sabre and laid its flat in one long, 



stinging welt across that black poncho : " ! 



who are you hitting 1 ?" Then we both remem- 

 bered that Grierson too wore a hat; and I ten- 

 der him here my public acknowledgment of a 

 good-nature so great that an evening reunion in 



