Peter B. Kyne

“ I towld him about Chick Fish.
“Very well,” sez he, “’tis the brave that know the brave.”
A week later Chick Fish was given back his commission, an’ sint back to furrin service. He serrved a year, wit’ honor, an’ then resigned. He’s a lawyer now, in New York, where he can fight to his heart’s contint without seein’ blood, an’ Jack Dempsey’s dead av the glanders, an’ me auld heart’s sore this night. Thank ye for walkin’ out wit’ me. Ochone, ochone. A man’s friends comes and they goes in the service—they comes an’ they goes. ”

“ We could make the move, an’ get there before the inimy knew what we were up to, an’ rush reënforcements to the rear; an’ with a hundhred an’ seventy men in the gap that B Throop can break in that wall, the divil a thousand amigos can sthand agin’ us. We could carry the infanthry to the edge av the town, an’ then break the way for them wit’ a pistol charrge. Is there a nag in the throop that can’t lep that wall, sergeant?” sez he.
“Sorra wan, sir,” sez I; “an’ if ye’d be afther sindin’ wurrd to the brigadier——”
“Would ye tackle them on the plan I’ve outlined, sergeant?” ”

“ The top av that wall fair spit fire at us.
“Off wit’ ye!” yells Chick Fish, givin’ his doughboy a dig in the ribs. An’ “Off wit’ ye!” yells the noncoms. An’ “Off wit’ ye!” yells the throopers. An’ off slid the doughboys, glad enough to do their fightin’ on foot, accordin’ to their nature an’ inclination.
“Dhraw pistols,” says Chick Fish, an’ our bugler bhoy sounded off. “Left wheel! Forward! Trot! Gallop!” as we come into the open. “Charrge!” an’ away we went, head an’ tail up, sthraight for the wall, wit’ the infanthry, yellin’ blue murder, trailin’ afther us like a pack av foxhounds. ”

“ The Loyal Ordher av Chick Fish’s Friends was intact, barrin’ a few scratches here an’ there, an’ when it was all over, says Con Donohue to me, sez he:
“Divil a wan av me knows whether Chick Fish is man, woman, or divil, but I’ll say this much: For a man that needs the protection av his friends—an’ Chick Fish needs it—I never rode behind a braver little man.” ”

“ Then our new throop commander—he was a slow-thinkin’ divil an’ I never liked him an’ never will—got next to the true sthate av affairs. If he was wild wit’ me for ordherin’ him off Jack Dempsey, he was wilder now at B Throop’s salute to a condimned coward.
“B Troop! Return—sabers!”
B Throop heard, but it did not heed. Who was this young blood that dared to give them ordhers in the presence av Chick Fish? The sabers stayed at salute, mine wit’ the rest av them. Not a man so much as moved an eyelash. ”

“ Chick Fish closes the door of me ordherly room, sets down, an’ looks his auld top cutter fair in the eye.
“Sergeant,” sez he, “I need a friend—an’ divil a friend have I at the officers’ mess. I’ve fed too long wit’ the line. We’ll be ordhered into Santa Cruz Province some time to-day, or I miss my guess, an’ there’ll be many a dirrty piece av wurrk around Laguna de Bay. How many times have ye been in action, sergeant?” ”

“ As he went, he turned his red head an’ winked at me, an’ sure ’twas the proud man he was to be friends wit’ Chick Fish.
A half hour later back comes Con, followed be a company av the Fourteenth, in command av a top sergeant, the company commander havin’ been winged be a sthray bullet on his way over. An’ who should be ridin’ wit’ Con but the brigadier and his staff, as pompous as a cockatoo.
“This is a darin’ plan av yours, Lootenant Fish,” sez he, “but this corporal av yours tells me he’s been within a stone’s throw av the wall in back, an’ ’tis held be—how many men did ye say, corporal?” ”

“ He took a long look at Jack Dempsey then at the led horses we had with the throop, an’ faith he was a judge av horseflesh, for, without a by your l’ave, or if ye plaze, he climbs aboord Jack Dempsey.
The airs av him angered me. Chick Fish had never sphoke to me as “me man;” an’ nayther does any other officer that’s a gintleman when he speaks to a top sergeant wit’ fifteen years av honorable service behind him, an’ the Auld Soldier’s Home in front. ”

“ I was ready to cry wit’ the thought av missin’ the sight av Jack Dempsey takin’ that wall wit’ Chick Fish.
“Out ye come, ye little Irish wild cat,” says a big doughboy, grabbin’ his horrse be the tail an’ twistin’ him around like he would a sheep. “Ye’ll fight respectably now, ye gossoon, on yer two feet, as Gawd intended ye should, not on a ramping, bone-rackin’ brute av a horrse.” ”

“ Fish, an’, since I was a private wanst meself, I think we may safely bank on the opinions av the men ye led over that wall at Santa Cruz, even if ye did flunk it at Muntinlupa. I think, Mr. Fish, that I have influence enough in Washington to have your case reopened. Ye may l’ave your address with me aid. I wish ye good luck an’ godspeed, sir, an’, if ye don’t mind, I’d like to shake the hand av a man that’s loved like B Throop loves you.”
An’ so we lost Chick Fish an’ I gained Jack Dempsey. The gineral was as good as his wurrd to Chick Fish. ”

“ He was siftin’ in a room be himself when I come in.
“How do ye do, Sergeant Ryan,” sez he, an’ shook hands wit’ me. He picked somethin’ off his desk. “Here is a little somethin’ for ye, sergeant,” sez he. “Congress voted it to ye at the last session for conspicuous gallanthry in action at a place called Muntinlupa,” an’ he pins on me blue blouse a medal av honor. “Be the way, sergeant,” sez he, “what kind av a man was that young officer, Fish, an’ what was behind that affair at Muntinlupa?” ”

“ Ye may think ’tis a risky matther goin’ into action undher a man that’s spint his life figurin’ intherest, but be the grace av Gawd an’ the cuteness av the commander in chief, our little man was saddled wit’ a regular arrmy windjammer wit' sinse enough to blow the right call when the brigadier give the wrong ordher—so we got along nicely, an’ the brigadier was as happy as could be, thinkin’ what a great sojer he was—but wasn’t. ”

“ The longest-living author of this work died in 1957, so this work is in the public domain in countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 66 years or less. This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works. ”

“ We’d just led the sthock off the cascos onto the stone quay, when the big quartermaster’s tug that carries the home-goin’ throops out to the transports in the fairway pulled in to the' dock ahead av us. ”