And
where did you leave Miss Hannay?"
"We have not left her at all," the Doctor said gravely; "there is
no longer a Miss Hannay. There, man, don't look so shocked. She
changed her name on the morning we came away."
"What!" Wilson exclaimed. "Is she Mrs. Bathurst? I am glad, Bathurst.
Shake hands again; I felt sure that if you did rescue her that
was what would come of it. I was almost certain by her way when I
talked to her about you one day that she liked you. I was awfully
spoony on her myself, you know, but I knew it was no use, and I
would rather by a lot that she married you than anyone else I know.
But come along into my tent; you know your troop and ours are going
to be joined. We have lost pretty near half our fellows, either in
the fights coming up or by sunstroke or fever since we came here.
I got hold of some fizz in the bazaar yesterday, and I am sure you
must be thirsty. This is a splendid business; I don't know that I
ever felt so glad of anything in my life," and he dragged them away
to his tent.
Bathurst found, to his disappointment, that intense as was the
desire to push forward to Lucknow, the general opinion was that the
General would not venture to risk his little force in an operation
that, with the means at his disposal, seemed well nigh impossible.
Cholera had made considerable ravages, and he had but fifteen
hundred bayonets at his disposal. All that could be done pending
the arrival of reinforcements was to prepare the way for an advance,
and show so bold a front that the enemy would be forced to draw a
large force from Lucknow to oppose his advance.
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