licking, you do; and if you were in the 15th, you'd get it pretty
quickly."

"Oh! I beg your pardon," Tom said gravely; "I did not know that the
15th were famous for thrashing boys. Thank you; when I enlist it shall
be in a regiment where men hit fellows their own size."

There was a shout of laughter, and the sergeant, enraged, stepped
forward, and gave Tom a swinging box on the ear.

There was a cry of "shame" from the others; but before any of them
could interfere, Tom suddenly stooped, caught the sergeant by the
bottom of the trousers, and in an instant he fell on his back with a
crash.

For a moment he was slightly stunned, and then, regaining his feet, he
was about to rush at Tom, when the others threw themselves in between
them, and said he should not touch the boy. He struck him first, and
the boy had only given him what served him right.

The sergeant was furious, and an angry quarrel was going on, when an
officer of the Rangers came suddenly out of barrack.

"Hullo, Summers, what is all this about? I am surprised at you. A lot
of non-commissioned officers, just in front of the barrack gates,
quarreling like drunken sailors in a pothouse. What does it all mean?"

"The fact is this, Captain Manley," the sergeant said, saluting,
"these two lads came up to speak to me, when Sergeant Billow chaffed
them. The lad gave the sergeant as good as he got, and the sergeant