"
Harry's progress was rapid. A handsome figure and face, and an ingenuous
manner made him a favorite. After midnight he wandered into a room where
older men were smoking and talking. They were mostly officers, some of
high rank, one a general, and they talked of that which they could never
get wholly from their minds, the war. All knew Harry, and, as he wanted
fresh air, they gave him a place by a window which looked upon a small
court.
Harry was tired. In dancing he had been compelled to bring into play
muscles long unused, and he luxuriated in the cushioned chair, while the
pleasant night breeze blew upon him. They were discussing Lee's probable
plans to meet Meade, who would certainly follow him in time across
the Potomac. They spoke with weight and authority, because they were
experienced men who had been in many battles, and they were here on
furlough, most of them recovering from wounds.
Harry heard them, but their words were like the flowing of a river.
He paid no heed. They did not bring the war back to him. He was
thinking of the music and of the brilliant faces of the girls whom he
loved collectively. What that Lawrence girl had said was true. He was a
Virginian as well as a Kentuckian, and the Kentuckians and Virginians
were all one big family.
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