Young Ole Devil by J.T. Edson

personalities between the leaders of his
various regiments. ‘Will you ask him to come in, Jim?’
    ‘ Sure,’ Bowie answered, coming to his feet and crossing the
room.
    Despite knowing that he had
successfully completed a difficult and dangerous scouting mission,
delivering much useful information about the Mexican army’s strength and
progress, Ole Devil Hardin felt distinctly uneasy when Bowie opened
the door of the study and passed on the General’s
summons.
    Colonel Travis had been
anything but pleased by the discovery that Hardin and his cousin,
Mannen Blaze, had become involved in a second brawl and had
rendered more members of the Republic of Texas ’ army unfit for duty. Nor had
he been in any mood to listen to explanations, particularly when he
had learned what had brought Tommy Okasi to the livery barn.;
Instead, Travis had suggested icily that the cousins would be
advised to pay greater attention to their military duties and
should reserve any further inclination for fighting for use against
the Mexicans. Accepting the comments without argument, and not
permitting Blaze—who was seething with indignation over what he
regarded as Travis’ unjust treatment—to speak up in his defense,
Hardin had once again tidied himself up ready to report to
Houston.
    On Hardin ’s arrival at headquarters, he
had been told that the General could not see him straight away. A
messenger had brought in dispatches of considerable importance
which required Houston’s immediate attention. Before hurrying away,
the General’s aide—a harassed-looking young captain—requested that
Hardin should remain in the hall until he was sent for. Returning
with Bowie and Travis, the aide had taken them into the office.
Taking note of Travis’s cold scowl as he went by, Hardin could
guess at the report which would be made regarding his activities.
So he had misgivings when he was finally called in by
Bowie.
    Little of
Hardin ’s
perturbation showed as he went by Bowie, into the room and came
under the scrutiny of the two senior officers. However, he was not
as composed as he forced himself to appear. In fact, by the time he
came to a halt in front of the desk he felt downright ill-at-ease, even
though he was managing to conceal it. Standing at a stiff military
brace which Travis would probably have approved of under other
circumstances, he looked straight ahead. For all that he was
conscious of Houston studying his bruised left cheek and swollen
top lip.
    After what seemed to the young
man to be a very long time, Houston said in flat tones which told
little of his feelings. ‘I hear you’ve been in trouble this afternoon,
Captain Hardin.’
    ‘ Yes,
sir,’ Hardin answered, allowing his gaze to drop to the speaker’s
tanned and expressionless face.
    ‘ On two occasions,’ Houston went on, still giving no indication of
how he felt about such conduct.
    ‘ Yes,
sir,’ Hardin agreed.
    ‘ Do
you make a habit of picking fights?’ Houston inquired.
    ‘ When
it’s necessary, sir,’ Hardin replied respectfully.
    ‘ And
you considered that it was necessary this afternoon?’
    ‘ Yes,
sir.’
    ‘ Why?’
Houston asked, glancing from Travis to Bowie who had returned and
was standing alongside the straight-backed young man. ‘You’re at
ease, captain.’
    Relaxing slightly, Hardin
explained how he had found the Chicano boy at the livery barn. Learning who had administered
the beating and why, he had made his way to the cantina to investigate. Before going
in, he had listened to the agitator answering questions and had
taken notice of who was asking them.
    Recognizing the threat to
Houston ’s
military strategy, Hardin had decided to intervene. However, he had
known that to attempt anything in his official capacity would avail
him nothing. Enlisted men in the Republic of Texas’s army, being
volunteers, were generally not so well disciplined that they would
obey orders given by an officer who did not belong to their own
respective