Why did you enlist in the regulars ?" "Largely because I liked soldiering, or thought I did.

I knew there would be plenty of fighting out here, and, I believed, advancement." "You mean to a commission ?" "Yes.

You see, I did not understand then the impossibility, the great gulf fixed.

I dreamed that good fortune might give me something to do worth while." "And fate has been unkind ?" "In a way, yes," and he laughed rather grimly.

"I had my chance--twice; honorable mention, and all that, but that ended it.
There is no bridge across the chasm.