True to the Old Flag Part 17

Now, then, who sent you?"

"My ma.s.sa," the negro answered.

"And who is your master?"

The negro was again silent, but as, at a nod from Peter, the men again raised the ramrods, he blurted out:

"Ma.s.sa Chermside."

The name was known to many of the scouts, and a cry of anger broke from them.

"I thought as much," Harvey said. "I suspected that scoundrel was at the bottom of it all along. Where is he?" he asked the negro.

"Me not know, sar."

"You mean you won't say," Peter said. "Try the vartue of them ramrods again."

"No, no!" the negro screamed. "Me swear me do not know where him be. You may burn me to death if you will, but I could not tell you."

"I think he is speaking the truth," Harvey said. "Wait a minute. Have you done this before?" he asked the negro.

"Yes, sar. Eight or ten times me swim de river at night."

"With messages to the Americans?"

"Yes, sar; messages to American officers."

"Have you any written message--any letter?"

"No, sar, me never take no letter. Me only carry dis." And he took out from his hair a tiny ball of paper smaller than a pea.

It was smoothed out, and upon it, were the words, "General Washington."

"Where I go, sar, I show dem dis, and dey know den dat de message can be believed."

"But how do you get the message? How do you see your master?"

"Master's orders were dat me and two oders were to meet him ebery night, after it got dark, at a tree a mile from de place where de soldiers are.

Sometimes he no come. When he come he gibs each of us a piece of money and tell us to carry a message across the river. We start by different ways, swim across de water in different places, take de message, and come back to de plantation."

"A pretty business!" Peter said. "Now you must come back with us to the post and tell your story to the commanding officer. Then we must see if we can't lay hands on this rascally master of yours."

Upon the news being told, the general in command sent a party out, who, after searching the house and out-buildings of the plantation in vain, set fire to them and burned them to the ground. The negroes were all carried away and employed to labor for the army. The town and all the surrounding villages were searched, but no trace could be obtained of the missing man. One of the men of Gregory's corps of scouts disappeared. He had recently joined, but his appearance, as a man with beard and whiskers, in no way agreed with that of the planter. He might, however, have been disguised, and his disappearance was in itself no proof against him, for the scouts were under no great discipline, and when tired of the service often left without giving notice of their intention of doing so. It was, moreover, possible that he might have fallen by an enemy's bullet.

The strongest proof in favor of the deserter being Chermside was that, henceforth, the scouts were again as successful as before, often surprising the enemy successfully.

Now that the ford nearest Mr. Jackson's was strongly guarded, the young men had no apprehension of any surprise, although such an event was just possible, as the cavalry on both sides often made great circuits in their raids upon each other's country. That Chermside was somewhere in the neighborhood they believed; having, indeed, strong reason for doing so, as a rifle was one evening fired at them from the wood as they rode over, the ball pa.s.sing between their heads. Pursuit, at the time, was impossible. But the next day a number of scouts searched the woods without success. Soon after they heard that Chermside had joined the Americans and obtained a commission in a body of their irregular horse.

Harvey was now formally engaged to Isabelle Jackson, and it was settled that the wedding should take place in the early spring at New York. When not on duty he naturally spent a good deal of his time there, and Harold was frequently with him. Since he had been fired at in the woods Isabelle had been in the highest state of nervous anxiety lest her lover's enemy should again try to a.s.sa.s.sinate him, and she begged Harold always to come over with him, if possible, as the thought of his riding alone through the wood filled her with anxiety.

Although he had no order to do so, Jake, whenever he saw Harold and his friend canter off toward the Jacksons, shouldered his rifle and went out after them to the house, where, so long as they stayed, he scouted round and round with the utmost vigilance. Very often Harold was ignorant of his presence there; but when, after his return, he found, by questioning him, how he had been employed, he remonstrated with him on such excessive precaution.

"Can't be too cautious, ma.s.sa," Jake said. "You see dat fellow come one of dese days."

Jake's presentiment turned out correct. One evening when, with several friends, the young men were at Mr. Jackson's the sound of the report of a rifle was heard at a short distance.

"That must be Jake's rifle!" Harold exclaimed.

"Quick, Harvey, to your horse!"

It was too late. As they reached the door a strong party of American cavalry dashed up to it.

"Surround the house!" an officer shouted. "Do not let a soul escape!"

The young men ran upstairs again.

"We are caught," Harvey said. "Escape is cut off. The Yankee cavalry are all round the house. Good-by, Isabelle. We shall meet one of these days again, dear." The girl threw herself into his arms.

"Be calm, love!" he said. "Do not let this scoundrel have the satisfaction of triumphing over you."

A moment later Chermside, accompanied by several soldiers, entered the room.

"I am sorry to disturb so pleasant a party," he said in a sneering voice, "but if Americans choose to entertain the enemies of their country they must expect these little disagreeables."

Mr. Jackson abruptly turned his back upon him, and no one else spoke, although he was personally well known to all.

"These are the two men," he said to the soldiers--"two of the most notorious scouts and spies on the frontier. We will take them to headquarters, where a short shrift and two strong ropes will be their lot."

"The less the word spy is in the mouth of such a pitiful traitor as yourself the better, I should say," Harvey said quietly; and, walking forward with Harold, he placed himself in the hands of the soldiers.

No one else spoke. Isabelle had fainted when she heard the threat of execution against her lover. Ada stood before her with a look of such anger and contempt on her young face that Chermside fairly winced under it.

"To horse!" he said sullenly, and, turning, followed his men and prisoners downstairs.

The troop, Harold saw, numbered some 200 sabers. They had with them a number of riderless horses, whose accouterments showed that they belonged to an English regiment; most of the men, too, had sacks of plunder upon their horses. They had evidently made a successful raid, and had probably attacked a post and surprised and driven off the horses of a squadron of cavalry, and were now on their return toward their lines.

"This is an awkward business, Harold," Harvey said as, in the midst of their captors, they galloped off from the Jacksons'. "Of course it's all nonsense about our being hung. Still, I have no wish to see the inside of a prison, where we may pa.s.s years before we are exchanged. Once handed over to the authorities we shall be safe; but I shall not feel that we are out of danger so long as we are in this scoundrel's hands. Fortunately there are officers of superior rank to himself with the squadron, otherwise I have no doubt at all that he would hang us at once."

Such was indeed the case, and Chermside was, at that moment, fuming intensely at the chance which had thrown his rival in his hands at a time when he was powerless to carry out his vengeance. He had, indeed, ventured to suggest that it would be less trouble to hang the prisoners at once, but the major in command had so strongly rebuked him for the suggestion that he had at once been silenced.

"I blush that I should have heard such words from the mouth of an American officer. It is by such deeds, sir, that our cause is too often disgraced. We are soldiers fighting for the independence of our country--not lawless marauders. Had these men been taken in their civilian dress over on our side of the river they would have been tried and hung as spies; but they were on neutral ground, and, in fact, in the rear of their own posts. There is no shadow of defense for such an accusation. Should I ever hear a similar suggestion I shall at once report your conduct to General Washington, who will know how to deal with you."

"I wonder what has become of Jake," Harold said to his comrade. "I trust he was not shot down."

"Not he," Harvey said. "He made off after firing his rifle, you may be sure, when he saw that there was nothing to be done. The fellow can run like a hare, and I have no doubt that, by this time, he has either got back to the village and given the alarm there or has made for the ford.

There are 100 cavalry there now as well as the infantry. Jake will be there in an hour from the time he started. The dragoons will be in the saddle five minutes later, and it is just possible they may cut off our retreat before we have crossed the river. Peter is on duty there, and, if he happens to be at the post when Jake arrives, he will hurry up with all the scouts he can collect."

Jake had taken flight as Harvey supposed. He had, after firing his rifle, taken to the wood, and had remained near the house long enough to see which way the cavalry rode when they started. Then he made for the post at the ford at the top of his speed. It was less than an hour from starting when he arrived there, and three minutes later the cavalry trumpets were blowing "To horse!" After giving his message to the officer in command Jake went into the village, where the sounds of the trumpet brought all the soldiers into the street.