Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1875-11-22
Written for the ORLEANS County MoxIroR.
A Story Of the Wooden
War.
CHAPTER I.-THE SPY.
BY wM. II. WHEELER.

es In the great forest which stretched
away to the northward from the Ver-
mont line. Wild, rough looking men
were the settlers, but. as the sequel will
show, there were warm hearts and strong
friendships beneath their coarse exteri-
ors. The town of Barnston was noted
far and wide as the headquarters of the
counterfeiting business, which was car
ried on very extensively; and to this
day old people will relate tales of thrill
ing interest from their own experience,
| in connection with this trade.
But to my story. Harry H. was a
wldely-known personage-a kind heart
ed. coarse, rough man, without an enc
my, and regarded by the people with a
feeling of combined love and respect for
his neighborly qualities and awe for his
supposed great power among the coun-
terfeiters, of whom he was popularity be-
lieved to be leader. A few of the
more superstitious believed him also to
possess supernatural attributes, and to
be in league with disembodied spirits.
He owned large tract of land. on
which there we're saw and grist mills,
a blacksmith shop, and there had also
been a carding and fulling mill, but it
had long been in disuse. The grist mill
was always at work, for -four and meal
we're not brought from the western prai-
ries by rail, in those days
Jake Midway, queer fellow" as
he was classed by the people. was tend
ing the saw mill, and seemed to be al.
ways on hand, day and night. When
he slept was mystery. and some verify
believed he never slept at all You
were as likely to hear the ringing of the
old upright saw under the strokes of
Jake's file at midnight as at midday.
This afternoon, tall. handsome young
man came walking briskly up the road,
with an old musket in his hand, stopped
and spoke few low words to Jake, to
which the latter replied, ''All right, >
and then passed on up the road, across
the bridge, and disappeared in the thick
woods on the left of the road He walk
ed briskly up the hill and soon struck a
path, following which, in few minutes
more he entered small opening of per.
haps dozen acres. This was part Of
Harry HIS farm, and in this opening
he had built a barn where was stored
the hay which grew in the clearing and
barn. clearing and all had come to b.
known as ''Harry's barn. Some hall
dozen men were there before him. al
armed-some with rifles, some with
guns and some with old ''kings' arms,
many of which, with their flint lock-
and great weight. had passed through
the rebellion and the war of 1912.
"Hello, Harrison, where's Rob % in
quired one of the party, as the new-cOm
er entered.
He'll be along soon. There he come
now, replied Harrison. as lad of no
more than II, emerged from the bushe
in another direction.
Men kept coming IN from all direc
tions, while those present amused them
selves in various ways; some firing a
targets, and otkers, in little groups, ca
geriy giving and receiving intelligene
from the different quarters from whicl
they had come, until there were som
fifty or sixty present of all ages, frou
the boy of ii to the old man of 60. al
: armed. but with as wide difference il
the style of their weapons as in thei
ages.
Suddenly, the shooting and the con
versation was hushed. as Harry himself
accompanied by Uncle Bill. an old whit
headed man, emerged from the woods
Harry was warmly greeted, evidentl
being the commanding officer of the paI
ty, and in few minutes the men wer
formed in military style. and he wa
putting them through the tactics. The
! had evidently been trained pretty vel
and Harry was good training officer.
, For some half an hour. Harry ha
been alternately giving the men instruC
D tiOns and putting them through the eve
lutions of military drill, when the lou
r clang of Jake Medway's file was hearC
: Two strokes. then a short silence, on
> stroke, another interval, and again tw
e strokes Harrison's quick ear took i
the sound. and he stepped up to Harr
and said, There is spy coming. an
! Jake has given the signal" In ten mil
!. utes Harry, Uncle Bill and two or thrt
other persons, whose presence wOul
T have been good ground for the govern
: ment for suspecting something mol
J than a mere turkey-shOOt. had disa
peared. dozen turkeys and a numb
e of chickens had been brought out Of Il
e barn by Rob. and the scene had entire
: changed into a turkey shoot. vel
!, popular pastime with the settlers
that day.
!! The cause Of the sounds from Jake
Is 6le. which had so suddenly changed q
) appearance Of the scene, can be quick
a explained. A stout-built manHin .
uniform of q BritisL officer, had ridd