Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1893-02-01
CHAPTER XVII.
SURPRISED.

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81 am the guest of that youn0 lady,"
The next morning Mark hearing a
tap at the door got out of bed and
opened it cautiously. AS was natural
under the circumstances, he saw danger
in everything that occurred. He half
expected to see through the slight open
ing he at first made the muzzle of re-
volver pointing directly at him. Hesaw
very different sight. 1t was large
tumbler, with q straw in it, on a silver
tray in the hands of negro.
"Mrs. Fain's compliments, sah," and
he handed Mark mint julep.
"Ah" exclaimed Mark, with intense
satisfaction.
"Present my compliments to your
mistress, and tell her | perceive with
pleasure that this noble Virginia Gus
tom has found its way into Tennessee,
as it has long ago into South Carolina. y
eyes, sah!'
"There are alleviating circumstances
even in the life of spy" said Mark,
contemplating the beverage, uncertain
as that life is. Why will man not al
ways be philosopher? Here | am in a
beautifully furnished room; have been
sleeping between the whitest linen, on
the softest of beds. arise and behold
this delicate attention on the part Of my
hostess, who, if she should know who l
am, would bring a dozen bayonets to
hedge me in, and I should be waving in
the soft summer breeze at the end Of a
hemp cord in twelve hours. But she
does not knt who l am, and, consid-
cred philosophically, am Mr.. Rhett, Of
South Carolina, and in clover. Here's to
Private Mark Malone, poor devil!"
However, Mark desired to keep his
head cool, considering the circumstances,
and contented himself with few swal-
lows of the julep, and after completing
his toilet joined the ladies at the break
fast table. He praised Mrs. Fain's fried
chicken and light biscuit and corn
bread, and was about to give the coffee
few words of encomium when, tast-
ing it beforehand, he discovered the pre-
vailing chicory. So he entered upon
TRADE against the blockade, and ended
by hoping that Abe Lincoln would at
last be hanged higher than Haman, a
reference that gave him a disagreeable
sensation about the neck and caused
Laura's bosom to heave tumultuously.
The comforts surrounding Mark, the
kindness of his hostess, and above all
the presence Of a girl whose bosom
seemed to contain such volcanic forces
as would best harmonize with one
whose chief object in life seemed to be
to get himself hanged, conspired to make
him feel safety that he should not have
felt under the circumstances. He had
been campaigning for year, during
which period he had experienced no
greater comfort than Mcclellan sad
die, and the women of the country
through which he had passed had not
received him with any marked evidences
of pleasure. Is it to be wondered that
he felt approximate content-if one can
feel content whose neck is in halter
in the Fain manor house?
But Mark had something else on his
mind which he knew was of more i'm
portance than his own safety, though
its value, if he should possess it, would
be dependent on that safety. He wanted
some indication of where the enemy
would strike. He was not SO foolhardy
as to think of going back to Chattanooga
himself, but ne resolved to send mes
senger. If he could lind some one to go
to town that day, the latest news could
be brought him in the evening. Then
he would assume disguise and be off in
the night.
After breakfast he took his pipe and
went out to smoke in the yard. He
sauntered around to the barn and found
Daniel at work upon the horses.
"Daniel," he said, good morning"
"Mornen, sah," said Daniel, eying him
suspiciously.
"Nice lot of stock you have here, Dan
iel."
eS, san; une SIOCR.
"And see you take good care of them.
That pony shines as if his coat had been
oiled"
dat Missie Laurie pony, sah."
"Ah! It's fine animal. And is that
her phaeton5'
eyes, sah.'
Mark was standing very near Daniel,
and suddenly turned and looked him i'll
the eye, knowingly.
"Daniel," said he, "are you all right on
the cause of freedom?"
"Reckon l air, sah."
Suppose you had chance to favor
that cause, the cause which if it tri-
umphs will make all darkies free, would
you do it!'
"Reckon I would, sah."
"Well, suppose Union man were to
ask you to-
"Yo' counterance air berry faliliar to
me, sah."
"Do look like Mr. Slack"
"God bress the Lo'd! wonder if yo'
air Mr.. Slack
"Or the colored girl who came here
the other night" Mark asked in low,
confidential tone.
"Fo' de Lod!''
Never mind who 1 am, Daniel. I'm
q Union man. Now want You to go
into Chattanooga and learn all you can
of the latest army news. Don't trust
your own eyes, but ask people what's
going on. l want to know if troops are
leaving Chattanooga, and if SO, where
they are going. Here are ten dollars.
Buy some things for the old woman and
the children, and ask questions other
people mean, not me-"
"Trus' me fur dat" said the old man,
and going to the stable he began to har-
ness horse to the family wagon.
When Mark finished smoking he went
into the house. He passed into the IL
brary, where he found Laura. She
seemed to feel easier than when Mark
had been up stairs, but she was in con-
tinual dread. Mark asked her to sit OH
g. sofa facing one window while he sat
facing another. "Then We'll have the
position entiladed," he said.
Laura did not understand what that
meant, but she did as he desired.
They sat thus without suffering the
watch to relax during three delightful
hours-delightful notwithstanding the