The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1898-03-08
CHAPTER III.

CHAPTER III.
Over in front Of the barn three troop
ers sat talking comfortably. Their car
bines were leaned against the wall. At
their side and outlined in the black of
the open door stood n sentry, his weap-
on resting in the hollow of his arm
-Four horses saddled and accoutered were
comforting with their heads together
The four bride reins were flung over a
post
Mary had intended to 60 and tell the
commander i'll blue that her mother did
not wish his men to use the barn at all
but She paused when she heard him
speak to the sergeant. She thought she
perceived then that it mattercd little to
him what her mother wished and that
an objection by her or by anybody
would be futile. She saw tho soldiers
conduct the prisoner in gray into tho
barn, and for long time she watched
three chatting guards and tho pondering
sentry Upon her mind in desolato
weight was tho recollection of tho three
men in the feed box.
1t seemed to her that in a case of this
description it was her duty to be o hero
inc. Plainly n heroine would take meas
ures to rescue tho four men. If she did
not at least make an attempt she would
be false to those carefully constructed
ideals which were the accumulation Of
years and dreaming.
But the situation puzzled her. There
was the barn with only ono door and
with four armed troopers in front of
this door, one Of them with his back to
the rest of the world engaged no doubt
In steadfast contemplation of the calm
man and incidentally of tho feed box.
She knew, too, that even if she should
open t..o hIl> ..un uour ln.> 49,, ...u
perhaps four would turn casually in her
direction. Their ears were real ears.
One by one she saw the gorgeous con-
trivances and expedients of fiction fall
before the plain homoly difficulties of
this situation. Sadly, ruefully, she
thought of the calm man and of the con.
tents of the feed box
The sum Of her invention was that
she could sally forth to the commander
of the blue cavalry, and, confessing to
him that there were three of her friends
and his enemies secreted i'll the feed box,
pray him to let them depart unmolest.
ed. But she was beginning to believe
tho old graybeard to be bear 1t was
hardly probable that he would give this
plan his support. 1t was more probable
that he and some of his men would at
once descend upon the feed box and con
fiscate her three friends. Tho difficulty
with her idea was that she could not
learn its value without trying it, and
then in case Of failure it would be too
late for remedies and other plans. She
reflected that war made men very un-
reasonable.
All she could do was to stand at the
window and mournfully regard the
barn. She admitted this to herself with
a sense Of deep humiliation. She was
not then made of that fine stuff that
mental satin, which enabled some other
beings to be Of such mighty service to
the distressed. She was defeated by a
barn with one door, by four men with
eight eyes and eight ars-trivialitios
that would not impede the real hero.
ine
The vivid white light Of the broad
day began slowly to fade Tones Of
gray came upon the fields and the
shadows were of lead. In this moro
somber atmosphere the FIXES built by
the troops down in the far end of tb o
orchard grew moro brilliant becoming
spots OF crimson color in the dark grove
The girl sat In the new gloom of til 0
kitchen and watched. The soldiers lit a
lantern and hung it in tho barn. It's
rays made the form Of tho sentry seem
gigantic. Horses whinnied from the or.
chard. There was low hum of human
yOices Sometimes small dotochnonte q
of troopers rode past the front Of the
house. The girl heard the abrupt calls
of the sentries. She fetched some food
and ate 1t from her hand, standing by
the window. She was SO afraid that
something would occur that she barely
left her post for an instant
Once she felt that she had made her
mind to reconnoiter at any rate. 1t was
night. The lantern at the barn and the
campfires made everything without
their circles into masses Of heavy mys-
fio blackness. She took two steps to-
ward the door, but there she paused
Innumerable possibilities of danger had
assailed her mind. She returned to the
window and stood wavering. At last
she went swiftly to the door. opened it
and slid noiselessly into the darkness
For moment she regarded the shad-
ows Down in the orchard the camp
fires Of the troops appeared precisely
likd great painting, ali in reds upon a
blabk cloth. The voices Of the troopers
still huramed. The girl started slowly
J OFF the opposite direction. Her eyes
.sRsg ixaa "a q steTes sbe studied the