Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-12-08
CHAPTER VIII.
Beaten If Not Betrayed.

-Four o'clock by the watch muttered
Wing to his senior subaltern, as the squad
ron halted and dismounted to rest the
horses and reset saddles, land we haven't
seen a spark CIR heard a sound. The town
IL hardly mile ahead" The lieutenant
nodded. but said no word He knew MS
captains capacity, but respected his pecu-
liarities. Wing liked to do the talking NM
self. Moreover, he was not in the best
humor. He had started on this expedition
full of lively anticipation. 1t was the mrs,
chance of really stirring service that mao
vet fallen to the lot of his squadron he
was chosen to lead a night march to Belle
view, and beyond If need be. and to cap.
ture If possible, certain officers or the stan
of General Buckner, sent from bo"ilh
Green to arouse the men of Casey, Iaylor
and Greene counties, as the doctor had
aroused those of Marion, and to locate
the rendezvous of several bands OF troopers
reported as riding to and fro 10 cent AZ
Kentucky, and doing no niue prose'y .ils
assured by the colonel commanding at
Bardstown that Belleview was at this illo-
ment entertaining three promlnefl, oliit 80
of the confederate army. one OF whom nau
come thither under the instruction OF Alpeit
Sidney Johnston himself, and that Dr. foil
was at home and keeping open mouse AGAIN
for Chrlstmastide, at least, safe' as ne SUP
posed behind the curtain OF the Haluii'
hills. SO Ill,
Wing had been furnished with a guloe
who knew the country by heart, VINO hao
been cast off by his family and connectioils'
mot because of the war. but previous ms
demeanors" said the colonel, ana Ilie
Young fellow is not unwilling to turn upon
those who had spurned him. WING s,ai , esu
with the highest hopes OF success any i1~
opinion of Holt. He had conceived IL 10 DC
a wise plan to let the young man Know ne
was not looked upon with favor. that ne
meant to hold him responsible II tnlhes
went amss. He had found his aversion 10
the young soldier waning as ne noted MS
quiet sad, dignified bearing. ne! ne n niaas o to
gun to believe there might be two Sides TO
this as to other stories, and still, had ne not
been warned by the colonel that tnere nas
reason to doubt the young man loyalty
had spoken his thinly yelled threat IN
moment of impulse and regretted 1t almost
before the words were off his tongue. IL
seemed to his inner and better self such
brutal thing, even in war time. 10 oully
man who could not hit back. Even in the
dark s he felt, though he could not see,
the pallor deepen on the young soldieI
face He could not fail to note the choke
in the utterance, the tremor IN the voice.
when at last Norman Holt found words
and his sense of burning -yrong and lnJus-
tice was given vent 1t was only by SUI
preme effort that he remembered the rlgor-
Gus teachings of three years at the Point,
and controlled his temper.
"As | have no idea of the object. Captain
Wing | shall not know whether 1t mas
failed or not But no threats are necessary.
Although no man in this army has been
more a sufferer than | for doing soldiers
duty yet ] shall continue to do It, With
that he turned away, leaving Wing to feel
the blood climbing to his weather-beaten
cheeks There was rebuke, deserved re-
buke in the soldiers tone, manner am
words. He spoke like a gentleman, and
Wing had spoken like a brute. He had
been threatened. and, without threatening.
had most effectively replied There was
more to this young fellow than Wing sup
posed and he was fairly silenced by the
unexpected response. And now, when he
would have liked to cultivate the youth and
draw him out as it were. and learn some
thing about the county and the people, he
found his guide silent, unresponsive, unfor-
giving
by the time o'clock came and the spire
of a church or two and the wooden cupola
of the inevitable court house could be dim
ly discerned against the southwark sky,
and the squadron dismounted to rest while
the captain, his guide and brace of troop
ers stole softly forward to recOnnoiter,
Wing was wishing he had bitten his tongue
before speaking So harshly to a man placed
as was this soldier son of a gallant, dis
unhappy state. Almost was he
that to some other squadron leader
had fallen the detail, for in answer to plain
question Holt had said he had reason to
know that his father had left Belleview
some weeks before, intending not to return.
He did not say that which for a moment
was trembling on his tongue-that If his
father were here the squadron would not be
until broad daylight. Back where the
men were resting by the roadside a cross
country track intersected the pike. Follow
that either eastward or westward a mile or
SO, and a southerly trending country road
could be found that would take the -om-
lhand clear around the once lively town and
enable it to enter Belleview, and 1t was
when they reached this cross road that the
guide had refined in and coolly said. "Is it
your wish to approach Belleview from the
east or west sir?"
at is my wish to surround it," said Wing
perhaps the west WON'T. be the better.
We could then cut off ybedy attempting
to gallop away toward Buckner's pickets"
Halted close to the northern skirts of the
town, with barns and farm buildings on
both sides of the pike. the four sat in the
saddle and listened.
(To be continued.)
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