The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-12-02
BY c. B. LEWIS.

ff+AAES anu " men tue EclLAiE the DcitEi-
yard moved about the snow creaked
sharply under their feet. A woman who
had been using the spinning wheel al
most without a halt since MONDAY now
set it aside. and as the whirr ceased
aud the last of a great ball of yarn was
being wound up, q man sitting in the
chimney corner with a Bible on his
knees looked up and quoted from the
page.
They shall be smitten hip and thiCh
yea, verify. they shall. be smitten
without mercy. Yes. Abigail, it's time
10 milk the COWS and feed the stock.
tn be cold job. and / wish l was
able to 10 it myself
But I'll wrap up well, Zachariah,
and have it over in half an hour. How's
Your knee2''
"PIaguey bad yft. I'm afraid won't
git out for d couple of weeks When
rheumatic gifts holt of me it hangs on,
Don't fOrgit to throw an armful of
fresh straw into the hog pen, and
make sure that the henhouse door is
tight shet. It's goin' to be stingin' cold
night, and may the Lord hev mercy on
them poor soldiers at Valley Forge"
I've been sort o. prayin' for EN- all
day" said the wife. as she put on her
hood and looked about for her mittens.
''If our Zadok got that last bundle of
things he'll be all right. but such
weather is awful on all of EN-"
Taking up the milk pail she passed
out into the wintry gloom and cutting
blasts, and was soon busy at the barn.
/ The farmhouse was within twenty
miles Of the winter quarters of the pa
triot army. 1t had contributed cattle
and sheep and wheat and corn and hay
to Washinston's quarteTmaster. and
Dame Scott had spun her yarn and knit
il into socks and mittens and comfort
of the first men in the neighbOrhOOd TO
volunteer was ZadOk, then hardly IS
years old. The tall and strOng-VOiCed
! ZaChaTiah. with his white hair, rarely
was such a thing as d beard in those
I days. and the weight Of SeVeRty-three
years upon his shoulders. would have
gone with the Tidemeu, but they de-
ClaTed his years too many He had done
a patriots fun duty. however, and on
the manteI shelf. where all who came
! in must see it, was a srtter in which
Washington had expressed his thanks.
Two weeks before our story opens old
Zachariah had injured hiss knee and
rheumatism had set in, and left him
able only to hObble about.
The chores" at the barn had been
finished, and the good wife had picked
up her pail of milk and started for the
house. when she heard the hoofbeats of
horses and the jangle of arms on the
highway. Patriot patrols often passed
the house. and twice that winter she
had looked out upon a small detach-
ment of redcOats- As they made no stop
she reasoned that they must have been
scouting instead Of raiding. Now, how
ever, as the woman bent her head to
peer through the darkness and listen
the troopers came to a halt. As she
hurried to the house she saw them rid
ing in at the gate It was party of
ten redccats.
What is it. AbigaiI?' asked Zacha-
riah in anxious tones. as she came
rushing into the kitchen.
THE British. They are right at the
door"
Hand me down the musket, They
viii kill me and drive you out and rob
and burn the house. but Jehovah
reigns, and at least one of them shall
die"
The door was flung omen and the
troopers crowded in. they found
gray-haired old man making use of his
chair 10 help him stand erect. while he
held his hintlock at a ready" and
his eyes flashed danger and defiance.
Beside him, unarmed, but full Of cour-
age and dignity. stood his gray-haired
helDmeeJ.
We come in peace said the British
captain. as he threw up his hand. We
/ ask but to thaW our frozen bodies by
your generous fire, and whatever man
] or beast may eat viii be paid Tor in
gold"
Zachariah and Abigail were patriots
1 to the core and as such the idea Of
succ0rinE the enemy 10 the extent Of
a glass of cider had d smack of treason
/ about it. They realized and accepted
/ the situation. however. 1t were wiser
/ to feed and warm the British than TO
/ have the farm devastated. The Old
1ra+ M he < .
( himself down in his chair. and. enCOuT-
aged by o nod from him, A bigdi hustled
about to prepare supper. Some Of the
/ troopers took the horses to the Barn
and cared for them. and not a word
/ was spoken to give offense to patriot
{ ism. On the contrary, officers and men
I were very civil. and though the mis-
/ trustful old man refused 10 meet them
half way. he mentally gave them more
I credit than ever before. Three miles
away was the house of Colonel Talbot.
F He had come home day or two before,
. friu=i~E Major Hope and Captain Davis
with him. and their orders were to beat
up the country for miles around and
. forward. further contributions The sol
/ diers at Valley Forge were on half
rations. clothed in rags, and seven
/ eiEhthS of them frost-bitten. There
were companies which could not have
! TUNED out i've men if the drums had
! beaten the long roll, there were none
which could have made a tve-mile
. march if the fate of liberty depended
. on it. In some way the British had got
/ word of the presence of the three Of
! ficers. and they had planned a sudden
F dash to capture them. They were ahead
. of their time when they reached the
I Scott farmhouse. and the idea was tC
lay up for an hour When they had
I been warmed and fed they went their
/ way. and a gold piece was left on tbs
/ table to pay for their entertainment
As the sounds of their horses hOOfs
died away ZaChaTiah reached down his
/ Bible-and opened il and read
They shall be smitten hip and thigh
yea, verify. they shall be smitter
without mercy" Then, looking up al
his wife, he said:
They did not show us mercy fol
! merCy's sake. but for other reasons
| wonder what they do in this neighbOr-
/ hood and why they stayed theil
/ hand2'
The wife had begun clearing away
the dishes. She stopped to look at Zach
/ ariah. and of a sudden her face grew
/ white and she gasped the table to holc
herself w..
"They-they are here to capture Col
| onel Talbot she gasDed.
God, Cod 1t is sol 1t is SOL" re-
piled Zachariah. as he rose to his fee
I and fell back with a moan.
For a long minute the two looked a
each other in a dazed and helpless way
Il was all plain TO them. but they cOulC
ture of the officers would be another
Hcfr mo a