The Virginia enterprise., 1901-08-30

YOUNG FOLKS COLUMN.

rebel spy to boot" announced "Jake' to
the Hessian officer in. command. His
own footprints, though fast being oblit-
Grated, yet made fairly-good trail back
to the Truesdale house, and just as the
captain was telling his children it was
time they had gone to bed there was a
crash of glass simultaneously from both
sides of the parlor. The redcoats came
scrambling in the windows, and Capt.
Truesdale found himself prisoner. He
was bound hand and foot and none too
| gently placed upon chair in one corner.
And then the Hessians, foraging for
themselves, found the larder and brought
out everything that was eatable. Mrs.
| Truesdale and her daughter were made
Hessians laughed and drank and made
merry. 'Ye miserable traitor" the cap
tain had roared at 'Jake' moment be-
fore, but gag had stopped the captains
utterance.
ITS, the fortunes of war, ma'am,"
Jake had remarked to the weeping
Mrs. Truesdale, but he shuffied uneasily,
before the blazing, wrathful eyes Of the
! poor woman. A moment before Mrs.
| Trucsdale had hurried her two children
| upstairs, away from the loud-mouthed
Hessians, but the suspense was too great,
and they had crept down in the dark to
where they could hear what was said
through the open door.
Yes" they could hear Jake" saying
! to their mother, tomorrow morning ear
ly the captain will be taken on to Tren-
ton and tried by drumhead courtmartial
us a spy, and shot, most likely"
| At this direful news the two children
crouching, in the hallway clutched each
other in the anguish of the moment.
Come said Jack to Dolly presently
and following her brother she stole out
into the kitchen.
Dolly" muttercd Jack. there is a
faint chance that Washington will arrive
in time to save father, but we must not
depend upon it, for it is storming hard
how the great general can cross with all
his men and SteedS and cannon. | am
going down to old Brickston's wharf and
mayhap will find there some kind Of an
old boat: shall try to cross over and
try to find the American camp and if
possible bring back aid''
IF you so l shall go, too,' said Dolly
decidedly.
But you are girl, and I greatly fear
that the cold would overcome you"
Not me- said Dolly sturdily. II will
put on my heavy cape and the heavy
mlttens that mother just finished for me,
lnd-and, you shall see how brave can
be-"
No one refused the two small figures
as they crept out of the house and fioun-
lered through the snow, now knee high,
in the direction of the rivers edge. At
ter an hour, the two nearly exhausted,
they reached the wharf, and under it's
lee, out OF the reach of the current, lay
Il small, sturdy rowboat. But it was
frozen in all sides. 1t was another hour )
work before they had succeeded, with the
aid Of the oars, in breaking away the ice
sufficiently to permit them to send the
boat out into the rapid current of the
river, and even then great chunks of
snow topped ice crunchcd and jolted
to the two children that it would surely
be stove in, leaving them to perish in the
icy water. But kind Providence watched
over them that night, and though they
were carried half mile down stream be-
fore they gained the other shore, at last
they were on land. Poor Dolly was we'll
night spent, and sturdy Jack, realizing
went in search of the American camp,
! whose campfres were plainly discernible
only few rods away. Bravely she
waited while the minutes passed, and
still lno tidings Of her brother and the
aid he sought.
cred with the biting cold, and when half
an hour had passed and still no signs Of
her brothers return, she we'll nigh gave
up hope. TO row the boat alone was i'm
possible, and if she stayed where she was
she must soon freeze to death. And as
though this were not enough, there rose
before her the vision of her father, bound
hand and foot, waiting an awful fate.
and. forgetting her own peril, she knelt
down in the snow and offered little
prayer that her father might be saved.
That moment flashing lights, as of swing
ing lamps, dazzled her eyes, and the voice
of her brother called out:
Help at last, Dolly! And now to res
cue father
task for the two children and was no easy
thing for even the stalwart soldiers, Il
half dozen Of whom had volunteered to
cross into the enemy's country and rescue
| Capt Truesdale. Something warm and
stnging was forced down Dolly's throat,
and her numbed fingers We're briskly
rubbed by one Of the men to keep them
| from freezing.
In the meantime affairs had taken a
dangerous turn at the Truesdale house.
| The Hessans had removed the gag from
the captains mouth, with the idea that
his angry splutterings in response to cruel
taunts would be entertaining. But with
quiet dignity the captain utterly refused
to say anything. This enraged the Hes
slams, and having eaten and drunk more
than was good for them, they were in a
| very dangerous Stdle. OOuleOue pFOpOSeu
to hang the captain out Of hand to save
the trouble of carrying him to Trenton.
This met with chorus of approval, and
they were about to put the sentence into
execution when the Hessian officer gave
a start and put down his mug with 4
shaking hand.
"Ach, himmel!!' he growled; Il seed a
face at the window"
Nonsense, man." cried Jake" though
he gave an earnest glance about. who
would be prowling around at this time OF
the night, least of all. the Americans?"
| Thus assured, the lieutenant once more
raised the mug to his lips, when, with u
cry. he sprang to his feet, the stone mug
crashing to the floor.
"Ach"' he groaned; Il knew it. We
are caught like-rats in a trap
| Hardly were the words uttered when
three heads appeared in the doorway and
three muskets were leveled at the half
dozen Hessian soldiers, whose firearms
lay useless out of reach in a corner. The
lieutenant looked toward the rear win
dow as though for means of escape, but
two shadowy forms seen through the
glass showed him how useless It was.
and with little shrug of the shoulders
he said. Il surrender"
At the very first appearance of the