Waterbury evening Democrat., 1904-12-09

over with the quick and critical Scrur tiny of men who have not met since boyhood, and laughed as we grasped hands.
 ''You are as welcome to the inside of this bear pen," said Major Croghan, 'as you made me to the outside of the one in the wilderncss.' ~ "I hope you'll not give me such am other tramp after shelter for the night as gave you," said.
 "The best in Fort Stephenson is yours. But your rest depends on the enemy. A runner has just come in from the general warning me Proctor and Tecumseh are turning their atten- tion this way. I'm ordered to evacuate, for the post is considered too weak to hold"
 "How soon do you march?" "I don't march at all. I,stay here. I'm going to disobey orders"
 eff you're going to disobey orders you have good reason for doing so." "I have It was too late to retreat. 1 I'm going to fight. hear, Lazarre, you know how to handle Indians in the French way" | My. dear Croghan, you insinuate the American way may be better" "It is on the western border, It may not be on the northern"
 "Then you would not have advised 1 my attempting the Indians here" 1 'T shouldn't. have discouraged it. 1 When I got the secret order said, 1 Bring the French, bring the mission aries, bring anything that will cut the l comb of Tecumseh"" s"The missionaries and the French like being classed with-anything," [ said.
 We're Americans here," Croghan laughed. "The dauphin may have to fight in the ditch with the rest of us." ] s'The dauphin is an American, too, and used to sears, as you know.- Gan l you give me any news from Green Bay in the Wisconsin country 2"
 "T was ordered to Green Bay last l year to see if anything could be done with old Fort Edward Augustus" "Does my Holland court lady live there?''
 "Not now," he answered soberly. ''She's dead"
 ''That's bad" ' said, thinking of lost opportunities. <
 "Is pretty AnnabeI de Chaumont ever coming back from FranceT' | 'sNot now; she's n1arried,''
 That's worse" he sighed. 'T was very silly about her when I was a boy"
 We had our supper in his quarters, and he busted himself until late in the night with preparations for defense. The whole place was full of cheer and plenty of game, and swarmed like lit- l tie fair with moving figures. A camp ire was built at dark in the center of the parade ground, heaped logs send II ing their glow as far as the dark pick ] cts. Heads of families drew toward 1t while the women were putting their l children to bed, and soldiers off duty lounged there, the front of the body in light, the back in darkness.
 Cool forest night air flowed over the stockade, gwaying smoke this way and that As the fire was stirred and ] smoke turned to flame 1t showed more and more distinctly what dfndnasse mad Screeffed. 7S 7dfrT, a,r- et F-t4+awfE 7R
 A man rose up on the other side of it, clothed in a coffee sack, in which holes were cut for his head and arms. His hat was a tin kettle with the handle sticking out behind like stiff | cue.
 .l Indifferent to his grotesqueness, he took 1t of and put it on the ground beside him, standing ready to com rnand attehtions z
 He was a small, dark, wiry man, barefooted and barelegged, whose black eyes sparkled and whose scanty hair 4 and beard hung down over shoulders and breast. Some pokes of leather, much scratched, hung bulging from the rope which girded his coffee sack. From one of these he took few un- bound leaves, the fragment of book, sppead them open and began to read in a chanting, prophetic key something lIabout the love of the Lord and the mysteries of angels. His listeners kept EGtheir eyes on him, giving an indulgent ear; to spiritual messages that made less demand on them than the violent earthly ones to which they were ac- customed.
 "It's Johnny Appleseed," man at my side told me, as if the name ex- plained anything he might do.
 When Johnny Appleseed finished reading the leaves he put them back I h..s, 1esst tA 2