Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1905-11-23
CHAPTER XL1.-Continued.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

THAT We cannot: twill be over the
horses ears. The beasts will drown them
selves and US as we'll"
How we should have argued it out l do
not know. for just then Jennifer's horse.
seeming the troop mounts on the farther
shore, cooked tail and ears. let out a
squealing neigh, and fell TO curve,ing and
plunging in a racket that might have
stood for the splashings of an advancing
army.
In a twinkling the outpost camp was
astr and believing hail came to us
across the water Having no answer the
troopers began to let off their pieces hap
hazard in the darkness; and with the
singing zip of the first nlusket ball, Rich
ard went battle mad. as he always did III
the face of danger.
AT them!' he Numbered, ciappinG
spurs to his jaded beast and whipping out
the great claymore: and so we charged,
the forlornest hope that ever fell upon an
enemy.
How we came ashore alive through the
gun-tre Is one of those mysteries to which
every battle adds its quota; but the poor
beasts we rode We're not so lucky. Jeil-
nifer's horse went down while we We're
yet some yards from the bank; and mine
fell a moment later To face score of
waiting enemies afoot was too much for
even Richards rash courage; SO when
we were free Of the struggling horses we
promptly dove for shelter under the up
stream bank.
Here the darkness stood our friend; and
when the redcoat troopers came down 10
the rivers edge with torches to see what
had become of US, we took advantage of
the noise they made and stole away up
stream till a shelving beach gave us leave
to climb to the valley level above.
Richard shook himself like water
soaked spaniel and laughed grimly.
AE1,1la rIa C.l
less and we'll belize to freeze to death, "
he commented. What neXt?''
1 made him a bow. You are on my de-
mesne of Appleby Hundred, Captain Je.l-
infer, and it shall so hard with us il we
cannot find fire TO warm a guest and a
horse to mount him withal Let us go to
the manor house and see what We can dis
cover
He entered at once into the spirit of
the jest, and together we trud2ed the
scant mile through the stubble fields 10 my
old roof-tree. AS you would guess. we
looked to find the manor house turned into
an outpost headquarters; but now we
We're desperate enough to face anything.
Howbeit not to rush blindly into the
jaws of a trap we first routed out the old
black majordomo at the negro quarters;
and when we learned from him that the
great house was quite deserted, we took
possession and had the black make us q
rousing fire in the kitchen arch. Nay,
more; when we had steamed ourselves q
little dry. we had old Anthony stew and
grill for us, and fetch us bottle OF that
madeira of my fathers laying in.
"A toast cried Richard, when the bot
tie came, springing to his feet with the
glass held high. ITO the dear lady OF APP
pleby Hundred, and may She forgather
with the man she loves best, he 1T you, or
j, or another. Jack lreton.
Js,,, a
sit before the fire. havering like two love-
sick school boys over the charms of that
dear lady to whom one of us WAS less
than naught, and to whom the other could
be but naught whilst that first one lived.
You will smilz. my dears, that we should
come to this when, but q short hour be-
fore one OF us had been bent upon STAY
ing the other for Mistress Margery's sake.
But the human heart is many-sided; not
ably that heart the soldier carries. And
though / looked not TO live beyond the
setting of another sum- \ was glad to my
finger tips to have this last loving cup
with my dear lad. / thought it would
nerve me bravely for what must come
4 and so it did, though rot as prehgured
We were still sitting thus before the
/ kitchen arch when the dawn began to dim
the freight, and the work of the new day
confronted us. Pinned down, old An
thony confessed that some two or three
horses of the Appleby Hundred stables
had escaped the hands of the foragers OF
both sides; and two of these he fetched
for u.s. OF TIE twain one CHANGED to be
Blackstar the good beast which had car
ried ME from New Berne in the spring
and so | had my own horse betwixt my
knees when set Dick {. mile on the roac
to Salisbury, and babe him farewell.
| HIS last word to me was one of generous
caution.
"Remen1ber, Jack: haste, haste, pos
haste is your watchword. There will be
other couriers in from the battle field al
Kings mountain; and you must hang aiic
fire your news-petard and vanish betore
they come to bctfay you
Trust me- said 1, evasively: and SO We
parted, he to gallop eastward and ] &c
charge down pcaceably upon the British
outpost we had set abuzz in the small