The Young Sharpshooter at Antietam Part 24

CHAPTER XIX

AT THE FORK

Noel ran swiftly forward in the darkness until at last he was compelled to stop to recover his breath. As he looked behind him he saw that the fire on the plantation manifestly was dying down. There was one spot of dull red yet to be seen against the dark horizon, but the flames had ceased.

For a moment he was tempted to turn and bid Dennis join him in his flight; but his uncertainty as to the exact direction in which to return to the old well, and his confidence that somehow the young Irish soldier would be able to make his way through the surrounding difficulties caused him to decide to continue his own flight.

The young soldier soon found himself in a road with which he was, of course, unfamiliar. He also was ignorant alike of the location of his friends and his enemies. For a brief time Noel tried to discover some signs which would indicate the presence or the pa.s.sing of bodies of troops, but his efforts were unavailing, and at last he turned to his left and started resolutely along the roadway.

Frequently the young soldier stopped to convince himself that he was in no immediate peril. To his listening ears, however, no sounds of danger came. The silence of the night was unbroken, and from the occasional plantations not even the dogs betrayed any alarm at his pa.s.sing.

Two hours or more had elapsed, and Noel now was beginning to feel the effects of his labors. Only in a general way did he know where he wanted to go, but his very ignorance had strengthened his nervous fear and he increased his efforts to make haste.

Suddenly the young soldier was aware that a dense fog was settling over the land. Almost like raindrops the heavy mist rested upon his face and clothing. He was able to see but a short distance before him. What fears or hopes might be concealed by the enfolding mist he did not know, but his senses were alert, and he was keenly watchful as he moved forward in the darkness.

He had not advanced far, however, when he came to a fork in the road.

Almost at right angles a road branched which plainly was traveled as frequently as the one over which he had journeyed. Near the fork the young soldier discovered a little cabin, about which he was striving to make some investigations that would enable him to decide which road to follow. The little building was near the side of the road, and as Noel saw it he abruptly halted and listened intently for any sounds that might betray the presence of people within it.

It was almost morning by this time, and though the fog was not scattered, the light of the coming day presented a new aspect to his surroundings. Cautiously the young soldier approached the little cabin.

The door was open, and as he came nearer he saw that there was no window in the room. Apparently the place was deserted.

At last with renewed caution Noel approached the door and hastily glanced within the building. In spite of the darkness he was convinced that he was the only one in the place. His impression was strengthened when he entered and found that apparently the room had not been occupied for a long time.

So tired was Noel by the efforts which he had made in his flight that the place appeared almost inviting. At all events, it was quiet and peaceful and he flung himself on the ground and soon was sleeping soundly.

The young soldier was awakened suddenly, and as he opened his eyes, at first he was unable to say where he was. Rays of the early sunlight were streaming through the open s.p.a.ces in the walls, but stronger than the impression produced by the morning was that of the sounds which he heard from the road.

It was plain that horses and men were outside the building, and if he could judge from the noise there were many of both.

Alarmed as Noel was by what he heard, he nevertheless quickly arose and cautiously looked through the place where the window had been.

The sight which greeted his eyes was one which might well have startled a bolder man than the young soldier. A troop of cavalry had halted at the fork in the road and were preparing their breakfast. There were at least fifty men in the band, and from their actions Noel concluded they were in no immediate fear of discovery or attack. The men were not noisy, but they were joking with one another, and plainly were interested in the preparations which were being made for their morning meal. Indeed, the odor of the bacon which was being broiled over the several fires which had been kindled, made him aware that he, too, had eaten little since he had fled from his pursuers early the preceding day.

Occasional words were overheard, and it was not difficult for the young soldier to conclude that the men before him belonged to a troop of Stuart's cavalry, and that apparently they were in no immediate fear of the Federal troops.

As the young soldier looked about him in the morning light he saw that the building in which he had slept was old and dilapidated. One corner of the roof had fallen, and the place was so small that no one pa.s.sing would believe that many could be concealed within its walls. At all events, its appearance of desolation undoubtedly was his strongest protection, he thought. Not one of the cavalrymen would think of inspecting a place around which the bushes and weeds were growing and within which no one was likely to seek refuge.

His admiration for the men before him became stronger as he continued to watch their activities. Not only were they well trained, but their horses were wonderful animals. Some of them showed the effect of the labors of the campaign, but it was clear that both men and horses made up a carefully selected body.

Noel, as has been said, was peering anxiously from one corner of the little window. An exclamation of surprise almost escaped his lips when suddenly he discovered two men approaching from the branch road, and he was convinced that one was Levi, the former sutler in the camp at Harper's Ferry, and the other was the husband of Sairy Ann's sister.

It became evident to the young watcher that the arrival of both men was expected. At all events, an orderly ran forward to meet them, and it was plain from the conversation which followed that neither of the newcomers was a stranger to him.

Noel's desire to see and hear more became intense. Soon after the arrival of the sutler and his companion, patrols were established in the three roads. The chief comfort that Noel had at the time was the conviction that his hiding-place, in view of the interest which the arrival of the two men had created, was not likely to receive the attention of the cavalrymen.

Except for a few faint s.n.a.t.c.hes of the conversation of the soldiers, Noel, despite his efforts, still was unable to overhear much of what was said.

Occasionally words came to him, but for the most part they were meaningless. The impression, however, which he received was that the newcomers had brought information which was considered of importance, for the men soon were hastily preparing to leave the place, although they had not yet finished their breakfast.

By this time the fog largely had been burned away by the rays of the rising sun. When a few minutes later the bugle sounded, the men mounted their horses and in a body departed swiftly, leaving behind them both Levi and his strange companion, whom Noel had first seen in the house of the elongated Jim, the husband of Sairy Ann.

The two men sat on the ground near one of the fires which was still burning, and over it was some of the food still cooking which the soldiers had abandoned in their sudden departure. The conversation between the two could be overheard more plainly, and as Noel listened his interest became more intense.

"Here, don't yo' all want some of this yere bacon?" inquired Levi's companion.

"I do not eat bacon."

"Why don't you eat it?"

"Because it vas unclean."

"It's as clean as anything you're likely to get in the next week or two," laughed the man. "Now, then, Levi, what did you find out?"

"Just vat I tells you."

"Yo' 're perfectly sure about that, be yo'?"

"Yes," snapped Levi. "Now you tells me vat you haf found."

"Not very much. I was back here on the major's plantation, and he said there were some Yanks at the n.i.g.g.e.r hut last night, but that they couldn't find any trace of them this mo'nin'. One of the cabins burned up last night, and the major thinks the men got away while all hands were busy puttin' out the fire."

"How many did you say der vas?" inquired Levi.

"How many of what?"

"How many Yankees vere dere. How many got avay?"

"I don't know anything about that. I heard the major say he was sure two, anyway."

"Yah, I knows dose men, I vas sure. Dey are de two men what robbed me of mine goots. Dey push over mine tent. Dey say I charge too mooch. Dey steals mine goots. Dot is vy I am no more some Yankee."

"A Yankee!" exclaimed his companion as he threw back his head and laughed loudly. "A Yankee! Yo' 're about as much Yankee as yo' are n.i.g.g.e.r."

"Not too far, mine friend. Not too far. You forget dot the brains of the Confederacy is Jew brains--"

"That's a good one! That's a good one!" broke in Levi's companion. "Now, then," he added more soberly, "are yo' all comin' on with me, or am I goin' with yo' all? The captain said yo' all were to come with me. Do yo' know where we're goin'?"

"I know vere ve vas going to try to go," said Levi. "Ever since dose men push over mine tent and steals mine goots, I--"

"Well, if we're going, why don't we start? I have had all I want to eat," broke in the other man.

Noel could see that neither of the men was clad in the uniform of the Confederate army. His suspicions were confirmed that both were being used by the rebel troops to secure information concerning the presence and the actions of McClellan's army.

Noel was desirous of hearing the men speak more concerning their immediate plans, but, although it was plain that neither was suspicious that any one was near, almost instinctively they both lowered their voices whenever they spoke concerning the immediate task which confronted them.