Show H E athi AIR ile m so 07 to va 9 4 0 H 0 r 3 j r 51 V P Bachelle tv C bat TZ asap CHAPTER V 7 which tells te s of the indian raid and the masterful mrs bowlby and colins return to cambridge there were near fifty men inen anil and women in the band which tire the masterful mrs bowlby had so speedily organized for their common defense fear had been a constant companion of uiese these sequestered people since war had taken their strong men they knew what to do when they heard the summons of the conch shell and were prepared for immediate action now they waited in a silence broken only by the crackling of the fl fire re and the crying of the children behind the closed door of the inn at last I 1 know what it menus means to be a back country american colin said to mrs bowlby she answered with a stern face and without turning there tire are times when its very bad sir her voice had lost its gentle quality they heard an outburst of fiendish yells at he ede edse of the forest about eighty rods north of them drunk or th eyd sneak up on us mrs dowley calmly remarked drink makes them noisier than a flock of crows she turned to colin and spoke in tone of a teacher commanding a pupil in need of discipline put the old women in the spruce thicket beyond the road get some of the men behind these big pines back of us and have the rest lie ile down in the shadow at the end of the inn toll tell them to keep out of sight when I 1 say close in they are to rush from cover and surround the raiders get all the delay you can colin said to her A troop from the fort will be sure to follow them if got guns we may have a bloody battle but well lick em cm she said colin answered the colonel at the fort told me that they have only three guns and no ammunition good news but they will have knives and tomahawks and bows and arrows the indians were approaching their kinte cawing seemed to fill the depths above them every outburst echoed and re echoed in the distant forest its purpose was to appall the hearts of the pale faced people it filled the herded children with terror and their cries increased it was this element in the situation which gave to colin cabot his understanding of the memorable scene these armed women were like the slie she bear when v lien her cubs are threatened in a moment they are changed and they face the peril of death with no hesitation the kinte cawing ceased Ther ewas was no flight of arrows A full minute passed filled with anxiety and a silence in which the waiting band heard only k tl you no give whisky me burn house the sobbing behind the door the in deans skulking in the file shadows ran suddenly nith wild yells toward the two in the firelight ft nho ho stood unmoved while the unsuspecting raiders sped into a ring around them and the fire to olins surprise mrs airs spoke calmly lit in the indian tongue saying in my red brothers I 1 want peace what do you want whisky one of them answered as he held up a bottle half run full of liquor you can get no vil jillisky lisky here she answered the brave drank from his fits bottle wh while I 1 e his comrades brule into derisive laughter lie ile answered to in fog english lish easily understood you no rive give whisky we git mad we burn house they haill 1 arned how to make their way by creating terror close wa la mrs bowlby shouted men lien and women sprang out of the shadows in a trice they encircled the band of red men and stood each with a rude weapon ready tor for use the braves were filled with astonishment again the brave woman spoke to her friends stand still make no hos tile uwe moe till I 1 order it then in their tongue she addressed the red men we offer you peace or war if you choose pence peace we will give you food but no drink there Is not a drop of drink in my tavern for a moment the braves chattered together like magpies at that moment an incautious move might have P precipitated a hurling of tomahawks toma torna hanks haks and a disaster which bould have gone into history the indians saw that they were overmatched over matched more than three to one and that they could not escape a terrible goring their leader was perhaps perli aps sobered a little by his peril ills his counsel seemed to prevail As the red men ceased their chattering he said wife of Maril mariatou tou give us meat we go away what subtle deviltry may have been in the peace he offered will never be known colln colin obeying the order of the woman gave her ills his gun and pistol and set out for the kitchen to bring a roasted ham before he opened the door he heard the hoofs of horses coming swiftly down the road when he returned he be found that six armed troopers had arrived you people can go to your homes the captain of the troop was saying saing well attend to these lousy wildcats the tenseness of the scene was broken the women hastened to the SYNOPSIS OF PRECEDING CHAPTERS at boston in july 1775 colin cabot ardent young lover of liberty bids goodby good by to his sweetheart patience pat faye ther daughter of a loyalist but herself a rebel he joins the revolutionary army at cambridge and is mustered f into no the company of capt A amos as farnsworth colin cohn impre impresses washington asb ington and ho he makes him h his is informal secretary with the rank of captain A I 1 letter ater from pat tells colin she eho Is to visit friends outside tho the american lines and ask him to meet her he sets out learning L ing of a british plot to capture colm colin Fairns farnsworth worth with th a troop rides to the rescue A british patrol led by harry gage colin rival for the hand of pat threatens the youny young patriot farnsworth and his troop come up gage gaffe challenges colin cohn to a duel they fight and gage Is wounded cc colin returns to cambridge washington having forbidden dueling reduces him to the ranks but mrs washington affectionately known to the army as tady lady washington remains his stanch friend Res restored tired to his rank lot for meritorious service colin is sent with th col sim botts bolts a cil civilian rib soldier on an a hils recruiting mission ln in the west ho he meets a typical pioneer were woman mrs bowlby inn door to get their children five troopers with guns cocked stood by the red men thel their r captain took the ham from colin and put it down beside him saying captain cabot take my gun you and a nd sirs mrs bowlby will please stand by a minute it if any red devil shows fight or tries to run put a hole in him the rest 0 ye hold yer fire till its needed lie ile went among the savages and took away their bottles and tomahawks and flung them on the veranda ile he took out ills his hunting bunting knife and began to slice the ham and throw it to the red men who grabbed and ate it like hungry dogs this done he made them to understand by word and gesture that they were to roll up in their blankets and lie ile down for the night he turned to mrs bowlby saying ye can nil all go to bed ill mount a guard and keep a pair 0 eyes eye on these wild men sleep like tired dogs till daylight then well give em a bite to eat an run em cm on off down a trail to the west they wont trouble you no more they found ye bad medicine your tour coming was timely said the woman 1 I eye it as a thing from providence dont blame god for it the officer answered our scout was watching em an we was ordered out within an hour after they were heading for this settlement the red men and their escort had gone when colin set out an hour after sunrise ne ile was aas to meet colonel botts at the village tillage 0 of new milford there the colonel had assembled and organized a force of nearly three hundred armed men the fall work of harvesting and threshing being finished colts botts with the aid of two able young lawyers had made excellent progress in the west with tents and other equipment in heavy wagons they set out on their march ciarli to cambridge stopping here and there to pick up the recruits recruit who had signed for service on the westward journey A loyalist youth who nho jeered the little littie regiment as it was leaving new milford was quickly seized and compelled to march twenty miles behind the fife and drum corps comps with a me goose in his arms lie ile went home adorned with a part of the gooses feathers the incident signalizes zeS both the intensity and the overwhelming preponderance of antl anti feeling among the country folk the regiment growing as it proceed ed was a force of more than four foul hundred men when it joiner joined the army battalions were coming in on the no north rth and south roads the con coin mander in chief was in better spirit still there as no to pay cers or men they were complaining bitterly for two days there had been no meat in earod and tor for three oliree days day no bread colonel botts bolts and captain cabot arrived nt at general headquarters at eight in the evening the chief listened with his usual dignity and calmness while colonel botts sent up a whirling flight of words as it if in search of an orbit for his patriotic emotions emot loni ile he was in a bev il dering maze when the general interrupted him ing colonel this la Is interesting and I 1 that your report will require more leisurely consideration than I 1 can now gie to it therefore please accept my thanks and compliments for your excellent work and submit your report in writing lie ile arose and gane gae the colonel his hand and walked with him to the door the orator had been so graciously and courteously silenced that colln colin smiled with gratitude and admiration when the chief returned to his office he brought with him the great doctor franklin who lind come with a committee from congress to confer with general washington ile he was is a stout old gentleman of medium height with a large head bald at the crown white hair bair and a countenance beardless and amiable turning to colln colin the chief said hero here Is a young man to whom I 1 gladly lend my ears its a kind of lending that pays if you get interest doctor franklin answered with a benevolent smile As they sat down the general asked the young captain to give them an account of his adventures the distinguished gili shed patriots were interested and amused by his vivid recital they shook with laughter at the gentle humor with which certain parts of it had been flavored without mentioning his name colln colin described the oratory ot of one of 0 his coworkers franklin sitting near the fire mopped his smooth shaven face with a large colored handkerchief and moved his chair saving when a mans head Is filled with nothing he Is eager to get rid of 0 it we blame him lie ile Is only obeying a law of nature A vacuum can make a lot of noise A whirlwind Is a great spinning bottleful of nothing and in hot haste to get rid of it yet it Is very capable said colln colin most energetic I 1 franklin agreed our people have no need deed of being conNin convinced ced any kind of noise will serve to remind them of their duty A fife and drum Is enough I 1 think that their souls have heard a voice more convincing than yours or mine in I 1 ile they are preparing for hunger and hardships and disappointment we must rub along as best we may until we come to better going powder Is arria arriving ing and ne shall soon be able to pay a part of 0 the sum we owe Nean meanwhile whIle the chimney corner heroes are everywhere criticizing our inactivity said the general 1 I wrote to robert morris of my feeling about that ills HIS answer has amused me ne he read from a letter on his desk heaven has blessed you with a firmness of mind a steadiness of countenance and a patience in sufferings that give you infinite advantage advant age over other men you are not to depend on other peoples exertions being equal to your own ne ile feels the need of more optimistic reports from me he seems to think that with all these flattering qualifications I 1 should b be e able to shoot without powder and to feed the men without bread and meat franklin was laughing its as he suggested tell him that you have turned your steady countenance and your firm mind on the british army in loston boston and that no damage Is yet reported it refuses to move therefore you have concluded that your mind and face are in need of assistance no I 1 shall try another remedy of yours I 1 shall retaliate with lattery flattery and ask him to tell his wealthy friends that if they desire good news they will have to pay for it with a good natured chuckle frank ilya answered the rich men are so set in the habit of receiving money that they need what the french call massage to get their hands accustomed to a new type of action both the body and the soul have to be converted I 1 know some of them who are pained by the necessity of paying tor for coats and breeches and shoes and bread and meat when they are asked ased to pay tor for liberty and human rights naturally they hesitate they have been frugal because of that they have prospered so morris gets well wet v mith ith perspiration every day of his life the chief answered the generosity of these poor farmers and mechanics who ho leave their homes where they are needed without pay or sum chent food ought to shame the money 10 u c Y lovers loers A man said to me that with our stingy wealth and poor officers we make out said franklin 11 1 1 I 1 told him that we stop pumping because there are men aboard who tie ile sere to be drowned we shall pull pill through we have friends who at are e tireless and incorruptible they are the sea the winter mitter and the iwilder wilder ness you remember what mint happened happen ed in the wild country one night or of that fighting I 1 shall never forget said washington we were entrenched in the Great meadows it was dark its as To pheth the skies opened and a drowning rally rain descended we were put to it tor for breath in the flood and were soon breast deep in water we slopped about in blinding in darkness A bad night I 1 not so bad as when I 1 met the wounded men trying to get back to their homes that Is a matter of 0 which I 1 never try to tell building up a new world Is an expensive process but it will pay said the old prophet we cannot fall because the lord Is in need of a land the only kill king Is intellect looking in forward to the good of man I 1 like to think of the future it Is impossible to imagine the height to which the power of mind over ove matter may be carried in a thousand years we may perhaps learn to deprive large masses of their gravity and give them absolute levity for purposes of transportation port por tation atlon agriculture may diminish its labor and double its product our lives may be lengthened we may discover a plan to compel nations to settle their differences the talk of these great men was of deep interest to young captain cabot his report was finished and feeling that his presence might be unwelcome lie he arose and bade them good night in ID the hall lie he met lady washington she kissed him and said ive been lying in wait tor for you im plumb tired of nil all this military business come into the library a few minutes and well talk of more important matters she led the way chattering as she went of a matter in which her interest was deeply engaged 1 your tour girl has made me a visit 0 oh it yes a real visit she is a dear girl what devotion good landl land you rank with julius caesar they sat down together the lady as usual had her knitting with her she was laughing ile he exclaimed oh the lonely greatness of young lovers we look down from a lofty height and feel sorry for the rest of the world I 1 wonder how she got through her last letter said that general gage had refused to give her a pass you see the boy got better said the lady he did not lose his arm it will be a withered arm and no help in love making but better than none so general gage relented no well bred gallant englishmen could resist the entreaties nt of a girl like pat burning to see her lover he let her go |