UBRARY0A, 
 
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 gwsmsfo
 
 Colonial Days. 
 
 BEING 
 
 Stories and Ballads for Young Patriots, 
 
 A.S RECOUNTED BY 
 
 FIVE BOYS AND FIVE GIRLS 
 
 IN 
 
 AROUND THE YULE LOG." 
 
 "ABOARD THE MAVIS." 
 
 "ON THE EDGE OF WINTER. 
 
 BY 
 
 RICHARD MARKHAM. 
 
 ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 DODD, MEAD & COMPANY, 
 
 PUBLISHERS.
 
 COPYRIGHT 187918801881, 
 BY DODD, MEAD & COMPANY.
 
 ?s 
 
 PART ONE. 
 
 Around the Yule Log. 
 
 96G3CO
 
 waiting 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE sun had been gone more 
 than an hour on a certain cold 
 winter's evening, and only a dull 
 glow in the west told where he 
 had set. But his light was not 
 missed ; for overhead the moon 
 shone out clear and white through 
 the frosty air, making the snow 
 that lay deep all about flash and 
 glitter like a burnished shield. 
 
 The air was so still, that, 
 above the dull booming of the 
 ocean, one could hear the train 
 more than two miles away, as it 
 puffed slowly onward through the 
 Shinnecock Hills ; and the dri 
 vers of the sleighs, who had been 
 for it at the station, left off stamping about the plat- 
 
 THE SHINNECOCK HILLS.
 
 10 TOM AND CARRIE LONG WOOD. 
 
 form and swinging their arms about them, and made haste to get 
 their teams ready. 
 
 In one of the cars that was drawing near there was great con 
 fusion. Ten boys and girls were reaching up to the racks above 
 their heads for their parcels, or were busily at work putting on their 
 wraps. A lady and gentleman vainly tried to make themselves 
 heard above the uproar caused by a blue-gray Skye terrier, who, 
 roused by the confusion, was barking at the top of his lungs, without 
 stopping for a moment to take breath. 
 
 "Thistle, be quiet ! " said the gentleman. 
 
 But Thistle absolutely refused ; and even when Carrie Long- 
 wood picked him up, and held him under her seal-skin jacket, he 
 still kept up a muffled " woof- woof- woof." 
 
 Had it not been for his rude conduct, I should have presented 
 you in form to all this party. As it is, I shall only have just time 
 to tell you their names before the train stops and they leave it; 
 The gentleman and lady are Mr. and Mrs. Longwood, and Tom and 
 Carrie are their children. They have asked eight of their young 
 friends to pass the holiday week with them at their place on the 
 seashore ; and now at last the long and tedious miles through the 
 scrub-oak forest have been passed over, and they are nearly at their 
 journey's end. 
 
 The house has always been shut in winter, while the family are 
 in the city ; but Mr. Longwood had sent down a week before, and 
 fires had been kindled, a good stock of provisions laid in, and a first- 
 rate cook engaged. 
 
 At this very moment she was standing in the kitchen doorway, 
 listening for the whistle of the engine ; and no sooner did she hear
 
 THE SLEIGH STANDS WAITING. II 
 
 it coming across the fields than she hurried back, and saying, " La 
 sakes ! now they will be here in no time, and mighty hungry, I 
 specs," set about broiling her chickens with great zeal. 
 
 Meantime the train had stopped at the station, and our party 
 was making all speed to get out. There were Rose and Kate 
 Waring, Charlie and Will Morgan, Lou and Ned Grant, and Ger 
 trude Hastings and her little brother Jack. 
 
 How fresh and crisp the air seemed after the close car ! They 
 stood in a little group for a moment, watching the departing train, 
 which, after much wheezing and coughing on the part of the en 
 gine, had got under way again, and was fast disappearing in the 
 distance. But Tom Longwood was much too excited to stand still 
 longer, and crying, " Come, boys ! come, girls ! " led the way to a 
 great four-horse sleigh which stood waiting, the horses stamping 
 and shaking their bells impatiently. It took but a moment for all 
 to get their seats, and draw the robes about them. Crack went 
 the whip : the leaders plunged and danced for a moment; and then, 
 settling down to their work, away they all went down the broad 
 village street at a rattling pace, every bell jingling its loudest, and 
 every boy and girl talking as fast as tongue could wag. 
 
 On they sped, leaving the village behind, the roar of the surf 
 growing louder as they came nearer the sea, until they saw before 
 them, at only a little distance from the water's edge, a group of 
 houses standing out bold and clear in the bright moonlight. All 
 were dark but one, and in that there was a perfect glow of light. 
 Every window was bright ; and in the parlor, as they drove up, they 
 could see a blazing fire, that filled the whole of the great chimney- 
 place, and made candles useless.
 
 12 
 
 MARY ANN WELCOMES THEM. 
 
 " They are evidently expecting us," said Mr. Long-wood. 
 " I hope they have something to eat," said Tom : "I am as 
 hungry as a bear." 
 
 " I think that we can trust Mary Ann not to let us go to 
 
 bed supperless," said Mr. 
 
 Longwood. "See! there she 
 is at the door." 
 
 Mary Ann was a Shinne- 
 cock Indian, one of a tribe 
 of whom we shall have more 
 to say farther on ; and very 
 stout and comfortable she 
 seemed, as she stood waiting 
 to welcome them. Around 
 her head was wrapped a 
 gorgeous turban; and she 
 looked so jolly, that Tom, as 
 he rushed up to shake hands 
 with her, said, 
 
 " Why, Mary Ann, you 
 look as blooming as a rose ! " 
 
 " La sakes ! Master Tom, 
 now you jist git along," said 
 Mary Ann, very much pleased. 
 What else she would have said, no one knows; for Thistle, 
 discovering of a sudden his old summer friend Garm, a great 
 English mastiff, set up such a wild and joyful barking, rushing 
 about under every one's feet, that no one could hear a word; 
 
 MARY ANN.
 
 GARM AND THISTLE COME TO SUPPER. 13 
 
 and all were fain to run into the house, and leave the dogs to 
 renew their acquaintance in the snow. 
 
 They had hardly thrown off their wraps, when another sleigh 
 drove up loaded with the trunks ; and then there was a great 
 tramping of feet in the hall as the men carried them up-stairs 
 under the direction of the two maids who had come from the 
 city with the party. In the midst of the confusion, supper was 
 announced ; and the promptness with which the call to it was 
 obeyed showed that the long ride had given them all good 
 appetites. If any other proof had been needed, the rapidity with 
 which Mary Ann's chickens disappeared would have furnished it. 
 
 The dogs soon found out what was going on, and both put 
 in an appearance at the dining-room door ; Garm advancing with 
 a smiling countenance, and a suggestive sniffing of the air, his 
 great tail waving slowly back and forth ; while Thistle rushed 
 forward to Carrie, and, sitting up on his haunches, waved his 
 paws wildly in the air. But the rules of the family were strict, 
 that the dogs should not be fed at the table ; and so they had 
 to control their impatience as best they could till the meal was 
 over. 
 
 As soon as they rose from the table, all went out on the 
 front piazza ; the girls catching up cloaks and shawls as they 
 passed through the hall, while the boys waited only to seize 
 their hats. It was a perfect night. Not a thousand feet away 
 the ocean was breaking on the beach, and the air was filled with 
 the never-ceasing thunder of the surf. Through the gaps in the 
 sand-hills they could see the waves leaping and plunging far out 
 at sea, while a broad lane of dazzling silver led from the shore
 
 14 THE SHIPS OF SKY-WORLD. 
 
 out to where the moon hung clear and white over the changing 
 waters. Directly in front of them, not a stone's-throw distant, lay 
 the little Lake Agawam, its surface gleaming in the bright light. 
 Overhead there was a stiff breeze blowing, and great masses of 
 white clouds were hurrying across the sky before it. 
 
 "How the clouds do fly!" said Rose Waring. 
 
 "Yes," said Mrs. Longwood. "They remind me of a little 
 piece of poetry : 
 
 The deep blue sea of sky-world 
 
 Is white with many a sail : 
 All canvas spread, ropes taut o'erhead, 
 
 They fly before the gale. 
 
 From the far North, southward bearing, 
 
 Are they fresh from arctic seas? 
 Have they sailed the north-west passage, 
 
 Sealed to other craft than these? 
 
 Are their crews the ghosts of sailors 
 
 From earth long passed away? 
 Is the skipper bold of spirit-mould? 
 
 Is this their heaven alway? 
 
 ' Ahoy ! whence come ye, shipmates ? ' 
 
 But no answering hail is heard : 
 The shrill wind whistles through their shrouds; 
 
 They pass without a word." 
 
 " It is curious," said Ned Grant very seriously, " how different 
 objects in nature suggest thoughts to one. Just as the clouds
 
 THE ICE PRONOUNCED CAPITAL. 15 
 
 have been speaking to Mrs. Longwood, so the lake before us is 
 now speaking audibly to me." 
 
 " What does it say ? " asked Mrs. Longwood. 
 
 " ' Come and skate on me,' " said Ned. 
 
 "Oh, what a splendid idea!" said Tom; while they all 
 laughed. " Let us take a run down, and see how the ice is." 
 
 So all the boys took to their heels down the path ; while the 
 girls, finding standing still rather cold work, began to move toward 
 the door to go in. 
 
 The boys were back in no time. They pronounced the ice 
 excellent, and were wild to get out their skates, and begin at 
 once. But Mr. Longwood said, "No: we have all been travelling 
 five hours, and are pretty tired. If we overdo matters at the 
 start, we shall not have half so good a time afterward. So let 
 us put off skating till to-morrow, and all go into the parlor and 
 have some games. I fancy Mary Ann may have some apples 
 and nuts." 
 
 " It seems almost a pity not to skate," said Tom, looking 
 longingly at the lake. " It may snow before morning, and then 
 our chance will all be gone." 
 
 " I don't think that there is much danger of that," said Mr. 
 Longwood, laughing. " At all events, none of the girls could 
 go ; and it would not be at all polite, Master Tom, to go off 
 and leave them by themselves." 
 
 This was a point that the boys had not thought of: so they 
 all made haste to join the rest of the party in the parlor. 
 
 " What shall we do ? " asked Lou Grant. 
 
 "Well, what do you say to some games?" said Carrie.
 
 1 6 JACK HASTINGS CALLS FOR "INJUNS? 
 
 " I'll tell you what would be much nicer," said Will Morgan. 
 " Mr. Longwood knows ever so many splendid stories. If he 
 would tell us one, I know you would be sure to like it." 
 
 They all joined in urging this plan so vigorously, that finally 
 Mr. Longwood agreed to tell a story. 
 
 " But what shall it be about ? " he asked. 
 
 " Injuns," said little Jack Hastings, who sat at the end of the 
 circle about the fire, his eyes as big as saucers. 
 
 The boys all voted that Jack's choice was a good one ; and 
 so Mr. Longwood began.
 
 . v ^ 
 
 ?CJK 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 " IN the year 1636, when 
 what I am about to tell you 
 took place, there was not a 
 single settlement on Long 
 Island, and only one or two 
 along the whole Connecti 
 cut shore. Everywhere were 
 wild forests, and the whole 
 negion hereabout was owned 
 by a tribe of fierce and war 
 like Indians, the Pequots. 
 
 "At first they had been 
 friendly to the whites ; but, 
 after a time, there had come 
 signs of trouble. A whole 
 vessel's crew who had gone 
 up the Connecticut River to 
 trade with them had been cut 
 off, and not a man had been 
 left to tell the tale. Notwith 
 standing this warning, there were to be found men who were. 
 
 AN INDIAN WARRIOR.
 
 1 8 SKIPPER GALLUP TO l^HE RESCUE. 
 
 willing to run all risks for the sake of the great profit that could 
 be made in bartering with them. 
 
 " One of these was John Oldham, a bold and hardy adven 
 turer, who had spent years in such traffic. Loading his pinnace 
 with beads, knives, and other things that the Indians loved, he 
 would sail to some part of the coast where his coming speedily 
 became known. Soon his vessel would be crowded with Indians, 
 eager to exchange beaver-skins and other furs for the bright 
 trifles that took their eye ; when he would sail back to Plymouth, 
 where his skins were shipped to England to be sold at a great 
 profit. 
 
 " But he ventured too often ; for on one of these journeys, 
 while off Block Island, his only crew being a boy and two 
 friendly Indians, he was boarded by some twenty or more Pe- 
 quots. The cargo was too great a temptation for them : so they 
 killed Capt. Oldham and cut off his head, carried off the crew 
 prisoners, and seized the vessel. But his death was avenged 
 speedily and thoroughly, as you shall hear. 
 
 " Hardly had the foul deed been done, when a sail was seen 
 in the distance, drawing near. It was Skipper John Gallup in 
 his sloop. He had set out from Connecticut to trade with the 
 Indians on Long Island, somewhere near where we now are ; 
 but the wind had changed suddenly, and, coming on to blow, he 
 was driven toward Block Island. The sail ahead at once at 
 tracted his attention ; for there were so few craft then, that every 
 skipper knew at once the name of every sail he met. So Capt. 
 Gallup knew that it was Capt. Oldham's pinnace : and when, as 
 he drew nearer, he saw a canoe-load of Indians leave it for the
 
 CAPTAIN OLDHAM IS KILLED. 
 
 shore, while on the deck he could count fourteen Pequots, each 
 man armed, his heart misgave him; for he saw at once that Capt. 
 Oldham had been killed. 
 
 INDIANS BRINGING BEAVER-SKINS TO BARTER. 
 
 "His own crew was small enough, his two sons, both lads, 
 and one grown man, were all : so that many a one would have
 
 20 SKIPPER GALLUP ON THE WAR-PATH. 
 
 thought it no cowardice to fly from so large a band of enemies. 
 But such a thought never entered Skipper Gallup's mind. He 
 stationed his crew all forward, where they were sheltered by the 
 bulwarks, and armed them with the two guns and two pistols he 
 had on board. Then, taking his station at the wheel, he bore 
 down toward the pinnace. The three in the bows used their 
 weapons to such good effect as soon as they came within gun 
 shot, that the whole band of Indians presently left the deck in 
 great haste and confusion to seek protection from the bullets 
 below. Then the skipper all at once changed his vessel's course, 
 and, coming down at full speed before the wind, struck the pin 
 nace, bows on, on her quarter. 
 
 "The shock was tremendous; and she careened so far, that the 
 Indians thought that she was about to capsize ; and six, filled 
 with fright, rushed up from below, and jumped overboard, where, 
 as it was blowing half a gale, and they were two miles from 
 shore, they were soon drowned. 
 
 " Meantime our skipper had again worked his sloop to wind 
 ward, and was coming down once more to strike the pinnace 
 as before. This time he hung his great anchor over the bow 
 in such a way, that, when he struck, her fluke should tear open 
 the side of the pinnace. His crew were directed to hold their 
 fire till after they had met, when they were to deliver their shots 
 through the hole they hoped would be made. 
 
 " This onset was even more successful than the first. The 
 sloop raked the pinnace from bow to stern, tearing open her 
 side, and causing such fright among the heathen, that four more 
 leaped overboard. Only four now remained ; and Capt. Gallup
 
 THE END OF THE PINNACE. 21 
 
 and his man at once boarded the enemy. One Indian came up, 
 and begged for quarter. They bound him hand and foot, and 
 put him into the sloop. A second followed. Him they also 
 bound. But, when they thought an instant, they saw that they 
 should put themselves in much danger if they spared his life. 
 What if the two, having loosed one another's bonds, should rise 
 upon them at night when they were worn out with work ? They 
 had been taken red-handed ; for there in the pinnace lay the 
 body of poor Oldham. The risk was too great. Overboard he 
 must go, and overboard he went to share the fate of his fellows. 
 
 "There were now but two left, and these were hidden below, 
 and were afraid, as well they might be, to show themselves. 
 The gale was increasing. So Skipper Gallup hastily shifted what 
 cargo of the pinnace had not been stolen to his own boat, and 
 such of her .sail and rigging as could be hastily transferred, fas 
 tened down her hatches, and, taking her in tow, set sail once 
 more, hoping to carry her into port with him. But the storm 
 increased so rapidly, that after a time he had to cut her loose ; 
 and she was never seen again." 
 
 The boys indulged in many praises of Skipper Gallup's 
 bravery ; till at last Will Morgan said, 
 
 "And was that the end of the trouble with the Pequots?" 
 
 " Oh, no ! " said Mr. Longwood : " they became worse than 
 ever. Whenever a white man showed himself outside of the 
 towns, he was sure to find an Indian arrow in wait. At last all 
 the colonies united, and raised a small army. There was a great 
 battle, in which over seven hundred of the red men were killed ; 
 which so weakened them, that the surrounding tribes, their ene 
 mies, fell upon them, and exterminated them to a man."
 
 22 JACK HASTINGS' S GREAT- GRANDMOTHER. 
 
 " I wonder what became of Skipper Gallup," said Ned Grant. 
 
 " I do not know," said Mr. Longwood ; "but one of the sons 
 who was with him in this affair became a captain, and was killed 
 in King Philip's War." 
 
 " Isn't there some good story about that war ? " asked Ned. 
 
 " Yes," said Mr. Longwood : " there are a great many. There 
 was one man who was a great fighter. At one time, when 
 almost all alone, he captured sixty Indians." 
 
 " I know a good story," interrupted little Jack Hastings. " My 
 great-grandmother " 
 
 " Hush, Jack ! " said his sister. " Do go on, please, Mr. 
 Longwood." 
 
 " King Philip's War," said Mr. Longwood, " was much more 
 important than the one I have been telling you about. It came 
 forty years later, when there were a great many more settlers in 
 the country ; and there were so many tribes engaged in it, and 
 they were at first so successful, that it seemed that the Indians 
 would carry out their threat to drive every white man out of 
 the land. 
 
 "The first blood was shed in a town named Swansey. The 
 people were expecting trouble with the Indians ; and so a day of 
 humiliation and prayer was ordered, in the hope that God would 
 hear the cry of his people, and avert the great calamity which 
 they feared was coming upon them. They had all met in the 
 meeting-house, which, as of course you know, was more like a 
 fort than a church, and to which they were always summoned by 
 the beating of a drum ; for there were no bells in those days. 
 The prayers were said, and the people were on their way to their
 
 CAPTURED BY THE INDIANS.
 
 THE SETTLERS ATTACKED. 
 
 Ski 
 
 homes, when the fearful war-whoop was heard, and from an 
 ambush close at hand came a flight of bullets, and several 
 dropped dead. 
 
 " Then the Indians fell upon all the towns and outlying farms. 
 When the men went out 
 to work, they were shot 
 down by an unseen foe. 
 Those whom the bullet 
 only wounded, the toma 
 hawk finished. All made 
 haste, leaving their homes 
 to be burned, and their 
 crops to be destroyed, to 
 flock into the garrison- 
 houses, which, built of 
 heavy logs, were bullet 
 proof. But many was 
 the poor man and woman 
 shot down before they 
 dreamed of danger, and 
 many were the captives 
 carried away to drag out 
 a miserable existence, 
 the women and children 
 as slaves ; the men to run the gauntlet, or to be tortured to death 
 to satisfy the cruel nature of their captors. 
 
 " If you read the histories of that time, you will hear of many 
 a hairbreadth escape, and many a deed of daring. At one time, 
 
 A SETTLER ATTACKED.
 
 26 
 
 A CAPITAL SHOT. 
 
 in one of the garrison-houses, a woman in the second story was 
 turning cheeses, and had slipped back a small shutter to let in 
 
 light. An Indian who 
 was on the watch fired 
 at the opening. The 
 ball passed complete 
 ly through the cheese 
 that the woman held 
 in her hand, but did 
 her no injury. 
 
 "At another time, 
 on a very dark night, 
 a man who was a 
 capital shot let him 
 self out of the garri 
 son-house, and took 
 his stand just beside 
 the door. A com 
 panion within put a 
 light in one of the 
 loop-holes of the 
 house, and retired in 
 stantly. It was well 
 that he did so; for the 
 next instant a bullet 
 fired by some am 
 bushed Indian came 
 out the candle. Our friend 
 
 RUNNING THE GAUNTLET. 
 
 with such good aim, that it put
 
 THE ADVENTURE OF TWO CHILDREN. 
 
 outside the door, however, was waiting with his rifle to his shoulder. 
 Quick as thought he fired at the flash of the Indian's gun, and 
 brought down his man. 
 
 " It was not the men alone who did daring deeds. In Dor 
 chester lived a Mr. Minot, who had two little children. One 
 
 AN INDIAN LODGE. 
 
 Sunday morning, while the rest of the family were at church, 
 they were left at home alone with a servant-maid. She made 
 the door fast as usual, and was busy about her household affairs. 
 On a sudden an Indian appeared, and tried to make his way in. 
 Not being able to force the door, he ran to the window. The
 
 28 A SHOVEL OF LIVE COALS. 
 
 girl waited only a minute to hide the children under two great 
 brass kettles, and rushed up stairs for a musket. The Indian 
 .fired at her as she ran, but missed her. She fired back at him 
 with better aim, hitting him in the shoulder. But the shot did 
 not disable him ; and, filled with rage, he made all the more vig 
 orous efforts to get in. There was no time to load again : so, 
 catching up a shovel of live coals, she dashed them against his 
 face with such force, that he made haste to get away. The next 
 day his dead body was found in the woods, his face one mass 
 of burns. 
 
 " Well, at first it seemed, as I said, as if the Indians were 
 going to be successful, and drive all the white men out of the 
 country. Town after town was burned. There was no way of 
 paying them back in kind ; for their lodges, built of sticks covered 
 with skins, were rebuilt in a day. Things looked very black for 
 the colonists. 
 
 " But all at once the tide turned. A great battle was fought, 
 in which many hundred Indian warriors were slain. At last King 
 Philip, the chief of their whole confederation, was killed ; and then 
 the war was practically at an end. 
 
 "The most successful leader of the settlers was Capt. Church. 
 He was a man without personal fear. He would venture into 
 the councils of tribes whom he feared were about to join the 
 ^nemy, and would sit unmoved amid the wildest gesticulation and 
 fury of orators urging their nation to take up arms against the 
 whites. Often, by his personal coolness, he weaned a tribe back 
 to their old alliance. He it was who captured the sixty Indians ; 
 and this was the way it happened :
 
 AN INDIAN ORATOR.
 
 STAND TO IT; STAND TO IT! 31 
 
 " In the battle in which King Philip was killed, one of the 
 Indians was heard calling out in a loud voice to his men, ' I-oo- 
 tash ; I-oo-tash /' ' Stand to it ; stand to it ! ' This was old 
 Annawon, Philip's right-hand man. 
 
 "A few days later, when Capt. Church was on a scouting 
 expedition with one white man and five or six friendly Indians, 
 they captured one of the enemy, an old fellow, who, on being 
 questioned, confessed that he had come from Annawon's camp, 
 which he said was situated in a swamp. He further told that 
 there were with him some sixty men, and that by hard marching 
 the camp could be reached by nightfall. Capt. Church had, as I 
 said, but one white man and five Indians .with him. If he 
 waited for re-enforcements, he would lose his opportunity ; for it 
 was well known that Annawon was too wily to ever camp twice 
 in the same place. He turned to his men. Would they join 
 him in a forlorn hope to capture this great chief? The white 
 man answered, ' I am never afraid of going anywhere when you 
 are with me ; ' and the Indians, so great was Capt. Church's 
 renown as a warrior, at last consented. The old man whom they 
 had taken prisoner agreed, if they would spare his life, to pilot 
 them ; and so they set out, their guide striding before them at 
 ' such a pace, that he was often out of sight. 
 
 " At last, as dusk drew near, he halted. This was the time, 
 he said, when Annawon sent out his scouts. If they went on, 
 there was danger of being discovered. They must wait an hour 
 or so, and then it would be safe to move again. Here Capt. 
 Church asked the old man if he would fight for him. The 
 Indian bowed low, and said, that, as he owed him his life, he had
 
 A PERILOUS CLIMB. 
 
 consented to show him the way ; but he prayed him that he 
 might not be made to fight against his old master. He promised, 
 however, to come to the captain's aid, should any one attack him. 
 " Then they set out again. Soon they came in sight of the 
 
 camp. It was in a 
 deep recess ; and the 
 only way to it was 
 to climb down some 
 rocks in single file, 
 in sight of all below. 
 The guide was sent 
 first, so that he would 
 be recognized as a 
 friend ; and they fol 
 lowed in his shadow. 
 A young woman was 
 pounding corn in a 
 mortar. When she 
 pounded, they moved 
 on ; when she stopped 
 to turn the corn, they 
 stopped : and so it 
 turned out, that be 
 fore Annawon, who 
 
 A SQUAW AND PAPPOOSE. 1 1 ir 1 
 
 was lying half asleep 
 
 with his son beside him, realized that the enemy were upon him, 
 Capt. Church had stepped across his prostrate body, and secured 
 all his arms, which had been stacked a little to one side.
 
 ANNA WON MAKES A PRESENT. 33 
 
 "The old chief saw that he had been outwitted, and, after 
 the first start and exclamation of surprise, lay in perfect stillness 
 with true Indian stoicism. Meantime the rest of Capt. Church's 
 party had gone to the other Indians of the band, who were 
 lying about fires a little distance away, and telling them that 
 Annawon was taken, and that they were entirely surrounded b^ 
 whites, but that, if they would give up their guns, they should 
 have quarter, persuaded them to yield their arms. 
 
 " Capt. Church had succeeded ; but his position was by no 
 means an enviable one. Should his captives find out the truth, 
 they could by sheer force of numbers overcome him. He, too, 
 was worn out with his work. Bidding his men keep watch for a 
 couple of hours, he lay down, and fell asleep. But he took the 
 precaution to throw one of his legs over Annawon, and the other 
 over his son, so that neither could move without disturbing him. 
 At the end of the two hours he awoke. Annawon lay with his 
 eyes wide open, watching him. Together they remained eying 
 one another. At length the old Indian rose, and strode off into 
 the forest. Capt. Church, as he was gone some time, fearing: 
 that some villany was preparing, made the chief's son lie beside 
 him in such a way that no bullet could reach him without first 
 killing the Indian. But his precautions were needless ; for the 
 old man soon returned, bearing with him the belt of King Philip, 
 which he had taken from its hiding-place. Kneeling down, he 
 presented it to Capt. Church, saying in broken English, 
 
 " ' Great captain, you have killed Philip, and conquered his 
 country: for I believe that I and my company are the last that 
 war against the English, so suppose the war is ended by your 
 means ; and therefore these things belong to you.'
 
 34 A PLAN IS PROPOSED. 
 
 " The war was, as Annawon had said, at an end. He had no 
 heart to fight further ; and his captor marched him off the next 
 morning with his men to Plymouth, where shortly after he was 
 tried for the murder of many English, and, notwithstanding Capt. 
 Church's efforts in his behalf, was executed." 
 
 " What I can't understand," said Tom Longwood, " is why 
 Annawon did not try to escape the next morning. He must 
 have seen then how much stronger his own party was than that 
 of Capt. Church." 
 
 " I suppose he did not think that he would be shot by the 
 settlers," said Mr. Longwood. " Very likely Capt. Church prom 
 ised him his life. After Annawon had brought King Philip's 
 belt, they sat by the fire, and talked together till morning. It 
 is certain that Capt. Church tried his utmost to save him, and 
 that he was very much depressed when he heard of his taking- 
 off. But Annawon confessed that he had put whites to death 
 by torture, and there was no chance for him after that." 
 
 "How glad I am that all those days are over!" said Rose 
 Waring. " It was very kind of you, Mr. Longwood, to take so 
 much trouble to amuse us ; and I am sure we all thank you very 
 much." 
 
 "Yes, indeed!" they all cried; and Ned Grant said, "I hope 
 that to-morrow night you will feel like telling us another." 
 
 " How would it do," said Mr. Longwood, " for each of you 
 young people to tell a story? We shall be here five nights 
 more, and there are ten of you. That would give us ten stories 
 in all, two on each evening. We might make the condition that 
 they should be from American history. There are a great many
 
 AN EMPTY ROOM. 
 
 35 
 
 books on that subject in the library, and you can easily hunt 
 up some story if you do not know one already. What say you 
 all ? Shall we try it ? " 
 
 The question was put to vote, and it was decided that the 
 plan should be tried. Then lots were drawn, and each had his 
 or her day allotted. Carrie Longwood and Will Morgan drew 
 theirs for the next evening, while at the very end of all came 
 little Jack Hastings. 
 
 " I know what I shall tell," said that young gentleman. " My 
 great-grandmother " 
 
 " Don't tell us to-night, Jack," said Mrs. Longwood. " It is 
 high time that we all went to bed, if we want to be fresh in 
 the morning for to-morrow's fun." 
 
 So they all trooped off up-stairs, and soon the parlor fire 
 was flickering and blinking to an empty room.
 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 " DEAR me, girls ! " said 
 Gertrude Hastings when 
 they were up-stairs, " I am 
 so glad that our rooms open 
 into one another ! It is like 
 all sleeping in the same 
 room. Those Indian stories 
 have made my blood creep, 
 and I expect to hear a war- 
 whoop at any moment." 
 
 " I am so sleepy," said 
 Kate, " that I don't think a 
 hundred war-whoops could 
 wake me to-night. It must 
 be the sea air. I never am 
 so in New York." 
 
 Notwithstanding all tnis r 
 she made no haste to get 
 into bed, but joined the 
 other girls, who, in their 
 
 night-dresses, had crouched around the blazing fire. They were 
 
 36 
 
 GERTRUDE'S FRIGHT.
 
 GERTRUDE HEARS AN INDIAN. 37 
 
 all deep in some of the many subjects that girls find to talk 
 about; and might have continued there till morning, had not 
 Mrs. Longwood come in and packed them all off to bed, when 
 their tongues soon stopped for the night. 
 
 It must have been about three o'clock in the morning when 
 Gertrude awoke suddenly. The blaze had all died away from 
 the fire, and only a few embers threw a dull red glow on the 
 ceiling. As she lay there only half conscious, she heard a noise, 
 crunch, crunch, on the snow outside. In an instant all the In 
 dian stories came back to her mind, and she started up in bed 
 in a fright. But a moment's thought told her that Indians had 
 long ago ceased to rouse people from their sleep. Still the 
 noise went on, crunch, crunch. Something, she was sure, was 
 wrong. Perhaps it was a burglar. She felt a strong desire to 
 lie down, and cover her head with the bed-clothes, but, putting 
 away all such suggestions, jumped up, and, making her way to 
 the window, looked out. 
 
 The moon was just setting; but there was still light enough 
 to make out the cause of her fright. It was Garm. He was 
 walking slowly about, keeping guard over every thing. What a 
 sudden change it made in her feelings ! Now she felt as safe as 
 a little while before she had been frightened. She tapped softly 
 on the pane; and he looked up, and, seeing her, stood still a 
 moment, and wagged his tail, and then resumed his walk. 
 
 Her window looked out upon the sea ; and there, as she 
 raised her eyes, close in shore, was a great ocean-steamer. 
 Gertrude could make out clearly the outlines of her masts and 
 the red flame that poured from her smoke-stacks as she made 
 her way onward.
 
 THE BOYS ARE MISSING. 
 
 But she soon found . herself shivering with cold: so she left 
 the window. " I'll just put one of these logs on the fire," she 
 said: " a little blaze is such good company." And then she hopped 
 into bed again, and, long before the blaze had sprung up, was 
 fast asleep. 
 
 Morning arrived in due time, and with it the breakfast-hour. 
 When Mr. and Mrs. Longwood came down stairs, they found 
 the girls all waiting in the parlor; but not a boy was to be seen. 
 
 THE STEAMER AT SEA. 
 
 "Why, this is very strange!" said Mr. Longwood after they 
 had all said good-morning. "Where are the boys?" 
 
 " I have not heard a sound," said Kate, " and I have been 
 down stairs more than half an hour." 
 
 "What heavy sleepers they must be! Bridget!" he called to 
 the maid who was standing in the hall, " go up to the young 
 gentlemen's rooms, and tell them that breakfast is ready."
 
 THE BOYS ARE FOUND. 39 
 
 " Sure, it's skatin' they've been this hour, sur," said Bridget. 
 " I saw thim wid their skates in their hands whin I first came 
 down." 
 
 "This will never do," said Mrs. Longwood. "They must 
 always have something to eat before going out, or they'll be 
 catching cold. Bridget, tie a napkin to the piazza-post. Master 
 Tom will remember that that was the way we called him to din 
 ner last summer, when he was out boating." 
 
 The napkin was tied up; and the girls who gathered at the 
 window to watch soon saw the five boys, side Ipy side, with hands 
 joined, come gliding down toward them, the two dogs plunging 
 and slipping and barking wildly behind. 
 
 And in less than no time they were up at the house, and 
 sitting around the table. 
 
 "Well, young people," said Mr. Longwood when they had 
 been helped, "how did you sleep?" 
 
 All declared that they had not opened their eyes till daylight, 
 except Gertrude, who told the story of her fright. 
 
 " I suppose," said Ned Grant, " that, if it had been a real 
 Indian, you would have been very much frightened." 
 
 " Yes, indeed I should," said Gertrude. 
 
 " And yet there was an Indian crouched within fifty feet of 
 your bed all night long." 
 
 " O Ned Grant, what an awful story ! " said two or three of 
 the girls. 
 
 " It isn't a story at all," said Ned. " Mary Ann, the cook, is 
 a Shinnecock Indian. I went out to the kitchen before going 
 skating to see if I couldn't get a piece of bread. I was afraid.
 
 40 JACK MAKES A JOKE. 
 
 having just got over a bad cold, to go out before eating. Mary 
 Ann gave me a slice of bread and butter and a glass of milk ; 
 and while I v/as eating it she told me that she was a Shin- 
 necock Indian, and that the tribe lived only two miles away on 
 land reserved for them by the government. She told me ever 
 so much beside ; and I got so interested, that all the fellows had 
 their skates on, and were off, before I reached the lake. I am 
 going to see her again some time." 
 
 " I suppose," said little Jack, " that the bread she gave you 
 must have been Indian bread." 
 
 "O Jack," they all cried, "what a wretched joke! But is it 
 true, Mr. Longwood, that there is a tribe of Indians close to us ? " 
 
 " Yes," said that gentleman, "not two miles away. Before 
 we go back, we will all go over there in the big sleigh. We can 
 go to-day if you like." 
 
 " The skating is prime," said Tom, " and it may not last. If 
 it should snow, there would be an end to it ; while the Shinnecock 
 Indians are not likely to run away." 
 
 " Not very far in this cold weather, at all events," said Mr. 
 Longwood. " Perhaps it is better not to try any excursions on 
 our first day. The lake will give us plenty of amusement; and 
 it is so close at hand, that, if any get tired, they can easily come 
 to the house and rest." 
 
 So as soon as breakfast and prayers were over, they all set 
 out. The boat-pier made a capital place for the girls to sit 
 while the boys put on their skates ; and in a very few moments 
 they were all on their feet and away, except Rose Waring, who 
 stood holding her skates in her hand, and looking after them 
 with quite a melancholy face.
 
 ROSE WARING TRIES TO SKATE. 41 
 
 "Why, Rose," said Charlie Morgan, "how solemn you look! 
 Sit down here, and I'll have your skates on before you can say 
 Jack Robinson." 
 
 " But I don't know how to skate," said Rose. 
 
 " Oh ! you'll learn in no time," said Charlie encouragingly. 
 " I learned in an hour. Come : Ned Grant and I will hold you 
 up on each side, and you'll get the hang of it at once." 
 
 So Rose had her skates put on, and started off with a boy 
 on either side. But she soon found that the expectation Charlie 
 had held out, of her learning in an hour, was a vain one. As 
 long as the two boys held her up, she got on very well ; but, 
 the minute they let go, down she went in a heap. Half an hour 
 passed, and she made no more progress than at first. She was 
 a very considerate girl ; and so, as she saw that she was keeping 
 them from skating, and as she knew that they would never leave 
 her by. herself, she suddenly discovered that she was very tired, 
 and decided that her skates must come off. The boys .remon 
 strated ; but she persisted. 
 
 Just as she had got on her feet without them, Tom and Will 
 came down. 
 
 " Why, Rose ! " they cried, " what is the matter ? " 
 
 "She says she is tired," said Ned Grant; "but I know that it 
 is only because she thinks that she is troubling us." 
 
 " Wait a moment," said Tom : " I have an idea." And, taking 
 off his skates, he ran to the house. A moment later, they saw 
 him coming back with a rocking-chair over his head. 
 
 " It just occurred to me that Rose could sit on this, and we 
 -could push her. I think it will run nearly as easily as a sled ;
 
 42 A FIRE ON THE ICE. 
 
 and, if it doesn't, there is a sled in the barn. Perhaps, now that 
 I have my skates off, I had better get that, in case the chair 
 doesn't work." So off he went again, and soon was back with 
 the sled, and a rug that he had picked up on the way. 
 
 The chair was tried, and the sled both ; but the boys pronounced 
 in favor of the sled, because it had a long rope, and three or 
 four could draw it at once. So Rose, snugly tucked up in the 
 rug, was soon flying to the other end of the lake, where the others 
 were. 
 
 " It is pretty cold," said Carrie after a time : " one has to 
 keep moving to keep warm. I should think you would freeze on 
 that sled, Rose." 
 
 " I should," said Rose ; " but Tom tucked me up so snugly, 
 that I am as warm as toast." 
 
 " There is a great pile of old fence-rails on our land close by 
 the lake," said Tom ; " and I am sure that we could have some to 
 make a fire on the ice." 
 
 At that they all set out again in the direction of home ; and, 
 Mr. Longwood's consent being gained, a bright blaze was soon 
 made, and the young folk gathered around it, sitting down on 
 sundry rails that were to feed the fire when it grew low. 
 
 Just then Ned Grant gave a frantic scream. 
 
 " What is the matter ? " they all cried. 
 
 ' That," said Ned with much gravity, " was a war-whoop. I 
 saw Mary Ann out by the kitchen-door, and thought that perhaps 
 she would think it a polite attention on my part to salute her 
 after the manner of her nation." 
 
 " It seems to have been a very effective salute, at all events."
 
 IS IT PEACE, OR WAR? 43 
 
 said Tom; " for she is coming this way. Look out, Ned, for your 
 scalp; for she may be on the war-path." 
 
 " That basket doesn't look like it," said Ned. " I hope it's 
 sandwiches." 
 
 Mary Ann by this time had reached the lake, and was walking 
 over the ice toward them with as much care as if she expected 
 to see her heels fly into the air at any moment. 
 
 " Hillo, Mary Ann ! what's in that basket?" said Tom, skating 
 toward her, and trying to take it. 
 
 " Now you jist git along," said Mary Ann. " Fust thing you 
 know, I'll be down; and that's no laughing matter. Young folks 
 is mighty risky of their lives. I'd no more put them skates on 
 my feet than I'd fly." 
 
 The basket did contain sandwiches, and they air munched them 
 with great satisfaction. 
 
 " It's eleven o'clock already," said Carrie. " How the time has 
 flown ! And I'm rather tired too. What do you say, girls, to going 
 in, and resting till dinner ? " 
 
 The girls all fell in with her plan, and the boys were soon left 
 alone. 
 
 " I have an idea," said Tom. " There is an ice-boat at the 
 upper end of the lake, and I know the man who owns it. If one 
 of you fellows will go with me, we will hunt him up, and see if 
 he won't take us out in her." 
 
 Will Morgan and he thereupon set off; and in about twenty 
 minutes little Jack, who was on the lookout, called out, " There 
 they come! They've got her! I see a sail!" 
 
 A minute later the ice-boat was right abreast of them, flying
 
 44 JACK HAS AN ACCIDENT. 
 
 like the wind ; Tom and Will standing up and waving their hats, 
 and shouting like two young lunatics. 
 
 " Hold hard ! " the others could just hear a gruff voice call in 
 the distance ; and the next instant the boat came around in the wind, 
 and moved slowly toward them. One after another, they took 
 turns in sailing. The breeze was strong, and the boat fairly flew. 
 The captain turned out to be a jolly fellow too, and he let the 
 boys help manage her ; and altogether they were in such a wild 
 state of delight, that the napkin tied to the piazza-post to tell 
 them that dinner was ready was not seen at all, and Mr. Longwood 
 had to come down to the pier and call again and again before 
 they heard. 
 
 After dinner, they went skating again as wildly as if they had 
 not seen ice for a twelvemonth. And now I must tell you what 
 befell Jack Hastings. It had got to be four o'clock, and the 
 boys were playing snap-the-whip. Jack was on the very end. 
 How it happened so, I know not ; for he was a little fellow, and 
 they were always very careful of him. Will Morgan, who was 
 the strongest, cracked the whip ; and he did it with such force, 
 that poor Jack was thrown down, and sent flying over the ice. 
 Very little harm would have been done by this, for Jack had had 
 at least fifty hard tumbles that day before ; but it so happened 
 that they were near the edge of the lake, and close at hand was 
 a hole that had been broken to make a place for some cattle to 
 drink. 
 
 Toward this hole Jack went flying, and into it he plumped. 
 The water could not have been more than a foot deep ; but when 
 he got on his feet, and came out, he was pretty thoroughly wet.
 
 JACK HASTINGS' ACCIDENT.
 
 RUN, YOUNGSTER, RUN! 47 
 
 His coat had protected his body ; but they could hear the water 
 crunch in his boots as he walked. 
 
 " Off with his skates, fellows ! quick ! " cried Ned Grant, 
 stooping down to take off his own. "Run, youngster!" he cried 
 as Jack shook off the last strap ; and, taking him by the shoulder, 
 he hurried him along till they reached the house, all panting 
 from the run. 
 
 Mrs. Longwood, who was in the hall, took in the situation at 
 a glance ; and Master Jack was hurried up-stairs, and, before he 
 knew it, had his wet things off, and was perched up on a table, 
 where Bridget rubbed him dry, while Mrs. Longwood rummaged 
 in his trunk for a change of clothes. They were soon forthcom 
 ing ; though Bridget's sharp eye found that a button was off, and 
 so she stopped to put it on. Jack did not in the least object to 
 the delay, but seemed to take a great satisfaction in the whole 
 business. Especially did he enjoy it, when, in answer to his 
 mild insinuation that a hot lemonade was capital to ward off 
 colds, Mrs. Longwood sent Bridget down to make one. 
 
 But after dinner, when they had all gathered around the fire, 
 Master Jack was discovered to be very hoarse ; and Mrs. Long- 
 wood, in spite of his appeals, and his statement that there was 
 nothing the matter with him, decided that he must go to bed 
 instanter. So he was packed off up-stairs ; and his bed was put 
 into her room, so that she would be close at hand in case he 
 should grow worse in the night. 
 
 Jack was at first quite inconsolable. " You see," he said to 
 Margaret, Tom and Carrie's old nurse, who had been in the 
 family for years, and who Helped him undress, " I know a splen-
 
 4 8 
 
 JACK GOES TO BED. 
 
 did story about my great-grandmother, and I am so afraid that 
 some of the fellows may tell it ! However," he went on, " I don't 
 see how it can be helped ; and I don't believe they any of them 
 ever met her, anyway." And, with this bit of comfort in his. 
 thoughts, he rolled over, and was soon asleep. 
 
 JACK GOES TO BED.
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 
 
 It 
 
 " MY story," said Will, 
 when they had all drawn 
 up into a great circle be 
 fore the fire, " has to do 
 with Indians. I am very 
 sorry that it has, because 
 Gertrude begged that there 
 should be no Indian sto 
 ry this evening, as she did 
 not want to have another 
 fright. It would be a 
 pretty difficult thing to find 
 any part of early American 
 history in which Indians 
 did not play a part ; and 
 as it is not very long, and 
 the Indians did not alto 
 gether have the best of it. 
 perhaps it will not disturb 
 her slumbers, after all. 
 is a ballad ; and the incidents it describes must have taken 
 
 AN OLD INDIAN CHIEF. 
 
 49
 
 50 THE WOMEN OF MARBLEHEAD. 
 
 place in King Philip's War, of which Mr. Longwood told us last 
 night. 
 
 "It is called 
 
 1677. 
 
 Fair blew the wind at Marblehead 
 
 Long years ago, on a morn in May, 
 When the little fleet of fishing craft, 
 
 Outward-bound, left the quiet bay; 
 And the band of women upon the pier 
 Watched them grow fainter, with sigh and tear. 
 True hearts have the women of Marblehead. 
 
 Scarce had a fortnight passed and gone, 
 
 'Twas the Lord's Day morning, clear and calm, 
 
 From the open doors of the meeting-house 
 Came the sound of the closing psalm, 
 
 And the words of prayer for those at sea, 
 
 That the Lord would be with them where'er they be. 
 Warm hearts have the women of Marblehead. 
 
 Why do the goodwives crowd on the steps, 
 
 Shading their eyes to look over the bay? 
 What is so strange in yon incoming sail? 
 
 Why do they start when they hear one say, 
 " By the cut of her jib, 'tis my goodman's boat ; 
 Tis 'The William and Mary,' right well I know't"? 
 Sharp eyes have the women of Marblehead. 
 
 "What harm can have fallen the fishing-fleet, 
 
 That he comes alone at this early day?" 
 Through the crowd, at her word, a tremor runs : 
 
 " To the pier ! " they cry ; " to the pier ! Away !
 
 SIXTEEN HUNDRED AND SEVENTY-SEVEN. 51 
 
 What hinders the men, that so slow they sail? 
 Will they never get closer, and answer our hail?" 
 Wild fears have the women of Marblehead. 
 
 " Skipper, ahoy ! What news do ye bring ? 
 
 Tell us at once, does all go well?" 
 " God have mercy ! " the skipper said : 
 
 " Hard is my fate such news to tell. 
 Taken or slain are all our men, 
 Routed at night by the Indian." 
 
 God pity the women of Marblehead ! 
 
 ''Anchors down in a sheltered cove, 
 
 Reckoned we nought of a hidden foe. 
 Down came the heathen five hundred strong, 
 
 All of our crews asleep below : 
 Some they slew with a savage zest, 
 But to sail the fleet they saved the rest." 
 
 What news is this, women of Marblehead ? 
 
 " I and my mates we watched our chance : 
 
 Four of our foes we pitched into the sea, 
 Sharp was the fight, but our lives were at stake, 
 
 Crowded all sail ; and so here we be. 
 Two of the red men we have fast bound 
 Down below deck all safe and sound." 
 
 Crazed are the women of Marblehead. 
 
 " Kill ! " screamed a fisher-wife lank and thin : 
 " They are taken red-handed, these murderers ! " 
 
 And she tore her sparse and grizzled hair, 
 And hurled a stone * the prisoners.
 
 52 CAPTAIN DAVENPORT BUYS INDIANS. 
 
 Then all the women in that mad crowd 
 Tore them to pieces with shriekings loud. 
 
 Have a care of the women of Marblehead ! 
 
 " Dear me ! " said Lou, " do you mean that they actually 
 killed them ? I don't believe it. Why, it was ever so much 
 worse than that riding of Floyd Ireson in a cart, that Whittier 
 wrote about." 
 
 " Nevertheless, it is so," said Will. " The old record says that 
 they, in a tumultuous way, very barbarously murdered them. 
 Oh ! those were savage days, and neither side had much to boasf 
 of. In the same book where I found that story there is a letter 
 from an officer. After telling of their various marches, and the 
 number of prisoners captured, he says, 
 
 "'Dec. 17, we sold Capt. Davenport forty-seven Indians, 
 young and old, for eighty pounds in money.' ' 
 
 " Why, what could Capt. Davenport do with them ? " asked 
 Rose. 
 
 " He burned them at the stake, one a day," said Ned Grant 
 solemnly. 
 
 " Nonsense ! he did nothing of the sort," said Will, seeing 
 Rose's look of horror. " He probably sold them to the planta 
 tions in the West Indies as slaves." 
 
 " That was about as bad, anyway," said Ned. 
 
 " We must remember," said Mr. Longwood, " that there was 
 hardly a settler who had not lost friends or a home by the sav 
 ages. They came to be regarded as wild beasts rather than 
 men."
 
 JOSIAS PLAISTOWE IS CAUGHT STEALING. 53 
 
 " The people who landed in ' The Mayflower ' did not think 
 so," said Carrie. " Almost one of the first things they did was to 
 make a treaty with the Indians ; and, if any one cheated them, he 
 was made to pay for it severely. Among their earliest records," 
 she went on, taking up a large book, and reading out of it, 
 " is this : 
 
 " ' Josias Plaistowe, for stealing four baskets of corn from the 
 Indians, is ordered to return them eight baskets, to be fined five 
 pounds, and hereafter to be called by the name Josias, and not 
 Mr. as formerly he used to be.' ' 
 
 " What a learned lady you are ! " said Ned Grant, very much 
 astonished. 
 
 " You see," laughed Carrie, '^when I came in from the pond 
 to hunt up a story for my part to-night, I took down an old 
 book that was all about the Pilgrims. I was so interested, that 
 I read on until nearly tea-time ; and then all at once I found that 
 I had no story : so I made up my mind to tell something about 
 the first settlers of New England." 
 
 " Blaze away ! " said Tom. 
 
 " Well," said Carrie, "the Pilgrims, you know, fled from Eng 
 land, where they were persecuted because of their religious be 
 lief, and went to Holland, and formed a settlement there. But, 
 after a time, they became dissatisfied. They did not want their 
 children to grow up Dutchmen ; and, as they had heard a great 
 deal about the New World, they decided that they would go to 
 America, and form a new colony. The land on the Hudson 
 River was known to be excellent, and they intended to settle 
 there.
 
 54 
 
 DEPARTURE FROM DELFT HA VEN. 
 
 "As all could not leave at once, they selected out of their 
 number some to go before. All flocked to Delft Haven, where 
 their vessel lay ; and, amid the tears and prayers of those left be 
 hind, the sails were hoisted, and the good ship soon left Holland 
 
 DELFT HAVEN. 
 
 on the lee. Another vessel had been hired, which joined them 
 at Southampton ; and together, their prows headed westward, they 
 set out for the New World. 
 
 " But storms soon came, and it was found that ' The Speed-
 
 LAND HO! AT LAST. 
 
 55 
 
 well ' was unseaworthy. There was no help but to put back to 
 port. Part of their number had to be left behind. The rest, 
 crowded together in close quarters in ' The Mayflower,' once more 
 set sail, on the 6th of September, and, after fifty-five days of 
 weary tossing and violent storms, saw land before them. They 
 hailed it with joy, though it was but the barren sands of Cape 
 
 THE " MAYFLOWER " AND " SPEEDWELL." 
 
 Cod, and many miles north of the Hudson River, for which they 
 had set out." 
 
 " How many were there ? " asked Tom. 
 
 " One hundred and two," said Carrie. " One baby was born 
 on the way, and he was named Oceanus. There were a good 
 many children, and they had such odd names ! There were
 
 56 CAPTAIN STANDISH GOES A-SCOUTING. 
 
 Humility Cooper, and Desire Minter, Remember Allerton, Love 
 Brewster, and Wrastle Brewster. These last were brother and 
 sister ; and their other two sisters, Fear and Patience, came over 
 later. If the children were as sober as their names, what sol 
 emn little groups must have played together on ' The Mayflower's ' 
 deck ! 
 
 " Well, when they found that they were so far north of where 
 they intended to be, they were, as I said, very much disap 
 pointed. But they decided that it was so late in the season, 
 that it would not do to go farther, but that they must get ashore, 
 and build them houses before the winter was upon them. It 
 was very well that they did not go to the Hudson River ; for the 
 fiercest Indians in the whole country were there, and they would, 
 no doubt, have been cut off speedily ; while the whole coast here 
 about had been visited only three years before by a great pesti 
 lence, that had carried off nearly all the natives, leaving the 
 country almost uninhabited. 
 
 " Scouting -parties were sent out every few days to find a 
 good place to begin the town. The first of these, consisting of 
 sixteen men, under the lead of their captain, Miles Standish, 
 marched afoot, each man armed with musket, sword, and corselet. 
 They had not gone far before they saw five or six Indians ; but 
 these had no sooner seen them, than they fled into the woods at 
 the top of their speed. The scouting-party followed their tracks 
 some ten miles ; but the Indians were too fleet to be overtaken. 
 Night came on ; and, stationing three sentinels, they built a fire, 
 and lay about it till morning. 
 
 " As soon as daylight appeared they followed the tracks once
 
 OFF FOR THE NEW WORLD.
 
 THE f DRINK NE W- ENGLAND WA TER. 
 
 more, hoping to fall in with some of the natives, or at least to 
 find their houses. But though they went on through bush and 
 brake, so wild that their very armor was torn, they could find 
 neither. They were nearly famished with thirst too ; for they had 
 brought neither water nor beer with them, and theirs had been a 
 long and weary tramp. But at ten they came upon a deep valley 
 with a spring, ' of which,' says one, ' we were heartily glad, and 
 sat us down, and drunk our first New-England water with as 
 much delight as ever we drunk drink in all our lives.' 
 
 " Then their march was taken up again. After a time they 
 discovered patches of cleared ground, where Indian -corn had 
 evidently been planted. A little farther on there were a few 
 boards where a wigwam had been, and a heap of fresh sand 
 smoothly piled up. 
 
 " This they digged into, and found within it a basket of Indian- 
 corn. It was a great blessing to them ; for in this way they got 
 seed for their next year's crop. Indian-corn was not known in 
 Europe ; and the grain that they brought with them did so poorly, 
 that they soon came to depend entirely upon it. Taking what 
 they could carry, they set out once more. Again night came, 
 and again they camped out by a fire, three sentinels keeping 
 watch as before. They were now not far from the ship, and, in 
 the morning, made their way back to her. 
 
 " One of the party fell into a deer- trap, and was caught by a 
 noose around his leg. It was well for him that his friends were 
 with him, or he might have dangled head downward in the air, 
 as the trap was made by bending down a strong sapling, which, 
 being suddenly set free, snapped back, dragging any poor animal 1 
 whom it had caught into the air.
 
 60 A PERILOUS ADVENTURE. 
 
 " After the victim had been set free, they soon reached the 
 ship, weary enough. 
 
 " Another party set out a few days later in the shallop. They 
 camped the first night in a favorable spot on the beach ; but the 
 next morning, when they were about to set sail again, there came 
 an Indian war-whoop and a flight of arrows. They sprang to 
 their arms, and there was a sharp fight for a few moments ; but 
 the white men's weapons soon put the savages to flight, and the 
 party resumed their journey. 
 
 " The day was wild and stormy. The spray dashed over them, 
 freezing as it fell, until they were coated with ice. Snow and 
 rain came to add to their misery. Just at dark the gale increased. 
 At a critical moment their mast broke into three pieces, and in 
 an instant more they would have been in the breakers. But the 
 sailor who was steering called to them, if they were men, to put 
 the boat about, and pull with the oars for their lives. They 
 needed no spur, but tugged with might and main, and so at last 
 got into smooth water under the lee of an island. They were 
 afraid to go ashore, for fear of Indians ; and yet staying out in a 
 December rain, wet to the skin, in an open boat, was worse. So 
 they ventured to land, and built them a fire, and fortunately were 
 not disturbed by the Indians at all. We may be very certain 
 that this party were very glad to get back to their ship. 
 
 " At last, after exploring still farther, they decided on settling 
 at Plymouth ; and on Christmas Day all the men were at work on 
 land, building their houses." 
 
 "And did they all live on the ship from the Qth of Novem 
 ber until Christmas?" asked Tom.
 
 THE BILLING TON BOY. 6 1 
 
 " Yes," said Carrie ; " except that the women went on shore 
 at times under guard to wash." 
 
 "Whew!" whistled Tom. " I am glad I wasn't there. Just 
 think of being close to shore for more than six weeks, and not 
 being able to land ! I should have been wild." 
 
 "There was a boy just like you, Tom. His name was Bil- 
 lington. He must have felt wild too. When his father was 
 away on an expedition he got some gunpowder and made squibs, 
 which he let off on deck. Then he went into his father's cabin 
 and took his fowling-piece, and fired it off. It was a wonder he 
 did no damage; for not only was the piece loaded, but there was 
 half a keg of gunpowder open in the room. 
 
 " They were all happy enough to get on shore ; but on the 
 scouting-expeditions many had been wet through, and then ex 
 posed to icy cold ; and they had often had to wade ashore from 
 their boats through the surf; and a great illness came on, so that, 
 before the end of March, there were only fifty left alive. 
 
 " But before this their town of log-houses had been built. It 
 had one broad street running up a hillside. At the top of the 
 hill, said a visitor who was there soon after it was finished, ' they 
 have a large square house with a flat roof, made of thick-sawn 
 planks, stayed with oak beams, upon the top of which they have six 
 cannon, which shoot iron balls of four or five pounds weight, and 
 command the surrounding country. The lower part they use for 
 their church, where they preach on Sundays and the usual holidays. 
 They assemble by beat of drum, each with his musket or firelock, 
 in front of the captain's door. They have their cloaks on, and place 
 themselves in order three abreast, and are led by a sergeant without 
 beat of drum.
 
 A SMILING YOUNG WOMAN. 
 
 " ' Behind comes the governor in a long robe ; beside him, on 
 the right hand, comes the preacher, with his cloak on ; and on the 
 left hand the captain, with his side-arm and cloak on, and with a 
 small cane in his hand : and so they march in good order, and 
 each sets his arms down near him.' " 
 
 " What larks ! " said Tom. 
 
 THE FORT ON THE HILL. 
 
 " Not so much as it may seem," said Carrie. " These were 
 very solemn people. Why, a young woman, a servant, was threat 
 ened with being sent out of the country as a common vagabond, 
 only because she smiled in church. And they did not think that 
 any one should spend any thought on their clothes. In Holland
 
 TIIK CALL TO PRAYER.
 
 WHALEBONES IN HER BODICE. 65 
 
 some of them raised a great complaint because one of the minis 
 ters' wives wore whalebones in her bodice and sleeves, and corked 
 shoes ; and one old woman who had entertained a clergyman, 
 when he was about to depart came up to him, and felt of his 
 band, for her eyes were dim with age, and, finding that it had been 
 stiffened with starch, was much incensed, and reproved him sharply, 
 fearing God would not prosper his journey. 
 
 " If you had lived in those days, Master Tom, I don't believe 
 you would have read your Sunday-school book during the sermon, 
 as I saw you doing last Sunday." 
 
 " I don't believe I should have had any to read," said Tom, 
 laughing. 
 
 " The laws that they made were very strict. Here are one or 
 two of them : 
 
 " A stubborn and rebellious son, and any one who cursed his 
 parents, was to be put to death. 
 
 " Profane cursing and swearing was fined ten shillings; and, if 
 there were more than one oath at a time, twenty shillings. 
 
 " Idle people and tobacco- takers were to be at once taken 
 before a magistrate for punishment. 
 
 " Any person who walked in the streets or fields on the sab 
 bath was fined ten shillings. 
 
 " One of the most common of their punishments was the pil 
 lory. On a raised platform, in the sight of all the people, in 
 some public place, the convicted person was made to stand. Some 
 times his head and feet were put into the stocks in addition. 
 
 " ' Edward Palmer, for his extortion in taking two pounds thir 
 teen shillings and fourpence for the woodwork of Boston stocks,
 
 66 WELCOME, ENGLISHMEN.' 
 
 is fined five pounds, and ordered to be set one hour in the 
 stocks.' 
 
 "The pillory continued many years in New England, long 
 after the log-huts had given place to well-built houses. The 
 Pilgrims were sorely troubled with later emigrants who differed 
 somewhat from them in religious matters ; and many was the per 
 son condemned as a scoffer, whom they made to stand on it. 
 
 " Their encounter with the Indians made them keep a sharp 
 lookout all the time that they worked in building ; but though 
 they saw the smoke of their fires in the woods about them, yet 
 none of the natives themselves were to be seen. But one day, 
 right down the village street, came an Indian. He walked boldly 
 into their midst ; and they were astonished to hear him say, ' Wel 
 come, Englishmen ! ' He had picked up a little English from the 
 crews of some ships that had been on the coast fishing ; and this 
 now stood them in good stead, for he became their interpreter to 
 the other Indians. He was most friendly, and, in spite of their 
 hints to the contrary, stayed all night. In the morning they sent 
 him away loaded with presents, and bade him take friendly mes 
 sages to the other Indians, and tell them to bring beaver skins to 
 trade. 
 
 " He did his errand faithfully ; and on the next Sunday he 
 re-appeared, followed by several stalwart fellows bearing the skins. 
 But it was Sunday, and the Pilgrims would do no business on 
 that day. They gave them presents, and bade them come again. 
 In a few days, Massasoit, the sachem of the tribe that lived about 
 them, paid them a visit with some sixty warriors, all with their best 
 paint on. The faces of some were red, and of some black, and
 
 SCOFFERS IN THE STOCKS.
 
 THE BILLINGTON BOY AGAIN. 69 
 
 they were all stalwart fellows ; so that our friends only received the 
 chief and some few of his principal men into the town, while the 
 rest waited outside. They feasted them, and gave them strong 
 water to drink. It made Massasoit's eyes fairly start out of his 
 head at first, and then it threw him into a great heat ; but his 
 reception pleased him very much, and he made a treaty with them, 
 and kept it so faithfully, that they could wander alone anywhere 
 about in the forests in perfect safety. The Indians were only too 
 glad to trade beaver-skins ; and the women fancied the things they 
 had to offer so much, that they sold their dresses of beaver off 
 their backs. 
 
 " That dreadful Billington boy now made as great an excite 
 ment as he did when he nearly blew up ' The Mayflower.' He 
 got lost in the woods. They had about given up hope of finding 
 him, when they learned that he had been discovered by a tribe 
 of Indians that lived some distance away. So Capt. Standish 
 had to take a boat's crew, and go after him. It took four or five 
 days. 
 
 " Boys," said Carrie, looking about her in a very superior way, 
 " are a great deal of trouble." 
 
 Ned Grant opened his mouth to defend the poor boys, at 
 tacked in this sudden and unexpected manner ; but Carrie made 
 haste to go on before he could begin : 
 
 " They kept on very friendly terms with Massasoit, and he 
 was always their firm ally. Through him they learned of a plan 
 of some of the other tribes to cut them off to a man. Pecksuot 
 and Wituwamet were the two men at the head of the conspiracy. 
 The governor of the colony called a meeting. It was necessary
 
 70 AN ARMY OF NINE MEN. 
 
 to act instantly, or it might be too late. They called upon Capt. 
 Standish, who was always ready. Selecting eight men, he set 
 out at once for the enemy's country. As soon as they reached 
 it an Indian came, pretending that he wanted to trade, but in 
 reality as a spy. Standish received him pleasantly, as he did not 
 want his plans suspected ; but the man went back to his fellows, 
 and reported that he saw by the captain's eyes that he was 
 angry. 
 
 " Wituwamet and Pecksuot were very bold and confident. 
 They had their followers in strong force with them, and whetted 
 and sharpened their knife-points before his face, and used many 
 impudent gestures. Wituwamet bragged of his knife, which had 
 a woman's face on the handle : ' but,' he said, ' I have another at 
 home, wherewith I have killed both French and English, and that 
 hath a man's face on it; and by and by these two must marry.' 
 Pecksuot, being a large man, laughed at Capt. Standish because 
 he was small; but the captain said nothing, biding his time. 
 
 "The next day they were in a room together, the two con 
 spirators and another Indian, and the captain and two of his 
 men. The time had come. Calling to his men outside to make 
 fast the door, he rushed upon Pecksuot, and, tearing his knife 
 from his neck, after a fearful struggle killed him. The other two 
 men killed Wituwamet, and bound the other. The uprising of 
 the Indians was at an end ; and the little army of nine marched 
 back to their town, to be received in triumph. 
 
 " And I had just read as far as that," said Carrie, " when the 
 tea-bell rang ; and so that is all I have to tell." 
 
 " Capt. Standish must have been a brave man," said Charlie
 
 CAPT. STANDISH'S HOUSE. 
 
 Morgan, "to have attacked Pecksuot hand to hand; for he could 
 easily have killed him with his musket without risk to himself." 
 
 " He was a man of small stature," said Mr. Longwood, " but 
 of great personal courage. He had a very quick temper; but it 
 always seemed to blaze out at exactly the right moment for the 
 
 
 THE HOUSE THAT CAPT. STANDISH BUILT. 
 
 good of the colonists, as in this case, where the sudden slaughter 
 of a few Indians, no doubt, saved them all from destruction. He 
 was one of the chief men of New England during his whole life 
 The house that he built and lived in is still standing."
 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 " WHAT are we to do 
 to-day ? " asked Tom the 
 next morning as they sat 
 at the breakfast - table. 
 The boys had not got 
 up so early as on the 
 day before : indeed, truth 
 compels me to say that 
 Tom and Will did not put 
 in an appearance until 
 after all the rest were 
 seated. Jack Hastings was the first to show himself, and he had 
 been stumping up and down stairs to hurry up the others ever 
 since. He had made one trip to the kitchen ; but Mary Ann, 
 who had taken a great fancy to him, tried to kiss him, and he 
 had beaten a hasty retreat to the parlor in great dudgeon. His 
 cold was all gone, and he felt, as he himself expressed it, as 
 jolly as a sand-boy. 
 
 " I ordered the big sleigh to be here at half-past nine," said 
 Mr. Longwood in answer to Tom's question. " So, if you all 
 like, we will drive over to Shinnecock Bay. If it were summer 
 72
 
 NED GRANT DESCRIBES THE SHINNECOCKS. 73 
 
 we could take a boat, and sail across to the light-house ; but now 
 the bay must be full of ice, so that sailing is no easy matter. 
 We can see the Shinnecock Indians : and I told the stable-man 
 to put in four horses that could travel at a good rate of speed; 
 so that, if we do nothing more, we shall, I hope, have a pleasant 
 ride." 
 
 " It will be very interesting to see the Indians and their vil 
 lage," said Lou. " I have never seen any real Indians." 
 
 " You must not be frightened," said Ned, " if they seem a 
 little wild. I read in a government agent's report a while ago 
 that all attempts to civilize the Indians had failed, and that they 
 could not be persuaded to leave off their paint and barbarous 
 ways. But there are too many in our party for them to dare 
 attack us. So if you see one push aside the skins that make 
 the door of his wigwam, and come striding toward us, the feath 
 ers in his crest quivering with his excitement, while, he carries 
 a murderous knife in his belt, you must not be frightened. Just 
 keep your eyes fixed on him, and don't show fear in your face, 
 and you are all right." 
 
 " I don't think I want to go," said Gertrude Hastings. " It 
 sounds pretty dreadful." 
 
 " Pshaw ! " said Jack. " Don't be a coward. Remember what 
 stuff your great-grandmother was made of. Mr. Longwood is 
 sure to be known, and they won't dare to touch us." 
 
 " Soon the jingle of bells was heard, and the sleigh came up 
 to the door. All hurried to put on their wraps, and were in a 
 short time on the piazza ready to start. But they found the 
 sleigh already occupied. Thistle had full possession of the high
 
 74 GARM TAKES A SLEIGH-RIDE. 
 
 seat beside the driver ; and Garm had climbed on behind, and 
 was stretched at full length upon the straw at the bottom, where 
 he lay eying the party, and lazily beating his tail upon the floor, 
 but making no move to come out. 
 
 "Get down, sir!" called Mr. Longwood. 
 
 " Oh, let us take them with us ! " cried two or three of the 
 girls. " There will be plenty of room ; and, if Garm lies the way 
 he now is, he will be as good as a foot-stove." 
 
 So they all made haste to clamber in. Garm seemed to en 
 joy it hugely. His tail beat the floor harder than ever, but he 
 made no attempt to move; and when they were all seated, and 
 the robes pulled up over their laps, no one would have had an 
 idea that a dog was anywhere about. 
 
 " How is he to breathe ? " asked Rose. " He will certainly 
 suffocate where he is." 
 
 " Never fear," said Tom : " he will let us know when he wants 
 to change his position." 
 
 Jack had clambered up to the high seat, and Thistle was in 
 his lap; and the sleigh was soon off. Master Jack lost no time 
 in opening a conversation with the driver, and they were soon 
 on the best of terms. 
 
 " There," said the man, pointing ahead with his whip after 
 they had been riding about half an hour, " that fence there 
 marks the boundary of the Reservation. We go through that 
 gate yonder." 
 
 " I'll jump down and open it," said Jack. 
 
 " No, you needn't," said the driver : " that Injun walking ahead 
 of us will get there just as we do."
 
 A REAL SHINNECOCK WARRIOR. 75 
 
 " Is that an Injun ? " asked Jack. 
 
 " Oh, yes!" was the reply. 
 
 Jack stared very hard at him as they came closer ; and when 
 the man pulled open the gate, and held it for them to pass 
 through, he turned around, and called out, 
 
 "Gertrude, Gertrude, here is a warrior! Don't be afraid!" 
 
 " Where ? where ? " asked Gertrude. 
 
 " Why, holding open the gate ! Don't you see him ? " said 
 Jack. 
 
 ''That isn't an Indian," said Gertrude: "that's a negro. Is it 
 an Indian, Mr. Longwood ? " 
 
 The man was very old, and bent nearly double. His head 
 was covered with wool, and his features were coarse like a 
 negro's. He carried a basket on one arm, and a long staff in 
 his hand, and made his way on very slowly and painfully. 
 
 " I am afraid," said Mr. Longwood, " that, if you believed all 
 that Ned told you this morning, you will be somewhat disap 
 pointed. The Shinnecocks intermarried with negroes to such an 
 extent, that the present generation are virtually negroes. Instead 
 of going on the war-path like their ancestors, they fish, and pick 
 huckleberries to sell at the boarding-houses." 
 
 They were now fairly in the Reservation, and the children 
 looked about them with much interest. They were on a great 
 open moor, with not a tree or fence to break the view. On all 
 sides the land lay as if it had once been a sea of rolling waves 
 suddenly changed to earth ; while over all was the pure white 
 snow, dazzlingly bright in the sunlight. 
 
 " In the summer," said Mr. Longwood, " all this land is the 
 feeding-ground of great herds of cattle."
 
 76 ONE LITTLE INJUN BOY. 
 
 Just at this moment they passed a small Indian boy. He, too, 
 looked like a negro. 
 
 " Have a ride ? " called Tom, who was at the end of the 
 sleigh. 
 
 " Thankee," said the boy, and ran and jumped on the step. 
 
 Now, whether it was the boy's voice, or whether it was that 
 he had been asleep, and dreamed that the company were in great 
 danger, from which only prompt action on his part could save 
 them, I do not know ; but it is certain that Garm chose that 
 moment to spring up. He dashed on to his feet, sending the 
 robes right and left, and, stretching himself to his full height, 
 opened his mouth, and gave a deep bay. 
 
 " Lord a massy ! " said the little Indian boy ; and he jumped 
 off, and took to his heels across the fields at the top of his 
 speed. 
 
 Garm made no attempt to follow him ; but the sight was too 
 much for Thistle. He wiggled out of Jack's arms ; took a flying 
 leap, landing on Carrie's head; and then rushed across their laps 
 to get out behind. In another moment he would have been 
 after the boy ; but Tom caught him as he was just jumping, and, 
 despite all his struggles, held him fast. 
 
 " Stop ! stop ! " said Mr. Longwood to the driver. " Call to 
 the boy, Tom, to come back." 
 
 Tom shouted, and the boy turned around. He stood still 
 eying them for a long time, but was very slow in his progress 
 back, until he understood that Tom had a ten-cent piece for him, 
 when he mastered his fears, and came and climbed up where he 
 was before, only saying,
 
 THE GARDENS OF THE SEA. 77 
 
 " Sakes ! I thought I was going to be eaten up." 
 
 Gertrude soon found that Ned's pictures of Indian life were 
 not, as Mr. Longwood had hinted, very true as far as the Shinne- 
 cocks were concerned. There were no wigwams built of skins,, 
 but, instead, neat little frame-houses, at whose doors and windows 
 they saw negro men and women standing; though here and there 
 the long straight black hair and aquiline features of one showed 
 that the blood of his Indian ancestors had not all gone. The 
 children were much more interested when after a time the 
 village was left far behind, and a sudden turn in the road 
 brought them right upon the bay. 
 
 It was a sight to be remembered. The water was everywhere 
 covered with white-capped waves, while away out on a narrow 
 spit of land that run far into the bay, the tall white tower of 
 the light-house reared itself against the sky. 
 
 " Isn't it beautiful ? " said Carrie. 
 
 " Yes," said Mrs. Longwood. 
 
 "The gardens of the sea are all abloom 
 
 This chill December day : 
 The wild clematis hangs her clusters out 
 On tumbling waves that break in watery rout 
 
 O'er all the tossing bay. 
 
 The wild winds tear the petals from the flowers : 
 
 They fall like drops of rain ; 
 Their faint salt breath on every landward breeze 
 Comes up from off the ever-heaving seas, 
 
 The breath of sea-flowers slain.
 
 78 GARM WINS THE RACE. 
 
 These are no blossoms born of April showers 
 
 And the warm sun of May : 
 The hoarse winds raving o'er the watery waste 
 Call the chill sea-flowers forth in eager haste 
 
 To bloom and fade away." 
 
 Away down the beach, on a little bluff, they could see a small 
 house. Drawn up on the sands before it was a boat, and they 
 could make out two or three figures moving about. 
 
 "Let's take a run over there, fellows, to warm us up!" called 
 out Tom. "The tide has washed the snow off the beach, and 
 we can race." 
 
 The boys all jumped out at this, and made off, followed by 
 the two dogs. Mr. Longwood called after them not to be gone 
 long ; but they were shouting so, that I doubt whether any of 
 them heard what he said. 
 
 Garm was the first to reach the goal ; but the boys were close 
 upon his heels. They found a man at work at the boat, stopping 
 up the seams where they had warped ; while two boys looked on. 
 Our party watched him for a time with great interest. 
 
 " The boat seems pretty old," said Will at last. 
 
 " Yes," said the man: "she hasn't been used for several years, 
 not since the inlet was closed. But, now that it has been opened, 
 there is a chance for fishing again : so I have hauled her up here 
 for repairs." 
 
 " How do you mean about an inlet being opened ? " asked 
 Will. 
 
 "You see," said the man, "that there used to be an inlet 
 from the ocean to the bay. Then the blue-fish could run into the
 
 PAINTING THE OLD FISHING-BOAT
 
 HAULING THE SEINE. 
 
 81 
 
 bay, which made prime fishing. Or we could sail out into the 
 ocean, and fish there. But the storms closed it up, and kept it so 
 for several years. That has stopped most of the fishing; for the 
 surf is so heavy on the ocean, that it is no light task to launch a 
 boat. This winter the inlet has opened again, and all the fisher 
 men feel happy." 
 
 " What do you fish 
 for ? " asked Charlie Mor 
 gan. 
 
 " Mossbunkers, a 
 good deal of the time," 
 said the man. " We go 
 out with a boat like 
 my ' Phillis ' here, and 
 a couple of row-boats. 
 Pretty soon we see a 
 school of mossbunkers, 
 menhaden some call 
 them. They run so thick, 
 that you can see them a 
 long way off by the dark 
 color of the water. Then 
 we get out the seine and 
 
 A HAUL OF MOSSBUNKERS. 
 
 the small boats, drag the 
 
 seine around the fish, bring them up to ' The Phillis's ' side, and dump 
 
 them in. Sometimes we get six or eight cartloads at a time." 
 
 " Are they good to eat ? " asked Will. 
 
 "Not very," said the man. "They have too many bones for
 
 82 
 
 ON THE WATCH FOR BLUE-FISH. 
 
 my taste. We sell them to the farmers to put on the land to 
 
 make the crops grow." 
 
 "And couldn't you fish at all when the inlet was closed?" 
 "Well," said the man, "we don't let a school of blue-fish go 
 
 by, if we know it. And there are a good many mossbunkers 
 
 caught by dragging the seine up on to the beach. When the 
 
 blue-fish begin to run, the fish 
 ing companies keep a man on 
 the lookout most of the time. 
 As soon as a school is sighted, 
 he runs up a signal to the top 
 of a pole, a bush or an old 
 shirt, or some such thing ; and 
 the rest of the company hurry 
 down, launch their boat through 
 the surf, and make for the fish. 
 
 Sometimes they make great 
 hauls. I've seen as many as 
 five hundred blue-fish brought 
 in at one time. That was a 
 good day for the fishermen." 
 
 "Did you ever go to sea?" 
 asked Jack. 
 
 " Yes," said the man : "I followed the sea more than twenty 
 years." 
 
 " Did you ever go to far-off countries, such as India and 
 China ? " 
 
 " Only once," said the man : " most of my trips were to the 
 
 A SCHOOL OF BLUE-FISH IN SIGHT.
 
 OX THE LOOKOUT.
 
 AN ANCIENT MARINER. 
 
 Arctic Ocean a-whaling. Many and many is the day I have been 
 at the mast-head keeping a sharp lookout. The cry of ' There 
 she blows ! ' would wake a ship's crew up pretty quick, I can tell 
 you." 
 
 " Did you ever have any adventures ? " asked Jack. 
 
 " Well," said the man, " I was wrecked twice." 
 
 " Oh ! do tell us about it," said the boys. 
 
 "The first time," said the man, "our ship was nipped in the 
 ice. It was just at dusk, 
 and we " 
 
 Just at that moment 
 there came a faint halloo 
 from the distance. 
 
 "Oh, dear!" said Jack. 
 " It's Mr. Longwood calling, 
 and we must go." 
 
 " I suppose he is afraid 
 that we shall not get home 
 for dinner," said Tom. 
 
 " You had better go, then," said the man. " Dinners spoil in 
 keeping ; stories don't." 
 
 So the boys started back, and they were all soon hurrying 
 homeward. 
 
 In the afternoon they went skating on the lake; but nothing 
 worth ^chronicling happened. Evening found them all seated 
 about the fire, waiting for Charlie Morgan and Lou Grant to 
 entertain them. 
 
 NIPPED IN THE ICE.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 " WE are going to take a 
 skip of about a hundred and 
 fifty years," said Ned Grant, 
 " into the time just before the 
 Revolution ; and I am going 
 to tell you how a whole nation 
 gave up drinking tea, and took 
 to wearing homespun. 
 
 " You must know, that, 
 when the colonies first began 
 to settle in the New World, 
 each had a charter from the English king, in which they were prom 
 ised absolutely and forever the power to make their own laws, 
 to assess their own taxes, and other such rights as these. But 
 after they grew, and the whole country began to be settled, the 
 English Government thought that it would be a fine thing if 
 America could pay a part of the expenses of the mother-country : 
 so they passed a law called the Stamp Act. By this, all business 
 was to be done on stamped paper, every sheet of which paid a 
 small tax. Unless this paper was used, any marriage was null ; 
 notes of hand were worthless. If a ship's papers were not on it^ 
 
 86
 
 A STIRRING TEXT. 87 
 
 she might be seized at sea, as a prize, by any one. These were 
 some of the penalties for not using it. Hardly a man in England 
 imagined that the colonists would dare to resist. 
 
 "But they did. 'What business has the King of England to 
 tax us without our consent ? ' they cried. ' The next thing will 
 be, that he will claim our lands, and all that we have. We are 
 freemen, and not slaves ; and we will not submit ! ' Crowds gath 
 ered in the streets. The men who had been appointed in every 
 part of the country to sell the paper were waited upon : if they 
 refused to resign their office, they were mobbed. The ministers 
 preached on the subject, rousing the people with their stirring 
 words. One chose as his text, ' I would they were even cut off 
 which trouble you ; for, brethren, ye have been called unto lib 
 erty.' The country was in revolt. 
 
 "All eyes were turned to New York; for there were British 
 troops and British men-of-war. How would they face the crisis? 
 The officers were confident that the New-Yorkers would never 
 dare to disobey the law. ' If they refuse,' said one braggart, ' I 
 will cram the stamps down the throats of the people with the 
 point of my sword.' But he did not know the people that he 
 was talking about. 
 
 " Soon the vessels with the stamped paper began to arrive 
 in the different ports. The shipping in the harbors welcomed 
 them by putting their flags at half-mast. What was to be done 
 with the paper? There was not a person in the whole land to 
 distribute it ; for not a stamp-collector but had been made by the 
 people's rage to resign his office. The governors of the Colonies 
 took possession of it in the absence of the proper persons.
 
 88 AN EXCITED PEOPLE. 
 
 "The morning of the ist of November, 1765, the day on 
 which the law was to go in force, was ushered in over the whole 
 country by the tolling of church-bells and the booming of min 
 ute-guns. Flags were everywhere at half-mast. And no one 
 bought any of the hated stamps. The newspapers, boldly defying 
 the law, came out on the same paper as before. 
 
 "In New York, where the royal officers were so certain of 
 success, the whole city rose in wrath. Placards were posted at 
 the street-corners, threatening any one who should buy the stamps. 
 At night there was a great uproar. A vast body of men with 
 torches, bearing with them a scaffold and two images, paraded the 
 city. They broke into the governor's coach-house, for he was 
 no friend to the people, and took the state carriage. In it they 
 placed the two images : one was of himself ; the other, opposite, 
 was that of the Devil. They drew the coach thus occupied 
 through the streets of the town, and returned later in the night 
 to Bowling Green, where they burned him in effigy before his very 
 eyes. Another party sacked the house of the major who had 
 talked about cramming the paper down their throats with his 
 sword." 
 
 " Hurrah for New York ! " cried Jack Hastings. 
 
 " ' We are not safe while the paper is in your possession,' said 
 the people to the governor. ' We demand that it be given into 
 our hands.' 
 
 "The governor hesitated: the people insisted. They were 
 determined, and he dared not refuse. It was taken from the ships, 
 and delivered to the Common Council in the City Hall. And 
 that was the way the New-Yorkers submitted to the Stamp Act.
 
 HOMESPUN BECOMES THE FASHION. 9 1 
 
 " As it was in New York, so it was elsewhere. No stamped 
 paper was sold. 
 
 " When the news of all these outbreaks came to England, the 
 act was repealed ; but the government would not give up the 
 right it claimed to tax the Colonies. It now said, ' If the people 
 don't want to pay taxes in the way we proposed, we must try 
 another.' So a duty was put on nearly every thing that was 
 imported from England. 
 
 " But it was not the paying taxes that had made the out 
 break ; for the people had always paid those imposed by their 
 own legislatures. It was the claim of the English Government 
 that they had the right to tax without the consent of the colo 
 nists, and without their having a voice in the matter. 
 
 " The merchants of New York met together, and proposed a 
 union of all the people of the country. ' Until the duties are 
 repealed,' they said, ' let us not buy an article from England. 
 Let us weave and wear homespun, give up drinking tea, and do 
 without luxuries.' The whole land took up the plan with wild 
 enthusiasm. British imports fell the first year from twelve 
 millions to eight millions of dollars. There was the greatest 
 excitement everywhere. The newspapers were full of exhortations 
 to the people to stand by their rights, many of them couched in 
 what was supposed to be poetry. Here is one from ' The Boston 
 News -Letter : ' 
 
 'TO OUR LADIES. 
 
 Young ladies in town, and those that live round, 
 
 Let a friend at this season advise you : 
 Sine** money's so scarce, and times growing worse, 
 
 Strange things may soon hap and surprise you.
 
 92 TOP-KNOTS OF PRIDE. 
 
 First, then, throw aside your top-knots of pride ; 
 
 Wear none but your own country linen : 
 Of economy boast ; let your pride be the most 
 
 To show clothes of your own make and spinning. 
 
 What if homespun, they say, is not quite so gay 
 
 As brocades? yet be not in a passion; 
 For, when once it is known this is much worn in town, 
 
 One and all will cry out, " Tis the fashion ! " 
 
 And, as one, all agree that you'll not married be 
 
 To such as will wear London factory; 
 But at first sight refuse ; tell 'em such you will choose 
 
 As encourage our own manufactory. 
 
 No more ribbons wear, nor in rich silks appear; 
 
 Love your country much better than fine things; 
 Begin without passion ; 'twill soon be the fashion 
 
 To grace your smooth locks with a twine string. 
 
 Throw aside your Bohea, and your Green Hyson tea, 
 
 And all things with a new-fashion duty : 
 Procure a good store of the choice Labrador; 
 
 For there'll soon be enough here to suit you. 
 
 These do without fear, and to all you'll appear 
 
 Fair, charming, true, lovely, and clever : 
 Though the times remain darkish, young men may be sparkish, 
 
 And love you much stronger than ever.' 
 
 " Presently the London merchants began to cry out. They 
 were being ruined. Business with "he Colonies was at a stand 
 still. Neither was any revenue coming in. The clamor grew so
 
 NOW, THEN, ABANDON TEA. 93 
 
 loud, that the duties had to be taken off. But the Government 
 would not give up entirely. They exempted every thing but 
 tea. At the same time, they put the duty on tea in American 
 ports much lower than it was in English. But a principle was 
 involved. ' We will never touch it,' said the patriots. Here is 
 one of the rhymes with which they encouraged one another. It 
 was set to a sacred air, and sung far and wide : 
 
 ' Rouse every generous, thoughtful mind ; 
 
 The rising danger flee : 
 If you would lasting freedom find, 
 Now, then, abandon tea. 
 
 Scorn to be bound with golden chains, 
 
 Though they allure the sight : 
 . Bid them defiance, if they claim 
 Our freedom and birthright. 
 
 Shall we our freedom give away, 
 
 And all our comfort place 
 In drinking of outlandish tea, 
 
 Only to please our taste? 
 
 Forbid, it, Heaven ! let us be wise, 
 
 And seek our country's good ; 
 Nor ever let a thought arise 
 
 That tea should be our food. 
 
 Since we so great a plenty have 
 
 Of all that's for our health, 
 Shall we that blasted herb receive, 
 
 Impoverishing our wealth?
 
 94 A FAMOUS TEA-PARTY. 
 
 Adieu, away, O Tea ! begone ! 
 
 Salute our taste no more ; 
 Though thou art coveted by some 
 
 Who 're destined to be poor.' 
 
 ' The patriots resolved not only that they would buy no tea, 
 out that none should be landed. The ships that came to New 
 York and Boston were ordered to return at once to England. 
 When the royal authorities refused to let them go, and insisted 
 that the tea must be landed, the people boarded the ships, and 
 threw it overboard. This old song from ' The Pennsylvania Packet ' 
 will tell you how it happened in Boston : 
 
 ' As near beauteous Boston lying 
 
 On the gently swelling flood, 
 
 Without jack or pendant flying, 
 
 Three ill-fated tea-ships rode, 
 
 Just as glorious Sol was setting, 
 
 On the wharf, a numerous crew, 
 Sons of Freedom, fear forgetting, 
 
 Suddenly appeared in view. 
 
 Armed with hammers, axe, and chisels, 
 
 Weapons new for warlike deed, 
 Towards the herbage-freighted vessels 
 
 They approached with dreadful speed. 
 
 Quick as thought the ships were boarded, 
 
 Hatches burst, and chests displayed : 
 Axes, hammers, help afforded ; 
 
 What a glorious crash they made !
 
 A DRAWING OF TOBACCO. 9J 
 
 Squash into the deep descended 
 
 Cursed weed of China's coast : 
 Thus at once our fears are ended; 
 
 British rights shall ne'er be lost. 
 
 Captains ! once more hoist your streamers, 
 
 Spread your sails, and plough the wave : 
 Tell your masters they were dreamers 
 
 When they thought to cheat the brave ! ' 
 
 " The party who destroyed the cargoes of the Boston ships 
 were disguised as Indians. They were very careful that none of 
 it should be stolen. One man, who slyly slipped some into his 
 coat-tail pocket, found, when he reached home, that his coat had 
 no tails. A neighbor had seen him, and had cut them off. 
 
 " There are some very amusing stories of this tea business. 
 Many an old lady found it very hard to give up her cherished 
 beverage, and took it on the sly. On one occasion an old 
 gentleman fancied that his wife had invited some cronies to have 
 an unsuspected cup with her. He stole up stairs to the room 
 where the forbidden feast was to be held. Sure enough, there 
 was the teapot before the fire. He lifted the lid quietly, and 
 dropped in a great piece of tobacco. Then he went down stairs, 
 chuckling, to wait the breaking-up of the party, which came very 
 speedily. 
 
 " But, in spite of such cases, the feeling was so strong, that 
 no merchant dared sell it, and no revenue ever went to England 
 from tea." 
 
 " And how did all this end ? " asked Tom.
 
 96 LIEUT. DUDDINGTON. 
 
 " It ended, before many years were passed, in the War of 
 Independence," said Charlie. 
 
 " I don't think they lost much by not having tea, anyway," 
 said Jack. " It is pretty thin stuff, I think." 
 
 " Well, Kate," said Mr. Longwood after Charlie's story had 
 been talked over, " what have you to tell ? " 
 
 " During the time that Charlie has been describing," said 
 Kate, " when such heavy duties were laid on imports, a small 
 schooner was sent to Rhode Island by the admiral of the English 
 fleet at Boston to prevent smuggling on that coast. The com 
 mander, Lieut. Duddington, would not show the State officers 
 any legal warrant for his actions ; and, as he was known to be 
 no customs-officer himself, they were very indignant, as may be 
 imagined. They made a protest to the admiral ; but all his 
 answer was, that, if one of them dared touch his lieutenant, he 
 would have him hanged in Boston for a pirate. Duddington made 
 himself as obnoxious as he could, stopping and examining 
 coasters that he must have known were not smugglers, and being 
 generally as overbearing as could well be. What follows is told 
 in this ballad : 
 
 'THE BURNING OF THE " GASPE." 
 
 Seventeen hundred and seventy-two, 
 Summer was smiling the whole land through ; 
 New-mown meadows scented the air : 
 But the hearts of men were full of care. 
 Trouble was rife ; for a tyrant's hand 
 Heavily lay on our own fair land.
 
 THE BURNING OF THE GASPE. 97 
 
 Up and down the Rhode-Island shore 
 Sailed the " Gaspe," schooner of war. 
 Might makes right when foes are few : 
 Braggart was captain, and braggarts the crew. 
 Colonists had no laws that they, 
 Officers of the king, should obey. 
 
 Sailing now here, and sailing there, 
 
 Carrying trouble everywhere ; 
 
 At length, one day, in a hurried chase, 
 
 After a schooner flying apace, 
 
 Fast on the bar the " Gaspe " lay, 
 
 Fast, till the tide should come^up the bay. 
 
 Midnight darkness had settled down : 
 
 Out from the wharves of the silent town 
 
 Boats moved swiftly with muffled oar; 
 
 Quickly behind them sunk the shore, 
 
 Till by the " Gaspe's " sullen side 
 
 They float on the waves of the coming tide. 
 
 Up on the deck with a sudden leap, 
 Seeming like foemen sprung from the deep ! 
 The ship is theirs ere the crew half know, 
 Tumbling on deck from their hammocks below. 
 Lower your boats, and make away : 
 Never again shall you sail our bay. 
 
 As they pulled homeward, a lurid flame 
 Lights them back o'er the way they came. 
 Up the tall masts the fire runs free, 
 Turning to blood the unquiet sea; 
 Till, with a crash like a thunder-tone, 
 Night falls again, and the " Gaspe"'s " gone.' "
 
 9 8 
 
 A USELESS REWARD, 
 
 " Your ballad is very well, as far as it goes," said Mr. Long- 
 wood ; " but it does not tell what follows. The English Govern 
 ment offered five thousand dollars to any person who would give 
 
 information as to who was the leader of this expedition, and two 
 thousand five hundred each for the names of any in the party. 
 But not a man did they find ; for, though hundreds knew who 
 were the offenders, no one was base enough to betray them.
 
 AN OLD DOGGEREL. IOI 
 
 Duddington was wounded in the affair. An old doggerel thus 
 speaks of these rewards : 
 
 ' Now, for to find these people out, 
 King George has offered, very stout, 
 One thousand pounds, to find out one 
 That wounded William Duddington ; 
 One thousand more, he says, he'll spare 
 For those who say the sheriffs were ; 
 One thousand more there doth remain 
 For to find out the leader's name ; 
 Likewise five hundred pounds per man 
 For any one of all the clan. 
 But, let him try his utmost skill, 
 I'm apt to think he never will 
 Find any of those hearts of gold, 
 Though he should offer fifty-fold.' "
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 " I SAY," called out Tom, who had been 
 standing for some time at the window, " you 
 have no idea what a magnificent night it is. 
 It is as light as day. The moon must be full, 
 or nearly so ; and the snow fairly sparkles. 
 Hillo ! " he went on, " here comes a man. 
 I wonder what he is after. Oh ! I know : 
 it is one of the crew from the life-saving sta 
 tion. I am going to speak to him." And he 
 ran out, followed by the other boys. 
 
 " I suppose," said Tom after the man had 
 stopped, and they had chatted for a moment 
 or two, " that your crew will have an easy 
 time to-night. No ship could very well go ashore in such a quiet 
 sea as there is now, and in such a clear light." 
 
 " Ay," said the man ; " but it is not going to last. We 
 expect a storm before morning. The barometer is falling fast, 
 and the wind is shifting. We shall have snow before many 
 hours, or I am mistaken." 
 
 " Then good-by to skating," said Ned Grant. 
 
 Mr. Longwood had by this time come out on the piazza, and
 
 AN END TO THE SKATING. 103 
 
 had heard the news. " If the skating is to be spoiled," he said, 
 " we had better make the most of it at once. Boys, get ready 
 yourselves, and tell the girls ; and we will have an hour or so 
 of it before it goes." 
 
 With a wild whoop and halloo the boys carried the tidings 
 into the parlor, and soon they were all on the ice. The fire 
 was kindled where it had been a few days before, and they 
 dashed up and down and about it in great glee. 
 
 At eleven o'clock, when they went back to the house, they 
 saw that the man's prediction of a storm was coming true. The 
 wind had grown damp and chilly ; and a thin mist was gathering 
 over the sky, through which the moon shone with a sickly light. 
 
 " It's fortunate that we learned of the storm in time," said 
 Tom ; " but I am pretty tired, for one." 
 
 " So am I," said Gertrude. " I don't believe even an Indian 
 could wake me to-night." 
 
 " I think we shall be pretty safe in telling Mary Ann not to 
 put on breakfast till nine o'clock," said .Mr. Longwood. "Then 
 we shall have time to get thoroughly rested." 
 
 At half-past eight the next morning, when Master Jack 
 awoke, and raised himself on his elbow to look out of the win 
 dow, he found that the snow had indeed come. The air was full 
 of it. No one of the other boys had as yet waked up. Ned 
 Grant in one bed, and Will Morgan in the other, were sleeping 
 as quietly as if it were midnight. The door into the room 
 where Tom and Charlie slept was closed ; but there was not a 
 sound to be heard. Jack stealthily raised himself to his feet, 
 and, taking a firm hold of his pillows, hurled them at the sleep-
 
 104 A WELL-AIMED PILLOW. 
 
 ing figures. Each went straight to the mark, and the two boys 
 were brought up standing. Holding up his finger to caution 
 them to silence, Jack seized the small toilet-pitcher, and, softly 
 opening the door, stole into the next room. The others fol 
 lowed to see the fun. Advancing to Tom's bedside, Jack raised 
 the pitcher, and a gentle stream of cold water was on its way 
 from it to Tom's face, when, all of a sudden, a pillow came fly 
 ing from the bed in which Charlie Morgan was supposed to be 
 fast asleep. It missed Jack's head, at which it was directed, but 
 hit his extended elbow with such dire effect, that the entire con 
 tents of the pitcher were emptied on him, soaking him from head 
 to foot. Finding the laugh thus turned on himself, that young 
 man retired with haste to dry and dress himself. 
 
 " I do believe," said Carrie as they were about to sit down 
 to breakfast, " that the storm is over. See ! it has stopped 
 snowing." 
 
 They all crowded to the window to look out. What a 
 change a few hours had made ! The lake had disappeared, and 
 to all appearance they were in the midst of snow-covered fields. 
 Some distance .away they could see two men and a dog making 
 their way toward the village. But, even as they stood by the 
 window, the flakes began to fall again, and soon came down 
 faster than ever, shutting out the whole landscape. 
 
 " Suppose," said Jack, " that it keeps on snowing till the 
 house is nearly buried. Then we couldn't get out and go to 
 New York. What larks that would be ! " 
 
 " No storms have ever come severe enough to bury a house, 
 have there, Mr. Longwood ? " asked Gertrude.
 
 A QUAINT OLD LETTER. 
 
 105 
 
 " Not in this part of the country. But the New-England 
 storms are pretty severe at times. I remember reading an 
 account of one that came many years ago. Perhaps I can find 
 
 ON THEIR WAY TO THE VILLAGE. 
 
 the book. Yes, here it is," he said, coming back a moment 
 later from the library. "It is a letter from a clergyman in Bos 
 ton to a friend in England. I will read part of it." 
 
 BOSTON, loth Dec. 1717. 
 
 SR., Tho ws are gott so far onward as the beginning of another Winter, yett 
 we have not forgott ye last, which at the latter end whereof we were entertained 
 & overwhelmed wilh a Snow, which was attended with some Things, which were 
 uncommon enough to afford matter for a letter from us. 
 
 On the twentieth of last February there came a Snow, which being added unto 
 what had covered the ground a few days before, made a thicker mantle for our
 
 106 A QUAINT OLD LETTER. 
 
 Mother than what was usual : And ye storm with it was, for the following day, so 
 violent as to make all communication between ye Neighbors everywhere to cease. 
 People for some hours could not pass from one side of a street unto another. 
 But on ye Twenty-fourth day of ye Month, comes Pelion upon Ossa : Another 
 Snow came on which almost buried ye Memory of ye former, with a Storm so 
 famous that Heaven laid an Interdict on ye Religious Assemblies throughout ye 
 Country, on this Lord's day, ye like whereunto had never been seen before. The 
 Indians near an hundred years old, affirm that their Fathers never told them of 
 any thing that equalled it. Vast numbers of Cattel were destroyed in this Calamity. 
 Whereof some there were, of ye Stranger sort, were found standing dead on their 
 legs as if they had been alive, many weeks after when ye Snow melted away. 
 And others had their eyes glazed over with Ice at such a rate, that being not far 
 from ye Sea, their mistake of their way drowned them there. One gentleman on 
 whose farms were now lost above uoo sheep, writes me word that there were two 
 Sheep very singularly circumstanced. For no less than eight & twenty days after 
 the Storm the People pulling out the Ruins of above an 100 sheep out of a Snow 
 Bank, which lay sixteen foot high drifted over them, there was two found alive 
 which had been there all this time, and kept themselves alive by eating the wool 
 of their dead companions. When they were taken out they shed their own 
 Fleeces, but soon gott into good Case again. 
 
 Sheep were not ye only creatures that lived unaccountably for whole weeks 
 without their usual sustenance. A man had a couple of young Hoggs which he 
 gave over for dead. But on the twenty-seventh day after their Burial they made 
 their way out of a Snow Bank at the bottom of which they had found a little 
 Tansy to feed upon. Hens were found alive after seven days. Turkeys were 
 found alive after five and twenty, buried in ye Snow, and at a distance from ye 
 ground, and altogether destitute of any thing to feed them. 
 
 The Wild Creatures of ye Woods, ye outgoings of ye Evening, made their 
 Descent as well as they could in this time of scarcity for them toward ye Sea-side. 
 A vast multitude of Deer, for ye same cause taking ye same course, & ye Deep 
 Snow Spoiling them of their only defence which is to run, they became such a 
 prey to these Devourers, that it is thought not one in twenty escaped. 
 
 It is incredible how much damage is done ye Orchards For the Sno\f
 
 JACK STAYS IN-DOORS. IO/ 
 
 freezing to a Crust, as high as the boughs of ye trees, anon Split ym to pieces. 
 The Cattel also walking on ye crusted Snow a dozen foot from ye ground so fed 
 upon ye trees as very much to damnify them. The odd Accidents befalling many 
 poor people whose cottages were totally covered with ye Snow & not ye very tops 
 of their chimneys to be seen would afford a story. But I forbear them subscrib 
 ing myself 
 
 Syr, Yours with an affection 
 
 that knows no Winter 
 
 COTTON MATHER. 
 
 "There, Jack, you see what would happen to you," said Ned 
 Grant, " if you had your wish to have the house buried in snow. 
 You would have to live by eating our clothes, like the sheep." 
 
 After breakfast, Tom proposed that the boys should put on 
 their top-boots, and run over to the life-saving station. Mrs. 
 Longwood, however, thought it better that Jack should stay at 
 home, as he caught cold so easily. 
 
 " We won't any of us go," said Will Morgan. " It would be 
 too bad to leave Jack." 
 
 " Nonsense ! " said Jack. " Go ahead. I'll get on somehow. 
 Only don't be gone all the morning." 
 
 So the boys started, Jack watching them till they were lost 
 in the snow. Then he strolled about the room, and finally set 
 out for the kitchen to see if there were any thing there to 
 amuse him. Mr. Longwood, meanwhile, was deep in a book ; 
 Mrs. Longwood was writing a letter ; and the girls had gathered 
 around the fire, and were sitting idly. 
 
 " For my part," said Carrie, " I am not sorry that we have 
 to be quiet to-day. We have been going so hard, that I feel 
 like sitting still."
 
 io8 
 
 A STARTLING EVENT. 
 
 "So do I," said the rest. 
 
 Crash ! clang ! clatter ! thump ! thump ! bump ! came from 
 the hall. Such a noise it was, that all sat still and stared at one 
 another for a minute. Then Mr. and Mrs. Longwood sprang 
 up, and ran out. Jack was found sitting in a sort of dazed way 
 at the foot of the stairs, while a great metal tea-tray lay on the 
 polished floor some distance from him. 
 
 " What is the matter ? " cried Mrs. Longwood. 
 
 " I had a fall," said Jack. 
 
 " There seems to be no harm done ; at all events, no bones 
 are broken," said Mr. Longwood, who had been feeling and pull 
 ing Jack all over. " Here, I will carry him to the sofa ; and then 
 he can tell us all about it."
 
 JACK EXPERIMENTS IN COASTING. 109 
 
 " Oh ! I can walk well enough," said Jack ; and he scrambled 
 up to his feet. 
 
 " How did it happen ? " asked the girls. 
 
 " Well," said Jack, " you see, it was kind of lonesome with 
 only girls about : so I thought I had better be occupied in 
 some way. I had heard one of the fellows in school say that 
 his mother told him, that, when she was a girl, she used to coast 
 down the stairs on a tea-tray. There was a great big tray out 
 in the kitchen ; and I borrowed it of Mary Ann, and got on it 
 at the top of the stairs, and started. It was jolly at first : but 
 something must have happened ; for the tray came out between 
 the banister-rails about half-way down, and I came the rest of 
 the way without it." 
 
 "It is a mercy you did not break your neck," said Mrs. 
 Longwood. But Mr. Longwood lay back in his chair, and 
 shouted with laughter. 
 
 " Here, Jack," said he, when he had recovered his breath, 
 " put on your coat and boots, and I'll take you over to the 
 boys on my back. I don't believe that you will run half the 
 risk that you do at home." 
 
 When they reached the life-saving station, they found Tom 
 and the rest sitting about the fire, trying to coax one of the two 
 men who were there to tell them some adventure that he had 
 had a hand in. Mr. Longwood deposited Jack, and, asking the 
 boys to take good care of him, went back to the house to his 
 book. 
 
 As soon as the door was closed behind him, the boys began 
 to urge the man again.
 
 110 A JURY IS IMPANELLED. 
 
 " But I have never had any adventure," said he. 
 
 " Oh, yes, you have ! " said Ned Grant. 
 
 " But I haven't," said the man. 
 
 " You don't go about this in the right way," said Jack. 
 " You fellows be jury, and I'll be judge, and he shall be the 
 prisoner. Gentlemen of the jury," he went on in a solemn 
 tone, cocking himself cross-legged on the top of a table, " look 
 upon the prisoner. Prisoner, look upon the jury. What is 
 your name ? " 
 
 " George Washington," said the man with a grin. 
 
 " George Washington," said Jack, holding out a mess-fork, 
 <( take this in your right hand. Do you well and truly promise 
 to answer all the questions that may be asked you, according to 
 the best of your knowledge and ability ? " 
 
 The man nodded, and grinned again. 
 
 " Where were you born ? " asked Jack. 
 
 " In the State of Maine." 
 
 " It strikes me," said Ned Grant, " that it is a new kind of 
 court where the judge asks all the questions." 
 
 " Counsellor Grant," said Jack severely, " the Court awards 
 you worthy of contempt. You are hereby fined twenty-five 
 cents ; the amount to be expended in gum-drops for the benefit 
 of those present." 
 
 "Oh! I am a counsellor, am I?" laughed Ned. "A moment 
 ago I was one of the jury." 
 
 " Silence in the court ! " said the judge. " When did you 
 leave the State of Maine ? " 
 
 " When I was twenty-five years old," said the man.
 
 THE FIRST STROKE.
 
 A WILLING WITNESS. 113 
 
 " What did you do in those twenty-five years ? " 
 " The first few I hollered a good deal, I expect," said the 
 man. 
 
 " What then ? " 
 " Then I went to school." 
 " What did you do after that ? " 
 " Oh ! nothing particular till I was twenty-one." 
 " When you were twenty-one, prisoner, what did you do ? " 
 " I went off for the winter, lumbering in the backwoods." 
 " Ah ! " said Jack, turning to the jury, " we are getting to 
 facts. Believe me, gentlemen, that, before we get through with 
 this witness, we shall lay bare the whole truth about this 
 abominable business." 
 
 " Oh ! " said Ned, " he's a witness, is he ? I thought he 
 was a prisoner." 
 
 " Silence ! " said Jack. " Prisoner, you will now detail to us, 
 without varying the slightest from the truth, the circumstances 
 of that winter which you spent lumbering. Gentlemen of the 
 jury, should there be any point on which you desire light, you 
 are at liberty to ask questions." 
 
 " Well," said the man, " I hired out to go lumbering, as I 
 said. There was a large gang of us. We reached the ground 
 long before the snows began to fall, and set to work. The 
 first thing to be done is to choose the place for the camp, and 
 build the shanties for the men to live in. Of course they must 
 be near a brook or spring." 
 
 " What kind of shanties are they, George Washington ? " 
 asked Charlie.
 
 114 
 
 A LUMBERMAN'S STORY. 
 
 Log 
 And 
 No : 
 
 huts," said the man, " such as you see in pictures." 
 do you lie on the floor ? " 
 
 we make bunks around the walls. They are pretty 
 
 hard beds ; but, when 
 a man has swung an 
 axe all day long, he 
 goes to sleep at night 
 without thinking 
 whether his bed is 
 hard or soft. After 
 the houses are all 
 ready, we begin work. 
 Of course, no hauling 
 can be done till the 
 snow comes ; but we 
 commence felling at 
 once, and sawing the 
 logs into lengths, and 
 skidding them up, as 
 we call it, into great 
 piles, so that they can 
 be loaded on to sleds 
 easily. 
 
 " Before long the 
 snow comes. It is 
 not so much fun then 
 to stand up to one's knees in a bank, and drag a saw back and 
 forth through some prostrate tree : but it has to be done ; and, 
 after a little, one gets used to it all." 
 
 SAWING IN THE SNOW.
 
 THE JUDGE DECIDES A QUESTION OF PRECEDENCE. 115 
 
 " What do you do in the evenings ? " asked Tom. 
 
 " What do you have to eat ? " asked Will. 
 
 " Which question am I to answer first, judge ? " said the 
 man, turning to Jack. 
 
 " Neither, George Washington," said Jack with dignity. 
 " Tell us first all about hauling the logs.'" 
 
 LOADING THE LOGS. 
 
 " Well, the sleds, with horses or oxen, take off the skidded 
 logs first. When they have drawn those, they come to where 
 the men are cutting, and take them right off the ground as 
 they lie." 
 
 " I should think it would need ever so many men to handle
 
 Il6 HOW LOGS ARE LOADED. 
 
 such huge fellows," said Ned. " I have seen them at saw-mills 
 more than four feet through." 
 
 " They use the teams to help load," said George Washington. 
 " First the sled is brought near a log. Then two long skids 
 are laid, with one end of each on the sled, so that the timber 
 can be rolled up on them. A long chain is passed under it. 
 One end is made fast to the sled, and a team is hitched to the 
 other ; and, when the team starts, the log rolls right up into its 
 place. This is the way : do you see ? " And the man, with 
 some sticks and a piece of string, showed them just how it was 
 done. 
 
 " Well, now," said Jack, " what do they do with them when 
 they are loaded ? " 
 
 " The camps are always as near some stream as they can be 
 placed," said the man. " If you have ever been in Maine, you 
 will know that it is a pretty mountainous country. The streams 
 run in the gorges between the hills. In the autumn they are 
 often only little brooks that one can jump over ; but when in 
 April the warm rain comes, or some hot days, the snow that 
 lies six or eight feet deep on a level melts all at once, and 
 pours down the mountain-sides. The little brooks become 
 raging torrents twenty feet deep, and carry every thing away 
 before them. The lumberman has made ready beforehand, know 
 ing just about when the freshet is due. The sleds carry their 
 loads to the edges of these deep gorges all winter long. There 
 is a moment's pause while the measurements are taken and 
 entered in a book. Then the driver takes his bill-hook in his 
 hand, and gives a strong wrench. The log tumbles clumsily off
 
 GOOD PLAIN COOKING. II? 
 
 the sled, slips slowly forward, and then, with a rush like thunder, 
 tears down the hillside like an avalanche to join his fellows 
 below. When that part of the gorge is full we move on, and 
 fill it up farther down stream." 
 
 " Now, then, what do you do in the evenings ? " said Tom. 
 
 " Well, mostly nothing ; for there is nothing to be done. 
 Some of the men play cards ; and others sit around the fire, and 
 smoke, and tell yarns. But they soon get talked out. If there 
 is an old newspaper, or any thing of that sort, it gets read 
 to pieces. Why, I went through a whole volume of Patent- 
 Office reports, including the ' whereases ' and ' now therefores/ 
 that winter. But work in the open air makes one glad to sit 
 still ; and by eight o'clock we had all had our pipe, turned in, 
 and were fast asleep." 
 
 " What did you have to eat ? " 
 
 " Pork and flapjacks, tea and coffee, about made up the bill 
 of fare." 
 
 " Did you cook in turn ? " asked Will. 
 
 " No : our gang was so large, that we had a regular cook. 
 He used to get some plain talking to, I can tell you, if the 
 coffee wasn't right. But he was a pretty good hand at his 
 trade ; for one of the men fell ill, and he made no end of tasty 
 messes for him. 
 
 " When it gets along toward spring, the men begin to 
 wonder what kind of a run of logs there will be. If the snows 
 have been light, or if the thaw comes too gradually, and the 
 autumn before has been dry, so that the ground takes up 
 much of the moisture, there will be hardly any rise in the
 
 A FRESHET AT HAND. 
 
 stream, and the logs will have to lie over till another season. 
 On the other hand, if the freshet is too great, all the level land 
 on each side of the stream is overflowed ; and, when the water 
 begins to go down, the logs are often stranded so far from the 
 current, that it costs more to get them than they are worth. 
 
 " With the freshet comes the hardest work of all. Axes 
 and saws are no longer of any use. Each man takes his bill 
 hook in hand, and follows down the course of the stream. It 
 is a wild sight. The raging torrent is black with logs, which it 
 swirls and tears about as if they were straws. Here some great 
 fellow caught by an eddy rears straight up on end. In one- 
 wild rushing mass they tear along. 
 
 " All at once the experienced logman's eye sees that there is 
 trouble ahead. Before him he hears, at some bend or narrow 
 part of the river, a crushing of timber, He sees, as he hurries.
 
 AWAY SHE GOES!
 
 A JAM HAS FORMED. 
 
 121 
 
 forward, the logs piling themselves up in mad confusion high 
 above the water's surface. The stream beside him begins to 
 rise rapidly. It is a jam. Two of the foremost timbers, in 
 passing, have got wedged together in the shape of the letter V. 
 The point is up stream, and each end is braced against the 
 bank. The whole run is stopped. Prompt action is neces- 
 
 BREAKING A LOG-JAM. 
 
 sary. The logman rushes out on the piled-up mass. His 
 shoes are armed with sharp iron spikes to prevent his slipping. 
 He sees in a moment which log it is that is the key to the 
 position. He takes firm hold of his bill-hook, and wrenches at 
 the offender until the wedged end slips out. At the top of his 
 speed he makes for the shore, reaching it just as the now
 
 122 THE JURY RENDER A VERDICT. 
 
 loosened mass, urged on by the water backed up behind, once 
 more plunges wildly forward down stream. 
 
 " By and by, when the streams have all run into some great 
 river on their way to the sea, the logs are mingled together 
 with those that have come down from some other mountain 
 tributary and belong to other owners. In order to sort them 
 out, a boom is stretched across at some convenient spot, where 
 they are all halted. Here those bearing the same mark are 
 made up into great rafts, and, taking their crews on board, pass 
 onward like some clumsy vessel. Slowly carried along by the 
 current, and kept in mid-course by long poles wielded by the 
 mariners, they come at last to their destination, and are made 
 fast at the side of some' mill. When I reached that point in 
 my experience I was paid off, and went home." 
 
 " Gentlemen of the jury," said Jack, " you have heard the 
 evidence, and the prisoner's statement in his own behalf. What 
 say you ? Is he guilty, or not guilty ? " 
 
 " I hope your honor will remember my youth at the time the 
 offence was committed," said the man. " If you'll let me off, 
 I'll never go lumbering again." 
 
 " All right, then," said Jack : " we'll let you off this time." 
 
 " I -suppose," said Ned, " that there has been a great 
 difference in saw-mills since you wer>t lumbering. I saw one 
 out West a year ago. There were no end of saws, through all 
 of which a log passed at one time. When the hind end was 
 going into the mill as a log, the front end was coming out a 
 dozen good boards." 
 
 " No," said the man. " We had nothing like that."
 
 THE RAFT IN RAPID?
 
 GEORGE WASHINGTON ENTERTAINS HIS VISITORS. 125 
 
 The boys looked about the life-saving station for some time, 
 examining the appliances for saving wrecked mariners. The 
 man showed them the mortar, from which a bomb, with rope 
 attached, was thrown over a ship in distress. They climbed 
 into the life-boat, and into the life-car, in which they imagined 
 themselves being drawn through the surf. Then they went up 
 stairs and looked at the men's quarters. They proposed to go 
 to the lookout on the roof ; but George Washington, as they 
 still called him, said that they could see nothing on account of 
 the snow, and the wind was so high that he feared they might 
 be blown away. The storm was a wild one. The surf, only 
 three hundred feet distant, was tearing and dashing up over the 
 sand-hills as if it longed to get at them, and sweep them away. 
 
 " Well," said Tom after a while, " it must be getting near 
 dinner-time. We had better go back to the house. I wonder 
 what we can do this afternoon. I wish there were some way of 
 getting to the village." 
 
 " There is a man coming down from there about three 
 o'clock with a load of wood for us. If you don't mind 
 standing up, he will take you. I'll send him over to the 
 house." 
 
 " But how shall we get back ? " 
 
 " Oh! I reckon he'll bring you," said the man. "Anyway, 
 if you give him fifty cents, he'll drive you about all the after 
 noon." 
 
 " All right, then," said Tom. " Send him up, please." 
 
 After dinner, as the sled did not appear, and the snow held 
 up a little, the boys decided to build a great snow man. The
 
 126 
 
 NIGHT COMES AGAIN. 
 
 girls put on their wraps, and came out ; but hardly was the first 
 ball rolled up, when the belated vehicle arrived. Off set the 
 
 five youngsters : and what 
 ever they found to interest 
 them I do not know ; but 
 they did not get home till 
 just before tea. 
 
 When that meal was well 
 over, they gathered in the 
 parlor, as usual. Then Ned 
 Grant produced a great pack 
 age of gum-drops, as he had 
 been ordered to do when 
 found guilty of contempt of 
 court ; and they all sat 
 munching, and saying not 
 a word. At last Tom turned 
 to Charlie Morgan, and said 
 briefly, 
 
 " Strike up music." 
 " How can I tell a story ?" 
 said Charlie. " You will eat 
 up all those gum-drops be 
 fore I get half through, and 
 I won't have any." 
 At this there was a general laugh ; and a handful being 
 delivered over to him, and safely put into his pocket out of the 
 reach of Jack's mischievous fingers, all settled themselves to 
 listen. 
 
 THE BEGINNING OF THE SNOW MAN.
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 "SOMEWHERE about 
 the year 1580," began 
 Charlie Morgan, " there 
 was born at Willoughby, 
 in Lancashire, England, a 
 boy named John Smith." 
 
 " Smith, Smith," inter 
 rupted Jack Hastings 
 meditatively. " The name 
 sounds familiar. Where 
 can I have heard it ? " 
 
 " When he was thir 
 teen years old," went on 
 Charlie, without paying 
 any attention to Jack's remark, " his father and mother died, and 
 he came under the care of guardians. It had long been his 
 great desire to go to sea ; and so he hailed with joy an 
 apprenticeship to a great merchant of London, upon one of 
 whose vessels he hoped soon to set sail. But, his longing not 
 being gratified, he took French leave of his master, who, for 
 eight years, did not set eyes upon him again. He made his way 
 
 127
 
 128 A NEW INFERNAL MACHINE. 
 
 across to France, and for a long time knocked about, seeing 
 strange lands, the Low Countries, Italy, and Egypt, and all 
 the time gaining knowledge, and growing in strength and all 
 manly acquirements. 
 
 " At length, in Hungary, where the Turks and Christians were 
 always at deadly feud, he rendered such distinguished service 
 that he was made captain of a troop of two hundred and fifty 
 horse, and was thenceforth known as Capt. John Smith. 
 
 " With the Turks he fought furiously, and his name soon 
 became a well-known word in their camp. The city of Alba Re- 
 galis the Pagans had conquered from thfe Christians, and for sixty 
 years had held against many an assault. They believed it to be 
 impregnable. Once again a Christian army surrounded it. A 
 night attack was determined on. Capt. Smith invented a sort of 
 infernal machine. First he took a number of round-bellied pots, 
 and filled them with gunpowder. Over all he spread a layer of 
 pitch, and this he stuck full of bullets ; then more pitch ; and 
 over this cloth soaked in oil was tightly bound. These grenades 
 were lighted, and hurled from slings. ' At midnight it was a 
 fearful sight to see the short flaming course of their flight in 
 the aire ; but, presently after their fall, the lamentable noise of 
 the miserable slaughtered Turks was most wonderful to heare.' 
 The enemy was thrown into great confusion ; the city was set on 
 fire ; and, a terrific onslaught being made by the besiegers, the 
 banner of the crescent gave place to that of the cross upon its 
 walls. 
 
 " Not long after, the Christians laid siege to another town ; 
 and here, to relieve the tedium of the camp, a Turk sent a chal-
 
 THREE TURKS' HEADS. 129 
 
 lenge into their lines, directed to any captain of a company who 
 durst combat with him for his head. Smith was chosen to meet 
 him. A truce was declared, and the lists were formed. On all 
 sides were fair ladies and knights. Each combatant, with lance 
 in rest, awaited the word for the onset. They met in mid-course ; 
 and Smith's spear was so well aimed that it pierced his enemy's 
 helmet, and hurled him lifeless to the ground. 
 
 " The death of the Turk so enraged a friend named Grualgo, 
 that he sent a personal challenge to our hero. Again the lists 
 were opened, and the trumpets sounded the charge. The knights 
 met : their lances were shivered. In the hand-to-hand contest 
 that followed, Smith again came off victorious, and the Turk bit 
 the dust. 
 
 " It was very important that the attention of the enemy should 
 be drawn away from certain movements in the besiegers' camp. 
 To effect this, it was arranged that Smith, in his turn, should 
 send a challenge into the enemy's ranks. A doughty Pagan, 
 Bonny Mulgro by name, made haste to accept it. A third time 
 the lists were opened. The contest was a furious one ; and it 
 was only by a skilful use of his dagger, after his battle-axe had 
 been beaten from his hand, that the Englishman managed to 
 snatch victory out of the jaws of defeat. 
 
 " For these deeds a coat of arms was given him, on which 
 stood out, in bold relief, three Turks' heads. 
 
 " But fortune, that had so far stood his friend, now deserted 
 him. In a pitched battle he was left among the dead and wounded 
 on the field, and was there found by the wretches who came to 
 pillage. Perceiving by his armor that he was a person of posi-
 
 130 THE LIFE OF A SLAVE. 
 
 tion, they saved him for ransom. Healed of his wounds, he, with 
 many others, was sent to Axopolis, where, in the market-place, 
 they were sold for slaves, like so many beasts. He was bought 
 by a bashaw, who sent him as a present to his lady-love in Con 
 stantinople ; whither, with other prisoners chained together by the 
 necks in parties of twenty, he was marched without delay. 
 
 " He was fortunate in finding a kind mistress. She became 
 greatly interested in him ; and, fearing that her mother might 
 again sell him, she had him despatched to her brother, the Bashaw 
 of Nalbrits, in the country of the Crym Tartars, directing that 
 he should be treated with especial kindness. 
 
 " But her commands were totally disregarded. Within an hour 
 after his arrival, Smith was stripped naked ; his head and beard 
 were shaved ; about his neck was riveted a great iron ring ; a 
 rough coat of hair was thrown on him, only held together by a 
 piece of undressed hide ; and in this wretched condition he was 
 made to perform all the menial offices for a hundred other 
 slaves. 
 
 " After a time, he was set to threshing. At work one day in 
 a lonely field, he was visited by his master, who, in anger, began 
 to beat him : whereupon, forgetting that he was hundreds of 
 miles from any Christian land, and that his chances of escape 
 were almost hopeless, Smith turned upon the wretch, and beat 
 out his brains with his flail. Then, putting on the dead man's 
 clothes, he hid the body under some straw, and, mounting his 
 horse, fled at the top of his speed. Sixteen days he kept on, 
 nearly dying with hunger and fatigue, but mercifully avoiding 
 notice, which was the cause of his escape ; for he would at once
 
 A WONDERFUL ESCAPE. 131 
 
 have been known by his collar to be a slave. On the seven 
 teenth day he reached a Christian garrison on the Don, where 
 he was among friends, and safe at last. 
 
 " Our captain now thought that he would return to ' his own 
 sweet countrie : ' but on his way thither, being in Spain, and 
 hearing of the wars in Africa, he must needs pass over at once 
 into Morocco ; whence, after more fighting, he sailed, and again 
 set foot on English soil. 
 
 " The time of his arrival was especially fortunate. To a man 
 of his wild spirit, and contempt for danger, a chance for fresh 
 adventure offered in the planting a colony in Virginia, in the New 
 World. He entered warmly into the project, and on the iQth of 
 December, 1606, with a hundred others, set sail. 
 
 " The three ships carried no such company as that which 
 fourteen years later settled New England. Instead of hard-work 
 ing, God-fearing men, these were a band of reckless adventurers, 
 lured by the stories of the golden prizes which the Spaniards 
 had found in the South Seas, and hoping each to so enrich him 
 self with spoils, that, after a few months, he need nevermore do 
 any work. Of the one hundred, forty-six were gentlemen ; twelve 
 were their servants. Not a single woman was of the company. 
 To build a city in a new world, they took with them but four 
 carpenters, one mason, one bricklayer, one blacksmith. Never 
 was a party so ill assorted. 
 
 " They were fairly prosperous on their voyage, which they 
 made by way of the West Indies ; though at the last they fell in 
 with a gale that so discouraged some, that they were for turning 
 back to England. But, when the storm had somewhat abated,
 
 132 AN ILL-ASSORTED COMPANY. 
 
 the glad cry of ' Land, ho ! ' was heard from the lookout ; and 
 they found themselves at the mouth of Chesapeake Bay. Wearied 
 with the long confinement of shipboard, some thirty made haste 
 to recreate themselves on shore ; but they were attacked by the 
 savages, and two were badly hurt ; whereon the rest with all 
 speed got back to their ships. 
 
 " Some little time was spent in selecting a site whereon to 
 build; but on the i3th of May a spot was chosen. Capt. Smith 
 was sent off on a voyage of discovery with a small boat's crew, 
 and the rest set to work. While they were building in careless 
 security, their arms not even within reach, the Indians fell upon 
 them. One was killed outright, and seventeen wounded ; and 
 they would have been cut off to a man, had not a chain-shot 
 from one of the ships, tearing through the tree-tops, put their 
 foes to flight. 
 
 " Hardly had the ships' sails disappeared down the horizon, 
 on their return to England in June, before sickness came ; and, 
 in a fortnight, hardly ten men were on their feet. Night and 
 day they had stood on their guard against the Indians ; working 
 with desperate energy, in the mean time, to finish their half-built 
 fort and houses. Their provisions, too, had given out. It was 
 now the time for planting, and months must elapse before they 
 could reap. For a while they lived on sturgeon ; but those were 
 soon gone, and starvation stared them in the face. ' At this 
 crisis,' says the old chronicler, ' God, the patron of all good 
 endeavours, so changed the heart of the Salvages that they brought 
 such plenty of their fruits and provisions as no man wanted.' 
 
 " Capt. Smith had proved himself the ruling spirit in the midst
 
 A RESOLUTE COMMANDER. 133 
 
 of all these troubles. He now set out in the pinnace with a 
 crew of seven to trade with the savages ; for their provisions 
 would soon again fail. Not one of his men, with a single excep 
 tion, had ever sailed a boat. They knew not even how to raise 
 a sail. But their hearts were staunch ; and so, in an open craft, 
 the eight set out to face whole tribes of enemies. 
 
 " At their first landing the Indians treated them with scorn, 
 as famished men. They offered them a handful of corn for a 
 gun, and another handful for their clothes. Whereupon, seeing 
 that nothing was to be gained from such men as these by gentle 
 ness, the captain ordered his men to discharge their pieces; 
 * whereat the Indians all fled into the woods. So, marching to 
 wards their houses, they might see great heapes of corn, much 
 a doe he had to restraine his hungry souldiers from present tak 
 ing of it, expecting, as it hapned, that the Salvages would assault 
 them, as, not long after, they did, with a most hydeous noyse. 
 Sixtie or seaventie of them, some blacke, some red, some white, 
 some party-coloured, came in a square order, singing and dancing, 
 out of the woods, with their Okee (which was an Idoll made of 
 skinnes stuffed with moss) borne before them : and in this man 
 ner, being well armed with Clubs, Targets, Bowes and Arrowes, 
 they charged the English, that so kindly received them with their 
 muskets loaden with Pistoll shot, that downe fell their God, and 
 divers lay sprauling on the ground : the rest fled again to the 
 woods.' After this, they were glad enough to treat for peace ; 
 and in a short time, for a few pieces of copper, Smith had 
 bought a boat's . load of corn, and was on his way back to the 
 settlement.
 
 134 
 
 SMITH BINDETH A SALUAGE TO HIS ARM. 
 
 " His next voyage of any importance ended disastrously for 
 himself; for he was taken prisoner. With a small crew, as before, 
 he had set out to discover the sources of one of the rivers that 
 emptied into the bay. They ascended the stream so far, that their 
 barge could go no farther. Whereupon it was anchored in mid- 
 channel, out of the reach of any stray arrows ; and, bidding his 
 men on no account venture ashore until his return, the captain 
 made his way, in a canoe with two whites and two Indians, some 
 twenty miles farther, to the head of the stream. 
 
 fightethtvith ikeJQna ^Pamawricee a 
 all hit company, aridjliw 3 of them. 
 
 " The men remained in the barge, as ordered, for a time ;. 
 but they were not accustomed to obeying, and they soon grew 
 restless, and hauled the boat to the river's bank to disembark. 
 The savages fell upon them, and it was only by the most vigorous 
 efforts that they reached a place of safety. As it was, one was 
 taken and tortured. Before his death, his captors found out from 
 him the direction in which Smith had gone, and set out to take 
 him also. The two Englishmen, his companions, they came upon
 
 CAPT. SMITH IS CAPTURED.
 
 THEY TAKE HIM PRISONER IN THE OOZE. 137 
 
 as they were sitting by a camp-fire ; and a flight of arrows soon 
 left them lifeless. Smith himself was hunting for their supper 
 with one of the Indian guides. Finding that he was surrounded 
 by two hundred of the foe, he quickly with his garters bound 
 the guide to his arm as a shield ; and, plying his musket vigorously, 
 he slew three of the enemy, and so frightened the rest that they 
 dared not come within gunshot. 
 
 " Seeing this, he began a retreat to his canoe, still with his 
 Indian shield before him ; and he would no doubt have reached 
 * had he not slipped, and fallen into a pool of mud, where he 
 sank up to his waist, unable to move. Even when in this plight 
 his foes did not dare to approach, till, half perished with cold, 
 he threw away his piece. Then they dragged him out, and, 
 dancing about him with fierce glee, brought him to their king. 
 
 " Opechankanough was this worthy's name. Capt. Smith pre 
 sented him with a compass. The motion of the needle, and the 
 glass cover, excited the greatest interest in the royal mind ; and 
 when his men, a little later, bound their captive to a tree, and 
 took their stand to shoot at him, he raised his hand, and com 
 manded his release. Manifestly a man who knew so much as 
 this one was not to be killed off like a common prisoner of war. 
 
 " Smith was now for weeks in the hands of the Indians. 
 They carried him about from tribe to tribe as a great show. At 
 one time he narrowly escaped death at the hands of a warrior, 
 indignant that he did not cure his son, to whom the captain was 
 taken just as the breath was leaving the lad's body. 
 
 " At one time ' they entertained him with most strange and 
 fearful conjurations.' In a long house he was put alone. A fire
 
 138 
 
 STXAA'GE AND FEARFUL CONJURATIONS. 
 
 was made in the centre of the floor, and on each side of it a 
 mat was stretched. On one of these our hero took his seat. 
 Presently in came a great fellow, painted black with coal and 
 
 Si'ia Po'vvKatan carnanjf C.'S'nrith, to 
 
 Fokahc-ntas begyrhis life his 
 \ibtecJfd. 3g of the ir 
 
 oil, and adorned with all manner of hideous devices. In his hand 
 he bore a rattle, and in a frightful voice began an invocation to 
 his god, dancing wildly. A moment later, in came three others 
 similarly gotten up. These four kept up their frightful singing,
 
 ONE OF CAPT. SMITH'S EXPERIENCES.
 
 THE FEAST ENDS UNPLEASANTLY. 
 
 howling, and dancing, the livelong day ; while their poor victim 
 looked on, fasting. The intention of all this, they told him, was 
 to find out whether he meant them well or ill. It took them three 
 days to do this to their satisfaction, which must have been far 
 from pleasant to poor Smith. 
 
 " At last, in the course of their wanderings, they brought him 
 to Powhatan, the chief of all the tribes. Here he was received 
 in great state. A queen brought him water to wash his hands, 
 and feathers on which to dry them, while two hundred grim 
 courtiers looked on. Then he was feasted : but the feast had a 
 most unpleasant ending for the captain ; for two great stones were 
 brought in, and he was seized, and laid prostrate on one, while 
 his swarthy captors stood ready to dash out his brains with their 
 clubs. At this moment, when he had given up all hope of life, 
 Pocahontas, the young daughter of the king, rushed forward, and, 
 throwing herself beside him, shielded him with her own body. 
 Upon which Powhatan relented, and Smith's life was spared ; 
 and, a short time after, he got safely back to Jamestown." 
 
 " Is that the end ? " asked Carrie as Charlie stopped. " You 
 haven't told us all, I am sure. Did Capt. Smith have no more 
 adventures ? " 
 
 " Oh, yes ! " said Charlie : " there was no end of them. He 
 went off for several years on expeditions among the Indians, 
 who were nearly always more or less hostile. He had a hand- 
 to-hand fight with the King of Paspahegh, who, being a huge 
 man, dragged him into the river, and tried to drown him, but 
 failed, and was himself taken. He seized the King of Paumaunkee 
 by his scalp-lock in the face of seven hundred of his armed
 
 142 
 
 SMITHES POWDER-BAG EXPLODES. 
 
 warriors. They had planned to take Smith, but found themselves 
 outwitted, and the king at the mercy of his pistol if they dared 
 to move a hand. 
 
 " Nor were the Indians the only people that engaged his 
 attention ; for, nearly every time that he came back to Jamestown, 
 6e had to crush a rebellion among the settlers, who were a sad 
 
 " At last a great accident befell our captain. ' Sleeping in 
 his Boate, accidentallie one fired his powder-bag, which tore the 
 flesh from his body and thighes, nine or ten inches square, in a 
 most pittiful manner; but to quench the tormenting fire, frying 
 him in his cloaths, he leaped over-boord into the deepe river,
 
 C.Smitfi toKethtfit J&np of famavnl^ee jvifongr - 
 
 FROM AN OLD HISTORY OF VIRGINIA.
 
 AN HONEST GENTLEMAN OF GOOD BEHA VIOUR. 145 
 
 where, ere they could recover him, hee was neare drowned.' There 
 was no physician in the country skilful enough to cure a wound 
 so severe as he had received ; and, a ship being about to return 
 to England the next day, he hastily had another person appointed 
 governor in his stead, and bade farewell to the colony forever. 
 
 " Did his wound heal ? " asked Kate. 
 
 "Yes," said Charlie: "he made many other voyages to Amer 
 ica, but they were to New England." 
 
 " That part about Pocahontas," said Jack Hastings medita 
 tively, " reminds me of my great-grandmother." 
 
 "What became of Pocahontas?" asked Rose. 
 
 " She was always a staunch friend of Capt. Smith's," said 
 Charlie. " Several times she came in the night to warn him of 
 treachery on the part of the Indians. After the captain had gone 
 back to England, her father became very restless; and the settlers 
 by a stratagem seized her, and kept her as a hostage for his 
 good conduct. While she was thus held, 'Master John Rolfe, an 
 honest gentleman and of good behaviour,' became very anxious 
 about her soul, and determined to convert her. His efforts were 
 successful, and she was baptized. They fell in love with one 
 another, and were married. It was a very happy union ; for she 
 was very quiet and gentle in her nature. 
 
 " Rolfe took her to England, where she was presented at court, 
 and attracted great attention. They were just about to take ship 
 back to America, when she suddenly died. There are many 
 families in Virginia now which are very proud to trace back their 
 descent to this Indian princess." 
 
 " Hark ! " said Mrs. Longwood, holding up her hand. " Can 
 that be rain?"
 
 146 A PETTY TYRANT. 
 
 They all stopped to listen ; but the fire made such a crack 
 ling, that no one could hear distinctly. 
 
 " Never mind," said Mr. Longwood : "let us go on with our 
 stories. What have you for us, Lou ? " 
 
 "In the early years of the Revolution," said Lou, "there was 
 stationed at Newport a detachment of the British army. In those 
 old days the harbor of Newport was white with the sails of mer 
 chantmen ; but the war soon put a stop to all peaceful sailing of 
 the seas, and these vessels, one after the other, fell into the 
 enemy's hands. The English men-of-war lay in the harbor, and 
 the English soldiers were billeted on the town. In command of 
 the land forces was Gen. Prescott. There was no man whom the 
 Americans more hated and despised; for he was the soul of mean 
 ness. The people were, of course, at his mercy; and this petty 
 tyrant took every advantage of his position. When he walked in 
 the streets, if he saw two or three talking together he would 
 shake his cane at them, and call out, 'Disperse, ye rebels!' He 
 made it a rule that every one should take off his hat on pass 
 ing him. One day he met a Quaker named Elisha Anthony. 
 This man kept his hat on, as is the custom with Quakers, because, 
 as he himself said, he did not think it right to show those 
 signs of respect to man. Prescott ordered his servant to knock 
 it off his head. 
 
 " Anthony had a pair of horses that he had grown very fond 
 of. They knew him, and were warm friends ; for he was never 
 tired of petting them. The day after his affair with the British 
 general, that officer sent for these horses, saying that he wished 
 them in the king's service to carry an express to Boston. Resist-
 
 PRESCOTT BUILDS A SIDEWALK. 147 
 
 ance was useless. What became of one is not known ; but that 
 afternoon Anthony found the other by the roadside, prostrate. 
 He had been ridden furiously, and was dying. The old man 
 hurried to him, and, kneeling down, took his head into his lap. 
 The poor beast gave one look of pain and misery in his master's 
 face, and died. 
 
 " When Prescott took up his quarters in Newport, he wished 
 a sidewalk in front of his house. There were no stones conven 
 ient: so his men quietly took the door-steps of the houses near, 
 and built one with them. 
 
 " He arrested the townspeople on the slightest provocation, 
 and kept them in jail to show his power. One citizen named 
 Tripp was thus treated. He was not allowed to write, or hear 
 from his family ; though his quick-witted wife managed to write 
 him a letter, which she baked in a loaf of bread, and sent him. 
 When she went to petition Prescott for her husband's relief, she 
 was met by his aide, who slammed the door in her face, having 
 first told her that he expected that her husband would be hung 
 as a rebel in less than a week." 
 
 "What old brutes he and his master must have been!" said 
 Tom. 
 
 " Well," went on Lou, " you may imagine that Prescott was 
 pretty thoroughly hated. At last, in the summer of 1777, he had 
 his quarters at a farmhouse belonging to a Quaker. The house 
 was about five miles from Newport, and was close to the shore. 
 In front of it were anchored three frigates, each with their guard- 
 boats out ; and close at hand was an encampment of light-horse 
 and a guard-house. Col. Barton of the patriot army conceived a
 
 148 "ALL'S WELL!" 
 
 plan to surprise Prescott by night, and carry him off. It was a 
 scheme full of danger, but one which, if successful, would bring 
 great glory to all concerned. He chose forty men, on every one 
 of whom he knew he could depend in -emergency. Each man, 
 too, knew how to handle an oar ; for it might well be that 
 they would need to show a clean pair of heels, should the men- 
 of-war espy them. In several boats, with muffled oars, the party 
 set out from the mainland. It was about nine o'clock on the 
 night of the loth of July. They passed silently across the bay, 
 so close to the frigate's guard-boats that they plainly heard the 
 sentinel's cry of ' All's well ! ' and landed in a cove near the 
 house. 
 
 " Here the party divided. One section took a roundabout 
 path, and came up to the rear of the house, cutting off all 
 escape in that direction. The other marched stealthily forward, 
 led by a negro, Jack Sisson, who had been Prescott's servant. 
 
 "They passed between the guard -house and the cavalry- 
 encampment, and came directly up to the front - door. The 
 sentinel on duty called out, ' Who's there ? ' but they paid no 
 attention, and marched steadily on. ' Who's there ? ' called out 
 the man again. ' Give the countersign.' 
 
 " ' We have no countersign,' said Barton. ' Have you seen 
 any deserters here to-night ? ' 
 
 " Deceived by this question, the guard let them approach 
 nearer, and in a moment more was seized, and threatened with 
 instant death if he made a sound. 
 
 " Barton, with some of his men, at once entered the house. 
 The Quaker was sitting reading : all the others of the family
 
 CAPTURED IN HIS SHIRT. 149 
 
 had gone to bed. In response to their demand, ' Where is 
 Prescott's room ? ' he pointed to the one directly overhead. We 
 can imagine the joy with which he heard them dash up stairs, 
 Jack the negro leading the way. The door was locked. No 
 time was to be lost. Jack backed the width of the hall, and, 
 rushing forward with head down, burst it open at the first blow. 
 
 " Prescott sprang up in bed as they entered ; but there was 
 no chance for escape. His aide in another room, hearing the 
 noise, jumped out of the window to give the alarm, but was 
 instantly captured by the men below. Barton ordered the gen 
 eral to rise, and go with them. He begged for time to dress. 
 But delay was dangerous. Throwing a cloak about him, they 
 took him in his shirt, telling him that on the other side of the 
 bay he would have time to dress at his leisure. The rest of 
 the party, who had remained on guard outside, formed around the 
 prisoners ; and as stealthily as they came they made their way 
 back to the boats. Once again with muffled oars they passed 
 by the frigates, the men chuckling to themselves as they heard 
 the sentry's cry of ' All's well ! ' and thinking of the chagrin that 
 would befall them, when, a little later, they learned that all was 
 ill. 
 
 " A carriage was waiting on the main - land. As they were 
 about to enter it, Prescott broke the silence that he had held 
 since his capture. ' Sir,' he said, turning to Barton, ' you have 
 made a bold push to-night. ' ' We have been fortunate,' said 
 that hero." 
 
 " Wasn't it just splendid ! " said the boys. 
 
 " This daring deed was instantly known far and wide. Con-
 
 ISO A DISH OF SUCCOTASH. 
 
 gress presented the gallant colonel a sword, and a grant of land 
 in Vermont. This land, though, brought him great trouble in 
 the end. In managing it, his affairs became involved, and he 
 was arrested. It was in the days when people were imprisoned 
 for debt ; and for fourteen years the hero lay in jail. At the 
 end of that time La Fayette revisited America. Asking for his 
 old friend, he heard with grief and indignation of his hard fate, 
 and at once paid his debts, and set him free." 
 
 " And what became of old Prescott ? " asked Charlie. 
 
 " He was sent to Washington's headquarters in New Jersey. 
 His late ignoble capture did not seem to have improved his 
 manners. On his way thither he stopped to dine at a tavern 
 kept by one Capt. Alden, in Lebanon, Conn. Mrs. Alden 
 brought him his dinner. Among the dishes was one of succo 
 tash. Prescott took up the dish, and threw it on the floor, 
 exclaiming, ' What ! do you treat me with the food of hogs ? ' 
 
 " Upon this Mrs. Alden left the room. The British officer 
 was somewhat dismayed, a little later, to see her stalwart hus 
 band enter with a horsewhip in his hand. It was too late then 
 to regret his rudeness. He was seized, and had a good 
 dressing." 
 
 "Oh, cricky ! " said Jack ecstatically. " What fun ! " 
 
 " He was exchanged after some months, and went back to 
 Newport to his old command. But the horsewhipping seems to 
 have rankled. He was visited by a committee of citizens on 
 some business, on one occasion after his return. To one of 
 them he was so rude and violent, that the gentleman left the 
 room. On his friends asking of him the reason, Prescott said
 
 MY GREAT-GRANDMOTHER. 153 
 
 that he looked so much like a Connecticut man who had horse 
 whipped him, that he could not abide his presence." 
 
 " That's a tiptop story," said Jack with enthusiasm ; " but 
 just wait till you hear about my great-grandmother ! "
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THERE was no doubt at 
 all, when the children trooped 
 off to bed that night, as to 
 whether it was raining or not. 
 The clatter on the roof above 
 and about them was so loud, 
 that they could hardly hear 
 one another speak. It was 
 like the trampling of many 
 feet. Ned went to the window, and flattened his nose against 
 the pane in a vain attempt to see something in the darkness 
 outside ; but what little he did see was so depressing, that he 
 made haste to take off his clothes, and get into bed. Will 
 Morgan had not come up, having stayed behind to do a little 
 writing. The other boys, sitting in bed, with their hands clasped 
 about their knees, waited for him, listening to the wind which 
 was coming in blasts that made the house shake, and that dashed 
 the rain against the pane as if it would break the glass. 
 
 " What a wild night it is at sea ! " said Charlie. " The men 
 at the life-saving station must have a fearful time patrolling the 
 154
 
 "TO BED, TO BED, SAYS SLEEPY HEAD." 155. 
 
 beach in such a storm. I shouldn't wonder if there were wrecks 
 on the coast before morning." 
 
 " Yes," said Ned sleepily ; " but, if the rain keeps on long 
 enough to take off the snow, there will be good skating again 
 when it clears. I wonder what Will can be writing, to keep him 
 so long. I'm going to sleep, anyway ; " and, stretching himself 
 down in the bed, he pulled up the clothes, and was off in no- 
 time. The other boys followed his example with such speed, 
 that, when Will did come, he found no one awake to greet him. 
 
 " Whew ! " whistled Tom, sitting up in bed for a moment at 
 half-past seven the next morning. " Isn't it a stinger ? It has 
 cleared off cold with a vengeance. I have been dreaming, for 
 ever so long, that I was a snow man ; and my nose is just like 
 a lump of ice. I'll wager that the water is frozen stiff in the 
 pitchers ; " and a little cloud of frozen vapor rose from his mouth 
 as he spoke. 
 
 " I say," he went on, " who's going to make the fire ? There 
 are kindlings and the oak logs all ready. If any of you fellows 
 want to do it, don't hesitate on my account." 
 
 At this there was a sudden stillness, all the boys pretending 
 to be fast asleep. 
 
 "Well, I can't be much colder than I am now," said he; "so 
 here goes : " and out he jumped. The crackling flames were 
 soon roaring up the chimney, and the pitchers were set down in 
 front of it to thaw out ; and gradually the boys, one after another, 
 crawled out of bed, and sat before the blaze to dress. 
 
 " I say, fellows ! " cried Ned, all at once glancing out of the 
 window. " Come quick ! Why, here's a great shp right in shore,.
 
 156 THE SEA IN A GALE, 
 
 and she's had a hard time of it too. Her sails are all blown 
 away. She must be going aground." 
 
 " No," said Will, after watching her a moment or two : " the 
 wind is off shore, and she has sail enough to make headway against 
 any current setting towards land. But I don't envy the sailors. 
 
 Think of being out at such a time ! The sea dashes over the 
 decks every minute or two, and must freeze instantly ; and the 
 rigging is stiff with ice. But we shall be stiff ourselves if we 
 stand here, and, besides, be late to breakfast." 
 
 " I wonder," said Ned Grant when they were all about the
 
 THE WRECK OF "THE SYLPH." 157 
 
 table, " what writing it could have been that kept Will up so late 
 last night. It looks suspicious." 
 
 " I know," said Jack: " it was poetry. It fell out of his coat 
 when he put it on this morning. He picked it up very quickly; 
 but I saw it. Don't blush," he said, turning to Will patronizingly : 
 " I've written poetry myself." 
 
 " O Will ! " said the girls : " do let us hear it ! " 
 Will, thus besought, tried to beg off. Finally, finding that 
 there was no use, he produced the paper from his pocket. 
 " When we were all over at the life-saving station yesterday," he 
 said, " one of the men told me that his father, an old sea-captain, 
 told him of the wreck of a British man-of-war that took place 
 when he was a boy. So, when we were in the village, I hap 
 pened to meet the old gentleman, and he told me all about it. 
 I tried to put it in rhyme as follows : " 
 
 THE WRECK OF "THE SYLPH." 
 
 'Tis nigh upon seventy years ago 
 
 Since " The Sylph " came ashore : 
 
 'Twas the war of eighteen hundred and twelve, 
 
 And she was a British sloop-of-war. 
 
 Lord ! I can see it all again, 
 
 The gale, and the spray, and the wild surfs roar, 
 
 And the wave-lashed corpses of drownded men ; 
 
 Though I was but a lad of ten 
 
 When " The Sylph " came ashore. 
 
 And the old sea-captain's silver hair 
 
 Fluttered and tossed in the summer air, 
 
 As he leaned at ease o'er his garden-gate, 
 
 And told me the tale of " The Sylph's " hard fate.
 
 158 ASHORE ON SOUTHAMPTON BEACH. 
 
 Did we know the craft? Ay, we knew her well, 
 
 From Montauk Point to Fire-Island Light. 
 
 Many a time from her decks had a shell 
 
 Screamed through the air in the quiet night, 
 
 Waking the siknt village street 
 
 With its roar and the tramp of flying feet; 
 
 Many a night had a ruddy glare 
 
 Lighted the landscape far and near, 
 
 As some old homestead and barns were burned, 
 
 And the labor of years into ashes turned. 
 
 And so, when one cold December morn, 
 
 Ere the moon's pale light had faded out, 
 
 A hurrying sound of feet was heard, 
 
 And on the chill night air rang forth the shout, 
 
 "'The Sylph's' ashore on Southampton beach!" 
 
 We wasted no time in idle speech ; 
 
 But each man sped to the beach away 
 
 To meet the foe that was now at bay. 
 
 This was the sight that met our eyes 
 In that cold dawning dim and gray, 
 A white-capped mass of swirling foam, 
 Filling the air with its icy spray : 
 Out of its midst there rose a mast 
 Black with the bodies of men lashed fast; 
 And each wild wave, as it came ashore, 
 With its icy fingers some poor wretch tore 
 From his frail hold, and with wrathful hand 
 Beat out his life on the shallow sand. 
 
 What could we do in a strait like that? 
 What ship could live in so mad a sea?
 
 THE WILD WIND WHISTLING SHRILL. 
 
 159 
 
 Women wailed as they watched it all; 
 Strong men looked on helplessly. 
 Crash ! all at once the mast went down, 
 Hurling them sheer in the surf to drown. 
 One mad struggle, then all was still; 
 Only the wild wind whistling shrill. 
 Out of a hundred and twenty men, 
 Only six walked the earth again. 
 
 We buried the dead that came ashore : 
 You may see their graves at the inlet still. 
 But the wreck turned out a prize indeed, 
 And we picked her bones with a right good will.
 
 i6o 
 
 HOW THE MEETING-HOUSE WAS BUILT. 
 
 From her guns and timbers of cedar-wood 
 We built us a meeting-house strong and good. 
 
 THE WRECK. 
 
 And I've often heard the parson tell 
 That he heard these words in her swinging bell,' 
 "To the pruning-hook ye shall beat the sword; 
 For the wrath of men shall praise the Lord."
 
 JACK MAKES SUGGESTIOA 7 S. 
 
 "Very good, very good," said Jack when he had finished; 
 " as a whole, very good. Ma}* I trouble you to read the first 
 part again ? " 
 
 Will read it. 
 
 " It's a little remarkable, isn't it," said Jack, looking around, 
 " that there should have been such a difference in the weather 
 on the two sides of the pond yesterday ? Here it wa^ snowing 
 and blowing, and over there the old sea-captain's silver hail \vas 
 tossing in the summer air." 
 
 " That's poetical license/' said Will. 
 
 " If you had consulted me," said Jack, " I should have recom 
 mended a change. You might have put it this way : 
 
 And the old sea-captain shivered with cold, 
 And told me the tale which I have just told." 
 
 " But," said Will, " the lines that you object to come in the 
 very beginning, before he has told the story." 
 
 " Oh ! well," said Jack, " then you might have said, 
 
 And the old sea-captain's silver hair 
 Stood up on end in the frosty air." 
 
 " It is hereby requested," said Will, laughing, " that Jack tell 
 us the story about his great-grandmother in rhyme." 
 
 " Let's go and skate, fellows," said Jack all at once : " the 
 ice looks beautifully." 
 
 " Do you happen to know that the thermometer stands at 
 zero, or lower ? " said Carrie. 
 
 " We are going to have a talk from Mr. Longwood about 
 fishes, after breakfast is over," said Gertrude. " There are some
 
 1 62 
 
 AN OPEN COUNTENANCE. 
 
 beautiful pictures of them in a book in the library, and he is 
 going to tell us something as to their habits. If you boys will 
 promise to be very quiet, you may come too." 
 
 " Thank you," said Jack. " It would be very pleasant. Per 
 haps we will come in a little later. Fishes seem somehow to 
 belong more to summer than to winter. But we'll try to come 
 in, after skating a while." And the young scapegrace rushed out 
 of the door. The other boys followed, as they said, to see where 
 
 Jack had gone ; but as 
 the girls saw them all, 
 a little later, putting on 
 their skates at the 
 pond's edge, they made 
 up their minds that 
 waiting for them would 
 be but a loss of time. 
 The book of plates was 
 lying on the table in 
 the library, and the girls 
 were all bending over 
 it when Mr. Longwood 
 came into the room. 
 " (f)h ! " cried out Carrie as a leaf was turned, " what is that 
 strange fellow with a line and bait ? " 
 
 " That," said Mr. Longwood, "is a frog-angler. He has a 
 small body, and an enormously big head ; and, from the shape of 
 the mouth, you will see that he has a very open countenance 
 when he smiles. Owing to his shape, he cannot swim very fast; 
 
 FROG-ANGLER.
 
 A NEW WAY TO FISH. 
 
 163 
 
 so that, had he to depend on speed for his breakfast, he would 
 often go hungry. Nature has therefore provided another way 
 for him to get his meals. Do you see the rod and line that 
 stand out of his head ? That is tipped at the end, where it 
 grows larger, with a bright-colored piece of membrane that answers 
 for a bait. The rod, too, has a joint in it, so that it can be 
 moved about in every direction Our fisherman, when he gets 
 hungry, stirs up the 
 mud so as to hide 
 himself from sight in 
 the dirty water, and 
 then sets his line. Be 
 fore long, some foolish 
 little fish espies the 
 tempting bait, and goes 
 up to smell of it. 
 Snap go the great 
 jaws, and little fish is 
 gone. It is said that 
 the frog-angler some 
 times grows to be ten 
 feet long. 
 
 "This fellow," he 
 went on as Gertrude 
 turned over a page, "is a lump-sucker. From his appearance 
 he might be called ' Old Barnacles ; ' for he is as rough as a ship's 
 bottom. On the lower part of his body there is an arrangement 
 called a sucker, by which he can make himself fast to any object. 
 
 LUMP-SUCKER.
 
 1 64 VISITING THE FISH-MARKET. 
 
 In this way he can protect himself against the violence of the 
 waves, which would otherwise beat his clumsy person about with 
 out mercy. So tightly can he hold with his sucker, that if yo t ' 
 put one in a tub of water, and he attaches himself to the bottom, 
 you may use his tail as a handle, and with this lift tub, water 
 and all, into the air. The eggs of this fish are deposited in 
 shallows. When they hatch, the little suckers ail make fast to 
 their papa, and he swims off with them into deep water." 
 
 " Are they good to eat ? " asked Rose. 
 
 " Seals are very fond of them," said Mr. Longwood ; " but 
 they are rather too oily to please human beings. People who 
 live in cold countries, and see only the gray and silver fish that 
 are common with us, have no idea of the beautiful colors that 
 they wear in tropic seas. In the West Indies, for instance, I 
 have seen fish of three colors, striped around like a zebra ; and 
 each color was as brilliant as can well be imagined, yellow, red, 
 and blue. Tropical waters are often so clear, that one can lean 
 over the boat's side, and make out the whole sea-bottom, with 
 its moving panorama of marine life, far below. You don't have 
 to wait till the fish pulls the line to know whether you have a 
 bite or not ; for you can look down, and watch his every action. 
 
 " One morning I got up very early to pay a visit to the 
 fish-market. The islands swarm with negroes : and their jabber 
 is something astonishing ; for they all talk at once, and never 
 stop. I pushed my way through the market-place, filled with 
 women sitting on the ground, with little piles of lemons or oranges 
 for sale about them, and presently came to the spot for which 
 I had set out. Fish cannot be killed, as with us ; for, owing to
 
 GOOD-BY TO POLLYWOG. 
 
 the heat of the climate, they keep but a few hours : so they are 
 put in tubs as soon as they are caught. I found myself sur 
 rounded by these large tubs of water, in all of which were fish 
 darting about as briskly as if they had never known any other 
 home. 
 
 "I stood on one side a little while to see how business was 
 done. Presently down came a negro-woman. She looked into 
 the various tubs, and at last selected two victims. A lively hag 
 gle as to price now be 
 gan. This being over, 
 she said, ' Keel dose.' 
 The man slipped a net 
 under the two poor 
 wretches, and, whisk 
 ing them out of the 
 water, put them on 
 a little tray which she 
 had. She stuck the 
 tray on her head, ne 
 groes carry every thing 
 on their heads, from a 
 
 SEA-HORSE. 
 
 banana to a barrel of 
 
 flour, and walked off; the poor fish making their last dying flaps 
 
 above her unregarded. 
 
 "This next specimen is a sea-horse. He takes his name from 
 his slight resemblance to that animal. He whips his tail about 
 some plant, and waits quietly. Woe to the heedless little polly- 
 wog that wanders near him ! That sharp nose is after him in a
 
 1 66 HOW TO MEET A FAMINE. 
 
 moment, and mamma pollywog waits in vain for her beloved 
 truant to come back to her again. 
 
 " Here," said Mr. Longwood, "is an animal that is known as 
 a sea-cucumber. On its head grows, as you notice, a flower-like 
 cluster. The sea-cucumber varies from six inches to two feet in 
 length, and lies with its body under the sand, its head alone 
 projecting. It is a very strange beast. If it is frightened or 
 
 attacked it will throw 
 out all its teeth, its 
 stomach, and the rest 
 of its insides, and 
 become nothing but 
 a thin empty bag. 
 Gradually all these 
 displaced parts begin 
 to grow again ; and, 
 after some months, 
 there is the complete 
 sea-cucumber as fresh 
 and lively as ever. In 
 SEA-CUCUMBER. famine it adopts a pe 
 
 culiar plan. It gradually breaks off parts of its body, and throws 
 them away, until nothing but the head is left. Should food come 
 in time, a new body grows on the old head." 
 " Are they good to eat ? " asked Kate. 
 
 " Oh, yes ! " said Mr. Longwood. " The Chinese are very 
 fond of them ; .and hundreds of tons of trepang, as they call it, 
 are caught every year. The Feejee Islands are a great fishing-
 
 A CANNIBAL FEAST. 1 67 
 
 grdund for them. The inhabitants of the islands are cannibals, 
 and would prefer to eat the sailors rather than catch trepang for 
 them ; so that a sharp watch has to be kept. There are Ameri 
 can ships engaged in the business. The first thing to be done 
 on arriving on the ground is to open communication with the 
 islanders ; for they are to do the catching. A prominent chief or 
 two are taken on the ship as hostages, and then the work 
 begins. 
 
 " The Feejees in great numbers dive by the hour each time 
 through the clear water, picking out their victims, and always 
 coming up with them in their hands. They used to be paid for 
 this work a whale's tooth for every hogshead they caught ; but 
 of late years they prefer hatchets and such things. The crew of 
 the ship, meanwhile, have built great bins on shore ; and into 
 these the trepang are thrown. After lying a day they are split 
 open, and dried over slow fires ; then packed away for their 
 voyage to China, where they are esteemed a great delicacy, 
 and used for soups." 
 
 " I shouldn't think that it would be altogether comfortable, 
 working among cannibals," said Lou. 
 
 " No," said Mr. Longwood : " the sailors have to be on their 
 guard all the time. The wretched islanders sometimes wait till a 
 strong wind is blowing to the shore. Then in the night they 
 swim out, and, diving, manage to break the ship's cable. Before 
 the sails can be raised, the ship is in the breakers ; and the 
 Feejees roast and eat the crews." 
 
 Just at this moment there came a loud shout of laughter 
 from the lake. The girls rushed to their windows to see the
 
 1 68 THISTLE CREATES AN EXCITEMENT. 
 
 cause. The boys, standing by the pier, were holding on to one 
 another, and shouting with laughter ; while an old man on the 
 ice beside them was chuckling, and grinning from ear to ear. 
 Half-way up the lawn came Thistle at full speed, his tail be 
 tween his legs, and his little gray body making such time, that 
 he looked, indeed, like a puff of thistle-down blown by the wind. 
 Garm stood still on the ice, looking at his flight with astonish 
 ment. 
 
 " Those horrid boys ! " cried Carrie : " they have been teasing 
 my dog." And she rushed to the door, and stood ready to take 
 up Thistle when he arrived. 
 
 But he could not stop for any endearments. He shot by 
 her, and, making for the sofa, darted under it, refusing to come 
 out in spite of all his mistress's attentions. While Carrie was on 
 her knees, trying to coax him, Will Morgan appeared at the 
 door. 
 
 " O Will ! " she cried, " what have you been doing to 
 Thistle?" 
 
 " Nothing at all," said Will, laughing. " You see, the dog 
 has been awfully cross all the morning. While we were putting 
 on our skates, an old fellow who has a wooden leg came stump 
 ing along, and began to talk with us. Thistle did not like his 
 looks ; though the man took a great fancy to him, and tried 
 to make friends. Every time he spoke, Thistle snapped and 
 snarled ; and all at once he rushed at him, and seized him by 
 the leg. But he took hold of the wooden leg. As soon as he 
 felt it in his teeth, he stopped short, and, giving one look at 
 the man, put down his tail, and fled."
 
 THE ICE IS SPLENDID." 
 
 The girls all laughed ; and Thistle, who hated being laughed 
 at, gave a growl of rage and mortification from under the sofa. 
 
 " What I came up for," said Will, " was to say that it is 
 growing warmer every minute, and does not seem cold at all. 
 The ice is splendid." 
 
 At this the atlas of fishes was put away at once, and the 
 girls hurried to get on their wraps. They found such good fun, 
 that, as soon as dinner was over, they were out again. Ned dis 
 covered that capital coasting could be had from the top of the 
 sand-hills by the sea, down on to the lake ; and they went into 
 this with such vigor, that when evening came they were all tired 
 enough, and glad to sit quietly before the blazing fire and listen 
 to Gertrude and Tom.
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 " AT the be 
 ginning- of the 
 seventeenth cen 
 tury," began Ger 
 trude, " England 
 and Holland were 
 doing a brisk 
 trade with India. 
 But the long 
 voyag e around 
 the southern ex 
 tremity of Africa 
 was made at a 
 very great e x- 
 pense, and many 
 were the attempts 
 to find some 
 shorter route. The world was not then so well known as it is 
 now, and some people thought that there must be a way around 
 the north of either Europe or America. Many expeditions were 
 
 made to those icy seas to find this unknown passage. 
 170 
 
 AN EARLY NEW-YORK HOUSE.
 
 THE SEARCH FOR "CHINA BEHIND NORWAY." 17 1 
 
 " One of these set out in the year 1609 from Amsterdam. 
 The ship was ' The Half- Moon.' The crew were Dutch ; but the 
 commander was an Englishman, Henry Hudson, a bold and in 
 trepid mariner. He was to search for the passage to ' China 
 behind Norway.' But, when he had got far to the north, noth 
 ing lay before him but great fields of ice ; and he could go no 
 farther. He did not give up his quest, however. Turning 
 about, he sailed to the south-west, and, striking the American 
 coast, sailed along it, looking for some arm of the sea on which 
 he could sail through the continent, and thus reach Asia through 
 America. 
 
 " At last he thought he had found what he was looking for. 
 One warm August morning he came to anchor at a spot where 
 the ocean ran in landward, making a great bay. A few days 
 later he pushed on, and found himself in an inner bay. Before 
 him lay a mighty river, its western border lined by rocky pal;- 
 sades; while on its other side, abreast of him, lay a large island. 
 That island was " 
 
 " New York," interrupted Jack Hastings. " I know all about 
 
 that. 
 
 ' Flow fair beside the Palisades, flow, Hudson, fair and free, 
 By proud Manhattan's shore of ships and green Hoboken's tree : 
 So fair yon haven clasped its isles, in such a sunset's gleam, 
 When Hendrik and his sea-worn tars first sounded up the stream, 
 And climbed this rocky palisade, and, resting on its brow, 
 Passed round the can, and gazed a while on shore and wave below. 
 And Hendrik drank with hearty cheer, and loudly then cried he, 
 "Tis a good land to fall in with, men, and a pleasant land to see.'" 
 
 " These last are the very words that Hudson used," said
 
 A FAMOUS DINNER. 
 
 Jack, stopping to take breath ; " and there is lots more. I 
 learned it one day last winter when I was at home with a cold." 
 
 " Well, Hudson thought," went on Gertrude, " that surely 
 here was the way to the South Sea ; for such a vast body of 
 water could not be a river : so he hoisted sail again, and pressed 
 onward. But after a few days' voyage he found that the water 
 
 was getting shal 
 low, and that it 
 was not safe to 
 continue. So he 
 turned about, and 
 sailed back again. 
 The Indians came 
 off in canoes, and 
 were very friend 
 ly. He gave them 
 an entertainment 
 which seemed to 
 them so magnifi 
 cent, that the tra 
 dition of it lasted 
 among the tribes 
 nearly two hun 
 dred years. One old chief, I am sorry to say, took such a fancy 
 to his strong water, that he got drunk. His fellows had never 
 seen any one in such case, and they were greatly troubled. They 
 brought various magic beads to break the spell which the strangers 
 had cast over him. But when, the next morning, the old reprobate 
 
 "THE HALF-MOON" IN THE HUDSON.
 
 
 HUDSON'S MEN MUTINY. 1/3 
 
 came to himself, and said that he had had a good time, and would 
 like to try it again, their admiration knew no bounds. They traded 
 their ' pompions ' with great joy ; and no doubt Hudson and his 
 men had pumpkin-pie to their hearts' content. 
 
 " On his return voyage, Hudson put into the English harbor 
 of Dartmouth. Here he and his ship were seized by the au 
 thorities. It was not that the English did not wish the Dutch 
 to profit by the discovery he had made, they thought that a 
 matter of no importance, but they did not want so bold a 
 mariner as Hudson to be in the Dutch service ; for perhaps 
 he might discover the short cut to India, and then their rivals 
 would gain an advantage over them. So, after a little, they let 
 'The Half-Moon' go on to her port; but Hudson was bidden 
 not to go to Holland. And in this way the Dutch lost his 
 services." 
 
 " Did he never go back to New York ? " 
 
 " No," said Gertrude : " he came to his death two or three 
 years after, and a fearful death it was. He set out on another 
 voyage to discover the way to India through the Arctic Ocean. 
 He found his way into the great bay named after him, Hudson's 
 Bay ; and there he passed the winter. The sufferings of all were 
 terrible. Their food gave out, and they kept alive on wild-fowl 
 and moss. When spring came, loosening their icy fetters, they 
 made their way to the open sea. But mutiny broke out. Hud 
 son and his son and seven others were put in an open boat, 
 cast adrift, and left to perish in this icy waste. Death, no 
 doubt, soon came to terminate their sufferings. And so ended 
 the life of a brave man and a hardy manner. One of the crew, t&
 
 174 
 
 THEY HAVE A HARD TIME OF IT. 
 
 his great honor be it 
 told, he was the car 
 penter, Philip Staffe, 
 of his own accord 
 clambered into the 
 boat beside his com 
 mander, preferring to 
 die with him than to 
 live in dishonor." 
 
 " I hope the mu 
 tineers all came to 
 grief," said Ned. 
 
 " They had a pretty 
 hard time of it," said 
 Gertrude. " Five died : 
 the rest had to live 
 on candle-grease, and 
 were almost dying, 
 when a fishing-smack 
 sighted them, and 
 brought them into 
 port. 
 
 "Well, the Dutch 
 did not make any 
 great use of their dis 
 covery of the Hudson 
 River. They found 
 the trade with the
 
 HUDSON TUT* ADRIFT BY UTS MTTTTNFFRS
 
 A REDOUBTABLE GOVERNOR. 177 
 
 Indians in skins very profitable : so they established a trading- 
 fort where New York now stands. They bought the whole 
 island from the Indians for twenty- four dollars' worth of beads 
 and other trinkets. 
 
 " Gradually, though slowly, a little settlement grew up about 
 this trading-fort, and they named it New Amsterdam. Other 
 settlements were made at different places on the river, and in 
 the year 1633 the governor over the colony was Wouter Van 
 Twiller. Gov. Van Twiller was a curious specimen. He was a 
 famous hand at the tankard ; but in other qualities he was some 
 what deficient. 
 
 " It was the great aim of the Dutch to keep the trade of the 
 river all to themselves, and thus far no one of any other nation 
 kad ventured to enter it. What was Van Twiller's dismay, then, 
 one day, to see an English vessel quietly enter the bay, and 
 announce its intention of going up the river to trade with the 
 Indians ! The governor was speechless with astonishment and 
 indignation. He ordered the gunner to spread the flag of the 
 Prince of Orange, and to salute it with three pieces of ordnance ; 
 but, to his surprise, the English, instead of going away abashed 
 at this, raised the flag of England, saluted it, and set out up 
 the river to trade. 
 
 " The governor saw their sails fade out of sight with incredu 
 lous surprise. But only one course suggested itself to him. 
 Ordering out a barrel of wine, he seized his glass, and, filling it, 
 shouted, ' All who love the Prince of Orange and me, emulate 
 me in this, and assist me in repelling the violence of this Eng 
 lishman ! '
 
 t?8 THE COUNTRY FULL OF FOOLS. 
 
 " De Vries, a sea-captain of great renown, suggested to him, 
 however, another course of action. By his advice, a body of 
 men were sent up the, river. The Englishman, who had put up 
 a tent and begun to trade, was driven on to his ship, and 
 brought back to New York, where, after paying sundry fines, he 
 was bidden to leave with all speed, and never return. 
 
 " But this great victory so filled the redoubtable Van Twiller's 
 head with pride at his own greatness, that when De Vries, a 
 little later on, was about to sail in his own vessel, he peremp 
 torily ordered him to stop, and turned the guns of the fort upon 
 the ship. Whereupon, says that veteran, ' I ran to the point of 
 land where Van Twiller stood with the secretary and one or two 
 of the council, and told them that it seemed to me the country 
 was full of fools. If they must fire at something, they ought to 
 have fired at the Englishman.' After this plain speaking they 
 made him no further trouble. 
 
 " Van Twiller was not stupid only. Grave suspicions as to 
 his honesty began to arise ; and he was presently ignominiously 
 removed, and a new man appointed in his stead. 
 
 " New Amsterdam had now begun to grow a little. The 
 quaint houses were built after the fashion of those in Holland, 
 with sharp gables. Many were only one story high, and they 
 were scattered about here and there with paths winding in and 
 out among them. This is the reason that so many of the 
 streets down town are so crooked. They have never been 
 straightened since the Dutch days. There is an old contract still 
 in existence for a house which was to be thirty feet long, eigh 
 teen feet wide, and eight feet high. It was to cost one hundred
 
 A SLAAP-BANCK. 
 
 179 
 
 and forty dollars. 
 It was further 
 stipulated that it 
 was to contain a 
 slaap-banck." 
 
 "What in the 
 world is a slaap- 
 banck ? " asked 
 Rose. 
 
 "A bedstead," 
 said Gertrude. 
 " It was built 
 against the wall, 
 and had doors in 
 front like a cup 
 board, so that in 
 the daytime it 
 could be shut up 
 out of sight. 
 The sleepy 
 Dutchman, who 
 decided to go 
 to bed, knocked 
 the ashes out of 
 his pipe, opened 
 the doors, and 
 climbed in. Un 
 der him was a feather-bed, and over him he spread another ;
 
 i8o 
 
 JACK INTERRUPTS AGAIN. 
 
 and soon he was far away from New Amsterdam, in the land of 
 dreams. 
 
 " Well, the town continued to grow. Dutch, English, French, 
 all lived in harmony together. A new governor came, and an 
 old one went, till Peter Stuyvesant was appointed to that office. 
 He planted on his farm, in the Bowery, a pear-tree that stood 
 for more than two hundred years, till the Bouerie farm was 
 covered with blocks of houses." 
 
 " It's lucky little George Wash 
 ington didn't visit New York with 
 his hatchet," said Jack : " he would 
 have had that pear-tree down in no- 
 time." 
 
 " Don't interrupt, Jack, " said 
 Gertrude. " Well, one day Stuy 
 vesant was told that some English 
 men-of-war were off the coast, in 
 tending to capture the place. Before 
 he could do any thing to strengthen 
 it, the mouths of sixty cannons were 
 pointed at the town. He had but 
 twenty guns ; but he made up his 
 He was at his station in the fort, 
 stumping about on his wooden leg, and the gunners had their 
 matches burning, when a deputation from the town demanded 
 that he surrender. Half of the townsfolk were English, and 
 welcomed the invaders. There was not the slightest hope, they 
 said, of holding the town. They had not even powder enough 
 
 PETER STUYVESANT. 
 
 mind to fight till the last.
 
 THE WHITE FLAG RAISED. 
 
 181 
 
 to fight for more than a few hours. The old man read their 
 demand with a face 
 pale with mortifica 
 tion. ' I had rather 
 be carried to my 
 grave,' he said. 
 The white flag was 
 raised, and New 
 Amsterdam became 
 New York." 
 
 " But what right 
 had the English to 
 take it? "asked Ned. 
 
 " None at all," 
 answered Gertrude. 
 " They were then 
 at peace with the 
 Dutch States ; and 
 the whole thing was 
 managed so that 
 their intention 
 should not be 
 known in time for 
 them to take any 
 
 measures to p r e- 
 
 Vent it." PETER STUYVESANT'S PEAR-TREE. 
 
 "And did Holland submit quietly?" 
 
 " By no mftans. War was declared against England. The
 
 \ 
 
 182 THE KING ON HORSEBACK. 
 
 Dutch fleets were so successful, that they destroyed the English 
 navy ; and the people of London trembled to hear their enemy's 
 guns only a few miles away, where, at Chatham, they were burn 
 ing the English ships and naval stores. When the treaty of 
 peace was signed, England was allowed to keep New York ; but 
 yielded, in place of it, three colonies that were considered vastly 
 more important. 
 
 " And that is the way," said Gertrude, " that New York be 
 came English." 
 
 After they had talked over what Gertrude had told them for 
 a little, they all turned to Tom to hear what he had to say. 
 
 " When the news of the passage of the Stamp Act reached 
 New York," he began, " a number of patriots met together, 
 formed an association, and called themselves the Sons of Liberty. 
 How they treated the stamped paper, and how they wet down 
 the tea that came over, Ned told us a night or two ago. Not 
 a penny's worth of either ever got into circulation. 
 
 " After a time came the news that the Stamp Act was re 
 pealed. The Sons of Liberty were overjoyed at finding the king^ 
 so prompt to listen to their complaints ; and, in an excess of 
 patriotism, they cast a statue of him in lead, and set it up in 
 the Bowling Green. It was very fine. The king was on horse 
 back, life-size : on his head was a crown, while one hand held in 
 a prancing steed. But the statue did not stay there many years. 
 What became of it you will learn a little later. 
 
 " It was hardly settled on its base when the loyal feelings 
 that raised it received a shock. News came that Parliament, 
 enraged at the disturbances about the stamped paper, had passed
 
 KING SEARS IS ARRESTED. 183 
 
 a law called the Mutiny Act, stationing British troops in the prin 
 cipal cities of America ; and that a regiment was on the ocean, 
 on its way to them. The Sons of Liberty were aroused and 
 indignant. They declared that the troops should not land ; but 
 they could not prevent it. As a relief to their feelings, they 
 erected on the Common a great liberty-pole. The soldiers pres 
 ently cut it down ; but the people set up another : and in this 
 way there began to be bad blood between them. 
 
 " About this time Gen. Gage was fortifying Boston Neck. 
 He wanted lumber for his barracks, and men to build them. 
 But the sturdy Bostonians would furnish neither. So he sent to 
 New York for help. The Sons of Liberty heard that a sloop 
 was about to sail well loaded. They declared that it should not 
 leave port. Isaac Sears, who, from the influence that he had, 
 was known as King Sears, urged the people to arm. For this 
 he was arrested for treason. 
 
 " The very afternoon of his arrest, a horseman entered New 
 York, breathless with haste, and jaded with hard riding. He 
 bore the news of the battle of Lexington. The people were 
 wild with excitement and anger. Led by Marinus Willett, they 
 rescued Sears from the authorities, and, marching to the arsenal 
 in a body, seized six hundred stands of arms. The next day 
 every ship in the harbor was visited by a committee, who used 
 arguments of such weight, that not a vessel went to the help of 
 Gage. 
 
 "The British regiment was at once ordered to Boston. The 
 men left their barracks, and marched to the wharf to embark. 
 Marinus Willett noticed that they were taking with them several
 
 1 84 SIX HUNDRED MUSKETS. 
 
 carts loaded with extra arms. Rousing his fellows, he set out in 
 pursuit, and, seizing the bridles of the horses, captured all these 
 loads." 
 
 "Why didn't the soldiers interfere?" asked Jack. 
 
 " They were just about to leave the city, and probably the 
 officers thought that the arms were not worth the fight that 
 would be sure to follow. You must remember that the Sons of 
 Liberty had captured six hundred muskets a few days before, 
 and so could speedily arm themselves. At all events, the British 
 lost the guns ; and a little later they did good service in a regi 
 ment in the Continental army, which Willett commanded. Wil- 
 lett won a great reputation as a fighter, particularly from the 
 Indians, whom the British roused to attack the settlers. Among 
 them he went under the name of ' The Devil.' 
 
 "During the winter of 1775-6 Washington sent Gen. Lee 
 with a body of men to occupy New York. There were no Brit 
 ish troops in the city ; but a man-of-war, ' The Asia,' lay in the 
 harbor. The Tories besought Lee not to enter the city, for fear 
 that 'The Asia' would bombard it. But he paid small attention 
 to any such suggestions. ' If the ships of war are quiet,' he 
 said, ' I shall be quiet. If they make my presence a pretext for 
 firing on the town, the first house set in flames by their guns 
 shall be the funeral pile of some of their best friends.' 
 
 " The spring following, after the British were driven out of 
 Boston, Washington hurried to New York, and began to fortify 
 the city, and put into shape her straggling army. Lord Howe, 
 the British commander, soon after arrived in the harbor, having 
 under him thirty thousand men. These he landed on Staten
 
 SEIZING BRITISH ARMS.
 
 THIRTY-SIX THOUSAND CARTRIDGES. 187" 
 
 Island, and both sides took a long breath before the struggle 
 that was before them. In this lull there came from Congress 
 the Declaration of Independence. The troops were drawn up on. 
 the Common, where the City Hall now stands, in a hollow square, 
 to hear it. 
 
 " Standing in their midst was Washington, and by his side 
 an aide, who read it aloud in a clear voice. The listening Sons 
 of Liberty thronging about heard it with joy. Rushing to the 
 Bowling Green, they tore down the statue of the king, and 
 hacked it in pieces. Lead was scarce, and bullets were needed. 
 Out of it were made cartridges ; and these are the names of the 
 brave women who did the work : Mrs. Marvin made 6,058 ; 
 Laura Marvin, 8,370; Ruth Marvin, 11,592; Mary Marvin, 10,790. 
 The British, as some one at the time said, had melted majesty 
 fired at them. 
 
 " Presently the Englishmen crossed to Long Island, and the 
 Americans met them in a bloody battle where Brooklyn now 
 stands. It was a sad day for our fathers, and many a sturdy 
 patriot fell. For years the farmers would plough up skulls still 
 showing the holes that the British bullets had made. The 
 Americans were defeated, and driven back to the river. The 
 English followed, hemming them in. and sure that they could 
 not elude them. But in the night came up a greaJ fog ; and, 
 under cover of it, the nine thousand Americans crossed the 
 river in small boats to New York, and escaped. When th^ fog 
 lifted, the chagrined conquerors saw their foe just across the 
 river, marching up from the ferry in safety. 
 
 "It is said that a woman living near sent her slave in the
 
 i88 
 
 A WOMAN'S EXPEDIENT. 
 
 middle of the night to the British to tell them what the Ameri 
 cans were doing. 
 He, however, fell 
 in with a Hessian 
 sentinel who could 
 not understand 
 him ; and, when at 
 last the message 
 was known, it was 
 too late. 
 
 " It was now 
 seen that New York 
 could not be held ; 
 and Washington 
 retreated from the 
 city, leaving only 
 four thousand men 
 under Gen. Put 
 nam. These would 
 have all been cap 
 tured, but for a 
 woman's clever 
 ness. This was how 
 it happened : Put 
 nam was stationed 
 near the Battery, 
 when the British suddenly crossed from Brooklyn to where now is 
 the foot of Thirty-fourth Street. They were in great force ; and
 
 MRS. MURRAY ENTERTAINS THE BRITISH. 
 
 they marched at once across the fields towards the centre of the 
 island, thus closing the two roads of exit from the city. One of 
 these ran along the East River, and the other along the centre 
 of the island. As Gen. Howe, at the head of his troops, reached 
 the crest of the hill, they came to the fine old mansion of Robert 
 Murray. Murray himself was a Tory ; but his wife and daughters 
 were stanch patriots. From the second-story windows of their 
 house they had seen the dust arising from a half-known lane 
 between them and the Hudson, and now and then a flash of 
 bayonets marked where Putnam's troops were hurrying northward 
 to escape. Should the British see them, they were lost. 
 
 " Mrs. Murray, with her daughters beside her, stood at her 
 gate as the English drew near. 
 
 " ' William,' she said to Lord Howe in her quiet Quaker 
 way, ' will thee alight, and refresh thyself at our house ? ' 
 
 " ' I thank you, Mrs. Murray,' said the Englishman ; ' but I 
 must first catch that rascally Yankee Putnam.' 
 
 " ' Didst thou not hear,' said Mrs. Murray, ' that Putnam had 
 gone ? It is late to try to catch him. Thee had better come in 
 and dine.' 
 
 " Howe yielded to her entreaties, and, with his chief officers, 
 dismounted. Mrs. Murray and her daughters never so exerted 
 themselves before. It was two hours before the officers left, and 
 by that time Putnam was safe." 
 
 " How proud she must have been ! " said Rose. 
 
 " Her stratagem was known at once among the Americans," 
 said Tom; "and the soldiers all said that Mrs. Murray had saved 
 Putnam's division.
 
 192 
 
 CROWDED PRISONS AND DYING PRISONERS. 
 
 " The British met with continued success after this. They 
 took several thousand prisoners, and these they treated with 
 great brutality. They were crowded into churches and sugar- 
 houses, and old hulks anchored in the bay. It makes one's 
 
 blood boil to think 
 how they were 
 starved and killed 
 just through pure 
 wickedness on the 
 part of their captors. 
 You can fancy the 
 treatment they re 
 ceived, from the fact 
 that in three weeks 
 more than seventeen 
 hundred died." 
 
 " Those were in 
 deed dark days for 
 the patriots," said Mr. 
 Longwood. " Defeat 
 came after defeat. 
 The British seized all 
 
 New- York Island, and 
 overran New Jersey. 
 
 A SUGAR-HOUSE USED AS PRISON. 
 
 Among their troops were many Hessians, German mercenaries who 
 had been hired by the English king. Their foraging parties scoured 
 the country, stealing alike from friend and foe, and making the 
 farmers drag with their teams the food which had been stolen from
 
 A FORAGIN 7 G PARTY.
 
 A BOLD WOMAN. 
 
 195 
 
 under their very eyes. Happy was the man who got away from 
 camp without having his horses seized. I have heard my great- 
 grandmother say," he went on, " that when her husband, who was 
 an officer in the army, ventured home for a visit, she always put 
 his horse in the house ; and many and many was the time when 
 she seized her baby under her arm, and hid in a deep swamp 
 close at hand, while the foragers pillaged the house." 
 
 " She must have 
 been almost as brave 
 as my great-grand 
 mother," said Jack ad 
 miringly. 
 
 " It was not till 
 Christmas Day," Mr. 
 Longwood went on, 
 " that a change came. 
 Did you ever hear this 
 old ballad?" he said, 
 going to the shelves, 
 and taking down a 
 book. It was written at the time, though it is not known by 
 whom, and well describes what took place. The victory of which 
 it tells put great courage into all the patriots, and the cause of 
 liberty grew stronger at once. 
 
 " Here it is: 
 
 THE PRISON HULK "JERSEY."
 
 ig6 AN OLD BALLAD. 
 
 'BATTLE OF TRENTON. 
 
 ON Christmas Day in seventy-six, 
 
 Our ragged troops, with bayonets fixed, 
 
 For Trenton marched away. 
 The Delaware see, the boats below, 
 The light obscured by hail and snow, 
 
 But no signs of dismay. 
 
 Our object was the Hessian band, 
 That dared invade fair Freedom's land, 
 
 And quarter in that place. 
 Great Washington he led us on, 
 Whose streaming flag, in storm or sun, 
 
 Had never known disgrace. 
 
 In silent march we passed the night, 
 Each soldier panting for the fight, 
 
 Though quite benumbed with frost. 
 Greene, on the left, at six began : 
 The right was led by Sullivan, 
 
 Who ne'er a moment lost. 
 
 Their pickets stormed, the alarm was spread, 
 That rebels risen from the dead 
 
 Were marching into town. 
 Some scampered here, some scampered there; 
 And some for action did prepare, 
 
 But soon their arms laid down.
 
 BATTLE OF TRENTON. 
 
 197 
 
 Twelve hundred servile miscreants, 
 With all their colors, guns, and tents, 
 
 Were trophies of the day. 
 The frolic o'er, the bright canteen 
 In centre, front, and rear was seen, 
 
 Driving fatigue away. 
 
 Now, brothers of the patriot bands, 
 Let's sing deliverance from the hands 
 
 Of arbitrary sway ; 
 And, as our life is but a span, 
 Let's touch the tankard while we can 
 
 In memory of that day.' ''
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 SUNDAY morning dawned 
 bright and fair. Out of 
 doors the sun flashed and 
 blazed on the smooth sur 
 face of the lake ; and the 
 breath of Tom and Rose, 
 as they stood for a moment 
 on the piazza, went up in 
 little clouds of frozen vapor, 
 that made Jack, who was 
 watching them, say that they 
 were like two steaming tea 
 kettles. 
 
 " What a jolly season 
 winter is ! " said Tom. 
 " There is no time of the 
 year like it." 
 
 "Oh! do you think so?" 
 said Rose. " Spring is the 
 season for me, when the first buds begin to swell, and the 
 
 dandelions come." And she broke out singing, 
 198
 
 JACK TAKES A NAP. 199 
 
 Through the gray April clouds 
 
 A burst of sunshine came, 
 Lighting the shoots of timid grass 
 
 With a sheet of golden flame ; 
 And every struggling bud fresh courage took; 
 A softer ripple laughed the little brook. 
 
 The clouds have shut again : 
 
 No more the clear blue sky ; 
 But, scattered through the tender grass, 
 
 The sunbeams tangled lie. 
 
 No sunbeams these that cease when clouds incline : 
 T^hey are they are the golden dandelion ! 
 
 Our whole party went to church in the morning in a body. 
 As they were much too numerous to sit together, they divided 
 up into little parties of twos and threes. Jack found his old 
 friend George Washington, who took him into his own pew ; 
 and so much at home did he feel, that, before the minister 
 had fairly got under way with his sermon, he had gone to sleep, 
 with his head on George Washington's arm. All their new 
 acquaintances of the past week were about them, from the man 
 who took them into town on the wood-sled to the driver who 
 had piloted them in their expedition to the Shinnecocks. This 
 latter man Jack discovered all at once in the choir. He had his 
 mouth wide open, and was rolling out, in a voice that seemed 
 to come from way down in his boots, 
 
 " Broad is the road that leads to death ; " 
 
 but, at sight of Jack's big eyes looking at him, he broke out 
 into a grin not at all in keeping with the gloomy words he 
 was singing.
 
 200 THOMAS JOHN'S TOBOGAN. 
 
 After the last hymn had been sung, and the service was 
 over, the boys gathered around George Washington. 
 
 " The judge seemed a trifle sleepy this morning," said he, 
 smiling at Jack. 
 
 " We have been going so hard all the week," said Will, 
 " that I don't wonder at it. I felt sleepy myself." 
 
 " I noticed you were coasting on the sand-hills," said George 
 Washington. "Did you ever see a tobogan?" 
 
 "One of those Canada things?" asked Will. "I have seen 
 pictures of them." 
 
 " Well," said George Washington, " Thomas John Wilsey, 
 over by North Sea, has made one. He read somewhere about 
 it, and saw a picture, and went to work to copy it. I saw him 
 this morning, and he said he had just finished it." 
 
 "I wonder if he'd let us try it," said Tom. 
 
 " Oh, yes ! I know he would," said George Washington. 
 " And the hills over by his house are high ; so that you could 
 have prime fun." 
 
 "Oh, jolly!" said all the boys together. "Let's ask Mr. 
 Longwood if we can't have the big sleigh, and go to-morrow 
 afternoon. What larks it would be ! " 
 
 Mr. Longwood gave assent at once ; and Jack, fearful that 
 something might happen to change his mind, ran after the 
 driver, who was walking down the village street with a young 
 woman, to tell him to be sure to have the four horses and the 
 sleigh at the house at two o'clock the next day, without fail. 
 
 The rest of Sunday was passed very quietly. In the middle 
 of the afternoon, the boys, with Mr. Longwood, went off for an
 
 OFF FOR NORTH SEA. 2OI 
 
 hour's walk ; while the girls went to the beach, and watched the 
 surf thundering on the sand. Soon after supper, Charlie Morgan 
 announced, with a yawn, that he thought he would go to his 
 " slaap-banck." " To-morrow, you know, is our last day here," 
 he said ; "so that we must be all fresh for the morning." 
 
 The rest of the young folk seemed to find his example 
 contagious; and, at a much earlier hour than usual, the parlor 
 was left alone, with no one but the sleepily blinking fire to keep 
 it company. 
 
 The next day was, in point of weather, all that could be 
 desired. Punctually at two, just as dinner was being finished, 
 the sleigh arrived. Girls, boys, and dogs hurried into it with a 
 rush, and off they went. What a delight it was to sit still, and 
 be whirled along ! From breakfast till dinner they had skated 
 almost without stopping, so that sitting still was quite a luxury. 
 The sleighing was perfect, and it appeared as if all the world 
 were out to enjoy it. Every now and then a swift flying cutter 
 met them ; and at the village post-office, where they halted for 
 the mail, it seemed, now that the loud jingle of their own bells 
 had stopped, as if the whole air was full of the melody of 
 distant chimes. 
 
 As they went on toward North Sea, the face of the country 
 changed. They found themselves among hills, with oak-woods 
 all about them ; while every now and then a snug farm-house 
 came into view, and went quickly out of sight behind. 
 
 They met fewer people, for it was a rather lonely road ; though 
 at one place they had to draw to one side to let pass two stalwart 
 horses with a heavy load of wood. Their driver walked beside
 
 202 THOMAS JOHN'S MOTHER. 
 
 them, and he had a whip that he cracked like a pistol. At last, 
 after an hour or so, their own driver announced to Jack that the 
 house to which they were going was at the foot of a high hill 
 just before them ; and a moment later they drove in through an 
 open gate, and reined up just under an overhanging shed. 
 
 " I'll just make fast the horses, and blanket them," said he as 
 they scrambled out, " and then I'll hunt up Thomas John and the 
 tobogan." So, the fastening and blanketing being soon accom 
 plished, he advanced to the side-door of the house. A trim- 
 looking woman with gray hair opened it. 
 
 "Thomas John at home?" asked the driver. 
 
 " No, Thomas John's gone away east," said the woman. 
 
 "I brought over a party to see his tobogan," said the driver; 
 " and I thought perhaps he'd let them try it." 
 
 "La sakes ! " said the woman, "you're welcome to take the 
 critter: it's out in the barn. I don't take no stock in it myself; 
 and I reckon Thomas John don't so much as he did, sence this 
 morning." 
 
 "Why, how's that?" said the driver. 
 
 " Well," said the woman, " I see him going off toward the 
 hill with the critter this morning ; and I didn't like the looks of 
 it nohow, and I told him so : but young men know much more 
 than their mothers nowadays, and he only laughed. Well, about 
 half an hour later, Thomas John he put his head into the 
 kitchen-door, and says he, ' Mother, I want a piece of raw pork.' 
 
 " ' La sakes ! ' says I. ' Thomas John, I can't take my hands 
 -out of this batch of bread. What do you want raw pork for?' 
 
 " ' I kind o' bruised my head,' says he.
 
 THE TEAMSTER WITH THE WHIP.
 
 THE DRIVER OFFERS TO SACRIFICE HIMSELF. 205 
 
 "'With that I looked up; and, sure enough, there was a big 
 lump over his eye : so I bound it up in pork, and it came down 
 some. But the last thing I says to him when he went off this 
 afternoon, 'Thomas John,' says I, 'be sure you don't turn the 
 north side of your face to any one you meet, or they'll think 
 you've been drinking.' " 
 
 " Well," said Mr. Longwood, who had drawn near and heard 
 the conversation, " that doesn't look as if it would be very safe 
 for boys and girls ; does it ? " 
 
 "Oh! I'll try it first," said the driver cheerfully, "and then 
 we can see if there is any danger." 
 
 So off they all tramped to the barn, and then, trailing the 
 tobogan after them, to the top of the hill. Two of the girls sat 
 on it, and the boys gallantly offered to drag them all : but it was 
 pretty hard work ; and they were not sorry when they changed 
 their minds, and said they would rather walk. 
 
 When they had all reached the hill-top, the driver pulled the 
 tobogan around into position, and took his seat. " Pshaw ! " he 
 said, " it's nothing but plain sailing. I never did think Thomas 
 John any great shakes anyway." And, giving himself a push with 
 his hands, off he went. 
 
 Did any of you young people ever see a tobogan ? If you 
 have not, you will get a good idea of it from the picture. It is 
 simply a long board turned up at the end, and braced with cross- 
 pieces. The rider sits on it, guiding it by moving his body or 
 by his hands. If you have ever tried one, you will not be at all 
 surprised to learn, that, before the driver had gone two hundred 
 feet, the tobogan, instead of going on straight as when he started,
 
 206 
 
 THE FIRST ATTEMPT. 
 
 began to swerve more and 
 more to one side. Its rider's 
 movements grew wilder and 
 wilder as he tried to get its 
 head about again. But it was 
 of no use : the frantic tobogan 
 went more and more sideways. 
 How it would have ended, I 
 cannot say : but all at once 
 the driver threw himself off 
 into the snow ; and, the rope 
 catching on his leg, a sudden, 
 effectual stoppage was made. 
 As for the boys, who were 
 looking on, they were wild 
 with delight. They shouted 
 
 and laughed about the man, 
 while he unbuttoned his coat, 
 and tried vainly to get out 
 about a quart of snow which 
 had been forced inside of his 
 collar ; and they were in a 
 state of hilarious glee when he 
 announced that it was melting, 
 and trickling down his back.
 
 PERHAPS THOMAS JOHN WAS NOT A FOOL, 
 
 207 
 
 " Well," he said after a little, 
 during which time he had 
 squirmed about in his clothes 
 as he felt the icy stream down 
 his spine, " here goes for it 
 again. Perhaps Thomas John 
 was not such a fool as I took 
 him for." 
 
 This time he set out much 
 more carefully. Away he flew, 
 straight as an arrow. "Hurrah!" 
 shouted Jack : " he's got the 
 hang of it now. Next time 
 I'm going down behind him." 
 
 But the words were hardly out 
 of his mouth when they saw a 
 strange sight. Half way down 
 the hill was a slight ridge, or 
 thank-you-ma'am as the country- 
 people call it. Over this the 
 tobogan shot ; but, as it did so, 
 its rider flew into the air, the 
 long tail of his cap streaming 
 above him. He came down very 
 quickly, but not soon enough 
 to catch the tobogan, which
 
 208 DOUGHNUTS IN VIEW. 
 
 leaped onward from under him, leaving him at full length on his 
 back on the snow, while it made the rest of the journey to the 
 foot of the hill alone. 
 
 The boys ran after it, and slowly brought it back, while the 
 disappointed toboganist made his way after them. 
 
 " I think it's pretty evident, girls," said Carrie, " that we shall 
 not do much coasting on that sled this afternoon. I, for one, 
 have no fancy for having icy waterfalls down my back, nor for 
 shooting into the air like a rocket. Nor do I want to go back 
 to New York with a piece of raw pork on the north side of my 
 face. So I move we go down and pay a visit to Thomas John's 
 mother, I'm half frozen standing here, and there we can sit 
 by the fire." 
 
 " All right," said the other girls. " Let's have a race." 
 
 " She's a powerful hand at making doughnuts, is Thomas 
 John's mother," said the driver. " If you manage right, perhaps 
 she'll give you some." 
 
 " We'll try to manage right, then," said Carrie. " When will 
 you all be back ? " 
 
 "Well," said the driver, "I don't like to give in beat by an 
 old board. If you are not in a great hurry," turning to Mr. 
 Longwood, " I'd like to have another try at the old thing." 
 
 "Oh! by all means," said Mr. Longwood. "We'll be back by 
 and by, girls. We won't go home without you : don't be afraid." 
 
 " Please don't start the tobogan till we get down the hill and 
 over the fence ; will you ? " said Carrie. 
 
 " Why, I've not been coasting in the direction you are going 
 at all," said the driver.
 
 A MAN OF ONE IDEA. 209 
 
 "Nevermind," said Carrie: "it may turn around the hill, and 
 chase us, for all I know." 
 
 "All right," laughed the man: "I'll wait." 
 
 So the girls set out. Thomas John's mother seemed delight 
 ed to see them. She gave them chairs by the fire, and asked 
 them all sorts of questions about their relations, and what their 
 fathers "followed for a living," and "whether any of them had 
 been summer stoppers ; " and told them no end of things about 
 Thomas John, who was evidently perfect in her eyes. And, to 
 crown it all, she brought in a great pitcher of milk and a heaping 
 plate of those doughnuts that they had heard about ; and the 
 girls did not care how long the boys stayed away. 
 
 Meanwhile, on the hill-top, the tobogan was once more in 
 position, and the driver was about to take his seat. 
 
 " Perhaps you'd like to try it yourself, sir," he said to Mr. 
 Longwood. 
 
 " No, thank you," said that gentleman. " I'll watch you." 
 
 " I think I know what my mistake was," said the driver. " I 
 ought to have held on over that hummock. We'll see how it 
 works that way." 
 
 This time he did hold on, and the hummock was passed 
 beautifully. As he went flying on, he loosed one hand for a 
 moment to wave it triumphantly, and then seized tight hold 
 once more. But what happened afterward showed what a mis 
 take it is to be a man of one idea. He was so intent on 
 holding on, that he forgot to steer. On he flew with head 
 down. 
 
 Close to the road, at the very foot of the hill, stood the
 
 2IO 
 
 THE RUNAWAY STEED STOPPED. 
 
 schoolhouse. There had been 
 no school for a week or so ; and 
 the snows had blown and drifted 
 around the building, so that at 
 the back there was a smooth 
 plain from the fields to the very 
 top of the roof. Toward this the 
 tobogan flew. 
 
 " Hollo ! " shouted Jack. 
 "Stop!" But at that distance 
 no one could have heard him. 
 
 " He'll go over the building, 
 
 and pitch headlong into the 
 street ! " cried Will. " He'll break 
 .his neck ! There he goes ! " 
 
 But just at that minute, 
 when the tobogan had reached 
 the top of the roof, its rider 
 looked up, and saw his danger. 
 With a sudden movement he 
 caught the chimney with both 
 arms, and held it with a grip 
 like iron. It was close work: 
 but the runaway steed came to 
 a halt ; and, when he relaxed his 
 hold, it slid slowly back down
 
 A FINAL TRIAL. 211 
 
 the roof where it had come up, and stopped. Unfortunately, it 
 did not slide far enough ; and, when he stepped off, the driver 
 disappeared into a drift, in which he sank up to his shoulders. 
 A few vigorous plunges, however, brought him out. 
 
 " I'll tell you what," he said to the boys, who ran to meet 
 him, " that's prime ! I've got the idea of the thing now. Next 
 time I'll try the hill farther to the left. It is much smoother 
 there ; and, if all goes right next time, I can take two of you 
 down with me each time." 
 
 " Don't let's climb the hill again, fellows," said Tom. " Let's 
 wait here, and see him come down." 
 
 So they clambered up on the fence, and waited. Up the 
 hill went the driver with a long stride. He had forgotten about 
 the snow down his back, and the bounce into the air, and was 
 beginning to think Thomas John a fool again. He went some 
 distance from where he had started before, and took his seat. 
 
 " Do you think it quite wise to go down there?" said Mr. 
 Longwood. " You may bring up among some of those trees." 
 
 " Oh ! I know how to manage her now," said the driver. 
 " I'll steer clear of them without any trouble." 
 
 Vain words ! Down came the tobogan ! It acted as if alive 
 and filled with the spirit of wickedness. Straight on it flew 
 toward one particular tree near the foot of the hill, swerving 
 neither to the right nor left. Its rider tried to steer it; but it 
 would not be steered. The boys, who were looking on, saw 
 one minute a swiftly flying tobogan, and the next a man wildly 
 embracing a tree ; while the tobogan, split into two long strips, 
 lay close at hand.
 
 212 
 
 ANOTHER WOUNDED MAN. 
 
 They all rushed forward ; but, before they reached the spot, 
 the driver had picked himself up, and stood holding his head in 
 his hands, looking ruefully down at the wreck. 
 
 "There's an end of that concern anyway," he said at length. 
 
 " Why, the side of your face 
 is all bruised," said Mr. Long- 
 wood. " And it has begun to 
 swell. You had better hold 
 some snow to it as we go along, 
 and when we get to the house 
 we can tie it up. Here, boys : 
 bring on the tobogan." 
 
 So they made their way, a 
 rather depressed party, back 
 to the house, the remains of 
 Thomas John's experiment trail 
 ing behind them. When they 
 had put it in the barn, they 
 went on to join the girls. 
 
 "Well, I declare!" said 
 Thomas John's mother, " if 
 there ba'in't another wounded 
 man ! That 'ere critter will be 
 the death of Thomas John yet 
 I expect, he's so presumptions." 
 
 "Not as it is now," said the driver; "for I busted it." 
 " Well, now, you don't say so ! " said Thomas John's mother. 
 ''That's a real blessing. It makes me feel wonderful friendly to
 
 HOME AGAIN. 213 
 
 ye. Seems kind of as if you'd resked your life to save Thomas 
 John's, don't it? Come in, come in, and I'll tie your head up 
 for you." 
 
 Much as he disliked the operation, there was no help for it ; 
 for one eye was fast closing up. With a huge slice of raw pork 
 firmly tied on with a big white cloth, he climbed up after a 
 little on to his seat, and the whole party got in for the home 
 ward ride. Mr. Longwood took the reins in hand ; and once 
 more away they went, waving their hats to Thomas John's 
 mother, who stood in the yard to see them off. The sun was 
 just setting as they left ; and before long the stars came out, one 
 by one. As they drove up to their own door, the clock was 
 just striking six ; and five minutes later they were around the 
 supper-table.
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 " HURRAH ! " said Tom as they rose from the table. " Now 
 for Jack's great-grandmother ! " 
 
 "Would you mind if I told my story first?" asked Rose. 
 " Then I shall have it off of my mind." 
 
 " No : go on, by all means," said Jack. " I'll just lie down 
 on the sofa, and collect my thoughts." 
 
 So Rose began. " The story I am going to tell you," said 
 she, " is of a boy in the Revolution, who lived in Portsmouth. 
 It is written by himself. At Portsmouth, he says, 
 
 " Ships were building, prizes taken from the enemy unloading, 
 privateers fitting out, standards waved on the forts and batteries. 
 The exercising of soldiers, the roar of cannon, the sound of mar 
 tial music, and the call for volunteers, so infatuated me, that I 
 was filled with anxiety to become an actor in the scenes of war. 
 My eldest brother, Thomas, had recently returned from a cruise 
 on board 'The General Mifflin/ of Boston, Capt. McNeal. This 
 ship had captured thirteen prizes ; some of which, however, being 
 of little value, were burnt ; some were sold in France ; others 
 reached Boston, and their cargoes were divided among the crew 
 of that ship. On my brother's return I became more eager to 
 
 try my fortune at sea. My father, though a high Whig, dis- 
 214
 
 / RESOLVE TO RUN AWAY. 215 
 
 approved the practice of privateering. Merchant-vessels at this 
 period, which ran safe, made great gains : seamen's wages were, 
 consequently, very high. Through my father's influence, Thomas 
 was induced to enter the merchants' service. Though not yet 
 fourteen years of age, like other boys I imagined myself almost 
 a man. I had intimated to my sister, that, if my father would 
 not consent that I should go to sea, I would run away, and go 
 on board a privateer. My mind became so infatuated with the 
 subject, that I talked of it in my sleep, and was overheard by 
 my mother. She communicated what she had heard to my father. 
 My parents were apprehensive that I might wander off, and go 
 on board some vessel without their consent. At this period it 
 was not an uncommon thing for lads to come out of the country, 
 step on board a privateer, make a cruise, and return home, their 
 friends remaining in entire ignorance of their fate until they 
 heard it from themselves. Others would pack up their clothes, 
 take a cheese and a loaf of bread, and steer off for the army. 
 There was a disposition in commanders of privateers and recruit 
 ing-officers to encourage this spirit of enterprise in young men 
 and boys. Though these rash young adventurers did not count 
 the cost, or think of looking at the dark side of the picture, yet 
 this spirit, amidst the despondency of many, enabled our country 
 to maintain a successful struggle, and finally achieve her inde 
 pendence. 
 
 " The Continental ship of war ' Ranger,' of eighteen guns, com 
 manded by Thomas Simpson, Esq., was at this time shipping a 
 crew in Portsmouth. This ship had been ordered to join ' The 
 Boston ' and ' Providence ' frigates, and ' The Queen of France/
 
 2l6 
 
 SHIPPED ABOARD "THE RANGER." 
 
 of twenty guns, upon an expedition directed by Congress. My 
 father, having consented that I should go to sea, preferred the 
 service of Congress to privateering. He was acquainted with 
 Capt. Simpson. I visited the rendezvous of ' The Ranger,' and 
 shipped as one of her crew. There were probably thirty boys 
 on. board this ship. As most of our principal officers belonged 
 
 "THE RANGER." 
 
 to the town, parents preferred this ship as a station for their 
 sons who were about to enter the naval service. Hence most 
 of these boys were from Portsmouth. As privateering was the 
 order of the day, vessels of every description were employed in 
 the business. Men were not wanting who would hazard them-
 
 OUT AT SEA. 217 
 
 selves in vessels of twenty tons or less, manned by ten or fifteen 
 hands. * 
 
 " The boys were employed in waiting on the officers ; but, in 
 time of action, a boy was quartered to each gun to carry car 
 tridges. I was waiter to Mr. Charles Roberts, the boatswain, and 
 was quartered at the third gun from the bow. Being ready for 
 sea, we sailed to Boston, joined ' The Providence ' frigate, com 
 manded by Commodore Whipple, ' The Boston ' frigate, and ' The 
 Queen of France.' I believe that this small squadron composed 
 nearly the entire navy of the United States. We proceeded to 
 sea some time in June, 1779. A considerable part of the crew of 
 ' The Ranger ' being raw hands, and the sea rough, especially in 
 the Gulf Stream, many were exceedingly sick, and myself among 
 the rest. We afforded a subject of constant ridicule to the old 
 sailors. Our officers improved every favorable opportunity for 
 working the ship and exercising the guns. We cruised several 
 weeks, made the Western Islands, and at length fell in with the 
 homeward-bound Jamaica fleet on the Banks of Newfoundland. It 
 was our practice to keep a man at the mast-head constantly by 
 day on the lookout. The moment a sail was discovered, a signal 
 was given to our consorts; and all possible exertion was made to 
 come up with the stranger, or discover what she was. About 
 seven o'clock one morning, the man at the fore-topmast head 
 cried out, ' A sail ! a sail on the lee-bow ! another there, and there ! ' 
 Our young officers ran up the shrouds, and with their glasses 
 soon ascertained that more than fifty sail could be seen from the 
 mast-head. It should here be observed, that, during the months 
 of summer, it is extremely foggy on the Banks of Newfoundland,
 
 2l8 THE JAMAICA FLEET, 
 
 Sometimes a ship cannot be seen at the distance of one hundred 
 yands ; and then in a few moments you may have a clear sky and 
 bright sun for half an hour, and you are then enveloped in the 
 fog again. The Jamaica fleet, which consisted of about one 
 hundred and fifty sail, some of which were armed, was convoyed 
 by one or two line-of-battle ships, several frigates, and sloops of 
 war. Our little squadron was in the rear of the fleet, and we 
 had reason to fear that some of the heaviest armed ships were 
 there also. If I am not mistaken, 'The Boston' frigate was not in 
 company with us at this time. My reader may easily imagine 
 that our minds were agitated with alternate hopes and fears. No 
 time was to be lost. Our commodore soon brought to one of 
 our ships, manned, and sent her off. Being to windward, he edged 
 away, and spoke to our captain. We were at this time in pur 
 suit of a large ship. The commodore hauled his wind again ; 
 and in the course of an hour we came up with the ship, which 
 proved to be ' The Holderness,' a three-decker, mounting twenty- 
 two guns. She struck after giving her several broadsides. Al 
 though she had more guns, and those of heavier mettle, than 
 ourselves, her crew was not sufficiently large to manage her 
 guns, and at the same time work the ship. She was loaded 
 with cotton, coffee, sugar, rum, and allspice. While we were 
 employed in manning her out, our commodore captured another, 
 and gave her up to us to man also. When this was accom 
 plished, it was nearly night : we were, however, unwilling to 
 abandon the opportunity of enriching ourselves ; therefore kept 
 along under easy sail. Some time in the night we found our 
 selves surrounded with ships, and supposed we were discovered.
 
 A BROADSIDE OR TWO. 
 
 219 
 
 We could distinctly hear their bells, on which they frequently 
 struck a few strokes, that their ships might not approach too 
 near each other during- the night. We were close on board one 
 of their largest armed ships, and, from the multitude of lights 
 which had appeared, supposed that they had called to quarters. 
 It being necessary to avoid their convoy, we fell to leeward, and 
 in an hour lost sight of them all. The next day the sky was 
 overcast, and at times we had a thick fog. In the afternoon the 
 
 A BROADSIDE OR TWO. 
 
 sun shone for a short time, and enabled us to see a numerous fleet 
 a few miles to windward, in such compact order, that we thought 
 it not best to approach them. We were, however, in hopes that 
 we might pick up some single ship. We knew nothing of our 
 consorts, but were entirely alone. Towards night we took and 
 manned out a brig. On the third morning we gained sight of 
 three ships, to which we gave chase, and called all hands to
 
 220 AN UNWILLING PRIZE. 
 
 quarters. When they discovered us in chase, they huddled to 
 gether, intending, as we supposed, to fight us. They, however, 
 soon made sail, and ran from us. After a short lapse of time we 
 overhauled and took one of them, which we soon found to be a 
 dull sailer. Another, while we were manning our prize, attempted 
 to escape ; but we found that we gained upon her. While in 
 chase, a circumstance occurred which excited some alarm. Two 
 large ships hove in sight to windward, running directly for us 
 under a press of sail. One of them shaped her course for the 
 prize we had just manned. We were unwilling to give up our 
 chase, as we had ascertained from our prize that the two other 
 ships were laden with sugar, rum, cotton, &c., and that they 
 were unarmed. We soon came up with the hindmost, brought 
 her to, and ordered her to keep under our stern while we 
 might pursue the other, as our situation was too critical to allow 
 us to heave to and get out our boat. 
 
 " The stranger in chase of us was under English colors. We, 
 however, soon ascertained by her signal that she was ' The Provi 
 dence ' frigate, on board of which was our commodore. This 
 joyful intelligence relieved us from all fear of the enemy, and 
 we soon came up with our chase. In the mean time the prize 
 which we had taken (but not boarded) sought to get under the 
 protection of 'The Providence,' mistaking that frigate for one of 
 the English convoy, as he still kept their colors flying. Our 
 prize, therefore, as she thought, eluded us, and, hailing our com 
 modore, informed him ' that a Yankee cruiser had taken one of 
 the fleet.' ' Very well, very well,' replied the commodore : ' I'll 
 be alongside of him directly.' He then hauled down his English
 
 BOARDING THE PRIZE. 
 
 221 
 
 colors, hoisted the American, and ordered the ship to haul down 
 her flag, and come under his stern. This order was immediately 
 obeyed. We now ascertained that the strange ship which was 
 in chase of our first prize was another of our consorts, 'The 
 
 BOARDING THE PRIZE. 
 
 Queen of France.' Having manned our prizes, and secured our 
 prisoners, we all shaped our course for Boston, where we arrived 
 some time in the last of July, or beginning of August, 1779. 
 "In all we had taken ten prizes, two of which were re-taken.
 
 222 MY' SHARE OF THE SPOILS. 
 
 4 The Ranger ' made but a short stop at Boston ; for, as most of 
 our officers and crew belonged to Portsmouth and its vicinity, 
 our vessel could be most conveniently refitted there. On return- < 
 ing home, I had the satisfaction to find the family well. My 
 eldest brother had recently returned from a successful voyage in 
 a merchantman. The cargoes of our prizes being divided among 
 our crews, my share was about one ton of sugar, from thirty to 
 forty gallons of fourth-proof Jamaica rum, about twenty pounds 
 of cotton, and about the same quantity of ginger, logwood, and 
 allspice, about seven hundred dollars in paper money, equal to 
 one hundred dollars in specie. My readers must be left to imagine 
 the feelings of my parents when they could number four sons 
 and seven daughters around their table in health and prosperity. 
 ' In the day of prosperity be joyful ; but in the day of adversity 
 consider : God also hath set the one over against the other, to 
 the end that man should find nothing after him' (Eccles. vii. 14)." 
 "Now, then," cried Ned as soon as Lou had finished, " now, 
 then, for our great-grandmother! Turn on the lights; ring up 
 the curtain ; prepare for something startling. 
 
 ' For, oh ! it is an 'orrible tale : 
 I'm sure 'twill make your cheeks turn pale.' 
 
 " The lecturer will now advance to the rostrum." 
 
 All eyes were turned to the dusky corner of the room, where 
 
 Jack lay stretched upon the sofa ; but not a motion did he 
 
 make. 
 
 " I do believe he has gone to sleep," said Ned, going toward 
 
 him. "Yes, he is fast asleep. Jack!" he bawled, "wake up!"
 
 WAKE UP, JACK! 22$ 
 
 Not a movement from Jack. 
 
 " Shake him," said Charlie. 
 
 Ned seized him by the shoulder, and gave him a good 
 shaking. 
 
 " Lemme be," said Jack in a very sleepy tone. 
 
 "Oh! poor boy," said Mrs. Longwood. "He is all tired out. 
 Do let him sleep. It is a shame to wake him." 
 
 " What ! " exclaimed Ned and Charlie at the same time, 
 "and lose that wonderful story! That will never do. He must 
 be waked." 
 
 So both boys seized him firmly, and shook and shouted, 
 while all the rest looked on laughing. After several minutes of 
 vigorous pulling and bawling, Jack was so far roused that he 
 sat up, and rubbed his eyes. 
 
 "What is the matter?" he asked. 
 
 "Tell us about your great-grandmother," said Carrie. 
 
 " I never had a great-grandmother," said Jack in a very 
 thick voice ; and he fell back on the sofa, and in a minute was 
 sound asleep again. 
 
 " I fear that it is hopeless to try to rouse him," said Mr. 
 Longwood. " Perhaps Gertrude can tell us what her great- 
 grandmother did that has so excited Jack's admiration." 
 
 " I haven't the slightest idea," said Gertrude. " I asked him 
 two or three times ; but he always said I ought to be ashamed 
 not to know of the glorious deeds of my ancestors. I don't see 
 how it could have had any thing to do with American history, 
 in any case ; for one of our grandmothers was French, and the 
 other English."
 
 224 NED PRESCRIBES COLD WATER. 
 
 " Don't you think we might pour some cold water on his 
 head, and wake him that way ? " asked Ned. 
 
 " For shame, Ned ! " said Kate. " You had better carry him 
 away, and put him to bed." 
 
 The boys all seized upon Jack at this suggestion, and bore 
 him unresisting up stairs, where they proceeded to take off 
 his clothes, and make him ready for bed. Not a word did he 
 say, and not a motion did he make. The skating and coasting 
 had tired him out completely, and he was as sound asleep as a 
 boy could be. They put him into bed, and pulled up the sheet 
 and tucked it up, and were just about to put out the light and 
 leave him, when Master Jack began to speak. 
 
 "Hush!" said Will: "he's talking in his sleep!" 
 
 It was a long sentence which Jack was uttering. But, though 
 the boys listened intently, his voice was so thick, that they could 
 not make out any of it but the last few words ; and these were 
 plain enough. They were, " Just wait till you hear about my 
 great-grandmother." 
 
 When they were all down about the fire again, Will said, " It 
 is too bad that we are to lose a story! Mr. Longwood, can you 
 not tell us one ? " 
 
 All joined in urging ; and so Mr. Longwood began : 
 
 " You all know, of course, that at the first discovery of this 
 country, while the English settled along the Atlantic seaboard, 
 the French, entering the St. Lawrence, took possession of 
 Canada. They did not follow the same plan as their neighbors 
 to the southward ; for, instead of cultivating the soil, they looked 
 rather to a trade in furs with the Indians. Instead of founding
 
 BEGONE, YOU VAGABOND! 2Q$ 
 
 towns, and clearing away forests, they built forts, in each of 
 which a small garrison lived. Hither came the Indians to trade 
 their furs for blankets, guns, powder, and the bright trifles that 
 took their fancy; and from these posts set out the hardy fur- 
 traders to make long journeys into the primeval forest. In their 
 light canoes they passed up the rivers of the north hundreds of 
 miles, sleeping at night by lonely camp-fires, strong, sturdy 
 men, despising toil and exposure. The French took much more 
 kindly to the Indians than did the English. Many of these 
 voyageurs took to themselves native wives, and settled down to 
 a life in the forest, surrounded by dusky half-breed children. 
 
 " The Indian was never a very noble specimen, and the white 
 man's whiskey did not raise him any higher. When he loafed 
 day after day about an English village, he was called an idle 
 vagabond, and roughly bidden to be gone. If he purloined 
 some article that took his fancy, he was summarily put in jail. 
 When he went to the French fort, all was different. He might 
 hang about for weeks, and no one found fault. The French 
 commanders in time of war even donned the paint and feathers, 
 and danced the war-dance around the scalping-post with the 
 Indian braves, shouting, shrieking, and brandishing their toma 
 hawks, like the rest. 
 
 " Years rolled on. While mile after mile ol forest had fallen 
 before the Englishman's axe, and fresh towns had sprung up here 
 and there amid the wilderness, the French had built almost no towns 
 at all. But they had been busy in other directions. Bold explorers 
 had followed up the St. Lawrence to its source, had crossed the Great 
 Lakes, had discovered the Mississippi, and had sailed down it to the
 
 226 WAR IS DECLARED. 
 
 Gulf of Mexico. The Ohio, too, they had navigated. All the lands 
 bordering on these great rivers they claimed for the king of France. 
 
 " If you will look on the map, you will see that these claims to 
 the valleys of the Mississippi and Ohio left to England but a strip 
 of seaboard on the Atlantic. Already the English settlers, westward 
 bound,, were on the outskirts of the Ohio. A struggle could not be 
 avoided, and war between England and France was declared. It 
 was long and bloody. Nearly all the Indians took part with the 
 French, and all the terrors of a border war came upon the poor out 
 lying settlers. At first, too, the French had success on their side ; 
 but soon the tide of battle turned. Gen. Wolfe was at the head of 
 the English and Colonial forces. One after another the enemy's 
 forts fell before him, Louisburg, where he leaped into the sea, and 
 led his troops to land through the surf ; l and at last Quebec, where, 
 on the Plains of Abraham, he found victory and a soldier's end. 
 
 " The capture of Quebec practically put an end to the war. The 
 Frencli possessions in Canada and the West came under English 
 rule, and one after another their outlying forts were surrendered. 
 It is with one of these, Detroit, then far beyond even the outskirts 
 of civilization, that my story has to do. 
 
 " The fort had now been for some little time in English hands. 
 Widespread discontent was felt among all the Indian tribes ; and 
 among them went Pontiac, chief of the Ottawas, rousing them by 
 stories of their wrongs, and by working upon their love for blood, to 
 go upon the war-path. His plan was to capture by treachery or a 
 sudden onslaught all the outlying forts, and then to fall upon the 
 lonely, unprotected settlers, who, unsuspicious of their plans, would 
 
 * See Frontispiece.
 
 A PIECE OF TREACHERY. 229 
 
 become an easy prey. In this way the credulous savages believed 
 the English might be driven out of the land to the last man. 
 
 "The fort at Detroit would nowadays be considered a sorry 
 structure. It was a palisade some twenty-five feet high, within which 
 were a hundred small wooden straw-thatched houses. Here and 
 there over the gates of the palisade were block-houses, while a bas 
 tion stood at each corner. The garrison consisted of one hundred 
 and twenty soldiers, though there were besides some forty fur- 
 traders. This was the place Pontiac proposed to surprise. His plan 
 was this : He was to demand a council. Sixty of his braves were 
 to attend him, each man muffled in a blanket, beneath which he had 
 ready his gun and scalping-knife. They would easily get access to 
 the fort ; for as yet the whites had no idea how widespread was the 
 disaffection among, them, and would admit them without hesitation. 
 At the council, Pontiac would deliver his speech. At the appointed 
 sign, when he should hold forth in his hand a peace-belt of wampum 
 in a reversed position, every man would drop his blanket, and, instead 
 of quiet Indians, there would appear a band of braves, knives in 
 hand, shouting their war-whoop. The officers were to be shot down 
 at once ; and the garrison, thrown into confusion, would soon be at 
 the mercy of their friends, who, on tne watch without, would crowd 
 in through the gates to help them. 
 
 " A day or two before this surprise was to take place, a woman 
 from the garrison, going into one of the Indian villages, found sev 
 eral of the men filing off the barrels of their guns, so as to make 
 them, stock and all, not more than three feet in length. It seemed 
 to her a very strange thing to do ; and, when she spoke of it, it was 
 found that during the past few days many Indians had tried to bor-
 
 230 FILES AND SAWS. 
 
 row files and saws of the blacksmith, and that they would not tell 
 what they wanted them for. 
 
 "The commander, Major Gladwin, was informed; but he did 
 not think it foreboded any mischief. The next day he received 
 intelligence which showed him that trouble was ahead. It is said 
 that a young Indian girl, who had fallen in love with him, on 
 the day before the treachery was to be consummated revealed 
 to him the whole plot. That night the watchful commander 
 doubled the sentinels at their posts ; for from afar through the 
 silent hours came the shouts of warriors as they danced about 
 the scalping- post in preparation for the bloody work before 
 them. 
 
 " The next morning dawned bright and fair. About the fort 
 came swarming bands of Indians. They disposed themselves as 
 if to have a game of ball ; but it was noticed that they were in 
 great excitement, and kept a constant eye upon the fort. Soon 
 from the forest came Pontiac, at the head of his sixty warriors, 
 each man wrapped in his blanket. Stalking silently on, they 
 halted at the fort, and demanded a council. The gates were 
 thrown open, and they entered. As they did so, they started with 
 surprise ; for, instead of the every-day appearance which they 
 were accustomed to see there, they found themselves received 
 between lines of soldiers, while every few paces on stood groups 
 of hardy traders, armed to the teeth. They were thoroughly 
 startled. Could it be that their plan was discovered? It was 
 too late to retreat ; for the gates were closed behind them. They 
 moved onward to the council-hall. Here, meeting only Major 
 Gladwin and one or two of his officers, their suspicions were
 
 CRESTFALLEN AND ABASHED. 233 
 
 lulled. Why was it, Pontiac demanded, that, when they came on 
 a peaceful errand, they found so many armed men about ? 
 Gladwin replied that it was because they were practising in the 
 use of their weapons. 
 
 " Pontiac then made his speech. The commander never took 
 his eye from him. As the Indian moved his hand to reach out 
 the belt that was the fatal signal, he made a sudden motion. In 
 an instant came the clash of arms from the troops outside, 
 while the long roll of the drums filled the room with their 
 deafening din. There was now no longer any doubt among the 
 Indians that their plans were known. Crestfallen and abashed, 
 they made their way through the ranks of soldiery to the gates, 
 and vanished into the forest. Detroit was saved." 
 
 " I should have thought," said Will, " that, when Gladwin had 
 them all there, he would have seized them. He would have 
 found the proofs of their villany on them." 
 
 " He did not know how widespread was the determination of 
 the Indians to have war, or he would have done so," said Mr. 
 Longwood. " Perhaps, too, he wanted to show them that he 
 could afford to despise them and their efforts. Had Pontiac 
 been seized then, no doubt a long struggle and many hundred 
 lives might have been saved." 
 
 " Tell us some more about him," said Ned. 
 
 " It is time for our story-telling to come to an end now," 
 said Mrs. Longwood ; " for it is growing late, and we must all 
 be in bed early if we are to be up in time to take the morning 
 train for New York. Our week at the sea has been a happy 
 one ; but all good things must come to an end."
 
 234 THE END OF THE YULE LOG. 
 
 Just as she spoke, a great log on the fire, that had been 
 blazing and flashing all the evening, crumbled into a mass of 
 glowing embers. 
 
 "Yes," said Will: "let us go. Our Yule Log has burned 
 out."
 
 PART TWO. 
 
 Aboard the Mavis.
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 IT was a day in early Sep 
 tember. Beyond the fields, yel 
 low with the golden-rod, or white 
 , with the tiny autumn daisy, lay 
 the ocean, more blue than the 
 sky above it, while the little Lake Agawam seemed like a sap 
 phire in a golden setting. A fresh, crisp wind was rustling the 
 grass, now turning brown in the falling year ; and the never- 
 ceasing thunder of the surf on the long stretch of beach-sands 
 filled the air. 
 
 Indoors about the dining-table were seated Mr. and Mrs. 
 Longwood, and Tom and Carrie. Tom had just laid down his 
 fork, and was looking out of the window with an air of forced 
 resignation. 
 
 " And to think," he said, after a moment, " that a fellow 
 must leave all this, day after to-morrow, and go back to school ! " 
 
 237
 
 TOM IS DISCONSOLATE. 
 
 No one answered ; for, indeed, if all Tom's regrets had been 
 sympathized with, some one of the family would have been talk 
 ing all the time. 
 
 The arrival of the pudding seemed to revive his spirits ; and 
 he did not speak again until it had all vanished from his plate, 
 when he said briefly, 
 
 " Sterscuseme ? " 
 
 To this enigmatical remark his mother gave a pleasant nod, 
 and Master Tom was quickly out of the room. As he reached 
 the piazza, he cried out, " Hallo ! there's Andrew ! " and, seizing 
 his cap, he started down the path to the pier, toward which a 
 boat driven by the sturdy arms of a young Irishman was rapidly 
 approaching. 
 
 " Any letters ? " he asked, as he seized the painter of the 
 boat, and made it fast. 
 
 Andrew, who was a man of few words, silently took off his 
 hat, and, producing therefrom two envelopes, handed them over, 
 together with three or four newspapers, which he fished out of 
 a side pocket. 
 
 " All for papa," said Tom, looking at the superscriptions ; and 
 he set out for the house, and gave them to his father, who was 
 still sitting at the table. Then he was on his way out of doors 
 once more, when a sudden call from his father, who had broken 
 one of the seals, stopped him. 
 
 " Wait a moment, Tom," he said. " I think this letter con 
 cerns you ; " and, after reading it carefully through, he tossed it 
 over, and Tom picked it up. This was the letter :
 
 AN EPISTLE FROM THEOPHILUS GRINDER. 239 
 
 MR. GRINDER'S SELECT SCHOOL FOR YOUNG GENTLEMEN. 
 
 PUPILS FITTED FOR COLLEGE OR BUSINESS. THE MODERN LANGUAGES 
 
 CAREFULLY TAUGHT. 
 
 No. 2000 MADISON AVENUE, NEW-YORK CITY, Sept. 8, 1879. 
 
 WILLIAM LONGWOOD, ESQ. 
 
 Dear Sir, It is with sincere regret that I am compelled to notify you of 
 the postponement of the opening of the autumn term of my school from Sept. 15, 
 to Oct. i. 
 
 A defect in the drainage-pipes of the house having made itself perceived, I 
 have decided that it was due to the health of my scholars to have a thorough 
 revision made of the plumbing of the establishment, in order that any suspicion 
 of trouble might be done away with. This revision is in progress, and is making 
 such headway that by the ist of October, prox., I hope to meet again all my 
 young friends. 
 
 The delay is of course detrimental to their interests ; but by home study of 
 three or four hours each day, until school begins, a great portion of the loss may 
 be made up. Your son was about to enter on Algebra, Sallust's Jugurthine Wars, 
 and Latin Prose Composition. 
 
 The idea that I have thrown out will, no doubt, commend itself to your judg 
 ment, and I shall hope for your hearty co-operation. 
 
 Yours with esteem, 
 
 THEOPHILUS GRINDER, M.A. 
 
 Tom gave a wild shout of delight, and threw his cap into 
 the air, deftly catching it as it came down. 
 
 "Carrie! Mamma!" he shouted, rushing into the hall, "no 
 
 school ! 
 
 Sound the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea : 
 
 Grinder's pipes are out of order, his pupils are free ! " 
 " Tom," said Carrie with great severity, " that is a hymn that
 
 24 TOM COMMITS A SIN. 
 
 you are turning into ribald rhyme, and it is very wrong of 
 you." 
 
 " You seem to have forgotten, Master Tom," said his father, 
 with a queer twinkle in his eye, as he came into the hall, " that 
 Mr. Grinder wishes you to study Latin prose and algebra four 
 hours a day, and confidently relies on my co-operation in seeing 
 that you do it. Had you not better get your books at once, 
 and begin ? " 
 
 Tom's countenance fell. That part of the letter had hardly 
 caught his eye at all. 
 
 " O papa!" he said, "that would be dreadful." 
 
 His father laughed. " I confess," he said, " that a different 
 plan had occurred to me. How would Carrie and you like to 
 ask down some of your friends, and all go next week on an 
 expedition to Montauk ? " 
 
 There was such a chorus of delighted shouts at this, that 
 Mrs. Longwood, who had come to the head of the stairs at 
 Tom's first call, deliberately put her hands over her ears, and 
 went back to her room. 
 
 When at last quiet was restored, Mr. Longwood said, 
 
 " Well, to-day is Wednesday. You will have two hours in 
 which to write the letters before the mail closes. I am going to 
 the village, and will post them. They ought to reach their des 
 tination to-morrow early, and you should have answers by Friday 
 noon. Ask them all to come on Saturday ; and Monday, bright 
 and early, we will set off. Whom do you intend to ask?" 
 
 "We must have Will and Charlie Morgan," said Tom. 
 
 "And Rose and Kate Waring," said Carrie.
 
 SOME LETTERS ARRIVE. 241 
 
 " And Ned and Lou Grant, of course," said Tom. 
 
 "And Gertrude and Jack Hastings," added Carrie. 
 
 " That will be the same party that we had when we kept 
 up our Yule-tide festivities," said Mr. Longwood, " and will do 
 nicely. Now off to your letter-writing ; and don't make any more 
 noise than you can help, for I want to read my paper." 
 
 The letters were duly written and posted, and Tom and 
 Carrie were all impatience for the time to come when the 
 answers should arrive. Friday noon they were both on hand at 
 the office when the mail came in, and watched with eagerness 
 as one letter after another was thrust into their box. And at 
 last, when the little square window was opened for delivery, 
 Tom seized the handful of letters and papers that were passed 
 to him ; and both ran out together, where they could examine 
 them free from the curious eyes of the loungers in the store. 
 
 " Here are two for you, Carrie, and two for me," said Tom. 
 " Hallo ! where is papa? The dog-cart was here a moment 
 ago." 
 
 " Perhaps the horse was restless, and he has driven down the 
 road. Let us sit down here, and read the letters," said Carrie, 
 tearing one open. 
 
 They proved highly satisfactory. All wrote that they were 
 coming, but Gertrude and Jack, and from them there was no 
 reply. Tom turned over the whole package, and even went 
 back to see if by chance any thing could have been left in the 
 box ; but there was no trace of such to be found. 
 
 " Perhaps they may have been away from home," said Carrie : 
 "but, unless they were very far away, I think we shall hear by
 
 242 A SHORT STOUT MAN IN A PEA-JACKET. 
 
 to-morrow ; for I put ' Haste ' in big letters on the envelope, 
 and I fancy Mrs. Hastings would open it. Where can papa 
 be?" 
 
 If they had not been so intent on watching for the mail, they 
 would have noticed that Mr. Longwood had driven on slowly 
 down the village street. He had hardly passed the first bend in 
 the road when he noticed coming toward him a short, stout man, 
 with grizzled hair and beard, dressed in a pea-jacket, whose roll 
 ing gait at once proclaimed him a sailor. As he came abreast, 
 Mr. Longwood pulled up his horse suddenly, and said : 
 
 " Why, it's Capt. Jackson ! " 
 
 " Ay, ay, Mr. Longwood, here I am," said the captain. 
 
 "And where is the schooner?" asked Mr. Longwood; "and 
 how did you get so far from blue water ? " 
 
 " ' The Mavis ' is tied up at the wharf in Sag Harbor. You 
 see, my mate and two of the hands own an interest in her, and 
 they both came from this section, and we've been a-v'yagin* 
 pretty steadily for two years, and they thought they'd come 
 down and see their folks for a couple of weeks ; and that's how 
 it is the schooner's tied up idle. What I'm to do for two weeks, 
 I dono ; for I have neither chick nor child, and time passes 
 kind o' monotonous ashore." 
 
 " Well, I suppose, then," said Mr. Longwood, " that you 
 would consider favorably an offer from me to charter the 
 schooner for a week." 
 
 Capt. Jackson at once became all attention, and in ten 
 minutes it was arranged. Mr. Longwood was to furnish a crew 
 of four men, a thing that he knew could be easily done
 
 AROUSE YE, HARDY MARINERS. 243 
 
 in a place where every other man had been to sea ; and 
 Capt. Jackson and the Mavis were to be at his service for a 
 week. 
 
 " We will arrange the trip in this way," Mr. Longwood ex 
 plained to Tom and Carrie that day at dinner : " Your mamma 
 and the girls will drive to Montauk, taking a day and a half to 
 reach the light-house. The rest of us will sail, joining them 
 there. Then we can make any further plans we fancy. Per 
 haps we might all go on board our craft, and make a trip to 
 New London. 
 
 " The first thing to do now, though, is to hunt up the crew 
 that I have agreed to furnish. So, Tom, if you will go with 
 me, we will start on our search in an hour." 
 
 The crew was easily obtained. Thomas John Wilsey from 
 North Sea was engaged as mate ; for he had been to sea, and 
 was quite a skilful sailor. The man whom they had met at 
 Shinnecock Bay was to be one of the hands, and two other 
 sturdy fellows were only too glad to go. 
 
 The night's mail brought no word from Gertrude ; but the 
 next morning, when Carrie was in the attic hunting out from an 
 old trunk something for the trip, she heard some one hurrying 
 up the crooked stairs ; and the next minute one of the maids 
 came panting toward her with a yellow envelope in her hand. 
 
 " It's a telegram, Miss Carrie. Your papa told me to take it 
 to you as quickly as I could." 
 
 Carrie tore it open, and read: 
 
 " Letter received. Hurrah ! We are coming. 
 
 JACK."
 
 244 
 
 THE GUESTS ARRIVE. 
 
 The morning train brought Will and Charlie, Rose and Kate, 
 and Lou and Ned ; and it was a merry and noisy party that 
 
 THE ARRIVAL OF THE TELEGRAM. 
 
 gathered about the dining- table. And in the evening came Jack 
 and Gertrude. Jack could not sit still, but jumped out when he
 
 JACK COMES ON FOOT. 
 
 245 
 
 came near, and raced across the fields to the house, beating by 
 several minutes the rumbling old stage that brought them. 
 
 And now our party is all together, and everv one is wishing 
 for Monday to come, that they may set out. 
 
 GERTRUDE COMES AT LAST.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 MONDAY came at last. At nine 
 o'clock, John, the coachman, brought 
 to the door the great Concord 
 wagon, while Andrew followed with 
 the farm-cart for the two small 
 trunks into which all the baggage 
 of the land party had been com 
 pressed. Then Mrs. Longwood and the girls climbed up to their 
 seats, John drew up the reins, and off they went at a spank 
 ing pace, the boys giving them a parting cheer as they turned 
 into the road, and disappeared. Then every boy rushed into the 
 house for his own luggage ; for the lumbering stage that was to 
 take them to the station was seen slowly approaching, half visible 
 through the cloud of dust by which it was enveloped. 
 
 A half-hour's ride on the railway brought them to Sag Har 
 bor, where they found Capt. Jackson waiting, his crew all on 
 board, and every thing in readiness for an immediate start ; and, 
 only delaying while Mr. Longwood made some purchases at one 
 of the provision-stores, they hurried aboard, and in ten minutes 
 had cast off, and were afloat. 
 
 Long before they had made their way out through the crooked 
 246
 
 JACK PROPOUNDS NAUTICAL QUESTIONS. 247 
 
 channel, into the open water of the Sound, Jack had been through 
 every part of " The Mavis." He had surveyed with unspoken 
 admiration the bunks around the little cabin where they were to 
 sleep ; he had pulled at every rope, and asked its name ; and 
 he had propounded to Capt. Jackson more questions on nautical 
 points than that worthy seaman had ever heard, even from an 
 examining board. The other boys, too, had not been idle ; so 
 that when the black head of the cook suddenly appeared, an 
 nouncing that dinner was ready, they all discovered that they 
 were ravenously hungry, and made a rush for the cabin. 
 
 " Come, Captain," said Mr. Longwood. 
 
 " No," said Capt. Jackson. " I'll wait till we get out of the 
 channel, into deep water, before I take a bite." 
 
 " Well, 17 said Jack, as he paused, after a vigorous attack on 
 a sweet-potato, " this is what I call jolly. Why, we might be a 
 party of bold navigators bound on exploring some unknown sea, 
 Columbus about to discover America, for instance." 
 
 " If you want to represent the discoverer of America," said 
 Mr. Longwood, " you will have to go nearly five hundred years 
 farther back than Columbus." 
 
 " Why, the question in my geography," said Jack, " is, ' Who 
 first discovered America ? ' and the answer is, ' Christopher Colum 
 bus, in 1492.'" 
 
 " Nevertheless," said Mr. Longwood, " it was discovered about 
 the year 1000, by a Northman." 
 
 "What was his name?" asked Tom; "and how did it come 
 about ? " 
 
 " Well, to make you understand it clearly," said Mr. Long-
 
 248 THE SEA-KING HASTINGS. 
 
 wood, " I shall have to go back to the year 850, when there 
 lived in Norway a king, Harold Fairhair. He was a man of 
 great strength of will ; and he brought all the independent 
 chiefs, who had before been subject to no one, under his power. 
 But there were many who preferred to leave their country, rather 
 than submit. They flocked to the Orkney, and Shetland, and 
 Faroe Isles, and became Vikings, or sea-rovers. In their long- 
 ships, as the war-vessels were called, to distinguish them from 
 merchantmen, they were the terror of the world. 
 
 " Did you ever hear how one Hastings took the city of Luna, 
 in Italy ? 
 
 THE SACK OF LUNA. 
 
 The guards on the walls of Luna, 
 
 As they seaward cast the eye, 
 See a mighty fleet of Vikings 
 
 Clear-cut against the sky. 
 * What, ho ! the town is threatened, 
 
 Quick sound the bell's alarm ! 
 'Tis the sea-king Hastings cometh : 
 
 Bid every freeman arm.' 
 
 The dreaded fleet draws nearer, 
 
 Till each ship at anchor rides ; 
 But no gay-wrought pennons flutter, 
 
 No warriors crowd their sides. 
 Instead, a pall of blackness, 
 
 And the death-song chanted slow, 
 While two messengers in sable robes 
 
 To the gates of the city go.
 
 A FIGHT BETWEEN VIKINGS
 
 HAVE AT THEM NOW, YE SEA-DOGS. 
 
 'We come not here in anger, 
 
 Nor the battle-cry to sound; 
 But we seek a grave for our leader 
 
 In consecrated ground. 
 And if ye, of your courtesie, 
 
 Shall grant this our request, 
 Full many a roll of yellow gold 
 
 Will we pay for his spirit's rest.' 
 
 Next day the corpse of the sea-king, 
 
 In an oaken coffin lain, 
 Is borne on the shoulders of Vikings, 
 
 At the head of a goodly train. 
 Full reverently they bear him, 
 
 To music's mournful sound, 
 Before the great high altar, 
 
 And in silence stand around. 
 
 Why shrink the priests in terror? 
 
 Why blanch their cheeks with fear? 
 Can it be their craven hearts stand still, 
 
 At the pale corpse lying here? 
 Ha ! the coffin bursts asunder, 
 
 And the dead man leapeth out; 
 Above his head his good blade shines, 
 
 From his lips there rings the shout, 
 
 ' Have at them now, ye sea-dogs ! 
 
 Plunder, and burn, and slay ! 
 Hew down these craven-hearted priests, 
 
 The town is ours this day !
 
 25 2 HAROLD FAIRHAIR GOES TO WAR. 
 
 Fear not the odds against us, 
 Glory waits him who falls : 
 
 For those who live there's treasure; 
 For the dead great Odin's halls.' 
 
 Down crash the half-burned rafters, 
 On the dead priests within' 
 
 Without, the shrieks of women 
 Above the battle's din. 
 
 So fell the town of Luna, 
 
 In the days long since gone by : 
 
 Give God true thanks that we live at peace, 
 Nor dread a battle-cry. 
 
 " Well, the Vikings harried England and all the Atlantic coast, 
 going, as we have seen, into the Mediterranean even ; but the 
 land they most loved to fall upon was that from which they had 
 been driven. 
 
 " Harold Fairhair was not a man to submit to such treatment ; 
 and no sooner had he established his authority over his own land 
 than he fitted out a great fleet, and fell upon the outlying islands 
 with such violence, that he broke the power of the Vikings for 
 ever. 
 
 " Those who were left alive after these bloody battles, having 
 now less than ever a mind to be the subjects of Harold Fair- 
 hair, turned their eyes to Iceland ; and such numbers went there, 
 that in a few years the habitable parts of the island were thickly 
 peopled. 
 
 " They were, as I have said, a race of warriors. Their reli-
 
 WITH ODIN AT VALHAL. 
 
 gion made them so. The hero who died in battle went straight 
 to live with Odin, at Valhal. Here the roof was made of the 
 golden shields of heroes ; and the time passed in stirring feats 
 of arms, and in drinking great horns of mead. Thor was another 
 god : he it was whose voice made the thunder. Ran was the 
 goddess of the sea ; and there were other gods and goddesses 
 without number. 
 
 AN ICELANDIC HARBOR. 
 
 " The Vikings recounted their valorous deeds in chants after 
 
 this fashion : 
 
 ' Hewed we with the hanger, 
 
 When I young was ; 
 
 East in Eyra's channel, 
 
 Outpoured we blood for grim wolves.'
 
 254 
 
 THORFINN THE SKULLSPLITTER. 
 
 " The very names that some of them carried such, for 
 instance, as ' Thorfinn the Skullsplitter ' attested their prowess. 
 
 " It was a wild land they chose for their home when they 
 were driven from the Western Islands by Harold. Great volca 
 noes belch forth in its central portion, so that, for hundreds of 
 miles, there is not a sign of plant-life to be found. At times 
 
 THE RIVER JOKtTLSA. 
 
 the gloomy river Jokulsa comes seaward, its swollen waters cov 
 ered with ashes, while at night it looks like a river of blood, as 
 it reflects the stream of flame shooting high in air from some 
 crater's mouth. Only near the seaboard is the country habitable. 
 " But the Northmen cared little for its wildness, or for the
 
 A WINTER NIGHT'S TALE. 257 
 
 bleakness of its coast, and its frightful storms. Here Harold 
 Fairhair could not reach them ; and out of the landlocked fjords, 
 or arms of the sea, their long-ships could r.ally forth, carrying 
 destruction to the enemy. It was one of these men who dis 
 covered America. 
 
 " Eirek the Red had tired of Iceland. Learning of a new 
 country called Greenland, he had gone there with his family to 
 settle. In the long winter nights, as they sat about the fires, 
 listening to the wild experiences of any stranger that might have 
 claimed their hospitality, they heard with astonishment the tale 
 of one Bjarni. He declared that once, driven by wild storms, 
 he had discovered land far to the westward. The coast had 
 seemed bleak and unattractive to him ; and, the wind hauling, he 
 had left it astern, and sailed back to Greenland. 
 
 " Old Eirek and his son Leif were much stirred at this story. 
 They decided that they would buy Bjarni's ship, and themselves 
 hunt out this strange land. They loaded her with all needed 
 provisions, and with a crew of thirty-five men, were just about 
 to sail, when Eirek, on his way to embark, fell from his horse. 
 Regarding this as an ill omen, he decided to stay at home, 
 and Leif sailed without him. 
 
 " He found, after a few days, that Bjarni's tale was true ; for 
 there lay the land before him. It was the south-eastern ex 
 tremity of Newfoundland, recognizable to this day by their de 
 scription : ' a bare, rugged plain, covered with broad flat rocks.' 
 Two days more they sailed before a north-east wind ; then, coast 
 ing westward, they came, after a little, to a river. Pleased with 
 the country, they passed up the river, and decided to winter on
 
 25? A TIMBER-LADEN SHIP. 
 
 its banks. With all speed they built themselves huts : Leifsbuder 
 they called them. The river furnished them the finest salmon ; 
 and the country about so abounded in grapes, that they called it 
 Vinland. 
 
 " Here," said Mr. Longwood, taking down a chart from a 
 rack above his head, " this is the spot. It is now called the 
 Taunton River." 
 
 " Why, it .is not very far from where we now are," said Will. 
 
 " No," said Mr. Longwood ; " not more than twenty-five 
 miles, as the crow flies. 
 
 " The winter passed away quietly ; and in the spring Leif 
 loaded his vessel with timber, and his long boat with dried grapes, 
 and so went home again." 
 
 " Was Leif the only Northman who came ? " asked Ned. 
 
 " No, indeed. Thorvald, his brother, spent two or three years 
 in Vinland. He explored the coast all about this very region 
 where we now are ; but his love for adventure caused his death ; 
 for, on one of these voyages of investigation, attacked by a band 
 of Skraellings in canoes, he was slain by an arrow. 
 
 " Thorstein too, a wealthy and powerful man of distinguished 
 family, made a journey to the new world with three ships. He 
 planned to form a colony. His wife Gudrida went with him ; 
 and a son, Snorri, was no doubt the first Christian boy born in 
 America. For Leif and Thorvald and Thorstein had all been 
 converted to Christianity a few years before, and had forsaken 
 the worship of the wild gods of the North. 
 
 " But after three winters Thorstein made up his mind that 
 his colony was a failure ; and so, back he went to Greenland.
 
 A SECOND THORFINN THE SKULLSPLITTER. 261 
 
 He took with him, as cargo, all the wood that he could carry, 
 and sold it in Norway at an enormous price. For a small piece 
 of what was probably bird's-eye maple, he received about eighty 
 dollars. 
 
 " So you see, Master Jack," said Mr. Longwood, rising, " that 
 Columbus was not the first man that discovered America, though 
 your geography does say so." 
 
 The boys all rose from the table, and crowded around the 
 chart, to make out more plainly the places Mr. Longwood had 
 spoken of. After a little, Jack went up the ladder, to see what 
 had been going on while they were at dinner. A moment after, 
 the others followed him. 
 
 When they were in the open air, they stopped an instant to 
 look around. The deck seemed quite deserted. Only Capt. 
 Jackson was to be seen, standing at the wheel, now casting his 
 eyes aloft where the sails were bellied out by the fresh wind, and 
 now ahead, scanning the coast. All the rest of the crew were 
 below, forward, where, in the absence of any cargo, they had 
 hung up hammocks. 
 
 " Where is Jack ? " the boys said. " Jack ! Jack ! " but there 
 was no answer. 
 
 " Oh ! there he is," said Will, looking at the bowsprit, a little 
 way out on which, in a somewhat dangerous position, Jack sat 
 cross-legged. "Why didn't you answer us, you bad boy?" 
 
 " I am not Jack," said that youth. 
 
 "Thorfinn am I, 
 Skullsplitter hight.
 
 262 MAN OVERBOARD. 
 
 Many a hero, 
 I, with my downstroke, 
 Hurried to Valhal. 
 Now, in my long-ship, 
 Roam I o'er ocean, 
 Ran defying " 
 
 At this, Thorfinn ceased abruptly, and clutched convulsively 
 at some ropes overhead, to recover the balance which he had lost. 
 He failed to reach them, however ; and, after some wild struggles, 
 down he went, splash into the water, into the embrace of the 
 goddess he had been defying. 
 
 " Man overboard ! " shouted Ned, bawling down the hatch to 
 the men below. 
 
 Will Morgan's coat and shoes were off in a twinkling, and 
 he was over the schooner's side after Jack ; but, quick as he was, 
 he was hardly in the water before Thomas John, who, hearing 
 Ned's shout, had run up from below. 
 
 Fortunate it was that Tom Longwood and the Morgans had 
 been brought up by the sea, and knew just what to do. At the 
 first shout, Capt. Jackson had put the helm hard down ; but, 
 before the vessel's head had fairly come around into the wind, 
 Tom and Charlie had lowered the boat, cast it off, and were 
 pulling lustily to where Will and Thomas John were holding up 
 Jack. 
 
 " And a mighty good thing it is," said Capt. Jackson to him 
 self, " that I had that boat's tackling overhauled. I am afraid it 
 wouldn't have worked so well a week ago." 
 
 The boat quickly made its way to the unfortunate Thorfinn,
 
 A HOT LEMONADE. 263 
 
 and the three dripping figures were soon aboard. Jack and Will 
 hurried to the cabin, to get rid of their wet clothes ; and Will 
 was soon out again ; but Mr. Longwood thought that Jack had 
 better turn into one of the berths for an hour or so, to make 
 sure of not taking cold. 
 
 So, after bringing him a glass of hot lemonade, they covered 
 him up with blankets, and left him, bidding him be a good little 
 boy, and get into no more mischief.
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 CARCELY had the sound of the 
 boys' retreating footsteps died away, 
 when Capt. Jackson's burly form 
 appeared. The captain, as we have 
 said before, was a man of few 
 words. He nodded to Jack, and, 
 seating himself at the table, proceeded 
 to do justice to the food before him. 
 Jack watched with silent astonishment 
 the rapidity with which the contents of the 
 dishes disappeared. Silence, however, was 
 not his strong point. So he raised himself upon his elbow, and 
 proceeded to open conversation. 
 
 " What is Montauk, anyway, captain ? " he asked. 
 " Montauk," said Capt. Jackson, pausing with his fork half 
 way to his mouth, "Why, Montauk is Montauk; the east end 
 of Long Island, you know." 
 
 "Yes," said Jack; "but what is it?" 
 
 "Well," said the captain, "it's a fine rolling country; pas 
 tures a sight of stock. There must be a good many thousand 
 cattle and sheep on it. There used to be a tribe of Indians, 
 264
 
 AN INTERRUPTED WEDDING. 265 
 
 but they are about gone. Hardly a dozen are left of them 
 all." 
 
 "And do the Indians own it?" 
 
 "Oh, no!" said the captain. "It happened this way: Wyan- 
 dance was the sachem of the Montauks, and all the other tribes 
 on Long Island were subject to him. But at Block Island, and 
 on the main land, there was a tribe, the Narragansetts, that was 
 more powerful still. Ninigret was their sachem's name ; and he 
 made things so uncommonly hot for the Montauks, that they 
 hardly slept o' nights. Why, at one time, Wyandance's daughter 
 was gettin' married, when in walked the Narragansetts, without 
 so much as sayin' ' By your leave,' killed the groom and half 
 the company, and carried, the bride off to Block Island. 
 
 "Well, one of these war-parties of Ninigret's made them 
 selves so very much at home, that the Montauks concluded they 
 would go down to Easthampton, and see if the settlers there 
 would not protect them. So down they went : the white men 
 let them stay, and the Narragansetts dared not attack them 
 there. The result of it all was a big document, wherein, for the 
 love they bore their white brethren, they did grant and convey 
 all Montauk to those white brethren, only reservin' the right to 
 hunt and fish, and live on the land. The document says that it 
 was the Indians' own idee to make over all the property ; but I 
 take notice that it wasn't in Indian handwriting that the deed 
 was made." 
 
 " I wish I could get up," said Jack, as the captain started to 
 
 g- 
 
 " Let me have a look at you," said that worthy. " I am
 
 266 CAPTAIN JACKSON'S SURGERY. 
 
 somethin' of a doctor. I once performed a surgical operation 
 on one of my men, took off a crushed finger." 
 
 "How did you do it?" asked Jack. 
 
 " Hammer and chisel," said the captain concisely. " So," he 
 went on, taking Jack's hand, " pulse steady, skin cool : why, you 
 are all right ! I'll speak to Mr. Longwood when I get on deck, 
 and have you up in no time." 
 
 The captain was as good as his word ; for, in a moment, Ned 
 Grant shouted down to him, "Jack! I say, Jack! get up!" 
 
 " Come down, and stay with me while I dress," called Jack. 
 
 " Can't be done," said Ned : " too much going on up here. 
 Hurry up ! " 
 
 Spurred by this, Jack hurried as never before ; and in five 
 minutes was running across the deck to join the others, button 
 ing the last button as he came. 
 
 He was just in time to see close beside them a boat such as 
 the fishermen on all the Long-Island shore use when they put 
 off through the surf to draw the seine. Two men were in it. 
 One was examining a lobster-pot, which he had just drawn to 
 the surface, and out of which he was pulling a reluctant victim ; 
 while the other was keeping the boat's head to the wind, for 
 the sea was rising before a light gale, and the spray every now 
 and then dashed over her bow, sprinkling them both thoroughly. 
 
 " It is wonderful how strong those boats are," said Will. 
 "They can live in almost any sea. Isn't that so?" he asked, 
 turning to one of the sailors who stood close by. 
 
 " I know a time when I was mighty glad to get out of one," 
 said the man.
 
 / WAS DIGGING IN THE GARDEN. 
 
 " When was it ? Tell us about it," said the boys, scenting a 
 story, and closing up about him. 
 
 " Well," said the man, " it was one May. I was at my house 
 think I was digging in the garden. Yes," he said medita 
 tively, stroking his chin ; " am sure I was digging in the garden. 
 I remember I was putting in Early-Rose potatoes. Most ex 
 traordinary thing, the yield I had with them potatoes. I never 
 yet saw their like." 
 
 " But the boat," 1 interrupted Charlie. 
 
 "Oh, yes!" said the man. " W r ell, along the road, coming 
 toward me, I saw that boy of Jared Wilsey's, shouting, ' Whale f 
 whale f ' I never knew a boy like that. His tongue is hung in 
 the middle, and clatters at both ends all day long. They say he 
 even talks in his sleep. And there's his father and mother, the 
 silentest people in the whole town." 
 
 " And did he see the whale first ? " asked Ned. 
 
 " Yes : he seen her spouting, close in shore. So* down a 
 lot of us ran ; and we manned four boats, and after a short chase 
 we killed her, about three mile out. But no sooner was she 
 dead, than the critter sank. So there was nothing for it but to 
 make her fast to an anchor, and wait for her to rise. 
 
 " The man on the lookout, two days after, saw, at sunrise, 
 that she had risen, and was drifting eastward, because the anchor- 
 
 o 
 
 rope was too short. The others were sure it was long enough ; 
 but I knew 'twa'n't ; " and the man shut his jaws with a snap, as 
 if there were no more to be said on the subject, and relapsed 
 into silence. 
 
 " Well ? " said Will.
 
 27 
 
 BLOWING GREAT GUNS. 
 
 " Eh ? Oh, yes ! Two boats went off, and they saw her fairly 
 anchored this time. Then they started for shore, on a double- 
 quick, for the fog shut in, and the surf got up ; and mighty 
 thankful they were when they were safely on land again. 
 
 " Next day it was blowing great guns from the sou'west, and 
 no boat could live. The whale dragged anchor, and went off 
 
 BRINGING DOWN A BOAT. 
 
 before the wind. We heard of her near Easthampton, and how 
 parties there were going to get her as soon as the sea went 
 down. That was more than we could stand. Some one called for 
 volunteers ; and a crew was made up. The surf was tremen 
 dous, and things looked squally enough. I more'n half expected 
 our boat would be staved before she got afloat. However, at
 
 BAREFOOTED, IN OUR SHIRT-SLEEVES. 271 
 
 last we were off, with only a wetting. But outside we found 
 the sea so heavy, that we were afraid the boat would be swamped. 
 We were in a sorry plight, afraid to go ahead, and afraid to 
 go back. As good luck would have it, we seen, a mile or so 
 ahead, a schooner belonging to the Coast Wrecking Company. 
 We pulled for dear life, and got aboard, and at last worried our 
 boat up on to her deck. A thankful man was I, when I had 
 something thicker than inch plank under me." 
 
 " And what became of the whale ? " asked Tom. 
 
 " We borrowed the schooner, and went after her," said the 
 man ; " took her in tow, and started back. But the wind all at 
 once hauled to the east, and blew a gale. Snap went the tow- 
 rope, and off went the whale again. By this time we had all 
 the whale we wanted, for things looked ticklish for the schooner. 
 We didn't dare risk her on the coast any longer, so she scudded 
 before the gale ; and next day we turned up in New- York har 
 bor, barefooted, in our shirt-sleeves, ninety miles from home, 
 without a cent in our pockets. By good luck, we had friends 
 there : so we borrowed some money, and came back by railroad." 
 
 " And did you lose the whale, after all ? " asked Charlie. 
 
 " No : she went ashore, a ways west. We cut her up, and 
 cleared nine hundred dollars from her." 
 
 "What land is that?" asked Jack, as the man turned away. 
 " Is it an island ? " 
 
 " That," said Mr. Longwood, " is Gardiner's Island. When 
 Capt. Kidd was roving the seas, chasing and burning every ill- 
 fated ship that he met, he stopped at Gardiner's Island on his 
 way homeward to Boston, after a cruise in the Spanish Main,
 
 272 
 
 MRS. GARDINER ROASTS A SUCKING-PIG. 
 
 where was the scene of his chief exploits. He summoned Gardi 
 ner, and in his presence buried a chest of treasure, telling him 
 that he should hold him personally responsible for its safe keep 
 ing. Then he ordered Mrs. Gardiner to roast him some sucking- 
 pig for dinner. She must have been an excellent cook ; for he 
 
 KIDD AFTER A MERCHANTMAN. 
 
 was so pleased with the dish, that he presented her with a quan 
 tity of cloth-of-gold, after which he sailed away to Boston. His 
 treasure did him little good though, for hardly had he reached 
 port before he was seized."
 
 GARDINER HAS CHILLS O' NIGHTS. 273 
 
 " What became of it ? " asked Will. 
 
 " Gov. Bellamont heard of his having buried it ; so he sent 
 commissioners from Massachusetts to recover the spoil. Gardi 
 ner delivered it up, and it was taken away ; but I imagine the 
 good man had many a chill at the thought that perhaps the old 
 freebooter might yet escape, and come back to claim his own, 
 and that he was a happy man when he heard, about two years 
 after, that Kidd had been hung in chains at Execution Dock, in 
 London." 
 
 " I wonder he did not try to keep it for himself," said Ned. 
 " Was it very great ? " 
 
 " Yes : there were some thirteen bags," said Mr. Longwood. 
 " They contained gold and silver, coined, in bars, and in dust. 
 There were, beside, precious stones and jewels. It is not pleas 
 ant to think of the bloody deeds by which it was got together." 
 
 " Why, Jack," said Ned suddenly, looking at him, " how pale 
 you are about the gills ! I do believe you are going to be sea 
 sick." 
 
 " I am not," said Jack indignantly. 
 
 " There certainly is a great deal more motion than there was 
 an hour or two ago, and the wind is much fresher," said Mr. 
 Longwood. 
 
 " The schooner's empty," said Capt. Jackson, who had come 
 up just at that moment. " If she had a cargo aboard, she'd be 
 much steadier. I have an idea," he went on, " that a storm is 
 brewing. The barometer is falling fast, and I don't like the looks 
 of things altogether ; " and he cast his eyes in a weather-wise 
 fashion at the sky, and then at the horizon. " I shouldn't won 
 der if we had a nasty night."
 
 274 THE MAVIS IS DESERTED. 
 
 " That's not a very pleasant prospect," said Mr. Longwood. 
 " I consider myself a fair sailor ; but I must confess that I like 
 to sleep in a bed that is moderately still." 
 
 " Well, there's nothing easier than to have a quiet night," 
 said the captain. " We can run into Fort Pond Bay, and anchor. 
 There's no safer harbor on the coast, when the wind is east." 
 
 " Fort Pond Bay, then, let it be, by all means. Let us look 
 at the chart in the cabin, boys, and see just where it is," said 
 Mr. Longwood. 
 
 Then it was, when all heads were bent over the chart, that a 
 brilliant idea came to Jack. " Why ! House No. 2, where Mrs. 
 Longwood and the girls were to spend the night, was at Fort 
 Pond. The island looks very narrow there, on the chart. I don't 
 believe it can be more than a mile wide. What fun it would 
 be to walk across, and surprise them ! I am going to ask Thomas 
 John about it." 
 
 Thomas John pronounced the plan entirely feasible ; and so 
 it turned out, that when, in the gathering dusk, " The Mavis " 
 dropped her anchor in the quiet waters of the bay, our party 
 made haste to disembark ; and Capt. Jackson and his men, while 
 they were making all snug for the night, saw them disappear 
 across the moors in single file, Thomas John at their head as 
 pilot. 
 
 Meantime, at House No. 2, toward which our friends were 
 striding, Mrs. Longwood and the girls had arrived, and had just 
 finished their supper. They were now all standing in the little 
 porch facing the sea. It seemed, in the dim twilight, as if the 
 ocean which was thundering so angrily on the sands, but a few
 
 A SCENE AT TWILIGHT. 
 
 275 
 
 hundred feet away, might suddenly come rushing forward, and 
 sweep them ail to destruction. 
 
 As they looked to the east, they could catch the fitful gleam
 
 276 AN INDIAN STORY. 
 
 of the spray that lined the foot of the cliffs where the waves 
 were lashed to fury. Far out at sea glimmered the solitary light 
 of a passing vessel ; but over the moorlands all about them, 
 there was nothing but the dull gray of coming night. The 
 nearest house was four miles away. 
 
 " What a dreadfully lonely place ! " said Gertrude. " I am 
 going into the house. I should soon see ghosts, or Indians, or 
 some more horrible things, if I stayed out." 
 
 " You are as bad as the farmer's lass," said Carrie, as they 
 all followed her. " Did you ever hear of her ? 
 
 When autumn nights grow sharp and chill, 
 
 And cold white mists the valleys fill, 
 
 The farmer's lass at the window-pane 
 
 Starts back in fright, yet peers again ; 
 
 For she sees, by the pale light the moon doth yield, 
 
 Red Indians crouching in the field. 
 
 ' Injuns, father ! ' she cries, and flees 
 
 To a refuge safe on her father's knees. 
 
 
 
 The farmer's laugh rings loud and free ; 
 
 ' Indians they are, in truth,' says he ; 
 
 ' But wait till once comes the rising sun, 
 
 And we'll take them prisoners, every one ; 
 
 We'll beat them with clubs, and we'll grind their bones 
 
 To the finest flour, through the old millstones ; 
 
 And we'll eat them smoking hot,' laughs he ; 
 
 ' For they're buckwheat Indians a that you see.' " 
 
 1 For the benefit of such of my readers as are not versed in farmers' ways, I will sav~ 
 that the sheaves' of buckwheat left standing in the field are known as "Injuns."
 
 HUGH 7 BIG lAJUNf 277 
 
 As Carrie finished the last line, she turned toward the door, 
 and gave a little scream ; for there, apparently, stood an Indian. 
 He had about his shoulders an old, worn buffalo-robe loosely 
 thrown. His face was concealed by the robe, but through his 
 dishevelled hair they could see a couple of arrows sticking. From 
 this disreputable figure came a voice that said, 
 
 " You callee, he comee. Plentee hungry, this fellow. Hugh ! 
 big Injun ! " 
 
 As for Gertrude, at these words she disappeared like a flash 
 through the door that led to the dining-room ; nor did she pause 
 in her flight till she reached the kitchen. There, finding a man 
 calmly sitting by the fire, smoking his pipe, I will not say that, 
 like the farmer-lass, she found a refuge safe on his knees, but 
 she certainly did seize him by the arm, and hold on very tightly. 
 
 Carrie, on the other hand, looked at the Indian for a moment, 
 and then, rushing forward, seized the buffalo-robe, and, dragging 
 it from his shoulders, exclaimed, 
 
 " Jack ! you wicked boy, to frighten your sister ! Where in 
 the world did you come from ? and where are the rest ? " 
 
 A shout of laughter from without answered Carrie's question ; 
 and the next moment all were shaking hands together in the 
 little sitting-room.
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 AFTER a little, when the 
 buffalo-robe, which Jack had 
 filched from a wagon at the 
 stable, had been returned to its 
 place, and a second supper had 
 been hurriedly prepared, the boys 
 and Mr. Longwood hastened to 
 the dining-room, to fall upon it. 
 The girls all followed, and sat 
 at the long table, by way of 
 helping them to the various 
 dishes. 
 
 " Dear me ! " said Carrie, 
 after a little, during which there 
 had not been a sound, except 
 of knives and forks : " this is 
 dreadful. Not a word has one 
 
 of these boys spoken for five minutes, and Ned has 
 had four slices of bread already. I know, for I 
 passed him the plate. I feel as if I were in a 
 zoological garden, tossing buns to a bear. Do, seme 
 of you, tell us your adventures." 
 
 278
 
 HAUL THE KEEL ABOARD. 279 
 
 " Jack fell overboard," said Ned concisely. 
 
 " What a story ! " cried each of the girls. " It isn't true ! 
 Did he fall overboard, Mr. Longwood ? " 
 
 " He certainly did," said that gentleman. 
 
 " O Jack ! " they said : " how frightened you must have been ! 
 Wasn't it dreadful ? " 
 
 " It was an awful moment," said that young man, with his 
 mouth full of bread and butter. " But above the gurgling of 
 the waters in my ears, as I sank, I heard the deep voice of Capt. 
 Jackson shouting, ' Avast ! All hands holystone the deck, and 
 haul the keel aboard,' and then I knew that I was safe." 
 
 " Nevertheless," said Mr. Longwood, when the laugh had died 
 out, " Master Jack had a very narrow escape ; and I fear that, 
 had not Will Morgan and Thomas John come so promptly to his 
 help, Capt. Jackson's command to haul the keel aboard would 
 hardly have saved him." 
 
 Jack's eyes glistened as he looked toward Will ; and I am 
 quite certain that a very thankful heart beat under his jacket, 
 and that his nonsense was only put on to conceal his real 
 feelings. 
 
 "It is hardly fair to make us talk now," said Charlie. " You 
 should tell us of your exploits. Begin, Rose. What has hap 
 pened ? Did you meet with any dragons, and did a gallant knight 
 deliver you ? " 
 
 " No," said Rose : " there were neither dragons nor knights ; 
 and we had a much nicer time than if there had been. We had 
 the crisp September air overhead, and the rustling of the early 
 fallen leaves as we passed through the woods, and every little
 
 280 
 
 A PITCHER OF MILK. 
 
 while we came to a view of the sea that was enough to take 
 one's breath away. And half of the time some of us were out 
 of the wagon, running on ahead, or gathering asters by the 
 roadside." 
 
 A WALK BY THE WAY. 
 
 " Oh, yes ! " broke in Lou ; " and we stopped at the prettiest 
 little house ; and Carrie went in to get us some water, and, after 
 being gone about ten minutes, came out with a great pitcher of 
 milk. How good it tasted ! What in the world kept you so 
 long, Carrie ? I meant to ask at the time, but the sight of the 
 milk put it all out of my mind."
 
 A SAILOR'S LULLABY. 281 
 
 " The woman was singing a lullaby to her baby," said Carrie ; 
 " and I persuaded her to sing it again, while I took down the 
 words. 
 
 When waves are wild, 
 And the winds are out, 
 
 And, 'mid the blinding spray, 
 The good ship, staggering, leaps on, 
 
 Where do the sailors stay? 
 
 High up aloft 
 
 On the swaying yards, 
 
 Like birds on an elm-tree bough, 
 Little they heed the tossing sea 
 
 Breaking about their prow. 
 
 When night comes on, 
 O'er the darkening sea, 
 
 Like birds in their wind-tossed nest, 
 Each in his swinging hammock lies, 
 
 Rocked by the winds to rest. 
 
 " The woman said that her husband was a sailor," went on 
 Carrie ; " and that he had been away more than a year on a 
 whaling-ship in the Arctic seas. She did not expect him back 
 for another year. And, oh, papa ! she had some old blue-and- 
 white cups and saucers on a little shelf, that you would have 
 liked to have. She said that her father brought them home from 
 China, many and many a year ago. I was so much interested 
 in talking to her, that I almost forgot that the others were wait 
 ing for me outside."
 
 282 
 
 AN OLD DUTCH CHEST-OF-DRAWERS. 
 
 " I must look that place up," said Mr. Longwood, much 
 interested. 
 
 " Papa, you must know," said Tom, " is a great collector. If 
 he can only coax his way into the attic of some of these old 
 houses, he is perfectly happy. He is sure to come home with a 
 
 WAITING FOR CARRIE. 
 
 curious pair of fire-dogs, or perhaps an old Dutch chest-of- 
 drawers, or some old china. The people all about have come 
 to know him; and they think well, not to put too fine a 
 point on it, they think him a little weak in his mind. And 
 then, some fancy that they have only to show him something
 
 A HAUL OF MENHADEN. 283- 
 
 old, for him to buy it. One woman actually tried to sell him an 
 old broken-down iron caster, because it was a hundred years old-,, 
 and another talked him into buying a corset-board." 
 
 " Ha, ha ! " laughed Mr. Longwood ; " but there were a dozen 
 old Nankeen cups and saucers in that house, and I wanted to 
 get into the old lady's good graces ; and so I bought the corset 
 board." 
 
 " What is a corset-board, pray ? " asked Gertrude. 
 
 " In the old days," said Mrs. Longwood, " before steels were 
 used, corsets were laced up behind ; and, to keep them in shape, 
 a thin board of proper shape was inserted in front. The one 
 Mr. Longwood has is chased, and is really quite elaborate." 
 
 " I suppose you took dinner at Easthampton," said Charlie. 
 
 " Yes," answered Kate. " It was just after eleven when we 
 reached there. We found that we had quite two hours before 
 dinner ; so, after seeing John and Andrew set out for home, and 
 leaving all our wraps to be put into the stage that was to bring 
 us on, we strolled down to the beach. It was very exciting ; 
 for a school of menhaden were close in shore, and the fishermen 
 were bringing down their boat. We watched them go off, cast 
 the seine, and draw it." 
 
 " Did they have a good haul ? " asked Jack. 
 
 " Not very," said Kate ; " for the fish mostly escaped through 
 a hole in the net. The men said that a shark had been caught, 
 and had been strong enough to break his way through. They 
 spread the net out on the sand ; and the hole was there, sure 
 enough." 
 
 " Proceed with your narration," said Ned, as Kate paused.
 
 284 
 
 A SATANIC LEGEND. 
 
 " Well, after dinner we set out in a stage ; and our driver 
 was quite a character. He told us why there are no stones on 
 Long Island." 
 
 " Because it is a sandbank washed up by the ocean," inter 
 rupted Jack. " I knew as much as that." 
 
 OVERHAULING THE NET. 
 
 " Not at all," said Carrie. " He said, that, before the first 
 settlers came, Long Island was full of great bowlders. Connecti 
 cut, however, had not a stone in it, and was a lovely country.
 
 A SHOWER OF STONES. 285 
 
 But it belonged to the Devil, and was, in fact, his own peculiar 
 garden. One Sunday, Satan thought he would visit his fair 
 domain, which he had not seen for some time. The first thing 
 that his eyes lighted on was a Puritan meeting-house. He drew 
 near, to see what it could be, and heard the loud voice of the 
 dominie praying. Now, prayer is the one thing that Satan cannot 
 stand. It always puts him to flight. So he clapped his hands 
 over his ears, and fled across to Long Island, where he sat him 
 down to think. But, the more he thought, the more angry he 
 grew ; and presently he worked himself up to such a pitch, that 
 he seized all the bowlders, and hurled them across the Sound to 
 Connecticut. And, if you don't believe the story," said Carrie, 
 " you can go to Connecticut, and see them." 
 
 " It was a long ride over the Napeague meadows," said 
 Kate ; " and we tried to get our driver to tell us some other 
 story, to shorten the way. For six miles and more, the sand 
 was so heavy that our horses could go no faster than a walk. I 
 never saw such a picture of desolation. Great wastes of drifting 
 sand were on one side, with here and there a peep at the sea 
 through the dunes, and, on the other, long stretches of marshes,, 
 with sea-birds rising from them." 
 
 " You forget the mosquitoes," said Rose : " there were mil 
 lions of them." 
 
 " I am not likely to forget them in a hurry," said Kate rue 
 fully. 
 
 "And did not your driver tell you any other story?" asked 
 Mr. Longwood. 
 
 "No," said Lou. "The best he could think of was how
 
 286 
 
 A HUNDRED PLOVER IN ONE DAY. 
 
 Col. Somebody-or-other went shooting on the Montauk moors 
 last autumn, and bagged a hundred plover in a single day." 
 
 " That certainly was a sad falling-off, after so brilliant a be 
 ginning as the bowlder story," said Mr. Longwood. " There were 
 :some quite exciting scenes all about here in Revolutionary days. 
 
 After the battle of Long Island, when the defeated patriot troops 
 had made good their escape to the mainland, the whole island 
 fell under the British sway. And a great thing it was for the 
 British, too, that they did get possession of it ; for it was the 
 garden whence all the provisions for the army at New York 
 came. The Tories were only too glad to get high prices for their
 
 A WHALE-BOAT WARFARE. 28 7 
 
 cattle and produce at the New- York market ; and, if the unwill 
 ing patriots did not appear, a summary order from Sir Henry 
 Clinton, enforced by a detachment of soldiers, directing their 
 cattle to be brought in at once for sale, under penalty of imme 
 diate seizure, soon brought the helpless men to terms. Great 
 quantities of wood, too, were cut from the Montauk lands, and 
 carried off in sloops to New York, for barracks and for fire 
 wood. 
 
 " But the British did not have every thing their own way. 
 Of course, all who had been leaders among the Americans knew, 
 after that unfortunate battle, that matters would go hard with 
 them, if Sir Henry Clinton once got them in his clutches. So 
 they lost no time in escaping. They took their wives and their 
 children, and such of their household effects as they could get 
 together, and, hurrying them into whale-boats, crossed the Sound, 
 and found a refuge in Connecticut. And then began a guerilla 
 warfare. The farms of those who fled were often given to some 
 prominent Tory, as a reward. But few dared take possession 
 of them. He who did, presently received a notice to leave if 
 he would save his life. If he paid no heed to the warning, he 
 was visited, some dark and stormy night, by a party of armed 
 men. They had crossed the Sound in whale-boats, under the 
 leadership, perhaps, of the former owner of the lands ; and they 
 made small matter of burning the house over the ill-starred 
 loyalist's head. 
 
 " Many of those who did not take flight to Connecticut were 
 secretly in sympathy with the patriots. They gave them informa 
 tion as to the proper time for armed parties to make midnight
 
 2 88 SO, BOSSY! SO, BOSSY! 
 
 journeys in whale-boats across the Sound. They even bought 
 goods in the New- York markets, which were sent across to Con 
 necticut by these same whale-boats, thus bringing substantial aid 
 to the patriots. 
 
 " On the other hand, there were Tories on the mainland, who 
 much preferred good British gold pieces to the depreciated Con 
 tinental money, and who smuggled their cattle across to Long 
 Island, where some agent was sure to take them off their hands 
 at once. I remember a story of two men who tried to take a 
 fat steer across in this way. They tied him fast, so that he could 
 not struggle, and laid him in the bottom of a whale-boat, and 
 then, starting out as soon as darkness came, pulled manfully 
 away for Long Island. 
 
 " All went well till they got half-way across ; and then a rope 
 came unfast, so that the animal's hind-legs were loosened. The 
 beast struck out so vigorously, that the man in the stern had to 
 jump about with the greatest activity, to prevent his back and 
 legs from being broken. Encouraged by this partial success, the 
 animal made such play with his horns, that the man in the bow 
 lost no time in scrambling from his seat also. In this way they 
 passed the night in the middle of the Sound, one man in the 
 extreme bow, and one in the extreme stern, and between them 
 an active young steer, threatening to stave in the boat, and sink 
 them at any moment." 
 
 " I think I see them now," said Jack ecstatically. " ' So, 
 bossy ! so, bossy ! ' says one ; and then he steps forward, to catch 
 an end of the rope, when away go the heels, and back he scur 
 ries. What larks ! "
 
 A SKELETON STORY. 289 
 
 " What was the end of it all ? " asked Will. 
 
 " A patriot cruiser was in sight at daylight. The men had 
 no choice but to surrender ; and the unruly steer was speedily 
 taken on board, where the sailors highly praised his good taste 
 in refusing to be eaten by the enemies of his country." 
 
 " Those must have been wonderfully exciting times," said 
 Will. " What a chance for a few brave men, by some daring 
 deed, to gain a name ! " 
 
 ' There was one such man," said Mr. Longwood, " who must 
 have had quite a reputation at the time, though he has long 
 since been forgotten. I noticed, on a shelf in the other room, 
 while we were waiting for supper, a book which, if it be the 
 one I think it, is made up of extracts from the newspapers at 
 the time of the Revolution. Will you get it for me, Carrie, 
 please ? It is called ' Revolutionary Incidents of Long Island.' 
 Yes," said Mr. Longwood, as he took the book ; " it is as I 
 thought. I will read you a few extracts which give you, as it 
 were, the skeleton of the man's story. You can fill out the 
 details from your imagination. Here is the first mention I find 
 of him. It is from a patriot paper : 
 
 "'E. Dayton, under Capt. John Clark, by order of Putnam, seized, Apl. '77, 
 a wagon & goods on Long Island, the property of Oba Wright, of Saybrook.' 
 
 " The next is from a New- York Tory paper : 
 
 "'Sunday night, loth inst. (May, '78), 2 whale-boats, 7 men in each, came 
 to Blue Point, & took thence 5 boats lying there with oysters. This party was 
 commanded by one Dayton, from Corum, & were all well armed. They brought 
 their boats from the N. side of the Island, and sent their prizes to N. London.
 
 29 A PEDDLER TURNS PRIVATEER. 
 
 The head of the banditti who captured the five vessels thus loaded with lumber 
 -& produce, was Ebenezer Dayton, a noted pedler who lately lived at Corum." 
 
 " The next dates from New London, the port to which nearly 
 all prizes taken by the Americans were sent : 
 
 "'NEW LONDON, May 15. Sunday night last, 2 boats, under the command 
 of Capt. Dayton & Chester, with 14 men in both, went to L. I., and, carrying 
 one of the boats across a narrow part of the island at S. Hampton, they went 
 about sixty miles up the S. side of the island to Fire Island Inlet, & took pos 
 session of 5 sail of coasting vessels which lay there, laden with lumber, oysters, 
 household furniture, dry goods, provisions, &c. The prizes are all safe airived. 
 More might have been brought off, could they have manned them.' 
 
 " The records of the Maritime Court have preserved the names 
 of these unfortunate vessels. They were the ' Peggy,' ' Polly,' 
 * George/ ' Dalancey,' and ' Jacob ; ' and the proceeds of their 
 sale no doubt helped mightily to fill the empty pockets of Capt. 
 Dayton and his men." 
 
 " He would soon be rich, at that rate," said Charlie. 
 
 " He did not rest on his oars, at all events," said Mr. Long- 
 wood. " Here is a record only a week later : 
 
 "'NEW LONDON, May 22, '78. Tuesday night 8 whale-boats arrived here, 
 taken by Dayton, S. side of L. I.' 
 
 "'NEW LONDON, June 12, '78. Capt. E. Dayton, in an armed boat, carried 
 3 prizes into N. Haven, which he took- near Fire Island Inlet.' 
 
 " Our privateersman has now got on in the world," said Mr. 
 Longwood. " He commands an armed vessel, and not a mere 
 whale-boat. But he is about to come to grief. Hear this, from 
 a Tory paper in New York :
 
 CAPT. DAYTON COMES TO GRIEF. 
 
 291 
 
 THE CAPTURE OF THE RANGER. 
 
 " ' Capt. Eben Dayton, in the sloop Ranger, of 45 men, 6 carriage guns, and 
 12 swivels, blunderbusses, muskets, hand grenadoes (to throw on the deck of
 
 292 JACK DRAWS ON HIS IMAGINATION. 
 
 the vessel attacked as they run her aboard with whale-boats), was taken in South 
 Bay (Nov. 2Oth, '78), by Capt. Stout of a N. Y. Privateer, and brought to N. Y., 
 Wed. last.'" 
 
 " What a pity," said Will, " that the records are not more 
 full ! One would like so much to know how he was taken 
 whether by surprise, or by overpowering numbers, after a brave 
 fight." 
 
 " I am going to imagine," said Jack, " that he stood by his. 
 guns till the last, and that he was picked up out of the water 
 after his ship went down. But it is all up with him now. He 
 will be put in one of the sugar-houses that were used as prisons 
 in New York, for captured rebels ; and no man can live long 
 there. Why, they had to lie on a bare floor at night, so close 
 together that they were just like sardines in a box. If one 
 ached from his cramped position, he called out, and the whole 
 line had to turn over at the same time. Good-by, Capt. Eben 
 Dayton. That's the last of you." 
 
 " Don't dispose of him in quite so summary a manner," said 
 Mr. Longwood. " Here is another newspaper extract : 
 
 "'Auc. 28, '79. Aug. 14, a party of about 20 rebels made their appearance 
 at Corum. The well-known Eben Dayton was at the head of this party.' 
 
 " So you see, Master Jack, that he certainly did not end his 
 days as you proposed, for here he is at liberty again. And that 
 is all I have been able to find about him. 
 
 " But, Rose," said Mr. Longwood, " I broke right in, with my 
 Revolutionary reminiscences, on your account of your ride here. 
 It was very thoughtless of me." 
 
 N
 
 THE WILD ROLLING MOORS. 
 
 2 93 
 
 " Oh ! your story was a thousand times better," said Rose ; 
 " and beside, I had nothing- to say. Our driver, you remember, 
 could only tell about bagging plover." 
 
 " There was a lovely view backward," said Lou, " as we left 
 Napeague, and climbed the highlands. Below us, we saw the 
 salt meadows with the sea-birds flying over them, while on one 
 side lay the ocean, and on the other the Sound. We should 
 have stayed for hours, looking, if our driver had not hurried us, 
 so as to reach here before dark." 
 
 A LOOK BACK. 
 
 " And the moors were lovely," said Carrie. " I wanted to 
 run all the way. There was not a fence nor a stone ; only the 
 wild rolling moors, with thousands of cattle on them." 
 
 " And we came on a desolate little graveyard," said Gertrude, 
 <( on a hillside looking down on the ocean. Nearly every grave 
 was marked by a quantity of rough stones piled about it. They
 
 294 
 
 WHERE SHALL WE SLEEP TO-NIGHT f 
 
 told us that unknown mariners, lost on the coast, were buried 
 there. How sad it seemed for them to be lying in their last 
 long sleep in an unknown grave, apart alike from dead or living 
 friends, in these lonely solitudes ! " 
 
 " By the way," said Jack, after a minute, breaking in on the 
 sober silence that had followed Gertrude's words, "where are all 
 we fellows to sleep to-night ? This tiny house can never hold 
 us." 
 
 " That is indeed a serious question," said Mr. Longwood, as 
 they rose from the table ; " and we must give it prompt atten 
 tion."
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 AN examination into the anatomy of the 
 house showed that Jack's assertion that they 
 could never all find sleeping-quarters in it 
 was true indeed. At first the situation ap 
 peared rather depressing, particularly as their 
 landlady could suggest nothing other than that the boys should 
 lie on the sitting-room floor. Matters looked brighter, however, 
 when Tom suggested, 
 
 " Why not try the barn ? " 
 
 The boys all received this plan with decided approval ; and 
 Thomas John gave it as his opinion, that a hay-mow was equal 
 to a spring-mattress any day ; and that decided the matter. 
 
 So, half an hour later, you might have seen them stumbling- 
 along the path through the pitchy blackness, which was only 
 made more black by the fitful glimmer of the lantern that 
 swung from Thomas John's hand. What a wild night it was 
 growing ! The clouds had come up in great masses, so that not 
 a star was visible. The wind was blowing furiously, threatening 
 every instant to put out their light ; and the whole air was dank 
 with spray from the sea, that was lashing itself to fury on the 
 sands. 
 
 295
 
 296 A NASTY NIGHT AT SEA. 
 
 " It is a nasty night at sea," said Will. 
 
 " Yes," said Thomas John ; "I am glad " 
 
 The cause of Thomas John's gladness, the boys could only 
 guess ; for at that moment he tripped over an unseen stone, 
 and, striving to recover his balance, pitched wildly forward, and 
 disappeared through the barn-door with lightning-like suddenness, 
 
 They followed, laughing, and looked about their new bed 
 room. 
 
 " It is going to pour presently," said the practical Tom ; " and 
 the building is very old. The roof probably leaks. Therefore 
 we shall fare better if we pitch some hay down on the floor ; 
 for there is a mow above it which will shield us." 
 
 " I'll pitch it down," said Thomas John, " in a minute. 
 " But, if the rain does come, it will drive through the cracks on 
 this side of the barn, toward the storm, and wet us thoroughly. 
 Here are a hammer and some nails. Now, if we can only find 
 some old horse-blankets, you might nail them up while I pitch 
 down the hay." 
 
 The horse-blankets were found, and nailed up ; the floor was 
 piled deep with hay ; and in a few minutes the boys, thoroughly 
 tired with their long day's excitement, were so soundly asleep 
 that they never even stirred when the expected rain did come 
 clattering and stamping on the old roof above them, with a 
 tremendous uproar. 
 
 It must have been seven o'clock before any one stirred. The 
 horses in their stalls rose from their sleep, and, stretching their 
 heads over their mangers, took stolen mouthfuls from the boys' 
 beds, which they munched with great satisfaction. At length the
 
 THOMAS JOHN A WAKES. 297 
 
 one near Thomas John, growing bolder, decided to find out for 
 himself why a man was lying there so quietly, when, according 
 *o all equine experience, he should have been moving about, 
 getting him his breakfast. So he stretched his moist nose as far 
 forward as he could, and smelled all over Thomas John's face, 
 ending up with a snort of astonishment directly in his ear. 
 
 It is unnecessary to say that this manoeuvre was perfectly 
 successful, and that Thomas John awoke. 
 
 His rising awoke the rest ; and together they shook the hay 
 seeds from their hair, and forced open the great doors on the 
 leeward side of the barn. The prospect was no whit pleasanter 
 than it had been the night before. The wind whistled and 
 shrieked louder than ever, and the rain came in such blinding 
 torrents that one could not see more than a hundred feet away. 
 
 "It is a pity that we did not bring our towels with us," said 
 Ned. " We could have a shower-bath by simply putting our 
 heads out of doors." 
 
 " There is a great tub standing under the spout from the 
 roof," said Will. " No one can see us here ; and I, for one, 
 vote for a bath. We can get our towels from the house ; and 
 we'll feel better for it all day." 
 
 Thomas John, who had been rummaging about the dark 
 corners of the barn, hereupon appeared, attired in a yellow tar 
 paulin suit which he had found hanging on a peg, and volun 
 teered to bring from the house any toilet-articles they wished. 
 
 " Find out when breakfast will be ready," called the boys 
 after him, " and how all our party are." 
 
 Thomas John speedily re-appeared, and the ablutions in the
 
 298 A STARTLING QUESTION. 
 
 big tub under the sheltered side of the barn began. The storm, 
 he told them, as they rubbed themselves down and dressed about 
 him, was tremendous. The wind was terrific. It had seized him 
 in an unguarded moment, and flattened him out so vigorously 
 against the side of the house, that, if a lull had not come, he 
 thought he should have been spread, like butter on bread, all 
 over the side of the building. " Like that sheepskin there," he 
 added, pointing to one nailed on the barn-door. 
 
 After breakfast, their situation came up for discussion. 
 ' I think we had much better sit at the table all day," said 
 Jack disconsolately. " There are so many of us, that, if we get 
 up, the room will not hold us." 
 
 " Why not all go out to the barn again ? " said Mr. Long- 
 wood. " The great floor is dry, you say, and we can find room 
 there." 
 
 So, wrapped in all manner 'of strange waterproof garments, 
 Mrs. Longwood and the girls were safely escorted out. They 
 found Thomas John and the cattle-keeper sitting on a box, both 
 whittling away for dear life. Jack, as usual, began the conversa 
 tion ; and, as usual, his question to the cattle-keeper was a 
 startling one. 
 
 " Do any corpses ever come ashore here ? " he asked. 
 
 " What a question, Jack ! " said Carrie. " Of course not ! 
 Where could they come from ? " 
 
 " Shipwrecks at sea," said Jack. " Do they, Mr. Cattle- 
 keeper ? " * 
 
 " Fourteen came ashore right in front of the house, in a 
 single morning," said the man. " It was after the wreck of
 
 AN UNLUCKY SHIP. 299 
 
 1 The Circassian.' That was a dreadful time. Twenty-eight lives 
 were lost. The ship was wrecked at Bridgehampton, more than 
 twenty miles west, and the bodies were brought here by the 
 current." 
 
 " Tell us about it," said the boys, while the girls drew into 
 the circle, though with rather disquieted faces. 
 
 " Oh ! I am no story-teller," said the cattle-keeper. " And, 
 beside, I know of it only by hearsay. Mr. Longwood knows 
 far more than I do, no doubt." 
 
 So Mr. Longwood was urged to tell the story, and began, 
 
 " ' The Circassian ' went ashore on the bar close to the life- 
 saving station at Bridgehampton." 
 
 " Was she a steamer ? " asked 'Ned. 
 
 " No ; though she had been originally. During the Rebellion 
 she was a blockade-runner. She was an unlucky ship, from the 
 first. She was captured by a man-of-war, at the outset of her 
 unlawful career. After being sold as a prize, she went ashore 
 twice ; but each time the wrecking companies brought her off. 
 At last she was bought by some Englishmen, who changed her 
 to a sailing-ship. It was her first voyage as a sailing-ship, and 
 when on her way to New York, that she went ashore." 
 
 " Was she a large ship ? " asked Will. 
 
 " Yes," said Mr. Longwood. " She was nearly three hundred 
 feet long, if I remember rightly. Her size was against her, in 
 one way ; for she drew twenty feet, and grounded four hundred 
 yards from shore, where no ball from a mortar could reach her." 
 
 " How do you mean, about a ball from a mortar ? " asked 
 Rose.
 
 300 MR. LONG WOOD EXPLAINS. 
 
 " Every life-saving station is furnished with a small mortar, 
 or cannon," said Mr. Longwood. " When a ship goes ashore, 
 and the surf is so heavy that a boat cannot be launched, the 
 mortar, which is packed in a two-wheeled car, is dragged down 
 to the very edge of the surf. Then it is loaded with a conical 
 shot, to which a very light but very strong rope is fastened. It 
 
 CARRYING A LINE ABOARD, THE NEW WAY. 
 
 is, perhaps, more like a cord than a rope. This cord is coiled 
 by the side of the cannon, and when all is ready the gun is fired. 
 The ball flies through the air over the ship, if all goes well, and 
 the line drops on the deck." 
 
 " But how does having a line to the ship help matters ? " 
 asked Kate.
 
 THE BREECHES BUOY. 
 
 301 
 
 " The men on the vessel haul in the line, to the end of which 
 the life-crew have made fast a 
 much heavier one, so that soon 
 there is quite a strong cable 
 from the wreck to the shore. 
 A board, on which is painted 
 directions in several languages, 
 has been tied to the rope, and 
 hauled in with it ; and from this 
 the crew learn that they are to 
 carry their end of the cable 
 high up the mast, and make it 
 fast there. On the cable thus 
 stretched, runs, on a pulley, a 
 sort of seat, called the breeches 
 buoy, which is dragged back and 
 forth between ship and shore, 
 by guide-ropes ; and in this the 
 wrecked crew are brought safely 
 to land." 
 
 " They must get a precious 
 ducking, if the rope sags," said 
 Jack. 
 
 " I dare say they often do," 
 said Mr. Long-wood ; "but com- 
 
 o 
 
 ing ashore wet is better than 
 drowning on the bar." 
 
 " What a vast advance the use of the mortar is," said Mrs. 
 
 THE BREECHES BUOY.
 
 302 THOMAS JOHN COMES TO THE FORE. 
 
 Longwood, " over the times when the only way to get a line to 
 a ship was by means of some brave fellow, who tied the rope 
 about him, and swam out to the vessel in distress, in most cases 
 at the risk, if not loss, of his life ! " 
 
 " No man living could get through the Long-Island surf in 
 the gales that I have seen," said Thomas John. " He would be 
 beaten to death by the waves, in no time. It was so the night 
 4 The Circassian ' struck." 
 
 " Were you there ? " they all cried. 
 
 " I was on the next station," said Thomas John ; " but we 
 were sent for, to help." 
 
 Mr. Longwood found, all at once, that he was deserted, and 
 that Thomas John was the centre of attraction. 
 
 "Tell us all about it," said Jack. "What kind of weather 
 was it ? " 
 
 " Bad as could be. Wind north-east, blowing a gale, and 
 the air so full of snow that we could not make her out well 
 enough to use the mortar, even if she had been within range. 
 And no boat made could have lived in the surf that was run 
 ning. There was nothing to be done but wait for daylight. 
 
 " When that came, the snow held up a little, and matters 
 looked better. The sea had been pounding her on the bar, and 
 had driven her shoreward quite a ways ; and the tide had gone 
 out, so that the beach was not under water, and we could bring 
 the mortar forward. We had good luck, for the third shot fell 
 plump on her deck ; and in a little while we had the buoy all 
 rigged, ready to run them ashore. 
 
 " But, when that was done, we found that the surf had gone
 
 CARRYING A LINE ABOARD, THE OLD WAY.
 
 A HAPPY RELEASE. 
 
 35 
 
 down enough to launch a boat ; and so, in six or seven trips, 
 we brought the whole forty men safely ashore." 
 
 " But I thought they were all drowned," said Gertrude, in 
 astonishment. 
 
 " That was later," said Thomas John ; " when the Coast 
 Wrecking Company were trying to get the ship off. It was 
 
 LAUNCHING THE SURF-BOAT. 
 
 nearly three weeks after she went ashore, before she broke up. 
 All this time, the Wrecking Company were hard at work. A 
 gang of men were landing cargo, to lighten her. Then, they 
 had anchors sunk out to sea, and carried hawsers from them 
 aboard. By keeping a strain on these hawsers, they dragged her 
 out a few feet, every high tide. But what they wanted was a
 
 3 6 THE LINE IS CAST OFF. 
 
 regular gale. Then the seas would come in high enough to lift 
 her clear off the bar, and they could drag her out, and get away 
 under sail. So they worked for dear life, and hoped for a storm. 
 As she lay, every day made her chances worse ; for the sand 
 banked up about her, and she was in danger of breaking in two. 
 Being aground in the middle, with both ends in deep water, the 
 strain was tremendous ; and, being an iron ship, of course she 
 would break much quicker than a wooden one. 
 
 " The storm came ; but it was more than they bargained for. 
 It was just at the end of December. Before noon, on that day, 
 the gang of men who had been shifting cargo came ashore, and 
 the line to the beach was cast off." 
 
 " That would seem to have been a strange thing to do," said 
 Mr. Longwood. 
 
 " It cost them their lives," said Thomas John. " It was this 
 way : The Wrecking Company were determined to get the ship 
 off. They believed that she was strong enough to stand any 
 surf; and they had an idea, that, if the line were there, some of 
 the crew might get frightened, and make for shore, just at a 
 time when their leaving would block the whole thing. So they 
 cast off the line. But it was not a storm that came : it was a 
 tornado." 
 
 The girls and boys all drew a little nearer. 
 
 " Late that day, the life-saving crew at Bridgehampton made 
 out that all was not right aboard. They could see her, half 
 buried in foam and spray, and she was rolling and pounding ; 
 but her hawsers had been slacked, and that meant that they had 
 given up trying to get her off. Something had gone wrong,
 
 THE VESSEL BREAKS IN TWO. 
 
 37 
 
 that was certain. We found out afterwards that she had broken
 
 3 8 A FEARFUL NIGHT. 
 
 her back. Still no one ashore felt uneasy (for they knew how 
 strong she was) until about eight o'clock, when they made out 
 that one of her masts was gone. That showed that she was 
 breaking up ; and then the life-crew at Bridgehampton sent for 
 help to the other stations. 
 
 " I remember that I had just come off my beat, and was 
 turning in, thankful enough that my work for the night was 
 over, when we heard a horseman coming at full gallop, to call 
 us. 
 
 " As soon as the mast went, the life-saving crew tried to 
 get a line aboard. But it was no use. You know how the 
 Long-Island beach looks, back of the sea a broad stretch 
 of sand, two or three hundred feet wide, and back of that the 
 sand-hills. Well, that night all the sand was covered, and the 
 waves came lashing up the sand-hills, sweeping over them, 
 and cutting sluiceways clean through them. It was fearful to 
 see. The mortar had to be fired from the top of the sand-hills ; 
 and, in the teeth of such a wind as was blowing, the ball did 
 not begin to reach the ship. Besides, the wet sand blew so that 
 it would bury the line before it could be coiled, and it was so 
 cold, that at times it froze stiff. 
 
 " The crew had long since taken to the rigging ; for every 
 sea made a clean breach over her. 
 
 " And then a most uncommon thing happened. The wind 
 had been blowing from the sou'-east, and all at once it chopped 
 around into the sou'-west, and blew a perfect whirlwind. It made 
 a sea, the like of which I never saw before, or after. Overhead, 
 the clouds were torn apart by the gale, and went sweeping
 
 FOUR MEN ARE SA VED. 39 
 
 across the sky like mad ; and now and then the moon shone 
 between their ragged edges, so that we could see better. We 
 kept the mortar going all the time ; but, from the start, it was 
 no use. 
 
 " Close on to midnight the tide was low, so that the ship's 
 deck was no longer under water. We saw a light on it, and 
 made out that the men were changing to the mast nearest shore. 
 By three o'clock, the mast they had left was gone, the vessel 
 had broke clean in two, and the for'ard part had sunk in the 
 deep water outside the bar. A little after that, the one they 
 were on began to careen. We could hear them shout for help, 
 above the wind and surf. Slowly it settled, lower and lower, till 
 jt went under, and the cries ceased." 
 
 The girls all drew a long breath of horror. 
 
 " But did none of them escape ? " asked Rose. 
 
 " Four men got ashore," said Thomas John ; " and that was 
 the strangest part of the whole business. It was all owing to 
 the pluck of one of them. When the mast went down, we 
 scattered along the beach to the eastward, on the bare chance ; 
 but not a soul ever dreamed that any one could live in such a 
 sea. However, the ship's first mate had forecasted what he would 
 do if the ship broke up. He was as strong as a giant, the 
 finest-built man I ever met. While the others were running 
 around, kind o' terror-stricken, he and the second mate cut out 
 from under the seats of one of the ship's boats a piece of cork 
 buoy. It was cigar-shaped, and about five feet long. They 
 rigged it with ropes, through which an arm could be thrust, and 
 lugged it up into the rigging with them.
 
 310 A WONDERFUL ESCAPE. 
 
 " When the mast went under, they grabbed it, and jumped 
 as far towards shore as they could. A sailor, struggling in the 
 water, got hold with them ; and one of the Wrecking Company's 
 men, who came up alongside, also managed to reach it. Then 
 the first mate ordered them to lock legs underneath. This held 
 them together, and turned them into a kind of craft, that he 
 took command of. When a big wave was coming, he'd give the 
 order, ' Hold hard ! ' and, when it had gone by, ' Ease up, and 
 breathe ! ' When they got in towards shore, he loosened his 
 legs, and sounded, telling them, ' After next wave, run ! ' A big 
 sea pitched them well up the beach, and they tried to run, as it 
 swept back ; but they were too far gone, and would have been 
 dragged out in the undertow, and killed, if the life-saving men 
 had not rushed in, and dragged them back." 
 
 " What a hero that man must have been ! " said two or three ; 
 and Mrs. Longwood asked, " Did they all live ? " 
 
 " Yes," said Thomas John. " They came ashore nearly a 
 mile to eastward of the wreck, though they thought they had 
 not been in the water more than three minutes. It was so cold, 
 that, before we could carry them to the station, they were cased 
 in ice. One man was very low, and for a day or so we did 
 not think he could live ; but the first mate was smoking his 
 pipe by the fire, a half-hour afterward." 
 
 " And they were all that were saved," said Mrs. Longwood ; 
 " and twenty-eight lost." 
 
 " Ten of the men were Indians, who were working for the 
 Wrecking Company. They were the pick of the Shinnecocks, 
 and their death was a great blow to the tribe. Some of the
 
 ANOTHER TALE OF THE SEA. 3*3 
 
 lost, too, were hardly more than boys. They were a sort of 
 apprentices, in the same position in the merchant-service that 
 midshipmen are in the navy, I fancy. The captain was urged to 
 leave them ashore ; but he said their place was aboard." 
 
 " Poor boys ! " said Mrs. Longwood sadly. " I am thinking 
 of their mothers." 
 
 " There was a very strange shipwreck on the Jersey coast, a 
 few months after the loss of ' The Circassian,' " said Mr. Long- 
 wood. " It was a schooner, if I remember rightly, ' The Margaret 
 and Lucy.' The patrolman on the beach, about eight o'clock in 
 the evening, saw, down the coast before him, a bright light like 
 a torch. While he was looking, it went out. He hurried on as 
 fast as possible, through the driving rain, and saw, about three 
 hundred yards out from the shore, a red and a green fight, one 
 only a few feet above the other. He at once burned the red 
 light with which each patrol is furnished, to give notice to those 
 on board that they had been seen ; but not a sound was heard, 
 nor was there any signal in response. So he made all speed 
 back to his station, to report. A man was sent at once to the 
 spot, to watch, while the rest of the crew dragged the mortar- 
 car slowly through the sand. 
 
 " All at once the man on guard saw the lights disappear ; 
 the next moment came the sound of a crash from the sea ; and 
 that was all that was ever seen of ' The Margaret and Lucy,' 
 except the pieces of wreckage that lined the beach for miles, 
 the next morning." 
 
 " Why, what an extraordinary thing ! " said Will. 
 
 " The pieces that came ashore," said Mr. Longwood, " were
 
 GERTRUDE TIRES OF HORRORS. 
 
 broken into bits, and thoroughly decayed. It was believed that 
 the ship was so rotten, that, when she struck the bar, her bot 
 tom rubbed off, and that she sank before the crew had a chance 
 to save themselves. The torch was thought to have been lighted 
 by them when she first struck, and its almost instant disappear 
 ance showed how quickly she sank. The red and green lights. 
 were those in the rigging. Seven lives were lost in this catas 
 trophe." 
 
 " Dear me ! " said Gertrude : "we have had enough of horrors. 
 Do let us have something cheerful." 
 
 "I think so too," said Carrie. "What say you to a game?" 
 
 A game was decided on ; and girls and boys were soon scaling 
 ladders, and hiding in mows. And such good fun did they find 
 it, that, before they realized it, the morning had gone, and they 
 were called to dinner. 
 
 " There is one thing that always provokes me," said Carrie, 
 as they sat about the table ; " and that is, that, in these stories 
 that one hears of deeds of bravery, a man is always the hero. 
 Just as if women never did brave things ! Women do just as 
 many, I believe, only they don't talk of them. But, for a 
 change, I would like to hear one in which a woman was the 
 heroine." 
 
 " My great-grandmother " began Jack. 
 
 But he got no farther than the word " great-grandmother ; " 
 for, at that, every one broke out laughing. Jack had often 
 boasted of a great-grandmother of his, and of some bold deed 
 which she had once done. But, though many a time urged to 
 tell the tale, something had always happened to prevent, and the
 
 NIGHT PATROL BURNING THE RED LIGHT.
 
 JACK TELLS THE STORY OF HIS GREAT-GRANDMOTHER. 317 
 
 subject had come to be regarded as a great joke. Carrie had 
 even suggested that her name was Harris, and had openly stated 
 that she didn't " believe there was no sich a person." 
 
 Jack flushed at the laughter, and looked very indignant. 
 
 " What was it you were going to say, Jack ? " asked Mr. 
 Longwood kindly. 
 
 " I was only going to say, sir," he replied, with considerable 
 dignity, " that my great-grandmother was a woman." 
 
 At this, there was such another peal of merriment that Jack's 
 wrath was kindled afresh, and he declared that he would never tell 
 the story anyway. But, seeing that his feelings were really hurt, 
 they all set to work to appease him, with such good results that 
 presently he began. 
 
 " Some fellow has worked it into poetry," he said ; " so here 
 goes : 
 
 SIXTY YEARS AFTER. 
 
 ' Hark, hark ! I hear the sound of hoofs : 
 
 'Tis the British horse. Hide ! flee ! ' 
 ' Nay, Grand-dame, lay aside your fears : 
 The British horse, these sixty years, 
 
 Have been across the sea. 
 'Tis but some traveller of a night : 
 You're by your fireside warm and bright.' 
 
 ' Ay, so I am. My thoughts were back 
 
 In those days of war and flight. 
 Once more my blood seemed chill with fear, 
 At those loud hoof-beats drawing near, 
 
 As on that dreadful night,
 
 318 A WOMAN'S WIT. 
 
 When, roused from sleep, I heard the shout, 
 " Come forth, you rebel, or be burned out ! " 
 
 ' Who was the rebel ? Your grandsire, child ; 
 
 A major of rebels, he. 
 To see his wife, he'd stolen home, 
 Near British posts. They learned he'd come, 
 
 Through Tory treachery. 
 They stayed to see the burned house fall; 
 But woman's wit outmatched them all. 
 
 ' Down to the door, half choked with smoke, 
 Where their captain stood, I went; 
 
 " You fight not women, sir," I said : 
 
 " To move my mother, ill in bed, 
 Give us, at least, consent." 
 
 On her feather-bed we bore her out, 
 
 Half dead with fright at that wild rout. 
 
 ' Not a man there would lend a hand : 
 
 So the bed dragged on the ground. 
 Your grandsire, crouching, crept along, 
 Safe underneath, through the wild throng 
 
 That jeering stood around. 
 As the roof fell, they laughed, and said, 
 " One rebel more has joined the dead." 
 
 'Then, mounting steeds, they rode away, 
 
 And I laughed aloud in glee ; 
 For what cared I for roof-tree burned, 
 And household goods to ashes turned? 
 
 My rebel was safe for me. 
 But still the tramp of horses' feet 
 At night makes my heart cease to beat.' "
 
 ANOTHER DAY IS OVER. 3*9 
 
 They lingered about the table for a long time, discussing 
 Jack's story, and talking of one thing and another. At length 
 Will, looking out of the window, exclaimed, 
 
 " Why, it's stopped raining ! and I think the wind has hauled. 
 I shouldn't wonder if it cleared." 
 
 A rush to the door followed ; and there they found that his 
 surmise was true ; for away in the west, on the horizon's edge, 
 was a streak of pale-blue sky, while the heavy clouds overhead 
 were beginning to break away and to hurry seaward. 
 
 With exclamations of satisfaction, the boys seized their hats, 
 and rushed out. Every thing was dripping wet ; but the girls 
 donned their wraps, and joined them, and all went together to 
 ward the beach, where the sea was rolling in with fearful fury. 
 There was a strange fascination in watching the waves, as, one 
 after another, they drew nearer, and finally snapped themselves 
 out, with a report like a cannon, and disappeared in a shower 
 of spray. 
 
 Toward evening they took a stroll across the moors, which 
 brought them home to supper with wet feet and rousing appe 
 tites. And, by the time the clock struck nine that night, every 
 boy and girl was fast asleep, and another day was over.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THE sun was 
 well out of his wa 
 tery bed before the 
 boys awoke the 
 next morning. In 
 the crisp Septem 
 ber air, blowing in 
 fresh gusts down from the New-England hills, every object stood 
 out clear and distinct. Jack, as he put his head out of the barn 
 door, even insisted that he could see the Connecticut shore ; 
 but, as there was quite a hill between him and that somewhat 
 distant land, I am inclined to think that he must have been 
 mistaken. 
 
 There was no great shower-bath pouring from the roof OD 
 this morning ; but the large tub was full, and, by the aid of a 
 pail, a fair substitute for yesterday's plunge was had. Then, 
 finding that it was still a good hour until breakfast, and that no 
 one of their party at the house was stirring, the boys decided to 
 work off their superfluous energy by a long walk down the 
 beach. 
 
 " Perhaps we may find a corpse or two," said Jack, skipping 
 320
 
 TOM HAS A PRESENTIMENT. 
 
 321 
 
 "1 
 
 for lightness of heart, "and around its waist a money-bag stuffed 
 with gold and jewels." 
 
 So, now walking, now running, and now stopping short, they 
 soon were out of sight. 
 
 Presently, as they were looking seaward, where a full-rigged 
 ship was flying along with all canvas spread, one of them chanced 
 to glance over his 
 shoulder. On the 
 road across the moors, 
 some distance away, he 
 saw a man on horse 
 back, moving along at 
 good speed. They all 
 watched him for a 
 moment, when Tom 
 said, 
 
 " I'll wager any 
 thing that he has 
 come to bring a mes 
 sage to papa. I feel 
 it in my bones. Let's 
 go back." 
 
 Off they all start- 
 
 TOM HURRIES BACK. 
 
 ed ; but Tom was so 
 
 much impressed by his fancy, that he strode on at a pace that 
 
 left the others out of sight, and brought him to the house 
 
 breathless. 
 
 Sure enough, he found the man sitting on his horse, talking
 
 322 A TELEGRAM ARRIVES. 
 
 to his father. Mr. Long-wood had apparently been called down 
 from his room unexpectedly, for his coat was loosely thrown on, 
 and his hair dishevelled. 
 
 THE MAN FROM EASTHAMPTON. 
 
 " O Tom ! " he said, "I am glad to see you. Perhaps you 
 can suggest some way out of the difficulty. This man brings 
 me a telegram from my clerk in New York, saying that there
 
 BREAKFAST IS READY. 323 
 
 are some papers there requiring my immediate attention. I am 
 afraid that I must go back, and leave you." 
 
 " That would be awful," said Tom, " and spoil all our fun. 
 Let me see. I have it ! Telegraph him to meet you at New 
 London to-morrow. It would be a jolly sail across ; and we 
 could get back that same evening." 
 
 " I believe you've hit the very thing," said Mr. Longwood. 
 " I'll go in, and write the despatch." 
 
 While he was gone, Tom climbed the fence, and opened 
 conversation with the messenger. 
 
 " Where did you get the telegram ? " asked he. 
 
 " Your man fetched it to Easthampton yesterday. He laid 
 out to hire a horse there to bring him on. I thought I'd kind 
 o' interrogate him 'bout the road ; and found he'd never been 
 over it. So I told him, that, if the thing must go, I'd take it 
 myself; but I didn't propose to have one of my horses bogged 
 in the Napeague marshes. And 'twas lucky I did ; for no green 
 hand 'ud ever got through. Half the road was washed clean 
 away. I got to House No. i at dark, and come on first thing 
 this morning." 
 
 At this point the other boys hurried up, and Mr. Longwood 
 came out with the despatch. 
 
 "Now, then," he said, as the man rode away, after buttoning 
 it up in his coat, " I must make haste, and get ready for break 
 fast. Our landlady told me that she was just putting it . on the 
 table. Kate and Carrie are down by the beach. Will one of 
 you call them ? " 
 
 " I will," said Jack ; and he set off on a run toward where
 
 3 2 4 
 
 A TERRIBLE CALAMITY AVERTED. 
 
 the two could be seen standing on a little bluff overlooking the 
 sea. As he came close to them he stopped, and a look of mis 
 chief came over his face. 
 
 " Girls," he said, in a steady voice, " be calm ! Don't be 
 frightened. But get away from that bluff as quickly and quietly 
 
 as you can. This whole shore 
 is washing away at a fearful 
 rate." 
 
 Involuntarily Kate dropped 
 her arms from Carrie, and both 
 hurried backward. But they 
 had not gone a dozen feet, 
 before they stopped with some 
 what sheepish faces. Then 
 Carrie turned upon Jack, who 
 had thrown himself down on 
 the grass, and was rolling over 
 and over in an ecstasy of de 
 light. 
 
 " You wicked boy ! " she 
 said. " You told a story ! " 
 " I did not," said Jack. " I read a book on Long Island, the 
 morning before I left New York ; and it said that it was esti 
 mated that two thousand tons of soil were washed away from 
 Montauk every day." 
 
 The sound of a bell from the house put a speedy end to 
 Carrie's indignation, and together they all hurried thither. 
 
 Breakfast and prayers over, there ensued a scene of bustle 
 
 CARRIE AND KATE.
 
 CAPTAIN JACKSON ESCORTS THEM ABOARD. 325 
 
 It had been decided that all were to go aboard " The Mavis," 
 and sail to the point. Should the sea be smooth, they might 
 perhaps go a little way out. They could, in any case, easily 
 make a landing at the light-house, and take dinner there. 
 
 Mr. Cattle-keeper, as Jack called him, had been interviewed 
 on the subject that morning, and had promised to take them all 
 down Fort Pond in his sail-boat, so that there would be only a 
 few hundred feet to walk to " The Mavis." And so, when they 
 reached the northern end of the pond, they found Capt. Jackson 
 standing on the shore to welcome them, while one of the sailors 
 was in the schooner's boat, waiting to put them aboard. 
 
 " Well," said the captain, as he shook hands all around, 
 " you don't seem to have been damaged by the storm. No top 
 masts gone, no sails split; every thing taut and ship-shape. 
 That's hearty. You did well to get ashore, boys," he went on. 
 " The cabin of ' The Mavis ' wasn't big enough for me yester 
 day ; and what we should have all done, shut up in her, I don't 
 know. Who goes aboard first ? Ladies, of course." 
 
 So saying, the captain helped Mrs. Longwood and two or 
 three of the girls into the small boat, and, taking his place in 
 the stern, was pulled out to " The Mavis," where they all got 
 on board, while the boat went back for the others. Then he 
 brought up an armful of rugs from some unseen locker, and 
 spread them on the deck, where Mrs. Longwood would be shel 
 tered from the wind. 
 
 Meanwhile the rest were come, the boat was hauled up, the 
 sails were raised, and " The Mavis " was once more under way. 
 How lightly she flew along, lying well over, and throwing back
 
 326 GERTRUDE WISHES TO FLY. 
 
 in spray the waves that came rolling up under her bow ! There 
 was life and vigor in her every motion. " I feel as if I could 
 fly," said Gertrude. " I know now just how clouds feel ; " and 
 she broke out singing, 
 
 THE SONG OF A CLOUD. 
 
 From afar, by wild, hot, west winds driven, 
 
 Have I come with flying feet ; 
 O'er mountain, forest, and broad farm-fields, 
 
 Scorched in the summer heat. 
 But now I see the breakers gleam, 
 
 And the white surf dashing free, 
 And I catch the sound of a sea-bird's scream : 
 
 Yo, ho ! for the open sea ! 
 
 Once more I breathe the strong salt air, 
 
 While around the sea-gulls fly; 
 And the stormy petrel rocks below, 
 
 Where the tossing waves dash high. 
 And the great white ships, with all sails spread, 
 
 Leave, the land upon the lea; 
 And the wild winds, rollicking, cry aloud : 
 
 Yo, ho ! for the open sea ! 
 
 By and by they began to see before them the end of the 
 island. The great white light-house towering high above the 
 cliffs had long been in sight, but now they could look out into 
 the ocean. A fleet of small craft lay there, pitching up and 
 down in the heavy swell that came in from the sea. 
 
 " What are all those boats doing ? " asked Rose.
 
 MR. LONGWOOD ASKS A QUESTION. 
 
 327 
 
 " Fishing," said Capt. Jackson. " There is no place in the 
 world like this for fish. You have only to put in a line, and 
 
 A FISHING-BOAT OFF MONTAUK POINT. 
 
 pull up a fish. These boats, many of them, come from New Lon 
 don, and stay out here for days." 
 
 " Do the fish bite here now on Sundays ? " asked Mr. Long- 
 wood.
 
 328 A PRAYING AND A PIOUS COMPANY. 
 
 " Didn't they always ? " asked the captain. 
 
 " I have a book at home," said Mr. Longwood, " called 
 * Magnalia Christi.' It was written by a very eminent, if not the 
 most eminent, minister of New England, in the old colonial days. 
 In it you will find a passage something like this : 
 
 1 "'On the 1 6th of October, in this present year 1697, there arrived at New 
 Haven a sloop of about fifty tuns, whereof Mr. William Trowbridge was master: 
 the vessel belonged unto New Haven, the persons on board were seven ; and sev 
 enteen long weeks had they now spent since they came from their port, which 
 was Fayal. By so unusually tedious a passage, a terrible famine unavoidably came 
 upon them ; & for the five last weeks of their voyage they were so destitute of all 
 food, that thro' faintness they would have chosen death rather than life. But they 
 were a praying & a pious company ; and when " these poor men cried unto the 
 Lord, he heard & saved them." God sent his dolphins to attend 'em; and of 
 these they caught still one every day, which was enough to serve 'em : only on 
 Saturdays they still catched a couple : and on the Lord's Days they could catch 
 none at all. With all possible skill & care they could not supply themselves with 
 the fish in any other number or order; and indeed with an holy blush at last they 
 left off trying to do any thing on the Lord's Days, when they were so well sup- 
 ply'd on the Saturdays. 
 
 " ' Thus the Lord kept feeding a company that put their trust in him, as he 
 did his Israel with his manna : and thus they continu'd until the dolphins came 
 to that change of water, where they us'd to leave the vessels. Then they so 
 strangely surrendered themselves, that the company took twenty-seven of 'em; 
 which not only suffic'd them until they came ashore, but also some of 'em were 
 brought ashore dry'd, as a monument of the divine benignity.' " 
 
 The effect of this story on Capt. Jackson was peculiar. He 
 
 1 As Mr. Longwood was not quite exact in the wording of this passage, we have asked 
 Tom Longwood to copy it out of the book, and give it here just as it was written.
 
 A FISH-STORY. 
 
 329 
 
 turned toward the boys, put his tongue in his cheek, and winked 
 three distinct winks. 
 
 Mr. Long-wood looked up, and saw him. 
 
 " Then you don't believe it ? " he asked. 
 
 " I didn't say that," said the captain ; " but it sounds to me 
 a good deal like 
 a fish-story." 
 
 Just then a 
 voice was heard 
 shouting, " Skip 
 per, ahoy ! " 
 
 Close to their 
 stern was passing 
 a small fishing- 
 craft ; and stand 
 ing up in it, one 
 hand grasping 
 the tiller, was a 
 weather-beaten 
 fellow, with a 
 hearty, open face. 
 
 " Ye seem to 
 have your family 
 aboard, skipper," he bawled, with a grin, as Capt. Jackson an 
 swered his hail. " Their keep must be a big drain on ye. 
 Now, if ye've a nice spry lad that ye'd like to 'prentice out, 
 chuck him over, and I'll pick him up. Must be spry and handy, 
 though, and know how to clean fish." 
 
 THE JOVIAL FISHERMAN.
 
 33 MRS. LONG WOOD DEC WES TO LAND. 
 
 The girls and boys all laughed, and the old man seemed 
 highly delighted at the way his little joke had been taken. 
 
 " A pleasant v'yage to ye all," he said, and he took off his 
 hat to them. 
 
 By this time the heavy swell from the sea was beginning to 
 reach them, and " The Mavis " rose and fell on it in a way that 
 made Mrs. Longwood decide that they would land at once. " It 
 will be quite dinner-time when we are landed, and have climbed 
 the hill to the light-house," she said. " You boys can all go to 
 sea this afternoon, if you wish ; and the rest of us will drive 
 back over the moors. I took the precaution to order the stage 
 to meet us here." 
 
 So " The Mavis " was headed into the quieter waters, under 
 shelter of the point, and they made a landing by the aid of her 
 boat. In half an hour they had climbed the hill, and were at 
 the light-house. 
 
 Instinctively they all ran out to the edge of the point. A 
 hundred feet or more sheer below them, lay the sea. Great swells, 
 the remnants of yesterday's storm, came rolling in from the ocean, 
 pitching up and down the fleet of fishing-craft like so many toy- 
 boats. Ten miles away, Block Island rose out of the sea. On 
 one side of them was the boundless ocean, and, on the other, 
 Long Island Sound. Overhead swept the sea-gulls, with long, 
 steady beat of wings, uttering hoarse cries. 
 
 They all stood fascinated for a few moments. Jack was the 
 first to break the spell. 
 
 " I fancy I detect the odor of broiled bluefish," he said, 
 sniffing the air. " Dinner must be ready. Let's go in."
 
 A NEW KIND OF ICE-BOAT. 33 1 
 
 They made their way to the little parlor, and seated them 
 selves. The odor of broiled bluefish was much stronger. It 
 was evident to the least tutored nose that dinner could not be 
 far off. 
 
 Nevertheless it seemed to the hungry young folk to be a 
 long while in coming. Jack wandered restlessly about ; but Tom, 
 taking down a book from the chimney-shelf, began to read. 
 
 " Why, this is a jolly book ! " he said after a little, looking 
 up. "It is written by a man who was in the quartermaster's 
 department during the Revolution." 
 
 " ' My feyther fit into the Revolution,' ' remarked Jack * r 
 " ' that is, he druv a baggage- wagon. He was wounded ; that 
 is, he was kicked by a mule.' ' 
 
 " This man drove a baggage-wagon too," laughed Tom. " It's 
 quite jolly. The part I have been reading tells how he went up 
 Lakes George and Champlain, on the ice, to Canada. Coming 
 back, he passed great numbers of sleighs carrying troops north 
 ward. On Lake George, he says the men stood up on the seats, 
 with arms locked. The wind was fresh from behind, and carried 
 them on at such a pace, that the horses had to go at a full 
 gallop, to keep the sleigh from running on their heels." 
 
 " Read us a little," asked Kate. 
 
 So Tom began : 
 
 "'Early in the year 1777, my father and I were again In 
 active employment. Large quantities of provisions had been 
 accumulating at Bennington for the use of our northern armies, 
 and the New-England people had been quite industrious in fur 
 nishing their quota of supplies. As there was always some con-
 
 33 2 OVER THE HILLS AND FAR AWAY. 
 
 tention about getting a job, as it was called, my father took the 
 precaution to bring the loads contracted for, down to his own 
 farm, and then he carried them to the north afterwards, as he 
 had leisure. We went with them to Whitehall, then known as 
 Skenesborough. Thence we travelled down Lake George to Ti, 
 and there delivered our loads. On our second trip, we had 
 scarcely unloaded our sleighs, when Col. Hay, well known as an 
 active and efficient quartermaster-general, informed us that we 
 must stay, and commence dragging timber for the bridge which 
 was about to be constructed, by order of Congress, between Ti 
 and Mount Independence. As we had not yet fulfilled our con 
 tract in regard to forwarding the supplies, my father remonstrated, 
 and mentioned that, if he was not allowed to bring on the 
 remainder, as he had contracted, before the lake opened, it would 
 after that become impracticable. Col. Hay, however, said that it 
 was far more important for him to assist in the construction of 
 the works, than to transport the supplies. My father, on this 
 occasion, gave a specimen of his boldness and ingenuity, and it 
 illustrated the manner in which every thing was managed in 
 those days. An officer was despatched to take charge of our 
 party ; and my father then requested permission to cross over to 
 Mount Independence, to deposit his load. He gave me private 
 instructions to follow him, at all hazards. The officer jumped 
 into my sleigh, and stood up in it. My father led the way, and 
 drove down hill at full speed in another direction than the one 
 intended. I followed him as fast as possible, when the officer 
 cried out, " Where are you going to ? " I replied, " After my 
 father ; " and a fresh application of the whip made the horses
 
 CARRYING TROOPS INTO
 
 A NEW SORT OF GUIDE-BOARD. 335 
 
 dash on in the most furious manner. The officer, in full dress, 
 and not relishing the strange manoeuvre, nor even understanding 
 it, thought proper to jump out of the sleigh, and, in doing so, 
 described a parabolic curve, or rather a long ellipse, which gave 
 him time to turn heels upward, and descended with velocity, head 
 foremost in the snow. I gave him one look over my shoulder, 
 as he was flying through the air, and then another, when I per 
 ceived him stuck upright in the snow, like a guide-board, one 
 foot pointing to Mount Independence, and the other to Ti. But 
 I was too happy at the thought of again rejoining my father, to 
 indulge in any other sentiments than those of exceeding joy. 
 
 " ' We very soon got under the brow of the hill, and on the 
 lake shore, where, to our surprise, we found many others of our 
 companions before us, parleying with a sentry, who guarded the 
 roads to the lake, and who required them to show a permit 
 before he could allow them to pass. It was a critical moment 
 for us, as we expected an alarm and pursuit. One John Mahony, 
 a neighbor of ours, had previously drawn out of his pocket an 
 old certificate, and, though unable to read himself, endeavored, 
 from memory, to mutter out the words of a permit. Nor was 
 the sentry any wiser, for he could not read ; and Mahony had 
 declared that it was a pass for nine sleighs, the exact number 
 that was already there, before we arrived. My father, with great 
 presence of mind, corrected him, and read the paper so it ap 
 peared a permit for eleven sleighs. The sentry took all for 
 granted, as he saw the paper before his eyes ; and we came off 
 together in high glee. We were then safe ; for, however within 
 the line of sentinels we were liable to detention, beyond them
 
 33<5 A DISCOMFITED PRESS-GANG, 
 
 we knew we were not to be overtaken, either by their fire, or 
 by pursuit on any of the worn-out horses of the garrison. 
 
 " ' Some others of our companions were not so fortunate. 
 Coming down the wrong road, with similar intentions of escaping 
 from impressment like that which my father had determined not 
 to submit to, they crossed the very same sentinel, though under 
 circumstances which showed confusion at seeing him ; still they 
 determined to force their way past him. He hailed them. They 
 pretended not to hear him. He hailed again. They were deaf. 
 He hailed again. They kept their horses at full speed. The 
 sentinel fired ; and, as they were exactly in the range of his fire, 
 the ball struck the nearest sleigh, passed between the legs of 
 the driver, between the horses in front, and struck the next 
 sleigh, where it lodged. They were out of reach before he could 
 fire again. When we arrived at Fort Anne, we had another similar 
 attempt at coercion to resist. A sentinel there also stopped us ; 
 and we were ordered to remain, and to load with hides, to be 
 carried down to Albany, for the purpose of being manufactured 
 into shoes for the army. As it was getting late in the season, 
 and we were anxious to finish our contract before it was impracti 
 cable, objections were made to going on to Albany at that time. 
 Mahony endeavored to force the guard ; but a scuffle took place, 
 and he was overpowered. An officer came up ; and, as he was 
 inclined to use compulsion, we hit upon the expedient of giving 
 one of our companions, an honest, good-natured militia officer, 
 the title of colonel, and, in a measure, placed ourselves under 
 his protection. The mention of his title had considerable effect, 
 upon the press-gang. By mutual agreement, a further arrange-
 
 ANOTHER RACE FOR LIBERTY. 337 
 
 ment was to be made in relation to the business, at the fort, 
 which was on a piece of rising ground. The sentinel himself, 
 far from being boisterous, civilly pointed out the road, which went 
 across the creek and around a point of land, while he took a 
 short cut across the point, to be there as soon as we. The 
 colonel forgot his rank and his promise, and so did we. The 
 moment we were out of view, under the rise of ground, we left 
 the officer to imagine what he pleased. We drove off at full 
 speed, and were soon out of his reach. This post of Fort Anne 
 was, in fact, a mere block-house surrounded by palisades. It 
 was near the creek, which poured down the rocks into the basin 
 below, and in its passage turned the wheel of a saw-mill. We 
 escaped from the block-house and its occupants, and reached 
 our home without further molestation. We took up our last 
 load, and again set out for Ticonderoga, which we reached with 
 out incident. But, when we arrived there, some apology was 
 indispensable for our previous conduct. My father, albeit unused 
 to play the orator, acted as spokesman for the delinquents. As 
 I have a full recollection of the interview with Col. Hay, I will 
 give the particulars. Wiping his forehead with the back of his 
 hand, handkerchiefs being rather scarce in those days, and then 
 straightening his locks over his forehead, he gave a hem, and a 
 nod, and then observed briefly, and to the point, " Well, here 
 we are again, Col. Hay." " Yes, so I perceive," said the colonel ; 
 " and the public interests have suffered severely by your late 
 conduct. I must hold you responsible for the consequences." 
 My father instantly replied, " I have no objections to be held 
 responsible : my urgent business is now finished. My word is
 
 33 8 THE TEAMSTERS COME TO GRIEF. 
 
 kept, my contract is finished. You can take any course the law 
 will warrant" Col. Hay knew his man. He immediately ob 
 served, " Give me your word that the sleighs in your company 
 shall remain to assist us for a few days, and I am satisfied." 
 My father did not hesitate to give the required promise, as he 
 was always willing to aid the service, and he well knew the 
 necessity of completing the works of defence, then in a state of 
 preparation, to resist the approaching enemy. 
 
 " ' The rapid change of the weather soon rendered our sleighs 
 a while useless, and our return home necessary. My father was 
 again the organ of communication ; and Col. Hay agreed to dis 
 charge the whole party, if three pairs of horses could be pur 
 chased at fair prices for the service. My father readily undertook 
 to obtain them, and a general muster of all our cattle immedi 
 ately took place. The object was then explained ; and, as he had 
 from the first anticipated, all were willing to sell. The three 
 pairs were selected, with sleighs and harness. The highest price 
 paid was two hundred and seventy dollars. The money was 
 counted out to them from a store of Continental currency. The 
 purchase being thus effected, we came away, right glad to be 
 released from the laborious operation of dragging over hill and 
 dale the immense pieces of timber which were to become integral 
 parts of the defence of Ticonderoga. 
 
 " ' At length we set out for Skenesborough ; and there fresh 
 trouble awaited us. The commanding officer remembered the 
 trick we played him, but had not ventured to interrupt us on 
 our way north, loaded as we were with important supplies for 
 Ticonderoga. Now, however, a sergeant and file of men took
 
 AN OUTPOST.
 
 A MOMENT OF MISERY. 341 
 
 possession of our " pale caravan." We were compelled by the 
 law of the strongest to go to work drawing saw-logs for the 
 confounded little saw-mill I have before mentioned. Here we 
 tugged away, in no good humor, for several days, when my 
 father's generalship again brought us off with flying colors. The 
 escape from our new tormentors was brought about in the fol 
 lowing manner : A day was fixed on which to make the attempt. 
 On that day I was told by my father to take charge of the pair 
 of horses I had usually under my care, and lead them into the 
 woods, where, in a certain place, covered up with branches of 
 wood, I would find my sleigh ; and, that done, to follow, by a 
 given route, the party who were to take an early start. I did 
 so ; leading one horse, and riding the other. When I reached 
 the forest, I could not at first discover the place where our sleigh 
 was concealed. I looked, and looked in vain. Every moment I 
 feared the long absence of the company would lead to inquiry 
 and detection. They were all well gone ; and I was left alone, 
 to bear, perhaps, the weight of increased resentment. My father 
 gone too ! The idea was absolutely frightful. At this moment 
 my eyes caught a glimpse of the place of concealment. I moved 
 off at a brisk pace to the spot, and found the object of my 
 search. It was but a minute's work to adjust the harness. It 
 took but another to get my horses at full speed. I drove them 
 for eight miles as fast as they would go ; and a joyful meeting 
 it was when I overtook my friends. They had left me behind 
 for the purpose of making good their retreat, well knowing that, 
 if I had been detected, my youth would have saved me from 
 any difficulties, and have prevented my detention. My escape,
 
 342 DINNER IS READY. 
 
 however, was foremost in my own mind, and I considered myself 
 almost a hero, in consequence of the adventure.' ' 
 
 " Dinner is ready, sir," said a voice, as Tom read the last 
 word.
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 AFTER dinner was over, 
 Mrs. Long-wood proposed 
 that they should all sit 
 quietly for a time, and get 
 thoroughly rested. But 
 this proposition the young 
 people treated with scorn. 
 They had done nothing" 
 to tire them, they de 
 clared ; and they did not 
 want to rest. So, leaving 
 Mr. and Mrs. Longwood 
 comfortably settled on the sunny porch of the light-keeper's 
 house, they all ran around to the tall white tower, and began 
 the ascent of the dark, spiral stairs. Presently they came troop 
 ing down again, as restless as ever. 
 
 " It must be getting quite late," said Tom, after a little ; 
 " and the eight miles over the moors, back to House No. 2, is 
 over a rough road. The twilight, too, falls early at this time of 
 the year. I think, mamma, I should feel easier if you set out 
 on your homeward drive quite soon." 
 
 343
 
 344 A CHASE ACROSS THE MOORS. 
 
 " Thanks for your consideration, Tom," said Mrs. Longwood, 
 laughing. " I fancy, however, that I detect one thought for me, 
 and two for yourself. You would fain be back on your schooner, 
 I fear." 
 
 " I think, though, after all," said Lou, " that Tom's idea is a 
 good one. We could walk along the edge of the cliff, and the 
 stage could pick us up whenever we felt tired." 
 
 The girls all approved of this, and scampered down the 
 hill to the stable, to deposit their wraps in the stage. Then, 
 waving their handkerchiefs as a good-by to the boys, they 
 chased one another across the moors, stopping at last, breathless, 
 on the crest of one of the highest swells, to look back. 
 
 " Dear me ! " said Carrie, " I forgot all about mamma. We 
 ought to have waited for her." 
 
 " Let us go back," said Rose. 
 
 " There she comes out of the house now ! " said Gertrude, 
 panting for breath ; " and she is walking to the stables. Now 
 she is getting into the stage, and the man is bringing out the 
 horses. We'd better wait here." 
 
 Presently the stage came up to them, and Mrs. Longwood 
 got out. Then they strolled on together, while the lumbering 
 vehicle followed, with much creaking of harness and rattling of 
 joints, as it jolted over the rough way. 
 
 Their run had put them all out of breath, so that, for some 
 little time, they walked along sedately enough. But of a sud 
 den they came to a break in the cliffs, where an easy descent 
 might be made to the water's edge. 
 
 " Let's go down," said they all. " May we, Mrs. Longwood ? "
 
 
 THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF THE WAGONER. 
 
 345 
 
 " It looks perfectly safe," said that lady. " I will have our 
 driver take one of those buffalo-robes off the seat of the wagon, 
 and spread it out for me in this hollow, where I shall be shel 
 tered from the wind. You may be gone as long as you please, 
 provided you call to me from time to time, to let me know that 
 all is going well." 
 
 ALONG THE CLIFFS. 
 
 So, down they went ; and it was more than a half-hour be 
 fore they re-appeared, clambering up the cliff's side, hot and 
 breathless. 
 
 " What a heat you are all in ! " said Mrs. Longwood. " Sit 
 down here in this warm nook, and cool off gradually, and I will 
 read to you of the further adventures of the wagoner of whom 
 we heard at noon."
 
 THE INDIANS ARE COMING. 
 
 " Why, you have brought the book away with you ! " exclaimed 
 Carrie, in astonishment. 
 
 " Yes," said Mrs. Longwood : " I persuaded the light-keeper 
 to sell it to me. 
 
 " To make you understand clearly what I am going to read, 
 I will give you a little bit of history. During the Revolution, 
 when the English held New- York City, it was planned that a 
 British army should march from Canada down Lake Champlain, 
 and force its way through to Albany, where the New- York army 
 would effect a junction with it." 
 
 " I see," said Lou. " It was to be a sort of Sherman's march 
 to the sea, and would cut the Americans in two." 
 
 "Exactly," said Mrs. Longwood. "Well, the army assembled 
 in Canada, under Gen. Burgoyne. A large army it was, too x for 
 those days ; and the British, beside, had a great following of 
 Indian allies. Many was the council-fire that had been burned 
 the preceding winter ; and the savages, led by their great chief 
 Brant, were wild for the march to begin. 
 
 " So, in the spring, they advanced. The Americans fell back 
 from Ticonderoga, which they had fortified, and the British came 
 on toward Saratoga, where our wagoner lived. And now I will 
 let him speak for himself. 
 
 " ' It was in August, and we had just risen from dinner. 
 My father had remained in the neighborhood of the invaders' 
 army much longer than most of his friends ; and, relying upon 
 the advantages of early advice from our army, pursued his agri 
 cultural avocations with his usual diligence. It was then, when, 
 as I have before mentioned, we were just risen from the dinner-
 
 A FRIGHTENED NEGRO. 
 
 table, when one of my uncle's negroes came running to the 
 house, with eyes dilated. We learned from him that an Indian 
 
 INDIANS COMING TO A COUNCIL. 
 
 had been discovered in the orchard near the house, evidently 
 intending to shoot a person belonging to the family, who was
 
 348 THE CLOTHES ARE HIDDEN IN A CASK. 
 
 at work in the garden : the blacks, however, had given the 
 alarm, and the man escaped into the house, while, at the same 
 moment, six other savages rose from their place of concealment, 
 and ran into the woods. This was on our side of the river. 
 The savages that remained with Burgoyne were continually for 
 miles in advance of him, on his flanks, reconnoitring our move 
 ments, and beating up the settlements. Their cruelty was not 
 to be restrained. My father, on learning the fact of their ap 
 proach, went immediately over to his brother's house, which was 
 about one- fourth of a mile off, to ascertain what was to be done 
 for the safety of the families. He found him making every ex 
 ertion to move away, and the domestics busily engaged in getting 
 every thing ready. During my father's absence, my mother, who 
 was a resolute woman, was industriously placing the most valuable 
 of her clothing in a cask ; and at her instance I went out with 
 some of our servants to catch a pair of fleet horses, and harness 
 them as fast as possible to the wagon. To those who now sit 
 quietly by their own firesides, I leave it to be imagined with 
 what feelings we hastened to abandon our home, and fly for 
 safety, we knew not whither. 
 
 " ' I can never forget the distress of our family at this moment 
 of peril and alarm. The wagon was soon at the door ; and, as 
 my father came up, he directed us to carry a few loads down to 
 the river, and place them in a light bateau which belonged to 
 us, and was fastened to the shore, at the meadow's bank, near 
 the ferry. The first time I went down alone, and soon unloaded 
 the contents of the wagon. The distance I had to go was about 
 a quarter of a mile. The road ran down the meadow, and was
 
 WE PREPARE TO ESCAPE. 
 
 349 
 
 cut through the bank on the river-side, in order to make it easy 
 of ascent. Between the upland and lowland of our farm, there 
 
 BRANT. 
 
 was a board fence, and a few bars were usually placed across, 
 the road. The second time, having some heavier articles to 
 carry, I was accompanied by my father. As we approached the
 
 35 A SUDDEN ALARM. 
 
 fence, which he had left down, we saw the third bar across the 
 road, so as effectually to prevent our passing through. " What 
 does this mean ? " exclaimed he. I was breathless with agitation, 
 and stopped the horses. My father sprang out, making an ex 
 pressive motion with his hand, to keep back for a few moments. 
 Warily and carefully turning his eye in every direction, he ap 
 proached the bar, and let it down. I drove on, he jumped in, 
 and we lost no time in hastening home. The circumstance gave 
 us great uneasiness. When we reached home he made minute 
 inquiries among his laborers and blacks, if any of them had 
 been down to the meadow. He found that none of them had 
 been away from the house. He then formed the conclusion that 
 some Indians had passed along that way, and supposing we had 
 crossed the river, and got beyond their reach (for we were hid 
 from their observation by being under the bank at the river 
 side), had gone away. The danger was so near as to induce 
 him to make more speed, and use greater precaution. A gun 
 was loaded, and placed in my hands ; and I patrolled about the 
 house with a feeling of some responsibility. I strained my eye 
 to detect the least appearance of motion, presented my piece at 
 every waving bush, but was not under the necessity of dischar 
 ging it. A friendly neighbor, who was also anxious to ascertain 
 the state of things, came up at this time, and assisted me in 
 keeping guard. My father, in the interim, placed the family in 
 the wagon. He also buried in the road some valuable domestic 
 utensils, which we recovered some years afterwards, in perfect 
 preservation. At last we bade adieu to our homestead, and 
 arrived safely at the river. At about five o'clock P.M., my father
 
 FRESH BREAD AND MUTTON. 351 
 
 crossed over with the family at the ferry, while I and one of 
 the blacks were put into a small canoe, and we proceeded down 
 the stream as fast as we could ply our paddles. We joined the 
 family at Vandenbergh's, eight miles down . the river, where we 
 obtained further information. We learned that a party of Indians 
 had been going from our neighborhood to the south-east, after 
 -surprising a farmer by the name of Lake. While working at 
 his trade as a carpenter, in an out-house near his dwelling, he 
 was surprised by the salutation from the savages, of " Sago" 
 With great presence of mind, he said " Sago" in reply to them. 
 He saw that resistance would be vain, and therefore continued 
 quietly at work. They looked at him a few moments, and then 
 went towards his house, but took nothing from it. On coming 
 out, they discovered an oven which gave signs of having just 
 been heated. They opened it, and, finding it full of bread, took 
 each of them a loaf. In a field adjacent, a sheep came straying 
 near them ; one of them instantly shot it, and in a few mo 
 ments it was cut into quarters, and carried off. Lake was a 
 resolute man, and observed, if he could only have had any chance 
 with them, he never would have suffered them all to escape 
 alive. At Vandenbergh's we found my father, who had arrived 
 there first, and was keeping an anxious lookout for us on the 
 shore. 
 
 " ' We found, on landing, a number of people, who, like our 
 selves, had been driven from their homes. We passed the night 
 amongst them. Some obtained accommodations within doors ; 
 some were happy to be under the cover of the cattle-sheds ; 
 while others stretched themselves in their wagons, and endeavored
 
 352 A LONG CAVALCADE OF WAGONS. 
 
 to snatch a few moments of repose. Early in the morning the 
 sleepers were awakened, and no fresh rumors alarmed them to 
 any very hasty movements. Indeed, my father rather rashly re 
 solved to return home, accompanied by a few congenial spirits, 
 to get further information of the enemy, and, if possible, to 
 save some of his cattle and farming-stock. I say rashly, as Bur- 
 goyne was expected down with his army every hour. Soon after 
 he was gone, the whole body of the people moved off towards 
 Stillwater, a general panic now prevailing among them, which 
 seemed every hour to increase. My father, however, safely reached 
 his house, and succeeded in getting off part of his stock. He 
 immediately pushed for the Hoosick River, which he intended 
 to cross, and then pass over into New England. Corresponding 
 arrangements had been made on our part, when he left us, to 
 rejoin him there. Our procession of flying inhabitants wore a 
 strange and melancholy appearance. A long cavalcade of wagons, 
 filled with all kinds of furniture, not often selected by the owners 
 with reference to their use or value on occasions of alarm, 
 stretched along the road ; while others on horseback, and here 
 and there two mounted at once upon a steed panting under the 
 double load, were followed by a crowd of pedestrians. These 
 found great difficulty in keeping up with the rapid flight of their 
 mounted friends. Here and there would be seen some humane 
 person assisting the more unfortunate, by relieving them of the 
 packs and bundles with which they were encumbered ; but gen 
 erally a principle of selfishness prevented much interchange of 
 friendly offices. Every one for himself, was the constant cry. 
 After my father's departure, he committed to me the care of his
 
 A BRAVE AND DESPERATE WOMAN. 355 
 
 wagon and horses, and the safe-conduct of my mother and the 
 family. Unfortunately for me, when we left home I had selected 
 the most valuable and spirited horses ; and so restive did I now 
 find them, that they completely overcame my strength, and wearied 
 my patience. They were continually attempting to run past the 
 wagons ahead of me, and were every instant making an effort 
 to get off the road. My chafed and blistered hands could no 
 longer restrain them. I saw that, in a few moments more, I 
 should be unable to prevent the lamentable consequences. My 
 mother was then nursing a young infant, which she now held in 
 her arms, and felt an indescribable anxiety on that account. She 
 succeeded in making a person who came alongside of us sensi 
 ble of our distress, and hired him to drive the horses at the then 
 dear rate of a shilling a mile ; but he soon gave up, from ina 
 bility to control them, having far less skill than myself. In this 
 dilemma? with tears in her eyes, and despair in her looks, she 
 got out of the wagon, and, picking up a stout club in the road, 
 walked on for many miles at the head of the unruly animals, 
 and, with her infant on one arm, actually kept them back, and 
 restrained them from breaking the line, by striking them over 
 the heads with the stick she held in the other. And so great 
 was each individual's anxiety for himself, that not a person in 
 the throng offered to assist her. When we reached Stillwater, it 
 was evident that our retreat was well-timed, for the advance- 
 guard of Gen. Schuyler's army arrived almost as soon as we 
 did. They encamped there ; and the increasing confusion and 
 noise every moment added new difficulties to those we already 
 were doomed to encounter. We remained here all night, as it
 
 356 A NIGHT OF WRETCHEDNESS. 
 
 was our intention next day to cross the river, and overtake my 
 father, who, by this time, we supposed several miles on his way 
 to Massachusetts. Some of his brothers also agreed to take the 
 same direction ; and early in the morning we crossed the river, 
 and travelled a whole day through a penetrating rain, and over 
 the worst of roads. We had gone about fifteen miles when 
 darkness overtook us, and we were far from any place of shelter. 
 We had no alternative but to remain there till morning ; and, 
 selecting the dryest place in the marsh, where we were fairly 
 stuck fast, some beds were taken out of the wagons, and laid 
 on the ground. On these my mother reposed, if the wakeful 
 and comfortless hours could be said to have been repose. We 
 were afraid to light any fire, for we knew the woods were filled 
 with Tories and Indians. To our hard fate, necessity therefore 
 compelled us to submit. Cold, wet, and dreary was the night : 
 yet it was not without its consolation ; for, before morning broke 
 upon our wretched bivouac, my father arrived, to our great 
 astonishment and pleasure. We started as soon as it was light 
 enough to travel, and that day reached San Coick, in the south 
 part of Cambridge, where we were received by some distant 
 connections with much hospitality.'-' 
 
 " How glad they must have been to see him ! " said Kate. 
 " The wagoner's mother must have been of the same stuff as 
 Jack's great-grandmother, I should imagine." 
 
 " Burgoyne did not carry out his great scheme of dividing 
 the Americans," said Mrs. Longwood. " Attacked on all sides, 
 he was obliged to retreat, and at last surrender. As soon as 
 his retreat began, our wagoner and his father made their way
 
 A THOUSAND EASTERN MILITIA. 357 
 
 back to their home. And this is the way he tells of their home 
 coming' : 
 
 " ' I mentioned that my father had arrived with the news of 
 the retreat. The intelligence was joyful to us. He ordered the 
 black to get three horses ready early in the morning, to take us 
 back to Saratoga. Our sleep, though not sound, was filled with 
 pleasant dreams. Early as the day dawned, all were on the 
 move but my mother, who remained behind. We met on the road 
 great numbers of wounded men belonging to both armies. A 
 great many were carried on litters, which were blankets fastened 
 to a frame of four poles. I never saw the effects of war until 
 now. The sight of these wretched people, pale and lifeless, with 
 countenances of an expression peculiar to gunshot-wounds, and 
 the sound of groaning voices as each motion of the litter re 
 newed the anguish of their wounds, filled me with horror, and 
 sickness of heart. 
 
 " ' We reached the American camp, and drove through it to 
 the bank of the river opposite my uncle's farm. We got out, 
 and walked along the bank, to see if there was any thing to 
 aid us in getting across. My father luckily recognized a Capt. 
 Knute of the bateau men, who kindly offered us the use of a 
 scow, and, indeed, saw us safely over the river. We drove that 
 night to our own home. But oh, how much changed ! It looked 
 like a military post, to which use it was actually converted. A 
 thousand Eastern militia were quartered around the premises. 
 We began to think we had not gained much by coming on at 
 this juncture. My father, however, entered the house in the 
 dark, and, being familiar with the passages and rooms, made his
 
 358 STfA, BOYS, CLEAR THE WAY. 
 
 way into the stove-room, which he naturally thought would be 
 most comfortable. Having brought a candle from the wagon 
 with him, he deliberately lighted it at the stove. The moment 
 it glimmered, a person jumped off his bed, and observed to my 
 father with as much twang as was agreeable, " You seem to be 
 considerable acquainted here." My father's reply was, " I used 
 to be." The stranger rejoined, " You are the owner, maybe ? " 
 My father answered, "No! I find some here before me." 
 "Oh, well!" continued the speaker, "you shall be accommodated." 
 At this instant the steady blaze of the candle showed the room 
 to be occupied by a number of persons, and there appeared no 
 probability of our receiving the promised accommodation. But 
 he spoke as one having authority, when he exclaimed, " Stir, 
 boys, stir ; clear the way : here is the owner come ! " They 
 yawned and grunted, and got out of the way with unexpected 
 good-nature. He also placed a guard over our wagon, to pro 
 tect it from invasion. My father, in order to return his civilities, 
 brought in some spirits to the officer, and a social glass was- 
 handed round. It was an unexpected happiness to the kind- 
 hearted Yankee. The draught was repeated until sleep came to 
 refresh us after our fatigues. Stretched on pallets of straw, we 
 laid ourselves down ; and, after strange vicissitudes of hope and 
 fear, we sunk to rest once more in our own house, every ill and 
 every 'fatigue forgotten.' 
 
 " Well, we had better be on our homeward way," said Mrs. 
 Longwood, as she closed the book, " or Tom's fears for our 
 safety may come true, after all. Shall we walk on a little, or 
 get into the stage ? "
 
 A CAPTIVE CLOUD-HORSE. 359 
 
 " The road leaves the cliffs here for some miles," said their 
 driver. " I think you would do well to ride." 
 
 So in they all clambered, and the horses set out on a jog 
 trot. It was such a beautiful day, that, for very lightness of 
 heart, the girls broke out singing. Overhead the clouds in great 
 white masses were flying before the fresh wind. Away on the 
 horizon a full-rigged ship was making its way on, every stitch 
 of canvas spread. The sun made its sails gleam white and 
 sparkling, so that, as Carrie said, it looked like a captive cloud. 
 
 " You are not the first that has had that idea," said Mrs. 
 Longwood. " Did you ever hear this ? 
 
 A SHIP AT SEA. 
 
 Adown the sky the wild cloud-horses run, 
 
 Tossing their glistening manes in wanton play; 
 Their unshod feet no hoof-marks leave behind, 
 
 As through the blue sky fields they hold their way. 
 
 But, look ! down where the ocean meets the sky, 
 
 A captive cloud-horse wears his life away; 
 Chained to a huge sea-plough, and, hapless, doomed 
 
 To turn a never-ending furrow night and day. 
 
 See how he tugs and strains to burst his bonds, 
 
 And snorts defiance in his misery ! 
 Poor wretch ! his spirit broken by his chains, 
 
 The first brief calm he'll die, and so be free." 
 
 Meanwhile the stage horses had not been idle. Mile after 
 mile of moorland they had left behind them ; and now, just as
 
 3 6 
 
 YO, HO! FOR THE OPEN SEA. 
 
 the sun was sinking, they drew up in front of the little house 
 whence they had set out in the morning. 
 
 By this time the boys were well out at sea. They had made 
 haste to board " The Mavis," as soon as Mrs. Longwood and the 
 
 MONTAUK FROM THE SEA. 
 
 girls had started on their homeward way. They had sailed close 
 by the cliffs, where, the tide now being out, the surf was much 
 less than it had been. Then they had steered out into the open 
 ocean, and the land was now nearly fading from view.
 
 
 FOGIES, WHITE-FISH, MENHADEN, BONY-FISH, 3 6 * 
 
 And yet it must be confessed that they were a little disap 
 pointed. They had rather expected some adventure, or some 
 strange sensation ; and all had been as tame and matter-of-fact 
 as could be. And so they were standing around in a rather 
 discontented state of mind. 
 
 " Fish ! fish ! " cried Jack, who was looking over the side. 
 " See, there are thousands ! " 
 
 " About a million in that school," said Thomas John, survey 
 ing them critically. 
 
 And, indeed, when the boys looked carefully, they could see 
 that Thomas John's estimate was a moderate one. Several acres 
 of water were in a boiling state from the quick swish of the 
 fishes' tails. They lay as closely together, Ned said, as sardines 
 in a box. 
 
 " What are they ? " asked Jack. 
 
 " Mossbunkers," said Thomas John, " pogies, white-fish, men 
 haden, bony-fish, fat-backs, alewives, old-wife chebogs, hardheads, 
 greentails. There, you can take your choice of names. The 
 same fish is called all those different ways on different parts of 
 the coast." 
 
 " Are they good for any thing ? " asked Ned. 
 
 " Some folks say," answered Thomas John, " that they are 
 brought into the world to be eaten. They have no means of 
 defence, and so can't help themselves. When we make a haul 
 from shore, we often bring in several shark with them, and these 
 have each half a bushel of bunkers in their stomachs. Then 
 these bony whales that you see hereabouts often, I am told 
 that they can take down as many as would fill a hogshead, at a
 
 362 FAT-BACKS, ALE WIVES, HARDHEADS, GREENTAILS. 
 
 gulp. Porpoises go for them too, and dog-fish. But the worst 
 enemy they have are blue-fish. Blue-fish are regular pirates, 
 sea-rovers, who kill for the fun of it. Why, they will go through 
 a school of menhaden, and leave a streak of blood behind them. 
 For every one they eat, they kill a hundred." 
 
 " When you haul from shore, what do you do with them ? " 
 asked Jack. 
 
 " Sell them for manure," said Thomas John. " We can't 
 catch enough to make it pay to make oil. There are no end 
 of steamers, though, in the fishing business, who carry all they 
 catch to the oil-factories." 
 
 "Have you any idea how many are taken in this way?" 
 asked Mr. Longwood. 
 
 " I have heard that it was calculated somewhere about seven 
 hundred millions a year," said Thomas John. 
 
 " Why, I should think they would begin to grow scarce," 
 said Charlie. 
 
 " It seems A good many," said Thomas John ; " but the fish- 
 commissioner at Washington has made an estimate of how many 
 are eaten by other fishes. I s'pose it's guess-work, mainly ; but 
 still they get a good many statistics in Washington to go on. 
 It's three thousand millions of millions." 
 
 " If the fish can hold their own against such destruction as 
 that," said Mr. Longwood, " they are not likely to be lessened 
 much by the number taken by man." 
 
 " I suppose the steamers take them with seines," said Ned. 
 
 " Oh, yes ! " said Tom. " Haven't you ever seen them ? They 
 lie off the beach at home, sometimes, by dozens. I have often
 
 THE FISH ARE SURROUNDED. 
 
 made out all their operations with a glass. They have a greal 
 seine, which is kept half in one boat, and half in another, 
 These boats row away from one another, around the fish in 
 circle, throwing out the net as they go, until they meet. Ther 
 
 A MEETING BY NIGHT. 
 
 the ends are fastened together. The fish now cannot escap; 
 except at the bottom, and they have a way of stopping that 
 All along the bottom of the net are sewed rings, and througl
 
 THE DAY COMES TO AN END. 
 
 these a rope runs. The men haul for dear life on this rope 
 until the bottom is drawn tight together, and the fish are in a 
 bag. Then the steamer comes alongside, and they let down a 
 big iron caldron into the flopping mass ; and aboard they go, 
 a thousand at a time." 
 
 " Aren't they good to eat at all ? " asked Charlie. 
 
 " Well," said Thomas John, " I understand that they are put 
 up like sardines, and that there is quite a little business in 
 shipping them salted to the West Indies ; but, after all, it doesn't 
 amount to much. A good many, too, are sold as bait to the 
 fishing-fleet on the banks." 
 
 The school was soon passed, and forgotten in the excitement 
 of supper, which was served in " The Mavis's " little cabin. 
 Nothing of especial interest happened during the evening, except 
 that a large ship passed them, within easy hail. Her stern, as 
 she went by, showed five bright cabin-lights, and made their 
 own tiny quarters look even smaller than ever. Small as they 
 were, though, five tired and sleepy boys found them very com 
 fortable, as each stretched himself out in his bunk, and pulled 
 his blanket up over him. They were still out of sight of land, 
 but now were headed homeward ; and Capt. Jackson assured them, 
 that, when they awoke the next morning, they should find them 
 selves off Fort Pond Bay.
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 THE sun was only a 
 short distance above the 
 horizon the next morn 
 ing, when from the cabin 
 might have been seen 
 emerging two scantily- 
 robed figures. True to 
 his promise, Capt. Jack 
 son had brought " The 
 Mavis " around to her 
 former anchorage. She 
 now lay idly, like a de 
 serted ship, save for the 
 one man, who, huddled 
 up on the leeward side of the hatch, was seeking solace in a 
 short black pipe. Her boat lay alongside, bumping against her, 
 as the little waves lifted it up and down. 
 
 " I say," said Will, drawing about him a rug, and thereby 
 disclosing a bare and shivering leg, " this begins to look less 
 amusing than it did down below. The water must be awfully 
 cold. What do you say to giving it up ? " 
 
 367
 
 368 TOM TAKES A HEADER. 
 
 " Nonsense ! " said the other scantily-clad figure, which was 
 Tom's, " it's always warmer than the air. Come on ! " 
 
 The man who was on duty, hearing their voices, came 
 forward. 
 
 " Don't you think the water is warm ? " asked Tom. 
 
 " Well, I expect it's some tepid," said the man. 
 
 "There," said Tom, "I told you so! Come on: I'll give 
 you a lead ; " and, dropping his rug, he leaned forward, and 
 took a header. In a moment more he was scrambling up into 
 the small boat. 
 
 " Don't miss it on any account," he called to Will. " It's 
 wonderful ! " But the moment that Will, too, took a header, 
 and disappeared, he scrambled up on to the deck with the greatest 
 speed. And it was well that he did so, for the next instant a 
 clinched fist came up from the waves, and was shaken vigor 
 ously at him, while its owner lost no time in scrambling on 
 deck. 
 
 " You wretch ! " cried Will, as he wildly rushed toward the 
 cabin, near which Tom was standing, grin on face, and towel 
 in hand. " Why didn't you tell me that it was like ice ? " 
 
 " I didn't want to spoil your fun," said Tom ; and he attempted 
 to elude Will's grasp. He succeeded ; but his feet slipped out 
 from beneath him, and he disappeared down the companion-way, 
 and arrived in the cabin in a sitting position, with a loud crash. 
 
 His noisy entrance awoke the boys and Mr. Longwood. 
 
 " I remember," said that gentleman, after he had heard of 
 Tom and Will's performance, " that once, when I was crossing 
 the ocean, I went to take my morning bath. The steward had
 
 TEN THOUSAND NEEDLES. 369 
 
 it all drawn for me ; and, expecting my usual delightful experi 
 ence, I plunged in. But it seemed as if ten thousand needles 
 were sticking into me, and I sprang out like a flash. As I 
 raised my eyes to the porthole, I saw, hardly a quarter of a 
 mile away, a gigantic iceberg. I usec\, after that, to look out 
 of the porthole first." 
 
 Breakfast seemed particularly good that morning. Possibly it 
 may have been that the cook was an adept in his art ; possibly 
 it may have been that the sea-air had given them great appe 
 tites. However that may be, they lingered so long over it, that, 
 before they had left the table, Thomas John announced that the 
 cattle-keeper's boat, with the ladies on board, was in sight, com 
 ing up the pond. 
 
 And before long the whole party were together again, and 
 " The Mavis," with all sails set, was flying along toward New 
 London. 
 
 " Come, Jack," said Rose, after a time, when they had all 
 settled comfortably down on a mass of rugs that had been spread 
 on the deck, " you are a scholar ; tell us something of the 
 country to which we are going." 
 
 " The climate is temperate," said Jack, quoting glibly from an 
 imaginary geography ; " the products are hay, straw, oats, and 
 wooden nutmegs. The government is vested in a governor, 
 lieutenant-governor, senate, and house of representatives." 
 
 " You seem to be very well up in your facts, Master Jack," 
 said Mr. Longwood : " tell us if there were ever two persons 
 governors of Connecticut at the same time." 
 
 " Let me think," said Jack meditatively, assuming a grave air.
 
 370 NIEGOR MAN TO GOVERNOR SKENE. 
 
 " I don't recall the circumstance, nor can I recall having met 
 with the subject in my large and varied course of reading." 
 
 " Well," laughed Mr. Longwood, " I fear that your reading 
 must have been misdirected. In the good old times, as some 
 people call them, befor^ the Revolution, when Connecticut was 
 a slave-holding State, it was the custom for the negroes to elect 
 their governor, as well as their masters ; and, though he did not 
 have all the perquisites of the white governor, he was treated 
 with the greatest .respect by all his colored brethren. The proc 
 lamation that one of these negro governors put forth created 
 quite an excitement on one occasion. It was this : 
 
 HARTFORD, nth May, 1776. 
 
 I Governor Cuff of the Niegro's in the province of Connecticut, do Resign 
 my Govermentshipe, to John Anderson Niegor Man to Governor Skene. 
 
 And I hope that you will obeye him as you have Done me for this ten 
 year's past, when Colonel Willis' Niegor Dayed I was the next. But being weak 
 and unfit for that office do Resine the said Governmentshipe to John Anderson. 
 
 I : John Anderson having the Honour to be appointed Governor over you I 
 will do my utmost endevere to serve you in Every Respect, and I hope you will 
 obey me accordingly. 
 
 JOHN ANDERSON Governor 
 
 over the Niegors in Connecticut. 
 Witnesses present, 
 
 THE LATE GOVERNOR CUFF, Hartford, 
 
 QUACKOW, 
 
 FETTER WADSWORTH, 
 
 TITOWS, 
 
 POMP WILLIS, 
 
 JOHN JONES, 
 
 FRADAY. 
 
 " Now, Gov. Skene, to whom John Anderson was ' Niegor
 
 GOVERNOR ANDERSON OFFERS TO TREAT. 37 1 
 
 Man,' was a great Tory. He was in Hartford on his parole, 
 for it was in the early days of the Revolution ; and it was at 
 once suspected that he had concocted a plot by which all the 
 slaves should kill their masters. So he was summoned before 
 the officials, and great examinations were held." 
 
 " And did they find out any thing ? " asked Rose. 
 
 " If I remember rightly," said Mr. Longwood, " it was dis 
 covered that Gov. Cuff abdicated on Gov. Anderson's offering to 
 treat to the amount of twenty dollars. Gov. Anderson lamented 
 loudly that the treating had cost him twenty-five dollars, and 
 considered himself an injured man." 
 
 " Connecticut," said Jack, " was where Gen. Putnam came 
 from. He was a fine fellow. When he was a young man, 'there 
 was a wolf " 
 
 At this point, however, our young friend stopped short, for a 
 smile was on every countenance. 
 
 " We think we have all heard that story," said Charlie apolo 
 getically, and Jack subsided. 
 
 " There is another story about Putnam, though," said Toni, 
 " that I don't believe you have heard. He was marching, at one 
 time, under Gen. Amherst, to attack the French in Canada. 
 The troops, late on an afternoon, reached a lake, which it was 
 necessary they should cross. But there, sailing up and down, 
 was an armed French vessel, ready to attack them the moment 
 they attempted it. 
 
 " Putnam went to Gen. Amherst. ' We must capture that 
 vessel,' said he. 
 
 " Gen. Amherst was of the same mind ; but how to do it 
 was the question.
 
 372 PUTNAM MAKES A CAPTURE. 
 
 " ' Give me,' said Putnam, ' half a dozen picked men, a mallet, 
 and some wedges, and I'll take her.' 
 
 " Amherst didn't quite see how he was to capture a ship 
 with a mallet and wedges ; but he told him that he should have 
 them. In the middle of the night Putnam and his men stole 
 softly out in a small boat, and, under cover of the darkness, 
 drove the wedges in back of the vessel's rudder, so that it could 
 not move. As soon as daylight came, the troops began to get 
 on the rafts and bateau that were to take them across, and 
 the Frenchman hoisted his sail to attack them. But, somehow, 
 his craft wouldn't behave. She just blew along over the water; 
 and, before he knew it, he was ashore, and a party of the enemy 
 were aboard and in possession." 
 
 " I say," called out Jack presently, returning from a tour into 
 the bows, " I can see the light-house off New London harbor." 
 
 " New London was a stirring town during the Revolution," 
 said Mr. Longwood. " Before the war broke out she had a -large 
 shipping -trade with the West Indies and Mediterranean ports. 
 But the British cruisers soon put an end to that. And so she 
 became the headquarters of privateersmen. You remember how 
 Capt. Dayton brought his prizes there. Well, he was only one 
 of hundreds. Woe to the English transport or merchant-vessel 
 that fell behind her convoy as she entered the Sound ! A 
 low, swift-sailing craft suddenly crept out from shore, and, before 
 her escort could help, compelled her, by the logic of cold lead, 
 to haul down her flag, and surrender. At times the warehouses 
 of New London were crammed with English goods, taken in this 
 way.
 
 THEIR HEARTS IN THEIR MOUTHS. 
 
 373 
 
 " But the New-London people did not have it all their own 
 way. Half of the time they lived with their hearts in their 
 mouths ; for the harbor defences were practically worthless, and 
 there was nothing to 
 have prevented a British 
 fleet anchoring before 
 the town, and blowing 
 it to pieces. And many 
 a tfme the good citizens 
 thought the hour had 
 come, when they saw 
 frigate after frigate com 
 ing to anchor, and furl 
 ing their sails off the 
 harbor mouth. Many a 
 time the alarm-guns to 
 rouse the country about 
 sounded, but the enemy 
 sheered off, and went 
 elsewhere. But at last, 
 when they had grown 
 bold, and least expected 
 it, the blow fell. The 
 British came, and burned 
 the town." 
 
 " I remember reading about it, not long ago," said Will. 
 " It was Arnold the traitor who led the British, was it not ? " 
 
 " Yes," said Mr. Longwood. " Go on, and tell the story." 
 
 FURLING THEIR SAILS.
 
 374 THE TRAITOR SETS SAIL. 
 
 11 Well," said Will, " if I remember rightly, Arnold made the 
 point of assemblage for his vessels somewhere on the Long- 
 Island shore, perhaps near where we started from in the 
 morning. 
 
 " As soon as it was dusk they set sail, intending to reach 
 New London, and make the attack in the night, before the 
 militia could be summoned to the aid of the town. But just as 
 they reached the harbor mouth, a little after midnight, the wind 
 hauled, and they could not enter, but had to beat off and on, 
 waiting for daylight. 
 
 " With the first dawn they were seen ; and the alarm-guns 
 from the forts began to echo over the country-side, rousing the 
 militia to their aid." 
 
 " The signal for danger," interrupted Mr. Longwood, " was 
 two guns. Three meant the arrival of a prize, or good news. 
 The enemy had learned this ; and, whenever the forts fired two 
 guns, one of their ships added a third, so as to confound the 
 signals." 
 
 " It was ten o'clock before the British made a landing," went 
 on Will ; " and by that time the militia had begun to come in. 
 But a parcel of half-disciplined farmers could do nothing against 
 well-drilled regulars. They fired from behind fences, and every 
 now and then a rebel bullet reached its mark, and brought down 
 a man ; but the militia were practically helpless, and the English, 
 with the traitor at their head, marched forward, and took the 
 town." 
 
 " Arnold was doubly a traitor on this expedition," said Mrs. 
 Longwood ; "for he was born only a few miles from New Lon-
 
 A SCENE OF TERROR. 
 
 375 
 
 don, and no doubt had 
 known the town for 
 years, so that it was 
 his own native place he 
 was destroying." 
 
 " You can imagine 
 the excitement," Will 
 continued, " when it was 
 known that the British 
 were really at hand. 
 Wagons were hastily 
 loading; women and 
 children half wild with 
 terror rushed here and 
 there, and then made 
 their way to the open 
 country, whence they 
 watched the flames that 
 made them homeless. 
 
 " The people had 
 hoped that the town 
 might escape ; but this 
 was not Arnold's inten 
 tion. The warehouses, 
 shops, dwellings, were 
 soon in a blaze, while 
 he watched it all from the steeple of the meeting-house. Among 
 the townspeople were many old acquaintances. He even took 
 
 A REBEL BULLET.
 
 A FORTUNATE CHANGE OF WIND. 
 
 dinner with one of them ; but before he rose from the table the 
 house had been fired, and he left it wrapped in flames." 
 
 " What an old scamp he must have been ! " said two or three ; 
 and Ned added, " After all, the British must have lost more 
 men than the patriots, for they had the advantage of firing only 
 from cover, and did not once meet them in the open." 
 
 " Ay, but," said Will, " there was some of the bloodiest fight 
 ing in the whole war on the other side of the harbor. You see, 
 there were a lot of sail, great and small, in port, and Arnold 
 meant to make a clean sweep of them all. There was, among 
 others, a large ship, ' The Hannah,' which had been brought in 
 as a prize, and was unloading. These vessels would naturally 
 all go up the river, where the British could not follow, and 
 escape. But the wind was dead against them, so that they could 
 not. Arnold had foreseen all this, and so he had landed men 
 on each side of the harbor mouth, and, while one party was 
 burning the town, the other was marching to get above the 
 shipping. They almost made it out ; but, just at the right mo 
 ment, with the change of the tide, the wind changed, and all 
 that lay in the stream hoisted sail, and fled in safety. 
 
 " Now, as this detachment of the British marched along, they 
 came to Fort Griswold. In it were only a hundred and fifty 
 militia ; but they refused to surrender when challenged, though 
 the enemy outnumbered them ten to one. Then began a fight 
 that was a fight in earnest. The militia, with grape-shot, swept 
 down whole ranks of the enemy, killing their two commanding 
 officers at the first fire. But the odds were too unequal. The 
 British poured over the works, and the fort was theirs. They
 
 ARNOLD VIEWING THE DESTRUCTION OF THE TOWN.
 
 FALL BACK TO THE SHIPS. 379 
 
 must have been fiends, and they were led by a fiend ; for, when 
 the American colonel surrendered his sword, the wretch seized it, 
 and plunged it into his heart. The soldiers, angered at the 
 unexpected resistance they had met, acted like so many wild 
 beasts, and, falling upon the Americans who had laid down their 
 arms, cut them down in cold blood, firing upon them in platoons, 
 and despatching the wounded with their bayonets. It could 
 never be found out who was the officer who allowed it all." 
 
 " The whole conflict at Fort Griswold was totally unnecessary," 
 said Mr. Longwood. " The British did not intend to hold New 
 London ; and the fort, after they had possession of the town, 
 was of no earthly use. Two or three hundred men were killed 
 and wounded through sheer stupidity. They had hardly gained 
 possession of the fort, too, before they began to see that, if 
 they wished to get away in safety, they must make all speed. 
 For the news of their landing had spread, and all over the 
 country the militia were coming in by the hundreds. Bullets 
 from unseen rifles began to fly among the red-coats, and make 
 them long to be back on their ships. So they made haste to 
 gather about the shore. 
 
 " Before they left, though, they determined to blow up what 
 was left of the fort. They had recovered from their madness 
 by this time, and prepared to remove the wounded first, though 
 after a barbarous fashion. Getting an ammunition-wagon, they 
 piled them in on top of one another, regardless of their groans. 
 Then some twenty soldiers dragged the wagon along toward 
 the crest of the hill, at the foot of which was a house in 
 which they could be left. But the hill was steep, and the
 
 3 8 A HARDY MILITIAMAN. 
 
 wagon heavy ; the men could not hold it back. Leaping aside, 
 they let it go. Down it went, faster and faster, bumping over 
 rocks and stones, until at the foot, when, under full headway, it 
 crashed against an apple-tree, and came to a sudden halt. The 
 screams and cries of the wounded men were heard across the 
 harbor, and several died outright from the shock. 
 
 " By this time it was sunset, and the British embarked, and 
 dropped down the harbor, watching to see the fort fly into the 
 air ; for they had laid a train to the magazine, and had fired it. 
 But, though they looked and looked, the fort never moved, much 
 to their disgust and astonishment. Arnold, in his report, was 
 very severe on the artillery-officer whose work failed ; but it 
 was not the officer's fault. The train was burning fast, when a 
 hardy militiaman made his way in, and, seeing the danger, rushed 
 to the pump, and, filling an old cartridge-box with water, put 
 out the fire, and saved the fort." 
 
 Just at this time Jack, who had not been paying much 
 attention to Mr. Longwood's and Will's story, came aft, and, seat 
 ing himself, remarked abruptly, " I say, here's larks ! Dinner's 
 been ready for ten minutes, and cookie's in a stew ! " 
 
 "What's the matter?" asked they all. 
 
 " The cabin won't begin to hold us ; and he hasn't plates 
 and things enough to go around in such a crowd." 
 
 " Why should we go into the cabin ? " said the girls. " Let's 
 call it a picnic, and have dinner on deck ; and then it will be a 
 good joke, not having dishes enough." 
 
 So they all went forward, much to the cook's embarrassment. 
 His black face was screwed up into a comical knot in his per-
 
 A HASTY PLATE OF SOUP. 383 
 
 plexity. " 'Pears like I don't see how ye're to eat dis yer soup, 
 nohow," he said. 
 
 The soup smelled very nicely, and boys and girls were very 
 hungry. " How many soup-plates have you ? " asked Rose. 
 
 Jack hastened to explain that there were no soup-plates at 
 all, but that there were six bowls. 
 
 " Tumblers for the rest of us," cried Ned, seized by a sudden 
 inspiration. 
 
 So, this difficulty being over, the soup was soon disposed of. 
 After that the other courses were more easily managed ; for 
 " The Mavis's " stock of plates and other articles, though small, 
 was yet enough to go around, with a little ingenious assistance. 
 The cook had evidently a pretty thorough idea of what hungry 
 boys and girls could do ; for one good thing appeared after 
 another, until, at last, peaches and raisins ended the meal.
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 ff^rjL\ 09 EANTIME "The Mavis" had been 
 ^ \ ^*^%/ X/r making good progress. * She had 
 
 v \ ^/^rTELy ,if, s / / ' i 
 
 passed the light-house and the great 
 hotel buildings, and had glided up 
 the harbor; and, just as Jack was 
 surreptitiously sweeping the last of 
 the raisins into his pocket, she 
 rounded the point on which Fort 
 Trumbull stands, and dropped her 
 anchor before the town. 
 A small boat shot out at once from one of the piers, and 
 came alongside ; and a young man in it touched his hat to Mr. 
 Longwood, and scrambled up the schooner's side. 
 
 " You are very prompt, sir," he said. " I have only just 
 arrived." 
 
 Mr. Longwood led the way to the cabin, and the young man 
 followed. Presently he came out again, and said, " I thought 
 that only my signature was wanted ; but I find that there is 
 work here that will take me two or three hours. You had all 
 better go ashore, and enjoy yourselves." 
 
 So, after a brief consultation, it was decided that they should 
 384
 
 THEY MAKE A LANDING. 
 
 385 
 
 land at the foot of the hill where the fight that we have just 
 heard of took place, and visit the remains of the old fort. It 
 was necessary that the boat should make two trips to take them 
 all : so Ned, Tom, and Will, with three of the girls, went first. 
 While the boat went back for the rest, they began to climb, and 
 
 LOADING AND UNLOADING. 
 
 presently reached the top of the hill. Somewhat out of breath, they 
 waited for the others to come, before they should begin their ex 
 plorations. They had with them a glass, and through it they could 
 see the piers of the town plainly, with schooners lying along 
 side, taking in and discharging cargo. Presently they cast their 
 restless eyes about them. Not far away, on an old stone, was
 
 386 THE HISTORY OF MOSES. 
 
 seated a man with his back toward them, smoking a pipe. His 
 shabby coat showed that his circumstances were not of the best. 
 
 " Let's go and talk to him," said Tom. 
 
 So he and Will strolled over. As they came near, the man 
 removed his pipe, not noticing their approach, and began to 
 sing a song in a low tone. The boys stopped to listen. 
 
 Whin Pharaoh's daughther wint down to the wather, 
 
 Sure there was young Moses a-shwimmin' around 
 In his arruk all so handy, wid a shtick of swate candy, 
 
 To kape him from cryin' ontil he was found. 
 
 Says she to a maithen, says she, " Bring yon haythen, 
 
 Your trotters be shakin', ye lazy spalpeen ; 
 If the wathers wance wet him, or the crockodiles get him, 
 
 It's no crockodile tears ye'll be sheddin', I ween." 
 
 So, whin from his shwimmin' he was brought to the wimmin, 
 Faith, it shows how the blarney's a famale's chafe joy, 
 
 A nate bow he was makin', as sure as I'm spakin'; 
 " Begorra ! " says she, " he's the broth of a boy." 
 
 " He seems to have attended Sunday school in his youth," 
 said Will, as the singer broke off abruptly, to put his pipe back 
 into his mouth. 
 
 The man heard his voice, and turned around. " Long life to 
 your honors," he said, rising. 
 
 " That's quite a nice song you were singing," said Will. 
 " Where did you learn it ? " 
 
 " It was injuced by me own circumsthances," said the man.
 
 THE REST OF THE PARTY ARRIVE. 387 
 
 41 1 was lookin' at that bit of wather just fornint yez, and wishin' 
 Moses had left his boat whin he got through wid it ; for how I 
 am to get across, I doan know, be raison that I have niver so 
 much as a pinny, and the fare is five cints on the boat. On- 
 less," he added, with a grin, " ye may be a brother of Pharaoh's 
 daughther, and inclined to hilp a poor man a bit, like your 
 sister did wid Moses." 
 
 Will laughed, and gave him a small coin ; and, with another 
 " Long life to your honors ! " he set out briskly for the ferry. 
 
 By this time, Mrs. Longwood and the rest of the party had 
 arrived, and together they strolled about the hill-top. There was 
 not much to see, though, beside the view : so, after a little, they 
 sat themselves down on a grassy knoll, and two or three began 
 to urge Mrs. Longwood to tell them more about Arnold and his 
 crime. 
 
 "It is not a pleasant subject," said that lady ; " but it is a 
 good thing for every boy and girl to know the story of that 
 traitor, and how his acts recoiled on his own head, and left him 
 despised alike by friends and foes. 
 
 " Arnold was born some ten or a dozen miles from where 
 we now are, on the very river Thames that we see winding be 
 neath us. He grew up to be a man among the stirring scenes 
 that preceded the Revolution, in the days of the Stamp Act, 
 and other attempts at oppression by the mother country. He 
 was a thorough patriot. When the news of the battle of Lex 
 ington came, he was in business in New Haven. He summoned 
 the guards of which he was captain, and called for volunteers to 
 march with him to Cambridge. Sixty men stepped forward. He
 
 388 PRODUCE THE KEYS. 
 
 demanded arms and ammunition of the selectmen. But these 
 worthies were not accustomed to such rapidity of action : they 
 said that he would do better to wait a little, for regular orders. 
 Arnold marched his men to the house where they were assem 
 bled, and sent in word, that, if the keys of the magazine were 
 not produced in five minutes, his men should break in the 
 doors. The keys were produced ; and the company, well armed 
 and equipped, set out at once." 
 
 " What an energetic fellow he must have been ! " said Charlie, 
 
 " He was, indeed," said Mrs. Longwood. " No sooner had 
 he and his men arrived in camp than he proposed to the authori 
 ties a plan for seizing Fort Ticonderoga." 
 
 " Why, that is where the wagoner went," said Carrie. 
 
 " Yes," said Mrs. Longwood ; " but the wagoner was two or 
 three years later. Well, the authorities fancied Arnold's plan ; 
 and they made him a colonel, with power to recruit four hun 
 dred men. So he set out to the western part of Massachusetts 
 to raise his men ; but, when he reached there, he found that a 
 party of Green-Mountain Boys under Ethan Allen had already 
 started for the same purpose. He went after them, and, showing 
 his commission, claimed the command. But the Vermonters did 
 not know him, and would not obey him. They would fight under 
 their own leader, or go home. Arnold, however, went on with 
 them ; and he and Ethan Allen were side by side at the head 
 of the men, when, in the gray morning, the troops seized the 
 fort, and, waking up the commander from his sleep, demanded 
 his surrender in the name of the Great Jehovah and the Conti 
 nental Congress.
 
 THE MARCH ON CANADA. 391 
 
 " Arnold's reputation was now established as a bold and 
 daring man, and one who could rouse his followers to enthusi 
 asm. And so he was chosen to lead one of the most dangerous 
 expeditions of the whole war. Its plan was this. Here," said 
 Mrs. Longwood, drawing with her parasol an imaginary map on 
 the grass, " is Montreal, and here Quebec, which were occupied 
 by the British. Now, an American army was on its way to 
 Canada, to attack these cities. It was marching northward by 
 way of the lakes," and she pointed out their course. " It was 
 proposed that Arnold should lead a force to join them. His 
 route was to be through Maine. No one but Indians had ever 
 passed through these northern wilds ; but it was thought that his 
 army might ascend the Kennebec River in scows, as far as pos 
 sible, then strike across country to the head waters of the 
 Chaudiere, down which they could float to the St. Lawrence. 
 
 " Arnold's men were bold and hardy. Three companies were 
 from Western Virginia, men who had seen rough service on 
 the Indian frontier, the rest were rugged farmers used to all 
 manner of toil and exposure. Full of determination they set 
 out, and were soon lost to sight in the forest." 
 
 " It must have been glorious fun, though, making their way 
 up the rivers, and camping in the Maine woods ! " said Tom. 
 " Just think of it, fellows : salmon, and trout, and deer, and all 
 that sort of thing." 
 
 " These men did not go for a lark, as you would call it," 
 said Mrs. Longwood. " They had to pole great heavy bateaux 
 against the current all day, sometimes stopping to carry the 
 baggage on their backs around rapids. When night came, they
 
 392 
 
 A SUDDEN COLD BATH. 
 
 were glad enough to broil their salt pork over the camp-fire, 
 and drop off" to sleep, without thinking of trout and venison. 
 A band of pioneers went before, to explore the way, and many 
 was the rough experience they had. 
 
 A ROUGH EXPERIENCE. 
 
 " At length, after days and days of toil, the little army 
 reached the head-waters of the Kennebec, where the stream was 
 to be left, and the forest crossed that lay between them and the 
 head-waters of the Chaudiere. And now they were in peril 
 indeed. They were too far along to go back, and to go forward
 
 DOG-SOUP FOR DINNER. 395 
 
 seemed almost certain death. Storm after storm came upon 
 them. In a single night the streams rose ten feet, so that they 
 were often up to their waists in the icy water. And, worst of all, 
 their provisions gave out. Many lay down and died in their 
 misery. To push on, and reach some of the friendly French 
 villages, was their only hope. They were reduced to such straits, 
 that they killed the two dogs that were with them, and made 
 them into soup ; they boiled their buckskin breeches, and ate 
 them ; and they gnawed the roots of trees and shrubs that they 
 dug out of the ground. In all these trials Arnold shared as a 
 common soldier, and was everywhere present, encouraging and 
 sympathizing with the men. 
 
 " And at last a remnant, ragged and famishing, found them 
 selves within reach of help from the friendly French settlers." 
 
 " Poor fellows ! " said Lou, " they certainly deserved success : 
 they worked hard enough for it." 
 
 " They did not achieve it, however," said Mrs. Longwood. 
 " It was early in September when Arnold's little army left Boston, 
 Now it was the loth of November ; and his force, after all 
 stragglers had come in, was only six hundred men, half-clothed. 
 They had not lost their determination, though, but pressed 
 forward with all speed toward Quebec. But the British had 
 learned of their coming, and recruits poured into the city from 
 all about. They burned every boat on the St. Lawrence, for 
 twenty miles, to prevent their crossing. And when, one dark 
 night, Arnold, eluding a man-of-war, landed his little army in 
 Wolfe's Cove, and scaled the plains on which the city stood, 
 there were three men inside her walls, to his one without."
 
 39 6 
 
 "ROW, BROTHERS, ROW." 
 
 11 It looks to me," said Jack, "as if he were in rather a 
 tight place." 
 
 " Of course he could not attack the city with such a force," 
 said Mrs. Longwood : " so he intrenched himself, and waited for 
 
 CARLETON'S ESCAPE. 
 
 the other American army to join him. That army, led by Gen. 
 Montgomery, had had brilliant success. It had taken Montreal, 
 and would have taken the English commander, Gen. Carleton,
 
 THE BELLS CLANG FORTH AN ALARM. 397 
 
 had he not made his escape in disguise, in a small boat. But 
 by reason of the garrisons it had had to leave behind it, and 
 the expiration of the time for which the men had enlisted, it 
 had so dwindled that it numbered only three hundred men." 
 
 " And so Arnold was not much better for their coming,"' 
 said Kate. 
 
 " No ; he was not, indeed," said Mrs. Longwood. " The two 
 commanders held a conference. To attack the city seemed mad 
 ness, but they were determined to attempt it. They planned a 
 night assault. The snow was coming down thick and fast when 
 the attack was made. A hundred yards before his men ran 
 Arnold, while all the bells of the city were clanging forth a wild 
 alarm. On a run after him came his men, holding their muskets 
 under their coat-flaps, to keep the locks dry. At the very first 
 onset Montgomery was killed, and Arnold was struck by a mus 
 ket-ball that broke his leg. Rising on his other leg, he tried 
 to press forward, and cheered the men as they passed him. 
 They made a galh,nt fight, but it was in vain : Quebec was not 
 to fall." 
 
 " What a shame it was," exclaimed the boys, " that he should 
 fail ! but it was a desperate venture at the best. The fight 
 must have given him a great reputation." 
 
 ".Yes," said Mrs. Longwood. " Congress at once promoted 
 him to be a brigadier. The Americans were forced to retire 
 slowly from Canada, and the British followed them up as they 
 went. Gen. Carleton was determined to get full possession of 
 Lake Champlain, because of its nearness to Ticonderoga. The 
 British always had their eyes on Ticonderoga, longing to gain it,.
 
 SKILLED SEAMEN AGAINST LAND-LUBBERS. 
 
 because, with it once in their hands, they thought they could easily 
 force their way to Albany, and effect a junction with the forces 
 in New York. So Carleton began to build vessels with all speed, 
 and Arnold, too, began to build vessels to fight him. Of course 
 Carleton had great advantages. He was not far from Montreal, 
 his base of supplies, whence he could get men and material, 
 and he had the whole purse of England to draw from, while 
 Arnold had only the backwoods about him. And so it came 
 about, that, when the two fleets met in fight, the British had 
 more than twice the weight of guns, and twice as many ships, 
 as he, and had skilled seamen to navigate them, while he had 
 but land-lubbers." 
 
 " I suspect this will be as vigorous a scrimmage as the other," 
 said Ned. 
 
 " You shall see," said Mrs. Longwood. " When the British 
 ships, with all their flags proudly flying, came sailing down to 
 attack the American, the English captain, seeing the smallness 
 of the American fleet, said that he thought they should have 
 little trouble ; but Gen. Carleton, who was aboard, remembered 
 the march through the Maine woods, and thought differently. 
 And he was right. It was half-past twelve when the two fleets 
 were within musket-shot and hard at work. Arnold had that 
 morning lost the ship on which he was, ' The Royal Savage,' 
 and now had taken his station on ' The Congress ' galley. He 
 anchored her in the hottest part of the fire, and there she stayed 
 until, at five o'clock, the British retired. 
 
 " Not only were he and his men exposed to the fire of the 
 enemy's ships, but the whole shore close at hand blazed with
 
 THE BRITISH COMMANDER CAUGHT NAPPING. 399 
 
 the rifles of the Indians. Fortunately, though, he had foreseen 
 this, and had protected his sides so that the bullets did little 
 harm. He was omnipresent on his ship. His men were inexpe 
 rienced, and he himself pointed and discharged most of the guns. 
 He knew no such word as submission. His vessel was hulled 
 eleven times. Seven shots had passed through her, above the 
 water-line, her mast and rigging were cut to pieces, while around 
 him lay the dead and wounded ; and yet he fought as madly as 
 at first. 
 
 " That night the British fleet, confident that another day 
 would see the Americans in their power, stationed themselves in 
 the channel through which they must pass to escape. Arnold 
 called a council. His fleet was in a dreadful way : three-fourths 
 of their ammunition was spent. They must escape if possible. 
 The night was a hazy one. Each ship put out all lights save 
 one at the stern, to guide the vessel that followed her, and, 
 raising their sail, they stole noiselessly away. And when morn 
 ing awoke the British commander, to go on with the struggle of 
 the day before, his enemy had escaped him." 
 
 " How provoked he must have been ! " said they all. 
 
 " He was indeed," said Mrs. Longwood. " He hoisted all 
 sail, and set out in pursuit ; and after a little he came up with 
 the hinder vessels of the flying fleet. Two had sunk from their 
 injuries ; and the others, crippled and struggling, were making 
 the best of their way to Crown Point and safety. Arnold, in his 
 ' Congress ' galley, with one or two gondolas, determined to fight 
 the whole fleet, and so detain them till the others had time to 
 escape. His poor old craft was in a terrible way from the en-
 
 400 ONE STEADY ROUND OF SHOT AND SHELL. 
 
 counter she had just had ; but for four hours she fought des 
 perately. Seven Englishmen surrounded her, and poured into 
 her one steady round of shot and ball, and still Arnold's cry 
 was, No surrender ! At last, when he saw that the rest of his 
 fleet had made good their escape, he ran her ashore, and com 
 manded his men to leap overboard, and wade to land. With his 
 own hand he set her on fire, and, keeping off the enemy's small 
 boats till the flames had such headway that they could not be 
 extinguished, he left his flag still flying, and escaped to land. 
 
 " I am going to tell you only one story more of Arnold's 
 daring," said Mrs. Longwood. " It was at the battle of Saratoga. 
 You remember about that in the wagoner's story. It was the 
 battle which caused the surrender of Burgoyne, and allowed our 
 worthy wagoner to return to his home. 
 
 " Gates, who had command of the American forces, had thrown 
 up earthworks at a place called Bemis Heights, and here the 
 battle took place. The two armies were within earshot of one 
 another. Early in the morning the British troops were seen to 
 be moving. Arnold was wild with impatience. He was not now 
 in command, and so had to await orders. At last they came. 
 All day long the battle raged, until night put an end to the 
 strife. Like a madman he rushed into the wildest danger, lead 
 ing the troops in person to the charge. He was so well known 
 that his presence alone seemed to bring success. 
 
 " The battle was a drawn one. Both armies rested on the 
 field. But Burgoyne's advance was checked. He no longer 
 thought of marching to Albany, but of how to escape. It was 
 too late. His camp was surrounded, his provisions were growing
 
 THE EARTHWORKS AT BEMIb HEIGHTS.
 
 A WRONGLY DIRECTED BULLET. 403 
 
 shorter. Not a mouthful could he gain by foraging, so closely 
 was he watched. His only chance was in another battle ; and, a 
 little more than a fortnight after the first conflict, came the 
 second and decisive one. 
 
 " Arnold had in this interval quarrelled with his commanding 
 officer, and had been relieved of his command. When the sound 
 of the guns came to his ears, telling that the battle had begun, 
 he paced up and down his tent in a fever of impatience. ' I 
 can stand it no longer ! ' he exclaimed. ' If I cannot command, 
 I can at least serve as a volunteer ; ' and, leaping on his great 
 brown horse, he tore madly to the fight. Above the noise of 
 the guns could be heard the yells of the men, as they welcomed 
 their old leader back. Placing himself once more at their front, 
 he led them on, waving his broadsword above his head, and 
 utterly disregarding the leaden missives of death that filled the 
 air. 
 
 " And he led them to victory ; for at the end of that day, 
 when he fell, wounded in the same leg that received the ball at 
 Quebec, the British were routed.". 
 
 " What a hero he must have been ! " exclaimed they all. 
 
 " Yes," said Mrs. Longwood. . " An historian has well said, 
 that, if that bullet had ended his life, no one would have stood 
 higher on the roll of patriot heroes than Arnold. 
 
 " Among the British officers who were killed in this battle 
 was Gen. Frazer. He begged that he might be buried at six 
 o'clock in the evening, on the top of a neighboring mountain, 
 in a redoubt that had been built there. 
 
 " Slowly the mournful procession moved up the hillside in
 
 404 A WILD BURIAL SCENE. 
 
 the sight of. both armies, just as the sun was setting. It was so 
 far distant that the Americans mistook it for a body of troops, 
 and opened fire upon them. As the chaplain read the burial- 
 service the shot were whistling over his head, and at times he 
 was covered with loose earth as one struck near him ; but his 
 voice never faltered. 
 
 " Then, all at once, as the Americans discovered the nature 
 of the work they were intent upon, the cannonading ceased, 
 and, in its place, the solemn minute-guns echoed through the 
 hills, bearing token of their sympathy and admiration of him 
 who was gone." 
 
 " How thankful I am," said Rose, " that there is no war 
 now ! Think of going through such dreadful scenes ! " 
 
 " How could such a man as Arnold turn traitor ? " said Ned. 
 " He had reached such a height in the affections of his country 
 men, and had fought so bravely for his native land ! " 
 
 " The height he had reached only made his fall the greater, 
 and the lustre of his name only made his treason blacker," said 
 Mrs. Longwood. " I have shown you only one side of his 
 character, and the brightest side. Unfortunately he was arrogant 
 and overbearing, he made enemies by the score, and it was 
 openly said that he was not honest. In his Canada campaign, 
 as well as at other times, he was accused of taking property 
 and using it for his own advantage. His enemies, and they 
 were many, worked busily. When Congress raised five briga 
 diers to higher rank they were all his juniors, and men who- 
 had done nothing, while his great services were ignored. There 
 is no doubt that this slight was most unjust. His wrongs grew 
 in his mind, bearing bitter fruit.
 
 PATRIOTS OPEN FIRE. 405 
 
 " Then the British emissaries began their work. They praised, 
 and they flattered, and they promised. It was in vain, they told 
 him, for the colonies to succeed in their struggle against such a 
 mighty country as England. If he would go over to the British, 
 and yield up possession of some important post, the war would 
 be ended all the sooner, and great credit would be his. And, 
 besides, it should be to his pecuniary advantage. He should be 
 a major-general in the British army, and should receive a certain 
 sum in cash. And so he listened, and he fell." 
 
 " How he must have wept tears of rage and mortification in 
 after-life," said Tom, " when he saw what he had thrown away ! 
 How did he turn traitor ? " 
 
 " He obtained the command of West Point, a post of such 
 importance, that, had he succeeded in delivering it up to the 
 enemy, as he intended, it would have, no doubt, put an end to 
 the war. 
 
 " The plan was this : Arnold was to weaken the garrison as 
 much as possible, by sending men away on one pretext and 
 another. Then the British, who were to be embarked in readi 
 ness, were suddenly to appear before the fort, and he was to 
 surrender it. All these plans had been fully discussed and 
 arranged with Major Andre, and, had it not been for the fortu 
 nate capture of that officer, would have succeeded. 
 
 " His capture came about in this way : Andre had come up 
 the river in the British man-of-war ' Vulture.' Arnold had sent 
 a boat for him, and had a conference, lasting until daylight, by 
 the river-side. Then, as all the arrangements had not been fully 
 made, Andre accompanied the traitor to a house near at hand.
 
 406 THREE MEN APPEAR SUDDENLY. 
 
 While he was there, a patriot battery opened fire on ' The Vul 
 ture,' with such effect that she was driven to hoist her anchors, 
 and fall down with the current. Consequently Andre could not 
 return to her. Arnold furnished him with maps and plans of 
 West Point, which he put inside his stockings ; and then, with a 
 pass in his pocket, Andre set out to make the journey to New 
 York on horseback. 
 
 " All went well for a time ; but when he reached Tarry town, 
 and thought himself in comparative safety, he was stopped by 
 three men, who seized and searched him. As soon as they saw 
 the plans in his stockings, they knew that he was no common 
 man, and they carried him to the nearest American post. Here 
 he managed to get a letter sent Arnold, telling of his capture. 
 It came to the traitor just as he, with his aides, was at break 
 fast. Without a moment's delay, he went to his wife's room, 
 and broke to her the intelligence that he must fly for his life. 
 Then, springing on a horse that stood at the door, he tore madly 
 down the hill to the river, and, entering a barge, bade the men 
 row him to ' The Vulture,' which still lay in the stream. His 
 treason had failed, but he himself was safe." 
 
 " And what became of Andre ? " asked Lou. 
 
 " He was tried as a spy, and was hanged," said Mrs. Long- 
 wood. 
 
 " It seems hard that Arnold should escape, and he suffer," 
 said Carrie. 
 
 " I think it served him right," said Will. " It was not a very 
 creditable piece of business for an officer to be engaged in. 
 Trying to bribe a man to be a traitor is not generally considered
 
 ARNOLD'S ESCAPE.
 
 SO MUCH FOR TREASON. 49 
 
 to be work for a gentleman, in the army or out. But it is an 
 awful pity that Arnold could not have been hung too." 
 
 " His treason benefited him little," said Mrs. Longwood ; 
 " for he was distrusted, and held in secret if not open contempt, 
 by the English, and despised by his countrymen. 
 
 " Once, anxious to know how he was regarded, he asked a 
 patriot captain who had been taken prisoner, what would be his 
 fate, should he be taken by the Americans. 
 
 " ' They will cut off,' said the captain, ' that shortened leg of 
 yours, wounded at Quebec and Saratoga, and bury it with all 
 the honors of war, and then hang the rest of you on a gibbet.' 
 
 " When the Revolution came to an end, Arnold saw that 
 America could never more be a home for him. With his family 
 he removed to England, and there passed the rest of his days in 
 obscurity. Business reverses came upon him ; and, when he lay 
 dying, he knew that, except the pensions w r hich his treason had 
 bought, his family had almost nothing wherewith to buy their 
 daily bread. 
 
 " So much for treason."
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 JUST as Mrs. Long- 
 wood finished, the head 
 and shoulders of Mr. 
 Longwood appeared, 
 coming up the hill. 
 Tom and Carrie ran to 
 meet him, and soon he 
 was sitting on the grass 
 beside them. 
 
 " That tiresome busi 
 ness is through with, at 
 last," he said; "and now 
 what shall we do ? Do 
 you propose to stay at 
 a hotel in New London 
 all night ? or what are your plans, young people ? " 
 
 " Shall we not get back to House No. 2 in time to sleep ? "" 
 asked the girls. 
 
 " Hardly," said Tom. " Why, it is now half-past four ; and, 
 if we set out at once, with the light wind there is blowing, we 
 should hardly get back to Fort Pond before twelve o'clock. 
 410
 
 
 THEY SET OFF FOR THE TOWfr. 41 r 
 
 And I presume you would not enjoy the walk across the moors 
 to the house, in the pitchy blackness of midnight." 
 
 " No, indeed," said Gertrude. 
 
 ' A hotel is so stupid ! " said Carrie ; " but I suppose there 
 is nothing else for it." 
 
 " I have an idea," said Jack. " Why not all spend the night 
 on the schooner ? The cabin will take Mrs. Longwood and you 
 girls very snugly, and Mr. Longwood can have a hammock, I 
 am sure there must be an extra one. We fellows could roll 
 ourselves up, each in a rug, and camp down anywhere. It will 
 be delicious sailing to-night. There is a moon ; and it is so 
 warm that we can be on deck late, without feeling the slightest 
 chill." 
 
 The girls all seemed to fancy Jack's idea ; and so it was 
 decided to adopt it. 
 
 " Well, then," said Mr. Longwood, " unless you wish to sit 
 longer on this hill, suppose we go over to the town, and see 
 what is to be seen. I should like to get a newspaper, and learn 
 what has been going on in the world while we have been away 
 from it. Possibly, too, we may find something to supplement 
 'The Mavis's' larder." 
 
 So they started off for the town. Apparently they did find 
 something there to add to their table ; for when, an hour later, 
 they came straggling down to the waterside, to once more get 
 aboard their schooner, every boy and girl was carrying a package 
 of some kind, while Jack led the way with two huge melons 
 under his arms. 
 
 " There," he said, with a sigh of relief, as he handed them-
 
 412 JACK EARNS HIS SUPPER. 
 
 to Thomas John, who laid them carefully in the bottom of the 
 boat, " I've earned my supper, anyway ! " 
 
 The sun was low down in the west as " The Mavis " glided 
 slowly out of the harbor. The air was full of sea-gulls, and 
 here and there, as they moved onward, they passed an incoming 
 craft. One of these attracted their especial attention, for the 
 skipper was no other than a young girl. The sun was shining 
 brightly on her slender figure, as she grasped the tiller firmly ; 
 and, just as they passed, they heard her father's gruff call, 
 " Luff a little, lassie ! " and her clear answer, " Luff it is, sir ! " 
 
 The girls all waved their handkerchiefs, as they passed close 
 by. What effect the sight of her had on the boys, I can only 
 judge from its effect on one. Jack disappeared : at least, they 
 saw nothing of him for ten minutes. At the end of that time 
 he came back, with a piece of paper and a stump of a pencil 
 in his hand, and inquired softly of Will, " I say, what rhymes 
 with skipper ? " 
 
 " Hallo ! " said Charlie, who overheard. " Jack wishes to 
 write a poem about the pretty skipper, but is balked by the 
 lack of a rhyme. Let's see, Jack : what rhymes with skipper ? 
 Why " 
 
 " I'd rather know what rhymes with supper," said Rose. 
 " Do, boys, see when we are to have it." 
 
 So two or three of them went forward at once, and, return 
 ing after a little, announced that it was almost ready. 
 
 " You sat a long time on the hill-top this afternoon," said 
 Mr. Longwood, as they lingered about the remains of their 
 meal. " I suppose you learned all aboicl New London in the 
 olden times."
 
 THE PRETTY sl<, H'l'KR
 
 MATHER BYLES IS TROUBLED. 415 
 
 " No, indeed," said Ned. " We learned a great deal about 
 Arnold ; but we heard nothing of New London. Do tell us 
 something." 
 
 " Didn't Mrs. Longwood tell you about the Rev. Mather 
 Byles and his troubles ? " 
 
 " No," said Jack. " What were his troubles ? Colds in the 
 head ? His name sounds like that." 
 
 " I do not know that he was troubled in that way," said Mr. 
 Longwood, smiling. " He was a minister." 
 
 " Do let us hear about him," said they all, drawing nearer. 
 
 " You know," said Mr. Longwood, " that our excellent ances 
 tors of many generations ago came to this country for religious 
 toleration. By religious toleration they understood that any 
 person should be free to believe as they did. If he did not so 
 believe, they made short work of him. Roger Williams, for 
 instance, was driven out of the Massachusetts Colony in winter, 
 and travelled through the woods alone and unprotected to Provi 
 dence, where he could found a new settlement, and hold his 
 opinions undisturbed. 
 
 " But everywhere, whatever difference on doctrines there might 
 be, they agreed on one thing, and that was, that Sunday was to 
 be kept in the strictest way possible. The Pilgrims who came 
 in ' The Mayflower ' fined any one of their number who might 
 be seen walking in the fields on Sunday ; and, if you look over 
 the old court records of New London, you will find, in the year 
 1670, an entry like this: 
 
 " John Lewis and Sarah Chapman are presented for sitting together on the 
 Lord's day, under an apple-tree in Goodman Chapman's orchard.' "
 
 416 
 
 AN AWFULLY MEAN FELLOW. 
 
 " He must have been 
 an awfully mean fellow who 
 told of them," said Jack. 
 
 " They ought to have 
 been reading their Bibles," 
 said Carrie, with great se 
 verity. 
 
 " I imagine that some 
 times the young people were 
 hard to manage, even when 
 they did come to church," 
 said Mr. Longwood. " A 
 year or two before John 
 Lewis and Sarah Chapman 
 came to such signal grief 
 for defying public opinion, 
 a town in Massachusetts 
 held a meeting, and 
 
 " ' The town ordered that no 
 woman, maid, nor boy, nor gall, 
 shall sit in the South Alley & East 
 Alley of the M. House, upon penalty 
 of twelvepence for every day they 
 sit in the alley after the present day. 
 It was further ordered that every 
 dog that comes to the meeting after 
 the present day, either of Lord's 
 days or lecture days, except it be 
 
 their dogs that pays for a dog whipper. the owner of these dogs shall pay sixpence 
 for every time they come to the meeting, that doth not pay the dog whipper.' " 
 
 A FAIR PURITAN.
 
 ROGER WILLIAMS IN THE FOREST.
 
 UNFRUITFUL WORK OF DARKNESS. 419 
 
 " I say," said Jack, " it must have been fun to go to church 
 in those days ! " 
 
 " Especially for the dog-whipper," said Ned. 
 
 " Well," continued Mr. Longwood, " the Rev. Mather Byles 
 lived about a hundred years after John Lewis and Sarah Chap 
 man ; but the people in his day did much worse things to trouble 
 him than sitting together under apple-trees on Sunday. A sect 
 sprang up, called Rogerines, who considered it their duty to 
 bear testimony against the ministers of the day, because, among < 
 other things, they preached for hire, and because they made long 
 prayers, which are forbidden in the New Testament, and because 
 they observed the first day of the week, which they said was no 
 sabbath by God's appointment. Their way of bearing testimony 
 was peculiar. One of them has written a book on the subject, 
 and this is what he says : 
 
 " ' yune 10, 1764. We went to the meeting house and some of our people 
 went in and sat down ; others tarried without & sat upon the ground. And when 
 Mather Byles their priest began to say over his formal synagogue prayer, some of 
 our women began to knit, others to sew, that it might be made manifest they 
 had no fellowship with such unfruitful works of darkness. But Justice Coit and 
 the congregation were much offended at this testimony and fell upon them in the 
 very time of their prayer and drove us all out of the house in a most furious 
 manner.' 
 
 " These testimony-bearing Quakers were brought before the 
 justices the next day, and sent to prison for a short time for 
 disturbing the peace. But this only egged them on. The women 
 brought their spinning-wheels ; and every Sunday they bore their 
 testimony in the same disagreeable way, and were ejected. They
 
 420 
 
 MATHER BYLES (IAS A QUICK TEMPER. 
 
 visited every church in the neighborhood ; but were especially 
 fond of Mather Byles, because of his choleric temper. If all 
 were quiet in the church, and he were proceeding with his ser 
 mon, a Quaker had but to put on his hat, to bring on a tempest. 
 
 THE WAY JOHN LEWIS OUGHT TO HAVE SPENT THE SABBATH. 
 
 The minister would stop short ; nor could he be persuaded to 
 go on, until the obnoxious covering was removed. He was so 
 touchy on this subject, that he would not leave his house to go
 
 JACK SIGHS FOR THE PAST. 421 
 
 to church, if one were in the path. The wily Quakers knew 
 this ; and on Sunday morning a couple might, perhaps, sit on 
 his doorstep, and one or two more loiter by the path that led to 
 church. Then the congregation would assemble, and take their 
 seats. The hour would pass ; but no minister would come. 
 There would the people sit, and the bell would keep on tolling, 
 perhaps fifty or sixty minutes ; but Mr. Byles would not budge 
 from his house until a constable arrived, to drive the obnoxious 
 Quakers from his path." 
 
 " Why wasn't I born in those days ? " said Jack earnestly. 
 
 " I fear, you young rogue, that you would have been a 
 Quaker," said Mr. Longwood. 
 
 " Well, at each new outbreak the testimony-bearers were 
 brought up for trial. For each fresh offence the time of impris 
 onment was doubled ; so that presently the jail was crowded. 
 At length, one Sunday, the imprisoned Quakers saw a fresh 
 party approaching, under the care of the constables. They 
 decided that they had already as- many in the jail as could be 
 comfortable. So they barred the door. Their historian says : 
 
 "'We blew a shell in the prison in defiance of their idol Sabbath, and to 
 mock their false worship, as Elijah mocked the worshippers of Baal. The authority 
 gave orders to break open the prison door, so they went to work and labored 
 exceeding hard on their Sabbath, cutting with axes and heaving at the door with 
 iron bars for a considerable time till they were wearied, but could not break open 
 the door." 
 
 " The constables were not to be balked, however : finding 
 the door so stout, they cut a hole in the roof, and dropped the 
 fresh arrivals on the heads of their friends below."
 
 422 A REACTION SETS IN. 
 
 " And how did all these troubles end ? " asked Lou. 
 
 " I am sorry to say that the authorities proceeded presently 
 to very brutal measures, for they began to whip men and 
 women ; but this produced a re-action, and gradually the whole 
 thing died out."
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 I HAVE forgotten to mention, 
 that, among the purchases at 
 New London, was one by Jack, 
 of a very shrill whistle. It had 
 lain forgotten in his trousers 
 pocket, until now ; but, of a 
 sudden remembering it, he drew 
 it forth, and gave a blast upon 
 it that caused them all to put 
 their hands to their ears. 
 
 " I have noticed, with great 
 
 pain," said he, attempting to hold the whistle between his lips, 
 and talk at the same time ; and, in consequence, uttering some 
 unintelligible sounds, "I have noticed, with great pain, that 
 this vessel was so insufficiently manned and provided, that it had 
 not a boatswain, or even a boatswain's whistle. At great trouble, 
 and out of my limited resources, I have procured a whistle, 
 which, while lacking in proper force, is yet a fair substitute for 
 that in ordinary use." 
 
 And he gave another blast upon it, by way of illustration, 
 grinning with mischief, as the girls again covered their ears with 
 
 4 2 3
 
 424 HASTINGS THE BO'SUN. 
 
 their hands, to deaden the shrill sounds. " By a little practice, 
 I think I can make myself heard quite a distance," he added. 
 " Henceforth you will please address me as Hastings the bo'sun. 
 I say, Carrie, toss me over a peach, will you ? " 
 
 "It is not customary for the bo'sun to mess with the pas 
 sengers," said Carrie with great dignity. "I do not know 
 whether Capt. Jackson has provided peaches for the crew, or 
 not. If he has, you will probably find them forward ; " and she 
 took up one, and commenced to munch it with great satisfaction. 
 
 The laugh was decidedly against Jack ; but that young man 
 was equal to the emergency. He came close behind Carrie, and 
 said : "If the passengers revolt, and disobey the officers, they 
 are put under arrest. Will you hand me a peach ; or shall I 
 pipe all hands, to put you in irons ? " and he bent forward, so 
 that his mouth was close to her, and put the whistle to his lips. 
 
 " Goodness, Jack ! " she cried. " Don't blow that fearful thing 
 in my ears, and you shall have all the peaches you want. Here, 
 take them ! " and she handed him the dish. 
 
 The victor selected the best one, and, magnanimously saying 
 nothing about his triumph, strolled away, eating it. 
 
 The others sat about, chatting idly. Presently the sun went 
 down, and twilight began to come over the waters. The moon, 
 however, did her best to enliven the scene, so that the little 
 groups scattered about " The Mavis's " deck were plainly visible 
 to one another. By and by Capt. Jackson made his appearance 
 from somewhere below, and began to talk with Mr. and Mrs. 
 Longwood. 
 
 Carrie soon joined them. " Capt, Jackson," she exclaimed,
 
 CAPT. JACKSON BROUGHT TO BOOK. 
 
 425 
 
 " you haven't told us a story ; and you must know ever so many. 
 Tell us one ; won't you ? " 
 
 Capt. Jackson looked like a man upon whom a long-expected 
 blow had fallen. 
 
 THE MOON ENLIVENS THE SCENE. 
 
 " I never in all my life saw a passel of boys and girls so 
 sharp-set after stories as you all," he exclaimed. " Why, you're 
 worse than blue-fish after menhaden. I knew it was comin', 
 though," he went on. " I knew you'd be after me for a story ; 
 and it seemed like as if all the little wits I had went clean out 
 of me at the idee. I kep' away from you the whole way over 
 this mornin', a-purpose. There was a story I remembered havin'
 
 426 AUNT JERUSHA'S BABY. 
 
 heard my mother tell, which was considerable amusin', how my 
 aunt Jerusha's baby cut her first teeth. I put a powerful amount 
 of strain on myself to overhaul that yarn, but somehow I 
 couldn't get the points to lie rightly in my mind ; and what to 
 do I couldn't tell, no ways. I didn't know but I should have to fall 
 back on the Flying Dutchman. 
 
 " And so, while you were all on the top of the hill at New 
 London, yarnin', I'll be bound, I went ashore in the town, 
 to walk about a bit, and give my mind a rest. I strolled on, for 
 a time, till I kind o' lost my bearin's ; so I stopped in a gro 
 cer's shop, to get the reckonin'. The young man behind the 
 counter was waitin' on a young woman ; so I cast my eyes about 
 a bit, and there, lyin' on a barr'l, was an old newspaper. The 
 fust thing I see, in the corner of it, was a bit of poetry. I 
 read down a ways, and then I knew that my goin' into that 
 store was providential ; for there was the story I was after, all 
 blocked out in print." 
 
 "About aunt Jerusha's baby?" asked Jack, who had joined 
 the group. 
 
 " No," said the captain ; " a much better story than that. 
 Just wait a bit. 
 
 " Well, when the young man had done up the young woman's 
 package, which took some time, he turned to me kind o' sharp, 
 and says he, 
 
 " ' What will you have, sir ? 
 
 " I rather calcalate that they two was a-conversin'," said the 
 captain with a chuckle, " and didn't think my comin' in was so 
 providential as I did. I was kind o' took aback by his question, 
 for I was readin' away for dear life ; but I looks up at once.
 
 A POUND OF GUNPOWDER. 427 
 
 " ' I'll have a pound of gunpowder,' says I. 
 
 " ' We don't keep it,' says he, short like, and snappish. 
 
 " Well, then/ says I, ' give me a pound of saleratus. That 
 will answer the same purpose.' 
 
 " He looked at me as if he thought I was an ijot ; but he 
 went away back, and began to dig it out of a drawer, and I 
 just folded that paper up small, and put it in my pocket. When 
 he brought the saleratus, I paid for it, and come away, without 
 even so much as asking the question I went in for. When I 
 got to the next corner, I looked around, and there was that 
 young man standing in the doorway watchin' me. 
 
 " 'Twas the fust time that I ever stole, that I recollect," 
 added the captain ; " and, till I got safe aboard again, I was 
 afraid to look over my shoulder, for fear of seein' a policeman 
 after me. But they haven't caught me yet ; and I calcalate that, 
 by this time, we're out of the jurisdiction of Connecticut, and 
 I'm tolerable safe." 
 
 " Pipe all hands to hear Capt. Jackson's story," said Hastings 
 the bo'sun, blowing vigorously pn his whistle. 
 
 The girls and boys all gathered around. 
 
 " I must have a lantern," said the captain, taking the news 
 paper out of his pocket, and unfolding it. 
 
 So Jack brought one. 
 
 : ' It's poetry," said he, looking around on their attentive faces. 
 "The paper says it's written by a gifted fellow-townsman. The 
 name of the piece is ' Scituate, 1812.' Scituate is the name of 
 a place; 1812 is a date." And without further preamble, he 
 began to read :
 
 -428 CAPT. JACKSON'S TALE. 
 
 Away in the top of the tall white tower, 
 
 The light-keeper's daughter breathless stands ; 
 
 Forgotten the lamps with their half-trimmed wicks, 
 
 Forgotten the scissors that fall from her hands. 
 
 The fishing-boats below sail free, 
 
 But her gaze is fixed far out at sea, 
 
 As she shields her eyes from the sun's strong glare. 
 
 Then her voice rings shrilly down the stair : 
 
 ' Run, boys, run ! and rouse the town ! 
 
 Tis a British cruiser coming down ! ' 
 
 Up on the cliffs that o'erhang the bay, 
 
 The fisher-folk run at the first alarm. 
 
 War is abroad ! To these peaceful folk 
 
 A British cruiser is rife with harm. 
 
 Nets and boats are their worldly good ; 
 
 For they wring from the sea a livelihood, 
 
 And gaunt hunger follows when these are gone. 
 
 Helpless they watch the ship bear down ; 
 
 Not a dozen muskets in the bay, 
 
 And Boston a score of miles away. 
 
 Steadily on with the rising tide, 
 
 The incoming ship draws near the land. 
 
 They can hear the splash as her anchor drops, 
 
 They can hear from her decks the gruff word of command 
 
 ' Man the boats, and lower away. 
 
 Burn out these rats that infest the bay ! ' 
 
 Their red coats gleam as the boats draw near, 
 
 But a redder gleam there shall soon appear, 
 
 As the cruel flames seize boats and town, 
 
 While the men above look helpless down.
 
 UNDER THE SAND-HILLS WE'LL BEAT AND PLAY.
 
 OUT PEALED THE FIFE. 431 
 
 Away on the point, from the light-house tower, 
 
 The light-keeper's daughter sees it all. 
 
 An angry flush on each red cheek burns, 
 
 And she springs to her feet with a sudden call : 
 
 ' Sal ! take the drum. I'll take the fife. 
 
 We'll bear a hand in the coming strife. 
 
 Under the sand-hills we'll beat and play, 
 
 As we stride out of sight by the side of the bay. 
 
 They'll think us the troops from Boston down. 
 
 'Tis the only chance to save the town.' 
 
 Forward, march ! And out pealed the fife, 
 And steadily rolled the throbbing drum. 
 The red-coats across the bay stop short. 
 As the warlike notes o'er the waters come. 
 ' Recruits are marching down the bay, 
 To cut us off ! To the boats ! Away ! 
 In, men, and pull for your lives ! ' they cry. 
 'We are caught in a trap, and we must fly. 
 Pull for the ship. Make no delay. 
 Let us get out of this cursed bay ! ' 
 
 Then from the cliffs those old muskets blazed, 
 And on many a red coat a redder spot burned; 
 But they never slacked oars in their headlong flight, 
 Or a single glance over their shoulder turned; 
 For on the wind came sharp and clear 
 The sounds that told of the foemen near. 
 Shrill and more shrilly the fifer blew, 
 And louder and louder the deep drum-beats grew; 
 So they fled in haste down the quiet bay, 
 Hoisted their anchor, and sailed away."
 
 432 JACK INQUIRES AS TO SALERATUS. 
 
 The reading of this ballad took some time ; for Capt. Jack 
 son had not given that attention to his early studies that he 
 ought to have done. Besides, as he read on, he became more 
 and more impressed with the idea that this poetry was very fine ; 
 and, whenever a line occurred that struck him as particularly 
 good, he stopped, and read it over again. At last, however, it 
 was finished. 
 
 " What became of the saleratus ? " asked Jack the irrelevant. 
 
 Capt. Jackson looked dazed. " I don't recall no mention of 
 saleratus in the poem," he said with dignity. 
 
 " I mean the saleratus you bought," said Jack. 
 
 " Oh ! " said the captain, relaxing. " I gave it to a poor 
 woman on the pier. She thanked me kindly, and said that her 
 husband was very fond of it in his bread." 
 
 " Don't you think you could remember about aunt Jerusha's 
 baby ? " asked Carrie. " Try again." 
 
 Capt. Jackson was very much elated by the success of his 
 ballad. He felt very much like talking on indefinitely. He 
 scratched his head with his hand, and meditated for a moment. 
 
 " The story, as my mother used to tell it," said he, " was a 
 full-rigged ship, with all sails set, and streamers flyin'. As I 
 remember it, it is nothin' but an old hull, with not a spar aloft. 
 Howsomendever : 
 
 " My aunt Jerusha was a spinster lady who married late in 
 life. Her husband was the squire of the place, a big, burly 
 fellow, who seemed to like a sight better to be out with his 
 cows and horses, with a dozen dogs around, than in the house 
 with his wife. And, to tell the truth, I don't much blame him ;
 
 AUNT JERUSHA IS A NEAT WOMAN. 433 
 
 for she was as neat as Sunday mornin'. She'd a-liked to had 
 him take off his boots on the porch, every time he come into 
 the house, only he was a man of sperrit, and would have his 
 own way. 
 
 " Well, by and by, aunt Jerusha she had a girl-baby. She 
 and the squire was sot up, no end. The squire, fust time he 
 see the child, was considerable took aback. She was smaller 
 than he expected. He looked her over pretty careful, and said 
 her p'ints was good, though he'd liked it better if the roof of 
 her mouth had been black ; and that he thought, as far as he 
 could judge of so young a filly, she had good stayin' powers. 
 
 " Well, that couple was considerable foolish over that baby. 
 It was really amusin'. And so things went on for a spell, when 
 the squire had to go to Boston on one of his cattle-trades. He 
 always put up at Adams's Hotel, and Miss Jerusha she knew it. 
 The baby had been considerable fretful for quite a spell ; and, 
 the day after he went, she found that two teeth had come through. 
 And she alone was foolisher about those teeth than they both 
 had ever been at any time since that baby was born, and that's 
 sayin' a good deal too. 
 
 " Now, the telegraph had just been put into the town. The 
 squire he thought highly of it ; but Miss Jerusha she said it 
 was flyin' in the face of Providence, and never, no, never, would 
 she use such a sinful thing. But when those ' little toothins * 
 come, she was wild to have the squire know. And, the more 
 she thought, the less the' telegraph seemed like flyin' in the face 
 of Providence. So she up with an old memorandum-book that 
 lay on the table, and tore a page out, and on it she wrote :
 
 434 THE BRINDLE AND THE RED COW. 
 
 " ' The baby has cut two teeth. Bring it a present.' 
 
 " Then she called Jake the hired man, and gave it to him, 
 and told him to go to the office, and ask the operator to get 
 that there piece of paper to the squire's hands at Adams's Hotel 
 in Boston, just as quick as he could. It was an old diary of 
 the squire's grandfather that she took the page out of to write 
 on ; but she said the squire'd know her writin', so it didn't make 
 no difference what was wrote on the other side. But it did 
 made a difference ; for the operator sent the wrong side of the 
 paper, and this was the message the squire got : 
 
 " ' This day the brindle and the red cow got fast in the bog. We did our 
 best, but could not extricate them.' 
 
 " Miss Jerusha she felt very chipper after her despatch went 
 off. To be sure, she was some took aback by what it cost, 
 the worth of six whole dozen eggs ; but, after all, that was of 
 no account. So there she sot, thinking what the squire would 
 bring, a silver rattle, no doubt, and kind o' huggin' her own 
 smartness, when up come a message from the squire : 
 
 " ' Get Jerry the blacksmith, and his gang and tackle, and yank them out 
 before they get in any faster. I'll be down in afternoon train.' 
 
 " Miss Jerusha she was a woman who had considerable tem 
 per, and they do say she sputtered considerable when she read 
 this. This was the squire's idee of a good joke, was it ? She 
 always knew his family were inferior to her'n in breedin', but she 
 did think he had better manners 'n that. And she was so riled 
 up that she just locked the door of her room when the time
 
 'JERUSHA!' SAYS HE. 435 
 
 come for the squire, and there she sot. The squire he come on 
 time ; and, as he walked up to his house, he passed by the 
 blacksmith-shop. 
 
 " ' Well, Jerry,' he says to the smith, who stood in the door ; 
 4 did you get 'em out ? ' 
 
 " But Jerry didn't know what the squire was talkin' about, 
 and told him so. 
 
 " When the squire found that Jerry had had no message from 
 aunt Jerusha, he was quite excited, for he sot great store by his 
 cattle ; and he thought it was the fault of the telegraph, who 
 hadn't delivered his message. So he stirred about ; and, pretty 
 soon, Jerry and the two men had the tackle on their shoulders, 
 and were marchin' down the street as fast as they could g&, 
 the squire, red-faced and puffin', at their head. 
 
 " Miss Jerusha she saw 'em comin' ; but she only gave a sniff, 
 and tossed her head, and sot still, contemptuous like. 
 
 " Pretty soon she saw Jerry and his men go back down the 
 road ; for the squire had met Jake the hired man, and found 
 that the cattle had not been in the bog. 
 
 " Then she heard him come up the stairs and try the door ; 
 but she sot still. 
 
 " ' Jerusha ! ' says he. 
 
 " Not a word says she. 
 
 "Then 'he tried to bend down, to look through the keyhole; 
 but he was so stout that he couldn't. 
 
 " ' Jerusha ! ' says he again ; but not a word says she. 
 
 " ' I vum ! ' says he, scared like ; and aloud, ' She's off her 
 mind ; and that accounts for the telegram. Bill Jones told me,
 
 ACK INSTRUCTS THE CAPTAIN. 
 
 before I married, that there was a streak of craze in her family, 
 and that I'd better keep my eye open.' 
 
 " ' This was mor'n Jerusha could stand. ' I ain't off my 
 mind ! ' she says ; ' and there ain't no such thing in my family.' 
 
 " Well, by and by the whole facts come out ; and the squire 
 he sot down on the stairs, and laughed till the tears rolled down 
 his cheeks, and you could have heard him a mile off. But Miss 
 Jerusha she was powerful mad at the telegraph man, and they 
 do say she didn't ever speak to him again." 
 
 Capt. Jackson was a wise man. He felt that he had reached 
 a point where he might retire from the role of story-teller, and 
 leave behind him quite a glowing reputation. So he rose up 
 from the deck where he had been sitting, and, in the midst of 
 the laugh that his story had raised, strode away. We should 
 have said, walked away, except that his gait, like that of all true 
 sailors, was a compound of roll and jerk, and indescribable by 
 any one word. The boys and girls all called to him to come 
 back ; but he paid no attention, and disappeared down the steps 
 that led to the cabin. Jack followed presently, and found him 
 standing in the midst of the room, looking helplessly around at 
 the berths that lined it. 
 
 " I ain't much used to women-folks' ways, myself," said the 
 captain slowly and solemnly. " Do you reckon they'll expect 
 pillers, all on 'em ? " 
 
 " I think not," said Jack promptly. " I understand that on 
 land it is the custom for ladies to sleep with their heads hanging 
 down over the side of the bed ; and I presume that at sea they 
 would follow the same habit." And the young rascal looked the
 
 WOMEN-FOLKS' WAYS. 437 
 
 captain as steadily and calmly in the face, as if he had been 
 only saying that it was a quarter past nine o'clock. 
 
 Capt. Jackson was more dazed than ever. " Tell you what," 
 he said, after a moment's meditation, " you're bo'sun, eh ? " 
 
 " Ay, ay, sir ! " said Jack. 
 
 ' Then on deck with you, and ask Mr. Longwood to step 
 here a moment." 
 
 Jack disappeared at once. " The Admiral of the Squadron," 
 said he, saluting Mr. Longwood as he approached, " presents his 
 compliments to the Commander of the Land-forces, and would 
 like to see him in his cabin." 
 
 The Commander of the Land-forces evidently was more versed 
 in " women-folks' ways " than the Admiral of the Squadron. He 
 pulled about blankets and rugs vigorously for a few moments, 
 and then announced that all was in readiness for the ladies. 
 Capt. Jackson, notwithstanding Jack's assurance as to the sleeping 
 habits of the fair sex, was still uneasy on the point of pillows ; 
 but as Mr. Longwood did not seem to consider them necessary, 
 and as it would have been impossible to have obtained them in 
 any case, he finally dismissed the subject from his mind. 
 
 " Well, then," he said, " I calcalate the best thing we can do 
 is to get them stowed below, with the hatches battened down ; 
 and then we sha'n't have no uneasiness about them until morn- 
 in'." 
 
 It having been intimated to the ladies that the captain thought 
 it about time for them to retire, they shortly afterward gathered 
 themselves together, and made their way below, where sleep soon 
 closed their tired eyes, and quieted their busy tongues.
 
 438 THE BO 1 SUN DRILLS HIS MEN. 
 
 The boys, being thus left to themselves, hung about for a 
 time ; but it was very dull, and the fresh wind had made them 
 drowsy, so they shortly voted that they, too, would turn in. 
 
 " I tell you what, men ! " said Jack, who, in virtue of his 
 self-assumed office, considered himself entitled to take a lofty 
 position ; " this going to bed must be done in ship-shape style. 
 No slinking out of your clothes like landlubbers. Pay attention 
 now to your bo'sun." 
 
 The place they were in was the waist of the schooner. In 
 ordinary times it would have been full of cargo. Now, as " The 
 Mavis " was on a pleasure-trip, and was empty, Thomas John 
 and the crew had hung up their hammocks here, in place of the 
 forecastle. In these hammocks the boys were to sleep. The 
 place was dimly lighted by one swaying lamp, that made the 
 darkness seem only more dark, and brought out the shadows 
 cast by the swinging hammocks as they moved back and forth 
 in answer to the vessel's motion. " The Mavis's " last voyage 
 had been from the West Indies, and there was a strong smell 
 of molasses and sugar ; but the boys did not seem to mind. 
 
 Each hammock had in it a thick rug ; and the boys were 
 about to select their resting-places for the night, when Jack thus 
 summarily called them to order : 
 
 " Now, then," he said, " look sharp. Fall into line there, 
 and mind your eye ; or I'll have your grog stopped ! " 
 
 This threat was so dreadful, that the four at once fell in, and 
 meekly awaited orders. 
 
 " Now," said the bo'sun, " one blast on the whistle means 
 unbutton ; two blasts close together, off with coats and vests ;. 
 three, off with shoes."
 
 THE BO'SUN LOSES HIS WHISTLE. 439 
 
 " Please, mister bo'sun," said Ned, " what are we to do with 
 them ? " . 
 
 " Roll 'em up, and use them for pillows," said the bo'sun. 
 " Now, then " 
 
 The blasts from the whistle came sharp and fast ; and, in the 
 twinkling of an eye, all stood unrobed. 
 
 " Now," said the bo'sun, " take your stand by your ham 
 mocks. One blast of whistle means, Haul down the main- 
 sheet " 
 
 " The main-sheet is up on deck," said Charlie. 
 
 " The main-sheet here is the rug you are to sleep under," 
 said the bo'sun, with decision. " Two blasts mean, in with you. 
 Now, then ! " 
 
 One blast came, and each rug was hauled down ; two, and 
 each boy leaped into his hammock. There was a moment's 
 silence, and then a crash. The bo'sun had leaped too far, 
 overshot his mark, and come headlong to the floor. The others, 
 as they turned cautiously, to prevent following his example, saw 
 their bo'sun, lately so full of dignity, dancing around on one 
 foot, with his thumb in his mouth, while he gave utterance ta 
 these unofficer-like words : 
 
 " Oh, Jiminy, doesn't it hurt ! and I've lost my whistle."
 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 THE untiring sun, when 
 again it looked down on 
 Fort Pond Bay, saw " The 
 Mavis " lying there as idly 
 as if it had not stirred from 
 the position in which it was 
 twenty-four hours before. 
 And there were as few 
 signs of life about it now 
 as then. But presently the 
 five boys emerged together 
 from their quarters. 
 
 " Well, I must say," said 
 one, " that sleeping in a vessel that has carried a cargo of sugar 
 is not my idea of a good time. I feel as if I had been dipped 
 head first into a cask of molasses. Let me draw a few breaths 
 of clear air." 
 
 " I say, bo'sun," said Ned, " how was it that, after putting 
 us to bed in so ship-shape a fashion, you let us get up and 
 dress like land-lubbers ? Where is the whistle ? " 
 
 440
 
 TOM PRESCRIBES FOR JACK. 44 1 
 
 " It rolled off somewhere when I fell," said Jack ; " and my 
 thumb hurt me so much that I didn't care, then, whether I found 
 it or not." 
 
 " Let's see your thumb," said Will. " Why ! " he went on, as 
 Jack, unrolling- his handkerchief, showed a swollen and discolored 
 hand ; " you never said you'd hurt yourself like that. You 
 should have told us. I thought it was only a thump on the 
 floor that was the trouble. This must have given a good deal 
 of pain. Why didn't you speak ? " 
 
 " It did keep me awake a good deal," said Jack ; " but I 
 didn't see how making a fuss would help matters." 
 
 " Well, you're a plucky little beggar, any way," said Tom ; 
 " but I think that hand ought to have some Pond's Extract on 
 at once. There's a bottle in my satchel. I'll get it." 
 
 So presently Jack's hand was bound up in a wet handker 
 chief, while another handkerchief was tied neatly over all ; and, 
 just as it was finished, the cook announced that he had some 
 coffee ready on his stove. 
 
 It had been decided the day before that the boys should get 
 up early, and walk across to House No. 2. Here they should 
 give notice that the rest of the party would arrive to a late 
 breakfast, and should despatch the sail-boat to bring them down. 
 Accordingly, when each had fortified himself with a cup of coffee 
 and a piece of hard-tack, Thomas John put them ashore, and 
 they set out. 
 
 First, however, they all climbed the little slope or bluff, and 
 looked about them. " If one had only the magic power of some 
 of the old wizards," said Thomas John, " what a wonderful place
 
 442 A RESURRECTION OF INDIANS. 
 
 this would be to exhibit it ! One moment there would be these 
 great desolate moors, with only the sea-birds flying over them. 
 A stamp of the wizard's foot, and the hundred thousand warriors 
 buried here would spring to life, each with bow and tomahawk 
 in hand. That would be a sight worth seeing." 
 
 " Are there so many buried here as that ? " asked the boys. 
 
 " Yes," said Thomas John. " Some say, many more than a 
 hundred thousand. This was the chosen ground for all the 
 Indian tribes of the east end of Long Island. The dead were 
 brought here from a distance, some in great state. One chief 
 was carried on the shoulders of his principal men, while the 
 whole tribe followed as mourners. That was Pogattacutt, sachem 
 of Manhansackahaqushuwamock." 
 
 " Say it again," said Jack. 
 
 " It is too much work," said Thomas John, laughing. " I 
 would rather give it its English name of Shelter Island." 
 
 It was a very languid party that sat about the table after 
 breakfast was over, and the dishes removed. " What shall we do 
 to-day ? " asked Ned. 
 
 " Do ! " echoed the girls. " Let's do nothing. We have 
 hardly had a quiet moment for four days. Our bones fairly ache. 
 Let's sit around, and take naps." 
 
 The boys laughed, and affected to think the girls very weak, 
 and easily tired out ; but, in point of fact, I fancy that they 
 themselves were not sorry to be idle. For, when the cattle- 
 keeper went into the barn at noon to give his horses a bite, he 
 found three of them stretched out on the floor, with their heads 
 on their arms, fast asleep.
 
 FOR SHAME, WILLIAM AND CAROLINE! 443 
 
 By dinner-time, however, they had all pulled themselves to 
 gether ; and a suggestion from Mr. Longwood, that they should 
 get into the big wagon, and drive over the moors, was received 
 with decided interest. Will and Carrie, however, did not join in 
 the expressions of satisfaction at the plan. 
 
 " The fact is," said Will, " that Carrie and I had formed a 
 scheme for a little ride on our own account ; so that we shall 
 not be able to join you." 
 
 "Upon my word!" said Jack; "that's cool. What in the 
 world are you two up to, anyway ? It's some fun, I know. 
 What a shame, not to let us all in ! Tell us about it." 
 
 The others joined in demanding to know what their plan 
 was ; but Will and Carrie were silent. Not a bit of information 
 was to be had from them. 
 
 " Well, then," said Tom, " since nothing can prevent these 
 two young madcaps from going off by themselves, what time 
 shall the rest of us start ? " 
 
 " I would go pretty early, if I were you," said Carrie. " It 
 grows quite cold toward evening now." 
 
 " Oho ! " exclaimed they all. " One thought for us, and two 
 for yourself. We'll wait until quite late, and have you set out 
 first ; and then we'll follow you, and find out your little game." 
 
 But, in spite of this malevolent determination, the big wagon 
 drove away that afternoon, leaving Will and Carrie alone on the 
 doorstep. 
 
 " Hurrah ! " cried Will, as the horses started. " Come along: 
 I thought they would never go. We must be off." 
 
 And now I will explain to you their plan. It was this ;
 
 444 FEATHERS FOR A HAT. 
 
 Carrie had noticed flying over the moors some birds with beauti 
 ful wings; and she had cried out to Will, who was with her at 
 the time, " What lovely wings ! Wouldn't they be perfectly 
 beautiful on a hat ? " Will had thereupon assured her that she 
 should have one ; and this afternoon they were to secure it. 
 They had borrowed of the cattle-keeper his double-barrelled gun, 
 and they had hired his horse and old box-wagon ; and this 
 turnout was now harnessed, and waiting for them at the barn. 
 
 They hurried out, and scrambled in. Will set the loaded gun 
 carefully between his knees, and, drawing up the reins, said, 
 " Get up ! " 
 
 " Had you not better let me drive," said Carrie, " and you 
 manage the gun ? " 
 
 "Oh! I don't think I shall have any trouble," said Will. 
 " The horse seems very gentle. Which way shall we go ? " 
 
 " Anywhere," said Carrie ; " only, don't let's follow the road, 
 but drive right across the downs." 
 
 So, off they set. The cattle-keeper's dog, at sight of the 
 gun, seemed to consider himself invited, and ran along by their 
 side, plunging into the reedy ponds, and startling the wild fowl 
 that were idling away the sunny hours, and wondering much, in 
 his own canine fashion, that none of the many birds that he 
 started up were considered worth shooting. Such a sportsman 
 he had never known before. But these young people had one 
 kind of game in their minds, and were not to be diverted from 
 their intention by any other. 
 
 They jogged on for perhaps an hour. They were having a 
 very good time, but not a sign of the wished-for bird had been 
 seen.
 
 THE CATTLE- KEEPER'S DOG.
 
 A REGULAR WORN-OUT BEAST. 447 
 
 . 
 
 " What a regular old worn-out beast this is ! " said Will. " I 
 haven't been able to get him off a jog-trot once. I don't believe 
 he could hurry, to save his life. Hallo ! there's a bird ! Whoa ! " 
 
 The horse stopped short. Will dropped the reins, raised the 
 gun, and pulled the trigger. Bang ! went the gun. The next 
 minute he and Carrie thought that there must have been a con 
 vulsion of nature. They felt themselves flying backward through 
 space, and in their flight were conscious of another bang, as the 
 other barrel of the gun went off wildly in the air. Then they 
 came down at full length on the soft turf, and, picking them 
 selves up in a dazed way, found presently that they were sound 
 of wind and limb. 
 
 But across the moors, a full quarter of a mile away, they saw 
 the old worn-out horse, whom nothing could persuade to go off 
 a slow trot, tearing madly toward home, the old wagon rattling 
 along at his heels in the wildest fashion. 
 
 " What has happened ? " asked Carrie. 
 
 " Well," said Will, " as nearly as I can judge, I should sa^ 
 that the horse sprang at the report of the gun, and that the 
 seat, being only set in, instead of fastened in, tipped backward, 
 and it and we both went out the back of the wagon. At all 
 events, we seem to be here; and the wagon, I should judge, 
 must be nearly home by this time." 
 
 " How fortunate that the other barrel did not hit us ! " said 
 Carrie. " I wonder if you killed the bird." 
 
 " Yes," said Will, after looking about a little. " Here he is." 
 
 " Oh ! what a beauty ! " exclaimed Carrie. " But here come 
 all the rest of our party. What shall we say to them ? "
 
 448 A HORSE THAT JUMPS AT A GUN. 
 
 " Don't tell them how it happened, for any thing," said Will. 
 " Leave it to me." 
 
 Just at that moment, the big wagon, which had suddenly 
 come in sight over a ridge, drew up beside them. 
 
 " Your coming is very fortunate," said Will, speaking at once, 
 to forestall the host of inquiries that he saw were ready to be 
 rained down upon them. " We got out of our wagon, and the 
 horse took that occasion to go off home, without waiting for us." 
 
 " I see," said Mr. Longwood ironically. " You must have 
 devised a new way of getting out ; for I notice that you took 
 the seat with you. And Carrie has a long green grass-stain on 
 her shoulder. However, as you seem sound in body, both of 
 you, we won't ask any embarrassing questions. Stow away that 
 seat behind, and hop on. What a beautiful bird you have,. 
 Carrie ! " 
 
 " I can tell you how it happened," said their driver confiden 
 tially and in a low tone, to Jack, who sat behind them. " That 
 hoss they had always jumps at a gun. They was spilled out." 
 
 " Oh, ho ! " said Jack. " They needn't think they're going to 
 get off so easily. Hear Will talking about the color of the 
 ocean, to turn the conversation ! Wait a bit, my lad. You'll 
 get it presently. But I should think," he said to the driver, 
 " that a horse down here would get used to the sound of a 
 gun." 
 
 " Some hosses never do," said the man. " My father had an 
 old mare that used to get frightened out of her wits at the 
 sound. Men were around the field where she was, off and on, 
 half the time, shootin' game. By and by, she seemed to kind
 
 NED AND JACK INTERROGATE WILL. 449 
 
 of put two and two together ; and, if a plover came down in 
 the field where she was, she'd take to her heels in no time, just 
 the same as if 'twas a gun." 
 
 Jack, as soon as they reached home, made haste to communi 
 cate to Ned what the driver had told him as to the probable 
 cause of Will and Carrie's being found on the open heath alone. 
 These two young scapegraces proposed a series of such apt 
 questions during supper, to the two discomfited bird-hunters, 
 that they fully believed that their whole performance had been 
 seen. And it was a happy release for them when the pushing- 
 back of chairs announced that the meal was over, and that they 
 could escape from their tormentors. 
 
 " This is the last night of our trip when we shall be all 
 together," said Jack ,- " and we must have one more story. And 
 it must be a regular jolly one ; an Indian story, I think." 
 
 " O Jack ! " said Gertrude. " Let's have a nice quiet one, 
 that a body can sleep after." 
 
 " Gertrude," said Jack briefly and authoritatively, " I am 
 ashamed of you. It is very rude, when Mr. Longwood offers to 
 tell us an Indian story, for you to object." 
 
 So Gertrude, finding that no one would take her part, meekly 
 subsided, and Mr. Longwood began : 
 
 " If you want an Indian story," he said, " I can tell you a 
 little bit of history, the scene of which was around about New 
 London, where we were yesterday, In the early days of the 
 country a savage tribe, the Pequots, lived there, and the harbor 
 was known as Pequot Harbor. At the time I am about to tell 
 you of, this tribe had become most troublesome. They had fallen
 
 45 
 
 TWO CAPTAINS ARE KILLED. 
 
 upon two captains, who had ventured up the Connecticut to 
 trade, and, taking them unexpectedly, had killed them and their 
 entire crews. Off Block Island, too, they had murdered Capt. 
 Oldham. The colonists were alarmed. Something must be done, 
 or they would be all slaughtered. No man's life would be safe 
 
 for a minute, un 
 less the Indians 
 were taught some 
 severe lesson. 
 So an expedition 
 was sent out 
 from Massachu- 
 setts, which 
 sailed along the 
 coast, and burned 
 a few wigwams, 
 and destroyed a 
 little corn, but 
 succeeded in do 
 ing nothing more 
 than arousing the 
 savages to a pitch 
 of fury. 
 
 " As soon 
 as the backs of 
 
 their invaders were turned, they fell upon all the settlers on the 
 Connecticut. Their pow-wows, or medicine-men, assured them 
 that they should soon drive out every Englishman from the land. 
 
 INDIAN TOW-WOWS.
 
 THE FATE OF TILLY. 
 
 451 
 
 A sorry time the poor wretches had of it. They had prayed for 
 a force that should teach the red men a lesson of the white 
 man's strength. Instead, their troubles had been only increased. 
 ' You,' said one of these settlers derisively to the commander 
 of this fiasco, ' will keep yourselves safe in the bay, but myself 
 you will leave at the stake to be roasted.' 
 
 TILLY SURPRISED BY THE INDIANS. 
 
 " Sorry times followed. Not a day passed without some one 
 falling a victim. Many were the hairbreadth escapes. No man 
 went to the* field without having his rifle within reach. The 
 settlers fought desperately ; for it was better to be killed outright 
 than made prisoner, for the captives were tortured frightfully. 
 One Tilly, for instance, was taken when he was out in a canoe,
 
 45 2 THE SAVAGES ARE HAPPY. 
 
 hunting. He made a hard fight for liberty, but was unsuccessful. 
 Determined that they should not make him wince at any pain 
 they might inflict, he sat grimly, without moving a muscle, while 
 they cut off his hands, and then his feet, and so killed him by 
 inches. 
 
 " Of course this state of things could not continue. Those 
 who were not killed outright would soon have to fight ' Capt. 
 Hunger ; ' for no fields could be tilled, and the cattle were slain 
 by the hundred. So an expedition set out from Connecticut, an 
 army of ninety men, under the command of Capt. John Mason. 
 Their orders were to sail along the coast until they came to 
 Pequot Harbor. There they were to make a landing, and attack 
 the foe. Capt. Mason did not like this plan at all. The Pequots 
 would know of their coming, and could watch every movement 
 they made. He proposed that they should sail by the harbor, 
 on to Narragansett Bay, and by forced marches reach their forts, 
 and attack them, as it were, in the rear. 
 
 " The other officers of the fleet disagreed with their captain. 
 They thought they had much better follow their instructions. In 
 this juncture the chaplain of the fleet was summoned, and bade 
 to spend the night in prayer, that they might decide wisely. He 
 did so, and in the morning reported in favor of Capt. Mason's 
 plan. 
 
 " So the fleet sailed past Pequot Harbor, and the watching 
 savages saw it depart with joy. Once again their prowess had 
 frightened away their foe, and they returned to carouse and 
 dance in triumph in their villages. 
 
 " Meantime Mason was sailing onward. Uncas, chief of the
 
 BUT THEIR JOY SOON TURNS TO GRIEF. 
 
 453 
 
 A RACE FOR LIFE. 
 
 Mohegans, had joined him with a band of warriors eager to fight
 
 454 UNCAS TAKES THE WAR-PATH. 
 
 against their old enemies. They landed in the country of the 
 Narragansetts, and marched at once to their chief fort, where 
 they stated the business on which they had come. The Narra 
 gansetts, while they highly approved of the plan of the whites, 
 doubted much if so small a party could stand for a moment 
 against such terrible fighters as the Pequots. However, they 
 said they would go along, and take a hand in the fray. 
 
 " The next day the little army, with its following of Mohegans 
 and Narragansetts, marched twenty miles to a place called Nyan- 
 tick, where lived Ninigret, another Narragansett sachem." 
 
 " Why, that is the name of the man who made things so hot 
 for the Montauks, as Capt. Jackson said," exclaimed Jack. 
 
 " It is the same fellow," said Mr. Longwood. " He was a 
 great nuisance to the English for many years. Capt. Mason 
 found him so surly, that he distrusted him at once, and suspected 
 that he intended sending word to the enemy of his approach. 
 That night he stationed guards about his fort, and gave him 
 notice that any of his men who left it, did it at the peril of 
 their lives." 
 
 " That was a high-handed proceeding, at all events," said 
 Will. 
 
 " Yes," said Mr. Longwood, " it seems to us, under the cir 
 cumstances, the height of effrontery ; but Capt. Mason was not 
 one to stop at any obstacle, after he had gone through so much. 
 And the morning showed that he did wisely ; for many of the 
 warriors then announced their intention of joining him, and they 
 danced a war-dance before starting, with great vigor and zest 
 
 " At last the Pequot country was reached. Their great lort
 
 SEVEN HUNDRED WARRIORS. 455 
 
 was close at hand. It was strongly stockaded, and in it were 
 some seven hundred warriors, with their wives and children. The 
 invaders as, close at hand, they nearly held their breaths for fear 
 of discovery, could hear them chanting of their prowess, and of 
 the English scalps they had taken. 
 
 " All night long they waited, till the gray dawn came. The 
 noisy Pequots were now deep in sleep. Mason summoned his 
 Indian allies, but they were not to be found. The nearness of 
 the dreaded Pequots had filled them with terror. He sent them 
 word to look on, and see how Englishmen could fight. 
 
 " The fort had an entrance at either end. The invaders 
 divided their force, and made their way in. The enclosure was 
 full of wigwams, behind which the suddenly-roused warriors 
 took refuge, pouring in a shower of arrows on their foe. Seeing 
 that this would soon prove a losing game, Mason caught up a 
 firebrand, and, thrusting it into the mats and straw which lay 
 about, cried out to burn them out. The light wind fanned the 
 flames, and in a few moments the whole fort was in a blaze. 
 The English made their way out, and, forming a circle about it, 
 cut down every soul that attempted to escape. If, perchance,, 
 one more fortunate than the rest passed them, he fell before 
 the tomahawks of the Mohegans and Narragansetts, whose cour 
 age had somewhat returned, and who hung on the outskirts,, 
 cutting down every flying survivor. 
 
 " The Indians had at last received a lesson. Ninety men had 
 put to the sword nearly seven hundred of their greatest warriors. 
 The power of the Pequots was broken forever. 
 
 " The position of the victors, though, was by no means pleas-
 
 456 JACK IS BLOODTHIRSTILY INCLINED. 
 
 ant. They were miles inland ; many were wounded. They had 
 almost no provisions; and another body of Pequot warriors, some 
 three hundred in number, who had been at another fort, learning 
 the fate of their brethren, followed them, mad with rage. Vic 
 tors though they were, it was a joyful moment when from a 
 hilltop they saw New London Harbor in the distance, with their 
 ships, that they had ordered to meet them there, awaiting them." 
 
 " It's a pity they didn't go back, and wipe out those other 
 three hundred Pequots, when they had their hand in," said Jack 
 bloodthirstily. 
 
 " These poor wretches met their end soon enough," said Mr. 
 Longwood. "Another expedition destroyed many; and the Mo- 
 hegans and Narragansetts, now grown bold, hunted them up and 
 down the country, till the miserable remnant came to the English, 
 and besought protection. Make them but secure of their lives, 
 and they asked no more. To such desperation had they come." 
 
 " And what oecame of them ? " asked Jack. 
 
 " They were divided up. Uncas, the sachem of the Mohe- 
 gans, took a hundred ; Miantonimoh, sachem of the Narragan 
 setts, took eighty ; and your old friend Ninigret was given twenty. 
 He had, however, as usual, been making trouble; and he was not 
 allowed to have his men until he had made satisfaction for the 
 mare of one Pomeroye, which he or his men had killed." 
 
 " What did they do with them ? " asked Ned. " Put them to 
 death ? " 
 
 " Oh, no ! they adopted them into their tribe. They ceased 
 to be Pequots, and became Mohegans and Narragansetts, though 
 I do not imagine that they had the foremost seats in the council, 
 nor, indeed, that life was made very sweet to them."
 
 DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES. 459 
 
 " Go on," said Jack, as Mr. Longwood paused. 
 
 " Why, I think I have made a pretty thorough ending of the 
 Pequots," said that gentleman. 
 
 " Yes," said Jack ; " but of course the Mohegans and Narra- 
 gansetts fought." 
 
 " They did, indeed," said Mr. Longwood. " When the Pequots 
 - were out of the way, Miantonimoh aspired to be the sachem of 
 all the tribes about. There was but one obstacle to his plans, 
 and that was Uncas. He had made a formal treaty of friendship 
 with him, after the fall of their common enemy. But this he 
 treacherously ignored. He hired one of Uncas's captive Pequots 
 to shoot him. The man, watching his chance : fired, and shot 
 him through the arm. Then, making his way to the Narragan- 
 setts, he boasted that he had killed his chief. 
 
 " Presently, however, Uncas turned up as well as ever. This 
 was unexpected. Miantonimoh, finding that his doings were 
 somewhat known, quietly knocked the Pequot on the head, on 
 the principle that dead men tell no tales. It was too late, how 
 ever : his treachery was evident. 
 
 " Presently he made another attempt. As Uncas was going 
 down the Connecticut, Miantonimoh tried to shoot him. This 
 attempt, too, failed, as the first had done. 
 
 " Then he raised an army of a thousand warriors, and made 
 all his plans to fall upon his enemy when he did not expect 
 him. Uncas had warning from his scouts, not a moment too 
 soon. He summoned half a thousand of his bravest men, all 
 that he could gather in that short time, and marched forward to 
 meet his foe. There is a good account of this battle by an old 
 historian, which is something like this :
 
 460 A PAGE OF HISTORY. 
 
 1 " ' When they had advanced within fair bow-shot of each other, Uncas had 
 recourse to a stratagem with which he had previously acquainted his warriors. He 
 desired a parley ; and both armies halted in the face of each other. Uncas, gal 
 lantly advancing in front of his men, addressed Miantonimoh to this effect : " You 
 have a number of stout men with you, and so have I with me. It is a great pity 
 that such brave warriors should be killed in a private quarrel between us only. 
 Come, like a man as you profess to be, and let us fight it out. If you kill me, 
 my men shall be yours ; but if I kill you, your men shall be mine." 
 
 " ' Miantonimoh replied : " My men came to fight : and they shall fight." 
 Uncas falling instantly upon the ground, his men discharged a shower of arrows 
 upon the Narragansetts, and, without a moment's interval, rushing upon them in a 
 furious manner, with their hideous Indian yell, put them immediately to flight. 
 The Mohegans pursued the enemy with the same fury and eagerness with which 
 they commenced the action. The Narragansetts were driven down rocks and 
 precipices, and chased like a doe by the huntsman. Among others, Miantonimoh 
 was exceedingly pressed. Some of Uncas's bravest men, who were most light of 
 foot, coming up with him, twitched him back, impeding his flight, and passed him, 
 that Uncas might take him. 
 
 " ' Uncas was a stout man, and, reaching forward like a lion greedy of his 
 prey, seized him by his shoulder. He knew Uncas, and saw that he was now in 
 the power of the man whom he had hated and by all means attempted to destroy ; 
 but he sat down sullen, and spoke not a word. Uncas gave the Indian whoop, 
 and called up his men who were behind, to his assistance. The victory was com 
 plete. About thirty of the Narragansetts were slain, and many more wounded. 
 
 " ' Miantonimoh made no request, either for himself or his men, but continued 
 in the same sullen, speechless mood. Uncas therefore demanded of him why he 
 would not speak. Said he, " Had you taken me, I should have besought you for 
 my life." ' " 
 
 " And now I suppose," said Jack, " that he lopped off his 
 head." 
 
 1 We are again indebted to Tom Longwood, who has copied the extract for us from the 
 book in his father's library, so that we can give it as it was written.
 
 DEATH OF MIANXONTMOH.
 
 UNCAS KILLS HIS ENEMY. 463 
 
 " You are in rather too much of a hurry," said Mr. Long- 
 wood. " He did not quite dare to do it off-hand, for fear that 
 the English might not approve ; though he longed, in his savage 
 way, for his death. So he carried the speechless sachem to 
 Hartford, where his case was laid before the authorities. They 
 decided, in their solemn way, that Miantonimoh should be delivered 
 over to him, because he had repeatedly tried to kill him, and 
 because Uncas could never be safe as long as his enemy was 
 alive. 
 
 " So Uncas, with some of his trustiest braves, was summoned 
 to Hartford, where they took their prisoner, and departed. The 
 authorities knew, of course, that the Narragansett would be 
 killed ; and so they sent two white men along, to see that no 
 tortures were inflicted. In single file they strode away. Sud 
 denly, at a sign from his leader, the man who was directly 
 behind Miantonimoh, raised his hatchet, and, at a single blow, 
 split his skull. Without a groan, he fell prostrate ; and his sav 
 age captor, cutting a large piece from his shoulder, ate it, 
 exclaiming that ' it was the sweetest meat he ever ate : it made 
 his heart strong. ' 
 
 " What an old villain ! " exclaimed Gertrude. " Jack, how can 
 you want to hear such awful stories ? " 
 
 " I think they are splendid," said Jack. " Go on, please, Mr. 
 Longwood. I am sure there is something to tell about Ninigret." 
 
 " Nothing in especial, that I know of," said that gentleman, 
 " except that he was a dreadful nuisance all his days. For two 
 seasons the Connecticut- Colony had to keep an armed vessel 
 cruising between Montauk and Block Island, to prevent his 
 making incursions on the Long-Island Indians."
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 " WELL," said Tom, 
 after a little, as they sat 
 about, chatting idly, " to 
 morrow we start for 
 home. Our jig is nearly 
 danced out." 
 
 " That's a capital idea," 
 said Ned, starting up. 
 
 " What ? " said Tom. 
 
 " A jig" answered 
 Ned. " Why shouldn't 
 
 we all go out to the barn, 
 
 I' 
 and have a Virginia reel ? 
 
 We can hang up some 
 lanterns to light it. We will just sit here stupidly, if we don't, 
 for an hour ; and then you girls will politely try to stifle your 
 yawns, and go off to bed." 
 
 " But what shall we do for music ? " asked the girls. 
 " Listen," said Ned, holding up his hand. 
 
 They all stopped talking, and at once the sound of an old 
 fiddle in the kitchen became audible. It was squeaking out with 
 464
 
 GABRIL, COME BLOW DE HORN. 465 
 
 great vigor, " Gabril, come blow de horn," and involuntarily the 
 boys' and girls' feet all began to beat time to the music. 
 
 Ned made haste to secure the services of the fiddler, who 
 was nothing loath to give his services to secure a little jollifica 
 tion. The cattle-keeper produced three lanterns, and went him 
 self to hang them up, so as to see that his barn was not set 
 on fire by inexperienced hands. For an hour or two the old 
 building resounded with peals of merriment, and the fiddle 
 squeaked almost without cessation. Then, at the same moment, 
 Mr. Longwood announced that they must turn in for the night, 
 and the fiddler announced that his arm had given out. 
 
 " What a shame it is that our good time is over ! " said Tom. 
 
 " Let us hope that it will rain pitchforks to-morrow," said 
 Jack ; " and then we can't get away." 
 
 " No hope of that, I reckon," said the cattle-keeper morosely, 
 he would have liked to have had them stay on indefinitely, 
 " the wind is sou'- west. We'll have a fine day, 'thout a doubt." 
 
 And so it turned out ; for the next morning, when, after a 
 hearty breakfast, the big wagon was loaded with the girls, and 
 the boys made ready to tramp across to " The Mavis," the moors 
 were everywhere glistening with dew, which the rising sun 
 turned into drops of gold and fire. The sea was bluer than the 
 sky above it. The fresh wind came softly, laden with odors from 
 the moorlands, odors which it would carry many a mile out to 
 sea, to gladden the incoming mariner, Nature's cry of " Land 
 ho!" 
 
 The ist of October had arrived. The hands of the clock in
 
 466 HOW DO YOU DO, FELLOWS? 
 
 the steeple of the church close by pointed to five minutes of 
 nine. Around the door of Mr. Grinder's select school, at No. 
 2,000 Madison Avenue, stood a large group of boys, busily 
 talking. Nearly all of them were tanned from the sun, though 
 here and there a white face told of a summer in the hot city. 
 But five were especially brown. They looked almost copper- 
 colored. They were the centre of an admiring group, who were 
 plying them with questions, and regarding them with ' envious 
 eyes. 
 
 " Well, fellows," said Will, " the clock has almost reached the 
 hour. We had better go up and say ' How do you do ? ' to our 
 revered instructor. Come on." 
 
 So the whole group broke up, and tramped noisily up the 
 winding stairs. 
 
 The room was a large one. In the centre, against the wall, 
 was Mr. Grinder's desk, and beside it, on either hand, were two 
 long benches on which the classes sat to recite. All the rest of 
 the room was filled with rows of desks. 
 
 The boys walked toward Mr. Grinder. He was at that mo 
 ment listening to a pale-faced, lantern-jawed young man, whom 
 they heard say, " Yes, sir : I have translated twenty pages of 
 Sallust, and I have made corresponding progress in my other 
 studies." 
 
 " It gives me great pleasure, Master Jones," Mr. Grinder 
 replied, " to hear of such commendable assiduity in study. A 
 like energy shown in the affairs of after-life will be sure to 
 secure you a position of mark. Here are some of your class 
 mates. I hope we may hear an equally good report from them.
 
 MULTIPLICATION IS VEXATION. 467 
 
 Ah ! Morgan primus, and secimdus, and Longwood, how do you 
 do ? Your classmate, Timothy Jones, here, tells me " 
 
 But at this moment the clock struck nine, and Mr. Grinder 
 broke off abruptly, to call the school to order, and the boys 
 made haste to gain their desks before any awkward questions 
 should be asked. 
 
 As soon as the roll had been called, Mr. Grinder opened the 
 school, as usual, with prayer. All listened reverently; though I 
 must confess that there was a little smile on more than one 
 face, when he returned thanks that this separation, alike painful 
 to instructor and scholar, was over. 
 
 Then he called, " The first Latin." 
 
 This was the name of a class. Timothy Jones, the lantern- 
 jawed boy, came forward at once. Tom, the two Morgans, Ned 
 Grant, and one or two other boys, followed more slowly. 
 
 " I presume," said Mr. Grinder, " that your parents all received 
 the circular which I sent, informing them of the cause of the 
 untoward postponement of the opening of the school, and sug 
 gesting that you should make up the loss by home study. I am 
 glad to know that at least one of you, and, I have no doubt, 
 all, have followed my suggestion." 
 
 But somehow, as his glance rested on the sunburned counte 
 nances of our four friends, his voice seemed to lose a little of 
 the confident tone that it had when he began. 
 
 " Jones, here," he went on, " tells me that he has read twenty 
 pages. Perhaps he has gone farther than others of you. Mor 
 gan primus, you may begin at tne first paragraph on page 8. 
 We will consider this first recitation somewhat in the nature of 
 a review of your home study."
 
 468 HASTINGS IS MARKED FOR MISCONDUCT. 
 
 Will opened the book, and looked at it hopelessly. 
 
 " I have not been able to do any thing at my studies at all. 
 sir," he said. 
 
 Mr. Grinder looked sober. 
 
 " Longwood, you may try it." 
 
 Tom made haste to avow his innocence of any home study. 
 
 Mr. Grinder looked solemn. 
 
 At this moment a half-suppressed chuckle was distinctly audi 
 ble. It came from a distant corner of the room, where Jack 
 was watching with glee the discomfiture of his cronies. 
 
 Mr. Grinder looked up, and caught him. 
 
 " Hastings," he said severely, " I am truly sorry that you 
 should begin, thus early in the session, to merit reproof. I give 
 you one mark for misconduct." 
 
 Jack subsided. 
 
 " How many of this class," said Mr. Grinder, returning to the 
 subject in hand, " have done any study whatever, on their Latin ? 
 Let them raise their hands." 
 
 Timothy Jones's hand went up. No other kept it company. 
 
 " It is as I feared," said Mr. Grinder with great severity. 
 " When you get to be men, young gentlemen, you will look 
 back, and regret in sackcloth and ashes these wasted opportuni 
 ties. To your desks ! It will take persistent application to make 
 up for these two weeks of idleness."
 
 PART THREE. 
 
 On the Edge of Winter.
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 NOVEMBER had come. 
 Out in the woodlands the 
 wild fowl were ruffling their 
 feathers, and looking for the 
 red berries of the black- 
 alder, if perchance their 
 hungry fellows had not al 
 ready stripped the branches 
 bare. The sharp west wind 
 went rushing through the 
 naked forests, followed by 
 a train of reluctant leaves. 
 But these are sights of 
 which the city lad sees 
 little ; for November is the 
 month when he is expected 
 to be hard at work at his books. And so, on this particular 
 morning, in the main room of Mr. Grinder's school, there was a 
 
 471
 
 472 "HASTINGS, BRING ME THAT NOTE" 
 
 busy hum from the fifty boys who were bending over their desks 
 intent upon their studies. 
 
 In the farther corner, however, there was one boy whose 
 thoughts were not upon his .lessons. He was scribbling away 
 upon a piece of paper, which he presently folded up, and, with 
 a dexterous flip of his thumb, sent flying skilfully through the 
 air to the desk of a lad some distance away. But, alas ! just as 
 it alighted safely, the eye of the master was raised, and a severe 
 voice said, 
 
 " Hastings, bring that note to me." 
 
 The detected culprit took the note, which his comrade handed 
 him with a half suppressed grin, and, slowly making his way to 
 the master's desk, presented it. 
 
 " You may take your stand upon the platform, .and read it 
 aloud to the school," said that gentleman grimly. 
 
 Hastings was heard to make some objections to this in a low 
 tone ; but the master was peremptory. 
 
 Accordingly the young man proceeded to the platform, opened 
 the note, and began to read. He was blushing furiously; and, in 
 his haste to get through, he paid little attention to his stops, so 
 that his reading was somewhat unintelligible. But the boys who 
 were near heard something like this : 
 
 " I say Will have you heard we five are to cut school the 
 day after Thanksgiving and Monday won't old Grinder be mad 
 just and with the girls are going up to Tom's uncle's on the 
 Hudson we are to go on the boat Wednesday and come back 
 Monday afternoon five days what larks and no old Grinder with 
 his everlasting improve your opportunities young gentlemen hip 
 te doodle do ! "
 
 HASTINGS AS A PUBLIC READER. 
 
 473 
 
 As Jack Hastings finished, he looked up sheepishly. To his 
 astonishment there was a twinkle in the master's eye. " You 
 may take your seat," he said. " ' Old Grinder ' congratulates you 
 on the pleasure you have in prospect." 
 
 The trip which Jack had thus publicly announced as in pros 
 pect, in due season grew to be a reality. It was Monday when 
 he stood upon the platform, and read what the boys called his 
 " open letter." That day and Tuesday passed as slowly as the last 
 
 LOADING THE BOAT. 
 
 two or three days before a vacation always do pass. Wednesday 
 came at last ; and at three o'clock a merry and noisy party stood 
 on the deck of the boat, watching the hurrying laborers as they 
 trotted with loaded trucks up the rattling, shaking gang-plank, 
 and deposited their burdens between-decks, and then clattered 
 back again.
 
 474 THE WHISTLE BLOWS, AND THEY ARE OFF. 
 
 But after a time the freight was all aboard, the whistle blew, 
 the ropes were cast off, the wheels began to revolve with a tre 
 mendous splashing, and the boat slowly left the pier. And now, 
 while she is fairly getting out into the stream, I must give you 
 some more definite information as to the plans of our party. 
 
 Mr. Longwood, then, you must know, had a brother, whose 
 home was on the farther slopes of the Hudson Highlands. He 
 had never been strong ; and so he had bought himself a farm, on 
 which he lived, sheltered by the hills about him from the strong 
 sea-winds. He was not much of a farmer, if the truth be told, 
 but much more of a student. And so the management of the 
 farm fell to the lot of his factotum, Daniel Daniels, who, with 
 his wife and children, lived in one wing of the old house, and 
 gave due attention to all the wants of the land, the cattle, and 
 his employer. At the time when the events we are chronicling 
 took place, this Mr. Longwood was abroad ; and, in his absence, 
 our Mr. Longwood, Tom's father, had supervision of his farm. 
 And it chanced that the idea had occurred to him that Tom and 
 Carrie should make up a party with their friends, and eat their 
 Thanksgiving dinner in the old farmhouse. 
 
 The party had been made up without a moment's hesitation, 
 Will and Charlie Morgan, Kate and Rose Waring, Ned and 
 Lou Grant, and Gertrude and Jack Hastings, the same ten 
 who had been together at Christmas, and had cruised together 
 in " The Mavis " in August. They were now all together in the 
 bows, watching with great interest the shipping about them. 
 Close at hand a great ocean-steamer lay in the stream, just in 
 port after the long voyage. As they swept by, they could see-
 
 A PUFF OF NORTH WIND. 
 
 475 
 
 her passengers crowding down the gangway to the tug that lay 
 alongside. 
 
 Before them, up the long course of the shining river, the 
 Palisades stood out distinctly against the clear band of autumn 
 
 THE PALISADES. 
 
 sky along the horizon. The wind that came strong and fresh 
 out of the cold north-west drove before it sullen masses of cloud ;,
 
 476 A LITTLE PIECE OF POETRY. 
 
 while here and there a little flurry of snowflakes came fluttering 
 down from their dark edges. "It is just like a little piece of 
 poetry that I once learned," said Gertrude. 
 
 Across the autumn sky 
 
 The flocks of cloudland hie, 
 Hurrying in reckless flight their course along; 
 
 While with loud voice and hoarse, 
 
 Urging them on their course, 
 Behind, their shepherd comes, the west wind strong. 
 
 Over the meadows bare, 
 
 Through the chill autumn air, 
 Over the woodlands turning russet brown, 
 
 They pass, in broken bands, 
 
 To the far Southern lands ; 
 Their lusty shepherd following with scoff and frown. 
 
 A leader not less fleet, 
 
 With gentle voice and sweet, 
 Brought them to wander o'er our Northern hills, 
 
 When spring's first blossoms broke, 
 
 And the south wind awoke, 
 And led them forth, heedless of autumn's ills. 
 
 Beneath their passing feet 
 
 Bent down the daisies sweet, 
 The violet and frail anemone ; 
 
 While in a single night, 
 
 Donning her robes of white, 
 In many an orchard bloomed the apple-tree.
 
 A MOVE TO THE CABIN. 477 
 
 But now the roughening blast, 
 
 Seizing upon the last, 
 Scatters their fleece with icy fingers cold. 
 See through the darkening air 
 
 The snowflakes everywhere. 
 Alas ! poor sheep, haste to your Southern fold. 
 
 " Don't you think it is rather cold out here ? " asked Kate. 
 " If we were to go into the for ward -cabin, we should be shel 
 tered from the wind, and we could see every thing through the 
 windows almost as plainly as if we were actually on the deck." 
 
 " That's a good suggestion," said Carrie. " Mamma is in 
 there too. Come, boys, will you go with us ? " 
 
 " We'll come in a few minutes," said Tom, ''just as soon as 
 we have got the bearings of things." 
 
 So the girls went in, and settled themselves in the comfortable 
 chairs, drawing them up about Mrs. Longwood, while the boys 
 proceeded to get the " bearings of things." This process con 
 sisted in inspecting the boat from stem to stern. They looked 
 into the engine-room ; they glanced over the scanty supply of 
 literature that was offered, with apples, oranges, peanuts, and 
 papers of tobacco, at the news-stand ; in short, they could, before 
 they finished, have passed a very creditable examination on the 
 boat and its entire contents down to the very freight. 
 
 " ' O running stream of sparkling joy 
 To be a soaring human boy ! ' " 
 
 " What a comfort it is to be no longer one ! " said Mr. Long- 
 wood, in the upper cabin, to the girls, as he drew a book from
 
 47 8 "MY MINISTER'S CAT? 
 
 his pocket. " I can sit here comfortably, without the slightest 
 curiosity as to what is going on in the boat. I can even in the 
 city see a cat in the street, without wanting to throw a stone at 
 it." So saying, with a sigh of content, he turned the leaves, and 
 was soon absorbed. 
 
 The girls and Mrs. Longwood sat looking at the shores for 
 a little. Away behind them, just coming out of the city, they 
 could see a train hurrying along the river's edge. Nearer and 
 nearer it drew, until, with a rush and a roar, it shot by, and dis 
 appeared around some curve. Then they passed close to a num 
 ber of oyster-boats. They were anchored fast ; and the men in 
 them were busy with their long rakes in dragging the unwilling 
 oyster from his comfortable bed. But presently all these sights 
 palled upon them ; and they pulled their chairs together, and began 
 to play " my minister's cat." That much abused domestic ani 
 mal ran the whole gamut of praise and blame, amid many peals 
 of laughter, until Mr. Longwood at last laid down his book. 
 
 " We are just entering the Tappan Zee," he said, looking 
 about. " This is that famous sheet of water considered so dan 
 gerous by the old Dutch sailors, that each one always put up a 
 prayer to St. Nicholas before he ventured upon it." 
 
 " What a different thing travelling must have been in those 
 days ! " said Kate. " People then, I fancy, hardly crossed the seas 
 for pleasure." 
 
 " The book I have been looking over was the journal of a 
 traveller to the New World," said Mr. Longwood. " He crossed 
 in 1638, nearly two hundred and fifty years ago." 
 
 " Do tell us a little about it," urged the girls. So Mr. Long- 
 Wood opened his book again, and read them extracts.
 
 DUCKED AT THE MAIN YARDS ARM. 479 
 
 " ' ANNO DOM. 1638. April the 26th being Thursday, I 
 came to Gravesend and went aboard the New Supply, alias, the 
 Nicholas of London, a Ship of good force, of 300 Tuns burden, 
 carrying 20 Sacre & Minion, manned with 48 Sailers, the Master 
 Robert Taylor, with 164 Passengers, men, women, and children.'" 
 
 " What are Sacre and Minion ? " asked Grace. 
 
 " Small cannon used in old times, but out of date long since," 
 said Mr. Longwood. 
 
 " ' The 28. we turned into the Downs, where Captain Clark 
 one of His Majesties Captains in the Navy, came aboard of us 
 in the afternoon, & prest two of our Trumpeters. Here we had 
 good store of Flounders from the Fishermen, new taken out of 
 the Sea and living, which were fry'd while they were warm ; 
 methought I never tasted of a delicater Fish in all my life 
 before.' 
 
 " It took our voyager's ship five days to get clear of the 
 English Channel, and fairly out to sea," went on Mr. Longwood : 
 " and his journal for those five days has little of interest : so I 
 will skip it. 
 
 " ' The Eighth day, one Boreman's man a passenger was 
 duck'd at the main yards arm (for being drunk with his Masters 
 strong waters which he stole) thrice, & fire given to two whole 
 Sacre, at that instant. Two mighty whales we now saw, the one 
 spouted water through two great holes in her head into the Air 
 a great height, and making a great noise with puffing & 
 blowing, the Seamen called her a Soufler ; the other was further 
 off, about a league from the Ship, fighting with the Sword-fish, 
 and the Flail-fish, whose stroakes with a fin that grows upon her
 
 480 THE SEA BOYLES LIKE A POT. 
 
 back like a flail, upon the back of the whale, we heard with 
 amazement ; when presently some more than half as far again 
 we spied a spout from above, it came pouring down like a River 
 of water ; So that if they should light in any Ship, she were in 
 danger to presently sunk down into the Sea, and falleth with 
 such an extream violence all whole together as one drop, or as 
 water out of a Vessel, and dured a quarter of an hour, making 
 the Sea to boyle like a pot, and if any Vessel be near, it sucks 
 it in. In the afternoon the Mariners struck a Porpisce, or Sea- 
 hogg, with an harping Iron, and hoisted her aboard, they cut 
 some of it into thin pieces, & fryed, it tastes like rusty Bacon, 
 if not worse ; but the Liver boiled & soused sometime in 
 Vinegar is more grateful to the pallat. 
 
 " ' About 8 of the clock at night, a flame settled upon the 
 main mast, it was about the bigness of a great Candle, & is 
 called by our Seamen St. Elmes fire, it comes before a storm, 
 and is commonly thought to be a Spirit ; if two appear they 
 prognosticate safety'.' ' 
 
 " Oh ! I say," interrupted Jack, who had come into the 
 saloon, and had heard the latter part of what Mr. Longwood 
 was reading, " this begins to be interesting. It was no doubt 
 the Banshee, or a corpse-candle." 
 
 " I am sorry to check your imagination, Jack," said Mr. Long- 
 wood ; " but the cause of St. Elmo's Fire is too well known to be 
 attributed to evil spirits. It is supposed to be electricity. 
 
 " But to go back to our voyager. ' The Twelfth day being 
 Whitsunday, the partie that was sick of the small pox now dyed, 
 whom we buried in the Sea, tying a bullet (as the manner is)
 
 A CAT WITH NINE TAILS. 48! 
 
 to his neck, and another to his leggs, turned him out of a Port 
 hole, giving fire to a great Gun. In the afternoon one Martin 
 Joy a stripling, servant to Captain Thomas Cummock was whipt 
 naked at the Cap-stern, with a Cat with Nine tails, for filching 
 9 great Lemrnons out of the Chirurgeon's Cabbin, which he eat 
 rinds and all in less than an hours time.' ' 
 
 " I suppose the whipping acted as an antidote to the lemons," 
 said Carrie. 
 
 " The next two weeks in our voyager's diary are very barren," 
 continued Mr. Longwood. " Now and then he speaks briefly of 
 meeting a ' tall ship ; ' but he has nothing more to say about food 
 that is ' grateful to the pallat.' Possibly the cause of it may be 
 found in one sentence : ' All this while a very great grown Sea 
 & mighty winds.' 
 
 " ' June the first day in the afternoon, very thick foggie 
 weather, we sailed by an inchanted Island, but could see nothing 
 by reason of the mist.' ' 
 
 " Oh, come ! " said Jack : " that's too thin, you know." 
 
 " ' The Fourteenth day of June, very foggie weather, we 
 sailed by an Island of Ice three leagues in length mountain 
 high, in form of land, with Bayes & Capes like high clift land, 
 and a River pouring off it into the Sea. We saw likewise two 
 or three Foxes, or Devils skipping upon it. Here it was as cold 
 as in the middle of January, & so continued till we were some 
 leagues beyond it. These Islands of Ice are congealed in the 
 North, and brought down in the spring-time with the Current to 
 the banks on this side Newfoundland & there stopt where they 
 dissolve at last to water.
 
 4&. FISHING ON A SUNDA Y. 
 
 " ' The Sixteenth day we sounded & found 35 fathom water 
 we cast out our hooks for Cod-fish, thick foggie weather, the 
 Codd being taken on a Sunday morning the Sectaries aboard 
 threw those their servants took into the Sea again, although they 
 wanted fresh victuals. 
 
 " ' The twentieth day we saw a great number of Sea-bats or 
 Owles called also flying fish, they are about the bigness of a 
 Whiting with four tinsel wings with which they fly as long as 
 they are wet when pursued by other fishes. Here likewise we 
 saw a great fish called the Sword fish, having a long, strong, 
 and sharp finn like a Sword blade on the top of his head, with 
 which he pierced our Ship & broke it off with striving to get 
 loose one of our Sailers dived & brought it aboard.' 
 
 " From this time on the voyage was very commonplace. 
 Sixty-eight days after leaving England, they anchored in Boston 
 Harbor. What a contrast, in point of time, to that of the great 
 steamer we just saw, which has made the same distance in less 
 than ten days ! " 
 
 " Well," said Jack meditatively, " after all, it couldn't have 
 been such bad fun in the old times. Think of seeing a man 
 ducked at the yard-arm ! That must have been prime. But I 
 say," he went on, " this fellow must have drawn a very long 
 bow with his enchanted islands, and so forth. I wonder if people 
 believed him ! " 
 
 " He published an account of a second voyage to America," 
 said Mr. Longwood ; " and in the preface to it he says snap 
 pishly, that there are ' certain spirits who have never travelled so 
 much sea as is between Heth ferry & Lyon Key yet notwith-
 
 AN INCREDULOUS PUBLIC. 
 
 standing sitting in the chair of the scornful will desperately 
 censure the relations of the greatest Travellers.' So that I 
 imagine that his stories were not all implicitly believed. 
 
 " He went into the Province of Maine, too, after he had 
 landed, and records one or two pretty stiff stories of wonders 
 there, one of a sea-serpent that ' lay quoiled up like a Cable 
 upon a rock at Cape Ann.' Another was of one Mr. Mitten, 
 who had an encounter with a triton in Casco Bay. ' The Gentle 
 men was a great Fouler, and used to goe out with a small Boat 
 or Canow, and fetching a compass about a small Island for the 
 advantage of a shot was encountered with a Triton who laying 
 his hands upon the side of the Canow had one of them chopt 
 off with a Hatchett by Mr. Mitten which was in all respects like 
 the hand of a man, the Triton presently sunk, dying the water 
 with his purple blood & was no more seen.' ' 
 
 " I should fancy that the ships of those days would have had 
 hard times in the great storms," said Will. 
 
 " They often did succumb," said Mr. Longwood. " Some 
 found themselves suddenly on an unknown coast, like Somers 
 and his men, who lost their ship on the Bermudas, though they 
 escaped with their lives : others, less fortunate, went down in the 
 swirling fury of an angry sea, leaving never a trace behind to 
 tell how their fate had come upon them." 
 
 " Why, yes ! " said Carrie, " there was that expedition of Sir 
 Humphrey Gilbert's, don't you know ? " 
 
 ' We don't know," said Rose and Lou. " Tell us about it." 
 
 " I think I will ask papa to tell," said Carrie ; " for T am not 
 very sure that I know myself."
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 " SIR HUMPHREY GILBERT sailed from 
 England with a little fleet of five ships, 
 ' The Delight/ ( Raleigh,' ' Golden Hind,' 
 ' Swallow,' and ' Squirrel.' ' The Delight ' 
 carried the admiral's flag. Two days after, 
 when they hailed one another in the even 
 ing, they learned that the captain and 
 many of the men of ' The Raleigh ' were 
 down with a strange fever ; and that night 
 the ship left them, and made her way back 
 to England. 
 
 " The other four kept on their west 
 ward course, though much disheartened 
 at the loss of their most puissant ship. Storms and fog assailed 
 them, and drove them asunder ; but they met on the New 
 foundland coast. And here the men of the other ships were 
 much astonished to see how greatly the attire of the men 
 of ' The Swallow ' had improved since they parted company. 
 Then they were sadly straitened. Presently the cause of the 
 improvement leaked out. ' The Swallow ' had been originally a 
 486
 
 A NEW WAY OF BUYING CLOTHES. 489 
 
 pirate, and had been captured in the narrow seas, as the English 
 and Irish Channels were called, just as she had overhauled a 
 Frenchman. Probably to escape hard usage for piracy, her crew 
 had consented to go on this expedition. So a new captain was 
 set over them. In mid ocean they met a fisherman, homeward 
 bound from the Banks ; and, being very short of clothes, they 
 persuaded the captain to let them go off in the small boat, to 
 buy such things as they stood most in need of. They had no 
 sooner boarded her than they made good use of their past ex 
 perience. The unfortunate fishermen were triced up, and tortured 
 with cords, which were wound about their heads, and then 
 tightened. In this way they were made to give up all that they 
 had, even the clothes off their backs. So terrified were the poor 
 wretches, that when their tormentors left them, and their boat 
 in getting away was swamped, instead of sailing away, and leav 
 ing them to drown, they fished up all they could, and, with their 
 own boat, put them back on ' The Swallow.' 
 
 " After more stormy weather, the little fleet met in the 
 harbor of St. John's. Here they recruited their empty larders 
 from the fishing-fleet that was always to be found in these 
 waters. The turbulent spirits of the crews broke out afresh. 
 They plotted to run away with the ships while the officers were 
 ashore, and were only prevented by great vigilance. A party of 
 them actually did seize a fishing-craft, putting her men on land, 
 to shift as best they might. Numbers deserted, and hid them 
 selves ashore : others were taken ill in such quantities, that it 
 was decided that ' The Swallow ' should be sent back to England 
 with the sick. Her captain and piratical crew were transferred
 
 49 WINDING THE CORNET AND HAUTBOY. 
 
 to ' The Delight ; ' and the fleet, now reduced to three sail, set 
 out southward to explore the coast. Sir Humphrey Gilbert him 
 self went in 'The Squirrel,' a tiny craft of only ten tons. Her 
 decks were fitted with the guns from ' The Swallow/ far too 
 heavy a weight for the little ship, as was most disastrously 
 proved later on. 
 
 " They sailed away, as we have said, rounding the headlands, 
 and exploring the bays, and in constant danger from sudden 
 shoals. At the end of a week a great calamity befell them. 
 4 The Delight,' their largest ship, and the one which bore their 
 store of provisions, was lost. The evening before, as she led 
 the fleet, she laid her course north-west, following the trend of 
 some cape. The other captains remonstrated ; but she held her 
 way, and they had nothing to do but follow. The weather was 
 fair, and, says the old chronicler, ' like the swan that singeth 
 before death, they in " The Delight " made merry all that evening 
 with trumpet and drum and fife, also winding the cornet and haut 
 boys.' In the morning they found themselves suddenly among 
 shoals and breakers ; and before they could get about, they were 
 aground, and the ship fast breaking up under the fury of the 
 seas. ' The Golden Hind ' and ' The Squirrel,' warned in time, 
 barely managed to wear off until they were safe in deep water. 
 There they watched their unfortunate comrades, utterly unable to 
 help them as the breakers dashed their good ship to pieces, and 
 drowned them one after another. 
 
 " This was a staggering blow to the expedition. Their largest 
 ship, a hundred men, provisions, all gone at a blow. The men 
 in the two vessels that were left became discouraged, and refused
 
 "THE SQUIRREL" IN DANGER.
 
 THE WIND IS "LARGE FOR ENGLAND." 493. 
 
 to proceed ; and so their prows were turned eastward, and, with 
 the wind ' large for England,' they set out for home. Sir 
 Humphrey went in the little ' Squirrel.' Loaded down with guns, 
 the tiny craft was in no ways suited for an ocean-passage. He 
 was urged to change to ' The Golden Hind,' but replied, ' I will 
 not forsake my little company with whom I have passed so many 
 storms and perils.' 
 
 " The two vessels were ordered to keep together, and each was 
 to hang out lights at night ; and so they kept their course until 
 about a third of the homeward passage was made, and then 
 they came upon very foul weather and terrible seas. The little 
 ' Squirrel ' went out of sight between the great waves, and at. 
 one time they in ' The Golden Hind ' thought that she had 
 foundered ; but she recovered wonderfully, and Sir Humphrey, 
 who was sitting book in hand upon the deck, cried out to them, 
 as they came within hail, to be of good courage. ' We are as 
 near to heaven by sea as by land.' That night, about midnight, 
 the watch of ' The Golden Hind ' cried out suddenly that the 
 ' Squirrel ' was cast away. In a single instant her lights dis 
 appeared : the waves had swallowed her. And so died a reso- 
 
 * 
 
 lute Christian gentleman." 
 
 All this talking and story-telling had not taken the short time 
 that it has for you to read it here. Darkness had fallen long 
 before. In the dim moonlight the giant hills of the highlands, 
 through which the boat was making her way, stood out, the 
 shadows lying dark and deep in the hollows, while the winding 
 river flowed on at their feet in inky blackness. 
 
 One after another the landings had been made ; and now,
 
 494 WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN, JACK? 
 
 when the young people began to get their wraps together, ready 
 for their own disembarking, it was suddenly discovered that Jack 
 was missing. When notes were compared, it was found that no 
 one had seen him for at least an hour. Carrie at once started 
 the idea that he had fallen overboard. " You know he fell over 
 from ' The Mavis ' last summer," she said ; " and he is such a 
 harum-scarum boy ! " She was so convinced of the truth of her 
 theory, that, if it had rested with her to decide, she would have 
 had the river dragged for his body without loss of time. It was, 
 I think, quite a disappointment to her when the missing young 
 man turned up in the midst of her eloquence, hands in pocket, 
 and whistling. 
 
 " Where have you been ? " they all cried. 
 
 " Up in the pilot-house," replied Jack loftily. " And I say, 
 the pilot told me a lot of stones about the hills and things, as 
 we passed them. There was one he called the Dunderberg. He 
 said it was a regular old storm-breeder, and the reason was that 
 it was the home of a goblin, who ruled the weather. In old 
 times the navigators used to see him. He was of Dutch build, 
 and wore a sugar-loaf hat and knickerbockers, and, with his 
 trumpet to his mouth, would order another blast of wind to pipe 
 
 up, or another peal of thunder to crash away. And then, when 
 
 / 
 
 the storm was at its height, they would see him tumbling head 
 over heels, surrounded by little imps, in the thick of the rack. 
 
 " One time a sloop was passing, and all at once a thunder- 
 gust burst right over the craft. The vessel pitched and strained 
 fearfully, as if she were going to the bottom. Up on the top of 
 the mast the men saw a white sugar-loaf hat, and they knew that
 
 THE DOMINIE'S WIFE'S NIGHTCAP. 495 
 
 it belonged to the goblin of the Dunderberg ; but none of them 
 dared to climb the mast. And so the sloop went driving on in 
 a terrible way, the men expecting to see her sink every minute 
 (and so she would have, had they not fortunately a horse-shoe 
 nailed to the mast) , until they reached the upper end of the high 
 lands, where the goblin's dominion ended. There the hat sud 
 denly whirled up in the air, and, followed by all the clouds and 
 storm, started back in mad flight, and never rested until it 
 reached the Dunderberg." 
 
 " Did your pilot ever see him ? " asked Ned somewhat sarcas 
 tically. 
 
 " No ; but Skipper Ouselsticker of Fishkill did. His craft 
 was off the point in a tremendous squall ; and he saw the goblin, 
 seated astride of his bowsprit, running them ashore." 
 
 "What did he do?" asked Lou. 
 
 " He had Dominie van Giesen, or some other such name, on 
 board : and he mustered up courage to repeat the hymn of St. 
 Nicholas ; and the goblin couldn't stand that, so he turned a 
 somerset off the bowsprit, and disappeared. He went off like 
 a flash, and carried the dominie's wife's nightcap with him ; and 
 the next Sunday they found it hanging on the weathercock of 
 the steeple of his church, more than forty miles away. After 
 that, the navigators always lowered their peaks in passing the 
 mountain, and he let them alone ; but, if any one didn't, he had 
 ' Hail Columbia ' to pay for it." 
 
 " Your pilot seems to have been a diligent reader of Wash 
 ington Irving, at all events," said Mr. Longwood. " Did he 
 point out Antony's Nose, and tell you how it came by its 
 name ? "
 
 496 THE STORY OF ANTONY'S NOSE. 
 
 " Yes," said Jack. " When Peter Stuyvesant, the old Dutch 
 governor of New York, was once sailing up the river, it chanced 
 that his trumpeter, Antony van Corlear, happened to be looking 
 over the vessel's side, contemplating his countenance in the water 
 beneath him. Antony had a nose mighty in size, and fiery from 
 
 APPROACHING THE DOCK. 
 
 many a long pull at the flagon. Just at that instant the sun 
 rose ; and one of its beams, darting over the top of a hill, fell 
 full upon Antony's nose, whence it glanced off, hissing hot, into 
 the water, killing a sturgeon that was swimming near the surface. 
 And ever since the hill has been known as ' Antony's Nose.' "
 
 GET IN, LITTLE BOY. 497 
 
 " Well," interrupted Tom, " here we are close to our landing. 
 We had better go below, and get ready to go ashore." 
 
 So gathering up their wraps, they made their way down, and 
 shortly found themselves standing on the dock. Two large 
 wagons were waiting for them. Mr. and Mrs. Longwood, with 
 the girls and Jack, much to his disgust, got into one, which set 
 out briskly at once up the long hills ; while the four boys waited 
 to pick out the luggage, and follow in the other.
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 SLOWLY the wagons crept up the 
 hills, passing first through the village 
 streets, where the light from the win 
 dows of the houses gleamed through 
 the darkness ; then on up the long 
 way, where only now and then a 
 house broke the pale moonlit monot 
 ony of fence and field and wood. 
 The air was sharp and chill ; and the 
 girls drew their wraps closer around 
 them, while impatient Jack, heedless 
 of the steep incline, endeavored by 
 surreptitious chirps to make the horses go faster. 
 
 " But it is a long road that has no turning," is the old say 
 ing ; and so at last they all at once left the highway, and turn 
 ing through a gate into the fields, after a moment more drew up 
 at the farmhouse door. 
 
 " Whoa ! " called the driver ; and at the word the door opened, 
 and a trim woman appeared in it. Her whole figure stood out 
 in bold relief against the warm glow of light behind her ; for 
 498
 
 A HfSSTNG AND SPLUTTERING SOUND. 499 
 
 the place was ablaze with a great open wood-fire that filled the 
 huge old fireplace with bellying flags of flame, and sent troops 
 of sparks up the big chimney, while the smell of the burning 
 hickory-logs filled the room with fragrance. 
 
 The young people lost no time in hurrying in, and, gathering 
 about the hearth, looked with interest around. It was a huge 
 room. Overhead one could almost touch the heavy oak beams, 
 blackened by time, that had never been hidden away under 
 plaster. The whole brick chimney-breast was covered with shelves, 
 on which stood many ponderous books, so large, that Gertrude 
 found herself wondering how they were ever gotten up there. 
 Around nearly the whole room, against the walls, ran book-shelves, 
 breast-high, filled with books. It was evident that Mr. Long- 
 wood's brother was more of a scholar than a farmer. 
 
 But the object to which the eyes of our friends were directed 
 with the greatest satisfaction was at one side of the room, a 
 table set with twelve plates, which shone out conspicuous under 
 the light of a great candelabra in the centre. Their eyes 
 returned to it constantly ; and at times they found themselves all 
 silent, and listening, each with a pleasant expression of face, to 
 a hissing and spluttering sound that came through the half-open 
 kitchen-door. " A voice within me cries ' Cupboard ! ' : ' said Tom. 
 " We feel with you," said they all sympathetically. 
 
 Presently the hissing and spluttering ceased, and the trim 
 woman began to hurry in and out with one smoking dish after 
 another in her hands. An odor of broiled chicken began to 
 struggle for the mastery with that of burning hickory, and in a 
 few mimites they were seated around the table.
 
 500 AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR. 
 
 They had all been helped, and there was that blissful conver 
 sational silence that comes with a roaring appetite, and the trim 
 woman was bustling about, passing the viands, when suddenly 
 these words rang out in a shrill, quavering voice, 
 
 " Who be you ? " 
 
 Involuntarily they all turned in the direction from which the 
 sound came. There in the kitchen doorway stood a strange 
 figure, a woman very old, spare and tall. On her head a 
 nightcap was tied tightly : around her shoulder was drawn a 
 blanket, which trailed behind her on the floor, exposing the bot 
 tom of a nightdress and a pair of bare feet below it. 
 
 Gertrude gave a little scream, and clutched Tom, who was 
 sitting next to her, firmly by the arm ; and the trim woman set 
 down a plate of bread which she was passing him, so hurriedly, 
 that it all upset into his lap, and exclaiming, " Sakes alive ! it's 
 mother waked up," hurried toward her. 
 
 " Who be you," demanded the quavering voice again, " a- 
 eatin' and carousin' when honest folk should be abed ? ' Woe 
 unto them that are mighty to drink ' " 
 
 But the further denunciations of this new Jeremiah were cut 
 short by the trim woman, who unceremoniously hustled her inta 
 the kitchen, and closed the door behind her. 
 
 " Gertrude," said Tom politely, " I think the worst of the 
 danger is now over. If you will release my arm from your 
 grasp, I will endeavor to relieve myself from this bread, which, 
 as the politician said of office, came to me entirely unexpectedly, 
 and through no effort of my own. Who is our strange visitor 
 anyway, papa ? "
 
 A POWERFUL GRIP ON THE SCRIPTERS. 501 
 
 " I suspect she is Mrs. Daniels's mother," said Mr. Longwood. 
 41 Daniels told me that his wife's mother had come to live with 
 them, and that she was so old that she was getting childish, but 
 that she had ' a powerful grip on the Scripters yet.' I think the 
 old lady answers to his description." 
 
 The rest of the meal went on without further interruption. 
 The trim woman re-appeared shortly, looking a little flustered, 
 but said nothing ; and after a time they all drew up in a circle 
 about the blaze. Conversation flagged. Presently Tom began to 
 nod, then looking up, suddenly exclaimed, " Four of you are half 
 asleep, and I can hardly keep my eyes open. Jack has been 
 oblivious for ten minutes. It must be the wind." 
 
 " Well," said Mr. Longwood, looking at the tall clock that 
 stood in the corner, " it is half-past nine." 
 
 " I vote we all turn in," said Ned. 
 
 So there was a lighting of candles, and a stumbling up the 
 wooden stairs ; and when the great backlog broke up, a half- 
 hour later, into a mass of glowing coals that came flying out on 
 to the broad hearth, there was no one to sweep them back, until 
 the trim woman came bustling in with the first light the next 
 morning. 
 
 Jack, as usual, was the first to be down stairs. His was an 
 investigating mind. With hands in pocket, and whistle in mouth, 
 he strolled about the room. Presently, not being at all bashful, 
 he made his way into the kitchen. The old grandmother was 
 rocking a boy of two or three years in a cradle. The youngster 
 was struggling to get out, and kicking lustily ; but the old woman 
 was strong, and held him firmly. " Lie still," she cried at inter-
 
 502 WHO IS CLAWJESMITH? 
 
 vals, " or Clawjesmith will get you." But the youngster would 
 not lie still : he struggled and fought as hard as ever. " Land 
 o' Goshen ! " exclaimed the old woman, panting for breath, " that's 
 the powerfulest three-months-old child I ever heard on. I'm 
 nigh beat out. I wonder if it's the cramp. Cynthy ! " she called 
 to her daughter, who had been busy in the other room all this 
 while, " I calcalate the baby's got the cramp. Where's the anise- 
 seed ? " 
 
 At this the trigi woman appeared in the doorway, and, taking 
 in the situation, rushed forward, and released the boy, who 
 straightway stood upon his feet, and proceeded to use his mouth 
 to suck his thumb with, instead of to shout with. 
 
 " Land o' Goshen ! " said the old woman, as she made out the 
 size of the youngster, after a prolonged and earnest gaze through 
 her spectacles, " I reckoned 'twas the baby all the while. Where 
 is the baby?" 
 
 Now, the youngster just mentioned was the trim woman's only 
 child : in short, there was no baby, except in the old woman's 
 imagination. But in that there was a baby, and a very positive 
 one. It even had a name. Little Cynthy she called it, and half 
 her time was spent in attendance on that imaginary child. This 
 freak of her fancy had been a source of considerable annoyance 
 to her worthy son-in-law, until one day he hit upon the idea of 
 having a gigantic rag-baby made, with which she was perfectly 
 satisfied, and would be quiet for hours in tending it. 
 
 " Mr. Longwood," said Jack at the breakfast- table, " who or 
 what is Clawjesmith ? " 
 
 " Clawjesmith ! " said that gentleman, repeating the word after 
 him. " I have not the slightest idea. Where did you hear it ? "
 
 A PRECIOUS VILLAIN. 503 
 
 " The old grandmother in the kitchen told the boy to lie still, 
 or Clawjesmith would get him." 
 
 " Why didn't you ask her who he was ? " said Carrie. 
 
 " I did," said Jack. 
 
 " What did she say ? " asked Rose. 
 
 " Nothing to the point," said Jack, flushing a little. 
 
 " Give us her exact words," said Carrie firmly, taking note of 
 the blush. 
 
 " Well," said Jack, " if you must have them, she said, ' Never 
 
 you mind, you sassy little boy : only look out he don't get 
 
 > 
 you. 
 
 There was a general laugh at this, when suddenly Mr. Long- 
 wood exclaimed, " Why, of course ! I have it. She must mean 
 Claudius Smith." 
 
 "Who was he?" 
 
 *' A desperate wretch, the terror of all this neighborhood in 
 Revolutionary times. He was the leader of a gang who hid 
 away in the mountains. By night they would sally forth, and 
 commit all sorts of cruelties. Hanging men up until they were 
 nearly dead, to make them tell where they kept their money, and 
 sometimes quite forgetting to let them down at all, was one of 
 their favorite practices. Our aged friend has doubtless heard 
 many wild stories about the villain from her parents." 
 
 " What became of him ? " asked Charlie. 
 
 " He murdered one of the principal men of the place in cold 
 blood, and then a large reward was offered for him. Fearing 
 that its size might tempt his own men to give him up, he fled 
 to New York, and then to Smithtown on Long Island, where he
 
 504 THE STORY OF A BRAVE WOMAN. 
 
 
 
 hoped to be hidden. But his whereabouts became known to one 
 or two patriots. A party crossed the Sound in whale-boats, and 
 seized him ; and the worthy settlers whom he had tormented had 
 the satisfaction of seeing him hung. He was a precious rascal. 
 His mother had once told him that he would die, like a trooper's 
 horse, with his shoes on ; and to prevent her prophecy coming 
 true, while he was standing in the cart, with the noose about 
 his neck, he kicked off his shoes, and died in his stockings." 
 
 " Dear me ! " said Carrie, " I suppose it's the old story again. 
 We shall hear, as we have done in all our expeditions, about 
 men's doings, good or bad, but never a word about women's 
 doings." 
 
 " Caroline," said Will, " dismiss your gloomy anticipations. 
 You shall hear of a woman's deed this moment." 
 
 i. 
 'Twas in days of the Revolution, 
 
 Dark days were they and drear, 
 And by Carolina firesides 
 
 The women sat in fear; 
 For the men were away at the fighting, 
 
 And sad was the news that came, 
 That the battle was lost; and the death-list 
 
 Held many a loved one's name. 
 
 n. 
 
 And the men of the routed army, 
 
 Their hearts within as stone, 
 Half believed that the Lord had forsook them, 
 
 And they must fight alone.
 
 A CALL FOR A VOLUNTEER. 
 
 57 
 
 When as heart-sore they sat round the camp-fires, 
 
 " What ho ! Who'll volunteer 
 To carry a message to Sumter ? " 
 
 A voice rang loud and clear. 
 
 BY CAROLINA FIRESIDES. 
 
 III. 
 
 There was a sudden silence, 
 But not a man replied : 
 
 They knew too well of the peril 
 Of him who dared that ride.
 
 508 THE CLICK OF A RIFLE 
 
 For the country was filled with wild troopers, 
 With Cunningham's bloody pack, 
 
 And Tory wretches at every turn : 
 What wonder the men hung back ! 
 
 IV. 
 
 Outspoke then Emily Geiger, 
 
 With a rich flush on her cheek, 
 " Give me the message to be sent : 
 
 I am the one you seek. 
 For I am a Southern woman; 
 
 And Td rather do and dare 
 Than sit by a lonely fireside, 
 
 My heart gnawed through with care." 
 
 v. 
 They gave her the precious missive ; 
 
 And on her own good steed 
 She rode away, 'mid the cheers of the men, 
 
 Upon her daring deed. 
 And away through the lonely forests, 
 
 Steadily galloping on, 
 She saw the sun sink low in the sky, 
 
 And in the west go down. 
 
 VI. 
 
 " Halt ! or I fire ! " On a sudden 
 
 A rifle clicked close by. 
 " Let you pass ? Not we, till we know you are 
 
 No messenger nor spy." 
 " She's a Whig, from her face, I will wager," 
 
 Swore the officer of the day.
 
 THE 
 
 MARCH
 
 TO THE GUARD-HOUSE! 5" 
 
 "To the guard-house, and send for a woman 
 To search her without delay." 
 
 VII. 
 
 No time did she lose in bewailing: 
 
 As the bolt creaked in the lock, 
 She quickly drew the precious note 
 
 That was hidden in her frock, 
 And she read it through with hurried care, 
 
 Then ate it, piece by piece, 
 And calmly sat her down to wait 
 
 Till time should bring release. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 They brought her out in a little, 
 
 And set her on her steed, 
 With many a rude apology, 
 
 For their discourteous deed. 
 On, on, once more through the forest black, 
 
 The good horse panting strains, 
 Till the sentry's challenge, "Who comes there?*' 
 
 Tells that the end he gains. 
 
 DC. 
 Ere an hour, in the camp of Sumter 
 
 There was hurrying to and fro. 
 " Saddle and mount, saddle and mount ! " 
 
 The bugles shrilly blow. 
 " Forward trot ! " and the long ranks wheel, 
 
 And into the darkness glide : 
 Long shall the British rue that march, 
 
 And Emily Geiger's ride.
 
 C IAPTER IV. 
 
 WHAT a glorious morning it wa^ 
 The boys, as they came hurrying out 
 of doors, and felt the cool breath of 
 the north wind on their faces, were 
 ready to throw their caps into the 
 air from mere animal spirits. Ned, 
 having opportunely bent over to fast 
 en his shoestring, presented such an 
 attractive back, that Tom could not
 
 HOW VICIOUSLY SHE SWITCHES HER TAIL! 
 
 513 
 
 forbear a leap ; and before the girls, who followed more deco* 
 rously, Tiad arrived on the ground, the boys were half way down 
 the road to the gate, in a wild game of leap-frog. 
 
 " I suppose, anyway, that the boys will be no fun until they 
 get the ' bearings of things,' " said Carrie, watching their flight. 
 " Come, girls, let us see what is to be seen. Suppose we go out 
 to the barn." 
 
 They set out at once, but got no farther tha'n the barnyard 
 gate ; for there facing 
 them, placidly chewing 
 her cud, and gazing with 
 mild wonder in her eyes, 
 stood a cow. They came 
 to a halt instantly. 
 
 " She is certainly dan 
 gerous," said Lou. "See 
 how she looks at us, and 
 how viciously she switch 
 es her tail ! " 
 
 The cow, at this mo 
 ment scenting the apples 
 which they were eating, 
 and hoping for a morsel, 
 moved a step forward 
 with outstretched nose. The girls precipitately fled. 
 
 " Well," said Carrie, " we can get into the barn through the 
 other yard : there are only sheep there. They cannot harm us." 
 
 So they opened the gate into the sheep-yard, and passed in. 
 
 THE DANGEROUS COW.
 
 514 JACK DELIVERS HIS VIEWS. 
 
 The boys joined them. Jack, who had witnessed their ignoble 
 retreat, was expressing his views on girls' weaknesses. They 
 were about half way across the yard. 
 
 " It was very foolish," he said. " The cow was perfectly 
 gentle. Nine hundred and ninety-nine cows out of a thousand 
 are. You might just as well expect to be attacked by a sheep." 
 
 Rash words ! An old buck, unnoticed by them, had viewed 
 their entrance with marked disapproval. At first he was satisfied 
 to express this by tosses of the head, and energetic stamps of 
 his foot : but his feelings had rapidly grown beyond his control ; 
 and, just as Jack pronounced the last words, he advanced upon 
 him, swiftly and unseen, from behind, and with one dexterous 
 blow of his head sent him sprawling to the ground. 
 
 The girls fled at this unexpected attack; while the boys were 
 laughing too hard to help Jack, who scrambled half way up just 
 in time to be sent down by another blow. He was quicker a 
 second time, and, gaining his feet and a stick at the same time, 
 soon put his enemy to flight. 
 
 "It is evident that we are not to reach the barn this morn 
 ing," said Rose. " Let's go back to the house : it must be 
 almost time to get ready for church." 
 
 " Church ! " ejaculated Jack with astonishment strongly mixed 
 with disapprobation. 
 
 " Of course, you young reprobate ! " said Will. " Who ever 
 heard of not going to church on Thanksgiving ? I hope we 
 shall walk. It's just the morning for a good tramp." 
 
 At the prospect of a walk Jack's spirits rose; and they all 
 went together toward the house, where they saw Mr. Longwood.
 
 DA NIELS'S WIFE'S DOG. 515 
 
 He was at the back of it, talking to Daniels ; and close at hand 
 was a kennel, where a most villanous-looking bull-dog was growl 
 ing viciously, as he moved about the short space his chain 
 allowed. 
 
 " Yes, sir," they heard Daniels say : " he is ugly. You see, I 
 am away in the fields a good part of the time ; and now and then 
 a tramp comes along, and my wife she feels more easy with the 
 dog at hand." 
 
 " So I should imagine," said Mr. Longwood. " If I were a 
 tramp, I should feel like moving on. Don't let him loose while 
 we are here." 
 
 " Never fear," said the man. " He shall be kept close." 
 
 The girls, by this time, had made their appearance, ready for 
 church; and they all set out. If it had been Sunday, I suspect 
 they would have gone on decorously ; but, as it was, the fresh 
 air from the hills around them was too stimulating for a sober 
 walk. The boys vaulted over every pair of bars they came to ; 
 and Carrie and Rose, made reckless by the taunts of Ned and 
 Jack, ran along the tops of the stone fences with many a squeal 
 of terror and delight. 
 
 " That field over there," said Carrie, pointing to the one in 
 question, " is full of wild strawberries in their season. I was up 
 here last June, and stained every dress I had." 
 
 " Not to mention your face and hands," said Mrs. Longwood. 
 
 " And mamma sat on the fence," went on Carrie, " and ate 
 the berries I brought her, out of a cup made of walnut-leaves, 
 and between times wrote a little piece of poetry."
 
 THE RED, RED STRAWBERRY. 
 
 Down in the midst of the meadow-grass 
 
 Red-ripe strawberry hides away, 
 Fearful of hungry birds that pass, 
 
 Swift in flight all the summer day. 
 
 But, though these robbers have seen him not, 
 There is a foe with sharper eyes : 
 
 Little brown feet push the leaves aside ; 
 
 Little brown hands seize the trembling prize. 
 
 THE STRAWBERRY EIELD. 
 
 Little red lips for a moment ope, 
 
 Strawberry's gone ere his prayers be said : 
 
 Vain was the nook 'neath the plaintain-leaf ; 
 Empty is now his grassy bed. 
 
 " What a magnificent country this must have been for Indian 
 fighting- ! " said Charlie. " These wild ravines and rugged hills no- 
 doubt saw many a hard tussle."
 
 THE PEOPLE OF THE LONG HOUSE. 
 
 517 
 
 "Yes," said Mr. Long-wood: "we are on the territory of what 
 was the most powerful confederation of Indians ever known on 
 this continent." 
 
 " Do you mean the Five Nations ? " asked Ned. 
 
 " Yes," said Mr. Longwood. " They were called Iroquois by 
 the French. Their own name for 
 themselves was Hodenosaunee ; 
 or, the ' People of the Long 
 House.' " 
 
 " What a strange name ! " 
 exclaimed Rose. 
 
 " You will understand the 
 meaning of it better, if you know 
 how these people built their 
 houses. They were not rude 
 wigwams, such as the inferior 
 natives of New England lived 
 in, but large houses, which sev 
 eral families often occupied. 
 They were long and narrow, 
 built with rafters, with an open 
 ing at the peak the whole length, 
 for the smoke to escape. Each 
 
 family built its fire, and lived around it. The five tribes who made 
 up the confederacy were stretched westward, one after the other, 
 in nearly a straight line, Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas, 
 Senecas, like so many families around the fires in one of their 
 houses : hence the name."
 
 518 A NEW WAY OF MAKING CITIZENS. 
 
 11 Were they great fighters ? " asked Jack. 
 
 " They were the terror of every tribe, from the Atlantic to 
 the Mississippi, and from Canada to the Carolinas. When they 
 lost a warrior, they adopted a prisoner in his place, and in this 
 way kept their strength up." 
 
 " I should have thought that the prisoners might object," said 
 Kate. 
 
 " If they did," said Charlie, " they had only to say so, and 
 they could be burned at the stake instead." 
 
 " They most certainly would have been," said Mr. Longwood. 
 " Besides, it was a great honor to belong to so great a confed 
 eracy. When the Dutch settled New York, they foolishly traded 
 guns and ammunition with them for beaver-skins, and they 
 became far more than ever the terror of their enemies. 
 
 " Lying, as they did, between the French in Canada and the 
 English in New York, their friendship was courted by both. But 
 they were too wily to commit themselves definitely to either, 
 though they finally became much more the friends of the English 
 than of their northern rivals. 
 
 " One of the most wonderful things in the whole history of 
 this country is the attempt of the Jesuits to convert these 
 savages. Leaving their homes in France, where many of them 
 held high rank, they threw aside forever the world in which they 
 had lived, with all its luxuries and comforts, penetrated the 
 forests to the Indian villages, and spent their lives amid their 
 filth and squalor, in the hope of winning souls to heaven. Some 
 of them were tortured ; more than one died at the stake ; but 
 none of these things daunted their courage."
 
 THE STORY OF SEBASTIAN RASLES. 521 
 
 " But they did not succeed, did they ? " asked Tom. 
 
 " No," said his father. " The Five Nations declared for 
 the English, and marched against the French in Canada. The 
 Hurons, enemies of the confederacy, among whom the Jesuits 
 had met with the greatest success, were exterminated. Those of 
 the missionaries who had labored among the Iroquois were forced 
 to depart, and so the Jesuit mission came to an end." 
 
 " I should imagine," said Will, " that our friends of New 
 England, who thought that Popery was born of the Evil One, 
 would have looked with most unfriendly eyes on these efforts of 
 the Jesuits." 
 
 " They did, indeed," said Mr. Longwood. " And what inten 
 sified their views was the dread lest these Jesuits, being French, 
 should bring over the Indians to be , the allies of France ; in 
 which case they would not only lose a profitable trade, but have 
 an active enemy at their very doors. 
 
 " In the valley of the Kennebec dwelt a Romish priest, 
 Sebastian Rasles. For nearly forty years he had dwelt among 
 the savages, hewing his wood, and drawing his water, and living 
 on the same scanty fare as they. A man of wonderful ability, 
 he gained great influence over them, and taught them many of 
 the arts of civilization, while he converted them to his form of 
 belief. He appealed to their love for color by painting the walls 
 of his chapel in glowing hues. His life was pure and blameless. 
 Besides all this, he was strong and expert with the snow-shoes, 
 and in other feats that gained the Indians' respect. 
 
 " The sober-minded colonists of New England viewed with 
 great disfavor the success that attended his efforts. And when
 
 522 THE BELL HAS STOPPED RINGING. 
 
 they found that he was striving to make the tribes about him 
 declare for the French, and renounce their old alliance, their rage 
 knew no bounds. They sent one expedition after another against 
 the Indians who had attacked the border-towns, and at last sur 
 prised his town at a time when nearly all the warriors were away. 
 Rasles was slain by a soldier, although orders had been given 
 that he should be taken prisoner, and not injured ; and his town 
 was burned. And, when his absent warriors returned, they found 
 his dead body, and with many lamentations buried it at what 
 had been the altar of his ruined church, vowing dire vengeance 
 on his murderers. 
 
 " But here we are at our church," said Mr. Longwood, break 
 ing off abruptly. " And the bell has stopped ringing." 
 
 They all trooped in, their cheeks red and glowing from the 
 exercise in the cool air. Half of the congregation twisted their 
 heads around to see who all these strangers were ; and the 
 clergyman, who had just begun to read the hymn, stopped short 
 in surprise for an instant, at the end of the first line : 
 
 " Lord of the seasons, oh ! how fair " 
 
 Tom and Will wickedly whispered that he was so astonished 
 at the good looks of the party, that this was an involuntary com 
 pliment ; but, as he shortly recovered and went on, the next line 
 completely refuted their suggestion : 
 
 " Thy works : how vile thy creatures are ! " 
 
 And so, smiling broadly at the sudden reversal of the compli 
 ment, they took the seats which were hospitably offered them on 
 all sides.
 
 JACK LONGS FOR FORBIDDEN FRUIT. 525 
 
 The sermon was long, and somewhat tedious. Jack, I suspect, 
 would have ventured on a surreptitious bite out of a big apple 
 which he had in his pocket ; but whenever he managed to screw 
 his courage up to the sticking-point, and put his hand to the 
 forbidden fruit to bring it out, an old lady of severe countenance, 
 who sat at the end of his pew, looked at him fixedly through 
 her glasses, and he reluctantly gave up his little scheme. 
 
 They lost no time in getting out after the Doxology had been 
 sung. Daniel was at the door with the large wagon. Mrs, 
 Longwood, Lou, and Gertrude climbed into it, preferring to ride, 
 rather than walk, up the long hills. Mr. Longwood, too, decided 
 that he was rather too lazy for the walk ; but the rest of the 
 party scouted the idea of riding, and set out briskly. 
 
 " O Tom ! " called out his father just as they were starting, 
 " my old friend Dr. Stone was not at church, and I hear that 
 he is ill. Take my card, and leave it at his house. Ask how 
 he is, and say that I will come to see him in the morning." 
 
 " All right, sir," said Tom, taking the card, and putting it in 
 his pocket. " Fellows, walk slowly, and I will overtake you. It's 
 only a step ; " and he set off on a run for the doctor's house. 
 
 A couple of minutes brought him to it, and a vigorous ring 
 at the bell brought a red-faced Irish girl to the door. 
 
 " How is the doctor ? " asked Tom. 
 
 " Faith, he's bether the day, sorr," said she. 
 
 " Well, give him this card, and tell him he'll call in the 
 morning," and thrusting it into her hand, and turning around, he 
 ran on to overtake his party. 
 
 " And it's in a fine hurry ye are, troth and sure," said the 
 girl, as she closed the door, and carried the card to her master.
 
 526 
 
 AN ANGRY DOCTOR. 
 
 Now, Tom was like every other boy : his pockets had in them 
 nearly every thing that can be thought of, knife, string, cards 
 that had been handed him by advertising men in the streets. 
 Of these latter he had a half-dozen that he had tucked away 
 without ever looking at them : so it was not strange, if, in his 
 hurry, he left another card than the one his father gave him. 
 
 This was what the astonished doctor read on the pasteboard 
 that his servant handed him : 
 
 ABRAHAM ISAACS, 
 100 BOWERY. 
 
 HIGHEST PRICE PAID FOR GENTLEMEN AND 
 LADIES' CAST-OFF CLOTHING. 
 
 -- 
 
 P. S. LADIES ATTENDED BY MRS. ISAACS. 
 
 " Where is the fellow ? " demanded the wrathful doctor, as he 
 read it. He was evidently convalescing. Being cross is a sign 
 of returning health. 
 
 " Says he'll be afther callin' in the mornin', sorr," said the 
 girl. 
 
 " Impudent rascal ! " exclaimed the angry man. " If he does, 
 I'll lay my stick over his shoulders ! " 
 
 Meantime, Tom, ignorant of his blunder, was well up the hill ; 
 and, as the wagon stopped at the door of their house, the 
 walking-party were close behind it. 
 
 " I wonder at what time we are to have dinner," said Will. 
 
 " I will go and see," said Carrie with alacrity.
 
 THE DOMINIE COMES OUT STRONG. 
 
 527 
 
 She came back presently. " Four o'clock," she said. " It's 
 now just half-past one. There is a luncheon, though, of sand 
 wiches and milk all ready." 
 
 After the edge of hunger had been taken off, the girls 
 decided that they would stay indoors for a time : so they settled 
 themselves comfortably, one to 
 write, others to read, while the 
 boys strolled out to the barn, 
 where they found Daniels putting 
 away the horses. 
 
 " Powerful sermon," said Dan 
 iels, by way of opening conver 
 sation. 
 
 "Did you hear it?" asked 
 the boys. 
 
 " No. But the dominie gen- |j 
 erally comes out strong on sech 
 occasions. He's a prime hand 
 at managing a boat, is the dom 
 inie. Nary man on the river 
 can beat him. Last winter he 
 
 thought he'd try an ice-boat. Never had tried one ; but one of 
 his deacons had a boat, and he'd often told him to take her. 
 ' Manage her jist as ye do your sail-boat, dominie,' he said. 
 'Tain't no trouble 'tall.' 
 
 " So the dominie one afternoon tried the boat. Weather had 
 been mighty cold, river smooth as glass, and that afternoon 'twas 
 kind o* warm and sunshiny, though a stiff wind was blowing ; and 
 
 WAITING FOR DINNER.
 
 528 THE DOMINIE GOES ICE-BOATING. 
 
 nigh half the town was on the ice. So he hysted up the sail 
 and, whist ! away she went, seventy miles an hour. Pretty soon 
 he thought he'd turn around : so he fetched her about, and away 
 she went back on the same track she'd come, seventy miles an 
 hour again, right toward the people skatin.' They see the dan 
 ger, and put for the shore like mad ; and sech a scrambling up 
 the banks was never seen. 
 
 " The dominie he tried to change the boat's course, but 
 nothing he could do would make her change. She was like a 
 runaway hoss. Another minit, and he'd been in the thick of 
 'em ; and he did say he calcalated he'd have furnished material 
 for three funerals a day for a fortnit, if he hadn't jammed the 
 helm hard down. That fetched her ; but then she began to go 
 round in a circle, so fast that he expected 'twould twist his head 
 off. And then, all of a sudden, over she went. He don't go 
 ice-boatin' any more." 
 
 The boys laughed at Daniel's story, and then began to amuse 
 themselves in various ways, until, before they realized it, a 
 couple of hours had gone, and Carrie came running bareheaded 
 from the house to bid them come to dinner. 
 
 The trim woman seemed to have outdone herself, for the 
 table fairly groaned beneath the good things upon it. In the 
 centre was a great heap of red and yellow apples, and upon 
 them three golden ears of corn, with the husks drawn back. 
 
 " The corn is my idea," said Carrie, with satisfaction in her 
 tone. 
 
 " It is very pretty," said Ned. " Are we to eat it with 
 pepper and salt ? or to gnaw it undressed from its native cob ? "
 
 A SINFUL WASTE AND A SHAME. 529 
 
 " You are not to eat it at all, you foolish boy ! " said Carrie 
 severely. "It is symbolical of the first Thanksgiving Day ever 
 appointed." 
 
 " Pray lighten our darkness," said Charlie. " I know nothing 
 about it." 
 
 " Well," said Carrie, " you must learn, that, when the Pilgrim 
 Fathers came to Plymouth, they had a very hard time. Their 
 provisions gave out so nearly, that one day they had only three 
 ears of corn, or some such small number, left. And just at this 
 time a ship came from England with provisions ; and they 
 appointed a day of thanksgiving, which is the origin of the day 
 we are now keeping." And Carrie took up the knife and fork, 
 which she had laid down in order to give greater effect to her 
 little speech, and hastened to make up for lost time. 
 
 The trim woman hurried to and fro between the kitchen and 
 the table, bringing fresh dishes, while the chatter of many 
 tongues made a merry noise. But all at once, as sometimes 
 happens, there was a sudden lull ; and in that moment's silence 
 the shrill voice of the old grandmother was heard distinctly to 
 say, 
 
 "That little freckled gal has trimmin' of real silk on her frock 
 three inches wide, a sinful waste and a shame. ' Tremble, ye 
 women that are at ease : strip you, gird sackloth upon ' " 
 
 At this a heavy step suddenly strode to the door, which 
 closed with a bang, and they heard no more. 
 
 " The question now is," said Jack mischievously, " which of 
 you young ladies answers to the description of the ' little 
 freckled gal.' "
 
 53 CARRIE TAKES THE FIELD. 
 
 " I have made a hurried examination of the dresses," said 
 Ned, " and fear that it is my own dear sister Lou who has 
 aroused the old lady.'s indignation." 
 
 Lou blushed very much at rinding herself the object of such 
 sudden attention ; and Carrie came to her aid by saying, " I think 
 her dress is perfectly sweet. People seem to forget that there is 
 such a thing as an apostolic injunction to dress well." 
 
 " Will you kindly let us know which of the apostles gave 
 this injunction ? " said Mr. Longwood. " It has escaped my 
 recollection." 
 
 " Why, St. Paul," answered Carrie, " when he said, ' Forsake 
 not the adornment of the person, as the manner of some is'" 
 
 At this there was a shout of laughter ; and Mr. Longwood 
 ventured the assertion that he hardly thought St. Paul would be 
 willing to be responsible for such a command. " As I remember 
 it," said he, " it reads, ' Forsake not the assembling of your 
 selves together.' ' 
 
 By and by, as they sat about the table, the twilight began to 
 thicken ; and, before they had reached the nuts and raisins, it was 
 quite dark. Then some one suggested that Mr. Longwood should 
 give them another of his stories.
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 " TELL us of some old 
 sea-dog," said Jack indis 
 tinctly, his teeth fast in a 
 great red apple. 
 
 "There was a boy," be 
 gan Mr. Longwood, "whom 
 his parents intended should 
 be a great scholar, but 
 whose mind was set on 
 going to sea." 
 
 " Ah ! " interrupted Jack. 
 "Runs away clothes in 
 handkerchief nearest sea 
 port ships before the 
 mast mutiny kills offi 
 cers takes command turns pirate many years hands red 
 with blood great grizzled beard lots of money comes home 
 no one knows him nabob from the East marries beautiful 
 young girl maltreats her neighbors hear shrieks at night - 
 
 531
 
 532 JACK IS ABASHED. 
 
 break in, find papers showing his past history hang him 
 strong moral curtain falls." 
 
 " Upon my word, Jack," said Will, " you are not very polite 
 to interrupt Mr. Longwood in that way." 
 
 " I beg pardon, sir," said Jack very much abashed. " I did 
 not mean to be rude. Please go on." 
 
 " This boy, then," said Mr. Longwood, " did not run away, 
 but like a sensible fellow told his parents of his wishes, and with 
 their aid found a good ship, and a good captain, and at fifteen 
 went to sea. And he soon showed that he was made of good 
 stuff ; for in three years, and when he was only eighteen, he won 
 the position of first mate. 
 
 " On his very first voyage as mate a mutiny broke out. The 
 men seized the captain, and were just throwing him overboard, 
 when our hero, hearing the scuffling on deck, rushed from below, 
 and attacking the mutineers, backed only by the second-mate and 
 one old sailor, after a hard fight, drove them into the bows, and 
 secured the ringleaders in irons. 
 
 " And the owners of the vessel, seeing that here was a man 
 who could not only sail a ship, but command one, lost no time 
 in making him captain." 
 
 " You have not told us his name," said Gertrude. 
 
 " His name was William Bainbridge," said Mr. Longwood. 
 " He is more generally known in history as Commodore Bain- 
 bridge of the United States navy. The year in which, at the 
 age of nineteen, he was made captain, was 1793. These were 
 the days when the country was recovering from the Revolutionary 
 war, when we had no navy, when the seas swarmed with pirates
 
 BAINBRIDGE SMELLS BURNT POWDER. 533 
 
 and privateers, and every merchant-ship left port well armed, and 
 ready to fight jor fly, according to the size of the enemy. 
 
 " And so, as you may imagine, it was not very long before 
 Capt. Bainbridge had a chance to smell burnt powder. He 
 was commanding the good ship ' Hope,' and was on his way 
 from Bordeaux to St. Thomas, when he was attacked by a 
 schooner carrying eight heavy guns. ' The Hope ' had but four 
 nine-pounders and a crew of eleven, against the other's thirty. 
 But the eleven managed their small weapons with such skill, that 
 they cut the schooner's rigging to pieces, tore away her spars, and 
 riddled her hull, till she hauled down her flag, and struck. 
 
 "His men were wild to board her, and carry her as a prize 
 into port ; but Capt. Bainbridge reflected that his first duty 
 was to the owners of his vessel, and that he must get the valua 
 ble cargo he had aboard safe into harbor without loss of time. 
 So putting up his helm, he sailed close by the conquered craft, 
 and, hailing her, ordered her captain, in his most contemptuous 
 tones, to go about his business, and to tell his masters, that, when 
 they wanted his ship, they must send a greater force, or a more 
 skilful commander ; and so sailed away." 
 
 " How enraged the schooner's captain must have been ! " said 
 Will. 
 
 " Yes," said Mr. Longwood. " No doubt he had calculated on 
 making a rich haul, and he came to signal grief. But we must 
 leave him to repair damages, and go on with Capt. Bainbridge and 
 his fortunes. 
 
 " A few voyages after this he was stopped by a British man- 
 of-war, whose lieutenant boarded him, and ordered his crew to be
 
 534 THE DAYS OF THE PRESS-GANG. 
 
 mustered, that they might press any British seamen whom he 
 might chance to have." 
 
 " Had they any right to do this ? " asked Tom. 
 
 " It was the old case of the strong and the weak," said Mr. 
 Longwood. " The British claimed the right to seize their seamen 
 wherever they could be found, and the Americans were then too 
 too weak to resist. They have long ago been forced to aban 
 don the claim. Impressment of seaman has from time imme 
 morial enraged Americans. In 1748, when we were colonies of 
 Great Britain, Commodore Knowles, who was in command of 
 some British war-ships in New England, sent his boats to Boston 
 Harbor, and seized all the seamen on the ships and wharves. 
 The whole town rose in anger. The governor called out the 
 militia to restore order ; but they refused to act, and the gov 
 ernor, in terror, fled to the castle for protection ; while all the 
 officers of the ships on shore were seized, and held as hostages 
 for the return of the pressed men." 
 
 " And how was it all settled ? " asked Carrie. 
 
 " The pressed men were returned, and the affair blew over 
 after a time," said Mr. Longwood. " But to get back to our 
 story. You may imagine the wrath with which Capt. Bain- 
 bridge found himself obliged to summon his men. The first one 
 called was Allen McKinsey, the first mate. The British officer 
 declared that the man was Scotch. Bainbridge denied it, and 
 said that he was born in Philadelphia. On the British lieuten 
 ant announcing that he should carry him off, Bainbridge turned 
 to McKinsey, and told him to find pistols and a sabre in his cabin 
 to defend himself. The mate lost no time in getting the
 
 BAINBRIDGE TAKES THE LAW INTO HIS OWN HANDS. 537 
 
 weapons, and announced that he would shoot the first man who 
 touched him. Seeing that he had a tough subject to handle, 
 the lieutenant discreetly abandoned his designs on the mate, and 
 took, instead, a common seaman. 
 
 " Bainbridge remonstrated ; stated that his vessel was insuf 
 ficiently manned, and that its safety was in danger if his force 
 were lessened. Finding that he could not save his man, he 
 boldly declared to the British officer that he would stop the first 
 English merchant-vessel he met, and take off a man to supply 
 his place. The lieutenant remarked, with a sneer, that he would 
 never dare to do such an illegal thing, and went over the side 
 into his boat, and left with his victim. 
 
 FIRED A SHOT ACROSS HER BOWS. 
 
 " Five days after, Bainbridge fell in with an armed English 
 brig. He mustered his crew, cleared his decks for action, and 
 made her lie to by firing a shot across her bow. He then trained
 
 538 A MELANCHOLY DRY. 
 
 his guns upon her, while his first mate, McKinsey, went aboard 
 in a small boat, seized an able-bodied sailor, and brought him 
 off". Then, hailing the captain of the English vessel, he directed 
 him to report that Capt. William Bainbridge had seized one of 
 his Majesty's subjects in retaliation for a seaman taken from the 
 American ship ' Hope ' by Lieut. Norton of ' The Indefatigable 
 Razee,' commanded by Sir Edward Pellew." 
 
 " What a plucky fellow he was ! " said Charlie. 
 
 " Such acts as these, of course, soon caused him to be known 
 as a brave man, and one fitted for an emergency ; and so, as 
 the government was just fitting out ships as the beginning of a 
 navy, he was chosen to command one. 
 
 " We have no time now to tell of all his doings, -of how at 
 first he was unfortunate, and was captured, but will hurry on to 
 the year 1800, when he was appointed to the frigate ' George 
 Washington,' for the purpose of carrying to the Dey of Algiers 
 the tribute paid every year by the United States." 
 
 " What ! " exclaimed the boys, " did the United States pay 
 tribute, and to the Dey of Algiers ? It's impossible." 
 
 " Nevertheless, it is so," said Mr. Longwood. " It was to 
 protect American merchant-vessels from the Barbary pirates. 
 You must remember that those were the early days of the 
 Republic, before she had waxed strong, and shown her teeth. 
 And she was not alone in paying tribute : England and France 
 endured the same humiliation. 
 
 " Capt. Bainbridge reached Algiers, and handed over the 
 money to the American consul. The Dey was at this time in 
 great trouble. His sovereign lord and master, the Sultan of
 
 A DEY IN TROUBLE. 
 
 539 
 
 BAINBRIDGE AND THE DEY. 
 
 Turkey, was in a rage with him because he had concluded a
 
 540 A HUMILIATING DEMAND. 
 
 peace with France at the time that the Sultan was fighting 
 Napoleon in Egypt ; and the Dey was in fear that he should 
 lose not only his office, but his head. He demanded that Capt. 
 Bainbridge should carry for him to Constantinople a present 
 to the Sultan, which he hoped would appease his rage. Capt. 
 Bainbridge politely regretted that his orders would not allow him 
 to do this. The Dey fell into a fury. ' You pay me tribute,' 
 he shouted, ' and by this you become my slaves. I will order 
 you where I think proper.' 
 
 " Besides, he gave Bainbridge distinctly to understand that his 
 ship was in the harbor under the fire of all the guns of his 
 forts, and that, if he attempted to sail, she should be blown in 
 pieces, and that he and his crew should be cast iirto prison. 
 Every American merchant-ship, too, in the Mediterranean, would 
 at once fall before the swarms of Barbary pirates. There was no 
 help for it. ' The George Washington ' had to go to Constan 
 tinople. Bainbridge, in his report, said, ' I hope I may never 
 again be sent to Algiers with tribute, unless I am authorized to 
 deliver it from the mouth of our cannon.' ' 
 
 " If I had been he," said Jack, who had been slowly recover 
 ing his spirits, " I would have taken the presents for the Sultan 
 on board, and as soon as I got out of the harbor I would have 
 cut stick, and let the Sultan whistle." 
 
 " Your language is highly enigmatical," said Tom. " Do I 
 gather that you would have run away with the presents ? " 
 
 " That's about the size of it," responded Jack the incorrigible. 
 
 " That would have been a very clever thing to do," said 
 Carrie sarcastically. " It would have taken the Ace about a
 
 TWO HUNDRED MOSLEM PASSENGERS. 
 
 541 
 
 month to find out what he had done ; and then the American 
 merchant-ships would all have had a sweet time." 
 
 " May I inquire whom you mean by the Ace ? " asked Jack. 
 
 " You know per 
 fectly well, you foolish 
 boy," said Carrie with 
 great dignity. " The 
 man, whatever his name 
 was, would of course 
 have retaliated on every 
 American ship that fell 
 in his way. , 
 
 Jack being suffi 
 ciently subdued by 
 this vigorous attack, 
 Mr. Longwood took 
 up the thread of his 
 story again. 
 
 " So The George 
 Washington ' sailed for 
 Constantinople with five 
 or six hundred thousand 
 dollars in money, and 
 some two hundred Mos 
 lem passengers. You 
 can well imagine that 
 the sailors were not in 
 the best humor at the work they were doing, and the poor pas 
 
 MOSLEMS AT PRAYER.
 
 542 JACK TAR TACKS HIS SHIP. 
 
 sengers had a rather hard time of it. The Moslems, as you 
 know, are very rigid in their prayers, and pray always with their 
 faces toward Mecca. Five times a day they swarmed the decks, 
 with their faces turned eastward. Hardly would they have begun, 
 before Jack Tar would find it necessary to tack the ship, when 
 an entire re-arrangement on the part of the praying band would 
 become imperative. At last the* ship at these times described 
 such an erratic course, and it grew so difficult to tell which was 
 east, that they found it necessary to station one of the faithful at 
 the binnacle, who, with one eye on the compass, pointed with 
 outstretched arm in the desired direction. 
 
 " Imagine the joy of those wicked sailors," said Kate. 
 
 " ' The George Washington ' was fifty-nine days in making 
 the passage to Constantinople, a passage alike tedious to pas 
 sengers and crew, who must all have rejoiced when the anchor 
 dropped in the lower part of the harbor. An official at once 
 came alongside, and requested to know from what country the 
 vessel came. He was answered, ' From the United States.' After 
 a short absence he returned, and said that no such country was 
 known to them, and asked for fuller information. Bainbridge 
 answered that he came from the New World discovered by 
 Columbus. Upon this information, the captain of the Porte was 
 ordered to conduct the frigate into the inner harbor. As it 
 
 passed the Sultan's palace, Bainbridge saluted it with twenty-one 
 
 \ 
 
 guns, at which his Sultanic Majesty was highly pleased. He also 
 observed the American flag with great satisfaction, and said that 
 the two nations must have somewhat in common, as each had. a 
 part of the heavenly bodies in their flag.
 
 THE PACHA LOSES HIS TEMPER. 543 
 
 " Throughout his whole stay Bainbridge was treated with the 
 utmost consideration. He was the guest of the Capudan Pacha, 
 or Turkish Admiral ; and when his ship left port, on its return, 
 it received a salute from a fortress which had never fired one, 
 except to the admiral himself; and by this high official he was 
 presented with a firmin" 
 
 " What is that ? " asked Gertrude. 
 
 " A kind of passport," said Mr. Longwood, " which, being 
 granted only by the Sultan, would protect him in any part of 
 his dominions. 
 
 " The treatment of the ambassador of the Dey was very 
 different from that received by Capt. Bainbridge. He was 
 ordered to the admiral's ship, and, having made due tender of 
 the lions and tigers and money he had brought, presented his 
 master's letter. The admiral seized it in a fury, first spat upon 
 it, and then stamped on it, and bade him go back and tell his 
 master, that unless he declared war with France instantly, and 
 sent to the Sultan at Constantinople, within sixty days, a million 
 piastres for his impudence, matters would go hardly with him. 
 Naturally the ambassador was in haste to be gone. 
 
 " ' The George Washington,' as if wishing to be through with 
 the disagreeable business on which she was engaged, made quick 
 time on her return -voyage, and in twenty-one days was anchored 
 in the Bay of Algiers, - this time, out of range of the batteries 
 on shore. This position did not suit the Dey at all. He had 
 forgotten the solemn oath he swore, not to ask Bainbridge to do 
 any further service for him, and would fain have made him carry 
 back the million piastres."
 
 544 
 
 THE DEY ALSO BECOMES ANGRY. 
 
 " I hope he didn't do it," exclaimed Carrie. 
 
 ''You shall hear," said 
 Mr. Longwood. " Capt. 
 Bainbridge refused, and 
 presently waited upon the 
 Dey. He was in a state 
 of fury at being thwarted 
 in his plans, and broke 
 forth in the wildest way. 
 About him stood his fifty 
 janizaries ready to do his 
 bidding at a nod. Bain- 
 bridge, knowing that his 
 life was hardly worth a 
 moment's purchase, pulled 
 out the firmin which had 
 been given him at Constan 
 tinople. The effect on the 
 Dey was magical. His rage 
 ceased instantly, and he 
 became even crouching in 
 his manner." 
 
 " That firmin did the 
 business nicely," said Tom. 
 " I suppose Bainbridge was 
 not sorry to see the last of 
 the old scoundrel." 
 
 " He was free from this man," said Mr. Longwood ; " but he 
 
 SCENE IN CONSTANTINOPLE.
 
 A WHOLE FLEET OF PIRATES. 547 
 
 was to see much more of another as bad, and he, too, in a most 
 disagreeable fashion. It was several years later. There was then 
 a fleet of American men-of-war in the Mediterranean, who were 
 making things very hot for the Barbary pirates. ' The Philadel 
 phia,' which Bainbridge commanded, had sighted a suspicious sail 
 on the horizon, had come within range, and was blazing away 
 at her with great vigor, when suddenly she ran aground on a 
 sunken ledge. The men did their best to get her off; but her 
 speed had driven her high up, and, though they threw overboard 
 guns and every thing else they could to lighten her, she was 
 immovable, and finally careened, and lay broadside on the ledge. 
 
 " Such guns as they now had left, pointed toward the sky ; 
 and a whole fleet of pirates was about them, peppering away with 
 all their might. They stood it for five hours, during which time 
 they threw overboard all the small arms, and floated the magazine, 
 and then they hauled down their flag, and surrendered. A wild 
 rabble boarded them at once, stealing even their clothing off their 
 backs. Ignominiously enough they were carried into Tripoli, and 
 led before the Bashaw, who ordered them all into confinement. 
 Nineteen long months passed before they were set at liberty. 
 
 " Dreary times were these for them all. By day the men 
 were forced to work on the fortifications : at night they were all 
 carefully locked up. 
 
 " The Bashaw was most anxious to have the earthworks hur 
 ried forward ; for he feared lest the remaining vessels of the 
 American fleet should knock his town about his ears before he 
 could get into a position to defend it. So he offered money for 
 what they did, to the men who would work when the day's labor
 
 548 
 
 JACK TAR MAKES HIMSELF OBNOXIOUS. 
 
 was ended. Poor Jack was only too glad to have a little cash r 
 which soon found its way into the hands of the sellers of 
 
 AN EASTERN BAZAAR. 
 
 brandy ; while Jack himself, uproariously drunk, reeled through 
 the streets of Tripoli. The drinking of spirituous liquors is for-
 
 A TASTE OF THE BASTINADO. 549 
 
 bidden all true Moslems ; and these sailor habits excited great 
 contempt in the minds of the Tripolitans, which they showed in 
 their usual way of expressing contempt, spitting in the faces. 
 Jack was not the man to stand this ; and a bruised and damaged 
 follower of the prophet generally made prompt complaint at the 
 
 THE BASTINADO. 
 
 guard, and the bastinado was as promptly ordered for the 
 offender." 
 
 " I have heard of that punishment," said Will. " Is not that 
 the one where knees and ankles are tied fast, and the victim is 
 held while the bare soles of his feet are beaten with a flat board 
 or paddle ? "
 
 55 A FRIENDLY EXECUTIONER. 
 
 " Yes," said Mr. Longwood. " At times the blows are so 
 heavy, that the blood is driven through the top of the foot." 
 
 " I should think the men would soon have been disabled by 
 such treatment." 
 
 " They made friends of the under slave-driver who adminis 
 tered the punishment. The chief slave-driver was much too 
 dignified to be present while this was going on. He stood out 
 side, and told by the sound, and by the cries of the victims, that 
 the blows were well laid on. The manner in which it was 
 actually done was for the executioner to call in harsh tones for 
 two of the sailors to hold the one to be bastinadoed. A third 
 held five or six straw mats over the soles of his feet, which were 
 then beaten furiously, while Jack himself shouted as if under 
 going tortures." 
 
 " What a jolly idea ! " said all the boys. " The under slave- 
 driver must have been a very decent fellow." 
 
 " Possibly his feelings may have been softened by a little 
 money from the sailors," said Carrie. 
 
 " It may have been so," said Mr. Longwood. " But we will 
 give him the benefit of the doubt." 
 
 " Were the officers treated in the same way as the men ? " 
 asked Jack. 
 
 " Oh, no ! " said Mr. Longwood. " They had quarters by 
 themselves, and at times had chances to see somewhat of the 
 city and surrounding country. Their treatment varied according 
 to the temper of the Bashaw. The months were long and dreary 
 enough to them. 
 
 " They made plan after plan to escape ; but each fell through.
 
 DECATUR UNDERTAKES A CAPTURE. 
 
 551 
 
 To add to their chagrin, the Tripolitans 
 \\ succeeded in dragging 'The Philadelphia' 
 
 mfll I 1 
 
 U I i off the rocks, bringing her into the harbor, 
 and repairing her. There she lay in plain 
 sight, a beautiful new frigate, in the hands 
 of the enemy. It was more than 
 they could stand. By the aid of in 
 visible ink, Bainbridge communicated 
 with Commodore Preble, and sketched 
 out a plan for her destruc 
 tion. Preble approved, and 
 intrusted the execution to 
 Lieut. Decatur. 
 
 " About midnight one 
 uark night, the Tripolitan 
 watch on ' The Philadel 
 phia ' observed a small 
 ketch bungling into the 
 harbor, and so carelessly 
 managed, that they feared 
 that she would foul with 
 them. They called out to 
 her to anchor, or they would 
 fire into her ; but a Malay 
 pilot called back that she 
 had lost her anchors. The 
 wind dying away, she lay 
 becalmed some fifty feet 
 
 AN EASTERN STREET.
 
 552 
 
 THE TRIPOLITANS ARE SURPRISED. 
 
 distant; and the guard, seeing a boat lowered, apparently to tow 
 her off, gave her no further thought. The boat, however, quietly 
 
 A TRIPOLITAN SOLDIER. 
 
 made fast the end of the rope it carried, to the anchor-chains of 
 the frigate. Stalwart arms pulled lustily on it from the ketch ; and, 
 before the sentries realized what was being done, she was along 
 side, and seventy men, sword in hand, had leaped from her deck.
 
 A HALF-FORGOTTEN ANECDOTE. 553 
 
 " The startled crew of ' The Philadelphia,' roused from sleep, 
 retreated fighting to the forecastle. The struggle was bitter, but 
 short. Those who were not sabred leaped into the sea. Then 
 began the work of destruction. Every man had been assigned 
 his task before setting out, and almost in an instant the ship 
 was in a blaze in a hundred places.- The batteries on shore, 
 roused by the firing and the flames, awoke, and began to pour 
 shot and shell into the ketch, which was now a beautiful target 
 for their aim. Fortunately the wind sprung up, and she made 
 good her escape without the loss of a single man, and with but 
 four wounded." 
 
 " What a daring deed it was ! " said Will. " It would be great 
 fun to meet the men who figured in such acts as these, and get 
 them talking. They would have any quantity of stories of their 
 experiences." 
 
 " There is one anecdote about this very enterprise that I have 
 heard," said Mrs. Longwood, who had sat silent all the evening. 
 " Mr. Longwood seems to have forgotten it." 
 
 " What was it ? " they asked. 
 
 " When Decatur called for volunteers to go on his expedi 
 tion, of course twice the number stepped forward that were 
 needed. So he selected such as he thought most suited for the 
 work in hand. Among those passed by was a slender young 
 fellow of nineteen, a Quaker." 
 
 " It seems to me that aboard a man-of-war is a strange place 
 to find a Quaker," said Carrie. " I thought they did not believe 
 in fighting." 
 
 " Nor do they," said Mrs. Longwood. " This fellow had, I
 
 554 A FIGHTING QUAKER. 
 
 believe, committed some slight fault, and, rather than meet 
 reproof at the hands of his elders, had gone to sea." 
 
 " Perhaps he spoke in meeting," suggested Jack. 
 
 " I cannot say," said Mrs. Longwood, smiling. " At all events, 
 he was so much disappointed at being left behind, that he impor 
 tuned the lieutenant, as he was going over the side, to take him. 
 
 " ' Why do you wish to go ? ' asked Decatur sternly. 
 
 " His early training was too much for the young Quaker. 
 He could not say that he wanted to fight : Q o he stammered out 
 that he would ' like to see the parts.' ' 
 
 " Did they take him ? " asked Ned. 
 
 " Yes ; and he led the boarders, ana was always afterward a 
 prime favorite with the men." 
 
 " At last the nineteen long months came to a close," said Mr. 
 Longwood, taking up the story, " and Bainbridge was again a 
 free man. The American squadron had bombarded the city two 
 or three times, and brought the Bashaw to beg for peace. 
 Though the bombardment was most efficacious toward our hero's 
 liberation, it nearly caused his death ; for a round shot from one 
 of the American guns fell in the prison within a foot of him, 
 throwing him down, and burying him beneath nearly a ton of 
 stone and mortar which it tore from the walls in its passage." 
 
 " It is to be hoped that Bainbridge had better luck after he 
 at last bade good-by to Africa," said Tom. 
 
 " He had a very quiet time, at all events," said Mr. Long- 
 wood ; " for the country was at peace. He superintended one or 
 two navy-yards, and even, to patch his torn fortunes, obtained 
 leave of absence, and made one or two voyages in the merchant-
 
 ONCE MORE AT SEA. 
 
 555 
 
 service. Presently all this peaceful work was broken up. Ths 
 war of 1812 began. 
 
 " Bainbridge was once more in command of a frigate. And 
 now came the most brilliant action of his whole life." 
 
 ONCE MORE AT SEA. 
 
 The boys all stirred in their. chairs expectantly ; and Gertrude, 
 holding up her crewel-work to examine it critically by the light 
 of the lamp, exclaimed,
 
 556 TWENTY-SIX MINUTES PAST ONE. 
 
 " I never saw such things as boys ! You know that some 
 thing bloodthirsty is coming, and yet you are as pleased as can 
 be at the idea of hearing it." 
 
 " You are much worse than boys, or than sailors and soldiers 
 even," said Jack, glancing at her work. " They do cruel things 
 for their country's good only. You do them for your personal 
 pleasure." 
 
 " That is very poor, Jack," said Charlie : " not even worth 
 smiling at. Please go on, Mr. Longwood." 
 
 " It was in the month of December that ' The Constitution/ 
 which he commanded, was cruising off the Brazilian coast, when 
 she fell in with the British frigate ' Java.' Bainbridge's report of 
 the action that followed is a model description. Tom, you will 
 find a copy of his life somewhere about. I think it is lying on 
 the table. I was looking it over only an hour or two ago. 
 
 " Here is the place," he went on, turning over the leaves as 
 Tom handed him the book. " He tells at first of sighting her ; 
 then says, 
 
 " ' At twenty-six minutes past one P.M., being sufficiently from 
 the land, and finding the ship to be an English frigate, took in 
 the mainsail and royals, tacked ship, and stood for the enemy. 
 
 " ' At fifty minutes past one, the enemy bore down with an 
 intention of raking us, which we avoided by wearing. A general 
 action with round and grape then commenced, the enemy keep 
 ing at a much greater distance than I wished ; but could not 
 bring him to a closer action. 
 
 " ' At ten minutes past two, commenced the action within 
 good grape or canister distance, the enemy to windward, but much
 
 DETERMINED TO CLOSE WITH THE ENEMY. 
 
 557 
 
 farther than I wished. At thirty minutes past two, our wheel 
 was shot entirely away. At forty minutes past two, determined 
 to close with the enemy, notwithstanding his raking. Set the 
 
 THE OFFICERS OF THE "JAVA" SURRENDER THEIR SWORDS. 
 
 fore and main sail, and luffed up close to him. At fifty minutes 
 past two, the enemy's jib-boom got foul of our mizzen rigging. 
 At three, the head of the enemy's jib-boom, and bowsprit, were
 
 558 HE MOST PRUDENTLY STRUCK HIS FLAG. 
 
 shot away by us. At five minutes past three, shot away the 
 enemy's foremast by the board. At fifteen minutes past three, 
 shot away his main topmast just above the cap. At forty min 
 utes past three, shot away the gaft and spancker-boom. At fifty- 
 five minutes past three, shot away his mizzen-mast nearly by 
 the board. At five minutes past four, having silenced the fire 
 of the enemy completely, and his colors in the main rigging 
 being down, we supposed he had struck ; we then hauled down 
 courses, and shot ahead to repair our rigging, which was 
 extremely cut, leaving the enemy a complete wreck ; soon after 
 ward discovered the enemy's flag was still flying. Hove to, to 
 repair some of our damage. At twenty minutes past four, wore 
 ship, and stood for the enemy. At twenty-five minutes past five, 
 got very close to the enemy in a very effectual raking position, 
 athwart his bows, and when about to fire, he most prudently 
 struck his flag.' ' 
 
 " Hurrah ! " shouted Jack enthusiastically, waving his hand 
 above his head. " I knew we'd win. What a fine old cock 
 Bainbridge must have been ! 
 
 ' Simon was old but his heart itt was bold 
 
 His ordinance he laid right lowe 
 He put in chaine full nine yardes long 
 
 With other great shott less and moe 
 And he lette goe his great gunnes shott 
 
 So well he settled itt with his ee 
 The first sight that Sir Andrew sawe 
 
 He see his pinnace sunke in the sea.' " 
 
 " Jack," said Tom, " evidently imagines that he is back in
 
 THE END OF THE "JAVA." 561 
 
 school. Hastings, I mark you ten for declamation. You have 
 done creditably." 
 
 " The commander of the English frigate had as hard a lot as 
 old Sir Andrew Barton of whom Jack tells us," said Mr. Long- 
 wood. " He saw his ship blown up by his enemy, and he him 
 self died of wounds received in the fight." 
 
 " Well, let us leave the table," said Mrs. Longwood. " For 
 I imagine that Mrs. Daniels would like to clear away the remains 
 of our dinner."
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 " FOR my part," said Charlie, an 
 hour or two later, " I feel as if I 
 should have the nightmare unless I 
 have some exercise before I sleep. 
 What do you say to some sort of a 
 
 game 
 
 I 
 
 said 
 
 know a splendid one," 
 Ned. " A candle-race." 
 
 " What in the world is that ? " 
 they asked. 
 
 " You run three times around the 
 house, and the one who gets through 
 first wins. Each person carries two 
 lighted candles. The minute one goes 
 out, he has to stop short until he 
 has relighted it. It's no end of fun." 
 
 " Let's try it ! " they all exclaimed. 
 And Carrie hurried into the kitchen, 
 and presently returned with a heap of 
 
 candles, which they all seized upon, and hastened to light. Mr. 
 562
 
 
 THE CROSS DOG LIFTS UP HIS VOICE. 563 
 
 Longwood put on his coat and hat, and stood at the front-door 
 to see fair play ; while Daniels and the trim woman stood at the 
 back-door to see this new sport, which, as she observed to her 
 husband, " took a many candles." The cross dog, roused by the 
 noise and light, tugged and strained at his chain, and snapped 
 and snarled most wickedly. 
 
 " One, two, three, ind away," said Mr. Longwood, as they 
 stood in line ; and off they went. Now, to such of you as have 
 never tried it, a candle-race may seem a very simple thing ; but 
 it is nothing of the sort. In the first place, the candles go out 
 most unexpectedly, and will not relight, except by great coaxing. 
 And then, when you hold the candles before you, you cannot 
 see at all where you are going. Jack brought up violently 
 against an old apple-tree ; Kate found herself held fast by the 
 briers of a large rose-bush ; and Tom was flat on his face before 
 they had made half of the first circuit of the house. It was 
 fully ten minutes before Will struggled in, a winner, at the 
 starting-post. Once more they tried the contest ; but this time 
 Ned, by a little ingenuity, easily won. He held his candles 
 upside down. 
 
 But, when they came laughing and panting back into the 
 house, there was a sudden exclamation from them all, as they 
 looked at him ; for his clothes were white with the wax from 
 the candles. It took an hour of blotting-paper and hot flat-irons 
 to make him look presentable. After that they all went to bed. 
 
 When the boys opened their eyes the next morning, and 
 looked out of the window, they were filled with astonishment. 
 Could they have mistaken Christmas for Thanksgiving ! There
 
 564 
 
 A LOWERING SKY AND A WINTRY WIND. 
 
 were two inches of snow on the ground, a lowering- sky over 
 head, and a wintry wind whistling about the house. Down far 
 below them in the distance, the broad river was cold and lead- 
 
 AN UNSEASONABLE PROSPECT. 
 
 colored. As they looked, a wild rabbit, surprised, no doubt, at 
 this strange weather, darted across the field beneath their window. 
 They shivered as they watched him, and then all clambered back 
 into bed again to take counsel as to this unexpected state of 
 affairs. After a little, though, a rattling of plates showed that
 
 THE GIRLS DECIDE TO STA Y IN DOORS. 
 
 565 
 
 the trim woman was setting the table for breakfast : so they 
 jumped up, and made haste to dress. 
 
 " Well, young people," said Mr. Longwood at breakfast, 
 " how do you propose to spend the day ? I am going to see 
 my old friend Dr. Stone this morning, and may not be back 
 until dinner, at four. You left my card there yesterday, did you 
 not, Tom?" 
 
 " Yes, papa," answered Tom. But, as he said the words, he 
 put his hand into his pocket, and produced the identical card 
 
 A HUNGRY RABBIT. 
 
 " I am sure I left something," he said, holding it up, and looking 
 at it blankly ; " but what, I have no idea ; for here is certainly 
 the card you gave me." 
 
 " It would be well to be more careful next time," said his 
 father. " However, I do not imagine that any very great harm 
 is done. But you have none of you answered my question as to 
 what you propose doing." 
 
 " I think we girls shall stay in doors," said Carrie and Rose,
 
 5 66 A SNOW-BALL FIGHT IS PROPOSED. 
 
 " It looks very wet. I imagine that these winds, which are 
 whistling so vigorously around the house, will soon melt and 
 carry off the snow. How like a March day it seems ! Just 
 as if 
 
 The wild March winds have mustered ; 
 
 Their stormy bugles blow; 
 Aroused from sleep, in squadrons deep 
 
 They rush upon the foe. 
 The piled-up snows of winter 
 
 Cower and melt and flee ; 
 In sheltered nooks the little brooks 
 
 Once more splash merrily. 
 
 In all the sunny valleys 
 
 Is heard a stirring sound ; 
 Little green heads from wintry beds 
 
 Come peeping through the ground. 
 The pale wind-flower is swaying 
 
 Upon its slender stalk ; 
 And violets blue, a merry crew, 
 
 Ripple and laugh and talk." 
 
 t 
 
 " I shall not object to keeping quiet, for my part," said Kate. 
 
 " I feel somewhat used up by our activity yesterday." 
 
 " We boys will be close at hand," said Tom and Will, " in 
 
 case we can help to pass the time. Jack and Ned and Charlie 
 
 have challenged us to a great snow-ball fight. I believe that is 
 
 to come first in order after breakfast." 
 
 " Well," said Mr. Longwood, as they rose from the table, " I 
 
 will leave you to your own devices. I must be off. I am going
 
 MR. LONG WOOD FINDS AN ANGRY DOCTOR. 
 
 5 6 7 
 
 to walk across the fields, and through the woods. There will be 
 no mud there if the snow melts." And, taking his stick, he set 
 out briskly, and was soon lost to view in the forest. 
 
 Before the boys had fairly got into the thick of their snow 
 ball fight, he had reached the doctor's house, and rang the bell. 
 As he stood waiting for the door to be opened, he heard a 
 voice from up stairs call out, 
 
 "If that's the rascal who was here yes 
 terday, just let him come into the hall, and 
 I'll give him a piece of my mind." 
 
 " However, when the wrathful doctor learned 
 that it was an old friend, he was 
 overjoyed ; and they both had a 
 hearty laugh over Tom's 
 
 ^\ x -" 
 
 blunder, as the facts came 
 out. 
 
 The young people did 
 nothing in particular very 
 |j| actively all day long. The
 
 5 68 
 
 THE OLD GRANDMOTHER HAS A COLD. 
 
 snow-ball fight came off, and lasted more than an hour, with very 
 evenly matched results. The girls strolled into the kitchen, in the 
 hope of having an interview with the old lady ; but the trim woman 
 
 was alone. Her mother, she said, had taken a cold, and she had 
 persuaded her to stay in bed. Lou found a dish of bread-crusts, 
 and scattered crumbs to a few hungry birds that gathered about 
 her at the back-door. 
 
 Finally they drew their chairs about the fire, each with her
 
 FROM OVER THE OCEAN A WAR-WORN BAND. 569 
 
 Avork, and talked and chatted. Rose, after a little, found on the 
 shelves a scrap-book filled with newspaper clippings. They had 
 been cut out at different times by Mr. Longwood's brother, as 
 the fancy seized him. Poetry and prose were mixed in great 
 confusion. Rose read to them, now and then, an extract. Here 
 is one : 
 
 THE RETURN OF THE HESSIANS. 
 
 " How shall I tell them ? " the sergeant said, 
 
 And he shook his old and grizzled head, 
 
 And a tear rolled down his dust-grimed face. 
 
 (They were marching home, and they marched apace) 
 
 From over the ocean, a war-worn band, 
 
 To their homes in the German fatherland. 
 
 " The good God's mercies have gone astray : 
 Why were they slain on the self-same day? 
 Why came I alive from the cruel strife, 
 Useless and old, with no child nor wife? 
 How tell a mother of two sons dead, 
 A wife, and a sweetheart?" the sergeant said. 
 
 " How can I tell how we found one slain 
 Shot through the head, on the lonely plain; 
 How 'neath the colors one dropped and lay 
 Dead ere his red lips a word could say?" 
 And the sergeant marched with head bent down, 
 Nor heard the cheers as they reached the town; 
 
 Raised not his eyes as they marched along, 
 Saw not around him the gathering throng,
 
 57 
 
 FOR KING AND COUNTRY. 
 
 Till three pale women clutched hard his arm, 
 Their wild eyes haggard with strange alarm. 
 " The good God help you they are dead ! 
 'Twas for king and country," the sergeant said. 
 
 THE FALL OF THE COLORS. 
 
 " For king and country ! " their mother cried. 
 " Not for their country have my sons died. 
 One tyrant sold them, poor helpless slaves, 
 To another tyrant beyond the waves.
 
 SHOT THROUGH THE HEAD ON THE LONELY PLAIN.
 
 
 
 HOW THE DAY HAS GONE! 575 
 
 God judge between us. Daughters, come home, 
 By our vacant hearth we will make our moan." 
 
 " Is it true, as the poem says, that they were sold ? " asked 
 Carrie. 
 
 " George the Third obtained the Hessian regiments from 
 Frederick II. of Hesse-Cassel. For the twenty-two thousand men 
 which were furnished he paid about three million pounds sterling. 
 It was said and believed that many of the men were kidnapped, and 
 that their families never knew what had become of them. Many 
 of them had no mind to return to Germany after the war, but 
 deserted, and settled among the people whom they came to fight. 
 
 " Here comes papa," said Carrie. " And, would you believe 
 it ! it is half-past three. How the day has gone ! We had better 
 go up stairs, and get ready for dinner, girls."
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 "In the year 
 1747," said Mr. 
 Longwood, as they 
 drew about the fire 
 again, after dinner 
 was over, "among 
 the many new set 
 tlements in New 
 Hampshire was one 
 at Epsom ; and 
 among the settlers was a man named McCoy. He was a rough 
 specimen, but withal a daring man. Having heard rumors that 
 hostile Indians were committing depredations on some of the 
 other settlers round about, he took his gun, and set out through 
 the forest to find for himself whether any were in his own 
 neighborhood. Presently he saw signs that showed only too well 
 that there were, and he made haste to retrace his steps. 
 
 "But unknown to him, the Indians had seen him, and noise 
 lessly followed him home. They told his wife, when they were 
 hurrying her away a prisoner, that they looked through the 
 
 574
 
 THE DOGS GROWL SAVAGELY. 575 
 
 cracks of their log-house that night, and saw what they ate for 
 supper." 
 
 At this point Jack wickedly gave his chair a sudden scrape, 
 and Gertrude jumped. 
 
 "The time for them to strike, however, was not yet come. 
 They wanted to find out the strength of the new settlement 
 first. For two days there was no sign of trouble. But, on the 
 afternoon of the second day, Mrs. McCoy went to see if a neigh 
 bor, who had fled at the first report of trouble, had returned. 
 As she was coming homeward, her dogs, who had gone around 
 to the back of the block-house as she passed it, came running 
 to her, with their hair standing up along their backs, and growl 
 ing savagely. 
 
 " When McCoy heard this, he made up his mind that the 
 Indians were already in the town, and that it was time to fly. 
 
 "So he watched that night ; and the next morning he and 
 his wife and his son set out for a garrison at Nottingham. The 
 two men had muskets ; but they had used up all their powder 
 and ball in hunting, so that they were of no use to them. 
 They strode along a narrow path through the woods, until they 
 began to climb a hill. They were some distance up the hill ; 
 and Mrs. McCoy, who for some unknown reason had straggled 
 behind, was just at its foot, when two Indians reached out 
 suddenly from the bushes, and seized her. At the same time 
 they clapped their hands over her mouth, so that her husband 
 and son might not hear her screams for help. They heard, how 
 ever, and, putting their pieces to their shoulder, advanced hastily 
 to the rescue. The Indians, of course, at once levelled their
 
 576 
 
 MRS. MCCOY TAKES COUNSEL OF PRUDENCE. 
 
 guns, when Mrs. McCoy struck them down, and called to her 
 son and husband to run. They hesitated for an instant, then 
 remembering that their weapons were useless, and that they had 
 no chance of success, leaped into the woods, and fled. 
 
 " Mrs. McCoy now natu 
 rally expected that she should 
 be tomahawked ; but her 
 conduct had probably pleased 
 the Indians, and they treated 
 her with great consideration. 
 They took her to the banks 
 of a little stream not far 
 away, and left her in charge 
 of a boy, while they went 
 back, and burned her house. 
 During this interval she de 
 bated whether she would not 
 do well to kill the boy, and 
 make her escape. A heavy 
 piece of iron was there, with 
 which she could easily have 
 done the deed. But, in case 
 they should retake her, she 
 knew too well that she would probably be burned alive, and so* 
 decided to take her chances, and stay quietly where she was. 
 
 " Before long her captors returned, grimed with smoke ; and, 
 pleasantly informing her in broken English of their having suc 
 cessfully burnt up all her possessions, they set out on the long 
 
 CAPTIVE.
 
 PLAUSAWA, S ABATIS, AND CHRIST!. 577 
 
 march for Canada. The names of these three worthies were 
 Plausawa, Sabatis, and Christi : the boy's name is not given. 
 
 " Mrs. McCoy was a sturdy woman, and marched along 
 stanchly. Probably, had she been feeble, and unable to keep 
 up, they would have lost patience, and tomahawked her. As it 
 was, she did not suffer. They had carried off with their other 
 plunder a dozen ripe apples from the solitary tree that bore in 
 the new settlement ; and they gave her one of these a day as 
 long as they lasted. They carried her on their backs over the 
 streams, and at night covered her with one of their blankets ; 
 and, as this all took place in the summer, she experienced hardly 
 any hardship." 
 
 " It must have been jolly," said Ned. " A sort of perpetual 
 picnic." 
 
 " I fear Mrs. McCoy did not look at it in that way," said 
 Rose. 
 
 " Well," went on Mr. Longwood, " at last they reached Cana 
 da, and here the captive was sold by her captors to a French 
 family, as servant. After a time she was ransomed, and returned 
 to her home." 
 
 " How glad she must have been to see her husband again ! " 
 said Carrie. 
 
 " In point of fact," said Mr. Longwood, smiling, " she ought 
 to have been glad. But McCoy was a man of violent temper, 
 from which she had suffered somewhat. And she was indiscreet 
 enough to say, that, if it had not been for her children, she 
 would have preferred to stay in Canada, where she was very 
 comfortable.
 
 THERE START UP FOUR INDIANS. 
 
 " She must have seen her captors quite frequently after her 
 return ; for, when the war was over, they built their wigwams, 
 and lived quite close to her. Plausawa and Sabatis both were 
 killed in a drunken bout, and buried near at hand." 
 
 " How frightful those times must have been to live in ! " said 
 Gertrude. " The men must have been ready to run at the word 
 ' Indian.' " 
 
 " Not a bit of it," said Will. " I was looking over that 
 stanch old warrior, ' Gardener's History of Pequot Warres,' a short 
 time ago. Let me just get the book from the shelves, and read 
 you a little : 
 
 " ' In the 22d of February I went out, with ten men and 
 three dogs, half a mile from the house, to burn the weeds, 
 leaves, and reeds upon the neck of land, because we had felled 
 twenty timber trees, which we were to roll to the water-side to 
 bring home, every man carrying a length of match with brim 
 stone matches with him to kindle the fire withal. But when we 
 came to the small of the Neck, the weeds burning, I having 
 befoie this set two sentinels on the small of the Neck, I called 
 to the men who were burning the reeds to come away ; but 
 they would not until they had burnt up the rest of their matches. 
 Presently there starts up four Indians out of the fiery reeds, but 
 ran away. I calling to the rest of our men to come away out 
 of the marsh. Then Robert Chapman and Thomas Hurlbut, 
 being sentinels, called to me, saying there came a number of 
 Indians out of the other side of the marsh. Then I went to 
 stop them, that they should not get to the woodland ; but 
 Thomas Hurlbut cried out to me that some of the men did not
 
 THE TWO SOUND MEN RAN A WA K 
 
 579 
 
 follow me ; for Thomas Rumble and Arthur Branch threw down 
 
 their two guns, and ran away ; then the Indians shot two of them 
 
 that were in the reeds, and sought to get between us and home, 
 
 but durst not come before us, but kept us in a half-moon, we 
 
 retreating, and exchanging 
 
 many a shot, so that Thomas 
 
 Hurlbut was shot almost 
 
 through the thigh, John 
 
 Spencer in the back, myself 
 
 in the thigh : two more were 
 
 shot dead. 
 
 " ' But on our retreat, I 
 kept Hurlbut and Spencer 
 still before us, we defending 
 ourselves with our naked 
 swords, or else they had 
 taken us all alive : so the 
 two sore woimded men, by 
 our slow retreat, got home 
 with their guns, when our 
 two sound men ran away, 
 and left their guns behind 
 them. 
 
 " ' But, when I saw the cowards that left us, I resolved to 
 let them draw lots which of them should be hanged, for the 
 articles did hang up in the hall for them to read. But at the 
 intercession of old Mr. Michell, Mr. Higgison, and Mr. Pell, I 
 did forbear. 
 
 THE TWO COWARDS.
 
 5 8o 
 
 BEATING SAMP AT THE GARDEN PALES. 
 
 " ' Within a few days after, when I had cured myself of the 
 wound, I went out with eight men to get some fowl for our 
 relief, and found the guns that were thrown away, and the body 
 of one man shot through, the arrow going in at the right side, 
 
 the head sticking fast half 
 through a rib at the left 
 side ; which I took out, and 
 cleansed it, and presumed 
 to send to the Bay, because 
 they had said that the ar 
 rows of the Indians were of 
 no force.' ' 
 
 " That doesn't sound as 
 if Gardener, at least, were 
 much afraid," said Charlie. 
 "Wait a little," said WilL 
 " I'll read you some more of 
 it." 
 
 " ' You, Robert Chapman, 
 you know that when you and 
 John Bagley were beating 
 samp at the Garden Pales, 
 the sentinels called you to 
 run in ; for there was a number of Pequits creeping to you to 
 catch you. I, hearing it, went up to the Redoubt, and put two 
 cross-bar shot into the two guns that lay above, and levelled 
 them at the trees in the middle of the limbs and boughs, and 
 gave order to John Frend and his man to stand with handspikes, 
 
 "ONE MAN SHOT THROUGH."
 
 SHOUT AS LOUD AS YOU CAN. 581 
 
 to turn them this way or that as they should hear the Indians 
 shout ; for they should know my shout from theirs, for it should 
 be very short. 
 
 " ' Then I called six men and the dogs, and went out run 
 ning to the place, and keeping all abreast in sight, close 
 together. And when I saw my time, I said " Stand ! " and called 
 all to me, saying, " Look on me ; and, when I hold up my hand, 
 then shout as loud as you can ; and, when I hold down my 
 hand, then leave : " and so they did. Then the Indians began a 
 long shout, and then went off the two great guns, and tore the 
 limbs of the trees about their ears, so that divers of them were 
 hurt ; for there is one of them in this present year, '60, that 
 lieth above Harford, that is fain to creep on all four. And we 
 shouted once or twice more, but they would not answer us 
 again : so we returned home, laughing. 
 
 " ' Another pretty prank we had with three great doors of 
 ten feet long and four feet broad, being bored full of holes, and 
 driven full of long nails as sharp as awl-blades, sharpened by 
 Thomas Hurlbut. These we placed in certain places where they 
 should come, fearing lest they should come in the night, and fire 
 our redoubt or battery. And in a dry time and a dark night, 
 they came as before, and found the way a little too sharp for 
 them ; and as they skipped from one they trod upon another, 
 and left the nails and doors dyed with their blood, which you 
 know we saw the next morning, laughing at it. And this I write 
 that young men may learn, if they should meet with such trials 
 as we met with there, and have not opportunity to cut off their 
 enemies, yet they may, with such pretty pranks, preserve them-
 
 582 GENTLE MEASURES IN THE TRAINING OF THE YOUNG. 
 
 selves from danger ; for policy is needful in wars, as well as 
 strength.' ' 
 
 " His idea of a pretty prank is unique, at all events," said 
 Charlie. " He must have been a tough customer to meet. Did 
 he keep his scalp on his head ? " 
 
 " Oh, yes ! " said Mr. Longwood. " He died in his bed at a 
 good old age." 
 
 " How did they scalp people ? " asked Rose. 
 
 " I shall be happy to show any of you young ladies," said 
 Jack, bloodthirstily drawing from his pocket and opening a knife 
 with a most formidable blade, a new one bought especially for 
 this expedition to the country. 
 
 " Jack," said Gertrude, " do put up that dreadful knife ! " 
 
 " My sister," said Jack, looking around with a wicked glance, 
 " has in her character a vein of what we will, for lack of a 
 better term, call timidity. Possibly some of you may have 
 noticed it. She is especially timid on the subject of Indians. I 
 propose to cure her of this. This is to be my method of treat 
 ment. I will now scalp her. When she has acquired that thor 
 ough familiarity with this process that breeds contempt, I advance 
 to the next step. Just before she goes up to the room where 
 she is to sleep alone, I shall tell her the story of an Indian 
 massacre, and the tortures that followed, that will cause each 
 hair of her luxuriant tresses to stand on end. Then, when she 
 has just put out the light, and before she fairly has her head 
 under the blanket, I shall madly hurl a tomahawk into the door, 
 and give the war-whoop. Gentle measures in the training of 
 the young, these are always successful."
 
 INDIAN SCALPING AN ENEMY.
 
 THOMAS TOOGOOD TURNS THE TABLES. 585 
 
 " Will you please tell us how you are to make her locks 
 stand on end after she has been scalped ? " asked Carrie. 
 
 " Your theory apparently needs a little more elaboration," 
 said Will. " Perhaps, therefore, you had better postpone carrying 
 it out until you have given it further thought. In the mean 
 time we can go on with our talk." 
 
 " There are several good stories about these Indian wars," 
 said Mr. Longwood. " Thomas Toogood had a rather curious 
 experience. He was seen by three Indians, and took to his 
 heels, they following at the top of their speed in pursuit. 
 Presently one overtook and seized him, whereat the other two 
 turned back. But, while his captor was hunting about him for 
 some string to tie his arms, Toogood suddenly wrested his gun 
 from him, and, presenting it at his head, threatened to shoot if 
 he made a sound. Then he quietly retreated with the musket to 
 the nearest garrison, while the chagrined savage made the best 
 of his way back to his comrades, there, no doubt, to be the 
 subject of ridicule for many a long day." 
 
 " I remember to have heard of one great Indian fighter," 
 said Ned, "whom the savages called the man with two heads. 
 He wore a wig, and always, when he got warmed up in a fight, 
 used to take it off, and hang it on a bush. They had never 
 seen a wig, and their amazement was without bounds." 
 
 " By the by," said Charlie, " do you fellows remember how 
 suddenly Mr. Grinder's hair turned gray at the last Christmas 
 holidays ? It was a dark brown the day before Christmas ; and 
 the day after New Year's, when school opened, it was positively 
 gray."
 
 586 CAPT. TYNG MAKES TWO HUNDRED POUNDS. 
 
 11 Pity the sorrows of a poor old man," said Kate. " It was 
 probably grief at the conduct of you boys." 
 
 " Well," said Will, " to leave Mr. Grinder's scalp, and get 
 back to those of the early settlers, I suppose all this bloody 
 work did not increase a Christian spirit in the whites." 
 
 " No, indeed ! " said Mr. Longwood. " They often became 
 rivals of the Indians in brutality. One ought not to expect 
 much at the hands of men whose wives and children have been 
 killed, and perhaps tortured. The Province of Massachusetts 
 at one time offered a reward of forty pounds for every Indian 
 scalp ; and the historian grimly states, that one Capt. Tyng at 
 once set out, and soon returned with five, for which he received 
 two hundred pounds. 
 
 " Out of deference to Gertrude's feelings, and in view of the 
 lesson that Jack is preparing for her," said Mr. Longwood, smil 
 ing, " we will avoid the subject of massacres, and the torture of 
 captives. It happened, however, not unfrequently, that a white 
 man was adopted into a tribe to take the place of some warrior 
 who had fallen. It was sometimes years before such a one 
 could manage to make his escape. There are quite a number of 
 narratives in existence, written by these captives. Here and 
 there, in them, one comes on quite interesting accounts of hunt 
 ing, and wild life experience. Listen to this. The writer was 
 carried off from Pennsylvania by the Delawares, and was with 
 them five years. He says, 
 
 " ' I went out with Tecaughretanego and some others, a 
 beaver-hunting, but we did not succeed ; and on our return we 
 saw where several raccoons had passed while the snow was soft,
 
 IT BEGAN TO SNOW MOST VIOLENTLY. 587 
 
 though there was now a crust upon it. We all made a halt, 
 looking at the raccoon-tracks. As they saw a tree with a hole 
 in it, they told me to go and see if they had gone in thereat ; 
 and, if they had, to halloo, and they would come and take them 
 out. When I went to that tree, I found they had gone past ; 
 but I saw another, the way they had gone, and proceeded to 
 examine that, and found they had gone up it. I then began to 
 halloo, but could have no answer. 
 
 " ' As it began to snow and blow most violently, I returned, 
 and proceeded after my company, and for some time could see 
 their tracks ; but the old snow being only about three inches 
 deep, and a crust upon it, the present driving snow soon filled 
 up the tracks. As I had only a bow, arrows, and tomahawk with 
 me, and no way to strike fire, I appeared to be in a dismal situa 
 tion ; and, as the air was dark with snow, I had little more pros 
 pect of steering my way than I would in the night. At length 
 I came to a hollow tree, with a hole at one side that I could go 
 in at. I went in, and found that it was a dry place, and the 
 hollow about three feet diameter, and high enough for me to 
 stand in. I found that there was also a considerable quantity of 
 soft, dry rotten wood about this hollow. I therefore concluded 
 that I would lodge here, and that I would go to work and stop 
 up the door of my house. I stripped off my blanket, which was 
 all the clothes that I had, except a breech-clout, leggings, and 
 moccasins, and with my tomahawk fell to chopping at the top 
 of a fallen tree that lay near, and carried wood, and set it up on 
 end against the door, until I had it three or four feet thick all 
 around, excepting a hole I had left to creep in at. I had a
 
 588 A BED LIKE A GOOSE- A^EST. 
 
 block prepared that I could haul after me to stop the hole; and, 
 before I went in, I put in a number of small sticks, that I 
 might more effectually stop it on the inside. When I went in, 
 I took my tomahawk, and cut down all the dry rotten wood I 
 could get, and beat it small. With it I made a bed like a 
 goose-nest, and with the small sticks stopped every hole, until 
 my house was almost dark. I stripped off my moccasins, and 
 danced in the centre of my bed for about half an hour in 
 order to warm myself. In this time my feet and whole body 
 were agreeably warmed. The snow, in the mean time, had 
 stopped all the holes ; so that my house was dark as a dungeon, 
 though I knew that it could not yet be dark out of doors. I 
 then coiled myself up in my blanket, lay down in my little 
 round bed, and had a tolerable night's lodging. When I awoke, 
 all was dark : not the least glimmering of light was to be seen. 
 Immediately I recollected that I was not to expect light in this 
 new habitation, as there was neither door nor window in it. As 
 I could hear the storm raging, and did not suffer much cold, as 
 I then was situated, I concluded I would stay in my nest until I 
 was certain it was day. 
 
 " < When I had reason to conclude that it was surely day, I 
 arose, and put on my moccasins, which I had laid under my 
 head to keep from freezing. I then endeavored to find the dour, 
 and had to do all by the sense of feeling, which took me some 
 time. At length I found the block ; but it being heavy, and a 
 large quantity of snow having fallen on it, at the first attempt 
 I did not move it. I then felt terrified. Among all the hard 
 ships I had sustained, I never knew before what it was thus to
 
 A QUANTITY OF SNOW FELL IN. 
 
 be deprived of light. I once again attempted to move away the 
 block, which proved successful : it moved about nine inches. 
 
 A FIGHT IN THE FOREST. 
 
 With this a considerable quantity of snow fell in from above, 
 and I immediately received light ; so that I found a very great
 
 59 r - / BELTED MY BLANKET ABOUT ME. 
 
 snow had fallen, above what I had ever seen in one night. I 
 then knew why I could not easily move the block ; and I was so 
 rejoiced at obtaining the light, that all my other difficulties 
 seemed to vanish. I belted my blanket about me, got my toma 
 hawk, bow and arrows, and went out of my den. 
 
 " ' I was now in tolerably high spirits, though the snow had 
 fallen above three feet deep in addition to what was on the 
 ground before ; and the only imperfect guide I had in order to 
 steer my course to camp was the trees, as the moss generally 
 grows on the north-west side of them if they are straight. I 
 proceeded on, wading through the snow ; and about twelve o'clock 
 I came upon the creek our camp was on, about half a mile below 
 the camp ; and, when I came in sight of the camp, I found there 
 was great joy, by the shouts and yellings of the boys. 
 
 " ' When I arrived, they all came around me, and received 
 me gladly ; but at this time no questions were asked, and I 
 was taken into a tent, where they gave me plenty of fat beaver- 
 meat, and then asked me to smoke. When I had done, Tecaugh- 
 retanego desired me to walk out to a fire they had made. 1 
 went out; and they all collected around me, both men, women, 
 and boys. Tecaughretanego asked me to give, them a particular 
 account of what had happened from the time they left me yes 
 terday until now. I told them the whole of the story, and they 
 never interrupted me ; but, when I made a stop, the intervals 
 were filled with loud acclamations of joy.' ' 
 
 " It was a lucky thing for him that he found that hollow 
 tree," said Ned. " But go on, please, Mr. Longwood." 
 
 " ' Shortly after/ went on that gentleman, after turning over
 
 A HUNTER'S CAMP.
 
 ONE NIGH7' A SQUAW RAISED AN ALARM. 593 
 
 two or three pages of the book, ' the squaws began to make 
 sugar. They made the frost, in some measure, supply the place 
 of fire. Their large bark vessels for holding the stock water 
 they made broad and shallow ; and, as the weather is very cold 
 here, it frequently freezes at night in sugar time, and the ice 
 they break, and cast out of the vessels. I asked them if they 
 were not throwing away the sugar. They said No : it was water 
 they were casting away : sugar did not freeze, and there was 
 scarcely any in that ice. They said I might try the experiment, 
 and boil some of it, and see what I would get. I never did try ; 
 but I observed, that, after several times freezing, the water that 
 remained in the vessel changed its color, and became very brown 
 and sweet. 
 
 " ' About the time we were done making sugar, one night a 
 squaw raised an alarm. She said she saw two men, with guns 
 in their hands, upon the bank on the other side of the creek, 
 spying our tents : they were supposed to be Johnston's Mohawks. 
 On this, the squaws were ordered to slip quietly out some dis 
 tance into the bushes, and all who had either guns or bows were 
 to squat in the bushes near the tents ; and, if the enemy rushed 
 up, we were to give them the first fire, and let the squaws have 
 an opportunity of escaping. 
 
 " ' Before we withdrew from the tents, they had carried 
 Manetohcoa to the fire, and gave him his conjuring tools, which 
 were dyed feathers, the bone of the shoulder-blade of a wild 
 cat, tobacco, etc. And, while we were in the bushes, Manetoh- 
 zoa was in a tent at the fire, conjuring away to the utmost of his 
 ability. At length he called aloud for us all to come in, which
 
 594 THE PICTURE OF TWO WOLVES. 
 
 was quickly obeyed. When we came in, he told us, that after he 
 had- gone through the whole of his ceremony, and expected to 
 see a number of Mohawks on the flat bone when it was warmed 
 at the fire, the pictures of two wolves only appeared. So he 
 said we might all go to sleep, for there was no danger. And 
 accordingly we did. 
 
 " ' The next morning we went to the place, and found wolf- 
 tracks, and where they had scratched with their feet, like dogs ; 
 but there was no sign of moccasin-tracks. If there is any such 
 thing as a wizard, I think Mafcetohcoa was as likely to be one 
 as any man, as he was a professed worshipper of the Devil. 
 But, let him be a conjurer or not, I am persuaded that the 
 Indians believed what he told them on this occasion as well as 
 if it had come from an infallible oracle, or they would not, after 
 such an alarm as this, all go to sleep in an unconcerned 
 manner.' ' 
 
 " It certainly was very strange," said Carrie. '' How in the 
 world do you suppose the medicine-man found out that they 
 were wolves ? " 
 
 " There used to be witches in the time of Saul," said Lou. 
 " Perhaps he was a real witch : it might have been so, you 
 know." 
 
 " Pshaw ! " said Jack. " The thing is simple enough. Give 
 me some dyed feathers, the bones of the shoulder-blade of a 
 wildcat, and some tobacco, and an intelligent squaw who will rush 
 in and tell the company what I have told her beforehand to say, 
 and I will perform no end of wonders." 
 
 The girls looked at Jack with admiration. " I never should 
 have thought of that," said Carrie.
 
 o 
 
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 WE HOISTED Ul SAILS. 597 
 
 " When the warm weather came," said Mr. Longwood, " the 
 tribe to which our hero belonged moved off to Detroit to trade 
 the skins and furs that they had gained in their winter's hunt 
 ing. He says, 
 
 " ' We took up our birch-bark canoes which we had buried, 
 and found that they were not damaged by the winter. All 
 embarked ; and the wind being fair, and the lake not extremely 
 rough, we hoisted up sails, and arrived safe at the Wyandot 
 town, nearly opposite to fort Detroit. Here we found a num 
 ber of French traders, every one very willing to deal with us. 
 
 " ' We bought ourselves fine clothes, ammunition, paint, 
 tobacco, etc., and, according to promise, a new gun for me ; 
 yet we had parted with only about one- third of our beaver. At 
 length a trader came to town with French brandy : we purchased 
 a keg of it, and held a council about who was to get drunk, 
 and who was to keep sober. I was invited to get drunk, but I 
 refused the proposal. Then they told me that I must be one of 
 those who were to take care of the drunken people. I did not 
 like this ; but of two evils I chose that which I thought the 
 lesser, and fell in with those who were to conceal the arms, and 
 keep every dangerous weapon we could out of their way, and 
 endeavor, if possible, to keep the drinking-club from killing each 
 other, which was a very hard task. Several times we hazarded 
 our own lives, and got ourselves hurt, in preventing them from 
 slaying each other. Before they had finished this keg, near 
 one-third of the town was introduced to this drinking-club. 
 They could not pay their part, as they had already disposed of 
 all their skins ; but that made no odds : all were welcome to 
 'drink.
 
 59 8 CHASING DEER ON SNOW-SHOES. 
 
 " ' When they were done with this keg, they applied to the 
 traders, and procured a kettleful of brandy at a time, which 
 they divided out with a large wooden spoon ; and so they went 
 on, and never quit while they had a single beaver-skin. 
 
 " ' When the trader had got all our beaver, he moved off. 
 
 " ' When the brandy was gone, and the drinking-club sober, 
 they appeared much dejected. Some of them were crippled, 
 others badly wounded, a number of their fine new shirts torn, 
 and several blankets were burned. A number of squaws were 
 also in this club, and neglected their corn-planting.' ' 
 
 " That is just like Indians," said Will. " They work at hunt 
 ing and trapping all winter, and then spend all the result of 
 their labors in a drunken debauch." 
 
 " Doesn't the fellow tell how they caught the wild beasts ? " 
 asked Charlie. 
 
 " There are accounts of how they chased deer on snow- 
 shoes," said Mr. Longwood, " and, somewhere in the book, one 
 of killing a bear. Perhaps I can find it. Yes : here we have it. 
 
 " ' In the course of the month of January I happened to 
 observe that the trunk of a very large pine-tree was much torn 
 by the claws of a bear, made both in going up and down. On 
 further examination I saw that there was a large opening in the 
 upper part, near which the smaller branches were broken. From 
 these marks, and from the additional circumstance that there were 
 no tracks on the snow, there was reason to believe that a bear 
 lay concealed in the tree. 
 
 " ' On returning to the lodge, I communicated my discovery ; 
 and it was agreed that all should go together in the morning.
 
 WE TOILED LIKE BEAVERS. 
 
 599 
 
 to assist in cutting down the tree, the girth of which was not 
 less than three fathom. The women at first opposed, because 
 our axes, being only of a pound and a half weight, were not 
 well adapted to so heavy a labor ; but the hope of finding ? 
 large bear, and obtaining from its fat a great quantity of oil, 
 an article at the time much wanted, at length prevailed. 
 
 HUNTING ON SNOW-SHOES. 
 
 " ' Accordingly, in the morning we surrounded the tree, both 
 men and women, as many at a time as could conveniently work 
 at it ; and here we toiled like beavers till the sun went down. 
 This day's work carried us about half-way through the trunk ; 
 and the next morning we renewed the attack, continuing it till 
 about two o'clock in the afternoon, when the tree fell to the 
 ground. For a few minutes every thing remained quiet, and I 
 feared that all our expectations were disappointed ; but, as I
 
 6oo A BEAR OF EXTRAORDINARY SIZE. 
 
 advanced to the opening, there came out, to the great satisfac 
 tion of all our party, a bear of extraordinary size, which, before 
 she had proceeded many yards, I shot. 
 
 " ' The bear being dead, all my assistants approached, and all 
 took her head in their hands, stroking and kissing it several 
 times, begging a thousand pardons for taking away her life ; 
 calling her their relation and grandmother, and requesting her 
 not to lay the fault upon them, since it was truly an English 
 man that had put her to death. 
 
 " ' This ceremony was not of long duration ; and, if it were I 
 that killed their grandmother, they were not themselves behind 
 hand in what remained to be performed. The skin being taken 
 off, we found the fat in several places six inches deep. This, 
 being divided into two parts, loaded two persons ; and the flesh 
 parts were as much as four persons could carry. 
 
 " ' As soon as we reached the lodge, the bear's 'head was 
 adorned with all the trinkets in the possession of the family, 
 such as silver arm-bands and wrist-bands, and belts of wampum, 
 and then laid upon a scaffold set up for its reception within the 
 lodge. Near the nose was placed a large quantity of tobacco. 
 
 " ' The next morning no sooner appeared than preparations 
 were made for a feast to the manes. The lodge was cleaned 
 and swept, and the head of the bear lifted up, and a new 
 blanket, which had never been used before, placed under it. 
 The pipes were now lit ; and Wawatam blew smoke into the nos 
 trils of the bear, telling me to do the same, and thus appease 
 the anger of the bear on account of my having killed her. I 
 endeavored to persuade him that she no longer had any life,
 
 WAWATAM MAKES A SPEECH. 
 
 60 1 
 
 and assured him that I was under no apprehension from her 
 displeasure ; but the proposition obtained no credit. 
 
 " ' At length, the feast being 1 ready, Wawatam commenced a 
 speech resembling in many things his address to the manes of 
 his departed companions. The speech ended, we all ate heartily 
 
 IN PURSUIT OF BREAKFAST. 
 
 of the bear's flesh ; and even the head itself, after remaining 
 three days on the scaffold, was put into the kettle.' ' 
 
 " For my part," said Will, as Mr. Longwood laid down the 
 book, " I believe that the popular idea that the Indians were 
 wonderfully skilful as hunters is a mistake. I have in my book
 
 602 THOMPSON GOES A-FISHING. 
 
 here an account of how a white man taught them how to catch 
 fish. It will only take a moment to read it. 
 
 " ' We diverted ourselves several days by catching rock-fish 
 in a small creek. The Indians fished in the night with lights, 
 and struck the fish with spears. The rock-fish here, when they 
 begin first to run up the creek to spawn, are exceedingly fat. 
 The first night we scarcely caught fish enough for present use 
 for all that was in the town. 
 
 " ' The next morning I met with a prisoner at this place by 
 the name of Thompson, who had been taken from Virginia. 
 He told me, if the Indians would only omit disturbing the fish 
 for one night, he could catch more than the whole town could 
 make use of. I told Thompson, that, if he were certain he could 
 do this, I would use my influence with the Indians to let the 
 fish alone for one night. I applied to the chiefs, who agreed to 
 my proposal, and said they were anxious to see what the Great 
 Knife (as they called the Virginian) could do. Thompson, with 
 the assistance of some other prisoners, set to work, and made a 
 hoop-net of elm-bark. They then cut down a tree across the 
 creek, and stuck in stakes at the lower side of it, to prevent 
 the fish from passing up, leaving only a gap at one side of the 
 creek. Here he sat with his net, and, when he felt the fish 
 touch the net, he drew it up, and frequently would haul out two 
 or three rock-fish that would weigh about five or six pounds each. 
 He continued at this until he had hauled out about a wagon- 
 load, and then left the gap open in order to let them pass up, 
 for they could not go far on account of the shallow water. Before 
 day he shut it up to prevent them from passing down, in order
 
 THE INGENUITY OF THE VIRGINIAN. 603- 
 
 to let the Indians have some diversion in killing them in day 
 light. 
 
 " ' When the news of the fish came to town, the Indians 
 all collected, and with surprise beheld the large pile of fish, and 
 applauded the ingenuity of the Virginian. When they saw the 
 number of them that were confined in the water above the tree, 
 the young Indians ran back to the town, and in a short time 
 returned with their spears, etc., and were the chief part of that 
 day engaged in killing rock-fish, insomuch that we had more 
 than we could use or preserve.' '
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 SATURDAY morning dawned bright 
 and clear. The sunlight fell in long 
 bars across the floor of the rooms 
 where the girls slept ; and finally 
 one ray, growing bolder than its 
 fellows, fell full upon Carrie's closed 
 eyelids, forcing them open. She 
 sat up sleepily, half inclined to lie 
 down again ; but at that moment 
 the clock began solemnly to strike : 
 one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, 
 eight. There was nothing to be 
 done but to get up. 
 
 Lou and Gertrude were soon 
 roused by Carrie's movements. 
 
 Rose and Kate in the next room were apparently already up ; 
 for through the closed door they could be heard singing softly. 
 Carrie threw the door open, and they were all soon chatting 
 away as fast as ever before. Rose presently, for mere lightness 
 of heart, broke out singing again ; and one after another they 
 604
 
 A CHRISTMAS CAROL. 605 
 
 all joined in, making the room ring with their sweet voices. 
 It was a Christmas carol. 
 
 Tis said, at that blessed season 
 
 (Kept alike in heaven and earth), 
 When the winter wild winds usher in 
 
 The time of the Saviour's birth, 
 That above, in great high heaven, 
 
 The dear Lord Christ again 
 Becomes once more a little child 
 
 As when he came to men. 
 And with all the baby-angels 
 
 He plays in childish play 
 Through the winding courts of heaven 
 
 For one long heavenly day. 
 
 The holy saints and martyrs, 
 
 Who through toil have entered in, 
 Look on with the blessed penitents 
 
 Now shrived from every sin ; 
 And anon they break into chaunting, 
 
 Led by the seraphim. 
 
 Lord Christ, in this joyous pleasaunce 
 
 Grant unto us to share ; 
 Make us as little children, 
 
 That we may enter there. 
 
 " We are very much obliged to you," said Mr. Longwood, as 
 they came trooping down stairs in a body, and found all waiting 
 for them, " for a very pleasant little concert. Have you looked 
 out of the window, and seen what a glorious day it is ? The
 
 <5o6 WHOA ! 
 
 snow is all gone, and the weather is warm and mild. It is like 
 Indian summer." 
 
 " What are we to do this morning ? " asked Carrie. 
 
 " The big wagon is to be at the door at ten, and I am going 
 to take you all to drive," said Tom. 
 
 " It will have to be a pretty big wagon to hold us all," said 
 Rose. 
 
 " Just wait until you see it," said Tom. 
 
 And surely enough, when ten o'clock came, and with it the 
 big wagon, it was found to be a huge affair. There were four 
 seats, and each seat held three people comfortably. Two big 
 strong horses were before it ; and with much laughter they all 
 climbed in, Tom, Rose, and Will in front, and the rest in the 
 other seats behind. 
 
 It was just the morning for a drive. The big horses plodded 
 steadily on ; the boys jumping out to lighten their load when 
 the way led up some hill, and then scrambling back, or running 
 races alongside. In one sunny hollow they came on a great 
 cluster of wild asters which the snow had not blighted, and they 
 picked handfuls for the girls. They found the red bitter-sweet, 
 too, running on the fences ; and in one place the scarlet berry 
 of the black-alder flamed out against a background of gray 
 woods. After a little, their wagon looked like a great moving 
 mass of red and purple, from the quantity that the girls' arms 
 held. The sun grew warmer, so that they loosened their wraps ; 
 and presently, when they passed a tiny house close by the road 
 side, in whose window was a sign, " Sarsaparilla and root-beer," 
 there broke simultaneously from every one of the party the cry, 
 "Whoa:"
 
 WE ARE SO THIRSTY/ 607 
 
 " What is the matter ? " asked Tom, drawing in the horses. 
 
 " We are so thirsty ! " they said. " Don't you see the sign ? " 
 
 A little man bent nearly double came out of the door. 
 
 " Yes, sir," he said to Mr. Longwood. " Sarsaparilla, yes, 
 sir ; root-beer, yes, sir ; nice and cool, hanging in the well, 
 sir ; " and he toddled around the house, Jack and Charlie at his 
 heels, and commenced turning an old windlass. They both took 
 a hand ; and in a moment up came a big basket full of bottles, 
 each as cold as ice. How good it tasted ! The old man chinked 
 the money in his hand that Mr. Longwood gave him, and 
 looked at them with great satisfaction as they emptied bottle 
 after bottle. This was a party just after his own heart. 
 
 They drove on, feeling much refreshed, and presently found 
 themselves back in the little village near their home. To their 
 astonishment, the bell of the school was ringing, and the scholars 
 hurrying in the door. 
 
 " It must be one o'clock," said Mr. Longwood. " We have 
 been driving three hours." 
 
 " It seems not half that time," said the boys. 
 
 " Stop at the post-office, Tom," said Mr. Longwood. 
 
 So they drew up there. Presently Mr. Longwood came out 
 with his hands full of letters, which he handed to the young 
 people. " I find one among my own," he said, " which needs 
 an immediate answer. I will write it here, and then walk home. 
 Don't wait for me." 
 
 Three or four of the party at once said that they would 
 walk too ; and their example proved so contagious, that Mrs. 
 Longwood, Tom, and Will found themselves left alone.
 
 608 HELP, HELP ! CYNTHY'S IN THE WELL. 
 
 " Well, it will be just so much easier for the horses," said 
 Tom, and drove on. 
 
 As they came to their door, they were met by the old grand 
 mother, wringing her hands. 
 
 " Help, help ! " she cried. " Little Cynthy's in the well ! " 
 
 Now, it happened that Mrs. Longwood, too, had got out a 
 little way back, saying that she would sit down by the roadside, 
 and wait for the others. Had she been with them, she could 
 have told them that there was no such person in the world ; 
 but, knowing nothing of the old lady's fancy, the boys were 
 struck with alarm. 
 
 " Tie the horses, Will," cried Tom. " I'll run to the barn for 
 Daniels and a rope ; " and, springing out, he made off at the top 
 of his speed. 
 
 Daniels was thrashing. Tom burst . in on him breathless. 
 " Little Cynthy's in the well ! " he exclaimed. 
 
 Daniels slowly dropped his flail, and wiped his brow with his 
 sleeve. Tom looked at him in astonishment. What kind of a 
 father was this, who did not care whether or no his child was 
 drowned ? Perhaps he had not heard aright. 
 
 " In the well ! " he exclaimed. " Cynthy's in the well ! " 
 
 " And 'tain't the first time, neither," said Daniels stolidly 
 Then, going to a corner of the barn, he took a long pole that 
 stood there. In one end was a sharp iron something like a 
 harpoon. He threw the pole over his shoulder, and walked 
 slowly toward the well. 
 
 They found Will bending over, and looking in. 
 
 " She's on top of the water," he exclaimed, " but face 
 downward."
 
 LITTLE CYNTHY, MY YOUNGEST. 609 
 
 The old grandmother ran back and forth, wringing 1 her hands, 
 and feebly crying for help. 
 
 " You run in and get blankets ready," said Daniels kindly. 
 " I'll get her out all right." 
 
 So the old lady toddled in to get blankets ; and Daniels, 
 turning the pole so that the sharp end was down, lowered it 
 into the well, and stabbed it into the back of little Cynthy. 
 Then he commenced drawing it up ; and, before the boys could 
 express their horror of this fiendish treatment, little Cynthy lay, 
 a wet and drabbled spectacle, on the grass beside them. It was, 
 as you all know, no real baby at all, but a big stuffed doll. 
 
 " Why why ! " they stammered in astonishment. " We 
 thought it was little Cynthy." 
 
 " So 'tis," said Daniels, " little Cynthy, my youngest ; that 
 is, 'cording to mother-in-law. She's a little cracked, you know. 
 Says it takes after me in looks, more than its mother," he went 
 on, gazing with amusement at its flabby features. 
 
 " Well," he continued, when the boys had had their laugh 
 out, taking it up by one leg to shake the water off, " I 
 don't know but it's better'n if 'twas a real child. Gives its 
 grandmother just as much pleasure, and I don't have to walk 
 the floor o' nights as I did with the real one ; " and, so saying, 
 he walked to the back-door, and handed it over to the old . lady, 
 who stood waiting with a blanket in hand. Then he unfastened 
 the horses, and led them off to the barn, while Tom and Will 
 set off to meet the rest of their party, and tell them the story 
 of little Cynthy. 
 
 They all had a hearty laugh ; but this was not the last that
 
 6 io MR. LONGWOOD RISES TO THE SITUATION. 
 
 they were to hear of the old grandmother on that day, as you 
 shall presently know. 
 
 It was about half-past three o'clock. Mrs. Longwood and the 
 girls had gone up stairs for a nap ; the boys were out in the 
 barn, listening to some wonderful story that Daniels was telling 
 them ; and Mr. .Longwood had taken a book out on the sunny 
 porch. The book was a little dull, the sun was warm, and he 
 was tired. Presently he began to nod ; then he stretched him 
 self at full-length, and, with his hands under his head, dropped 
 off asleep. He was roused presently by some one kicking him. 
 He looked up drowsily. It was the grandmother. Her old eyes 
 .iad probably mistaken him for her grandson. She pushed him 
 vigorously with her foot. 
 
 " Git up ! " she cried, " you dirty child, a-lyin' there, and silin' 
 of your clothes. Git up, or I'll tell your mammy, and she'll give 
 you a whippin'. Git up, I say ! " 
 
 Thus adjured, Mr. Longwood slowly rose. He was a tall 
 man ; and, as he came to an upright position, she gazed at him 
 at first with blank astonishment, and then with alarm. 
 
 " Land o' Goshen ! " she exclaimed, " a tramp ! Where's the 
 dog ? " and she toddled off the porch, and hurried around the 
 house. 
 
 Mr. Longwood looked after her for fully a minute with an 
 amused smile ; then suddenly the meaning of her words flashed 
 upon him. She had gone to let that savage brute loose. 
 
 He had no time to lose. He heard the chain clank. The 
 door was on the other side of the house from the porch. The 
 windows were all shut. He dropped his book, and ran with all
 
 . 
 THE DOG WAS AFTER HIM. 611 
 
 his might. When he was about ten feet from safety, he looked 
 over his shoulder. The dog was after him, about forty feet 
 away, and the dog had four legs to his two. Never before did 
 Mr. Longwood move so actively ; and it was well he did, for 
 hardly had he clapped to the door behind him, when the brute 
 dashed against it with a savage snarl, and then began scratching 
 at it, and barking furiously. 
 
 Daniels in the barn heard him ; and, breaking off in the most 
 thrilling part of the story he was telling the boys, seized a stick, 
 and set out on a run for the house. 
 
 " It was not my first experience with a bull-dog," said Mr. 
 Longwood, as they sat at dinner, and he gave them a descrip 
 tion of his late adventure. " When I was in college, I and one 
 of my friends took a long walk one Saturday afternoon in spring. 
 We made quite a circuit in the country lanes, and came back to 
 town by another road, on which was a toll-bridge. It was not 
 until we put foot on this bridge that we remembered that 
 neither of us had a penny in our pockets. However, college- 
 boys do not stop at trifles,' and we made our way on. The 
 toll-house was on the farther side of the bridge ; and when we 
 had crossed, and had come to it, out came the keeper. ' A cent 
 apiece,' he said. We told him politely that we could not mus 
 ter two cents between us. 
 
 " ' Then you had better go back,' he said. 
 
 " My companion explained to him that it was three miles 
 around by the other bridge. ' Besides,' said he, ' we have now 
 crossed the bridge, and owe you two cents ; if we go back, we 
 shall have to recross it, that will make four cents : you will 
 therefore lose twice as much as if you let us go on.'
 
 6i2 A VERY BAD MAN. 
 
 " The old man became very angry at this. He evidently 
 thought that we had money, but were trying to chaff him. He 
 whistled, and out of his house came a most villanous bull-dog. 
 I think it must have been the father of the one Daniels has. 
 ' Watch 'em,' said the old man to the dog ; and into his house 
 he went." 
 
 " What did you do ? " asked the girls. 
 
 " We felt somewhat foolish, I must confess," said Mr. Long- 
 wood. " But there was nothing to do. We sat upon the rail 
 of the bridge, and looked at the view. It was very fine. Every 
 time we moved, the dog would show his teeth, and growl. Now 
 and then the old man would come out, and say, 
 
 " ' Got them two cents ? ' 
 
 " And, when we answered that we had not two cents, he 
 would swear very badly, and go back into the house again. At 
 last he seemed to believe our story, and said, ' Do you really 
 mean that you haven't two cents ? ' We told him that we had 
 already said so a dozen times. Then ' go along,' said he. He 
 called his dog off, and we went along. 
 
 " The next day we walked down, and each presented him 
 with a cent. Instead of pleasing him, it made him more angry 
 even than he was the day before." 
 
 " He must have been a very bad man," said Carrie indignantly. 
 
 The drive of the morning had given them all good appetites, 
 and their dinner tasted uncommonly good. At last, however, it 
 was over, darkness had fallen again, and, when they drew around 
 the fire, they settled themselves comfortably to hear another of 
 Mr. Longwood's stories.
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 " THE Spanish, as of course you know," he began, " had 
 gained enormous wealth in the West Indies. Their cities there 
 were most prosperous. Every year ships loaded with cargoes 
 of great value sailed for Spain. To waylay and capture one of 
 these was to secure a fortune for all concerned ; and many was 
 the proud Don who had to haul down the flag of Spain at the 
 bidding of a band of wild sea-rovers. Desperate men, they 
 stopped at no odds. I remember one case where a small craft, 
 manned only by twenty-eight men, took the ship of the vice- 
 admiral of the Spanish fleet. Her commander had been warned 
 during the day that that small sail in sight was a pirate, but 
 replied contemptuously, ' What then ! am I to be afraid of such 
 a pitiful craft ? ' 
 
 " That night, when all was dark, the pirate crept alongside. 
 Her men had bored her full of holes to sink her in order that 
 every man might fight like mad, knowing that he had no means 
 of escape in case of defeat. Sword in hand, they clambered up 
 the Spaniard's side. Before her captain fairly knew that they 
 were aboard, he had a pistol clapped to his head, and had lost 
 his ship." 
 
 613
 
 614 
 
 A FLEET OF FIFTEEN SAIL. 
 
 " I should have thought," said Will, " that the great European- 
 powers would have sent their men-of-war, and cleared the seas 
 of these rascals." 
 
 " The pirates were very largely English," said Mr. Longwood. 
 " Among them it was almost a matter of religion to attack a 
 
 THE PIRATE BOARDS THE VICE-ADMIRAL. 
 
 Spaniard. Besides, even had the powers felt disposed to do as 
 you suggest, they might not have been able. The pirates, after 
 a little, had great strength. Capt. Henry Morgan, one of the 
 most noted of these villains, had at times a fleet of fifteen sail 
 and a thousand men. He took cities by storm, and sacked 
 them, killing, burning, and torturing, until one's blood boils at
 
 THEY FELL UPON THE CITY. 
 
 the recital. No deed of wickedness was too bad for these 
 wretches. ' j 
 
 " Withal their bravery was astounding. One cannot help 
 being stirred as he reads accounts of their bold deeds. With 
 but four hundred men, Morgan attacked the city of Puerto 
 Bello. It was a fortified town, with a garrison of three hundred 
 
 MORGAN'S ATTACK. 
 
 soldiers, besides the regular inhabitants. Landing his men at 
 midnight, they surprised the sentinel before he could give the 
 alarm. They took the castle near the town, having first threat 
 ened the garrison with death in case they refused to surrender, 
 and blew it and them into the air by firing the magazine. 
 Then they fell upon the city, which resisted stubbornly. Mor-
 
 6i6 A QUARTER OF A MILLION SPANISH DOLLARS. 
 
 gan's first act was to seize all the monks and nuns he could find 
 in the convents. He made these march before him, and raise 
 scaling ladders against such other castles as were not taken, 
 thinking that the governor would not fire upon them. But that 
 worthy was not to be stopped by any feeling of sympathy. He 
 ordered the soldiers to shoot, regardless of their cries. It was 
 not till afternoon that they finally conquered him, after the most 
 obstinate struggle ; and then they were obliged to kill him, for 
 he would not surrender, and fought so madly, that they could 
 not make him a prisoner. 
 
 " As a result of the capture of the city, they carried away a 
 quarter of a million Spanish dollars, besides all the merchandise 
 with which they loaded their ships. 
 
 " Morgan was as crafty as he was fearless. One of his expe 
 ditions was against Maracaibo. The fort that protected the 
 harbor gave them a warm reception ; but they finally silenced 
 its guns, and sailed on to the town. The inhabitants had fled. 
 Their city had been visited before by buccaneers, and they remem 
 bered too well what they had then suffered. Morgan sent out 
 into the country about, and seized many who were in hiding ; 
 and these he tortured fearfully. 
 
 " At last, when he had gotten all the booty he could, he 
 made ready to leave. The unpleasant news greeted him that the 
 fort had been re-garrisoned, and that three Spanish men-of-war 
 lay off the bar awaiting his appearance. He sent down a boat 
 to see if the news were true, and found that it was : the ships 
 mounted forty, thirty, and twenty-four guns. The outlook was 
 bad indeed, but Morgan was equal to the emergency. He pre-
 
 MORGAN CARRIES OUT A STRATAGEM. 
 
 pared a fire-ship filled with pitch and powder, and stationed on 
 its deck logs dressed in clothes to represent men. It was 
 steered against the largest of the men-of-war, and speedily set 
 her in a blaze. A panic seized one other of the enemy. Her 
 crew ran her ashore and sunk her ; and the pirates attacked and 
 captured the third. 
 
 " The coast was now clear, as far as the men-of-wai - were 
 concerned ; but the fort was to be passed. Morgan managed 
 this by stratagem. All day long his boats were busy landing 
 men, as if his plan were to assault the works at night. The 
 garrison, thinking this, moved their heavy guns to the land-side 
 of the fortifications. At dusk he raised his canvas ; and, before 
 they had time to bring back the guns into position, he had 
 re-embarked his men, and his fleet was at sea, he firing a salute 
 in mockery as his ship passed the chagrined garrison." 
 
 " What became of all the plunder ? " asked Charlie. " I 
 suppose, after one such raid as this, the men made enough to 
 support them for life." 
 
 " It hardly lasted a week after they reached Jamaica, which 
 was their headquarters," answered Mr. Longwood. " It all came 
 into the hands of the tavern-keepers by that time, and then the 
 men were ready and anxious to go off on another cruise. It is 
 satisfactory to find that these wicked men received in this world, 
 in many cases, the punishment they so richly deserved for all 
 their fearful cruelties. Nearly every one of the leaders came ta 
 violent deaths. One was tortured at the stake by savages? 
 mother came to his end in a dungeon ; and so on." 
 
 " Sacking cities is hardly one's idea of piracy," said Tom.
 
 A VERY APPEARS AT BOSTON. 
 
 " No," said Mr. Longwood. ' We should, perhaps, more 
 properly call these men buccaneers, or free-booters, reserving the 
 title of ' pirates ' for those who robbed ships at sea. 
 
 " There was a man who appeared at Boston in the early part 
 of the eighteenth century. His name was Avery, and he had a 
 great quantity of diamonds and jewels which he wished to sell. 
 He was afraid to offer them, though, for fear of detection. His 
 story is a striking one. He was mate of an English vessel 
 lying at Bristol. His captain was a man fond of his cups, and 
 almost always more or less the worse for liquor after dinner. 
 Avery laid his plans accordingly. While the captain lay in his 
 cabin in a drunken sleep, sixteen confederates from shore came 
 aboard, fastened down the hatches, thus taking the crew pris 
 oners ; and Avery took command, and took the ship to sea. 
 
 " Presently the captain, roused by the motion of a vessel 
 which he supposed to be quietly at anchor in the harbor, waked, 
 and rang his bell. Avery and one of his men at once 
 answered it. 
 
 - " ' What is the matter ? ' demanded the captain. ' Does the 
 ship drive ? What weather is it ? ' 
 
 " ' No, no,' said Avery, with impudent coolness, ' we are at 
 sea. Put on your clothes, and I'll let you into a secret. I am 
 captain now, and this is my cabin. Therefore you must walk 
 out.' 
 
 " The deposed commander was then informed that the vessel 
 was on a piratical cruise, and was asked to go along, being 
 promised a lieutenancy if he behaved well. But he would none 
 of it : so he and five or six of his men who thought as he 
 did were put ashore.
 
 A PARTNERSHIP OF ROGUES. 
 
 621 
 
 " Avery then sailed for Madagascar. As he neared it, he fell 
 in with two sloops whose crews had stolen them. He proposed 
 a partnership to these scamps, and they agreed at once. 
 
 " By and by the lookout espied a huge ship in the distance. 
 They crowded on all sail, and soon overtook her. She carried 
 
 AVERY TAKES THE GREAT MOGUL'S SHIP. 
 
 the flag of the Great Mogul, and showed fight ; but the three 
 pirates attacked her lustily, and she soon surrendered." 
 
 " Who was the Great Mogul, any way ? " asked Ned. 
 
 " He was the Emperor of Delhi, and a mighty man in those 
 days, when England's hold on India was very different from what
 
 022 THF- GREAT MOf'JL LOSES HIS TEMPER. 
 
 it now is. He was so enraged when he heard that his ship had 
 been attacked, that he threatened to exterminate all the English 
 in the East, and was only appeased with great difficulty. This 
 particular ship had on board many of the chief men of his 
 court, and one of his daughters, who were making a pilgrimage, 
 like devout Moslems, to the holy shrine at Mecca. All these 
 dignitaries travelled in Oriental magnificence, with troops of 
 slaves ; and they bore with them great treasures, which were to 
 have been offerings at the shrine." 
 
 " I suspect they were put to far other uses," said Tom. 
 
 " They were, indeed ; for, before the ship was freed, she was 
 ransacked from stem to stern. Avery then proposed to the men 
 of the sloops, that all the treasure should be put on his ship, as 
 the safest place. No sooner had he it all safely aboard, than he 
 cracked on all sail, and made off with it, leaving his late con 
 federates to digest their loss as best they were able. 
 
 " When he came to the division with his own men, he suc- 
 .ceeded in outwitting them too ; so that his wealth, when he was 
 in Boston, must have been enormous. But it was almost use 
 less to him, for he dared not turn it into money. He went over 
 to England, and lived under an assumed name. Sharpers suc 
 ceeded in getting his jewels away without giving him any thing 
 for them, and he was soon in absolute beggary ; and when he 
 died he had not enough to buy himself a coffin. His story does 
 not need a moral to point out its lessons." 
 
 " How fortunate the people who lived hereabout in those 
 days must have thought themselves, that the pirates did not 
 roam these seas, and attack their towns ! " said Will.
 
 THE PIRATES VISIT BLOCK ISLAND. ' 623 
 
 " They, of course, did not suffer as the Central-Americans 
 did," said Mr. Longwood ; " but, on the other hand, they did not 
 get off scot free. Block Island was visited four or five times 
 by them. I think I can find a book on the shelves in which 
 an account of their coming is given. Yes, here it is. Let me 
 see if I can find the place," he went on, turning over the leaves. 
 " Ah ! here I have it. 
 
 " ' Some time in July, 1689, three French privateer- vessels 
 came to Block Island. They had an Englishman with them, one 
 William Trimming, who was wont treacherously to decoy and 
 betray those whom they met at sea, pretending they were 
 Englishmen. Him they sent on shore with some of the men, 
 in a periauger which lay off at a small distance, whilst he took 
 the advantage of stepping from one rock to another, and came 
 alone to the islanders, who were standing on the shore in arms, 
 who inquired of him who they were. 
 
 " ' To which he answered that they were Englishmen, and 
 that they had done great exploits among the Spaniards in the 
 West Indies ; that they were bound for Newport (which was so 
 far true) ; that their design was to take and rifle that town ; and 
 that they wanted a pilot, and to be supplied with fresh provis 
 ions for their money. This was a plausible and very pleasing 
 account to the inhabitants ; and the islanders were very well 
 satisfied, and fearless of danger. 
 
 " ' Trimming then went off to the periauger ; and several that 
 had sailed to and fro Newport in hope of some great reward 
 went on board. They no sooner were got there, but they were 
 immediately clapped under hatches, and examined on the strength
 
 024 AN EASILY AMUSED PEOPLE. 
 
 of Newport and Block Island ; and, finding this last not able to 
 resist them, they resolved to play their game in plundering the 
 people. 
 
 " ' Accordingly, manning their three periaugers, with about 
 fifty men in each of them, they made for the harbor (having 
 their guns all lying in the bottom of their boats, out of sight), 
 where the people met them, and were somewhat amused at their 
 great number. But, being well satisfied that there was no monk 
 ery in the case, they, in a very friendly manner, directed them 
 to shun some sunken rocks that lay at the entrance into the 
 harbor ; and, to requite their kindness, every one of them, as 
 they laid to the wharf, started up with his gun presented, and 
 told the people, if they stirred from the place, or made resist 
 ance, they were dead men. Thus tamely and unexpectedly they 
 were all taken, and made prisoners-of-war. 
 
 " ' As they were thus become masters of the island, they dis 
 armed the men, and stove their guns to pieces on the rocks, 
 and confined the people in the house of Capt. Sands. This 
 they made their prison and rendezvous, and soon set upon plun 
 dering houses, and killing cattle, sheep, and hogs, some to feed 
 on, others for waste and spoil. 
 
 " ' However, news quickly reached the main that Block Island 
 was taken by the French, upon which the country was alarmed, 
 and bonfires made from Connecticut to Massachusetts. Perceiv 
 ing by the bonfires that the country was alarmed, they were dis 
 couraged from making an attack on Newport, and therefore 
 determined to attack New London. Accordingly they sailed 
 thither, and up into the harbor. The country being alarmed,
 
 A VERY VIOLENT RESOLUTE FELLOW. 625 
 
 the men in the border-towns came down in great numbers ; and, 
 the fort with their great guns firing on them, they found the 
 place to hot for them, and drew off. 
 
 " ' Meantime the people of Newport fitted out two vessels 
 with volunteers to engage them. These vessels were sloops, 
 under the command of Commodore Paine, who had some years 
 before followed the privateering design, and Capt. Godfrey his 
 second. They stretched off to the southward ; and the French 
 discovered them, and made all sail, expecting to make prizes of 
 them. Accordingly they sent a periauger full of men, with 
 design to pour in their small-arms on them, and take them, as 
 their manner was, supposing they were unarmed vessels, and 
 only bound on trade. Capt. Paine's gunner urged to fire on 
 them. The captain denied, alleging it more advisable to let the 
 enemy come nearer. But the gunner still urging it, being certain 
 he should rake them fore and aft, thus with much importunity 
 the captain gave him leave. He fired ; but the bullet went wide 
 of them, and finally lodged in a bank, as they were not far 
 from the shore. This brought them to row off as fast as they 
 could, and wait until their vessels came up. 
 
 " ' When they came, they bore down on the English ; and a 
 very hot sea-fight for several hours followed, the great barque 
 foremost pouring in a broadside with small-arms. Ours bravely 
 answered them. Then followed the larger sloop, the captain 
 whereof was a very violent, resolute fellow. He took a glass of 
 wine to drink, and wished it might be his destruction if he did 
 not board them immediately. But, as he was drinking, a bullet 
 struck him in the neck, with which he instantly fell down dead.
 
 026 
 
 THE PRIVATEERS ARE FLEET OF FOOT. 
 
 However, they con 
 tinued the fight until 
 the night came on, 
 and prevented their 
 further conflict. Our 
 men as valiantly paid 
 them back in their 
 own coin. 
 
 " ' Our men ex 
 pected a second en 
 counter in the morn 
 ing ; but, having 
 found the engage 
 ment too hot for 
 them, they hoisted 
 their sails, and stood 
 off to sea. The Eng 
 lish pursued them ; 
 but the privateers, 
 being choice sailors, 
 were too fleet of foot 
 for them.' " 
 
 " I should hardly 
 have thought that 
 it would have paid 
 them to take such a 
 place as Block Is 
 land," said CharJie, 
 
 BUSY WITH THE HARVEST.
 
 THE PRINT OF THEIR HEELS IN THE OCEAN. 627 
 
 " They could have found little booty to carry away. What they 
 wanted was money, not crops." 
 
 " One would think so, certainly," said Mr. Longwood. " But 
 they came back again within a year, when the men were in the 
 fields busy with the harvest, and again at two other times 
 later on. Perhaps it was the want of fresh meat that brought 
 them. The third time they came to grief. 
 
 " They landed on a Sunday morning, and marched up from 
 the harbor, with colors flying, and were speedily at their old work 
 of robbing and burning houses, and wantonly killing stock. 
 There was no one to oppose them. Probably all, like our 
 narrator, had taken to hiding at their approach, considering dis 
 cretion the better part of valor. From a safe retreat he was 
 watching their doings, when suddenly, as the heavy fog lifted, 
 he saw an English man-of-war riding at anchor close at hand. 
 The pirates saw her too, and made all haste to get back to 
 their vessels, and put to sea. The man-of-war made all sail, and 
 pursued them. The fog settled down again ; and the French ran 
 into a bay, thinking their pursuer would sail by. But she, ' as 
 if she followed the print of their heels in the ocean,' came in 
 upon them, and took them. Some forty of the men, when she 
 suddenly loomed up out of the fog right upon them, took to 
 the small boats, and got ashore ; but the people there seized and 
 sent them off prisoners to Boston, and the pirate craft was 
 condemned at Newport." 
 
 " I remember to have heard of a ship that was commanded 
 by a Quaker," said Ned. " He was fired into by a privateer 
 schooner; and, as his religious principles did not allow him to
 
 628 CAPTAIN READ FROM NEWPORT. 
 
 make resistance, he was about to surrender his ship. His first 
 officer, however, did not propose to yield up a fine vessel tamely : 
 and he urged his views so strongly, that the captain finally agreed 
 to go to his cabin, and let him take command of the ship for 
 a little while ; and so he disappeared down the companion-way. 
 
 " Presently his interest or curiosity grew so strong, that he 
 could not stay below ; and he came up the ladder, and watched 
 what was going on. ' Charles,' he said quietly, after a moment, 
 to the first officer, ' if thee intends to run down that schooner, 
 thee had better put thy helm a leetle more to starboard.' The 
 helm was put to starboard ; and the great ship went over the 
 privateer, sinking her instantly, and drowning every man aboard." 
 
 " I remember to have heard that story," said Mr. Longwood. 
 " The ship, I think, hailed from Newport. Privateering on all the 
 Connecticut and Rhode Island shore came to be an every-day 
 occurrence during the Revolution. Dozens of privateers made 
 their headquarters at Newport. Of course sailing up to a mer 
 chant-vessel with your guns trained on her, and making her haul 
 down her flag, is not an action requiring any very great bravery 
 or heroism ; but privateering grew to be a much more serious 
 business when the British, too, put out their privateers. There 
 was some very hard fighting between the rival crafts. A certain 
 Capt. Read from Newport had quite an active experience of this 
 sort. He commanded a privateer with varying success, now tak 
 ing a prize, and then being made a prisoner, until, in the course 
 of events, he found himself in the command of a new and trim 
 brig. He sailed out of port, and at first was very successful, 
 taking several prizes.
 
 AN ESCAPE FROM A PRISON-SHIP. 629 
 
 " Among his crew, however, was a Tory in disguise, named 
 Crandall. This man, in some way which I have never under 
 stood, got control of the brig, delivered up Read to the Jersey 
 prison-ship in New- York Harbor, and, hoisting the British flag, 
 speedily carried the brig over to the enemy's side. 
 
 " Read, however, had no mind to sit down tamely and sub 
 mit. He bent all his thoughts on a means of getting away. 
 Three or four others agreed with him to escape, or die in the 
 attempt. For some time no chance offered. At length, one 
 night the prison-boat returned from shore with provisions. Wait 
 ing until its load was discharged, the conspirators, at a given 
 signal, leaped over the side into it, cut the painter, and pulled 
 madly for shore. The guard fired ; but they fortunately escaped 
 the bullets that came flying around them, and a snow-storm for 
 tunately began which hid them entirely. That night they suc 
 ceeded in landing on Long Island ; and Read was soon back in 
 Newport. 
 
 " He at once secured a fresh vessel well armed, and set sail 
 to find his treacherous friend. He was not long in coming upon 
 him, and, letting fly a broadside, showed himself to the aston 
 ished man, who thought him fast bound on the prison-ship. A 
 cannon-ball took off the Tory's head ; and presently Read 
 re-appeared in Newport Harbor with his old brig following him 
 as a prize." 
 
 " A man in those days must have needed a clear head, and 
 a cool one too," said Charlie. 
 
 " Yes," said Mr. Longwood. " This very man Read did one 
 act that required just such qualities. He heard off Sandy Hook
 
 630 ARE WE GOING TO NEW YLRKf 
 
 that a vessel from Providence had been captured, and was on 
 her way to New York under the charge of a prize-crew. He 
 made haste to moor his own vessel out of sight ; and presently 
 the captured craft came in sight, and anchored outside to wait 
 for a pilot. Read appeared alongside with a few men to man 
 his boat, and offered his services, which were accepted. The 
 wind favoring, he at once put her head eastward for Newport. 
 The prize-master suspected nothing until they had nearly reached 
 there. Then he began to suspect this pilot and his stalwart 
 companions. 
 
 " ' Are we going to New York ? ' he demanded. 
 
 " ' No, sir, no ! ' said the pilot. ' We are going to Newport.' 
 And to Newport he went."
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 SUNDAY evening, as they 
 sat about the fire after din 
 ner was over, Jack heaved a 
 sigh so long that it seemed 
 to come from his very boots. 
 " Why, Jack ! " they ex 
 claimed. " What a depth 
 of woe that sigh betokens ! 
 What is the matter?" 
 
 " I was thinking," said 
 Jack mournfully, " that to 
 morrow is Monday, and that 
 old Grinder is lying in wait 
 for us." 
 
 " It is a bad lookout, isn't it ? " said Tom. " I suppose, that, 
 if we take the early train, we could be at school by half-past 
 ten." 
 
 " And, with no lessons learned, of course we should be kept 
 in," said Charlie. " I have an idea. What fun it would be if 
 we could get aboard one of those great tows of canal-boats that 
 
 631
 
 632 IT WOULD BE SUCH A LARK! 
 
 run down the river all the time, and go home that way ! We 
 could learn ever so much of the history of the Highlands as 
 we passed through them, and it would be such a lark ! " 
 
 "So it would," said all the boys. " Just as soon as Mr. 
 Longwood comes home, let's suggest it to him, and see what he 
 says." 
 
 Mr. Longwood was spending the evening with his friend Dr. 
 Stone, who had sent up for him a little before. 
 
 " I suppose it would hardly do for us girls ; would it, 
 mamma ? " asked Carrie. 
 
 " Hardly," said Mrs. Longwood. " But if your father takes 
 up with Charlie's plan, as I think he may, we will not go until 
 the afternoon train, and so have another morning." 
 
 There was such an outburst of joy at this, that the trim 
 woman opened the door from the kitchen, and asked, 
 
 " Did you call, ma'am ? " 
 
 " Of course," said Jack, " the thing is settled, because Mr. 
 Longwood will be sure to agree if Mrs. Longwood asks him. 
 What larks ! " 
 
 " Come, young people," said that lady after a little : " we are 
 in danger of forgetting that it is Sunday. Sit down quietly, and 
 I will say to you a piece of poetry that I learned not long 
 since." 
 
 So they all drew up in a circle, and endeavored to dismiss 
 the thoughts of to-morrow's expedition from their minds, though, 
 I must confess, with only partial success. And Mrs. Longwood 
 began. 
 
 "It is called," she said,
 
 COHORTS OF ANGELS FLYING. 633 
 
 THE FIRST CHRISTMAS. 
 
 The mighty sentinel angels 
 
 That keep heaven's court of guard, 
 Pacing her high-hung battlements 
 
 In zealous watch and ward, 
 Descry, o'er distant leagues of space, 
 
 Cohorts of angels flying 
 Heavenward, from where adown the gulf 
 
 Earth is in darkness lying. 
 
 And they wave on high their flaming swords, 
 
 As they hold their onward course, 
 And clash afresh their golden shields, 
 
 And break into chorus hoarse, 
 " Another chain is forged around 
 
 The great dragon underground : " 
 The flash of their shields is the lightning, 
 
 Their voice the thunder sound. 
 
 They crowd the wide-flung gates of heaven, 
 
 And now the golden street 
 Re-echoes to their clanging mail 
 
 And the tread of marching feet. 
 And the great archangel Michael 
 
 Leads through the heavenly town, 
 Till before the awful throne of God 
 
 They fall in silence down. 
 
 "The babe is born in Bethlehem; 
 
 We have seen the God made man; 
 And the old arch-dragon pale with fright 
 
 At the wave of an infant's hand.
 
 634 JACK APPROVES THE POETRY. 
 
 And above the noise of the burning pit, 
 
 Clear coming to the ear, 
 We heard the shouts of the souls in prison, 
 
 That knew deliverance near." 
 
 i 
 
 " Glory to God ! " the heavenly choir 
 
 Break into rapturous song, 
 Ten thousand times ten thousand throats 
 
 The silver notes prolong. 
 " Glory to God on high, on earth 
 
 Be peace, good-will to men ! " 
 The mailed host with thunderous noise 
 
 Take up the loud refrain ; 
 The very walls of heaven shake 
 
 At the sound of the grand Amen. 
 
 " It is perfectly splendid," said Jack, when she finished. " I 
 wonder how many canal-boats there are in one of these big 
 tows." 
 
 Mrs. Longwood laughed. " I am afraid that my poetry 
 failed to change the current of Jack's thoughts, at least. Let us 
 sing a hymn or two." 
 
 Carrie began " Abide with me," and soon their clear fresh 
 voices joined in the harmony. They were all fond of singing, 
 and one after the other started some favorite air. Presently, 
 looking up, they discovered that the kitchen-door was half-way 
 open, and that the old grandmother was standing by it listening. 
 She was nodding and mumbling softly to herself; and when, after 
 a time, they stopped, she moved away. 
 
 " Didn't she look just like a witch ? " asked Lou. " One could 
 fancy that she was muttering evil spells as she stood there."
 
 A COUPLE OF HUNDRED YEARS AGO. 635 
 
 " Her looks might have brought her to the gallows, a couple 
 of hundred years ago, in New England," said Will. 
 
 " Did any one ever suffer death in this country for being a 
 witch ? " asked Rose. 
 
 " Yes, indeed," said Mrs. Longwood. " It is a very dark blot 
 on our country's history." 
 
 " Do tell us about it," said they all, drawing their chairs 
 closer. Even Jack, at the mention of the word " witch," forgot 
 about the number of boats in a tow, and leaned forward much 
 interested. 
 
 " In the town of Salem, near Boston, in the year 1692," 
 began Mrs. Longwood, " in the family of Mr. Parris, one of the 
 ministers of the place, there were two young girls, his daugh 
 ter, about nine years old, and his niece Abigail Williams, about 
 eleven. These two girls had several friends somewhat older 
 than themselves ; and they were in the habit of having meetings 
 to practise palmistry, and such foolish amusements. Presently 
 the minister's daughter and niece began to have strange attacks, 
 somewhat like fits. It was probably, in the outset, nothing more 
 than what is now called hysteria, which all young girls who are 
 not very strong are liable to have. Instead of treating it as 
 such, Mr. Parris called in several of his brother clergymen, who 
 looked at the children in their fits, and prayed over them, but 
 had no more common-sense in the matter than he. 
 
 " The children in the mean while, finding themselves the 
 objects of so much public attention, began to have fits harder 
 than ever ; and their young companions, too, broke out with them. 
 People in those days believed in a very active, ever-present,
 
 636 THE AFFLICTED CHILDREN. 
 
 bodily Devil. They believed that there could be witches as truly 
 as in the days of Saul. And they thought that Satan could only 
 practise his evil arts on a human being through another human 
 being. So they set themselves to find out who these persons 
 were that Satan was thus using to torment the children. They 
 exhorted them to tell who it was that persecuted them. And 
 the children called out the names of three women who they 
 said did it. One of these was Tituba, the slave of Mr. Parris. 
 He tied her neck and heels, and beat her until she confessed 
 every thing he suggested to her. On her examination by the 
 court, she avowed that she had made a compact with Satan, and 
 signed his book, and that she rode to his meetings on a pole 
 through the air. 
 
 " It is a sickening story. The ' afflicted children,' as they 
 were called, denounced person after person. On their assertion 
 alone, the accused were arrested. When brought into court for 
 examination, the children would fall down in their fits, declaring 
 that the prisoners were pinching them, and sticking pins into 
 them, by their apparitions. The people were wild with excite 
 ment, believing it all. The magistrates were bigoted. Nineteen 
 innocent people were hung as witches." 
 
 " Were they poor people ? I mean, people without friends," 
 asked Charlie. 
 
 " A few were," said Mrs. Longwood. " But many were of the 
 highest social position. One was a clergyman. Though a very 
 small man, he was enormously strong ; and this was thought to 
 be a proof of his being a witch, as no one unless helped from 
 an evil source could have done such deeds. One of his accusers
 
 ALL THE WITCHES MOUNTED THEIR BROOMS, 
 
 6 37 
 
 testified, beside, that he had a trumpet, the sound of which could 
 be heard through all the townships about. When he blew it, 
 all the witches mounted their brooms, and came flying through 
 the air to the meeting." 
 
 ON THEIR WAY TO THE MEETING. 
 
 " What perfect nonsense ! " said Tom. " Did people actually 
 believe such stuff?" 
 
 " They did, indeed ; and it cost the minister his life. The 
 case off Giles and Martha Corey was a very hard one. Giles 
 Corey was a man of violent temper, who was always coming into 
 conflict with his neighbors, and was most unpopular. Late in life 
 he had repented of his ways ; but the habits of a life-time are 
 not easily laid aside. When the question of witchcraft first came
 
 6 3 8 
 
 HE USED VERY STRONG LANGUAGE. 
 
 up, he was a firm believer in it. His wife, however, who was a 
 thoroughly good woman, was not. He was so provoked at her 
 differing from him, that he used very strong language about her 
 
 MARTHA COREY IN PRISON. 
 
 in public. It was soon known to the afflicted children that 
 Martha Corey thought them deluded, and they immediately cried 
 out upon her as a witch. Her past blameless life could not save
 
 HO W PERFECTL Y A WFUL ! 639 
 
 her : she was hung. Parris and two of his deacons visited her 
 in prison, and excommunicated her. 
 
 " Giles Corey's eyes were opened by the attack upon his 
 wife ; and soon he, too, was cried out on. He was a man of 
 iron nerve, though eighty-one years old. He formed his plans, 
 and held to them. He would not be tried as a witch ; and no 
 relative of his, who had been unfriendly to his wife, should ever 
 have a particle of his property. Two of his sons-in-law had 
 been. He executed a deed after he was arrested, giving abso 
 lutely all he possessed to his other two sons-in-law. This deed, 
 however, should he be tried for witchcraft, might be held to be 
 invalid. He resolved that he would not be tried. When he was 
 brought before the court, and asked whether he were guilty or 
 not guilty, he did not open his mouth. They could not try a 
 man who would not plead." 
 
 " And did he escape ? " interrupted Tom. 
 
 " No," said Mrs. Longwood. " An old English law was 
 trumped up, in which the man who refused to plead was to 
 suffer a certain punishment until he did. Corey was taken to 
 prison, and laid on his back : a weight of iron was placed on. 
 him, and he was almost without food or drink. The weights 
 were steadily increased, but the old man would not speak. He 
 was crushed to death." 
 
 " How perfectly awful ! " said the girls. 
 
 " It was a strange part of this business, that those who con 
 fessed being witches escaped death. It was those who persisted 
 in denying their connection with Satan who were hanged," said 
 Mrs. Longwood.
 
 640 A HUNDRED AND FIFTY IN JAIL. 
 
 " And how did it all end ? " asked Ned. 
 
 " People began to come to their senses. There were already 
 a hundred and fifty in jail ; and the afflicted children seemed to 
 be as much afflicted as ever, and to be quite as ready to cry 
 out upon others who were as yet unsuspected. The court was 
 adjourned ; and in two or three months, when time had brought 
 clearer views, all were set at liberty." 
 
 " What became of the afflicted children ? " asked Rose. 
 
 " I do not know," said Mrs. Longwood. " But public indig 
 nation was very sharp against those who had taken a leading 
 part in the prosecutions. Mr. Parris, whom it was openly said 
 had used the children to denounce some of his enemies, was 
 driven from his church and town, and lived ever after in obscur 
 ity and poverty. Others made public and humble confession that 
 they had fallen into error. It was long before the wounds the 
 trouble made were healed. 
 
 " But here comes Mr. Longwood, and you can find out what 
 he thinks of your plan for going home."
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 MR. LONGWOOD'S entrance 
 was greeted by such a sudden 
 chorus of exclamations, that 
 he looked completely as 
 tounded. " What in the 
 world is it ? " he said. " Has 
 old Mrs. Daniels done any 
 thing ? or the bulldog ? " 
 
 " Let's leave it to Mrs. 
 Longwood to explain to him,'" 
 said Jack, with a sudden 
 accession of wisdom. 
 
 So there was a complete 
 silence until the plan was. 
 unfolded, when Mr. Long- 
 wood promptly agreed to it. 
 " If it should rain, though, 
 of course we should have to give it up," he added. 
 
 " We might wait until the next fair day," suggested Ned. 
 The next morning bright and early the boys were crowding, 
 
 641
 
 642 THREE TOWS SOUTHWARD BOUND. 
 
 half-dressed, about the window of their room that looked up 
 toward Newburgh Bay. They saw three tows southward bound. 
 From the height and distance at which they were, the tows 
 
 PREPARING FOR BREAKFAST. 
 
 looked almost like huge rafts. But a moment's glance showed 
 the straining tug in advance, and, close upon its heels, the clumsy 
 rabble of canal-boats wabbling along, lashed four or five abreast, 
 and five or six rows deep.
 
 IV E MUST HURRY UP. 643 
 
 " We must hurry up," said Jack, as, after scrambling 1 into his 
 clothes, he rushed down stairs, and into the kitchen, to see if 
 breakfast were not ready. "We must hurry up, or they will all 
 have gone by." 
 
 The trim woman had her hands in a bowl of dough. Evi 
 dently they were to have hot corn-bread for breakfast, for the 
 old grandmother was bringing a pan in which to bake it. 
 
 " Never fear," said Daniels, in answer to Jack's outburst. 
 " At this season of the year they come down close upon one 
 another's heels. You see, they hurry through the canals now 
 that it's just on the edge of winter, for fear that a sudden cold 
 snap may come, and freeze them in." 
 
 Notwithstanding this assurance, Jack was very uneasy in his 
 mind for some time. It was not until Tom, looking at the 
 clock, said, " Well, we couldn't catch the early train now if we 
 tried : so, no matter how we go to town, we cannot get to 
 school to-day," that he seemed to enjoy his breakfast. Then he 
 stretched forth his plate to be helped again, and attacked the 
 good things in earnest. 
 
 By half-past eight, breakfast was over ; their trunks were 
 packed, ready to go on the same train with the girls in the 
 afternoon ; and the boys themselves, with Mr. Longwood, well 
 wrapped up, were climbing into the big wagon. 
 
 " If we should upset," said Ned, " I should be perfectly help 
 less ; for I am so swathed in my winter coat, with this rug over 
 my knees, that I could not move." 
 
 " You will be glad of all your wraps, never fear," said Mr. 
 Longwood. " It will be cold enough on the water, and there
 
 644 THE WIND WAS COLD ENOUGH. 
 
 will be no comfortable cabin where one can sit and look out 
 through the window. It is to be a deck-passage." 
 
 " I hope we brought provisions enough," said Tom. " I think 
 that by dinner-time I shall be able to do my share at the. 
 trencher." 
 
 Before long they found themselves at the pier, where they 
 had disembarked from the boat on the night of their coming. 
 There was a grayish hue spreading over the sky, and the wind 
 as it came down the river was cold enough. It felt, as Daniels 
 had said, as if they were on the edge of winter. There seemed 
 to be very little going on about the dock. One or two people 
 came to their doors to see our party leave the wagon ; but the 
 morning boat had gone some time before, and the place had 
 settled down to wait until its return in the evening should bring 
 again a ripple of excitement. 
 
 Directed by Daniels, they hurried along the shore to a house 
 a little way distant, whose owner kept boats to let. A fine tow 
 was only a short distance away, and no time was to be lost. 
 
 " Father is out in one of the sailboats there/' said a tidy 
 girl who answered their knock. " He is going to bring her in, 
 and haul her out for the winter. I'll call him," and she ran 
 down to the water's edge, and quickly brought him ashore. 
 
 Mr. Longwood stated their wishes. Could he put them 
 aboard the little fleet of canal-boats close at hand there ? 
 
 He regarded them apparently as out of their heads. Of 
 course he could put them aboard ; but, massy sakes ! they 
 wouldn't get to York, he didn't know when. He had much bet 
 ter take them across the river to the railway : there was " some
 
 THE BOATMAN'S DAUGHTER.
 
 CATCH HOLD THERE. 647 
 
 chance then of seem' their folks to home before they'd all grown 
 old and died." 
 
 But, as Mr. Longwood persisted, he hauled a big rowboat 
 up to his landing ; and, all being stowed away in her, he took 
 his oars, and pulled vigorously out into the current, casting a 
 glance now and then over his shoulder, to see that he was 
 laying his course rightly. 
 
 Presently the great lumbering tubs of boats were alongside. 
 On one of them stood a man all hair and beard. The boatman, 
 with a few strokes, brought their craft near and, throwing his 
 painter toward him, said briefly, 
 
 " Catch hold there." 
 
 The hairy man seized it, and made his end fast ; and then, 
 looking down upon them, said, with equal brevity, 
 
 " What's up ? " 
 
 " This here party wants to take passage with ye to York," 
 said the boatman. 
 
 " Nary lunatic-asylum about here broke loose, is there ? " 
 asked the hairy man. 
 
 Mr. Longwood made haste to say that they had not gone 
 mad, and that they were quite ready to pay for their passage ; 
 and so they speedily came to terms, the hairy man agreeing to 
 put them ashore 'at any town they wished, in a small boat, which 
 he said could be borrowed from the tug that was hauling them. 
 So their boatman helped them to scramble up on the deck of 
 their new craft, and, having handed up the basket of provisions 
 after them, was cast off, and soon well on his homeward way. 
 Those of the readers of this story who have been on canal-
 
 648 A NEW KIND OF FOG WHISTLE. 
 
 boats, and know all about them, may skip a page or two : the 
 rest may stay with the boys, as they cast their eyes, big with 
 curiosity, about them. Curiosity seemed to be the order of the 
 day. On nearly every boat in the fleet they saw a man sitting 
 on his cabin-roof, staring with open eyes at them. From every 
 cabin-stairs emerged a more or less dishevelled woman's head, to 
 join the general looking-on. 
 
 But the boys were not to be daunted by any such observa 
 tion. " I say," said Jack in a friendly tone to the hairy man, by 
 way of opening conversation, " I say, what's forward there where 
 it looks like the roof of a cabin ? " 
 
 " Mules," said the man. 
 
 " Really ? " asked Jack. " No joking?" 
 
 It was not necessary for the man to make any reply. One 
 of the mules took it upon himself to do that. Out of the top 
 of his small stable came a tremendous bray, that died away in 
 echo after echo against the side of Storm- King Mountain. The 
 boys put their hands over their ears until there was silence. 
 
 " He must be of no end of use in a fog," said Ned. " He'd 
 take the place of the steam-whistle. Just give his tail a twist 
 to open the valve, and out would come the noise." 
 
 " Nobody don't twist that mule's tail, not with impunity," said 
 the hairy man gloomily. " One man tried it." 
 
 " What happened to him ? " asked the boys. 
 
 " It was near the place where he was raised," said the man ; 
 " and we buried him in the family lot." 
 
 " How in the world do you get them in there ? " asked 
 Charlie, as they all walked forward.
 
 GOING TO BED MADE EXCITING. 649 
 
 " This strip of the roof comes off," said the man, lifting one 
 end up as he spoke, so that they could look down on the mules 
 in their stalls below. " They scramble in and out just like dogs. 
 Those two berths back there, just behind them, are where the 
 men sleep." 
 
 " It must be lively work for them to get to bed when your 
 mule who kicks feels like a little exercise," said Tom. " They 
 must have to dodge the kicks." 
 
 " How long do you work the mules at a time ? " asked 
 Charlie. 
 
 " Six hours," said the man. " You see, we have four men 
 and four mules beside the captain." (Jack gave Will a nudge at 
 this slight slip.) " They work six hours at a time, relieving one 
 another. When we come down to Troy, we leave two of the 
 mules in the stables there." The hairy man stopped short, and 
 looked a little ashamed at having been so talkative. Then he 
 strolled slowly toward the stern of the boat, and disappeared 
 down the stairs into his cabin. 
 
 The boys watched his disappearance with considerable sur 
 prise. " Could we have said any thing to offend him ? " said 
 Tom. 
 
 " No : I fancy it is only his way," said Mr. Longwood. " He'll 
 ;be back presently, no doubt. Meantime I think I will spread out 
 a rug, and establish myself here with a book. The stable-roof 
 will make an excellent protection from the wind. The weather 
 is rather cold." 
 
 So, suiting his action to his words, Mr. Longwood sat down 
 on the deck ; and, except that every moment or two he raised
 
 650 A SERIES OF QUESTIONS. 
 
 his eyes to see that none of his boys had fallen over, or other 
 wise come to grief, he took no part in any of their doings for 
 the next hour or two. 
 
 They, however, were not idle. The hairy man had re-appeared, 
 and they plied him vigorously with questions. 
 
 What had he aboard ? they demanded. 
 
 " Wheat." 
 
 Where did he get it ? 
 
 " Buffalo." 
 
 How long did it take to come from Buffalo ? 
 
 "Ten days." 
 
 But he was not to be tempted into conversation ; and the 
 boys' hope of getting a story out of him was soon seen to be 
 without foundation. After a little they managed to get aboard 
 the boat alongside. The captain of this was much more com 
 municative ; and, though he was not to be coaxed into telling 
 a story, he told them how he had been a canal-man for twenty 
 years. He took them, too, down into his tiny cabin where his 
 wife and two children were, and showed them the kitchen just 
 big enough to take in a stove, and how it could be shut up 
 tight by means of sliding-doors. The cabin was tiny enough, 
 but every thing was as clean and neat as could be. 
 
 All the hour or two that the boys spent in idly running about 
 and talking, had not been spent in idleness by the tug that 
 was dragging them. One after another the hills of the High 
 lands had been slowly passed. West Point, with the gray build 
 ings of its military academy, was far behind. And now a sudden 
 hunger seized every one. They hurried back pell-mell to where
 
 A BAND OF STARVING WOLVES. 651 
 
 Mr. Longwood was still sitting deep in his book, and surrounded 
 him as a band of starving wolves do a defenceless sheep whom 
 they have come upon in some unprotected place. 
 
 He understood from their faces what they would have sug 
 gested, without their speaking a word. 
 
 " Bring the basket, Tom," he said. 
 
 Tom made haste to bring it, and spread the contents on some 
 napkins which he laid upon the deck. 
 
 " Jiminy ! " said Jack, as the last article came out, " they 
 haven't put in a thing to drink. What shall we do ? " 
 
 " Possibly our captain's wife could make us some coffee," said 
 Mr. Longwood. " Go and see, Tom. At all events, she can no- 
 doubt give us some water." 
 
 Tom came back shortly, and announced that the coffee was 
 under way ; and before long the hairy man brought it in a big" 
 pitcher with three cups, all that he could muster. 
 
 The coffee smelled deliciously, and the lunch looked excel 
 lently. In half an hour there was not so much as a drop or a 
 crumb left. Then the boys stretched themselves out on the rugs r 
 and begged Mr. Longwood to tell them a story. 
 
 " It so happens," said that gentleman, " that we are passing 
 historic scenes at this moment. Here on the west side of the 
 liver were the old Forts Clinton and Montgomery, where there 
 was fighting during the Revolution." 
 
 " Do tell us about it," they all exclaimed. 
 
 " You have all heard of how, during the Revolution, Burgoyne 
 tried to march down from Canada, by way of the lakes, to Albany^ 
 while Sir Henry Clinton was to move up the Hudson, and meet
 
 652 4 TRIO OF CLINTONS. 
 
 him there. It was a well-conceived plan ; and it lacked only one 
 thing, and that was success. Burgoyne was captured at Saratoga. 
 Sir Henry Clinton never reached Albany. He made the attempt, 
 however ; and, if he had made it sooner, possibly the whole face 
 of matters might have been changed. 
 
 " He waited for some Hessian re-enforcements which were on 
 their way to him from over sea. They, however, had sailed 
 in Dutch vessels, which were not much better sailers than the 
 noble craft on which we now are, and so did not arrive until 
 October, a good month or more later than they were expected. 
 
 " As soon as they did come, he set out up the river with 
 some five thousand men. 
 
 " The Americans had stretched an enormous iron chain from 
 the tip of Anthony's Nose across to the opposite shore, and 
 there had built two forts, Montgomery and Clinton, to dispute 
 the passage of the river with the British ships. These obstacles 
 had to be overcome, of course, before the English could make 
 their little visit to Albany. It is a curious fact, that each of the 
 American forts was commanded by a Clinton, and that the com 
 mander of the British was also a Clinton." 
 
 " Were they any relation ? " asked one of the boys. 
 
 " Not that I ever heard of," said Mr. Longwood. 
 
 " Well, the British, as I said, set out from New York, and 
 proceeded up the river. In the two forts together there were 
 but six hundred men ; and it was important to conceal his inten 
 tion of attacking them, lest they should be thoroughly garrisoned. 
 So Sir Henry landed a couple of thousand men at Tarrytown, 
 and then marched them northward toward Peekskill. By this
 
 GEN. PUTNAM IS DECEIVED. 
 
 653 
 
 means he deceived Gen. Putnam, who was in command, and 
 who thought his intention was to destroy the supplies that were 
 stored there. So that all the militia of the districts about has 
 tened to Peekskill, and the forts were not strengthened. 
 
 THE FIGHT WITH THE FIELD-PIECE. 
 
 ." Then, taking advantage of a fog, Sir Henry Clinton passed 
 tw.D thousand men across the river, and landed them on the 
 west shore, with instructions to make their way north and attack 
 the forts." 
 
 " It must have been tough work forcing their way over those 
 hills, and through the forests," said Will. " How far was it ? " 
 
 " About twelve miles, I should fancy," said Mr. Longwood
 
 65 4 THE FIELD-PIECE IS SPIKED. 
 
 " And there was no road at all. A Tory piloted them by a 
 path he knew over the Dunderberg, but they had to go in 
 single file. When they had passed it, they divided into two 
 parties, and each attacked a fort. 
 
 " Gov. Clinton, the American in command, had suspected all 
 along that the enemy were intending to attack the forts, and 
 had his scouts posted on the Dunderberg. A little after noon 
 they descried the advancing force, fired upon them, and retreated. 
 A field-piece was at once sent out, but the enemy came on so 
 fast that the gun had to be spiked and left. Then the Amer 
 icans fell back on another gun, with which they did good work 
 on the advancing Hessians ; but unfortunately it burst. By 
 four o'clock the enemy had reached both forts, and an assault 
 was made without loss of time." 
 
 " Of course they won," said Jack. " They were three to our 
 one, and regulars against militia. It was not a fair show at all." 
 
 " Nevertheless," said Mr. Longwood, " they had to fight hard 
 for it. But, as you say, the Americans were at a great dis 
 advantage. To add to it, a British frigate or two had come up 
 the river, and opened fire upon them from the water-side. 
 
 " They continued to resist obstinately until dusk, when the 
 British conquered. The clouds had come up thickly, and dark 
 ness came on apace ; and the Americans, having no mind to see 
 the inside of a British prison in New York, lost no time in 
 escaping to the forests that surrounded them on every side. 
 There was some desultory fighting, but it soon ceased; and the 
 hardy militia found no difficulty in making their way to safety. 
 Both American generals escaped, one badly wounded ; and over
 
 TWO HUNDRED MEN REPORT FOR DUTY. 
 
 657 
 
 two hundred of their men reported for duty at their headquar 
 ters, some twelve miles or more distant, the next day. There 
 
 THE ADVANCE OF THE HESSIANS. 
 
 , 
 
 were but six hundred, you must remember, in the two forts to 
 gether at the beginning of the fight."
 
 6 5 8 
 
 THE BOOM IS DESTROYED. 
 
 " And what became of the boom from Anthony's Nose ? " 
 asked Ned. 
 
 THE ASSAULT ON THE FORT. 
 
 The British destroyed it as soon as they secured the forts,"
 
 ' 
 THE FIRE REACHES THE MAGAZINES. 659 
 
 said Mr. Longwood. " There were one or two American armed 
 vessels above the boom ; and these, when they saw how the 
 battle had gone, raised their sails, and tried to escape up the 
 river. The wind was against them though, and they could make 
 no headway : so their crews set them afire, and abandoned 
 them." 
 
 " What a magnificent sight it must have been ! " said Charlie. 
 
 " Yes," said Will. " It was at night, you know, and of course 
 the guns would go off one after another as the fire reached 
 them ; and at last when it reached the magazine there would 
 be one grand crash, and then silence." 
 
 " There was a spy captured at the American general's head 
 quarters, a day or two after the battle, under very curious cir 
 cumstances," said Mr. Longwood. " He was discovered by the 
 pickets, and, having asked what general was stationed near, was 
 told, Clinton. Thereon he asked to see him at once. He was 
 led into his presence. He was noticed to change color, and 
 heard to exclaim, in a low tone, ' I am lost ! ' At the same 
 moment he put something into his mouth, and swallowed it. 
 They gave him an emetic, and soon brought to light a silver 
 bullet. He managed to secure it, and again swallowed it. They 
 gave him an emetic a second time. He refused to take it at 
 first ; but, on being told that he should be hanged and cut 
 open if he did not, he yielded, and the bullet was once more 
 produced. It was found to unscrew, and to contain a note from 
 Sir Henry Clinton to Burgoyne, telling of his success." 
 
 " But why in the world did the man act so like a fool ? " said 
 Tom. " He must have been crazy."
 
 660 THE END OF A SPY. 
 
 " No," said Mr. Longwood. " In the first place, he thought 
 the Americans totally cut up by the late battle, and he had no 
 idea that they could have re-organized in even the smallest way. 
 And he had never heard of an American Gen. Clinton. How 
 ever, in spite of all this, he hardly seems to have been the 
 man to make his way across a hundred miles or two of an 
 enemy's country." 
 
 " I suppose the discovery of the note was his death- warrant,' r 
 said Will. 
 
 " Yes : he was tried as a spy, and hanged to an apple-tree,'" 
 said Mr. Longwood. 
 
 " The fighting at these two forts about which you have told 
 us was not all that came off in tb~ Highlands, was it?" asked 
 Will. 
 
 " No," said Mr. Longwood. " There was the storming of 
 Stony Point by Wayne, Mad Anthony Wayne as he was called 
 on account of his reckless courage. That took place a couple of 
 years later. We shall be passing the point presently." 
 
 " That was a night assault, wasn't it ? " asked Will. 
 
 " Yes. The way was this. The British had captured the 
 works which the Americans had begun at Stony Point, and had 
 greatly enlarged and strengthened them. There were only forty 
 men in the fort at the time, so that its capture was an easy 
 affair. Then, on the other side of the river there was another 
 fort, which the British secured also. These two commanded the 
 river pretty effectually. 
 
 " When we pass the point, you can notice what a strong 
 position it is by nature. Three sides are surrounded by water ;
 
 POMPEY MARCHES ON BEFORE. 663 
 
 and, in old times, the fourth was a morass, where the tide came 
 in to a depth of two or three feet. Of ccTurse, the occupation 
 of these positions menaced the American posts at West Point, 
 and made it necessary to keep there a large force at all times. 
 
 "So it was resolved that Stony Point should be assaulted, 
 and Anthony Wayne was chosen to do the work. On a hot 
 July afternoon the Americans made their way in single file 
 through the wild defiles of the hills, and at sunset rendezvoused 
 a mile and a half from the fort. Meantime the darkness came 
 on, and the garrison within t^ie walls betook themselves to slum 
 ber, little dreaming of the foe that lay so quietly and so close 
 at hand. 
 
 " The patriot force did not move until near midnight, and 
 then not a sound betokened their forward march. Every dog in 
 the neighborhood had been killed the day before, lest some watch 
 ful bark might give the alarm. At their head marched Pompey, 
 an old negro, their guide ; and by his side two stalwart men, 
 disguised as farmers. Their business was to seize the sentinel, 
 when Pompey engaged his attention in talk." 
 
 " Did they expect that the sentinels would let him walk up 
 to them ? " asked Tom. " They surely would not do any thing 
 so foolish ! " 
 
 " Pompey was a privileged character," said Mr. Longwood. " He 
 had brought berries to the fort to sell all through the spring, 
 and the officers were only too glad to buy them. He belonged 
 to a strong patriot, who, by this means, knew about every 
 thing that went on within the walls, for the negro kept his eyes 
 well open while selling berries. Presently Pompey announced to
 
 664 
 
 THE OFFICERS ENJOY BERRIES. 
 
 the officers that he could not come any more. He had to hoe 
 corn in the day-time, he said. They were in no mind to lose 
 their fresh berries, and so gave him the countersign, that he 
 
 IN THE FORT. 
 
 might pass the guards at night. He had been in and out often 
 now, so that the sentry would not suspect him.
 
 A SENTINEL ON THE HIGH GROUND. 
 
 6G 5 
 
 There was a sentinel stationed on the high ground before 
 
 THE PICKET GUARD. 
 
 they came to the rnorass which they had to pass, and another
 
 665 THE FORT'S OUR OWN. 
 
 at the head of a narrow causeway, or road, that crossed it. Both 
 these men were made prisoners without an alarm being given. 
 Then the Americans divided into two bodies, so as to make their 
 attack at two different points. One followed the causeway ; the 
 others plunged into the morass, and waded on through water 
 two feet deep. Every man had in his hat a piece of white 
 paper, to distinguish him from the enemy in the darkness ; and 
 they had taken as their watchword the British countersign for 
 the night, ' The fort's our own.' 
 
 " Silently and steadily they marched. The pickets did not 
 discover them in the darkness, until they were within pistol-shot ; 
 but then the drum beat to arms, and the cannon opened upon 
 them. They fired not a shot in return, but pressed forward at 
 the point of the bayonet. Wayne led one column. As he was 
 almost entering the fort, a bullet struck him on the head, and 
 felled him. Stunned, and believing for the moment that he was 
 
 ft 
 
 mortally wounded, he cried to his aides, ' March on ! Carry me 
 in, for I will die at the head of the column.' He did not die, 
 however, but lived to receive the laurels that his gallant action 
 brought him. The whole country rang with his praises. 
 
 " The capture of the fort was important in two ways. It 
 enabled the Americans to destroy the works which the British 
 had so carefully built, and it had a great and stimulating effect 
 on the rest of the army. Congress struck off medals which were 
 presented to the leaders." 
 
 " You say," said Charlie, " that the Americans destroyed the 
 fort. They didn't hold it, then ? " 
 
 " No," said Mr. Longwood. " They would not have been
 
 THE ASSAULT.
 
 STRUCK BELOW THE WATER-MARK. 669 
 
 able, in all probability, against the force the British would bring 
 against them. They were, you must remember, at some distance 
 from the main force, and in a wild country. They therefore 
 destroyed all the works and the supplies. They attempted to 
 move the heavy artillery, which they put upon a hulk. But, the 
 moment she set . out for West Point, the fort on the opposite 
 shore opened fire on her, and one or two of the British men- 
 of-war joined in ; and, after a little, a shot struck her below 
 water-mark, and she filled, and went down." 
 
 " Well, I for one am glad " said Charlie, " that I live in the 
 piping times of peace." 
 
 " You may well be thankful that, at all events, you did not 
 live in the valley of the Hudson and its tributaries," said Mr. 
 Longwood. " Between the inroads of the Indians, led by their 
 great chief Brant, and the strong Tory element that existed, 
 the patriot settler, on his half-cleared farm, lived always with 
 rifle in reach of his hand. 
 
 " I put a little book in my pocket before starting, thinking 
 that this subject might come up," he went on, " Let me read 
 you a settler's reminiscences. Possibly your satisfaction, at living 
 at the time you do, may increase. The writer says, 
 
 " ' We were constantly exposed to the harassing incursions 
 of the Tories and Indians. Almost the whole country was 
 alarmed by them ; and, with the subtlety peculiar to the savage 
 intellect, they seemed to escape every attempt at capture. Often 
 we have seen them running across the fields upon the opposite 
 side of the river, now stooping behind fences which afforded 
 them a partial cover, and now boldly running across the open
 
 670 KEEPING WATCH ALL NIGHT. 
 
 ground, where the fences were down, to some other enclosed 
 field, along which they skulked as before. During these alarms, 
 our neighbors used to come and live with us for weeks together 
 until the danger was over, and then they would return home. 
 The principal men of the country had guards stationed at their 
 dwellings. Some of the militia colonels who had become obnox 
 ious to the enemy were protected by guards of five and six 
 men about each house. Minor precautions were also taken, and 
 the relation of some of them will show my readers how weari 
 some was the life we led. My father was in the habit of stack 
 ing his corn in the field, and indeed all his grain, placing it as 
 far as possible from the fences ; for in case of surprise, and if 
 his dwelling should be burned, he knew what was scattered 
 through the fields would in a measure be safe. It was a com 
 mon thing in those days for the farmers with us to transport 
 their grain to Albany during the winter, and keep it stored there 
 for protection. In the summer it was carried back load by load, 
 as it was wanted for use. 
 
 " ' In the fall, alarms still continued ; *nd every precaution, as 
 was usual, was taken by us. We used to stack our straw in the 
 field near the house, and so erect the pile as to leave at the top 
 a conical hole, in which two persons kept watch during the 
 alarms, this way, every night. A ladder was placed for us to 
 mount with our guns ; and, when we were ensconced, it was 
 withdrawn. One slept while the other watched ; and, though 
 our elevation was not more than ten feet, it gave us a great 
 advantage in detecting the approach of the enemy. Perched in 
 these eyries, we passed night after night, while our sleepless
 
 I ESPY AN ENEMY. 671 
 
 strained their vision to catch the least appearance of the 
 foe. Indeed, we commanded a full view of the river, and to the 
 north and west for a great distance. Nor was this the only 
 method which caution induced us to take. The horses were 
 frequently harnessed to our sleds at night, which made, of 
 course, less noise than the wagons, to transport our baggage 
 down to a ravine, for the sake of preserving it from an expected 
 incursion. 
 
 " ' On one such occasion, when our neighbors were living 
 with us, as I have said, we had thirteen guns loaded and in 
 order ; and, being divided into watches, we stood as sentries 
 round the house. It soon came my turn to go out with one of 
 the blacks by the name of Ned, whom, on most occasions, a 
 pair of fleet heels served a friendly part. 
 
 " ' Ned, however, talked largely ; and I felt no backwardness 
 in stating what havoc we would make among the Tories with 
 our thirteen guns. While every one was fast asleep, about mid 
 night, during one of our walks towards a fence which ran down 
 to the river, as the moon was just rising behind us, and throw 
 ing a faint light on the scene beyond, I perceived with horror 
 the approach of objects whose movements appeared to be gov 
 erned by the most perfect military rules. Every now and then 
 they would halt, and, after a short rest, would move on with the 
 same precision. They were crossing a wheat-field which lay to 
 the south of the fence I have mentioned, anxious to get under 
 its cover for the purpose of concealing their approach to the 
 house. The rustling of the stubble seemed to be as carefully 
 avoided as possible. I watched them with the deepest interest
 
 672 I TAKE TO MY HEELS. 
 
 until they made a deliberate and regular halt when they came 
 to the fence. I was then convinced we were in imminent dan 
 ger, and, turning round to give some order to my companion, 
 found he was gone. I hesitated not a moment to follow his 
 example, and, hastening to the house, arrived there about the 
 same time with Ned. We woke up the sleepers with the star 
 tling information that a large number of disciplined men were 
 within a quarter of a mile of the house, and approaching it with 
 caution and perfect regularity. 
 
 " ' In an instant all the men were armed and ready. My 
 father volunteered to run down a few rods, and reconnoitre. He 
 did so, and came back with the news that they were coming. 
 A brief consultation was held as to the best manner of receiving 
 them ; as flight was impracticable under the circumstances, with 
 out abandoning both wives and children. One was for firing as 
 they mounted a fence that went across at right angles to the 
 house, parallel to the river. Another was for opening upon them 
 as they ascended the rising ground that intervened between the 
 house and bank of the river. The last project was approved, 
 and we were cautioned to fire low, and to make every shot tell. 
 The party stationed themselves accordingly, and I then volun 
 teered to go down and take another look. They still appeared in 
 motion, but, apparently without caution, approached the bank and 
 fence running parallel to it. There they halted for some time, 
 and I hastened back with the intelligence. Their apparent irreso 
 lution inspired us with fresh vigor, and we began to grow more 
 resolute as our enemy seemed to hesitate. A half hour passed 
 away, when they again moved forward briskly to the north ;
 
 FROM THE SUBLIME TO THE RIDICULOUS. 673 
 
 and this change of plan seemed to be the result of consultation, 
 and led us to expect their attack through the hollow, which it 
 seemed their object to gain, and by which the house was more 
 easily assailable. We now felt confident that some of the party 
 must be familiar with the ground, for no stranger would have 
 thought of approaching through the ravine. We shifted our 
 ground a little upon seeing this, and threw ourselves farther to 
 the right, where we still maintained the advantage of our ele 
 vated position. Learning all this manoeuvring, the wives of our 
 friends, and my mother, came out, almost crazy with alarm, yet 
 not daring to make any noise for fear of the consequences. 
 My father peremptorily ordered them back without explanation 
 Our eyes were still intent on our foes, when they suddenl 
 stopped near a spring which gushed out of the hill below u, 
 and there remained, until the moon, rising higher and higher, 
 threw its clear detecting light over the scene, and discovered to 
 us that our enemies were six of our horses that had broken 
 loose from their pasture. What a change from the sublime to 
 the ridiculous ! In an instant we discovered the curious causes 
 which led to our mistake. Six horses belonging to us and our 
 neighbors had been tied together abreast, and hoppled, to pre 
 vent their straying. It turned out that they had been without 
 water for two days previously, and, incited by thirst, had broken 
 into the wheat-field, and followed the fence until they came to 
 the spring of water.' ' 
 
 " Of course it was awfully hard for the men of those days," 
 interrupted Will. " It could have been no fun to fight on, half- 
 fed and half-clothed, for year after year, in the camp, and away
 
 A VISIT FROM THE HESSIANS. 
 
 from home. But just think what the women must have suffered! 
 They could not relieve their feelings by taking a musket, and 
 
 UNWELCOME VISITORS. 
 
 marching against the foe ; but must stay at home, and live in 
 terror of visits from the dreaded Hessians, or some prowling 
 band of rascally Tories, who in a single morning would eat and
 
 ONE SUNDA Y NIGHT. 675 
 
 drink up every thing that was to have kept them through the 
 winter. It is a pity Carrie is not here to stand up for them. 
 But go on, please, Mr. Longwood." 
 
 " ' One Sunday night, after all the family had retired to their 
 bed, it being a still, clear night in the fall of the year, we 
 heard our dogs barking violently in the front of the house, while 
 a confused sound of voices accompanied the deep-mouthed bay 
 ing. In an instant my father was out of bed, and ready for 
 action, when my prudent mother checked his impetuosity by 
 saying he was not a match for the persons without ; that, if he 
 went out, he would be taken ; and that perhaps, if all was kept 
 still within the house, the enemy would not think it necessary 
 to commit any violence for the sake of securing their own 
 safety, and go off. Gradually the noise of the dogs became 
 fainter and more distant ; and, before many minutes passed away, 
 it was as still and tranquil as ever. When all was quiet, my 
 father, with his gun in his hand, stole cautiously out of the 
 house, and followed in the direction of the noise when last 
 heard. It led him to the river ; and he had scarce reached the 
 bank, when he distinctly heard the noise of a canoe-paddle as 
 it touched the sides of the sonorous machine. Every one who 
 has noticed the sound of the oars of a boat, or the paddles of 
 a canoe, will readily recollect the hollow tone which they make, 
 and which, on some occasions, has an unnatural effect upon the 
 ear. My father, by long use, had become accustomed not only 
 to distinguish these peculiar sounds, but knew his own canoe by 
 the tones its hollow trough gave out at the touch of the rower. 
 On this occasion, his acute ear told him that his canoe was
 
 676 OUR CANOE IS GONE. 
 
 nearly across the river. For a moment he hesitated whether he 
 should not fire in the direction of the noise ; but, on reflection, 
 he thought the risk too great, and the advantage too remote, to 
 be hazarded by the discharge of his rifle. Slowly he turned his 
 back homewards, while his faithful curs, at his first approach, 
 having discovered their master, followed at his heels with a 
 whine which almost spoke their uneasiness and. alarm. In the 
 morning the canoe was discovered on the other side of the 
 river, and the circumstances led to suspicion that all was not 
 right. My father, as the sequel will show, had been in great 
 danger ; and his neighbors felt very unpleasantly about it, and 
 were constantly on the alert to discover who those persons could 
 have been, and whether they were in the vicinity. There \vas a 
 Capt. Dunham, who commanded a militia company in the neigh 
 borhood, a great Whig, and a firm friend of ours, who also 
 exerted himself to trace the marauder, and was in frequent con 
 sultation with Col. Van Vechten on the subject. One evening, 
 as they were together at a place of public entertainment, if such 
 a thing could be in those times, a boy was seen emerging from 
 the woods in the neighborhood on horseback, and, presently 
 approaching the place where they were, asked if he could pur 
 chase a little rum. When he was answered, " No," he imme 
 diately mounted, returned a considerable distance, and then wa? 
 seen galloping down the main road by the river-side. On 
 seeing this, Dunham exclaimed, " This means something, I am 
 sure of it ! " They then watched for the boy's return, and in a 
 few minutes he repassed at full speed. He then re-entered the 
 wood, and was gone from their sight in an instant.
 
 AROUND THE CAMP FIRE.
 
 A PERSON BY THE NAME OF GREEN. 679 
 
 " ' Dunham, when he reached home, immediately went to a 
 person by the name of Green, an able-bodied, bold, and perse 
 vering fellow. He was the safeguard of the people around him, 
 always ready for action, never desponding, and fearless to an 
 extent that was remarkable. He was always relied upon in try 
 ing emergencies by the leading men in the vicinity ; and what 
 completed his merit was, he was never dilatory. Dunham related 
 the circumstance to him, and declared his belief that there was a 
 party of Tories in the neighborhood. Three other persons were 
 called upon the same night for their assistance ; and, when the 
 rest of their neighbors were asleep, these hardy men com 
 menced their reconnoissance. Every suspected spot was carefully 
 approached in hopes to observe the objects of their search. 
 Every hollow that could contain a hiding-place was looked into ; 
 but in a more particular manner the out-houses and barns of 
 those persons who were suspected for their attachment to the 
 enemy were examined by them. It seemed all in vain. No 
 traces of a concealed foe were discovered, when towards day 
 break it was proposed to separate, and make one final search 
 for that time. Dunham took two men with him, and Green but 
 one. The former, as a last effort, returned to the house of one 
 Odeurman, who, it was probable, would be in communication with 
 an enemy, if near him. As he approached the house, he had 
 to pass a meadow adjoining, and observed a path leading from 
 the house to a small thicket of about three acres extent. Dun 
 ham immediately suspected it led to his enemy. He pursued it, 
 and found it passed round the thicket ; and, when it almost met 
 the place where it turned off, the path entered the wood. Dun-
 
 680 SHALL WE TAKE 
 
 ham paused, and, turning to his companions, said, " Here they 
 are : will you follow me ? " They instantly agreed to accompany 
 him ; and the party moved on in single file, with light and 
 cautious steps. As they got nearly to the centre, Dunham in 
 advance, a log stopped up the path, and seemed to prevent 
 any further approach. With a motion that indicated the neces 
 sity of their remaining still, he mounted the log, and, looking 
 over, discovered, sure enough, at once a desired and yet impos 
 ing sight. Round the remains of a watch-fire, which daybreak 
 rendered less necessary, sat a group of five fierce-looking men, 
 with countenances relaxed from their usual fixedness, but yet 
 betokening boldness, if not savageness of purpose. They were 
 dressing themselves, and putting on their shoes and stockings, 
 which stood by the side of their rude couches. Their clothes 
 were much worn, but had a military cut, and a peculiar snug fit, 
 which made their stout and muscular forms more apparent, and 
 distinguished them from the loose, slovenly, scarecrow figures 
 which the homely character of our country seamstresses imposed 
 upon every thing rural or rusticated among our people. Their 
 hats or caps were set carelessly on their heads, with the air of 
 regulars ; and what made them still more observable was, that 
 every man of them had his musket at his side on the ground, 
 ready to be used at an instant's notice. Dunham surveyed this 
 scene a few moments, and then drew back cautiously to his 
 companions. In a tone not above a whisper, he said, " Shall we 
 take 'em ? " A nod from his companions decided him. Each 
 now examined his musket, and re-primed it. The captain took 
 the right of his little band, and they moved forward to the log.
 
 SURRENDER, OR YOU ARE DEAD MEN. 68 r 
 
 They mounted it at the same instant ; and, as they did so, Dun 
 ham cried out, " Surrender, or you are all dead men ! " The 
 group that thus found themselves almost under the muzzles ot 
 their enemies' guns were indeed astonished. All but their leader, 
 Lovelass, seemed petrified and motionless. This resolute man 
 seemed disposed to make an effort for their lives. Twice, amid 
 the silence and stillness of the perilous moment, he stretched 
 out his hand to seize his gun. Each time he was prevented by 
 the nearer approach of the muzzle that pointed at his head, and 
 beyond which he saw an unflinching eye steadfastly fixed upon 
 him : at the same instant he was told that if he touched it he 
 was dead. 
 
 " ' At this critical period of the rencontre, Dunham peremp 
 torily ordered the party to come out, one by one, which they 
 reluctantly did ; fearing, perhaps, that they were surrounded by, 
 and in contact with, a superior force. As fast as one came over 
 the log, he was secured by the most powerful man of the three, 
 while the other two kept their pieces steadily pointed at the 
 other prisoners. In this way they were secured, and were 
 marched out of the thicket to the adjacent house. The inmates 
 of the dwelling were thunderstruck at perceiving the prisoners. 
 Some young women, who proved to be sisters of some of the 
 party, gave way to the most violent grief. Well aware of the 
 danger they were in, and of the speedy vengeance inflicted upon 
 Tories and spies, they anticipated the most dreadful conse 
 quences to their unhappy brothers ; and no words can express 
 the frantic sorrow to which they abandoned themselves. The 
 young men themselves assumed an air of firmness, but it was
 
 682 MARCHED OFF TO THE BARRACKS. 
 
 easily penetrated. They were marched off to Saratoga barracks ; 
 and, as they came up the main road opposite to our house, we 
 saw them approach, and my father and myself spoke to them. 
 They confessed that they were the persons who had alarmed us 
 on the night to which I have already alluded. 
 
 " ' After crossing in the canoe, they had lain two days and 
 nights in the bush, a quarter of a mile from the river, looking 
 out for persons alone, and intending to capture the principal and 
 most active of the neighboring Whigs. They did not deny that 
 they had deliberated some time as to the propriety of taking my 
 father off with them. 
 
 " ' The poor wretches were tried and condemned at a court- 
 martial. Lovelass alone suffered death. He was considered too 
 dangerous a man to be permitted to escape. He complained, 
 that, being found with arms in his hands, he was only a prisoner ; 
 and many thought, that, such being the fact, he was scarcely 
 punishable as a spy. Indeed, he even bewailed his hard fate, 
 and the injustice done him, but found he had nothing to expect 
 from the judges. In two or three days he was brought out 
 upon the hill, and suffered death upon the gallows. Nothing 
 could have been more quiet and unaffected than his manner ; 
 the spectators themselves were touched with compassion : but 
 public policy seemed to require an unbending sternness on the 
 part of the court, and his punishment certainly put an end for 
 that time to all marauding expeditions by the Tories. Love- 
 lass's companions were sent down the river, the same day, to a 
 depot for prisoners.' ' 
 
 " That is a tiptop story," said Jack, as Mr. Longwood
 
 A REGULAR FIRST-CLASS FELLOW. 683 
 
 stopped. "Hasn't the book a good .Indian one? just a regu 
 lar first-class fellow." 
 
 Mr. Longwood laughed. " Yes : I think I could find one that 
 would please you," he said. " But it will have to be short ; for 
 I begin to make out the houses of Sing Sing in the distance, 
 and I think we will get our worthy captain to put us ashore 
 there." 
 
 " Well, let's make sure of the story, anyway," said Jack, seat 
 ing himself in Turkish fashion, while the other boys grouped 
 themselves comfortably around. 
 
 " It is of one of the exploits of our old acquaintance Brant," 
 said Mr. Longwood, turning the leaves. 
 
 " ' On the morning of the day which Schoharie will long 
 remember, John Vrooman, well known as old rifle, and two others, 
 wire out upon duty as scouts. They were in the woods, about 
 eight miles distant from the settlement, anxiously reconnoitring 
 every suspicious object, and ready to fight or fly, as was more 
 necessary, when Vrooman caught a glance of an Indian, who 
 appeared engaged in a business similar to their own. The next 
 instant he raised his rifle to his face, and the savage fell. An 
 other Indian discovered himself, and Vrooman's companion fired at 
 him. This one also fell, apparently dead. A third rose, as if to 
 give them each a chance of firing ; but the third scout became 
 alarmed at this third vision, and refused to fire. Vrooman 
 snatched the rifle from his hand, and shot this one also. 
 Instantly a group of Indians and Tories rose from the ground 
 near them with a yell, and in a manner that clearly indicated 
 that they were disturbed in finishing their breakfast. ' Did you
 
 684 A FLOCK OF CROWS. 
 
 see that flock of crows ? ' said Vrooman. ' We shall have a 
 warm day of it : let every one take care of himself.' 
 
 " ' He was an old woodsman ; and, as the three scouts sepa 
 rated, he immediately made a tack, and dashed into the thickest 
 of the forest. The enemy pursued him ; and it was only by a 
 series of zigzag flights that he reached the fort at Vrooman's 
 Flats at noon, breathless, exhausted, and completely worn out by 
 fatigue. He was scarcely there before the flames of the dwell 
 ings at the settlement were visible. Brant, at the first alarm, 
 pushed for the settlement by an old road, and was already doing 
 his work of devastation. 
 
 " ' I had an aunt living at the place, whose husband, at the 
 moment of Brant's arrival, was engaged in loading his barn 
 with hay, and was himself on the load with the pitchfork in his 
 hand, while his sons were in the barn stowing it away. As he 
 accidentally looked around, he discovered the Indians between him 
 and the house. At the same instant he heard his wife scream. 
 He had presence of mind to cry out, ' My boys, the enemy ! ' 
 He jumped from the load, with the apparent intention of making 
 for the cornfield. As he struck the fence, a ball went through 
 him, and he fell dead on the spot. His wife was coming out 
 of the garden, where she had just parted with a neighbor, when 
 she saw the savages, and gave the shriek which had alarmed 
 her husband. She was instantly tomahawked. The three oldest 
 of the sons were mad?, prisoners; while the youngest brother, of 
 about five years of age, who had been playing about the wagon 
 in the field, they knocked on the head. Thus, in a few moments, 
 was a family put to a cruel and savage death. The three cap-
 
 THEY PRESENTED A WOFUL APPEARANCE. 685 
 
 tives were carried away to Canada. They did not obtain their 
 liberty until nearly two years afterwards. I well remember their 
 return. My father obtained information of it, and went to the 
 North to meet them. He brought them home to his own house r 
 and there learned the story of their sufferings and exile. From 
 their long captivity, and their continued labors in the field with 
 out hats, both in the service of the savages and the Canadians,, 
 they were burned very black, and presented a woful appearance. 
 
 " ' Some of the inhabitants, however, escaped under circum 
 stances very extraordinary, and worthy of reminiscence. The 
 road which led from the upper to the middle fort ran across the 
 hill. At the time of the enemy's approach, two men were in 
 the field with a wagon and horses, busily engaged in work. 
 They were at least two miles and a half from the fort. They 
 heard the noise of the engagement, and instantly attempted to 
 escape. One of them stood up and drove, while the other, with 
 his pitchfork, goaded the horses to their topmost speed. No 
 less than seven swing-gates interposed themselves as barriers on 
 the road ; but, as most miraculously they were made to swing- 
 either way, they were forced open by the horses running against 
 them. During this terrible race against time, several persons 
 succeeded in getting into the wagon from behind ; and these 
 laid hold of every person who came near enough to attempt the 
 same exploit. As they passed a point where an old person by 
 the name of Swarts resided, who was unloading some corn from 
 a wagon, they gave him the alarm, and, being near the goal 
 they wished to arrive at, slackened their pace. He told them 
 not to wait for him. He sent one of his men to his house to
 
 686 A MIRACULOUS ESCAPE. 
 
 call his wife, while he reharnessed his horses to the wagon. 
 His poor wife came running out, the picture of distraction, and, 
 in her fright, forgot her child, that was sleeping in a cradle. 
 She was surprised at her forgetfulness, and ran back for it. 
 The three were then hauled into the wagon as quick as possible. 
 The horses were forced into a gallop down the hill, and through 
 the creek. Notwithstanding they were pursued by the savages 
 the whole of the distance, they escaped, reaching the fort in 
 safety, with eleven persons in the wagon, picked up in this 
 singular manner. The harness was covered with clotted blood, 
 and the poor animals were completely exhausted. Another per 
 son escaped across the flats in this way. Whenever he found 
 his pursuer gaining on him, he would turn round, and point 
 something which he carried towards the savage, as if he was 
 about to fire. This occasioned a halt ; and, with a fresh breath 
 drawn at those intervals, he completely succeeded in getting 
 safely into the fort. 
 
 " ' This celebrated excursion, as I before mentioned, was con 
 ducted by Sir John Johnson and Brant. The force which they had 
 with them has always been said to have been 1,150, counting red 
 and white. The enemy, while on their march, were discovered by 
 the lookouts at the upper fort ; and immediately three guns were 
 discharged as a signal to the neighborhood. As I have before 
 mentioned, the inhabitants were engaged in their usual business, 
 for they always hoped to be able to retire to the fort before the 
 danger became imminent. When the alarm was given, my grand 
 father was in the fort, and his son was in a mill which belonged 
 to the family, about one mile from the place. The former imme-
 
 SHALL THE WHITE FLAG BE FIRED ON? 687 
 
 diately went down to the mill, and the two shut it up, and 
 stopped its motion. This was considered very venturesome in 
 the old man, but he was not immediately exposed through his 
 rashness. Besides, the life of a favorite son was not the least 
 incentive on the occasion. He and his son mounted two horses 
 that were there, while the miller trusted to his legs for security. 
 As the fugitives approached the fort on their return, they dis 
 covered the enemy within a hundred yards of them. They 
 immediately changed their course, and got in at the rear of the 
 fort without further risk. This was early in the morning. After 
 sunrise, Sir John Johnson surrounded the middle fort, and sent 
 a flag demanding its surrender. Exasperated by the sufferings 
 they had already undergone, and perhaps by a knowledge of the 
 mischief already done at the flats, and incited to hostility by 
 the remarks of some old people, that they wanted no red-coats 
 in the fort, they told the sentry to fire at the flag, and drive it 
 off. A Major W., a Continental officer, who was stationed there, 
 endeavored to prevent this outrage of military etiquette, and 
 commanded the sentry not to fire. The militia officer overruled 
 him, and gave peremptory orders to the man to fire. I can 
 imagine the moment when the willing sentry, looking beyond 
 the rude palisade which skirted the fort, saw the white flag 
 drawing nearer with that uncertainty of manner which indicates 
 the doubt of a favorable reception. Raising his musket to his 
 shoulder, he looked around for some approving look from his 
 comrades-in-arms. The distant smoke, which he well knew was 
 from the torch of the incendiary, and the glitter of the red-coats 
 just within sight of him, gave a sort of tremor to his hand, and
 
 688 A CONTINENTAL OFFICER. 
 
 he thought of the fate which perhaps awaited them all. Just 
 behind him stood the extremes of Continental etiquette and 
 militia subordination, personified in the one instance by a sharp 
 and huge cocked hat, trimmed profusely with gold lace, sur 
 mounting a well-powdered head ; the lips of the officer firmly 
 set, and his right hand resting on a cane, with which he now 
 and then laid down his argument, and somewhat roundly too, on 
 the toes of his unlucky listeners around him. A long-waisted 
 blue coat turned up with buff, that met and parted at the same 
 time on his breast, and a black-silk kerchief drawn tightly round 
 his throat, completed the upper part of our major. A pair of 
 small-clothes drawn tightly over a muscular thigh were met at 
 the knee by a pair of straight-sided boots, that doubtless, by 
 their stiffness and want of pliability, prevented any thing like an 
 attack upon the limb inside. A white belt thrown over the 
 whole man, and a heavy sabre with a leathern scabbard, com 
 pleted the Ajax of the council, the son of chivalry, and the 
 regularly fed friend of the Continental Congress. But the nicely 
 drawn arguments taken from the rules of war were lost upon 
 the rude minds of his unlettered but exasperated companions. 
 Their embrowned visages, but illy protected by their ancient hats, 
 which had served at least during the war, declared that revenge 
 and an obstinate defence were all they wished, and that the means 
 which were to lead to these were not to be invaded by rules to 
 which they, at least, had never subscribed. 
 
 " ' Brown shirts were the panoply of the farmer soldiers : 
 over them hung powder-horns and shot-bags, manufactured dur 
 ing the winter nights, and now and then stopped up with a.
 
 THE FLAG-BEARER TAKES TO FLIGHT. 689 
 
 corn-cob. Muskets were rather uncommon. Long fowling-pieces 
 were more in fashion in Schoharie. Sometimes the rank of the 
 individual led him to greater expense in equipment. A sparse 
 sprinkling of gold lace in places best calculated for display, a 
 long feather, and a thin epaulette, were indicative of the superior 
 pretensions of the man who wore them. 
 
 " ' Occasionally, in the interstices of the disputants, an old 
 man or two would be listening with that peculiar expression 
 of countenance which argues the possession of hard hearing. 
 These, who had generally known something of service in the 
 French war, would occasionally chime in with Yes or No, as the 
 controversy came within the range of their memories. There was 
 another argument used, which, after all, was perhaps the most 
 powerful of any ; and this was the fact, that, however etiquette 
 might be regarded by the besieged, it certainly was not likely 
 to produce a correspondent feeling on the part of the enemy. 
 On the whole, the friends of etiquette were overpowered. The 
 order to fire was repeated, and the close shot of the sentinel 
 drove away at full speed the bearer of the flag of truce. The 
 major, however, unwilling to be responsible for the consequences, 
 retired to his pallet, and excused himself from any further com 
 mand at present, alleging his indisposition. A Capt. Vrooman 
 was invested with the honors of the command, and, at the head 
 of three hundred and fifty men, besides women and children, 
 resolved to fight while there was a combatant of either sex left 
 alive. After the violation of the flag, Sir John brought up his 
 artillery, and fired upon the fort. The fire was promptly returned. 
 Having a few light howitzers with him, he threw a few shells,
 
 690 THE MAJOR IS ROUTED, AND RETIRES. 
 
 of which only two struck the building. One of them entered 
 the roof of a small building in the pickets, and fell through the 
 roof into a room where two sick women were lying. It was 
 arrested in its fall by a feather-bed, where it exploded, and 
 scattered a gale of feathers about the apartment. No serious 
 injury, however, occurred. An effort was made to set fire to 
 the pickets and out-houses, by loading a wagon with dry wheat, 
 and, after firing it, to shove it as close to the place as possible. 
 This attempt also failed. Either the sharp shooting of the rifle 
 men, or the short-lived flames of the material which was used, 
 prevented any injury. The principal part of the day was occu 
 pied in operations of this kind, when the sentry again discovered 
 the approach of a white flag. In an instant the news was about, 
 and a crowd again assembled to watch its coming. Major W. 
 with the rest, determined to make his last stand against the 
 invasion of military law. A Capt. Reghtmeyer, however, was on 
 the platform where the soldier stood, and he gave him the order 
 to fire. The major, exasperated at this, drew his sword, and 
 seemed about to run the delinquent through. The little captain, 
 who carried a fusee in his hand, instantly clubbed it, and made 
 an impressive motion with its breech, which again drove the 
 major back to his retreat. 
 
 " ' During this petty siege, the enemy would draw off their 
 forces, and burn and destroy dwellings in the neighborhood. At 
 these intervals, our men would succeed in killing numbers of 
 them ; but, the moment any thing like a show of force took 
 place, the latter would run back, repass the gate under the pro 
 tection of a heavy fire from their comrades, and the small
 
 A DESULTORY WARFARE. 691 
 
 artillery, within the walls. During this desultory warfare, which 
 lasted from morning to night, the females within our fort dis 
 played a heroism worthy of commemoration. They were well 
 provided with arms, which they intended to use if the English 
 attempted to take the place by storm. Their services were not 
 required by such an extremity. One of these, then an interest 
 ing and handsome young female, whose name is still mentioned 
 with respect by the people of Schoharie, displayed a good deal 
 of courage on this occasion. Perceiving that one of our men, 
 who went to draw water from a well within reach of the enemy's 
 fire, scudded into the fort as fast as he could to escape it, she 
 gallantly went out herself, and drew water for the men in the 
 fort, as long as any was required. Without changing color, she 
 carried bucket after bucket to the thirsty combatants, and, provi 
 dentially, she escaped without the slightest injury. 
 
 " ' Finding the fort too strong for them, the enemy drew 
 down to the lower fort, and, after skirmishing until sundown 
 without much effect, drew off towards the Mohawk River. By 
 this time, however, the alarm had spread through the neighbor 
 ing settlements ; and a body of militia of sufficient force to 
 become the assailants arrived, it is said, within a short distance 
 of the enemy near the river, and Sir John Johnson, in conse 
 quence, had actually made arrangements to surrender. The 
 Americans, however, at this moment, fell back a short distance, 
 for the sake of occupying a better position during the night. 
 The interval was improved by the enemy ; and, by great exertions 
 on their part, floats and rafts were constructed, upon which they 
 passed over before the Americans came up in the morning.
 
 692 A FAIR MARK FOR THE RIFLE. 
 
 There is a tradition among the Schoharie people, however, that, 
 as the last float was going over, a British officer who was on 
 it offered a fair mark for the rifle, in consequence of the glitter 
 of his dress in the light of the morning sun. A friendly Oneida 
 asked permission to fire at him; and, on its being given, he took 
 a rest for his rifle in order to take a good aim, fired, and shot 
 the officer instantly.' " 
 
 As Mr. Longwood finished reading, and closed the book, 
 Jack jumped up promptly. 
 
 " Shall I go and tell the hairy man to get his boat," he 
 asked, " to put us ashore ? " 
 
 " I suppose he may as well have it ready," said Mr. Long- 
 wood ; " for we shall be off Sing Sing presently, and that will be 
 a good place to land. All or nearly all the express-trains stop 
 there, so that we can be sure of getting home promptly." 
 
 The hairy man was sitting forward on the roof of the stable. 
 He had been sitting there for an hour, doing nothing but gaze 
 morosely at the water. The mules every now and then lifted 
 up their united voices in a tenor and bass duet, with a volume 
 of sound that seemed as if it must lift the roof of their stable, 
 hairy man and all, clear off, and send them floating down the 
 river. But their sweet notes did not seem to rouse him. He 
 sat as stolidly as ever. 
 
 Jack approached, and made known their wishes. 
 
 He rose without a word, and jumping on to the boat next 
 alongside, and from that to another, made his way forward until. 
 he came to the bow of the one nearest the tug that was draw 
 ing them. Between him and the tug lay a broad stretch of
 
 
 THE BOAT IS BROUGHT ALONGSIDE. 693 
 
 boiling water lashed into foam by the paddle-wheels. Putting 
 his hands to his mouth, he gave a loud halloo. 
 
 A man standing idly on the deck answered ; and a conversa 
 tion in shouts ensued, of which the boys could hear nothing. 
 Apparently, however, it terminated successfully ; for they saw a 
 boat tipped off the stern of the tug. Then the paddle-wheels 
 stopped for a moment ; and the man, taking advantage of the 
 temporary lull, jumped into his boat, and, with a few vigorous 
 strokes, sent it out of the whirling eddies into the quieter water 
 on the farther side of the tow. The hairy man met him there, 
 got into the boat while the new-comer got out, and sat down 
 to talk with an acquaintance he had found. 
 
 Presently their man brought the boat around to the side of 
 his own craft where they were waiting, and threw aboard the 
 painter, which Tom made fast. Then Jack and Ned and Charlie 
 made their way over the side, and the three others were about 
 to follow, when suddenly there appeared up the cabin-steps a 
 woman. She was not a handsome woman. Over her head was 
 tied a handkerchief which, folded two or three times, completely 
 covered one eye. She appeared to have been engaged in 
 sweeping : at all events, she had a broom in her hands. She 
 advanced to where they were embarking, and, addressing her 
 husband, said firmly, 
 
 " John Quincy Adams Jones, you get out of that boat." 
 
 " I'm goin' to put them ashore," said the man. 
 
 " Not much you ain't," she said. " You're comin' right out 
 of that boat quicker." 
 
 " But, my good woman," said Mr. Longwood, " he has prom 
 ised to land us at Sing Sing."
 
 694 JOHN QUINCY ADAMS JONES GETS OUT. 
 
 " Don't good woman me," said she fiercely, turning upon 
 that gentleman, who involuntarily retreated a step. " When 
 you've only one eye left, you'll know better'n let your husband 
 go off where he can get liquor, when you see the fit comin' on 
 him. Coin' ashore ! Not if I knows it. Here, you, John Quincy 
 Adams Jones, you get out of that boat." 
 
 Thus adjured, John Quincy Adams Jones got out. 
 
 " Who's to take 'em, then ? " he said sulkily. 
 
 " Never you mind : you ain't. Here, Sam," she called to 
 one of the mule-drivers, who had been asleep in his bunk until 
 roused by the commotion, " you get in here, and take these 
 folks ashore." 
 
 " Do'no zi know how to row much," said the man, taken 
 aback at the suddenness of this order, and scratching his head 
 stupidly. 
 
 " Then'ts time you learned. Get in, I say, the whole passel 
 of you;" and she clutched her broom, and looked so threaten 
 ingly, that no one dared to object ; but pell-mell, Tom, Will,, 
 Mr. Longwood, and Sam all tumbled in. The next moment the 
 end of their painter was unloosed and thrown after them, and 
 they were adrift. 
 
 Tom seized one oar, and Will another ; and, as they were both 
 broad-shouldered lads, the boat was soon moving at a good 
 pace. It was well loaded down, though, with our party, so that 
 pulling at the oars was no light task. 
 
 After a little, the pier at Sing Sing began to be close at 
 hand. Just then a faint shout was heard behind them. They 
 stopped, and all looked back. On the deck of one of the boats
 
 THE MAN MAKES NO REPLY, 695 
 
 of the flotilla they had left, they could see a man who was 
 shouting wildly, and gesticulating. 
 
 " He acts as if he wanted us to come back," said Mr. Long- 
 wood. " Can we have left any thing behind us ? " 
 
 The boys counted their packages. No ; nothing was missing. 
 
 " He must be shouting at some one else," said Mr. Long- 
 wood. " Go on, boys." 
 
 So the oars were dipped once more, and soon they were all 
 scrambling up the pier. 
 
 " The boat will row more easily going back," said Tom pleas 
 antly to the man. " You'll be glad to get rid of us." 
 
 The man made no reply. He got up from the stern where 
 he had been sitting, and plunged unsteadily forward, nearly 
 upsetting the craft, and sat down on the seat nearest the bow, 
 with his face toward it. The natural result of this arrangement 
 was, that the bow went down almost to the water's edge, while 
 the stern stood well up out of it. Then he pulled out his oars, 
 and stretched them out across the gunwales. Finding no row 
 locks to put them in, he rose up again, and backed to the next 
 seat, upon which he sat down suddenly and most unexpectedly 
 with a crash. In executing this movement, he let go one of his 
 oars, which immediately slipped off into the water. He recovered 
 it with a sudden lunge over the side, which wet his arm up to 
 the elbow, and tipped the boat so that she shipped at least a 
 pail ot water. 
 
 About this time, his movements began to excite great interest 
 among a crowd of boys who suddenly appeared from nowhere, 
 and began to give him most disinterested advice.
 
 696 DISINTERESTED ADVICE. 
 
 " Put your oar in deep, and bring it out with a jerk," said one. 
 
 " You ought to sit straddle of the seat," said another. 
 
 There was no end to the advice that was thus generously 
 thrust upon him. Tom, however, made his way through the 
 crowd of urchins to the edge of the pier, and said quietly, 
 
 " Turn around, with your face to the other end of the boat." 
 
 The man recognized his voice, and, lifting up his feet, spun 
 around on the seat as on a pivot. 
 
 " Put your oars out through the rowlocks." The man did so. 
 
 " Now, then, you're all right," said Tom encouragingly. " Go 
 ahead." 
 
 The man drew his knees up nearly to his chin. Of course, 
 as soon as he pulled, the oars struck his knees, and jumped 
 from the rowlocks. 
 
 The crowd of urchins shouted with glee. 
 
 " Hang your legs over your shoulders," said one. 
 
 Tom came once more to the rescue. " Stretch your legs out 
 straight before you," he called. 
 
 The man did so, and pulled three or four strokes beautifully. 
 " I've got the hang of the old thing this time," they heard him 
 say to himself. The next minute he caught a crab, and went 
 over backward, all that was left to tell his whereabouts being a 
 pair of thick raw-hide shoes which stuck up in the air. One of 
 the oars took advantage of the occasion to leap overboard again. 
 By the time he had regained his seat, it was beyond his grasp ; 
 but, by reaching after it with the other, he at last managed to 
 regain it. 
 
 All this time they could hear a perfect volley of shouts from
 
 A NEW WAY TO ROW. 697 
 
 the tow, which was steadily moving on, each moment taking it 
 further and further away. The figure of the man gesticulating 
 wildly could still be seen, though distance was beginning to 
 soften down the edges of his wrath. 
 
 The toiling oarsman gave no heed to his shouts : he had 
 conceived a new plan. Wedging one oar firmly so that it could 
 not elude him, he seized the other, and pulled with all his 
 might. The boat spun around vigorously. Then, laying down 
 that oar, he seized the other. The boat spun around as actively 
 the other way. The current in the mean while had carried him 
 some twenty feet on during this operation, so that when he 
 stopped to take breath, and saw that the distance between him 
 and the pier had widened, he made up his mind that this was 
 the proper line of action for him ; so, seizing again his single 
 oar, he made the boat spin around as actively as before. 
 
 Just at this moment Mr. Longwood, who had hurried to the 
 station as soon as they landed, and had witnessed none of these 
 feats of the oar, came hurrying down. 
 
 " Come, boys," he called, " lose no time. An express-train 
 is due in just three minutes. There is the whistle now." 
 
 They hurried after him, and reached the station platform just 
 as the long train came to a halt. 
 
 " I am sure I saw Carrie's face in the window of that second 
 drawing-room car, as it passed," said Tom. " Let's get in that 
 car, and see." 
 
 Sure enough : they found Mrs. Longwood and the girls, and 
 plenty of unoccupied seats ; and soon they were all chatting 
 .together as busily as if they had never been parted. " We
 
 698 FROM RAGE TO DESPAIR. 
 
 drove to Newburgh," said Carrie, " and crossed the river, taking 
 the train there." 
 
 A short hour brought our party to the city ; and, with many 
 regrets, they parted. What became of the man in the boat, 
 however, I cannot tell you. The last they saw of him, as they 
 looked back, he was still pulling at a single oar. They passed 
 the tow a mile or so farther on. The man was still standing on 
 the deck. His rage had apparently changed to the apathy of 
 despair. He was not shouting or gesticulating now, but looking 
 back with a stony gaze to his boat, which was still spinning 
 around like a tee-to-tum in the widening distance. 
 
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