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THE LOG CABIN LIBRARY. OF
.. Who did this?”
The Sons of Liberty.” :
- “Then Heaven bless the Sons of Liberty!” .
“What! the enemies of the king, father?” cried Fanny, re-
pressing a smile. . no,
“Perdition take the king, when he has followers that burn in-
nocent women and. children out of house and home, and such
yillains as Spence Sturges in his train!” -
“Huzza! huzza! Brother said you’d conie out right side up
with care,” cried Maude, smiling so brightly that Mr.. Maynard
thought she looked like an angel. ..
“T’ve been an old fool long enongh,’*.said he smiling in turn.
“Hand me a glass of wine, please, Miss Mande, and fill one for
- your father.” :
She did so. .
“Here’s to the American Congress!” he cried, and he drained
his glass to the uttermost drop.
“Amen! and to the health of George Washington, a young
general, but an old soldier!” .
“Good! “If I dared take a second glass I’d drink that, and
your son’s health, too, old neighbor. If he’ll have Fanny she
shall have him, or I’ll cut her off with a shilling in my will.”
“You're. all witnesses to that,” cried Fanny. ‘And if Ido
not have him, I will never wed any man.”
“Good! £ wish the doctor was here. He said I must drink
only three glasses of wine a day, but I do think on this occasion
I might take one extra.” :
“You can,” said a deep-toned voice at the door.
It was the surgeon, who, with the door open, bad been a
witness-to the occurrences just narrated.
“Thank you, doctor. You shall have a dozen of port, fifty
ears in glass in my own wine-bin at the’ Cedars—port left me
by my father.” '
“You're improving fast, Mr. Maynard.” {
‘“‘Ay, in every way. He has avowed his sympathy for our
cause, doctor.”
“Tam not at all surprised,” said the latter. ‘The - atrocities
of our enemies are heaping coals of fire on their own heads.”
Mr. Pemberton and the doctor now left the chamber, and only
Maude and Fanny remained with the invalid.
_At the door Mr. Pemberton and the doctor were met by Sigis-
mund Taliaferro. The condition of his horse, foam-covered
and panting in front of the door, told that he had ridden hard
and fast. ‘
“Why! What has occurred now, captain?” :
“Sturges and nearly all his band have joined a still larger
band, raised by Dunmore under one Fordyce, and now nearly
six hundred strong they threaten us again. . Arms are coming to
them from the British fleet, and reinforcements under one
Travis, which will give them a force of one thousand men, and
it will be hard to check and prevent their ravages. Blood must
flow now!” .
“Where were these men when last heard from?”
“At their old rendevous—the Sturges Plantation.”
“But a half day’s march from here. .And here they will un-
doubtedly strike their first blow. Doctor, will your patient in
there bear removal?’* .
“Yes; on a litter, with care.” :
“Then he and the women must be quickly removed to a good
‘hiding place on an island in a swamp that few know of beside
myself, and where there is no danger of the enomy finding them.
That done, I am ready for the field, and we will fight those
wretches to the bitter end.” '
“Can I send you aid?” asked Taliaferro, ‘For myself I must
use every moment in assembling my men and preparing for the
conflict.” \ , i
“A dozen men to escort my guests and daughter to their re-
treat,” said Pemberton. ‘My own trusty servants will carry pro-
visions and a couple of tents.”
“They will be here in half an hour,” said Taliaferro.
Joan me a fresh horse; my animal is about used up.”
A good horse was quickly brought for the brave young patriot,
and he dashed away, while Mr. Pemberton prepared to vacate
his home. :
“Now
CHAPTER XXXVII.
THE ‘YANKEE FISHERMAN. :
The progress of the Rattlesnake as she sailed northward from
‘the Delaware Cape was slow, with a head sea and wind, but even
in this she was fortnne-favored, though Ned Pemberton grum-
bled all the time at their slow rate of speed. Providence ‘favors
the cause of the just, though often the just are very blind in see-
ing it. . : ,
: Fast before daybreak, on the morning after they passed
the Capes of the Delaware, they took soundings, and Hopkins
said: i
“We're somewhere off Long Island now. Clear white sand
here, and nary a bit o’ mud—gray and broken shells with the
and.”
Shortly after, just as day broke, a sloop was seen close aboard.
She put her helm up, and tried to run away, but a shot from the
long gun bronght her-in a hurry.
_Tarnal sake! If I’?d known yer was Yankee, I’d never have
run from ye!” cried the captain, as he answered Pember-
fons hail, wheu the schooner luffed up close to windward of
im.
The sloop proved to be the Molly, from New London, out after
fish, and her news was most important. The British had evacu-
ated Boston, and their large fleet was either in New York Bay,
along the Sound, or off the coast, and the only svonder was thas
the schooner in running up the coast had not got in among some
of them.
“That accounts for so many men-o’-war in the month of the
Delaware,” said Clewline.
What are you thinking of, Hopkins?’ Pemberton asked of the
pilot.
“That if we can only scoot on safely, into Bosting Harbor,
there'll be lots 0’ transports comin’ from England that’ll drop
right into our hands, ‘cause they haven’t got the news of the |
evaccyation.”
“You are right,” said Pemberton; ‘‘and we’ll scoot.”
“Do you think the British Admiral quite a fool?” cried Clew-
line. ‘‘They’ve doubtless left some vessel of their fleet off the
port to blockade it and keep their own transports from running
in under our batteries.”
“Maybe so. "['won’t do no harm to see,” said Josi.
‘Where is General Washington?” asked Pemberton, of the
sloop’s captain.
“Coming south, with the bigger part of his army, to try and
keep the Britishers out of New York and Philadelphia.”
“He left a force in Boston.”
“Yes, strong enough to keep and hold it.
never get in there again, by hoky!” ,
“Good-by and good luck!” cried Pemberton. “If you should
be overhauled by « British ,craft, forget that you’vo seen any
vessel that looks like this.” ,
“Ay, ay! . Good luck, mister!”
y Both schooner ana sloop filled away now, the schooner head-
ing an offing from Boston. °
‘The wind had lessened so much that by noon all reefs wore
shaken ont, and with a favoring slant the schooner laid her
course with free sheets and the wind nearly abeam.
Before that time they had sighted Montauk, and were well up
with the Vineyards by sunset. But just as the sun’s last rays
were gliding a cloud bank westward, the lookout aloft -hailed,
and said there were three square-rigged ships in sight to the east-
ward, :
Night set in before they could be fairly made‘out, and yet, as
they stood northward, a trifle westerly, Pemberton felt sure they
were the same crafts that followed him out of the Chesapeake,
and very likely they were yet ignoran that Boston had been evac-
uated by General Gage.
“We'll hug the coast as closely as we can without danger,” he
said to Hopkins. ‘Those ships will give the land,a wide berth in
the night any way, and we'll be up to Boston Harbor by day-
light if this wind lasts.”
**T reckon we will,” said Josi.. *‘The old lady is reeling off
even inch of leven knots now. She is greased lightning when
she has a breeze.” ,
The British will
“Do you think those crafts outside sighted us: before dark?” _
asked Pemberton, addressing Clewline.
“Hardly, or they would have changed their course.”
“Not if they had their weather eyes skinned,” said Josi.
**’Canse you see that would have put us on our guard at once,
Tf their Eead officer,has his witsabout him, he'll head as he was
till dark, and then change his course to cut us off.”
“True—true; and we must change our course, or else hug the
shore so closely they dare not come in where we are.”
“Tf we hug it too close we may strike,” said Josi. ‘‘1’ll not
be responsible if we go inside of ten fathoms, and they can swim
in that as well as we.” .
“What do you advisé?” asked Pemberton, perplexed.
- “To shove on every inch of canvas, up gaff topsail and stay-
sail, and let her wrag what she can’t carry. Then wo’ll head
reach on ’em, and be off Boston Harbor early enough to ran in
before daylight. no matter what is in the offing.”
“Right again. We'll do it.”
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