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26 oo _ THE LOG CABIN LIBRARY.
The Tories, three hundred in number, well-armed, provided |
with powder and Jead furnished by Lord Dunmore, and headed
by Spence Sturges, calculated to sweep all before them.
“But to-night,” said Taliaferro, ‘‘I can crush them with fifty
men. I left the officers all pretty drunk, and getting worse
every hour. The men had just succeeded in getting a barrel of
peach brandy and a keg of Jamaica rum. They'll be as bad off
as their officers by midnight. Iknow where every gun is stacked,
every pound of powder and lead stored. They feel so secure
that they have posted no sentinels. We can surprise them
‘before day dawns, and put every villain to death.”
A warm debate n-w rose, and for nearly’an hour the subject
was eagerly discussed. The Sons of Liberty by this time in-
creased to nearly one hundred and fifty men, under the leader-
ship of Taliaferro, were to surprise, disarm, and disperse the
Tory gathering, with a warning if they ever met again they
should never be spared. -
Mr. Pemberton was offered the command, but he declined in
favor of Taliaferro, whose military education and experience
best fitted him for command.
It was yet three hours to daylight when they left their rendez-
yous, and they had an easy ride of two hours in which to make
the distance. This gave them an hour before dawn in which to
surround the house and grounds of Sturges, secure the arms and
ammunition, and prepare for the surprise which would take
place when the Tories discovered who and what their late ‘‘raw
recruit” was.
Taliaferro had calculated, and with reason, to find every officer
and man helplessly drunk when he reached the residence of
Spence Sturges. But he did not know that the latter was’ an
inveterate and wily gambler, and that while he made his guests,
the officers, foolishly drunk, he did not so ply them as to dis-
able them from play, for he calculated to make all his personal
‘and official expenses out of his crowd by a skillful manipulation
of cards and dice.
So he managed to keep those who had money just sober
‘enough to play and lose, and an hour before dawn he had upon
his table, of his own winnings, fully one thousand pounds
sterling in gold, while all but three of the most hardy and in-
yeterate gamesters had succumbed to wine and bad luck, and
either gone to bed, fallen asleep in their chairs, or dropped, in
drunken stupor to the floor.
Sturges had just dealt a hand of cards among the last three
who played, when the door opened, and the man who had called
himself Jonas Elderkin walked in.
He wore an elegant sword, had a brace of pistols in his belt,
anid carried a short rifle, with a strap arranged to sling it at his
pack when he was mounted. On his heels 4 pair of spurs glit-
ered.
‘Jupiter! You're well fitted out, my young recruit!” cried
Sturges, looking at his fire-arms enviously. “You are better
armed than your colonel. That will never do!”
‘Whose is that?” asked the “recruit,” pointing to the gold.
“All mine!” said Sturges, with a laugh. “V’ve been lucky
to-night.”
“Whew! I should think you pady There must be over a
thousand pounds there,”
“What a godsend that sould be to ‘the Continental Congress,
with so many soldiers to arm, uniform, and feed.”
“Yes, but it is a godsend they'll never see or get. Did you
get any more recruits like yourself?” .
“Yes, a few. Would you like to see them?” ;
“Yes, after Iam done playing. . It must be near daylight.”
“ft is, colonel, but I’m here. You know I told you I'd be
back before daylight.”
“Yes, you are a man of your word. Now goand tell my
“orderly to look out for your men. I want to go on with my
ame.
“Your orderly is drunk, colonel.
kitchen floor.”
“Well, well! the best of men get in that way sometimes.
\What’s trumps, gentlemen?”
“These!” cried the supposed reernit, drawing and leveling his
pistols at the party, at the same time stamping his foot three
times loudly.
Twenty men, well armed, filed into the room.
“Here aro the new recruits, just like me, Colonel Sturges!”
eried Taliaferro. ‘‘Don’t move, sir, or you die. That gold, so
easily won by you from your drunken comrades, will go toward
arming and sustaining patriots in the Continental service.”
:{*Who are you?” gasped Sturges, turning his staring eyes here
and thero as if to look for a chance of escape.
“Captain Taliaferro, of the Sons of Liberty, Colonel Sturges.
He’ is laid out on the
- Keep quiet, sir, or I shall be forced to puta ball throngh your
head, and you will be eternally and infernally quiet. Your men
are all disarmed, and prisoners to those under my command.
And now—I take possession of this money for our service.’
“Don’t you touch it—it’s mine—mine—I won it!’ whined
Sturges, as he tried to pocket the gold.
A blow from the flat of a sword in one of the men’s hands lit-
erally mashed his fingers on the table, and he screamed out jo
pain and terror: ,
“Oh, don’t—please don’t kill me! I surrender!
The other men had sat as if they were stupefied with surprise
and fear.
Taliaferro now called for a bag, and gathered up all the coin,
counting it and making a memorandum, he handed it to
Mr. Pemberton, who was treasurer of the society.
Then, in the presence of the officers, he gave orders to toad up
every wagon found on the premises with the arms and ammuni-
tion found, and with all the bacon and salted meats that would
be of use in the Continental arm,
Spence Sturges groaned, for he saw that little but his lands
and dwellings wonld be left, if indeed they did not burn that.
He was so mean and avaricious that he thought of his property
before a consideration about his life came into his mind.
The day dawned, and then the Tories, counting in all but
three hundred and seven men, were mustered in “front of the
house. A sickly, draggled-looking set they were, just wakened
from the stupor of drunkenness.
The Sons of Liberty, all splendidly armed, were drawn up in
a position to cover them, and the Tories believed almost univer-
sally that they were to be shot. A few only were sullen and de-
fiant, while the majority were pitiful subjects of terror and
despair. “ :
But their suspense was soon ended. Taliaferro made a speech
from a position on the porch. Said he:
“Through the intercession of Basil Pemberton, Esquire, the
man whom you intended to ruin and destroy, your lives are all
spared. Had it not been for his pleading, not one of you should
yp
live to boast of this day’s mercy. As it is, with arms, ammuni-
tion, horses, and all conveyances confiscated to the use of the
patriot American cause, you will be allowed to disperse on foot
to your various homes. But mark me well—I hold your muster- *
roll. Besides; I know the faces of almost every man in this ~
party. If any one or any number of you are ever again caught
in arms against our cause, he shall be shot or. hanged the mo-
ment he is in our power. Let this be fully and fairly under-
stood by all, and, if calmly and_on after thought, any of you re-
consider your late position, and choose to side with the Conti-
nental Congress, you shall be welcomed and treated as brothers
—this villain, Spence Sturges, alone excluded, He isttoo das-
tardly to serve any one but the king or the‘devil.”
Sturges paled.with anger, for now that his life seemed safe,
his courage revived.
“T'l] make you sorry for this, Signor Taliaferro!” he shouted.
“Tie that pitiful wretch up, and make his own overseer give
him thirty-nine lashes with his slave-whip!” cried Taliaferro.
“He must be taught how to respect his new masters.”
In an instant the man was seized and tied to the very whip-
ping-post where he had caused many a poor negro to be flogged;
and the overseer, warned that he would get alike punishment
if he did not la¥ the blows on well, administered such a flogging
as made the miserable wretch howl wildly, but vainly, for
mercy.
When this was over, Taliaferro said to the crowd of Tories:
“(Now remember what 1 have said, and leave!”
In five minutes not one was to be seen in the vicinity,
CHAPTER XXXVL
» MORE DANGER,
‘“Well, old neighbor, how did things look at the Cedars?”
asked Mr. Maynard, when, wearied with two days’ riding and a
night of entire sleeplessness, Mr. Pemberton returned to the .
mansion.
“Better than they would have looked here had Spence
Sturges carried out his intentions,” said Mr. Pemberton.
“Spence Sturges? What of him?” asked Mr. Maynard. =
“He has raised'a band of Tories, near three hundred in num-
ber, with the avowed intention of ravaging and destroying every
patriot plantation in the district. His first descent was to be
here, and he had avowed his intention of seizing and forcing
your daughter Fanny into a marriage with him, ale making you
give him a deed of the Cedars.”
“The dog! the vile cur!”
“As for me and mine, death or worse was to be our fate.”
“Merciful Heaven! Where is he now?”
“Having a sore back dressed. His force is dispersed, their
arms and munitions captnred; and he, for his insolence, was tied
up, and received nine-and- thirty lashes on his baro back.”