"Then we surrender, for we can't do nothin' else," said Captain Titus. "But I want to tell you, Colonel Belthorpe and Noah Lyon, that you haven't seen the end of this thing yet. If the whole country don't howl ag'in you within twenty-four hours, I lose my guess."
"You had better fall back on your ruffians and guess again," added the colonel, as he placed himself at the side of Major Lyon.
"What does the surrender amount to, Colonel?" asked the planter of Riverlawn.
"It really amounts to nothing but a way to get rid of these fellows. We have had enough of them for to-night," replied the commander. "Captain Gadbury, will you ride around through the fields to Captain Deck, and ask him to let the mob move down the road toward the bridge? If any of them have guns, take them from them."
Captain Gadbury started on his mission. Four mounted negroes were sent after him to assist in disarming those who had weapons if needed. In a short time the captain and his followers arrived at their destination, as could be seen from the position of the main body. It was light enough by this time to see the force there place themselves on each side of the road.
Then the commander ordered his men to march, shouting to the mob to do the same. The ruffians began their humiliating retreat, and the defenders followed them as far as the bridge. The planters and their attendants then returned to their homes.
Colonel Cosgrove and Squire Truman returned to Riverlawn with Major Lyon and his son. Colonel Belthorpe and Tom renewed their expressions of gratitude to Deck for the important service he had rendered to the family in the protection of Margie and Kate, and insisted that he should visit Lyndhall as soon as possible. They parted at the cross roads, and both parties received a warm welcome at their homes.
Levi Bedford and Artie Lyon had remained on watch in the fort, while a sufficient number of the hands patrolled the bridge and the creek; but the ruffians had found enough to do in the direction they had gone, and there was no alarm during the rest of the night. The major took his guests to the mansion, while Deck related to Levi and Artie the events of the visit to Lyndhall.
"Captain Titus and the mob have really been thoroughly whipped out of their boots," said the overseer, when Deck had finished his narrative. "But, as the leader of the ruffians said, we haven't seen the end of this thing yet."
"Do you think they will make another attack upon Riverlawn, Levi?" asked Deck with along gape.
"I don't reckon they will try it in the same way they did before; at least not till they are fully provided with arms and ammunition," replied Levi. "That attempt to capture the two daughters of Colonel Belthorpe looks like one of Buck Lagger's schemes. If he had obtained possession of the two girls, very likely he would have confined them in one of the caverns like the one where they put the arms, with a guard over them."
"That would have been awful," added Artie.
"I reckon they didn't mean to hurt the girls, and wouldn't if they had got possession of them," continued Levi. "But you can see for yourselves, boys, that they would have had the key to the fortress in their own hands if they had obtained the girls."
"That's so!" exclaimed Deck, who had seen the point before without any help from the overseer.
"I don't see what good the girls could have done them," said Artie, who had been asleep most of the time during the absence of the planter and his son.
"It is as plain as the nose on a monkey's face," added Deck. "With the two girls as prisoners, Captain Titus would have demanded the return of the arms and ammunition of Colonel Belthorpe."
"I see!" exclaimed Artie, as the object of the capture dawned upon him. "But the colonel did not have the arms, and he could not have given them up."
"But father would have made common cause with him, and he could not well have helped giving up the arms to get back his neighbor's daughter," Deck explained.
"But I wonder they didn't try to take our girls," suggested Artie.
"That is what they may try to do next; and I shall advise your mother not to permit Miss Dorcas or Miss Hope to go outside of the plantation unless they are well guarded," added Levi. "If Captain Titus could get away with your two sisters, and hide them, he could have things all his own way with your father."
"We must keep a sharp lookout for the girls," said Artie.
"Buck Lagger, with his gang, must have gone ahead of the main body of the ruffians," continued the overseer thoughtfully, "or he could not have been in the cross-cut. He must have known about the party, and that the colonel's daughters were there."
"Where does this Buck live?" asked Deck.
"He has a shanty on the road to the village, just above the schoolhouse. He is a pedler when he does anything like work, and I suppose he knows about every family in the county," replied Levi. "He could easily have found out all about the party, and who were to be there."
"There is the breakfast-bell," said Deck, who was quite prepared by his night's work for the summons.
At the table the story of the night's adventures was repeated for the information of Mrs. Lyons and her daughters, and they wanted to hug Deck; first, because he had been so brave and vigorous in the rescue of Margie and Kate Belthorpe, and second, because he had not been killed or severely wounded in the encounter of which he had been the hero.
After the meal Major Lyon and his two guests retired to the library, while the boys went to bed. Before the former separated, they had arranged a plan for the enlistment of a company of cavalry which had been discussed at the meeting the evening before. But all concerned were tired out after the labors of the night. Colonel Cosgrove was sent to the place where he had left his team, and Squire Truman was driven to the village by Levi, who had chosen this duty himself, in order to "see what was going on," as he expressed it.
The ruffians who had formed the mob had been gathered from the region around Barcreek, and not a few of them lived in the village. There appeared to be no excitement there, and the overseer started for home. On his way he had to pass the shanty of Buck Lagger, where he lived alone when he was at home, which was not much of the time. His worldly wealth, consisting of his stock of miscellaneous goods, was contained in a couple of tin trunks, with which he tramped all over the county.
As Levi drove by the hovel a bullet whistled past his head; and, removing his soft hat, he found that the missile had passed through it, and within a couple of inches of the top of his head. It required no reasoning to convince him that Buck Lagger had fired the shot which had narrowly failed to send him to his long home. This particular kind of outrage was not an uncommon occurrence in Kentucky during the exciting period which followed the bombardment of Fort Sumter. Not a few who had enlisted in the armies of the Union were killed in this cowardly manner.
Levi Bedford reined in his horses, and then secured them to a tree. He was not a man to permit such a dastardly deed to remain unpunished a moment longer than was necessary. The ruffian, who had appeared to be the lieutenant of Captain Titus the night before, could not be far off. Passing to the rear of the shanty, Levi discovered him running for the woods a short distance from the road. In his hand he carried an old flint-lock musket, from which he had doubtless fired the shot intended to deprive Major Lyon of the services of his valuable overseer.
Buck turned to look at his pursuer, though he hardly abated his speed in doing so. His left arm was hung in a sling, the material of which looked as though it might have been a part of the flag of truce displayed on the creek bridge the night before. Levi had the heavy revolver with which he had armed himself still in his pocket; and it had even occurred to him that he might have occasion to use it before he returned from his present visit to the village.
Though he was a heavy man, Levi was agile in his movements, and the ruffian could not help seeing that his pursuer was gaining upon him. Before he reached the woods, he realized that he had no chance to escape, and he halted. Elevating his gun, he took aim at the overseer. But Levi knew that the weapon could not be loaded, for he had fired its only charge at him, and had not had time to reload it.
"It won't go off again till you load it," said the overseer, as he rushed up to him, and wrenched the musket from his hand, thinking he might try to use it as a club. "It's no fault of yours, except in your aim, that you are not a murderer, Buck Lagger!"
"I'm only sorry I missed my aim," replied Buck. "You have a revolver in your hand, and you can shoot me as soon as you please."
"Shooting is too good for a ruffian like you. If I had a rope I would hang you to one of the beams of your own shanty," replied Levi, as he grasped the ruffian by the collar of his coat.
"Oh, I'll lend you a rope if you will come to the house," replied the obliging ruffian. "But hold your hand! You hurt me! You can see for yourself that I am wounded. One of Lyon's cubs put a ball through my shoulder last night."
"It's a pity he did not put it through your brains, if you've got anything of that sort in the top of your head," added Levi, as he proceeded to lead his prisoner to his wagon.
"You hurt me, Bedford!" pleaded Buck. "If you want to hang me, I'll help you do the job in proper fashion; but you needn't torture me before you do it. When we lynch a fellow we don't do that."
Levi released his hold upon the prisoner.
"My aim is better than yours; walk to my wagon, and if you attempt to run away, I won't kill you, but I will put two or three balls through your legs, so that it won't be convenient for you to run," said he, as he drove the villain before him towards the road.
"What are you go'n' to do with me, Bedford?" asked Buck.
"That's my business," replied Levi.
"Well, I think it rayther consarns me too."
"If you live long enough you will find out in time. Now get into the wagon."
"Are you go'n' to take me down to Lyon's place?" asked Buck, looking his captor in the face as they stopped at the side of the vehicle.
"Get in quick, or I may hurt you again!" said Levi impatiently. "You won't get killed by a ball from my shooter, but you may have another wound."
Probably the ruffian preferred shooting to hanging, and the remark of the overseer did not please him. If he had told his whole story, he would have said that he had been unable to sleep on account of the wound in his shoulder, and for that reason he had been up early enough to see Levi drive past his shanty with Squire Truman. The suffering made him angry, stimulated his desire for revenge; and he had tried to put the overseer out of the way.
He pretended to be more afraid of wounds than of death; and with the assistance of Levi he climbed into the wagon, taking his place on the front seat as directed. His captor put the gun he had brought with him into the wagon, and then seated himself beside his prisoner. The spirited horses went off at a lively pace, and Buck immediately complained that the motion increased his pain.
"That wasn't a bad scheme of yours to get possession of Colonel Belthorpe's girls, Buck. You meant to trade them off for the arms, I suppose," said Levi, as he reduced the pace of his horses to a walk; for he desired, if he could, to obtain some information from his prisoner.
"That was just it, Bedford; and if that cub of Lyon's hadn't interfered, we should have had the arms before this time," replied Buck, with both a chuckle and a groan.
"Why didn't you try it on Major Lyon's girls first, for that would have brought the matter nearer home?"
"That's just what we meant to do," replied Buck, with refreshing confidence in his custodian. "That was my plan; but Cap'n Titus was obstinate, and wouldn't hear to me. He ain't much of a cap'n; and I'd had the arms and the rest o' the things if he had left it to me."
"What was your plan, Buck?" asked Levi quietly.
"That's tellin'; we may try it on some other time, if I live long enough. Our folks are fightin' this thing on principle, and we ain't go'n' to see the good old State of Kaintuck turned over to the Abolitionists."
"What do you mean by Abolitionists, Buck?"
"Such fellers as Lyon, Cosgrove, Belthorpe."
"They are all slaveholders."
"They're all Lincolnites, and gave arms to their niggers to shoot down white Kaintuckians last night," replied Buck bitterly.
"Only when a mob of ruffians came down upon them to burn their property and carry off their daughters!" added Levi. "They are Union men, and they will stand by the old flag as long as there is anything left of them."
"The Union's busted!"
"Not much! Why don't you enlist in the Confederate army, and carry out your principles? You are a cowardly ruffian, Buck!"
"We can do more good to the cause by stoppin' here, Bedford; and when I git command of that Home Guard, as I shall afore long, I'll clean out the Abolitionists in less'n a week," said Buck boastfully.
"If you live long enough," suggested Levi.
"If I don't I'm willin' to be a martyr to the good cause!" protested the reprobate.
As before suspected by Levi and his employer, "that Home Guard" was composed of the ruffians who had been the assailants the night before. Levi drove to the fort, where a guard of a dozen negroes, under the command of General, had been placed over the arms and ammunition. The prisoner was taken from the wagon, and permitted to lie on one of the beds which had been brought from the mansion the night before for the use of the defenders of the plantation. General and his men were charged to shoot the captive if he attempted to escape.
Levi Bedford, in spite of his threats to hang his prisoner, was a kind-hearted man, and he did what he could for the comfort of Buck Lagger. He had often been called upon to prescribe for the sick or injured among the hands on the plantation. He examined the wound of the ruffian; but it was beyond his skill, and he did not attempt to treat the patient.
During the absence of the expedition for the defence of Lyndhall he had done what he could for those who had been wounded on the creek road; but he was not an expert in the treatment of gunshot wounds. There was little he could do for them; and early in the morning he had sent Frank to procure the attendance of Dr. Falkirk, who resided near the village. He had been called to a case on a plantation several miles from Barcreek. He had not returned when Levi went to his bed.
Major Lyon and the boys had taken to their beds as soon as the guests departed, and the overseer was in condition to follow their example. The premises were well guarded along the creek, and two men with breech-loaders in their hands were in charge of the wounded prisoner. In the mansion Mrs. Lyon and her daughters, who had been up most of the night, for they could not sleep while the major and his sons were in danger, had gone to bed to obtain needed rest.
Even the hands who had been on service the whole or a part of the eventful night were asleep, and the guard at Fort Bedford had been relieved. Levi slept soundly on the bed he had taken within the works, in spite of the groans mingled with curses of the wounded ruffian. There was no white person awake on the plantation to wonder what was to be the outcome of the events of the night. Doubtless Colonel Cosgrove and Squire Truman were also sleeping off the fatigues of the night. The aggressive ruffians had fled to their several homes, defeated, exhausted, and disgusted with the result of their labors in the cause of Secession. There was a calm after the storm.
Dr. Falkirk appeared about the middle of the forenoon. He was of Scotch descent; but his father had settled in New Orleans, and the son became as violent a "fire-eater" as though he had been the possessor of half a thousand slaves. He had made a fortune in the practice of his profession, and had purchased a plantation in Kentucky, on the outskirts of Barcreek, where he intended to end his days in peace and quiet. But some of his investments had been unfortunate, and he had been compelled to resume practice.
His skill as a physician and surgeon had brought to him an abundant practice, though his patients were widely scattered, and he was obliged to pass much of his time in his gig. When the troubles of the nation began, he developed into a Secessionist of the most ultra stripe. He was a highly educated man and a fluent speaker in public and private. In the Lyceum of the village he and Squire Truman were often pitted against each other, and one was quite as outspoken as the other.
But Dr. Falkirk was faithful to his patients, poor or rich, and without regard to their creed or politics. Though his fortune had been impaired, he was still in comfortable circumstances, and never refused to visit any sick person to whom he was called, with no regard to color or the expectation of payment for his services. In fact, he was the beau-ideal of a good physician, and held the honor of his profession above every other consideration.
The men on patrol at the bridge conducted the doctor to the fort as soon as he appeared, in obedience to the orders of the overseer. When he reached Fort Bedford he manifested no little astonishment at the appearance of the old ice-house, with its four embrasures, through which the twelve-pounders could be seen. The negroes with breech-loaders in their hands were a disgusting exhibition to him, and he turned up his nose, though he made no remark.
The sentinel at the door politely ushered him into the presence of his patient. Without asking any questions in regard to the manner in which the sufferer had received his wound, Dr. Falkirk proceeded to examine him. Buck Lagger was still in great pain, and had kept up a continual groaning all the forenoon. The doctor immediately gave him a couple of little pills, intended to ease the pain. The skilful surgeon discovered that a bullet was embedded in the shoulder, and he took from the handbag the instruments for its extraction.
Then he called upon a couple of the guards to assist him. There were but two sentinels in charge of the fort, who were faithfully marching up and down outside the door. But they paid no attention to the call of the doctor. Each of them seemed to be impressed with the idea that the protection of the plantation and the lives of all the family depended upon him, and that it would be treason for them to leave their posts.
"Can't you hear me, you black rascals?" demanded the surgeon in a loud tone. "Come here, one of you!"
"Can't leabe de post, Mars'r Doctor," replied one of the men.
Probably there was no enemy within a mile of the fort; but they had been told that they were not to leave their places for anything, and they were disposed literally to obey their orders. But the angry tones of the surgeon had awakened Levi Bedford, who was sleeping at one end of the fort. He sprang to his feet, and discovered the doctor at the couch of his patient.
"Good-morning, Doctor Falkirk," said he. "I did not know you were here."
"I knew I was here, and I ordered those black scoundrels to assist me, and they refused to do so," replied the doctor angrily.
"They only obey their orders, but they rather overdo it. I will assist you, Doctor," added Levi.
"Orders!" exclaimed the professional gentleman contemptuously. "One would think this was a regular garrison."
"That is about what it is," replied the overseer.
"Humbug!" said the surgeon, as he turned to his patient.
Levi called in one of the sentinels, and the bed of the wounded man was drawn out before the door where the light was best, and the doctor proceeded with his work. The morphine pills he had given the patient appeared to have relieved his pain. The operator probed for the ball, and soon found it. Then he dressed the wound with as much care as though the sufferer had been a Kentucky colonel. He had hardly completed his office before Buck dropped asleep under the influence of the powerful medicine he had taken. The bed was moved back without waking him, and Dr. Falkirk passed out of the fort, followed by the overseer.
"Keep the man quiet for a week, and give him anything he wants to eat," said he, as he looked about him at the warlike preparations which had been finished the day before.
"We have three more wounded men in the hospital who need a surgeon," added Levi.
"What are those niggers doing over on the other side of the creek?" asked the surgeon, whose gaze had wandered to the grove at the side of the road. Some of the hands had been directed to bury the man who had fallen behind the tree where he had taken refuge from the shots of the defenders of the plantation.
He had been seen in the act of levelling his gun at the advancing column, and Levi had brought him down before he could discharge his weapon.
"They are burying a man that fell in the skirmish last night," Levi replied to the question of the doctor.
"What skirmish?" inquired Dr. Falkirk, with evident astonishment.
"You don't appear to have heard the news, Doctor," replied the overseer.
"What news? I was called to General Longman's plantation last evening; I spent the night there, and did not get home till half-past eight this morning."
As briefly as possible Levi gave the details of the events of the preceding night, beginning with the meeting at Big Bend, and ending with the final defeat and surrender of the ruffians.
"An Abolition row!" said the doctor contemptuously.
"Not exactly, Dr. Falkirk; it was a Secession row!" added Levi with energy.
"Brought about by the insane wrangling of the traitors to the State of Kentucky!" snapped the surgeon.
"The traitors to the State of Kentucky are loyal to the government of the United States and the Union," protested the overseer.
"There is no longer any United States, and the Union has ceased to exist! The men who are making all this trouble in Kentucky are those who are trying to make war upon the Southern Confederacy, to subdue and enslave a dozen sovereign States!" argued the doctor, almost furiously.
"I reckon it's no use for you and me to argue this question, for we don't live in the same world on that subject," said the overseer, with a smile on his round face. "But Kentucky is for the Union by a large majority, and what you call sovereign States are in rebellion against the lawful authorities of the nation, and the insurrection will be put down just as sure as fate."
"This used to be a free country, though it isn't so now; but every man can have his own opinion as long as he is willing to be responsible for it."
"It isn't exactly a free country as long as the loyal citizens of this county cannot hold a meeting without being attacked by the ruffians of Secession, as was the case at Big Bend last night. Then the same villains came over here in a mob of a hundred to burn Major Lyon's house, and capture his daughters, as they tried to do with Colonel Belthorpe's girls. They did not succeed, and some of them were shot down in the attempt. The right to commit such outrages as these is what you call free; but we at Riverlawn don't understand it in just that way."
"But, according to your own statement, Mr. Bedford, your people had stolen the arms intended for the company of the Home Guards whom Captain Titus Lyon has enlisted," returned the doctor.
"We took possession of the arms and ammunition, including the two guns at those embrasures, to prevent these ruffians from using them against the loyal citizens of the county in carrying out their ideas of freedom," said Levi stoutly. "Do you believe these ruffians, the offscourings of the county, ought to be permitted to burn, ravage, and destroy the homes of some of the most respectable people in this vicinity, Dr. Falkirk?"
"But your people were the aggressors, and I think they were justified in trying to recover the property that had been stolen from them."
"The ruffians issued their threats to burn the mansion of Major Lyon before the arms entered into the question."
The discussion might have continued all day, if Sam, Colonel Belthorpe's house servant, had not ridden up at this moment.
"I come for the doctor, sar," said the man.
"Who is sick at Lyndhall, Sam?" asked Levi with much interest.
"Nobody sick, Mars'r Bedford; but Mars'r Tilford's very bad with his wound, and Mars'r Cunnel send me for the doctor," replied the servant.
"Is this another of your victims, Mr. Bedford?" asked the doctor with a heavy sneer.
"It is Colonel Belthorpe's overseer. He refused to assist in protecting the family from the ruffians, and left the mansion. It seems that he was shot in attempting to join your army, doctor."
"He's a brave fellow! I will go and see him."
"But he deserted your army of ruffians, and crawled back to the house, where the girls nursed him and cared for him. Now the colonel sends for you to patch him up, the ingrate!"
"True to his principles against his employer!"
The doctor was conducted to the hospital, where he did his duty faithfully to those who had been wounded, though Levi reminded him that they belonged to "his army." None of them were in a bad way, and the surgeon said they would be all right in a few days.
All was quiet again at Riverlawn, and the sleepers used most of the day in their beds. On the following morning, after the whole evening had been used in discussing the events of the preceding night, everything went along as usual on the plantation. No more ruffians appeared on the other side of the creek, though Major Lyon and the boys remained on duty at the fort.
"What is to be the end of all these disturbances, Noah?" asked Mrs. Lyon, as the family seated themselves at the breakfast-table the second morning after the battle, as they had come to call the events of that stormy night.
"I think we all understand what is before us. We are to have war, and I don't believe it will end in a hundred days, as the statesman at Washington says," replied Major Lyon; and even some of his family had learned to apply this title to him. "Within a few days we shall begin to form a company of cavalry. I am still of military age, and the boys are old enough to take part in the struggle before us. But Levi will remain on the plantation; and as the hands have proved that they can stand up under fire, he will have the means of protecting you, Ruth."
"Of course we shall be sorry to have you go, but I agree with you, Noah, that your country has a claim upon you which you cannot shirk," replied Mrs. Lyon, struggling to repress a tear.
"Buck Lagger asked me this morning if I thought he was well enough to be hung," said Levi, perhaps to break off the conversation in that line.
"Do you think of hanging him, Levi?" inquired the planter.
"That is what I promised him; but I leave that matter to you, Major Lyon. He is a murderer at heart, and the bullet from his gun passed within two inches of the top of my head."
"I should not like to have him hung at Riverlawn," added the planter. "I will talk with him, and see what can be done; but there is no law in this part of the country just now."
The family were to dine that day at Lyndhall at one o'clock, so that none of them need be absent after dark. Major Lyon left the house, and was directing his steps towards Fort Bedford for an interview, when he saw Captain Titus Lyon driving over the bridge. He did not care to meet him, but he could hardly avoid doing so, and he stopped in front of the flower-garden. Titus fastened his horse to a post, and approached his brother.
Noah Lyon was not glad to see his brother; but this was a new experience to him, for he had always had a fraternal feeling for him, and had done everything in his power for him when he needed assistance. He was willing to believe that Titus was sincere in his political convictions, though it was impossible for him to understand how he could be a traitor to the Union.
At the North both of the great parties were united in support of the government, and at his former home Titus would have been almost alone if he had clung to the opinions which now actuated him; for "copperheads" were rare serpents there. Noah's brother would hardly have been one amid the surroundings of his former home. It was evident that Kentucky whiskey and a feeling of revenge, born of his disappointment over the provisions of Duncan's will, had done more to make him a Secessionist than the workings of his own reason.
"I have come to see you once more, Noah," Titus began quite mildly for him, though it was plain to his brother that he was primed with his favorite beverage as usual.
He was not intoxicated in any reasonable sense of the word; and he had plainly resolved to make the interview a peaceable one. Doubtless he had a point to carry, but within a few days he had probably learned more about the character of his brother than he had ever known before. Noah could not say that he was glad to see him, for even a "society lie" was repulsive to him.
"I hope we shall be peaceable and pleasant this time, even if we cannot agree in everything," he replied very gently and with a smile upon his honest face.
"That's just what I want, Noah; and I have always tried to make things peaceable between us," added Titus.
Noah wondered if he believed what he uttered, after coming with a mob to his plantation to burn and ravage his property; but whatever doubts he had, he kept them to himself, for he knew that the thought which was uppermost in his mind, if expressed, would only irritate his brother, and provoke him to wrath.
"I trust you will continue to do so," was his next remark, though he thought that even this was admitting too much.
"There is a question between us, Noah," continued Titus, struggling to retain his quiet demeanor as he approached the point of difference between them. "I won't say a word about the way I have been used up to three days ago, for I want to be on kind of brotherly terms with you, if we don't agree on politics."
"I assuredly desire to be on brotherly terms with you, and it shall not be any fault of mine that we are not brothers in spirit as well as in fact," replied Noah, who became slightly hopeful of Titus, for he had not recently heard him speak so many friendly words.
"There is only one question between us now, and we might just as well come right down to business at once," said Titus, very nervous in his manner, as though his hope of accomplishing anything with the stern patriot his brother had proved to be was only slight. "Of course you know that I mean about the arms."
"I understand you, Brother Titus," replied Noah, exceedingly unwilling to fan the fire that was smouldering in the breast of the leader of the ruffians.
"It seems to me that there ought to be no trouble between two brothers like you and me about settling a question of this kind," continued Titus, still toying with the subject. "Of course you must admit that the arms did not belong to you."
"No more than Fort Sumter and a dozen other places built and maintained by the Union belonged to the insurgents who have taken possession of them," answered Noah very quietly.
"That's another matter," returned the captain, evidently thrown off his base by this home argument.
"It is precisely the same thing to my mind."
"Do you call stealing my property the same thing as a nation taking possession of forts and such things within its own territory, Noah Lyon?"
"Precisely the same thing, though on a smaller scale."
"I used to think you had lots of logic in your head, Noah; but I believe you hain't got none on't left," retorted Titus, relapsing into what he called his "week-day speech." "I was in hopes you had come to sunthin' like reason, and would be ready to give up the property you stole."
"I shall be quite ready to give it up when the insurrectionists give up the property they stole."
"The two things ain't no more like than a nigger is like a white man," protested Titus, the bad blood, mingled with whiskey, in his veins beginning to boil.
"I think we had better not discuss this question any more, Brother Titus. It only stirs up bad blood, and does not accomplish anything," suggested Noah.
"I s'pose I'm to understand from what you say that you don't mean to give up the arms you stole from me," said Titus, doubling his fist, and holding it near the face of his brother.
"I do not consider that I have any right to deliver the arms to you; for I understand that they were to be used to arm what you call the Home Guards, or, in other words, the ruffians who came over here to burn my house and lay waste my property. I shall not give up the arms to you, or to any other person representing the enemies of the Union. The insurrectionists have set the example of stealing arms, as you call it, and forts, and public buildings by wholesale; and the Secessionists of Kentucky are robbing the Union men of their arms. I hold that the precedent has been well established by those on your side of the question."
"I don't care for your precedents, and I wish my brother would deal with the one question between us."
"I am entirely willing to do so, Brother Titus. You wish me to furnish the brands with which you can burn my house and those of my neighbors."
"What sort of bosh is that?" demanded Titus, who did not see the point.
"If I should return to you the military supplies in my possession, they would be used to arm the horde of ruffians you marched over here to burn my property the other night."
"They would be used to arm my company of the Home Guards; and they are regular under the call of the Governor of Kentucky."
"The Legislature of the State repudiate him, and the people are enlisting the troops he refused to furnish."
"The Legislature is a fraud, and don't rightly represent the will of the people. I came over here with the Home Guard and other friends of the cause to get the arms. You turned our own weapons against us, and without arms we could do nothing against armed niggers."
"I have put my place in a condition to be defended, and I have called upon the United States government to send a body of troops here to protect the Union people from the outrages of your people."
"They will have a hot time of it when they get here," replied Titus with a sneer.
"In the meantime we shall defend ourselves. We have been attacked"—
"You have not been attacked!" protested the captain. "We came over here to demand the arms. We put up a flag of truce, and wanted to talk with you; but you drove us off, and fired upon us," answered Titus.
"Your people began the attack at the schoolhouse."
"'Tain't so! Some of our men went to the meeting, and you fell upon 'em there."
"They had no business there, for the call was addressed to the Union men of the county. They disturbed the meeting, and we put them out. Then your company gathered in the woods, demanding 'Lyon and his cubs.' My friends stood by me, and the meeting shouldered all the responsibility in regard to the arms. We agreed to get up a company of cavalry for the United States."
"And you mean to arm 'em with the things you stole from me!" almost gasped Captain Titus.
"When a proper officer comes here he will give you a receipt for the property."
"Which would not be worth the paper it is written on to me!"
"Not unless you could show that you were a Union man."
"My men are bent on gettin' them arms, and they will have them!"
"They will have to fight for them," added Noah quietly.
Perhaps the interview would have become still more stormy if Levi Bedford had not approached with a gentleman wearing the uniform of a cavalry officer. Captain Titus did not like the looks of him, and, judging that Noah had proceeded farther than he had suspected in providing for the protection of the loyal people of the county, he beat a hasty retreat; and he drove across the bridge at a rate so furious as to indicate his state of mind.
"Major Lyon, this is Lieutenant Gordon, of the United States Volunteer Service," said Levi, as he approached with the visitor.
"I am very glad to see you, Lieutenant Gordon," added the planter, extending his hand to the officer.
"I am rejoiced to meet you, Major Lyon; and I am glad to find that you are a military man," replied Lieutenant Gordon.
"But I am not a military man, and was never even a private in a military company," replied the major, laughing at the natural mistake of his guest. "I protested against answering to my title till I found it was useless to do so."
"If you are not a major now, perhaps you will be one very soon. I am sent here by Major-General Buell, in reply to your letter to him," added the officer, producing a document which authorized him to enlist, enroll, and muster in a company of cavalry.
"You are the very man I wished most to see," said the planter, after he had glanced at the paper. "Come to the house, if you please, and we will consider the object of your visit."
"I had some trouble in getting here; for our information is that General Buckner, with a considerable force of the enemy, is moving towards Bowling Green, probably with the intention of occupying it, and I did not deem it wise to go there, as I had been directed to do."
"What you say is news to us," replied the major, as he conducted the officer into the house. "Have you been to breakfast, Lieutenant?"
"I have not, sir. I left the train last night at Dripping Spring, which they told me was the last station before coming to Bowling Green. I found a place to sleep, and a stable for my horse, which I brought down in a baggage car, I started out early this morning to find Riverlawn, and here I am."
The lieutenant was shown to one of the guest chambers of the mansion, and the planter ordered breakfast for him, instructing Aunty Diana to provide the best the house afforded. The officer wanted his saddle-bags, which had gone to the stable with his horse, and they were carried up for him. Before the morning meal was ready he came down, and was presented to Mrs. Lyon and her daughters.
After he had washed and dressed himself, he proved to be what the girls declared was a handsome man. He was not more than twenty-five years old, and had a decidedly military air and manner. He made himself very agreeable to the ladies; and Dorcas, who was a full-grown woman in stature, wondered if he was to remain long at Riverlawn.
"You are on the very ragged edge of the Rebellion, Major Lyon," said the visitor, as he seated himself at the table. "I should say you were not more than fifteen miles from Bowling Green."
"I suppose you are acquainted with the country about here, Lieutenant?" added the planter.
"Not at all, Major; I was born and always lived in the State of Ohio; and I have never been in this direction farther than Lexington. But I know that Bowling Green is near the junction of two railroads into Tennessee and the South; and the Confederates can't help seeing that it is an important point for them to possess and hold. There will be some fighting in this quarter before long."
"There has been a skirmish or two. The Home Guards are making some trouble in this vicinity, and I have put my place in a condition to be defended from their assaults," added Major Lyon.
He proceeded to describe the affair at the bridge and on the two roads, in which the officer was much interested. He was particularly delighted with the capture of the arms and ammunition. The planter then conducted him to Fort Bedford.
Lieutenant Gordon looked about him with something like amazement as he entered the fort. Levi Bedford and the boys had arranged the arms in racks made by the carpenters. The two Napoleons, as the twelve-pounders are sometimes called, were pointed out at the embrasures, and the aspect of the place was decidedly warlike. Buck Lagger had been removed to the hospital, where he found three of his comrades of the Home Guards, two others having been sent to their homes.
"These are my sons, Lieutenant," said Major Lyon, introducing each of them by name. "They are stout boys, very nearly eighteen years old, and are good riders. They will be the first recruits to put their names on your paper after mine when you enter upon the work of your mission."
"They are the kind of recruits I like to add to our forces, for they are not only stout, but intelligent," replied the officer, as he took from his breast pocket the printed form of document for the enlistment of soldiers. "Where did you get the name of this fort, Major Lyon?"
"From my overseer, the first man you met on my premises. He was formerly connected with an artillery company in Tennessee; but he is a Union man to the core," replied the planter, who proceeded to give Levi the excellent character he deserved.
"Then he will be our fourth recruit?" suggested the lieutenant.
"No, sir; he is about fifty years old, and he is to take charge of my plantation in my absence. But I think there are over a hundred men in this vicinity who are ready to put their names down on your paper. The horses are all ready for them, for they were pledged in the Union meeting of which I told you."
"We shall not need the horses at first," added the lieutenant.
"Not need the horses, sir!" exclaimed Deck, who was listening with all his ears to the conversation. "How are we going to get up a company of cavalry without horses?"
"The company will be first drilled like infantry, and the exercises with horses come in later," replied the officer with a smile at the eagerness of the boy; and Artie was just as enthusiastic, though he said very little.
"Both of them will make good soldiers, sir, for they have been under fire in a small way," added the father.
"I should say that you have little need of soldiers for the protection of your place, Major Lyon," added the officer, as he looked at the cannon and the breech-loaders arranged around the interior of the fort. "Are these the arms you captured in the cavern?"
"The same, sir; and they have already enabled us to defend ourselves from the mob that came over here to burn my house."
"These muskets must have cost a round sum of money, for they are of the best quality, and have the latest improvements. Unfortunately they are not adapted to the use of cavalry, and we shall need carbines."
"Well, it is something to keep them out of the hands of the enemy," replied Major Lyon. "I suppose we are ready to make a beginning in the business before us, Lieutenant Gordon. What is the first thing to be done?"
"The first thing is to enlist the men," replied the officer, as he took from his pocket a handbill, printed for use in some other locality. "We must post bills like this one all about this vicinity."
"We can't get them printed short of Bowling Green," said Major Lyon, after he had read the placard. "And the Home Guards will pull them down as fast as we can put them up."
"But some of them will be seen, and the news that a recruiting office has been established here will soon circulate. You are between two fires here, and your foes will talk about it even more than your friends. We must have the handbills at any rate."
"Very well. Artie, this will be a mission for you."
"I am ready and willing to do anything I can," replied the quiet boy; and in half an hour he was mounted on a fleet horse on his way to a printing-office.
"I suppose the village of which you speak would be the best place to establish the recruiting office," suggested Lieutenant Gordon, as soon as Artie had gone to the stable for a horse.
"I am afraid not," replied the planter. "I fear the ruffians who abound in that vicinity would mob you. Why not establish the office here, where we shall be able to protect you?"
"It seems to be too far from any centre of population," said the officer.
"All the better for that; for in the village they would not only mob you, but the ruffians would intimidate those who were willing to enlist. People in this vicinity don't mind going two or three miles when business calls them," continued the planter.
"I shall adopt your suggestion, Major Lyon," returned the recruiting officer, as he proceeded to alter the handbill to suit the locality. "I suppose everybody in this neighborhood will know where to find Riverlawn."
"Everybody in the county," replied the major, as Artie dashed up to the door of the fort, where the officer gave him his instructions, and the planter supplied him with money to pay the bill.
"I think I had better take one of those revolvers in my pocket," suggested Artie. "If I get into any trouble it may be of use to me."
"Do you expect to get into any trouble, my boy?" asked the major, anxiously gazing into the messenger's face.
"I don't expect any trouble, but something may happen."
"Perhaps I had better send half a dozen of the boys with you," suggested his father.
"The boys?" queried the lieutenant, wondering where they were to come from, as he had seen only two of them.
"I mean the negroes who defended the place the other night," added the planter. "They have learned to handle the breech-loaders, and they would fight for my boys as long as there was anything left of them."
"I dare say they would," replied the officer with a significant smile. "But if you send six negroes armed with breech-loaders to Bowling Green, you may be sure there will be a row."
"Just my sentiments," added Levi Bedford. "I don't think Artie will have any trouble if he goes alone."
"Very well, let him go alone; but I am confident half a dozen of the boys would make it hot for any band that attempted to molest him," said the major; and the messenger departed on his mission.
"Have you an American flag, Major Lyon?" asked the lieutenant when he had gone.
"Two of them, for my brother always celebrated the Fourth of July."
"We always hoist one on a recruiting office."
Under the direction of Levi a flagstaff was erected in front of the fort, and before dinner-time the Star Spangled Banner was spread to the breeze. Major Lyon took off his hat and bowed to it as soon as it was shaken out to the breeze; and cheers were heard from the negroes in the field beyond the stables.
"If you had set that flag over your office in the village, it would have been hauled down and trampled under foot inside of an hour," said the planter.
"Are the people of this vicinity so disloyal as that?" asked Lieutenant Gordon, astonished at the remark. "I supposed the Unionists were in the majority here."
"So they are; but they are not half so demonstrative as the other side."
The bell rang at the door of the mansion for dinner; and while the family were attending to this midday duty, Artie was entering the county town. He had taken his dinner with him, and had eaten it as he approached his destination. There were two printing-offices in the place, and he called at the first one he saw.
"What's this? 'Union Cavalry!'" demanded the printer, as he read the head-line in displayed type.
"What will you charge for printing two hundred copies of that bill, and doing it while I wait?" asked Artie.
"'Riverlawn!'" added the man, as he continued to read the placard. "Who are you, boy?"
"My name is Artemas Lyon, and my father lives at Riverlawn," replied Artie.
"Well, Artemas Lyon, I would not print that bill if your father would give me a hundred dollars a letter for doing it!" stormed the printer, as he tossed the copy back to the messenger with as much indignation in his manner as in his speech.
"All right, sir; if you don't want to do the job you needn't!" replied Artie, as he returned the bill to his pocket and moved to the door.
"Stop a minute, boy! So you are recruiting at Riverlawn for the Abolition army?" called the printer, who was perhaps a member of the Home Guards. "I want to know something about that business."
"If you want to enlist in the Union army, you can do so at Riverlawn. I am in a hurry, and I can't stop to answer any questions," replied Artie, as he bolted out at the door.
"What are you doing here, Artie Lyon?" called a voice from the other side of the street as he was unhitching his horse.
It was Colonel Cosgrove, though his house was some distance farther up the street. The lawyer came over to him, and he explained the object of his visit to the county town.
"You ought to have come to me at once, Artie," said the colonel, as the messenger showed him the handbill. "That printer runs a Secession paper, and he would lose all his subscribers if it was known that he printed a placard like this. Come with me, and I will get the work done for you."
Artie followed him to the office of a Union paper, and it looked as though it was in a more prosperous condition than the other. The printer readily undertook the work, and promised to have it done by three o'clock in the afternoon. The messenger was invited to the mansion of Colonel Cosgrove, where he dined with the family.
"I signed the letter to General Buell with your father, asking him to send a recruiting officer to this locality," said the colonel, as he conducted his guest to the library. "I am very glad he has come. I should have been in favor of establishing his office in this place if it were not a current report that the town is to be occupied by the Confederates within a short time."
"Father thought Riverlawn would be a better place than Barcreek village for it," added Artie.
"I think he is right."
The messenger was called upon to tell the news of his vicinity, and he mentioned all that had occurred since the fight, including the attempt to murder Levi Bedford, and the capture of Buck Lagger. At three o'clock Artie went to the printing-office, and found the handbills all ready for him. He paid the bill, and went back to the colonel's house for his horse, which had been as well cared for as his rider. He was advised to hurry out of the town, and he galloped his horse for the first mile till he reached the open country. Half a mile ahead of him was a wood.
The young horseman had reduced his speed to a moderate gait before he reached this grove; but he had not gone far before three men stepped out of the bushes and stood in front of him in the road. They had flint-lock guns in their hands, and it looked as though they were there for a purpose.
"Stop, boy!" shouted the man who stood in the middle of the road, with one on each side of him.