Suddenly these sparks caught in the tinder.
Suddenly these sparks caught in the tinder.
Slowly and carefully they began striking the flint with the steel, and with each blow they expected to hear a commotion from the sentinels on the platform along the wall.
Click, click, click. With each click little sparks flew from the flint, and suddenly these sparks caught in the tinder, which blazed upward quickly, revealing the two brave patriots who were thus risking their lives for the good of the patriot Cause.
The light from the tinder was seen by the sentinels above, and the next moment there was a great outcry, and the sentinels, looking over and catching sight of the two patriots, who were now running away from the fort as fast as possible, opened fire, and several musket-shots were fired at the fugitives.
Luckily, however, none of the shots were effective, the bullets going wide of the mark, and Dick and Tim kept on running and were soon in the timber and among their comrades.
Then the patriots watched the growing fire eagerly, and the soldiers that had been instructed to shoot the redcoats if they tried to extinguish the fire, waited eagerly for the attempt to be made, their muskets held in readiness for instant use.
Then suddenly the gate of the fort was thrown open and out rushed a large number of British soldiers, bringing water with which to put out the fire.
And as they appeared, the patriot soldiers opened fire, and a rain of bullets was poured in among the British.
Crash! roar! Loudly the volleys rang out, and yells of pain and rage went up from the lips of the redcoats struck by the bullets.
And then to the rattle of the musketry was added the boom-boom of the field-pieces.
Doubtless the patriots would have been able to keep the redcoats from putting out the fire, and it would have burned the stockade-wall and perhaps the fort, but a thunder-storm came up just as the affair was at its height, and a heavy rain beating down on the fire, put it out.
The patriots, realizing that it would be useless to try to set the fort afire when the wood was wet, returned to their encampment, and made themselves as comfortable as they could for the night.
Next morning work was resumed, but no very rapid progress was made. They kept pounding the stockade-wall with six-pound cannon balls, but they did not seem to make much impression. Nor did General Greene deem it wise to try to storm the fort, for the structure was too strong to break through, and the wall was too high to scale.
It began to look as if the siege was to be a long one, and the patriots settled down to take it as easy as possible, and make a thorough job of the affair. They were determined that they would capture the fort sooner or later.
When the siege had been going on four or five days, a patriot settler came to the encampment, and told General Greene that a British force was coming to reinforce Fort Ninety-Six, and it was about fifty miles distant, and coming from the coast. General Sumpter had sent the patriot to warn General Greene.
The general called a council of the members of his staff, and then they questioned the patriot closely.
“How long will it take the British to reach here?” asked General Greene.
“About three days, I think,” was the reply.
“And how strong a force is it?”
“The man that brought the news to General Sumpter said there was about five hundred soldiers in the force.”
“That number, in addition to the force that Major Cruger already has in the fort will make his army too strong for us,” said General Greene.
“We must capture the fort before the reinforcements get here,” said Captain Morgan.
“Yes, so we must,” agreed the general. “That is, if we can.”
“We are weakening the stockade-walls,” said another officer. “I believe that in another day of pounding the wall with six-pound shots we will be able to make an opening, and then we can storm the works.”
“We will try to force our way into the enemy’s works, anyhow,” said General Greene. “We will get to work early in the morning, and keep at work till we succeed.”
The patriots were up early next morning, and soon after breakfast the bombardment of the fort with the six-pounders was begun, and was kept up steadily throughout the day, but when evening came the wall still stood firm.
The patriots began to believe that they would not be able to break down the wall and get at the enemy.
Still, they were determined, and next day they worked as hard as ever, but when evening came the wall still stood firm. The patriots were disappointed, but made preparations to continue the work as energetically as ever on the morrow.
After an early breakfast next morning, they went at it, and kept the field-pieces busy till noon, and then as the wall still withstood the fire from the six-pounders, General Greene began figuring on storming the fort anyway.
“The British reinforcements may get here this afternoon,” he said, “and we haven’t much time in which to work. We must try to effect an entrance at the point where we have been trying to cause a breach with the field-pieces.”
The other officers agreed with him, and so about the middle of the afternoon an attempt was made to storm the enemy’s works. For a while there was a desperate battle, and the patriots came very near effecting an entrance, but finally they were repulsed, and had to retreat to the edge of the forest.
It was now getting along toward evening, and the dead and wounded patriots were removed under a flag of truce, the dead being buried and the wounded taken care of.
Dick Dare had gone to General Greene as soon as the patriot force had retreated, and he suggested that he should go and reconnoiter and see if the British reinforcements were anywhere near, and the general had told him to go ahead.
“That is a good idea,” he said. “The British may be near here now.”
Dick set out, and made his way eastward at a rapid pace, and kept onward till nightfall, when he stopped at a farmhouse and asked if any redcoats had been seen in that vicinity.
The settler said no, and Dick went on his way, but when night came, he had not seen any signs of the British.
“They are not far away, I am certain,” was his thought. “Well, I’ll keep on till I get them located. They will be in camp, likely, somewhere near here.”
A few minutes later he caught sight of the glimmer of a campfire in the distance, and he advanced slowly and cautiously, and when about one hundred and fifty yards from the camp, he paused and stood there, gazing at the scene with interest.
It was the British force, sure enough, and when he had sized it up closely, he decided that there was nearer one thousand men than five hundred.
“Our force could not hope to capture Fort Ninety-Six after this force gets there,” he murmured. “And this force will reach there easily by noon to-morrow.”
Having sized up the British force, Dick turned and made his way back in the direction of the patriot encampment, reaching there about half-past ten o’clock. He went direct to the tent occupied by General Greene, and found the general still up.
“I found the encampment of the British, sir,” said Dick, after exchanging greetings.
“Ah, indeed. How far from here is the encampment, Dick?”
“About ten or twelve miles.”
“How strong a force have they?” was the next question.
“There is nearer one thousand men than five hundred, sir.”
“Ah. Then the force is stronger than the messenger thought.”
“Yes, sir.”
The general asked a number of questions, all of which Dick answered, and then the youth went to the quarters occupied by his company, and told Tom and Ben about the British.
“That means that we will have a big battle to-morrow,” said Tom, his voice trembling with eagerness.
“Likely,” said Dick.
“But they will outnumber us greatly,” said Ben.
“Yes,” said Dick, “but we will make a strong fight, and if we could manage to capture the fort before the reinforcements get here, I believe we could hold it.”
“I wish we could capture the fort,” said Tom.
Then they lay down and were soon sound asleep.
The patriot force was up very early next morning, and had eaten breakfast before daylight, and as soon as they could see, they began the attack on Fort Ninety-Six.
They fired with the field-pieces as rapidly as possible, and about the middle of the forenoon they charged upon the fort and made another attempt to force an entrance, but the British fought desperately, and the patriot force was driven back.
And soon afterward word was brought by a messenger that had been sent to keep watch for the coming British reinforcements, to the effect that the force in question was close at hand.
It would be useless to try to attack the fort again, and so General Greene ordered that they advance, take up as strong a position as possible, and resist with persistence the approaching force of British.
The patriot soldiers made their way to the top of a sort of ridge about half a mile east of Fort Ninety-Six, and here they stationed themselves behind trees and awaited the coming of the enemy.
Presently they caught sight of the redcoats approaching, but it was seen a few moments later that it was only an advance guard. The redcoats had heard the sound of the battle, and were cautious, and had sent a reconnoitering party ahead, so as to avoid an ambush.
The patriots, knowing they would be discovered before the main force reached the spot, opened fire on the party as soon as it came in range, and several of the redcoats were dropped, dead or wounded.
The rest beat a hasty retreat, and rejoined the main force, and reported the presence of the patriot force at the top of the ridge. The party came to a stop, and the officers held a council.
Two or three of the officers were for making an attack, but the others thought differently, and so it was decided to make a detour and go around the patriots.
This was done, but the patriots learned of the movement, through Dick, who had followed the reconnoitering party and kept watch on the British, and the patriots managed to reach a point from which they could fire on the British as they passed, and killed and wounded a few.
The redcoats returned the fire, but did not stop to show fight. They kept onward at as fast a pace as possible, until they reached the fort, which they entered, and they received a hearty welcome from Major Cruger, who had begun to think that he would have to surrender the fort.
The patriots went into camp about a mile from Fort Ninety-Six, and it was decided to wait and see what the British would do.
“I believe that we could hold this position, here on the top of this ridge,” said General Greene. “And I am in favor of staying and giving them one battle, at any rate.”
The other officers agreed with him in his view of the matter, and so they put in the rest of the day, strengthening their position by throwing up earthworks.
When this had been finished, the patriots settled down to take it easy and await some move on the part of the British.
Dick and Tom and Ben were stationed near the fort, to keep watch and report any move the enemy might make, and General Greene felt that his force would be able to make a good showing, as the patriot youths would send him word if the British emerged and started to come toward the camp of the patriots.
No such move was made that day, however, nor during the night, and the patriots had an opportunity to get rested up, after their hard work during the siege. It was a privilege appreciated by both officers and men.
Next morning, however, the British came forth from the fort, and began to advance toward the point where the patriot force had taken up its position.
They advanced slowly, and Dick sent word by Tom that the redcoats were coming, and General Greene began making ready to receive the enemy.
Dick and Ben moved back slowly, till they came to the patriot position, and then they informed General Greene of the nearness of the British, who put in an appearance a few minutes later.
The British made an attack, advancing swiftly and firing as they came. They charged up the slope, toward the patriot position, but the patriots, crouching in the ditch, with the earthwork before them, were in a protected position, and as soon as the redcoats were within range, they opened fire.
The battle was on, and a lively battle it was, for a while. The rattle of the musketry and pistols was loud, and the yells of pain from the wounded British soldiers added to the din. The patriots were not injured much, because the bullets from the enemy’s weapons did not penetrate the earthworks.
The British made a desperate attempt to enter the encampment and capture the patriot force, but they failed, and finally retreated, taking their dead and wounded with them.
The patriots were very well satisfied with the result of the battle, but they realized that they might not be successful again, and so General Greene called a council and asked the officers if they did not think it best to begin a retreat.
The officers said they favored retreating, as the British were now too strong for them, and so that evening, after supper was over and the soldiers had rested a while, they broke camp and started on the march toward the east.
They marched onward till about midnight, and then they stopped and went into camp. They were far enough away from the British, so that they did not fear an attack, but there might be Indians around, though hardly in strong enough force to make much trouble.
The patriots did not break camp next morning till rather late, and they had just got started, when a British force was seen approaching from the direction of Fort Ninety-Six.
“They are coming in pursuit,” said General Greene.
This was indeed the case, and during that day there was almost a constant exchange of shots between the British and the patriots.
A large party of Indians put in an appearance, also, and aided the British in hindering the marching of the patriots as much as possible.
The redskins were so good at concealing themselves behind trees that it was difficult to injure them, and they did considerable damage.
That night the patriot force went into camp on the top of a knoll and made its position as strong as possible. Double the usual number of sentinels were stationed, and it would not be possible for the British to take them by surprise.
The British did not make an attack that night, however, but instead encircled the encampment of the patriots, and when morning came, the patriots found that they could not proceed, unless they fought their way through the British lines.
What to do was the question. If they remained, they would probably sooner or later be captured, as the British force was more than twice as strong as their own, and to try to break through the enemy’s lines would be to cause the loss of many patriot lives.
It was decided, at a council, to remain on the knoll and hold the British in check as long as possible.
“If we can get word to General Sumpter, he will come to our assistance,” said General Greene, and he summoned Dick Dare and asked him if he were willing to make the attempt to slip through the British lines, after nightfall, that evening, and carry a message to General Sumpter.
As the readers of the Dare Boys stories know, and as they will see by reading the next volume, entitled, “The Dare Boys With La Fayette,” Dick Dare was always ready to attempt any feat, no matter how dangerous, if it would benefit the patriot cause, so now he said promptly that he would make the attempt.
The British did not make a strong attack, that day, but contented themselves with firing at the patriots whenever they caught sight of one. The patriots returned the fire, and thus the day passed, and evening came.
And as soon as it was dark, Dick Dare started on his perilous expedition, and worked his way slowly and cautiously through the British lines. He had selected the weakest point of the line for his attempt, and he succeeded in getting through, though he was discovered by a sentinel as he was hastening away, and was fired at. He ran swiftly, however, and although he was pursued, he managed to escape in the darkness.
He had received instructions as to the whereabouts of Sumpter, from the man that had brought the news of the coming of the British force, and so he did not have a great deal of difficulty in finding Sumpter.
When Dick told Sumpter that the patriot force under General Greene was surrounded by a superior force of British and that he needed assistance, Sumpter said that he would go to the assistance of the patriot party at once.
He set out, with his force, consisting of about five hundred men, and reached the vicinity of the encampment of the patriot force about the middle of the afternoon of the next day.
He advanced and attacked the British with great energy, and they, taken by surprise, were thrown into great disorder. Then the patriot force on the knoll charged out upon the British, and added to the confusion, and for a while there raged about as fierce a battle as one would expect to see.
The British tried to rally and hold their ground, but could not do so, and finally they broke and fled at the top of their speed, pursued by the patriots, who were glad to turn the tables on the British.
The British continued on in the direction of Fort Ninety-Six, and it seemed evident that they did not intend to linger in the vicinity of the patriots, now that they had a strong force.
Generals Greene and Sumpter held a council, and after considerable discussion, decided not to follow the enemy and try to capture Fort Ninety-Six.
Instead they joined forces and went to another part of South Carolina, where the redcoats and Indians were causing the patriot settlers a lot of trouble, and made it so hot for the British and Tories and Indians that they were glad to cease operations and head in the direction of Fort Ninety-Six.
The patriots were well satisfied with their work. They had stopped most of the work of plundering by redcoats, Tories and Indians, and were ready to start to make it lively for other gangs of Tories and Indians, in other parts of the country.
Dick and Tom Dare, and Ben Foster, having gotten through the campaign without being wounded, were well pleased with their part in the campaign, and were eager for further adventures.
“I like the excitement of battling with the British,” said Tom, as they sat in camp, at evening, and talked of the exciting adventures they had gone through in the past few weeks. “I hope we will soon get started on another series of adventures just as exciting.”
“I don’t like fighting for the sake of the excitement of the fight,” said Dick; “but I am always glad to be fighting when it is to be for the benefit and good of the patriot Cause.”
“That is the way I look at the matter,” said Ben. “I shall be glad when the war ends, so far as I am concerned.”
“And so shall I,” said Dick.
“Sure an’ it’s mesilf thot loikes foightin’ as well as the nixt wan,” said Tim Murphy. “But Oi’ll be willin’ to settle down an’ take it aisy whin the war is over.”
“Yah, und dot is der vay I loog at id,” said Fritz Schmockenburg.
“Well, there will likely be a lot of fighting yet, before the war is ended,” said Tom.
“There will be considerable fighting in the next few months, likely,” said Dick.
And he was right. The war did not end till more than a year later, when the British were defeated at Yorktown.
THE END
THE END