by Oliver Optic
CHAPTER V
THE LEADER OF THE SCOUTING-PARTY
As the squadron came to a region where Major Lyon was no longer familiarwith the country, scouts had been sent out ahead of the column to giveinformation in regard to any possible enemy. Confederate troops had beenreported from several different directions by those who had occasion totravel about the State. As indicated by some of their operations, theirpresent policy was to destroy the railroad bridges, so as to prevent thegovernment from forwarding troops by them.
General Buckner, or his forces, had destroyed one at Rolling Creek; buthe was supposed to be falling back upon Bowling Green, as regiments fromOhio, Indiana, and Illinois began to reach this part of the State. Itwas possible that the squadron might come in contact with some of theseforces; and the men were very anxious to find them.
Sergeant Knox was at the head of the scouts. He was a man of forty-two,a tall, raw-boned Kentuckian, whose enterprise and love of adventure hadled him into the region beyond the Mississippi, where he had been aregular soldier, a hunter, a trapper, and _voyageur_. For some reason hehad become a strong friend of Deck Lyon, who was never tired oflistening to his stories of the regions beyond the pale of civilization.He was a bluff, good-natured man with those who pleased his fancy; and,though he was not bitter or revengeful, he was capable of being aterrible enemy.
Firing at a target was part of the regular drill of the cavalrymen incamp, and Life Knox always put his ball inside of every other. His namewas Eliphalet, and he sometimes laughed at his parents for giving himsuch a long name. Captain Gordon had had no little difficulty ininducing him to sign his name in full on the enlistment papers. He hadabbreviated it to "Life," and declared that he had never signed anythingbut that to any document in all his life.
He was born and "raised" in Warren County, though he had wandered farfrom it at an early age, after the death of his father and mother. Hehad a brother who was a prosperous planter, and with him he had livedthe last two years of his life. When he came to Riverlawn to enlist, hebrought with him a long rifle, which was a load for an ordinary man tocarry. He was told that he could make no use of it in the army; but heasked Deck to take care of it for him, and he put it in his room.
It was occasionally brought out when the soldiers were firing at atarget, and Life produced the most surprising results with it. He waspretty sure to hit the bull's-eye with it every time; for he had beentrained where his daily existence depended upon the accuracy of his aim.He could bring down a squirrel as far as he could see him; and he alwaysinsisted that the rifle had as much to do with the result as himself.His shooting was observed with interest by the officers and men; and hewas called, not simply a good, but a remarkable, shot. He was a deadshot to any living thing at which he aimed.
Life Knox was a good-hearted man; but there was a sort of inbornaristocracy in him which would not permit him to associate intimatelywith all his comrades in the ranks, though he treated them well, andspoke pleasantly to them. Deck was always respectful to him, and Lifehad taken a decided fancy to him. When the tall Kentuckian was orderedupon the scout, he took care that Deck should be one of the party. Theyhad ridden together all the afternoon, and Life had made the time seemshort to the young man by relating all the details of a fight with aparty of Indians.
As the darkness of the evening came on, Life ordered his men to keep asharp lookout on all sides, and suspended his thrilling narratives thathis own watchfulness might not be impaired. The scouts were passingthrough what appeared to be a plantation, though they could not yet seeany buildings. Suddenly the light of a fire flashed up at a considerabledistance to the right of the scouts in the road.
"A fire, Life!" shouted Deck, as he discovered the glare of the firstflame that rose in the darkness.
"Hush, little one!" interposed Knox. "Don't tell the neighbors about it,for it might astonish them."
"I don't believe there are any neighbors very near us," replied Deck ina low tone. "But there is something going on in this vicinity."
"We won't tell 'em, whoever's at work round here, that we are coming. Bythe light of the fire I can see a mansion or farmhouse over yonder."
As he spoke, the report of the half-a-dozen muskets, more or less, thathad attracted the attention of the main body of the squadron, was heard,though the scouts were half a mile distant. The building of the fire waspossibly a signal for the discharge which had so soon followed it; butno other connection could be suggested between them.
"One man can always do better in lookin' inter things than a dozen,"said Life, as he was trying to connect the fire and the firing in areasonable manner. "Ride over towards that fire, Deck, and see what youcan see."
"Be you uns soldiers, Mars'r?" asked a negro, coming out of a cornfieldat the side of the road, where the stalks had concealed his coming.
"Of course we are, Cato," replied Deck, who was nearest to him.
"Who done tole you my name, Mars'r?" asked the negro, whose surpriseseemed to have driven everything else out of his head.
"I guessed at it. But what do you want? I told you we were soldiers,"added Deck. "Do you come from that house beyond the cornfield?"
"Yes, Mars'r; but if you uns is soldiers, which side was you on?"inquired Cato very cautiously.
"Not gone, Deck?" asked Knox, riding up to him.
"This contraband has just come out of the field, and belongs to thehouse we saw in the distance. I thought he could tell me better than Icould see for myself what is going on here," replied Deck.
"You are right, Deck."
"But he wants to know which side we are on before he says anything,"added Deck.
"Then he is a sensible nigger. Of course we uns belong on the Unionside; and when you catch Life Knox on any other side, you'll catch acoon asleep," replied the sergeant, decidedly enough to satisfy anydoubtful person. "What's gwine on at that fire, Minky?"
"Bress de Lod if you was Union sodgers! and my name is Cato!" exclaimedthe visitor, earnestly enough for a camp-meeting. "Dey is a hullregiment of Sesh sodgers ober dar!" he added, pointing in the directionfrom which the report of the firing had come.
Without waiting for any further information, Knox called Lane, one ofthe scouts, and sent him back to report what the negro said to MajorLyon. He was directed to move slowly after he had gone the eighth of amile; for the enemy were at some point on the right of the road, and hewould get a shot if he disturbed them.
"What are the Sesh soldiers here for, Cato?" asked Knox, as soon as hismessenger had gone.
"Gwine to burn de bridge ober dar," replied the man, pointing in thedirection in which the structure had been made out in the gloom of theevening.
"Well, why don't they burn it, then?"
"Dey done got oder business at de mansion-house, sar."
"What other business have they got there?"
"I reckon de story's as long as Uncle Zeke's sarmints; but de fust thingis, dey's gwine to hang Mars'r Barkland to one ob dem trees, if he don'ttell whar he hide his money," answered Cato, as he gave a hurriedglance at the fire.
"How many men are there at the house, or near it, Cato?" asked Knox withdeep interest.
"I done count six on 'em."
"Then we won't allow a Union man to be hung to a tree. Scouts,attention, march!" called the sergeant hurriedly.
With this order, Life dashed into the cornfield, closely followed byDeck and the others. The harvest had been gathered in the field, andthere was nothing but the stalks that remained to obstruct the passageof the squad. The fire was at the edge of a grove, on ground slightlyelevated, and not far in the rear of the mansion, which could now bedistinctly seen. In approaching it, the cavalrymen came to a spot lesselevated than the grove, where Knox halted to reconnoitre.
"There's a lot of the villains coming from the house!" exclaimed thesergeant, as he brought his horse to a full stop all at once.
"They have about finished hanging Union men in our county," said Deck,"and I don't believe they will hang this one here.
"
"You can bet your horse they won't," added Life. "They can't see usyet, and I think we had better fix things a little before we beginbusiness."
"We obey orders, Sergeant. There's a knoll over on the right coveredover with trees."
"I was looking at that; and we will move over there, and take a positionbehind it, where they can't see us," replied Knox, as he led the waythrough a hollow, which brought the party to it.
The mansion-house was on the highest ground in the vicinity, though itwas not on a hill. The fire seemed to be plentifully supplied with wood;for it burned brightly, and shed its light on the road leading from thehouse to the grove. A group of men could be seen approaching theelevation where the fire burned. They moved very slowly, and appeared tohave considerable trouble in making any progress at all. There was aprisoner in the midst of the party, and he was very unwilling to move inthe direction indicated by his oppressors.
While they were observing the spectacle, Cato joined them, for he hadfollowed the cavalrymen as rapidly as he could on foot. He evidentlybelonged on the plantation, and knew all about the nature of the affairin progress, though the sergeant was not disposed to listen to a storyas "long as Uncle Zeke's sermons."
"Do you know what those villains are doing there, Cato?" he asked, whenthe negro had recovered his breath.
"Dey drag ole Mars'r Barkland ober to de tree, whar dey will hang him,"answered Cato promptly.
"Then your master has plenty of money?"
"I dunno, Mars'r; he neber tole me notin' about dat."
"I s'pose not. Are the men who came to the mansion in uniform, Cato?"
"No, sar; no uniform but de rags dey wear. Cap'n Tites is out at bofelbows, and a nigger'd be 'shamed to wear sich a coat."
"Did you hear what they said when they came to the house?"
"Hear ebery word dey say, Mars'r, 'cause I waits on de table when deydone took supper."
"Then they had supper at the mansion?"
"Yes, sar; dey was all half-starbed, and dey eat more'n twenty men, anddone drink whiskey enough to float a canal-boat."
"Did that captain you spoke of drink whiskey, Cato?" asked Deck.
"He done drink more as all de rest on 'em. Mars'r Barkland willin' togib dem de supper and de whiskey, but he don't want to gib 'em anymoney. Cap'n Tites tell him he done got million money; but mars'r say hedon't hab none. Den de cap'n say he hang 'im to a tree if he don't gibup de money."
"That will do, Cato; I think I understand the matter now," said Knox, ashe changed his position so that he could get a better view of the sceneof action. "They have got nearly to the tree. It is about time to make amove."
The sergeant questioned the negro in regard to the road which led to therear of the house, and some other matters relating to the locality. Knoxwas a strategist in a small way, as he had been obliged to be indefending himself from Indians and wild beasts. In a moment he had hisplan ready to put into operation.
"I count nine men there, taking in the planter," said he. "Cato saysthere is a whole regiment camped in here somewhar. I don't believe it,Deck; but we don't want to stir 'em up just yet. You will take Owensand Fox, and ride round to that road Cato tells about, and I will go inon this side. I'll do most of the job with my four; but I don't want 'emto git off to their main body. Major Lyon'll tend to them."
Deck started at once with his two followers, directed by Cato again; andthe negro went himself with all the speed of his legs. He came to theroad, which was simply a driveway over the plantation, and soon reachedthe house. He was galloping his steed; but when he came to the house hereined him in at the plaintive supplication of an elderly woman and ayoung lady, whose face he could not see in the gloom of the evening.