by Oliver Optic
CHAPTER XXX
LEVI BEDFORD AND HIS PRISONER
Colonel Cosgrove and Squire Truman returned to Riverlawn with Major Lyonand his son. Colonel Belthorpe and Tom renewed their expressions ofgratitude to Deck for the important service he had rendered to thefamily in the protection of Margie and Kate, and insisted that he shouldvisit Lyndhall as soon as possible. They parted at the cross roads, andboth parties received a warm welcome at their homes.
Levi Bedford and Artie Lyon had remained on watch in the fort, while asufficient number of the hands patrolled the bridge and the creek; butthe ruffians had found enough to do in the direction they had gone, andthere was no alarm during the rest of the night. The major took hisguests to the mansion, while Deck related to Levi and Artie the eventsof the visit to Lyndhall.
"Captain Titus and the mob have really been thoroughly whipped out oftheir boots," said the overseer, when Deck had finished his narrative."But, as the leader of the ruffians said, we haven't seen the end ofthis thing yet."
"Do you think they will make another attack upon Riverlawn, Levi?" askedDeck with along gape.
"I don't reckon they will try it in the same way they did before; atleast not till they are fully provided with arms and ammunition,"replied Levi. "That attempt to capture the two daughters of ColonelBelthorpe looks like one of Buck Lagger's schemes. If he had obtainedpossession of the two girls, very likely he would have confined them inone of the caverns like the one where they put the arms, with a guardover them."
"That would have been awful," added Artie.
"I reckon they didn't mean to hurt the girls, and wouldn't if they hadgot possession of them," continued Levi. "But you can see foryourselves, boys, that they would have had the key to the fortress intheir own hands if they had obtained the girls."
"That's so!" exclaimed Deck, who had seen the point before without anyhelp from the overseer.
"I don't see what good the girls could have done them," said Artie, whohad been asleep most of the time during the absence of the planter andhis son.
"It is as plain as the nose on a monkey's face," added Deck. "With thetwo girls as prisoners, Captain Titus would have demanded the return ofthe 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 themup."
"But father would have made common cause with him, and he could not wellhave 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 mothernot to permit Miss Dorcas or Miss Hope to go outside of the plantationunless they are well guarded," added Levi. "If Captain Titus could getaway with your two sisters, and hide them, he could have things all hisown 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 ofthe ruffians," continued the overseer thoughtfully, "or he could nothave been in the cross-cut. He must have known about the party, and thatthe 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 knowsabout every family in the county," replied Levi. "He could easily havefound out all about the party, and who were to be there."
"There is the breakfast-bell," said Deck, who was quite prepared by hisnight's work for the summons.
At the table the story of the night's adventures was repeated for theinformation of Mrs. Lyons and her daughters, and they wanted to hugDeck; first, because he had been so brave and vigorous in the rescue ofMargie and Kate Belthorpe, and second, because he had not been killed orseverely 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 hadarranged a plan for the enlistment of a company of cavalry which hadbeen discussed at the meeting the evening before. But all concerned weretired out after the labors of the night. Colonel Cosgrove was sent tothe place where he had left his team, and Squire Truman was driven tothe village by Levi, who had chosen this duty himself, in order to "seewhat was going on," as he expressed it.
The ruffians who had formed the mob had been gathered from the regionaround Barcreek, and not a few of them lived in the village. Thereappeared 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 livedalone when he was at home, which was not much of the time. His worldlywealth, consisting of his stock of miscellaneous goods, was contained ina 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 noreasoning to convince him that Buck Lagger had fired the shot which hadnarrowly failed to send him to his long home. This particular kind ofoutrage was not an uncommon occurrence in Kentucky during the excitingperiod which followed the bombardment of Fort Sumter. Not a few who hadenlisted 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. Hewas not a man to permit such a dastardly deed to remain unpunished amoment longer than was necessary. The ruffian, who had appeared to bethe lieutenant of Captain Titus the night before, could not be far off.Passing to the rear of the shanty, Levi discovered him running for thewoods a short distance from the road. In his hand he carried an oldflint-lock musket, from which he had doubtless fired the shot intendedto deprive Major Lyon of the services of his valuable overseer.
Buck turned to look at his pursuer, though he hardly abated his speed indoing so. His left arm was hung in a sling, the material of which lookedas though it might have been a part of the flag of truce displayed onthe creek bridge the night before. Levi had the heavy revolver withwhich he had armed himself still in his pocket; and it had even occurredto him that he might have occasion to use it before he returned from hispresent visit to the village.
Though he was a heavy man, Levi was agile in his movements, and theruffian could not help seeing that his pursuer was gaining upon him.Before he reached the woods, he realized that he had no chance toescape, 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 itsonly 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 herushed up to him, and wrenched the musket from his hand, thinking hemight try to use it as a club. "It's no fault of yours, except in youraim, that you are not a murderer, Buck Lagger!"
"IT WON'T GO OFF AGAIN UNTIL YOU LOAD IT."]
"I'm only sorry I missed my aim," replied Buck. "You have a revolver inyour 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 wouldhang you to one of the beams of your own shanty," replied Levi, as hegrasped the ruffian by the collar of his coat.
"Oh, I'll lend you a rope if you will come to the house," replied theobliging ruffian. "But hold your hand! You hurt me! You can see foryourself that I am wounded. One of Lyon's cubs put a ball through myshoulder last night."
"It's a pity he did not put it through your brains, if you've gotanything of that sort in the top of your head," added Levi, as heproceeded to lead his prisoner to his wagon.
"You hurt me, Bedford!" pleaded Buck. "If you want to hang me, I'll helpyou do the job in proper fashion; but you needn't torture me before youdo 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 torun aw
ay, I won't kill you, but I will put two or three balls throughyour legs, so that it won't be convenient for you to run," said he, ashe 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 thewagon."
"Are you go'n' to take me down to Lyon's place?" asked Buck, looking hiscaptor in the face as they stopped at the side of the vehicle.
"Get in quick, or I may hurt you again!" said Levi impatiently. "Youwon't get killed by a ball from my shooter, but you may have anotherwound."
Probably the ruffian preferred shooting to hanging, and the remark ofthe overseer did not please him. If he had told his whole story, hewould have said that he had been unable to sleep on account of the woundin his shoulder, and for that reason he had been up early enough to seeLevi drive past his shanty with Squire Truman. The suffering made himangry, stimulated his desire for revenge; and he had tried to put theoverseer out of the way.
He pretended to be more afraid of wounds than of death; and with theassistance of Levi he climbed into the wagon, taking his place on thefront seat as directed. His captor put the gun he had brought with himinto the wagon, and then seated himself beside his prisoner. Thespirited horses went off at a lively pace, and Buck immediatelycomplained that the motion increased his pain.
"That wasn't a bad scheme of yours to get possession of ColonelBelthorpe's girls, Buck. You meant to trade them off for the arms, Isuppose," said Levi, as he reduced the pace of his horses to a walk; forhe 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 achuckle and a groan.
"Why didn't you try it on Major Lyon's girls first, for that would havebrought the matter nearer home?"
"That's just what we meant to do," replied Buck, with refreshingconfidence in his custodian. "That was my plan; but Cap'n Titus wasobstinate, and wouldn't hear to me. He ain't much of a cap'n; and I'dhad 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 longenough. Our folks are fightin' this thing on principle, and we ain'tgo'n' to see the good old State of Kaintuck turned over to theAbolitionists."
"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 downwhite Kaintuckians last night," replied Buck bitterly.
"Only when a mob of ruffians came down upon them to burn their propertyand carry off their daughters!" added Levi. "They are Union men, andthey will stand by the old flag as long as there is anything left ofthem."
"The Union's busted!"
"Not much! Why don't you enlist in the Confederate army, and carry outyour principles? You are a cowardly ruffian, Buck!"
"We can do more good to the cause by stoppin' here, Bedford; and when Igit command of that Home Guard, as I shall afore long, I'll clean outthe 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 thereprobate.
As before suspected by Levi and his employer, "that Home Guard" wascomposed of the ruffians who had been the assailants the night before.Levi drove to the fort, where a guard of a dozen negroes, under thecommand of General, had been placed over the arms and ammunition. Theprisoner was taken from the wagon, and permitted to lie on one of thebeds which had been brought from the mansion the night before for theuse of the defenders of the plantation. General and his men were chargedto shoot the captive if he attempted to escape.