Altsheler, Joseph - [Novel 09]

by In Hostile Red (lit)

  " I thank you for the honor, Sir William," said Wildfoot, with a grateful inflection, " but I had formed another plan, somewhat different in manner but similar in the result that you mention."

  " May I ask just what you mean ? "

  " It is not necessary for us to be separated under my plan."

  " I do not understand yet."

  " I had thought, Sir William, of taking you with me when I left Philadelphia." 174

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  The deep red flushed Sir William's swarthy face again. My amazement at Wildfoot's presumption increased, but I remembered the case of the Eng- lish general Prescott, who had been kidnapped in Rhode Island by the daring American captain, Barton."

  " Do you mean that you would carry me off as a prisoner ? " asked Sir William.

  " Such was my intention, if you will pardon the rudeness," replied Wildfoot, humbly. "And if you will excuse me again, Sir William, we must hurry."

  I saw Vivian suddenly lean over in his chair, throw out his arms, and sweep from the table the candles, extinguishing them instantly, while Graves, with a single strong puff of his breath, blew out the one in front of us. The rooms were plunged into darkness, and what had seemed comedy before, be- came tragedy, especially for Graves and me, bound as we were to the table and powerless to cry out. I heard the quick, heavy tread of feet, and the crack of a pistol shot, the flash of the powder casting for a moment a fantastic light by which I saw rapidly moving figures, and then the sound of shattering glass and another shot.

  I do not think that I breathed for a minute or two. The next room, with the darkness, the pistol shots, the occasional flashes of light and the tramp- ling feet, furnished every evidence of a deadly strug- gle, and at any moment a pistol ball might take me in the breast, while I sat there bound to the table, powerless to help myself, and unable even to make myself heard.

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  A man brushed suddenly past me, threw open the outer door, and shouted to the guards, who were already crowding into the room. But the sounds in the inner chamber ceased with great suddenness, and in a moment, a flame flared up. It was Vivian relighting a candle. He was very pale, and the blood was dripping from his left arm, which was limp by his side. Save for himself, the room was empty. Broken glass from both windows lay on the floor. Near the table was a large spot of blood.

  " They escaped through the windows, Sir Wil- liam," said Vivian, "but I think that one has carried with him the mark of my bullet."

  " And you have the mark of his," replied Sir Wil- liam, who was at the outer door. " One of you men run for a surgeon at once. I owe too much to you, Vivian, to forget this."

  Then he began to give hasty orders for the pursuit of Wildfoot and his men. All the anger and cha- grin which he had concealed so well in their pres- ence surged up.

  " They shall be caught ! They shall be caught ! " he cried. " I will give a hundred guineas myself to the man who first lays hands on this Wildfoot. Send the alarm to all the pickets, and permit nobody to leave Philadelphia on any pretext whatever ! "

  He continued his orders, and messengers rushed with them to the outposts, impressed by the anger and emphasis of the commander-in-chief which would permit no delay. Two or three minutes passed thus, and the fierce mental exertion seemed to calm Sir William. More candles had been lighted, 170

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  and looking about the room, he saw Graves and me still motionless and confronting each other across the table, as silent as sphinxes.

  " What, are you bound?" he exclaimed. "Why did n't you call for help ? "

  And we were yet silent.

  He stared at us in surprise, and then he burst into laughter. I think it was partly relief from the nervous strain that made him laugh.

  " I have heard often," he said, " that silence is a virtue, but this seems to me to be carrying it to an extreme point."

  He promptly gave orders to have the gags and thongs removed, and I stretched my muscles with a feeling of deep relief. Wildfoot might be a great partisan commander, but there was such a thing as pernicious activity. I was a good American, and it was a grievous insult to be bound and gagged by another good American.

  " How did this happen ? " asked Sir William.

  " I do not know," I replied, glad to be able to speak again. " We were bent over the table, busy with our writing, when we were seized from behind. I cannot understand how they passed the sentinel unnoticed."

  Sir William swore a frightful oath.

  "The sentinel has disappeared," he said. "Un- doubtedly he was in league with them, perhaps an American whom we took to be a faithful Tory. We will capture this Wildfoot before morning, and you shall help."

  I exchanged a word or two with Vivian, and 12 177

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  found that he was not badly hurt. A small bone in his left arm was broken by the bullet, but i would heal perfectly in a week or two. Then I hurried out with Sir William and Graves.

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  CHAPTER FIFTEEN The Pursuit of Wildfoot

  Til 10 general was so eager that Graves aud I were several yards behind him when we emerged from the house into the midst of a great tumult, orderlies gal- loping from the door with despatches, and others re- turning for more, while lights were increasing rapidly in the city, and soldiers were gathering for duty. It was evident that Sir William was thoroughly aroused, and intended to capture Wildfoot if it were possible to do such a thing. My first feeling of anger against the ranger because of his treatment of me passed, as I reflected that he naturally took me for a British officer, and could not have done other- wise, even had he known the difference. Now I began to fear for him. I did not wish this bold man, so valuable to our cause, to be captured, possibly to be hanged upon some pretext or other. But Sir William did not give me much time to think. " Be sure you follow me, Melville," he said. He was already on horseback, and, mounting a horse that an orderly held for me, I galloped after him. He had gathered several other aides in his rapid pursuit, and we made quite a cavalcade, the hoofs of our horses thundering upon the hard street. 178

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  The whole city was awake now ; night-capped heads were thrust from windows, and trembling voices asked what was the matter. But we paid no heed, galloping on.

  Catron was among the officers who had joined us, and pointing towards Gerrnantown, he said :

  " They ran this way ; I saw four men with pistols in their hands dash down the street. One was very lar ge."

  "That was Wildfoot ! It was he! Sound the call ! " Sir William shouted joyfully to a trumpeter.

  The man put the instrument to his lips and blew the hunting call. Merrily rose the notes, and Sir William's spirits rose with them. He felt sure that already he held Wildfoot in the hollow of his hand.

  Our rapid ride was bringing us near the outskirts of the city, where the British intrenchments and for- tifications lay, and I imagined that it was Sir Wil- liam's plan to establish first a thorough picket line, and then to search every house in Philadelphia for Wildfoot and his comrades. But, turning my eyes to the southward, I saw a sudden rosy glow under the dark horizon which deepened in a moment into pink and then into red, rising in a lofty pyramid. Sparks shot from it. I pointed it out to Sir William at once. He paused, perplexed.

  " It is a fire, clearly enough," he said ; " but 1 wonder what it can be ! "

  His doubt lasted only a moment. An aide, much excited, galloped up and informed us that the can- tonments of the troops to the southward had been set on fire, and were now burning fiercely. 180

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  "An accident?" asked Sir William, deeply an- noyed.

  " The men are sure that it was caused by the rebels," replied the aide-

  " There is nothing to be done but to put it out as best you can," replied Sir William, and he began to give instructions ; but even as he spoke the report of rifle-shots came from a point a little farther to the north, distant yet dis
tinct, sounding so far away like the popping of a hickory log under the flames. There were red sparks too, no bigger than fire-flies, and both the cracking noises and the sparks increased. Sir William stopped his horse and gazed anxiously at the little red flashes.

  "An attack by the rebels, and at this of all times," he said in tones of great annoyance, but to himself rather than to us. It was not likely that our ragged little army could storm fortified Philadelphia and defeat the powerful and far more numerous force that defended it ; but Sir William was so much engrossed with the pursuit of Wildfoot that he resented any in- terference demanding his attention. He swore again in his wrath.

  "Catron," he said, "you must go at once to that point. If the force there is not sufficient, hurry forward these."

  He began to name regiments that would be avail- able.

  Catron galloped away, and before the sound of

  his horse's hoofs had died, more rifle-shots were

  heard still farther to the northward, coming from a

  point entirely new. The fire quickly blazed up there

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  like a flame in a tinder dry forest, indicating another attack, heavier perhaps than the first. We paused, uncertain which way to go ; and while we hesitated, the attack developed at a fourth point far to the southward, some of the ships in the river replying, the deep boom of the cannon rising like the notes of a funeral bell above the crackle of the musketry. A hum sprang up too from Philadelphia, the alarm of the people deepening as the firing seemed to spread and ring them around. They feared another battle fought almost at their doors, like that of Germantown. The cantonments, mostly light wooden structures, burned brightly, adding to the alarm, and casting a glow over the hurrying regiments. I confess, Amer- ican as I was, and much as I should have enjoyed the doubts of the British, that I, too, was in a daze. My own peculiar position was assuming most per- plexing phases.

  " If I only knew what this meant ! " exclaimed Sir William. " Perhaps, after all, I can leave my men to brush off those rebels while I continue my search for Wildfoot."

  His eagerness to capture the partisan seemed to increase, and I did not wonder at it. I should have felt the same way in his place. We were joined at this moment by more officers, among whom I saw Belfort and Schwarzfelder. The German's face was inflamed by drink, and his talk was full of war-like fury. It died, however, when Sir William looked towards him, although it was Belfort's hand on his arm that warned him to make less noise.

  Another light flamed up at the central point of 182

  The Pursuit of Wildfoot

  attack, and one of the officers stilted that it was a farmhouse occupied as quarters by the troops, evi- dently set on fire, like the other cantonments, by the rebels. The rapid br-r-r of the rifle-shots there indicated that it was the heaviest point of attack.

  This seemed to decide Sir William, and he rode towards the farmhouse, ordering us to follow. I looked back and saw the lights of the city twinkling behind us, and I felt sure that Wildfoot and his com- rades lay hidden there, perhaps in the houses of trusty patriots. The attack at this particular time was either a lucky chance, or part of a clever .scheme, and my admiration of the man, always great, in- creased. We approached the scene of the combat, and the volume of the firing swelled rapidly, the shouts of the combatants coming to our ears ; yet we could see but little of the battle. The night was dark, and the assailing force which had driven back the pickets was sheltered by a rail fence standing within the original British lines. The little jets of flame ran along the fence for some hundreds of yards, but the Americans remained invisible. None could even make a guess at their numbers.

  " Stop, Sir William ! " exclaimed Belfort, sudden- ly. " Let us dispose of these skirmishers before you advance."

  Belfort never lacked courage, and his remark was well-timed. I heard the br-r-r of a bullet over our heads, and then another, and then many others. Two men were struck the next instant, and a horse was killed. It was obviously not the place of the 183

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  comrnander-in-cliief to ride into such a hornet's nest, and he drew off a bit. An unusually heavy volley burst from the fence, and the British pickets were driven back. The officers with us gathered up the fugitives, and led them in a charge.

  " Stay with me, Melville," said Sir William to me. " I shall want you for despatches."

  I was devoutly thankful for his order, not being willing to join in a charge against my own country- men, and I sat willingly on my horse beside him. I was of the opinion that the attack of the British would fail, as they were in too small force, and should have waited for the regiments which were coming up rapidly.

  All the officers were on horseback save the one whose mount had been shot from beneath him, and a bulky figure which I recognized even in the dark as Schwarzfelder's led the van. The German, for all I knew, was a brave man ; but the wine that he had been drinking was now more potent in bringing him on and putting him in the foremost place.

  The attacking force of English numbered about a hundred, and, despite their scanty numbers, they rushed forward with the greatest gallantry, shouting to each other and uttering a hearty cheer. The top of the fence burst into a long streak of flame, and the crack of many rifles together made a heavy crash, followed by an irregular crackle, as more rifles were fired. All but a few in the front ranks of the attack- ing column were cut down, and those in the rear still pushing on, dropped fast before the deliberate fire of the concealed sharpshooters. 184

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  " It 's a trap," I said to Sir William ; " the English are sure to be beaten."

  We heard a rapid drum behind us, and the foot- steps of an advancing regiment ; but they would be too late to save the forlorn hope charging the fence. The crackling fire swelled again into a volley, and the red blur made by the uniforms of the advancing English became dimmer. I heard a groan beside roe. It was Vivian, pale and weak, with a limply hanging arm, who had ridden up.

  " They will all be killed," he said.

  The charging force was now approaching the fence, and always in the van was the bulky figure of Schwarzfelder, bestriding his horse, man and beast apparently alike untouched, the German brandishing a huge sword, and shouting as if he were possessed by a demon.

  " Certainly Schwarzfelder is brave," muttered Sir William, who perhaps remembered the night that I had cast the German out of his quarters. The forlorn hope was almost at the fence, and then the fire of the riflemen increased rapidly. Many of the English fell, and the few who were left, unable to stand such a leaden sleet, turned and ran, as they should have done long before, all except Schwarzfelder, who rode straight at the fence.

  Then I saw an unusual thing. Two men, evi- dently large and powerful, and at the distance the first looked to me remarkably like Wildfoot, sprang over the fence and seized Schwarzfelder from either side. Then, while one tore the sword from his hand, the other, the one who looked like Wildfoot, sprang 185

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  up behind him, and, holding him around the waist, jumped the horse over the low fence. Then we heard the distant thud of hoofs as they disappeared in the darkness.

  " What an insult to Hessian dignity ! " said Vivian beside me. Then he added in a low voice, that Sir William might not hear : " There 's an end to your duel, Melville. The gods are surely unwilling for you to fight."

  When the regiment advancing to the relief reached the fence, the Americans were gone and no one could discover where. The attack at the other points ceased almost simultaneously, and the fires burned out slowly. The search for Wildfoot in the city was continued, but no trace of him could be found, and, eating his heart out in his anger, Sir William re- turned to his quarters.

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  CHAPTER SIXTEEN A Rebuke for Waters

  THE next day was a gloomy one in Phil- adelphia, which was then largely a British town, not only because of the army of occupation, but because most of the patriot population had
gone away, leaving the Tories in possession. The feelings of all were hurt by Wildfoot's extraordinary daring, his easy disap- pearance with his men, and the utter lack of respect he had shown for the commandcr-in-chief. Men said : " What if he had really carried off Sir William ! What an irregular mode of warfare ! " They repeated that they did not fear the American armies, but that they did object to an antagonist who appeared at such unexpected moments and in such an unexpected manner ; the irregularity of the thing was what they especially disliked.

  A number of us visited Vivian at his quarters as soon as we could obtain leave, and condoled with him over his wound. But he was suffering little pain, and reckoned the bandage upon his arm a badge of distinction. So we gave him our congratu- lations instead of our condolences.

  " I should have been glad to have had the other arm broken, if thereby we could have captured Wild- 187

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  foot," he said. The words were spoken without affectation, and we knew that he meant them.

  Belfort was there too, and he was gloomy, despite the fact that he had been commended by Sir William for gallantry in action. Vivian rallied him on his looks.

  " It is because our luck is bad," replied Belfort. " That prisoner who might have told things of im- portance has disappeared completely, and Wildfoot seems to be able to enter the city, do what he pleases, and then disappear with impunity. I am of the opinion that there are traitors in Philadelphia."