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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Miss Lou, by E. P. Roe
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Miss Lou
+
+Author: E. P. Roe
+
+Posting Date: September 8, 2012 [EBook #5309]
+Release Date: March, 2004
+First Posted: June 29, 2002
+Last Updated: August 15, 2005
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISS LOU ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Charles Franks and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE WORKS OF E. P. ROE
+
+VOLUME NINE
+
+"MISS LOU"
+
+
+ILLUSTRATED
+
+
+
+
+In Loving Dedication
+
+TO LITTLE MISS LOU MY YOUNGEST DAUGHTER
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+     CHAPTER I   A GIRL'S PROTEST
+
+    CHAPTER II   SOMETHING HAPPENS
+
+   CHAPTER III   MAD WHATELY
+
+    CHAPTER IV   AUN' JINKEY'S POLICY
+
+     CHAPTER V   WHATELY'S IDEA OF COURTSHIP
+
+    CHAPTER VI   THE STORM BEGINS
+
+   CHAPTER VII   DANGERS THICKENING
+
+  CHAPTER VIII   "WHEN?"
+
+    CHAPTER IX   PARALYZED WITH SHAME
+
+     CHAPTER X   A BAFFLED DIPLOMATIST
+
+    CHAPTER XI   AUN' JINKEY'S WARNING
+
+   CHAPTER XII   A WHIRLWIND OF EVENTS
+
+  CHAPTER XIII   THE UNEXPECTED HAPPENS
+
+   CHAPTER XIV   A THREAT
+
+    CHAPTER XV   MISS LOU EMANCIPATED
+
+   CHAPTER XVI   A SMILE ON WAR'S GRIM FACE
+
+  CHAPTER XVII   THE JOY OF FREEDOM
+
+ CHAPTER XVIII   A WELL-AIMED SLIPPER
+
+   CHAPTER XIX   A GIRL'S APPEAL
+
+    CHAPTER XX   SCOVILLE'S HOPE
+
+   CHAPTER XXI   TWO STORMS
+
+  CHAPTER XXII   CHUNK'S QUEST
+
+ CHAPTER XXIII   A BOLD SCHEME
+
+  CHAPTER XXIV   A HOME A HOSPITAL
+
+   CHAPTER XXV   A TRIBUTE TO A SOUTHERN GIRL
+
+  CHAPTER XXVI   A BACKGROUND OF EGOTISM
+
+ CHAPTER XXVII   AUN' JINKEY'S SUPREME TEST
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII   TRUTH IF THE HEAVENS FALL
+
+  CHAPTER XXIX   "ANGEL OF DEATH"
+
+   CHAPTER XXX   GLIMPSES OF MOODS AND MINDS
+
+  CHAPTER XXXI   THE DUELLISTS VANQUISHED
+
+ CHAPTER XXXII   SAD TIDINGS
+
+CHAPTER XXXIII   CONSPIRATORS
+
+ CHAPTER XXXIV   CHUNK PLAYS SPOOK
+
+  CHAPTER XXXV   A VISITATION
+
+ CHAPTER XXXVI   UNCLE LUSTHAH EXHORTS
+
+CHAPTER XXXVII   A NEW ROUTINE
+
+
+
+
+"MISS LOU"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+A GIRL'S PROTEST
+
+
+A great, rudely built stone chimney was smoking languidly one
+afternoon. Leaning against this chimney, as if for protection and
+support, was a little cabin gray and decrepit with age. The door of the
+cabin stood wide open, for the warm spring was well advanced in the
+South. There was no need of a fire, but Aun' Jinkey, the mistress of
+the abode, said she "kep' hit bunin' fer comp'ny." She sat by it now,
+smoking as lazily as her chimney, in an old chair which creaked as if
+in pain when she rocked. She supposed herself to be in deep meditation,
+and regarded her corncob pipe not merely a solace but also as an
+invaluable assistant to clearness of thought. Aun' Jinkey had the
+complacent belief that she could reason out most questions if she could
+only smoke and think long enough. Unfortunately, events would occur
+which required action, or which raised new questions before she had had
+time to solve those originally presented; yet it would be hard to fancy
+a more tranquil order of things than that of which she was a humble
+part.
+
+The cabin was shaded by grand old oaks and pines, through which the
+afternoon sun shone in mild radiance, streaming into the doorway and
+making a broad track of light over the uneven floor. But Aun' Jinkey
+kept back in the congenial dusk, oblivious to the loveliness of nature
+without. At last she removed her pipe from her mouth and revealed her
+mental processes in words.
+
+"In all my projeckin' dat chile's wuss'n old mars'r en miss, en de wah,
+en de preachin'. I kin kin' ob see troo dem, en w'at dey dribin' at,
+but dat chile grow mo' quare en on'countable eb'y day. Long as she wus
+took up wid her doll en tame rabbits en pony dar wa'n't no
+circum'cutions 'bout her, en now she am all circum'cution. Not'n gwine
+'long plain wid her. She like de run down dar--but win' en win' ez ef
+hit had ter go on, en hit couldn't mek up hits min' which way ter go.
+Sometime hit larfin' in de sun en den hit steal away whar you kyant
+mos' fin' hit. Dat de way wid Miss Lou. She seem right hyar wid us--she
+only lil gyurl toder day--en now she 'clinin' to notions ob her own, en
+she steal away to whar she tink no one see her en tink on heaps ob
+tings. Won'er ef eber, like de run, she wanter go way off fum us?
+
+"Ole mars'r en ole miss dunno en doan see not'n. Dey kyant. Dey tinks
+de worl' al'ays gwine des so, dat means de way dey tink hit orter go.
+Ef hit go any oder way, de worl's wrong, not dey. I ain' sayin' dey is
+wrong, fer I ain' des tink dat all out'n. 'Long ez she keeps her foots
+on de chalk line dey mark out dey ain' projeckin' how her min' go yere
+en dar, zigerty-zag wid notions ob her own."
+
+The door darkened, if the radiant girl standing on the threshold could
+be said to darken any door. She did not represent the ordinary Southern
+type, for her hair was gold in the sun and her eyes blue as the violets
+by the brook. They were full of mirth now as she said: "There you are,
+Aun' Jinkey, smoking and 'projeckin' as usual. You look like an old
+Voudoo woman, and if I didn't know you as my old mammy--if I should
+just happen in as a stranger, I'd be afraid of you."
+
+"Voudoo ooman! How you talks, Miss Lou! I'se a member ob de Baptis'
+Church, en you knows it."
+
+"Oh, I know a heap 'mo'n dat,' as you so often say. If you were only a
+member of the Baptist Church I wouldn't be running in to see you so
+often. Uncle says a member of the Baptist Church has been stealing some
+of his chickens."
+
+"I knows some tings 'bout de members ob HE church," replied Aun'
+Jinkey, with a toss of her head.
+
+"I reckon you do, more than they would like to see published in the
+county paper; but we aren't scandal-mongers, are we, Aun' Jinkey?" and
+the young visitor sat down in the doorway and looked across the green
+meadow seen through the opening in the trees. A dogwood stood in the
+corner of the rail fence, the pink and white of its blossoms well
+matching the girl's fair face and her rose-dotted calico gown, which,
+in its severe simplicity, revealed her rounded outlines.
+
+Aun' Jinkey watched her curiously, for it was evident that Miss Lou's
+thoughts were far away. "Wat you tinkin' 'bout, Miss Lou?" she asked.
+
+"Oh, I hardly know myself. Come, Aun' Jinkey, be a nice old witch and
+tell me my fortune."
+
+"Wat you want ter know yo' fortin fur?"
+
+"I want to know more than I do now. Look here, Aun' Jinkey, does that
+run we hear singing yonder go round and round in one place and with the
+same current? Doesn't it go on? Uncle and aunt want me to go round and
+round, doing the same things and thinking the same thoughts--not my own
+thoughts either. Oh, I'm getting so tired of it all!"
+
+"Lor' now, chile, I wuz des 'parin' you ter dat run in my min'," said
+Aun' Jinkey in an awed tone.
+
+"No danger of uncle or aunt comparing me to the run, or anything else.
+They never had any children and don't know anything about young people.
+They have a sort of prim, old-fashioned ideal of what the girls in the
+Baron family should be, and I must become just such a girl--just like
+that stiff, queer old portrait of grandma when she was a girl. Oh, if
+they knew how tired of it all I am!"
+
+"Bless yo' heart, Miss Lou, you ain' projeckin' anyting?"
+
+"No, I'm just chafing and beating my wings like a caged bird."
+
+"Now see yere, Miss Lou, isn't you onreason'ble? You hab a good home;
+mars'r en miss monstus pius, en dey bringin' you up in de nurter en
+'monitions ob de Lawd." "Too much 'monition, Aun' Jinkey. Uncle and
+aunt's religion makes me so tired, and they make Sunday so awfully
+long. Their religion reminds me of the lavender and camphor in which
+they keep their Sunday clothes. And then the pages of the catechism
+they have always made me learn, and the long Psalms, too, for
+punishment! I don't understand religion, anyway. It seems something
+meant to uphold all their views, and anything contrary to their views
+isn't right or religious. They don't think much of you Baptists."
+
+"We ain' sufrin' on dat 'count, chile," remarked Aun' Jinkey, dryly.
+
+"There now, Aun' Jinkey, don't you see? Uncle owns you, yet you think
+for yourself and have a religion of your own. If he knew I was thinking
+for myself, he'd invoke the memory of all the Barons against me. I
+don't know very much about the former Barons, except that my father was
+one. According to what I am told, the girl Barons were the primmest
+creatures I ever heard of. Then uncle and aunt are so inconsistent,
+holding up as they do for my admiration Cousin Mad Whately. I don't
+wonder people shorten his name from Madison to Mad, for if ever there
+was a wild, reckless fellow, he is. Uncle wants to bring about a match,
+because Mad's plantation joins ours. Mad acted as if he owned me
+already when he was home last, and yet he knows I can't abide him. He
+seems to think I can be subdued like one of his skittish horses."
+
+"You HAB got a heap on yo' min', Miss Lou, you sho'ly hab. You sut'ny
+t'ink too much for a young gyurl."
+
+"I'm eighteen, yet uncle and aunt act toward me in some ways as if I
+were still ten years old. How can I help thinking? The thoughts come.
+You're a great one to talk against thinking. Uncle says you don't do
+much else, and that your thoughts are just like the smoke of your pipe."
+
+Aun' Jinkey bridled indignantly at first, but, recollecting herself,
+said quietly: "I knows my juty ter ole mars'r en'll say not'n gin 'im.
+He bring you up en gib you a home, Miss Lou. You must reckermember dat
+ar."
+
+"I'm in a bad mood, I suppose, but I can't help my thoughts, and it's
+kind of a comfort to speak them out. If he only WOULD give me a home
+and not make it so much like a prison! Uncle's honest, though, to the
+backbone. On my eighteenth birthday he took me into his office and
+formally told me about my affairs. I own that part of the plantation on
+the far side of the run. He has kept all the accounts of that part
+separate, and if it hadn't been for the war I'd have been rich, and he
+says I will be rich when the war is over and the South free. He said he
+had allowed so much for my bringing up and for my education, and that
+the rest was invested, with his own money, in Confederate bonds. That
+is all right, and I respect uncle for his downright integrity, but he
+wants to manage me just as he does my plantation. He wishes to produce
+just such crops of thoughts as he sows the seeds of, and he would treat
+my other thoughts like weeds, which must be hoed out, cut down and
+burned. Then you see he hasn't GIVEN me a home, and I'm growing to be a
+woman. If I am old enough to own land, am I never to be old enough to
+own myself?"
+
+"Dar now, Miss Lou, you raisin' mo' questions dan I kin tink out in a
+yeah."
+
+"There's dozens more rising in my mind and I can't get rid of them.
+Aunt keeps my hands knitting and working for the soldiers, and I like
+to do it. I'd like to be a soldier myself, for then I could go
+somewhere and do and see something. Life then wouldn't be just doing
+things with my hands and being told to think exactly what an old
+gentleman and an old lady think. Of course our side is right in this
+war, but how can I believe with uncle that nearly all the people in the
+North are low, wicked and vile? The idea that every Northern soldier is
+a monster is preposterous to me. Uncle forgets that he has had me
+taught in United States history. I wish some of them would just march
+by this out-of-the-way place, for I would like to see for myself what
+they are like."
+
+"Dar, dar, Miss Lou, you gittin' too bumptious. You like de fus' woman
+who want ter know too much."
+
+"No," said the girl, her blue eyes becoming dark and earnest, "I want
+to know what's true, what's right. I can't believe that uncle and
+aunt's narrow, exclusive, comfortless religion came from heaven; I
+can't believe that God agrees with uncle as to just what a young girl
+should do and think and be, but uncle seems to think that the wickedest
+thing I can do is to disagree with him and aunt. Uncle forgets that
+there are books in his library, and books make one think. They tell of
+life very different from mine. Why, Aun' Jinkey, just think what a
+lonely girl I am! You are about the only one I can talk to. Our
+neighbors are so far away and we live so secluded that I scarcely have
+acquaintances of my own age. Aunt thinks young girls should be kept out
+of society until the proper time, and that time seems no nearer now
+than ever. If uncle and aunt loved me, it would be different, but they
+have just got a stiff set of ideas about their duty to me and another
+set about my duty to them. Why, uncle laughed at a kitten the other day
+because it was kittenish, but he has always wanted me to behave with
+the solemnity of an old cat. Oh, dear! I'm SO tired. I wish something
+WOULD happen."
+
+"Hit brokes me all up ter year you talk so, honey, en I bless de Lawd
+'tain' likely any ting gwinter hap'n in dese yere parts. De wah am
+ragin' way off fum heah, nobody comin' wid news, en bimeby you gits mo'
+settle down. Some day you know de valley ob peace en quietness."
+
+"See here, Aun' Jinkey," said the girl, with a flash of her eyes, "you
+know the little pond off in the woods. That's more peaceful than the
+run, isn't it? Well, it's stagnant, too, and full of snakes. I'd like
+to know what's going on in the world, but uncle of late does not even
+let me read the county paper. I know things are not going to suit him,
+for he often frowns and throws the paper into the fire. That's what
+provokes me--the whole world must go just to suit him, or else he is
+angry."
+
+"Well, now, honey, you hab 'lieve yo' min', en I specs you feel bettah.
+You mus' des promis yo' ole mammy dat you be keerful en not rile up ole
+mars'r, kase hit'll ony be harder fer you. I'se ole, en I knows tings
+do hap'n dough dey of'un come slowlike. You des gwine troo de woods
+now, en kyant see fur; bimeby you come ter a clearin'. Dat boy ob mine
+be comin' soon fer his pone en bacon. I'se gwinter do a heap ob tinkin'
+on all de questions you riz."
+
+"Yes, Aun' Jinkey, I do feel better for speaking out, but I expect I
+shall do a heap of thinking too. Good-by," and she strolled away toward
+the brook.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+SOMETHING HAPPENS
+
+
+It was a moody little stream which Miss Lou was following. She did not
+go far before she sat down on a rock and watched the murmuring waters
+glide past, conscious meantime of a vague desire to go with them into
+the unknown. She was not chafing so much at the monotony of her life as
+at its restrictions, its negation of all pleasing realities, and the
+persistent pressure upon her attention of a formal round of duties and
+more formal and antiquated circle of thoughts. Only as she stole away
+into solitudes like the one in which she now sat dreaming could she
+escape from the hard materialism of routine, and chiding for idleness
+usually followed. Her aunt, with an abundance of slaves at her command,
+could have enjoyed much leisure, yet she was fussily and constantly
+busy, and the young girl could not help feeling that much which she was
+expected to do was a mere waste of time.
+
+The serene beauty of the evening, the songs of the mocking and other
+birds, were not without their effect, however, and she said aloud: "I
+might be very happy even here if, like the birds, I had the heart to
+sing--and I would sing if I truly lived and had something to live for."
+
+The sun was approaching the horizon, and she was rising wearily and
+reluctantly to return when she heard the report of firearms, followed
+by the sound of swiftly galloping horses. Beyond the brook, on the
+margin of which she stood, rose a precipitous bank overhung with vines
+and bushes, and a few rods further back was a plantation road
+descending toward a wide belt of forest. A thick copse and growth of
+young trees ran from the top of the bank toward the road, hiding from
+her vision that portion of the lane from which the sounds were
+approaching. Suddenly half a dozen cavalrymen, whom she knew to be
+Federals from their blue uniforms, galloped into view and passed on in
+the direction of the forest. One of the group turned his horse sharply
+behind the concealing copse and spurred directly toward her. She had
+only time to throw up her hands and utter an involuntary cry of warning
+about the steep bank, when the horse sprang through the treacherous
+shrubbery and fell headlong into the stream. The rider saw his peril,
+withdrew his feet from the stirrups, and in an instinctive effort for
+self-preservation, threw himself forward, falling upon the sand almost
+at the young girl's feet. He uttered a groan, shivered, and became
+insensible. A moment or two later a band in gray galloped by wholly
+intent upon the Federals, who had disappeared spurring for the woods,
+and she recognized her cousin, Madison Whately, leading the pursuit.
+Neither he nor any of his party looked her way, and it was evident that
+the Union soldier who had so abruptly diverged from the road behind the
+screening copse had not been discovered. The sounds died away as
+speedily as they had approached, and all became still again. The
+startled birds resumed their songs; the injured horse moved feebly, and
+the girl saw that it was bleeding from a wound, but the man at her feet
+did not stir. Truly something had happened. What should she do?
+Breaking the paralysis of her fear and astonishment, she stepped to the
+brook, gathered up water in her hands, and dashed it into the face of
+the unconscious man. It had no effect. "Can he be dead?" she asked
+herself in horror. He was as pale as his bronzed features could become,
+and her woman's soul was touched that one who looked so strong, who had
+been so vital a moment before, should now lie there in pathetic and
+appealing helplessness. Was that fine, manly face the visage of one of
+the terrible, bloodthirsty, unscrupulous Yankees? Even as she ran to
+Aun' Jinkey's cottage for help the thought crossed her mind that the
+world was not what it had been represented to her, and that she must
+learn to think and act for herself.
+
+As she approached, Chunk, Aun' Jinkey's grandson, appeared coming from
+the mansion house. He was nicknamed "Chunk" from his dwarfed stature
+and his stout, powerful build. Miss Lou put her finger to her lips,
+glanced hastily around, and led the way into the cabin. She hushed
+their startled exclamations as she told her story, and then said, "Aun'
+Jinkey, if he's alive, you must hide him in your loft there where Chunk
+sleeps. Come with me."
+
+In a few moments all three were beside the unconscious form. Chunk
+instantly slipped his hand inside the soldier's vest over his heart.
+"Hit done beats," he said, quickly, and without further hesitation he
+lifted the man as if he had been a child, bore him safely to the cabin,
+and laid him on Aun' Jinkey's bed. "Hi, granny, whar dat hot stuff you
+gib me fer de belly misery?"
+
+Aun' Jinkey had already found a bottle containing a decoction of the
+wild ginger root, and with pewter spoon forced some of the liquid into
+the man's mouth. He struggled slightly and began to revive. At last he
+opened his eyes and looked with an awed expression at the young girl
+who stood at the foot of the bed.
+
+"I hope you feel better now," she said, kindly.
+
+"Are you--am I alive?" he asked.
+
+"Dar now, mars'r, you isn't in heb'n yet, dough Miss Lou, standin' dar,
+mout favor de notion. Des you took anoder swaller ob dis ginger-tea, en
+den you see me'n Chunk ain' angels."
+
+Chunk grinned and chuckled. "Neber was took fer one in my bawn days."
+
+The young man did as he was bidden, then turned his eyes wistfully and
+questioningly from the two dark visages back to the girl's sympathetic
+face.
+
+"You remember," she said, "you were being chased, and turned your horse
+toward a steep bank, which you didn't see, and fell."
+
+"Ah, yes--it's all growing clear. You were the woman I caught glimpse
+of."
+
+She nodded and said: "I must go now, or some one will come looking for
+me. I won't speak--tell about this. I'm not on your side, but I'm not
+going to get a helpless man into more trouble. You may trust Aun'
+Jinkey and her grandson."
+
+"Dat you kin, mars'r," Chunk ejaculated with peculiar emphasis.
+
+"God bless you, then, for a woman who has a heart. I'm quite content
+that you're not an angel," and a smile so lighted up the soldier's
+features that she thought she had never seen a pleasanter looking man.
+
+Worried indeed that she was returning so much later than usual, she
+hastened homeward. Half-way up the path to the house she met a tall,
+slender negro girl, who exclaimed, "Hi, Miss Lou, ole miss des gettin'
+'stracted 'bout you, en mars'r sez ef you ain' at supper in five minits
+he's gwine down to Aun' Jinkey en know what she mean, meckin' sech'
+sturbence in de fambly."
+
+"How absurd!" thought the girl. "Being a little late is a disturbance
+in the family." But she hastened on, followed by the girl, who was
+employed in the capacity of waitress. This girl, Zany by name, resented
+in accordance with her own ideas and character the principle of
+repression which dominated the household. She threw a kiss toward the
+cabin under the trees and shook with silent laughter as she muttered,
+"Dat fer you, Chunk. You de beat'nst nigger I eber see. You mos' ez
+bro'd ez I is high, yit you'se reachin' arter me. I des like ter kill
+mysef lafin' wen we dance tergeder," and she indulged in a jig-step and
+antics behind Miss Lou's back until she came in sight of the windows,
+then appeared as if following a hearse.
+
+Miss Lou entered the rear door of the long, two-story house, surrounded
+on three sides by a wide piazza. Mr. Baron, a stout, bald-headed old
+gentleman, was fuming up and down the dining-room while his wife sat in
+grim silence at the foot of the table. It was evident that they had
+made stiff, old-fashioned toilets, and both looked askance at the
+flushed face of the almost breathless girl, still in her simple morning
+costume. Before she could speak her uncle said, severely, "Since we
+have waited so long, we will still wait till you can dress."
+
+The girl was glad to escape to her room in order that she might have
+time to frame some excuse before she faced the inquisition in store for
+her.
+
+Constitutional traits often assert themselves in a manner contrary to
+the prevailing characteristics of a region. Instead of the easy-going
+habits of life common to so many of his neighbors, Mr. Baron was a
+martinet by nature, and the absence of large, engrossing duties
+permitted his mind to dwell on little things and to exaggerate them out
+of all proportion. Indeed, it was this utter lack of perspective in his
+views and judgments which created for Miss Lou half her trouble. The
+sin of tardiness which she had just committed was treated like a great
+moral transgression, or rather it was so frowned upon that it were hard
+to say he could show his displeasure at a more heinous offence. The one
+thought now in Mr. Baron's mind was that the sacred routine of the day
+had been broken. Often there are no greater devotees to routine than
+those who are virtually idlers. Endowed with the gift of persistence
+rather than with a resolute will, it had become second nature to
+maintain the daily order of action and thought which he believed to be
+his right to enforce upon his household. Every one chafed under his
+inexorable system except his wife. She had married when young, had
+grown up into it, and supplemented it with a system of her own which
+took the form of a scrupulous and periodical attention to all little
+details of housekeeping. There was a constant friction, therefore,
+between the careless, indolent natures of the slaves and the precise,
+exacting requirements of both master and mistress. Miss Lou, as she was
+generally called on the plantation, had grown up into this routine as a
+flower blooms in a stiff old garden, and no amount of repression,
+admonition and exhortation, not even in her younger days of punishment,
+could quench her spirit or benumb her mind. She submitted, she yielded,
+with varying degrees of grace or reluctance. As she increased in years,
+her thoughts, as we have seen, were verging more and more on the border
+of rebellion. But the habit of obedience and submission still had its
+influence. Moreover, there had been no strong motive and little
+opportunity for independent action. Hoping not even for tolerance, much
+less for sympathy, she kept her thoughts to herself, except as she
+occasionally relieved her mind to her old mammy, Aun' Jinkey.
+
+She came into the dining-room hastily at last, but the expression of
+her face was impassive and inscrutable. She was received in solemn
+silence, broken at first only by the long formal grace which Mr. Baron
+never omitted and never varied. In her rebellious mood the girl
+thought, "What a queer God it would be if he were pleased with this old
+cut-and-dried form of words! All the time uncle's saying them he is
+thinking how he'll show me his displeasure."
+
+Mr. Baron evidently concluded that his best method at first would be an
+expression of offended dignity, and the meal began in depressing
+silence, which Mrs. Baron was naturally the first to break. "It must be
+evident to you, Louise," she said in a thin, monotonous voice, "that
+the time has come for you to consider and revise your conduct. The fact
+that your uncle has been kept waiting for his supper is only one result
+of an unhappy change which I have observed, but have forborne to speak
+of in the hope that your own conscience and the influence of your past
+training would lead you to consider and conform. Think of the precious
+moments, indeed I may say hours, that you have wasted this afternoon in
+idle converse with an old negress who is no fit companion for you! You
+are becoming too old--"
+
+"Too old, aunt? Do you at last recognize the fact that I am growing
+older?"
+
+With a faint expression of surprise dawning in her impassive face Mrs.
+Baron continued: "Yes, old enough to remember yourself and not to be
+compelled to recognize the duties of approaching womanhood. I truly
+begin to feel that I must forbid these visits to an old, ignorant and
+foolish creature whose ideas are totally at variance with all that is
+proper and right."
+
+"Uncle thinks I have approached womanhood sufficiently near to know
+something of my business affairs, and even went so far as to suggest
+his project of marrying me to my cousin in order to unite in sacred--I
+mean legal bonds the two plantations."
+
+The two old people looked at each other, then stared at their niece,
+who, with hot face, maintained the pretence of eating her supper.
+"Truly, Louise," began Mr. Baron, solemnly, "you are indulging in
+strange and unbecoming language. I have revealed to you your pecuniary
+affairs, and I have more than once suggested an alliance which is in
+accordance with our wishes and your interests, in order to prove to you
+how scrupulous we are in promoting your welfare. We look for grateful
+recognition and a wise, persistent effort on your part to further our
+efforts in your behalf."
+
+"It doesn't seem to me wise to talk to a mere child about property and
+marriage," said the girl, breathing quickly in the consciousness of her
+temerity and her rising spirit of rebellion.
+
+"You are ceasing to be a mere child," resumed her uncle, severely.
+
+"That cannot be," Miss Lou interrupted. "You and aunt speak to me as
+you did years ago when I was a child. Can you expect me to have a
+woman's form and not a woman's mind? Are women told exactly what they
+must think and do, like little children? Aunt threatens to forbid
+visits to my old mammy. If I were but five years old she couldn't do
+more. You speak of marrying me to my cousin as if I had merely the form
+and appearance of a woman, and no mind or wishes of my own. I have
+never said I wanted to marry him or any one."
+
+"Why, Louise, you are verging toward flat rebellion," gasped her uncle,
+laying down his knife and fork.
+
+"Oh, no, uncle! I'm merely growing up. You should have kept the library
+locked; you should never have had me taught to read, if you expected me
+to become the mere shell of a woman, having no ideas of my own."
+
+"We wish you to have ideas, and have tried to inculcate right ideas."
+
+"Which means only your ideas, uncle."
+
+"Louise, are you losing your mind?"
+
+"No, uncle, I am beginning to find it, and that I have a right to use
+it. I am willing to pay all due respect and deference to you and to
+aunt, but I protest against being treated as a child on one hand and as
+a wax figure which can be stood up and married to anybody on the other.
+I have patiently borne this treatment as long as I can, and I now
+reckon the time has come to end it."
+
+Mr. Baron was thunderstruck and his wife was feeling for her
+smelling-bottle. Catching a glimpse of Zany, where she stood
+open-mouthed in her astonishment, her master said, sternly, "Leave the
+room!" Then he added to his niece, "Think of your uttering such wild
+talk before one of our people! Don't you know that my will must be law
+on this plantation?"
+
+"I'm not one of your people," responded the girl, haughtily. "I'm your
+niece, and a Southern girl who will call no man master."
+
+At this moment there was a knock at the door. Without waiting for it to
+be opened, a tall, lank man entered and said, hastily, "Mr. Baron, I
+reckon there's news which yer orter hear toreckly." He was the overseer
+of the plantation.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+MAD WHATELY
+
+
+Mr. Baron was one of the few of the landed gentry in the region who was
+not known by a military title, and he rather prided himself on the
+fact. "I'm a man of peace," he was accustomed to say, and his neighbors
+often remarked, "Yes, Baron is peaceable if he has his own way in
+everything, but there's no young blood in the county more ready for a
+fray than he for a lawsuit." "Law and order" was Mr. Baron's motto, but
+by these terms he meant the perpetuity of the conditions under which he
+and his ancestors had thus far lived. To distrust these conditions was
+the crime of crimes. In his estimation, therefore, a Northern soldier
+was a monster surpassed only by the out-and-out abolitionist. While it
+had so happened that, even as a young man, his tastes had been legal
+rather than military, he regarded the war of secession as more sacred
+than any conflict of the past, and was willing to make great sacrifices
+for its maintenance. He had invested all his funds as well as those of
+his niece in Confederate bonds, and he had annually contributed a large
+portion of the product of his lands to the support of the army. Living
+remote from the scenes of actual strife, he had been able to maintain
+his illusions and hopes to a far greater extent than many others of
+like mind with himself; but as the war drew toward its close, even the
+few newspapers he read were compelled to justify their name in some
+degree by giving very unpalatable information. As none are so blind as
+those who will not see, the old man had testily pooh-poohed at what he
+termed "temporary reverses," and his immunity from disturbance had
+confirmed his belief that the old order of things could not materially
+change. True, some of his slaves had disappeared, but he had given one
+who had been caught such a lesson that the rest had remained quiet if
+not contented.
+
+The news brought by his overseer became therefore more disturbing than
+the strange and preposterous conduct of his niece, and he had demanded
+excitedly, "What on earth's the matter, Perkins?"
+
+"Well, sir, fur's I kin mek out, this very plantation's been p'luted by
+Yankee soldiers this very evenin'. Yes, sir."
+
+"Great heavens! Perkins," and Mr. Baron sprang from his chair, then
+sank back again with an expression suggesting that if the earth opened
+next it could not be worse.
+
+"Yes, sir," resumed Perkins, solemnly, "I drawed that much from Jute.
+He seen 'em hisself. I noticed a s'pressed 'citement en talk in the
+quarters this evenin', an' I follered hit right up an' I ast roun' till
+I pinned Jute. He was over the fur side of the run lookin' fur a stray
+crow, an' he seen 'em. But they was bein' chased lively. Mad
+Whately--beg pardon--Mr. Madison was arter them with whip and spur.
+Didn't yer hear a crack of a rifle? I did, and reckoned it was one o'
+the Simcoe boys out gunnin', but Jute says hit was one o' our men fired
+the shot, en that they chased the Yanks to'erds the big woods. They was
+all mounted en goin' it lickity switch. The thing that sticks in my
+crop isn't them few what Mr. Madison chased, but the main body they
+belongs to. Looks as ef there's goin' to be a raid down our way."
+
+"If that is so," said Mr. Baron, majestically, "Lieutenant Whately
+proves that our brave men are not far off, either, and the way he
+chased some of them shows how all the vile invaders will eventually be
+driven out of the country. Be vigilant, Perkins, and let it be
+understood at the quarters that Lieutenant Whately is within call."
+
+The overseer bowed awkwardly and limped away. His lameness had secured
+him immunity from military duty.
+
+"Ah, that's a man for you," said Mr. Baron, glaring at his niece. "Your
+cousin is a true scion of Southern chivalry. That is the kind of a man
+you do not know whether you wish to marry or not--a brave defender of
+our hearths and liberties."
+
+"If he wishes to marry me against my will, he's not a defender of my
+liberty," retorted the girl.
+
+"If you had the spirit which should be your birthright your eyes would
+flash with joy at the prospect of seeing a hero who could thus chase
+your enemies from our soil. If you could only have seen him in his
+headlong--"
+
+"I did see him."
+
+"What!"
+
+"I saw Cousin Madison leading a dozen or more men in pursuit of half a
+dozen. That does not strike me as sublimely heroic."
+
+"Why haven't you told me of this? How could you have seen him?" and the
+old man, in his strong excitement, rose from his chair.
+
+"My reception when I entered was not conducive to conversation. I was
+merely sitting by the run and saw both parties gallop past."
+
+"You should have come instantly to me."
+
+"I'm sure I came in hastily," she replied, crimsoning in the
+consciousness of her secret, "but I was met as if I had been guilty of
+something awful."
+
+"Well, if I had known," began her uncle, in some confusion, mistaking
+her color for an expression of anger.
+
+"I think," remarked her aunt, coldly, "that Louise should have
+recognized that she had given you just cause for displeasure by her
+tardiness, unless it were explained, and she should have explained at
+once. I have no patience with the spirit she is displaying."
+
+But Mr. Baron's mind had been diverted to more serious and alarming
+considerations than what he characterized mentally as "a girl's
+tantrum."
+
+"It makes my blood boil," he said, "to think that this Northern scum is
+actually in our neighborhood, and might be at our doors but for my
+brave nephew. Thanks to him, they met a righteous reception on this
+plantation; thanks to him, in all probability, we are not now weltering
+in our blood, with the roof that shelters us blazing over our heads. If
+those marauders had found us unprotected, young woman, you would have
+rued the day. Their capacity for evil is only equalled by their
+opportunities. If your cousin had not flamed after them like an
+avenging sword you might have cried loudly enough for the one of whom,
+in your fit of unseemly petulance, you can speak so slightingly. I
+advise you to go to your room and thank Heaven for your escape."
+
+"Uncle, are the people of the North savages?"
+
+"Its soldiers are worse than savages. Have you not heard me express my
+opinion of them over and over again? Go to your room, and when you
+appear again, I trust it will be with the meekness and submission
+becoming in a young woman."
+
+When the girl left Aun' Jinkey's cabin the young soldier looked after
+her with an expression of deep interest. "Who is she?" he asked.
+
+"Dat's Miss Lou," said the old negress, forcing into his mouth another
+spoonful of her fiery decoction.
+
+"Oh, that's enough, aunty, unless you wish to burn me out like a hollow
+log," and he struggled to his feet to ease his tendency to strangle.
+"Miss Lou? How should I know who she is?"
+
+"Ob co'se," said Aun' Jinkey, dryly, "I ain' namin' her pedigree."
+
+"You a Linkum man, ain' you?" Chunk asked, quickly.
+
+"Yes, and Lincoln is a good friend of yours."
+
+"Hi! I knows dat. W'at fer you so hidin'-in-de-grass, granny? No use
+bein' dat away wid a Linkum man."
+
+"I ain' talkin' 'bout my young mistis to folks ez drap down fum de
+clouds."
+
+"You wouldn't like me better if I came up from below, aunty. There now,
+I'm not a very bad fellow, and I belong to the army that's going to
+make you all free."
+
+"I hasn't des tink out dis question ob bein' free yit. I'se too ole to
+wuk much an' old mars'r's took keer on me long time."
+
+"Well, I'se tink it out," put in Chunk, decidedly; "en I'se able to wuk
+fer you en me too."
+
+"You mighty peart, Chunk, co'tin' a gal lie a bean-pole a'ready. I
+reck'n she spen' all you eber mek. You bettah boos' de Linkum man into
+dat ar lof sud'n, kase ef Marse Perkins cotch 'im yere we all ain'
+feelin' berry good bimeby."
+
+"Dat ar truer'n preachin'," admitted Chunk, with alacrity. "Des you tek
+hol' ob dem ladder rouns, mars'r, an' put yo' foots on my sho'lers.
+Dat's hit. Nobody tink ob fin'in' you yere. I'se study how ter git yo'
+hoss out of sight 'gin mawnin'."
+
+"You stand by me, Chunk," said the soldier, "and you won't be sorry.
+There's a lot of us coming this way soon, and I can be a good friend of
+yours and all your people if you help me out of this scrape."
+
+"I'se gwine ter stan' by you, boss. I'se mek up my min' ter be free dis
+time, sho! Hi! w'at dat?"
+
+He was wonderfully agile, for his arms were nearly as long as his legs.
+In an instant he descended, drawing a trap-door after him. Then he
+sauntered to the door, which he opened wide. A troop of horsemen were
+coming single file by a path which led near the cabin, and the foremost
+asked in a voice which the negro recognized as that of Lieutenant
+Whately, "Is that you, Chunk?"
+
+"Dat's me, mars'r. My 'specs."
+
+"Be off, you skeleton. Make time for the house and help get supper for
+me and the men. If you don't run like a red deer, I'll ride you down."
+
+"Good Lawd! w'at gwine ter hap'n nex'?" groaned Chunk, as he
+disappeared toward the mansion. He burst like a bombshell into the
+kitchen, a small building in the rear of the house.
+
+"Did you eber see de likes?" exclaimed Zany. "What yo' manners--"
+
+"Hi, dar! talk 'bout manners! Marse Whately comin' wid a army, en want
+supper fer um all in des one minute en er haf by de clock!"
+
+Great, fat Aun' Suke threw up her hands in despair, and in the brief
+silence the tramp of horses and the jingling of sabres were plainly
+heard. They all knew Mad Whately, and it needed not that Mrs. Baron,
+desperately flurried, should bustle in a few moments later with orders
+that all hands should fly around. "What you doing here?" she asked
+Chunk, sharply.
+
+"I'se here ter hep, mistis. Dem's my orders from Marse Whately. He come
+ridin' by granny's."
+
+"Then go and kill chickens."
+
+A few moments later the dolorous outcry of fowls was added to the
+uproar made by the barking dogs.
+
+With a chill of fear Miss Lou, in her chamber, recognized her cousin's
+voice, and knew that he, with his band, had come to claim hospitality
+at his uncle's hands. What complications did his presence portend?
+Truly, the long months of monotony on the old plantation were broken
+now. What the end would be she dared not think, but for the moment her
+spirit exulted in the excitement which would at least banish stagnation.
+
+In his secret heart Mr. Baron had hoped that his nephew would go on to
+his own home, a few miles further; for applauding him as a hero was one
+thing, and having him turn everything upside down at that hour another.
+Routine and order were scattered to the winds whenever Mad Whately made
+his appearance, but the host's second thoughts led him to remember that
+this visitation was infinitely to be preferred to one from the terrible
+Yankees; so he threw wide open the door, and, with his wife, greeted
+his nephew warmly. Then he shouted for Perkins to come and look after
+the horses.
+
+"Ah, mine uncle," cried Whately, "where on earth is to be found a
+festive board like yours? Who so ready to fill the flowing bowl until
+even the rim is lost to sight, when your defenders have a few hours to
+spare in their hard campaigning? You won't entertain angels unawares
+to-night. You'd have been like Daniel in the den with none to stop the
+lions' mouths, or rather the jackals', had we not appeared on the
+scene. The Yanks were bearing down for you like the wolf on the fold.
+Where's my pretty cousin?"
+
+Mr. Baron had opened his mouth to speak several times during this
+characteristic greeting, and now he hastened to the foot of the stairs
+and shouted, "Louise, come down and help your aunt entertain our
+guests." Meanwhile Whately stepped to the sideboard and helped himself
+liberally to the sherry.
+
+"You know me must maintain discipline," resumed Whately, as his uncle
+entered the dining-room. "The night is mild and still. Let a long table
+be set on the piazza for my men. I can then pledge them through the
+open window, for since I give them such hard service, I must make
+amends when I can. Ah, Perkins, have your people rub the horses till
+they are ready to prance, then feed them lightly, two hours later a
+heavier feed, that's a good fellow! You were born under a lucky star,
+uncle. You might now be tied up by your thumbs, while the Yanks helped
+themselves."
+
+"It surely was a kind Providence which brought you here, nephew."
+
+"No doubt, no doubt; my good horse, also, and, I may add, the wish to
+see my pretty cousin. Ah! here she comes with the blushes of the
+morning on her cheeks," but his warmer than a cousinly embrace and kiss
+left the crimson of anger in their places.
+
+She drew herself up indignantly to her full height and said, "We have
+been discussing the fact that I am quite grown up. I will thank you to
+note the change, also."
+
+"Why, so I do," he replied, regarding her with undisguised admiration;
+"and old Father Time has touched you only to improve you in every
+respect."
+
+"Very well, then," she replied, coldly, "I cannot help the touch of
+Father Time, but I wish it understood that I am no longer a child."
+
+"Neither am I, sweet cousin, and I like you as a woman far better."
+
+She left the room abruptly to assist her aunt.
+
+"Jove! uncle, but she has grown to be a beauty. How these girls blossom
+out when their time comes! Can it be that I have been absent a year?"
+
+"Yes, and your last visit was but a flying one."
+
+"And so I fear this one must be. The Yanks are on the move, perhaps in
+this direction, and so are we. It was one of their scouting parties
+that we ran into. Their horses were fresher than ours and they
+separated when once in the shadow of the woods. They won't be slow,
+however, in leaving these parts, now they know we are here. I'm going
+to take a little well-earned rest between my scoutings, and make love
+to my cousin. Olympian humbugs! how handsome and haughty she has
+become! I didn't think the little minx had so much spirit."
+
+"She has suddenly taken the notion that, since she is growing up, she
+can snap her fingers at all the powers that be."
+
+"Growing up! Why, uncle, she's grown, and ready to hear me say, 'With
+all my worldly goods I thee endow.'"
+
+"But the trouble is, she doesn't act as if very ready."
+
+"Oh, tush! she isn't ready to throw herself at the head of any one.
+That isn't the way of Southern girls. They want a wooer like a cyclone,
+who carries them by storm, marries them nolens volens, and then they're
+happy. But to be serious, uncle, in these stormy times Lou needs a
+protector. You've escaped for a long time, but no one can tell now what
+a day will bring forth. As my wife, Cousin Lou will command more
+respect. I can take her within our lines, if necessary, or send her to
+a place of safety. Ah, here comes my blooming aunt to prepare for
+supper."
+
+"Welcome to The Oaks," she again repeated. "Never more welcome, since
+you come as defender as well as guest."
+
+"Yes, aunt; think of a red-whiskered Yank paying his respects instead
+of me."
+
+"Don't suggest such horrors, please."
+
+The gentlemen now joined Miss Lou in the parlor, while under Mrs.
+Baron's supervision Zany, and Chunk, as gardener and man-of-all-work,
+with the aid of others soon set the two tables. Then began a procession
+of negroes of all sizes bearing viands from the kitchen.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+AUN' JINKEY'S POLICY
+
+
+Allan Scoville, for such was the Union soldier's name, fully realized
+that he was in the enemy's country as he watched through a cranny in
+the cabin the shadowy forms of the Confederates file past. Every bone
+in his body ached as if it had been broken, and more than once he moved
+his arms and legs to assure himself that they were whole. "Breath was
+just knocked right out of me," he muttered. "I hope that's the worst,
+for this place may soon become too hot for me. My good horse is not
+only lost, but I may be lost also through him. That queer-looking
+darky, Chunk, is my best hope now unless it is Miss Lou. Droll, wasn't
+it, that I should take her for an angel? What queer thoughts a fellow
+has when within half an inch of the seamy side of life! Hanged if I
+deserve such an awakening as I thought was blessing my eyes on the
+other side. From the way I ache, the other side mayn't be far off yet.
+Like enough hours will pass before Chunk comes back, and I must try to
+propitiate his grandam."
+
+He crawled painfully to the trap-door and, finding a chink in the
+boards, looked down into the apartment below. Aun' Jinkey was smoking
+as composedly it might seem as if a terrible Yankee, never seen before,
+was not over her head, and a band of Confederates who would have made
+him a prisoner and punished her were only a few rods away. A close
+observer, however, might have noticed that she was not enjoying languid
+whiffs, as had been the case in the afternoon. The old woman had put
+guile into her pipe as well as tobacco, and she hoped its smoke would
+blind suspicious eyes if any were hunting for a stray Yankee. Chunk's
+pone and bacon had been put near the fire to keep warm, and Scoville
+looked at the viands longingly.
+
+At last he ventured to whisper, "Aun' Jinkey, I am as hungry as a wolf."
+
+"Hesh!" said the old woman softly. Then she rose, knocked the ashes
+from her pipe with great deliberation, and taking a bucket started for
+the spring. In going and coming she looked very sharply in all
+directions, thus satisfying herself that no one was watching the cabin.
+Re-entering, she whispered, "Kin you lif de trap-do'?"
+
+Scoville opened it, and was about to descend. "No, you kyant do dat,"
+interposed Aun' Jinkey, quickly. "Lie down up dar, en I han' you
+Chunk's supper. He gits his'n at de big house. You's got ter play
+possum right smart, mars'r, or you git cotched. Den we cotch it, too.
+You 'speck I doan know de resk Chunk en me tookin?"
+
+"Forgive me, Aunt Jinkey. But your troubles will soon be over and you
+be as free as I am."
+
+"I doesn't want no sech freedom ez you got, mars'r, hid'n en scrugin'
+fum tarin' en rarin' red-hot gallopers ez Mad Whately en his men. Dey'd
+des bun de ole cabin en me in't ef dey knowed you's dar. Bettah stop
+yo' mouf wid yo' supper."
+
+This Scoville was well contented to do for a time, while Aun' Jinkey
+smoked and listened with all her ears. Faint sounds came from the house
+and the negro quarters, but all was still about the cabin. Suddenly she
+took her pipe from her mouth and muttered, "Dar goes a squinch-owl
+tootin'. Dat doan mean no good."
+
+"Aunt Jinkey," said Scoville, who was watching her, "that screech-owl
+worries you, doesn't it?"
+
+"Dere's mo' kin's ob squinch-owls dan you 'lows on, mars'r. Some toots
+fer de sake ob tootin' en some toots in warnin'."
+
+"That one tooted in warning. Don't be surprised if you hear another
+very near." He crawled to the cranny under the eaves and Aun' Jinkey
+fairly jumped out of her chair as she heard an owl apparently hooting
+on the roof with a vigor and truth to nature that utterly deceived her
+senses. Scoville repeated the signal, and then crept back to the chink
+in the floor. The old woman was trembling and looking round in dismayed
+uncertainty. "There," he said, with a low laugh, "that squinch-owl was
+I, and the first you heard was one of my men. Now, like a good soul,
+make pones and fry bacon for five men, and you'll have friends who will
+take good care of you and Chunk."
+
+"De Lawd he'p me! w'at comin' nex'? Miss Lou wuz a wishin' sump'n ud
+hap'n--w'at ain' gwinter hap'n?"
+
+"Nothing will happen to harm you if you do as I say. Our men may soon
+be marching this way, and we'll remember our friends when we come."
+
+"I des hope dere'll be sump'n lef ob me ter reckermember," said Aun'
+Jinkey, but she rose to comply with the soldier's requirement, feeling
+that her only course was to fall in with the wishes of whoever happened
+to be uppermost in the troublous times now foreseen. She was in a
+terribly divided state of mind. The questions she had smoked and
+thought over so long now pressed with bewildering rapidity and urgency.
+An old family slave, she had a strong feeling of loyalty to her master
+and mistress. But they had been partially alienating Miss Lou, for whom
+she would open her veins, while her grandson was hot for freedom and
+looked upon Northern soldiers as his deliverers. Aun' Jinkey was not
+sure she wished to be delivered. That was one of the points she was not
+through "projeckin'" about. Alas! events would not wait for her
+conclusions, although more time had been given her than to many others
+forced to contemplate vast changes. With a shrewd simplicity she
+decided that it would be wise to keep on friendly terms with all the
+contending powers, and do what in her judgment was best for each.
+
+"Hit des took all de 'visions we got," she remarked, disconsolately.
+
+"You'll soon have visions of more to eat and wear than ever blessed
+your eyes," said Scoville, encouragingly.
+
+"Hi! granny," said Chunk, peeping in at the door.
+
+"How you start me!" ejaculated the old woman, sinking into her chair.
+
+"That you, Chunk?" asked Scoville. "Is the coast clear?"
+
+"I reck'n. Keep shy yet a while, mars'r." A few words explained the
+situation, and Chunk added: "You des feed dem Yankees big, granny. I'se
+pervide mo'. I mus' go now sud'n. Made Aun' Suke b'lebe dat I knowed ob
+chickens w'at roos' in trees, en dey tinks I'se lookin' fer um. High
+ole times up ter de house," and he disappeared in the darkness.
+
+In nervous haste Aun' Jinkey prepared the ample supper. Scoville hooted
+again, a shadowy form stole to the cabin for the food, and disappeared
+again toward the run. Then Aun' Jinkey prepared to compose her nerves
+by another smoke.
+
+"Hand me up a coal for my pipe, also," said Scoville, "and then we'll
+have a sociable time."
+
+"I des feared onsosh'ble times dis eb'nin'," remarked Aun' Jinkey.
+
+"If you knew how my bones ached, you'd help me pass the time."
+
+"Reck'n mine ache, too, 'fo' I troo wid dis bus'ness."
+
+"No, Aunt Jinkey, you won't be punished for doing a good deed. Your
+young mistress is on your side, anyway. Who is she?"
+
+"Young mistis ain' got no po'r ef dey fin's out. She nuff ter do ter
+hol' 'er own."
+
+"How comes it she's friendly to 'we uns,' as you say down here?"
+
+"She ain' friendly. You drap at her feet ez ef you wuz dead, en she hab
+a lil gyurlish, soft heart, dat's all. Didn't she tole you dat she ain'
+on yo' side?"
+
+"Well, bless her heart, then."
+
+"I circumscribe ter dat ar."
+
+"Aren't you on our side?"
+
+"I'se des 'twix en 'tween all de sides."
+
+"You're all right, Aunt Jinkey. I'd trust you with my life."
+
+"Reck'n you hab ter dis eb'nin'."
+
+"Well, about Miss Lou--you say she has trouble to hold her own. How's
+that?"
+
+"Dem's fambly matters."
+
+"And so none of my business, unless she tells me herself."
+
+"How she gwine ter tol' you tings?"
+
+"Ah, Aunt Jinkey, you've vegetated a great while in these slow parts. I
+feel it in my bones, sore as they are, that some day I'll give you a
+new dress that will make you look like a spike of red hollyhocks.
+You'll see changes you don't dream of."
+
+"My haid whirlin' now, mars'r. Hope ter grashus I kin do my wuk
+ter-morrer in peace and quietness."
+
+There was neither peace nor quietness at the mansion. Whately, with a
+soldier's instincts to make the most of passing opportunities, added to
+the hasty tendencies of his own nature, was not only enjoying the
+abundant supper, but feasting his eyes meantime on the charms developed
+by his cousin in his absence. He knew of his uncle's wish to unite the
+two plantations, and had given his assent to the means, for it had
+always been his delight to tease, frighten, and pet his little cousin,
+whose promise of beauty had been all that he could desire. Now she
+evoked a sudden flame of passion, and his mind, which leaped to
+conclusions, was already engaged in plans for consummating their union
+at once. He sought to break down her reserve by paying her extravagant
+compliments, and to excite her admiration by accounts of battles in
+which he would not have posed as hero so plainly had he not been
+flushed with wine. There was an ominous fire in her eyes scarcely in
+accord with her cool demeanor. Unused to the world, and distrusting her
+own powers, she made little effort to reply, taking refuge in
+comparative silence. This course encouraged him and her uncle. The
+former liked her manifestation of spirit as long as he believed it to
+be within control. To his impetuous, imperious nature the idea of a
+tame, insipid bride was not agreeable; while Mr. Baron, still under the
+illusion that she was yet but a submissive child, thought that her bad
+mood was passing and would be gone in the morning. He little dreamed
+how swiftly her mind was awakening and developing under the spur of
+events. She did not yet know that her cousin was meditating such a
+speedy consummation of his purpose, but was aware that he and all her
+relatives looked upon her as his predestined wife. Now, as never
+before, she shrank from the relation, and in the instinct of
+self-preservation resolved never to enter into it.
+
+Her long, rebellious reveries in solitude had prepared her for this
+hour, and her proud, excited spirit surprised her by the intensity of
+its passionate revolt. Not as a timid, shrinking maiden did she look at
+her cousin and his men feasting on the piazza. She glanced at him, then
+through the open windows at their burly forms, as one might face a
+menace which brought no thought of yielding.
+
+The family resemblance between Whately and herself was strong. He had
+her blue eyes, but they were smaller than hers, and his expression was
+bold, verging toward recklessness. Her look was steady and her lips
+compressed into accord with the firm little chin.
+
+Mrs. Baron's ideas of decorum soon brought temporary relief. She also
+saw that her nephew was becoming too excited to make a good impression,
+so she said, "Louise, you may now retire, and I trust that you will
+waken tomorrow to the truth that your natural guardians can best direct
+your thoughts and actions."
+
+Whately was about to rise in order to bid an affectionate good-night,
+but the girl almost fled from the room. In the hall she met Chunk, who
+whispered, "Linkum man gittin' peart, Miss Lou."
+
+"She'll be over her tantrum by morning," said Mr. Baron in an
+apologetic tone. "Perhaps we'll have to humor her more in little
+things."
+
+"That's just where the trouble lies, uncle. You and aunt have tried to
+make her feel and act as if as old as yourselves. She's no longer a
+child; neither is she exactly a woman. All young creatures at her age
+are skittish. Bless you, she wouldn't be a Baron if she hadn't lots of
+red, warm blood. So much the better. When I've married her she'll
+settle down like other Southern girls."
+
+"I think we had better discuss these matters more privately, nephew,"
+said Mrs. Baron.
+
+"Beg pardon, I reckon we had, aunt. My advice, however, is that we act
+first and discuss afterward."
+
+"We'll talk it over to-morrow, nephew," said Mr. Baron. "Of course as
+guardian I must adopt the best and safest plan."
+
+Chunk's ears were long if he was short, and in waiting on a soldier
+near the window he caught the purport of this conversation.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+WHATELY'S IDEA OF COURTSHIP
+
+
+When waiting on the table, Zany either stood like an image carved out
+of black walnut or moved with the angular promptness of an automaton
+when a spring is touched. Only the quick roll of her eyes indicated how
+observant she was. If, however, she met Chunk in the hall, or anywhere
+away from observation, she never lost the opportunity to torment him. A
+queer grimace, a surprised stare, an exasperating derisive giggle, were
+her only acknowledgments of his amorous attentions. "Ef I doesn't git
+eben wid dat niggah, den I eat a mule," he muttered more than once.
+
+But Chunk was in great spirits and a state of suppressed excitement.
+"'Pears ez ef I mout own mysef 'fo' dis moon done waxin' en wanin'," he
+thought. "Dere's big times comin,' big times. I'se yeard w'at hap'n
+w'en de Yanks go troo de kentry like an ol bull in a crock'ry sto'." In
+his duties of waiting on the troopers and clearing the table he had
+opportunities of purloining a goodly portion of the viands, for he
+remembered that he also had assumed the role of host with a very meagre
+larder to draw upon.
+
+Since the Confederates were greatly wearied and were doubly inclined to
+sleep from the effects of a hearty supper and liberal potations, Mr.
+Baron offered to maintain a watch the early part of the night, while
+Perkins was enjoined to sleep with one eye open near the quarters.
+Mattresses and quilts were brought down and spread on the piazza floor,
+from which soon rose a nasal chorus, "des like," as Chunk declared, "a
+frog-pon' in full blas'."
+
+Whately, trained in alert, soldierly ways, slept on the sofa in the
+parlor near his men. One after another the lights were extinguished,
+and the house became quiet. Chunk was stealing away with his plunder
+through the shrubbery in the rear of the house, when he was suddenly
+confronted by Zany. "Hi! you niggah!" she whispered, "I'se cotch you
+now kyarin' off nuff vittles ter keep you a mont. You gwinter run away."
+
+"You wan ter run wid me?" asked Chunk, unabashed.
+
+"What you took me fer?"
+
+"Fer better er wuss, w'ite folks say. Reck'n it ud be fer wuss in dis
+case."
+
+"I reck'n de wuss ain' fur off. I des step ter ole mars'r an' tell 'im
+ter 'vestigate yo' cabin dis eb'nin'," she said, and, with a great show
+of offended dignity, she was about to move away.
+
+"Look yere, Zany, doan yer be a fool. Doan you wanter be a free gyurl?"
+
+"Ef you had me fer wuss I'd be des 'bout ez free ez Miss Lou w'en she
+mar'ed ter Mad Whately."
+
+"Hi! you year dat, too?"
+
+"I got eyes, en I got years, en you ain' gwinter light out dis night en
+lebe yo' granny en we uns. I sut'ny put a spoke in yo' wheel dat stop
+hits runnin'."
+
+Chunk was now convinced that he would have to take Zany into his
+confidence. He looked cautiously around, then whispered rapidly in her
+ear. "Hi!" she exclaimed, softly, "you got longer head dan body."
+
+"I kin reach ter yo' lips," said Chunk, snatching a kiss.
+
+"Stop dat foolishness!" she exclaimed, giving him a slight cuff.
+
+"Zany, keep mum ez a possum. Dere's big times comin', en no un kin
+hender um, dough dey kin git deysefs in a heap ob trouble by
+blarnations. De Linkum men soon gwine ter be top of de heap an I'se
+gwinter be on top wid um. Dar you be, too, ef you stan's by Miss Lou en
+me."
+
+"Ve'y well, but I'se gwinter keep my eye on you, Marse Chunk."
+
+"Reck'n you will, kaze I am' gwinter be fur off; en ef you puts yo' eye
+on some oder man, you soon fin' he ain' dar." With this ominous
+assurance he stole away.
+
+Soon afterward the hoot of an owl was heard again; shadows approached
+the cabin; Scoville, assisted by Chunk, joined them, and there was a
+whispered consultation. Scoville put the result in the following words:
+
+"The chance is a good one, I admit. It is quite possible that we could
+capture the Johnnies and their horses, but that's not what we're out
+for. Besides, I'm too badly broken up. I couldn't ride to-night. You
+must go back to camp, and leave me to follow. Chunk here has provisions
+for you. Better be moving, for Whately will probably be out looking for
+you in the morning."
+
+So it was decided, and the shadows disappeared. Scoville was put into
+Aun' Jinkey's bed, the old woman saying that she would sit up and
+watch. Chunk rubbed the bruised and aching body of the Union scout till
+he fell asleep, and then the tireless negro went to the spot where the
+poor horse had died in the stream. He took off the saddle and bridle.
+After a little consideration he diverted the current, then dug a hole
+on the lower side of the animal, rolled him into it, and changed the
+brook back into its old channel. Carefully obliterating all traces of
+his work, he returned to the cabin, bolted the door, lay down against
+it so that no one could enter, and was soon asleep.
+
+The next morning dawned serenely, as if Nature had no sympathy with the
+schemes and anxieties to which the several actors in our little drama
+wakened. Whately was early on foot, for he felt that he had much to
+accomplish. Mr. Baron soon joined him, and the young man found in his
+uncle a ready coadjutor in his plans. They were both in full accord in
+their desires, although governed by different motives. The old man was
+actuated by his long-indulged greed for land, and wholly under the
+dominion of his belief that one of the chief ends of marriage was to
+unite estates. In this instance he also had the honest conviction that
+he was securing the best interests of his niece. No one could tell what
+would happen if the invaders should appear, but he believed that the
+girl's future could best be provided for in all respects if she became
+the wife of a Confederate officer and a representative of his family.
+
+Sounds of renewed life came from all directions; the troopers rolled up
+their blankets, and went to look after their horses; Mrs. Baron bustled
+about, giving directions for breakfast; Chunk and Zany worked under her
+eye as if they were what she wished them to be, the automatic
+performers of her will; Aun' Suke fumed and sputtered like the bacon in
+her frying-pan, but accomplished her work with the promptness of one
+who knew that no excuses would be taken from either master or mistress;
+Miss Lou dusted the parlor, and listened stolidly to the gallantries of
+her cousin. He was vastly amused by her reserve, believing it to be
+only maidenly coyness.
+
+Breakfast was soon served, for Whately had announced to Mr. Baron his
+intention of scouting in the woods where the Federals had disappeared;
+also his purpose to visit his home and summon his mother to his
+contemplated wedding. He and his men soon rode away, and the old house
+and the plantation resumed their normal quiet aspect.
+
+It had been deemed best not to inform Miss Lou of her cousin's
+immediate purpose until his plans were a little more certain and
+matured. Circumstances might arise which would prevent his return at
+once. Moreover, he had petitioned for the privilege of breaking the
+news himself. He believed in a wooing in accordance with his nature,
+impetuous and regardless at the time of the shy reluctance of its
+object; and it was his theory that the girl taken by storm would make
+the most submissive, contented and happy of wives; that women secretly
+admired men who thus asserted their will and strength, if in such
+assertion every form was complied with, and the impression given that
+the man was resistless because he could not resist the charms which had
+captivated him. "Why, uncle," he had reasoned, "it is the strongest
+compliment that a man can pay a woman, and she will soon recognize it
+as such. When once she is married, she will be glad that she did not
+have to hesitate and choose, and she will always believe in the man who
+was so carried away with her that he carried her away. My course is
+best, therefore, on general principles, while in this particular
+instance we have every reason for prompt action. Lou and I have been
+destined for each other from childhood, and I'm not willing to leave
+her to the chances of the hurly-burly which may soon begin. As my wife
+I can protect her in many ways impossible now."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+THE STORM BEGINS
+
+
+Of late years Aun' Jinkey's principal work had been the fine washing
+and ironing of the family, in which task she had always been an adept.
+For this reason she had been given the cabin near the run and an
+unusually fine spring. Miss Lou felt a kindly solicitude and not a
+little curiosity in regard to the man who in a sense had been thrown at
+her feet for protection. So gathering up some of her laces, she made
+them an excuse for another visit to Aun' Jinkey. Mrs. Baron readily
+acquiesced, for she felt that if there was to be a wedding, the whole
+house must be cleaned from top to bottom. Moreover, by such occupation
+her mind could be diverted from the dire misgivings inspired by the
+proximity of Yankees. Under the circumstances, it would be just as well
+if her niece were absent.
+
+As the girl passed down through the shrubbery, she found Chunk
+apparently very busy. Without looking up he said, "Doan be afeard, Miss
+Lou, I'se be on de watch. Marse Linkum man right peart dis mawnin'."
+
+Aun' Jinkey was at her washtub near the door, and the cabin presented
+the most innocent aspect imaginable. "Good-morning," said the girl,
+affably. "How is your patient?"
+
+"Recovering rapidly, thanks to your kindness and the good friends in
+whose care you placed me," answered a hearty voice from the doorway.
+
+Aun' Jinkey made a sort of rush to the door, exclaiming in tones that
+were low, yet almost stern, "Marse Linkum man, ef you show yo'sef--ef
+you doan stay by dat ar ladder so you git up sud'n, I des troo wid dis
+bus'ness! Tain' far ter dem w'at's reskin' dere bodies en a'most dere
+souls!"
+
+"You are right, aunty," said Scoville, retreating. "It's wrong for me
+to do anything which might bring trouble to you or Chunk; but I was so
+eager to thank this other good Samaritan--"
+
+"Well, den, sit by de ladder dar, en Miss Lou kin sit on de do'step.
+Den a body kin feel tings ain' comin' ter smash 'fo' dey kin breve."
+
+"Good Samaritan!" repeated Miss Lou, taking her old place in the
+doorway where she had so recently wished something would happen; "you
+have not fallen among thieves, sir."
+
+"My fear has been that you would think that a thief had fallen among
+the good Samaritans. I assure you that I am a Union soldier in good and
+regular standing."
+
+"I reckon my uncle and cousin would scout the idea that you, or any of
+your army, had any standing whatever."
+
+"That does not matter, so that I can convince you that I would not do
+or say anything unbecoming a soldier."
+
+"You are a Yankee, I suppose?" she asked, looking at him with strong
+yet shyly expressed interest.
+
+"I suppose I am, in your Southern vernacular. I am from New York State,
+and my name is Allan Scoville."
+
+"Uncle says that you Yankees are terrible fellows."
+
+"Do I look as if I would harm you, Miss Lou? Pardon me, I do not know
+how else to address you."
+
+"Address me as Miss Baron," she replied, with a droll little assumption
+of girlish dignity.
+
+"Well, then, Miss Baron, you have acted the part of a good angel toward
+me."
+
+"I don't like such talk," she replied, frowning. "You were merely
+thrown helpless at my feet. You didn't look as if you could do the
+South much harm then. What I may feel to be my duty hereafter--"
+
+"I have no fears at all of what YOU may do," he interrupted, with a
+smile that made his expression very pleasing.
+
+"How so?"
+
+"Because you are incapable of betraying even an enemy, which I am not
+to you. On the contrary, I am a grateful man, who would risk his life
+to do you a service. The little unpleasantness between the North and
+South will pass away, and we shall all be friends again."
+
+"My uncle and cousin--indeed all the people I know--will never look
+upon you Northern soldiers as friends."
+
+"Never is a long time. I certainly feel very friendly toward you."
+
+"I wish you to know that I am a Southern girl," she replied stiffly,
+"and share in the feelings of my people."
+
+"Well, I'm a Northern man, and share in the feelings of my people.
+Can't we agree that this is fair and natural in each case?"
+
+"But why do you all come marauding and trampling on the South?"
+
+"I beg your pardon, Miss Baron, but your question opens up all the
+differences between the two sections. I have my views, but am not a
+politician--simply a soldier. You and I are not at war. Let us talk
+about something else. With your brave cousin enlisting your sympathies
+against our side, what use would there be of my saying anything?"
+
+"My brave cousin does not enlist any of my sympathies; but that,
+certainly, is a matter which we cannot talk about."
+
+"Pardon, but your reference to him made it natural--"
+
+"There is no need of speaking of him," she interrupted, coldly. "I
+merely meant that he and those with him in what you slightingly term an
+unpleasantness can never be friendly to you. This war may be a small
+thing to you, but suppose your home and family were in danger, as ours
+are?"
+
+"Can you think that this war is a holiday to me?" he asked, gravely.
+"What stands between me now and death--perhaps a shameful and horrible
+death--except your kindly, womanly impulses? I am hourly in danger of
+being caught and treated as a spy."
+
+"Oh, I didn't realize it," said the girl, simply and kindly.
+"Everything looks so quiet and lovely. Aun' Jinkey, there, my old
+mammy, is at work just as I have seen her for years, and Chunk is busy
+yonder in the garden. It is hard to think how suddenly all might
+change."
+
+"A soldier must think and be prepared."
+
+"Have you no fear?"
+
+"Life is sweet to me. I know only one thing--I must do my duty and
+trust in God. I have the consolation that no one is dependent on me; no
+one would grieve for me very much. I'm quite alone in the world. My
+crusty old guardian would inherit my property, and you may well guess
+that Aunt Jinkey's tub yonder would hold all his tears if I should make
+a sudden exit," and again he smiled in his pleasant way, as if with the
+purpose to relieve his words of all sombreness.
+
+"Are you an orphan, too?" she asked sympathetically.
+
+"Such a mature, fully developed orphan as I am is not an object of
+pity, Miss Baron," he replied, laughing. Then he added, a little
+proudly: "I'm nearly twenty-two; I was twenty-one on my last birthday,
+and I celebrated it by a ride only less risky than the one which landed
+me at your feet. But your little word 'too' suggests that you are
+somewhat alone, also. I hope that your father was not killed in this
+war?"
+
+"No, my father and mother died long before the war."
+
+"I am glad of that--not glad that they died, but that you cannot
+associate me with the causes of their death."
+
+"But you and yours have caused death and suffering to so many Southern
+people!"
+
+"Yes, I'm sorry it is so, but things are pretty even on that score.
+Your men give as many blows as they take."
+
+"Why did you enter the army?"
+
+"I suppose for about the same reasons that your cousin did."
+
+"Oh, you aren't like my cousin at all. I don't wish you to keep
+referring to him."
+
+"Well, then, I thought it was right. There was an urgent call for men
+and strong public feeling. I was at college. I couldn't see others go
+and not go with them. I had no influence, no one to push my interests,
+so I simply enlisted, and am trying to push my way by extra services.
+Now, Miss Baron, think for yourself a little. Here we are, two young
+people thrown together by a strange chance. We have been brought up
+differently, surrounded by different influences. Even if you think me
+wrong, can you not believe that I've followed my conscience and lived
+up to such light as I had? I can believe this of you. I don't wish you
+to think that we Yankees are monsters. Do I look like a monster? Why,
+Miss Baron, if I should live to be a hundred years I should regard a
+chance to do you a kindness as the best good-fortune that could befall
+me."
+
+As he spoke these words his face flushed, there was a slight quiver in
+his dark mustache, betokening deep, honest feeling, and his expression
+was one of frank admiration and respect. She looked at him in silent
+wonder, and asked herself, "Can this be one of the Yankees of whom I
+have heard such horrible things?"
+
+She began saying, "I am trying to think for myself, but I have been so
+shut out from the world that--" when she was suddenly interrupted.
+Chunk appeared and said, "Marse Scoville, des git up de ladder en shut
+de trap-do' quicker'n lightnin'. Miss Lou, kin'er peramberlate slow
+to'rd de house, des nachel like ez ef you ain' keerin' 'bout not'n.
+Wash away, granny. Play possum, ev'y one."
+
+Miss Lou had gone but a little way before Mad Whately joined her,
+having ordered his men to pass on before. "Chunk," he shouted, "take my
+horse and rub him well, or you'll get rubbed down yourself."
+
+The openings under the eaves in Aun' Jinkey's cabin were so many and
+large that Scoville had fairly good opportunities for observing what
+was going on in the immediate vicinity. In witnessing the meeting
+between Whately and Miss Lou he was conscious of a peculiar
+satisfaction when noting that her manner confirmed her words. The
+dashing cousin evidently was not in favor. "Well," thought the scout,
+with a decisive little nod toward him, "were I a young Southerner,
+you'd have a rival that would put you to your best speed. What a
+delicious little drawl she has in speaking, and how charmingly her
+consonants shade off into vowels! I would be more readily taken for a
+Southerner than she, if I did not speak. How blue her eyes are! and her
+fluffy hair seemed a golden halo when the sunshine touched it through
+the trees. And then how unsophisticated her face and expression! She is
+a lady from instinct and breeding, and yet she is but a sweet-faced
+child. Well! well! it was an odd chance to be pitched to the feet of a
+girl like that. Very possibly I'd be there again of my own free will
+should I see her often enough."
+
+If Scoville were a rival now he certainly would have to take a wild
+pace to keep up with Mad Whately in his wooing. His eyes were full of
+resolute fire as he walked beside his cousin, and her quick intuition
+took speedy alarm at his expression. "Well, sweet coz," he said, "the
+Yanks have very prudently dusted back to the region from which they
+came. My mother will give herself the pleasure of a visit at The Oaks
+this afternoon. Can you guess her object in coming?"
+
+"Why, as you say, to give herself the pleasure of a visit."
+
+"Yes, and you and I will enhance her pleasure a thousand-fold."
+
+"I shall do all that I can in courtesy."
+
+"I'll do the rest, for I shall gladden her heart by marrying you."
+
+"What!"
+
+"Simply that, nothing more. Isn't that enough?"
+
+"Far too much," replied the girl, hotly. "I don't like such jesting."
+
+"Faith and it will prove the best joke of our lives, over which we will
+often laugh at our fireside hereafter. Come now, cousin, make the best
+of it; it is the best for you as well as for me. You know I always
+intended to marry you, and I have the hearty sanction of all the high
+contracting powers."
+
+She stopped abruptly in the path, her face so rich in angry color that
+it shamed the flowers blooming in the shrubbery near.
+
+"Mr. Whately," she said, firmly, "there is one contracting power that
+you have not consulted. How can you marry me when I WILL not marry you?"
+
+"Nothing easier, pretty coz."
+
+"But how--how?"
+
+"Oh, that you will learn at the proper time. Everything shall go as
+simply, naturally and merrily as fate. The blessing of parent and
+guardian, the clergyman in robes, prayer-book, wedding feast--nothing
+shall be wanting."
+
+"This is absurd talk," she cried, and rushed to the house. In the upper
+hall she encountered her aunt engaged in superintending a general
+dusting and polishing of the old-fashioned furniture.
+
+"What is the meaning of this wild talk of Cousin Madison?" the girl
+asked, breathlessly.
+
+"I've heard no wild talk," was the cool response.
+
+"Well, come into my room and hear it, then."
+
+Mrs. Baron reluctantly followed, rather aggrieved that she must bear
+the first brunt of the storm.
+
+"What are you putting the house in such wonderful order for?" asked
+Miss Lou, with flashing eyes. "What do all these preparations mean?
+What is Aunt Whately coming here for this evening?"
+
+"It is very natural she should wish to be present at her son's
+wedding," was the quiet and exasperating answer.
+
+"When is this wedding to be?" was the next query, accompanied by a
+harsh laugh.
+
+"I think we can be ready by to-morrow evening."
+
+"Are you a woman, that you can thus try to sacrifice the motherless
+girl committed to your charge?"
+
+"So far from sacrificing you, I am trying to further your best
+interests, and at the same time carrying out the wishes of my husband
+and your guardian. These are solemn times, in which you need every
+safeguard and protection. We should be faithless, indeed, to our trust
+did we not give a brave soldier the best right in the world to shield
+and care for you."
+
+"Bah!" cried the girl, now almost furious. "Where's uncle?"
+
+"In his office, I suppose."
+
+Whately had preceded her thither, and had already made known to Mr.
+Baron the nature of his interview with his cousin, adding: "Our best
+policy will be just to take our course as a matter of course, in a
+genial, friendly way. We certainly are the girl's best friends, and it
+won't be long before she acknowledges the fact. All we do is to secure
+her safety, welfare and happiness. She will be as skittish as a blooded
+filly over it all at first--a feature in the case which only increases
+my admiration and affection. She doesn't and can't realize the need of
+the step, how it's best for all concerned in general and herself in
+particular. The thing to do, therefore, is to go right straight along.
+Mother will be here this evening, and will do much toward talking her
+into it. Lou's anger and revolt will probably be well over by
+to-morrow, and all--"
+
+Further predictions were interrupted by the swift entrance of the girl.
+She stood still a moment and regarded the two men in silent scorn. "So
+you are plotting?" she said at last.
+
+"Oh, dear, no, sweet coz. Nothing is more foreign to my nature than
+plotting. I am a man of action."
+
+"If your words have any truth or meaning, you are bent on very
+dishonorable action."
+
+"Far from it. I shall have the sanction of both Church and State."
+
+"This, then, is the boasted Southern chivalry of which I have heard so
+much."
+
+"It has been knightly in all times to protect and rescue lovely woman."
+
+"I need no protection, except against you. Please leave the room. I
+wish to speak to uncle."
+
+He attempted to kiss her hand as he passed out, but she snatched it
+away. "Uncle," she said, coming directly to him, "can it be that you
+sanction anything so wicked as this? It seems as if you and aunt were
+permitting my cousin to put upon me a cruel practical joke."
+
+"Ahem! Your very words, Louise, prove how unfit you are to judge and
+act in accordance with this emergency. You even dream that we are in a
+mood for jesting at this time, when our days and even hours may be
+numbered. No, indeed. I am resolved to unite with my protection all the
+power and dignity vested in a Confederate officer."
+
+"In other words, to shield me against some possible danger you will try
+to inflict on me the worst thing that could happen."
+
+"Hoity-toity! Is an honorable marriage which has always been
+contemplated the worst that could happen? If we are driven forth by
+hordes of Northern vandals, you would think it the best thing that had
+happened."
+
+"I don't fear these Northern vandals. I have"--and then she checked
+herself in time.
+
+"You don't fear them! Why, Louise, every word you speak makes it more
+imperative that I should act for one so utterly inexperienced and
+ignorant."
+
+"Do you actually mean to say that you will try to marry me against my
+will?"
+
+"Certainly, against your present will. Do you suppose that I can be
+guided in my solemn trust by your petulance, your ignorant notions of
+life, and your almost childish passion? In France, the most civilized
+country in the world, parents and guardians arrange these affairs as a
+matter of course, and with the best results. It is the general method
+all over the world. Far more than mere family and pecuniary interests
+are concerned in this instance. We are giving you a protector in the
+time of your deepest need."
+
+"How could Lieutenant Whately protect me if the Yankees should come in
+numbers?"
+
+"In more ways than you can imagine. Moreover, he would probably be
+permitted to escort you and your mother to a place of safety. You would
+have his name, and the name of a Confederate officer would always
+entitle you to respect."
+
+"Oh, this is dreadful!" cried the girl, bewildered and almost paralyzed
+by the old man's inexorable words and manner. So unsophisticated was
+she, so accustomed to be governed, that the impression was strong that
+she could be controlled even in this supreme crisis.
+
+She rushed into the parlor, where her cousin was striding up and down
+in a whirl of the glad excitement so congenial to his spirit. "Cousin
+Madison," she exclaimed, "I know you are hasty and impetuous, but
+generous impulses should go with such a nature. You surely will not use
+your advantage against an orphan girl?"
+
+"No, indeed, dear coz, not against, but for you. I love you too well to
+leave you to the chances of war."
+
+"Oh, but this is the certainty of evil. You know I do not love you. If
+you would wait--if you would give me time to think it all over--"
+
+"Why, so you shall when I've escorted you and mother to some place
+where none can molest or make you afraid."
+
+"Escort me, then, as I am, under your mother's care. Truly this would
+be a better way to win my heart than such hasty violence to all my
+feelings and wishes."
+
+"My dear Louise, you may think me a hasty, inconsiderate wooer to-day,
+but that is because you do not know all that I know. I must, like your
+guardians, be guided by your best welfare. When you learn to know me as
+a kind, loyal, considerate husband, you will appreciate my most
+friendly and decisive action at this time. You are in great danger; you
+may soon be homeless. In the case of one so young and fair as you are,
+those who love you, as you know I do passionately, must act, not in
+accordance with your passing mood, but in a way to secure your peace
+and honor for all time."
+
+"Oh, this is all a terrible dream! You can--you can protect me as your
+cousin, should I need any such protection, which I cannot believe.
+Northern soldiers are not savages. I know it! I know it!"
+
+"How can you know it? Have I not seen more of them than you have? I
+tell you that for the honor of our house I shall and will give you the
+protection of my name at once. Your uncle and aunt feel as strongly as
+I do about it, and your happiness will be the only result. We Southern
+people take no chances in these matters."
+
+Overwhelmed, frightened, bewildered, the girl left the room and
+mournfully climbed to her own apartment. She was too utterly absorbed
+in her own desperate plight to observe Zany whisking away in the
+background.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+DANGERS THICKENING
+
+
+Mr. Baron was scarcely less miserable than his ward, yet from wholly
+different causes. His anxieties concerning her were deep indeed, his
+very solicitude impelling him toward the plan which he was eager to
+consummate. He was distracted by fears and forebodings of every kind of
+evil; he was striving to fortify his mind against the dire misgiving
+that the Confederacy was in a very bad way, and that a general breaking
+up might take place. Indeed his mental condition was not far removed
+from that of a man who dreads lest the hitherto immutable laws of
+nature are about to end in an inconceivable state of chaos. What would
+happen if the old order of things passed away and the abominable
+abolitionists obtained fall control? He felt as if the door of Dante's
+Inferno might be thrown wide at any moment. There was no elasticity in
+his nature, enabling him to cope with threatening possibilities; no
+such firmness and fortitude of soul as he might be required to exercise
+within the next few hours. To start with, he was wretched and
+distracted by the breaking up of the methodical monotony of his life
+and household affairs. Since general wreck and ruin might soon ensue,
+he had the impulses of those who try to secure and save what is most
+valuable and to do at once what seems vitally important. Amid all this
+confusion and excitement of mind his dominant trait of persistence
+asserted itself. He would continue trying to the last to carry out the
+cherished schemes and purposes of his life; he would not stultify
+himself by changing his principles, or even the daily routine of his
+life, as far as he could help himself. If events over which he had no
+control hastened action, such action should be in harmony with previous
+purpose to the extent of his power. The plan, therefore, of marrying
+his niece immediately to her cousin doubly commended itself to him. It
+would throw around her additional safeguards and relieve him in part
+from a heavy responsibility; it would also consummate one of the
+cherished intentions of his life. Things might take a happy turn for
+the better, and then just so much would be gained and accomplished.
+
+Thus he reasoned, and his nephew spared no pains in confirming his
+views. The truth urged by his niece that she did not love her cousin
+seemed a small matter to the unemotional, legal mind of the old man
+when safety and solid interests were concerned. "A child like Louise,"
+he said, "must be taken care of, not humored." Mrs. Baron had long
+since formed the habit of yielding complete deference to her husband,
+and now was sincerely in accord with his views. She had never had much
+heart; her marriage had satisfied her ambition, had been pleasing to
+her kith and kin, and she saw no good reason why her niece should not,
+under any circumstances, form a similar union. That the girl should
+revolt now, in the face of such urgent necessity, was mere
+perverseness. Sharing in her husband's anxieties and fears, she found
+solace and diversion of mind in her beloved housekeeping. Neither of
+the old people had the imagination or experience which could enable
+them to understand the terror and distress of their niece, whom with
+good intentions they were driving toward a hated union.
+
+Dinner was served two hours later than usual--a fact in itself very
+disturbing to Mr. Baron; while Aun' Suke, compelled to cook again for
+the Confederate troopers, was in a state of suppressed irritation,
+leading her satellites to fear that she might explode. Small, pale and
+bloodless as "ole miss" appeared, none of her domestics dared to rebel
+openly; but if any little darky came within the reach of Aun' Suke's
+wooden spoon, she relieved her feelings promptly. In dining-room and
+kitchen, therefore, was seething and repressed excitement. The very air
+was electric and charged with rumors.
+
+Perkins, the overseer, was at his wits' end, also, about the
+field-hands. They were impassive or sullen before his face, and
+abounding in whispers and significant glances behind his back. What
+they knew, how much they knew, he could not discover by any ingenuity
+of questioning or threatening, and he was made to feel that excessive
+harshness might lead to serious trouble. Disturbing elements were on
+all sides, in the air, everywhere, yet he could not lay his finger on
+any particular culprit.
+
+Of all the slaves on the plantation, Chunk appeared the most docile and
+ready to oblige every one. He waited on the Confederate troopers with
+alacrity, and grinned at their chaffing with unflagging good-nature. In
+all the little community, which included an anxious Union scout, Chunk
+was about the most serene and even-pulsed individual. Nature had
+endowed him with more muscle than nerves, more shrewdness than
+intellect, and had quite left out the elements of fear and imagination.
+He lived intensely in the present; excitement and bustle were congenial
+conditions, and his soul exulted in the prospect of freedom. Moreover,
+the fact that he had proved himself to Zany to be no longer a mere
+object for ridicule added not a little to his elation. Shrewd as
+himself, she was true to her word of keeping an eye on him, and she was
+compelled to see that he was acting his part well.
+
+Miss Lou positively refused to come down to dinner. She had buried her
+face in her pillow, and was almost crying her eyes out; for in the
+confusion of her mind, resulting from her training and inexperience,
+she feared that if all her kin insisted on her marriage, and gave such
+reasons as had been urged upon her, she must be married. She was sorely
+perplexed. Could the Yankees be such ravening wolves as her uncle and
+cousin represented them to be? Certainly one was not, but then he might
+be different from the others because he had been to college and was
+educated.
+
+"He said he would be glad to do me any kindness," she sobbed. "Oh, if
+he could only prevent this marriage! Yet what can he do? I could not
+even speak to a stranger of my trouble, much less to a Northern
+soldier. I wish I could see my old mammy. She's the only one who in the
+least understands me and feels a little like a mother toward me. Oh,
+what a dreadful thing to be a motherless girl at such a time!"
+
+The powers below stairs concluded that it would be best to leave Miss
+Lou to herself for a time, that she might think over and become
+reconciled to the need and reasonableness of their action, but Mrs.
+Baron considerately sent up her dinner by Zany. The unhappy girl shook
+her head and motioned the tray away.
+
+"Hi, now, Miss Lou, w'at you tookin on so fer?" asked the diplomatic
+Zany.
+
+"For more than you can understand."
+
+"I un'erstan's a heap mo'n you tink," said Zany, throwing off all
+disguise in her strong sympathy. "Marse Whately des set out ter mar'y
+you, ez ef you wuz a post dat cud be stood up en mar'd to enybody at
+eny time. Hi! Miss Lou, I'se bettah off dan you, fer I kin pick en
+choose my ole man."
+
+"Everybody in the world is better off than I am."
+
+"I wudn't stan' it, Miss Lou. I sut'ny wudn't. I'd runned away."
+
+"How could I run away? Where could I go to?"
+
+"See yere, Miss Lou," and Zany sank her voice to a whisper, "dere's a
+Linkum man"--
+
+"Hush! how did you know that?"
+
+"Chunk en me's fren's. Don' be 'feard, fer I'd like ter see de gyurl
+dat kin beat me playin' possum. Dat Linkum man he'p you ter run away."
+
+"For shame, Zany! The idea of my going away with a stranger!"
+
+"'Pears to me I'se rudder runned away wid one man dan hab anoder man
+runned away wid me."
+
+"Don't ever speak to me of such a thing again."
+
+"Well, den, Miss Lou, de niggahs on dis plantashon des lub you, en dey
+ain' hankerin' arter Marse Whately. Ef you say de wud, I des belebe dey
+riz right up again dis mar'age."
+
+"Oh, horrible!" said the girl, in whose mind had been instilled the
+strong and general dread of a negro insurrection. "There, Zany, you and
+Chunk mean kindly, but neither you nor any one can help me. If either
+does or says anything to make a disturbance I'll never forgive you. My
+cousin and the men with him would kill you all. I'd rather be left
+alone, for I must think what to do."
+
+"I ain' sayin' not'n, Miss Lou, sence dat yo' 'quest, but doan you gib
+up," and Zany took her departure, resolving to have a conference with
+Chunk at the earliest possible moment.
+
+The impossible remedies suggested by Zany depressed Miss Lou all the
+more, for they increased her impression of the hopeless character of
+her position. She felt that she was being swept forward by
+circumstances hard to combat, and how to resist or whether she could
+resist, were questions which pressed for an immediate answer. She
+possessed a temperament which warned her imperatively against this
+hasty marriage, nor was there any hesitancy in her belief that it would
+blight her young life beyond remedy. She was not one to moan or weep
+helplessly very long, however, and the first gust of passion and grief
+having passed, her mind began to clear and face the situation. Looking
+out of her window, she saw that her cousin and his men were mounted and
+were about to ride away again. Having waited till they had disappeared,
+she bathed her eyes and then descended to her uncle.
+
+"Where has Lieutenant Whately gone?" she asked.
+
+"Your cousin does not forget, even at such a time, that he is a
+soldier, and he is scouting the country far and wide. Moreover, it is
+his intention to ask the Rev. Dr. Williams to be here to-morrow
+evening, and a few friends also. I trust that by that time your
+perverse mood will pass away, and that you will unite with your kindred
+in their efforts in your behalf."
+
+"Is there no use of reasoning with you, uncle--no use of pleading with
+you?"
+
+Perkins stood in the door and knocked to announce his presence.
+
+"Well, what is it?" asked Mr. Baron, nervously.
+
+"Have you heard anything, sir?"
+
+"Good heavens, no! Heard what?"
+
+"Well, sir, I dunno. The field-hands are buzzing like bees, en I kyant
+get nothin' out of 'em."
+
+"Well, Perkins, be watchful. Do your best. God only knows what's
+coming. You are well armed, I suppose?"
+
+"You may reckon that, sir, en I'll use 'em too, ef need be. The hands
+are cute, mighty cute. I kyant lay my finger on any one in particular,
+but they're all a sort of bilin' up with 'citement."
+
+"Best to stay among them and be stern and vigilant." When Perkins
+withdrew Mr. Baron said to his niece with strong emotion, "You see we
+are beset with danger, and you talk of reasoning and pleading against
+my best efforts for your safety. There! I'm too harassed, too
+overwhelmed with weighty subjects for consideration, to discuss this
+matter further. I must give my attention to securing some papers of
+vital importance."
+
+Miss Lou departed with the feeling that dangers were thickening on
+every hand, and that she was only one of the causes for anxiety in her
+uncle's mind. She knew it would be useless to say anything to her aunt;
+and with a longing for a little sympathy and advice, she resolved on
+another visit to her old mammy, Aun' Jinkey.
+
+The Union soldier had a remote place in the background of her thoughts,
+and yet she felt that it was preposterous to hope for anything from him.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+"WHEN?"
+
+
+The vigilant eyes and constant demands of her mistress prevented Zany
+from giving Chunk more than a few significant hints, but he was quick
+to comprehend the situation. When he saw Miss Lou bending her steps
+toward his granny's cottage, he thanked his stars that the garden was
+in that direction also, and soon apparently was very busy at a good
+point from which to observe the cabin. In view of the approaching
+wedding Mrs. Baron had given Aun' Jinkey much to do, and she was busily
+ironing when Miss Lou again stood within the door. The old woman's
+fears had been so greatly aroused that she had insisted that Scoville
+should remain in the loft. "Folks 'll be comin' en gwine all the
+eb'nin', en ole miss hersef mout step dis away."
+
+At the same time her heart ached for the young girl. At sight of the
+sweet, troubled face the faithful creature just dropped into a chair,
+and throwing her apron over her head, rocked back and forth, moaning
+"You po' chile, you po' chile!"
+
+"Yes, mammy," cried Miss Lou, forgetting for the moment that a stranger
+was within hearing. "I'm in desperate straits, and I don't know what to
+do."
+
+The trap-door was lifted instantly, and Scoville was about to descend.
+
+"You mustn't do dat!" exclaimed Aun' Jinkey. "We's all in mis'ry anuff
+now."
+
+"I hope that in no sense I am the cause of it," said Scoville,
+earnestly.
+
+"Oh, no," replied Miss Lou, wiping her eyes hastily, "not directly.
+Pardon me, I forgot for the moment that you were here. My trouble is
+with my family, and you have nothing to do with it except as you
+Yankees are coming South and making trouble of every kind."
+
+"Well, Miss Baron," said the scout, regarding her sympathetically
+through the open door, "it is too late to talk about our coming South.
+Isn't there something I can do for you, to show my gratitude and
+good-will?"
+
+"Oh, no, indeed!"
+
+"De bes' ting you kin do, Marse Scoville, is ter shet dat do' an' kep
+still; den git back ter yo' folks soon ez you kin trabble. We uns got
+des ez much ez we kin stan' up un'er, en ef dey foun' you yere, hit ud
+be de worl' comin' ter smash."
+
+"If Miss Baron would tell me her trouble, she might find that I am not
+so powerless to help as I seem. Since she has done so much for me, I
+have a certain kind of right to do what I can in return."
+
+"You forget, sir, that we are strangers and aliens."
+
+"No one is an alien to me from whom I am accepting life and safety,"
+and his glance was so kind and friendly that, in her dire extremity,
+she was induced to ask a question.
+
+"If you feel that you owe anything to me," she said, hesitatingly,
+"tell me truly, if your people came to this plantation, would our home
+be burned and we all be in danger of insult and death?"
+
+"Is that all you fear?" he asked, smiling.
+
+"But answer me on your word and honor."
+
+"No, Miss Baron, not from our regular troops. There are vile wretches
+connected with all armies, on your side as well as ours, who act
+without orders or any control except their lawless will. If you and
+your friends are tortured by the fear of Northern soldiers, should they
+come this way, you may set your mind comparatively at rest. I must add,
+however, that our troops have to live off the country, and so take food
+for man and beast. They also help themselves to better horses when they
+find them. I have told you the truth. Why, believe me, Miss Baron, I
+would defend you with my life against any one."
+
+"Oh, dear!" cried the girl, with another rush of tears, "my uncle
+believes that our house will be burned and we all murdered, and they
+are going to marry me to my cousin against my will, so that he can take
+me to a place of safety."
+
+"When?" asked Scoville, excitedly.
+
+"To-morrow evening."
+
+Aun' Jinkey in her trepidation had stepped to the door, and there, sure
+enough, was Mrs. Baron coming down the path with her hand full of
+crumpled muslins. She had appeared so silently and suddenly before
+Chunk that he had started and stared at her. When he tried to edge off
+toward the cabin, she had said, sharply, "Keep at your work. What is
+the matter with you? I reckon your granny is smoking instead of doing
+my work," and she hastened her steps to surprise the supposed
+delinquent.
+
+Entering the cabin, she saw only Aun' Jinkey ironing, and her niece
+sitting with her handkerchief to her face. "Ah!" said the old lady to
+her laundress, "I'm glad you realize the importance of doing my work
+when it's needed." Then followed a few brief directions in regard to
+the articles she had brought. "Louise, I wish you to come with me. This
+is no place for you," concluded Mrs. Baron, turning to depart.
+
+The girl rose and followed submissively, for she was overwhelmed by a
+confused sense of danger, not merely to the Union soldier, but also to
+her old mammy, who was sheltering him. The extremity of her fears and
+the fact that Chunk had not come to warn them led her to dread that her
+aunt's suspicions were already aroused. Chunk gave her a very anxious
+look as she passed, but she only shook her head slightly, as much as to
+say, "I don't know."
+
+The negro's elation and confidence now passed utterly; he became deeply
+alarmed, not only for the scout, but for himself and grandmother as
+well. He was not long in coming to a decision. Whately and his troopers
+were absent, and now, perhaps, was the best time to act. After
+satisfying himself that he was not observed, he slipped away to the
+cabin.
+
+When Mrs. Baron finally disappeared, Aun' Jinkey sank into a chair
+almost in a state of collapse. "O good Lawd!" she gasped, "I des
+tremblin' so in my knee-jints I kyant stan'."
+
+"Courage, Aunt Jinkey," said Scoville, through the chink in the floor.
+"Try to get Chunk here as soon as possible."
+
+"I des done beat. I kyant lif my han' no mo'."
+
+"Granny," said Chunk, sauntering in, "you des watch at de do'," and
+without waiting for a word he went up the ladder, lifted the door and
+closed it.
+
+"Ah, Chunk, I wanted you badly," said Scoville. "Do you think it
+possible for me to get away at once?"
+
+"Dat des w'at I come ter see 'bout, mars'r, en I'se gwine wid you.
+Marse Whately and he men all done gone till eb'nin'."
+
+"Well, there's no need of further words. See what you can do about
+getting horses and a good start. I will explain on the way. Hoot like
+an owl when the coast is clear and you are ready."
+
+A few moments later Chunk emerged from the cabin, with careless mien,
+eating a pone of hoecake.
+
+"Go back to yer work," shouted Perkins, who was passing in the distance.
+
+This Chunk did, his eyes following the overseer until the hated form
+was lost to sight in a distant field where a squad of hands were at
+work. Perkins was simply trying to be ubiquitous that day. Chunk's next
+step was to steal to the rear of the stables. To his delight he found
+that Whately had left his horse in order that it might rest for further
+hard service, and had borrowed one of his uncle's animals for the
+afternoon ride. As Chunk was stealthily putting on a bridle, a gruff
+voice asked, "What yer doin' thar?"
+
+The negro's heart stood still. Turning quickly, he saw, to his dismay,
+one of the Confederate soldiers lying on a pile of straw. A closer
+scrutiny revealed that the man was drowsy from partial intoxication,
+and Chunk, feeling that he was in for it now, said boldly: "Marse
+Whately tole me at dinner ter tek his hoss ter de run fer a drink en
+ter limber his jints 'bout dis time in de eb'nin'."
+
+"Very well; bring 'im back safe en sud'n or I'll make you a head
+shorter'n you air."
+
+"Ob co'se, mars'r, I do ez I tol'. I des ride ole bay down, too. Mout
+ez well took 'im ter water de same time."
+
+The soldier making no response Chunk slipped away with the horses,
+trembling as if in an ague fit. Nothing was left for him now but to get
+away and take his chances. Fortune in this instance, as it often does,
+favored the bolder course. The Confederate soldier was familiar with
+Chunk, since he had been the waiter at the troopers' mess; moreover,
+his faculties were confused and blunted and he was soon asleep again.
+Perkins' back was turned and every one at the mansion deeply
+preoccupied. Even Zany, who had been charged not to leave the
+dining-room, was not on the watch.
+
+Chunk hastened the horses down the lane toward the run, which having
+reached, he looked cautiously around, then hooted in fairly successful
+imitation of the ominous bird of night. Aun' Jinkey dropped into her
+chair again with an ejaculation of terror.
+
+"Look out of the door and tell me if you see any one," said Scoville,
+quickly.
+
+Mechanically she obeyed, saying, "No, mars'r, but dat squinch-owl des
+shook me like a ghos'."
+
+Before she knew it he was beside her, his eyes shining with excitement.
+"There," he said, putting into the hand he pressed a ten-dollar bill,
+"I'll see you again, and you won't be sorry. Good-by," and with a swift
+glance around he strode away toward the run. A moment or two later he
+was mounted on the bare back of Mad Whately's horse, following Chunk
+down the stream so that the flowing water might obliterate the
+hoof-prints. They soon left the water and put their horses to a gallop
+toward the forest, within whose shades they disappeared. Both had
+deemed best not to tell Aun' Jinkey of their departure, so that she
+might honestly plead ignorance.
+
+With the unerring instinct of a scout the soldier led the way hour
+after hour toward the point where he expected to find the Union cavalry
+force. On the way he and Chunk compared notes, and thus Scoville more
+truly understood Miss Lou's position. "We must be back to-morrow
+afternoon," he said, "in time to prevent this marriage. So, Chunk, be
+careful. You must not get sleepy or let your horse stumble."
+
+Leaving them to pursue their way to the northwest, we can return to The
+Oaks. Miss Lou followed her aunt into the house, burdened for the
+moment with a new and pressing anxiety. Did the resolute old lady
+suspect that one of the class which she most detested had been
+concealed within earshot of her voice, and would a search be
+instituted? The girl's sympathies had gone out to the stranger, and the
+fact that he so trusted her appealed strongly to her woman's nature. In
+her alienation from her relatives she was peculiarly isolated and
+lonely at just the period in life when she most craved appreciative
+understanding, and her intuitions led her to believe that this stranger
+could both understand and respect her feelings. His genial, kindly
+smile warmed her sore, lonely heart, and convinced her that there was a
+world of human affections and simple faith as well as of imperious
+wills and formal beliefs. His words in regard to himself and the North
+was another shock to her confidence in her uncle and aunt, and another
+proof that there was no good reason for the marriage they were forcing
+upon her.
+
+For a brief time she watched with keen-eyed interest to see if her aunt
+would take any steps to have Aun' Jinkey's cabin searched. Her mind was
+soon relieved on this score, for she became convinced that her uncle
+was distracted by various anxieties; while Mrs. Baron, from force of
+habit and with the purpose of diverting her mind from all she feared,
+was pursuing her preparations with restless energy, keeping every one
+in her employ as busy as herself. It was evident that her niece's idle
+hands and perturbed wanderings to and fro annoyed her, and at last she
+broke out: "Louise, it would be much more becoming in you to unite with
+me in my efforts. The idea of your sitting and idly bemoaning your case
+in that foolish old woman's cabin! I'm glad you had the grace to show
+obedience to me before her, for this is a time when to our people the
+example of obedience is most necessary, and you should be the first to
+set it in all respects. It will only increase the trouble which your
+uncle and Perkins are having if our people see that you are rebellious.
+There is much that you should be doing and seeing to, for your uncle
+says that it may be best for you to leave the plantation with Mrs.
+Whately and her son immediately after your marriage."
+
+"I am not married yet. I shall appeal to Aunt Whately, and if she has a
+woman's heart she will not sanction the marriage."
+
+"You will find that because she has a woman's heart, and a Baron's
+heart, she will sanction it and insist upon it."
+
+"We shall see," replied the girl, turning to go to her room.
+
+"Louise, it is my wish that you should put your things in order to be
+packed hastily, if need be."
+
+Miss Lou made no answer.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+PARALYZED WITH SHAME
+
+
+So far from obeying her aunt's injunctions, Miss Lou sat down by her
+window, but she did not note the smiling spring landscape over which
+the western sun was throwing its long, misty rays. Tears so blurred her
+eyes and blinded her vision that she could scarcely see at all. At last
+she was aroused by the crunching of wheels, and became aware that Mrs.
+Whately had arrived. From what she knew of this aunt she had a good
+deal of hope from her appeal, for Mrs. Whately had always seemed a
+kind-hearted woman. True, she had been over-indulgent to her son, and,
+in her blind idolatry of this only child, blind to his faults, always
+comforting herself with the belief that he was merely high-spirited and
+would settle down when he grew older.
+
+Miss Lou wished to speak to the mother before the son returned, and in
+the hope of securing a merciful ally in the lady, went down immediately
+to receive her. Mr. Baron was on the back porch calling, "Chunk, where
+in the mischief are you?" Where, indeed, with the start he had gained
+for the Union lines?
+
+"My dear niece," cried Mrs. Whately, effusively, "how glad I am to see
+you, and to take you in my arms on this deeply interesting occasion!"
+but the matron was troubled at the girl's red eyes and pallid face.
+
+"I will show you to your room at once," said Mrs. Baron to her guest,
+decisively and significantly.
+
+Miss Lou was right in believing that the situation and the unhappy
+appearance of the prospective bride would be explained. She had been
+forestalled in her chance to make an appeal. Mrs. Baron emphatically
+sustained her husband's purpose, concluding: "My dear sister, in this
+crisis you will have to take a firm stand with the rest of us. Louise
+is acting like a perverse child, and no more realizes the necessity and
+wisdom of our course than a baby."
+
+Meantime the outcry for Chunk increased, and Miss Lou was troubled that
+he did not respond. Taking advantage of the fact that her mistress was
+upstairs, Zany stole swiftly, with many a misgiving, to Aun' Jinkey's
+cabin.
+
+"Whar dat gran'boy o' you'n?" she asked, breathlessly.
+
+"Ain' he in de gyardin?"
+
+"No, he ain'. Does you KNOW whar he is? Bettah tell me de truf. Mout
+sabe you a heap ob trouble."
+
+"Des you min' yo' business, en doan cum trapesin' yere 'bout Chunk. You
+talks ez ef you own 'im."
+
+"Ole mars'r tinks he own 'im, en he des a yellin' fer 'im. De oberseer
+hollerin', too, en de lil niggahs runnin' yere, dar, en yander lookin'
+fer 'im. Yere one ob um now."
+
+With new and direful forebodings Aun' Jinkey declared loudly: "I doan
+know what he be. He ain' say not'n ter me 'bout gwine anywhar."
+
+Uttering an angry and contemptuous exclamation, Zany sped back, and,
+with a scared look, said to Miss Lou, "Aun' Jinkey 'clar she dunno
+not'n 'bout Chunk's doin's. Ef she ain' foolin' me, I des belebe he's
+runned away."
+
+At these tidings and at this suggestion the young girl was almost
+distracted. She went instantly to the cabin, supposing that it would
+soon be searched.
+
+"Mammy!" she exclaimed, "where's Chunk?"
+
+"Fo' de Lawd, honey, I doan know. I des gwine all ter pieces wid de
+goin's on."
+
+"But people will be here looking. Is he up there?" asked the girl in a
+whisper.
+
+"No, he des lit out two hour ago, en he guv me dis" (showing the
+money), "en say he see me agin. I'se feared he'n Chunk gwine off
+togeder."
+
+"Well, you don't know. Hide the money and declare you don't know
+anything. I'll stand by you as far as I can."
+
+As she hastened back she saw a Confederate soldier running toward the
+house and Perkins limping after him as fast as possible. Entering the
+rear door she heard the soldier demanding fiercely of her uncle,
+"Where's that cursed nigger you call Chunk?"
+
+"Whom are you addressing, sir?" asked Mr. Baron, indignantly.
+
+"Well, see yere, boss," was the excited reply, "this ere ain't no time
+fer standin' on nice words. That cursed nigger o' your'n took the
+lieutenant's horse ter the run fer a drink, an one o' your'n 'long of
+him, en me en Perkins kyant find nary one of 'em."
+
+"Yes, sir," added Perkins in great wrath, "we uns follered the
+hoof-prints ter the run en inter the water, en there's no hoof-prints
+comin' back. That infernal nigger has lit out with the two horses."
+
+"Why don't you go after him then?" shouted Mr. Baron, distracted with
+anger and accumulating perplexities. "He can't be far yet."
+
+"I'd like ter see the hoss on this place that could ketch the
+lieutenant's black mare. Oh, why didn't I shoot the nigger?" and the
+soldier strode up and down as if demented.
+
+"You deserve to be shot yourself, sir, if you, who had been placed on
+guard, permitted that black rascal to take the horses."
+
+"Yes," replied the soldier, desperately, "en the lieutenant is ther man
+ter shoot me--cuss his red-hot blood!" and he stalked away toward the
+stables as if possessed by a sudden resolve.
+
+Turning to enter the house, Mr. Baron encountered his niece, who had
+been a witness to the scene, which explained everything to her. "You
+see, you see," cried the old man, "everything going to rack and ruin!
+Would to Heaven you could be married to-night and sent away to a place
+of safety!"
+
+"Uncle," said the girl, almost fiercely, "did you not hear that man say
+of my cousin, 'curse his red-hot blood'? Is that the kind of a
+protector you would force upon me?"
+
+"Yes," almost shouted the angry man, "because he has the spirit to deal
+justly with such reprobates. He's just the kind of protector you need
+in these lurid times, when it seems as if no one could be trusted. To
+think that that boy Chunk, who has been treated so well, could play us
+such an infernal trick! His old crone of a grandam must know something
+about it, and I'll make her tell. Perkins!" and Mr. Baron rushed toward
+the door again.
+
+The ladies had now descended and joined the excited group on the
+veranda. Zany was listening with craned neck from the dining-room door,
+and other "yard folks," great and small, were gathering also.
+
+"What IS the matter?" cried Mrs. Baron.
+
+Paying no heed to her, Mr. Baron said to his overseer, "Aun' Jinkey
+must know about this rascally flight and theft. Bring her here."
+
+"Uncle," said Miss Lou, firmly, "Aun' Jinkey doesn't know anything
+about Chunk's disappearance. I've been to her cabin and asked her."
+
+"As if the cunning old witch would tell you anything! Bring her here, I
+say, Perkins. It's time the spirit of insubordination on this place
+received a wholesome check."
+
+"Why!" exclaimed Mrs. Baron, "it seems but a little while ago that
+Chunk was working quietly in the garden."
+
+"En I reckon hit ain't much more'n two hours gone sence I seed 'im
+comin' out o' the cabin, lazin' and eatin' hoe-cake," added Perkins as
+he started angrily to obey his orders.
+
+"He had mischief in his mind, though, now I think of it." resumed Mrs.
+Baron, "for he seemed startled when he saw me, and tried to edge away
+to the cabin. I thought he was afraid I would catch his granny smoking
+instead of doing urgent work. Louise, you were in the cabin at the
+time. Why should Chunk be so anxious to get there before I did?"
+
+"I have not spoken to him this afternoon, and know nothing of his
+movements except what I have heard," replied the girl, coldly.
+
+"Oh, dear!" exclaimed Mrs. Whately, "what troublous times we've fallen
+upon!"
+
+In the silence which followed they heard the gallop of a horse. A
+moment later a negro came running up and exclaiming, "Dat sojer in de
+stable des saddle he hoss en put out ez ef de debil wuz arter 'im!"
+
+Miss Lou smiled bitterly as she thought, "He evidently doesn't think it
+wise to wait for my protector."
+
+At this moment Mad Whately appeared cantering smartly up the avenue at
+the head of his men. Throwing his reins to a colored boy, he strode
+smilingly up the steps, exclaiming, "Why, this is a regular committee
+of reception. I am doubled honored since my fair cousin is present
+also."
+
+Miss Lou made no reply, and the expression on all faces led him to ask
+quickly, "Why, what's the matter?"
+
+The young man's brow grew black as Mr. Baron gave a hasty explanation.
+A half-suppressed oath rose to his lips as he turned on his heel and
+shouted to his men, "Halt, there! Let every man mount and await orders.
+Simson, you and two others follow the guard I left with my horse.
+Where's that nigger who saw him start? Here, you, put these men on his
+track as you value your life! Simson, take him, dead or alive!"
+
+The men saluted, and departed at once. The galloping of their horses
+soon died away in the distance. "Now for this beldam," said Whately,
+sternly, as Aun' Jinkey approached, tottering in her excess of fear and
+accompanied by Perkins.
+
+Miss Lou saw that her cousin was terribly excited; indeed, that he
+fairly trembled with passion. She was scarcely less stirred herself,
+for she possessed much of the hot blood of her kindled, and during the
+last twenty-four hours nearly all that had, occurred tended to fire her
+spirit. Now that she saw her own dear old mammy led cowering under the
+hostile eyes of every one, she was almost beside herself with pity and
+anger. Unaccustomed to conventional restraint, reacting from long years
+of repression, a child still in some respects, in others a passionate
+woman revolting at a fate from which her whole nature shrank, she was
+carried far above and beyond her normal condition, and was capable of
+following her impulses, whatever they might be.
+
+Aun' Jinkey turned her eyes appealingly, and was awed, even in that
+terrible moment, by the intensity of the girl's expression, as she half
+consciously drew nearer and nearer. The field-hands, deeply excited,
+had also edged up from the quarters. Mr. Baron and his overseer
+observed yet tolerated this, thinking that it might be just as well to
+have the negroes learn from Aun' Jinkey's experience that authority
+would still be sternly enforced.
+
+Whately's headlong temperament was so overcome by anger that he noted
+nothing except the presence of one whom he believed the aider and
+abetter in his great loss, for a favorite and trusty horse is one of
+the dearest possessions of a cavalryman.
+
+"Where's your grandson?" he demanded, fiercely.
+
+"'Fo' de Lawd, I dunno," gasped Aun' Jinkey.
+
+"The truth, now, or you'll be sorry."
+
+"I dunno, I dunno. Ef he gone, he ain' say neber a word ter me, not
+eben good-by."
+
+"No use of your lying. You knew the rascal's purpose. Why didn't you
+tell Mr. Baron? Which way did he go?"
+
+"I des declar, mars'r, I dunno."
+
+"You DO know," cried Whately, driven almost to frenzy, "and I'll cut
+the truth out of you."
+
+His whip fell before he could arrest it, but it struck the arm and
+shoulder of Miss Lou. She had drawn very near, and, swift as light, had
+sprung forward and encircled the form of her mammy. There were startled
+exclamations from those near, echoed by a groan from the negroes, and
+then the girl spoke in stern, deep tones, "You thought to strike ONE
+woman, and you have struck TWO."
+
+Whately dropped his whip and stood with bowed head, paralyzed with
+shame. There were wild cries and a swaying of the field-hands toward
+the house. The mounted soldiers drew their revolvers and looked from
+the thronging black faces to that of their commander, but he paid no
+heed to them. Perkins did not wait, however, but drawing his weapon,
+began to limp toward the threatening mass, with oaths and orders to
+disperse. As for Mr. Baron and the ladies, they were just helpless in
+the whirl of events.
+
+Although Miss Lou's back was toward this new phase of the drama, she
+instantly and instinctively comprehended it. With a fear almost
+hereditary, as well as one vaguely dreaded from childhood, she
+recognized the possible horrors of an insurrection, her own action the
+indirect cause. She turned and sprang forward so swiftly to interpose
+that her comb fell away, and her golden hair streamed behind her. She
+stood between the blacks and those who could harm them; also those
+whom, in their wild excitement, they were ready to attack.
+
+"Silence!" she cried; then in the deep hush that followed she called
+out, in clear, ringing tones: "Every friend of mine will go back to
+quarters, keep quiet, and obey orders. I promise that no harm shall
+come to any of you."
+
+The men doffed their ragged hats, and a voice from the crowd answered,
+"We 'bey you, Miss Lou, en we won' let no harm come ter you, noder."
+Then as the dense, angry mass of a hundred or more men and women melted
+away toward the quarters, it was seen that many a heavy club was
+carried among them. Miss Lou watched them silently two or three
+moments, the rest looking on in wonder and suppressed anger mingled
+with fear. The girl returned, and taking her mammy by the hand, was
+about to lead her into the house. Whately started as she essayed to
+pass him unheedingly, and seized her hand. "Lou, Cousin Lou, forgive
+me!" he cried. "You know I meant you no such indignity."
+
+"I know you mean me a greater one," she replied, coldly, withdrawing
+her hand.
+
+"See! I ask your forgiveness on my knees!" he urged, passionately.
+
+But her heart was steeled against him, for her very soul was hot with
+indignation. "Come, mammy," she said, firmly, "such shelter and
+protection as I still have in this house you shall share."
+
+"Louise, this is monstrous!" began Mrs. Baron.
+
+"NO!" cried the girl. "This poor creature is the nearest approach I
+have ever known to a mother. She doesn't know about her grandson, and
+no one shall try to cut the truth out of her. Come, mammy," and she led
+the trembling old negress up to her room. When hidden from all eyes her
+courage and excitement gave way, and she cried on her mammy's breast
+like the child she was.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+A BAFFLED DIPLOMATIST
+
+
+Miss Lou left consternation, confusion and deep anxiety below stairs.
+Mad Whately had his own code of ethics, and he felt as if he had
+committed the unpardonable sin. His mother was shocked and pained
+beyond measure. She understood the feelings of her son, and sympathized
+with him. Drawing him into the parlor, she soothed and cheered him with
+the assurance that when his cousin's anger passed she would explain and
+intercede.
+
+"Oh, mother!" he exclaimed, "I did love her honestly before, but now I
+adore her. I must marry her, and by a lifetime of devotion wipe out the
+wrong I did not intend to inflict."
+
+"It will all come about right yet, my boy," she whispered. "I never
+understood Louise before. I fear they have been too strict and
+unsympathetic in her bringing up, and so she has naturally rebelled
+against all their plans. You didn't think at the time--indeed, in our
+excitement we all forgot--that Aun' Jinkey was her mammy, and you know
+how strong that tie is, even in your case, and you have always had a
+mother's love."
+
+"Oh, fool, fool that I was in my mad anger! Brave, grand, heroic girl!
+I'd have done as much for my old mammy; or rather I'd have struck down
+a general before he should harm her. Oh, mother, mother!" concluded the
+much-indulged youth, "I must marry her. She is just the bride for a
+soldier."
+
+"Rather than have her fall into the hands of the enemy, we will lead
+her to see that it is the only thing to be done," replied Mrs. Whately.
+
+Perkins had a consultation with Mr. Baron, as far as that desperately
+perturbed old gentleman was capable of holding one, the result of which
+was the decision to let the negroes alone, provided they kept quiet and
+obeyed. It was evident to both of them that the approach of Union
+forces, though yet comparatively distant, had produced the usual
+demoralizing effects. The government at The Oaks had not been harsh,
+but it had been strict and animated by a spirit which alienated
+sympathy. The situation was now seen to be too critical to admit of
+severity, all the more as the protection of Whately and his troopers
+might soon be withdrawn.
+
+It was a silent and depressing meal to which they sat down that
+evening, long after the accustomed hour, a fact which Mr. Baron would
+not forget, even in the throes of an earthquake. He groaned over it; he
+groaned over everything, and especially over his niece, who had
+suddenly developed into the most unmanageable element in the whole
+vexed problem of the future. He felt that they owed her very much, and
+that she held the balance of power through her influence over the
+negroes; and yet he was incensed that she was not meek and submissive
+as a young woman should be under all circumstances. An angry spot
+burned in each of Mrs. Baron's cheeks, for she felt that Miss Lou's
+conduct reflected very unfavorably on her bringing up. She was so
+scandalized and vexed that she could scarcely think of anything else.
+Mrs. Whately was all deprecation and apology, trying to pour oil on the
+troubled waters in every way, while her son was as savagely angry at
+himself as he had been at poor Aun' Jinkey and her grandson.
+
+Most fortunately the main feature in the case remained undiscovered.
+The fact that a Union scout had been hidden and permitted to depart
+would have been another bombshell, and the consequences of its
+explosion would have been equally hard to predict or circumscribe. As
+it was, Miss Lou and Aun' Jinkey received a certain remorseful sympathy
+which they would have forfeited utterly had the truth been revealed.
+And the secret did tremble on the lips of Zany. She was not only
+greatly aggrieved that Chunk had "runned away" after all, without her,
+and had become a sort of hero among his own kind on the plantation, but
+she also felt keenly her own enforced insignificance when she knew so
+much more than that Chunk had merely decamped. Her mistress little
+dreamed, as the girl waited stolidly and sullenly on the table, that
+she was so swelling with her secret as to be like a powder magazine.
+But fear rather than faith finally sealed Zany's lips. She was aware
+that the first question asked would be, "If you knew so much, why
+didn't YOU tell?" and she could give no reason which would save her
+from condign punishment. Moreover, she hoped that Chunk would soon
+return with no end of "Linkum men," and then her silence would be
+rewarded.
+
+Supper was sent up to Miss Lou and her guest, and the old woman, having
+at last some sense of security, made her first good meal since "things
+began to happen." Then she hankered after her pipe. "I'll get it for
+you," said the warm-hearted girl. She stole to the head of the landing,
+and, the hall below being clear at the moment, she flitted down and out
+at the back door, reaching the deserted cabin unobserved. How desolate
+it looked in the fading twilight! The fire was out on the hearth, and
+the old creaking chair was empty. But Miss Lou did not think of Aun'
+Jinkey. Her thoughts were rather of a stranger whose face had been
+eloquent of gratitude as he offered to shield her with his life. Then
+she remembered his excited question as to the time of the marriage.
+"When?" Had her answer anything to do with the sudden and bold
+departure? Her heart was in a sudden flutter. She snatched the corncob
+pipe and tobacco pouch, and sped back again in a strange blending of
+fear and hope. She felt guilty that she could dare hope to see him, a
+Yankee, again. "But his smile was so pleasant and frank!" she murmured.
+"Oh, I never remember to have had such genial, honest, unreserved
+good-will looked at me by any one except mammy, and she's so old and
+wrinkled that she can't look much of anything. What handsome, kind,
+dark eyes he had! Yet they would all say, 'He's a monster!'"
+
+She made her way back in safety until she reached the head of the
+stairs, and then came plump upon her aunt. "Where have you been?" asked
+Mrs. Baron, sharply.
+
+"After Aun' Jinkey's pipe."
+
+"Horrible! I forbid her smoking in this house."
+
+"I shall permit her to smoke in my room."
+
+"You have no right."
+
+"Very well; then I'll go with her to her cabin."
+
+"My dear sister," said Mrs. Whately, putting her hand on the irate
+lady's arm, "I think it will be better to let our niece have her way in
+such little things. We must remember that she is no longer a child."
+
+"I think she is acting like a very perverse and foolish one; but then
+rather than have any more scenes"--and looking unutterable things she
+passed on down the stairs.
+
+"My dear, I wish to see you by and by. Won't you let me?" said Mrs.
+Whately. "I wish to see you--I must see you before I sleep," replied
+the girl, decisively.
+
+"I'll come up soon, then, dear."
+
+Mrs. Baron reported to her husband what had occurred, but he only
+groaned. He was scarcely able to do much else now.
+
+"Oh, hang it!" exclaimed Whately, "what fiend directs my luck this
+evening? If I had only known she had gone to the cabin, I could have
+compelled her to listen to me and to my apologies."
+
+"No worse luck could have happened," said his mother, entering. "You
+must curb your impatience, and so--pardon me for saying it--must you,
+brother and sister. You are driving the girl to lengths she would never
+have thought of going. She is excited and almost beside herself. You
+forget, brother, that she is a Southern girl and a Baron, and has all
+the spirit of our race. She is one to be coaxed, to yield to gentle
+pressure and firm reasoning, and not to be driven."
+
+"Oh, curse it! we've made a mess of it, I fear," groaned Whately, who
+was capable of violent alternations of mood, and now was in the valley
+of humiliation and almost despair.
+
+"Well, you must all let me manage a little now," resumed Mrs. Whately,
+somewhat complacently, "or else there is no telling what trouble you
+may have."
+
+"Yes, yes," cried her son, "I insist on mother's managing. She has
+always obtained what I wanted, and I shall certainly throw my life away
+if I don't marry Cousin Lou."
+
+"Madison," said his mother, tearfully, "am I, who have so loaded you
+with kindness, of no account?"
+
+"Oh, forgive me, mother, I can't do anything but blunder to-night. I'm
+all broken up, distracted by conflicting duties and feelings. I picked
+up important information this evening. The Yankee column, halting in
+the rich valley to the northwest, have been ranging the country far and
+near, loading their wagons and resting their horses. They will make a
+move soon, and will come this way just as likely as not. Our forces are
+coming up from the South, and there certainly will be a fight soon
+somewhere in this region. I received a secret despatch at the
+court-house, after seeing the minister, who will be here early
+to-morrow evening. After the wedding I intend to escort mother and my
+wife south to Cousin Sam Whately's. They certainly will be out of the
+Yankee line of march there. Perhaps you and aunt had better go too."
+
+"No," said Mr. Baron. "I intend to stay and face it out here. I shall
+stand or fall on my own hearth."
+
+"And I shall remain with my husband," added Mrs. Baron, firmly.
+
+"Well, nothing worse may happen than a general sack of the place, but I
+cannot leave mother and the girl who is to be my wife. I shall ride
+over to our place in the morning for the best horse on it, and to see
+the overseer. I'll bring back a few papers which I will put in your
+charge, uncle."
+
+Thus they discussed the emergency till Mrs. Whately thought she could
+venture to Miss Lou's room. Her son accompanied her to the door and
+called out, "I give you my word, cousin, that Aun' Jinkey can go to her
+cabin, and that no one shall disturb her"; then he retreated to the
+parlor again.
+
+When Mrs. Whately entered the room, she witnessed what was not
+reassuring. Miss Lou's white shoulder was bare, and upon it was the
+long red mark of the whip. Aun' Jinkey was bathing the bruise with some
+lotion. "My poor child!" said the lady, "Madison is almost beside
+himself with grief and self-reproach."
+
+"Please tell him," replied the girl, "that I'm glad the blow fell on me
+instead of mammy."
+
+"Ah, well, my dear, he has asked forgiveness and is profoundly sorry."
+
+"Hit soon be well, honey. Wish ter grashus hit wuz me dat hab it! en
+you barin' hit so patient, too, w'en I smokin'. Dar, I kiver hit up
+now, en hit ain' dar in de mawnin'. I reck'n I go back ter de cabin
+now, honey. I kin'er used ter my own chimbly corner. Miss Whately got
+sump'n ter say ter comfort you."
+
+"Very well, mammy. I'll see that you have no trouble," and the old
+woman departed.
+
+"Surely, Louise, you cannot expect any more trouble, after my son has
+said there would not be any," said Mrs. Whately, in a somewhat
+aggrieved tone.
+
+"You must have seen," was the reply, "that Cousin Madison hasn't just
+the kind of self-control which inspires confidence."
+
+"I assure you, Louise, that he regrets his act as much as you can. You
+should, in charity, remember his great provocation."
+
+"Well, then," Miss Lou burst out, "let him make amends. Here I am, a
+defenceless girl, with all my kindred against me. He should be the
+first to defend me."
+
+"So he wishes to do, my dear; and he only craves the most sacred right
+to defend you."
+
+"Yes, in his own way, and without any regard to my feelings and wishes."
+
+"Indeed, my dear, you misjudge him. You have only to yield one point in
+order to make him a slave to your wishes."
+
+"But that is yielding everything. Oh, aunt, how can you urge a girl
+toward a loveless marriage?"
+
+"Now, my dear, just listen patiently to me for a few moments," began
+Mrs. Whately in a wheedling tone. "I am older than you are. I know
+young girls are apt to have romantic notions, but when they reach my
+age they find that it is ever best to act in view of good and
+sufficient reasons. Apart from the terrible emergency that is upon us,
+you know that we all have had our hearts set on this marriage almost
+ever since you were born, and we have made no secret of the fact. It
+would be a terrible disappointment to us if it should not take place. I
+fear that life has been too strict and narrow for you here, but you
+know that in my home you will dwell in an atmosphere of kindness and
+indulgence. I will give up to you whenever you are ready to take the
+reins after these sore troubles are over. But, Louise, you do not
+realize that we are in the midst of a terrible emergency. You ought not
+to remain here. Madison has arranged that we both go south to his
+cousin Sam's."
+
+"I don't wish to go!" cried the girl, wringing her hands.
+
+"Now, my dear, can't you just believe that we, who are more experienced
+and know the danger, wish to do what is best for you and what you will
+soon see was best?"
+
+"No, I cannot! I cannot! I just feel that I can't marry my cousin
+without perjuring myself."
+
+"Surely you don't love any one else, Louise?"
+
+"What chance have I had to love anyone, except my old mammy? I don't
+know anything about the love which I feel should lead to marriage. I
+have just been treated like a child, and then without any girlhood at
+all I'm to be married to one that I shrink from. I feel in my very soul
+that it's all wrong and unjust."
+
+"But, my dear, you won't feel so after you are a wife and safe in your
+own home. You will then feel that you have reached woman's true place
+and sphere, without incurring the risks and misfortunes which befall so
+many. Your guardians might have shown more tact, perhaps, but they
+meant well, and they wish you well, and are seeking only your welfare.
+They feel in honor bound to do what is best for you, and not what, in
+your inexperience, you may wish at the moment. As for my son, a
+warmer-hearted fellow does not breathe. He loves you fondly. You can
+influence him, you can control him as no other can, you have the
+strongest hold upon him."
+
+"Alas!" said the girl, divining the ultimate truth, "you love him
+blindly and wholly; you would sacrifice me, yourself and everything to
+him, and because he has always had everything his own way, he would
+have me in spite of the whole protest of my being. No one truly cares
+for me; no one understands me. I have been thrown back upon books and
+my own nature for such knowledge as I now so desperately need, and I
+feel that if I am false to my interests, to what I believe is right, my
+life is spoiled. I don't wish to marry any one, and as to all these
+dangers you so vaguely threaten, I believe that if there is a good God,
+he will take care of me."
+
+"Well, my dear," said Mrs. Whately, striving to hide the fact that she
+was baffled, "we won't talk any more about it to-night. You are excited
+and worried, and incapable of wise judgment. Rest and sleep are what
+you need now," and she kissed the girl, who did not return the caress.
+
+"Wise judgment!" she muttered, bitterly, "what fine words they use! So
+you, too, are hopelessly against me. You would give me to your son just
+as you used to give him everything he cried for when a child. Well,
+then, I'll appeal to the minister himself. I don't believe he can marry
+me against my will. At any rate, I shall never give my consent, never;
+and perhaps somebody may come in time. My people are teaching me to
+fear them even more than the Yankees."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+AUN' JINKEY'S WARNING
+
+
+The night passed like a lull in the storm. Perkins reported that the
+negroes were quiet, contenting themselves with whispering and
+watchfulness. Aun' Jinkey smoked and dozed in her chair, listening to
+every sound, but no "squinch-owl" renewed her fears. The family at the
+mansion were too perturbed to sleep much, for all knew that the morrow
+must bring decisive events. The three soldiers sent after the recreant
+trooper returned from a bootless chase and were allowed to rest, but
+Whately saw to it that there was a vigilant watch kept by relief of
+guards on the part of the others. He was not very greatly encouraged by
+his mother's report, but as the hours passed the habits of his life and
+the tendencies of his nature asserted themselves with increasing force.
+He would marry his cousin on the morrow; he would not be balked in his
+dearest hope and wish. The very resistance of the girl stimulated his
+purpose, for throughout all his life nothing so enhanced his desire for
+anything as difficulty and denial. The subduing the girl's high spirit
+into subservience to his own was in itself a peculiarly alluring
+prospect, and he proved how little he appreciated her character by
+whiling away part of the night over "Taming of the Shrew." A creature
+of fitful impulse, nurtured into an arrogant sense of superiority, he
+banished all compunctions, persuading himself easily into the belief
+that as soldier, officer, and lover he was taking the manly course in
+going straight forward. "The idea of consulting a whimsical girl at
+such a time," he muttered, "when a Yankee horde may descend on the
+plantation within forty-eight hours."
+
+Miss Lou was quite as sleepless as himself, and also did a great deal
+of thinking. She had too much pride to hide and mope in her room. Her
+high, restless spirit craved action, and she determined to brave
+whatever happened with the dignity of courage. She would face them all
+and assert what she believed to be her rights before them all, even the
+clergyman himself. She therefore appeared at the breakfast table with
+just enough color in her cheeks and fire in her eyes to enhance her
+beauty.
+
+"Ah, this is something like," exclaimed her uncle. "I knew sleep and
+thought would bring back good sense."
+
+Mrs. Whately kissed her effusively and Mrs. Baron formally, the girl
+submitting with like mien in both instances. Her cousin, in accordance
+with his mood and the policy he had adopted, bowed gallantly and with a
+touch of grandiloquence in his tone said, "I again apologize before all
+for my most unfortunate act last evening."
+
+She only bowed silently in reply.
+
+Then Whately assumed the air of one who had many and weighty matters on
+his mind, his whole conversation conforming to the accepted belief that
+they were facing a terrible emergency, and that he, as the practical
+head of the family at such a time, must act decisively for the best
+good and safety of all. "If I could be governed in this instance," he
+said, "only by patriotic feeling I would advise the destruction of all
+the forage on the place if convinced that the Yanks were coming this
+way, but that would incite them to every possible outrage. Still, I
+truly believe that it would be best for you and aunt to go with us this
+evening."
+
+"No," said Mr. Baron, "I've settled that."
+
+"Haven't you negroes that you can trust to take the stock off into the
+woods for concealment?"
+
+"After Chunk's rascality I won't trust any of them."
+
+"Well, I shall adopt that plan at our place this morning, and leave as
+little of value within reach as I can help."
+
+By a sort of tacit agreement it was thought best not to say anything to
+Miss Lou except as Mrs. Whately broached the subject, it being believed
+that a quiet ignoring of her will and a manifest purpose to carry out
+their own would have the most weight in breaking down her opposition.
+Indeed it was a shrewd policy, hard for the young girl to bear up
+against. Mrs. Baron had been enjoined not to cross her in little
+things. The busy housekeeper was too preoccupied to do so had she been
+disposed, but it troubled and incensed the girl to the last degree to
+see her bustling about, preparing for the wedding as if it would take
+place as a matter of course. Mrs. Whately's affectionate smiles and
+encouraging words were even harder to endure. That good lady acted as
+if Miss Lou were a timid and coy maiden, who merely needed heartening
+and reassuring in order to face a brief ordeal, and then all would be
+well. Her cousin gallantly lifted her hand to his lips and then rode
+away with part of his men, saying cheerfully, "I'll manage everything
+for the best."
+
+A vague terror seized upon the girl and she again sought the refuge of
+Aun' Jinkey's cabin. She must have some one to speak to who understood
+her, who felt for her. She found that Mrs. Baron had been there before
+her, urging the completion of certain tasks. Indeed, the old woman was
+ironing a white muslin dress which looked very bridal-like. Miss Lou
+recognized it as her own gown, which might naturally be worn on such an
+occasion.
+
+"Who brought that here?" she asked quickly.
+
+"Ole miss, honey. She said you cud war dis or de one you hab on, des ez
+you pleases."
+
+"Aun' Jinkey," said the girl in an awed whisper, "do you think they can
+marry me against my will?"
+
+"Miss Lou, I declar ter you I'se been smokin' en projeckin' ober dat
+mos' all night."
+
+"Well?"
+
+"Hit 'pears ter me a orfully mux-up question. Yere yo' gyardins, ole
+mars'r en ole miss. Dey's des had dere gay on dis plantashon sence I
+wuz a gyurl. You wuz trus' ter dem ter be took keer on en you tole me
+how he manage yo' prop'ty. He call you he ward. I des dunno w'at po'r
+dat ward business gib 'im. I'se yeared en my day ob young gyurls mar'ed
+yere en mar'ed dar en dey aim' sayin' much 'bout who dey mar'y. Folks
+say dat wuz de way wid ole miss. I reckermember dem days en I year ole
+mars'r's fader talk'n wid her fader 'bout w'at dey call set'l'ments en
+po'tions. Den ole miss's mammy tole me how her young miss wuz cool ez a
+cowcumber, en how she say her folks know bes' en she sat'sfied; en den
+how she gib her min' ter w'at she call her trosso. Why honey, I des
+doin' up tings ob dat ar trosso yit."
+
+"That's just the trouble with aunt," said Miss Lou scornfully. "I don't
+believe she ever had heart enough to love with."
+
+"Well, I reck'n ole mars'r is projeckin' dis away. Ole miss, she settle
+down en tuck hole strong. She des kin'er fall inter he ways en mek
+tings hum wid de yard en house folks. She des a nachel-bawn
+housekeeper, en we uns all had ter stan 'roun' en do ez she sed sud'n,
+we sutn'y did; en ole mars'r, he tink hit be des de same wid you."
+
+"But it won't, mammy. I'm not like my aunt."
+
+"Dat you ain', honey, bless de Lawd! Ole miss neber stan' 'twix me en a
+whip, en she neber run fer my pipe en let her shol'er ache whiles I
+smokes like a ole himage. I'se only des a s'plainin' how dey feels
+'bout yo' mar'age."
+
+"Ah, but mammy, you know how I feel about it. I won't marry my cousin
+if I can help it."
+
+"Hit's yo' feelin's, honey, w'at des riles up my in'erds so I kyant
+hardly wuk. Dat's whar my projeckin' gins out, en I'se kin'er stump'd
+'bout hit. Dey's gwine right 'long wid dere prep'rations des ez ef dey
+cud do ez dey pleased. Dunno w'at de law is 'bout hit ef dere is any
+law in dese mux-up times. I'se des took clar off my foots wid all de
+goin's on. De fiel'-han's at de quarters is bilin' ober wid 'citement,
+en dey's sayin' de Linkum men's comin' ter upset ebryting. Whar dey get
+de news fum I dunno. Dey sez ole mars'r is 'stracted en ole miss des
+put her thin lips tergedder ez ef she gwine ter hab her way ter de las'
+minit. Ez fer Marse Whately, you knows he al'ays hab his way, en ef
+dere isn't eny way he mek it. You sez de min'ster en folks is comin'?
+Hit des stumps me fer dem ter go on so ef dey hasn't de po'r."
+
+"Well, then," said the girl desperately, "they will have to use force
+all the way through. I'll never give my consent."
+
+"P'raps w'en de min'ster see dat he woan mar'y you."
+
+"That's just my hope," said the girl, "I--"
+
+A quick step was heard and a moment later Mrs. Baron entered the cabin.
+Ostensibly she came for some of the articles which Aun' Jinkey had
+ironed, but Miss Lou knew she was under surveillance and she departed
+without a word. On entering her room she found that her little trunk
+had been packed and locked in her absence and that the key was gone.
+She felt that it was but another indignity, another phase of the strong
+quiet pressure urging her toward the event she so dreaded. A hunted,
+half-desperate look came into her eyes, but she did not waver in her
+purpose.
+
+Mrs. Whately knocked, but the girl would not admit her.
+
+Meanwhile Mrs. Baron said to Aun' Jinkey in parting, "See to it that
+you don't put foolish notions in my niece's head. We are none of us in
+a mood for trifling to-day."
+
+Then the old woman's wrath burst out. "You 'speck I'se feared ter speak
+fer dat chile w'at stan' by me so? Bettah be keerful yosef, mistis; you
+alls gittin' on ve'y scarey groun' wid Miss Lou. You tink you kin do
+wid her w'at you pleases des ez ef she a lil gyurl baby. I reck'n her
+moder come out'n her grabe ter look arter you ef you ain' keerful."
+
+"What do you mean by such language?"
+
+"I mean des dis, mistis. Ef you tinks Miss Lou ole anuff ter mar'y you
+know she ain' a chile. Ef she ain' a chile she a woman. Does you tink
+you kin tromple on a woman? You kin tromple on me en I am' sayin'
+not'n, but you kyant tromple on a wi'te woman like yosef. I tells you
+you gittin' on scarey groun' wid Miss Lou."
+
+"If you both had sense you would know we are getting her off scarey
+ground, as you call it. All you have to do is to obey my orders and not
+meddle."
+
+"Ve'y well, mistis, I'se warn you," said Aun' Jinkey, sullenly
+returning to her work.
+
+"Warn me of what?" But the old woman would not vouchsafe another word.
+
+Mrs. Baron returned to the house, her lips compressed with a firmer
+purpose to maintain discipline on deck till the ship went down, if that
+was to be the end. Combined with her cold, unimaginative temperament
+was a stronger and more resolute spirit than that of her husband, who
+now was chiefly governed by his lifelong habit of persistence. He
+adhered to his purposes as a man at sea clings to the ship which he
+feels is going to pieces beneath him.
+
+Chunk and Scoville reached the Union camp in the gray dawn of the
+morning, and the latter soon had an audience with the commanding
+officer, with whom he was a favorite scout. The small party which had
+been compelled to leave Scoville behind had brought important
+information, gained chiefly by the young man's daring and address, and
+the general was very glad to see him again and to be assured of his
+escape.
+
+"We are ready to move," said the commander, "and the information
+brought in by your party has decided me to bear off to the southeast in
+order to meet the enemy approaching from the southwest. As soon as you
+are rested, Lieutenant Scoville--"
+
+"Sir! what?"
+
+"Yes, I had recommended you for promotion and the order has come."
+
+"If zeal in your service, sir"--began the scout flushing proudly.
+
+"Yes, yes, I understand all that. I remember the men who serve me well.
+As soon as you're able to start out in the same direction again I would
+like you to do so."
+
+"I'm able now," said Scoville eagerly, and then he briefly related the
+situation of affairs at The Oaks, concluding, "If I had twenty-five men
+I believe I could not only prevent the marriage but capture all the
+Confederates with their information. They have been scouting up toward
+us just as we were toward the enemy."
+
+"All right," said the general, laughing. "Perhaps the marriage may come
+off yet, only with another groom."
+
+"No, sir," said Scoville, gravely. "The girl befriended me in my sore
+need. She is as good and innocent as a child, and I would shield and
+respect her as I would my own sister."
+
+"That's the right spirit, Lieutenant. I was not sure how far matters
+had gone--in fact, was only jesting."
+
+Scoville made a hearty breakfast, and within an hour, at the head of
+over a score of men, was rapidly retracing his steps, Chunk following
+in a state of wild elation. They both had been furnished with fresh
+horses, and the tough, elastic sinews of the newly-fledged officer were
+tense with an unwonted excitement. If those tearful blue eyes of Miss
+Lou should welcome him as deliverer this would be the most memorable
+day of his life.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+A WHIRLWIND OF EVENTS
+
+
+Whately returned wearing a rather gloomy and angry aspect. He had
+threatened his negroes and stormed at them; they had listened in sullen
+silence. The overseer had said, "Hit's the old story. They have heard
+that the Yanks are near and may come this way. Fact is, one doesn't
+know what they haven't heard. They hold together and keep mum. You can
+see that all discipline is at an end among 'em."
+
+Whately could only give the man such directions as the emergency
+dictated, obtain some valuables, and return chafed and all the more
+bent upon securing out of the possible wreck the one object he most
+coveted. But Miss Lou puzzled him and perplexed them all. She had taken
+refuge in almost absolute silence, and was as unresponsive to Mrs.
+Whately's endearments as to her uncle and aunt's expostulations, while
+toward Whately she was positively freezing in her coldness. Troubled
+and inwardly enraged, he was yet more than ever determined to carry out
+his purpose. His orders to his men were given sharply and sternly, and
+his mood was so fierce that there was no longer any affectation or
+assumption on his part. The girl's heart fluttered with nameless fears,
+but she had the strength of will to maintain the cold, impassive
+demeanor she had resolved upon. She felt that it would be useless to
+make further effort to influence her kindred, and that if she revealed
+her purpose to appeal to the clergyman, they might so prejudice his
+mind against her that he would not listen favorably. Fearing that this
+might be the case anyway, she found her thoughts turning with
+increasing frequency to the possible intervention of the Union scout.
+She both hoped for and feared his coming, supported as he would be, in
+this instance, by followers who might be so different from himself. She
+could not free her mind from the influence of the stories about
+Northern soldiers, and yet she was sure that as far as his power went,
+they would all be protected. Indeed, one danger menaced so closely and
+threateningly she could scarcely think of anything else than escape and
+relief from it.
+
+As the sun began to sink in the west her uncle came to her door and
+said authoritatively, "Louise, I wish you to come down."
+
+She obeyed without a word and entered the parlor where all were
+assembled, noting with dismay that the Rev. Dr. Williams was already
+present. Her cousin sought to meet her gallantly, but she evaded him
+and took a seat. Mr. Baron began a sort of harangue. "Louise," he said,
+"as your guardian and in obedience to my sense of duty in a great
+responsibility, I have approved of this marriage. I am convinced that
+the time will speedily come when you will be glad that I--that we
+all--were firm at this time. Both I and your aunt are growing old.
+Troubles, sore indeed even for the young to endure, are upon us. I am
+not sure that a roof will cover our gray hairs much longer. Perhaps in
+the dead of this very night the ruthless enemy may come. Now, your aunt
+Whately's carriage is at the door. A gallant soldier and a Confederate
+officer, the choice of all your kindred, is eager to give you his name
+and loving protection. He will take you far away from war's rude
+alarms, with its attendant and horrible perils. We have no common foe
+to deal with, but monsters animated by unquenchable hatred and a
+diabolical spirit. I should betray my trust and be recreant to my duty
+did I not avail myself of the one avenue of safety still open to you.
+See, your cousin's brave men are mounted, armed, and ready to act as
+your escort. Dr. Williams is here to perform his good offices, although
+other invited friends have not ventured from home in this time of peril
+which recent tidings prove to be increasing every hour. In a few
+moments you will be an honored wife, on your way to a place of refuge,
+instead of a helpless girl whose defenders may soon be scattered or
+dead."
+
+"Truly, Miss Baron," said the clergyman, rising and approaching, "you
+cannot hesitate in circumstances like these."
+
+Miss Lou felt her tongue clinging to the roof of her mouth, and could
+only say in a hoarse whisper, "But I do not love my cousin--I do not
+wish to marry."
+
+"That may be your feeling at this moment. Indeed, circumstances are not
+conducive to gentle amatory feelings, and all may seem sudden and hasty
+to you, but you must consider that your relatives in this
+emergency--indeed that all your neighbors--are doing many things and
+taking many precautions that would not be thought of in a time of
+security. I have already sent my own family further South, and now in
+your case and Mrs. Whately's I feel that time is pressing. Will you
+please rise and take your cousin by the hand?"
+
+She shook her head and remained motionless. Whately advanced
+decisively, took her hand, and sought gently to draw her into position
+before the clergyman. His touch broke the spell, the paralysis of
+dread, and she burst out, "No, no, you cannot marry me when my whole
+soul protests. I will not be married!"
+
+"Louise, I command you," began Mr. Baron excitedly.
+
+"It makes no difference. I will not! I will not!" was the passionate
+and almost despairing response.
+
+"Oh, come, cousin, you are just excited, frightened, and off your
+balance," said Whately soothingly.
+
+"My dear Miss Baron," added the clergyman, "let me reassure you. It is
+evident that you are a little nervous and hysterical. Pray be calm and
+trust your relatives to do what is best for you. I do not wonder that
+your nerves have given way and that--"
+
+"My nerves have not given way. Unfriended child that I am, I must not
+lose self-control. God grant that my WILL does not give way."
+
+"Unfriended!" exclaimed Mrs. Whately reproachfully. "Few girls in these
+times have so many to care and think for them. We are all bent on
+securing your welfare at every cost."
+
+"Yes, at every cost to me."
+
+"Dr. Williams sees the wisdom and reasonableness of our course. My son
+is even straining his sense of military duty to escort us to a place of
+safety, where you will still be among relatives."
+
+"Then let him escort me as his cousin, not his wife," cried the girl.
+
+"But, Miss Baron, in the turmoil and confusion which may ensue you will
+be far safer as his wife," Dr. Williams urged. "I would have been glad
+if I could have given my daughter like protection. Truly, it is not
+wise to be swayed by mere nervous excitement at such a time."
+
+"Oh, even you, from whom I hoped so much, are against me!"
+
+"No, my dear child," replied the minister, earnestly and sincerely, "I
+am for you always, but I cannot help seeing, with your relatives, that
+at present you are not in the quiet state of mind which would enable
+you to act wisely for yourself. What earthly motive could I have except
+your safety, welfare and happiness?"
+
+"Well, then," said the girl, with a swift glance around and as if
+turning into stone, "do your worst. I will never give my consent,
+NEVER!"
+
+They looked at each other perplexedly and inquiringly, as if to ask
+what should be done, when Perkins burst in at the back door of the
+hallway shouting, "The Yanks!"
+
+The girl sank into a chair and covered her burning face for an instant.
+Deep in her soul she divined who her rescuer was, yet in the midst of
+her hope she felt a certain consciousness of guilt and fear. Mr. Baron,
+Dr. Williams, and the ladies, half-paralyzed, yet drawn by a dreadful
+fascination, approached the open windows. Mad Whately now played a
+better part. He was in full uniform and his horse stood saddled
+without. He went to it, mounted with almost the swiftness of light, and
+was just in time to see the Federals sweep around the drive which led
+to the stables. Scoville had brought his little force by the familiar
+way of Aun' Jinkey's cabin. Furious at being forestalled, and in
+obedience to a headlong courage which none disputed, Whately's sabre
+flashed instantly in the rays of the sinking sun, and his command,
+"Charge!" rang clear, without a second's hesitancy.
+
+The order echoed in the girl's heart and she felt that she had too much
+at stake not to witness the conflict. Her own high spirit also prompted
+the act, and in a moment she was out on the veranda. She saw her cousin
+spur directly toward the leader of the Federals, in whom she recognized
+the Union scout. His men came galloping after him, but seemed more
+inclined to envelop and surround the Confederates than to engage in
+hand-to-hand conflicts. The latter were experienced veterans and
+quickly recognized that they were being overpowered and that there was
+no use in throwing away their lives. Hasty shots were fired, a few
+sabres clashed, but the demand, "Surrender!" heard on all sides, was so
+well enforced by the aspect of the situation that compliance soon
+began. Scoville and Whately, with those immediately about them,
+maintained the conflict. The two young officers were evenly matched as
+swordsmen, although the Federal was the larger, stronger, and cooler
+man. As a result, their duel was quickly terminated by the loss of
+Whately's sabre, wrenched from his hand. Then the point of his foe's
+weapon threatened his throat, and the word "Surrender!" was thundered
+in his ears.
+
+Instead of complying, he fell from his horse as if shot, lay still an
+instant, and then in the confusion of the melee glided through an
+adjacent basement door and disappeared. Seeing him fall, his mother
+uttered a wild shriek and gave way to almost hysterical grief. A
+backward glance revealed to Whately that the fight was lost, or rather
+that it had been hopeless from the first, and his one thought now was
+to escape and lead back a larger force for the purposes of both rescue
+and vengeance. Gaining a rear door, a bound took him to some shrubbery.
+A second later he was behind the kitchen. Aun' Suke saw him, threw up
+her hands, and uttered an inarticulate cry. A moment or two more and he
+was in the stable, leading out a horse. All attention was now so
+concentrated in front of the mansion that he was not observed. He took
+only time to slip on a bridle, then springing on the animal's bare
+back, he struck into a field behind a clump of trees. Putting the horse
+to a run, he was soon beyond successful pursuit. Some of his own men
+had seen him fall before they were driven back, and believed that he
+was either wounded or dead; thronging Federals, unaware of the
+circumstances, occupied the ground, and only Miss Lou, with an immense
+burden lifted from her heart, saw his ruse and flight. She wished him
+well sincerely if he would only leave her to herself. Hastening to Mrs.
+Whately she speedily restored the lady with assurances of her son's
+escape, then with her joined the group on the veranda. Mr. Baron, in
+the crisis of his affairs and as the head of the family, maintained a
+dignity and composure which of late had been lacking.
+
+Scoville paid no heed to them until every vestige of resistance had
+ceased and the Confederates were disarmed and collected as prisoners.
+Then sitting on his horse in front of the piazza steps he rapidly gave
+his orders. His first act was to send a vedette down the avenue toward
+the main road; then he selected five men, saying, "Take charge of the
+stables, barn, and out-buildings. Keep them as they are and permit no
+one to approach without my written orders."
+
+At this moment the field-hands, who had been surging nearer and nearer,
+sent forward a sort of improvised deputation. They approached bowing,
+with hats in hand and wistful looks in their eyes. Were these in truth
+the messengers of freedom of whom they had heard so much? Mr. Baron
+almost gnashed his teeth as he witnessed this action on the part of his
+property.
+
+"Mars'r," said the spokesman, "I reck'n you got good news for we uns."
+
+"Yes, good news. You are all free." His words rang out so that they
+were heard by every one. Shouts and cries of exultation followed like
+an echo, and ragged hats were tossed high in joy.
+
+The young soldier raised his hand with a warning and repressive
+gesture. In the silence that ensued he added, "My men here are both
+free and white, yet they must obey orders. So must you. Go back to your
+quarters and prove yourselves worthy of freedom by quiet behavior and
+honesty. If I find any one, black or white, acting the part of a thief
+while I am in charge it will go hard with him. The general will be here
+to-morrow and he will advise you further."
+
+His words found immediate acceptance, the negroes returning to the
+quarters, laughing and chatting joyously, not a few wiping tears of
+deep emotion from their eyes. The long-expected day had come. They
+little knew what the future had in store for them, but this was the
+beginning of a new era and the fulfilment of a great hope.
+
+Scoville now dismounted and gave the reins to Chunk, who stood near
+with a droll assumption of soldier-like stiffness and oblivion to all
+the well-known faces. Mounting the steps, cap in hand, the young
+officer approached Mr. Baron, who was becoming a little assured that
+the orders thus far heard had not included a general application of the
+torch.
+
+"Mr. Baron, I presume?" said Scoville.
+
+"Yes, sir," was the stiff reply.
+
+"The ladies of your household, I suppose?"
+
+"They are."
+
+Scoville bowed ceremoniously to each, giving Miss Lou no other sign of
+recognition than a humorous twinkle in his eye. "Ladies," he began,
+"since it is the fortune of war that I must have command here for a
+brief time, I hasten to assure you that we shall give as little
+annoyance as possible. A few men on both sides were wounded, and I fear
+that the officer commanding your men was killed. At least I saw him
+fall. The night is warm and still and I can make a hospital here on the
+piazza with a little aid from you. Please dismiss all further fears.
+Unless we are attacked, the night shall pass quietly. Each and every
+one will be treated with respect and courtesy. I must request of you,
+however, sir," addressing Mr. Baron, "food for myself and men and
+forage for our horses."
+
+"I suppose you will take them anyway," growled the unwilling host.
+
+"Certainly," replied Scoville, giving him a steady look. "Do you expect
+us to go hungry? I shall do my duty as a soldier and an officer, as
+well as deport myself as a gentleman."
+
+There was nothing left but for Mr. Baron to give his directions to
+Perkins, or for the ladies to make preparations for the improvised
+hospital. Miss Lou gratefully recognized that Scoville did not intend
+to compromise her in the least nor reveal his previous acquaintance
+unless it should become known through no fault of his. She lingered a
+moment as Dr. Williams stepped forward and asked, "May I be permitted
+to return to my home?"
+
+"I trust so, certainly, sir, but my duty requires brief explanation on
+your part and pledges that you will take no hostile action. We are not
+among friends, you know."
+
+"I can very readily account for myself, sir," was the stiff response.
+"I was summoned here to perform a wedding ceremony which your most
+inopportune arrival prevented. I am a man of peace, not of war, yet I
+cannot and will not give any pledges."
+
+"It is scarcely fair then, sir, for you to take refuge in your calling,
+but I will waive that point. I must warn you, however, that we can give
+protection to those only who do not seek to harm us. You are at
+liberty. Good-evening, sir."
+
+He had extracted from the clergyman the fact that he had arrived in
+time, and he again gave the girl in the doorway a mirthful glance, then
+turned on his heel to attend to his military duties.
+
+Miss Lou hastened to her room with hot cheeks.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+THE UNEXPECTED HAPPENS
+
+
+Scoville soon learned that his opponent, so far from being killed or
+even wounded, had escaped. He was not much worried by this fact,
+believing that before the Confederate officer could reach his friends
+and bring back an attacking force, the Federal column would be on the
+ground. Indeed, he was glad that the family upon which he had quartered
+himself could not associate him with so terrible a calamity. The young
+girl might not wish to marry her cousin, yet be sorry if he were
+fatally or even seriously wounded, while the rest of the household
+would be plunged in the deepest distress. Although a resolute soldier,
+Scoville was a kind-hearted fellow, and disposed to take the most
+genial views of life that circumstances permitted. There was a humor
+about his present situation which he relished exceedingly. He was
+buoyant over the interrupted wedding, and bent upon disappointing Mr.
+Baron in all his grewsome expectations in regard to the Yankees. There
+should be discipline, order, quiet, and an utter absence of all
+high-tragedy. He cautioned his men against the slightest tendency to
+excess, even forbidding the chaffing of the negroes and noisiness. A
+steer, a pig, and some fowls were killed for supper, and the wood for
+cooking it was taken from an ample pile in the rear of the house.
+Happily, none were seriously wounded, and being veterans were able to
+do much for one another, while an elderly man in the troop who had some
+rude surgical experience, supplemented their efforts. Miss Lou speedily
+joined her aunts in rummaging for old linen for bandages, and the
+performance of human duty by the elderly ladies dulled the edge of the
+terrible truth that they were in the hands of the Yankees. True, they
+had to admit to themselves that the young soldier did not appear like a
+"ruthless monster" and that his conduct thus far had been almost
+ceremoniously polite; yet all this might be but a blind on the part of
+a cunning and unscrupulous foe.
+
+When they came down to the veranda with the materials required, the
+unscrupulous foe met them, cap in hand, thanked them courteously, and
+gave his entire attention to the wounded, treating the men of both
+sides alike. Mrs. Whately, in glad reaction from overwhelming fear
+concerning her son's safety, offered her services in behalf of the few
+wounded Confederates and they were readily accepted. Before she was
+aware of it she found herself conferring with the young officer and the
+surgical trooper in regard to the best treatment of the injuries.
+Having long been mistress of a plantation and accustomed to act
+promptly when any of her slaves were hurt, she now proved a valuable
+auxiliary. When the soldiers with whom she sympathized were attended
+to, her kindness of heart led her on to the Federals, who thanked her
+as gratefully as if they were not depraved Yankees.
+
+Mr. and Mrs. Baron had retired to the parlor, where they sat in state,
+awaiting in gloomy fortitude the darker developments of what they
+deemed the supreme tragedy of their lives. Miss Lou was flitting in and
+out, getting lint and other articles required by Mrs. Whately. She
+found it no easy matter to maintain the solemnity of aspect which her
+guardians thought appropriate to the occasion, but was assisted in this
+effort by her genuine pity for the wounded. In her joyous relief at
+escape from a hated union her heart was light indeed. She had,
+moreover, no slight sense of humor, and was just bubbling over with
+mirth at the fact that although the Yankee monsters, from whom it was
+said she must be rescued at every cost, were masters of the situation,
+they were engaged in nothing more ruthless than feeding their horses,
+preparing supper, and caring for the wounded. The most delicious thing
+of all was that one of the chief prophets of evil, her Aunt Whately,
+was aiding in the last-named task. Her exultation was increased when
+she brought the last article required and Scoville said with his genial
+smile, so well remembered, "I think I can assure you now, Miss Baron,
+that all will do very well. We are deeply indebted to this lady (bowing
+to Mrs. Whately) whose services have been as skilful as humane."
+
+Now one of the things on which Mrs. Whately most prided herself was the
+generally accepted belief that she was as good as a country physician
+in an emergency, and she could not refrain from a slight and gracious
+acknowledgment of Scoville's words. As they drew near to the door she
+said hesitatingly, "Perhaps, sir, I should make an acknowledgment of
+deep indebtedness to you. I saw your sabre raised and pointed at my
+son's throat. Could you not have killed him had you so wished?"
+
+"Ah! this is Mrs. Whately. Believe me, madam, we are not so
+bloodthirsty as to wish to kill, or even to injure, except so far as
+the necessities of war require. If you witnessed the brief conflict you
+must have observed that my effort was to capture rather than to destroy
+your son's force."
+
+"We all could not help seeing that," cried Miss Lou eagerly.
+
+"I could not help seeing also, Miss Baron, that you exposed yourself to
+danger like a veteran, and I was anxious indeed lest a stray bullet
+might harm you. It was well you were not armed or we might have fared
+worse," and there was so much mirth in his dark eyes that she turned
+away to hide her conscious blushes.
+
+"Well, sir," resumed Mrs. Whately with emotion, "it is not easy to
+bless our enemies in this cruel war of aggression, but I must express
+my gratitude to one who stayed his hand when my son's life was within
+his power."
+
+"I trust, madam, he may live to care for you in your declining years,
+and to become a good loyal citizen."
+
+"He is loyal, sir," replied Mrs. Whately with gentle dignity, "to the
+only authority he recognizes," and with a bow she retired.
+
+Miss Lou lingered a moment and said earnestly, "I thank you. You are
+very considerate."
+
+His face so lighted up that it was almost boyish in its expression of
+pleasure as he answered with the pride and confidence of one sure of
+sympathy, "This is a jolly day for me. I was made an officer this
+morning, and now, best of all, I am paying a little of my debt to you."
+
+She put her finger on her lips and shook her head, but the smile she
+gave him over her shoulder was reassuring. He promptly started on a
+round among his men again to see that the prisoners were properly
+guarded, and that all was going as he wished.
+
+"Louise," said Mrs. Baron, as the girl appeared in the parlor door, "it
+would be far more decorous if you would remain here with your uncle and
+myself."
+
+Miss Lou took a seat in the darkest corner that she might be less open
+to observation while she calmed the tumult of her feelings. So much had
+happened that she must catch her breath and think what it all meant.
+Mr. Baron began gloomily, "Well, the dreaded hour which I hoped and
+prayed never to see has come. We are helpless and in the hands of our
+enemies. Only God knows what an hour will bring forth--"
+
+"He has brought deliverance," cried Mrs. Whately, entering. "I
+questioned Aun' Suke, thinking that she might have seen Madison if he
+left the house. She did see him safe and sound. She also saw him get a
+horse and ride away."
+
+"Ah, poor boy! how different was his departure from what he had every
+reason to hope and expect!" replied Mr. Baron. "I should think your
+heart would be remorseful, indeed, Louise, when you picture your cousin
+flying from his kindred and home, alone and sad, tortured meanwhile by
+thoughts of the fate which has overtaken us."
+
+"I'm sure, uncle, we are all sitting quietly in the parlor. That does
+not seem very dreadful."
+
+"You little know, young woman, you little realize the cunning
+depravity--"
+
+"There now, brother," interposed Mrs. Whately, "we must not think evil
+until we see more evidence of it, even in Yankees. I admit that I am
+most wonderfully and agreeably disappointed. The young officer in whose
+hands we are might have killed my son, but did not. I must at least be
+just to such a man."
+
+"And you know he has been polite to us all, and told us to dismiss our
+fears," added Miss Lou demurely.
+
+"It would almost seem, Louise, that you welcomed these invaders. I am
+too old and well informed not to know that this suave manner he affects
+is designed to lull us into a sense of false security."
+
+At this moment a firm step was heard on the veranda, followed by a rap
+from the brass knocker. They knew it was Scoville, and Mr. Baron rose
+and advanced to the parlor entrance. He assumed the solemn aspect of
+one who now must face the exactions and wrongs which he had predicted,
+and his wife tremblingly followed, to perish at his side if need be.
+But the invader barely stepped within the hall and stood uncovered as
+he said politely, "Mr. Baron, I have now practically made my
+dispositions for the night. There is no reason why your domestic
+routine should not be resumed as usual. As I said before, I pledge you
+my word you shall not be disturbed unless we are attacked.
+Good-evening, sir. Good-evening, ladies," and he bowed and withdrew,
+leaving the old gentleman speechless in the utter reversal of all that
+he had declared would take place. No plundering, no insults, no
+violence. On the contrary, even his beloved routine might be resumed.
+He turned around to his wife and sister almost gasping, "Is this some
+deep-laid plot?"
+
+"It certainly must be," echoed his wife.
+
+Miss Lou turned away quickly and stuffed her handkerchief in her mouth
+to prevent laughing outright.
+
+Her uncle caught her in the act and was instantly in a rage.
+
+"Shame upon you!" he cried. "Enemies without and traitors within."
+
+This charge touched the girl to the quick, and she replied with almost
+equal anger, "I'm no traitor. Where has your loyalty to me been to-day?
+Look at me, uncle, and fix the fact in your mind, once for all, that I
+am neither a child nor an idiot. God has given me a mind and a
+conscience as truly as to you, and I shall use them. This Northern
+officer says we are safe. I believe it and you will know it in the
+morning. Now I simply insist that you and aunt treat me with the
+respect due to my years and station. I've endured too much to-day to be
+patient under anything more. I meant no disrespect to you in laughing,
+but I cannot help being glad that instead of all sorts of horrible
+things happening we are treated with simple and even delicate
+politeness."
+
+"Yes, brother," added Mrs. Whately, "as far as this man is concerned,
+you must revise your opinions. There is no deep-laid plot--nothing but
+what is apparent. I must also urge upon you and sister a change in your
+treatment of Louise. She will be far more ready to fulfil our hopes
+when led by affection."
+
+"Well, well, that I should live to see this day!" groaned Mr. Baron.
+"My ward virtually says that she will do as she pleases. The slaves
+have been told that they are free and so can do as they please.
+Henceforth I suppose I am to speak to my niece with bated breath, and
+be at the beck and call of every Sambo on the place."
+
+"You are not 'weltering in your own blood,' uncle, and the 'roof is not
+blazing over our heads,'" replied Miss Lou quietly. "You have merely
+been told that you could have supper when it pleased you and then sleep
+in peace and safety. Aunt, I will thank you for the key of my trunk. I
+wish to put my things back in their places."
+
+Mrs. Baron took it from her pocket without a word, and Miss Lou went to
+her room.
+
+True to her nature, Mrs. Whately began to pour oil on the lacerated
+feelings of her brother and sister-in-law. "Louise is right," she said.
+"Things are so much better than we expected--than they might have
+been--that we should raise our hearts in thankfulness. Just think! If
+this Northern officer is what you fear, why would he have spared my
+son, whom he might have killed in fair battle? In his conduct toward
+the wounded he showed a good, kindly spirit. I can't deny it; and he
+has been as polite to us as one of our own officers could have been.
+Think how different it all might have been--my brave son desperately
+wounded or dead, and unscrupulous men sacking the house! I need not
+refer to darker fears. I must say that I feel like meeting courtesy
+with courtesy. Since this Yankee behaves like a generous foe I would
+like to prove that Southern rebels and slave-drivers, as we are called,
+can equal him in all the amenities of life which the situation permits."
+
+"Oh, sister!" cried Mrs. Baron, "even a cup of tea would choke me if I
+drank it in his presence."
+
+But Mr. Baron had lighted his pipe, and reason and Southern pride were
+asserting themselves under its soothing influence. At last he said,
+"Well, let us have supper anyway. It is already after the hour."
+
+"Supper has been ready this long time, as you know," replied his wife,
+"only I never dreamed of such a guest as has been suggested."
+
+"Of course, sister, I only said what I did as a suggestion," Mrs.
+Whately answered with dignity. "You are in your own home. I merely felt
+reluctant that this Yankee should have a chance to say that we were so
+rude and uncivilized that we couldn't appreciate good treatment when we
+received it. There's no harm in gaining his goodwill, either, for he
+said that his general, with the main force, would be here to-morrow."
+
+"Mrs. Baron," said her husband in strong irritation, "don't you see
+there is nothing left for us to do? No matter how things turn out, the
+presence of these Yankees involves what is intensely disagreeable. If
+sister is right in regard to this man--and I suppose I must admit she
+is till I know him better--he has made it necessary for our own
+self-respect to treat him with courtesy. Our pride will not permit us
+to accept this from him and make no return. It may be Yankee cunning
+which led him to foresee this, for I suppose it is pleasing to many of
+the tribe to gain their ends by finesse. Probably if this doesn't
+secure them, he will try harsher methods. Anyway, as long as he plays
+at the game of courtesy, we, as sister says, should teach him that we
+know what the word means. The mischief is that you never can know just
+what a Yankee is scheming for or aiming at."
+
+"Well, brother, supposing your words are true, as I do not think they
+are in this instance, it is due to our dignity that we act like sincere
+people who are above even suspecting unworthy motives. We do not
+compromise ourselves in the matter. We only meet courtesy with
+courtesy, like well-bred people."
+
+"Well, so be it then. In fact, I would like to ask this man what he and
+those he represents can hope to gain by invasion equalled only by that
+of the Goths and Vandals."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+A THREAT
+
+
+The moment Chunk believed that Scoville could dispense with his
+services for a time he made his way promptly to the back veranda and
+gave a low, peculiar whistle which Zany recognized. He had ceased in
+her estimation to be merely a subject for infinite jest. Though not
+very advanced in the scale of civilization, she was influenced by
+qualities which appealed to her mind, and possessed many traits common
+to her sex. His shrewdness and courage were making good his lack of
+inches. Above all, he was in favor with the "head Linkum man," and Zany
+belonged to that class ever ready to greet the rising sun. While all
+this was true, she could not be herself and abandon her coquettish
+impulses and disposition to tease. She came slowly from the dining-room
+and looked over Chunk's head as if she could not see him. Bent on
+retaliation, he stepped behind her, lifted her in his powerful arms and
+carried her on a full run to some screening shrubbery, the irate
+captive cuffing his ear soundly all the way. Setting her down, he
+remarked quietly, "Now I reckon you kin fin' me."
+
+"Yo' wool git gray 'fo' you fin' me agin," she replied, making a feint
+of starting for the house.
+
+"Berry well, Miss Zany. I see you doan want ter be a free gyurl. I'se
+tell Marse Scoville you no 'count niggah."
+
+"W'at you want anyhow, imperdence?"
+
+"I wants sup'n ter eat. Does you 'spects I kin ride all night en all
+day ter brung you freedom, en den not eben git a good word? You ain'
+fit fer freedom. I'se tell some nachel-bawn fool ter gib you a yaller
+rib'on en den dere be two ob you."
+
+"La now, Chunk," she replied, coming back, "ef I wuz lookin' fer a fool
+I des stay right yere. Ef you git a pa'r ob steps en look in my face
+you'd see I'se bettah fren' ter you ner you ter me. You stay yere en I
+brings you w'at you tink a heap on mor'n me," and now she darted away
+with intentions satisfactory to her strategic admirer.
+
+Chunk grinned and soliloquized, "Reck'n I kin fotch dat gyurl roun' wid
+all her contrariations. I des likes her skittishness, but I ain'
+tellin' her so, kaze I gwine ter hab my han's full as 'tis."
+
+Zany soon returned with a plate well heaped, for at this time her
+argus-eyed mistress was sitting in the parlor, awaiting whatever fate
+the ruthless Yankees might impose. Chunk sat Turk-fashion on the ground
+and fell to as if famished, meanwhile listening eagerly to the girl's
+account of what had happened during his absence.
+
+"Hi!" said Zany disdainfully, "you'd mek lub ter Aun' Suke ef she fed
+you."
+
+"I kin mek mo'n lub," Chunk answered, nodding at her portentously; "I
+kin mek mischief."
+
+"Reck'n you do dat anyhow."
+
+"See yere, Zany, does you tink Marse Scoville a fool?"
+
+"Ob co'se not."
+
+"Well, he doan tink me a fool. Whose 'pinion's wuth de mos'? Who took
+keer on 'im? Who got 'im off safe right un'er de nose ob one ob Mad
+Whately's sogers? Who brung 'im back des in time ter stop dat ar
+mar'age en gib we uns freedom? You mighty peart, but you got a heap ter
+larn 'fo' you cut yo' eye-tooths."
+
+"Some folks gits dere eye-tooths en doan git nuthin' wid 'em," Zany
+remarked nonchalantly. "I'se 'mit dough dat you comin' on, Chunk. W'en
+you gits growed up you'se be right smart."
+
+"I doan min' de foolishness ob yo' talk, Zany," Chunk replied coolly,
+between his huge mouthfuls. "Dat's in you, en you kyant he'p hit any
+mo'n a crow cawin'. I'se allus mek 'lowance fer dat. I des 'proves dis
+'casion ter 'zort you ter be keerful w'at you DOES. Dere's gwine ter be
+mighty ticklish times--sorter flash-bang times, yer know. I'se a free
+man--des ez free as air, en I'se hired mysef ter Marse Scoville ter
+wait on 'im. I'se growed up anuff ter know he kin tek de shine off eny
+man I eber see, or you neider. He yo' boss now well ez mine. I'se gib
+'im a good report on you ef I kin. I'se feard, howsomeber, dat he say
+you outgrowed yo' sense."
+
+"Dar now, Chunk, you puttin' on mo' airs dan Marse Scoville hissef. He
+des ez perlite ter marster en ole miss ez ef he come ter pay his
+'spects ter dem en he look at Miss Lou ez a cat do at cream."
+
+"Hi! dat so? No won'er he want ter git ahaid ob de parson en dat
+weddin' business."
+
+"Oh, yo' orful growed up en ain' fin' dat out?"
+
+"I 'spicioned it. Well, de ting fer you'n me is ter he'p 'im."
+
+"La, now," replied Zany, proposing to give a broad hint at the same
+time, "I ain' gwine ter he'p no man in sech doin's. De cream neber goes
+ter de cat."
+
+"Yere, tek de plate, Zany, wid my tanks," said Chunk, rising. "Sech
+cream ez you gits orful sour ef de cat doan fin' it sud'n. I'se took my
+'zert now," and he caught her up again and kissed her on the way back
+to the veranda.
+
+This time his performances were seen by Aun' Suke, who stood in the
+kitchen door. She snatched up a pail of water, exclaiming, "I cool you
+uns off, I sut'ny will. Sech goin's on!" But they were too quick for
+her. Zany pretended to be as irate as she was secretly pleased, while
+Chunk caused the old woman to boil over with rage by declaring, "Aun'
+Suke, I sen' a soger yere ter hab you 'rested for 'zorderly conduct."
+
+"Ef you eber comes ter dis kitchen agin I'se emty de pot ob bilin'
+water on you," cried Aun' Suke, retreating to her domain.
+
+"Ef you does, you get yosef ober haid en years in hot water," Chunk
+answered with exasperating sang froid. "You niggahs gwine ter fin' out
+who's who on dis plantashun 'fo' yo' nex' birthday."
+
+Zany's only response was a grimace, and he next carried his exaggerated
+sense of importance to his granny's cabin. He had seen Aun' Jinkey and
+spoken a few reassuring words as he passed with Scoville's attacking
+force. Since that time she had done a power of "projeckin'" over her
+corncob pipe, but events were now hurrying toward conclusions beyond
+her ken. It has already been observed that Aun' Jinkey was a neutral
+power. As yet, the weight of her decision had been cast neither for the
+North nor the South, while the question of freedom remained to be
+smoked over indefinitely. There was no indecision in her mind, however,
+in regard to her young mistress, and greater even than her fears when
+she heard the sounds of conflict was her solicitude over the
+possibility of a forced marriage. Since she was under the impression
+that her cabin might soon become again the refuge of one or the other
+of the contending powers, possibly of Miss Lou herself, she left the
+door ajar and was on the alert.
+
+"Hi dar! granny," cried Chunk, the first to appear, "dat's right. Now
+you kin smoke in peace, fer you own yosef. Nobody come bossin' you yere
+any mo'."
+
+"Doan you git so bumptious all ter oncet," said Aun' Jinkey. "Does you
+'spect de hull top's gwine ter be tu'ned right ober down'erds in er
+day? But dar! you ain' no 'sper'ience. Yo' stomack emty en you' haid
+light. Draw up now en tell me de news. Tell me sud'n 'bout Miss Lou.
+Did dey git her mar'd?"
+
+"Yah! yah! Marse Scoville's so'd ud cut de knot ef dey had."
+
+"Dat's des ez much ez you knows. All de so'ds ober flash kyant cut dat
+ar knot 'less dey kill Marse Whately."
+
+"Dat 'min's me ob someting ter'ble quar. Marse Scoville had he so'd
+pintin' right agin Mad Whately's neck en yit he ain' jab 'im. Dat same
+Mad Whately gwine ter mek a heap ob trouble fer he got clean off."
+
+"Marse Scoville know dat ef he kill a man right straight wid he own
+han' he spook come and mek a heap mo' trouble."
+
+"Hi! didn't tink o' dat."
+
+"Bettah tink right smart, Chunk. You'se gittin' top-heaby ef you is
+sho't. Now tell me all 'bout de mar'age."
+
+"Dey ain' no mar'age. Zany tole me how Miss Lou say she ain' neber
+'sent, en den 'fo' dey could say dere lingo ober her en mar'y her des
+ez dey would a bale ob cotton, up rides Marse Scoville en put his so'd
+troo ebryting. He tells us we all free en--"
+
+"En eat yo' supper. I ain' done projeckin' 'bout dis freedom business.
+How we uns gwine ter be free 'less Marse Scoville stay yere en kep us
+free?"
+
+"Zany guv me my supper en--"
+
+"Dar now, I ain' no mo' 'count. Zany gobble you aready. I des stick ter
+my chimbly corner."
+
+"Howdy, Aunt Jinkey," cried Scoville, coming in briskly. "Well, you see
+I'm back again as I promised."
+
+"You welcome, a hun'erd times welcome, kaze you kep my young mistis fum
+bein' mar'ed right slap 'gin her own feelin's ter her cousin."
+
+"Pshaw! Aunt Jinkey. No one can marry a girl against her will in this
+country."
+
+"Dat des de question Miss Lou en me projeckin' 'bout dis berry mawnin'.
+She gyardeens went straight along ez ef dey had de po'r, dey sut'ny
+did. Dat's w'at so upset Miss Lou en me. De po'r ob gyardeens is sump'n
+I kyant smoke out straight, en I des lak ter know how much dey KIN do.
+Ole mars'r al'ays manage her prop'ty en we wuz flustrated w'en we see
+'im en Mad Whately en he moder en ole miss en all gittin' ready fer de
+weddin' des ez ef hit was comin' like sun-up sho."
+
+"It was a shame," cried Scoville angrily. "They were seeking to drive
+her into submission by strong, steady pressure, but if she insisted on
+her right--"
+
+"Dat des w'at she did, Marse Scoville. She say she neber 'sent, NEBER,"
+Chunk interrupted.
+
+"Then the whole Southern Confederacy could not have married her and she
+ought to know it."
+
+"Well, you mus' be 'siderate, Marse Scoville. Miss Lou know a heap
+'bout some tings en she des a chile 'bout oder tings. Ole mars'r en
+misus al'ays try ter mek her tink dat only w'at dey say is right en
+nuthin' else, en dey al'ays 'low ter her dat she gwine ter mar'y her
+cousin some day, en she al'ays 'low ter me she doan wanter."
+
+"Poor child! she does need a friend in very truth. What kind of a man
+is this Mad Whately anyway, that he could think of taking part in such
+a wrong?"
+
+"He de same kin' ob man dat he wuz a boy," Chunk answered. "Den he kick
+en howl till he git w'at he want. 'Scuse me, Marse Scoville, but I
+kyant hep tinkin' you mek big 'stake dat you didn't jab 'im w'en you
+hab de chance."
+
+"Chunk," was the grave answer, "if you are going to wait on me you must
+learn my ways. I'd no more kill a man when it was not essential than I
+would kill you this minute. Soldiers are not butchers."
+
+"Granny sez how you wuz feared on his spook"--
+
+"Bah! you expect to be free, yet remain slaves to such fears? My horse
+knows better. Come, Aunt Jinkey, I'd rather you would give me some
+supper than your views on spooks."
+
+"Leftenant," said Perkins, the overseer, from the door, "Mr. Baron
+pr'sents his compliments en gives you a invite to supper."
+
+Scoville thought a moment, then answered, "Present mine in return, and
+say it will give me pleasure to accept."
+
+"Bress de Lawd! you gwine ter de big house. Not dat I 'grudges cookin'
+fer you w'eneber you come, but I des wants you ter took a 'tunerty ter
+advise dat po' chile 'bout she rights en de mar'age question."
+
+After assuring himself that the overseer was out of earshot, Scoville
+said almost sternly, "Aunt Jinkey, you and Chunk must not say one word
+of my ever having been here before. It might make your young mistress a
+great deal of trouble, and I should be sorry indeed if I ever caused
+her any trouble whatever." Then as he made his way to the mansion he
+smilingly soliloquized, "I don't know of any other question concerning
+which I would rather give her advice, nor would it be wholly
+disinterested, I fear, if I had a chance. At this time to-morrow," he
+sighingly concluded, "I may be miles away or dead. Poor unsophisticated
+child! I never was touched so close before as now by her need of a
+friend who cares more for her than his own schemes."
+
+Chunk following at a respectful distance became aware that the overseer
+was glowering at him. "Bettah 'lebe yo' min', Marse Perkins," he
+remarked condescendingly.
+
+"You infernal, horse-stealing nigger!" was the low response.
+
+"Hi! Marse Perkins, you kin growl, but you muzzled all de same."
+
+"The muzzle may be off before many mo' sunsets, en then you'll find my
+teeth in your throat," said the man under his breath, and his look was
+so dark and vindictive that even in his elation Chunk became uneasy.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+MISS LOU EMANCIPATED
+
+
+Nature had endowed Scoville with a quick, active mind, and
+circumstances had developed its power and capacity to a degree scarcely
+warranted by his age. Orphaned early in life, compelled to hold his own
+among comparative strangers since childhood, he had gained a worldly
+wisdom and self-reliance which he could not have acquired in a
+sheltered home. He had learned to look at facts and people squarely, to
+estimate values and character promptly, and then to decide upon his own
+action unhesitatingly. Although never regarded as the model good boy at
+the boarding-schools wherein he had spent most of his life, he had been
+a general favorite with both teachers and scholars. A certain frankness
+in mischief and buoyancy of spirit had carried him through all
+difficulties, while his apt mind and retentive memory always kept him
+near to the head of his classes. The quality of alertness was one of
+his characteristics. In schools and at the university he quickly
+mastered their small politics and prevailing tendencies, and he often
+amused his fellow-pupils with free-handed yet fairly truthful sketches
+of their instructors. As the country passed into deeper and stronger
+excitement over the prospect of secession and its consequences, he was
+among the first to catch the military spirit and to take an active part
+in the formation of a little company among the students. It was not his
+disposition to be excited merely because others were. Certain qualities
+of mind led him to look beneath the surface for the causes of national
+commotion. He read carefully the utterances of leaders, North and
+South, and to some extent traced back their views and animating spirit
+to historical sources.
+
+In the year of '63 he found to his joy that he had attained such
+physical proportions as would secure his acceptance in a cavalry
+regiment forming in his vicinity. His uncle, who was also guardian, for
+reasons already known, made slight opposition, and he at once donned
+the blue with its bluff trimmings. In camp and field he quickly learned
+the routine of duty, and then his daring, active temperament led him
+gradually into the scouting service. Now, although so young, he was a
+veteran in experience, frank to friends, but secretive and ready to
+deceive the very elect among his enemies. Few could take more risks
+than he, yet he had not a particle of Mad Whately's recklessness.
+Courage, but rarely impulse, controlled his action. As we have seen, he
+could instantly stay his hand the second a deadly enemy, seeking his
+life in personal encounter, was disarmed.
+
+The prospect of talking with such a host as Mr. Baron pleased him
+immensely. He scarcely knew to whom he was indebted for the courtesy,
+but rightly surmised that it was Mrs. Whately, since she, with good
+reason, felt under obligations to him. Even more than an adventurous
+scouting expedition he relished a situation full of humor, and such,
+his presence at Mr. Baron's supper-table promised to be. He knew his
+entertainment would be gall and wormwood to the old Bourbon and his
+wife, and that the courtesy had been wrung from them by his own
+forbearance. It might be his only opportunity to see Miss Lou and
+suggest the liberty he had brought to her as well as to the slaves.
+
+Mrs. Whately met him on the veranda and said politely, "Lieutenant
+Scoville, you have proved yourself to be a generous and forbearing
+enemy. If you feel that you can meet frank enemies who wish to return
+courtesy with courtesy, we shall be glad to have you take supper with
+us."
+
+"Yes," added Mr. Baron, "my sister has convinced me, somewhat against
+my will, I must in honesty admit, that such hospitality as we can offer
+under the circumstances is your due."
+
+"I appreciate the circumstances, Mr. Baron," was the grave reply, "and
+honor the Southern trait which is so strong that even I can receive the
+benefit of it. Your courtesy, madam, will put me at ease."
+
+Miss Lou, thinking it possible that she might see the Northern officer
+again, had taken her own way of convincing him that he was still within
+the bounds of civilization, for she made a toilet more careful than the
+one with which she had deigned to grace the appointed day of her
+wedding. She could scarcely believe her eyes when, entering the supper
+room a little late, she saw Scoville already seated at the table. He
+instantly rose and made her a ceremonious bow, thus again indicating
+that their past relations should be completely ignored in the presence
+of others. She therefore gravely returned his salutation and took her
+place without a word, but her high color did not suggest indifference
+to the situation. Mr. Baron went through the formal "grace" as usual
+and then said, "Ahem! you will admit, sir, that it is a little
+embarrassing to know just how to entertain one with whom we have some
+slight difference of opinion."
+
+"Perhaps such embarrassment will be removed if we all speak our minds
+freely," replied Scoville, pleasantly. "Pardon the suggestion, but the
+occasion appears to me favorable to a frank and interesting exchange of
+views. If my way of thinking were wholly in accord with yours my words
+could be little better than echoes. I should be glad to feel that my
+presence was no restraint whatever."
+
+"I'm inclined to think you are right, sir," added Mrs. Whately. "It
+would be mere affectation on our part to disguise our thoughts and
+feelings. With neighbors, and even with friends, we are often compelled
+to do this, but I scarcely see why we should do so with an open enemy."
+
+"And such I trust you will find me, madam, an OPEN enemy in the better
+sense of the adjective. As far as I can, I will answer questions if you
+wish to ask any. I will tell you honestly all the harm I meditate and
+outline clearly the extent of my hostility, if you will do the same,"
+and he smiled so genially that she half smiled also as she answered:
+
+"To hear you, sir, one would scarcely imagine you to be an enemy at
+all. But then we know better."
+
+"Yes, sir, pardon me, we do," said Mr. Baron, a little stiffly. "For
+one, I would like your honest statement of just what harm you and your
+command meditate. I am one who would rather face and prepare for
+whatever I shall be compelled to meet."
+
+"I think, sir, you have already met and faced the direst event of the
+evening--my presence at your hospitable board. Even this hardship is
+due to your courtesy, not to my compulsion."
+
+Miss Lou bowed low over her plate at this speech.
+
+"But how about the long hours of the night, sir? Have you such control
+over your men--"
+
+"Yes, sir!" interrupted Scoville with dignity. "The men I have with me
+are soldiers, not camp-followers. They would no more harm you or
+anything you possess, without orders, than I would."
+
+"Without orders--a clause of large latitude. As far as words go you
+have already robbed me of the greater part of my possessions. You have
+told my slaves that they are free."
+
+"Not upon my own responsibility, sir, although with hearty goodwill. In
+my humble station I am far more often called upon to obey orders than
+to give them. You are aware of President Lincoln's proclamation?"
+
+"Yes, sir, and of the Pope's bull against the comet."
+
+Scoville laughed so genially as partially to disarm his reply of its
+sting. "In this instance, sir, our armies are rather gaining on the
+comet."
+
+"But what can you and your armies hope to accomplish?" Mrs. Whately
+asked. "If you should destroy every Southern man, the women would
+remain unsubdued."
+
+"Now, madam, you have me at disadvantage. I do not know what we would
+or could do if confronted only by implacable Southern women."
+
+"Do not imagine that I am jesting. I cannot tell you how strange it
+seems that a man of your appearance and evident character should be
+among our cruel enemies."
+
+"And yet, Mrs. Whately, you cannot dispute the fact. Pardon me for
+saying it, but I think that is just where the South is in such serious
+error. It shuts its eyes to so many simple facts--a course which
+experience proves is never wise. I may declare, and even believe, that
+there is no solid wall before me, yet if I go headlong against it, I am
+bruised all the same. Positive beliefs do not create truths. I fancy
+that a few hours since you were absolutely sure that this courtesy of
+which I am the grateful recipient could not be, yet you were mistaken."
+
+"Has not the sad experience of many others inspired our fears? Neither
+has the end come with us yet. You said that the main Northern force
+would come this way tomorrow. We do not fear you and those whom you
+control, but how about those who are to come?"
+
+"I can speak only for the class to which I belong--the genuine soldiers
+who are animated by as single and unfaltering a spirit as the best in
+your armies. If a Confederate column were going through the North you
+could not answer for the conduct of every lawless, depraved man in such
+a force. Still, I admit with you that war is essentially cruel, and
+that the aim ever must be to inflict as much injury as possible on
+one's adversaries."
+
+"But how can you take part in such a war?" Mrs. Whately asked. "All we
+asked was to be let alone."
+
+"Yes, sir," added Mr. Baron, "how can you justify these ruthless
+invasions, this breaking up of our domestic institutions, this
+despoiling of our property and rights by force?" and there was a tremor
+of suppressed excitement in his voice.
+
+Scoville glanced at Miss Lou to see how far she sympathized with her
+kindred. He observed that her face was somewhat stern in its
+expression, yet full of intelligent interest. It was not the index of
+mere prejudice and hate. "Yes," he thought, "she is capable of giving
+me a fair hearing; the others are not. Mr. Baron," he said, "your views
+are natural, perhaps, if not just. I know it is asking much of human
+nature when you are suffering and must suffer so much, to form what
+will become the historical judgment on the questions at issue. The law
+under which the North is fighting is the supreme one--that of
+self-preservation. Even if we had let you alone--permitted you to
+separate and become independent without a blow, war would have come
+soon. You would not and could not have let us alone. Consider but one
+point: your slaves would merely have to pass the long boundary line
+stretching nearly across the continent, in order to be on free soil.
+You could compel their return only by conquering and almost
+annihilating the North. You will say that we should think as you do on
+the subject, and I must answer that it is every man and woman's right
+to think according to individual conscience, according to the light
+within. Deny this right, and you put no bounds to human slavery. Pardon
+me, but looking in your eyes and those of these ladies, I can see that
+I should become a slave instantly if you had your way. Unconsciously
+and inevitably you would make me one, for it is your strongest impulse
+to make me agree with you, to see things exactly as you do. The fact
+that you sincerely believe you are right would make no difference if I
+just as sincerely believed you were wrong. If I could not think and act
+for myself I should be a slave. You might say, 'We KNOW we are right,
+that what we believe has the Divine sanction.' That is what the
+tormentors of the Inquisition said and believed; that is what my
+Puritan and persecuting forefathers said and believed; what does
+history say now? The world is growing wise enough to understand that
+God has no slaves. He endows men and women with a conscience. The
+supreme obligation is to be true to this. When any one who has passed
+the bounds of childhood says to us, 'I don't think this is right,' we
+take an awful responsibility, we probably are guilty of usurpation, if
+we substitute our will for his. In our sincerity we may argue, reason
+and entreat, but in the presence of another's conscience unconvinced
+and utterly opposed to us, where is human slavery to end if one man, or
+a vast number of men, have the power to say, 'You shall'?"
+
+Scoville had kept his eyes fixed on Mr. Baron, and saw that he was
+almost writhing under the expression of views so repugnant to
+him--views which proved his whole scheme of life and action to be
+wrong. Now the young man turned his glance suddenly on Miss Lou, and in
+her high color, parted lips and kindled eyes, saw abundant proof that
+she, as he had wished, was taking to herself the deep personal
+application of his words. Her guardians and Mrs. Whately observed this
+truth also, and now bitterly regretted that they had invited the Union
+officer. It seemed to them a sort of malign fate that he had been led,
+unconsciously as they supposed, to pronounce in the presence of the
+girl such vigorous condemnation of their action. Had they not that very
+day sought to override the will, the conscience, the whole shrinking,
+protesting womanhood of the one who had listened so eagerly as the
+wrong meditated against her was explained? Scoville had not left them
+even the excuse that they believed they were right, having shown the
+girl that so many who believed this were wrong. Miss Lou's expression
+made at least one thing clear--she was emancipated and had taken her
+destiny into her own hands.
+
+Mrs. Whately felt that she must turn the tables at once, and so
+remarked, "It seems to me that the whole force of your argument tells
+against the North. You are bent upon conquering the South and making it
+think as you do."
+
+"Oh, no. Here the law of self-preservation comes in. If the South can
+secede, so can the East and the West. New York City can secede from the
+State. We should have no country. There could be no national life.
+Would England accept the doctrine of secession, and permit any part of
+her dominions to set up for themselves when they chose? I know you are
+about to say that is just what our fathers did. Yes, but old mother
+England did not say, 'Go, my children, God bless you!' Nor would she
+say it now to any other region over which floats her flag. Of course,
+if you whip us, we shall have to submit, just as England did. What
+government has helplessly sucked its thumbs when certain portions of
+the territory over which it had jurisdiction defied its power? We are
+called Goths and Vandals, but that is absurd. We are not seeking to
+conquer the South in any such old-world ways. We are fighting that the
+old flag may be as supreme here as in New England. The moment this is
+true you will be as free as are the people of New England. The same
+constitution and laws will govern all."
+
+"And can you imagine for a moment, sir," cried Mr. Baron, "that we will
+submit to a government that would be acceptable to New England?" "Yes,
+sir; and years hence, when the South has become as loyal as New England
+is now, if that abode of the Yankees should seek independence of the
+rest of the country she would be brought back under the flag. I would
+fight New England as readily as I do the South, if she sought to break
+up the Union. I would fight her if every man, woman and child within
+her borders believed themselves right."
+
+Now he saw Miss Lou looking perplexed. Her quick mind detected the
+spirit of coercion, of substituting wills, against which he had been
+inveighing and from which she had suffered. Mrs. Whately was quick to
+see the apparent weakness in his argument, for she said, "Consistency
+is a jewel which I suppose is little cared for by those so ready to
+appeal to force. With one breath you say we must not coerce the wills
+of others, and now you say you would, even though you did violence to
+universal and sacred beliefs."
+
+"I say only that the nation MUST do this as must the individual. Some
+one might say to me, 'I honestly think I should take off your right
+arm.' I would not permit it if I could help it. No more can a nation
+submit passively to dismemberment. The South did not expect that this
+nation would do so. It promptly prepared for war. If the North had
+said, 'We can do nothing, there's a blank, write out your terms and
+we'll sign,' we would have been more thoroughly despised than we were,
+if that were possible. There are two kinds of coercion. For instance, I
+do not say to you, Mrs. Whately, representing the South, that you must
+think and feel as I do and take just such steps as I dictate; but that
+there are things which you must refrain from doing, because in their
+performance, no matter how sincere you were, you would inflict great
+and far-reaching wrong on others. There could be no government without
+restriction. We would soon have anarchy if any part of a nation should
+and could withdraw when it chose and how it pleased."
+
+"Your doctrine, sir, would banish freedom from the world. All peoples
+would have to submit to the central tyranny called government, even
+though such government had become hateful."
+
+"This doctrine, which all governments act upon," replied Scoville
+pleasantly, "has not banished freedom from the world. In this country,
+where every man has a voice, the government will be just about as good
+as the majority determine it shall be."
+
+"Well, sir, to sum up the whole matter," said Mr. Baron coldly, "two
+things are clear: First, the South is determined to be free; second, if
+we fail we can be held only under the heel of your Northern majority as
+Poland is trodden upon."
+
+Scoville saw that the discussion had gone far enough for his purposes,
+and he said with a good-natured laugh, "I'm neither a prophet nor his
+son, but I think it is a very hopeful sign that we could have this
+frank interchange of views and belief. I see how perfectly sincere you
+are, and if I had been brought up here no doubt I should think and act
+as you do. As it is, I am only a very humble representative of the
+Government which is trying to preserve its own existence--a Government
+which the South helped to form as truly as the North. If I should come
+directly to your side, contrary to belief and conscience, you would be
+the first to despise me. I suppose we will all agree that we should
+obey the supreme dictates of conscience?"
+
+"No, sir," burst out Mr. Baron, "I cannot agree to anything of the
+kind. There are multitudes who must be guided and controlled by those
+who are wiser, older and more experienced. Why, sir, you would have the
+very nursery children in flat rebellion."
+
+"Indeed, Mr. Baron, I have not said one word against the authority of
+parents and guardians."
+
+"Ah! I am glad you draw the line somewhere. Half the misery in the
+world results from young people's thinking themselves wiser than their
+natural advisers. If they can merely say their consciences are against
+what their elders know is right and best, we have anarchy in the
+fountainhead of society--the family," and he glared for a moment at his
+niece.
+
+"What you say seems very true, Mr. Baron. I should be glad to know
+where YOU draw the line? Independent action must begin at some period."
+
+While Mr. Baron hesitated over this rather embarrassing question Miss
+Lou startled all her kindred by saying, "I did not intend to take any
+part in this conversation, but a glance from my uncle makes his last
+remark personal to me. I am at least old enough to ask one or two
+questions. Do you think it right, Lieutenant Scoville, that a woman
+should never have any independent life of her own?"
+
+"Why, Miss Baron, what a question! Within the received limits of good
+taste a woman has as much right to independent action as a man."
+
+"Well, then, how can she ever have any independence if she is treated
+as a child up to one day of her life, and the next day is expected to
+promise she will obey a man as long as he lives?"
+
+The angry spots in Mrs. Baron's cheeks had been burning deeper and
+deeper, and now she spoke promptly and freezingly, "Mr. Scoville, I
+absolve you from answering one who is proving herself to be neither a
+child nor a refined woman. I did not expect this additional
+humiliation. If it had not occurred I would have taken no part in the
+conversation. Mr. Baron, I think we have granted even more than the
+most quixotic idea of courtesy could demand."
+
+"'Granted? demand?' surely there is some mistake, madam," said Scoville
+with dignity, as he rose instantly from the table. "I have asked
+nothing whatever except that you should dismiss your fears as far as I
+and my men are concerned."
+
+Mrs. Whately was provoked equally at herself and all the others. She
+now deeply regretted that she had not left the Union officer to obtain
+his supper where and how he could, but felt that she must smooth
+matters over as far as possible. "Lieutenant Scoville," she said
+hurriedly, "you must make allowances for people in the deepest stress
+of trouble. We did intend all the courtesy which our first remarks
+defined. Of course you cannot know our circumstances, and when words
+are spoken which cut to the quick it is hard to give no sign. Perhaps
+our hearts are too sore and our differences too radical--" and she
+hesitated.
+
+"I understand you, madam," said Scoville, bowing. "I can only repeat my
+assurances of your safety and express my regret--"
+
+"Oh, shame!" cried Miss Lou, whose anger and indignation now passed all
+bounds. "We are NOT in the deepest stress of trouble, and you, Mrs.
+Whately, are the last one to say it. I saw this gentleman's sabre
+poised at your son's throat long enough to have killed him twice over,
+and he did not do it, even in the excitement of defending his own life.
+After Mrs. Baron's words he again assures us of safety. What did you
+all predict would happen immediately when Northern soldiers came?
+Whether I am refined or not, I am at least grateful. Lieutenant, please
+come with me. I will try to prove that I appreciate your courtesy and
+forbearance," and she led the way from the room.
+
+He bowed ceremoniously to Mr. Baron and the ladies, then followed the
+girl, leaving them, almost paralyzed by their conflicting emotions.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+A SMILE ON WAR'S GRIM FACE
+
+
+Miss Lou led the way to the broad, moonlit piazza. As Scoville
+followed, he saw that the girl was trembling violently, and he was thus
+able to grasp in some degree the courage she was manifesting in her
+first half-desperate essays toward freedom. "Poor child!" he thought,
+"her fright is surpassed only by her determination. How easily they
+could manage her by a little tact and kindness!"
+
+She pointed to a chair near the hall door and faltered, "Lieutenant
+Scoville, I scarcely know whether I am doing right in seeing you here
+alone. I know little of the usages of society. I do not wish to appear
+to you unrefined."
+
+"Miss Baron," he replied kindly, "I do not know why you have not the
+same right which other young ladies enjoy, of entertaining a gentleman
+at your home."
+
+"Oh, I am so glad that you are not angry."
+
+"I was never more lamb-like in my disposition than at this moment.
+Moreover, I wish to thank you as a brave girl and a genuine lady."
+
+She was almost panting in her strong excitement and embarrassment.
+"Please remember," she said, "that I do not wish to do or say anything
+unbecoming, but I know so little and have been so tried--"
+
+"Miss Baron," and he spoke low for fear he would be overheard, "I
+already know something of what you have passed through and of your
+brave assertion of a sacred right. Continue that assertion and no one
+can force you into marriage. I have ridden nearly twenty-four hours to
+be here in time and to make some return for your great kindness, but
+you were so brave that you scarcely needed help."
+
+"Oh! I did need it. I was so frightened and so desperate that I was
+almost ready to faint. My cousin is one who WILL have his own way. He
+has never been denied a thing in his life, I should have been taken
+away at least and then--oh, I just felt as if on the edge of a
+precipice. It seems dreadful that I should be speaking so of my kindred
+to a stranger and enemy--"
+
+"Enemy! Far from it. A friend. Have you not protected my life and
+liberty? Miss Baron, I give you my sacred word, I swear to you by my
+mother's memory to be as loyal to you as if you were my own sister.
+Young as I am, perhaps I can advise you and help you, for it is indeed
+clear that you need a friend."
+
+"I cannot tell you what relief your words bring, for, inexperienced as
+I am, something assures me that I can trust you."
+
+"Indeed you can. I should spoil my own life more truly than yours if I
+were not true to my oath. Please remember this and have confidence.
+That is what you need most--confidence. Believe in yourself as well as
+in me. Have you not been brave and true to yourself in the most painful
+of ordeals? Try to keep your self-control and you will make no serious
+mistakes, and never so misjudge me as to imagine I shall not recognize
+your good intentions."
+
+"Ah!" she sighed, with a rush of tears, "that's the trouble. I'm so
+hasty; I lose my temper."
+
+He smiled very genially as he said, "If you were as amiable as some
+girls you would have been married before this. Don't you see in what
+good stead your high spirit has stood you? I do not censure righteous
+anger when you are wronged. You are one who could not help such anger,
+and, if controlled, it will only help you. All I ask is that you so
+control it as to take no false steps and keep well within your certain
+rights. You are in a peculiarly painful position. Your kindred truly
+mean well by you--see how fair I am--but if they could carry out their
+intentions and marry you to that spoiled boy, you would be one of the
+most unhappy of women. If he is capable of trying to force you to marry
+him he would always be imperious and unreasonable. You would be a hard
+one to manage, Miss Baron, by the words, You must, and You shall; but I
+think Please would go a good way if your reason and conscience were
+satisfied."
+
+"Indeed, sir, you are right. If I loved my cousin I would marry him
+even though he were so badly wounded as to be helpless all his life.
+But my whole soul protests against the thought of marriage to any one.
+Why, sir, you can't know how like a child I've always been treated. I
+feel that I have a right to remain as I am, to see more of the world,
+to know more and enjoy more of life. I can scarcely remember when I was
+truly happy, so strictly have I been brought up. You would not believe
+it, but poor old Aun' Jinkey, my mammy, is almost the only one who has
+not always tried to make me do something whether I wish to or not. My
+aunt, Mrs. Whately, has meant to be kind, but even in my childish
+squabbles with my cousin, and in his exactions, she always took his
+part. I just want to be free--that's all."
+
+"Well, Miss Baron, you are free now, and if you will simply assert your
+rights with quiet dignity you can remain free. Your kindred are
+mistaken in their attitude toward you, and you can make them see this
+in time. They are well-bred people and are not capable of using force
+or violence. They did, I suppose, believe terrible things of me and
+those I represent, and their action, perhaps, has been due partially to
+panic. That crisis is past; you have only to trust your own best
+instincts in order to meet future emergencies. Whatever comes, remember
+that your Northern friend said he had confidence that you would do what
+is brave and right. Perhaps we shall never meet again, for we are in
+the midst of a fierce, active campaign. There is much advice I would
+like to give you, but we shall not be left alone long, and the best
+thing now, after this long, hard day, is for you to get your mind quiet
+and hopeful. How quiet and peaceful everything is! not a harsh sound to
+be heard."
+
+"Yes, and think what they tried to make me believe! They all should be
+treating you with kindness instead of--" but here she was interrupted
+by the appearance of Mrs. Whately.
+
+In order to understand that lady's action and that of her relatives, we
+must go back to the moment when Miss Lou and Scoville left the
+supper-room. Mrs. Whately was the first to recover her self-possession
+and some true appreciation of their situation. Mr. Baron in his rage
+would have gone out and broken up the conference on the piazza, but his
+sister said almost sternly, "Sit down."
+
+"Well," ejaculated Mrs. Baron, bitterly, "I hope you are both satisfied
+now with the results of courtesy to Yankees. I knew I was right in
+believing that we could have nothing whatever to do with them. I think
+it is monstrous that Louise is alone with one on the piazza, and her
+uncle should interfere at once."
+
+"Brother," said Mrs. Whately, "you can see our niece through the window
+from where you sit. She is talking quietly with the officer."
+
+"Yes, and what may he not say to her? Already her contumacious
+rebellion passes all bounds. She has heard too much incendiary talk
+from him already" and he again rose to end the interview.
+
+"Hector Baron," said his sister solemnly, "you must listen to me first,
+before you take any further steps. We will say nothing more about the
+past. It's gone and can't be helped. Now, with all the influence I have
+over you, I urge you and your wife to remain here until you are
+calm--till you have had a chance to think. Is this a time for headlong
+anger? Was there ever a period in your life when you should so
+carefully consider the consequences of your action? Please tell me how
+you and sister are going to MAKE Louise do and think exactly what you
+wish. This is no time for blinking the truth that you have alienated
+her. You could easily now drive her to do something rash and terrible.
+I understand her better every moment and feel that we have taken the
+wrong course. She would have gone away with Madison as his cousin, and
+wifehood would have come naturally later. We have been too hasty, too
+arbitrary. You both must recognize the truth that you cannot treat her
+as a child any longer or you will lose her altogether, for in this
+matter of marriage she has been made to know that she is not a child.
+She can be led into it now, but not forced into it. Her course is open
+now, but if you continue arbitrary her action may become clandestine
+and even reckless. Then in regard to this Yankee officer. Alas I what
+he says is too true. In our strong feeling we shut our eyes to facts.
+Are we not in his power? He has spared my son's life and your property
+and home, and yet he has been virtually ordered out of the house. There
+is truth in what Louise said. We are not in the deepest stress of
+trouble--infinitely removed from the trouble we might be in."
+
+"He has not spared my property," growled Mr. Baron, "he has told all my
+people they are free. Where does that leave me?"
+
+"Now, brother, your very words prove how essential it is that you
+regain your self-control and reason. Is this young officer going
+through the country on his own responsibility? He only echoes the
+proclamation of Abe Lincoln, whom he is bound to obey. Since we entered
+on the discussion of our differences could we expect him to do
+otherwise than present his side as strongly as he could? Now if you and
+sister can shake all this off by one mighty effort of your wills, do
+so; but if we do not wish to invite every evil we predicted, do let us
+be calm and rational. For one, I feel Louise's reproof keenly, and it
+will not do to outrage her sense of justice any longer. This officer
+has proved that we were wrong in our predictions before he came. If now
+we continue to treat him as outside the pale of courtesy, we lose her
+sympathy utterly and do our utmost to provoke him and his men. Merciful
+heaven! if my son were a bleeding corpse or dying in agony, what would
+the world be to me? I shall apologize to him and treat him with
+politeness as long as I am under his protection."
+
+"I shall have nothing to do with him," said Mrs. Baron, pressing her
+thin lips together.
+
+"Well, well," ejaculated Mr. Baron, "I suppose I shall have to become
+meeker than Moses, and kiss every rod that smites me for fear of
+getting a harsher blow."
+
+Mrs. Whately felt that it was useless to say anything more, and, as we
+have seen, joined her niece.
+
+"Lieutenant," she said, "we owe you an apology, and I freely and
+frankly offer it. I fear you think we are making sorry return for your
+kindness."
+
+"Mrs. Whately, I appreciate YOUR good intentions, and I can make
+allowance for the feelings of my host and hostess. The fine courtesy of
+Miss Baron would disarm hostility itself, but I assure you that there
+is no personal hostility on my part to any of you."
+
+"Well, sir, I must say that I regard it as a very kind ordering of
+Providence that we have fallen into such hands as yours."
+
+"I certainly am in no mood to complain," he replied, laughing. "Perhaps
+experience has taught us that we had better ignore our differences. I
+was just remarking to Miss Baron on the beauty and peacefulness of the
+night. Will you not join us? We can imagine a flag of truce flying,
+under which we can be just as good friends as we please."
+
+"Thank you. I will join you with pleasure," and she sat down near her
+niece. "Well," she added, "this is a scene to be remembered."
+
+Miss Lou looked at Scoville gratefully, for his words and manner had
+all tended to reassure her. In her revolt, he showed no disposition to
+encourage recklessness on her part. As her mind grew calmer she saw
+more clearly the course he had tried to define--that of blended
+firmness and courtesy to her relatives. She was so unsophisticated and
+had been so confused and agitated, that she scarcely knew where to draw
+the line between simple, right action and indiscretion. Conscious of
+her inexperience, inclined to be both timid and reckless in her
+ignorance and trouble, she began even now to cling, metaphorically, to
+his strong, sustaining hand. His very presence produced a sense of
+restfulness and safety, and when he began to call attention to the
+scenes and sounds about them she was sufficiently quiet to be
+appreciative.
+
+Dew sparkled in the grass of the lawn on which the shadows of trees and
+shrubbery fell motionless. The air was balmy and sweet with the
+fragrance of spring flowers. The mocking-birds were in full ecstatic
+song, their notes scaling down from bursts of melody to the drollery of
+all kinds of imitation. The wounded men on the far end of the piazza
+were either sleeping or talking in low tones, proving that there was no
+extremity of suffering. Off to the left, between them and the negro
+quarters, were two or three fires, around which the Union soldiers were
+reclining, some already asleep after the fatigues of the day, others
+playing cards or spinning yarns, while one, musically inclined, was
+evoking from a flute an air plaintive and sweet in the distance.
+Further away under the trees, shadows in shadow, the horses were dimly
+seen eating their provender. The Confederate prisoners, smoking about a
+fire, appeared to be taking the "horrors of captivity" very quietly and
+comfortably. At the quarters they heard the sound of negro-singing,
+half barbaric in its wildness.
+
+"It is hard to realize that this scene means war," remarked Miss Lou,
+after they had gazed and listened a few moments in silence.
+
+"Yet it does," said Scoville quietly. "Look down the avenue. Do you not
+see the glint of the moonbeams on a carbine? All around us are men,
+mounted and armed. If a shot were fired, we should all be ready for
+battle in three minutes. Those prisoners will be guarded with sleepless
+vigilance till I deliver them up. There is a sentinel at the back of
+the house, three guarding the out-buildings, and so it will be till I
+am relieved and another takes command."
+
+"Who will he be?" she asked apprehensively.
+
+"I do not know."
+
+"Oh, I wish you could guard us till these troubles are over."
+
+"I can honestly echo that wish," added Mrs. Whately.
+
+"Thank you. It would be pleasanter duty than usually falls to the lot
+of a soldier. Yet in these times I scarcely know what my duty may be
+from hour to hour."
+
+"You told us that we need not fear anything to-night," began Mrs.
+Whately.
+
+"Not unless I am attacked, I said. I am aware that at this moment your
+son is seeking a force to do this. I do not think that he will be able
+to find any, however, before morning. In any event you could have
+nothing to fear from us, except as your dreams were disturbed by a
+battle."
+
+"Oh, I wish I were a soldier!" exclaimed the girl. "This whole scene
+seems as if taken right out of a story."
+
+"You are looking at this moment on the bright side of our life. At any
+rate, I'm glad you're not a soldier. If you were, my duty might be made
+more difficult. It has other and very different sides. By the way, I
+would like to watch those negroes a little while, and listen to them.
+Their performances always interest me deeply. Will not you ladies go
+with me? Soon I must get some rest while I can."
+
+Miss Lou looked at her aunt, who hesitated a moment, then said, "I am
+very tired, Lieutenant. I will trust you as a chivalrous enemy to take
+my niece, and I will sit here until you return."
+
+"I deeply appreciate your kindness, madam."
+
+Miss Lou went with him gladly and found herself at the close of the
+long, miserable day becoming positively happy. When out of hearing she
+said, "Aunt's permission almost took away my breath. Yet it seems to me
+just the way a girl ought to be treated. Oh, how perfectly delicious is
+a little bit of freedom! How perfectly grand to have something going on
+that does not mean no end of trouble to one's self!"
+
+Scoville laughed lightly as he replied, "I now wish you were a soldier
+and an officer in my regiment. You and I would make good comrades."
+
+"You forget, sir," she answered in like vein, "that I am a bloodthirsty
+little rebel."
+
+"On the contrary, I remember that yours was the kind, pitying face
+which made me half fancy I was in heaven when recovering from my swoon."
+
+"Chunk and Aun' Jinkey brought you back to earth right sudden, didn't
+they?" and her laugh rang out merrily.
+
+"Sister," cried Mr. Baron, running out on the veranda, "what on
+earth--I thought I heard Louise laugh way off toward the quarters."
+
+"You did."
+
+"What! has she broken all bounds, defied all authority, and gone
+utterly wild in her rebellion?"
+
+Mrs. Whately made a gesture of half irritable protest. Meantime, Mrs.
+Baron, hearing her husband's voice, came out and exclaimed, "Is that
+Louise and the Yankee yonder going off alone?"
+
+"They are not 'going off.' You and brother may join them if you wish.
+They simply intend to watch the people at the quarters a little while,
+and I will wait here for them."
+
+"Sarah Whately!" gasped Mrs. Baron, "can you mean to say that you have
+permitted our ward to do such an indelicate thing? She has never been
+permitted to go out alone in the evening with any young man, and the
+idea that she should begin with a Yankee!"
+
+"She is not alone. She is always within call and most of the time in
+sight. I will make one more effort to bring you both to reason," added
+Mrs. Whately, warmly, "and then, if we continue to differ so radically,
+I will return home in the morning, after giving Louise to understand
+that she can always find a refuge with me if it is necessary. Can you
+think I would let the girl whom my son hopes to marry do an indelicate
+thing? Pardon me, but I think I am competent to judge in such matters.
+I will be answerable for her conduct and that of Lieutenant Scoville
+also, for he is a gentleman if he is our enemy. I tell you again that
+your course toward Louise will drive her to open, reckless defiance. It
+is a critical time with her. She is my niece as well as your ward, and
+it is the dearest wish of myself and son that she should be bound to us
+by the closest ties. I will not have her future and all our hopes
+endangered by a petty, useless tyranny. If you will treat her like a
+young lady of eighteen I believe she will act like one."
+
+Mrs. Baron was speechless in her anger, but her husband began, "Oh,
+well, if he were a Southern officer--"
+
+Then the blood of her race became too hot for Mrs. Whately's control,
+and she sprang up, saying, "Well, then, go and tell him to his face
+that he's a vile Yankee, a Goth and Vandal, a ruthless invader,
+unworthy of a moment's trust, and incapable of behaving like a
+gentleman! Take no further protection at his hands. How can you be so
+blind as not to see I am doing the best thing possible to retain Louise
+within our control and lead her to fulfil our hopes? I ask you again,
+how are you going to MAKE Louise do what you wish? You cannot be
+arbitrary with even one of your own slaves any longer."
+
+"Well," said Mrs. Baron, "I wash my hands of it all," and she retired
+to her room. Mr. Baron sat down in a chair and groaned aloud. It was
+desperately hard for him to accept the strange truth that he could not
+order every one on the place, his niece included, to do just what
+pleased him. Never had an autocratic potentate been more completely
+nonplussed; but his sister's words, combined with events, brought him
+face to face with his impotence so inexorably that for a time he had
+nothing to say.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+THE JOY OF FREEDOM
+
+
+In an open space near the quarters the negroes had kindled a fire,
+although the night was mild. These children of the sun love warmth and
+all that is cheerful and bright, their emotions appearing to kindle
+more readily with the leaping flames. When Miss Lou and Scoville
+approached, the worshippers were just concluding the hymn heard on the
+piazza. From the humble cabins stools, benches, rickety chairs, and
+nondescript seats made from barrels, had been brought and placed in a
+circle close about the fire. These were occupied by the elderly and
+infirm. Uncle Lusthah, whose name had been evolved from Methuselah, was
+the evident leader of the meeting, and Miss Lou whispered to her
+attendant, "He's the recognized preacher among them, and I believe he
+tries to live up to his ideas of right."
+
+"Then I'll listen to him very respectfully," said Scoville.
+
+Their advent created quite a commotion, and not a few were inclined to
+pay court to the "Linkum ossifer." All who had seats rose to offer
+them, but Scoville smiled, shook his head and waved them back. Uncle
+Lusthah immediately regained attention by shouting, "Look at me": then,
+"Now look up. Who we uns befo'? De King. De gret Jehovah. Bow yo' haids
+humble; drap yo' eyes. Tek off de shoon fum yo' feet lak Moses w'en he
+gwine neah de bunin' bush. Young mars'r en young mistis standin' dar
+'spectful. Dey knows dat ef de gret Linkum yere hissef, Linkum's Lawd
+en Mars'r yere befo' 'im. Let us all gib our 'tention ter 'Im who's
+brung 'liverance ter Israel at las'. We gwine troo de Red Sea ob wah
+now en des whar de promis' lan' is we got ter fin' out, but we hab
+tu'ned our backs on ole Egypt en we ain' gwine back no mo'. Brudren en
+sistas, you'se yeard a Gospil, a good news, dis eb'nin' sho. You'se
+yeard you free, bress de Lawd! I'se been waitin' fer dis news mo' yeahs
+den I kin reckermember, but dey's come 'fo' my ole haid's under de sod.
+Hit's all right dat we is glad en sing aloud for joy, but we orter
+rejice wid trem'lin'. De 'sponsibil'ties ob freedom is des tremenjus.
+Wat you gwine ter do wid freedom? Does you tink you kin git lazy en
+thievin' en drunken? Is dere any sech foolishness yere? Will eny man or
+ooman call deysefs free w'en dey's slabes ter some mean, nasty vice?
+Sech folks al'ays be slabes, en dey orter be slabes ter a man wid a big
+whip. See how de young mars'r' haves dat brung de news ob freedom. He
+know he juty en he does hit brave. He mek de w'ite sogers he 'mands des
+toe de mark. We got ter toe a long, wi'te mark. We ain' free ter do
+foolishness no mo' dan he en he men is. De gret Linkum got he eye on
+you; de Cap'n ob our salvation got He eye on you. Now I des gib you
+some 'structions," and happy it would have been for the freedmen--for
+their masters and deliverers also, it may be added--if all had followed
+Uncle Lusthah's "'structions."
+
+When through with his exhortation the old preacher knelt down on the
+box which served as his pulpit and offered a fervent petition. From the
+loud "amens" and "'lujahs" he evidently voiced the honest feeling of
+the hour in his dusky audience. Scoville was visibly affected at the
+reference to him. "May de deah Lawd bress de young Linkum ossifer,"
+rose Uncle Lusthah's tones, loud, yet with melodious power and pathos,
+for he was gifted with a voice of unusual compass, developed by his
+calling. "He des took he life in he hand en come down in de lan' ob de
+shadder, de gret, dark shadder dat's been restin' on de hearts ob de
+slabes. We had no fader, no muder, no wife, no chile. Dey didn't 'long
+to we fer dey cud be sole right out'n our arms en we see dem no mo'. De
+gret shadder ob slav'y swallow dem up. Young mars'r face de bullit,
+face de so'ed, face de curse ter say we free. May de Lawd be he shiel'
+en buckler, compass 'im roun' wid angel wings, stop de han' riz ter
+strike, tu'n away de bullit aim at he heart. May de Lawd brung 'im gray
+hars at las lak mine, so he see, en his chil'n see, en our chil'n see
+de 'liverance he hep wrought out.
+
+"En dar's young mistis. She hab a heart ter feel fer de po' slabe. She
+al'ays look kin' at us, en she stood 'tween us en woun's en death; w'en
+all was agin us en she in de watehs ob triberlation hersef, she say
+'fo' dem all, 'No harm come ter us.' She put her lil w'ite arm roun'
+her ole mammy." ("Dat she did," cried Aun' Jinkey, who was swaying back
+and forth where the fire lit up her wrinkled visage, "en de gret red
+welt on her shol'er now.") "She took de blow," continued Uncle Lusthah,
+amid groans and loud lamentations, "en de Lawd, wid whose stripes we
+healed, WILL bress her en hab aready bressed her en brung her
+'liverance 'long o' us. May He keep her eyes fum teahs, en her heart
+fum de breakin' trouble; may He shine on a path dat lead ter all de
+bes' tings in dis yere worl' en den ter de sweet home ob heb'n!"
+
+When the voice of Uncle Lusthah ceased Scoville heard a low sob from
+Miss Lou at his side and he was conscious that tears stood in his own
+eyes. His heart went out in strong homage to the young girl to whom
+such tribute had been paid and her heart thrilled at the moment as she
+distinguished his deep "amen" in the strong, general indorsement of the
+petition in her behalf.
+
+Then rose a hymn which gathered such volume and power that it came back
+in echoes from distant groves.
+
+"Hark, hark, I year a soun'. Hit come fum far away; Wake, wake, en year
+de soun' dat come fum far away. De night am dark, de night been long,
+but dar de mawnin' gray; En wid de light is comin' sweet a soun' fum
+far away.
+
+"Look how de light am shinin' now across de gret Red Sea. On Egypt sho'
+we stay no mo' in slabing misery. Ole Pharaoh year de voice ob God,
+'Des set my people free;' En now we march wid song en shout, right troo
+the gret Red Sea."
+
+Every line ended with, the rising inflection of more than a hundred
+voices, followed by a pause in which the echoes repeated clearly the
+final sound. The effect was weird, strange in the last degree, and,
+weary as he was, Scoville felt all his nerves tingling.
+
+The meeting now broke up, to be followed by dancing and singing among
+the younger negroes. Uncle Lusthah, Aun' Jinkey, and many others
+crowded around Scoville and "the young mistis" to pay their respects.
+Chunk and Zany, standing near, graciously accepted the honors showered
+upon them. The officer speedily gave Miss Lou his arm and led her away.
+When so distant as to be unobserved, he said in strong emphasis, "Miss
+Baron, I take off my hat to you. Not to a princess would I pay such
+homage as to the woman who could wake the feeling with which these poor
+people regard you."
+
+She blushed with the deepest pleasure of her life, for she had been
+repressed and reprimanded so long that words of encouragement and
+praise were very sweet. But she only said with a laugh, "Oh, come;
+don't turn my poor bewildered head any more to-night. I'm desperately
+anxious to have uncle and aunt think I'm a very mature young woman, but
+I know better and so do you. Why, even Uncle Lusthah made me cry like a
+child."
+
+"Well, his words about you brought tears to my eyes, and so there's a
+pair of us."
+
+"Oh!" she cried delightedly, giving his arm a slight pressure, "I
+didn't know that you'd own up to that. When I saw them I felt like
+laughing and crying at the same moment. And so I do now--it's so
+delicious to be free and happy--to feel that some one is honestly
+pleased with you."
+
+He looked upon her upturned face, still dewy from emotion, and wondered
+if the moon that night shone on a fairer object the world around. It
+was indeed the face of a glad, happy child no longer depressed by woes
+a few hours old, nor fearful of what the next hour might bring. Her
+look into his eyes was also that of a child, full of unbounded trust,
+now that her full confidence was won. "You do indeed seem like a lovely
+child, Miss Baron, and old Uncle Lusthah told the whole truth about
+you. Those simple folk are like children themselves and find people out
+by intuition. If you were not good-hearted they would know it. Well,
+I'm glad I'm not old myself."
+
+"But you're going to be old--AWFUL old," she replied, full of rippling
+laughter. "Oh, wasn't I glad to hear Uncle Lusthah pray over you! for
+if there is a God who takes any care of people, you will live to be as
+gray as he is."
+
+"If there is a God?"
+
+"Oh, I'm a little heathen. I couldn't stand uncle or aunt's God at all
+or believe in Him. They made me feel that He existed just to approve of
+their words and ways, and to help them keep me miserable. When I hear
+Uncle Lusthah he stirs me all up just as he did to-night; but then I've
+always been taught that he's too ignorant--well, I don't know. Uncle
+and aunt made an awful blunder," and here she began to laugh again.
+"There is quite a large library at the house, at least I suppose it's
+large, and I read and read till I was on the point of rebellion, before
+you and Cousin Mad came. Books make some things clear and others SO-O
+puzzling. I like to hear you talk, for you seem so decided and you know
+so much more than I do. Cousin Mad never read much. It was always
+horse, and dog, and gun with him. How I'm running on and how far I am
+from your question! But it is such a new thing to have a listener who
+cares and understands. Aun' Jinkey cares, poor soul! but she can
+understand so little. Lieutenant, I can answer your implied question in
+only one way; I wish to know what is true. Do you believe there's a God
+who cares for us as Uncle Lusthah says?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Well, I'm glad you do; and simply saying so will have more weight than
+all arguments."
+
+"Please remember, Miss Baron, I haven't said that I lived up to my
+faith. It's hard to do this, I suppose, in the army. Still I've no
+right to any excuses, much less to the unmanly one that it's hard. What
+if it is? That's a pretty excuse for a soldier. Well, no matter about
+me, except that I wish you to know that with all my mind and heart I
+believe that there is a good God taking care of a good girl like you.
+Pardon me if I ask another question quite foreign. How could your
+cousin wish to marry you if you do not love him?"
+
+He wondered as he saw the child-like look pass from her face and her
+brow darken into a frown. "I scarcely know how to answer you," she
+said, "and I only understand vaguely myself. I understand better,
+though, since I've known you. When you were hiding in Aun' Jinkey's
+cabin you looked GOODWILL at me. I saw that you were not thinking of
+yourself, but of me, and that you wished me well. I feel that Cousin
+Mad is always thinking of himself, that his professed love of me is a
+sort of self-love. He gives me the feeling that he wants me for his OWN
+sake, not for MY sake at all. I don't believe he'd love me a minute
+after he got tired of me. I'd be just like the toys he used to cry for,
+then break up. I won't marry such a man, NEVER."
+
+"You had better not. Hush! We are approaching a man yonder who appears
+anxious to hear what is none of his business."
+
+They had been strolling slowly back, often pausing in the deep mutual
+interest of their conversation. Miss Lou now detected Perkins standing
+in the shadow of his dwelling, between the mansion and the quarters.
+
+"That's the overseer," she said, in a low voice. "How quick your eyes
+are!"
+
+"They must be in my duty." Then he directed their steps so as to pass
+near the man. When opposite, he turned his eyes suddenly upon Perkins'
+face, and detected such a scowl of hostility and hate that his hand
+dropped instinctively on the butt of his revolver. "Well, sir," he
+said, sternly, "you have shown your disposition."
+
+"You didn't 'spect ter find a friend, I reck'n," was the surly yet
+confused reply.
+
+"Very well, I know how to treat such bitter enemies as you have shown
+yourself to be. Officer of the guard!" A trooper ran forward from the
+camp-fire and saluted. "Put this man with the other prisoners, and see
+that he has no communication with any one."
+
+As Perkins was marched off they heard him mutter a curse. "Pardon me,
+Miss Baron," Scoville resumed. "The lives of my men are in my care, and
+that fellow would murder us all if he had a chance. I don't know that
+he could do any harm, but it would only be from lack of opportunity. I
+never take risks that I can help."
+
+"Having seen his expression I can't blame you," was her reply.
+
+A new train of thought was awakened in Scoville. He paused a moment and
+looked at her earnestly.
+
+"Why do you look at me so?" she asked.
+
+"Miss Baron, pardon me, but I do wish I were going to be here longer,
+or rather, I wish the war was over. I fear there are deep perplexities,
+and perhaps dangers, before you. My little force is in the van of a
+raiding column which will pass rapidly through the country. It will be
+here to-morrow morning, but gone before night, in all probability. The
+war will be over soon, I trust, but so much may happen before it is.
+You inspire in me such deep solicitude. I had to tell those poor
+negroes that they were free. So they would be if within our lines. But
+when we are gone that overseer may be brutal, and the slaves may come
+again to you for protection. That cousin of yours may also come
+again--oh, it puts me in a sort of rage to think of leaving you so
+unfriended. You will have to be a woman in very truth, and a brave,
+circumspect one, too."
+
+"You are right, sir," she replied with dignity, "and you must also
+remember that I will be a Southern woman. I do feel most friendly to
+you personally, but not to your cause. Forgive me if I have acted and
+spoken too much like a child to-night, and do not misunderstand me.
+Circumstances have brought us together in a strange way, and while I
+live I shall remember you with respect and gratitude. I can never lose
+the friendly interest you have inspired, and I can never think of the
+North as I hear others speak of it; but I belong to my own people, and
+I should be very unhappy and humiliated if I felt that I must continue
+to look to an enemy of my country for protection. I cannot go over to
+your side any more than you can come over to ours."
+
+He merely sighed in answer.
+
+"You do not think less"--and then she paused in troubled silence.
+
+"Louise," called Mrs. Whately's voice.
+
+"Yes," replied the girl, "we are coming."
+
+"I think you will always try to do what seems right to you, Miss Baron.
+May God help and guide you, for you may have trouble of which you
+little dream. What you say about your side and my side has no place in
+my thoughts. I'll help settle such questions with soldiers. Neither do
+I wish to be officious, but there is something in my very manhood which
+protests against a fair young girl like you being so beset with
+troubles."
+
+"Forgive me," she said earnestly. "There it is again. You are
+unselfishly thinking of me, and that's so new. There's no use of
+disguising it. When you go there'll not be one left except Aun' Jinkey
+and Uncle Lusthah who will truly wish what's best for me without regard
+to themselves. Well, it can't be helped. At least I have had a warning
+which I won't forget."
+
+"But Mrs. Whately seems so kindly--"
+
+"Hush! I see uncle coming. She would sacrifice herself utterly for her
+son, and do you think she would spare me?"
+
+Mr. Baron's fears and honest sense of responsibility led him at last to
+seek his niece. In doing this he saw Perkins under guard. Hastening to
+Scoville he demanded, "What does this mean? My overseer is not a
+combatant, sir."
+
+"Mr. Baron," replied the officer, "have you not yet learned that I am
+in command on this plantation?"
+
+Poor Mr. Baron lost his temper again and exploded most unwisely in the
+words, "Well, sir, my niece is not under your command. You had no right
+to take her from the house without my permission. I shall report you to
+your superior officer to-morrow."
+
+"I hope you will, sir."
+
+"I also protest against the treatment of my overseer."
+
+"Very well, sir."
+
+"You will please release my niece's arm and leave us to ourselves, as
+you promised."
+
+"No, sir, I shall escort Miss Baron back to Mrs. Whately, from whom I
+obtained the honor of her society."
+
+"Louise, I command"--Mr. Baron began, almost choking with rage.
+
+"No, uncle," replied the girl, "you COMMAND me no more ... Request me
+politely, and I will shake hands with Lieutenant Scoville, thank him
+for his courtesy to me and to us all, and then go with you."
+
+The old man turned on his heel and walked back to the house without a
+word.
+
+"Bravo!" whispered Scoville, but he felt her hand tremble on his arm.
+"That's your true course," he added. "Insist on the treatment due your
+age, act like a lady, and you will be safe."
+
+"Well," Mrs. Whately tried to say politely, "have not you young people
+taken an ell?"
+
+"No, Mrs. Whately," Scoville replied gravely. "We have not taken a step
+out of our way between here and the quarters, although we have lingered
+in conversation. We have ever been in plain sight of many of your
+people. I put the overseer under arrest because I had absolute proof of
+his malicious hostility. I shall inflict no injury on any one who does
+not threaten to be dangerous to my command, my duty requiring that I
+draw the line sharply there. Mrs. Whately, I have never met a young
+lady who inspired in me more honest respect. If we have trespassed on
+your patience, the blame is mine. Ladies, I thank you for your courtesy
+and wish you good-night," and he walked rapidly away.
+
+"Aunty," said Miss Lou, "you have begun to treat me in a way which
+would inspire my love and confidence."
+
+"Well, my dear, I am sorely perplexed. If we yield in minor points, you
+should in vital ones, and trust to our riper experience and knowledge."
+
+The distractions of the day had practically robbed Mr. Baron of all
+self-control, and he now exclaimed, "I yield nothing. As your guardian
+I shall maintain my rights and live up to my sense of responsibility.
+If by wild, reckless conduct you thwart my efforts in your behalf, my
+responsibility ceases. I can then feel that I have done my best."
+
+"And so, uncle, you would be quite content, no matter what became of
+me," added the girl bitterly. "Well, then, I tell you to your face that
+you cannot marry me, like a slave girl, to whom you please. I'll die
+first. I shall have my girlhood, and then, as woman, marry or not
+marry, as I choose. Aunty, I appeal to you, as a woman and a lady, to
+stop this wretched folly if you can."
+
+"Louise," said her aunt, kindly, "as long as I have a home it shall be
+a refuge to you. I hope the morrow will bring wiser counsels and better
+moods to us all."
+
+The mansion soon became quiet, and all slept in the weariness of
+reaction. No sound came from the darkened dwelling except an occasional
+groan from one of the wounded men on the piazza. Scoville, wrapped in a
+blanket, lay down by the fire with his men and was asleep almost
+instantly. The still shadows on the dewy grass slowly turned toward the
+east as the moon sank low. To the last, its beams glinted on the
+weapons of vigilant sentinels and vedettes, and the only warlike sounds
+occurred at the relief of guards. All rested who could rest except
+one--the overseer. Restless, vindictive, he watched and listened till
+morning.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+A WELL-AIMED SLIPPER
+
+
+It would be hard to imagine a morning more lovely, a more perfect type
+of peace and good-will, than the one which dawned over The Oaks
+plantation the following day. With the light came fragrant zephyrs of
+delicious coolness; the stillness of the night gave place to a slight
+stir and rustle of foliage; chanticleers crowed lustily, with no
+forebodings of their doom; the horses began to whinny for their
+breakfasts, and the negroes to emerge from their quarters to greet the
+light of this first fair day of freedom. Uncle Lusthah declared "De
+millenyum yere sho!" Smoke rose from Aun' Jinkey's chimney, and after
+the pone was baking on the hearth she came out on the doorstep with her
+pipe to do a little "projeckin'." Even she was impressed with the
+beauty and peacefulness of the morning. "En ter tink," she ejaculated,
+"my honey's sleepin' lak a lil chile 'stead ob cryin' en wringin' her
+han's nobody know whar! Wen dey gits ter mar'in' my honey en she a
+bleatin' en a tremlin' like a lamb 'long a wolf dat lickin' he chops
+ober her, den I say hit's time fer a smash up. Marse Scoville look lak
+he 'tect her gin de hull worl'."
+
+So thought Miss Lou herself. In her weariness and sense of security she
+had slept soundly till the light grew distinct, when the birds wakened
+her. With consciousness memory quickly reproduced what had occurred.
+She sprang to the window and peeped through the blinds in time to see
+Scoville rise from his bivouac and throw aside his blanket. With a
+soldier's promptness he aroused his men and began giving orders, the
+tenor of one being that a scouting party should prepare to go out
+immediately.
+
+"Oh!" she sighed, "if I had such a brother what a happy girl I might
+be! I don't believe I'd ever care to marry."
+
+She was far from being a soft-natured, susceptible girl, and while
+Scoville kindled her imagination and had won her trust, she did not
+think of him as a lover. Indeed, the very word had become hateful to
+her, associating it as she did with her cousin and the idea of selfish
+appropriation. More strongly than any slave on the plantation, she
+longed for freedom, and the belief that the Union officer understood
+her, respecting her rights and feelings, won him all the favor she was
+then capable of bestowing upon any one. If he had employed his brief
+opportunity in gallantry and love-making she would have been disgusted.
+"I never met any one like him," she soliloquized as she hastily
+dressed. "It's so strange to find one willing I should be a little bit
+happy in my own way, who is not 'seeking my best welfare,' as uncle
+says. Welfare, indeed! As if I couldn't see some wish or scheme of
+their own back of all they say or do! His dark eyes declare, 'I wish
+you well whether you are useful to me or not.' Well, I am glad I've
+known him, whether I ever see him again or not. He has made my course
+much clearer."
+
+The inmates of the mansion as well as those without were soon busy in
+their preparations for a day which all felt must be eventful. That the
+"millenyum" had not come was soon proved by the commencement of
+hostilities on the part of Mrs. Baron and Scoville. The latter was
+approaching the kitchen to interview Aun' Suke when "ole miss" appeared.
+
+"Madam," he said, lifting his hat, "will you kindly direct your cook to
+prepare a breakfast immediately for the wounded? It should be light as
+well as nutritious, for some are feverish."
+
+She paid no more attention to him than if he had not spoken, and
+entered Aun' Suke's domain. There was a mirthful flash in his dark eyes
+as he followed her. When she saw him standing in the doorway, her cold
+stare, more clearly than words, designated him "intruder." He steadily
+returned her gaze, and Aun' Suke, who had been shouting over freedom
+the night before, now had the temerity to quiver in all her vast
+proportions with amusement.
+
+"Madam," resumed Scoville, removing his hat, "will you give my orders,
+or shall I?"
+
+"Your orders, sir! and in my kitchen!"
+
+"Certainly, madam, and my orders in this instance are simply the
+dictates of humanity."
+
+"I will see that our men are well cared for. I am not responsible for
+the others."
+
+"But I am, and all must fare alike. Cook, prepare a nice light
+breakfast for all the wounded men before you do anything else."
+
+"Yes, mars'r, I 'bey you, I sut'ny will."
+
+Scoville strode away to attend to other duties. Mrs. Baron glared after
+him and then at Aun' Suke, who at once began her work.
+
+"Do you mean to say that you'll take no more orders from me?" the old
+lady asked, in tones of suppressed anger.
+
+"Kyant do mo' 'n one ting ter oncet. Ob co'se I git yo' breakfas' when
+I kin. Reck'n dough we soon hab ter disergree on my wages. I'se a free
+ooman."
+
+"Oh, you are free and I am not. That's the new order of things your
+Yankee friends would bring about."
+
+"La now, misus," said matter-of-fact Aun' Suke, again shaking with
+mirth at the idea, "you got mo' edication 'n me. Wat de use bein' blin'
+des on puppose? Spose you en ole mars'r tell me dat ain' a egg"
+(holding one up): "kyant I see? Hit's broad sun-up. Why not des look at
+tings ez dey iz? Sabe a heap ob trouble. Yere, you lil niggahs, hep
+right smart or you neber get yo' breakfas'."
+
+Mrs. Baron went back to the house looking as if the end of the world
+had come instead of the millennium.
+
+In the hall she met her husband and Mrs. Whately, to whom she narrated
+what had occurred. Mr. Baron had settled down into a sort of sullen
+endurance, and made no answer, but Mrs. Whately began earnestly: "Our
+very dignity requires that we have no more collisions with a power we
+cannot resist. Even you, sister, must now see that you gain nothing and
+change nothing. We can be merely passive in our hostility. The only
+course possible for us is to endure this ordeal patiently and then win
+Louise over to our wishes."
+
+Miss Lou, who was dusting the parlor, stole to the further end of the
+apartment and rattled some ornaments to warn them of her presence. She
+smiled bitterly as she muttered, "Our wishes; mine will never be
+consulted."
+
+Mrs. Whately entered the parlor and kissed her niece affectionately.
+She did not like the girl's expression and the difficulty of her task
+grew clearer. Nevertheless, her heart was more set on the marriage than
+ever before, since her motives had been strengthened by thought. That
+her son was bent upon it was one of the chief considerations. "If I
+obtain for him this prize," she had reasoned, "he must see that there
+is no love like a mother's."
+
+Miss Lou, also, had been unconsciously revealing her nature to the
+sagacious matron, who felt the girl, if won, would not become a pretty
+toy, soon wearying her son by insipidity of character. "I know better,"
+the lady thought, "than to agree with brother and sister that Louise is
+merely wilful and perverse." Feeling that she was incapable of
+controlling her son, she would be glad to delegate this task to the one
+who had the most influence over him and who best promised to maintain
+it. She was not so blind in her indulgence as helpless in it from long
+habit. She thought that as a wife the girl would not only hold her own,
+but also do much toward restraining her son in his wild tendencies; but
+she gave no weight to the consideration often in Miss Lou's mind, "I do
+not see why everything and everybody should exist for Cousin Mad's
+benefit."
+
+Mrs. Whately secretly approved of Scoville's orders in regard to the
+wounded, but did not so express herself, resolving not to come into
+collision again with her relatives unless it was essential. She now
+went out and assisted the surgical trooper in dressing the men's
+injuries. Miss Lou had learned that breakfast would be delayed, and so
+decided to satisfy her hunger partially at Aun' Jinkey's cabin. The
+excitements of the preceding day had robbed her of all appetite, but
+now she was ravenous. Her estrangement from her uncle and aunt was so
+great that she avoided them, having a good deal of the child's feeling,
+"I won't speak till they make up first."
+
+The old negress heard her rapid steps and looked out from her door.
+"Oh, mammy," cried the girl, "I'm that hungry I could almost eat you,
+and I don't know when we'll have breakfast."
+
+"You des in time, den, honey. Come right in."
+
+But Miss Lou paused at the door in embarrassment, for Scoville had
+risen from the table and was advancing to meet her. "Good-morning, Miss
+Baron," he said. "Aunt Jinkey and Chunk have prepared me a capital
+breakfast, and I should be only too delighted to share it. I must be in
+the saddle soon and so availed myself of the first chance for a meal.
+Please do not hesitate, for it will probably be my only opportunity of
+saying good-by."
+
+"Dar now, honey, sit right down. Ef Marse Scoville ain' quality den I
+doan know um."
+
+"Miss Baron," cried Scoville, laughing, "Aunt Jinkey has raised a point
+now which you alone can settle--the question of my quality."
+
+"About the same as my own, I reckon," said the girl, sitting down with
+rosy cheeks. "Aun' Jinkey is evidently your ally, for she has put her
+invitation in a form which I could not decline without hurting the
+feelings of--"
+
+"Your sincere and grateful friend," interrupted the officer.
+
+"Uncle and aunt would think I was committing an unheard-of
+indiscretion."
+
+"But ARE you?"
+
+"I'm too hungry to discuss the question now," she answered, laughing.
+"Do let us hasten, for such OLD friends should not part with their
+mouths full."
+
+"Well, hit des does my ole heart good ter see you sittin' dar, Miss
+Lou. I'se po'ful glad yo' mouf's full ob breakfas' en dat yo' eyes ain'
+full ob tears. Wat we projeckin' 'bout yistidy?"
+
+"Now, Aun' Jinkey, just keep still. I can't show becoming sentiment on
+any subject except pones and such coffee as I have not tasted for a
+long time."
+
+"Hit Yankee coffee."
+
+"I drink your health in my one contribution," cried Scoville. "Never
+mind, aunty, we'll be jolly over it all the same. I agree with you.
+It's worth a month's pay to see Miss Baron happy and hungry. I'd like
+to know who has a better right. Aunt Jinkey's told me how you protected
+her. That was fine. You'd make a soldier."
+
+"Oh, please stop such talk, both of you. I'm ridiculously unlike the
+heroines in uncle's library. Lieutenant, please don't say 'Ha! the hour
+has come and we must part, perhaps forever.' I won't have any forever.
+Uncle Lusthah has insured you gray hairs, and if you don't come and see
+us before they're gray, Aun' Jinkey and I will believe all uncle says
+about the Yankees."
+
+"And so you ought," said Scoville. "Oh, I'll come back to breakfast
+with you again, if I have to come on crutches. Well, I must go. There
+is Chunk with the horses. Even now I'm keeping one ear open for a shot
+from that hasty cousin of yours."
+
+At this reference she looked grave and rose from the table.
+"Lieutenant," she said, taking his proffered hand, "please do not think
+me a giddy child nor an unfeeling girl. I DO thank you. I do wish you
+well just as you wish me well--for your own sake. Oh, it seems such a
+blessed thing for people to feel simple, honest goodwill toward one
+another, without having some scheme back of it all."
+
+"Well, Miss Baron, if I had a chance I'd soon prove that I too had a
+scheme. The chief point in it would be to keep all trouble out of the
+eyes that looked on me so kindly when I came to my senses in this
+cabin. Heaven bless your good, kind heart! Promise me one thing."
+
+"Well?"
+
+"If your cousin comes soon there may be a sharp fight. Keep out of
+danger. I could never be myself again if my coming here should result
+in injury to you."
+
+"As far as my curiosity will permit I will try to keep out of the way.
+I've seen so little in my short life that I must make the most of this
+brief opportunity. In a day or so you may all be gone, and then the old
+humdrum life will begin again."
+
+"Yes, we may all be gone before night. Your chief danger then will be
+from the stragglers which follow the army like vultures. If possible, I
+will induce the general to leave a guard to-night. I wish Mr. Baron had
+a clearer eye to his interests and safety. The general is not
+lamb-like. If a guard can be procured for to-night it will be due to
+your action and my representations. My services as a scout have brought
+me in rather close contact with the general, and possibly I may induce
+him to give protection as long as the interest of the service permits.
+All questions will be decided with reference to the main chance; so, if
+I seem neglectful, remember I must obey my orders, whatever they are.
+Ah! there's a shot."
+
+Her hand ached long afterward from his quick, strong pressure, and then
+he mounted and was away at a gallop. Miss Lou hastily returned to the
+house, but Chunk coolly entered the cabin, saying, "I'se git a bite fer
+mebbe I ain' yere ter dinner."
+
+"Reck'n you better be skerce, Chunk, ef Mad Whately comes," said his
+grandmother, trembling.
+
+"I knows des w'at ter 'spect fum Mad Whately en fum dat ar oberseer
+too, but dey fin' me a uggly ole hornet. I got my sting han'y," and he
+tapped the butt of a revolver in the breast of his coat. Having
+devoured the remnants of the breakfast he darted out and mounted his
+horse also.
+
+Mad Whately was coming sure enough, and like a whirlwind. He had fallen
+in with the van of the Confederate advance during the night, and by his
+representations had induced an early and forced march to The Oaks. The
+vigilant Scoville, with his experiences as a scout fresh in his mind,
+had foreseen this possibility. He had two plans in his mind and was
+ready to act upon either of them.
+
+Rushing through the hallway of the mansion from the rear entrance, Miss
+Lou found her kindred on the veranda. They were too excited and eager
+to ask where she had been, for the fierce rebel yell had already been
+raised at the entrance of the avenue.
+
+"Ah!" exclaimed Mr. Baron, "now we'll see this Yankee scum swept away."
+
+Apparently he would have good reason for his exultation. Scoville was
+the last man in the world to fight blindly, and Miss Lou kept her eyes
+on him. As he sat on his horse, where he commanded the best view of the
+advancing enemy, she thought he appeared wonderfully quiet. Not so his
+men. They were galloping to the right of the mansion, where there was a
+grove on rising ground which formed a long ridge stretching away to the
+northwest. It can readily be guessed that it was Scoville's aim not to
+be cut off from the main Union column by a superior force, and the
+ridge would enable him to see his enemy before he fought, if he should
+deem it wise to fight at all. He knew that his horses were fresh. If
+those of the attacking party were somewhat blown he could easily keep
+out of the way if it were too strong to cope with. He exchanged a few
+words with the sergeant commanding the scouting party recently sent
+out, and pointed to the grove with his sabre, then slowly followed with
+his eye on the enemy.
+
+Miss Lou was in a fever of apprehension in his behalf, for already
+shots were fired at him from the Confederates. Suddenly she heard the
+click of a musket lock just beneath her, and, looking down, saw Perkins
+levelling a piece at Scoville. Quick as light she drew off her slipper
+and dashed it into the man's face as he fired. By reason of his
+disconcerted aim the bullet flew harmlessly by the Union officer, who
+gave a quick, stern glance toward his assailant, recognized him, and
+galloped after his men.
+
+"You vile murderer!" cried Miss Lou, "would you shoot a man in his
+back?"
+
+"Oh, come, Perkins, that's hardly the thing, no matter what your
+provocation," Mr. Baron added.
+
+Perkins bestowed a malignant glance on Miss Lou, then limped away,
+wearing a sullen look. The officer in command of the Confederates
+sheered off across the lawn toward the grove, and the girl quickly saw
+that his force greatly outnumbered that of Scoville. Mad Whately dashed
+up to the piazza steps and asked breathlessly, "Are you all safe?"
+
+"Yes," cried his mother. "Thank God! I see you are safe also."
+
+He turned his eyes on his cousin, but in her cold, steady gaze found no
+encouragement. With something like an oath, he turned and galloped
+after the attacking force.
+
+But Scoville did not wait to be attacked. He continued with his men
+along the ridge, retreating rapidly when pressed, pausing when pursuit
+slackened. The officer in command soon remarked to Whately, "We are
+using up our horses to no purpose, and we shall need them for more
+important work later in the day."
+
+Therefore he sounded recall and retired on the mansion, Scoville
+following, thus proving that he was governed by other motives than
+fear. Indeed, he was in a very genial frame of mind. He had got all his
+men off safely, except two or three laggards, and had already sent
+swift riders to inform his general of the situation. Knowing that the
+tables would soon be turned, he was quite content that he had not made
+an obstinate and useless resistance. "What's more," he thought, "Miss
+Lou would not have kept out of danger. It isn't in her nature to do so.
+Miss Lou! I wish I might call her that some day and then drop the Miss.
+One thing is clear. If I meet that cousin again, he'll show me no
+quarter. So I must look out for him and that assassin of an overseer,
+too. She called him by his right name, the brave little girl! No need
+of asking me to come back, for I'd go to the ends of the earth to see
+her again."
+
+If he had know how her presence of mind and swift action had in all
+probability saved his life, his feelings would have been far more
+vivid, while his belief in the luck of throwing an old shoe would have
+become one of the tenets of his faith. Miss Lou went after the
+extemporized missile and put it on again, saying, "I have fired my
+first and last shot in this war."
+
+"It is indeed becoming doubtful on which side you are," answered her
+uncle sternly.
+
+"I'm not on the side of that wretch Perkins. Suppose he had succeeded,
+and Lieutenant Scoville's general came here, what mercy could we
+expect? If Perkins values his life he had better not be caught."
+
+"I am glad indeed, Louise, that you prevented such a thing from
+happening," said Mrs. Whately. "The result might have been very
+disastrous, and in any event would have been horrible. It was a brave,
+sensible thing to do, and you will find that Madison will think so,
+too."
+
+Mad Whately, however, was in anything but a judicial mood.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+A GIRL'S APPEAL
+
+
+Miss Lou was too well acquainted with, her cousin not to recognize
+evidences of almost ungovernable rage during the brief moment he had
+paused at the veranda. She looked significantly at his mother, whose
+face was pale and full of an apprehension now uncalled for, since the
+prospect of an immediate battle had passed away. "She is afraid of him
+herself, her own son, and yet she would marry me to him," the girl
+thought bitterly.
+
+Miss Lou was mistaken. Her aunt had fears only FOR her son, knowing how
+prone he was to rash, headlong action when almost insane from passion.
+The girl, however, was elated and careless. She justly exulted in the
+act by which she had baffled the vengeance of Perkins, and she had
+ceased to have the anxieties of a bitter Southern partisan. Such she
+would have been but for her alienation from those identified with the
+cause. She was capable of the most devoted loyalty, but to whom should
+she give it? If a loving father or brother had been among the
+Confederates, there would have been no question. Now she was sorely
+perplexed in her feelings, for the South was represented by those bent
+upon doing her a wrong at which her very soul revolted, and the North
+by one who had satisfied her sense of right and justice, who, more than
+all, had warmed her heart by kindness. The very friendliness of the
+negroes inclined her to take their part almost involuntarily, so deep
+was the craving of her chilled nature for sympathy. If she had been
+brought up in loving dependence she would not have been so well
+equipped for the chaotic emergency. Having no hope of good counsel from
+natural advisers, she did not waste a moment in seeking it, or weakly
+hesitate for its lack. What her bright, active mind suggested as right
+and best, that she was ready to do instantly. Now that she had gained
+freedom she would keep it at all hazards.
+
+When the Confederate officers approached the house, she was glad to
+observe that her cousin was not chief in command.
+
+Mr. Baron went down upon the lawn to meet the officers, and, after a
+brief parley, Major Brockton, the senior in command, began to dispose
+of his men for a little rest and refreshment, promising to join the
+family soon in the dining-room. Miss Lou, unasked, now aided in the
+preparations for the morning meal. Fearing Aun' Suke would get herself
+in trouble, she ran to the kitchen and told the old cook to comply with
+all demands as best she could. She had scarcely spoken when Mrs. Baron
+entered. Casting a severe look on her niece, she asked Aun' Suke, "Will
+you obey me now? Will you tell me you are a free woman now?"
+
+"My haid in a whirl aready, misus. Ef you wants me ter I kin cook, but
+I kyant keep track ob de goin's on."
+
+"I can," replied the indomitable old lady, "and I can keep a good
+memory of the behavior of all on the plantation!"
+
+"You can't govern much longer by fear, aunt," said Miss Lou. "Had you
+not better try a little kindness?"
+
+"What has been the result of all the years of kindness bestowed upon
+you?" was the indignant answer.
+
+"I only meant that it might be well to bestow a little of what other
+people regard as kindness. I had asked Aun' Suke to do her best and am
+sure she will."
+
+"It will be strange if she does, when you are setting the example of
+doing your worst. But I am mistress once more, and wish no
+interference."
+
+"Doan you worry, honey, 'bout we uns," said Aun' Suke quietly. "We
+yeard de soun' fum far away, en we year it agin soon."
+
+Meanwhile Mad Whately was closeted with his uncle and mother, listening
+with a black frown to all that had occurred.
+
+"I tell you," exclaimed the young man, "it's as clear as the sun in the
+sky that she should be sent away at once--in fact, that you all should
+go."
+
+"I won't go," said Mr. Baron, "neither will my wife. If the country has
+come to such a pass that we must die on our hearths we will die right
+here."
+
+"Then with my whole authority, mother, I demand that you and my cousin
+go at once while opportunity still remains. The forces on both sides
+are concentrating here, and this house may soon be in the midst of a
+battle. Lou will be exposed to every chance of war. By Heaven! the girl
+to be my wife shall not trifle with me longer. Oh, mother! how could
+you let her walk and talk alone with that Yankee officer?"
+
+"I tell you both you are taking the wrong course with Louise," began
+Mrs. Whately.
+
+"You never spoke a truer word, auntie," said Miss Lou, entering.
+
+Stung to the quick, Whately sprang up and said sternly, "In this
+emergency I am the head of my family. I command you to be ready within
+an hour to go away with my mother. Perkins and a small guard will go
+with you to my cousin's house."
+
+"Go away with that cowardly wretch, Perkins? Never!"
+
+"You are to go away with your aunt and my mother, and you cannot help
+yourself. Your readiness to receive attentions from a miserable Yankee
+cub shows how little you are to be trusted. I tell you for the honor of
+our house you SHALL go away. I'd shoot you rather than have it occur
+again."
+
+"You silly, spoiled, passionate boy!" exclaimed Miss Lou, rendered
+self-possessed by the very extravagance of her cousin's anger. "Do you
+suppose I will take either command or counsel from one who is beside
+himself? Come, Cousin Mad, cool off, or you'll have some more repenting
+at leisure to do."
+
+She walked quietly out of the room to the veranda just as Major
+Brockton was about to announce himself.
+
+"Miss Baron, I presume," he said, doffing his hat.
+
+"Yes, sir. Please sit down. I think we shall soon be summoned to
+breakfast. If the worst comes to the worst," she resolved, "I can
+appeal to this officer for protection."
+
+"Mother," said Whately in a choking voice, "be ready to go the moment
+you have your breakfast."
+
+His passion was so terrible that she made a feint of obeying, while he
+rushed out of the rear door. Perkins readily entered into the plan, and
+gave Whately further distorted information about Miss Lou's recent
+interview with Scoville. Mrs. Whately's horses were quickly harnessed
+to her carriage, and Perkins drove it near to the back entrance to the
+mansion.
+
+As Whately entered, his mother put her hand on his arm, and warned,
+"Madison, I fear you are all wrong--"
+
+"Mother, I will be obeyed at once. The carriage is ready. My own men,
+who have been paroled, will act as escort. Lou shall go if taken by
+force."
+
+"Madison, what can you hope from a wife won by such violence?"
+
+"She will fear and obey me the rest of her life. I'd rather die ten
+thousand deaths than be balked after what she has said. Come, let's go
+through the form of breakfast and then I shall act."
+
+They found Miss Lou with her uncle, aunt, and Major Brockton already at
+the table. The major at once resumed his condolences. "I am very sorry
+indeed," he said, "that you ladies are compelled to leave your home."
+
+"Do you think it wisest and best that we should?" asked Mrs. Whately
+quickly, hoping that her niece would feel the force of the older
+officer's decision.
+
+"Yes, madam, I do. I think that the sooner you all are south of our
+advance the better. It is possible that a battle may take place on this
+very ground, although I hope not. As soon as my men have had something
+to eat I shall follow the Yankees, a course I trust that will bring on
+the action elsewhere; but this region will probably become one of
+strife and turmoil for a time. It won't last long, however, and if the
+house is spared I think you can soon return."
+
+Mrs. Baron poured the coffee and then excused herself. A few moments
+later Miss Lou, who was very observant, noted a significant glance from
+Zany. As the dusky waitress started ostensibly for the kitchen, the
+young girl immediately followed. Whately hesitated a moment or two,
+then left the breakfast room also. But Zany had had time to whisper:
+
+"Oh, Miss Lou, Miss Whately's keridge's at de do', en Perkins en sogers
+wid it. Ole miss in yo' room en--"
+
+"Quit that," said Whately in a low, stern voice, and Zany scuttled away.
+
+"Now, then," resumed Whately to his cousin, "if you have any dignity or
+sense left, get ready at once. I can tell you that I'm far past being
+trifled with now."
+
+"I'll finish my breakfast first, if you please," was the quiet
+response, so quiet that he was misled, and imagined her will breaking
+before his purpose.
+
+They were scarcely seated at the table again before she startled them
+all by saying, "Major Brockton, I appeal to you, as a Southern
+gentleman and a Southern officer, for protection."
+
+"Why, Miss Baron!" exclaimed the major, "you fairly take away my
+breath."
+
+"Little wonder, sir. I have had mine taken away."
+
+"Louise, you are insane!" cried Mr. Baron, starting up.
+
+"Major, you can see for yourself that I am not insane, that I have
+perfect self-control. As you are a true man I plead with you not to let
+my cousin send me away. He can only do so by force, but I plead with
+you not to permit it. If I must I will tell you all, but I'd rather
+not. I am an orphan and so have sacred claims on every true man, and I
+appeal to you. I do not fear any battle that may be fought here, but I
+do fear being sent away, and with good reason."
+
+"Oh, Louise!" cried Mrs. Whately, with scarlet face, "you place us in a
+horrible position."
+
+"Not in so horrible a one as I have been placed, and which I will not
+risk again, God is my witness."
+
+Major Brockton looked very grave, for he was acquainted with Whately's
+recklessness. The young man himself was simply speechless from rage,
+but Mr. Baron sprang up and said sternly, "You shall hear the whole
+truth, sir. It can be quickly told, and then you can judge whether I,
+as guardian, am capable of countenancing anything unwarranted by the
+highest sense of honor. This girl, my niece, has been virtually
+betrothed to her cousin since childhood. I and her aunts deemed it
+wisest and safest, in view of dangers threatening the direst evils,
+that she should be married at once and escorted by my sister and her
+son to the house of a relative residing further south. First and last,
+we were considering her interests, and above all, her safety. That's
+all."
+
+"No, it is not all," cried Miss Lou, with a passionate pathos in her
+voice which touched the major's heart. "Would you, sir, force a girl,
+scarcely more than a child, to marry a man when you knew that she would
+rather die first? Safety! What would I care for safety after the worst
+had happened? I will not be married like a slave girl. I will not go
+away to Lieutenant Whately's relations unless I am taken by force."
+
+"Great God, sir, that I should hear a Southern girl make such an
+appeal," said Major Brockton, his face dark with indignation. "We are
+justly proud of the respect we show to our women, and who more entitled
+to respect than this orphan girl, scarcely more than a child, as she
+says herself? Good Heaven! Whately, could you not have protected your
+cousin as you would your sister? You say, sir" (to Mr. Baron) "that she
+was betrothed from childhood. She didn't betroth herself in childhood,
+did she? Believe me, Miss Baron, no one has the power to force you into
+marriage, although your kindred should use all means, while you are so
+young, to prevent an unworthy alliance."
+
+"I had no thought of marriage, sir, until terrified by my cousin's
+purpose and my family's urgency but a day since. I am willing to pay
+them all respect and deference if they will treat me as if I had some
+rights and feelings of my own. My only wish is a little of the freedom
+which I feel a girl should enjoy when as old as I am. I detest and fear
+the man whom my cousin has selected to take me away. I do not fear a
+battle. They all can tell you that I stood on the piazza when bullets
+were flying. I only ask and plead that I may stay in such a home as I
+have. My old mammy is here and--"
+
+"Well," ejaculated the major, "have you no stronger tie than that of a
+slave mammy in your home?"
+
+"I do not wish to be unjust, sir. I try to think my aunt and uncle mean
+well by me, but they can't seem to realize that I have any rights
+whatever. As for my cousin, he has always had what he wanted, and now
+he wants me."
+
+"That is natural enough; but let him win you, if he can, like a
+Southern gentleman. Lieutenant Whately, I order you to your duty. Mr.
+Baron, if you wish to send your ladies away and go with them, I will
+furnish an escort. Any Southern home beyond the field of hostilities
+will be open to you. Acquaint me with your decision," and he bowed and
+strode away.
+
+Even the most prejudiced and blind are compelled at times by an
+unhesitating and impartial opinion to see things somewhat in their true
+light. Long-cherished purposes and habits of thought in regard to Miss
+Lou, then panic, and strong emotions mixed with good and evil, had
+brought the girl's relatives into their present false relations to her.
+After the scene at the attempted wedding, Mrs. Whately would have
+returned to safe and proper ground, hoping still to win by kindness and
+coaxing. She had learned that Miss Lou was not that kind of girl, who
+more or less reluctantly could be urged into marriage and then make the
+best of it as a matter of course. This fact only made her the more
+eager for the union, because by means of it she hoped to secure a
+balance-wheel for her son. But the blind, obstinate persistence on the
+part of the Barons in their habitual attitude toward their niece, and
+now her son's action, had placed them all in a most humiliating light.
+Even Mr. Baron, who had always been so infallible in his autocratic
+ways and beliefs, knew not how to answer the elderly major. Whately
+himself, in a revulsion of feeling common to his nature, felt that his
+cousin had been right, and that a miserable space for repentance was
+before him, not so much for the wrong he had purposed, as for the woful
+unwisdom of his tactics and their ignominious failure. His training as
+a soldier led him to obey without a word.
+
+Miss Lou was magnanimous in her victory. "Cousin Madison," she said
+earnestly, "why don't you end this wicked nonsense and act like a
+cousin? As such I have no ill-will toward you, but I think you and
+uncle must now see I'll stop at nothing that will keep me from becoming
+your wife. There's no use of trying to make me think I'm wrong in my
+feelings, for I now believe every true man would side with me. Be my
+cousin and friend and I will give you my hand here and now in goodwill."
+
+But his anger was too strong to permit any such sensible action, and he
+rushed away without a word.
+
+"Madison!" called his mother. "Oh, I'm just overwhelmed," and she
+covered her face with her hands and burst into tears.
+
+"Well," said Mr. Baron in a sort of dreary apathy, "do you and Louise
+wish to go away under an escort furnished by the major?"
+
+"No," cried Mrs. Whately, "I would accept my fate rather than favor at
+his hands. If I could only explain to him more fully--yet how can I? My
+son, with all his faults, is all I have to live for. I shall stay near
+him while I can, for he will be reckless to-day. My heart is just
+breaking with forebodings. Oh, why couldn't you, with your gray hairs,
+have shown a little wisdom in helping me restrain him?"
+
+"I reckon the restraining should have been practiced long ago," replied
+her brother irritably.
+
+"You have practiced nothing but restraint in the case of Louise, and
+what is the result?"
+
+The girl looked at them wonderingly in their abject helplessness, and
+then said, "If you are taking it for granted that I am spoiled beyond
+remedy, I can't help it. I would have made no trouble if you had not
+set about making me trouble without end. As soon as I can I'll go away
+and take care of myself."
+
+"Of course, Louise," said Mrs. Whately, "we're all wrong, you as well
+as the rest of us. We must try to get this snarl untangled and begin
+right. The idea of your going away!"
+
+"I supposed that was the only idea," said Mrs. Baron, entering. "I, at
+least, have tried to remedy our niece's perverseness by getting her
+things ready."
+
+Mrs. Whately wrung her hands in something like despair, while Miss Lou
+burst into a peal of half-nervous laughter at the expression on her
+uncle's face. "Well," she said, "there'll be no more trouble as far as
+I am concerned unless it's of your own making. If I am protected in my
+home, I shall stay; if not, I shall leave it. One learns fast in such
+ordeals as I have passed through. Aunt Sarah, your son threatened to
+shoot me for doing what you permitted. Suppose I had told Major
+Brockton that? I made allowances for Madison's passion, but unless he
+learns to control himself he will have to vent his passion on some one
+else."
+
+"She has just lost her senses," gasped Mrs. Baron.
+
+"No, we have acted as if we had lost ours," said Mrs. Whately rising
+with dignity. "I can't reason with either of you any more, for you have
+made up your minds that a spade is not a spade. I shall tell my niece
+that hereafter I shall treat her kindly and rationally, and then go
+home," and she left husband and wife confronting each other.
+
+"What are you going to do?" asked the wife.
+
+"Do!" exploded the husband in desperation, "why, hump myself and
+restore everything in a twinkling as it was five years ago. What else
+can I do?"
+
+Even Mrs. Baron was speechless at this admission that events had now
+passed far beyond his control.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+SCOVILLE'S HOPE
+
+
+Mrs. Whately found her niece on the veranda watching the proceedings
+without, and she lost no time in expressing her purpose. To her
+surprise, a pair of arms were around her neck instantly, and a kiss was
+pressed upon her lips.
+
+"That's my answer," said Miss Lou, who was as ready to forgive and
+forget as a child. "If you say a word about going home I shall be
+unhappy. See, auntie, the Yankees are retreating again as our men
+advance."
+
+The morning sun was now shining brightly and the day growing very warm.
+Before them was the scene of military operations. At present, it
+afforded a deeply exciting spectacle, yet oppressed with no sense of
+personal danger. Scoville's little force was slowly retiring along the
+ridge which the Confederates were approaching, thus removing the
+theatre of actual conflict from the vicinity of the dwelling.
+
+Mr. Baron appeared on the veranda and soon began to yield to the
+soothing influences of his pipe. It was not in his nature to make any
+formal acknowledgments of error, but he felt that he had gone on the
+wrong track far and long enough, and so was ready for a gradual
+amelioration in his relations to his niece and sister. They had become
+too absorbed in the scene before them to think of much else, while Mrs.
+Baron sought composure and solace in her domestic affairs.
+
+At last Mrs. Whately said, "The Yankees appear to have stopped
+retreating and to be increasing in numbers. Alas! I fear our men are in
+great danger and that the main column of the enemy is near."
+
+There was a sudden outbreak of cries and exclamations from the negroes
+in the rear of the mansion. Zany rushed out, saying, "De Yanks comin'
+by Aun' Jinkey's cabin."
+
+She had scarcely spoken before they heard a rush of trampling steeds
+and the head of a Union column swept round the house. Miss Lou saw
+Scoville leading and knew that he had availed himself of his
+acquaintance with the place to guide an attack upon the Confederates in
+their rear. He saluted her with his sabre and smiled as he passed, but
+her sympathies were with the major, now taken at such disadvantage. At
+this period the troops on both sides were veterans, and neither fought
+nor ran away without good reason. Major Brockton knew as well what to
+do as had Scoville before him, and retreated at a gallop with his men
+toward the southwest, whence his supports were advancing. The Union
+attack, however, had been something of a surprise and a number of the
+Confederates were cut off.
+
+The scene and event had been one to set every nerve tingling. But a few
+yards away the Union force had rushed by like a living torrent, the
+ground trembling under the iron tread of the horses. Far more
+impressive had been the near vision of the fierce, bronzed faces of the
+troopers, their eyes gleaming like their sabres, with the excitement of
+battle. Scoville won her admiration unstintedly, even though she
+deprecated his purpose. His bearing was so fearless, so jaunty even in
+its power, that he seemed as brave as any knight in the old-fashioned
+romances she had read, yet so real and genial that it was hard to
+believe he was facing death that sunny morning or bent upon inflicting
+it. Looking at his young, smiling, care-free face, one could easily
+imagine that he was taking part in a military pageant; but the headlong
+career and flashing weapons of his men, who deployed as they charged
+straight at the Confederates, dispelled any such illusion.
+
+The ridge began to grow black with Union men and Miss Lou soon
+perceived the gleam of artillery as the guns were placed in position.
+Mr. Baron, who had permitted his pipe to go out in the excitement,
+groaned, "The Yanks have come in force and are forming a line of battle
+yonder. If our troops come up, the fight will take place on my land.
+Lord help us! What's coming next?"
+
+Miss Lou began to receive impressions which filled her with awe.
+Heretofore she had been intensely excited by what had been mere
+skirmishes, but now she witnessed preparations for a battle. That long
+line of dark blue on the ridge portended something more terrible than
+she could imagine. The sounds of conflict died away down the main road,
+the ring of axes was heard in the grove which crowned the ridge near
+the mansion, and Mr. Baron groaned again. Thin curls of smoke began to
+define the Union position--before noon thousands of coffee-pots were
+simmering on the fires.
+
+At last, a tall man, followed by a little group of officers and a
+squadron of cavalry, rode down the ridge toward the mansion. These
+troopers surrounded the house, forming one circle near and another much
+further away, so that none could approach without causing prompt alarm.
+The group of officers dismounted and orderlies held their horses. As
+the tall man came up the veranda steps Miss Lou saw two white stars on
+his shoulder. Then her uncle advanced reluctantly and this man said,
+"Mr. Baron, I presume?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"My name is Marston, commanding officer. This is my staff. Will you
+oblige us by as good a meal as can be provided hastily? I will pay for
+it."
+
+"No, sir, you cannot pay for it," replied Mr. Baron indignantly. "I
+keep a house of entertainment only for my friends. At the same time I
+know your request is equivalent to a command, and we will do the best
+we can."
+
+"Very well, sir. I can repay you in a way that will be satisfactory to
+my mind and be more advantageous to you. Hartly, tell the officer in
+command to permit no depredations. Ladies, your servant," and the
+general dropped into a chair as if weary.
+
+Some of the younger officers promptly sought to play the agreeable to
+Mrs. Whately and her niece, and upon the latter all eyes rested in
+undisguised admiration. Cold and shy as she had appeared, she had not
+failed to note the fact. The woman was sufficiently developed within
+her for this, and the quick, unanimous verdict of these strangers and
+enemies in regard to herself which she read in their eyes came with
+almost the force of a revelation. For the first time, she truly became
+conscious of her beauty and its power. More than ever, she exulted in
+her escape and freedom, thinking, "What a poor figure is Cousin Mad
+beside these men whose faces are so full of intelligence!"
+
+Mrs. Whately was the perfection of dignified courtesy, but quickly
+excused herself and niece on the plea of hastening preparations. She
+was one who could not extend even enforced hospitality bereft of its
+grace, and she also explained to Miss Lou, "We had much better gain
+their good-will than their ill-will."
+
+"Well, auntie, we must admit that the Yankees have not acted like
+monsters yet."
+
+The lady bit her lip, but said after a moment, "I suppose gentlemen are
+much the same the world over. Thus far it has been our good-fortune to
+have met with such only. There is another class, however, from which
+God defend us!"
+
+"Lieutenant Scoville admitted that himself. So there is on our side
+--men like Perkins."
+
+"No, I mean Yankee officers who have at least permitted the worst
+wrongs in many parts of our unhappy land." "Well," thought Miss Lou, as
+she helped Zany set the table, "after my experience I shall believe
+what I see. What's more, I mean to see the world before I die and judge
+of everything for myself. Now if the general on our side, with his
+staff, will only come to supper, I shall get quite an education in one
+day."
+
+Mrs. Baron retired to her room and would have nothing whatever to do
+with her present guests, but Aun' Suke did not need her orders now, nor
+did any of her assistants.
+
+Chunk had again returned to his haunts and had made havoc in the
+poultry-yard. Now he worked like a beaver, meantime enjoining Aun' Suke
+"ter sabe de plumpest chicken ob de lot fer my Boss. Marse Scoville
+brung 'em all yere, you knows. Hi! but we uns had ter git out sud'n
+dough dis mawnin'."
+
+"Does you tink de Linkum men git druv off agin?"
+
+"How you talks! Aun' Suke. Hi! Druv off! Why, de ridge des black wid
+um--anuff ter eat Mad Whately en all he men alibe. Dey des ridin' troo
+de kintry freein' we uns."
+
+"Well, I hopes I kin stay free till night, anyhow," said Aun' Suke,
+pausing in her work to make a dab at a little darky with her wooden
+spoon sceptre. "Firs' Marse Scoville whirl in en say I free; den old
+miss whirl in en say I ain'; now conies de gin'ral ob de hull lot en
+I'se free agin. Wat's mo', de freer I git de harder I has ter wuk. My
+haid gwine roun' lak dat ar brass rewster on de barn, wen' de win' blow
+norf en souf ter oncet."
+
+"No mattah 'bout yo' haid, Aun' Suke. Dat ain' no 'count. Hit's yo'
+han's dat de gin'ral want busy."
+
+"No mattah 'bout my haid, eh? Tek dat on yo'n den," and she cracked
+Chunk's skull sharply.
+
+"Dat's right, Aun' Suke, keep de flies away," remarked Chunk quietly.
+"You git all de freedom you wants ef you does ez I sez."
+
+"Mo'n I wants ef I've got ter min' ev'ybody, eben dem w'at's neber
+growed up."
+
+"I des step ter de gin'ral en say you hab dejections 'bout cookin' he
+dinner. Den I tell 'im ter order out a char'ot ter tek you ter glory."
+
+"G'lang! imperdence," said Aun' Suke, resuming her duties.
+
+"La! Aun' Suke," spoke up Zany, who had been listening for a moment,
+"doan yer know Chunk de boss ob de hull bizness? He des pickin'
+chickens now ter let de gen'ral res' a while. Bimeby he git on he hoss
+en lead de hull Linkum army wid yo' wooden spoon."
+
+Chunk started for her, but the fleet-footed girl was soon back in the
+dining-room.
+
+When the early dinner was almost ready Mr. Baron said to his sister:
+
+"Surely, there's no reason why you and Louise should appear."
+
+"Very good reason, brother. I shall make these Northern officers feel
+that they have eaten salt with us and so are bound to give us their
+protection. Moreover, I wish to gain every particle of information that
+I can. It may be useful to our general when he appears. Bring out your
+wine and brandy, for they loosen tongues."
+
+It soon became evident, however, that General Marston and his staff
+felt in no need of Dutch courage, and were too plainly aware of their
+situation to confuse their minds with their host's liquor even if they
+were so inclined. The general was serious, somewhat preoccupied, but
+courteous, especially to Miss Lou, on whom his eyes often rested
+kindly. At last he said:
+
+"I have a little girl at home about your age and with your blue eyes.
+I'd give a good deal to see her to-day."
+
+"I think, sir, you are glad that she is not where I am to-day," Miss
+Lou ventured to answer.
+
+"Yes, that's true. I hope no harm will come to you, my child, nor will
+there if we can help it. I know what claims you have upon us and would
+be proud indeed if my daughter would behave as you have in like
+circumstances. I have travelled the world over, Mrs. Whately, and have
+never seen the equal of the unperverted American girl."
+
+"I certainly believe that true of Southern girls, general," was the
+matron's reply, although she flushed under a consciousness of all that
+Scoville might have reported.
+
+"Pardon me, madam, but you are in danger of perverting the minds of
+Southern girls with prejudice, a noble kind of prejudice, I admit,
+because so closely allied with what they regard as patriotism, but
+narrow and narrowing nevertheless. That old flag yonder means one
+people, one broad country, and all equally free under the law to think
+and act."
+
+"Do you intend to remain in this country and hold it in subjection?"
+Mrs. Whately asked in smiling keenness.
+
+"We intend to give the Southern people every chance to become loyal,
+madam, and for one I rest confidently in their intelligence and sober
+second thoughts. They have fought bravely for their ideas, but will be
+defeated. The end is drawing near, I think."
+
+"Well, sir," said Mr. Baron grimly, "I am sorry you are preparing for
+some more bloody arguments about our very ears."
+
+"I am also, on account of these ladies; in other respects, I am not. By
+night there may be many wounded and dying men. It will be well for them
+that they do not fall in a wild and desolate region like some that we
+have passed through. As you say, sir, war is an argument, a heated one
+at times. But a wounded man is an appeal to all kindly humanity. You
+would nurse me a little, Miss Baron, if I were brought in wounded,
+would you not?"
+
+"Yes, sir, I would, because I feel what you say about a wounded man is
+true."
+
+"Oh, I know that," he replied with a very kindly smile. "I hope to tell
+my little girl about you." Suddenly he became grave again and said,
+"Mr. Baron, you are somewhat isolated here, and may not be so well
+informed as I am. However the prospective conflict may turn, I cannot
+remain in this region. Many of our wounded may be left. Do not delude
+yourself, sir, nor, if you can help it, permit your friends to be
+deluded by the belief, or even hope, that our forces will not soon
+control this and all other parts of the land. While I trust that
+humanity will lead to every effort to assuage suffering and save life,
+I must also warn you that strict inquisition will soon be made. There
+is nothing that we resent more bitterly than wrongs to or neglect of
+such of our wounded as must be left behind."
+
+"It would seem, sir, that you hold me responsible for evils which I
+cannot prevent."
+
+"No, sir. I only suggest that you employ your whole influence and power
+to avert future evils. I am offering a word to the wise, I trust. Ah,
+Scoville, you have news?"
+
+"Yes, sir, important," said that officer, standing dusty and begrimed
+at the doorway.
+
+"Is there haste? Is your information for my ear only? I'm nearly
+through."
+
+"Plenty of time for dinner, sir. No harm can now come from hearing at
+once what I have to say."
+
+"Go ahead, then. I'd like my staff to know."
+
+"Well, sir, having got the enemy on the run, we kept them going so they
+could not mask what was behind them. There's a large force coming up."
+
+"As large as ours?"
+
+"I think so. I gained an eminence from which I obtained a good view.
+Major Jones told me to say that he would skirmish with the advance,
+delay it, and send word from time to time."
+
+"All right. Get some dinner, then report to me."
+
+"Yes, sir;" and Scoville saluted and departed without a glance at any
+one except his commander.
+
+"What do you think of my scout, Miss Baron?" asked the general with a
+humorous twinkle in his eyes.
+
+"He proved himself a gentleman last evening, sir, and now I should
+think he was proving a very good soldier, much too good for our
+interests."
+
+"You are mistaken about your interests. Don't you think he was rather
+rude in not acknowledging your presence?"
+
+"I don't know much about military matters, but I reckon he thought he
+was on duty."
+
+The general laughed. "Well," he remarked, "it does not seem to be age
+that makes us wise so much as eyes that see and a brain back of them.
+Scoville is a gentleman and a good soldier. He is also unusually well
+educated and thoughtful for his years. You are right, my dear. Pardon
+me, but you keep reminding me of my daughter, and I like to think of
+all that's good and gentle before a battle."
+
+"I wish I could meet her," said Miss Lou simply.
+
+"Come and visit her after the war, then," said the general cordially.
+"The hope of the country is in the young people, who are capable of
+receiving new and large ideas." Having made his acknowledgments to Mr.
+Baron and Mrs. Whately, he repaired to the veranda and lighted a cigar.
+The staff-officers, who had tried to make themselves agreeable on
+general principles, also retired.
+
+Miss Lou's cheeks were burning with an excitement even greater than
+that which the conflicts witnessed had inspired--the excitement of
+listening to voices from the great unknown world. "These courteous
+gentlemen," she thought, "this dignified general who invites me to
+visit his daughter, are the vandals against whom I have been warned.
+They have not only treated me like a lady, but have made me feel that I
+was one, yet to escape them I was to become the slave of a spoiled,
+passionate boy!"
+
+Mrs. Whately guessed much that was passing in her mind, and sighed
+deeply.
+
+At the veranda steps stood Uncle Lusthah, hat in hand and heading a
+delegation from the quarters. The general said, "Wait a moment," then
+despatched one of his staff to the ridge with orders. "Now, my man."
+
+Uncle Lusthah bowed profoundly and began, "De young Linkum ossifer
+said, las' night, how you tell us mo' dis mawnin' 'bout our freedom."
+
+"You are free. Mr. Lincoln's proclamation makes you all free."
+
+"Kin we uns go 'long wid you, mars'r? Folks des seem kiner deef 'bout
+dat ar prockermation in dese parts."
+
+"No, my man, you can't go with us. We are marching much too rapidly for
+you to keep up. Stay here where you are known. Make terms with your
+master for wages or share in the crops. If it is necessary, the people
+about here will probably soon again hear the proclamation from our
+cannon. Mr. Baron, why don't you gain the goodwill of those people and
+secure their co-operation? They will be worth more to you as freemen,
+and they ARE free. I give you friendly advice. Accept what you can't
+help. Adapt yourselves to the new order of things. Any other course
+will be just as futile as to resolve solemnly that you will have
+nothing to do with steam, but travel as they did in Abraham's time."
+
+Miss Lou looked at her uncle curiously to see how he would take this
+advice. His coldness of manner and silence told how utterly lost upon
+him it was. The general looked at him a moment, and then said gravely,
+"Mr. Baron, such men as you are the enemies of your section, not such
+men as I. Good-morning, sir. Good-by, my child. Heaven bless and
+protect you!" With a stately bow to Mrs. Whately he departed and was
+soon on the ridge again with his men.
+
+"I wonder if Abraham and the Patriarchs would have been any more ready
+for the new order of things than uncle?" Miss Lou thought as she went
+to find Scoville.
+
+"He down at Aun' Jinkey's cabin. Chunk took he dinner dar," Zany
+whispered.
+
+"He des step ter de run ter wash he han's en face," said Aun' Jinkey a
+little later.
+
+Passing some screening shrubbery, the girl saw him standing on the spot
+from which he had been carried insensible by her directions so brief a
+time before. "Your dinner is ready," she called.
+
+He came to her quickly and said, "I've been trying to realize all that
+has happened since I fell at your feet yonder."
+
+"Far more has happened to me than to you," she replied. "It seems years
+since then; I've seen and learned so much."
+
+"I wish to ask you something," he said earnestly.
+
+"That scamp, Perkins, fired on me at close range. You stood just over
+him and I heard what you said. How happened it that his bullet flew so
+wide of the mark?"
+
+She began laughing as she asked, "Have you never heard that there was
+luck in throwing an old shoe? I hit Perkins over the eyes with one of
+mine."
+
+"Took it off and fired it while he was trying to shoot me?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+He seized both her hands and asked, "What will you take for that shoe?"
+
+"What a Yankee you are to ask such a question! It wasn't a shoe; it was
+a slipper." "Have you it on now?"
+
+"Yes. What should you want of it?"
+
+"I want to wear it next my heart. Which one was it? Let me see it."
+
+"No; it's old. I haven't any other, and I shall wear it on my right
+foot as long as it lasts."
+
+"Please let me see it and take it in my hands just a moment. I may
+never have a chance to ask another favor of you."
+
+"Oh, yes, you will. You are coming to see us, and the general has asked
+me to visit his daughter after the war is over. Do you think he'll
+remember it?"
+
+"The slipper, please."
+
+"How can you ask so absurd a thing?" and a dainty foot was put out a
+brief instant before him.
+
+"Oh, you little Cinderella! I wish I was the Prince." He saw something
+like a frown gathering on her face. "Don't look that way," he resumed,
+"I want to tell you something I've read. I don't remember the words,
+but the gist is that a woman never forgets a man on whom she has
+bestowed a great kindness. Already I have twice owed my life to you.
+You can't forget me. My hope is in what you have done for me, not what
+I can do for you. I can think of myself lying dead in front of the
+house, I know I am standing here looking into your true, sweet eyes.
+Let me look into them a moment, for I have no sister, no mother, no one
+in the world that I care for like you. Do not think I am making love. I
+may be dead yet before night. But whether I live or die I want you to
+remember that there is one human soul that always wishes you well for
+your OWN sake, that is wholly and unselfishly devoted to your interests
+and happiness."
+
+"There, I'm beginning to cry, and your dinner's getting cold. You must
+stop talking so."
+
+"Give me something to carry into battle this afternoon."
+
+She stooped and gathered some wild violets. "There," she said.
+
+"You could not have chosen better. Whenever I see violets hereafter
+they shall be your eyes looking at me as you are looking now."
+
+"And--well--you can remember that there is always a little friend in
+the South who does care. That's a curious thought about a woman's
+caring for those she has--I don't believe a woman can care for any one
+and not try to do something for him. Let us just think of ourselves as
+friends. It seems to me that I never want to think any other way. Now
+you MUST get your dinner. You may be summoned hastily and have no other
+chance to-day. After Uncle Lusthah's words last night I'm not going to
+have any forebodings."
+
+"Won't you let me call you Miss Lou once before I go?"
+
+"Why not?"
+
+"Well, then, Miss Lou, look in my eyes once more and remember what you
+see there. I won't say a word."
+
+She raised hers shyly to his, blushed deeply and turned away, shaking
+her head. The power to divine what she saw was born with her.
+
+"Yes, I understand you," he said very gently, "but you can't help it,
+any more than the sun's shining. Some day your heart may be cold and
+sad, and the memory of what you have just seen may warm and cheer it
+Miss Lou, you brave, noble little child-woman, didn't you see that my
+love was your servant--that it merely gives you power over me? Even as
+my wife you would be as free as I would be. Now good-by. We part here
+and not before others. Chunk is yonder with my horse. Be just as happy
+as you can whether we ever meet again or not." "Then--then--if you
+don't come again?" she faltered.
+
+"I shall be dead, but don't believe this too hastily."
+
+"You've been kind," she burst out passionately, "you've treated me with
+respect, as if I had a right to myself. You have saved me from what I
+dreaded far worse than death. You shall not go away, perhaps to die,
+without--without--without--oh, think of me only as a grateful child
+whose life you've kept from being spoiled."
+
+"I shall not go away without--what?" he asked eagerly.
+
+"Oh, I don't know. What shall I say? My heart aches as if it would
+break at the thought of anything happening to you." She dropped on the
+grass and, burying her face in her hands, sobbed aloud.
+
+He knelt beside her and sought to take one of her hands.
+
+Suddenly she hid her face against his breast for a moment and faltered,
+"Love me as a child NOW and leave me."
+
+"You have given me my orders, little girl, and they would be obeyed as
+far as you could see were I with you every day."
+
+"Lieutenant Scoville!" shouted the distant voice of an orderly. He
+hastily kissed away the tears in her eyes, exclaiming, "Never doubt my
+return, if living," and was gone.
+
+In a moment he had passed through the shrubbery. Before she had
+regained self-control and followed he was speeding his horse toward the
+ridge. "There, he has gone without his dinner," she said in strong
+self-reproach, hastening to the cabin. Chunk, who was stuffing a
+chicken and cornbread into a haversack, reassured her. "Doan you worry,
+Miss Lou," he said. "Dis yere chicken gwine ter foller 'im right slam
+troo eberyting till hit cotch up," and he galloped after his new "boss"
+in a way to make good his words.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+TWO STORMS
+
+
+Miss Lou sank wearily on the doorstep of Aun' Jinkey's cabin where the
+reader first made her acquaintance. She drew a long sigh. "Oh, I must
+rest and get my breath. So much is happening!"
+
+"You po' chile!" was the sympathetic response. "Ah well, honey, de good
+Lawd watchin' ober you. I year how dat ole snake in-de-grass Perkins
+git out Miss Whately's keridge en tink he gwine ter tote you off nobody
+know whar. You passin' troo de Red Sea long o' us, honey. I yeared how
+you say you doan wanter lebe yo' ole mammy. I ain' cried so sence I wus
+a baby w'en I yeared dat. Doan you reckermember, honey? You sot right
+dar en wish sump'n ter hap'n. I 'spects we bettah be keerful how we
+wishes fer tings. Doan you min' de time Uncle Lusthah pray fer rain en
+we wus all nigh drownded?"
+
+"I'm not sorry, mammy, things happened, for my heart's been warmed,
+WARMED as never before. Oh, it's so sweet to know that one is cared
+for; it is so sweet to have somebody look you in the eyes and say, 'I
+want you to be happy in your own way.'"
+
+"Did Marse Scoville say dat?"
+
+The girl nodded.
+
+"I'se hab ter smoke on dat ar lil whiles."
+
+Both were lost in thought for a time, Miss Lou's eyes looking dreamily
+out through the pines and oaks as they had before when vaguely longing
+that the stagnation of her life might cease. All had become strangely
+still; not a soldier was in sight; even the birds were quiet in the
+sultriness of the early afternoon. "Isn't it all a dream?" the girl
+asked suddenly.
+
+"Kin' ob wish we could wake up den, if it is. See yere, Miss Lou, you
+on'y a lil chile arter all. Doan you see Marse Scoville des tekin' a
+longer way roun' de bush? Wen he tell you he want you ter be happy he
+mean he want you hissef!"
+
+"Oh, yes, Aun' Jinkey, that was plain enough; but do you know how he
+would take me and when?"
+
+"Dat's des w'at I lak ter know, fer I tells you, chile, dis mar'in'
+business orful serus."
+
+"He would take me only when I went to him of my own free will and not
+before. I feel just as safe with him as with you. I believe he would do
+what I asked just as he minds that general of his. That's the wonderful
+part of it, which almost takes away my breath. Why, only the other day
+uncle and aunt were ordering me about as they always have, and now
+here's a brave, educated man ready to do my bidding. What a goose
+Cousin Mad was! If he had acted that way I shouldn't have known any
+better I fear than to marry him. I was so starved for a little
+consideration and kindness, that if he'd been generous and made me feel
+that he cared for ME and not for himself all the time, I fear I'd have
+just married him out of gratitude. I would have acted like an
+impulsive, ignorant child, blind to everything except that some one
+cared for me. But that's all past now. My eyes have been opened and
+I've been compelled to think and foresee the future. Dreary enough it
+would have been with him."
+
+"What you gwine ter do, honey?"
+
+"Stand on my rights. See how much I've learned in a few short days,
+yes, even hours. I've learned above all things that my life's my own.
+There were my relatives, who would reach out and take it, just as they
+would a ripe fig from a tree, with just about as much consideration for
+me as for the fig. Thank God! I have been shown clearly my right to my
+own life. Since I have learned so much in a few days, I shall keep my
+freedom and choose that which is best for me as well as best for
+others."
+
+"Now, honey, you on de right track, sho! Des you wait en lis'n. Mo'
+folks dan Marse Scoville wanter talk wid you on dis mar'age question.
+You on'y lil chile yit. Des you keep yosef deserved-like en say yo'
+mouf ain' waterin' few enybody. Marse Scoville berry nice gem'lin, but
+he yere to-day en like anuff a orful way yander termorrer--"
+
+"No matter where he is, Aun' Jinkey, he will carry the love I could
+give to a kind brother if I had one. He knows I can do no more and he
+does not ask more."
+
+"Yes, he does, honey; he ax hit in de bes way ter git hit fum you. He
+ain' de fool ter grab at hit, but he tek hit all de same."
+
+"Well," she answered judicially, "I don't see how a girl can help it if
+a man thinks more of her than she of him, but it does make all the
+difference in the world whether a man tries to grab, as you say, or
+waits respectfully for what should be a free gift, to be worth
+anything. How strange it seems to be talking quietly of such things!
+Think of what has happened, what might have happened, and what may take
+place before night!"
+
+"Well, honey, hit's a good ting ter stop tinkin' or ter tink slow
+sometimes. We couldn't keep a gwine as we wus. Our haids ud whirl right
+off our shol'ers. Hit's all so peaceful now, why doan you go ter yo'
+room en tek a nap. Mebbe you git berry lil sleep ter-night."
+
+"I reckon your advice is good, mammy. If you have trouble, come to me."
+
+As she walked through the garden and shrubbery to the mansion she felt
+that she was reacting from the strong excitements of the morning into
+languor and excessive weariness. The idle negroes had partially
+succumbed to the heat and quiet, and were generally dozing in the sun,
+even on this eventful day. Perkins, the exacting overseer, had
+disappeared on the first alarm of Scoville's charge and had not been
+seen since. When entering the house Zany, who always seemed on the qui
+vive, told her that her aunts were in their rooms and that Mr. Baron
+was in his office. Going out on the veranda, the girl saw two or three
+vigilant Union videttes under a tree. It was evident that they had
+chosen a point which commanded a good view of the house, outbuildings
+and quarters. The ridge was still lined with troops, but they appeared
+to be scattered about at their ease on the ground. The girl's eyes
+drooped; she wearily climbed to her room and was soon asleep.
+
+Many others slept also who would sleep again that night in the
+stillness of death; others who would groan through coming days and
+nights in anguished wakefulness. The temporary quiet did not deceive
+the resting soldiers on either side. They well knew that the active
+brains of their superiors were at work. Scoville found unexpected duty.
+He was given a score of men, with orders to scour the roads to the
+eastward, so that, if best, his general could retire rapidly and in
+assured safety toward the objective point where he was to unite with a
+larger force. Instead of resting, the young man was studying topography
+and enjoying the chicken which had at last caught up with him. He knew
+the importance of his work and did it thoroughly. Having chosen the
+road which promised best, he marked it on a map, expecting soon to go
+over it again as guide. He sighed deeply as he thought that it would
+lead away from the girl to whom he had devoted his life, yet not
+because he owed it to her. "If we could only remain together," he
+thought, "she would learn to give all that I give. The dear little girl
+is just learning that she is a woman, and is bewildered."
+
+Major Jones, who had been skirmishing to delay the Confederate advance,
+allowed his men and horses to rest when the enemy paused for their
+mid-day bivouac, and so had come about a cessation of hostilities
+during which both parties took breath for the coming struggle.
+
+Miss Lou was suddenly awakened by a jar which shook the house, followed
+by a strange, unearthly sound. For an instant she was confused,
+thinking night had come, so dark was her room. Springing to her window
+she threw open the blinds. A black, threatening sky met her gaze, the
+sunlight hidden by a dense bank of clouds, above which towered
+golden-tipped thunder-heads. The appearance of the ridge puzzled her.
+The cannon were there, a puff of smoke rolled heavily from one of them;
+but excepting a few gunners just about the pieces, the long line of men
+and horses had largely disappeared. Down the lawn from a point not far
+from the house to the main street and beyond was a line of horsemen,
+keeping abreast and equidistant from each other. What did it all mean?
+Facing the ridge on the left of the lawn was an extensive grove,
+through which the avenue wound in and out, and the line of horsemen was
+approaching this. Suddenly the very earth trembled and she saw smoke
+pouring upward among the trees from a rise of ground within the grove.
+All now became clear to her. While she had slept, the Confederates had
+come up, taken their position and the battle was beginning. In strong
+excitement she rushed down to the hall below, where she found her aunts
+with pallid, frightened faces. On the veranda was Mr. Baron, looking
+white indeed, but with firm, compressed lips and fiery eyes, watching
+the opening conflict.
+
+"Go in," he said sternly, "this is no place for you."
+
+In her intense absorption she did not even hear him. From the edge of
+the grove and along the avenue were now seen little puffs of smoke,
+followed by the sharp crack of carbines. The long line of Union
+skirmishers began to reply in like manner, but it was evident that they
+found themselves too obvious marks in the open. Here and there men fell
+from their saddles, and the riderless horses galloped away. The notes
+of a bugle were heard above the din, and the Union skirmish line
+retired rapidly to the foot of the ridge.
+
+Miss Lou saw all this only as the eyes catch, half-involuntarily, what
+is passing before them. With an awe almost overwhelming, her attention
+was absorbed by a phase of war utterly unknown to her--an artillery
+duel. Two Confederate batteries in the grove had opened and defined
+their positions. The Union guns replied, shot for shot, in loud
+explosions, with answering, deep-toned roar. Above the detonations were
+heard the piercing screams of the shells as they flew back and forth.
+On the ridge they burst with a sharp crack and puff of vapor, with what
+effect could only be guessed; but the missiles which shrieked into the
+grove gave the impression of resistless, demoniacal power. Great limbs
+and even tops of trees fell crashing after them. Blending faintly with
+the rending sound which followed were screams and yells.
+
+"Well," exclaimed the girl, "if Cousin Mad is there he at least is
+brave. It seems as if my knees would give way under me."
+
+Even as she spoke, a forked line of light burned downward athwart the
+heavy rising clouds. The smoke of the battle was lurid an instant; then
+came a peal which dwarfed the thunder of earthly artillery. Strange to
+say, the sound was reassuring to the girl; it was familiar. "Ah!" she
+cried, "the voice of heaven is louder than this din, and heaven after
+all is supreme. This fiery battle will soon be quenched and hot blood
+cooled."
+
+The voice in the sky was unheeded, for entering the lawn from the road,
+distant from the mansion about an eighth of a mile, was seen a solid
+gray column. On it went toward the ridge at a sharp trot. "Ah!" groaned
+Mr. Baron, "now comes the tug of war."
+
+The girl screamed and moaned as she saw shells tearing their way
+through this column, horses and men rolling over on the ground, puffs
+of smoke which rose revealing frightful gaps; but on flowed the dark
+gray torrent as if propelled by an invisible, resistless force.
+Vacancies made by wounds and death were closed almost instantly. In the
+strange, luminous twilight made by the approaching storm, the impetuous
+advance was wonderfully distinct in the distance, like a vivid
+silhouette.
+
+As the head of the column drew near the gentle acclivity, it fairly
+seemed to crumble. Grape shot was now making havoc; but for every man
+and horse that fell, two apparently came on as from an exhaustless
+reservoir. High above all sounds now came a yell which, once heard, can
+never be forgotten, and the Confederate column deployed at a gallop,
+charging the ridge. The Union skirmish line had already retired to the
+right, while pouring over the ridge by which they had been hitherto
+concealed, came rank after rank of men in blue, their deeper chest
+shouts blending with the shriller cries of their enemies. Charge was
+being met with counter charge. Cannon were silent, for now friends and
+foes were too near together. Even the clouds loomed silently, as if in
+suspense, over the terrific shock of the two lines of approaching
+cavalry.
+
+"Awful! awful!" moaned the girl.
+
+"Oh! if Madison is meeting that onset!" shrieked Mrs. Whately, beside
+herself with horror, yet compelled to look by a terrible fascination.
+
+Just as the two opposing forces dashed together a bolt of lightning
+gleamed over them, turning the upraised sabres for an instant into
+swords of fire. The crash of thunder followed so swiftly that it
+appeared to result from the impact of the two charging lines. An
+impression of annihilation was given, but so far was it from being
+realized, that the slope was seen to be alive with a struggling,
+seething mass, waving back and forth, at first downward, then
+stationary, then gradually upward, upward, until Mr. Baron shouted,
+"Hurrah! our men are carrying the ridge!"
+
+The cry was scarcely uttered before another dark line of horsemen on
+the far right was seen galloping forward toward the Confederate flank.
+Again there was another vivid flash, lighting up the scene with a
+lurid, momentary glare. The peal which followed created the illusion of
+sounding this new charge or else to be the thunder of the onset. It
+turned the fortune of the battle on the right, for the Confederates
+were seen to pause, and finally to give back slowly and stubbornly.
+Then the advancing rainfall began to blot the combatants from view.
+
+Suddenly the Union artillery opened. It seemed to the terrified
+spectators on the veranda as if the shells were shrieking directly
+toward them, but the iron bolts tore their way through the grove,
+although much nearer the house than before. The reason soon became
+apparent. On that ridge, and within the gloomy shadows of the trees,
+were officers as coolly observant as if playing a game of chess. They
+gave no more heed to the terrific peals of thunder than they would have
+done to so many Chinese gongs. While watching the attack upon his
+centre and providing against it, General Marston was also seeking to
+penetrate, by means of a powerful glass, the mask of the grove, and so
+detected a concentration on his left. Instantly his guns began to shell
+the grove near the house, where the assaulting force was massing. His
+reserves were ordered forward, and instructions rapidly given to the
+colonel who was to repel the attack; meanwhile his field-glass was
+glued to his eyes.
+
+Soon he cried, "It will be their supreme effort. We must strike a
+stunning blow in order to get away in safety," and he sprang on his
+horse and started the charge himself.
+
+The men, adoring their leader, followed with stern resolve and high
+enthusiasm. Scoville, who had returned, reported and rested somewhat,
+knew how critical was the moment. He rode close to the general, but did
+not fall out when the wary commanding officer permitted the human bolt
+he had launched to pass beyond him. He was responsible for the entire
+force, and must do just enough and no more. He must still keep his eyes
+on all parts of the field and his brain ready to direct when the result
+of the charge was known. More than the military necessity of repelling
+the Confederate charge bursting from the grove occupied the mind of
+Scoville. It looked to him as if the fight would take place about the
+very home of the girl to whom his heart was so tender, and his impulse
+was to be near, to protect and defend.
+
+The light was fading fast; the fury of the storm, whose preliminary
+blasts were shaking the dwelling, was coming as if an ally with the
+galloping Union ranks and threatening the equally impetuous onset of
+the Confederates. In the very van of the Southern force a vivid flash
+of lightning revealed Mad Whately, with a sabre of flame. For once he
+made a heroic figure. His mother saw him and shrieked despairingly, but
+her voice was lost in the wild uproar of thunder, yells and shouts of
+the combatants, the shock of steel and crash of firearms. Then torrents
+of rain, which had approached like a black curtain extending from
+heaven to earth, hid the awful scene of conflict. It vanished like a
+dream, and would have seemed but a nightmare had not the ominous sounds
+continued.
+
+Mr. Baron broke the spell which had fallen upon him, dragged his sister
+and niece within the door, and bolted it with difficulty against the
+spray-laden gusts.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+CHUNK'S QUEST
+
+
+If there had been sufficient light the battle might have continued in
+spite of the tropical downpour, but darkness became so intense that
+friend and foe were alike disguised from each other. At this crisis,
+Scoville's horse was shot and fell, dragging his rider down also. A
+flash of lightning revealed the mishap to Mad Whately, who secured the
+capture of the Union officer before he could extricate himself.
+
+By a sort of mutual consent the contending forces drew apart. Prisoners
+had been taken on both sides, and Whately, who had badly sprained his
+arm, unfitting himself for active duty, was given charge of those
+secured by the Confederates.
+
+General Marston withdrew the Union forces to the ridge again. He was
+satisfied that prudence required rapid progress toward his somewhat
+distant destination. True, he had severely checked his foes, but he
+knew that they had reinforcements near, while he had not. He deeply
+regretted Scoville's absence and possible death, but he had the map,
+and the men who had been out with the scout were acquainted with the
+selected road. Therefore, as soon as the violence of the storm abated
+and the moon shed a faint radiance through the murky clouds, he renewed
+his march as rapidly as the rain-soaked ground permitted. Fires were
+lighted along the ridge to deceive the enemy, and a rearguard left to
+keep them burning.
+
+The trembling household within the mansion slowly rallied as the sounds
+of battle died away. As soon as the fury of the conflict and storm
+decreased, Mr. Baron lighted a candle and they looked into one
+another's white faces.
+
+Miss Lou was the first to recover some intrepidity of spirit. "Well,"
+she said, "we are still alive, and these torrents are evidently
+stopping the fighting as they would put out fire."
+
+"Oh, Madison, Madison!" Mrs. Whately moaned, "are YOU living, or are
+you dead? If you are dead it is little to me that I am spared."
+
+Miss Lou did not give very much thought to her cousin. In overpowering
+solicitude she asked herself, "Where is he whose eyes looked such
+strange, sweet truth into mine to-day? Are they unseeing, not because
+it is dark, but because the light of life is quenched?"
+
+The brunt of the storm soon passed and was followed by a drizzling rain
+and the promise of a gloomy night. As the howling wind ceased their
+clamor, new blood-curdling sounds smote the girl's ears--the cries of
+wounded and dying men and horses. Then the ghastly truth, scarcely
+thought of in the preceding excitement, sickened her heart, for she
+remembered that, scattered over the lawn and within the grove, were
+mutilated, bleeding forms. They were all the more vividly presented to
+her fancy because hidden by the night.
+
+But little time elapsed before the activity of the surgeons began. Mr.
+Baron was summoned and told that his piazzas and as many rooms as
+possible must be occupied, and part of the wide hall fitted up with
+appliances for amputations. Every suitable place in the out-buildings
+was also required.
+
+Mrs. Baron almost shrieked as she heard this, seeing at one mental
+glance the dwelling which it had been her ruling passion to maintain in
+immaculate order, becoming bloodstained and muddy from top to bottom.
+
+Mrs. Whately asked only for her son, and he soon appeared, with the
+excitement of battle still in his eyes. She rushed to his arms and
+sobbed on his breast.
+
+"Come, mother," he exclaimed, "we've no time for this now. Please get a
+sling for this left arm, which aches horribly--only a sprain, but right
+painful all the same."
+
+Before the agitated lady could recover herself, Miss Lou ran to her
+room and returned with a scarf which answered the purpose.
+
+"Oh, you deign to do something for me?" he said bitterly.
+
+"Come, cousin," she replied, "since I have not lost my senses after
+what's happened it's time you regained yours."
+
+"Thank you, my dear," said his mother fervently, as she adjusted the
+support for the disabled arm. "Yes, I trust that we may all regain our
+senses, and, if we outlive these scenes, begin to act as if we were
+sane."
+
+"There, that will do," he said impatiently. "I must go now, for I have
+important duties," and he hastened away.
+
+Meantime General Marston had sent word through his picket line that he
+would not interfere with the care of the wounded and that the dwelling
+would not be fired upon if used as a hospital. He accompanied this
+assurance with the offer of medical stores, coffee, sugar and the
+services of two surgeons. The Confederate general accepted the offer.
+The trembling negroes were routed out of their quarters, and compelled
+more or less reluctantly to help bring in the wounded. Uncle Lusthah
+showed no hesitancy in the humane work and soon inspired those over
+whom he had influence with much of his spirit. It had been a terribly
+anxious day for him and those about him. Hope had ebbed and flowed
+alternately until night, when the day which seemed to him the dawning
+of the millennium ended as he imagined the world might end. Now,
+however, he was comforted in the performance of good works, and he
+breathed words of Christian hope into more than one dying ear that
+night.
+
+Perkins, the overseer, was animated by a very different spirit. At the
+first alarm of Scoville's return in the morning he had dashed into the
+grove, and next concealed himself on a distant eminence from which he
+could watch events. Under the cover of darkness he returned, and
+experienced grim satisfaction when he discovered the hated Union
+officer among the prisoners.
+
+As Whately was making his final arrangements for the night, Perkins
+touched his arm saying, "Leftenant, I'll help watch that Yank thar"
+(pointing to Scoville). "They say he's ez slip'ry ez a eel."
+
+"Do so, Perkins. We both have a heavy score to settle with him. At
+daylight I'll send him where he won't fare as well as he did on this
+plantation."
+
+"Is your arm woun'ed?"
+
+"No, only sprained, but it pains like the devil. Watch that Yank well.
+I'd rather they all got away than he."
+
+"He'll never get away alive," was the ominous reply.
+
+As was true after the first skirmish recorded in this history, Mrs.
+Whately now again appeared to the best advantage. Relieved from
+overwhelming anxiety in regard to her son, her heart overflowed with
+pity for the injured. From the outer darkness, limp, helpless forms, in
+bloodstained garments, were borne in. Groans and half-stifled cries
+began to resound through the house. Even Mrs. Baron forgot all else now
+but the pressing necessity of relieving pain and saving life, but she
+had eyes only for those who wore the gray. Mrs. Whately, on the
+contrary, made no distinction, and many a poor fellow, in blue as well
+as gray, blessed her as she aided the surgeons, two of whom were from
+the Union lines. Miss Lou remained chiefly in her own room and busied
+herself preparing bandages, sparing not her own rather scanty store of
+underclothing in the task.
+
+Mr. Baron was in the dining-room, dispensing wines and liquors to the
+officers who were coming and going. The Confederate general had made
+the wide hearth, on which roared an ample fire, his headquarters for
+the time, and was turning first one side then the other toward the
+blaze, in order to dry his uniform. Poor Aun' Suke had been threatened
+into renewed activity, and with many colored assistants had begun a
+stewing, baking and frying which promised to be interminable. Chickens,
+pigs and cattle had been killed wherever found, for hungry soldiers
+after a battle and in darkness ask no questions on either side. Mr.
+Baron knew he was being ruined, but since it was in behalf of his
+friends, he maintained remarkable fortitude, while his wife, with her
+thin, white, set face, honored every requisition.
+
+Some of the negroes, sighing for what seemed vanishing freedom, sought
+to reach the Union force, but were stopped at the picket line by which
+General Marston masked his retirement from the field. The majority of
+the slaves, however, were kept at work indoors and out, under the eyes
+of the Confederates, who quickly showed themselves to be savage toward
+any disposition to shirk orders.
+
+There was one who would have received short shrift if hands could have
+been laid upon him--Chunk. None knew this better than he, yet he was as
+fearless as he was shrewd. Scoville had already won from him unlimited
+devotion--bought him, body and soul, with kindness and freedom. When he
+found his new master had not returned from the final charge, Chunk
+questioned one and another until he learned that Scoville had been seen
+to go down and then disappear in the gloom. Whether he had been killed
+or captured, no one knew, but Chunk resolved to find out before morning
+at all risks. Yet in the darkness and rain he felt much confidence in
+his ability to elude danger, for he knew every inch of the ground and
+of numerous places for concealment.
+
+He set about his task in the most matter-of-fact way, resolving to
+begin operations with a good supper. At this early stage Aun' Jinkey
+and her cabin were both forgotten, and the poor old woman was half dead
+from terror. When Chunk tapped at the one window, she feared the spooks
+of dead soldiers had already begun their persecutions. Never was there
+a more welcome and reassuring sound than the impatient voice of her
+grandson, and she soon so rallied as to get him something to eat.
+
+"I darsn't come in," he said. "I got ter be whar I kin run en hide. Now
+granny, lis'n wid all yo' ears. Marse Scoville killed, woun'ed or took.
+I'se gwine ter fin' out which. Wen dey gits mo' settle down lak anuff
+dey be lookin' fer me yere, en I kyant come yere no mo', but I kin git
+ter Miss Lou's winder ef she hab no light in her room. I safest whar
+dey ain' lookin' fer me. Tell her ter put no light sho! Mebbe she
+hafter hep me git Marse Scoville off, ef he took en ef he woun'ed she
+de one ter 'tect en keer fer 'im. Dat ar Perkins kill 'im sho, ef he
+git de charnce. Now ef you years me toot twice lak a squinch-owl, you
+knows dat you got ter go en tell Miss Lou dat I need her hep en dat I
+gwine ter creep 'long de pazzer roof ter her winder. Ef I doan toot you
+keeps quiet till you sees me agin," and he disappeared.
+
+"Who'd a thunk dat ar boy had sech a haid!" ejaculated Aun' Jinkey,
+lighting her pipe. Deep as would now be her solicitude and great as her
+fears, her grandson's appearance and words had dispelled the
+spook-phase of her tribulations.
+
+Chunk could run on all fours as easily as in an upright position, and
+he made his way rapidly through the darkness. His first aim was to get
+his eye on Perkins and Mad Whately, from whom he felt that he and
+Scoville had the most to fear. He was now armed with a knife and short
+club, as well as a revolver, and was determined to use them rather than
+be captured. Skulking, creeping and hiding in deep shadow, he at last
+saw Perkins issuing from his house, carrying his lantern. Following, he
+distinctly observed the brief interview between the overseer and
+Whately, and guessed correctly that Scoville was among the prisoners.
+He was soon able so to shift his position as to satisfy himself on this
+point, and also to note that Perkins, from his movements, would be one
+of the guard. By the gleams of the lantern Chunk also saw that Scoville
+appeared to be watching the overseer as if suspecting treachery. "I
+watch 'im too," the negro soliloquized. "Ef he play eny debil trick he
+hissef gwine ter de debil sud'n."
+
+Scoville was indeed anxious about his position, for while he believed
+that Whately was scarcely capable of transcending the usages of war, he
+knew well that opportunity only limited the malignity of Perkins. He
+therefore rarely took his eyes from this personal enemy.
+
+For his own sake and that of the guards, Perkins aided in building a
+fire, for in the continued rain all were chilled. As Chunk saw the
+leaping flames and the lantern so placed that its rays fell on
+Scoville, he was almost in despair of any chance for rescue, but
+believed that his best course was to watch for some change which
+promised better. He remembered how Scoville had employed the hootings
+of the screech-owl as a signal, and resolved by the same means to
+prepare the prisoner for co-operation with any effort in his behalf.
+Therefore he hooted softly and was glad to see from Scoville's alert
+yet wary manner that he had recognized the signal.
+
+So intent was Chunk in watching his master that he did not hear the
+steps of a bewildered Confederate who stumbled over him and fell
+headlong with a volley of oaths. The negro employed woful strategy to
+mislead the soldier, for he grunted like a pig, thus awakening hopes of
+more fried pork. The result was immediate pursuit by all within
+hearing, and Chunk with difficulty escaped by the aid of darkness and
+his complete familiarity with the place. When at last he found himself
+secure he panted, "Mout ez well be took fer Chunk ez a hog. Stand des
+ez good a charnce. Won't try dat ar game agin."
+
+He was now sorely puzzled to know what to do, and his nerves were
+somewhat shaken by his narrow escape. At last he resolved to send his
+granny to Miss Lou and consult with the girl. Accordingly, he stole
+into the shrubbery of the garden and hooted twice, rightly thinking
+that Scoville could hear the signal also and believe that something
+might be attempted in his behalf. Cowering under a bush, he soon
+observed Aun' Jinkey tottering toward the house, muttering, "Good Lawd,
+hep us!" as she went.
+
+As the excitement of battle and exultation over the capture of Scoville
+subsided in Whately's mind he became excessively weary and his
+exhausted frame suffered from the chill and wetness of the night. He
+had sought to keep up by liberal potations in his uncle's dining-room,
+but was resolved to get a night's sleep if possible. He had urgently
+charged the sergeant of the guard over the prisoners to be vigilant.
+When Perkins offered to share in this watch Whately, understanding the
+vindictive motive, felt that he need give himself no further anxiety.
+He next sought his mother and obtained a little food which the lady had
+brought to her room.
+
+"Where is Cousin Lou?" the young man asked.
+
+"She is in her own room, and with Zany's help making bandages. I would
+advise you not to see her again to-night. You are greatly wearied."
+
+"Little wonder, after riding nearly all last night, and the fighting
+to-day."
+
+"Yes, I know, and have thought of all nearly every moment. I am only
+too thankful that you have survived. You have gone to the limit of
+human endurance and must sleep. The less you and Louise say to each
+other for a short time the better. After you have both grown calmer and
+have had a chance to think you will see things in a different light."
+
+"Mother, do you think I mean to be thwarted by that girl? I would marry
+her now from pure pride--for the sake of humbling her and teaching her
+that she made the mistake of her life in so crossing my will and in
+subjecting me to the mortification I endured this morning."
+
+"Madison! actuated by such motives, you'll never win her! If you will
+closely follow my advice I believe you can succeed. I must tell you
+plainly that if you join with brother and his wife in their tactics it
+will always end much as it did this morning."
+
+"Well, anyhow, I have that cursed Yankee cub that she went walking with
+in my power."
+
+"What! Lieutenant Scoville?"
+
+"Yes; he's a prisoner and Perkins is helping watch him."
+
+"Then I implore you not to let Louise know it. She saw that this
+Scoville might have killed you. She is merely friendly toward him
+because, instead of treating us rudely, as she was led to believe he
+would, he was very polite and considerate when we were in his power.
+That wretch Perkins tried to shoot him to-day and probably would have
+succeeded but for Louise," and she narrated the circumstances.
+
+Her son frowned only the darker from jealousy and anger.
+
+"Oh, Madison! why won't you see things as they are?" his mother
+resumed. "If you had treated this Yankee officer with kindness and
+thanked him for his leniency toward us, you would have taken a long
+step in her favor. If you were trying to make her hate you, how could
+you set about it more skilfully?"
+
+"Mother," he replied doggedly, "if Lou had married me, even if she had
+yielded reluctantly, I would have been her slave; but she has defied
+me, humiliated and scoffed at me, and I shall never whine and fawn for
+her favor again. I don't believe it would be of any use. If I should
+change my tactics she would only despise and laugh at me. What's more,
+my very nature revolts at such a change. I can't and won't make it. She
+shall learn to fear me. Women marry for fear as well as love. This
+Scoville gives me a chance to teach her the first lesson. He shall be
+sent by daylight to a Southern prison and that will be the last of him.
+Lou shall learn, as all will find out, that it's poor policy to thwart
+me. That major who interfered so impudently in our affairs is dead."
+
+"Oh, Madison!"
+
+"You needn't look so. I had nothing to do with it. There were plenty of
+Yankee bullets flying to-day. All I mean to say is that it will prove
+serious for any one to cross my path. Fate is on the side of a man who
+WILL have his own way, and Lou will discover this fact sooner or later."
+
+Poor Mrs. Whately was compelled to rate these vaporings at their true
+worth, seeing that between wine, anger and long-indulged arrogance, he
+was in a melodramatic mood and beyond reason: so she only said
+soothingly, "Please never let Louise know that I was aware of
+Scoville's captivity. After you have rested and have had time to think
+you will see things differently. I warn you however against Perkins,"
+she added solemnly. "If you identify yourself with him in any way you
+may involve yourself and all of us in ruin. Now come, I will make a bed
+for you at the end of the hall near my room, and you had better sleep
+while you can."
+
+He readily acquiesced, for even his lurid schemes for the future could
+keep him awake no longer. In a few moments he was sleeping soundly on a
+mattress, wrapped in a blanket. His uniform was hung on the back of a
+chair near him to dry.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+A BOLD SCHEME
+
+
+Aun' Jinkey gained Miss Lou's room in safety, but panting so from
+fright and exhaustion as to be for a few moments utterly incapable of
+speech. The girl divined that something serious was to be told. To her
+questioning look, the old mammy nodded, glancing meantime at Zany as
+much as to say, "We should be alone." This quick-witted negress,
+consumed with curiosity about Chunk, and some deeper interest, resolved
+not to be sent away.
+
+"Why you look dat away at Miss Lou, Aun' Jinkey?" Zany asked
+indignantly. "Time you knowed dat Miss Lou trus' me en I ain' doin'
+not'n ter loss dat trus'. She know bettah'n you dat ef dars eny ting
+ter be done I de one ter he'p."
+
+"We can trust Zany," whispered Miss Lou, who had become very pale. "You
+have some news about Lieutenant Scoville?"
+
+"Well, on'y dis, honey, Chunk lookin' fer 'im. Marse Scoville didn't
+come back fum dat las' fight, he say, en he say ter me dat ef he toot
+twiced lak a squinch-owl dat mean I go ter you, fer he need yo' he'p.
+He des done tooted," and Aun' Jinkey repeated all of her grandson's
+words as far as she could remember them.
+
+Miss Lou thought a few moments and her face grew very resolute. "Aun'
+Jinkey," she said, "tell Chunk I will do as he wishes, but he must act
+carefully and not too hastily. Cousin Mad is already asleep. One after
+another will follow his example, and fewer will be around by and by. We
+must take no risks that can be helped. The fact that he wishes to see
+me in this secret way is pretty good proof that the lieutenant is a
+prisoner. If he were wounded or--or--" but a rush of tears suggested
+the word she could not utter. "You had better go now, and let no one
+frighten you into telling anything. Appeal to me if threatened."
+
+As the old woman was stealing out she met Mrs. Baron, who asked
+sharply, "What do you want?"
+
+"Does you tink I doan wanter know dat chile is safe?"
+
+"If you wish to be safe yourself, see to it you have nothing more to do
+with that grandson of yours. He has sinned away HIS day of grace, and
+no mercy will be shown to those who have anything more to do with him."
+
+"I years you, misus," said Aun' Jinkey, stolidly continuing on her way.
+
+Miss Lou, who had followed her mammy to the head of the stairs, heard
+this warning and returned to her room with a stern look. She deemed it
+best to say nothing and give the impression that she could not endure
+the sights and sounds below stairs.
+
+Mrs. Whately entered soon afterward and did her best to propitiate her
+niece. Miss Lou pretended to be very weary and was glad to see that her
+aunt actually was so. At last the matron said, "Well, I'll go down once
+more and see if there is anything which I must attend to; then I shall
+try to rest a little while Madison is sleeping. Such experiences as
+we've had wear one out fast. I advise you, too, my dear, to sleep when
+you can."
+
+"Yes, aunt, I suppose you are right. So much may happen to-morrow."
+
+Mrs. Whately soon retired, and Miss Lou, listening at her door a
+moment, knew that she was sleeping. Then she returned to her own room,
+blew out her candle, opened the window softly and waited for Chunk.
+"Zany," she said, "sit in the dark there, and do not speak or let Chunk
+know you are here, unless permitted."
+
+Along the most secluded end of the house the piazza had not been built,
+a small lean-to extension taking its place. An apartment was thus
+formed which could be entered from without as well as from within the
+dwelling, and here Mr. Baron maintained what was at once a business
+office and a study. This extension was but one story high, with a roof
+which sloped to rising ground beyond. Chunk knew that he could easily
+gain this roof, and from it that of the front piazza also. When
+returning through the garden Aun' Jinkey had whispered to him not to
+make the attempt to see Miss Lou until her light was extinguished. Then
+she added the words that Mrs. Baron had just spoken to her and hastened
+tremblingly to her own chimney-corner. Chunk made a wide circle,
+approaching the house again at an angle which would give him a view of
+Miss Lou's window, and watching till it darkened. From the garden he
+had carried a small, light ladder which he had used when pruning
+fruit-trees. He stole near the extension warily, the shrubbery growing
+in that vicinity favoring his effort, and the heavy pall of clouds
+obscuring almost entirely the mild radiance of the moon.
+
+Satisfied by a careful reconnoissance that no one was watching or
+stirring at that end of the house, with the stealth and agility of a
+cat he went from roof to roof and crawled to Miss Lou's window.
+
+"Chunk," she whispered.
+
+"Dat's me, mistis."
+
+"You're a good, brave fellow. Now tell me quick--don't waste a word
+--where is Lieutenant Scoville?"
+
+"He's wid de pris'ners, en Perkins en sogers watchin' 'im."
+
+"Why is Perkins watching him?" the girl asked in deep alarm.
+
+"Dunno, Miss Lou, 'cept on 'count ob he gradge. Mad Whately en he talk
+knowin'--like en den Perkins tek he lantern en jine de gyard. W'en I
+las' see 'im he watchin' Marse Scoville close."
+
+"Lieutenant Scoville wasn't hurt, was he?"
+
+"Reck'n not. Didn't 'pear dat away, but he look at Perkins ez ef he
+feared on 'im. Ef I had ony Perkins ter deal wid I gib Marse Scoville
+he freedom in pay fer mine, but dar's sogers all aroun' en dey stick me
+quick ez dey would a pig."
+
+"Oh, Chunk! what shall we do? I could have no influence over the guard
+or Perkins either. Oh! OH! Mad Whately, you'll end by making me loathe
+you. To think of employing that treacherous wretch!"
+
+"Dat's des w'at I feard on, Miss Lou. Reck'n yo' cousin en Perkins
+projeckin' some debil trick."
+
+"You say my cousin has charge of the prisoners?"
+
+"Yassum. I yeared 'im gib de orders 'bout um, but I too fur off ter
+year w'at he say."
+
+"Can you think of any way, Chunk?"
+
+"Ef de gyard ony all get ter sleep, I'd tek de risk ob tacklin'
+Perkins, but dere's too many en I des stumped ter know w'at ter do."
+
+"Hi! Miss Lou," whispered listening Zany, "I kin tell you w'at ter do."
+
+"Doan you pay no 'tention ter her foolishness," said Chunk coolly. "Dis
+life-en-death business, en Zany outgrowed her sense."
+
+"En you ain' growed into your'n," responded Zany. "Ef you has, why doan
+you tell Miss Lou 'bout tings dat kin be done 'stead o tings dat kyant
+be?"
+
+"Well, Zany, what have you to say? Quick, and speak lower."
+
+"Miss Lou, dar's Mad Whately's coat en pants hangin' out in de hall.
+You put dem on, en tie yo' arm up in a sling. In de night who say you
+ain Marse Whately?"
+
+"Oh, Zany!" exclaimed the girl, appalled at first by the boldness of
+the scheme.
+
+"Well, dar now," whispered Chunk, "who'd tink dat ar gyurl got so much
+gumption! See yere, Miss Lou, dat de way ef you got de spunk ter do it.
+Ole Perkins tink you Mad Whately comin' ter play de debil trick en let
+you tek Marse Scoville way quietly, en de gyard won' 'fere wid you
+nudder, kase dey un'er yo' cousin. You kin go en lead Marse Scoville
+right off, en if Perkins follow I settle 'im."
+
+"Do you think there's no other way?" Miss Lou asked, with 'quick,
+agitated breathing.
+
+"Fo' de Lawd, I doesn't."
+
+"I don't know what they would do to me in the morning, I'd be sent
+away. Oh, you can't realize the risk I would take."
+
+"'Spects not, mistis. I ony know Marse Scoville tek mo' resk fer you ef
+he could."
+
+Chunk had touched the right chord now. She set her white face like
+flint in the darkness, and said, "I'll make the attempt, no matter what
+happens to me."
+
+"Den I des sneak out en get he coat en trousers," Zany whispered.
+
+"Yes."
+
+"En, Miss Lou, you des come out de house dis away wid me en Zany,"
+Chunk added. "Less charnce er bein' stopped. We kin go troo de gyardin
+end de bushes till we mos' whar we kin see Marse Scoville. Mebbe hit
+berry much plainer w'at ter do arter we get out en look roun'. I hab a
+ladder yere en you git down mighty easy."
+
+"Yes, that's the best way. I wish to take no risks of being seen till
+after I make my attempt."
+
+Zany reconnoitred the hall. No one was in sight. Even Mrs. Baron,
+wearied out, had retired, and Mr. Baron had resolved to spend the night
+in the dining-room, partly out of courtesy to the Confederate general
+and partly to be ready for any emergency. In the hall and on the front
+and rear piazzas were alert sentinels who would have observed and
+reported any unusual proceeding--therefore Chunk's plan was the only
+feasible one. In the darkness Zany helped Miss Lou don her cousin's
+uniform and slouched hat which, limp from the rain, fell over her face.
+She was not so very much shorter than he as to make the fit a bad one
+when seen in the partial light. The trousers had to be turned up, but
+that would be expected on account of the mud. Her plumpness filled out
+the coat very comfortably, and her arm in a sling made the disguise
+almost perfect.
+
+While Miss Lou was dressing Chunk again reconnoitred and reported the
+coast clear. It was now about midnight and all were sleeping except
+those whom imperative duty or pain kept awake. Chunk led the way,
+steadying Miss Lou with a firm hand, and Zany followed.
+
+"Now, Miss Lou," Chunk whispered, "I tek you de s'curest way, so you
+git back en' nobody see you ef I git cotched."
+
+They made a circuit to avoid the kitchen and climbed over a low fence
+into the garden. On the further side, opening on the driveway to the
+stables, was a gate. Before reaching this, Miss Lou said to Zany, "You
+stay here. If there's an alarm, go to the kitchen. You must not be
+known to have had anything to do with this affair. It might cost you
+your life."
+
+"Ve'y well, Miss Lou."
+
+The young girl and her guide paused at the gate some moments, for
+attendants upon the wounded, with whom the outbuildings were filled,
+were passing to and fro. At last they stole across the roadway to the
+shelter of a clump of trees beyond. From this point they could see the
+group of prisoners about the fire, which was in a rather dying
+condition. It was evident that some of the guards had succumbed to
+weariness, but Perkins still watched with the tirelessness of hate, his
+lantern so placed that its rays fell on Scoville, who could not make a
+movement without being observed. Indeed, it was clear that he, too, was
+almost overcome with sleep, for he occasionally nodded and swayed
+before the fire.
+
+"Now, Miss Lou," whispered Chunk, "I gwine ter wake Marse Scoville up
+by tootin' lak a squinch-owl," and he did so briefly.
+
+The Union officer was much too wary to start and look around, but he
+gradually proved that he was alert. Close scrutiny of Perkins showed
+that the signal had no significance to him.
+
+"Miss Lou," resumed Chunk, "dere's not'n fer you but ter walk right
+down de road ter de fire, berry quiet like, put yo' finger on yo' lips
+ter Perkins so he tink you 'bout ter play de debil trick, en' den lead
+Marse Scoville into de gyardin. Ef Perkins foller, I foller 'im. My
+hoss down by de run en we git off dat away."
+
+The girl drew a long breath and started. Now that she was in the crisis
+of the emergency a certain innate spirit and courage sustained her.
+Knowing her cousin so well, she could assume his very gait and manner,
+while her arm, carried in a sling, perfected a disguise which only
+broad light would have rendered useless. Her visit caused no surprise
+to the sergeant of the guard, on whom at first she kept her eyes. He
+merely saluted and thought Lieutenant Whately was attentive to his
+duty. Perkins was not surprised either, yet a little perplexed. As it
+had been supposed and hoped, the thought rose instantly in his
+revengeful nature that the Confederate officer had some design on
+Scoville. The latter watched the form recognized by the others as that
+of Whately with the closest scrutiny, and an immense throb of hope
+stirred his heart. Could it be possible?
+
+Miss Lou looked over the sleeping prisoners for a moment and then, as
+if satisfied, stepped quite near to Perkins, guarding meantime not to
+permit the rays of the lamp to fall on her face. "Leave him to me," she
+whispered, with a nod toward Scoville, and she put her finger to her
+lips. She next touched Scoville on the shoulder and simply said, "Come."
+
+He rose as if reluctantly and followed.
+
+Perkins did not suspect the ruse, the disguise was so good and
+Whately's right to appear so unquestioned; but he felt defrauded in
+having no part in the vengeance which he supposed would be wreaked on
+Scoville. After a moment or two of thought, he obeyed the impulse to
+follow, hoping to see what Whately intended to do, and if circumstances
+warranted, to be near to help. "If Mad Whately's high-strung notions
+lead 'im to fight a duel," he thought, "en the Yank comes off best,
+I'll settle my own score. Whately was ter'ble stirred up 'bout the
+Yank's talkin' ter his cousin, en would like ter kill 'im, but his
+officer-notions won't let 'im kill the blue-coated cuss ez I would. Ef
+thar's ter be a fight, I won't be fur off," and he stole after the two
+figures disappearing in the gloom.
+
+But Nemesis was on his steps. Chunk had shaken with silent laughter as
+he saw that their scheme was working well, but he never took his eyes
+from Perkins. Crouching, crawling, he closed on the overseer's track,
+and when the man passed into the garden, the negro followed.
+
+As Scoville accompanied Miss Lou, he soon ventured to breathe her name
+in a tentative way. "Hush!" she whispered. Then his heart beat thick
+with overpowering emotions of gratitude, admiration and love. Entering
+the garden, she led the way quickly toward Aun' Jinkey's cabin, and at
+a point where the shrubbery was thickest about the path, turned
+suddenly, put her finger on her lips, and breathed, "Listen."
+
+They distinctly heard steps following and drew back into the bushes.
+Then came the thud of a blow and the heavy fall of a man. The blow was
+so severe that not even a groan followed, and for a moment all was
+still. Then Chunk, like a shadow, glided forward and would have passed
+had not Miss Lou whispered his name.
+
+"Foller me," he answered breathlessly.
+
+This they did, but Scoville secured the girl's hand and carried it to
+his lips. The negro led the way beyond the garden to the run, where he
+had left his horse. "Lis'n onct mo'," he said. "Dat was Perkins I laid
+out."
+
+All was still. "Chunk," said Scoville, "go back on your tracks a little
+and see if there are any signs of alarm."
+
+Obedience was very prompt, for Chunk muttered as he ran, "My heart des
+bustin' 'bout Zany. Got ter lebe her now, sho! Ter thunk ob her showin'
+so much gumption!"
+
+Scoville again took Miss Lou's hands. "Oh, hasten, hasten," she said
+breathlessly, "you are in great danger here."
+
+"I can scarcely speak to you," he replied, "my heart is so full. You
+brave, noble little girl! How HAVE you accomplished this?"
+
+Incoherently she told him and again urged, "Oh, DO go at once, for my
+sake as well as yours, or all may be in vain. I can't breathe until
+I've put back my cousin's uniform."
+
+Now that the supreme crisis of danger had apparently passed for the
+moment, she was trembling violently in nervous reaction, and could
+speak only in little gasps. Every instant a deeper appreciation of the
+immense effort she had made in his behalf overwhelmed Scoville, and for
+a moment he lost all self-control. Snatching her to his breast he
+whispered, "Oh, you little hero, you little saint, I wish I could
+shield you with my life. I don't believe you half realize what you have
+done for me, bravest, truest, sweetest--"
+
+"Oh, hush," she pleaded, extricating herself from his arms. "Go, PLEASE
+go at once, for my sake."
+
+"Yes, my dear girl, I must go soon, more for your sake than mine. With
+this horse and this start, I am safe. Oh, it's terribly hard to leave
+you." Then he hooted low to recall Chunk. "Don't tremble so. After all,
+it's best to wait a few moments to make sure there is no pursuit. Thank
+God, after what you have done for me to-night you will never forget me,
+you will always care for me. Again I see as never before how true it is
+that a woman cares most for him whom most she has tried to help. You
+have risked much for me; I give all to you. Only death can keep me from
+seeking you and living for you always. Remember, I ask nothing which
+your own heart does not prompt, but you cannot help my giving undying
+loyalty. See, I just kneel to you in homage and gratitude. There never
+was such a gem of a girl."
+
+Chunk now appealed, recalled from a more affectionate parting than Zany
+had ever vouchsafed before, and he began to unhitch the horse.
+
+"Chunk must go back with you," Scoville began.
+
+"Oh, no," she whispered, "I cannot breathe till you both are well away.
+Chunk would be killed instantly--"
+
+"No matter; he has become a soldier like myself and must take all
+risks. I will not leave this spot--I will go with you myself, rather
+than leave you here."
+
+"Why, ob co'se I 'spects ter go back wid you, Miss Lou. You tink I
+gwine ter lebe you yere en dat ladder dar ter tell de hull business?
+Come wid me."
+
+"Well, then, good-by, and God keep you, Lieutenant. I shall hope to see
+you again."
+
+"To see YOU again will be my dearest hope. Dear, DEAR little Lou! how
+brave you've been! You've won a soldier's whole heart forever. How can
+I say good-by? You can't dream how dear you have become to me. Please,
+one kiss before we separate."
+
+Yielding to an impulse then not understood, she put her arm swiftly
+about his neck, kissed him, and turned so rapidly toward her home that
+Chunk could scarcely keep pace with her.
+
+They reached the ladder unobserved, and from the roof of the extension
+the way to Miss Lou's room was easy. Chunk went to a point from which
+he could watch the girl enter her apartment. Putting the ladder back
+into the garden, he rejoined Scoville, and together they made their way
+in the direction of the retiring Union column. Scoville never wearied
+in questioning his attendant about every detail of Miss Lou's action,
+while conjectures as to her experiences often robbed him of sleep.
+Never was a man more completely won and held in love's sweet thraldom.
+
+On regaining her room, Miss Lou hastily threw off her cousin's clothes
+and resumed her own apparel. Then she softly and cautiously opened her
+door. With the exception of sounds in the lower hall, all was still,
+and she slipped out in her stocking-feet, replaced the uniform on the
+chairs, stole back and bolted her door. For half an hour she sat
+panting on her chair, listening to every sound. Only the groans of the
+wounded smote her ears. "Oh, thank God! I do not hear HIS voice among
+them," she half sobbed, in pity for those who WERE suffering. "Well, I
+can best forget my anxiety about him by doing something for these poor
+men. Oh, how strange and true his words are! He touched my heart at
+first by just being helpless when he fell by the run, and everything I
+do for him seems to make him dearer. It cannot be that I shall never
+see him again. Oh, when shall I forget the way he took me in his arms?
+It seemed as if he gave me his whole heart then and couldn't help
+himself."
+
+There was a near mutter of thunder. In her deep preoccupation, she had
+not noticed the coming of another shower. It proved a short but heavy
+one, and she exulted. "The rain will obliterate all our tracks."
+
+Calmer thought led to the conclusion that the affair would be very
+serious for her if her part in it was discovered. She had acted almost
+without thought, without realizing the risks she had incurred, and now
+the possible consequences so appalled her that she resolved to be on
+her guard in every possible way. "He knew, he understood the risk I
+took better than I did then, better than I do now, perhaps," she
+breathed softly. "That's so fine in him--that way he has of making me
+feel that one's WORTH being cared for." She was far too excited and
+anxious to sleep. Wrapping herself up, she watched at her window. Soon
+the stars began to twinkle beneath the clouds in the west, showing that
+this last shower was a clearing one, and that the radiance of the moon
+might soon be undimmed. The fires along the ridge which, as she
+believed, still defined the Union position, were burning low. Suddenly
+flashes and reports of firearms in that direction startled her.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+A HOME A HOSPITAL
+
+
+The sudden night alarm caused by firing on the ridge can be easily
+explained. Wearied as were the Confederate general and his men, and
+severe as had been the repulse of their first attack, both were
+undaunted and, after rest and refreshment, eager to bring the battle to
+a more decisive issue, and it was determined to learn long before
+morning whether the Federal force was on the ridge or not. During the
+last shower a reconnoitring party was sent out stealthily, a few of the
+rear-guard captured, from whom it was learned that the Union column had
+been on the march for hours.
+
+Mrs. Whately was wakened and helped her disabled son to dress in haste.
+Little did Miss Lou know about the term ALIBI, but she had the
+shrewdness to show herself and to appear much alarmed. Opening her
+door, she gave a glimpse of herself in night attire with her long hair
+hanging over her shoulders, and cried, "Oh, oh, are we attacked?"
+
+"If we are you may have sad reason to wish that you had obeyed me this
+morning," replied her cousin sternly. "You no more understand your
+folly and danger than a child. Now I'm compelled to look after my
+prisoners first," and he rushed away.
+
+"Come in my room, Louise," said her aunt. "Whatever happens, it is best
+that we should be together." The girl was so agitated, fearing that in
+some way her adventures might be discovered, that she had no occasion
+to feign alarm. Mrs. Whately sought only to soothe and quiet, also to
+extenuate her son's words. "I don't suppose we truly realize yet, as
+Madison does, what war means," she concluded.
+
+Mr. Baron soon sent up word that there was no special occasion for
+further fears, and that the ladies might sleep, if they could, until
+morning.
+
+But there was no more sleep for Mad Whately. As soon as he reached the
+spot where the prisoners had been kept he asked sharply, "Where is that
+Yankee officer and Perkins?"
+
+The man then on duty answered, "The sergeant I relieved said that you
+took 'im away, sir, and that the man named Perkins followed you."
+
+"There's been treachery here," cried Whately in a rage. "Bring that
+sergeant here."
+
+The weary man was half dragged in his sleep to the officer and there
+thoroughly awakened by a volley of oaths. He stolidly told his story,
+concluding, "I cud a sworn it was you, and the overseer followed less'n
+three minutes after you left."
+
+"'I left'--curse you--don't say that again. You've been fooled or was
+asleep and neglected your duty."
+
+"Well, then, sir," was the dogged reply, "find that overseer who was a
+watchin' the Yank like a cat. Ast 'im; ast my men ef I wasn't awake en
+ef I didn't s'lute you soon ez you come. There's the overseer's lantern
+burnin' yet jis whar he left it."
+
+At this moment Perkins came staggering toward the fire, with both hands
+to his head as if trying to hold it together. His clothes were muddy,
+his face was ghastly and he stared at Whately as if the officer was
+also a part of a horrid dream.
+
+Whately seized him roughly by the arm and said sternly, "Speak, man.
+What does all this mean? Where's the Yank?"
+
+"For God's sake, quit," cried Perkins. "I'm nigh dead now. You've got
+me in anuff trouble for one night."
+
+"Trouble--you! What's your trouble to mine? I'm responsible for these
+prisoners. Now where's that Yank? Quick, or you WILL have trouble."
+
+"I ain't seen 'im since yer took 'im away--YOU. I ain't one of your
+understrappers. Ez I wuz follerin' yer some one knocked me down from
+behind and nigh onto killed me. I jes gittin' my senses back."
+
+Although so enraged, Whately knew that as a soldier he must curb his
+passion, report the facts immediately and see what could be done. His
+superior officer was called, all the parties questioned closely, the
+garden and Aun' Jinkey's cabin searched, but no new facts discovered.
+The old negress was savagely threatened, but she only replied, "I
+dunno, I dunno not'n. Wat got inter you ter tink an ole tottery,
+skeered ooman lak me gwine out in de dark en knock Marse Perkins on de
+haid?"
+
+"Where's your grandson, Chunk?" Whately demanded fiercely.
+
+"He des light out wid de Yankees dis eb'nin'."
+
+The conclusion guessed at was that Scoville had been rescued by his own
+men, who were known to be daring scouts. In the darkness and confusion
+after the battle, it was thought they had mingled with the
+Confederates, learned the situation of their leader and the general
+appearance of Whately with his disabled arm. Arrayed in the Southern
+uniform, of which scouts always had a supply, and favored by the sleepy
+condition of the guard, one of the scouts had played the trick which
+Whately rued so bitterly. Others, on the watch, had struck down Perkins
+and carried Scoville off in safety. No other theory they could hit upon
+explained so well what was known. The tricked sergeant was placed under
+arrest, and Whately, who had gone to sleep with such high and mighty
+notions of his prowess and friendly league with fate, found himself in
+partial disgrace and in the depths of mortification. He kept guard over
+his prisoners in person the remainder of the night and again had
+opportunity to repent at leisure. He mentally cursed himself as a fool,
+for now he remembered his mother's words. If he had shown leniency to
+Scoville, and brought him into the house, he might have kept the
+prisoner and won the goodwill of his cousin. Now, she would probably
+hear the humiliating facts and be less inclined either to fear or favor
+him. It was well that no suspicion on his part or that of others had
+fallen on her, for she was not one who could face coolly a severe
+cross-questioning.
+
+Perkins skulked off to his house, assuaged his aching head with cold
+water and his wounded spirit with whiskey. As he tried to think the
+matter over a vague suspicion of the truth began to enter his confused
+brain. The little slipper with which he had been hit over the eyes in
+the morning now became a broad hint. He knew well, however, that it
+would be dangerous to make any charges, or even suggestions, unless he
+had ample proof.
+
+When all became quiet again Miss Lou, in spite of deep anxieties, was
+overcome by extreme weariness and slept until, in a dream, she heard
+Scoville moaning and sighing in the extremity of physical pain.
+Starting up, she saw it was broad day. She passed her hand confusedly
+over her brow and tried to recall what had occurred, to understand the
+sounds which had suggested her dream. Then in a flash, the strange
+swirl of events in which she was involved presented itself and she knew
+she had wakened to other experiences beyond even her imagination. The
+groans of wounded men brought pitiful tears to her eyes and steadied
+her nerves by banishing the thought of self. Whatever might befall her,
+so much worse was the fate of others that already she was passing into
+the solemnity of spirit inspired by the presence of mortal pain and
+death. She drew the curtains of her window and then shrank back,
+shuddering and sobbing, for, scattered over the lawn, men and horses
+lay stark and motionless. More pitiful still, here and there a wounded
+horse was struggling feebly. The spring morning, dewy, bright,
+fragrant, made these evidences of strife tenfold more ghastly. There
+could not be a more terrible indictment of war than nature's peaceful
+loveliness.
+
+By the time she was dressed she was joined by Mrs. Whately, who looked
+serious indeed. Before they could descend to the lower hall, Madison,
+haggard and gloomy of aspect, intercepted them. Looking at his cousin's
+red eyes and pale face, he asked abruptly, "What's the matter?"
+
+"Do you think I am accustomed to these sights and sounds?" she answered.
+
+"Oh," he said, in a tone which seemed to her heartless, "it's an old
+story to me. Mother, I must speak alone with you a moment."
+
+She turned back with him to her room, meantime saying, "Louise, I do
+not think you had better go down without me."
+
+The girl tremblingly returned to her apartment, fearing that now she
+might be forced to confront her own actions. But she was conscious of a
+sort of passive courage. Mad Whately's anger, or that of others, was a
+little thing compared to the truth that men were dead and dying all
+about her.
+
+"Mother," said her son, "I had cursed luck last night. I wish I had
+slept on the rain-soaked ground near my prisoners," and he told her
+what had happened.
+
+"Oh, Madison!" sighed Mrs. Whately, "I wish this experience would teach
+you to be more guided by me. Louise cared nothing for this Yankee,
+except in a sort of grateful, friendly way. Through him, you could have
+done so much to disarm--"
+
+"Oh, well, mother, the milk is spilled. If possible, let the whole
+affair be kept from her knowledge."
+
+"Yes, I suppose that will be the best way. If she hears about it, we
+must try to explain by the usages of war. Now, Madison, you are cool.
+Let experience be your teacher, for you MUST face the truth. You must
+either give her up--"
+
+"I'll never give her up."
+
+"Then, as Major Brockton said, you must win her like a Southern
+gentleman. Her spirit is as high as yours. You can't continue to speak
+to her as you did last night and this morning. Try to realize the
+facts. In the seclusion of her bringing up, Louise has learned nothing
+of the conventionalities of society which might incline her toward a
+good match on general principles. So far from this, the many
+old-fashioned romances she has read have made her feel that she must
+and WILL have her romance. If you can make Louise feel that you love
+her so well as to become her gallant suitor, circumstances may soon
+give you great advantages. She may be cold and indifferent for a time,
+but like all passionate high-strung natures, present impulses against
+may turn just as strongly for you. At least, you have not to contend
+with that most fatal of all attitudes--indifference. A great change in
+you will be a flattering tribute to her power to which no girl would be
+indifferent. I must tell you now once for all that I will not again
+assist in any high-handed measures against Louise. Not only the
+futility of such action, but my own dignity and sense of right, forbid
+it. I did not understand her at first. Now that I do, I am all the more
+eager to call her daughter; but I wish her to feel toward me as she
+should in such a relation. Yesterday, when I apologized and told her
+that I meant to treat her with kindness and fairness, she kissed me
+like the warm-hearted girl she is. I will help you win her as a man
+should win his wife; I will not be dragged into any more false
+positions which can end only in humiliation. I will be your tireless
+ally in the only way you can succeed, but in no other."
+
+"Very well, mother, I agree," said Whately, whose nature it was to
+react from one extreme to another.
+
+"Ah, now I have hope. How is your arm?"
+
+"It pains horribly."
+
+Mrs. Whately went to Miss Lou's room and said, "Forgive me for keeping
+you waiting. Madison is almost beside himself with pain in his arm, and
+I will be detained a little longer."
+
+In her immense relief that she was not charged with all she dreaded,
+Miss Lou had leisure from her fears to feel commiseration for her
+cousin. When at last he appeared she said kindly, "I am sorry you are
+suffering so much."
+
+"If I thought you really cared I wouldn't mind the pain," he replied.
+"Cousin Lou, I owe an apology, several, I reckon, but I've been so
+distracted between conflicting feelings, duties and pain, that I
+scarcely know what I say."
+
+"You little know me if you think I'm weighing WORDS at this time," she
+replied. "Come, let us forget the past, shake hands and remember that
+we are simply cousins."
+
+He took her hand instantly, but said, "You ask what is impossible.
+Suppose you had said, 'Just remember your arm is well from this
+moment,' would it be well? I cannot help my feelings toward you and
+don't wish to."
+
+"Very well, then," she sighed, "I cannot help mine either. I don't wish
+to talk on that subject any more."
+
+"Then I must plead by actions. Well, I must go now."
+
+Mrs. Whately was much pleased, for her son was adopting just the course
+she desired. She added nothing and accompanied Louise downstairs.
+
+The amputating table had been removed and the halls cleansed, but the
+unmistakable odor of the hospital pervaded the house. Every apartment
+on the first floor except the dining-room was filled with the wounded.
+Some were flushed and feverish by reason of their injuries, others,
+pallid from loss of blood and ebbing vital forces.
+
+The Confederate general, with his staff, had already made a hasty
+breakfast and departed; through the open door came the mellow sound of
+bugles and the songs of birds, but within were irrepressible sighs and
+groans. Mrs. Whately entered the spacious parlor on the floor of which
+Confederate officers lay as close as space for attendance upon them
+permitted. The young girl paused on the threshold and looked around
+with a pitying, tearful face. A white-haired colonel was almost at her
+feet. As he looked up and recognized her expression, a pleased smile
+illumined his wan, drawn face. "Don't be frightened, my child," he said
+gently.
+
+The swift glance of her secured attention took in his condition. His
+right arm was gone and he appeared ghastly from loss of blood. In her
+deep emotion she dropped on her knees beside him, took his cold hand
+and kissed it as she said, "Please let me help you and others get well."
+
+The old man was strongly touched by her unexpected action, and he
+faltered, "Well, my child, you make us all feel that our Southern girls
+are worth fighting for and, if need be, dying for. Yes, you can help
+us, some of us, in our dying perhaps, as well as in our mending. My
+battles are over. You can help best by caring for younger, stronger
+men."
+
+"Such men will not begrudge you anything, sir."
+
+"Bravo!" cried half a dozen voices, and an officer near added, "Miss
+Baron speaks as well and true as you fought, Colonel."
+
+She looked hastily around. Seeing many friendly smiles and looks of
+honest goodwill and admiration she rose confusedly, saying, "I must go
+to work at once."
+
+"I think, Louise," said Mrs. Whately, joining her in the hall, "we can
+accomplish most if we work much together and under the directions of
+the surgeons. It is evident from the numbers of the wounded that time,
+strength, food--everything will have to be used to the best advantage.
+I'm glad that we both got some sleep last night. Now, I insist. Before
+you do a thing you must have a cup of hot coffee and some nourishing
+food yourself. The best impulses in the world are not equal to the
+tasks before us. Indeed, we shall fail these poor men in their sore
+need if we do not keep our strength. The worst is yet to come. As far
+as you can, control your feelings, for emotion wears faster than work.
+Let's first go to the kitchen."
+
+Zany followed from the dining-room with her hands full of dishes. She
+gave Miss Lou a swift, significant glance, and that was all. Even she
+was sobered by the scenes witnessed that morning and the thought of
+Chunk's indefinite absence. Aun' Suke sat dozing in a corner,
+absolutely worn out, and other negroes from the quarters had been
+pressed into the service. Mrs. Baron was superintending their efforts
+to supply soup and such articles of diet as the surgeons had ordered.
+"Ole miss" now shone to advantage and had the executive ability of a
+general. In cool, sharp, decisive tones she gave her orders, which were
+obeyed promptly by assistants awed into forgetfulness of everything
+else except the great, solemn emergency. All differences had
+disappeared between the two ladies, and they began consulting at once
+how best to meet the prolonged demands now clearly foreseen.
+
+"The confusion and conflicting requirements are just awful," said Mrs.
+Baron. "As soon as possible, we must bring about some system and order.
+One of the first things to do is to get as many provisions and
+delicacies as possible under lock and key, especially the coffee and
+sugar. They are going to give out anyway, before long."
+
+Miss Lou stole away and ran to Aun' Jinkey's cabin. Soldiers had taken
+possession of it and were cooking and eating their breakfasts. Some
+recognized the girl politely as she stood at the door, while others
+continued their occupation in stolid indifference. Aun' Jinkey rose
+tottering from a corner and came to the doorstep. "You see how 'tis,
+honey," she said. "Dey des gwine on ez ef I ain' yere. I a hun'erd
+yeahs ol'er dan I wuz w'en you want sump'n ter hap'n."
+
+"Take courage, mammy," Miss Lou whispered. "Chunk's safe. Have YOU had
+any breakfast?"
+
+"I can't eat, honey, w'en ev'yting des a whirlin'."
+
+The girl darted away and in a few moments returned with a cup of
+coffee. Entering the cabin, she said, "Fair play, gentlemen. This is my
+old mammy's cabin and this her place here in the corner by the hearth.
+Will you do me the favor of being kind to her and letting her remain
+undisturbed? Then you can use her fireplace all you please."
+
+The Southern soldiers, understanding so well the relation between the
+girl and the old woman, agreed with many good-natured protestations,
+offering to share with Aun' Jinkey their rude breakfast.
+
+By the time the girl had returned to the house, she found that Zany and
+others had prepared a second breakfast in the dining-room for the
+family and such of the officers whose wounds were so slight as to
+permit their presence at the table. Miss Lou was placed between her
+cousin and a young, dark-eyed officer who was introduced as Captain
+Maynard. He also carried his left arm in a sling.
+
+Mrs. Whately sat in Mr. Baron's place, since he, after a night's
+vigils, had retired to obtain a little sleep. "Louise," said the lady,
+"you will have to begin being useful at once. You have a disabled man
+on either side of you for whom you must prepare food."
+
+"Miss Baron," said Captain Maynard gallantly, "I am already more than
+reconciled to my wound. Anything that you prepare for me will be
+ambrosia."
+
+Whately frowned as he heard these words and saw the immediate
+impression made by his cousin upon his brother officer; but a warning
+glance from his mother led him to vie in compliments. Before very long
+Maynard remarked sotto voce, "If you aid in healing the wounds made by
+the Yanks, Miss Baron, who will heal the wounds YOU make?"
+
+"I shall not make any, sir. Such thoughts, even in jest, wound me at
+this time. Please excuse me, I've had all the breakfast I wish, and I
+cannot rest till I am doing something for those who are suffering so
+much."
+
+He rose instantly and drew back her chair. In sitting down again, he
+encountered Whately's eyes, and recognized the jealousy and anger
+already excited.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+A TRIBUTE TO A SOUTHERN GIRL
+
+
+Miss Lou entered upon her duties as hospital nurse at once.
+Untrammelled even by the knowledge of conventionalities, and with the
+directness and fearlessness of a brave child, she went from one to
+another, her diffidence quickly banished by her profound sympathy. The
+enlisted men on the piazzas received her chief attentions, nor was she
+long in discovering the Federal wounded, crowding the outbuildings and
+offices.
+
+With the exception of a rearguard and hospital attendants, the
+Confederate forces had marched in pursuit of the Union column. The dead
+were buried during the morning and the ghastlier evidences of strife
+removed. Along the edge of the grove tents were pitched, some designed
+for the soldiers, others for the better accommodation and isolation of
+certain critical cases. The negroes performed most of the labor, Uncle
+Lusthah counselling patience and quiet acceptance of their lot for the
+present. The prisoners were sent South. Confederate surgeon Ackley was
+in charge of the hospital, while upon Whately was conferred the
+military command. His partial disablement would not prevent him from
+attending to the light duties of the position, the surgeon being
+practically the superior officer. Order was quickly restored, guards
+set at important points, and the strangely assorted little community
+passed speedily under a simple yet rigorous military government.
+Curiosity, desire of gain, as well as sympathy, led people to flock to
+the plantation from far and near. One of Surgeon Ackley's first steps
+was to impress upon all the need of provisions, for Mr. Baron's larder,
+ample as it had been, was speedily exhausted. During the day began the
+transfer of the slightly wounded to the nearest railroad town, where
+supplies could be obtained with more certainty, and it was evident that
+the policy of abandoning the remote plantation as soon as possible had
+been adopted.
+
+Miss Lou knew nothing of this, and simply became absorbed in successive
+tasks for the time being.
+
+"Miss Baron," said Surgeon Ackley, "a number of the men are so disabled
+that they cannot feed themselves. Proper food at the right time usually
+means life."
+
+These words suggested what became one of her principal duties. At
+first, rough men were surprised and grateful indeed to find fair young
+girl kneeling beside them with a bowl of hot soup; then they began to
+look for her and welcome her as one who evoked their best and most
+chivalrous feelings. It had soon been evident to her that the wounded
+officers in the house would receive the most careful attention from the
+regularly appointed attendants and also from Mrs. Whately. With the
+exception of the old colonel, she gradually began to devote the most of
+her time to the enlisted men, finding among them much less
+embarrassment in her labors. With the latter class among the
+Confederates, there was not on either side a consciousness of social
+equality or an effort to maintain its amenities. The relation was the
+simple one of kindness bestowed and received.
+
+The girl made the acquaintance of the Union wounded with feelings in
+which doubt, curiosity and sympathy were strangely blended. Her regard
+for Scoville added to her peculiar interest in his compatriots. They
+were the enemies of whom she had heard so much, having been represented
+as more alien and foreign than if they had come across the seas and
+spoke a different tongue. How they would receive her had been an
+anxious query from the first, but she quickly learned that her touch of
+kindness made them kin--that they welcomed her in the same spirit as
+did her own people, while they also were animated by like curiosity and
+wondering interest in regard to herself. A woman's presence in a field
+hospital was in itself strange and unexpected. That this woman should
+be a Southern girl, whose lovely features were gentle in commiseration,
+instead of rigid from an imperious sense of duty to foes, was a truth
+scarcely accepted at first. Its fuller comprehension began to evoke a
+homage which troubled the girl. She was too simple and honest to accept
+such return for what seemed the natural offices of humanity; yet, while
+her manner and words checked its expression, they only deepened the
+feeling.
+
+At first she could scarcely distinguish among the bronzed, begrimed
+faces, but before the day passed there were those whose needs and
+personal traits enlisted her special regard. This was true of one
+middle-aged Union captain, to whom at first she had no call to speak,
+for apparently he was not very seriously wounded. Even before his face
+was cleansed from the smoke and dust of battle his large, dark eyes and
+magnificent black beard caught her attention. Later on, when feeding a
+helpless man near him, he spoke to her and held out a photograph. She
+took it and saw the features of a blond young girl scarcely as old as
+herself.
+
+"My little girl," said the officer simply. "See how she resembles her
+mother. That's one reason why I so idolize her," and he handed Miss Lou
+another picture, that of a sweet, motherly face, to which the former
+likeness bore the resemblance of bud to blossom.
+
+"We must try to get you well soon, so that you may go back to them,"
+said Miss Lou cordially. "You are not seriously hurt, I hope?"
+
+"No, I think not. I wanted you to see them so you can imagine how they
+will look when I tell them about you. I don't need to be reminded of my
+little Sadie, but I almost see her when you come among us, and I think
+her blue eyes would have much the same expression as yours. God bless
+you, for you are blessing those whom you regard as your enemies. We
+don't look very hostile though, do we?"
+
+"It seems a terrible mistake that you should be here at all as
+enemies," she replied. "I have been taught to dread your coming more
+than if you were Indians. I never can understand why men who carry such
+pictures as these next their heart can fight against us."
+
+"Well, Miss Baron, you must try to believe that we would not have left
+the dear originals of such pictures unless we had felt we must, and
+there let the question rest. Our lives are sweet to us, although we
+risk them, chiefly because so dear to those at home. Let the thought
+cheer you in your work that you are keeping tears from eyes as good and
+kind as your own. That's another reason why I showed you the
+likenesses."
+
+"It will be but another motive," she said. "A suffering man, whether
+friend or enemy, is enough."
+
+She smiled as she spoke, then picked her way across the wide barn floor
+and disappeared. Every eye followed her, pain all forgotten for the
+moment.
+
+"By G--d!" exclaimed a rough fellow, drawing his sleeve across his
+eyes, "I'm hard hit, but I'll crawl to and choke the first man who says
+a word she oughtn't to hear when she's around."
+
+"If you can keep your own tongue civil, Yarry, you'll have your hands
+full," said a comrade.
+
+"Well, I be blankety blank-blanked if that girl doesn't rout the devil
+out of a fellow, hoof and horns."
+
+"You're right, my man," said the Union captain, "and your feelings do
+you credit. Now I have a suggestion to make. Not one of us is capable
+of using a word before her that she shouldn't hear, if not out of our
+heads. We can pay her a better tribute than that. Let us decide to
+speak in her absence as if she were present. That's about all we can do
+in return for her kindness. She won't know the cost to us in breaking
+habits, but we will, and that's better. We all feel that we'd like to
+spill some more of our blood for the girl who fed Phillips yonder as if
+he were a baby. Well, let us do the only thing we can--speak as if our
+mothers heard us all the time, for this girl's sake."
+
+"I be blanked if I don't agree, and may the devil fly away with the man
+who doesn't," cried Yarry.
+
+"Ah, Yarry," said the captain, laughing, "you'll have the hardest row
+of any of us to hoe. We'll have to let you off for some slips."
+
+Then began among the majority a harder fight than that for life--a
+fight with inveterate habit, an effort to change vernacular, almost as
+difficult as the learning of a new language. For some time Miss Lou did
+not know nor understand. Word had been passed to other and smaller
+groups of the Union wounded in other buildings. The pledge was soon
+known as "A Northern Tribute to a Southern Girl." It was entered into
+with enthusiasm and kept with a pathetic effort which many will not
+understand. Yarry positively began to fail under the restraint he
+imposed upon himself. His wound caused him agony, and profanity would
+have been his natural expression of even slight annoyance. All day long
+grisly oaths rose to his lips. Now and then an excruciating twinge
+would cause a half-uttered expletive to burst forth like a projectile.
+A deep groan would follow, as the man became rigid in his struggle for
+self-control.
+
+"Yarry," cried Captain Hanfield, who had suggested the pledge, "let
+yourself go, for God's sake. You have shown more heroism to-day than I
+in all my life. We will make you an exception and put you on parole to
+hold in only while Miss Baron is here."
+
+"I be--oh, blank it! This is going to be the death of me, boys. The
+Rebs gave me hell with this wound. But for God's sake don't let her
+know. Just let her think I'm civil like the rest of you. Wouldn't she
+open them blue eyes if she knew a man was dyin', just holdin' in
+cussin' on her account. Ha, ha, ha! She'd think I was a sort of a
+Yankee devil, worse than the Injins she expected. Don't let her know.
+I'll be quiet enough before long. Then like enough she'd look at me and
+say, 'Poor fellow! he won't make any more trouble.'"
+
+Whately had a busy day and felt that he had a reputation to regain. He
+therefore bravely endured much physical pain in his arm and gave very
+close attention to duty. Captain Maynard, on the contrary, had nothing
+to do, and his wound was only severe enough to make him restless. The
+young girl whom he had met at breakfast at once became by far the most
+interesting subject for thought and object of observation. He was a
+young fellow of the ordinary romantic type, hasty, susceptible, as
+ready to fight as to eat, and possessed of the idea that the way to win
+a girl was to appear her smitten, abject slave. The passing hours were
+ages to him in contrast to his previous activity, and as he watched
+Miss Lou going about on her errands of mercy he quickly passed from one
+stage to another of admiration and idealization. Remembering the look
+that Whately had given him in the morning, he maintained a distant
+attitude at first, thinking his brother officer had claims which he
+must respect. As he wandered uneasily around, however, he discovered
+virtually how matters stood, and learned of the attempt which Whately
+had made to marry his cousin, nolens volens. This fact piqued his
+interest deeply and satisfied him that the way was clear for a suit on
+his part were he so inclined. Fair rivalry would give only additional
+zest, and he promptly yielded to his inclination to become at least
+much better acquainted with the girl. At dinner he and Whately vied in
+their gallantries, but she was too sad and weary to pay much attention
+to either of them.
+
+Mrs. Whately compelled her to lie down for a time during the heat of
+the afternoon, but thoughts of the suffering all about her banished
+power to rest. She went down and found the old colonel lying with
+closed eyes, feebly trying to keep away the pestering flies.
+Remembering the bunch of peacock feathers with which Zany, in old
+monotonous days, had waved when waiting on the table, she obtained it
+from the dining-room, and sitting down noiselessly by the officer, gave
+him a respite from his tormentors. In his drowsiness he did not open
+his eyes, but passed into quiet sleep. The girl maintained her watch,
+putting her finger to her lips and making signals for silence to all
+who came near. Other Confederate officers observed her wistfully; Mad
+Whately, coming in, looked at her frowningly. His desire and purpose
+toward his cousin had been that of entire self-appropriation and now
+she was becoming the cynosure of many eyes. Among them he saw those of
+Captain Maynard, who was already an object of hate. Little recked the
+enamored captain of this fact. To his ardent fancy the girl was rapidly
+becoming ideal in goodness and beauty. With the ready egotism of the
+young he was inclined to believe that fate had brought about the events
+which had revealed to him the woman he should marry. A bombshell
+bursting among them all would not have created a greater sensation than
+the knowledge that the girl's thoughts were following a Yankee, one
+whom she herself, by daring stratagem, had released from captivity.
+
+A twinge of pain awakened the colonel and he looked up, dazed and
+uncomprehending. Miss Lou bent over him and said gently, "Go to sleep
+again. It's all right."
+
+"Oh, I remember now. You are Miss Baron."
+
+"Yes, but don't try to talk; just sleep now that you can."
+
+He smiled and yielded.
+
+A few moments later Maynard came forward and said, "Miss Baron, your
+arm must be tired. Let me take your place."
+
+Now she rewarded him by a smile. "I will be glad if you can," she
+replied softly, "not that I am very tired, but there are so many
+others."
+
+As she moved away, she saw Surgeon Ackley beckoning to her. "Miss
+Baron," he said, "I am going to put one of my patients especially in
+your and your aunt's charge. Young as he is, he is a hero and an
+unusual character. I have had him moved to a tent, for he is in a very
+critical condition. Indeed, his chances for life are few and he knows
+it. I am acquainted with his family--one of the best in the South."
+
+He led the way to a small tent beneath the shade of a wide-branched
+oak. A stretcher had been extemporized into a camp bed and on it lay a
+youth not older apparently than the girl herself. His face had the
+blood-drained look which many will remember, yet was still fine in its
+strong, boyish lines. The down on his upper lip was scarcely more
+deeply defined than his straight eyebrows. A negro attendant sat near
+fanning him, and Miss Lou first thought that he was asleep. As she
+approached with the surgeon he opened his eyes with the dazed
+expression so common when the brain is enfeebled from loss of blood. At
+first they seemed almost opaque and dead in their blackness, but, as if
+a light were approaching from within, they grew bright and laughing.
+His smile showed his white, even teeth slightly, and her look of deep
+commiseration passed into one of wonder as she saw his face growing
+positively radiant with what seemed to her a strange kind of happiness,
+as he glanced back and forth from her to the surgeon. Feebly he raised
+his finger to his lips as if to say, "I can't speak."
+
+"That's right, Waldo; don't try to talk yet. This is Miss Baron. She
+will be one of your nurses and will feed you with the best of soup.
+We'll bring you round yet."
+
+He shook his head and smiled more genially, then tried to extend his
+hand to the girl, looking his welcome and acceptance of her ministry.
+So joyous was his expression that she could not help smiling in return,
+but it was the questioning, doubtful smile of one who did not
+understand.
+
+"When she comes," resumed Ackley, "take what she gives you, but don't
+talk until I give permission. That will do now. You must take
+everything except quiet in small quantities at first."
+
+His lips formed the words "All right," and smilingly he watched them
+depart.
+
+"I suppose he is not exactly in his right mind," said Miss Lou as she
+and the surgeon returned to the house.
+
+"Many would think so, I reckon," replied Ackley laconically. "He
+believes in a heaven and that he's going there. That's the only queer
+thing I ever discovered in Waldo. He's worth a lot of trouble, Miss
+Baron."
+
+"It would be right strange if I did not do my best for him, sir."
+
+"I thought you'd feel so. I want very strong beef soup made for a few
+such special cases, who can take but little at a time. I would like him
+to have a few teaspoonfuls every two hours. I am going to trust to you
+and Mrs. Whately chiefly to look after him in this respect. We can do
+little more than help nature in his case."
+
+Poor Aun' Suke was getting weary again, but she had a heart which Miss
+Lou speedily touched in behalf of her patient, and a special saucepan
+was soon bubbling over the fire.
+
+The soup for the evening meal being ready, she began again her task of
+feeding the helpless soldiers, visiting, among others, Phillips, who
+lay in a half-stupor on the great barn-floor. As she stepped in among
+the Federal wounded, she was again impressed by the prevailing quiet
+and by the friendly glances turned toward her on every side. The Union
+surgeon in charge lifted his hat politely, while such of the men as
+were able took off theirs and remained uncovered. The homage, although
+quiet, was so marked that she was again embarrassed, and with downcast
+eyes went direct to Phillips, gently roused him and gave him his
+supper. While she was doing this the men around her were either silent
+or spoke in low tones. The thought grew in her mind, "How these
+Northern soldiers have been misrepresented to me! Even when I am
+approaching and before they are aware I am near, I hear no rough talk
+as I do among our men. The world is so different from uncle's idea of
+it! Whether these men are right or wrong, I will never listen patiently
+again when they are spoken of as the scum of the earth."
+
+As she rose and saw the respectful attitude toward her, faltered,
+"I--I--wish to thank you for your--your kindness to me."
+
+At these words there was a general smile even on the wannest and most
+pain-pinched face, for they struck the men as very droll.
+
+"We were under the impression that the kindness was chiefly on your
+side," said Captain Hanfield. "Still we are glad you find us a civil
+lot of Indians."
+
+"Please remember," she answered earnestly, "that was not my thought,
+but one impressed upon me by those who did not know. Only within a very
+short time have I ever seen Northern people or soldiers, and they treat
+me with nothing but courtesy."
+
+"Perhaps you are to blame for that," said the captain pleasantly.
+
+"I can't help feeling glad that our good opinion is becoming mutual,"
+she replied, smiling. "Won't you please put on your hats and let me
+come and go as a matter of course? I don't like to be sort of received
+every time I come. I just want to help those I can help, to get well."
+
+"You have only to express your wishes, Miss Baron," was the hearty
+reply.
+
+"Thank you. Is there anything more that I can do for you? Is there any
+one who specially needs--"
+
+As she was glancing round her eyes fell upon Yarry. His face was so
+drawn and haggard with pain that, from an impulse of pity, she went
+directly to him and said gently, "I fear, sir, you are suffering very
+much."
+
+"I be--oh, hang--there, there, miss, I'll stand it a little longer. I
+could stand hell-fire for your sake. I didn't mean to say that. Guess I
+better keep still."
+
+His face, now seen attentively, revealed more to her in tuition than
+his words. She stooped by his side and said piteously, "Oh, you are
+suffering--I FEEL that you are suffering terribly. I must do something
+to relieve you."
+
+"Oh, now, miss," he replied, forcing a ghastly sort of smile, "I'm all
+right, I be--well, I am. Bless your kind heart! Don't worry about me.
+I'll smoke my pipe and go to sleep pretty soon. You look tired
+yourself, little one. I will feel better if you won't worry about me, I
+be--well, I will. I'm just like the other fellows, you know."
+
+"I reckon you are a brave, good-hearted man, to think of others when I
+KNOW you are suffering so much. I am having very strong soup made for
+one of our men, and I'll bring you some by and by," and with a
+lingering, troubled look into his rugged face, she departed.
+
+His eyes followed her until she disappeared.
+
+"Yarry, you are rewarded," Captain Hanfield remarked.
+
+"--my reward. Fellers, she's just wearin' herself out for us. I don't
+want no reward for anything I can do for her. Well, I'm goin' to shut
+up now. The only thing I can do for her is to hold my tongue till it
+can't wag. I told her I'd smoke my pipe and go to sleep. I be--well, I
+will. Light it for me, Tom. When she comes, like enough I'll be asleep,
+a sort of DEAD sleep, yer know. Just let her think I'm dozin' after my
+pipe. Don't let her try to wake me and worry about me."
+
+"All shall be as you wish, Yarry," said Captain Hanfield. "I tell you,
+men, few women ever received such a tribute as Yarry is paying this
+Southern girl. For one, I'm proud of him."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI
+
+A BACKGROUND OF EGOTISM
+
+
+When Miss Lou returned to the house supper was ready and she sat down
+weary, saddened and preoccupied by the scenes she had witnessed.
+
+"You are going beyond your strength," said Captain Maynard, who had
+watched her coming back from the Federal wounded. "Cannot you be
+content to confine your ministrations to your friends only?"
+
+"For once I can agree with Captain Maynard," Whately added stiffly. "I
+don't think it's right for you, cousin, to be going among those rough,
+brutal fellows."
+
+Instantly her anger flamed at the injustice of the remark and she
+answered hotly, "I've found no rough, brutal fellows among the Yankees."
+
+All smiled at her words, and Ackley remarked to one of the Union
+surgeons, "Dr. Borden, I thought our men could hold their own pretty
+well with the Army in Flanders, but you Yanks, I reckon, surpass all
+military organizations, past or present. There was one man especially
+who fairly made the night lurid and left a sulphurous odor after him
+when he was brought in. It would be rather rough on us all if we were
+where he consigned us with a vim that was startling. I certainly hope
+that Miss Baron is not compelled to hear any such language."
+
+"I appeal to Miss Baron herself," said Dr. Borden, "if she has been
+offended in this respect to-day?"
+
+"No, indeed, I have not," replied the girl indignantly. "I never was
+treated with more courtesy. I have not heard a rough word from the
+Yankees even when they did not know I was near, and that is more than I
+can say of our own men. Fight the Yankees all you please, but don't do
+them injustice."
+
+In spite of the girl's flushed, incensed face, there was an explosion
+of laughter. "Pardon me, Miss Baron," said Ackley, "but you can't know
+how droll your idea of injustice to the Yankees seems to us. That you
+have such an idea, however, is a credit to you and to them also, for
+they must have been behaving themselves prodigiously."
+
+"Yes, Dr. Ackley," replied Borden emphatically, "Miss Baron's
+impressions ARE a credit to her and to my patients. They promptly
+recognized her motives and character, and for her sake they pledged
+themselves that while here, where she is one of the nurses, they would
+not use language at any time which they would not have their mothers
+hear. That very man you speak of, who swore so last night, believes
+himself dying from his effort at self-restraint. This is not true, for
+he would have died anyhow, but his death is hastened by his effort. He
+has been in agony all day. Opiates make him worse, so there is no use
+of giving them. But I can tell you, no man in your Confederacy ever did
+a braver thing than he is doing this minute to show his respect for
+this young lady who has shown kindness to his comrades. I can assure
+you, Lieutenant Whately, that you need have no fears about your cousin
+when visiting my patients."
+
+"What's the name of the soldier of whom you speak?" Miss Lou asked
+eagerly.
+
+"He is called Yarry. I don't know any other name yet--been so busy
+dressing wounds."
+
+"Thank you," faltered the girl, rising, her face showing signs of
+strong emotion.
+
+"Oh, Louise! finish your supper," expostulated Mrs. Whately. "You must
+not let these scenes take so strong a hold"--but she was out of
+hearing. "I fear it's all going to be too much for her," sighed the
+lady in conclusion.
+
+Mr. Baron and his wife exchanged grim glances from the head and foot of
+the table, as much as to say, "She has shaken off our control and we
+are not responsible," but Ackley remarked, "I agree with you, Dr.
+Borden, that it's fine to see a girl show such a spirit, and I
+congratulate you that your men are capable of appreciating it. By the
+way, Mrs. Whately, I have put her, with you, in charge of young Waldo
+and truly hope that among us we can bring him through."
+
+"Mrs. Whately," said Captain Maynard, "I reckon more than one of us
+begin to regret already that we were not so desperately wounded as to
+need your attention and that of Miss Baron. We must remember, however,
+that she is not accustomed to these scenes, and I think we must try to
+make her forget them at the table. I suppose in the kindness of her
+heart she is now crying in her room over that Yankee." Whately shot a
+savage glance at the speaker which plainly implied, "It's none of your
+business where she is." Suddenly rising, he departed also, his mother's
+eyes following him anxiously.
+
+Miss Lou was not crying in her room. As the level rays of the sun shone
+into the wide old barn, making the straw in a mow doubly golden, and
+transforming even the dusty cobwebs into fairy lacework, she crossed
+the threshold and paused for the first time in her impulsive haste to
+find and thank the dying man of whom she had been told. All eyes turned
+wonderingly toward her as she stood for a moment in the sunshine, as
+unconscious of herself, of the marvellous touch of beauty bestowed by
+the light and her expression, as if she had flown from the skies.
+
+"Is there a soldier here named Yarry?" she began, then uttered a little
+inarticulate cry as she saw Captain Hanfield kneeling beside a man to
+whom all eyes directed her. "Oh, it's he," she sobbed, kneeling beside
+him also. "As soon as I heard I felt it was he who told me not to worry
+about him. Is--is he really dying?"
+
+"Yes, I hope so, Miss Baron," replied the captain gravely. "He couldn't
+live and it's time he had rest."
+
+The girl bent over the man, her hot tears falling on his face. He
+opened his eyes and looked vacantly at her for a moment or two, then
+smiled in recognition. It was the most pathetic smile she had ever
+imagined. "Don't worry," he whispered, "I'm just dozin' off."
+
+"Oh, my poor, brave hero!" she said brokenly, "I know, I know it all.
+God reward you, I can't."
+
+"Don't want no reward. I be--say, miss, don't wear--yourself--out fer
+us."
+
+She took his cold hand and bowed her forehead upon it, sobbing aloud in
+the overpowering sense of his self-forgetfulness. "O God!" she cried,
+"do for this brave, unselfish man what I cannot. When, WHEN can I
+forget such a thing as this! Oh, live, please live; we will take such
+good care of you."
+
+"There, there, little one, don't--take on--so about--me. Ain't wuth it.
+I be--Say, I feel better--easier. Glad--you spoke--good word to
+God--for me. I be--I mean, I think--He'll hear--sech as you. I'm--off
+now. Don't--wear--yourself--"
+
+Even in her inexperience she saw that he was dying, and when his
+gasping utterance ceased she had so supported his head that it fell
+back on her bosom. For a few moments she just cried helplessly, blinded
+with tears. Then she felt the burden of his head removed and herself
+lifted gently.
+
+"I suspected something like this when you left the table, Miss Baron,"
+said Dr. Borden.
+
+"Oh, oh, oh, I feel as if he had died for me," she sobbed.
+
+"He would a died for you, miss," said Tom, drawing his sleeve across
+his eyes, "so would we all."
+
+"Miss Baron," resumed the doctor gravely, "remember poor Yarry's last
+words, 'Don't wear yourself--he couldn't finish the sentence, but you
+know what he meant. You must grant the request of one who tried to do
+what he could for you. As a physician also I must warn you to rest
+until morning. You can do more for these men and others by first doing
+as Yarry wished," and he led her away.
+
+They had not gone far before they met Uncle Lusthah. The girl stopped
+and said, "Doctor, won't you let Uncle Lusthah bury him to-morrow down
+by the run? I'll show him the place."
+
+"Yes, Miss Baron, we all will do anything you wish if you only rest
+to-night. I tell you frankly you endanger yourself and your chance to
+do anything more for the wounded by continuing the strain which these
+scenes put upon you."
+
+"I reckon you're right," she said, "I feel as if I could hardly stand."
+
+"I know. Take my arm and go at once to your room."
+
+On the way they encountered Whately. "Cousin! where on earth have you
+been? You look ready to faint."
+
+His presence and all that he implied began to steady her nerves at
+once, but she made no reply.
+
+"She has witnessed a painful scene, Lieutenant," began the surgeon.
+
+"You have no business to permit her to witness such scenes," Whately
+interrupted sternly. "You should see that she's little more than an
+inexperienced child and--"
+
+"Hush, sir," said Miss Lou. "Who has given you the right to dictate to
+me or to this gentleman? I'm in no mood for any more such words,
+cousin. To-day, at least, no one has taken advantage of my
+inexperience. Good-evening," and she passed on, leaving him chafing in
+impatient anger and protest.
+
+At the house Mrs. Whately began expostulations also, but the girl said,
+"Please don't talk to me now. By and by I will tell you what will touch
+all the woman in your heart."
+
+"I earnestly suggest," added Dr. Borden, "that you take Miss Baron to
+her room, and that nothing more be said to disturb her. She is
+overwrought and has reached the limit of endurance."
+
+The lady had the tact to acquiesce at once. After reaching her room
+Miss Lou exclaimed, "But I have not been to young Waldo."
+
+"I have," replied her aunt, "and will see him again more than once
+before I retire. Louise, if you would not become a burden yourself at
+this time you must do as the doctor says."
+
+Within an hour the girl was sleeping and her nature regaining the
+strength and elasticity of youth.
+
+As Whately stood fuming where his cousin had left him, Perkins
+approached for the first time since they had parted in anger the night
+before.
+
+"I reck'n Miss Baron's gone over ter the inemy," remarked the overseer.
+
+"What do you mean?"
+
+"Look yere, Leftenant, what's the use o' you bein' so gunpowdery with
+me? What's the use, I say? I mout be of some use ter you ef you wuz
+civil."
+
+"Of what use were you last night? You allowed my prisoner to be carried
+off right under your nose."
+
+"Who carried 'im off? Answer that."
+
+"Why, some gawk of a Yank that you were too stupid to tell from me."
+
+"P'raps hit was, p'raps hit wasn't."
+
+"Who else could it be?"
+
+"I s'picion who it was, but I'm not goin' ter talk to one who's got
+nothin' better to give me 'n uggly words."
+
+"You don't mean to say--"
+
+"I don't mean to say nothin' till I know who I'm talkin' ter."
+
+Whately gave a long, low whistle and then muttered "Impossible!"
+
+"Oh, sut'ny," remarked Perkins ironically.
+
+The two men gave each other a long searching look; then Perkins
+resumed, "That's right, Leftenant, take yer bearin's. I don't see ez
+you kin do me any special good, ner harm nuther. Ef yer want no news or
+help from me, we kin sheer off right yere en now."
+
+"I say your suspicion is absurd," resumed Whately, as if arguing with
+himself. "When the alarm, caused by firing, came last night, it
+happened she was in her room and was badly frightened."
+
+"What time did the alarm happen?"
+
+"About two o'clock."
+
+"Wal, about midnight a figger that favored you 'mazingly, yes, ter yer
+very walk, came up boldly en sez ter me, nodding at the Yank, 'Leave
+'im ter me.' The figger wasn't jes' dressed like you in 'Federate
+uniform, but I kin a'most swear the figger had on them clo's and that
+hat you're a wearin' now; arm in sling, too. What's mo', when I thought
+hit over I was cock sure the figger wuz shorter'n you air. I don't
+believe there's a Yank livin' that could a fooled me last night, 'less
+he had yer clo's on en yer walk."
+
+"My uniform and hat hung on the chairs beside me, just where they had
+been put when I went to sleep."
+
+"Jes' tell me ef the do' o' yer room wuz locked."
+
+"I wasn't in a room. I slept at the end of the hall."
+
+"Then enybody could git 'em en put 'em back while you wuz asleep."
+
+"She couldn't knock you senseless. You're talking wild."
+
+"I've schemed that out. Thar's tracks in the gyardin not so blinded but
+they kin give a hint ter a blind hoss. Thar's a track nigh whar I fell
+mighty like what that infernal nigger Chunk ud make. Beyond, ez ef some
+uns had hidden in the bushes, right in the gyarden bed, air two little
+woman-like tracks en two men tracks."
+
+Whately ground his teeth and muttered an oath.
+
+"I don't s'pose I kin prove anything 'clusive," resumed Perkins, "en I
+don't s'pose it ud be best ef I could. Ef she was up ter such deviltry,
+of co'se you don't want hit gen'ly known. Bigger ossifers 'n you ud
+have ter notice it. Ef I was in yu shoes howsomever, in huntin' shy
+game, I could use sech a clar s'picion agin her en be mo' on my gyard
+inter the bargain."
+
+"I can use it and will," said Whately, sternly. "Perkins, keep your
+eyes wide open in my behalf. If that Yankee or Chunk ever come within
+our reach again--the nigger stole my horse and brought the Yank here
+too in time to prevent the wedding, I believe."
+
+"Reck'n he did, Leftenant."
+
+"Well, he and his master may be within our reach again. We had better
+not be seen much together. I will reward you well for any real
+service," and he strode away in strong perturbation.
+
+"Hang your reward," muttered Perkins. "You think you're goin' ter use
+me when the boot's on t'other foot. You shall pay me fer doin' my work.
+I couldn't wish the gal nuthin' worse than ter marry you. That ud
+satisfy my grudge agin her, but ef I get my claws on that nigger en
+dom'neerin' Yank of a master"--his teeth came together after the grim
+fashion of a bulldog, by way of completing his soliloquy.
+
+The spring evening deepened from twilight into dusk, the moon rose and
+shone with mild radiance over the scene that had abounded in gloom,
+tragedy and adventure the night before. The conflict which then had
+taken place now caused the pathetic life-and-death struggles occurring
+in and about the old mansion. In the onset of battle muscle and the
+impulse to destroy dominated; now the heart, with its deep longings,
+its memories of home and kindred, the soul with its solemn thoughts of
+an unknown phase of life which might be near, came to the fore,
+rendering the long, doubtful straggle complex indeed.
+
+The stillness was broken only by the steps and voices of attendants and
+the irrepressible groans of those who watched for the day with hope
+that waxed and waned as the case might be. Uncle Lusthah yearned over
+the Federal wounded with a great pity, the impression that they were
+suffering for him and his people banishing sleep. He hovered among them
+all night long, bringing water to fevered lips and saying a word of
+Christian cheer to any who would listen.
+
+Miss Lou wakened with the dawn and recognized with gladness that her
+strength and courage for work had been restored. Even more potent than
+thoughts of Scoville was the impulse to be at work again, especially
+among those with whom she inevitably associated him. Dressing hastily,
+she went first to see the old Confederate colonel. He was evidently
+failing fast Ackley and an attendant were watching him. He looked at
+the girl, smiled and held out his hand. She took it and sat down beside
+him.
+
+"Ah!" he said feebly, "this is a good deal better than dying alone.
+Would you mind, my child, writing some things I would like to say to my
+family?"
+
+Miss Lou brought her portfolio and tearfully received his dying
+messages.
+
+"Poor little girl!" said the colonel, "you are witnessing scenes very
+strange to you. Try to keep your heart tender and womanly, no matter
+what you see. Such tears as yours reveal the power to help and bless,
+not weakness. I can say to YOU all the sacred, farewell words which
+would be hard to speak to others."
+
+Brokenly, with many pauses from weakness, he dictated his last letter,
+and she wrote his words as well as she could see to do so. "They will
+be all the sweeter and more soothing for your tears, my dear," he said.
+
+He kept up with wonderful composure until he came to his message to
+"little Hal," his youngest child. Then the old soldier broke down and
+reached out his arms in vain yet irrepressible longing. "Oh, if I could
+kiss the little fellow just once before--" he moaned.
+
+For a few moments he and the girl at his side just wept together, and
+then the old man said almost sternly, "Tell him to honor his mother and
+his God, to live for the South, for which his father died. Say, if he
+will do this he shall have my blessing, not without. Now, my child, I
+trust this letter to you. Good-by and God bless you. I wish to be alone
+a little while and face the last enemy calmly."
+
+As she knelt down and kissed him tears again rushed to his eyes and he
+murmured, "That was good and sweet of you, my child. Keep your heart
+simple and tender as it is now. Good-by."
+
+Returning to her room with the portfolio she met her cousin in the
+upper hall. He fixed his eyes searchingly upon her and with the air of
+one who knew very much began, "Cousin Lou, my eyes are not so often
+blinded with tears as yours, yet they see more perhaps than you are
+aware of. I'm willing to woo you as gallantly as can any man, but
+you've got to keep some faith with me as the representative of our
+house and of the cause which, as a Southern girl, should be first
+always in its claims."
+
+Her heart fluttered, for his words suggested both knowledge and a
+menace. At the same time the scenes she had passed through, especially
+the last, lifted her so far above his plane of life that she shrank
+from him with something very like contempt.
+
+"Do you know what I have been writing?" she asked sternly.
+
+"I neither know nor care. I only wish you to understand that you cannot
+trifle with me nor wrong me with impunity."
+
+"Oh!" she cried, with a strong repellant gesture, "why can't YOU see
+and understand? You fairly make me loathe the egotism which, in scenes
+like these, can think only of self. As if I had either time or
+inclination to be trifling with you, whatever you mean by that. Brave
+men are dying heroically and unselfishly, thinking of others, while 'I,
+me and gallant wooing,' combined with vague threats against one whom
+you are in honor bound to protect, are the only words on your lips. How
+can you be so unmanly? What are you, compared with that noble old
+colonel whose last words I have just received? If you care a straw for
+my opinion, why are you so foolish as to compel me to draw comparisons?
+Do, for manhood's sake, forget yourself for once."
+
+He was almost livid from rage as he replied harshly, "You'll rue these
+words!"
+
+She looked at him scornfully as she said, "It's strange, but your words
+and expression remind me of Perkins. He might make you a good ally."
+
+In his confusion and anger he blurted out, "Little wonder you think of
+him. You and that accursed nigger, Chunk--"
+
+"Hush!" she interrupted in a low, imperious voice, "hush, lest as
+representative of our house you disgrace yourself beyond hope." And she
+passed quickly to her room.
+
+Within less than an hour he was asking himself in bitter
+self-upbraiding, "What have I gained? What can I do? Prefer charges
+against my own cousin which I cannot prove? Impossible!--Oh, I've been
+a fool again. I should have kept that knowledge secret till I could use
+it for a definite purpose. I'll break her spirit yet."
+
+If he had seen her after she reached her room he might have thought it
+broken then. Vague dread of the consequences of an act which, from his
+words, she believed he knew far more about than he did, mingled with
+her anger and feelings of repugnance. "Oh," she moaned, "it was just
+horrible; it was coming straight down from the sublime to the
+contemptible. That noble old colonel took me to the very gate of
+heaven. Now I'm fairly trembling with passion and fear. Oh, why will
+Cousin Mad always stir up the very worst of my feelings! I'd rather
+suffer and die as poor Yarry did than marry a man who WILL think only
+of his little self at such a time as this!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVII
+
+AUN' JINKEY'S SUPREME TEST
+
+
+The first long tragic day of hospital experience had so absorbed Miss
+Lou as to relegate into the background events which a short time before
+had been beyond her wildest dreams. In the utter negation of her life
+she had wished that something would happen, and so much had happened
+and so swiftly that she was bewildered. The strangest thing of all was
+the change in herself. Lovers of the Whately and Maynard type could
+only repel by their tactics. She was too high-spirited to submit to the
+one, and too simple and sincere, still too much of a child, to feel
+anything but annoyance at the sentimental gallantry of the other. The
+genial spirit of comradeship in Scoville, could it have been maintained
+through months of ordinary life, would probably have prepared the way
+for deeper feeling on the part of both, but there had been no time for
+the gradual development of goodwill and friendly understanding into
+something more. They had been caught in an unexpected whirl of events
+and swept forward into relations utterly unforeseen. He owed his escape
+from much dreaded captivity and his very life to her, and, as he had
+said, these facts, to her generous nature, were even more powerful in
+their influence than if she herself had received the priceless favors.
+At the same time, her course toward him, dictated at first by mere
+humanity, then goodwill, had made his regard for her seem natural even
+to her girlish heart. If she had read it all in a book, years before,
+she would have said, "A man couldn't do less than love one when fortune
+had enabled her to do so much for him." So she had simply approved of
+his declaration, down by the run, of affection for which she was not
+yet ready, and she approved of him all the more fondly because he did
+not passionately and arbitrarily demand or expect that she should feel
+as he did, in return. "I didn't," she had said to herself a score of
+times, "and that was enough for him."
+
+When later, for his sake, she faced the darkness of midnight, a peril
+she dared not contemplate, and the cruel misjudgment which would follow
+her action if discovered, something deeper awoke in her
+nature--something kindled into strong, perplexing life when, in his
+passionate gratitude, he had snatched her in his arms and, as she had
+said, "given her his whole heart because he couldn't help himself."
+From that moment, on her part there had been no more merely kind,
+tranquil thoughts about Scoville, but a shy, trembling, blushing
+self-consciousness even when in solitude his image rose before her.
+
+As she sought to regain composure after the last interview with her
+cousin, and to think of her best course in view of what seemed his
+dangerous knowledge, a truth, kept back thus far by solemn and
+absorbing scenes, suddenly became dear to her. The spirit of
+all-consuming selfishness again manifested by Whately, revealed as
+never before the gulf of abject misery into which she would have fallen
+as his wife. "If it hadn't been for Lieutenant Scoville I might now
+have been his despairing bond slave," she thought; "I might have been
+any way if the Northern officer were any other kind of a man, brutal,
+coarse, as I had been led to expect, or even indifferent and stupid. I
+might have been forced into relations from which I could not escape and
+then have learned afterward what noble, unselfish men there are in the
+world. Oh, I COULD marry Allan Scoville, I could love him and devote my
+life to him wholly, knowing all the time that I needn't protect myself,
+because he would always be a kinder, truer, better protector. How
+little I have done for him compared with that from which he has saved
+me!"
+
+There was a knock at the door and Zany quickly entered. "I des slip off
+while ole miss in de sto'-room, ter gib you a warnin', Miss Lou. Hain't
+had no charnce till dis minit. Dat ar ole fox, Perkins, been snoopin'
+roun' yistidy arter we un's tracks en las' night he tell Mad Whately a
+heap ob his 'jecterin'."
+
+"But, Zany," said Miss Lou, "you don't think they KNOW anything."
+
+"Reck'n hit's all des 'jecterin'," Zany replied. "Kyant be nufin' else.
+We des got ter face hit out. Doan you fear on me. We uns mus' des star
+stupid-like ef dey ax questions," and she whisked off again.
+
+The girl felt that the spirit of Zany's counsel would be the best
+policy to adopt. While she might not "star stupid-like," she could so
+coldly ignore all reference to Scoville's escape as to embarrass any
+one who sought to connect her with it. In the clearer consciousness of
+her feeling toward the Union officer her heart grew glad and strong at
+the thought of the service she had rendered him, nor did it shrink at
+suffering for his sake. A gratitude quite as strong as his own now
+possessed her that he had been the means of keeping her from a union
+dreaded even as an ignorant child, and now known, by the love which
+made her a woman, to be earthly perdition.
+
+"Having escaped that," she reflected, "there's nothing else I greatly
+fear," and she went down to breakfast resolving that she would be so
+faithful in her duties as a nurse that no one in authority would listen
+to her cousin or Perkins if they sought to make known their surmises.
+
+Ignorant of her son's action and its results, Mrs. Whately met her
+niece kindly and insisted that she should not leave the dining-room
+until she had partaken of the breakfast now almost ready. Captain
+Maynard joined her with many expressions of a solicitude which the girl
+felt to be very uncalled for, yet in her instinct to propitiate every
+one in case her action should be questioned, she was more friendly to
+him than at any time before. Meanwhile, she was asking herself, "What
+would they do to me if all was found out?" and sustaining herself by
+the thought, "Whatever they do to me, they can't reach Lieutenant
+Scoville."
+
+It was gall and bitterness to Whately to find her talking affably to
+Maynard, but before the meal was over she had the address to disarm him
+in some degree. For his own sake as well as hers and the family's she
+thought, "I must not irritate him into hasty action. If he should find
+out, and reveal everything, no matter what happened to me, he would
+bring everlasting disgrace on himself and relatives. I could at least
+show that my motives were good, no matter how soldiers, with their
+harsh laws, might act toward me; but what motive could excuse him for
+placing me, a young girl and his cousin, in such a position?"
+
+Whately had already satisfied himself that no pretence of zeal for the
+service could conceal his real motive or save him from general scorn
+should he speak of the mere conjectures of a man like Perkins. He had
+never meant to speak of them publicly, simply to use his knowledge as a
+means of influencing his cousin. He now doubted the wisdom of this.
+Reacting from one mood to another, as usual, his chief hope now was
+that some unexpected turn of fortune's wheel would bring his
+opportunity. The one thing which all the past unfitted him to accept
+was personal and final denial. His egotism and impatience at being
+crossed began to manifest itself in another direction, one suggested by
+Maynard's evident susceptibility to his cousin's attractions. "Here is
+a chance," he thought, "of righting myself in Lou's eyes. If this
+fellow, thrown into her society by the fortune of war, not by courtesy,
+presumptuously goes beyond a certain point in his attentions, Cousin
+Lou will find that no knight of olden time would have fought for her
+quicker than I will. Mother says she is one who must have her romance.
+She may have it with a vengeance. It may open her eyes to the truth
+that a spirit like mine brooks no opposition, and when she sees that I
+am ready to face death for her she will admire, respect, and yield to a
+nature that is haughty and like that of the old nobility."
+
+Thus he blinded himself in these vain, silly vaporings, the result of a
+false training and the reading of stilted romances. The thought of
+studying the girl's character, of doing and being in some degree what
+would be agreeable to her, never occurred to him. That kind of good
+sense rarely does occur to the egotistical, who often fairly exasperate
+those whom they would please by utter blindness to the simple things
+which ARE pleasing. Miss Lou had read more old romances than he, but
+she speedily outgrew the period in which she was carried away by the
+fantastic heroes described. They became in her fancy the other extreme
+of the matter-of-fact conditions in which her uncle and aunt had lived,
+and as we have seen, she longed to know the actual world, to meet with
+people who did not seem alien to her young and natural sympathies. Each
+new character she met became a kind of revelation to her. She was the
+opposite pole of the society belle, whose eyes have wearied of
+humanity, who knows little and cares less for anything except her
+mirrored image. With something of the round-eyed curiosity and interest
+of a child, she looked at every new face, asking herself, "What is he
+like?" not whether he will like and admire me, although she had not a
+little feminine pleasure in discovering that strangers were inclined to
+do this. Her disapproval of Maynard arose chiefly from the feeling that
+his gallantry at such a time, with the dead and dying all about them,
+was "more shocking than a game of cards on Sunday." She regarded his
+attentions, glances, tones, as mere well-bred persiflage, indulged in
+for his own amusement, and she put him down as a trifler for his pains.
+That he, as she would phrase it, "was just smitten without any rhyme or
+reason" seemed preposterous. She had done nothing for him as she had
+for Scoville. The friendly or the frankly admiring looks of strangers,
+the hearty gratitude and goodwill of the wounded, she could accept with
+as much pleasure as any of her sex; but she had not yet recognized that
+type of man who looks at a pretty woman and is disposed to make love to
+her at once. "Why does Captain Maynard stare at me so?" she asked
+herself, "when I don't care a thistle for him and never will. Why
+should I care? Why should he care? Does he think I'm silly and shallow
+enough to be amused by this kind of thing when that brave old colonel
+is dying across the hall?"
+
+It was a relief to her to escape from him and Whately and to visit even
+poor Waldo, dying also, as she believed. "Dr. Ackley," she said, "you
+may trust me to give him his food now every two hours. I won't break
+down again."
+
+"You did not break down, Miss Baron. All my nurses have their hours
+off. Why shouldn't you? I reckon," he added, smiling, "you'll have to
+obey my orders like the rest. I will go with you again on this visit."
+
+To her the youth seemed ghastlier than ever, but the expression of
+gladness in his eyes was unchanged.
+
+"Miss Baron feels very remorseful that she has not been to see you
+before," said Dr. Ackley, "but her labors yesterday were so many and
+varied that she had to rest. She will do better by you to-day."
+
+Waldo could only reach his hand feebly toward her in welcome. She took
+the brown, shapely hand in both of hers and it made her sad to feel how
+cold and limp it was. "But a few hours ago," she thought, "it was
+striking blows with a heavy sabre."--"I have brought you some strong,
+hot soup," she said gently, "and shall bring it every two hours. You'll
+be very good and take it from me, won't you?"
+
+He laughed as he nodded assent.
+
+"When can I begin to read to him, doctor, to help him pass the time?"
+
+"Perhaps to-morrow if he does well, but never more than a few minutes
+together until I permit. Slow and sure, Waldo, slow and sure are my
+orders, and you are too good a soldier to disobey."
+
+He shook his head mischievously and whispered "Insubordinate."
+
+The doctor nodded portentously and said, "If you and Miss Baron don't
+obey orders I'll put you both under arrest."
+
+This seemed to amuse the young fellow immensely and he was about to
+speak again, but the surgeon put his finger to his lips and departed.
+
+As she was feeding him with eyes full of gentle commiseration his lips
+framed the words, "You can talk to me."
+
+She scarcely knew how to do this. There were questions she was eager to
+ask, for his strange, exuberant happiness under the circumstances were
+hard to understand, even after Dr. Ackley's explanation. She had never
+seen religion produce any such results. Uncle Lusthah seemed to her
+very sincere and greatly sustained in his faith, but he had always been
+to her a sorrowful, plaintive figure, mourning for lost kindred whom
+slavery had scattered. Like the ancient prophets also, his heart was
+ever burdened by the waywardness of the people whom he exhorted and
+warned. In young Waldo appeared a joyousness which nothing could
+quench. From the moment she obtained a clew to his unexpected behavior,
+everything in his manner accorded with the surgeon's explanation. In
+his boyish face and expression there was not a trace of the fanatical
+or abnormal. He seemed to think of Heaven as he did of his own home,
+and the thought of going to the one inspired much the same feeling as
+returning to the other.
+
+"Well," said Miss Lou, after a little hesitancy, "it is a pleasure to
+wait on one who is so brave and cheerful. It makes me feel ashamed of
+worrying over my troubles."
+
+He motioned her to get something under his pillow and she drew out a
+small Testament. With the ease of perfect familiarity he turned the
+leaves and pointed to the words, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and
+are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." He looked up at her, smiled
+brightly, and shook his head when he saw tears in her eyes. Again he
+turned the leaves and pointed to other words, "Beloved, think it not
+strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some
+strange thing happened unto you: but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are
+partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be
+revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy." His expression was
+wonderfully significant in its content, for it was that of one who had
+explained and accounted for everything.
+
+"Oh," she faltered, "I wish I felt as you do, believed as you do. I
+hope you will get strong soon. I would like to tell you some things
+which trouble me very much, and there is no one I can tell."
+
+"By and by," he whispered. "Don't worry. All right."
+
+"Oh, what does this mean?" she thought as she returned to the house.
+"Awfully wounded, suffering, dying perhaps, yet 'glad with an exceeding
+joy'! Uncle and aunt haven't any idea of such a religion, and for some
+reason Dr. Williams never gave me any such idea of it at church. Why
+didn't he? Was it my fault? What he said seemed just words that made
+little or no impression. Since he tried to marry me to Cousin Mad I
+feel as if I could scarcely bear the sight of him."
+
+Yet he was the first one to greet her on the veranda. He spoke with
+formal kindness, but she responded merely by a grave salutation, and
+passed on, for she felt that he should have understood and protected
+her in the most terrible emergency of her young life.
+
+Having looked after the safety of his family, he had returned with the
+best and sincerest intentions to minister to the wounded. If the good
+he would do corresponded with these intentions he would have been
+welcomed in most instances; but he possessed that unfortunate
+temperament which is only one remove for the better from a cold
+indifference to his sacred duties. He did not possess a particle of
+that mysterious, yet in his calling priceless, gift termed magnetism
+for the lack of a better definition. All respected him, few warmed
+toward him or thought of opening to him their hearts. His mind was
+literal, and within it the doctrines were like labelled and separate
+packages, from which he took from time to time what he wanted as he
+would supplies from a store-room. God was to him a Sovereign and a
+Judge who would save a few of the human race in exact accordance with
+the creed of the Church in which the good man had been trained. What
+would happen to those without its pale was one of those solemn
+mysteries with which he had naught to do. Conscientious in his idea of
+duty to the last degree, he nevertheless might easily irritate and
+repel many minds by a rigid presentation of the only formula of faith
+which he deemed safe and adequate. It seemed his chief aim to have
+every form and ceremony of his Church complied with, and then his
+responsibility ceased. He and Mr. Baron had taken solid comfort in each
+other, both agreeing on every point of doctrine and politics. Both men
+honestly felt that if the world could be brought to accept their view
+of life and duty little would be left to be desired. When summoned to
+perform the marriage ceremony Dr. Williams no more comprehended the
+desperate opposition of Miss Lou to the will of her guardian, the
+shrinking, instinctive protest of her woman's nature, than he did the
+hostility of so many in the world to the tenets of his faith. His
+inability to understand the feelings, the mental attitude of others who
+did not unquestioningly accept his views and approve the action of the
+"powers that be" was perhaps the chief obstacle to his usefulness. He
+was not in the least degree intolerant or vindictive toward those who
+opposed him; his feeling rather was, "This is your opportunity. I
+gladly afford it and there my responsibility ceases"--a comfortable
+sort of belief to many, but one that would not satisfy a warm, earnest
+nature like Paul's, who said, "To the weak I became as weak, that I
+might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by
+all means save some." Paul would have found some way to reach the ear
+and heart of nearly every wounded man in the extemporized hospital, but
+for the reasons suggested the visits of poor Dr. Williams soon began to
+be very generally dreaded. Old Uncle Lusthah had far better success
+with those who would listen to him.
+
+Miss Lou soon found her way to the Federal wounded again. While
+agreeably to her wishes there was no formality in her reception, it was
+evident that the poor fellows had now learned to regard her with deep
+affection.
+
+"I have told them all," said Dr. Borden who received her, "that you did
+as Yarry wished, that you took a good rest and were looking this
+morning as you should, and it has pleased them greatly. Phillips died
+last night, and has been removed. He hadn't any chance and did not
+suffer much. Remembering your wishes, we kept Yarry here. He lies there
+as if he were dozing after his pipe, as he wished you to think."
+
+The girl stepped to the side of the dead soldier and for a moment or
+two looked silently into the still, peaceful face. Quietly and
+reverently the surgeon and others took off their hats and waited till
+she should speak. "Oh," she breathed softly at last, "how thoughtful
+and considerate you have been! You have made this brave, unselfish man
+look just as if he were quietly sleeping in his uniform. There is
+nothing terrible or painful in his aspect as he lies there on his side.
+Poor generous-hearted fellow! I believe he is at rest, as now he seems
+to be. I want you all to know," she added, looking round, "that he
+shall be buried where I can often visit his grave and keep it from
+neglect, for I can never forget the kindness that he--that you all have
+shown me. Dr. Borden, I will now show Uncle Lusthah the place where I
+wish the grave to be, and when all is ready I will come and follow poor
+Yarry to it. Do you think there ought to be a minister? There is one
+here now--Dr. Williams, who has a church near the Court House."
+
+"Just as you wish, Miss Baron. For one, I think a prayer from Uncle
+Lusthah, as you call him, would do just as well and be more in
+accordance with Yarry's feelings if he could express them. The old
+negro has been in and out nearly all night, waiting on the men, and has
+won their goodwill. He certainly is a good old soul."
+
+"I agree with the doctor," added Captain Hanfield. "Were it my case I'd
+ask nothing better than a prayer from Uncle Lusthah over my grave, for
+he has acted like a good, patient old saint among us."
+
+A murmur of approval from the others followed these words, and so it
+was arranged. Uncle Lusthah was soon found, and he followed the girl to
+the shadow of a great pine by the run and adjacent to the grassy plot
+with which the girl would ever associate Allan Scoville. It was there
+that she had looked into his eyes and discovered what her own heart was
+now teaching her to understand.
+
+Aun' Jinkey followed them from her cabin and asked, "Wat you gwine ter
+do yere, honey?"
+
+"Bury here a Northern soldier who has done me a very great honor."
+
+"Oh, Miss Lou, I des feared ter hab 'im so neah de cabin."
+
+"Hush!" said the girl, almost sternly. "Uncle Lusthah, you ought to
+teach mammy better than that."
+
+"Ah, youn' mistis, hit's bred in de bone. I des mourns ober my people,
+'fusin' ter be comf'ted. Yere Aun' Jinkey, gittin' gray lak me. She a
+'fessor ob religion, ye de word 'spook' set her all a tremble. Ef dey
+is spooks, Aun' Jinkey, w'at dat ter you? Dere's tunder en lightnin' en
+yearthquakes en wurin' iliments en all kin' ob miseries ob de body. Who
+gwine ter keep all dem fum yo' cabin? Reck'n you betteah trus' de Lawd
+'bout spooks too."
+
+"You don't believe in any such foolishness, Uncle Lusthah?"
+
+"Well, young mistis, I gettin 'po'ful ole en I al'ays yeared on spooks
+sence I kin reckermember. I neber seed one fer sho, but I'se had
+strange 'sper'ences o' nights, en dar's dem w'at sez dey has seen de
+sperets ob de 'parted. I dunno. Dere's sump'n in folk's buzzums dat
+takes on quar sometimes, ez ef we libin' mighty close onter a worl' we
+kyant mos' al'ays see. Dat ar doan trouble me nohow, en Aun' Jinkey
+orter know bettah. Ef de Lawd 'mits spooks, dat He business. He 'mits
+lots ob tings we kyant see troo. Look at dese yere old han's, young
+mistis. Dey's wuked nigh on eighty yeah, yit dey neber wuked fer mysef,
+dey neber wuked fer wife en chil'n. Dat mo' quar dan spooks."
+
+"I don't know but you are right," said the girl thoughtfully. "I didn't
+know you felt so about being free. Aun' Jinkey never seemed to trouble
+much about it."
+
+"I'se 'feared Aun' Jinkey tink a heap on de leeks en inions ob Egypt."
+
+"Dar now, Uncle Lusthah, you po'ful good man, but you owns up you doan
+know nufin' 'bout spooks, en I knows you doan know nufin' 'bout
+freedom."
+
+"Yes I does," replied Uncle Lusthah. "Ef de day come w'en I kin stan'
+up en say fer sho, 'I own mysef, en God ony my Mars'r,' I kin starbe ef
+dat He will. En dat' minds me, young mistis. IS we free? Perkins
+growlin' roun' agin dis mawnin', en say we he'p 'bout de horspital
+ter-day, but we all go ter wuk ter-morrer. I 'lowed he orter talk ter
+us 'bout wages en he des larf en cuss me. Wat's gwine ter be de end?
+Marse Scoville en de big Linkum gin'ral say we free, en Perkins larf
+'temptuous like. We des all a-lookin' ter you, young mistis."
+
+"Oh, uncle! what can I do?"
+
+"Shame on you, Uncle Lusthah, fer pilin' up sech a heap ob 'plexity on
+my honey," cried Aun' Jinkey, who was as practical as she was
+superstitious. "I kin tell you w'at ter do. I doan projeck en smoke in
+my chimbly-corner fer not'n. W'at kin you do but do ez you tole twel
+Marse Scoville en de Linkum gin'ral come agin? S'pose you say you woan
+wuk en woan 'bey, how you hole out agin Perkins en Mad Whately? Dey'd
+tar you all ter pieces. Dey say dis wah fer freedom. Whar yo' patience
+twel de wah'll end? De Yanks mus' do mo' dan say we free; dey mus' keep
+us free. Dar Aun' Suke. She say she free one minit en a slabe nex'
+minute twel her haid mos' whirl off her shol'ers. Now she say, 'I doan
+know 'bout dis freedom business; I does know how ter cook en I'se
+gwinter cook twel dey gets troo a whirlin' back en forth.' You says I
+mus' trus' de Lawd 'bout spooks, Uncle Lusthah. W'y kyant you trus' de
+Lawd 'bout freedom?"
+
+The old man shook his head sorrowfully, for Aun' Suke and Aun' Jinkey's
+philosophy didn't satisfy him. "I'se willin' ter do my shar," he said
+musingly, "de Lawd knows I be. Ef I cud die lak po' Marse Yarry en de
+oders fer freedom I'se willin' ter die."
+
+"Now, Uncle Lusthah, your strong feeling and not your good sense
+speaks," said Miss Lou, who had been thinking earnestly, meanwhile
+recalling Scoville's prediction that the negroes might come to her for
+help and counsel. "Aun' Jinkey is certainly right in this case, and you
+must tell all our people from me that their only safe course now is to
+obey all orders and bide their time. Perkins' authority would be
+sustained by all the soldiers on the place and anything like
+disobedience would be punished severely. If what Lieutenant Scoville
+and the Northern general said is true you will soon be free without
+useless risks on your part. If that time comes I want you and mammy to
+stay with me. You shall be as free as I am and I'll give you wages."
+
+"Dar now, young mistis, ef I know I free I bress de Lawd fer de charnce
+ter gib my wuk ter you. Dere's a po'ful dif'unce 'twix' bein' took en
+kep en des gibin' yosef out ob yo' own heart. Slav'y couldn't keep me
+fum gibin' mysef ter de Lawd en I been He free man many a long yeah, en
+I be yo' free man, too, fer lub."
+
+"Look yere, now, honey," added Aun' Jinkey, wiping her eyes with her
+apron, "you kin bury sogers all 'bout de cabin ef you wanter. Uncle
+Lusthah kyant do mo' fer you, honey, ner me, tookin resks ob spooks.
+Des bury dem sogers, ef you wanter, right un'er my win'er."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII
+
+TRUTH IF THE HEAVENS FALL
+
+
+It was quite natural that the thoughts of Perkins and Mr. Baron should
+turn toward the growing crops, neglected by reason of events
+unprecedented in their experience. The announcement to the slaves,
+first by Scoville and later confirmed by General Marston, of freedom,
+had staggered both employer and overseer, but every hour since the
+departure of the raiding Union column had been reassuring.
+
+It is not within the province of this story to follow the fortunes of
+that force, since it is our modest purpose merely to dwell on those
+events closely related to the experiences of the Southern girl who has
+won our attention. She had suddenly become secondary in her uncle's
+thoughts. A phase of the war, like a sudden destructive storm, had been
+witnessed; like a storm, he hoped that it and its effects would pass
+away. The South was far from being subdued; the issue of the conflict
+unknown. He was the last man in the Confederacy to foresee and accept
+new conditions, especially when he still believed the Southern cause
+would triumph.
+
+As the confusion of his mind, after the battle, passed he began to look
+around and consider what should be done, what could be saved out of
+what at first appeared a wreck. When Dr. Ackley assured him that the
+house and plantation would be rapidly abandoned as a hospital, hope and
+courage revived, while to these was added the spur of necessity.
+
+He knew that he must "make his crops," or his fortunes would be
+desperate. Remembering the value of timely labor in the spring season,
+he was eager on this second day after the battle to put his slaves to
+work again at their interrupted avocations. Accordingly he held a
+consultation with his nephew and Dr. Ackley.
+
+"The hands are becoming demoralized," he said, "by unaccustomed duties
+and partial idleness. Some are sullen and others distracted by all
+kinds of absurd expectations. Uncle Lusthah, the leader and preacher
+among them, even had the impudence to ask Perkins about wages. The
+Yankee officers, when here, told them they were free, and they wish to
+act as if they were. The sooner that notion is taken out of their heads
+the better. This can be done now while my nephew is here to enforce
+authority, better than when we are alone again. It seems to me that a
+certain number could be detailed for regular hospital duty and the rest
+put to work as usual."
+
+"I agree with you, certainly," replied Surgeon Ackley. "Give me a dozen
+men and half a dozen women to wash and cook, and I can get along.
+Lieutenant Whately, you, at your uncle's suggestion, can make the
+detail and enforce discipline among the rest."
+
+"I was going to speak to you about this very matter, uncle," said
+Whately. "My overseer has been over and I find the black imps on our
+place are in much the same condition as yours, a few venturing to talk
+about wages or shares in the crop and all that nonsense. I sent him
+back with half a dozen men, armed to the teeth, and told him to put the
+hands at work as usual. Mother is going to ride over and spend part of
+the day. I don't wish her to be there alone just yet, and I shall
+gallop over in time to be on hand when she arrives. Things are getting
+settled, my arm is not so painful, and it is time we pulled ourselves
+and everything together. You struck the right note when you said, 'Now
+is the time to enforce authority.' It must be done sharply too, and
+these people taught the difference between the Yanks' incendiary talk
+and our rights and positive commands. From what Perkins says, this old
+Uncle Lusthah is a fire-brand among your people. Give your overseer his
+orders and I'll see that he carries them out."
+
+Perkins was summoned, acquainted with the policy--just to his
+mind--resolved upon, told to pick out the detail for hospital duty and
+to have the rest ready for work after an early dinner.
+
+"Go right straight ahead, Perkins," added Whately, "and let me know if
+one of these Yankee-made freemen so much as growls."
+
+Dr. Borden was not the kind of man to take upon himself undue
+responsibility. He had therefore mentioned to Surgeon Ackley Miss
+Baron's wish to give Yarry a special burial by the run and that she
+expected to be present.
+
+Ackley good-naturedly acquiesced, saying, "I suppose there can be no
+objection to burying the man in a place of Miss Baron's selection,
+instead of the one designated by Mr. Baron. It's but a small concession
+to her who is so kindly bent on making herself useful. Let her have her
+own way in the whole affair."
+
+The spirit of Yarry's turbulent career seemed destined to break out
+afresh over his final disposition. Uncle Lusthah went to the quarters
+in order to obtain the aid of two or three stout hands in digging the
+grave. It so happened that his visit took place during the adoption of
+Mr. Baron's policy in dealing with his property and just before Perkins
+received his instructions. The negroes not engaged in labor relating to
+the hospital gathered around Uncle Lusthah in the hope of receiving
+some advice from Miss Lou. Mournfully the old man told them what she
+and Aun' Jinkey had said, adding, "I doan see no oder way fer us des at
+dis time ob our triberlation. Ole Pharo sut'ny got he grip on us agin,
+he sut'ny hab fer a spell. But brudren en sistas, hit ony lak a cloud
+comin' 'cross de risin' sun. Let us des wait pashently de times en
+seasons ob de Lawd who alone kin brung de true 'liverance."
+
+When he saw the deep, angry spirit of protest he threw up his hands,
+crying, "Wat de use? I warn you; I 'treat you, be keerful. Wat could us
+do wid our bar han's agin armed men? I tells you we mus' wait or die
+lak Moses 'fo' we enter de promis lan'." Then he told them about Yarry
+and asked for two or three to volunteer to dig the grave.
+
+A score stepped forward and nearly all expressed their purpose to
+attend the funeral. The old man persuaded all but three to remain near
+the quarters at present, saying, "So many gwine wid me mout mek
+trouble, fer Perkins look ugly dis mawnin'."
+
+"We ugly too," muttered more than one voice, but they yielded to Uncle
+Lusthah's caution.
+
+In going to the run Uncle Lusthah and his assistants had to pass
+somewhat near the house, and so were intercepted by Perkins and
+Whately, both eager to employ at once the tactics resolved upon.
+
+"Where the devil are you goin' with those men and shovels?" shouted
+Perkins.
+
+"We gwine ter dig a grabe fer a Linkum soger down by de run," replied
+Uncle Lusthah quietly. "That ain't the place ter plant the Yanks, you
+old fool. Go back to the quarters. No words. Leftenant Whately will
+detail the hands fer sech work. Back with you. Why in-don't you mind?"
+
+"I hab my orders fum--"
+
+"Silence!" thundered Whately. "Obey, or you'll go back at the point of
+the sabre."
+
+Uncle Lusthah and his companions still hesitated, for they saw Miss Lou
+running toward them. She had lingered to talk with Aun' Jinkey and was
+returning when she heard Perkins' high, harsh words. The overseer was
+in a rage, and limped hastily forward with uplifted cane, when he was
+suddenly confronted by the hot face and flashing eyes of Miss Lou.
+
+"Don't you dare strike Uncle Lusthah," she said sternly.
+
+Her appearance and attitude evoked all the pent-up hate and passion in
+the man's nature and he shouted, "By the 'tarnal, I will strike 'im.
+I've got my orders en I'll find out yere en now whether a traitor girl
+or a Southern officer rules this place."
+
+Before the blow could descend she sprang forward, seized his wrist and
+stayed his hand.
+
+"Wretch! murderer! coward!" she cried.
+
+"Oh, come, Cousin Lou, this won't do at all," began Whately, hastening
+up.
+
+An ominous rush and trampling of feet was heard and an instant later
+the negroes were seen running toward them from the quarters and all
+points at which the sounds of the altercation reached them.
+
+"Turn out the guard," shouted Whately. "Rally the men here with
+carbines and ball-cartridges." He whirled Perkins aside, saying, "Get
+out of the way, you fool." Then he drew his sabre and thundered to the
+negroes, "Back, for your lives!"
+
+They hesitated and drew together. Miss Lou went directly toward them
+and implored, "Go back. Go back. Do what I ask and perhaps I can help
+you. If you don't, no one can or will help you. See, the soldiers are
+coming."
+
+"We'll 'bey you, young mistis," said Uncle Lusthah, "but we uns lak ter
+hab 'splained des what we got ter 'spect. We kyant die but oncet, en ef
+we kyant eben bury de sogers dat die fer us--"
+
+"Silence!" shouted Whately. "Forward here, my men. Form line! Advance!
+Shoot the first one that resists." He then dashed forward, sought to
+encircle his cousin with his arm and draw her out of the way.
+
+She eluded him and turned swiftly toward the advancing line of men,
+crying, "Stop, if there is a drop of Southern blood in your veins."
+They halted and stared at her. She resumed, "You will have to walk over
+me before you touch these poor creatures. Uncle" (for Mr. Baron now
+stood aghast on the scene), "as you are a man, come here with me and
+speak, explain to your people. That is all they ask. They have been
+told that they were free, and now the oldest and best among them, who
+was doing my bidding, almost suffered brutal violence from a man not
+fit to live. Where is the justice, right, or sense in such a course?
+Tell your people what you wish, what you expect, and that they will be
+treated kindly in obeying you."
+
+She recognized that every moment gained gave time for cooler thoughts
+and better counsels, also for the restraining presence of others who
+were gathering upon the scene. It was in the nature of her headlong
+cousin to precipitate trouble without thought of the consequences; but
+as she spoke she saw Surgeons Ackley and Borden running forward.
+Captain Maynard was already at her side, and Whately looked as if he
+could cut his rival down with the weapon in his hand. While Mr. Baron
+hesitated Mrs. Whately also reached her niece and urged, "Brother, I
+adjure you, go and speak to your people. They are your people and you
+should tell them what to expect before you begin to punish. Go with
+Surgeon Ackley and settle this question once for all."
+
+"Yes, Mr. Baron," said Ackley sternly, "we must settle this question
+promptly. Such uproar and excitement are bad for my patients and not to
+be permitted for an instant."
+
+It was evident that the surgeon was terribly angry. He had been brought
+up in the old regular army, and anything like insubordination or injury
+to his patients were things he could not tolerate. Mr. Baron went
+forward with him and said in a low tone:
+
+"You are virtually in command here and all know it. A few words from
+you will have more effect than anything I can say."
+
+"Very well, then," responded the resolute surgeon, and he strode toward
+the negroes, not noticing that Miss Lou kept almost at his side.
+
+"Look here, you people," he began harshly, "do you think I will permit
+such disturbances? They may be the death of brave men. Quit your
+nonsense at once. You are simply what you've always been. Yankee words
+don't make you free any more than they make us throw down our arms.
+What happened to the general who said you were free? We fought him and
+drove him away. There is only one thing you can do and MUST do--go to
+work as before, and woe be to those who make trouble. That's all."
+
+"No," cried Miss Lou, "that surely cannot be all."
+
+"Miss Baron! What can you mean?"
+
+"I mean that these poor creatures are looking to me, trusting in me,
+and I have promised to intercede in their behalf. Tell them at least
+this, you or uncle, that if they obey and work quietly and faithfully
+they shall not be treated harshly, nor subjected to the brutal spite of
+that overseer, Perkins."
+
+"Truly, Miss Baron, you can scarcely expect me to interfere with your
+uncle's management of his property. The only thing I can and will do is
+to insist on absolute quiet and order on the place. In this case every
+one must obey the surgeon-in-charge. Do you understand that?" he
+concluded, turning to the negroes. "Neither you nor any one else can do
+anything to injure my patients. As you value your lives, keep quiet. I
+will not permit even a harsh, disturbing sound. Do not dare to presume
+on Miss Baron's kindness, mistaken in this crisis. This unruly,
+reckless spirit must be stamped out now. Your owner and master will
+tell you what he expects, and I will have the first man who disobeys
+SHOT. Miss Baron, you must come with me."
+
+"Yes, sir, but not until I have spoken the truth about this affair. All
+your power, Dr. Ackley, cannot keep me dumb when I see such injustice.
+You are threatening and condemning without having heard a word of
+explanation. Uncle Lusthah and those with him were simply doing my
+bidding. Can you think I would stand by and see him cursed and beaten?
+These people have not shown any unruly, reckless spirit. They may well
+be bewildered, and they only asked what they must expect. God is my
+witness, I will cry out 'Shame!' with, my last breath if they are
+treated brutally. They will be quiet, they will do their duty if
+treated kindly. They shall not appeal to me for justice and mercy in
+vain. My words may not help them, but I shall not stand tamely by like
+a coward, but will call any man on earth coward who butchers one of
+these unarmed negroes."
+
+She stood before them all possessed by one thought--justice. Her face
+was very pale, but stern, undaunted and noble in its expression. She
+was enabled to take her course from the courage, simplicity and
+unconventionality of her nature, becoming utterly absorbed by her
+impulse to defend those who looked to her, neither regarding nor
+fearing, in her strong excitement, the consequences to herself.
+
+Dr. Borden was hastening forward to remind Ackley of his promise
+concerning Yarry's grave, and to show the girl that he at least would
+stand with her; but his chief waved him back. The old surgeon of the
+regular army could appreciate courage, and the girl's words and aspect
+pierced the thick crust of his military and professional armor,
+touching to the quick the man within him. He saw in the brave young
+face defiance of him, of the whole world, in her sense of right, and he
+had the innate nobility of soul to respect her motive and acknowledge
+the justice of her action. Watching her attentively until she was
+through speaking he took off his hat, stepped forward and gave her his
+hand.
+
+"You are a brave girl," he said frankly. "You are doing what you think
+is right and I am proud of you. Tell these people yourself to go back
+to their quarters, behave themselves and obey their rightful master.
+After your words in their behalf any one who does not obey deserves to
+be shot."
+
+She was disarmed and subdued at once. "Ah, doctor," she faltered, tears
+in her eyes, "now you've conquered me." Then turning toward the negroes
+she cried, "Do just as Dr. Ackley has said. Go quietly to work and be
+patient. Uncle Lusthah, you know I told you to do so before all this
+happened. I tell you so again and shall expect you to use all your
+influence to keep perfect order."
+
+"We 'bey you, young mistis; we tank you fer speakin' up fer us," and
+the old man led the way toward the quarters, followed by all his flock.
+
+Dr. Ackley gave his arm to the girl and led her to the house. Captain
+Maynard took off his hat in a very deferential manner as she passed;
+she walked on unheeding the salutation. Whately frowned at him and
+dropped his hand on the hilt of his sabre. At this pantomime Maynard
+smiled contemptuously as he walked away. In a few moments the scene was
+as quiet and deserted as it had been crowded and threatening.
+
+On the way to the house Miss Lou explained more fully the circumstances
+relating to the dead soldier, Yarry, and Ackley said good-naturedly,
+"I'll have Uncle Lusthah and two others detailed to dig the grave and
+you can carry out your intentions; but, Miss Baron, you must be careful
+in the future how you let your inexperience and enthusiasm involve you
+in conflict with all recognized authority. We are safely out of this
+scrape; I can't answer for anything more."
+
+"Believe me," she said earnestly, "I don't wish to make trouble of any
+kind, and after your course toward me, I will seek to carry out your
+orders in every way. If I dared I would ask one favor. Uncle Lusthah is
+too old to work in the field and he is a kind, good old man. If you
+would have him detailed to wait on the wounded--"
+
+"Yes, yes, I will. You are a brave, good-hearted girl and mean well. I
+shall rely on your promise to work cordially with me hereafter. Now go
+to your room and get calm and rested. You are trembling like a
+frightened bird. I'll see your uncle, cousin and Dr. Borden. You shall
+bury your chivalrous Yank just as you wish. Then all must go according
+to regulations."
+
+She smiled as she gave him her hand, saying, "You may put me under
+arrest if I don't mind you in everything hereafter."
+
+"Well," muttered the surgeon, as he looked after her, "to think that a
+girl should have a probe long and sharp enough to go straight to the
+heart of a man of my age! No wonder Maynard and Whately are over head
+and ears."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIX
+
+"ANGEL OF DEATH"
+
+
+It would seem as if the brief tempest of the morning had cleared the
+air. Two strong natures had asserted themselves. Surgeon Ackley's
+recognition of Miss Lou's spirit and the justice of her plea turned out
+to be as politic as it was sincere and unpremeditated. The slaves
+learned all they could hope from her or any one now in authority and
+were compelled to see the necessity of submission. Whately was taught
+another lesson concerning the beauties of headlong action, while even
+his egotism was not proof against the feeling that his cousin's
+straightforward fearlessness would baffle all measures opposed to her
+sense of right. As for Perkins, he began to fear as well as hate her,
+seeing her triumph again. The only reward of his zeal had been
+Whately's words, "Get out of the way, you fool." Thereafter, with the
+exception of the girl's scathing words, he had been ignored. He had
+been made to feel that Ackley's threats had a meaning for him as well
+as for the negroes, and that if he needlessly provoked trouble again he
+would be confronted with the stern old army surgeon. Having known
+Whately from a boy he stood in little fear of him, but was convinced
+that he could not trifle with Ackley's patience an instant. He now
+recognized his danger. In his rage he had forgotten the wide difference
+in rank between the girl he would injure and himself. The courtesy
+promptly shown to her by Maynard and especially by the surgeon-in-chief
+taught him that one whom he had scarcely noticed as she grew up a
+repressed, brooding child and girl, possessed by birth the
+consideration ever shown to a Southern lady. He knew what that meant,
+even if he could not appreciate her conduct. Maynard had scowled upon
+him; Mrs. Whately bestowed merely a glance of cold contempt, while her
+son had failed him utterly as an ally. He therefore sullenly drove his
+malice back into his heart with the feeling that he must now bide his
+time.
+
+Even Mr. Baron was curt and said briefly before he left the ground, "Be
+sure you're right before you go ahead. Hereafter give your orders
+quietly and let me know who disobeys."
+
+The old planter was at his wit's end about his niece, but even he was
+compelled to see that his former methods with her would not answer. New
+ideas were being forced upon him as if by surgical operations. Chief
+among them was the truth that she could no longer be managed or
+restrained by fear or mere authority on the part of any one. He would
+look at her in a sort of speechless wonder and ask himself if she were
+the child to whom he had supposed himself infallible so many years. His
+wife kept on the even tenor of her way more unswervingly than any one
+on the place. She was as incapable of Dr. Ackley's fine sentiment as
+she was of her nephew's ungovernable passion. She neither hoped nor
+tried to comprehend the "perversity" of her niece, yet, in the
+perplexed conditions of the time, she filled a most important and
+useful niche. Since the wounded men were to be fed, she became an
+admirable commissary general, preventing waste and exacting good
+wholesome cookery on the part of Aun' Suke and her assistants.
+
+Poor Yarry was buried quietly at last, Miss Lou, with Dr. Borden,
+Captain Hanfield and two or three of his comrades standing reverently
+by the grave while Uncle Lusthah offered his simple prayer. Then the
+girl threw upon the mound some flowers she had gathered and returned to
+her duties as nurse. The remains of the old Confederate colonel were
+sent to his family, with the letter which Miss Lou had written for him.
+Every day the numbers in the hospital diminished, either by death or by
+removal of the stronger patients to the distant railroad town. Those
+sent away in ambulances and other vehicles impressed into the service
+were looked after by Surgeon Ackley with official thoroughness and
+phlegm; in much the same spirit and manner Dr. Williams presided over
+the departure of others to the bourne from which none return, then
+buried them with all proper observance. Uncle Lusthah carried around by
+a sort of stealth his pearl of simple, vital, hope-inspiring faith, and
+he found more than one ready to give their all for it. The old man
+pointed directly to Him who "taketh away the sin of the world," then
+stood aside that dying eyes might look. With the best intentions Dr.
+Williams, with his religious formulas, got directly in the way,
+bewildering weak minds with a creed.
+
+Mrs. Whately and her son went and came from their plantation and were
+troubled over the condition of things there. The slaves were in a state
+of sullen, smouldering rebellion and several of them had disappeared.
+"I fear Madison has been too arbitrary," she admitted to her brother.
+
+Mr. Baron shrugged his shoulders and smoked in silence. Perhaps his
+preposterous niece had not been so crazy after all.
+
+Between Maynard and Whately there were increasing evidences of trouble,
+which the mother of the latter did her best to avert by remonstrances
+and entreaty. On one occasion Whately had said a little irritably, "I
+say, Dr. Ackley, what's the use of Maynard's hanging around here? He is
+almost well enough for duty."
+
+"It is chiefly out of consideration for you that I am keeping him,"
+replied the surgeon gravely, in well-concealed mischief. "It is clear
+that he has entered the lists with you for your cousin's hand, and I
+could not further his suit better than by sending him away, especially
+if it were suspected that I did so at your instigation. He is doing
+well here, good-naturedly helps me in my writing and can soon go direct
+to his regiment. It seems to me that your cousin holds a pretty even
+balance between you, and all a man should want is a fair field."
+
+Whately walked frowningly away, more than ever convinced that the
+surgeon was too good a friend of his rival to interfere.
+
+At the close of the fourth day after the battle there was an arrival at
+The Oaks that greatly interested Miss Lou--a stately, white-haired old
+lady, the mother of Lieutenant Waldo. She was very pale and it would
+have been hard for Surgeon Ackley to meet her agonized look, her
+shrinking as if from a blow, were he unable to hold out any hope.
+
+"Mrs. Waldo," he said gravely, "your son is living and there's a chance
+of his getting well. His cheerfulness and absolute quiet of mind may
+save him. If he had fretted or desponded he would have died before
+this."
+
+"Yes," replied his mother with a great sigh of relief, "I know."
+
+"Miss Baron, will you kindly prepare Waldo for his mother's visit?
+Meanwhile, I will tell her a little about his case and our management
+of it. He doesn't know that I sent for you, for I was not sure you
+could come."
+
+"Is this Miss Baron and one of my son's nurses?"
+
+"Yes, and doing more for him than I--giving him all the bovine nectar
+and honeyed words he can take."
+
+"God bless you, my dear. Please let me kiss you."
+
+When Miss Lou entered Waldo's tent he whispered with a laugh, "It's
+four hours since you were here."
+
+"No, scarcely two."
+
+"Well, I'm as hungry as if it were four hours."
+
+"That's fine. You're getting right well. Will you be very good and
+quiet--not a bit excited, if I let some one else bring you your supper?"
+
+She beamed upon him so joyously that he exclaimed aloud, with a rush of
+tears, "Ah! mother?"
+
+The girl nodded and said, "Now remember, don't break her heart by being
+worse."
+
+"Oh, how sweet and lovely of her! I'll get well now, sure."
+
+"That's a nice way to treat your old nurse."
+
+Smilingly he held out his hand and said, "You are almost as pretty and
+good as she is, but you aren't mother." Then he added in strong
+sympathy, "Forgive me. You haven't any, have you? You don't know about
+this mother love."
+
+"I know enough about it to have the heartache for its lack. Now you
+must save your strength till she comes. Good-by."
+
+From that hour he steadily gained, banishing the look of anxiety from
+his mother's face. Mrs. Whately sighed as she saw how her niece's heart
+warmed toward the stranger, and how strong an attachment was growing
+between them. "Louise is drifting away from us all," she thought, "yet
+I cannot see that she encourages Captain Maynard."
+
+A genuine friendship had also grown between the girl and Captain
+Hanfield, the Federal officer, and she was heartily sorry when he told
+her that he would be sent to the railroad town the next day. "My wound
+isn't doing well and I seem to be running down," he explained. "Dr.
+Borden has been able to keep me thus far, but I must go to-morrow.
+Perhaps it's best. He is trying to get me paroled. If I could only get
+home to my wife and children I'd rally fast enough. I'm all run down
+and this climate is enervating to me."
+
+She tried to hearten him by kind, hopeful words, and he listened to her
+with a wistful look on his handsome face. "How I'd like you to meet my
+little girl!" he said. "Won't I make her blue eyes open when I tell her
+about you!"
+
+Another bond of union between them was the captain's acquaintance with
+Scoville, and he soon observed that she listened very patiently and
+attentively when he spoke of the brave scout's exploits. "I declare,"
+he had said, laughing, "I keep forgetting that you are a Southern girl
+and that you may not enjoy hearing of the successes of so active an
+enemy."
+
+"Lieutenant Scoville is not a personal enemy," she had replied
+guardedly. "He showed us all very great kindness, me especially. I wish
+that both you and he were on our side."
+
+"Well, as you say down here, I reckon we are on YOUR side any way," had
+been the captain's smiling reply.
+
+She spoke to Surgeon Ackley promptly about the prospects of a parole,
+but he said, "Impossible, Miss Baron. The question would at once arise,
+'If granted to Hanfield, why not to others?' I reckon Borden has been
+trying to rally his friend by hopes even when knowing them baseless."
+
+This proved to be the case, and the following day brought the young
+girl a strange and very sad experience. Dr. Borden appeared at
+breakfast looking troubled and perplexed. Miss Lou immediately inquired
+about the captain. The doctor shook his head saying, "He isn't so well.
+I'd like to speak with you by and by."
+
+She was so depressed by the surgeon's aspect that she paid little heed
+to the conversation of her two admirers and soon left the table. Borden
+followed her, and when they were alone began sadly, "Miss Baron,
+perhaps I am going to ask of you far too much, but you have shown
+yourself to be an unusually brave girl as well as a kind-hearted one,
+Hanfield is an old friend of mine and perhaps I've done wrong to
+mislead him. But I didn't and couldn't foresee what has happened, and I
+did hope to start him in genuine convalescence, feeling sure that if he
+got well he would give up the hope of going home as a matter of course.
+So far from succeeding, a fatal disease has set in--tetanus, lock-jaw.
+He's dying and doesn't know it. I can't tell him. I've made the truth
+doubly cruel, for I've raised false hopes. He continually talks of home
+and his pleading eyes stab me. You can soften the blow to him, soothe
+and sustain him in meeting what is sure to come."
+
+"Oh, is there no hope?"
+
+"None at all. He can't live. If you feel that the ordeal would be too
+painful--I wouldn't ask it if I hadn't seen in you unexpected
+qualities."
+
+"Oh, I must help him bear it; yet how can I? how shall I?"
+
+"Well, I guess your heart and sympathy will guide you. I can't. I can
+only say you had better tell him the whole truth. He ought to know it
+for his own and family's sake now, while perfectly rational. Soften the
+truth as you can, but you can't injure him by telling it plainly, for
+he will die. God knows, were it my case, the tidings wouldn't seem so
+very terrible if told by a girl like you."
+
+"Oh, but the tidings are so terrible to speak, especially to such a
+man. Think of his beautiful wife and daughter, of his never seeing them
+again. Oh, it's just awful," and her face grew white at the prospect.
+
+"Yes, Miss Baron, it is. In the midst of all the blood and carnage of
+the war, every now and then a case comes up which makes even my
+calloused heart admit, 'It's just awful.' I'm only seeking to make it
+less awful to my poor friend, and perhaps at too great cost to you."
+
+"Well, he on his side, and others on ours, didn't count the cost;
+neither must I. I must not think about it or my heart will fail me. I
+will go at once."
+
+"Come then, and God help you and him."
+
+A straw-bed had been made up in a large, airy box-stall where the
+captain could be by himself. Uncle Lusthah was in attendance and he had
+just brought a bowl of milk.
+
+Borden had left Miss Lou to enter alone. The captain held out his hand
+and said cheerfully, "Well, it's an ill wind that blows nowhere. This
+one will blow me home all the sooner I trust, for it must be plainer
+now than ever that I need the home change which will put me on my feet
+again. You needn't look so serious. I feel only a little more poorly
+than I did--sore throat and a queer kind of stiffness in my jaws as if
+I had taken cold in them."
+
+"Do I look very serious?" she faltered.
+
+"Yes, you look as if troubled about something. But there, see what an
+egotistic fellow I am! As if you hadn't troubles of your own! pretty
+deep ones, too, I fear. Our coming here has given you a wonderful
+experience, Miss Baron. No matter; you've met it like a soldier and
+will have much to remember in after years. You can never become a
+commonplace woman now and there are such a lot of 'em in the world.
+When I remember all you have done for us it makes me ill to think of
+some in our town--giggling, silly little flirts, with no higher
+ambition than to strut down the street in a new dress."
+
+"Oh, don't think of them or over-praise me. Perhaps if they had been
+here and compelled to face things they would have done better than I. A
+short time ago I didn't dream of these experiences, and then I would
+have said I couldn't possibly endure them."
+
+"Well, you have," resumed the captain, who was slightly feverish,
+excited and inclined to talk. "One of my dearest hopes now is to get
+back to my little girl soon and deepen her mind by making her ashamed
+of the silly things in a girl's life. Of course I wish her to be joyous
+and happy as a young thing should be, as I think you would be if you
+had the chance. By means of your story I can make her ashamed ever to
+indulge in those picayune, contemptible feminine traits which
+exasperate men. I want her to be brave, helpful, sincere, like you,
+like her mother. How quickly poor Yarry recognized the spirit in which
+you came among us at first! Jove! I didn't think him capable of such
+feeling. I tell you, Miss Baron, the roughest of us reverence an
+unselfish woman--one who doesn't think of herself first and always. She
+mayn't be a saint, but if she has heart enough for sympathy and is
+brave and simple enough to bestow it just as a cool spring gushes from
+the ground, we feel she is the woman God meant her to be. Ah, uncle,
+that reminds me--another cup of that cold water. For some reason I'm
+awfully thirsty this morning."
+
+Miss Lou listened with hands nervously clasping and unclasping, utterly
+at a loss to know how to tell the man, dreaming of home and planning
+for the future, that he must soon sleep beside poor Yarry. She had
+already taken to herself the mournful comfort that his grave also
+should be where she could care for it and keep it green.
+
+"I wish to tell you more about my little Sadie and my wife. Some day,
+when this miserable war is over, you will visit us. We'll give you a
+reception then which may turn even your head. Ha! ha! you thought we'd
+be worse than Indians. Well, I'll show you a lot of our squaws in full
+evening dress and you'll own that my wife is the prettiest in the
+tribe. Every day, until we started on this blasted raid, I received a
+letter from her. I knew about as well what was going on at home as if
+there. With my wife it was love almost at first sight, but I can tell
+you that it's not 'out of sight out of mind' with us. Time merely adds
+to the pure, bright flame, and such a pair of lovers as we shall be
+when gray as badgers will be worth a journey to you."
+
+Miss Lou could maintain her self-control no longer. She burst into
+tears and sobbed helplessly.
+
+"You poor little girl," exclaimed the captain in deep commiseration.
+"Here I've been talking like a garrulous fool when your heart is
+burdened with some trouble that perhaps you would like to speak to me
+about. Tell me, my child, just as little Sadie would."
+
+"My heart is burdened with trouble, captain; it feels as if it would
+break when I hear you talk so. Would to God little Sadie were here, and
+your beautiful wife too! Oh, what shall I say? How can I, how can I?"
+
+"Miss Baron!" he exclaimed, looking at her in vague alarm.
+
+"Oh, Captain Hanfield, you are a brave, unselfish man like Yarry. Don't
+make it too hard for me. Oh, I feel as if I could scarcely breathe."
+
+As he saw her almost panting at his side and tears streaming from her
+eyes, the truth began to dawn upon him. He looked at her steadily and
+silently for a moment, then reached out his hand as he said in an awed
+whisper, "Is it on account of me? Did Borden send you here?"
+
+She took his hand, bowed her forehead upon it and wept speechlessly.
+
+She felt it tremble for a moment, then it was withdrawn and placed on
+her bowed head. "So you are the angel of death to me?" the officer
+faltered.
+
+Her tears were her only, yet sufficient answer. Both were silent, she
+not having the heart to look at him.
+
+At last he said in deep tones, "I wasn't expecting this. It will make a
+great change in"--and then he was silent again.
+
+She took his limp hand and bowed her forehead on it, as before feeling
+by some fine instinct that her unspoken sympathy was best.
+
+It was. The brave man, in this last emergency, did as he would have
+done in the field at the head of his company if subjected to a sudden
+attack. He promptly rearranged and marshalled all his faculties to face
+the enemy. There was not a moment of despairing, vain retreat. In the
+strong pressure upon his mind of those questions which must now be
+settled once for all, he forgot the girl by his side. He was still so
+long that she timidly raised her head and was awed by his stern, fixed
+expression of deep abstraction. She did not disturb him except as the
+stifled sobs of her deep, yet now passing agitation convulsed her
+bosom, and she began to give her attention to Uncle Lusthah, hitherto
+unheeded. The old man was on his knees in a dusky corner, praying in
+low tones. "Oh, I'm so glad he's here," she thought. "I'm glad he's
+praying God to help us both." In the uncalculating sympathy and
+strength of her nature she had unconsciously entered into the dying
+man's experience and was suffering with him. Indeed, her heart sank
+with a deeper dread and awe than he from the great change which he had
+faced so often as to be familiar with its thought.
+
+At last he seemed to waken to her presence and said compassionately,
+"Poor little girl! so all your grief was about me. How pale you are!"
+
+"I do so wish you could go home," she breathed; "I am so very, VERY
+sorry."
+
+"Well, Miss Baron," he replied with dignity, "I'm no better than
+thousands of others. I always knew this might happen any day. You have
+learned why it is peculiarly hard for me--but that's not to be thought
+of now. If I've got my marching orders, that's enough for a soldier. It
+was scarcely right in Borden to give you this heavy task. I could have
+faced the truth from his lips."
+
+"He felt so dreadfully about it," she replied. "He said he had been
+giving you false hopes in trying to make you get well."
+
+"Oh, yes, he meant kindly. Well, if it hasn't been too much for you,
+I'm glad you told me. Your sympathy, your face, will be a sweet memory
+to carry, G--od only knows where. Since it can't be little Sadie's face
+or my wife's I'm glad it's yours. What am I saying? as if I should
+forget their dear faces through all eternity."
+
+"Ah! captain, I wish you could hear one of our soldiers, talk. Dying
+with him just means going to Heaven."
+
+The officer shook his head. "I'm not a Christian," he said simply.
+
+"Neither am I," she replied, "but I've been made to feel that being one
+is very different from what I once thought it was."
+
+"Well, Miss Baron, what is it to be a Christian--what is your idea of
+it? There has always seemed to me such a lot of conflicting things to
+be considered--well, well, I haven't given the subject thought and it's
+too late now. I must give my mind to my family and--"
+
+Uncle Lusthah stepped before him with clasped hands and quivering lips.
+"Ef marse cap'n des list'n ter de ole man a minit. I ain't gwine ter
+talk big en long. I kyant. I des wanter say I hab 'spearance. Dat
+sump'n, marse cap'n, you kyant say not'n agin--rale 'spearance, sump'n
+I KNOWS."
+
+"Well, you kind old soul, what do you know?"
+
+"P'raps des what mars'r knows ef he ony tinks a lil. Let us git right
+down ter de root ob de marter, kaze I feared dere ain' time fer
+'locutions."
+
+"Now you're right at least, uncle. I must set my house in order. I must
+write to my wife."
+
+"Marse cap'n, you gwine on a journey. Wa't yo' wife wish mo'n dat you
+git ready fer de journey? She tek dat journey too, bime by soon, en you
+bof be at de same deah home."
+
+"Ah, uncle, if that could be true, the sting of death would be gone."
+
+"Sut'ny, marse cap'n. Didn't I know dat ar w'en I mek bole ter speak?
+Now des tink on hit, mars'r. Yere I is, an ole ign'rant slabe, kyant
+eben read de good Book. De worl' full ob poor folks lak me. Does you
+tink ef de Lawd mean ter sabe us't all He'd do hit in some long
+rounerbout way dat de wise people kyant mos' fin' out? No, bress He
+gret big heart, He des stan' up en say to all, 'Come ter me en I gib
+you res'."
+
+"Yes, uncle, but I haven't gone to Him. I don't know how to go, and
+what's more, I don't feel it's right to go now at the last minute as if
+driven by fear."
+
+"Now, cap'n, fergib de ole man fer sayin' you all wrong. Haint young
+mistis been breakin' her lil gyurlish heart ober yo' trouble? Am de
+Lawd dat die fer us wuss'n a graven himage? Doan He feel fer you mo'n
+we kin? I reck'n you got des de bes' kin' of prep'ration ter go ter
+'Im. You got trouble. How He act toward folks dat hab trouble--ev'y
+kin' ob trouble? Marse cap'n, I des KNOWS dat de Lawd wanter brung you
+en yo' wife en dat lil Sadie I year you talk 'bout all togeder whar He
+is. I des KNOWS hit. Hit's 'spearance."
+
+"Miss Baron," said the captain calmly, "Isn't it wonderful? This old
+slave says he knows what, if true, is worth more to me than all the
+accumulated wisdom of the world. What do you think of it?"
+
+"It seems as if it ought to be true," she answered earnestly. "I never
+so felt before that it OUGHT to be true. We never should have been
+born, or given such love as you have for your dear ones, if it isn't
+true. Oh, to be just snatched hopelessly away from such ties is
+horrible. My whole soul revolts at it."
+
+"See here, uncle," said the captain almost sternly, "I'm not going to
+groan, sigh, weep, and take on in any of your camp-meeting tactics. I
+am before the last great enemy and I know how to meet him like a man
+and soldier, if not a Christian. I'm willing to do anything not
+insincere or unmanly to meet my wife and children again. If my thought
+and feeling for them at this time isn't right, then I've been created
+wrong."
+
+"Marse cap'n, I'se seen de mos' po'ful feelin's en miseries ob de
+'victed ones vaperate lak de maunin' dew en I'se larn in my ole age dat
+de sabin po'r ain' in we uns, ner in any ting we is ob oursefs ner in
+w'at we po' lil chil'n of yearth kin do. De Lawd say, He come ter seek
+en sabe de loss; I wuz loss. De wuss ting He enemies cud speak agin 'Im
+wuz, Dis man 'ceiveth sinners: I wuz a sinner. I des arst 'Im ter sabe
+me, en He did. I des trus' 'Im fer life en death en does de bes' I kin.
+Dat's all. But hit's 'SPEARANCE, marse cap'n, en I KNOWS hit. Now,
+marse cap'n, w'at fo' you go way in the de dark, you dunno whar? De
+bressed Lawd say, I go ter prepare a place fer you. Now you des let
+young mistis write ter yo' folks dat you gwine wid Jesus ter dat ar
+place en dat you gwine ter wait fer dem dar en welcome urn home bime by
+des lak dey wud welcome you home way up Norf. Dat ud comf't em a heap,
+en hit's all true. I knows hit. Young mistis berry sens'ble w'en she
+say we neber orter be bawn ef hit ain' true."
+
+The officer looked fixedly at the tearful, wrinkled face for a few
+moments and then said firmly, "I'll soon find out if it's true. If I do
+this thing at all, I'll do it in the only way I can. Miss Baron, you
+may write to my wife that I accept her faith. It's much the same as
+Uncle Lusthah's--too simple and unphilosophical, I used to think; but
+it meets my need now. I can't deal even with God in any other way than
+this. The mind he has endowed me with revolts at anything else as
+hypocritical. I can and do say that I will accept in grateful,
+downright sincerity the terms which Uncle Lusthah accepted, which my
+wife accepted. I submit myself to His will. I do this calmly, as I
+would give my hand and pledge my faith to a man, and I cannot do any
+more. Now He may do with me as He pleases. Miss Baron, you do the same
+and you'll be just as good--yes, a much better Christian than I, for
+I've done rough, bad things in my life. Don't you wait till you're in
+my extremity. I must say that I have a wretched sense of self-contempt
+that I am looking Heavenward with dying eyes. There's only one thing
+that reconciles me to it--the words 'Our Father.' God knows that I'd
+open my arms to my little Sadie under any possible circumstances. What
+the old man here says must be true, for to trifle with or mock a man in
+my position presupposes a degree of malignity inconceivable. I ask
+nothing better than that Christ will receive me as I would receive my
+child from world-wide wandering."
+
+"Ah, bress He big gret heart," cried Uncle Lusthah, dropping on his
+knees, "w'en yo' fader en yo' moder forsook you den de Lawd took you
+up."
+
+"Miss Baron, I wish to think a while and learn from Borden just how
+much time I have left. You will come to me again?"
+
+"Yes, whenever you wish."
+
+"Well, then, good-by for a short time. Thank God for sending me such an
+angel of death. You stay with me, uncle, till I send you for Borden."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXX
+
+GLIMPSES OF MOODS AND MINDS
+
+
+Dr. Borden's predictions were verified in regard to his friend and
+patient, Captain Hanfield, but not before the officer had dictated
+calm, farewell letters to his wife and "little Sadie." To Miss Lou were
+left the serene, smiling likenesses, a grave to be cared for beside
+Yarry's, and a memory that could never be blotted out. She was kept
+from witnessing the terrible convulsions which began soon after her
+interview, but was present at his death and held his hand until it was
+cold and lifeless.
+
+Within two weeks after the battle very few patients were left, and all
+these were to go with Dr. Ackley on the following day, Lieutenant Waldo
+excepted. He was still too weak to be moved. His mother had become so
+skilful in the care of his wound that she would be competent, with the
+help of an aged resident practitioner, to carry him through his
+convalescence. Mrs. Whately now spent most of the time on her
+plantation, her presence being needed there to remedy the effects, as
+far as possible, of the harsh measures at first adopted by her son. It
+was discouraging effort. The strong ebb tide in the old order of things
+had set in even far from the Union lines, and only the difficulty in
+reaching them prevented a general stampede of the negroes. As it was,
+two or three of her best hands would steal away from time to time, and
+run the gantlet of many dangers in their travel by night Northward. Her
+attempts to mollify and render her slaves contented were more than
+counterbalanced by the threats and severity of her son, who was too
+vacillating to adopt a fixed policy, and arbitrary by nature.
+
+Her chief hope for him still centred in Miss Lou, upon whom his
+thoughts were fixed with a steadfastness and earnestness which his
+mother fondly believed would win her eventually, "I'm sure," she
+reasoned, "Captain Maynard has made no deep impression. He is about to
+depart. All will soon be gone, and the old monotony of plantation life
+will be resumed. After what has happened Louise will not be able to
+endure this. Madison will return, older and wiser from experience and
+she, with nothing else to occupy her thoughts will react, like all
+impulsive natures, from her opposition. Next to winning her or her
+favor from the start, he has scored a success in waking a hostility far
+removed from fatal indifference."
+
+She maintained an affectionate manner toward her niece and never
+discussed the hope she entertained and expectation of calling her
+daughter. In truth, she had won the girl's respect and goodwill in a
+very high degree. She had been a kind and successful nurse among the
+wounded, confining her efforts chiefly to the Confederates. She had
+also been a dignified lady in all the scenes they had passed through.
+Her weakness was her son, yet the girl was compelled to admit that it
+was the weakness of love. In seeking to bring about the detested union
+a motherly heart and feeling toward her had ever been apparent.
+
+The girl was already becoming depressed by a presentiment of the dull,
+stagnant days to come. Scoville had been lost in the great outside,
+unknown world completely. She was suffering from reaction after the
+strong excitements and fatigues of her experience. Her two lovers,
+remaining on the scene, possessed a sort of goading interest which
+compelled her to think of them, but she contemplated their near
+departure without regret. Nothing in her nature answered to their
+looks, words and evident desires. She felt that she would as soon marry
+one as the other, and that she would rather be buried beside Captain
+Hanfield and take the journey of which Uncle Lusthah had quaintly
+spoken than wed either. Yet in her lassitude she feared that she could
+now be compelled to marry either or any one if enough active force was
+employed, so strangely had ebbed her old fearless spirit.
+
+It were with a kind of wondering pity that she looked at Maynard and
+saw the evidences of an honest, ardent attachment. "Why does he feel
+so?" she asked herself. "I have done nothing for him, given no
+encouragement, and would not care if I never saw him again. I merely
+wish him well, as I do so many others. Why can't he see this, and just
+act on the truth? He says he is coming to see me every chance he gets
+and tries to make me feel that he'll never give me up. Perhaps if I
+should let him speak plainly he would see how useless it all would be."
+
+Circumstances apparently favored the half-formed purpose. Languid from
+the heat of the day, she went out on the piazza after supper, sat down
+on the upper step and leaned against a rose-entwined pillar. Maynard
+was entranced by the picture she made and promptly availed himself of
+the opportunity. Every one else had disappeared except Zany, of whom
+glimpses could be caught through the open windows of the supper-room;
+but she did not count. Sitting on a lower step so as to be in a measure
+at her feet Maynard began.
+
+"Miss Baron, I am thinking very sadly, if you are not, over the fact
+that I am to go away in the morning."
+
+"Yes," she replied, half-consciously ignoring his personal view, "the
+old house and plantation will soon be as quiet and deserted as before."
+
+"Do you regret this?"
+
+"I scarcely know. I am very tired and feel sad over all that has
+happened. Perhaps I'll feel differently by and by, when I've rested and
+had time to think."
+
+"Oh, Miss Baron, if you knew how earnestly I hope to be remembered in
+those thoughts, to give you something definite to think of."
+
+She had scarcely the energy to check him, the thought occurring more
+than once, "I might just as well let him speak his mind and see how
+vain his hope is."
+
+"You have not given me encouragement," he resumed. "You have seemed too
+preoccupied, sad or weary; but this phase of your life will pass away.
+Our glorious cause must soon be crowned with success. If I survive, may
+I not hope that when I come again you will give me a hearing, a chance?
+I can be patient, even though not patient by nature. I will do all that
+a man--"
+
+"Captain," interrupted the girl, at last, "I suppose, from the books
+I've read, I should make some fine speeches about the honor you are
+bestowing on me, and all that. I'm too tired and sad for anything
+conventional and appropriate. I'm just going to answer you like a
+simple, honest girl. One of my chief reasons for sadness is that you
+feel as you do. I see no reason for it. I'm glad you say I've given you
+no encouragement, I know I have not. Why should you care so for me when
+I do not and cannot respond at all? I do sincerely wish you well, but
+it seems to me that it should be enough for a man when a girl listens
+to such words as yours in weary sadness only."
+
+"It may be hard indeed for a man to recognize this truth, Miss Baron,
+but I am not speaking of the present--of the future rather. There has
+been much to make you sad and weary. Your very youth and high spirit
+will soon lead you to react from your present depression. Let me speak
+of the future. Please let me fill that with hope for you and for me."
+
+"Oh, I don't know about the future. For some reason I dread even to
+think of it."
+
+At this instant Whately galloped to the piazza, threw the reins on the
+neck of his horse as he dismounted, evidently not caring in his
+perturbation where the animal wandered. He was in a bad mood, for
+things were not going smoothly at home. The attitude of his rival at
+his cousin's feet stung him into a jealous rage and he remarked
+bitterly as he strode past them, "Don't let my inopportune arrival
+disturb this charming tete-a-tete. In fact, I had no business to remain
+at my uncle's home at all, even at the call of duty, after Captain
+Maynard signified his intention of making it the long-continued field
+of his operations."
+
+Cut to the quick, Maynard sprang to his feet, but Miss Lou merely made
+a gesture of annoyance and went to her room.
+
+"Lieutenant Whately," began the captain in low, stern tones, "were I
+not in some sense a guest, even though an unwelcome one--"
+
+"You are no guest of mine, sir, nor indeed of anyone that I am aware
+of."
+
+"Thank you. I was haunted by some restraining consideration of Southern
+hospitality, but if I am free--"
+
+"You are perfectly free, sir," again interrupted Whately, dropping his
+hand on the hilt of his sabre. "Let me also add that a Southern
+gentleman would not have made Southern hospitality a subterfuge for an
+opportunity to press a suit repugnant to the family concerned. We have
+never failed in hospitality to any invited guest."
+
+"Your words are offensive, sir."
+
+"I mean them to be so."
+
+"Very well; then I have but one answer. I challenge you. Choose your
+weapons, hour and place of meeting."
+
+"Revolvers, if you please. Meet me back of the grove yonder, at the
+right of the house, at daybreak."
+
+"I'll not fail you. There is no need of seconds in this affair, I take
+it, and we are to keep our purpose secret. Dr. Ackley would interfere
+and the family be distressed were our intentions known."
+
+"No one need know till our shots are heard and then it will be too late
+to interfere. I insist that we fight to the death."
+
+"Certainly, if that's your wish. Good-evening, sir."
+
+"Good-evening," and Whately went to his room to remove the dust of his
+ride and prepare for the late supper which his aunt had ordered for him.
+
+This lady, hearing his step in the hall, hastened downstairs and called
+for Zany. "Yassum," came in quick response. The young woman emerged
+from the dining-room looking as stolid as a wooden image.
+
+"Attend to Lieutenant Whately's supper and see that he has the best you
+can get for him."
+
+"Yassum."
+
+Mrs. Baron then repaired to her husband's office, where he and Surgeon
+Ackley were closeted, making up the accounts relating to the occupation
+of the property for hospital purposes. Maynard lighted his pipe, and
+strolled out into the grounds. He was in a cold, deadly mood of anger.
+There was just enough sting of truth in Whately's words to make the
+insult unendurable. Added to this was intense exasperation that he had
+been interrupted at a critical and, as he believed, a hopeful, moment.
+He had seen that the girl was not ready for his suit or that of any one
+at present, but was quite sure he could have won permission to renew
+his addresses in the future. Now--well, he was ready enough to fight to
+the death and utterly oblivious of the still, serene beauty of the
+night. He appeared but a shadow as he walked quietly under the trees,
+but it was a shadow of death. An hour since and he was but a passionate
+youth, full of ardent love and longing, vaguely inspired, under the
+influence of his passion, toward all noble enthusiasms. At the touch of
+a few words his heart overflowed with bitterness, and a cold,
+vindictive hate rendered the hours interminable till he could aim a
+bullet at his rival's heart, reckless meantime that another bullet was
+aimed at his.
+
+In his walk he passed the tent in which Lieutenant Waldo and his mother
+were talking quietly of their home and the prospects of maintaining it
+during the troublous times clearly foreseen.
+
+"Mother," said Waldo, "have you any definite idea as to the success of
+our arms?"
+
+"No, Vincent, nor do I suppose we can at this remote plantation. We
+only know that there is heavy fighting at various points and great
+successes are claimed; but it seems very hard to get at the real truth.
+Our chief confidence must be in the sacredness and justness of our
+cause and in the prayers of so many sincere hearts to the God of
+justice. In giving you, my son, to our country, when you were scarcely
+more than a boy, you can understand why I feel that such sacrifices
+cannot be in vain. Now that I have watched beside you in your patient,
+heroic suffering, the feeling becomes a conviction that our sunny land
+must be enriched and blessed for all time by such blood as yours."
+
+"Well, mother, I do not begrudge my blood or my life. You have taught
+me that to die is gain; but almost hourly I pray for recovery that I
+may soon rejoin my regiment and do more toward achieving our liberty.
+How strange it is that men of the North should be animated by much the
+same spirit! Miss Baron has been showing me the lovely faces of the
+wife and daughter of a Federal officer who died heroically a few days
+ago. She says the war is all a dreadful mystery to her."
+
+"I am beginning to understand her better," replied Mrs. Waldo musingly,
+"for to some extent she has given me her confidence. If she had been
+brought up as you have been she would feel as you do. I can see why her
+uncle and aunts have not won her sympathy, while her cousin's conduct
+has been well calculated to alienate her. I can also understand why the
+negroes on the place have so enlisted her sympathy. I do not think they
+have been treated very harshly, but it is too clear that they are
+regarded simply as property, and Mr. Baron has allowed himself to be
+represented among them by a brutal, coarse-fibred man. If she had been
+your sister and had witnessed the spirit in which our slaves are
+governed and cared for she would feel as you do, not vindictive hatred
+of the North--such feeling is not permissible toward any of the human
+race--but a stern, lofty spirit of independence, such as our fathers
+had in separating from England."
+
+"Well, she is a brave, good girl, mother, and has been as kind to me as
+if I were her brother."
+
+"Very true, Vincent. She is a remarkably good girl for one brought up
+as she has been. She has told me much about her past repressed, unhappy
+life. I hope she may visit us some day."
+
+Meantime, the subject of this conversation sat at her window looking
+out into the warm, fragrant, starlit night. The words of Maynard, the
+passionate resentment of her cousin toward the young captain merely
+added to the heavy burden of experience which had been crowded into the
+past few weeks. "Oh," she sighed longingly, "if I could only see Allan
+Scoville! He is so strong, unselfish and restful. I could tell him
+everything. He would know just how weary and depressed I am, nor would
+he want me to do what I can't, what I'm not ready for. Oh, what a
+blessed thing it would be to have a friend near who wasn't always
+exacting or expecting or passionately urging something or other. I
+wouldn't need urging in his case, and would even know his hand would be
+the first to restrain me for my own good. Where is he now? Oh, he'd be
+here if my thoughts could bring him, yet my two lovers would be eager
+to take his life. Lovers indeed! Well, it's a strange, tangled up world
+that I'm learning about."
+
+Meantime Zany, bursting with her secret, was unable to tell any one,
+and not yet sure she wished to tell. For one at her point of
+civilization her motives were a little complex and sophisticated. In a
+vicarious way she felt not a little the elation of many a high-born
+dame that two men were about to fight over her young mistress,
+regarding it as an undeniable compliment. She was also inclined to
+indulge the cynical thought that it might save Miss Lou, Scoville,
+Chunk--indeed, all in whom she was interested--further trouble if, as
+she phrased it, "Dat ar young cap'n gib Mad Whately he way onst too
+of'un. He des natchelly bawn ter mek folks trouble en I reck'n we git
+on wid he spook bettah ner hesef."
+
+Whately would not have relished his supper if he had divined the
+thoughts of his waitress. As it was, he had little appetite for it and
+paid his respects chiefly to his uncle's decanter. He felt no need of
+false courage, but was irritated and depressed over the general aspect
+of affairs, and here was an easy way of raising his spirits. By the
+time he was ready to dispense with Zany's services he was so affected
+by his potations that his aunt, who had appeared on the scene, hastened
+his retirement. He told the sergeant of the guard to have him called at
+daybreak and was soon asleep.
+
+The indomitable housekeeper, Mrs. Baron, kept the girl busy until
+everything was put away and the dining-room in perfect order. Meantime
+Zany concluded that she had better tell Miss Lou. Her young mistress
+might blame her severely if she did not, and keeping such a secret over
+night would also be a species of torture.
+
+When she was dismissed she watched her opportunity, whisked up to Miss
+Lou's room, and was glad to find the girl still awake.
+
+"Oh, Miss Lou," she whispered breathlessly, "I des got de orfulest,
+quarest news, en I darsn't kep hit eny longer. Marse cap'n en Mad
+Whately gwine ter fight 'bout you fo' sun-up."
+
+"What!"
+
+"Dey sut'ny is. Dey gwine ter fight one anoder 'bout you wid
+'volvers--fight ter de deth dey said. I yeared dem troo de dine-room
+winders."
+
+"Oh, Zany! this is horrible!"
+
+"Hit mout be wuss. Yo' cousin hot fer hit. He say orful tings ter marse
+cap'n who didin't gib back a inch en sez, sez he, 'I challing you.
+Shoose yo' weapons en place ob meetin'. Dem he berry words. Den yo'
+cousin shose 'volvers en de far side ob de grobe up dar en said 'we
+fight ter de deth.' Deth useter seem orful, Miss Lou, but sech a heap
+ob mens die dat ef Mad Whately des set on dyin', w'y not let 'im hab he
+way? Dat orter suit 'im bes'. I reck'n he mek we uns en Marse Scoville
+en Chunk berry lil trouble arter he dead."
+
+"Zany, Zany, that's a dreadful way to look at it. You should know
+better. This meeting must be prevented. Where is my cousin?"
+
+"He des sound a sleep ez a log," and she made it clear that there would
+be no use in trying to remonstrate with him.
+
+"Where's Captain Maynard?"
+
+"Dunno. Sleepin' in he tent too, s'pose. Hit too late now, Miss Lou,
+ter do anyting fo' mawnin'."
+
+The girl thought deeply a few moments and then muttered, "Shame on them
+both!"
+
+"Dar now, Miss Lou, you doan reckermember dey payin' you a big
+compelment."
+
+"I shall tell them to their faces how I regard this outrage rather.
+Still, for their sakes, as well as my own, I will keep the affair quiet
+if I can. Zany, you must stay with me to-night and at the earliest dawn
+we must watch them and be on the ground as soon as they are."
+
+"Berry well, Miss Lou. I lak not'n bettah."
+
+"Go to sleep, then. I won't sleep to-night."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXI
+
+THE DUELLISTS VANQUISHED
+
+
+Zany's tidings brought the spur of a great necessity to Miss Lou's
+jaded spirit, and as her waking thoughts dwelt on the proposed
+encounter, a slow, deep anger was kindled in her mind. "What right have
+they to do such a thing?" she asked herself over and over again. Even
+more than at, the barbarism of the act she revolted at its injustice.
+"I never wronged either of them," she repeated, "and here they are
+recklessly bent on what would imbitter my life. The idea of being
+fought about! Two animals couldn't do worse."
+
+And so the long night was passed in bitter, painful thoughts. With the
+dawning the bird's innocent songs jarred on her overwrought senses. She
+looked out of the window by which she had kept her vigil, inhaled the
+dewy freshness of the air and then bathed her tired, hot eyes.
+
+"To think that men would disturb the peace of such a morning by their
+miserable, causeless hate! Where is Madison's love for his mother? Why
+don't they remember the distress and horror that would follow their mad
+act? Zany, wake up. It is time we were on the watch."
+
+Even as she spoke there was a heavy step in the outer hall, that of the
+sergeant coming to wake Lieutenant Whately. Miss Lou glanced from her
+window in time to see Captain Maynard striding from his tent toward the
+grove which would screen the combatants from observation. Waiting a few
+moments for the sergeant to retire she and Zany slipped down and out
+before Whately left his room. They reached the grove from the back
+entrance of the house, and concealing themselves in some copse-wood,
+watched for Whately's coming. He soon appeared, walking rapidly as if
+fearing to be behind time. He was in fact some moments late, having
+stopped to advise Perkins of the affair on hand. He passed so near his
+cousin's leafy screen that she could look into his flushed, troubled
+face and could hear him mutter, "Curse it all! I'm forever getting into
+scrapes."
+
+For the first time since Zany's news, pity overcame her anger and she
+murmured, "Poor spoiled boy! It's well for you and your mother that I'm
+here."
+
+Swiftly she followed him through the still dusky grove, keeping the
+boles of trees between herself and his form. Beyond the grove was an
+open grassy field, facing the east, where the light was distinct.
+Clearly outlined against the rose-tinted horizon was the figure of
+Maynard standing with his arms folded and his back toward them,
+apparently lost in deep thought.
+
+"Well, sir," said Whately sternly, "I suppose I should asked your
+pardon for keeping you waiting."
+
+"I reckon there's plenty of time for the purpose of our meeting,"
+replied Maynard coolly. "Since you are the challenged party and we have
+no seconds, arrange the matter to suit yourself."
+
+Whately was about to pace off the ground when a girl's voice rang out
+clearly, "Stop that!"
+
+"Miss Baron!" cried Maynard, taking off his hat.
+
+Whately threw back his head proudly. This was better than he had
+dreamed, for now his cousin would be compelled to recognize his high
+and haughty spirit. A glance at the girl's pale, stern face as she
+stepped out between them was not altogether reassuring. She glanced
+coldly from one to the other for a moment and then said firmly, "I have
+something to say about this affair."
+
+"Pardon me, Miss Baron," Maynard began, bowing, "if I am compelled to
+disabuse your mind. This is a little matter between Lieutenant Whately
+and myself. I am surprised beyond measure that he has invited you to be
+present."
+
+"That's a lie," thundered Whately, drawing his weapon from his belt.
+
+"Stop, both of you," cried the girl. "Captain Maynard, my cousin has
+not invited me. Your purpose of meeting was discovered by accident and
+revealed to me late last night--too late for me to do anything then.
+All the long night I have sat at my window that I might be in time to
+keep you from disgracing yourselves and me."
+
+"Great heavens! Miss Baron, you do me injustice," cried Maynard. "I
+have been insulted. I never thought of wronging you. Perish such a
+thought!"
+
+"Evidently neither of you has thought of me, nor cared for me or
+others. Yourselves, your own vindictive feelings have engrossed you
+wholly, yet I know I'm the innocent cause of this brutal encounter, and
+the world would know me to be the cause whether it believed me innocent
+or not. I tell you plainly that if you fight I shall brand you both
+unworthy the name of gentlemen and I shall proclaim to all your outrage
+to me."
+
+"Outrage to you, Miss Baron?" said Maynard, with a bitter, incredulous
+laugh.
+
+"Yes," she replied, turning upon him fiercely. "What can you think of
+me when you fight about me like a wild beast?"
+
+"I am prepared to fight Lieutenant Whately on entirely different
+grounds," he replied, his face flushing hotly at her words.
+
+"You cannot do it, sir. I would know, and so would all, that I was the
+cause. What right, sir, have you to imbitter my life, to fill my days
+and nights with horror? I never wronged you."
+
+"But, Miss Baron, in all ages such encounters have been common enough
+when a man received ample provocation, as I have."
+
+"So much the worse for the ages then. I say that you both were about to
+commit a selfish, cowardly, unmanly act that would have been an outrage
+in its cruelty to an innocent girl, to whom you had been making false
+professions of regard."
+
+"Now, by the God who made me, that's not true, Miss Baron."
+
+"Cousin Lou, you are beside yourself," cried Whately.
+
+"Miss Baron," said Maynard, coming to her side and speaking with great
+earnestness, "I can endure any charge better than your last. No man
+ever declared truer love than I to you."
+
+"I can tell you of a man who has declared truer love," she replied,
+looking him steadily in the eyes.
+
+"Who in God's name?" he asked savagely.
+
+"Any man who thought more of the girl than of himself," she answered
+with passionate pathos in her tones, "any man who considered her before
+his own reckless, ungovernable feelings, who would save her heart from
+sorrow rather than gratify his anger. Any man who asks, What is best
+for the woman I love? instead of What's my humor? what will please me?
+Suppose you both had carried out your savage impulses, and lay on this
+ground, wounded or dead, what would be said at the house there about
+me? What would be your mother's fate, Madison, that you might gratify a
+causeless spite? Have you no home, Captain Maynard, no kindred who
+would always curse my name? If you had died like the brave men who lie
+in yonder graves your friends would ever speak your name proudly; but
+even I, all inexperienced, know the world well enough to be only too
+sure, they would hang their heads and say you flung away your life for
+a heartless girl who was amusing herself at your expense. Fight if you
+will, but if you do, I pledge you my word that I will never willingly
+look upon either of you again, living or dead!"
+
+She was about to turn away when Maynard rushed before her exclaiming,
+"Miss Baron, I beg your pardon, I ask your forgiveness. I never saw
+this act in the light you place it."
+
+"There, cousin," added Whately with a sort of shamefaced laugh, "I'm
+hanged if you aren't in the right and I in the wrong again. As you say,
+the bullet that killed me might do worse by mother, and I should have
+thought of that. As for you, we didn't think you'd look at it this way.
+There's plenty of girls who'd think it a big feather in their caps to
+have men fight about 'em."
+
+"I can't believe it."
+
+"It's true, nevertheless," said Maynard earnestly. "What can I do to
+right myself in your eyes?"
+
+"If you wish to be men whose friendship I can value, shake hands and
+use your weapons for your country. If you truly care for my good
+opinion, forget yourselves long enough to find out what DOES please me
+and not rush headlong into action I detest. Consider the rights,
+feelings and happiness of others."
+
+"Well, Whately, what do you say?" asked Maynard with a grim laugh. "I
+am ready to obey Miss Baron as I would my superior officer," and he
+held out his hand.
+
+Whately took it with an answering laugh, saying, "There's nothing else
+left us to do. After her words, we could no more fight each other than
+shoot her."
+
+"Thank you. I--I--Zany," she faltered, turning deathly white. She would
+have fallen had not her cousin sprung to her aid, supporting her to a
+seat on a moss-grown log lying near.
+
+For a few moments the long strain and reaction proved too much for her,
+and she sat, pale and panting, her head resting against Zany, who had
+rushed from her covert. The young men were overwhelmed with compunction
+and alarm, but she retained and silenced them by a gesture. "I'll
+be--better--in a moment," she gasped.
+
+It proved but a partial giving way of her nervous force. In a few
+moments she added, "Please go back to the house by different ways. No
+one need know anything about this. No, don't call any one. I'll get
+better faster if left with Zany. I beg you do as I ask and then my mind
+will be at rest."
+
+"There, Miss Baron," said the remorseful Maynard, "I pledge you my word
+I'll never fight a duel. I can prove my courage sufficiently against
+the enemy."
+
+She smiled, held out her hand, which he carried to his lips and
+reluctantly departed.
+
+"See here, Cousin Lou," said Whately impulsively, "I'm going to give
+you an honest, cousinly kiss. I'm not so feather-headed as not to know
+you've got us both out of a devil of a scrape."
+
+He suited the action to his words, and strode off in time to intercept
+Perkins, who had the scent of a vulture for a battle. "We have arranged
+the affair for the present," said the young officer curtly, "and won't
+need any graves to-day. Keep mum about this."
+
+"I'll keep my mouth close enough till I kin begin ter bite on my own
+account," muttered the overseer as he sullenly followed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXII
+
+SAD TIDINGS
+
+
+That morning Miss Lou stood on the veranda and bade farewell, one after
+another, to those with whom she had been associated so strangely and
+unexpectedly. There was an unwonted huskiness in Dr. Borden's voice,
+and Ackley, usually so grim and prompt, held the girl's hand
+lingeringly as he tried to make a joke about her defying him and the
+whole Confederacy. It was a dismal failure. Regarding him with her
+weary eyes, she said:
+
+"Doctor, you had wit enough and heart enough to understand and subdue
+me. Haven't I minded you since?"
+
+"I'm a little afraid you'd still get the upper hand if you often looked
+at me as you do now. I shall find out, however, if you will obey one
+more order. Miss Baron, you MUST rest. Your pulse indicates unusual
+exhaustion. You have tried to do too much, and I expect those young men
+have been making such fierce and counter claims that you are all worn
+out. Ah, if I had been only twenty years younger I would have won you
+by a regular course of scientific love-making."
+
+"I don't know anything about science and wouldn't understand you. So it
+is better as it is, for I do understand what a good, kind friend you've
+been. You knew all the while that I was little more than an ignorant
+child, yet your courtesy was so fine that you treated me like a woman.
+I hope we shall meet again in brighter days. Yes, I will obey you, for
+I feel the need of rest."
+
+"I shall come again and take my chances," said Maynard in parting.
+
+Mercurial Whately, forgetting his various troubles and experiences in
+the excitement of change and return to active duty, bade her a rather
+boisterous and good-hearted farewell. His mind was completely relieved
+as to Maynard, and he did not dream of Scoville as a serious rival.
+
+"It's only a question of time," he thought, "and at present mother can
+do the courting better than I can. When I return Lou will be so
+desperately bored by her stupid life here as to be ready for any
+change."
+
+The remaining patients looked at her and Mrs. Whately very wistfully
+and gratefully, speaking reluctant adieus. When all were gone the girl,
+feeling that she had reached the limit of endurance, went to her room
+and slept till evening. It was the sleep of exhaustion, so heavy that
+she came down to a late supper weak and languid. But youth is elastic,
+the future full of infinite possibilities. Scoville's words haunted her
+like sweet refrains of music. No matter how weary, perplexed and sad
+she was, the certainty of her place in his thoughts and heart sustained
+her and was like a long line of light in the west, indicating a
+clearing storm. "He WILL come again," she often whispered to herself;
+"he said he would if he had to come on crutches. Oh, he DOES love me.
+He gave me his love that night direct, warm from his heart, because he
+couldn't help himself. He thought he loved me before--when, by the run,
+he told me of it so quietly, so free from all exaction and demands; but
+I didn't feel it. It merely seemed like bright sunshine of kindness and
+goodwill, very sweet and satisfying then. But when we were parting,
+when his tones trembled so, when overcome, he lost restraint and
+snatched me to HIS heart--then I learned that _I_, too, had a heart."
+
+If she had been given time this new heart-life, with thoughts and hopes
+springing from it like flowers, would have restored her elasticity.
+Scoville's manly visage, his eyes, so often mirthful, always kind,
+would have become so real to her fancy that the pallid, drawn features
+of the suffering, the dying and the dead, would have faded from her
+memory. So would have faded also the various aspects of passion from
+which she had shrunk, frightened by its hot breath. Her days would have
+been filled with the beautiful, innocent dreams of a young girl's first
+love so inspired as to cast out fear.
+
+But the ruthless Moloch of war could not permit anything so ideal, so
+heavenly, as this.
+
+Mrs. Waldo came down from the apartment to which her son had been
+removed and joined the girl on the veranda. "Ah!" she exclaimed, "I
+have taken solid comfort all day in the thought that you were sleeping,
+and now you are still resting. I want to see the color in your cheeks
+again, and the tired look all gone from your eyes before we go."
+
+"You don't know how I dread to have you go," replied Miss Lou. "From
+the first your son did more for me than I could do for him. The smile
+with which he always greeted me made me feel that nothing could happen
+beyond remedy, and so much that was terrible was happening."
+
+"Well, my child, that's the faith I am trying to cherish myself and
+teach my boy. It is impossible for you to know what a black gulf opened
+at my feet when my noble husband was killed early in the war. Such
+things, happily, are known only by experience, and many escape. Then
+our cause demanded my only son. I face death with him in every battle,
+every danger. He takes risks without a thought of fear, and I dare not
+let him know the agony of my fear. Yet in my widowhood, in the sore
+pressure of care and difficulty in managing a large plantation in these
+times, I have found my faith in God's love adequate to my need. I
+should still find it so if I lost my boy. I could not escape the
+suffering, but I would not sorrow as without hope."
+
+"How much I would give for the certainty of such a faith!" said Miss
+Lou sadly. "Sometimes, since Captain Hanfield died, I think I feel it.
+And then--oh, I don't know. Things might happen which I couldn't meet
+in your spirit. If I had been compelled to marry my cousin I feel that
+I should have become hard, bitter and reckless."
+
+"You poor, dear little girl! Well, you were not compelled to marry him.
+Don't you see? We are saved from some things and given strength to bear
+what does happen. Don't you worry about yourself, my dear. Just look up
+and trust. Happily, the sun of God's love shines on just the same,
+unaffected by the passing clouds of our feelings and experiences. He
+sees the end and knows all about the peaceful, happy eternity before
+us. You dear, worn-out little child! His love is ever about you like my
+arms at this moment," and the old lady drew the girl to her in an
+impulse of motherly tenderness.
+
+"Oh, Mrs. Waldo, you make me feel what it is to have no mother," sobbed
+Miss Lou.
+
+"Well, my dear, that's your heavy cross. Sooner or later, in some form,
+a cross burdens every human soul, too often many crosses. All I ask of
+you is not to try to bear them alone. See how faith changed everything
+for Captain Hanfield in his extremity. He is now in the better home,
+waiting for his dear ones."
+
+"I can never forget what faith has done for you and your son, Mrs.
+Waldo. Surgeon Ackley said that your son's absolute quiet and
+cheerfulness of mind during the first critical days saved his life."
+
+"Yes, I know that," Mrs. Waldo replied with her low, sweet laugh.
+"Faith is often more useful in helping us to live than in preparing us
+to die. It saved my life, too, I'm sure, after my husband died. I had
+no right to die then, for Vincent and, far more, my daughters, still
+needed me."
+
+For a time they sat on the piazza steps in silence, the old lady
+keeping her arm caressingly about the girl, whose head drooped on the
+motherly bosom overflowing with sympathy. Only the semi-tropical sounds
+of night broke the stillness. The darkness was relieved by occasional
+flashes along the horizon from a distant thunder-shower. Miss Lou
+thought, "Have I ever known a peace so deep and sweet as this?"
+
+There was a hasty, yet stealthy step along the hall to the door, yet
+the girl had no presentiment of evil. The warm, brooding, fragrant
+darkness of the night was not more undisturbed than her mind.
+
+"Miss Lou," said Zany in a loud whisper.
+
+What a shock came with that brief utterance! A flash of lightning
+direct from the sky could not have produced such sudden dread and
+presentiment of trouble. Truly, a woman listens more with her heart
+than her ears, and even in Zany's whisper there was detected a note of
+tragedy.
+
+After an instant Miss Lou faltered, "What is it, Zany?"
+
+"Ef you gwine ter yo' room soon I des he'p you undress."
+
+How well the girl knew that the faithful slave meant other and less
+prosaic help! She rose at once, kissed Mrs. Waldo good-night and
+excused herself. When Zany had lighted the candle her scared, troubled
+face revealed at once that she had tidings of dire import.
+
+Miss Lou seized the girl with a grip which hurt her arm, demanding,
+"Have you heard anything about--about Lieutenant Scoville?"
+
+"Now, Miss Lou, you gotter be brabe en not look at me dat away. Kaze ef
+you does, w'at I gwine ter do? I kyant stan' it nohow."
+
+"Oh! oh!" Miss Lou gasped, "wait a moment, not yet--wait. I must get
+breath. I know, I know what's coming. Chunk is back and--and--O God, I
+can't bear it, I cannot, I cannot!"
+
+"Dar now, Miss Lou, des lis'n. P'raps tain ez bad ez you tink. P'raps
+w'en Chunk 'splain all you see tain ez bad. Hi! Miss Lou, you musn't
+took on so," for the girl was wringing her hands and rocking back and
+forth in agony. "Folks s'picion dat Chunk yere en dat ud be de eend ob
+him, sho. He ain' seen Marse Scoville daid sho. He on'y see 'im fall.
+Chunk wanter see you en he mighty skeery 'bout hit, kaze ef Perkins get
+on he track he done fer. He ain' see he granny yit en he darsn't come
+dar twel hit late. He larn ter toot lak a squinch-owl frum Marse
+Scoville en he tole me dat when he come agin he toot. I nigh on run my
+legs off follerin' up tootin's o' nights, fer dey wuz on'y pesky
+squinch-owls arter all. Dis eb'nin' I year a toot dat flutter my heart
+big en I knowed 'twuzn't no squinch-owl dis time, sho," and so Zany ran
+on in her canny shrewdness, for she perceived she was gaining Miss
+Lou's attention and giving time for recovery from the blow.
+
+Miss Lou had a despairing conviction that Chunk would not have returned
+alone unless his master was dead, but her mind quickly seized upon the
+element of uncertainty and she was eager to see the negro.
+
+"We mus' wait, we sut'ny mus', twel Chunk kin creep ter he granny's
+cabin."
+
+"I can't wait, Zany. It wouldn't be best, either for me or Chunk. It's
+not very late yet, and I could visit Aun' Jinkey without exciting
+remark if you go with me. It's too dark for Chunk to be seen and I'd
+protect him with my life. I must get better ground for hope or my heart
+will break. Pretend I wish a glass of water and see if we can't slip
+out now."
+
+This Zany did, discovering that Mrs. Baron was with her husband in his
+office and that Mrs. Waldo had returned to her son's room.
+
+In a few moments Miss Lou was sitting by Aun' Jinkey and tremblingly
+telling her fears. Meanwhile Zany scouted around to insure immunity
+from observation.
+
+"You po', po' chile!" groaned Aun' Jinkey. "I wuz a-hopin' dat now you
+hab a time ob peace en quietness, en you des gwine ter be s'pended
+'twixt hebin en yearth."
+
+"Oh, I fear he's dead, my heart tells me he's dead. Oh, mammy, mammy,
+how can God be so cruel? I don't know who caused this war or who's to
+blame, but I feel now as if I could TORTURE them."
+
+"I'se feared dat ain' de right speret, honey."
+
+"How can one have the right spirit when mocked by such a hope as I've
+had? It needn't have happened. Oh, Mrs. Waldo, I could tell you NOW I'm
+no Christian at all. I say it needn't have happened. And then think how
+Uncle Lusthah prayed!"
+
+"Chunk down dar by de run, Miss Lou," whispered Zany. "I lis'n wid all
+my years en eyes."
+
+"Miss Lou, I'se yere in de shadder ob dis bush," Chunk called softly.
+
+"Tell me everything."
+
+"Darsn't twel I feels mo' safe, Miss Lou. Kin on'y say now Marse
+Scoville des dote on you en he ax questions 'bout you sence you lil
+gyurl. Hun'erds ob times he say, 'Chunk, we go back some day, sho!' But
+he do he duty brabe. I go wid 'im ev'ywhar en onst, des on de aige ob
+night, he wuz ridin' long wid 'bout twenty ob he men en dis ting
+happen. We didn't tink any Rebs roun' en I'd been kep' back tryn' ter
+git a chicken fer mars'r's supper. Ez I riz a hill, ridin' right smart
+I see our folks goin' easy en car'less inter a woods. I seed 'em all ez
+plain ez eber see anybody, en Marse Scoville ride at de haid. Sudden
+dere was flash, flash, bang, bang, all troo de woods. Marse Scoville
+fell right off he hoss, he sut'ny did. Den lots ob Johnnies run in de
+road fore en hind our mens. I see dere wuz no chaince fer me ter do any
+ting but git away en lil chaince fer dat, fer two Rebs on horses come
+tarin' arter me. Ef hit hadn't come dark sudden en my hoss wuzn't a
+flyer I'se been cotched sho. 'Fo' de Lawd, Miss Lou, dat all I know."
+
+"He's dead," said the girl in a hoarse whisper.
+
+"I orful feared he is, Miss Lou," assented the matter-of-fact Chunk.
+"De Rebs so neah w'en dey fiah, en Marse Scoville sut'ny did go off he
+hoss sudden. I been a week gittin' yere en I neber git yere ef de
+cullud people didn't he'p me long nights."
+
+The girl stood silent and motionless. Suddenly Zany grasped her hand
+and whispered, "I yeared steps. Come ter de cabin. Be off, Chunk."
+
+They had scarcely reached Aun' Jinkey's door before a shadow approached
+and the harsh voice of Perkins asked, "What's goin' on yere?"
+
+"My young mistis des seein' her mammy 'bout her clos," replied the
+quick-witted Zany.
+
+"I thought I yeared voices down by the run."
+
+"Reck'n you bettah go see," said Zany in rather high tones.
+
+"What the dev--what makes yer speak so loud? a warnin'?"
+
+"Tain' my place ter pass wuds wid you, Marse Perkins. Dem I serbs doan
+fin' fault."
+
+"I reckon Mr. Baron'll do mo'n find fault 'fore long. I bettah say
+right yere en now I've got my orders 'bout that nigger Chunk. Nobody
+kin save 'im ef caught. You've been followed before in your
+night-cruisin' en you're lookin' fer some one. Ef there's trouble, Miss
+Baron kyant say I didn't give warnin'. Now that the sogers is gone I'm
+held 'sponsible fer what goes on," and he stalked away.
+
+He did not wish to come into an open collision with Miss Lou again if
+he could help it--not at least while the Waldos remained. He had
+concluded that by a warning he might prevent trouble, his self-interest
+inclining him to be conservative. Confederate scrip had so lost its
+purchasing power that in its stead he had recently bargained with Mr.
+Baron for a share in the crops. Thus it happened that the question of
+making a crop was uppermost in his mind. Until this object was secured
+he feared to array the girl openly against him, since her influence
+might be essential in controlling the negroes. If policy could keep
+them at work, well and good; if the harshest measures seemed best to
+him he was ready to employ them.
+
+Not only was he puzzled, but Zany also and Aun' Jinkey were sore
+perplexed at Miss Lou's silence. She had stood motionless and unheeding
+through the colloquy with the overseer, and now remained equally deaf
+and unresponsive to the homely expressions of sympathy and
+encouragement of the two women. They could not see her face, but
+quickly felt the dread which anything abnormal inspires in the
+simple-minded. Prone to wild abandon in the expression of their own
+strong emotions, the silent, motionless figure of the young girl caused
+a deeper apprehension than the most extravagant evidences of grief.
+
+"Aun' Jinkey," whispered Zany, "you mus' des he'p me git her to her
+room."
+
+She went with them without word or sign. Their alarm was deepened when
+they saw her deathly pale and almost rigid features by the light of her
+candle.
+
+"Miss Lou, honey, speak ter yo' ole mammy. You broke my heart w'en you
+look dat away."
+
+"I tell you he's dead," whispered the girl.
+
+"Dis ter'ble," groaned the old woman. "'Fo' de Lawd I dunno w'at er do."
+
+Zany felt instinctively that the girl was beyond their simple
+ministrations and she was desperately afraid that if Mrs. Baron came
+Chunk's presence would be revealed by words spoken unconsciously. She
+and Aun' Jinkey promptly agreed that Mrs. Waldo was their only hope and
+Zany flew to summon her.
+
+Fortunately the lady had not retired and she came at once. "Louise,
+Miss Baron, what is the matter?" she asked in strong solicitude.
+
+"I tell you, he's dead," again whispered the girl, looking as if a
+scene of horror were before her eyes. "The Rebs were so near when they
+fired, and he fell off his horse sudden. Ch--"
+
+Quick as light Zany's hand was over the girl's mouth. The scared face
+and trembling form of the young negress did not escape Mrs. Waldo's
+quick eye.
+
+"Zany, what are you concealing?" she asked, sternly. "What does all
+this mean?"
+
+"Dar now, misus," answered Aun' Jinkey with a certain simple dignity,
+"we mus' des trus you. I'se yeared you a lubin' serbent ob de Lawd. Ef
+you is, you am' gwine ter bring mis'ry on mis'ry. We mus' brung Miss
+Lou roun' sudden 'fo' ole miss comes. He'p us git young mistis sens'ble
+en I tell you eberyting I kin. Dere ain' not'n bade 'bout dis honey
+lam' ob mine."
+
+They undressed the girl as if she were a helpless child and put her to
+bed, and then Zany went downstairs to keep Mrs. Baron out of the way if
+possible, at the same time listening intently for any signs of trouble
+to Chunk.
+
+Miss Lou's over-taxed mind had given way, or rather was enchained by a
+spell of horror to the scenes presented all too vividly in Chunk's bald
+statement. Her nervous force had been too enfeebled and exhausted to
+endure the shock of an impression so tremendous in its tragic reality
+that her faculties had no power to go beyond it. Chunk's words had
+brought her to a darkening forest and her dead lover, and there she
+stayed.
+
+Seeing how unconscious she was Aun' Jinkey whispered enough in
+explanation to enable Mrs. Waldo to comprehend the girl's condition.
+
+"We must make her sleep," said the lady decisively, and under her wise
+ministrations the stricken girl soon looked almost as if she were dead.
+Having kindly reassured and dismissed Aun' Jinkey, Mrs. Waldo watched
+Miss Lou as she would have kept vigil with one of her own daughters.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXIII
+
+CONSPIRATORS
+
+
+Perkins was very ill at ease that night, from a haunting suspicion that
+Chunk had returned. "Pesky nigger'll have a revolver, too, most likely,
+en be crazy ter use it! Haint been 'mong them cussed Yanks fer
+nothin'!" There was therefore little disposition for a night hunt after
+one who knew every inch of the region besides being as stealthy and
+agile as a cat. The blow from which his head still ached had a warning
+significance. Coarse, ignorant and superstitious, he was an easy victim
+to the tormenting fears of his own bad conscience. The graves by the
+run and the extemporized cemetery further away had even greater terrors
+for him than for Aun' Jinkey. Even his whiskey jug could not inspire
+sufficient courage to drive him at night far from his own door. Though
+both hating and despising Whately, yet the absence of the young officer
+and his force was now deeply regretted, as they had lent a sense of
+security and maintained the old order of existing authority. Now he was
+thrown chiefly on his own responsibility, for Mr. Baron was broken and
+enfeebled by what he had passed through. Avarice spurned Perkins to
+carry through the crops in which he had an interest, while his hope of
+revenge on Chunk, Scoville and Miss Lou also tended to keep him at a
+post which he foresaw would be one of difficulty and danger. He had no
+doubt that the Union officer and his freedman would return as soon as
+they could, and for the chance of wreaking his vengeance he was the
+more willing to remain in what he feared would be a spook-infested
+region. "Onst squar with them, en crops realized," he muttered, "I kin
+feel mo' comft'ble in other parts. To-morrer, ef Chunk en that scout's
+in these diggin's I'll know hit."
+
+He was aware that the few dogs left on the plantation would make no
+trouble for one they knew as well as they did Chunk, but he could rely
+on the brute which he kept in his own quarters--a bloodhound, savage to
+every one except his master.
+
+"Grip will smell out the cussed nigger in the mawnin' ef he's been
+around," he assured himself before beginning his nightly debauch.
+"What's mo', Miss Baron ain't so high en mighty now she knows I'm
+comin' to be the rale boss on the place. She didn't even squeak w'en I
+gin my warnin' ter night."
+
+Although Chunk knew his danger and was cautious, he was disposed on the
+first night of his arrival to take some serious risks in order to carry
+out the schemes dwelt upon during the long days of skulking home.
+Naturally fearless he had acquired much of Scoville's soldier-like and
+scouting spirit. The young officer had associated his dwarfish follower
+with the service rendered by Miss Lou and was correspondingly grateful.
+Chunk therefore received much consideration and good counsel by which
+he had profited. Especially had Scoville scoffed at the negro's
+superstitions, telling him that a fool afraid of spooks was neither fit
+to be a free man nor a soldier.
+
+Since Chunk had no imagination and believed absolutely in his master
+there were no more "spooks" for him, but he knew well the dread
+inspired by that word on the plantation, and it was his purpose to
+avail himself of these deep-rooted fears. He heard the colloquy between
+Zany and the overseer very distinctly, but so far from running away,
+dogged the latter home. Long knife and revolver were handy in his belt
+and a heavy club was carried also. Since no soldiers were around,
+Perkins was not to be dreaded in the night, when once his resting-place
+was known. Crouching a long time in the shadow of some cedars Chunk
+watched the overseer's window, but the light was not extinguished. A
+sudden suspicion dawned on our watcher, causing him to chuckle low with
+delight. "Hi! he des feared of sleepin' in de dark, en dat can'le bu'n
+all night!" Gliding a few steps nearer brought to the quick ear a
+resounding snore, accompanied with a warning growl from, the
+bloodhound. "I des fix 'em bof fo' I froo," and the brawny hand
+clutched with greater force the heavy club it carried.
+
+"Nex', some dem fellers mus' be tole ter he'p," and Chunk crept away to
+the quarters. It was an easy task to waken and enlist Jute, well known
+to be one of the most disaffected and fearless among the hands. The two
+started off to a grove which none could approach without being seen,
+and had a long whispered consultation. As a result, Jute returned to
+the quarters and brought back three others whom he knew would enter
+into the schemes on foot. By midnight Chunk had six of the braver and
+more reckless spirits among the slaves bound to him by such uncouth
+oaths as he believed would hold them most strongly. Then they returned
+to their cabins while the chief conspirator (after again reconnoitring
+the overseer's cottage) sought the vicinity of his granny's home.
+
+With mistaken kindness and much shrewdness Chunk had resolved upon a
+course that would fill the old woman's life with terror. He adopted the
+policy of not letting her know anything of his plans, so that she could
+honestly say "I dunno" and prove the fact by her manner. He
+instinctively felt that it would have a very bad look if superstitious
+Aun' Jinkey remained composed and quiet through the scenes he purposed
+to bring about. Her sincere and very apparent fears were to be his
+allies. It was part of his scheme also that Zany should be very badly
+frightened and made eager to run away with him as soon as he and the
+others were ready for departure.
+
+By a preconcerted signal he summoned Aun' Jinkey who was much affected
+by the thought that she was bidding her grandson a good-by which might
+be final, but oppressed with fear, she was at the same time eager he
+should go. Putting into his hands a great pone of corn bread she urged,
+"Des light out, Chunk, light out sud'n. 'Twix de baid news en Miss Lou
+en w'at Perkins do ef he cotch you, I des dat trembly, I kyant stan'."
+
+"Perkins asleep, granny. I'se off now fer good, but I comin' back fer
+you some day."
+
+He disappeared, and too perturbed to think of sleep the old woman
+tottered back to her chimney-corner. A few moments later she shuddered
+at the hooting of a screech-owl, even though she surmised Chunk to be
+the bird. Not so Zany, who answered the signal promptly. In a tentative
+way Chunk sought to find if she was then ready to run away, but Zany
+declared she couldn't leave Miss Lou "lookin ez if she wuz daid."
+Thinking it might be long indeed before she saw her suitor again, she
+vouchsafed him a very affectionate farewell which Chunk remorselessly
+prolonged, having learned in his brief campaigning not to leave any of
+the goods the gods send to the uncertainties of the future. When at
+last he tore himself away, he muttered, "Speck she need a heap ob
+scarin' en she git all she wants. Ef dat ar gyurl doan light out wid me
+nex' time I ax her, den I eats a mule." And then Chunk apparently
+vanished from the scene.
+
+The next morning Miss Lou awoke feeble, dazed and ill. In a little
+while her mind rallied sufficiently to recall what had happened, but
+her symptoms of nervous prostration and lassitude were alarming. Mrs.
+Whately was sent for, and poor Mr. Baron learned, as by another
+surgical operation, what had been his share in imposing on his niece
+too severe a strain. Mrs. Waldo whispered to Miss Lou, "Your mammy has
+told me enough to account for the shock you received and your illness.
+Your secret is safe with me."
+
+Meantime the good lady thought, "It will all turn out for the best for
+the poor child. Such an attachment could only end unhappily, and she
+will get over it all the sooner if she believes the Yankee officer
+dead. How deeply her starved nature must have craved sympathy and
+affection to have led to this in such a brief time and opportunity!"
+
+As may be supposed, Aun' Jinkey had been chary of details and had said
+nothing of Scoville's avowal. The mistress of the plantation looked
+upon her niece's illness as a sort of well earned "judgment for her
+perversity," but all the same, she took care that the strongest beef
+tea was made and administered regularly. Mrs. Whately arrived and
+became chief watcher. The stricken girl's physical weakness seemed
+equalled only by a dreary mental apathy. There was scarcely sufficient
+vital force left even for suffering, a fact recognized by the aunt in
+loving and remorseful solicitude.
+
+By the aid of his bloodhound Perkins discovered that some one whom he
+believed to be Chunk had been about, and he had secret misgivings as he
+thought of the negro's close proximity. He had already learned what a
+blow Chunk could deal and his readiness to strike. Taking the dog and
+his gun he had cautiously followed the run into which the tracks led
+until satisfied that the man he was following had taken horse and was
+beyond pursuit. On his return he learned of Miss Lou's illness and so
+ventured to threaten Aun' Jinkey.
+
+"Yer do know 'bout that cussed grandson o' yourn. Kyant fool Grip, en
+he' smelled out all the nigger's tracks. Now ef yer don't tell the
+truth I'll raise the kentry 'roun' en we'll hunt 'im to the eends of
+the yearth."
+
+"Well den, Marse Perkins," admitted the terror-stricken woman, "I des
+tell you de truf. Dat gran'boy ob min' des come ter say good-by. Marse
+Scoville daid en Chunk mos' up Norf by dis time, he went away so sud'n."
+
+"That Yankee cuss dead?" cried Perkins in undisguised exultation.
+
+"Marse Scoville daid, shot of'n he hoss long way f'um yere," replied
+Aun' Jinkey sorrowfully. "He kyant harm you ner you 'im no mo', ner
+Chunk neider."
+
+"Why the devil didn't you let us know Chunk was here las' night?"
+
+"He my gran'son," was the simple reply.
+
+"Well he isn't Zany's grandson! Now I know w'at she was snoopin' round
+nights fer, en Mrs. Baron'll know, too, 'fore I'm five minutes older."
+
+Aun' Jinkey threw up her hands and sank back into her chair more dead
+than alive. She, too, had been taxed beyond endurance and all her power
+to act had ceased with her final effort to show that pursuit of Chunk
+would be useless.
+
+Perkins speedily obtained an audience with Mrs. Baron, who became
+deeply incensed and especially against Zany. The inexorable old lady,
+however, never acted from passion. She nodded coldly to the overseer,
+saying, "I will inform Mr. Baron and he will give you your orders in
+regard to the offenders."
+
+Zany was too alert not to observe the interview and the omens of
+trouble in the compressed lips of "ole miss" and the steel-like gleam
+of her eyes. The moment Mrs. Baron was closeted with her husband the
+girl sped to the cabin. "Did you tell Perkins Chunk been yere?" she
+demanded fiercely.
+
+"Fo' de Lawd I des gwine all ter pieces," gasped Aun' Jinkey.
+
+"Hope ter grashus yer does, en de pieces neber come tergedder agin,"
+said Zany in contemptuous anger and deep alarm.
+
+Under the spur of tremendous excitement she hastened back, thinking as
+she ran, "Miss Lou too sick ter do anyting. I des got ter 'peal ter
+Miss Whately, er ole miss hab me whipped haf ter daith." When in
+response to a timid knock Mrs. Whately peered out of her niece's room
+she found a trembling suppliant with streaming eyes. Noiselessly
+shutting the door the matron said warningly:
+
+"Don't you know Miss Lou's life depends on quiet?"
+
+"How she gwine ter hab quiet w'en ole miss gwine ter hab Marse Perkins
+whip me'n Aun' Jinkey ter daith?"
+
+"Nonsense! Why should either of you be punished?"'
+
+"Well missus, I 'fess ter you," sobbed Zany, "kaze you got more feelin'
+fer us. Chunk come las' night ter say good-by ter he granny'n me, en
+den he put out fer good, en ain' comin' back no mo'. Perkins en he dog
+foun' hit out dis mawnin', en Aun' Jinkey tole 'im, too, I reck'n, she
+all broke up. Perkins been talkin' ter ole miss en she look lak she
+al'ways does w'en ders no let up. Hit ud des kill Miss Lou if she knew
+me'n Aun' Jinkey wuz bein' whipped."
+
+"Zany," said Mrs. Whately in rising anger, "you both had full warning.
+You knew what Chunk had done. He stole my son's horse and one from his
+master also, beside doing other things that could not be forgiven."
+
+"Please reckermember, missus, dat Chunk en me is mighty sweet on each
+oder en he Aun' Jinkey gran'boy. Tain' dat we 'prove of his goin's on,
+but how cud we tell on 'im en see 'im daid, w'en he des come ter say
+good-by. Oh, ef Miss Lou on'y well she neber let dat ole Perkins tech
+us."
+
+"I will see your master before anything is done," said Mrs. Whately
+with troubled face. "Go to your work now. I will get Mrs. Waldo to
+watch in my place after a while."
+
+Mr. Baron was depressed physically and mentally by the trying events of
+the past few weeks, but the fact that Chunk had ventured on the place
+again and had been permitted to escape angered him deeply. He also
+accepted the view of his wife and overseer that all discipline among
+the slaves would soon be at an end if so serious an offence were
+overlooked. It would be a confession of weakness and fear they believed
+which would have a most demoralizing effect in the quarters. Chunk
+represented the worst offences of which the slaves could be guilty; the
+most solemn warnings had been given against aiding and abetting him in
+any way. To do nothing now would be a virtual permission of
+lawlessness. There was no thought of mercy for Zany, but Aun' Jinkey's
+age, feebleness, together with her relations to Chunk and Miss Lou,
+complicated matters.
+
+Husband and wife were still consulting when Mrs. Whately joined them.
+Mrs. Baron did not welcome her guest, feeling that this was purely a
+personal affair, and was in no mood to brook interference.
+
+"I can't be absent long," began Mrs. Whately, "Zany has told me
+everything and--"
+
+"I think, sister, that Mr. Baron and I can manage this matter,"
+interrupted Mrs. Baron coolly.
+
+"No doubt you can," Mrs. Whately replied with dignity. "I did not come
+down to interfere with your domestic affairs. There is one point on
+which I have a right to speak and must speak. You can't punish Aun'
+Jinkey and Zany now if knowledge of such punishment can in any way
+reach our niece. No matter how much they may deserve it, I say you
+cannot do it. I promised Zany nothing, held out no hope to her of
+escape, but to you I will speak plainly. If you should excite and
+disturb Louise now, you might easily cause her death. If you feel that
+you cannot overlook the offence (and I know how serious a one it is)
+wait till I can remove Louise to my own house. You will find that Dr.
+Pelton when he arrives will confirm my words."
+
+Mr. Baron weakened. He had not the relentless will of his wife, who
+interposed with cutting emphasis, "There is no need of Louise's knowing
+anything about it till she is much better, and it would be well for her
+to learn then, as well as the slaves, that there is still a master and
+mistress."
+
+"It may be long before Louise is much better," Mrs. Whately replied
+gravely. "She has been subjected to a strain for which my conscience
+reproaches me, however it may be with yours. She is in a very critical
+state, and seemingly from some recent shock."
+
+"Can the news Chunk brought have had any such effect?" broke forth Mrs.
+Baron indignantly--"news of the death of that Yankee whom she met and
+treated as a social equal sorely against my will?"
+
+"Lieutenant Scoville dead!" exclaimed Mrs. Whately looking shocked and
+sad.
+
+"Yes, so Chunk told his granny."
+
+Mrs. Whately was troubled indeed. Perhaps there had been much more than
+she had suspected. If so, this fact would account for the girl's
+extreme prostration. To bring these tidings might have been one of
+Chunk's chief motives in venturing on his brief visit. Miss Lou might
+know all about the visit and even have seen Chunk herself. If this were
+true, punishment of those who were in a sense her accomplices would be
+all the more disastrous. The perplexed matron felt that she must have
+more time to think and to acquire fuller knowledge of the affair.
+
+"Brother," she said finally, "you are the guardian of Louise and in
+authority. She is now helpless and at present quiet. If quiet of mind
+and body can be maintained long enough she will no doubt get well. In a
+sense I am now her physician, and I say as Surgeon Ackley said of his
+patients, she cannot be disturbed. I positively forbid it. Dr. Pelton
+who must soon be here will take the same ground. Public opinion will
+support him and me in holding you responsible if you order anything
+endangering your ward's life and health at this time. Mrs. Waldo and
+her son would be witnesses. How far the former is acquainted with
+affairs we do not know. She watched with Louise all last night. If you
+act hastily you may be sorry indeed. I am trying kindness and
+conciliation with my people and they are doing better. I fear your
+policy is mistaken. Chunk is gone and beyond punishment. It is asking
+much to expect that his grandmother and the girl who loves him after
+her fashion would give information against him. It would seem that only
+the two slaves and Perkins know of this visit. Affairs are bad enough
+with you as it is and you can easily make them much worse. If you must
+punish for effect, take some stout field hand who is insubordinate or
+lazy. At any rate I love Louise and hope some day to call her daughter,
+and I will not have her life endangered. That's all I have to say."
+
+Mr. Baron's flame of anger had died out. His views had not been changed
+by his harsh experience, but he had been compelled to see that there
+were times when he could not have his own way. So he said testily,
+"Well, well, we'll have to let the matter rest a while, I suppose."
+
+Mrs. Whately departed. Mrs. Baron put her thin lips together in a way
+which meant volumes, and went out on her housekeeping round, giving
+orders to Zany in sharper, more metallic tones than usual. The
+delinquent herself had overheard enough of the conversation to learn
+that the evil day had at least been put off and to get some clew as to
+the future.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXIV
+
+CHUNK PLAYS SPOOK
+
+
+Since Mr. Baron had yielded for the present, Mrs. Whately was glad
+nothing need be said to the physician concerning their affairs. His
+positive injunction of quiet was sufficient, and now that Mr. Baron was
+impressed with its need and had had time for sober second thought, he
+concluded that he had trouble enough on hand as it was. He felt that
+every quiet day gained was so much toward securing the absolutely
+essential crops. Perkins was therefore summoned and the situation in
+part explained.
+
+The overseer was in unusual good-humor over the death of Scoville, and
+if Chunk had escaped finally, there was compensation in the thought of
+having no more disturbance from that source. So, fortunately for poor
+Zany, avarice came to the fore and Perkins agreed that the best thing
+to do was to bend every energy to "making the crops," using severity
+only in the furtherance of this end.
+
+"Beg pardon, Mr. Baron, but I must have sump'n up and down clar.
+There's been so many bosses of late en my orders been knocked eendwise
+so of'en that I don't know, en the hands don't know whether I've got
+any po'r or no. Ef this thing 'bout Chunk gits out, en nobody punished,
+the fiel'-hans natchelly think we darsn't punish. Mought es well give
+up then."
+
+"Punish as much as you think necessary to keep the quarter-hands at
+work. Then it is plain," replied Mr. Baron.
+
+Very seldom had Perkins been in so complacent and exultant a mood as
+when he left the presence of Mr. Baron that morning. But his troubles
+began speedily. Jute had slept little the night before and was stupid
+and indifferent to his work in the afternoon. Finding threats had
+little effect, the overseer struck a blow with his cane. The negro
+turned fiercely but was confronted with a revolver. He resumed work
+doggedly, his sullen look spreading like the shadow of a cloud to the
+faces of the others. So many began to grow indifferent and reckless
+that to punish all was out of the question. Perkins stormed and
+threatened, striking some here and there, almost beside himself from
+increasing anxiety and rage. Whichever way he turned a dark vindictive
+face met his eyes. The slaves had enjoyed a brief sense and sweet hope
+of freedom; he was seeking to refasten the yoke with brutal hands and
+it galled as never before. Even his narrow arbitrary nature was
+impressed with the truth that a great change was taking place; that a
+proclamation issued hundreds of miles away was more potent than his
+heavy hand. He was as incapable of any policy other than force as was
+his employer of abandoning the grooves in which his thoughts had always
+run.
+
+The worrisome afternoon finally ended, leaving the harassed man free to
+seek consolation from his jug. Mr. Baron relapsed into his quiet yet
+bitter mental protest. "Ole miss" maintained inexorable discipline over
+the yard and house slaves, keeping all busy in removing every stain and
+trace of the hospital. She governed by fear also, but it was the fear
+which a resolute, indomitable will produces in weaker natures.
+
+Mrs. Waldo already felt uncomfortable. There was no lack of outward
+courtesy, but the two women had so little in common that there was
+almost a total absence of sympathy between them. The guests through the
+fortune of war resolved therefore to depart in a day or two, making the
+journey home by easy stages. Mrs. Whately was both polite and cordial,
+but she also felt that the family should be alone as soon as possible,
+that they were facing problems which could better be solved without
+witnesses. It was her hope now to nurse her charge back to health, and,
+by the utmost exercise of tact, gain such an ascendency over the girl
+as to win her completely. Granting that the matron's effort was part of
+a scheme, it was one prompted by deep affection, a yearning to call her
+niece daughter and to provide for the idolized son just the kind of
+wife believed to be essential to his welfare. Much pondering on the
+matter led her to believe that even if the tidings of Scoville's death
+had been the cause of the final prostrating shock, it was but the
+slight blow required to strike down one already feeble and tottering to
+her fall. "He probably made a strong, but necessarily a passing
+impression on the dear child's mind," she reasoned. "When she gets well
+she will think of him only as she does of the other Union soldiers who
+so interested her."
+
+The object of this solicitude was docile and quiet, taking what was
+given her, but evidently exhausted beyond the power of thought or
+voluntary action.
+
+The night passed apparently without incident, but it was a busy one for
+Chunk. He again summoned Jute and his other confederates to a tryst in
+the grove to impress them with his plans. It was part of his scheme to
+permit a few nights to pass quietly so that disturbances would not be
+associated with him, he being supposed far away. In the depths of the
+adjacent forest he had found safe shelter for himself and horse, and
+here, like a beast in its lair, he slept by day. The darkness was as
+light to him about the familiar plantation, and he prowled around at
+night unmolested.
+
+During this second meeting he attempted little more than to argue his
+dusky associates out of their innate fear of spooks and to urge upon
+them patience in submitting to Perkins's rule a little longer. "I des
+tells you," he declared, "dey ain' no spooks fer us! Dere's spooks on'y
+fer dem w'at kills folks on de sly-like. If ole Perkins come rarin' en
+tarin' wid his gun en dawg, I des kill 'im ez I wud a rattler en he
+kyant bodder me no mo'; but ef I steal on 'im now en kill 'im in he
+sleep he ghos pester me ter daith. Dat de conslomeration ob de hull
+business. I doan ax you ter do any ting but he'p me skeer' im mos' ter
+daith. He watchin' lak a ole fox ter ke'p you en Zany yere. Ef you puts
+out, he riz de kentry en put de houn's arter you. We des got ter skeer
+'im off fust. I'm studyin' how ter git dat dawg out'n de way. Des go on
+quiet few mo' days en ef you year quar noises up on de hill whar de
+sogers bur'ed you know hit me. Look skeered lak de oders but doan be
+fear'd en keep mum."
+
+The next few days and nights passed in quiet and all began to breathe
+more freely. Even Aun' Jinkey rallied under the soothing influence of
+her pipe and the privilege of watching part of each day with Miss Lou.
+Slowly the girl began to grow better. Hoping not even for tolerance of
+her feelings in regard to Scoville, it was her instinct to conceal them
+from her relatives. She knew Mrs. Waldo would not reveal what Aun'
+Jinkey had told her, and understood the peculiar tenderness with which
+that lady often kissed her. She also guessed that while the stanch
+Southern friend had deep sympathy for her there was not very strong
+regret that the affair had ended in a way to preclude further
+complications.
+
+"Remember, my dear," said Mrs. Waldo, in her affectionate parting,
+"that God never utterly impoverishes our lives. Only we ourselves can
+do that. You will get well and become happy in making others happy."
+
+On the evening of that day, even Mr. Baron's routine was completely
+restored. His larder was meagre compared with the past, but with the
+exception that Mrs. Whately occupied the place of his niece at the
+table, and viands were fewer, all was as it had been. Zany's fears had
+subsided, leaving her inwardly chafing at the prospect of monotonous
+and indefinite years of work under "ole miss," with little chance of
+Chunk's return. Aun' Suke's taste of freedom had not been to her mind,
+so she was rather complacent than otherwise, and especially over the
+fact that there was so little to cook. The garden and Mr. Baron's good
+credit would insure enough plain food till the crops matured and the
+impoverishment caused by the raid was repaired. It certainly seemed
+when the sun set that evening that the present aspect of affairs might
+be maintained indefinitely in the little community.
+
+Only one was not exactly at rest. Perkins felt as if something was in
+the air. There was a brooding, sullen quiet among the negroes which led
+him to suspect that they were waiting and hoping for something unknown
+to him. This was true of Uncle Lusthah and the majority. The crack of
+Union rifles was the "soun' f'um far away" they were listening for. By
+secret channels of communication tidings of distant battles were
+conveyed from plantation to plantation, and the slaves were often
+better informed that their masters. As for Perkins, he knew next to
+nothing of what was taking place, nor did he dream that he was daily
+addressing harsh words to conspirators against his peace.
+
+The time had come when Chunk was ready to act. On the night in question
+a hot wind arose which blew from the little burial-place on the hill
+toward the house. "Hi! now's de charnce ter fix dat ar bizness!" and he
+made his preparations. Shortly before midnight he crept like a cat
+under the overseer's window. The heavy snoring rose and fell
+reassuringly, sweet as music to Chunk's ears. Not so the angry,
+restless growling of the savage bloodhound chained within. "But you
+doan kotch me dis yere time fer all yer fuss, Marse Grip," the negro
+muttered. "I done hab yer brekfus' ready fer yer! Dat'll settle yer
+hash,' and with deft hand a piece of poisoned meat was tossed close to
+the brute's feet as Chunk hastened away. Jute was next wakened and put
+on the watch. An hour later there came from the soldiers' cemetery the
+most doleful, unearthly sounds imaginable. No need for Jute and his
+confederates to arouse the other negroes in the quarters. A huddled
+frightened gang soon collected, Aun' Jinkey among them so scared she
+could not speak.
+
+"Marse Perkins ought to know 'bout dis," cried Jute.
+
+The suggestion was enough. The whole terror-stricken throng rushed in a
+body to the overseer's cottage and began calling and shrieking, "Come
+out yere! come out yere!" Confused in his sudden waking and thinking he
+was mobbed, he shouted through the window, "I'll shoot a dozen of yer
+ef yer don't clar out."
+
+"Marse Perkins, des you lis'n," rose in chorus from those far beyond
+the fear of mortal weapons.
+
+In the silence that followed the rushing wind bore down to them a
+weird, dismal howl that in Perkins's ears met every ghostly
+requirement. His teeth began to chatter like castanets, and snatching
+his jug of corn whiskey he swallowed great draughts.
+
+"We des tink you orter know 'bout dis," said Jute.
+
+"Cert'ny," cried Perkins in his sudden flame of false courage. "I'll
+light a lantern and take twenty o' you hands round that place. Ef
+thar's a cuss yonder makin' this 'sturbance we'll roast 'im alive."
+
+In a moment or two he dressed and came out with a light and his gun.
+Two revolvers were also stuck in his belt. As he appeared on the
+threshold there was a prolonged yell which curdled even his inflamed
+blood and sent some of the negro women into hysterics.
+
+"Come on," shouted the overseer hoarsely, "thirty of yer ef yer afraid."
+
+The crowd fell back. "We ain' gwine ter dat ar spook place, no mattah
+w'at you do to us."
+
+"Perkins, what IS the matter?" Mr. Baron was heard shouting from the
+house.
+
+"Reckon you better come out yere, sir."
+
+"Are the hands making trouble?"
+
+"No sir, sump'n quar's gwine on, what we kyant mek out yit."
+
+Mr. Baron, wrapped in his dressing-gown, soon appeared on the scene,
+while Aun' Suke's domain contributed its quota also of agitated,
+half-dressed forms. Chunk could not resist the temptation to be a
+witness to the scene and in a copse near by was grinning with silent
+laughter at his success.
+
+After learning what had occurred, Mr. Baron scoffed at their
+superstitions, sternly bidding all to go to their places and keep
+quiet. "Perkins, you've been drinking beyond reason," he warned his
+overseer in a low voice. "Get back to your room quick or you will be
+the laughing-stock of everybody! See here, you people, you have simply
+got into a panic over the howling of the wind, which happens to blow
+down from the graveyard to-night."
+
+"Neber yeared de win' howl dataway befo'," the negroes answered, as in
+a mass they drifted back to the quarters.
+
+Perkins was not only aware of his condition but was only too glad to
+have so good an excuse for not searching the cemetery. Scarcely had he
+been left alone, however, before he followed the negroes, resolved upon
+companionship of even those in whom he denied a humanity like his own.
+In the darkness Chunk found an opportunity to summon Jute aside and
+say, "Free er fo' ob you offer ter stay wid ole Perkins. Thet he'p me
+out."
+
+Perkins accepted the offer gladly, and they agreed to watch at his door
+and in the little hallway.
+
+"You mus' des tie up dat ar dawg ob yourn," first stipulated Jute.
+
+"Why, whar in--is the dog? Hain't yeared a sound from 'im sence the
+'sturbance begun."
+
+"Dwags kyant stan' spooks nohow," remarked Jute.
+
+"I've yeared that," admitted Perkins, looking around for the animal.
+
+"Thar he is, un'er yo' baid," said Jute, peeking through the doorway.
+
+The miserable man's hair fairly stood up when the brute was discovered
+stark and dead without a scratch upon him. Recourse was again had to
+the jug, and oblivion soon followed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXV
+
+A VISITATION
+
+
+There was no more sleep at the quarters that night, and never was the
+dawn more welcome. It only brought a respite, however, for the
+impression was fixed that the place was haunted. There was a settled
+aspect of gloom and anxiety on every dusky face in the morning. Mr.
+Baron found his overseer incapacitated for duty, but the hands were
+rather anxious to go to work and readily obeyed his orders to do so.
+They clung to all that was familiar and every-day-like, while their
+fears and troubled consciences spurred them to tasks which they felt
+might be a sort of propitiation to the mysterious powers abroad. Zany
+was now sorry indeed that she had not gone with Chunk, and poor Aun'
+Jinkey so shook and trembled all day that Mrs. Whately would not let
+her watch by Miss Lou. Knowing much of negro superstitions she
+believed, with her brother and Mrs. Baron, that the graves on the
+place, together with some natural, yet unusual sounds, had started a
+panic which would soon die out.
+
+When at last Perkins, shaky and nervous, reported the mysterious death
+of his dog, Mr. Baron was perplexed, but nothing more. "You were in no
+condition to give a sane account of anything that happened last night,"
+he said curtly. "Be careful in the future. If you will only be sensible
+about it, this ridiculous scare will be to our advantage, for the hands
+are subdued enough now and frightened into their duty."
+
+Perkins remained silent. In truth, he was more frightened than any one
+else, for the death of his dog appeared to single him out as a special
+object of ghostly hostility. He got through the day as well as he
+could, but dreaded the coming night all the more as he saw eyes
+directed toward him, as if he, in some way, were the cause of the
+supernatural visitation. This belief was due to the fact that Aun'
+Jinkey in her terror had spoken of Scoville's death, although she would
+not tell how she knew about it. "Perkins shoot at en try ter kill Marse
+Scoville," she had whispered to her cronies, "en now he daid he spook
+comin' yere ter hant de oberseer. We neber hab no quiet nights till dat
+ar Perkins go way fer good."
+
+This rational explanation passed from lip to lip and was generally
+accepted. The coming night was looked forward to in deep apprehension,
+and by none more than by Perkins. Indeed, his fears so got the better
+of him that when the hands quit work he started for the nearest tavern
+and there remained till morning. Chunk was made aware of this fact, and
+the night passed in absolute quiet. All the negroes not in the secret
+now hoped that the overseer was the sole prey of the spook, and that if
+they remained quietly in their places they would be unmolested. Chunk
+and a few of the boldest of his fellow conspirators had full scope
+therefore to perfect their final arrangements. In a disused room of one
+of the outbuildings the most ragged and blood-stained uniforms of the
+Union soldiers had been cast and forgotten. These were carried to a
+point near the burying-ground, tried on and concealed. Chunk found it
+was no easy task to keep even the reckless fellows he had picked up to
+the sticking point of courage in the grewsome tasks he had in view, but
+his scoff, together with their mutual aid and comfort, carried them
+through, while the hope of speedy freedom inspired them to what was
+felt to be great risks.
+
+On this occasion he dismissed them some little time before midnight,
+for he wished them to get rested and in good condition for what he
+hoped would be the final effort the following night. As he lingered in
+the still, starlit darkness he could not resist making an effort to see
+Zany, and so began hooting like an owl down by the run, gradually
+approaching nearer till he reached the garden. Zany, wakeful and
+shivering with nameless dread, was startled by the sound. Listening
+intently, she soon believed she detected a note that was Chunk's and
+not a bird's. Her first impression was that her lover had discovered
+that he could not go finally away without her and so had returned. Her
+fear of spooks was so great that her impulse was to run away with Chunk
+as far from that haunted plantation as he would take her. Trembling
+like a wind-shaken leaf, she stole into the garden shrubbery and
+whispered, "Chunk?"
+
+"Hi! yere I is."
+
+There was no tantalizing coquetry in Zany's manner now. In a moment she
+was in Chunk's arms sobbing, "Tek me way off fum dis place. I go wid
+you now, dis berry minute, en I neber breve easy till we way, way off
+enywhar, I doan keer whar. Oh, Chunk, you doan know w'at been gwine on
+en I darsn't tell you twel we gits way off."
+
+"I isn't feared," replied Chunk easily.
+
+"Dat's kaze you doan know. I des been tremblin' stiddy sence las' night
+en I'se feared hit begin eny minute now."
+
+"Hit woan begin dis yere night," replied Chunk, soothingly and
+incautiously.
+
+"How you know?" she asked quickly, a sudden suspicion entering her mind.
+
+"Wat's ter begin?" answered Chunk, now on his guard. "De night am
+still, nobody roun'. I hang roun' a few nights twel I study out de bes'
+plan ter git away."
+
+"Has you been hangin' roun' nights, Chunk?" Zany asked solemnly.
+
+"How you talks, Zany! Does you s'pects I dar stay roun' whar Perkins
+am? He kill me. He done gone way to-night."
+
+"How you know dat?"
+
+"One de fiel'-hans tole me."
+
+"Chunk, ef you up ter shines en doan tole me I done wid you. Hasn't I
+hep you out'n in eberyting so fur? Ef I fin' out you been skeerin me so
+wid eny doin's I des done wid you. I des feel hit in my bones you de
+spook. You kyant bamboozle me. I kin hep you--hab done hit afo'--en I
+kin hinder you, so be keerful. Dere's some dif'unce in bein' a spook
+yosef en bein' skeered ter death by a rale spook. Ef you tryin' ter
+skeer en fool me I be wuss on you ner eny Voodoo woman dat eber kunjurd
+folks."
+
+The interview ended in Chunk's making a clean breast of it and in
+securing Zany as an ally with mental reservations. The thought that he
+had fooled her rankled.
+
+Mr. Baron's expostulation and his own pressing interests induced
+Perkins to remain at home the following night. As Jute had seemed
+forgiving and friendly, the overseer asked him to bring two others and
+stay with him, offering some of the contents of the replenished jug as
+a reward. They sat respectfully near the door while Perkins threw
+himself on his bed with the intention of getting to sleep as soon as
+possible. "Are you shore ther wuz no 'sturbances last night?" he asked.
+
+"Well, Marse Perkins," replied Jute, "you didn't s'pect we out lookin'.
+We wuz po'ful sleepy en roll we haids en er blankets en den 'fo' we
+knowed, hit sun-up. Folks say en de quarters dat ar spook ain' arter
+us."
+
+"Who the devil is hit arter then?" was the angry response.
+
+"How we know, mars'r? We neber try ter kill enybody."
+
+"But I tell you I didn't kill him," expostulated their nervous victim.
+
+"Didn't name no names, Marse Perkins. I on'y knows w'at I yeared folks
+tell 'bout spooks. Dey's mighty cur'us, spooks is. Dey des 'pear to git
+a spite agin some folks en dey ain' bodderin oder folks long ez dey
+ain' 'feered wid. I 'spect a spook dat wuz 'feered wid, get he dander
+up en slam roun' permiscus. I des tek a ole bull by de horns 'fo' I
+'fere wid a spook," and Jute's companions grunted assent.
+
+"W'at's the good o' yer bein' yere then?" Perkins asked, taking a deep
+draught.
+
+"Well, now, Marse Perkins, you mus'n be onreasonbul. Wat cud we do? We
+des riskin' de wool on we haids stayin' yere fer comp'ny. Ef de spook
+come, 'spose he tink we no business yere en des lay we out lak he
+kunjer yo' dawg? We des tank you, Marse Perkins, fer anoder lil drap
+ter kep we sperets out'n we shoon," and Jute shuddered portentously.
+
+"Well," said Perkins, with attempted bravado, "I rammed a piece o'
+silver down on the bullat in my gun. 'Twix 'em both--"
+
+"Dar now, Marse Perkins, you des been 'posed on 'bout dat silber
+business. Ole Unc' Sampson w'at libed on de Simcoe place nigh on er
+hun'erd yeahs, dey say, tole me lots 'bout a spook dat boddered um w'en
+he a boy. Way back ole Marse Simcoe shot at de man dat hanker fer he
+darter. De man put out en get drownded, but dat doan make no dif'rence,
+Unc' Sampson say, kaze ole Marse Simcoe do he bes' ter kill der man. He
+sorter hab kill in he heart en Unc' Sampson low a spook know w'at gwine
+on in er man's in'erds, en dey des goes fer de man dat wanter kill um
+on de sly, en not dose dat kill in fa'r fight. Ole Unc' Sampson po'ful
+on spooks. He libed so long he get ter be sorter spook hesef, en dey
+say he talk ter um haf de time 'fo' he kiner des snuf out'n lak a
+can'l."
+
+"He wuz a silly old fool," growled Perkins, with a perceptible tremor
+in his voice.
+
+"Spect he wuz 'bout some tings," resumed Jute, "but know spooks, he
+sut'ny did. He say ole Marse Simcoe useter plug lead en silver right
+froo dat man dat want he darter, en dar was de hole en de light
+shin'in' froo hit. But de spook ain' min'in' a lil ting lak dat, he des
+come on all de same snoopin' roun' arter de ole man's darter. Den one
+mawnin' de ole man lay stiff en daid in he baid, he eyes starin' open
+ez ef he see sump'n he cudn't stan' no how. Dat wuz de las' ob dat ar
+spook, Unc' Sampson say, en he say spook's cur'us dat away. Wen dey
+sats'fy dere grudge dey lets up en dey doan foller de man dey down on
+kaze dey on'y po'r in de place whar de man 'lowed ter kill um."
+
+Perkins took a mental note of this very important limitation of ghostly
+persecution, and resolved that if he had any more trouble all the crops
+in the State would not keep him within the haunted limit.
+
+He whiled away the time by aid of his jug and Job-like comforters till
+it began to grow late and he drowsy.
+
+Suddenly Jute exclaimed, "Hi! Marse Perkins, w'at dat light dancin' up
+yon'er by de grabeyard?"
+
+The overseer rose with a start, his hair rising also as he saw a fitful
+jack-o'-lantern gleam, appearing and disappearing on the cemetery hill.
+As had been expected, he obeyed his impulse, pouring down whiskey until
+he speedily rendered himself utterly helpless; but while his
+intoxication disabled him physically, it produced for a time an excited
+and disordered condition of mind in which he was easily imposed upon.
+Jute shook him and adjured him to get up, saying, "I years quar soun's
+comin' dis way."
+
+When satisfied that their victim could make no resistance, Jute and
+companions pretended to start away in terror. Perkins tried to implore
+them to remain, but his lips seemed paralyzed. A few moments later a
+strange group entered the cottage--five figures dressed in Federal
+uniforms, hands and faces white and ghastly, and two carrying white
+cavalry sabres. Each one had its finger on its lips, but Perkins was
+beyond speech. In unspeakable horror he stared vacantly before him and
+remained silent and motionless. The ghostly shapes looked at him
+fixedly for a brief time, then at one another, and solemnly nodded.
+Next, four took him up and bore him out, the fifth following with the
+jug. At the door stood an immovably tall form, surmounted by a cavalry
+hat and wrapped in a long army overcoat.
+
+"Leftenant Scoville!" gasped Perkins.
+
+The figure, as if the joints of its back were near the ground, made a
+portentous inclination of assent and then pointed with another white
+sabre to the hill, leading the way. Perkins tried to shout for help,
+but his tongue seemed powerless, as in fact it was, from terror and
+liquor combined. He felt himself carried swiftly and, as he thought,
+surely, to some terrible doom.
+
+At last his bearers stopped, and Perkins saw the mounds of the Union
+dead rising near. He now remembered in a confused way that one more
+grave had been dug than had proved necessary, and he uttered a low howl
+as he felt himself lowered into it. Instantly the tall figure which
+appeared to direct everything threatened him with a ghostly sabre, and
+an utter paralysis of unspeakable dread fell upon him.
+
+For a few moments they all stood around and pointed at him with ghostly
+white fingers, then gradually receded until out of sight. After a time
+Perkins began to get his voice, when suddenly his tormentors appeared
+in terrible guise. Each white, ghostly face was lighted up as by a
+tongue of fire; terrible eyes gleamed from under wide-crowned cavalry
+hats and a voice was heard, in a sepulchral whisper, "Nex' time we come
+fer you, we bury you!"
+
+At this instant came a flash of lightning, followed by a tremendous
+clap of thunder. The jaws of the figures dropped, the burning splinters
+of light-wood they carried dropping down into the grave, and on its
+half-lifeless occupant. The ghosts now disappeared finally--in fact
+took to their heels; all except Chunk, who secured the jug, nodded
+thrice portentously at Perkins and then retired also, not a little
+shaken in his nerves, but sufficiently self-controlled to rally his
+panic-stricken followers and get them to remove their disguises before
+wrapping their heads in blankets. Having removed and hidden all traces
+of the escapade he hooted for the alert Zany, who had been tremblingly
+on the watch in spite of her knowledge of what was going on. As she
+fled with Chunk before the coming storm she gasped between the gusts,
+"I declar, Chunk, sech doin's gwine ter brung a judgment."
+
+Even Chunk inclined to this view for a time, as the lightning blazed
+from sky to earth, and the thunder cracked and roared overhead. The
+rain poured in such torrents that he feared Perkins might be drowned in
+the grave where he had been placed. As for Aun' Jinkey, she stared at
+her unexpected visitors in speechless perplexity and terror until the
+fury of the tempest had passed, their voices could be heard.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXVI
+
+UNCLE LUSTHAH EXHORTS
+
+
+The heavy thunder shower which came and passed quickly, combined with a
+consciousness of their high-handed performances, so awed Chunk and Zany
+and oppressed them with misgivings that they were extremely reticent,
+even to Aun' Jinkey. Chunk appeared profoundly ignorant of the ghostly
+disturbances, trying to say unconcernedly, "I foun' hit a orful long en
+skeery trable ter de Un'on lines en I says ter mysef, 'De Yanks fin' me
+down yere quicker ner I fin' dem up Norf. Dey be comin' dis away agin
+sho'."
+
+"I des tells you we all git whip nigh ter daith ef you ain' mo'
+keerful," said Aun' Jinkey, solemnly. "I kyant stan' de goin's on. I
+gwine ter pieces ev'y day en nights git'n wusser'n de days. De gust
+ober en you bettah light out. Ef Zany missed dey come yere lookin' fer
+her."
+
+They needed no urging to depart, for Zany was now as scared as Chunk
+had ever wished her to be, but her terrors were taking a form which
+inclined her to cling to the old landmarks rather than risk she knew
+not what, in running away. As she and Chunk were stealing toward the
+kitchen a flash of lightning from the retiring storm revealed a
+startling figure--that of Perkins, drenched and bedraggled, his eyes
+almost starting from their sockets as he staggered toward his cottage.
+Chunk's courage at last gave way; he turned and fled, leaving Zany in
+the lurch. Frightened almost to the point of hysterics, she crept to
+her bed and shook till morning, resolving meanwhile to have done with
+Chunk and all his doings. The next day Mrs. Baron found her the most
+diligent and faithful of servants.
+
+Perkins reached his door and looked into the dark entrance, the gusts
+having blown out the light. He shook his head, muttered something
+unintelligible, and then bent his uncertain steps to the tavern. The
+next morning Mr. Baron suspected where he was and went to see him. The
+overseer was found to be a pitiable spectacle, haggard trembling,
+nervous in the extreme, yet sullen and reticent and resolute in his
+purpose never to set foot on the plantation again. Mr. Baron then
+closed all business relations and sent over the man's belongings.
+Perkins became a perplexing problem to Mr. Baron and his household and
+a terrible tradition to the negroes, who regarded him as a haunted man.
+Every day and night passed in quietness after his departure enabled
+them to breathe more freely and to become more assured that he "wuz de
+on'y one de spooks arter."
+
+Chunk felt that he had disgraced himself by running away and leaving
+Zany, and did not venture back till the second night after the
+culmination of his schemes. He found Jute and his associates scared,
+sullen and inclined to have little to do with him in their present
+mood. Then he hooted in vain for Zany. The girl heard him but made no
+sign, muttering, "Sence you runned away en lef me I'se done wid runnin'
+away. You tootin' lak a squinch-owl en kin kep comp'ny wid
+squinch-owls."
+
+Only Aun' Jinkey gave him food and a sort of fearful welcome, and poor
+Chunk found himself at last a very unhappy and skulking outlaw.
+
+Mr. Baron gradually rallied under his increased responsibilities and
+resolved to be his own overseer. Although an exacting master, the
+negroes knew he was not a severe one if they did their work fairly
+well. The spook scare had given Uncle Lusthah renewed influence and he
+used it in behalf of peace and order. "Our fren Miss Lou, sick," he
+urged. "We mek her trouble en we mek oursefs trouble ef we doan go on
+peac'ble. What kin we do eny way at dis yer time? De Norf fightin' fer
+us en hit all 'pen' on de Norf. We mus' kep a gwine ez we is till de
+times en seasons ob de Lawd is 'vealed."
+
+And so for a period, quiet again settled down on the old plantation.
+Mrs. Whately and Aun' Jinkey nursed Miss Lou into a slow, languid
+convalescence, till at last she was able to sit in an easy-chair on the
+piazza. This she would do by the hour, with a sad, apathetic look on
+her thin face. She was greatly changed, her old rounded outlines had
+shrunken and she looked frail enough for the winds to blow away. The
+old, fearless, spirited look in her blue eyes had departed utterly,
+leaving only an expression of settled sadness, varied by an anxious,
+expectant gaze, suggesting a lingering hope that some one might come or
+something happen to break the dreadful silence which began, she felt,
+when Scoville fell from his horse in the darkening forest. It remained
+unbroken, and her heart sank into more hopeless despondency daily. Aun'
+Jinkey and Zany were charged so sternly to say nothing to disturb the
+mind of their young mistress that they obeyed. She was merely given the
+impression that Perkins had gone away of his own will, and this was a
+relief. She supposed Chunk had returned to his Union friends, and this
+also became the generally accepted view of all except Aun' Jinkey.
+
+Mrs. Whately came to spend part of the time at The Oaks and part on her
+own plantation, where her presence was needed. Her devotion would have
+won Miss Lou's whole heart but for the girl's ever-present
+consciousness of Mad Whately in the background. The mother now had the
+tact to say nothing about him except in a natural and general way,
+occasionally trying the experiment of reading extracts from his brief
+letters, made up, as they were, chiefly of ardent messages to his
+cousin. These Miss Lou received in silence and unfeigned apathy.
+
+The respite and quiet could not last very long in these culminating
+months of the war. Without much warning even to the negroes, who
+appeared to have a sort of telegraphic communication throughout the
+region, a Union column forced its way down the distant railroad and
+made it a temporary line of communication. Mr. Baron suddenly woke up
+to the fact that the nearest town was occupied by the Federals and that
+his human property was in a ferment. A foraging party soon appeared in
+the neighborhood and even visited him, but his statement of what he had
+suffered and the evident impoverishment of the place led the Union
+officer to seek more inviting fields.
+
+Partly to satisfy her own mind as well as that of her niece, Mrs.
+Whately asked after Scoville, but could obtain no information. The
+troops in the vicinity were of a different organization, the leader of
+the party a curt, grizzled veteran, bent only on obtaining supplies.
+Miss Lou, sitting helplessly in her room, felt instinctively that she
+did not wish even to speak to him.
+
+To Chunk, this Union advance was a godsend. He immediately took his
+horse to the railroad town, sold it for a small sum, and found
+employment at the station, where his great strength secured him good
+wages. He could handle with ease a barrel akin to himself in shape and
+size.
+
+Uncle Lusthah suddenly found immense responsibility thrust upon him. In
+the opinion of the slaves the time and seasons he had predicted and
+asked his flock to wait for had come. Negroes from other and nearer
+plantations were thronging to the town, and those at The Oaks were
+rapidly forming the purpose to do likewise. They only waited the
+sanction of their religious teacher to go almost in a body. The old
+preacher was satisfied they would soon go any way, unless inducements
+and virtual freedom were offered. He therefore sought Mr. Baron and
+stated the case to him.
+
+The old planter would listen to nothing. He was too honorable to
+temporize and make false promises. "Bah!" he said, irritably, "the
+Yanks will soon be driven off as they were before. I can't say you are
+free! I can't give you a share in the crops! It's contrary to the law
+of the State and the whole proper order of things. I wouldn't do it if
+I could. What would my neighbors think? What would I think of myself?
+What a fine condition I'd be in after the Yanks are all driven from the
+country! No, I shall stand or fall with the South and maintain the
+institutions of my fathers. If you people leave me now and let the
+crops go to waste you will soon find yourselves starving. When you come
+whining back I'll have nothing to feed you with."
+
+Uncle Lusthah cast an imploring look on Miss Lou where she sat in her
+chair, with more interest expressed in her wan face than she had shown
+for a long time.
+
+"Uncle Lusthah," she said earnestly, "don't you leave me. As soon as I
+am able I'll buy you of uncle and set you free. Then you can always
+work for me."
+
+"I doan wanter lebe you, young mistis, I sut'ny doan, ner der ole place
+whar I al'ays libed. But freedom sweet, young mistis, en I wanter feel
+I free befo' I die."
+
+"You shall, Uncle Lusthah. You have earned YOUR freedom, anyway."
+
+"Tut, tut, Louise, that's no way to talk," said her uncle testily.
+
+The old slave looked from one to the other sorrowfully, shook his head
+and slowly retired.
+
+"Remember what I said," Miss Lou called after him, and then sank back
+in her chair.
+
+Uncle Lusthah had to relate the result of his conference, and the
+consequence was an immediate outbreak of a reckless, alienated spirit.
+That afternoon the field hands paid no attention to Mr. Baron's orders,
+and he saw that slaves from other plantations were present. Uncle
+Lusthah sat at his door with his head bowed on his breast. His people
+would listen to him no more, and he himself was so divided in his
+feelings that he knew not what to say.
+
+"Hit may be de Lawd's doin's ter set He people free," he muttered, "but
+somehow I kyant brung mysef ter lebe dat po' sick chile. Ole mars'r en
+ole miss kyant see en woan see, en dat lil chile w'at stan' up fer us
+in de 'stremity ob triberlation be lef wid no one ter do fer her. I
+berry ole en stiff in my jints en I cud die peaceful ef I know I free;
+but hit 'pears that de Lawd say ter me, 'Uncle Lusthah, stay right yere
+en look arter dat lil sick lam'. Den I mek you free w'en de right time
+come.'"
+
+Uncle Lusthah soon had the peace of the martyr who has chosen his
+course. Mr. Baron also sat on his veranda with head bowed upon his
+breast. He too had chosen his course, and now in consequence was sunk
+in more bitter and morose protest than ever. Events were beyond his
+control and he knew it, but he would neither yield nor change. This was
+the worst that had yet befallen him. Black ruin stared him in the face,
+and he stared back with gloomy yet resolute eyes. "I will go down with
+my old colors flying," he resolved, and that was the end of it.
+
+His wife was with him in sympathy, but her indomitable spirit would not
+be crushed. She was almost ubiquitous among the house and yard slaves,
+awing them into a submission which they scarcely understood and
+inwardly chafed at. She even went to the quarters and produced evident
+uneasiness by her stern, cutting words. None dared reply to her, but
+when the spell of her presence was removed all resumed their confused
+and exultant deliberations as to their future course.
+
+Aun' Jinkey, sitting with Miss Lou, scoffed at the idea of going away.
+"Long ez my chimly-corner en my pipe dar I dar too," she said. "Dis
+freedom business so mux up I kyant smoke hit out nohow."
+
+Zany was in a terribly divided state of mind. Were it not for Miss Lou,
+she would have been ready enough to go, especially as she had heard
+that Chunk was at the railroad town. Her restless spirit craved
+excitement and freedom: a townful of admirers, with Chunk thrown in,
+was an exceedingly alluring prospect. With all her faults, she had a
+heart, and the sick girl had won her affection unstintedly. When
+therefore Miss Lou summoned her and fixed her sad, pleading blue eyes
+upon her, the girl threw her apron over her head and began to cry "Doan
+say a word, Miss Lou," she sobbed, "doan ax me not ter go kase ef you
+does I kyant go."
+
+"Sech foolishness!" ejaculated Aun' Jinkey with a disdainful sniff.
+"She lebe you des lak a cat dat snoop off enywhar en arter enybody w'at
+got mo' vittles. Wat she keer?"
+
+Down came the apron, revealing black eyes blazing through the tears
+which were dashed right and left as Zany cried, "You ole himage, w'at
+you keer? You tink a hun'erd times mo' ob yer pipe ner Miss Lou. Long
+ez you kin smoke en projeck in dat ar ole cabin hole you woan lebe his
+'less you turned out. I des gwine ter stay out'n spite en doan wanter
+go a hun'erd mile ob dat gran'boy ob yourn."
+
+"There, Zany," said Miss Lou gently, holding out her hand. "I
+understand you and Aun' Jinkey both, and you both are going to stay out
+of love for me. I reckon you won't be sorry in the end."
+
+Up went the apron again and Zany admitted, "I kyant lebe you, Miss Lou,
+I des kyant," as she rushed away to indulge in the feminine relief of
+tears without stint.
+
+Mr. and Mrs. Baron passed a sleepless night, for even the question of
+food would be problematical if all the able-bodied men and women on the
+place went away. In the early dawn there were ominous sounds at the
+quarters, and as the light increased a spectacle which filled the old
+planter and his wife with rage was revealed. The quarters were empty
+and all were trooping toward the avenue with bundles containing their
+belongings. This was to be expected, but the act which excited the
+direst indignation was the hitching of the only pair of mules left on
+the place that were worth anything to the old family carriage. Aun'
+Suke was waddling toward this with the feeling that a "char'ot wuz
+waitin' fer her now, sho!"
+
+Mr. and Mrs. Baron looked at each other in quick, comprehensive
+sympathy, then hastily and partially dressed. Mr. Baron took his
+revolver while "ole miss" snatched a sharp carving-knife from the
+dining-room. By the time they reached the scene, Aun' Suke filled the
+back seat of the carriage and the rest of the space was being filled
+with babies.
+
+"Stop that!" shouted Mr. Baron. "Before I'll let you take my mules I'll
+shoot 'em both."
+
+"Ole miss" wasted no time in threats--she simply cut the traces and
+there were Aun' Suke and the babies stranded. The negroes drew together
+on one side and master and mistress on the other. The faces of the
+latter were aglow with anger; on the countenances of the former were
+mingled perplexity and sullen defiance, but the old habit of deference
+still had its restraining influence.
+
+"Go and starve and leave us to starve, if you will," shouted Mr. Baron,
+"but you shall steal none of my property."
+
+Angry mutterings began among the negroes, and it were hard to say how
+the scene would have ended if old Uncle Lusthah had not suddenly
+appeared between the opposing parties, and held up his hand
+impressively.
+
+"I gib up my charnce ter be free," he began with simple dignity. "My
+body 'longs ter you yit, mars'r en misus; but not my speret. Out'n dat
+I gwine ter speak plain fer de fear ob man clean gone fum me. Mars'r,
+w'at I say ter you? Lak ole Pharo, you t'ink yo'sef bigger'n de Lawd.
+Ef you'd done spoke ter de hans en say 'des go home en dar de crops en
+shar' togeder' dey ud stayed en wucked fer you 'tented like, but you
+des talk lak ole Pharo. Now de people gwine en you kyant stop dem. We
+knowed 'bout de prokermation ob de gre't Linkum. We know we bin free
+dis long time. We al'ays know you no right ter keep us slabes. Dis yer
+God's worl'. Hit don't 'long ter you en misus. He ain't stoppin' ter
+'suit you 'bout He doin's. Ef you s'mitted ter He will you'd a gwine
+'long easy lak de crops grow in spring-time. Now hit des de same ez ef
+you plant de crops in de fall en'spect de Lawd ter turn de winter inter
+summer ter please you. I berry ole en had 'spearance. I'se prayed all
+de long night en de Lawd's gib me ter see inter de futer. Lak Moses I
+may never git in de promised lan' ob freedom, but hit dar en you kyant
+kep de people out'n hit. Ef you doan bend ter He will, you breaks. Wen
+all de han's gone en de fiel's is waste t'ink ober de trufe. De Lawd
+did'n mek dis yer worl' ter suit you en misus. P'raps He t'ink ez much
+ob dem po' souls dar (pointing at the negroes) ez ob yourn. Didn't I
+stan' wid dem w'at die ter mek us free? Der blood wateh dis hull lan'
+en I feels hit in my heart dat de Lawd'll brung up a crap dis lan'
+neber saw befo'. Please reckermember, mars'r en misus, de gre't wuck ob
+de Lawd gwine right along des ez ef you ain' dar."
+
+Then the old man turned to the negroes and in his loud, melodious voice
+concluded, "I gibs you one mo' 'zortation. You IS free, but ez I say so
+of'un you ain' free ter do foolishness. Tek yo' wibes en chil'un; dey
+yourn. Tek yo' clo'es; you arned urn en much mo', but you kyant tek de
+mules en de ker'age: dey mars'r's. Go en wuck lak men en wimmin fer
+hon'st wages en show you fit ter be free. Reckermember all I tole you
+so of'un. De Lawd go wid you en kep you in de way ob life everlas'in'."
+
+The better element among the negroes prevailed, for they felt that they
+had had a spokesman who voiced their best and deepest feelings. One
+after another came and wrung the hand of the old man and departed. To
+"Pharo" and his wife few vouchsafed a glance, for they had cut the cord
+of human sympathy. Many messages of affection, however, were left for
+Miss Lou. The mothers took the babies from the carriage, Aun' Suke was
+helped out and she sulkily waddled down the avenue with the rest. By
+the time she reached the main road her powers of locomotion gave out,
+causing her to drop, half-hysterical, by the wayside. Some counselled
+her to go back, saying they would come for her before long; but pride,
+shame and exhaustion made it almost as difficult to go back as to go
+forward, and so she was left lamenting. With stern, inflexible faces,
+master and mistress watched their property depart, then returned to the
+house, while Uncle Lusthah mended the harness temporarily and took the
+carriage back to its place. Standing aloof, Zany had watched the scene,
+wavering between her intense desire to go and her loyalty to Miss Lou.
+The sick girl had conquered, the negress winning an heroic victory over
+herself. When she entered the back door of the mansion, her face rigid
+from the struggle she had passed through, she was in no lamb-like mood.
+Neither was her mistress, who was angrier than she had ever been in her
+life.
+
+"Well," she said to Zany in cold, cutting tones, "what are you doing
+here? Looking around for something to carry off before you go also?"
+
+Stung to the quick by this implied charge and lack of appreciation of
+her great self-sacrifice, Zany replied hotly, "I done wid you, misus. I
+tek no mo' orders fum you. I stay fer sump'n you doan know not'n
+'bout--lub, but lub fer Miss Lou. Ef she kyant 'tect em 'gin you den I
+go."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXVII
+
+A NEW ROUTINE
+
+
+It certainly was a dismal, shrunken household that Mrs. Baron presided
+over that morning. Aun' Jinkey came to the rescue and prepared a meagre
+breakfast. Miss Lou's room being on the side of the house furthest from
+the scenes of the early morning, she had slept on till Zany wakened
+her. She listened in a sort of dreary apathy to all that had occurred,
+feeling that she was too weak physically and too broken-spirited to
+interfere. She also had the impression that it would have been of no
+use--that her uncle and aunt were so fixed in their ways and views that
+nothing but harsh experience could teach them anything. In answer to
+Zany's appeal for protection against "ole miss" Miss Lou said, "We
+won't say anything more about it now till you get over your hurt
+feelings, which are very natural. Of course my aunt can't punish
+you--that's out of the question now, but by and by I reckon you will do
+for her out of love for me when you see it will save me trouble. You
+have done a good, unselfish act in staying with me, and having begun so
+well, you will keep on in the same way. After all of the rest get free
+you will, too. What's more, when I come into my property I'll make free
+all who stand by me now."
+
+So Zany brought her up a nice little breakfast and was comforted.
+
+When at last the young girl with weak, uncertain steps came down to her
+easy-chair on the piazza, she found her uncle gloomily smoking, and her
+aunt solacing her perturbed mind with her chief resource--housekeeping
+affairs. Little was said beyond a formal greeting.
+
+As Miss Lou sat gazing vacantly and sadly down the avenue, a huge
+figure appeared, making slow, painful progress toward the house. At
+last Aun' Suke was recognized, and the truth flashed across the girl's
+mind that the fat old cook had found she could not get away. Finally
+the woman sat down under a tree not far from the house, not only
+overcome by heat and fatigue, but also under the impression that she
+must open negotiations before she could expect to be received.
+
+"There," said Mr. Baron grimly, "is one of them coming back already.
+They'll be sneaking, whining back when the crops are spoiled and it's
+too late."
+
+Miss Lou rose feebly and got an old sunshade from the hall.
+
+"Louise, you are not able--I forbid it."
+
+The girl felt she had strength to get to the old woman but not enough
+to contend with her uncle, so she went slowly down the steps without a
+word. Mr. Baron growled, "I might as well speak to the wind as to
+anybody on the place any more."
+
+When Aun' Suke saw the girl coming to her she scrambled to her feet,
+and holding up her hands ejaculated all sorts of remorseful and
+deprecatory comments.
+
+"Welcome back," said Miss Lou kindly, when in speaking distance.
+"There, don't go on so. Sit down and I'll sit down with you." She sank
+at the foot of the tree and leaned against it, panting.
+
+"I des feels ez ef de yeth ud op'n en swaller me," began the poor
+renegade, quivering with emotion.
+
+"Don't talk so, Aun' Suke. I'm not strong enough to stand foolishness.
+You will go back with me and stay with Uncle Lusthah and Aun' Jinkey
+and Zany. You will cook for us all just the same and by and by you will
+be as free as I am."
+
+"Well, Miss Lou, I comin' back lak de perdigous son, but ole miss ain'
+got no fatted calf fer me, ner you neider, I reckon. I des feered on
+w'at ole miss say en do."
+
+"Aun' Suke," said the girl, taking the woman's great black hand, "you
+stand by me and I'll stand by you. When I get stronger we'll see what's
+best to be done. Now I can't think, I don't know. I only feel that we
+must help one another till all is clearer."
+
+Mrs. Baron accepted Aun' Suke's presence in the kitchen again in grim
+silence. She believed it the earnest of the speedy return of all the
+others, and resolved to bide her time when the Southern armies restored
+completely the old order of things.
+
+Mrs. Whately drove over during the day and was aghast at what had
+occurred.
+
+"I have kept the great majority of my hands by conciliation and
+promising them a share in the crops. Indeed, I had virtually to treat
+them as if free. It was either that or ruin."
+
+"Well," growled her brother, "you can't keep that pace and I wouldn't
+begin it."
+
+"I can only do the best I can, from day to day," sighed the lady, "and
+I've been almost distracted."
+
+After showing her affectionate solicitude for Miss Lou she returned,
+feeling that her presence at home was now hourly needed.
+
+Gradually the little household began to adjust itself to the new order
+of things, and day by day Mr. and Mrs. Baron were compelled to see that
+the few servants who ministered to them were kept at their tasks by an
+influence in which they had no part. Almost imperceptibly, Miss Lou
+regained her strength, yet was but the shadow of her former self. Uncle
+Lusthah gave his attention to the garden, already getting weed-choked.
+The best he could hope to do was to keep up a meagre supply of
+vegetables, and Zany in the cool of the day often gave him a helping
+hand.
+
+Late one afternoon Miss Lou, feeling a little stronger, went to Aun'
+Jinkey's cabin and sat down on the doorstep.
+
+"Oh, mammy," she sighed, "I'm so tired, I'm so tired; yet I can do
+nothing at all."
+
+"You po' lil chile," groaned Aun' Jinkey, "how dif'ernt you looks ner
+w'en you fus sot dar en wish sump'n happen."
+
+"Oh," cried the girl almost despairingly, "too much has happened! too
+much has happened! How can God let such troubles come upon us?"
+
+"Eben Uncle Lusthah hab ter say he dunno. He say he des gwine ter hole
+on twel de eend, en dat all he kin do."
+
+"Oh, mammy, I'm all at sea. I haven't any strength to hold on and there
+doesn't seem anything to hold on to. Oh, mammy, mammy, do you think
+he's surely dead?"
+
+"I feared he is," groaned Aun' Jinkey. "Dey say he spook come arter
+Perkins en dat w'y de oberseer clared out."
+
+"Oh, horrible!" cried the girl. "If his spirit could come here at all
+would it not come to me instead of to that brutal wretch? Oh, mammy, I
+don't know which is worse, your religion or your superstition. You
+believe in a God who lets such things happen and you can think my noble
+friend would come back here only to scare a man like Perkins. It's all
+just horrible. Oh, Allan, Allan, are you so lost to me that you can
+never look goodwill into my eyes again?"
+
+Tears rushed to her eyes for the first time since she heard the
+dreadful tidings, and she sobbed in her mammy's arms till exhausted.
+
+That outburst of grief and the relief of tears given by kindly nature
+was the decisive point in Miss Lou's convalescence. She was almost
+carried back to her room and slept till late the following day. When
+she awoke she felt that her strength was returning, and with it came
+the courage to take up the burdens of life. For weeks it was little
+more than the courage of a naturally brave, conscientious nature which
+will not yield to the cowardice and weakness of inaction. The value of
+work, of constant occupation, to sustain and divert the mind, was
+speedily learned. Gradually she took the helm of outdoor matters from
+her uncle's nerveless hands. She had a good deal of a battle in respect
+to Chunk. It was a sham one on the part of Zany, as the girl well knew,
+for Chunk's "tootin'" was missed terribly. Mr. and Mrs. Baron at first
+refused point-blank to hear of his returning.
+
+"Uncle," said his ward gravely, "is only your property at stake? I can
+manage Chunk, and through him perhaps get others. I am not responsible
+for changes which I can't help; I am to blame if I sit down idly and
+helplessly and do nothing better than fret or sulk. Your bitter words
+of protest are not bread and bring no money. For your sakes as well as
+my own you must either act or let me act."
+
+The honorable old planter was touched at his most sensitive point, and
+reluctantly conceded, saying, "Oh, well, if you think you can save any
+of your property out of the wreck, employ Chunk on your own
+responsibility."
+
+So Chunk was reinstated in his granny's cabin and given a share in all
+he could raise and secure of the crops. The negro was as shrewd as
+Jacob of old, but like the Hebrew patriarch could do much under the
+inspiration of his twofold affection for Zany and his young mistress.
+
+And so the summer and early fall wore away. The railroad line of
+communication was maintained, and upon it drifted away Mr. Baron's
+former slaves and the great majority of the others in the neighborhood.
+The region in which the plantation was situated was so remote and
+sparsely settled that it was a sort of border land, unclaimed and
+unvisited by any considerable bodies from either party. Rev. Dr.
+Williams' congregation had shrunken to a handful. He officiated at one
+end of the church, and his plump, black-eyed daughter led the singing
+at the other, but it was observed that she looked discontented rather
+than devotional. She was keenly alive to the fact that there was not an
+eligible man left in the parish. Uncle Lusthah patiently drove the
+mules every clear Sunday morning and Mr. and Mrs. Baron sat in the
+carriage whose springs Aun' Suke had sorely tried; but Miss Lou would
+not go with them. After his readiness to marry her to her cousin she
+felt it would be worse than mockery to listen to Dr. Williams again.
+
+But a deep, yet morbid spiritual change was taking place in the girl.
+As of old, she thought and brooded when her hands were busy, and during
+her long, solitary evenings on the piazza. Strange to say, she was
+drawing much of her inspiration from a grave--the grave of a rough,
+profane soldier whom she knew only as "Yarry." There was something in
+his self-forgetful effort in her behalf, even when in the mortal
+anguish of death, which appealed to her most powerfully. His heroism,
+expecting, hoping for no reward, became the finest thing in her
+estimation she had ever witnessed. Her own love taught her why Scoville
+was attracted by her and became ready to do anything for her. "That's
+the old, old story," she mused, "ever sweet and new, yet old as the
+world. Poor Yarry was actuated by a purely unselfish, noble impulse.
+Only such an impulse can sustain and carry me through my life. No, no,
+Mrs. Waldo, I can never become happy in making others happy. I can
+never be happy again. The bullet which killed Allan Scoville pierced my
+heart also and it is dead, but that poor soldier taught me how one can
+still live and suffer nobly, and such a life must be pleasing to the
+only God I can worship." All wondered at the change gradually taking
+place in the girl. It was too resolute, too much the offspring of her
+will rather than her heart to have in it much gentleness, but it was
+observed that she was becoming gravely and patiently considerate of
+others, even of their faults and follies. As far as possible, her uncle
+and aunt were allowed their own way without protest, the girl
+sacrificing her own feelings and wishes when it was possible. They at
+last began to admit that their niece was manifesting a becoming spirit
+of submission and deference, when in fact her management of their
+affairs was saving them from an impoverishment scarcely to be endured.
+
+For Mrs. Whately the girl now had a genuine and strong affection,
+chilled only by her belief that the plan in regard to the son was ever
+in the mother's mind. So indeed it was. The sagacious woman watched
+Miss Lou closely and with feelings of growing hope as well as of
+tenderness. The girl was showing a patience, a strength of mind, and,
+above all, a spirit of self-sacrifice which satisfied Mrs. Whately that
+she was the one of all the world for her son.
+
+"I do believe," she thought, "that if I can only make Louise think it
+will be best for us all as well as Madison, she will yield. The spirit
+of self-sacrifice seems her supreme impulse. Her sadness will pass away
+in time, and she would soon learn to love the father of her children.
+What's more, there is something about her now which would hold any
+man's love. See how her lightest wish controls those who work for her,
+even that harum-scarum Zany."
+
+In the late autumn a long-delayed letter threw Mrs. Whately into a
+panic of fear and anxiety. A surgeon wrote that her son had been
+severely wounded and had lost his left arm, but that he was doing well.
+
+
+
+
+Here the author laid down his pen. In Mr. Roe's journal, under date of
+July 11, is an entry alluding to a conversation with a friend. That
+conversation concerned the conclusion of this book, and was, in effect,
+substantially the same as the outline given by him in a letter, part of
+which is quoted as follows:
+
+"It is not my purpose to dwell further on incidents connected with the
+close of the war, as the book may be considered too long already. It
+only remains for me now to get all my people happy as soon as possible.
+Zany and Chunk 'make up,' and a good deal of their characteristic
+love-making will be worked in to relieve the rather sombre state of
+things at this stage. Whately returns with his empty sleeve, more of a
+hero than ever in his own eyes and his mother's. Miss Lou thinks him
+strangely thoughtful and considerate in keeping away, as he does, after
+a few short visits at The Oaks. The truth is, he is wofully
+disappointed at the change in his cousin's looks. This pale, listless,
+hollow-eyed girl is not the one who set him to reading 'Taming of the
+Shrew.' That her beauty of color and of outline could ever return, he
+does not consider; and in swift revulsion of feeling secretly pays
+court elsewhere.
+
+"Mrs. Whately, however, makes up for her son's deficiencies. Utterly
+ignorant how affairs are shaping, she works by her representations upon
+Miss Lou's sympathies until the weary consent is wrung from the poor
+girl--'Nothing matters to me any more! If it makes you all
+happy--why--then--But I must wait a year.' She feels that her love for
+Allan Scoville will never be less, and that this period of time is
+little enough to devote to him in silent memory.
+
+"The delighted aunt hastens to report to her son, who stares rather
+blankly, for a lover, as he hears of this concession on his cousin's
+part, and without answer, he orders his horse and rides furiously away.
+The ride is one that has been very frequently taken since the young
+man's return, and pretty soon he is in earnest conversation with the
+rosy-cheeked, black-eyed daughter of Dr. Williams. There seems to be
+very good understanding between the two, and later, just at the final
+scene, it will come out as effectively as can be portrayed the
+startling news of their secret marriage.
+
+"The days go on. One afternoon in the late autumn, Aun' Jinkey, smoking
+and 'projeckin'' as usual in her cabin, has a vision which fairly sends
+her heart, as she will express it, 'right troo de mouf.' Was it a
+'spook,' or had the dead really come back to life? And I hear her
+exclaim, throwing up her hands, 'Bress de Lawd, Marse Scoville, dat
+you? Whar you drap fum dis yere time? I doan almos' know you widout de
+un'fo'm!'
+
+"But the 'vision' will not stop to narrate to the old aunty of his
+capture, imprisonment and illness, his release and hurried journey
+North. He catches sight of the slight figure of Miss Lou in the
+distance near the run, and in a moment is beside her. 'Only death could
+keep me from seeking you and living for you always, did I not tell you,
+my darling, my darling?'
+
+"And here I will leave them. The reader's imagination will picture more
+if more is wished. It is better so."
+
+THE END
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Miss Lou, by E. P. Roe
+
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