"For all the Welshmen, hearing thou wert dead,
Are gone to Bolingbroke, dispersed and fled."
_Richard III_
This was startling intelligence to receive just as night had shut in,
and under the other circumstances of the case. Touching the men who
still remained, captain Willoughby conceived it prudent to inquire into
their characters and names, in order to ascertain the ground he stood
on, and to govern his future course accordingly. He put the question to
the serjeant, therefore, as soon as he could lead him far enough from
the little array, to be certain he was out of ear-shot.
"We have Michael O'Hearn, Jamie Allen, the two carpenters, the three
niggers, Joel, and the three Dutchmen that last came into the
settlement, and the two lads that Strides engaged at the beginning of
the year, left," was the answer. "These, counting your honour and
myself, make just fifteen men; quite enough yet, I should think, to
make good the house, in case of an assault--though I fear everything
like an outwork must be abandoned."
"On the whole, these are the best of our men," returned the captain; "I
mean the most trustworthy. I count on Mike, Jamie, and the blacks, as
being as much to be relied on as we are ourselves. Joel, too, is a man
of resources, if he will but do his duty under fire."
"Corporal Strides is still an untried soldier, your honour; though
recruits, even, sometimes do wonders. Of course, I shall reduce the
guard to half its former strength, as the men must have some sleep,
sir."
"We must depend very much on your vigilance and mine, to-night, Joyce.
You shall take the guard till one, when I will stand it for the rest of
the night. I will speak to the men before you dismiss them. An
encouraging word, just now, may be worth a platoon to us."
The serjeant seldom dissented from any suggestion of his commanding
officer, and the scheme was carried out on the spot. The lantern was so
placed as to permit the captain to see the heterogeneous row of
countenances that was drawn up before him, and he proceeded:
"It seems, my friends," he said, "that some of our people have been
seized with a panic, and have deserted. These mistaken men have not
only fled themselves, but they have induced their wives and children to
follow them. A little reflection will show you to what distress all
must be reduced by this ill-judged flight. Fifty miles from another
settlement of any size, and more than thirty from even a single hut,
beyond the cabin of a hunter, days must pass before they can reach a
place of safety, even should they escape the savage foe that we know to
be scouring the woods. The women and children will not have sufficient
art to conceal their trail, nor sufficient strength to hold out against
hunger and fatigue many hours. God forgive them for what they have
done, and guide them through the difficulties and pains by which they
are menaced! As for us, we must determine to do our whole duty, or, at
once to retire, with the consent of each other. If there is a man among
you, then, who apprehends the consequences of standing to his arms, and
of defending this house, let him confess it frankly; he shall have
leave to depart, with all that belongs to him, taking food and the
means of subsistence and defence with him. I wish no man to remain with
me and mine, but he who can do it cheerfully. The night is now dark,
and, by quitting the Hut at an early hour, such a start might be gained
over any pursuers, as to place him in comparative security before
morning. If any such man is here, let him now speak out honestly, and
fear nothing. The gate shall be opened for his march."
The captain paused, but not a soul answered. A common sentiment of
loyalty seemed to bind every one of the listeners to his duty. The dark
eyes of the negroes rolled along the short rank to see who would be the
first to desert their master, and grins of delight showed the
satisfaction with which they noted the effect of the appeal. As for
Mike, he felt too strongly to keep silence, and he muttered the passing
impressions aloud.
"Och!"--growled the county Leitrim-man--"Is it a good journey that I
wish the runaways? That it isn't, nor many a good male either, as they
trudge alang t'rough the woods, with their own consciences forenent
their eyes, pricking them up to come back, like so many t'ieves of the
wor-r-ld, as they are, every mother's son of 'em, women and all. I'd
nivir do _that_; no, not if my head was _all_ scalp, down to
the soles of my fut, and an Injin was at every inch of it, to cut out
his summer clothes of my own skin. Talk of religion amang sich
crathures!--Why, there isn't enough moral in one of thim to carry him
through the shortest prayer the Lord allows a Christian to utter. Divil
burn 'em say I, and that's my kindest wish in their behalf."
The captain waited patiently for this soliloquy to terminate; then he
dismissed the men, with a few more words of encouragement, and his
thanks for the fidelity they, at least, had shown. By this time the
night had got to be dark, and the court was much more so, on account of
the shadows of the buildings, than places in the open air. As the
captain turned aside to give his last instructions to Joyce, he
discovered, by the light of the lantern the latter held, a figure
standing at no great distance, quite dimly seen on account of its
proximity to the walls of the Hut. It was clearly a man; and as all the
males able to bear arms, a single sentinel outside the court excepted,
were supposed to be in the group that had not yet separated, the
necessity of ascertaining the character of this unlooked-for visiter
flashed on the minds of both the old soldiers at the same instant.
Joyce raised the lantern, as they moved quickly towards the motionless
form, and its light glanced athwart a pair of wild, glowing, dark eyes,
and the red visage of an Indian.
"Nick!" exclaimed the captain, "is that you?--What has brought you here
again, and how have you entered the palisades?--Do you come as a
friend, to aid us, or as an enemy?"
"Too much question, cap'in--too much like squaw; ask all togeder. Go to
book-room; Nick follow; tell all he got to say."
The captain whispered the serjeant to ascertain whether the watch
without was vigilant, when he led the way to the library, where, as he
expected, he found his wife and daughters, anxiously waiting his
appearance.
"Oh! Hugh, I trust it is not as bad as we feared!" cried the mother, as
the captain entered the room, closely attended by the Tuscarora; "our
men cannot be so heartless as to desert us at such a moment!"
The captain kissed his wife, said a word or two of encouragement, and
pointed to the Indian.
"Nick!" exclaimed all three of the females, in a breath. Though the
tones of their voices denoted very different sensations, at the
unexpected appearance of their old acquaintance. Mrs. Willoughby's
exclamation was not without pleasure, for _she_ thought the man
her friend. Beulah's was filled with alarm, little Evert and savage
massacres suddenly crossing the sensitive mind of the young mother;
while Maud's tone had much of the stern resolution that she had
summoned to sustain her in a moment of such fearful trial.
"Yes, Nick--Sassy Nick," repeated the Indian, in his guttural
voice--"Ole friend--you no glad see him?"
"That will depend on your errand," interposed the captain. "Are you one
of the party that is now lying at the mill?--but, stop; how did you get
within the palisades? First answer me _that_."
"Come in. Tree no good to stop Injin. Can't do it wid branches, how do
it widout? Want plenty of musket and plenty of soldier to do _dat_.
Dis no garrison, cap'in, to make Nick afeard. Always tell him
too much hole to be tight."
"This is not answering my question, fellow. By what means did you pass
the palisades?"
"What means?--Injin means, sartain. Came like cat, jump like deer,
slide like snake. Nick great Tuscarora chief; know well how warrior
march, when he dig up hatchet."
"And Nick has been a great hanger-on of garrisons, and should know the
use that I can make of his back. You will remember, Tuscarora, that I
have had you flogged, more than once, in my day."
This was said menacingly, and with more warmth, perhaps, than was
prudent. It caused the listeners to start, as if a sudden and new
danger rose before their eyes, and the anxious looks he encountered
warned the captain that he was probably going too far. As for Nick,
himself, the gathering thunder-cloud is not darker than his visage
became at the words he heard; it seemed by the moral writhing of his
spirit as if every disgracing blow he had received was at that instant
torturing his flesh anew, blended with the keenest feelings of
ignominy. Captain Willoughby was startled at the effect he had
produced; but it was too late to change his course; and he remained in
dignified quiet, awaiting the workings of the Tuscarora's mind.
It was more than a minute ere Nick made any reply. Gradually, but very
slowly, the expression of his visage changed. It finally became as
stoical in expression as severe training could render the human
countenance, and as unmoved as marble. Then he found the language he
wanted.
"Listen," said the Indian, sternly. "Cap'in ole man. Got a head like
snow on rock. He bold soldier; but he no got wisdom enough for gray
hair. Why he put he hand rough, on place where whip strike? Wise man
nebber do _aat_. Last winter he cold; fire wanted to make him
warm. Much ice, much storm, much snow. World seem bad--fit only for
bear, and snake, dat hide in rock. Well; winter gone away; ice gone
away; snow gone away; storm gone away. Summer come, in his place.
Ebbery t'ing _good_--ebbery t'ing _pleasant_. Why t'ink of
winter, when summer come, and drive him away wid pleasant sky?"
"In order to provide for its return. He who never thought of the evil
day, in the hour of his prosperity, would find that he has forgotten,
not only a duty, but the course of wisdom."
"He _not_ wise!" said Nick, sternly. "Cap'in pale-face chief. He
got garrison; got soldier; got musket. Well, he flog warrior's back;
make blood come. Dat bad enough; worse to put finger on ole sore, and
make 'e pain, and 'e shame, come back ag'in."
"Perhaps it would have been more generous, Nick, to have said nothing
about it; but, you see how I am situated; an enemy without, my men
deserting, a bad look-out, and one finding his way into my very court-
yard, and I ignorant of the means."
"Nick tell cap'in all about means. If red-men outside, shoot
_'em_; if garrison run away, flog garrison; if don't know, l'arn;
but, don't flog back, ag'in, on ole sore!"
"Well, well, say no more about it, Nick. Here is a dollar to keep you
in rum, and we will talk of other matters."
Nick heeded not the money, though it was held before his eyes, some
little time, to tempt him. Perceiving that the Tuscarora was now acting
as a warrior and a chief, which Nick would do, and do well, on
occasion, the captain pocketed the offering, and regulated his own
course accordingly.
"At all events, I have a right to insist on knowing, first, by what
means you entered the palisades; and, second, what business has brought
you here, at night, and so suddenly."
"Ask Nick, cap'in, all he right to ask; but, don't touch ole flog. How
I cross palisade? Where your sentinel to stop Injin? One at gate; well,
none all round, t'other place. Get in, up here, down dere, over yonder.
Ten, twenty, t'ree spot--s'pose him tree? climb him. S'pose him
palisade?--climb him, too. What help?--Soldier out at gate when Nick
get over t'other end! Come in court, too, when he want. Half gate half
no gate. So easy, 'shamed to brag of. Cap'in once Nick's friend--went
on same war-path--dat in ole time. Both warrior; both went ag'in French
garrison. Well; who crept in, close by cannon, open gate, let pale-men
in. Great Tuscarora do _dat_; no flog, _den_--no talk of ole
sore, dat night!"
"This is all true enough, Wyandotté"--This was Nick's loftiest
appellation; and a grim, but faint smile crossed his visage, as he
heard it, again, in the mouth of one who had known him when its sound
carried terror to the hearts of his enemies--"This is all true,
Wyandotté, and I have even given you credit for it. On that occasion
you were bold as the lion, and as cunning as a fox--you were much
honoured for that exploit."
"No ole sore in _dat_, um?" cried Nick, in a way so startling as
to sicken Mrs. Willoughby to the heart. "No call Nick dog, dat night.
He _all_ warrior, den--all face; no _back_."
"I have said you were honoured for your conduct, Nick, and paid for it.
Now, let me know what has brought you here to-night, and whence you
come."
There was another pause. Gradually, the countenance of the Indian
became less and less fierce, until it lost its expression of malignant
resentment in one in which human emotions of a kinder nature
predominated.
"Squaw good," he said, even gently, waving his hand towards Mrs.
Willoughby--"Got son; love him like little baby. Nick come six, two
time before, runner from her son."
"My son, Wyandotté!" exclaimed the mother--"Bring you any tidings, now,
from my boy?"
"No bring tidin'--too heavy; Indian don't love to carry load--bring
_letter_"
The cry from the three females was now common, each holding out her
hand, with an involuntary impulse, to receive the note. Nick drew the
missive from a fold of his garment, and placed it in the hand of Mrs.
Willoughby, with a quiet grace that a courtier might have wished to
equal, in vain.
The note was short, and had been written in pencil, on a leaf torn from
some book of coarse paper. The handwriting however, was at once
recognised as Robert Willoughby's though there was no address, nor any
signature. The paper merely contained the following--
"Trust to your defences, and to nothing else. This party has many white
men in it, disguised as Indians. I am suspected, if not known. You will
be tampered with, but the wisest course is to be firm. If Nick is
honest, he can tell you more; if false, this note will be shown, even
though it be delivered. Secure the inner gates, and depend more on the
house itself, than on the palisades. Fear nothing for me--my life can
be in no danger."
This note was read by each, in succession, Maud turning aside to
conceal the tears that fell fast on the paper, as she perused it. She
read it last, and was enabled to retain it; and precious to her heart
was the boon, at such a moment, when nearly every sensation of her
being centred in intense feeling in behalf of the captive.
"We are told to inquire the particulars of you, Nick," observed the
captain; "I hope you will tell us nothing but truth. A lie is so
unworthy a warrior's mouth!"
"Nick didn't lie 'bout beaver dam! Cap'in no find him good, as Indian
say?"
"In that you dealt honestly, and I give you credit for it. Has any one
seen this letter but ourselves, yourself, and the person who wrote it?"
"What for ask? If Nick say no, cap'in t'ink he lie. Even fox tell trut'
some time; why not Injin? Nick say no."
"Where did you leave my son, and when?--Where is the party of red-skins
at this moment?"
"All pale-face in hurry! Ask ten, one, four question, altogeder. Well;
answer him so. Down here, at mill; down dere, at mill; half an hour,
six, two, ten o'clock."
"I understand you to say that major Willoughby was at the mill when you
saw him last, and that this was only half an hour since?"
The Tuscarora nodded his head in assent, but made no other reply. Even
as he did this, his keen eyes rolled over the pallid faces of the
females in a way to awaken the captain's distrust, and he resumed his
questions in a tone that partook more of the military severity of his
ancient habits than of the gentler manner he had been accustomed to use
of late years.
"You know me, Nick," he said sternly, "and ought to dread my
displeasure."
"What cap'in mean, now?" demanded the Indian, quietly.
"That the same whip is in this fort that I always kept in the other, in
which you knew me to dwell; nor have I forgotten how to use it."
The Tuscarora gazed at the captain with a very puzzling expression,
though, in the main, his countenance appeared to be ironical rather
than fierce.
"What for, talk of whip, now?" he said. "Even Yengeese gen'ral hide
whip, when he see enemy. Soldier can't fight when back sore. When
battle near, den all good friend; when battle over, den flog, flog,
flog. Why talk so?--Cap'in nebber strike _Wyandotté_."
"Your memory must be short, to say this! I thought an Indian kept a
better record of what passed."
"No man _dare_ strike Wyandotté!" exclaimed the Indian, with
energy. "No man--pale-face or red-skin, _can_ give blow on back of
Wyandotté, and see sun set!"
"Well--well--Nick; we will not dispute on this point, but let bye-gones
be bye-gones. What _has_ happened, _has_ happened, and I hope
will never occur again."
"Dat happen to Nick--Sassy Nick--poor, drunken Nick--to Wyandotté,
nebber!"
"I believe I begin to understand you, now, Tuscarora, and am glad I
have a chief and a warrior in my house, instead of a poor miserable
outcast. Shall I have the pleasure of filling you a glass in honour of
our old campaigns?"
"Nick alway dry--Wyandotté know no thirst. Nick, beggar--ask for
rum--_pray_ for rum--_t'ink_ of rum, _talk_ of rum, _laugh_ for rum,
_cry_ for rum. Wyandotté don't know rum, when he see him. Wyandotté
beg not'in'; no, not his scalp."
"All this sounds well, and I am both willing and glad, chief, to
receive you in the character in which you give me to understand you
have now come. A warrior of Wyandotté's high name is too proud to carry
a forked tongue in his mouth, and I shall hear nothing but truth. Tell
me, then, all you know about this party at the mill; what has brought
it here, how you came to meet my son, and what will be the next step of
his captors. Answer the questions in the order in which I put them."
"Wyandotté not newspaper to tell ebbery t'ing at once. Let cap'in talk
like one chief speaking to anoder."
"Then, tell me first, what you know of this party at the mill. Are
there many pale-faces in it?"
"Put 'em in the river," answered the Indian, sententiously; "water tell
the trut'."
"You think that there are many among them that would wash white?"
"Wyandotté _know_ so. When did red warriors ever travel on their
path like hogs in drove? _One_ red-man there, as Great Spirit make
him; by his side _two_ red-men as _paint_ make 'em. This soon
told on trail."
"You struck their trail, then, and joined their company, in that
manner?"
Another nod indicated the assent of the Indian. Perceiving that the
Tuscarora did not intend to speak, the captain continued his
interrogatories.
"And how did the trail betray this secret, chief?" he asked.
"Toe turn out--step too short--trail too broad--trail too plain--march
too short."
"You must have followed them some distance, Wyandotté, to learn all
this?"
"Follow from Mohawk--join 'em at mill. Tuscarora don't like too much
travel with Mohawk."
"But, according to your account, there cannot be a great many red-skins
in the party, if the white men so much out-number them."
Nick, now, raised his right hand, showing all the fingers and the
thumb, at each exhibition, four several times. Then he raised it once,
showing only the fore-finger and thumb.
"This makes twenty-two, Nick--Do you include yourself in the number?"
"Wyandotté, a Tuscarora--he count _Mohawks_"
"True--Are there any other red-men among them?"
"Oneida, so"--holding up four fingers only. After which he held up a
single finger, adding--"Onondaga, so."
"Twenty-two Mohawks, four Oneidas, and a single Onondaga, make twenty-
seven in all. To these, how many whites am I to add?--You counted them,
also?"
The Indian now showed both hands, with all the fingers extended,
repeating the gestures four times; then he showed one hand entire, and
two fingers on the other.
"Forty-seven. Add these to the red-skins, and we get seventy-four for
the total. I had supposed them rather stronger than this, Wyandotté?"
"No stronger--no weaker--just so. Good many ole womans, too, among
pale-faces."
"Old women!--You are not speaking literally, Nick? All that I have seen
appear to be men."
"Got beard; but ole woman, too. Talk--talk--talk;--do not'in'.
_Dat_ what Injin call ole woman. Party, poor party; cap'in beat 'em,
if he fight like ole time."
"Well, this is encouraging, Wilhelmina, and Nick seems to be dealing
fairly with us."
"Now, inquire more about Robert, Hugh"--said the wife, in whose
maternal heart her children were always uppermost.
"You hear, Nick; my wife is desirous of learning something about her
son, next."
During the preceding dialogue, there had been something equivocal in
the expression of the Indian's face. Every word he uttered about the
party, its numbers, and his own manner of falling in with it, was true,
and his countenance indicated that he was dealing fairly. Still, the
captain fancied that he could detect a covert fierceness in his eye and
air, and he felt uneasiness even while he yielded him credence. As soon
as Mrs. Willoughby, however, interposed, the gleam of ferocity that
passed so naturally and readily athwart the swarthy features of the
savage, melted into a look of gentleness, and there were moments when
it might be almost termed softness.
"Good to have moder"--said Nick, kindly. "Wyandotté got no squaw--wife
dead, moder dead, sister dead--all gone to land of spirits--bye'm-by,
chief follow. No one throw stone on his grave! Been on death-path long
ago, but cap'in's squaw say 'stop, Nick; little too soon, now; take
medicine, and get well.' Squaw made to do good. Chief alway like 'e
squaw, when his mind not wild with war."
"And _your_ mind, Wyandotté, is not wild with war, now," answered
Mrs. Willoughby, earnestly. "You will help a mother, then, to get her
son out of the hands of merciless enemies?"
"Why you t'ink merciless? Because pale-face dress like Injin, and try
to cheat?"
"That may be one reason; but I fear there are many others. Tell me,
Wyandotté, how came you to discover that Robert was a prisoner, and by
what means did he contrive to give you his letter?"
The Indian assumed a look of pride, a little blended with hauteur; for
he felt that he was manifesting the superiority of a red-man over the
pale-face, as he related the means through which he had made his
discoveries.
"Read book on ground," Nick answered gravely. "Two book alway open
before chief; one in sky, t'other on ground. Book in sky, tell
weather--snow, rain, wind, thunder, lightning, war--book on ground,
tell what happen."
"And what had this book on the ground to do with my son, Wyandotté?"
"Tell all about him. Major's trail first seen at mill. No moccasin--
much boot. Soldier boot like letter--say great deal, in few word. First
t'ink it cap'in; but it too short. Den _know_ it Major."
"This sounds very well, Nick," interrupted the captain, "though you
will excuse me if I say it is going a little too far. It seems
impossible that you should know that the print of the foot was that of
my son. How _could_ you be certain of this?"
"How _could_, eh? Who follow trail from house, here, to Hudson
river? T'ink Nick blind, and can't see? Tuscarora read _his_ book
well as pale-face read bible." Here Nick looked round him a moment,
raised his fore-finger, dropped his voice, and added earnestly--"see
him at Bunker Hill--know him among ten, six, two t'ousand warrior. Know
dat foot, if meet him in Happy Hunting Ground."
"And why my son's foot, in particular? The boot is often changed, can
never be exactly like its predecessor, and one boot is so much like
another, that to me the thing seems impossible. This account of the
boot, Nick, makes me distrust your whole story."
"What distrust?" demanded the Indian like lightning.
"It means doubt, uncertainty--distrust."
"Don't believe, ha?"
"Yes, that is it, substantially. Don't more than _half_ believe,
perhaps, would be nearer to the mark."
"Why, ole soldier alway distrust; squaw nebber? Ask moder--ha!--you
t'ink Nick don't know son's trail--handsome trail, like young chief's?"
"I can readily believe Nick might recognise Bob's trail, Hugh"--
expostulated Mrs. Willoughby. "He has a foot in a thousand--you may
remember how every one was accustomed to speak of his beautiful foot,
even when he was a boy. As a man, I think it still more remarkable."
"Ay, go on, Nick, in this way, and my wife will believe all you say.
There is no distrust in a mother's partiality, certainly. You are an
old courtier, and would make your way at St. James's."
"Major nebber tell about foot?" asked Nick, earnestly.
"I remember nothing; and had he spoken of any such thing, I must have
heard it. But, never mind the story, now; you saw the foot-print, and
knew it for my son's. Did you ask to be admitted to his prison? or was
your intercourse secret?"
"Wyandotté too wise to act like squaw, or boy. See him, widout look.
Talk, widout speak--hear, widout ear. Major write letter, Nick take
him. All done by eye and hand; not'in' done by tongue, or at Council
Fire. Mohawk blind like owl!"
"May I believe you, Tuscarora; or, incited by demons, do you come to
deceive me?"
"Ole warrior look two time before he go; t'ink ten time before he say,
yes. All good. Nick no affronted. Do so himself, and t'ink it right.
Cap'in _may_ believe all Nick say."
"Father!" cried Maud, with simple energy, "I will answer for the
Indian's honesty. He has guided Robert so often, and been with him in
so many trying scenes, he never _can_ have the heart to betray
him, or us. Trust him, then he may be of infinite service."
Even captain Willoughby, little disposed as he was to judge Nick
favourably, was struck with the gleam of mamy kindness that shot across
the dark face of the Indian, as he gazed at the glowing cheek and
illuminated countenance of the ardent and beautiful girl.
"Nick seems disposed to make a truce with _you_, at least, Maud,"
he said, smiling, "and I shall now know where to look for a mediator,
whenever any trouble arises between us."
"I have known Wyandotté, dear sir, from childhood, and he has ever been
my friend. He promised me, in particular, to be true to Bob, and I am
happy to say he has ever kept his word."
This was telling but half the story. Maud had made the Indian many
presents, and most especially had she attended to his wants, when it
was known he was to be the major's guide, the year previously, on his
return to Boston. Nick had known her real father, and was present at
his death. He was consequently acquainted with her actual position in
the family of the Hutted Knoll; and, what was of far more consequence
in present emergencies, he had fathomed the depths of her heart, in a
way our heroine could hardly be said to have done herself. Off her
guard with such a being, Maud's solicitude, however, had betrayed her,
and the penetrating Tuscarora had discerned that which had escaped the
observation of father, and mother, and sister. Had Nick been a pale-
face, of the class of those with whom he usually associated, his
discovery would have gone through the settlement, with scoffings and
exaggerations; but this forest gentleman, for such was Wyandotté, in
spite of his degradation and numerous failings, had too much
consideration to make a woman's affections the subject of his
coarseness and merriment. The secrets of Maud would not have been more
sacred with her own brother, had such a relative existed to become her
confidant, than it was with Saucy Nick.
"Nick gal's friend," observed the Indian, quietly; "dat enough; what
Nick say, Nick mean. What Nick _mean_, he _do_. Come, cap'in;
time to quit squaw, and talk about war."
At this hint, which was too plain to be misunderstood, captain
Willoughby bade the Indian withdraw to the court, promising to follow
him, as soon as he could hold a short conference with Joyce, who was
now summoned to the council. The subject of discussion was the manner
in which the Tuscarora had passed the stockade, and the probability of
his being true. The serjeant was disposed to distrust all red-men, and
he advised putting Nick under arrest, and to keep him in durance, until
the return of light, at least.
"I might almost say, your honour, that such are orders, sir. The advice
to soldiers carrying on war with savages, tells us that the best course
is to pay off treachery with treachery; and treachery is a red-skin's
manual exercise. There is O'Hearn will make a capital sentinel, for the
fellow is as true as the best steel in the army. Mr. Woods' room is
empty, and it is so far out of the way that nothing will be easier than
to keep the savage snug enough. Besides, by a little management, he
might fancy we were doing him honour all the while."
"We will see, serjeant," answered the captain. "It has a bad
appearance, and yet it may be the wisest thing we can do. Let us first
go the rounds, taking Nick with us for safety, and determine
afterwards."