A knight of Columbia; a story of the war . stanceoff the highway, but thither Chalmers had led, with confi-dence serene. The beard and spectacles had been dis-carded before they were two hours away from ManassasJunction, following their farm boy guide through woodand bridlepath that twisted and turned bewilderingly;hiding all day after sun up in a dense coppice, where lop-eared rabbits came and peered at them and tilted nervouslyaway. Long hours of the first night out they rode againin the track of their taciturn, tobacco-chewing guide, andslept at last with their feet to the embers in a woodm
A knight of Columbia; a story of the war . stanceoff the highway, but thither Chalmers had led, with confi-dence serene. The beard and spectacles had been dis-carded before they were two hours away from ManassasJunction, following their farm boy guide through woodand bridlepath that twisted and turned bewilderingly;hiding all day after sun up in a dense coppice, where lop-eared rabbits came and peered at them and tilted nervouslyaway. Long hours of the first night out they rode againin the track of their taciturn, tobacco-chewing guide, andslept at last with their feet to the embers in a woodmanscabin. At sunrise they were off again, their horses baited,their own needs supplied, for Chalmers carried coin aswell as the Navy Colt, and knew how to use both. Atnoon, on the banks of a swirling, red muddy stream theyparted with their silent conductor, whose sallow, sombrefeatures never relaxed even when he glanced at the heavyyellow disks that were pressed into his palm. Theysplashed through a ford, their feet tucked up cantlewards,. TaSEB I>AXS LATER THKY AVEHE3 THOTTIIfG BKISItLV ALOXG AX OLDplank: ROAD THE SENTEYS POTION 233 the waters foaming about their mettlesome chargersbreasts. Emerging, they turned to their left along theright bank of the stream, finally coming again into thickwoods, the sun wearing round to the off side as they rodeand finally streaming squarely over the right shoulderwhen they unsaddled for their needed rest. Now Chalm-ers seemed on more familiar ground. Occasionally theypassed some charcoal furnace or mud-chinked cabin, wherelank, bearded men asked eagerly for news and got it,—always the same: General Beauregards army was press-ing close on the Yankee lines in front of reinforcements were reaching him every day. Anyhour now he might burst through and then his guns wouldbring the capitol and treasury building tumbling about theears of the defenders, unless, indeed, these latter, seeingtheir hopeless plight, were forced to
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookidknightofcolu, bookyear1904
