CHAPTER XXVII
NEWS OF IMPORTANCE
When General Prideaux left Oswego for Fort Niagara he was well awarethat the French would more than likely make an attack on the new fortColonel Haldimand was building, consequently, he cautioned that officerto be on his guard at all hours of the day and night.
But Haldimand needed no word of warning. His military training was of ahigh order, and the very first thing he did before setting his men towork to cut logs for the new fort was to have them arrange the porkbarrels, containing a large portion of their food, in a circle, andoutside of this lay a dense mass of brushwood in such a fashion that toclimb over or through it would be no easy task.
This "pork fort" as it was called later on, caused many a laugh, yet itproved no mean defense, as we shall soon see. Behind the barrelsHaldimand planted such cannon as Prideaux had left him; and then went towork to build the fort proper without loss of time.
The French came over the lake with as much secrecy as possible. In thedarkness they landed behind some brushwood and tall timber and took upwhat they thought was a position of advantage.
The battle began the next day, while the English were hard at workchopping down trees and cutting them up into proper sizes for the newfort. A scout gave the alarm and this was immediately followed byseveral shots from the French and the blood-curdling war-cry of thehostile Indians.
Realizing at once that the enemy had tried to steal a march on him,Haldimand ordered his command to stop work and make for the "pork fort."Dropping their axes, the soldiers and pioneers seized their guns and ranfor the shelter of barrels and brushwood. Several were wounded, oneseriously, and seeing this, the command was given to fire in return, andsomething of a pitched battle occurred. But the Frenchmen between theEnglish and the improvised fort were easily scattered, and thenHaldimand brought up his troops inside the barrel barricade and mannedhis guns with such vigor that all of the enemy lost no time in seekingthe shelter of the forest so close at hand.
It was this first encounter which reached the ears of Henry and hisfriends. By the time they were on shore the firing had ceased and uttersilence prevailed as they crept slowly forward in the direction ofHaldimand's command.
"Do you think it possible that the French have withdrawn?" asked Henry,presently, as Barringford put up his hand as a signal to halt.
"I think they are up to some trick," was the low answer. "Hist! downwith ye!"
Barringford had seen a tall French soldier moving toward them. Thefellow was a sharpshooter and carried his rifle ready for immediate use.
The soldier was coming directly toward them and in a moment more Henryfelt they would be discovered. Then, without warning, Barringford leapedforward like a lightning flash, caught the soldier by the throat, andbore him to the ground.
Before Henry could recover from his bewilderment it was all over, andthe soldier lay flat on his back, for in going over his head had struckon a sharp rock, rendering him unconscious. Barringford took the man'sgun and his ammunition box and handed them to the youth. "Now you'rearmed as good as any o' us," he whispered. "It's lucky I cotched himjest right, otherwise we might have had to do some powerful rasselin',eh? Come."
Once again they moved forward, until they felt the barricade of porkbarrels could not be more than a hundred yards distant. Then a freshfiring broke out on their left, and soon fifty or more French soldiershove into sight as they were making a detour from one side ofHaldimand's defense to the other.
"Come, we must get out of here!" shouted Barringford, and as the enemycame closer, he fired at the leading soldier. Henry and Gangley alsoemptied their pieces and three of the enemy went down, all badlywounded.
Running with all possible swiftness, our friends soon reached a pointwhere they could see some of the pork barrels. Barringford held up hishands and was recognized.
"Come in!" was the cry. "Don't stay out there!" And then the three wentforward again. But the French had also noticed them and half a score ofrifles were turned in that direction. Henry felt a bullet singunpleasantly close to his head and then saw Barringford, who was closebeside him, stagger and go down in a heap.
"Oh, Sam!" he cried, in deep horror, "are you hit?"
There was no reply to this, and Henry saw the blood beginning to showitself around the old hunter's neck. In desperation he caught upBarringford's body and commenced to drag it to the entrance between thepork barrels. Gangley assisted him and soon they were behind thetemporary shelter with their burden.
"I hope he isn't dead?" said Henry, as he surveyed the motionless form."Isn't there a surgeon handy?"
A medical officer soon appeared, and Barringford was carried to animprovised hospital but a short distance away, and here the medical manmade a hasty examination.
"He isn't dead, but he's pretty hard hit," was the surgeon's conclusion."I'll do what I can for him. No, you can't help me. Better go to thefront and do your duty. There is no telling how strong the French are,and if they defeat us, you know what we can all expect--a dreary life ina Canadian prison--or worse."
There was no time to say more, for the shooting had now started up oncemore. It came from three sides. The enemy remained hidden behind thetrees and it was only occasionally that the English could get a shot inreturn.
"Will they make a general attack, do you think?" asked Henry, ofGangley.
"That depends on how strong they are," was the reply.
It was a fearfully hot day and those behind the improvisedfortification suffered much both from heat and thirst. It was onlyoccasionally that a French soldier or an Indian showed himself and oftenhe was picked off before he could again find shelter.
Presently, about two in the afternoon, came a fierce yelling of Indiansto the west of the fort, and the redskins could be seen moving throughthe forest, although they took care not to expose themselves too much toan attack.
"They are coming!" was the cry.
But Haldimand was not to be caught by any trick, and he divided hisforce, one half to meet the expected attack of the redmen and the othersto guard the side upon which the French were still located.
But the attack did not come off. Not over a score of redmen ran out intothe open, and when three of these were stretched lifeless by therangers, or the Royal Americans, as they were officially designated, theremainder ran back with all possible speed.
After this came another lull, and Henry ran to where Barringford hadbeen placed. He found the old frontiersman propped up against somebrushwood, over which a pair of blankets had been spread. He tried tosmile at the youth.
"Got it putty bad," said Barringford, in a low voice."In--the--neck--can't talk."
"Then don't say another word, Sam," returned Henry tenderly. "I am gladto learn it's no worse. You keep quiet. I reckon we are safe, so far;"and that was all that was said between them.
"He'll be all right in a few days," said the surgeon. "But he had anarrow escape. Had the bullet cut in half an inch deeper it would havegone through his windpipe."
Slowly the hours dragged by after this, with only an occasional shot.But now Haldimand was laying his plans for moving on the enemy. Someguns were brought into play on a certain bit of forest before the porkbarrel fort and when these were discharged the cries that followed toldthat the French had been taken by surprise.
"They are running for their boats!" was the announcement, a little whilelater. "They are on the retreat!"
A cheer went up at this announcement, and regardless of orders some ofthe rangers leaped out over the barrels and brushwood and made after theFrench, who seemed to have suddenly become panic-stricken.
It was seen that La Corne was indeed retreating. The French soldiers andthe Indians were running in all directions, and in the excitement adozen or more were sent sprawling on the shore.
"After 'em! After 'em!" was the cry. "Don't let 'em escape!" And thencame the rapid crack-cracking of guns and rifles and long pistols andthirty of the enemy were killed and wounded. La Corne was struck amongthe num
ber, but not seriously wounded.
With the rangers who left the fort was Henry, and soon he and Gangleyand four other pioneers were hurrying after a number of Indians who werefleeing up the lake shore. These were the redmen who had made Henry aprisoner and he was anxious to "square accounts" with them.
The Indians had three canoes secreted in the bushes and they wereanxious to gain possession of the craft. After a swift run of tenminutes they came in sight of the spot where the canoes were located.But now the rangers opened fire on them and two of the Indians wentdown, both wounded. The Indians returned the fire with a rifle shot andseveral arrows, but nobody was struck.
"They shan't git away so easy!" cried Gangley, and as the redmen leapedinto their canoes, he opened fire again. The others reloaded with allspeed, and a volley was delivered as the light craft shot out into thelake. One more redman was brought low and fell into the water with aloud splash, and then the canoes drew out of range with all possiblespeed.
The Indian who had fallen into the water was a stranger to Henry. He wasnot seriously wounded and not wishing to drown, came ashore, althoughevidently in terror of the whites.
"Don't shoot him!" cried Henry, as two of the others leveled their guns.
"Why not?" drawled one of the rangers. "Reckon as how he desarves it,don't he?"
"I want to question him."
In a few minutes more the Indian was a prisoner, and then the rangersturned their attention to the pair that lay wounded some distance back.One was dying, but the other suffered only from a slight wound in theleg. The dying redman was left where he had fallen and the others weretaken back to the fort.
It was not until some time later that Henry got a chance to question thecaptured Indians. One could speak fairly good English but it was onlywith difficulty that the young soldier could make him tell anythingconcerning the Indians in general and the prisoners they were holding.
But after Henry had taken the trouble to dress the wounded one's hurtand had supplied him with water and food, the redman's tongue becameloosened, and he listened to what Henry had to say with increasedinterest.
"Yes, Missapaw has seen the little girls," he said. "Two are of the samebirth, and the other is called 'Nell.'"
"And where are they now?" demanded Henry, eagerly.
"They are with some Indians and some French traders, in the west--at themighty fall of waters."
"You mean Niagara Falls?"
The Indian nodded.
"And who are the French traders?"
"Missapaw knows but one of them--a trader of the Kinotah."
"What, you don't mean Jean Bevoir?" cried the young soldier.
"Yes, that is his name."
"And they are helping the Indians to hold the little girls captive. Whatis their object?"
"To make the little girls' fathers pay well for the return of the littleones," was the answer.