CHAPTER V. THE SUSPICIOUS TORY.
At dawn on the following morning one thing was clear to every occupantof the old hut: The water was rising so rapidly that they would soon becompelled to vacate the building. Therefore, after breakfast, theylooked about for a place in which to build a new shanty. Afterconsiderable discussion it was decided to put the structure on theheights across the creek.
There were two reasons for such decision. If the cabin was built there,it would be above the reach of the rising waters; and a small party atthat point might protect the dam in case the British sent down a forceto destroy it.
"It may be that Captain Howell will ask General Burgoyne to let him leada company down here for the double purpose of rescuing me and preventingthe building of a dam," Ira said laughingly. "If so, we better beprepared for it. With the river between you and them, five on the hillcould drive off any force he is likely to bring with him."
"There are seven of us," Late said quickly.
"True," the lad admitted, "but there will soon be only five. When youhave moved the stuff, I shall set off for the encampment, taking Danwith me as far as the swamp-road, for I count on sending him to FortEdward with a report."
An hour later the site for the new shelter had been selected, and thegoods carried over. Then Ira and Dan embarked in one of the canoes, andpaddled off up the swelling stream. The water had risen so high that thevoyagers were able to push the light craft through the forest to a placewhere young Cushing could step directly out upon the highway. As he didso, he gazed over the increasing waters and said:
"Give us another twenty-four hours, Ira, an' this road will be covered."
"It looks so," the latter replied, "and I think, by picking my way, Ican push up the swamp to the north side."
"You surely can by goin' back to the creek, an' runnin' on that till itturns to the west. Hide your boat somewhere up that way, an' you cancome down to us any time you've a mind."
"Very-well," Ira answered; "but now for the message to General Schuyler.Here is a rough drawing of the road, the swamp, and the dam. I havewritten no description, and it will mean nothing to any one but you. Doyou understand it."
"It's clear as a bell," the lad admitted a moment later.
"Then you can explain it to the general. Tell him why we built the dam,and what we hope to accomplish by it. Give us two days more, and I seeno way for the red-coats to pass the swamp while the dam holds."
"That's 'bout the size of it," Dan replied grimly, "an' no one will seeit quicker than the general. 'Twas a lucky minute when it popped intoyour head, Ira," and with this compliment he swung down the roadstowards the fort.
Ira watched until he was out of sight, and then paddled leisurely backto the creek. Up this he went to its westward bend, and, leaving it,glided through the woods as long as he found any depth of water. Then,picking up the light craft, he carried it to a point where the land roseinto something like a hill.
"The water can't rise much farther than this," he thought, glancing backover the route he had followed.
Concealing his burden among the bushes, he strode on towards the camp,arriving there a little before noon, and going directly to the tent ofthe commander.
"Master Le Geyt!" exclaimed that officer as he saw his visitor, "I haddecided you were in the rebels' hands."
"Hasn't Captain Howell come back?" the young scout asked, eager to learnall he might about that officer before telling the story of hisprolonged absence.
"Yes," the general replied; "but he can explain nothing."
"How is that?"
"Last night he crawled over the barricade on which his corps was atwork, and fell unconscious among the men. They brought him into camp andcalled the surgeon. He examined him, finding one leg broken. Evidentlyhe had crawled many miles in that condition, and was nearly exhausted.When did you part with him?"
"Has he not been able to tell you any thing?" asked the lad, giving noheed to General Burgoyne's question.
"He has been in a delirium ever since, and we can get nothing from himsave fragments of a story. He has spoken of the Yankees, your capture,and his fall. We could only suppose that you two had run against some ofthe rebels during the tramp; that you had been captured, he got away,and was injured during his flight. We shall have to depend on yourreport to straighten matters out."
"There is not much to tell," the lad replied. "We stopped in anabandoned hut for the night, and were awakened by the sound of voices.He jumped from the cabin window and got away; but half a dozen rebelsentered the building before I could escape. I stayed there until thismorning, when they let me go, deciding, perhaps, that I was not worthkeeping."
"You were fortunate indeed. I presume, then, you discovered no roadaround the rebel barricades?"
"No," Ira replied. "They increase rather than diminish in number, andbelow here a few miles is a huge swamp, which, for some reason, isflooding rapidly. By the time we arrive there I believe it will bewell-nigh impassable."
"What a way in which to fight!" exclaimed the officer in disgust. "Ifthey would only come out in the open and give me a chance I would soonscatter them like chaff before the wind. But here they are blocking theway, exhausting my stores, forcing me to change all my plans ofcampaign; it is enough to make a saint angry!" and by this time he hadworked himself into such a rage that the hearer was glad, on the plea ofbeing tired, to retire to his own quarters.
When he next saw the general the latter was in a better mood. He hadsent for the scout, and when Ira entered the tent he found there a youngfellow, scarcely older than himself, to whom the officer at onceintroduced him.
"Master Le Geyt," he said, "this is Master Bowen, a courier likeyourself, which is a bond that ought to make you fast friends. He hascome from Quebec bringing me good news. In a short time Colonel St.Leger is to leave that city for Oswego. From there he will march againstFort Stanwix,[4] and, capturing that, sweep down the valley of theMohawk, driving the rebels before him, until he joins me at Albany. Nowhow large a force remains at Fort Stanwix?"
Startled as Ira was by these tidings, he nevertheless replied calmly:
"The last I knew, General Burgoyne, there were two hundred men in thefort. Of course I can't tell you whether any reinforcements have beensent there within a week or two."
It was the number that caught the general's ear.
"Do you hear that, Master Bowen?" he cried. "Only two hundred men there,and how large a force did you say St. Leger has?"
"Seven hundred regulars, and one thousand Indians," the courieranswered.
"Seventeen hundred in all!" the officer announced with exultation. "Weshall hear great things from him I do not doubt, and the rebels, beingcaught between our two forces, must be crushed to powder. Ha! ha!" andhe laughed loudly.
For some time he discussed the matter with his young visitors, and thendismissed them. Ira took Master Bowen, as a matter of courtesy, to hisown tent, where he bade him make himself at home.
"I shall have to come and go on my regular duties," he explained; "butyou are welcome to all I have so long as you remain with us."
"It will be but a few hours," the courier replied. "The authorities inQuebec are eager to know what progress our army is making, and as soonas the general can prepare his report I shall start on my return. I hopeit may be some time to-night. I can then reach the lake, where I have asailboat, in time for the morning breeze."
For reasons of his own Ira stuck close to his new friend during the restof the day, and when the hour came for the latter to depart, askedpermission of the general to accompany him a mile or two on his way.
"Certainly," that officer replied. "I said you would be fast friends,and the fact that you are loath to part with him proves it. Go as far asthe lake, if you wish."
"Thank you," the lad replied, and he and the courier left the linestogether.
When they had traveled no more than two miles on the trail Ira bade hisacquaintance good-bye, a
nd turned back towards the camp. He did notenter it, however. Passing to the eastward, he hurried through the hillsto the place where he had left his canoe the day previous. Carrying theboat to the waters, which had risen many inches since he was there, heembarked and pulled with feverish haste down to the dam. Landing, heclimbed up to the new Shelter and, arousing the inmates, astonished themby his sudden appearance and startling news.
"Quick, Late and Joe," he began. "You must go down to the fort at once.I am sending both, for it may be that General Schuyler will want you togo on to Fort Stanwix. Tell him that a Colonel St. Leger with sevenhundred regular troops and one thousand Indians will land at Oswegoabout August first. His purpose is to capture the fort, and then tosweep down the Mohawk valley to Albany, where he hopes to join forceswith Burgoyne. As I have said, if he wants you to go to the fort withthe tidings, do so. I can get along for a while with one helper. Shouldyou meet Dan on his way back, let him return to the fort with you, learnthe general's plans, and bring me word. I must know what is going onentirely along our lines, if I am to do my work here intelligently. TellDan I will be here the second night from this to hear his report."
While the messengers were preparing for their journey, he turned to thethree men who, after helping build the dam, had remained to help guardit, saying:
"Captain Howell got back to the camp, but with a broken leg and in ahigh fever. His condition is such that he is not likely to take anyinterest in military affairs for several days. Therefore the Britishofficers know nothing about the dam, and it is safe. You may go back toyour homes, if you so please."
Ira waited until the five continentals had disappeared down the southridge. Then he closed the cabin, went back to his canoe, and began hisreturn to the encampment.
Entering the enclosure from the same direction he had departed a fewhours previous, his absence created no suspicion, and soon aftermidnight he was sleeping soundly in his own bed.
During the following day the engineers succeeded in removing theobstructions from the narrow pass, and the entire army advanced amongthe hills to the margin of the swamp. Here they were again stopped, notonly by great barricades, but by a flood over the road-bed to the depthof at least three feet deep. The uncertain footing either side the way,the many turns in the road-bed, the numerous barricades, and the depthof the water, all forced the impatient commander to halt, while he sentforth men in every direction to learn, if possible, the cause of theflood.
It created no surprise when Ira joined that company which went to thenorth end of the great swamp, and when they, wearied by a long tramp andfruitless search, turned to retrace their steps, no one noted that helagged behind.
When night fell he was far enough in the rear to make his way to thehidden canoe and paddle off among the trees towards the creek. Once inthis watercourse, he made rapid progress, and soon was in the cabinlistening to Dan's tale.
"First," he said, "I'll tell you 'bout my own trip. After leavin' you Istruck out pretty smart for the fort. Reachin' it, I found the generalaway, so had to wait till the next mornin' 'fore I could see him. Heunderstood your plan at once, an' was mighty tickled with it. He told meto say that in two weeks we could let the water off, an' 'low thered-coats to come on as fast as they might. He'd be ready for them."
"What are they doing?" Ira asked eagerly. "Are they strengthening thefort?"
"No," was the answer. "The general has chosen Bemis Heights, 'cross theHudson, as the place to get in his work, and Kosciusko, that Polishofficer, is plannin' the fortifications. It's there our troops willfight it out with Burgoyne."
"General Schuyler counts on abandoning Fort Edward, then?" Ira remarkedmusingly.
"Yes, when the British get near enough to chase him. He'll keep just outof their way till he's enticed them 'cross the river. Then he'll wallop'em."
"What forces has he now?" was the next query.
"His own, an' General St. Clair's," Dan replied, keeping tally on hisfingers. "Then there's General Benjamin Lincoln with the New Englandtroops, General Nicholas Herkimer an' eight hundred militia, ColonelDaniel Morgan with his rifle corps, and Colonel Benedict Arnold withtwelve hundred regulars, more than ten thousand men in all. We'll whipthe red-coats yet, Ira."
"I hope so," was the hearty rejoinder. "Now tell me what has been doneabout Fort Stanwix."
"I was on my way back," the lad explained, "when I met the boys an' wentto the fort with them. The general was quite stirred up by the news;but, noddin' to me, said, 'Tell Ira there's time to get plenty ofreinforcements up there.' Then, turnin' to Late and Joe, he went on,'I'll have General Herkimer an' his troops on the way to-morrow, an'Colonel Arnold with his regulars shall follow.' He looked at me agin,an' asked, 'Did you take that in, Dan?' An' when I said, 'Yes, sir,' hecontinued, 'Put that in your report to Ira, too, an' give him my love,'all of which I've done accordin' to orders."
"Exactly, Dan. No one could have done it better," his companion repliedalmost gleefully. "But I must be off, or we'll have a troop ofBritishers looking me up. I'll drop in on you as often as possible."
"Don't worry 'bout me," was the reply. "I can stay here a week alone, ifit means in the end some good work for the Cause."
Before arriving at the British encampment the young scout met half adozen soldiers who were looking for him. The explanation that he had butjust got out of the swamp was deemed sufficient to account for hisdelay, and the entire party went back together.
Two weeks later a heavy thunder-storm raged. The rain literally fell intorrents for hours. The first effect was to swell the flood in theswamp; but on the following day it subsided with great rapidity. In asingle day the road-bed could be seen above the water, and GeneralBurgoyne, with much delight, ordered his corps of engineers to begin thework of clearing away the obstructions.
Ira at once surmised that the dam was gone, and that night received thefull particulars from Dan.
"First the rain swelled the creek," he said, "an' poured over the damwith a noise like thunder. Then trees, uprooted by the wind, came down,and went agin the timbers with a deafenin' crash. They piled up for awhile, and then, all at once, the strain became too great. The dam gaveway, an' water, trees an' timbers went down the gorge together. I tookthe liberty to scurry off to the fort as soon as it happened, an' toldthe general. He said 'twas all right. Let the army come 'long as fast asthey could, he was ready for them."
"It will be some days before they reach there," Ira said, curtly.
In this he was correct. It was more than a week before the British armyreached Fort Edward, and then they found it, as they had the fort atTiconderoga, abandoned. General Schuyler, with all his forces, stores,and guns, had crossed the Hudson to Bemis Heights.
On the river bank that night Dan and Ira had a brief interview.
"We are here at last," Ira began.
"Yes, but it took you twenty-four days to come twenty-six miles," theother retorted drily. "I reckon it is the most remarkable journey onrecord."
A few days after General Burgoyne had established his head-quarters inthe abandoned fort, he sent for his young scout.
"Here is some one you will be glad to meet, Master Le Geyt," was hisgreeting. "A relative of yours, I believe."
Ira's face blanched as he turned to meet a man he had never seen before.At a loss for words, he could only gaze at the fellow, a tall, gaunt manof sixty years or more, who promptly asked:
"Be you Ira Le Geyt?"
"Yes."
"Son of Hiram Le Geyt over on the Mohawk?"
"Yes."
For a moment the questioner gazed at him from head to foot, and thenblurted out:
"You don't look like him!"