IV.
It is perhaps a singular thing that this absence of the three men fromthe feed box at the time of the sharp lieutenant's investigation shouldterrify the girl more than it should joy her. That for which she hadprayed had come to pass. Apparently the escape of these men in the faceof every improbability had been granted her, but her dominating emotionwas fright. The feed box was a mystic and terrible machine, like somedark magician's trap. She felt it almost possible that she should seethe three weird men floating spectrally away through the air. Sheglanced with swift apprehension behind her, and when the dazzle from thelantern's light had left her eyes, saw only the dim hillside stretchedin solemn silence.
The interior of the barn possessed for her another fascination becauseit was now uncanny. It contained that extraordinary feed box. When shepeeped again at the knothole, the calm, gray prisoner was seated uponthe feed box, thumping it with his dangling, careless heels as if itwere in nowise his conception of a remarkable feed-box. The sentry alsostood facing it. His carbine he held in the hollow of his arm. His legswere spread apart, and he mused. From without came the low mumble of thethree other troopers. The sharp lieutenant had vanished.
The trembling yellow light of the lantern caused the figures of the mento cast monstrous wavering shadows. There were spaces of gloom whichshrouded ordinary things in impressive garb. The roof presented aninscrutable blackness, save where small rifts in the shingles glowedphosphorescently. Frequently old Santo put down a thunderous hoof. Theheels of the prisoner made a sound like the booming of a wild kind ofdrum. When the men moved their heads, their eyes shone with ghoulishwhiteness, and their complexions were always waxen and unreal. And therewas that profoundly strange feed box, imperturbable with its burden offantastic mystery.
Suddenly from down near her feet the girl heard a crunching sound, asort of a nibbling, as if some silent and very discreet terrier was atwork upon the turf. She faltered back; here was no doubt anothergrotesque detail of this most unnatural episode. She did not run,because physically she was in the power of these events. Her feetchained her to the ground in submission to this march of terror afterterror. As she stared at the spot from which this sound seemed to come,there floated through her mind a vague, sweet vision--a vision of hersafe little room, in which at this hour she usually was sleeping.
The scratching continued faintly and with frequent pauses, as if theterrier was then listening. When the girl first removed her eyes fromthe knothole the scene appeared of one velvet blackness; then graduallyobjects loomed with a dim lustre. She could see now where the tops ofthe trees joined the sky and the form of the barn was before her dyed inheavy purple. She was ever about to shriek, but no sound came from herconstricted throat. She gazed at the ground with the expression ofcountenance of one who watches the sinister-moving grass where a serpentapproaches.
Dimly she saw a piece of sod wrenched free and drawn under the greatfoundation beam of the barn. Once she imagined that she saw human hands,not outlined at all, but sufficient in colour, form, or movement to makesubtle suggestion.
Then suddenly a thought that illuminated the entire situation flashed inher mind like a light. The three men, late of the feed box, were beneaththe floor of the barn and were now scraping their way under this beam.She did not consider for a moment how they could come there. They weremarvellous creatures. The supernatural was to be expected of them. Sheno longer trembled, for she was possessed upon this instant of the mostunchangeable species of conviction. The evidence before her amounted tono evidence at all, but nevertheless her opinion grew in an instant froman irresponsible acorn to a rooted and immovable tree. It was as if shewas on a jury.
She stooped down hastily and scanned the ground. There she indeed saw apair of hands hauling at the dirt where the sod had been displaced.Softly, in a whisper like a breath, she said, "Hey!"
The dim hands were drawn hastily under the barn. The girl reflected fora moment. Then she stooped and whispered: "Hey! It's me!"
After a time there was a resumption of the digging. The ghostly handsbegan once more their cautious mining. She waited. In hollowreverberations from the interior of the barn came the frequent sounds ofold Santo's lazy movements. The sentry conversed with the prisoner.
At last the girl saw a head thrust slowly from under the beam. Sheperceived the face of one of the miraculous soldiers from the feed box.A pair of eyes glintered and wavered, then finally settled upon her, apale statue of a girl. The eyes became lit with a kind of humorousgreeting. An arm gestured at her.
Stooping, she breathed, "All right." The man drew himself silently backunder the beam. A moment later the pair of hands resumed their cautioustask. Ultimately the head and arms of the man were thrust strangely fromthe earth. He was lying on his back. The girl thought of the dirt in hishair. Wriggling slowly and pushing at the beam above him he forced hisway out of the curious little passage. He twisted his body and raisedhimself upon his hands. He grinned at the girl and drew his feetcarefully from under the beam. When he at last stood erect beside her,he at once began mechanically to brush the dirt from his clothes withhis hands. In the barn the sentry and his prisoner were evidentlyengaged in an argument.
The girl and the first miraculous soldier signalled warily. It seemedthat they feared that their arms would make noises in passing throughthe air. Their lips moved, conveying dim meanings.
In this sign language the girl described the situation in the barn. Withguarded motions, she told him of the importance of absolute stillness.He nodded, and then in the same manner he told her of his two companionsunder the barn floor. He informed her again of their wounded state, andwagged his head to express his despair. He contorted his face, to tellhow sore were their arms; and jabbed the air mournfully, to expresstheir remote geographical position.
This signalling was interrupted by the sound of a body being dragged ordragging itself with slow, swishing sound under the barn. The sound wastoo loud for safety. They rushed to the hole and began to semaphoreuntil a shaggy head appeared with rolling eyes and quick grin.
With frantic downward motions of their arms they suppressed this grinand with it the swishing noise. In dramatic pantomime they informed thishead of the terrible consequences of so much noise. The head nodded, andpainfully but with extreme care the second man pushed and pulled himselffrom the hole.
In a faint whisper the first man said, "Where's Sim?"
The second man made low reply. "He's right here." He motionedreassuringly toward the hole.
When the third head appeared, a soft smile of glee came upon each face,and the mute group exchanged expressive glances.
When they all stood together, free from this tragic barn, they breatheda long sigh that was contemporaneous with another smile and anotherexchange of glances.
One of the men tiptoed to a knothole and peered into the barn. Thesentry was at that moment speaking. "Yes, we know 'em all. There isn't ahouse in this region that we don't know who is in it most of the time.We collar 'em once in a while--like we did you. Now, that house outyonder, we----"
The man suddenly left the knothole and returned to the others. Upon hisface, dimly discerned, there was an indication that he had made anastonishing discovery. The others questioned him with their eyes, but hesimply waved an arm to express his inability to speak at that spot. Heled them back toward the hill, prowling carefully. At a safe distancefrom the barn he halted and as they grouped eagerly about him, heexploded in an intense undertone: "Why, that--that's Cap'n Sawyer theygot in yonder."
"Cap'n Sawyer!" incredulously whispered the other men.
But the girl had something to ask. "How did you get out of that feedbox?" He smiled. "Well, when you put us in there, we was just in aminute when we allowed it wasn't a mighty safe place, and we allowedwe'd get out. And we did. We skedaddled 'round and 'round until it'peared like we was going to get cotched, and then we flung ourselvesdown in the cow stalls where it's low-like--just dirt floor--and then wejust naturally went a-whooping under the barn
floor when the Yanks come.And we didn't know Cap'n Sawyer by his voice nohow. We heard 'imdiscoursing, and we allowed it was a mighty pert man, but we didn't knowthat it was him. No, m'm."
These three men, so recently from a situation of peril, seemed suddenlyto have dropped all thought of it. They stood with sad faces looking atthe barn. They seemed to be making no plans at all to reach a place ofmore complete safety. They were halted and stupefied by some unknowncalamity.
"How do you raikon they cotch him, Sim?" one whispered mournfully.
"I don't know," replied another, in the same tone.
Another with a low snarl expressed in two words his opinion of themethods of Fate: "Oh, hell!"
The three men started then as if simultaneously stung and gazed at theyoung girl who stood silently near them. The man who had sworn began tomake agitated apology: "Pardon, miss! 'Pon my soul I clean forgot youwas by. 'Deed, and I wouldn't swear like that if I had knowed. 'Deed, Iwouldn't."
The girl did not seem to hear him. She was staring at the barn. Suddenlyshe turned and whispered, "Who is he?"
"He's Cap'n Sawyer, m'm," they told her sorrowfully. "He's our owncap'n. He's been in command of us yere since a long time. He's got folksabout yere. Raikon they cotch him while he was a-visiting."
She was still for a time and then, awed, she said, "Will they--will theyhang him?"
"No, m'm. Oh, no, m'm. Don't raikon no such thing. No, m'm."
The group became absorbed in a contemplation of the barn. For a time noone moved nor spoke. At last the girl was aroused by slight sounds, andturning, she perceived that the three men who had so recently escapedfrom the barn were now advancing toward it.