CHAPTER XVIII
A Daniel come to judgment; yea, a Daniel! O wise young judge, how I do honor thee!
--_Merchant of Venice._
The Skinners followed Captain Lawton with alacrity, towards the quartersoccupied by the troop of that gentleman. The captain of dragoons had onall occasions manifested so much zeal for the cause in which he wasengaged, was so regardless of personal danger when opposed to the enemy,and his stature and stern countenance contributed so much to render himterrific, that these qualities had, in some measure, procured him areputation distinct from the corps in which he served. His intrepiditywas mistaken for ferocity; and his hasty zeal, for the natural love ofcruelty. On the other hand, a few acts of clemency, or, more properlyspeaking, of discriminating justice, had, with one portion of thecommunity, acquired for Dunwoodie the character of undue forbearance. Itis seldom that either popular condemnation or popular applause falls,exactly in the quantities earned, where it is merited.
While in the presence of the major the leader of the gang had felthimself under that restraint which vice must ever experience in thecompany of acknowledged virtue; but having left the house, he at onceconceived that he was under the protection of a congenial spirit. Therewas a gravity in the manner of Lawton that deceived most of those whodid not know him intimately; and it was a common saying in his troop,that "when the captain laughed, he was sure to punish." Drawing near hisconductor, therefore, the leader commenced a confidential dialogue.
"'Tis always well for a man to know his friends from his enemies," saidthe half-licensed freebooter.
To this prefatory observation the captain made no other reply than asound which the other interpreted into assent.
"I suppose Major Dunwoodie has the good opinion of Washington?"continued the Skinner, in a tone that rather expressed a doubt thanasked a question.
"There are some who think so."
"Many of the friends of Congress in this county," the man proceeded,"wish the horse was led by some other officer. For my part, if I couldonly be covered by a troop now and then, I could do many an importantpiece of service to the cause, to which this capture of the peddlerwould be a trifle."
"Indeed! such as what?"
"For the matter of that, it could be made as profitable to the officeras it would be to us who did it," said the Skinner, with a look of themost significant meaning.
"But how?" asked Lawton, a little impatiently, and quickening his stepto get out of the hearing of the rest of the party.
"Why, near the royal lines, even under the very guns of the heights,might be good picking if we had a force to guard us from De Lancey's[Footnote: The partisan corps called Cowboys in the parlance of thecountry, was commanded by Colonel De Lancey. This gentleman, for such hewas by birth and education, rendered himself very odious to theAmericans by his fancied cruelty, though there is no evidence of hisbeing guilty of any acts unusual in this species of warfare. Colonel DeLancey belonged to a family of the highest consequence in the Americancolonies, his uncle having died in the administration of the governmentof that of New York. He should not be confounded with other gentlemen ofhis name and family, many of whom served in the royal army. His cousin,Colonel Oliver De Lancey, was, at the time of our tale, adjutant generalof the British forces in America, having succeeded to the unfortunateAndre. The Cowboys were sometimes called Refugees, in consequence oftheir having taken refuge under the protection of the crown.] men, andto cover our retreat from being cut off by the way of King's Bridge."
"I thought the Refugees took all that game to themselves."
"They do a little at it; but they are obliged to be sparing among theirown people. I have been down twice, under an agreement with them: thefirst time they acted with honor; but the second they came upon us anddrove us off, and took the plunder to themselves."
"That was a very dishonorable act, indeed; I wonder that an honorableman will associate with such rascals."
"It is necessary to have an understanding with some of them, or we mightbe taken; but a man without honor is worse than a brute. Do you thinkMajor Dunwoodie is to be trusted?"
"You mean on honorable principles?"
"Certainly; you know Arnold was thought well of until the royal majorwas taken."
"Why, I do not believe Dunwoodie would sell his command as Arnold wishedto do; neither do I think him exactly trustworthy in a delicate businesslike this of yours."
"That's just my notion," rejoined the Skinner, with a self-approvingmanner that showed how much he was satisfied with his own estimate ofcharacter.
By this time they had arrived at a better sort of farmhouse, the veryextensive outbuildings of which were in tolerable repair, for the times.The barns were occupied by the men of the troop, while the horses werearranged under the long sheds which protected the yard from the coldnorth wind. The latter were quietly eating, with saddles on their backsand bridles thrown on their necks, ready to be bitted and mounted at theshortest warning. Lawton excused himself for a moment, and entered hisquarters. He soon returned, holding in his hand one of the common,stable lanterns, and led the way towards a large orchard that surroundedthe buildings on three sides. The gang followed the trooper in silence,believing his object to be facility of communicating further on thisinteresting topic, without the danger of being overheard.
Approaching the captain, the Skinner renewed the discourse, with a viewof establishing further confidence, and of giving his companion a morefavorable opinion of his own intellects.
"Do you think the colonies will finally get the better of the king?" heinquired, with a little of the importance of a politician.
"Get the better!" echoed the captain with impetuosity. Then checkinghimself, he continued, "No doubt they will. If the French will give usarms and money, we will drive out the royal troops in six months."
"Well, so I hope we shall soon; and then we shall have a freegovernment, and we, who fight for it, will get our reward."
"Oh!" cried Lawton, "your claims will be indisputable; while all thesevile Tories who live at home peaceably, to take care of their farms,will be held in the contempt they merit. You have no farm, I suppose?"
"Not yet--but it will go hard if I do not find one before the peace ismade."
"Right; study your own interests, and you study the interests of yourcountry; press the point of your own services, and rail at the Tories,and I'll bet my spurs against a rusty nail that you get to be a countyclerk at least."
"Don't you think Paulding's [Footnote: The author must have intendedsome allusion to an individual, which is too local to be understood bythe general reader. Andre, as is well known, was arrested by threecountrymen, who were on the lookout for predatory parties of the enemy;the principal man of this party was named Paulding. The disinterestedmanner in which they refused the offers of their captive is matter ofhistory.] party were fools in not letting the royal adjutant generalescape?" said the man, thrown off his guard by the freedom of thecaptain's manner.
"Fools!" cried Lawton, with a bitter laugh. "Aye, fools indeed; KingGeorge would have paid them better, for he is richer. He would have madethem gentlemen for their losses. But, thank God! there is a pervadingspirit in the people that seems miraculous. Men who have nothing, act asif the wealth of the Indies depended on their fidelity; all are notvillains like yourself, or we should have been slaves to Englandyears ago."
"How!" exclaimed the Skinner, starting back, and dropping his musket tothe level of the other's breast; "am I betrayed, and are you my enemy?"
"Miscreant!" shouted Lawton, his saber ringing in its steel scabbard, ashe struck the musket of the fellow from his hands, "offer but again topoint your gun at me, and I'll cleave you to the middle."
"And you will not pay us, then, Captain Lawton?" said the Skinner,trembling in every joint, for just then he saw a party of mounteddragoons silently encircling the whole party.
"Oh! pay you--yes, you shall have the full measure of your reward. Thereis
the money that Colonel Singleton sent down for the captors of thespy," throwing a bag of guineas with disdain at the other's feet. "Butground your arms, you rascals, and see that the money is truly told."
The intimidated band did as they were ordered; and while they wereeagerly employed in this pleasing avocation, a few of Lawton's menprivately knocked the flints out of their muskets.
"Well," cried the impatient captain, "is it right? Have you the promisedreward?"
"There is just the money," said the leader; "and we will now go to ourhomes, with your permission."
"Hold! so much to redeem our promise--now for justice; we pay you fortaking a spy, but we punish you for burning, robbing, and murdering.Seize them, my lads, and give each of them the law of Moses--fortysave one."
This command was given to no unwilling listeners; and in the twinklingof an eye the Skinners were stripped and fastened, by the halters of theparty, to as many of the apple trees as were necessary to furnish one toeach of the gang. Swords were quickly drawn, and fifty branches were cutfrom the trees, like magic; from these were selected a few of the mostsupple of the twigs, and a willing dragoon was soon found to wield eachof the weapons. Captain Lawton gave the word, humanely cautioning hismen not to exceed the discipline prescribed by the Mosaic law, and theuproar of Babel _"_ commenced in the orchard. The cries of the leaderwere easily to be distinguished above those of his men; a circumstancewhich might be accounted for, by Captain Lawton's reminding hiscorrector that he had to deal with an officer, and he should rememberand pay him unusual honor. The flagellation was executed with greatneatness and dispatch, and it was distinguished by no irregularity,excepting that none of the disciplinarians began to count until they hadtried their whips by a dozen or more blows, by the way, as they saidthemselves, of finding out the proper places to strike. As soon as thissummary operation was satisfactorily completed, Lawton directed his mento leave the Skinners to replace their own clothes, and to mount theirhorses; for they were a party who had been detached for the purpose ofpatrolling lower down in the county.
"You see, my friend," said the captain to the leader of the Skinners,after he had prepared himself to depart, "I can cover you to somepurpose, when necessary. If we meet often, you will be covered withscars, which, if not very honorable, will at least be merited."
The fellow made no reply. He was busy with his musket, and hastening hiscomrades to march; when, everything being ready, they proceeded sullenlytowards some rocks at no great distance, which were overhung by a deepwood. The moon was just rising, and the group of dragoons could easilybe distinguished where they had been left. Suddenly turning, the wholegang leveled their pieces and drew the triggers. The action was noticed,and the snapping of the locks was heard by the soldiers, who returnedtheir futile attempt with a laugh of derision, the captaincrying aloud,--
"Ah! rascals, I knew you, and have taken away your flints."
"You should have taken away that in my pouch, too," shouted the leader,firing his gun in the next instant. The bullet grazed the ear of Lawton,who laughed as he shook his head, saying, "A miss was as good as amile." One of the dragoons had seen the preparations of the Skinner--whohad been left alone by the rest of his gang, as soon as they had madetheir abortive attempt at revenge--and was in the act of plunging hisspurs into his horse as the fellow fired. The distance to the rocks wasbut small, yet the speed of the horse compelled the leader to abandonboth money and musket, to effect his escape. The soldier returned withhis prizes, and offered them to the acceptance of his captain; butLawton rejected them, telling the man to retain them himself, until therascal appeared in person to claim his property. It would have been abusiness of no small difficulty for any tribunal then existing in thenew states to have enforced a restitution of the money; for it wasshortly after most equitably distributed, by the hands of SergeantHollister, among a troop of horse. The patrol departed, and the captainslowly returned to his quarters, with an intention of retiring to rest.A figure moving rapidly among the trees, in the direction of the woodwhither the Skinners had retired, caught his eye, and, wheeling on hisheel, the cautious partisan approached it, and, to his astonishment, sawthe washerwoman at that hour of the night, and in such a place.
"What, Betty! Walking in your sleep, or dreaming while awake?" cried thetrooper. "Are you not afraid of meeting with the ghost of ancient Jennyin this her favorite pasture?"
"Ah, sure, Captain Jack," returned the sutler in her native accent, andreeling in a manner that made it difficult for her to raise her head,"it's not Jenny, or her ghost, that I'm saaking, but some yarbs for thewounded. And it's the vartue of the rising moon, as it jist touchesthem, that I want. They grow under yon rocks, and I must hasten, or thecharm will lose its power."
"Fool, you are fitter for your pallet than for wandering among thoserocks; a fall from one of them would break your bones; besides, theSkinners have fled to those heights, and should you fall in with them,they would revenge on you a sound flogging they have just received fromme. Better return, old woman, and finish your nap; we march inthe morning."
Betty disregarded his advice, and continued her devious route to thehillside. For an instant, as Lawton mentioned the Skinners, she hadpaused, but immediately resuming her course, she was soon out of sight,among the trees.
As the captain entered his quarters, the sentinel at the door inquiredif he had met Mrs. Flanagan, and added that she had passed there,filling the air with threats against her tormentors at the "Hotel," andinquiring for the captain in search of redress. Lawton heard the man inastonishment--appeared struck with a new idea--walked several yardstowards the orchard, and returned again; for several minutes he pacedrapidly to and fro before the door of the house, and then hastilyentering it, he threw himself on a bed in his clothes, and was soon in aprofound sleep.
In the meantime, the gang of marauders had successfully gained thesummit of the rocks, and, scattering in every direction, they buriedthemselves in the depths of the wood. Finding, however, there was nopursuit, which indeed would have been impracticable for horse, theleader ventured to call his band together with a whistle, and in a shorttime he succeeded in collecting his discomfited party, at a point wherethey had but little to apprehend from any enemy.
"Well," said one of the fellows, while a fire was lighting to protectthem against the air, which was becoming severely cold, "there is an endto our business in Westchester. The Virginia horse will make the countytoo hot to hold us."
"I'll have his blood," muttered the leader, "if I die for it the nextinstant."
"Oh, you are very valiant here, in the wood," cried the other, with asavage laugh. "Why did you, who boast so much of your aim, miss yourman, at thirty yards?"
"'Twas the horseman that disturbed me, or I would have ended thisCaptain Lawton on the spot; besides, the cold had set me a-shivering,and I had no longer a steady hand."
"Say it was fear, and you will tell no lie," said his comrade with asneer. "For my part, I think I shall never be cold again; my back burnsas if a thousand gridirons were laid on it."
"And you would tamely submit to such usage, and kiss the rod that beatyou?"
"As for kissing the rod, it would be no easy matter. Mine was brokeninto so small pieces, on my own shoulders, that it would be difficult tofind one big enough to kiss; but I would rather submit to lose half myskin, than to lose the whole of it, with my ears in the bargain. Andsuch will be our fates, if we tempt this mad Virginian again. Godwilling, I would at any time give him enough of my hide to make a pairof jack boots, to get out of his hands with the remainder. If you hadknown when you were well off, you would have stuck to Major Dunwoodie,who don't know half so much of our evil doings."
"Silence, you talking fool!" shouted the enraged leader; "your pratingis sufficient to drive a man mad. Is it not enough to be robbed andbeaten, but we must be tormented with your folly? Help to get out theprovisions, if any is left in the wallet, and try and stop your mouthwith food."
This injunction was obeyed, and the whole
party, amidst sundry groansand contortions, excited by the disordered state of their backs, madetheir arrangements for a scanty meal. A large fire of dry wood wasburning in the cleft of a rock, and at length they began to recover fromthe confusion of their flight, and to collect their scattered senses.Their hunger being appeased, and many of their garments thrown aside forthe better opportunity of dressing their wounds, the gang began to plotmeasures of revenge. An hour was spent in this manner, and variousexpedients were proposed; but as they all depended on personal prowessfor their success, and were attended by great danger, they were ofcourse rejected. There was no possibility of approaching the troops bysurprise, their vigilance being ever on the watch; and the hope ofmeeting Captain Lawton away from his men, was equally forlorn, for thetrooper was constantly engaged in his duty, and his movements were sorapid, that any opportunity of meeting with him, at all, must dependgreatly on accident. Besides, it was by no means certain that such aninterview would result happily for themselves. The cunning of thetrooper was notorious; and rough and broken as was Westchester, thefearless partisan was known to take desperate leaps, and stone wallswere but slight impediments to the charges of the Southern horse.Gradually, the conversation took another direction, until the gangdetermined on a plan which should both revenge themselves, and at thesame time offer some additional stimulus to their exertions. The wholebusiness was accurately discussed, the time fixed, and the manneradopted; in short, nothing was wanting to the previous arrangement forthis deed of villainy, when they were aroused by a voicecalling aloud,--
"This way, Captain Jack--here are the rascals 'ating by a fire--thisway, and murder the t'ieves where they sit--quick, l'ave your horsesand shoot your pistols!"
This terrific summons was enough to disturb all the philosophy of thegang. Springing on their feet, they rushed deeper into the wood, andhaving already agreed upon a place of rendezvous previously to theirintended expedition, they dispersed towards the four quarters of theheavens. Certain sounds and different voices were heard calling on eachother, but as the marauders were well trained to speed of foot, theywere soon lost in the distance.
It was not long before Betty Flanagan emerged from the darkness, andvery coolly took possession of what the Skinners had left behind them;namely, food and divers articles of dress. The washerwoman deliberatelyseated herself, and made a meal with great apparent satisfaction. For anhour, she sat with her head upon her hand, in deep musing; then shegathered together such articles of the clothes, as seemed to suit herfancy, and retired into the wood, leaving the fire to throw itsglimmering light on the adjacent rocks, until its last brand died away,and the place was abandoned to solitude and darkness.