Frank on the Lower Mississippi

  CHAPTER XII.

  A Scouting Party.

  Frank, of course, could not agree to the scout's proposition withoutfirst obtaining permission of either the admiral or Captain Wilson--thecommander of the division to which the Boxer belonged. He did not knowwhere to go to find the former, and besides, the latter had given himstrict orders not to leave his station until relieved by some othervessel, and to allow no one to go ashore. The very nature of theseorders put it out of his power to obtain liberty to carry out theproposed expedition. He went to bed pondering upon what the major hadtold him, and fell asleep without being able to conjure up any plan bywhich the capture of the rebel might be effected.

  The next morning, while at breakfast, the orderly entered the cabin andreported a gun-boat approaching. Frank at once went on deck, and when hehad made out her signals, he found, to his delight, that it was theManhattan, the flagship of the division to which the Boxer belonged.After ordering the officer of the deck to have the gig called away,Frank ran into the cabin, put on his side-arms, and, in company with themajor, put off to the iron-clad.

  Captain Wilson received them cordially, listened with a good deal ofinterest to the scout's plan for the capture of the guerrilla, andfinally gave Frank permission to "do as he pleased in the matter,"adding, "You have never yet failed in an undertaking of this kind, and Ishall fully expect you to succeed in the present instance. I will behere again in about a week, and you can turn the prisoner over to me."The confident manner in which the captain spoke of his success, madeFrank more determined than ever to capture the guerrilla, if within thebounds of possibility. After giving a short report of the state ofaffairs on his station, he returned to the Boxer, highly delighted withthe result of the interview. Archie was no less pleased, for, althoughhe had not said a word about accompanying his cousin, he looked upon itas a settled thing that he was to be one of the expedition. Frank, whoknew the danger of the undertaking, and was anxious to keep Archie outof harm's way, would have preferred to leave him behind; but, as thelatter had shown, in a remarkable manner, that he was equal to anyemergency, the young commander could not deny him on the ground that hehad never "smelt powder."

  The major advised Frank to take at least one more man; and this one wassoon forthcoming in the shape of Tom, the coxswain of the first cutter,the same who had been left in charge of the boat on the night that Frankand Archie had broken up the head-quarters of the "Louisiana Wildcats."He was at once summoned into the cabin, and after the object of theproposed expedition had been explained to him, Frank inquired: "Now,Tom, do you want to go with us?" "Douse my to'-gallant top-lights! yessir," he replied, eagerly. "But, Cap'n Nelson, I wouldn't like to beleft behind, sir, when it comes to the dangerous part of the business,like I was on the night when the paymaster burned that house. I want togo with you to the end, sir, an' if I ever show the white feather, thenmay I be keelhauled!"

  Frank assured him that he would be allowed to accompany them whereverthey went, and the coxswain departed satisfied.

  When night came, the gig was called away, and Frank, accompanied by themajor, Archie, and the coxswain, was set on shore. When the boat hadreturned to the vessel, which was now in command of the executiveofficer, the major led his companions through the woods toward the placewhere the horses were to be obtained. They traveled in silence,following the motions of their guide, who walked along as if he wellunderstood what he was about. The expedition certainly promised betterthan any in which Frank had before engaged. It was led by a manaccustomed to scenes of danger, and was altogether composed of thosewhose courage and determination had, more than once, been thoroughlytested. They were all well armed, and, in addition to a brace ofrevolvers, the coxswain carried a heavy saber; for, as he remarked, hemight be called upon to "repel boarders," and he wanted some weapon thathe knew how to use.

  After three or four hours' walk through the woods they came to a fence,where the major paused. Before them was a wide field, in which stood aplantation-house. Bright lights gleamed in the windows, and the majorturned to his companions and said:

  "There are more people in the house than there were last night."

  They all listened intently, and could hear an indistinct murmur ofvoices, and now and then the tramping of horses in the road that ran infront of the house.

  "There are some rebel soldiers in there," continued the major, "and wecan now get our horses without any difficulty, already saddled andbridled."

  As he spoke, he led the way along the fence toward the road, and theypresently came in sight of half a dozen horses which were tied in frontof the house. No orders were necessary, for each one knew what wasrequired of him. In a few moments they had quietly secured their horses,and were riding noiselessly down the road. As soon as they were out ofsight of the house, they began to make an examination of their prizes,and found that the rebels, who, no doubt, had little dreamed that anyone would disturb them there, had left their sabers attached to theirsaddles, and their pistols in their holsters. Frank and Archie alsofound themselves possessed, the former of a fine double-barrel shot-gun,loaded with buck-shot, and the latter of a heavy carbine; and theammunition for each of these weapons had been left on the saddles. Thehorses were splendid animals, evidently the fruits of a raid upon somewell-stocked barn-yard, for they appeared fresh and vigorous, and hadundoubtedly been accustomed to the best of care. As soon as they wereout of hearing of the people in the house, they put their horses into agallop, and as the road was excellent, they made rapid headway. For hourafter hour they kept on, stopping only now and then to water theirhorses. Just before daylight the major, who had scarcely spoken duringthe whole ride, suddenly came to a halt. As his companions gatheredabout him, he said, almost in a whisper: "Now, boys, we are at ourjourney's end. There's the house!" and as he spoke, he pointed to alarge building just ahead of them. "My advice, captain," he continued,turning to Frank, "would be to ride carefully up in front of the house,hitch our horses--for of course, we must not lose them--and then burstopen the door and gobble up the guerrilla before he has time to get outof bed."

  This plan was adopted. Riding noiselessly up to the gate, theydismounted, and after tying their horses, they drew their sabers (as itwas their intention to rely entirely upon the _sight_ of theseweapons to bring the guerrilla to terms). Then they entered the yard,and ascended the steps that led on to a wide portico. Here the major,who was in advance, paused a moment, to see that his companions wereclose behind him, and then, placing his shoulder against the door, withone strong push, forced it open. They all sprang into the house, Frankand Archie being close beside the major, and found themselves, to theirutter astonishment, in the presence of a dozen guerrillas, who startedfrom their blankets in alarm. So great was their surprise, that bothparties for an instant stood gazing at each other, as if suddenlydeprived of the power of action.

  "Sink my tarry wig, Cap'n Nelson, but here's a scrape for honest men tobe in!" exclaimed the coxswain, who had kept as close to his officer aspossible. "Here _is_ a scrape!"

  Their position was not an enviable one. There they were, forty milesfrom their vessel, almost in the heart of an enemy's country, andconfronted by three times their number of armed rebels, who, no doubt,could be speedily reinforced. It was too late to retreat, even had theyfelt disposed to do so. But the idea never once entered their heads. Sointent were they upon the capture of the guerrilla chief, that theythought of nothing else, and they were perfectly well aware that theonly way to get out of the house was to fight their way through theirenemies.

  The period of inaction lasted only for an instant; then a few of therebels, springing to their feet, retreated precipitately through theback door; but the others, recovering from their surprise, andcomprehending the nature of the attack, bravely stood their ground, andone tall fellow sprang forward and struck savagely at the major with hissword. But the scout was on the alert, receiving the blow upon his ownsaber, and before the rebel had time to renew his attack, a shot from arevolver stretched him lifeless on th
e floor.

  This opened the fight. The example of the rebel was quickly followed byhis comrades, who, depending wholly upon their sabers, rushed upon theofficers with the utmost fury. But they were bravely met. The latterstubbornly held their ground, and parrying the blows directed at them,used their revolvers with deadly effect. At this moment a door at thefurther end of the hall suddenly opened, and a man sprang out, carryinga short, heavy sword.

  "Give it to 'em, lads!" he shouted, hurrying forward to join in thefight. "Give it to 'em. No quarter to the Yankees!"

  This was the guerrilla chief, and the order he had just given told Frankand his companions, in plain language, that if overpowered, no mercywould be shown them.

  The rebels, encouraged by the voice of their leader, redoubled the furyof their attacks, and the officers were driven to the wall. Thecoxswain, on entering, had closed the door to prevent the escape of theguerrilla, and thus their retreat was cut off; but they had theadvantage of position, for the rebels, unable to get behind them, mustmake their attacks in front. Already had their ranks been thinned by thefire of the revolvers, but those who had at first retreated now began toreturn and take the places of those who had been shot down. At lastFrank's revolver was empty. He had another in his pocket, but could notget an opportunity to draw it. He must now depend upon his saber.Grasping it with both hands, he bravely met the attack of the leader ofthe guerrillas, who had succeeded in working his way in front of him.The latter's heavy sword descended with terrible force. Frank's guardwas broken down, and he was sent reeling to the floor. The rebel againraised his sword, and, as Frank was entirely unarmed, he gave himself upfor lost. One thought of home, of his mother and sister, flashed throughhis mind, and then he saw the bright blade swiftly descending. It wasmet, however, by the coxswain, who seeing the danger of his officer,interposed his own sword, and turned the rebel's weapon aside. Frank wason his feet again in an instant, and seeing a musket, with a bayonetattached, standing in the corner, he seized it with a shout of joy. Ifthere was any thing he thoroughly understood, it was thebayonet-exercise. He remembered that the knowledge of it had once savedhis life, and he had never let an opportunity to perfect himself in itpass unimproved. He now felt safe; and seeing the coxswain graduallyretreating before the furious attacks of the guerrilla chief, he sprangforward, and with one blow sent the sword flying from his hand and borehim to the floor. This move was seconded by Archie, who sprang to hiscousin's side with a revolver in each hand, firing right and left amongthe rebels, who, dismayed at the fall of their leader, began to retreat.But so closely were they followed, that escape was impossible. Thechief, after trying in vain to regain his feet, and seeing the bayonetpointed straight at his breast, shouted most lustily for quarter.

  "Surrender!" shouted the major. "Throw down your arms!"

  The rebels having lost more than half of their number, and knowing thedeadly effects of the revolvers which were aimed at their heads, gladlycomplied, and the fight was at an end.

  Although Frank and his companions had heard the order, "No quarter tothe Yankees!" the thought of taking vengeance upon those who, had theybeen the victors, would have shown no mercy, never once entered theirheads--they were more humane.

  With the surrender of the rebels the object of the expedition had beenaccomplished--the guerrilla chief was their prisoner!