CHAPTER IV--Warning the Settlers
Slowly the two redcoats approached. Dick looked around him, for someplace where he could conceal himself, but did not discover any. He wason the point of turning-and taking refuge in flight when the soldierssuddenly stopped while yet perhaps ten or fifteen yards from him, andstood talking earnestly.
This gave Dick an opportunity, and he at once took advantage of it. Heturned and behind the shelter of a fallen log dropped to his hands andknees. He began crawling away now as rapidly as he could and at the sametime not make any noise that would be heard by the two redcoats.
Dick was an expert in woodcraft, and he felt that he would be able toget away without being seen, if the redcoats stood there conversing fora sufficient length of time. With this hope in his mind he kept oncrawling, and when he was perhaps fifty yards away, he rose cautiouslyto his feet, keeping a tree between himself and his enemies, and lookedback to see what they were doing.
The two were just entering the edge of the forest, but were stillengaged in conversation and did not have eyes for anything about them,so Dick fortunately was not in much danger of being seen.
He hastened back to where he had left Tom and Ben, and told them what hehad heard. They were eager and excited, and said they were glad thatDick had succeeded in learning the plans of the party of British whomthey had chanced upon.
"What are we going to do?" asked Tom. "Shall one of us go back to ourencampment and bring a party of soldiers to attack the British?"
"It would be impossible to get a party of our soldiers here beforemidnight or even later," determined Dick. "It will be dark in a coupleof hours, and then the redcoats will likely go the settlement to plunderand burn the houses."
"Yes, it must be twenty miles, at least, to our encampment," admittedBen.
"Yes," continued Dick, "and so the only thing for us to do is to go tothe settlement as quickly as possible, and warn the patriots."
"That will be the best plan," acquiesced Tom. "Let's start at once,boys."
"All right. We may lose a little time looking for the settlement, so wehad better start now."
They set out, but made a detour and went around the encampment of theBritish soldiers, keeping at a distance, so as not to be seen. And whenon the other side of the camp, they walked rapidly in the direction thatthey believed would take them to the patriot settlement.
They searched around more than an hour, and finally caught sight of thehouses of the settlement, through a clearing. With exclamations ofsatisfaction, they hastened forward.
They were not long in reaching the settlement, and going to about thelargest house, one of them knocked on the door. The door was opened by aman of middle age, who eyed the youths curiously.
"How are you, sir?" said Dick, while Tom and Ben nodded a greeting. "Isthis a patriot settlement?"
The man started. "Why do you ask?" he queried.
"Because, if such is the case, we have some important information foryou."
"What is the information?" The man looked eagerly at the youths.
"There is a party of British soldiers encamped a couple of miles fromhere, sir," said Dick. "We spied on them and overheard them talking, andit is their plan to come here soon after dark, plunder your houses andthen set fire to them. We hastened here to tell you the news."
"And you did well, young men. I thank you, in the name of the people ofthe settlement. Who are you, and where are you from?"
"My name is Dick Dare, and this is my brother Tom, and this is acomrade, Ben Foster. We have just come down into this part of thecountry, from New York, with a regiment of patriot soldiers underGeneral Morris. Our camp is about twenty miles from here."
"Ah, I am indeed glad to hear that there is a patriot force in this partof the country," said the man. "Since Arnold came here and took commandof the British force in Virginia, we have been having a hard time of it.He seems to be extremely bitter, the soldiers and Tories are rough andinsolent, and there has been a great deal of plundering and burning ofhouses recently."
"Well, seemingly that is what the redcoats we saw intend doing here,to-night."
"I will call the men of the settlement together, and we will decide whatto do," announced the man. "I will have them come here to my house, andyou young men may as well remain here. Just step inside and have seats."
"We will sit here on the steps," said Dick. "It is pleasant out ofdoors."
"Very well," and the man hastened away.
The youths sat down and waited, and in ten or fifteen minutes there werea dozen men gathered there in front of the house. After greeting theyouths, they discussed the matter at issue, and finally decided that theonly feasible course was to take some essential household goods and goto a swamp a mile and a half distant. There was a small island in themiddle of the swamp, they said, that would furnish them an abiding-placefor a while, until the redcoats went away, and as the path leading tothe island in the swamp was a narrow and crooked one, they did not thinkthe redcoats could follow it. At any rate they could not do so in thedark.
As soon as this decision had been settled upon, the women were notified,and at once all began work. Even the children helped, and soon all thehousehold goods of much value that could be carried had been broughtout, and were gotten into shape for carrying.
Dick, Tom and Ben, of course, had helped, and at Dick's suggestion someof the children had been stationed out in the forest two or threehundred yards, to keep watch and give warning in case the redcoatsshould be heard approaching.
The settlers had just finished the work of getting the household goodsout of the houses, when the young sentinels came running up and saidthat they had heard voices, and had seen forms moving amid the trees.
"The redcoats are coming!" said Dick. "You must get away from herequickly. There is no time to lose."
"You're right," said Mr. Williams, the first man the youths had spokento at the settlement.
"Gather up the goods and we will start for the swamp."
This was done, and men, women and children, loaded down with thehousehold effects, staggered through the woods, following the lead ofMr. Williams.
They had gone perhaps a third of a mile when they heard yells from thedirection of the settlement, and knew that the redcoats had reachedthere and found their intended victims missing.
"They will likely follow," said Dick. "We had better hurry."
"Yes, we will go as fast as possible," said Mr. Williams. "It isscarcely a mile to the swamp."
They hastened onward, and although they listened intently, trying tolearn whether they were being followed, they did not hear any sound toindicate that such was the case.
Presently they came to a stop, Mr. Williams having called to them to doso, as the edge of the swamp had been reached. He had brought a torchalong, and now at the shut of dark this he lighted. Taking the lead, heguided the party into the swamp, keeping on the narrow, winding path.Without the light it would have been impossible to follow the trail, andto have gotten off into the quagmire at the sides would have been toperhaps lose their lives, for it seemed to have no bottom, the settlerssaid, being like quicksand.
They had gone about a quarter of a mile, when they heard yells behindthem. They realized that the redcoats had followed, and having seen thelight, knew where the fugitives were.
"They will light a torch and try to follow us, likely," said Dick.
"Possibly," said Mr. Williams. "Well, if they do, we will have to fightthem off, for the path, where it connects with the island is verytortuous and narrow. At places not more than two feet wide, and so onlya few of them could get at us at a time."
Presently the fugitives reached the island, and they carried thehousehold goods over to the farther side, where they were placed on theground, while they sat down to rest. They had hurried and the women andchildren were tired indeed.
They had been sitting there only a few minutes, however, when suddenlyDick exclaimed "Look yonder! I see a light. The redcoat
s are coming!"
Sure enough, a light that flickered and bobbed this way and that, inamong the trees, could be seen, and it was evident that the redcoatswere following the path leading to the island.
The Dare Boys in Virginia Page 4
