"Don"t shoot," said Caleb; and in his excitement and alarm he spoke so loud that the boys trembled.
"Don"t you know enough to keep still?" exclaimed Marcy angrily. "No one is going to hurt you. Come up to the fence. Now, what brought you here? Talk fast."
"Well," said Caleb, speaking slowly, as if he did not know how to explain his errand; "you mind them Gray an" Graham boys, don"t ye?"
"We have a slight acquaintance with them," answered Dixon. "What about them? Do you want to see them?"
"See "em?" repeated Caleb. "I jest did see "em, not more"n an hour ago."
"Um," said Dixon. "Where did you leave them?"
"Down in the woods on Riley"s place, a little piece back of n.i.g.g.e.r Toby"s cabin. Bud Goble"s got "em."
"Hold on, or you will spoil everything," whispered Dixon, looking over his shoulder at Marcy Gray, who began breathing very hard and trying to work his way closer to the fence. "What does Bud intend to do with them?"
"Well, it"s jest this a-way," replied Caleb. "A day or two ago Bud got a letter from somebody tellin" him that them two boys oughter be drove outen the kentry, kase they was Union all over an" preachin" up their docterings as often as they got a chance. Bud, he thought so too, an" this afternoon he grabbed "em."
"Who wrote that letter?" inquired Dixon.
"There don"t none of us know; Bud himself don"t know, kase there wasn"t no name to it."
"It was written by some coward who was afraid to let himself be known, was it? And Bud acted upon the advice that letter contained and grabbed the boys, did he? How did he go about it?" inquired Dixon; and his three companions, who knew how quick he was to get angry, wondered that he could speak so quietly and without the slightest show of excitement.
"When they was in town to-day Bud sont "em word that there was a sick man up the road a piece, an" asked them would they get some quinine an" take it to him," replied Caleb.
"And of course they went," said Dixon, through his clenched teeth. "Bud worked upon their feelings and caught them as easy as falling off a log. When they got to that cabin there wasn"t any sick man there, but a party of ruffians who jumped on Rodney and d.i.c.k and made prisoners of them," added Dixon, who was so impatient that he could not wait for Caleb to tell the story. "Was that the way of it?"
"It were; but you see he got the wrong one. Both of "em are the wrong ones."
"How so?"
"Well, you see they"re the wrong ones; not the ones he thought he was goin" to get. Rodney is secession the very wust kind."
"Of course he is; and Graham is State rights, which is the next thing to a rebel. Well, what of it?"
"Rodney is the wrong one, I tell ye. We-uns wanted the other Gray boy-the Union feller."
"What would you have done to him if you had got hold of him?"
"We-uns kalkerlated to lick him good an" send him outen the kentry with a striped jacket."
Caleb did not hesitate to acknowledge this. He had heard it said that there were some wild secessionists in the school, and taking his cue from the Barrington people, who thought it right to destroy the property of Union men, he believed that the students who were in favor of the Confederacy would be willing to take summary vengeance upon those of their number who were foolish enough to stand up for the old flag. But he thought it would be wise to make sure of that point before he went any further.
"You"re Jeff Davis men, I reckon, aint ye?" said he "We are for the South every day in the week," replied Dixon. "When the Stars and Stripes are pulled down and the Stars and Bars run up in their place, I"ll holler as loud as the next fellow. You may speak freely."
Caleb might have had some doubts on that point if he could have seen the flashing eyes and clenched fists there were on the other side of the fence. But Dixon spoke so calmly, in spite of the towering rage he was in, that the man"s suspicions were not aroused.
"You calculated to whip Rodney and drive him out of the country; but when you learned that he was a good rebel, you thought you wouldn"t do it," said Dixon. "Is that the way of it? Then what are you holding him for? Why don"t you let him come home?"
"All the company was in for lettin" both of "em go, "ceptin" Bud. He wouldn"t hear to it."
"What sort of a company have you?"
"One we-uns got up yesterday and last night while them houses was burnin". Minute men, you know, who are ready to grab their guns an" fight in a minute. Bud wanted to capting the company, but we-uns put in another feller, an" mebbe that makes him madder t"wards the boys than he would be if he was capting."
"Very likely; and it is a good idea to pound them for it. What was the reason he wouldn"t listen when you proposed to let Rodney go?"
"Kase Rodney an" that Graham boy was the fellers that offered to give him a hunderd dollars if he would show them where that underground railroad was that used to tote the n.i.g.g.e.rs off to Canady," replied Caleb. "Bud says they needn"t think they"re ever goin" to come back to the "cademy less"n he gets them hunderd dollars. He looked for the railroad in good faith, an" allows that he"d oughter be paid for his time an" trouble."
"And this is the way he takes to get his pay, is it? Well, he must have it, and if I have any influence with the boys he will get more than he asks for. But why did you come here to tell us this?"
"Kase Bud sont me up here to get the money."
"You know right where he is, I suppose?"
"I do, for a fac"."
"Are there many men with him?"
"n.o.body but jest Silas Walker. The rest of the company wouldn"t have nothing to do with it, an" so they went home."
"And you expect us to send the money back by you, do you? How much of it will you get?"
"Not a dog-gone cent. I don"t want none of it. I come kase I want to see them two boys let go. Hold on, there. What you doin"?" exclaimed Caleb, when he felt himself suddenly seized by the elbow and his whole arm pulled through the fence. "Turn me loose."
"Take hold of the other arm, Billings," said Dixon quietly. "Now, old man, keep perfectly still and do just as you are told, and no harm shall come to you. You are friendly to Rodney and d.i.c.k, and that makes us friendly toward you. Come over the fence. Up you go."
"What for?"
"We want you to tell the officer of the guard, and perhaps the colonel, just what you have told us, word for word."
"By gracious, boys, you"re going to get me into a pretty mess," said the sentry nervously. "You can"t get him over without alarming the whole school, and how shall I explain matters to the corporal? He"s a chap who will not stand any nonsense. Come over that fence," he added, an idea striking him; and as he spoke he drew up his loaded musket and pointed it at Caleb"s head. "Quick and still, or I"ll cut loose."
The sight of the black muzzle that looked him squarely in the eye was too much for Caleb"s nerves. Beseeching the sentry, in whining tones, to turn that weapon t"other way, he shinned up the pickets, Dixon and Billings shifting their hold from his arms to his legs and feet as he ascended, and in two minutes more he stood within the academy grounds.
CHAPTER XII.
THE FIRST COMPANY IN ACTION.
"There," said Dixon soothingly. "I told you you shouldn"t be hurt if you obey orders without making any fuss. Now come with us, and don"t speak above a whisper."
"What do you reckon the kurn"ll do to me?" inquired Caleb, who could scarcely have been more frightened if the students had threatened him as Bud Goble had threatened Rodney and d.i.c.k.
"He"ll not do the first thing to you," Billings a.s.sured him. "Why should he when you come here as a friend to those two prisoners? We"ll see you safe outside the gate as soon as the officers are through questioning you."
"An" will you-uns give me the money?" asked Caleb. "If you don"t, them boys is bound to get whopped."
"Did Bud say so?"