Roxy Hastings — page 120: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

BI 4 ROXY HASTINGS. Lit. ress Monroe by night journeys on the river, hiding them- selves and their vessel by day, as they had already done. They had about a hundred and forty miles to travel, of which they estimated they had already overcome thirty or more, and four more -nights at the most, they expected, if no adverse fortune prevented, would place them under the protecting zgis of the American flag. It is unnecessary to enumerate the hardships of those nights and days, the perils encountered and eluded, for an hourly brightening hope cast its light over all their suffer- ings and rendered them of trivial moment. Alfred was fleeing from the gallows, was speeding to the arms of loved friends, and he had but to remember these things to enable him to laugh at the trifling ills which he encountered. On the fifth night after leaving Richmond they heard the sound of sentinels on the southern shore and knew that they were within the Union lines. Their joy was un- bounded, their excitement intense, yet they dared not land until it was light, when they could raise a white flag—ever the emblem of amity, even among the blood-red hosts of Mars—and could thus insure a safe landing, and a welcome reception. Now drifting, now silently rowing, they kept far from shore until the first purple tints of dawn began to streak the eastern sky, when they extemporized a flag of no mean dimensions. Of what it consisted itis scarcely necessary to say, for when the lieutenant had donned his flannel shirt in the negro’s cabin, he had only covered, not discarded, his accustomed linen. As soon as it was fully light, Alf hoisted his banner on one of the oars, while with the other, used as a scull, Luke propelled the boat shoreward. The pickets, too accustomed to arrivals of ‘“contrabands” to be surprised, received them readily, but could scarcely credit the story which they had to tell. They were passed rapidly through the lines to the fort- ress, where their reception was enthusiastic in the ex- treme, and whence the news of Lee’s escape was quickly given by the wires to the world. CHAPTER XXI, THE MOTHER’S JOY. Charles Lee had remained with his sister and mother in Washington, because the latter was so -prostrated with cS GEomichboo (e(e) cy mM - “z%