Under Fire: A Tale of the Shenandoah Valley — page 184: what you’re looking at

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

~, - NED BRIGHT’S WORK. 177 soe turned from the highway with the utmost confi- ence. ; As it happened, these six raiders were unacquainted with this portion of the Shenandoalr Valley, else they would certainly have suspected that young Bright was not traveling toward the rear. | Matters were badly mixed that day, and but few of the combatants could tell whereabouts in the wide world they were to bring up before the sun should set. Ned Bright led the way through woods and across fields, for miles, seemingly, and, in truth, this was, much to the surprise of the prisoner, as well as to the wonder of the guard themselves. ‘How much furder, bub ?”’ “Just a- little. Colonel Woodford’s regiment is guarding prisoners down here aways.” They were in the woods now,. but suddenly came to an opening, and tan upon a line of soldiers drawn up as if in preparation for battle. “Holy sailor! the Yankees!”’ It was true; the little party had run unexpectedly upon a line of the newly formed army of the Union, and it was now too late to escape. The six cavalrymen ‘‘caved’’ when a score of mus- kets were leveled upon them. Captain Chetwood was once more a free man, and to Ned Bright he owed his life. When the captain explained the situation, Bright was not detained, but the six raiders were pulled from their horses.and sent to the rear. © | | Preparations were making for a battle. Sheridan had come, and a new order of things prevailed. Captain Chetwood soon learned this much, and he felt that it would not be a hard matter to find his own company now. | Before seeking his place in the line of battle, he spoke with the boy, Ned Bright. ‘“‘Vou saved my life, my boy, and I cannot be too -_ comic 900 cS co