Adventure Magazine Cover — page 26: what you’re looking at

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

24 WILKESON “Yes, sir,” said Macklin, who, of course, did not know the official countersign for the day. ‘‘And the word for this camp?” ‘“‘“Chesapeake’ is the word today for every Continental camp between the High- lands and the Santee,” replied Wayne. “Yes, sir. I know, sir,” said Macklin firmly. ‘But there’s another word still for this here camp, which ye must give afore I let ye by.” There was a breath of silence, then: “‘There are three of us and but two of you. Suppose I were to force this post?” “Then God help ye, sir!’ The answer came quickly from both sentries. “And whye” Wayne sounded curious. ‘““’Cause the men are still main upset *bout what was a-happening just as we left the grand parade on New Year’s,” said Swan in a queer, controlled way. “Most on ’em weren’t really for the mutiny till that happened,” said Macklin. “But after that, wild horses couldn’t ‘a’ turned ’em back to their duty. It made every last one of us mad clear through, to be fired on, and then charged, by our own company officers!”’ “It may interest you to learn, then,” said Wayne brutally, “that both Tolbert and White are dead from the effects of your return fire.” He paused to salute the manes of the two trusted and valuable officers. Macklin’s rifle slithered with a thump on to his snow- clogged foot, fetching a grunt that was al- most a groan out of him. He had been in Captain Tolbert’s company, and Tolbert had been a popular officer. ‘‘And the line must be mad _ indeed,”’ complained Wayne, ‘“‘to bar me from the camp of my own command. By whose or- ders is this done? ‘That ruffian of the 4th?” “‘Well—yes and no, sir,” hesitated Mack- lin. ‘‘There ain’t no particular orders to keep ye out of camp—just general ones that no one is to be passed without he give the word. Which ye ain’t done, ye see.”’ ““Man, man!’’ cried Wayne impatiently. “Why will ye be wasting time in this silly fashion! D’you think I’ve turned Arnold in the last two days, and have come to be- tray ye? Tell me the word, and let me pass into camp!” “‘General,’’ said Macklin, with a certain dignity in his simplicity, “if it was yourself, now, would ye give up the word?” The two colonels, who rode with Wayne, O’CONNELL choked with delight, and the general was left without breath for rejoinder. Macklin went unconsciously on. “It’s for your own sake that we—Swan and I—ask ye not to even try to enter camp today. Tomorrow, or the next day maybe, the men’s minds will be calmer, and then they’ll be glad enough to see and talk with ye. But don’t try to force ’em—it can’t be done.” Wayne stamped and fumed in the cling- ing snow, but he was defeated, and gave up the point—with a kick. “Look ye,’ he demanded sarcastically, “‘will your tender honors allow one of ye to leave his rifle in my incompetent hands long enough to carry a message from me to Sergeant Barstow?” “T reckon there’d be no harm in that, sir,”’ said Macklin cautiously. ‘‘What’s the message?”’ ‘“‘Ask him to come, with one trustworthy man from each regiment, to talk to me here and now,” instructed Wayne. ‘Tell him I have information that is most important to him—information that may change all your plans. And let no word of this get to the ears of that man, Fallen.” ‘Yes, sir!’ Macklin’s tone expressed all his deep approval. “T see you understand,” said Wayne. “T thought you would. By the way, why are you double posted?” “For fear of Roger’s Rangers, sir,” answered Swan. ‘‘We’ve knowledge of where all the other enemy corps are, that we're likely to meet up with, but no one seems to know where Red Roger is a-lying. And Fallen ain’t a-taking any fool chances of being run into by a bunch of blamed redcoats.”’ The very first crack of dawn was break- ing, but it was still far too dark to see the sensation this item of information created. But Butler’s teeth could be heard to click as he pulled his jaw shut, a spasmodic cluck came from Stewart, and Wayne grunted his bewildered astonishment. “Well, you might also tell Barstow,”’ said the general to his messenger, ‘‘that it will be safe to single post the guard. Red Roger is on Long Island, planning a partizan raid on Connecticut for tomorrow morning. He’ll be too occupied in harrying his neigh- bors and kindred to trouble you for a few days yet. And there’s no need to waste the men’s strength.” COmiclbool CO