Beadle's Dime Novels No. 115: The Sons of Liberty — page 35: what you’re looking at

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

THE WOUNDED PATRIOT. | 87 had kept his saddle, however, as long as the horsemen con- tinued the chase ; but when they pulled up in despair, his un- natural strength forsook him and he reeled and fell from his seat. He fuinted and remained senseless until he heard the sound of the hoofs of Connor and his men. Dragging himself to the water’s edge, he threw himself into it, and creeping along to the thicket of Willows, he Jaid himself prostrate Up to his shoulders in water, holding on by a-root. Here he lay while the Tories stood above him on the bank and made Conjectures on his probable fate. He waited until they rode away and then crept cautiously out, and by main strength raised himself to the bank, where he again lost his senses from loss of blood. : | How long he had lain in this situation he did not know, but when he came to his senses his first feeling was that of rest and ease, and that a beautiful girl was bending over him With a strange commiseration expressed in her face. Satisfied that this was a dream, he closed his eyes again, and when he opened them he saw her still before him. “ You are badly hurt,” she said. ‘“ Remain very quiet until I call my father. I shall not be gone a moment. It is a good thing you got into the water; it stopped the bleed- ing.” He had not strength to answer her, so he bowed his heaa, and she hurried away. It seemed a long time to him before she came back, accompanied by her father and four stout slaves carrying a mattress, They lifted him gently and laid dim on this, and then carried him to the house, where his wound was attended to by Mr. Connor, who had some .know- ledge of gunshot wounds, having dabbled in surgery. It did not require much skill to attend to this wound, which was all in the flesh, It was not the wound itself so much as the loss of blood that had weakened the stranger. | He lay therein a half-dreaming way through the long: €vening, watching the gracefuligure of ,his nurse as she glided fo and fro, and wondering if among all the beautiful women he had seen in his day there was one to compare with her, When the candles were lighted she sat near a small table reading, rising from time to time to arrange hig pillows or Rive hin. drink. 115 3 Conmiclooolks. corn)