Commodore Barney's Young Spies Part 3

"How soon can we get under way?"

I hesitated; it was on the tip of my tongue to say that I would not stir a hand in the matter, nor should the Avenger leave her moorings; but, fortunately, I remembered that we couldn't hold the pungy there to be destroyed when the enemy came up the river, and, to tell the absolute truth, I was ashamed to declare bluntly that I had no idea of casting in my lot with such a firebrand as Commodore Barney.

"We ought to leave here in an hour," Jerry said, making answer because he thought I was trying to figure how long it would take us to make ready. "Amos won't need more than ten minutes to get what stuff his mother is puttin' up for him, an' I'm goin' round by the mill to see if they will trust us for half a bushel of meal."

He was off like an arrow as he spoke, and Darius had no idea that I was hesitating as to the course to pursue, for an old fighter like him supposed it would be a pleasure for me to voluntarily go into the worst kind of a row.

It was fortunate indeed for me that the old man never suspected what was in my heart, otherwise I would have been shamed in my home to such an extent that I could never go there again; but all that came to mind later. Just then I felt as if I was being cruelly wronged by those who should have stood my friends.

Darius would have told me yet further of what Commodore Barney had done in the past; but I cut him short by saying like a spoiled child:

"I don't care to hear anything more about him; just now it strikes me that we'd better be thinking of ourselves."

The old man looked really distressed, and but for the fact that my heart was sore, I could have laughed because of the mistake he made.

Darius really believed that I was grieving over being thus obliged to leave my mother and the children, and he said soothingly:

"I come somewhere near knowin' how it is, lad. At such a time as this the least home talk that's made, the better, for it kind'er unstrings a fellow. You wait here, an' I'll go after what dunnage your mother is gettin' together; she'll understand that a short partin' is the best."

I could not have stopped him, for he was off before I had time to so much as open my mouth, and there I stood leaning against the canoe, giving the people of Benedict to believe I was eager to be fighting for my country.

Jim Freeman and his companions came along a few moments after Darius left, and in order to have some occupation, rather than from a desire to serve them, I offered to put the three aboard the Avenger.

They talked of nothing but what they would do once the enemy gave them an opportunity, until I asked petulantly:

"Is everybody in Benedict as eager to shed blood as are you?"

"Not much," Jim cried with a laugh. "There's Elias Macomber, for example--he's an Englishman, you know, an' hasn't been in this country more'n four years. He's makin' a lot of wild talk 'bout what he'll do to us folks when the Britishers come up the river."

"What reason has he to make any fuss?" I asked, rather for the sake of saying something, than because I desired information.

"Well, I suppose all hands have roughed into him pretty bad, on account of things he's said, an' now he counts on showin' what his countrymen can do."

Now it was that I began to feel glad because of having said nothing in opposition to joining Commodore Barney's fleet. By hanging back while all the others were taking up arms, I would be ranging myself on the side of Elias Macomber, which would have caused me to be ashamed of myself, for he was by no means a reputable citizen.

However glad I might be because I had refrained, or been prevented, from saying that which would have made it appear as if I took sides with the British, I was in nowise reconciled to the idea of going where the bullets were like to be flying, and, after putting Jim and his friend aboard the Avenger, I pulled back to the sh.o.r.e in anything rather than a cheerful frame of mind.

Darius was waiting for me, and he must have run every step of the way from the river to my father's home. He had with him a small bundle wrapped in one of mother's blankets, and said as he pulled the bow of the canoe up on the mud:

"I reckon it is jest as well that I went after your dunnage, lad, for your mother was ready to have a cryin' fit, which she couldn't perlitely let come on while I was there; but I'll warrant the water would have run had you been alone with her."

"She can't be feeling terribly bad, otherwise she wouldn't have been so anxious to have me go," I said sulkily.

"I don't know about that, my boy. It stands to reason she had rather anything else happened, than that you should stay at home when this part of the country needs every hand that can be raised in defense.

She feels sore because you are goin'; but I'll go bail she'd have felt ten times worse had you said you'd stay back with such as Elias Macomber."

I wasn't in a proper frame of mind to appreciate all that the old man said, and continued to consider myself as being abused, although not to such an extent as before I heard about Elias Macomber.

It was noised around in the village, told most likely by Jim Freeman, that we were going to Nottingham to join the commodore, and while Darius and I stood by the canoe waiting for Jerry, we were literally besieged by women, whose husbands or sons were with the fleet, nearly all of whom wanted to send some message, or this or that article which had been forgotten at the time of departure.

I believe of a verity that Darius and I charged ourselves with no less than twenty errands by word of mouth, and as for packages, why we had the bow piled full, until it seemed as if we were to carry something by way of reminder for every man under Commodore Barney's command.

Near-by where we stood were also gathered four men whose sympathies were entirely with the British, and among them, as a matter of course, was Elias Macomber.

These worthless ones who would injure the country which had provided them with a home, food and clothing, to say nothing of the comforts of life, evidently counted on ruffling our feathers, believing it would be safe to do so now that nearly all the men were gone from the village, and they began by talking loudly of the sorry spectacle which the commodore and his followers would present when Admiral Cochrane and his vessels came up the river.

I feel certain that Darius would have held his peace, for he was not naturally a quarrelsome man, had they made sport of everybody in the American army and navy, save Joshua Barney; but a word against him was to the old man much as a red flag is to a bull, and in a twinkling the trouble began.

"The man who says aught against the commodore must answer to me for his words," Darius said angrily as he strode toward the four who were trying to bait him. "I'll not stand here and listen to such talk!"

It was Elias Macomber who showed his lack of sound sense by making reply:

"We didn't ask you to stand here; but if you choose to do so, it's more than likely you'll hear a good many things which may not please you."

"Hold your tongue as to Barney, or it'll be the worse for all hands!"

Darius cried angrily, and at that moment Jerry appeared, staggering under a bag which must have contained a full bushel and a half of meal.

I shall always believe Elias Macomber held the idea that Darius was a feeble old man, otherwise he would have kept his tongue between his teeth, for he was far from being brave; but however that may be, he replied hotly:

"I do not count on choosin' my words when I speak of such a bag of wind as Josh Barney has shown himself to be!"

It seemed to me as if the words had not been fully spoken before Darius launched out, and, in, less time than it takes to tell it, was in the midst of a hot, one-sided fight, for the Tories all pitched into him, regardless of the fact that his quarrel was with Elias.

It stands to reason that I could never remain idle while a s.h.i.+pmate was getting the worst of it, particularly when his adversaries were men for whom I entertained no friendly feelings, and the scrimmage was hardly more than begun when I took a hand, standing close by the old man's side.

As I aimed a blow at Elias I saw, out of the tail of my eye, Jerry drop his meal as he came forward at full speed, and at almost the same moment a loud splas.h.i.+ng in the water caused me to glance quickly in the direction of the pungy.

Jim Freeman had jumped overboard to do his share toward teaching Macomber a lesson, and when he arrived the odds would be even.

Of course it was a disgraceful spectacle; but it could not have been avoided, so far as I was concerned, and I did my best, fighting as vigorously as if I had been the one to urge upon my companions the necessity of joining the fleet.

It is not well that I give too much s.p.a.ce to this brawl when there are so many other adventures, in which a fellow might well take pride, to be recorded, therefore I will only say that we had no very easy task to down these admirers of King George and the Prince Regent; but finally succeeded, thanks to the a.s.sistance of Jim Freeman.

It is doubtful which side got the worst drubbing, although we claimed a victory because the others ran; but positive it is that the four of us had all the punishment needed, and were forced to wash our faces more than once before we could look at each other without a certain feeling of shame.

"What made you tackle the whole of 'em?" Jerry asked the old man. "If the rest of us hadn't been near at hand, they'd wiped you out."

"I'd tackle twenty if they dared say anything against Joshua Barney!"

Darius cried as he shook his fist in the direction where our adversaries had last been seen. "I'd rather get the toughest pummellin' such as them could give, than keep my mouth shut while they was slurrin' their betters!"

We were actually obliged to use force with him, otherwise the old man would have gone in pursuit of the British-lovers, and it was only by tumbling him into the canoe head-foremost, holding him down by sitting on him once he was there, that we could make Darius listen to anything like reason.

"Let up on me, an' I'll keep quiet," he said after we had threatened to continue the drubbing begun by the Tories; "but this much I promise, that after the commodore has made shoestrings of that conceited admiral, I'll come back here an' have it out with Elias Macomber."

"We'll let it go at that," Jerry said as he released his hold of Darius and went back for the meal, while Jim wrung the water out of his clothing as best he could, for the fellow had not stopped to throw off coat or shoes when he jumped overboard to take a hand in the scrimmage.

It was near to half an hour before we were ready to go on board the Avenger, and by that time it was too late to make any protests against following the commodore.

My comrades took it for granted that I was equally eager with them to be where I could do my share of fighting the Britishers, and so stirred up was I by the game of fisticuffs ash.o.r.e that I actually forgot to be frightened by the prospect of taking part in a battle.