CHAPTER VIII.
BEFORE THE GREAT BATTLE.
CAPTAIN SOMERS was as thoroughly bewildered as he would have been if the mountains around him had suddenly commenced dancing a hornpipe; or if the trees, horses, and men before him had turned bottom upwards, and the whole order of nature had been reversed. He was entirely satisfied, on reflection, that the event of the preceding afternoon had been a reality; entirely satisfied that Major Riggleston had been a party to the infamous conspiracy by which the fair Maud had sought to capture him; and the unblushing impudence of his companion in denying it passed his comprehension.
“I think you must be dreaming, Captain Somers,” said the major, with a light laugh.
“Either I am, or you are; I will not pretend to say which,” replied Somers, almost convinced by the words, and especially by the easy assurance of the major, that no attempt had been made to capture him; that no such person as Maud Hasbrouk had an existence.
But of course the traitor would deny his guilt; that was to be expected. It was not to be supposed that he would engage in such a nefarious scheme as that which had been exhibited at the Hasbrouk house, and then confess his participation in it. The major had actually returned to the Union lines, and had the temerity to take his place in the ranks of the defenders of the Union, even while he was, not only in heart, but openly, engaged in the service of treason and rebellion.
“Now, captain, let us be friends,” continued the major; “for it really seems to me that you are disposed to provoke a quarrel with me.”
“I cannot be the friend of one who is an enemy to his country,” replied Somers, stiffly, and with a proper display of dignity.
“My dear fellow, I don’t understand you.”
“Don’t understand me, Major Riggleston?” Somers began to be stern and savage.
“Upon my word I do not,” protested the major, earnestly. “If you insist on picking a quarrel with me, pray tell me what it is all about.”
“This is all idle talk, sir.”
“You have accused me of being an enemy to my country.” The major began to be slightly indignant.
“Most distinctly I accuse you of it.”
“That’s a grave charge.”
“I am aware of it; and I speak advisedly when I make it. If I had met General Lee himself within our lines, I should not have been more astonished than I was to see you, after what has happened.”
“Will you be so kind as to tell me what has happened?” demanded the accused officer, manifesting no little excitement.
“At no distant day I shall do so before a court-martial.”
“What do you mean?”
“Have you any doubt whatever in regard to my meaning?”
“Upon my word and honor as an officer and a gentleman, I have not the remotest idea what you mean.”
“Major Riggleston, if the nature of my mission would permit, I would return to the headquarters of the commanding general and denounce you as a traitor.”
“Captain Somers, those are words which no man can use to me with impunity,” replied the major, indignantly. “I shall hold you personally responsible for them.”
“I am willing to be held personally responsible for what I say,” answered Somers, coolly. “If you mean violence by that remark, I shall not be off my guard.”
“Captain Somers, you are a brave man. You have proved yourself to be a brave and true man,” said the major, with more calmness. “I think you are too noble a fellow to vilify me without giving me an opportunity to defend myself.”
“Of course you will have an opportunity to defend yourself.”
“You propose to denounce me as a traitor, you say.”
“I do.”
“You are aware that the people of my state are divided on the great question that now disturbs the country; consequently a charge, however weak and unfounded, against me, would find plenty of believers. I have enemies. All I demand is fair play.”
“You shall have it, major; for, deeply as you have injured me, or attempted to injure me, I assure you I bear no personal ill will towards you.”
“Thank you for so much; but you say I have attempted to injure you. I am not conscious of any such attempt.”
“Major Riggleston, this is all idle talk while you assume that position—while you pretend to be ignorant of the matter with which I charge you; and I must decline holding any further intercourse with you at present. Let me add, however, that I will not make charges until you are present to defend yourself.”
“So far your conduct is honorable; if you would go a step farther, and state distinctly with what you charge me, I should be infinitely obliged to you.”
“That is useless. From a gentleman I should not expect such duplicity as you exhibit in pretending to know nothing about the charge.”
“I have pledged you my honor that I don’t know what you mean; that I am not conscious of having given you any offence, much less done anything which can justify you in calling me a traitor.”
“Do you know Miss Maud Hasbrouk?” demanded Somers.
“Of course I know her. You are perfectly aware that, though she is a rebel, she is a friend of our family.”
“Good night, Major Riggleston,” said Somers, as he put spurs to his steed, and dashed down the hill, leaving his companion to infer what he meant from his connection with the lady, if he needed anything to enable him to explain the nature of the charge.
The staff officer was excited and indignant that the traitor should attempt such a bold and foolish subterfuge. It was almost incredible that he should have the audacity to pretend that he did not know what the charge meant. There was no room for a doubt or a mistake. The major had positively received the blank letter; had positively gone after the rebel cavalry; had positively sustained Maud in her attempt to capture him. It was not possible, therefore, that he had done the culprit any injustice.
Thus assured that he had not wronged the major, Captain Somers again turned his attention to the message which he was to deliver to his general, and urged forward his weary horse at his best speed. He found the troops of “Fighting Joe” resting from the hard-fought action, and engaged in preparing their simple supper of coffee and “hard tack.” He delivered the orders of the commanding general, and the division of Richardson was accordingly sent forward to pursue the fleeing rebels.
Early on the following morning the army advanced, and Somers found no time to think of private grievances. The general did much of his own reconnoitring on this occasion, though the members of his staff were kept constantly employed. The enemy had fallen back in disorder from South Mountain; but at ten o’clock in the forenoon the advance of the first corps came up with the position which the rebels had taken, to dispute the farther progress of the now victorious army. But the general had not at this time a sufficient force to make an attack. Antietam Creek lay between the two armies; and the bridge over it at this point was protected by the batteries which the rebels had planted to defend it.
The enemy, in two lines on the west side of the creek, were believed to consist of fifty thousand men; and the brave general impatiently awaited the arrival of the rest of the corps. It looked like an opportunity to fight a successful battle, and he was determined to cross the stream at the first practicable moment.
“General, the enemy are breaking into column and marching towards Williamsport,” said Somers, as he rode up from the point at which he had been surveying the movement on the other side of the creek.
“They are on the retreat, then,” replied the general.
Captain Somers and an officer of the engineers were then sent to examine the creek in search of a ford by which to transfer the troops to the other side as soon as the force of the rebels should be sufficiently reduced to justify an attack. The general chafed under the restraint which the circumstances imposed upon him; but he was too prudent to risk an attack while the advantage was so strongly against him. A ford was found near a mill, farther up the creek, and the officers reported the fact; but the arrival of the commanding general at this time prevented “Fighting Joe” from ordering an advance.
The corps remained at this place until the afternoon of the next day, when orders came to cross the creek. The troops proceeded up the stream, and went over by a bridge and by the fords which had been examined by the staff officers. The outposts of the enemy were soon discovered and driven in, and the gallant corps continued to push the force in front till it was too dark to proceed any farther, at which time the resistance was fully equal to the power of the advancing host. This was the night before the great battle of Antietam.
The weary troops lay down to rest in the cornfields where they had halted. The rebels were close by, and the pickets of the two armies were within gunshot range of each other. There was no rest yet for the general and his staff; for it was evident that a great battle was to be fought on the morrow—a battle on which the destinies of the Union depended. If the grand army of the Potomac was defeated, there would be nothing to stay the march of the invaders. The fair fields and the prosperous cities and towns of the North would then be open to them. The great heart of the nation, beating timidly as the rebel hordes advanced, sickened by previous disasters, might sink into despondency, and the bright hopes of a great people be forever crushed. It was no time for the brain of the army to slumber.
“We want information,” said the general, after he had sent an aid to General McClellan to announce his intention to attack the enemy at the earliest dawn.
The commander of the first army corps always wanted information, for he never moved in the dark. His brain and his arm were twin brothers in the conflict. Somers and Barkwood volunteered to procure the information, and left the headquarters for this purpose. It was useless to attempt to penetrate the heavy picket line of the rebels in the cornfields, and they descended the hill beyond a farm-house, till they came to a ravine through which flowed a considerable volume of water.
“Here’s our chance,” said Somers, in a low tone.
“That’s so; but you know I am a great coward, and this looks like risky business,” replied Captain Barkwood.
“If you are, I think there is no need of more than one of us going through.”
“O, my dear fellow, I will go with you.”
“I think it would be safer for us both to separate here.”
“I agree with you.”
“Then I will take this ravine, and you may see what you can find farther to the north.”
“Good! Now be scientific, my boy; we want to know the topography of the country as well as the position of the enemy.”
“Certainly; I think I understand what is required,” replied Somers, as he descended the steep bank of the ravine into the water.
The banks of the stream were of course occupied by the pickets of the two armies, and his course led him through both of them. He was just as much exposed to a shot from one as from the other. Somers was a man of experience in this business. He had earned a reputation as a scout, and had on three occasions brought in information of the utmost value to the Union commanders. Indeed, his skill in this particular branch had procured for him his promotion and his present honorable position on the staff of “Fighting Joe.” He was now to undertake a fearful risk—more fearful, perhaps, than any he had before incurred; but the greater the danger, the more valuable the service rendered; and the result of to-morrow’s battle might depend upon the fidelity with which he discharged his difficult duty.
He wore his long boots, and he continued to feel his way on the verge of the stream, without going in beyond his depth. The ravine was fringed with a thick growth of bushes, which shielded him from the observation of the pickets; but the slightest sound would expose him to the fire of the men. In many places the trees formed an arch over the brook, and the darkness was so dense that he could hardly distinguish an object six feet from him. He did not walk; he crept, putting his feet down as a cat does when she is on the point of pouncing on her prey.
After advancing a short distance he heard low voices on the banks above him. He was passing the first line of pickets—that of the Union army. His progress was very slow, but he succeeded in his purpose without drawing the fire of the sentinels. He was now between the two lines, and he quickened his pace a little.
While he was thus creeping through the shallow water, he discovered in the gloom a dark object before him. He paused, and ascertained that it was a human figure—a man, who had also stopped; but whether friend or enemy he could not determine.