out doing
something. Stanislas has brought me a little money from Warsaw, and
I shall be ready to pay into the common treasury a sum sufficient
to pay for our share of the food. As to money taken, we shall not
expect any share of it. If you are attacked, we shall of course
fight, and shall be ready to do our full share in all work. So, at
any rate, you will not be losers by taking us with you."

"That is fair enough," the captain said, when Stanislas had
translated what Charlie said, suppressing, however, his remarks
about foraging with the army, as the brigands were ignorant that
Charlie and he had any connection with the Swedes, or that he was
not, as he had given out, a young Englishman come out to set up as
a trader.

The band now journeyed slowly on, keeping near the north bank of
the Dnieper. They went by twos and threes, uniting sometimes and
entering a village or surrounding a farmhouse at night, and taking
what they wanted. The people were, however, terribly poor, and they
were able to obtain but little beyond scanty supplies of flour, and
occasionally a few gold or silver trinkets. Many other bands of
plunderers had passed along, in the course of the summer, and the
robbers themselves were often moved to pity by the misery that they
everywhere met with.

When in small parties they were obliged to avoid entering any
villages, for once or twice furious attacks were made upon those
who did so, the women joining the men in arming themselves with any
weapon that came to hand, and in falling upon the strangers.

Only once did they succeed in obtaining plunder of value. They had
visited a village, but found it contained nothing worth taking. One
of the women said:

"Why do you trouble poor people like us? There is the count's
chateau three miles away. They have every luxury there, while we
are starving."

After leaving the village, the man to whom she had spoken repeated
what she had said, and it was agreed to make the attempt. At the
first cottage they came to they made further inquiries, and found
that the lord of the soil was very unpopular; for, in spite of the
badness of the times, he insisted on receiving his rents without
abatement, and where money was not forthcoming, had seized cattle
and horses, assessing them at a price far below what they would
have fetched at the nearest market.

They therefore marched to the house. It was a very large one. The
captain thoughtfully placed Charlie and Stanislas