rew rapidly in volume.

But the men under Sherburne, youthful though most of them might be,
were veterans. They knew every trick of war, and columns of infantry
swept forward to meet the attack, preceded by the skirmishers, who took
heavy toll of the foe.

"If they'd been able to make it a surprise they might have rushed us,"
said Harry.

"Nobody catches Sherburne sleeping," said Dalton.

"That's true, and because they can't they won't be able to overcome him
here. Now there go our rifles! Listen to that crash. I fancy that
about a thousand were fired together, and they weren't fired for nothing."

"No," said Dalton, "but the Yankees don't give way. You can see by their
line of fire that they're still coming. Look there! A powerful body of
horse is charging!"

It was unusual to see cavalry attack at night, and the spectacle was
remarkable, as the moonlight fell on the raised sabers. But the defiant
rebel yell, long and fierce, rose from the thicket, and, as the rifles
crashed, the entire front of the charging column was burned away, as if
by a stroke of lightning. But after a moment of hesitation they came on,
only to ride deeper into a rifle fire which emptied saddles so fast that
they were at last compelled to turn and gallop away.

"Brave men," said Harry. "A gallant charge, but it had to meet too many
Southern rifles, aimed by men who know how to shoot."

"But their infantry are advancing through that wood," said Dalton.
"Hear them cheering above the rifle fire!"

The Northern shout rang through the forest, and the rebel yell, again
full of defiance, replied. The cavalry had been driven off, but the
infantry and artillery were far from beaten. The sixteen guns of the
two batteries were massed on a hill and they began to sweep the Southern
lines with a storm of shells and shrapnel. The forest and the dark were
no protection, because the guns searched every point of the Southern line
with their fire. Sherburne's men were forced to give ground, before
cannon served with such deadly effect.

"What will the colonel do?" asked Dalton. "The big guns give the Yankees
the advantage."

"He'll go straight to the heart of the trouble," said Harry. "He'll
attack the guns themselves."

He did not know actually in what manner Sherburne would proceed, but he
was quite sure that such would be his course. The wary Southern leader
instantly detailed a swarm of his best riflemen to creep through the
wood