ack. He could not for a moment forget the letters which, at
Captain Beardsley's request, he had delivered to Colonel Shelby and the
rest. Did they convey to those who received them the information that
Beardsley no longer believed that there was money concealed in Mrs.
Gray's house, or did they contain instructions concerning a new plot
that was to be worked up against Marcy and his mother? The boys did not
know, and never found out for certain what it was that the captain wrote
in those letters. That night, after placing the captured Confederate
flag upon the wall of the sitting-room, Jack turned the proceeds of the
sale of his "venture" over to his mother, buried Marcy's prize money in
one of the flower beds, and bright and early the next morning went to
work to disguise the _Fairy Belle_ so that "her own brother wouldn't
know her." If the neighboring planters who visited them, and whom they
visited in return, had any suspicion that the captured flag in the
sitting-room did not express the political sentiments of the family,
they said nothing to indicate it. Their life apparently was as quiet and
peaceful as though such a thing as a slaveholders' rebellion had never
been heard of; but one day it was broken up most unexpectedly, and young
Allison was the first to tell them of it.

"Glorious victory of the Confederate arms," he shouted, jumping off the
steps of the store in which the post-office was located, and running
full tilt toward the place where Jack and Marcy were hitching their
horses. "Didn't we always say the Northern people had no business
alongside of us? The crowd in the post-office have cheered themselves
hoarse, and you fellows ought to have been here to join in."

"Has there been another fight?" asked Jack. "Where did it take place and
how much of a fight was it?"

"Well, you see," said Allison, "there hasn't exactly been any fight yet,
but there's going to be if the cowardly Yankees will only give us a
chance to get at them."

"Oh," said Jack, while an expression of disgust settled on his face.
"Where is it going to come off and how do you happen to know so much
about it?"

"Why, the authorities know all about it, and I suppose the papers got
the information from them," replied Allison. "At any rate, there's a
strong land and naval expedition being fitted out at Fortress Monroe,
and it is coming down here to destroy forts Hatteras and Clark and block
up Hatteras Inlet."

"And that expedition has