?

* * * * *

In either cause, one rage alone possess'd
The empire of the alternate victor's breast;
And they that smote for freedom or for sway,
Deem'd few were slain while more remain to slay."

--_Byron._

Peggy cast a fleeting glance backward, and the rich bloom of her
cheeks faded to paleness as she saw what amazing progress the horsemen
had made. Their own horses had been on the road since early morning,
and should the beasts of their pursuers be fresher she feared for the
result. With this reflection she cast aside her scruples and, taking
the whip out of its socket, let it fall in a stinging cut. The horses
leaped under the lash, then steadied to a rapid trot. Far behind
sounded a faint halloa, but she did not turn her head. The horses
demanded all her attention. How far away that farmhouse seemed! Could
they reach it before these lawless wretches overtook them? They must.
Again she let the lash fall, and the horses were off in a mad gallop.

In some manner Sally and Fairfax contrived to exchange places, and
with stern set features the youth sat watching the rapid advance of
the enemy, his musket ready for instant use. There were two guns. His
mother held the other, and the ammunition lay on the seat between
them. Not one of the little party voiced the thought that was in their
minds, for each one realized the awful consequences that would follow
capture by these desperadoes.

During the latter part of the Revolution there had sprung into
existence a class of men which might be termed banditti. They were
marauding bands which were restrained from robbery and outrage by no
military authority. They infested the woods and preyed upon lone
travelers, or small parties journeying upon the highways, and
desolated solitary farmhouses at will. No outrage was too great for
them to commit. Each state had its quota of these lawless wretches
which superadded to the horrors of war.

The state of New Jersey was particularly beset, owing to its
geographical situation between the two large cities of New York and
Philadelphia. The pines of Monmouth County, in whose boundaries Peggy
and her friends now were, afforded a safe hiding-place for numbers of
such robbers. They had caves burrowed in the sand-hills near the
margin of swamps in the most secluded situations, which were covered
with brush so as to be undiscoverable. The inhabitants were kept in a
state of