ned such a distance from the scene of the fight, and were
in such an out-of-the-way place, that the thought of being overtaken did
not obtrude itself for an instant, either upon their minds or Jake's.

But as they came back up the hill, with a gourd full of spring water for
their companion, they were amazed to see a party of blue-coats appear
around the bend of the road at a little distance. They dropped the gourd
of water, and yelled to the man on guard:

"Kill the Yank, an' run for yer life!" and disappeared themselves, in
the direction of the spring.

The guard comprehended the situation and the order. He fired his gun at
Jake, but with such nervous haste as to destroy the aim, and send the
charge into the puncheon a foot beyond his intended victim, and then
ran off with all speed to join his companions. The Union boys sent a few
dropping shots after him, all of which missed their mark.

Jake managed to recover his nerves and wits sufficiently to stagger to
the door as his comrades came up, and grasp one of the guns the Rebels
had left.

Questions and congratulations were showered upon him, but he replied
incoherently, and gasped a request for water, as if he were perishing
from thirst. While some hunted for this, others sought for traces of
the Rebels; so he gained time to fix up a fairly presentable story of a
desperate and long-continued bayonet struggle in which he was behaving
with the greatest gallantry, although nearly hopeless of success, when
the arrival of help changed the aspect of matters. He had so many
gaping wounds to confirm the truth of this story, that it was implicitly
believed, and he was taken back to camp as on e of the foremost heroes
of that eventful day. The Colonel made him a Sergeant as soon as he
heard the tale, and regretted much that he could not imitate the example
of the great Napoleon, and raise him to a commission, on the scene
of his valiant exploits. His cot at the hospital was daily visited by
numbers of admiring comrades, to whom he repeated his glowing account
of the fight, with marked improvements in manner and detail accompanying
every repetition.

He had no desire to leave the hospital during his term of service,
but his hurts were all superficial and healed rapidly, so that in a
fortnight's time the Surgeon pronounced him fit to return to duty.
He cursed inwardly tha officer's zeal in keeping the ranks as full as
possible, and went back to his company to find it prepar