ul, and that before long you will be able to join the
great forces in the western part of the state. You are both good boys
and now, good-bye."

The preparations for the mountain column, as Dick and Warner soon called
it, had been completed. They were on foot, but they were well armed,
well clothed, and they had supplies loaded in several wagons, purchased
hastily in the village. A dozen of the strong mountaineers volunteered
to be drivers and guides, and the major was glad to have them. Later,
several horses were secured for the officers, but, meanwhile, the train
was ready to depart.

Colonel Newcomb waved them farewell, the faithful and valiant Canby
opened the throttle, and the train steamed away. The men in the little
column, although eager for their new task, watched its departure with a
certain sadness at parting with their comrades. The train became smaller
and smaller, then it was only a spiral of smoke, and that, too, soon
died on the clear western horizon.

"And now to find Thomas!" said Major Hertford, who retained Dick and
Warner on his staff, practically its only members, in fact. "It looks
odd to hunt through the mountains for a general and his army, but we've
got it to do, and we'll do it."

The horses for the officers were obtained at the suggestion of Sergeant
Whitley, and the little column turned southward through the wintry
forest. Dick and Warner were riding strong mountain ponies, but at
times, and in order to show that they considered themselves no better
than the others, they dismounted and walked over the frozen ground.
The greatest tasks were with the wagons containing the ammunition and
supplies. The mountain roads were little more than trails, sometimes
half blocked with ice or snow and then again deep in mud. The winter
was severe. Storms of rain, hail, sleet and snow poured upon them, but,
fortunately, they were marching through continuous forests, and the
skilled mountaineers, under any circumstances, knew how to build fires,
by the side of which they could dry themselves, and sleep warmly at
night.

They also heard much gossip as they advanced to meet General Thomas,
who had been sent from Louisville to command the Northern troops in the
Kentucky mountains. Thomas was a Virginian, a member of the old regular
army, a valiant, able, and cautious man, who chose to abide by the
Union. Many other Virginians, some destined to be as famous as he, and
a few more so, wondered why he had not