ome to," he said. "Great deed of yours last night, Dick.
Wish I'd done it myself. They let old George talk just a little, but
he's his real old Vermont self again. Says chances were ninety-nine and
a half per cent that he would die there on the battlefield, but that the
half per cent, which was yourself, won. Fancy being only half of one
per cent, and doing a thing like that. No, you can't see him. Only one
visitor was allowed, and that's me. His fever is leaving him, and he
swallowed a little soup. Now, he's going to sleep."

Dick felt very grateful. Pennington had been up some time, and as they
sat down in the sun he gave Dick the news.

"It was a bad night," he said. "After you staggered in with George,
the rebels, in spite of the rain, harassed us. I was waked up after
midnight, and the colonel began to believe that we would have to fight
again before morning, though the need didn't come, so far as we were
concerned. But we were terribly worried on the flanks. They say it was
Stuart and his cavalry who were bothering us."

"What's the outlook for to-day?"

"I don't know. I hear that General Pope has sent a dispatch saying
that the enemy is badly whipped, and that we'll hold our own here. But
between you and me, Dick, I don't believe it. We've been driven out of
all our positions, so we can hardly call it a victory for our side."

"But we may hold on where we are and win a victory yet. McClellan
and the Army of the Potomac may come. Anyway, we can get big
reinforcements."

Pennington clasped his arms over his knees and sang:

"The race is not to him that's got
The longest legs to run,
Nor the battle to those people
That shoot the biggest gun."

"Where did you get that song?" asked Dick. "I'll allow, under the
circumstances, that there seems to be some sense in it."

"A Texan that we captured last night sang it to us. He was a funny kind
of fellow. Didn't seem to be worried a bit because he was taken. Said
if his own people didn't retake him that he'd escape in a week, anyhow.
Likely enough he will, too. But he was good company, and he sang us that
song. Impudent, wasn't he?"

"But true so far, at least in the east. I fancy from what you say,
Frank, that we'll be here a day longer anyhow. I hope so, I want to
rest."

"So do I. I won't fight to-day, unless I'm ordered to do it. But I'm
thinking with you, Dick, that we'll retreat. We were outmaneuvered by
Lee and Jackson