welcome
to it."

"I thank you greatly," Vincent replied, "and will, if you will allow me,
take half my breakfast out to my boy, who is waiting over there."

"Why did you not bring him in?" the girl asked. "Of course he will be
welcome, too."

"I did not bring him in before because two men in these days are likely
to alarm a lonely household; and I would rather not bring him in now,
because, if by any possibility the searchers, who are no doubt after me,
should call and ask you whether two men, one a white and the other a
negro, had been here, you could answer no."

"But they cannot be troubling much about prisoners," the girl said.
"Why, in the fighting here and in Missouri they have taken many
thousands of prisoners, and you have taken still more of them in
Virginia; surely they cannot trouble themselves much about one getting
away."

"I am not afraid of a search of that kind," Vincent said; "but,
unfortunately, on my way down I had a row in the train with a ruffian
named Mullens, who is, I understand, connected with one of these bands
of brigands, and I feel sure that he will hunt me down, if he can."

The girl turned pale.

"Oh!" she said, "I saw that in the paper too, but it said that it was a
minister. And it was you who beat that man and threw his revolver out of
the window? Oh, then, you are in danger indeed, sir. He is one of the
worst ruffians in the State, and is the leader of the party who stripped
this house and threatened to burn it to the ground. Luckily I was not at
home, having gone away to spend the night with a neighbor. His band have
committed murders all over the country, hanging up defenseless people on
pretense that they were Secessionists. They will show you no mercy, if
they catch you."

"No. I should not expect any great mercy, if I fell into their hands,
Miss Lucy. I don't know your other name."

"My name is Kingston. I ought to have introduced myself to you at once."

"Now you understand, Miss Kingston, how anxious I am to get across the
river, and that brings me to the question of the information I want you
to give me. How far is it from the next bridge on the south, and are
there any Federal troops there?"

"It is about seven miles to the bridge at Williamsport; we are just
halfway between that and the railway bridge at Columbus. Yes, there are
certainly troops there."

"Then I see no way for it but to make a small raft to carry us across,
Miss Kingston. I am a good swimmer,