e
lads were stretched at full length on the hay. "I'm allowin' that
whatever happens, the Britishers won't look in a smoke-house for
American soldiers or sailors, an' we can stay here snug as bugs in a
rug, barrin' bein a little hungry, till Amos' father is in better
condition to travel."

"But it will be a long while before that wound is healed!" Jim Freeman
exclaimed in dismay.

"Yes, I reckon it'll be quite a spell, pervidin' the Britishers stay
in the city; but if they go it won't be a hard job to find a boat
that'll take us to the Patuxent. But there's little call to make much
talk about movin', for we can't leave one of the crowd, no matter what
happens to the rest of us."

By the time all this had been done it was sunset. The retreat from
Bladensburg had been begun about four o'clock in the afternoon, and we
were not so badly off to be in Washington and housed so soon after the
defeat.

The one distressing question was whether the enemy would make search
in the city for such as we?

After he had eaten all the scraps of ham remaining on the bone, Darius
set about making a more thorough examination of our refuge, beginning
with the small shutter at the top of the building which was used when,
the meat having been cured, it was desired to clear the place of
smoke.

"What are you doing up there?" my father asked when the old sailor
clambered on the logs to get at the shutter.

"Makin' sure we can keep a lookout in case things get too hot," Darius
replied with a laugh. "I'm allowin' this shutter can be swung open a
crack without its bein' noticed from the outside."

He had no more than opened the window when an exclamation burst from
his lips, and without delay I clambered up beside him.

From this point of vantage we had a fairly good view of what was going
on near about the Capitol building, and my heart beat fast and
furiously with fear as I saw the enemy advancing.

"There seems to be the biggest part of the British army," Darius said,
pointing in the direction of the burying-ground, where I could see the
soldiers bivouacking for the night; but nearer at hand were two
officers, evidently high in command--General Ross and Admiral
Cockburn, as I afterward learned--, with an escort of three or four
hundred men, riding directly toward us.

Within full view of our hiding-place was a dwelling standing near the
government building, and as we gazed I saw the flash of a musket come
from this house, when the