d struck upon the ear of
Howe as the prophetic inspiration of one whose keen eye had read from
the dark tablets of futurity.

"Looking around upon the officers, he perceived that Washington and
Lafayette had half risen from their seats, and were gazing spell-bound
at him, as if to drink in every word he uttered.

"Taking advantage of the pervading feeling, he went on:--

"'Soldiers--I look around upon your familiar faces with a strange
interest! To-morrow morning we will all go forth to battle--for need I
tell you that your unworthy minister will march with you, invoking God's
aid in the fight?--we will march forth to battle! Need I exhort you to
fight the good fight, to fight for your homesteads, and for your wives
and children?

'My friends, I might urge you to fight, by the galling memories of
British wrong! Walton--I might tell you of your father butchered in the
silence of midnight on the plains of Trenton; I might picture his grey
hairs dabbled in blood; I might ring his death-shriek in your ears.
Shelmire--I might tell you of a mother butchered, and a sister
outraged--the lonely farm-house, the night assault, the roof in flames,
the shouts of the troopers, as they despatch their victim, the cries
for mercy, the pleadings of innocence for pity. I might paint this all
again, in the terrible colors of the vivid reality, if I thought your
courage needed such wild excitement.

'But I know you are strong in the might of the Lord. You will forth to
battle on the morrow with light hearts and determined spirits, though
the solemn duty--the duty of avenging the dead--may rest heavy on your
souls.

'And in the hour of battle, when all around is darkness, lit by the
lurid cannon glare and the piercing musket flash--when the wounded strew
the ground, and the dead litter your path--then remember, soldiers, that
God is with you. The eternal God fights for you--He rides on the battle
cloud, He sweeps onward with the march of the hurricane charge--God, the
Awful and the Infinite, fights for you, and you will triumph.'

"Roused by this manly and pathetic appeal, a low murmur ran from man
to man, as a heartfelt response; and the chieftains who were near the
speaker, felt proud and happy in the command of such true hearts and
tried blades. But darkness was enveloping all, and he hastened to
conclude.

"'They that take the sword shall perish by the sword.'

'You have taken the sword, but not in the spirit of wrong and rava