Closes round the ghastly fight,
If the vanquished warrior bow,
Spare him--by our holy vow;
By our prayers and many tears;
By the mercy that endears--
Spare him--he our love hath shared;
Spare him as thou wouldst be spared.
8. "Take thy banner, and, if e'er
Thou shouldst press the soldier's bier.
And the muffled drums should beat
To the tread of mournful feet,
Then this common flag shall be
Martial cloak and shroud for thee.
And the warrior took that banner proud.
And it was his martial cloak and shroud."
_XXIII.--LYDIA DARRAH._
1. While the British were in Philadelphia, one of Howe's principal
officers made his quarters at the house of a Quaker named William
Darrah. His wife, Lydia, was a true patriot, but she said so little,
and performed her household work so well, that she won the entire
confidence of her guest. One day he said to her, "I expect some friends
to call this evening, and they will stay late, so have your family out
of the way early." This order aroused her curiosity, and, when her
family were in bed, she took off her shoes and went into the passage
and listened to what was going on. She heard one of the officers read
an order of Sir William Howe for the troops to march out the next night
silently, and surprise Washington in his quarters. She went back to
bed, and, when it was time for her to get up and let out the visitors,
she was apparently fast asleep. She formed her plans during the night,
and, early in the morning, she awakened her husband and told him that
flour was wanted for family use, and that she must go to Frankford to
get it.
2. It was a cold morning in December, and a deep snow covered the
ground. On foot, with a bag in her hand, she set out, calling at Howe's
headquarters for a permit to leave the city. At an early hour she
reached Frankford, and, leaving her bag at the mill, she went on until
she reached the American outposts. Here she met Colonel Craig, who had
been sent out by Washington to get what news he could of the enemy.
To him Mrs. Darrah told her story, and then went back to the mill,
shouldered her flour, and hastened home.
3. From her window, the next night, in the cold starlight, she watched
the British troops as they marched silently out of town, and a few
hours later she saw them on their way back from their "fool's errand."
The officer came home and bade Lydia go to his room. With an air of
great secrecy he said, "Were any of your family up on the night when I
had company in my room?" "No," she replied; "they all retired at eight
o'clock." "It is very strange," said the officer. "You, I know, was
asleep, for I knocked on your door three times before you heard me.
But, by some means, our plans became known, for, when we went out, we
found Washington ready to receive us, with his cannon mounted and his
troops under arms, so we were compelled to march back like a parcel of
fools."
_XXIV.--THE LIBERTY-BELL._
1. The old State-House at Philadelphia still stands, and is preserved
with the greatest care. Thousands of people from all parts of the
United States visit it every year, for here Congress met in 1776, and
here the Declaration of Independence was signed, July 4th. In the
State-House is kept the old Liberty-Bell, which is thought almost as
sacred as the house itself.
2. This bell was bought in England, in 1752, for the State-House. It
was then the largest bell in America. Upon the first trial-ringing it
cracked, and it hung unused in the steeple for a year. It was then
taken down and recast, with these words in relief letters around its
top: "_Proclaim liberty throughout the land, unto all the inhabitants
thereof._" In the hall underneath this very bell, twelve years later,
Congress did indeed proclaim liberty, and the joyful ringing of
this bell first told the crowd of anxious people without that the
Declaration of Independence had been passed. For two hours the tones
of the bell floated down from above and mingled with the roll of drums,
the booming of cannon, and shouts of the multitudes below.
[Illustration]
3. After more than fifty years of service, the bell was cracked again,
and rendered useless. It is now kept as a sacred relic of the past. The
following is the last stanza of a poem upon the old bell by William
Ross Wallace:
4. "That old bell is still seen by the patriot's eye,
And he blesses it ever, when journeying by;
Long years have passed o'er it, and yet every soul
Will thrill, in the night, to its wonderful roll;
For it speaks to its belfry when kissed by the blast,
Like a glory-breathed tone from the mystical past.
Long years shall roll o'er it, and yet every chime
Shall unceasingly tell of an era sublime;
Oh, yes! if the flame on our altars should pale,
Let its voice but be heard, and the freeman will start,
To rekindle the fire, while he sees on the gale
All the stars and the stripes of the flag of his heart."
_XXV.--THE TORY'S HORSE._
1. While Cornwallis was virtually master of the Carolinas, raids were
made in all directions to prevent the patriots from assembling, and to
break up the bands of Sumter and Marion, which had proved to be very
annoying to the British commander. The most noted commander of these
raids was Colonel Tarleton, who displayed great activity in plundering
and burning the homes of the patriots. Some of the planters were
Tories, and eagerly welcomed the British troops.
2. While Tarleton was out on one of his raids, Macdonald, a young
Scotchman, one of Marion's men, played a curious trick on an old
Tory, who lived in the neighborhood. As soon as he heard that Colonel
Tarleton had encamped, he dressed himself in the British uniform, and
early in the morning called upon the Tory, and said to him:
3. "Colonel Tarleton sends his compliments, and, knowing you to be a
good friend of the king, begs you will send him one of your best horses
for a charger, to help drive the rebels out of the country."
4. "Send him one of my finest horses!" cried the old Tory, his eyes
sparkling with joy. "Yes, Mr. Sergeant, that I will. A good friend
of the king did he call me? Yes, God save his sacred majesty, a good
friend I am, indeed, and true! And faith I am glad, too, that the
colonel knows it. Here, Dick, run, jump, fly, you rascal, to the
stable, and bring me out Selim. Young Selim! Do you hear?"
5. Then, turning to Macdonald, he went on: "Well, Mr. Sergeant, you
have made me confounded glad this morning, you may depend! And now,
suppose you take a glass of peach--of good old peach, Mr. Sergeant?
Do you think it would do you any harm?" "Why, they say it is good on
a rainy morning, sir," replied Macdonald. "Oh, yes, famous of a rainy
morning, Mr. Sergeant--a mighty _antifogmatic_. It prevents the ague,
Mr. Sergeant, and clears the throat of the cob webs, sir."
6. "Your honor's health!" said Macdonald, as he turned off a bumper of
the strong cordial. But scarcely had he smacked his lips, before Dick
paraded Selim, a proud, full-blooded steed, that stepped as though he
disdained the earth he walked upon.
[Illustration]
7. Here the old fellow broke out again: "There, Mr. Sergeant, there
is a horse for you! A charger fit for a king. Well, my compliments to
Colonel Tarleton. Tell him I have sent him my young Selim--my Grand
Turk. Say to him that he is too noble for me, and that the only work
fit for him is to drive the rebels out of the country." And, to send
Selim off in high style, he ordered Dick to bring down his new saddle
and holsters, with his silver-mounted pistols. Then, giving Macdonald a
hot breakfast, and lending him a great-coat, as it was raining, he let
him go.
8. The next morning he waited upon Colonel Tarleton, and told his
name, with the smiling countenance of one who expected to be eaten up
with fondness. But Tarleton treated him as an entire stranger. After
recovering a little, he bluntly asked Colonel Tarleton how he liked
his charger. "Charger, sir!" replied Tarleton. "Yes, sir, the elegant
horse I sent you yesterday by your sergeant." "An elegant horse by my
sergeant? I really don't understand this!"
9. The looks and voice of Colonel Tarleton too sadly convinced the
old traitor that he had been bit, and that young Selim was gone.
To have been outwitted in this manner by a rebel--to have lost his
peach-brandy, his hot breakfast, his great-coat, his new saddle, his
silver-mounted pistols, and, worse than all, his darling horse, his
young, full-blooded, bounding Selim--the sense of all these losses
came crowding upon him so suddenly that the old sinner liked to have
suffocated on the spot. He grew black in the face, and as soon as he
could recover breath he broke out into a torrent of curses against the
rebels generally, and Macdonald in particular.
10. And Selim! a noble horse he was indeed! Full sixteen hands high,
with the eye of a hawk, the spirit of a king-eagle, the chest of a
lion, swifter than a roebuck, and strong as a buffalo! Macdonald kept
Selim up lustily to the top of his mettle. The horse soon learned his
master's ways, and at the first glimpse of the red-coats he would paw
and champ his bit with rage; and the moment he heard the word "Go!" off
he was among them like a thunderbolt.
_XXVI.--GENERAL SCHUYLER._
1. In the year 1781 the war was chiefly carried on in the South, but
the North was constantly troubled by parties of Tories and Indians, who
would swoop down on some small settlements, and make off with whatever
they could lay their hands on.
2. During this time General Schuyler was staying at his house, which
stood just outside the stockade or walls of Albany. The British
commander sent out a party of Tories and Indians to capture General
Schuyler.
3. When they reached the outskirts of the city, they learned from
a Dutch laborer, whom they had taken, that the general's house was
guarded by six soldiers, three watching by night, and three by day.
They then let the Dutchman go, after making him swear an oath of
secrecy. This oath he did not keep very strictly, for, the minute the
band was out of sight, he took to his short legs and warned the general
of their approach.
4. On one of those scorching August days, when you feel as if you
hardly had energy enough to move, and when the very trees droop their
dusty leaves, too lazy to hold up their heads, Schuyler and his family
were sitting in the large hall, when a servant entered and told the
general that there was a strange man at the back door who wished to see
him.
5. Schuyler, understanding the trap, gathered his family in one of the
upper rooms, and, giving orders that the doors and windows should be
barred, fired a pistol from one of the top-story windows to alarm the
neighborhood. The guards, who had been lounging in the shade of a tree,
started to their feet at the sound of the pistol; but, alas! too late,
for they found themselves surrounded by a crowd of dusky figures, who
bound them hand and foot, before they had time to resist.
6. In the room up-stairs was the sturdy general, standing resolutely
by the door, with his gun in hand, his black slaves gathered around
him, each with some weapon. At the other end of the room the women were
huddled together, some weeping, some praying. Suddenly, a crash is
heard, which chills the very blood, and brings vividly to each one's
mind the tales of Indian massacres so common at that day. The band had
broken in at one of the windows.
7. At that moment, Mrs. Schuyler springing to her feet, rushed to the
door; for she remembered that the baby, only a few months old, having
been forgotten in the hour of flight, was asleep in its cradle on the
first floor. But the general, catching her in his arms, told her that
her life was of more value than her child's, and that, if any one must
go, he would. While, however, this generous struggle was going on, the
third daughter, gliding past them, was soon at the side of the cradle.
All was as black as night in the hall, save for a small patch of light
just at the foot of the stairs; this came from the dining-room, where
the Indians could be seen pillaging the shelves, pulling down the
china, and quarreling with one another over their ill-gotten booty.
[Illustration]
8. How to get past the spot was the question, but the girl did not
hesitate. She reached the cradle unobserved, and was just darting
back with her precious burden, when, by ill-luck, one of the savages
happened to see her. Whiz! went his sharp tomahawk, within a few inches
of the baby's head, and, clearing the edge of the brave girl's dress,
stuck deep in the stair-rail.
9. Just then one of the Tories, seeing her flit by, and supposing
her to be a servant, called after her, "Wench, wench, where is your
master?" She, stopping a moment, called back, "Gone to alarm the town!"
and, hurrying on, was soon again with her father up-stairs.
10. And now, nearly all the plunder having been secured, the band
was about to proceed to the real object of the expedition, when the
general, raising one of the windows, called out in lusty tones, as if
commanding a large body of men: "Come on, my brave fellows! Surround
the house! Secure the villains who are plundering!" The cowards knew
that voice, and they each and every one of them took to the woods as
fast as their legs would carry them, leaving the general in possession
of the field.
_XXVII.--ODE._
1. How sleep the brave who sink to rest,
With all their country's wishes blest!
When Spring, with dewy fingers cold,
Returns to deck their hallowed mold,
She then shall dress a sweeter sod
Than Fancy's feet have ever trod.
2. By fairy-hands their knell is rung;
By forms unseen their dirge is sung;
Then Honor comes, a pilgrim gray,
To bless the turf that wraps their clay;
And Freedom shall awhile repair.
And dwell a weeping hermit there.
--_Collins_
SCOTTISH STORIES.
_XXVIII.--EDINBURGH CASTLE._
1. While Robert Bruce was gradually getting possession of the country,
and driving out the English, Edinburgh, the principal town of Scotland,
remained with its strong castle in possession of the invaders. Sir
Thomas Randolph was extremely desirous to gain this important place,
but the castle is situated on a very steep and lofty rock, so that it
is difficult, or almost impossible even, to get up to the foot of the
walls, much more to climb over them. So, while Randolph was considering
what was to be done, there came to him a Scottish gentleman, named
Francis, who had joined Bruce's standard, and asked to speak with him
in private. He then told Randolph that in his youth he had lived in the
castle of Edinburgh, and that his father had then been governor of the
fortress.
2. It happened at that time that Francis was much in love with a lady
who lived in a part of the town beneath the castle, which is called the
Grass-Market. Now, as he could not get out of the castle by day to see
his mistress, he had practiced a way of clambering by night down the
castle crag on the steep side, and returning up at his pleasure; when
he came to the foot of the wall he made use of a ladder to get over
it, as it was not very high on that point, those who built it having
trusted to the steepness of the crag. Francis had gone and come so
frequently in this dangerous manner that, though it was now long ago,
he told Randolph he knew the road so well that he would undertake to
guide a small party of men by night to the bottom of the wall, and, as
they might bring ladders with them, there would be no difficulty in
scaling it. The great risk was that of their being discovered by the
watchmen while in the act of ascending the cliff, in which case every
man of them must perish.
3. Nevertheless, Randolph did not hesitate to attempt the adventure. He
took with him only thirty men, and came one dark night to the foot of
the crag, which they began to ascend under the guidance of Francis, who
went before them, upon his hands and feet, where there was scarce room
to support themselves. All the while these thirty men were obliged to
follow in a line, one after the other, by a path that was fitter for a
cat than for a man. The noise of a stone falling, or a word spoken from
one to another, would have alarmed the watchmen. They were obliged,
therefore, to move with the greatest precaution. When they were far up
the crag, and near the foundation of the wall, they heard the guards
going their rounds, to see that all was safe in and about the castle.
4. Randolph and his party had nothing for it but to lie close and
quiet, each man under the crag, as he happened to be placed, and trust
that the guards would pass by without noticing them. And while they
were waiting in breathless alarm, they got a new cause of fright.
One of the soldiers of the castle, willing to startle his comrades,
suddenly threw a stone from the wall, and cried out, "Aha! I see you
well!" The stone came thundering down over the heads of Randolph and
his men, who naturally thought themselves discovered. If they had
stirred, or made the slightest noise, they would have been destroyed,
for the soldiers above might have killed every man of them, merely by
rolling down stones. But being courageous and chosen men, they remained
quiet, and the English soldiers, who thought their comrade was merely
playing them a trick (as indeed he was), passed on, without further
examination.
5. Then Randolph and his men got up and came in haste to the foot of
the wall, which was not above twice a man's height in that place.
They planted the ladders they had brought, and Francis mounted first
to show them the way; Sir Andrew Grey, a brave knight, followed him;
and Randolph himself was the third man who got over. Then the rest
followed. When once they were within the walls, there was not so much
to do, for the garrison were asleep, and unarmed, excepting the watch,
who were speedily destroyed. Thus was Edinburgh Castle taken, in the
year 1312-'13.
_XXIX.--SCOTTISH STRATEGY._
1. There was a strong castle near Linlithgow, where an English
governor, with a powerful garrison, lay in readiness to support the
English cause, and used to exercise much severity upon the Scotch
in the neighborhood. There lived, at no great distance from this
stronghold, a farmer, a bold and stout man, whose name was Binnock,
or, as it is now pronounced, Binning. This man saw with great joy the
progress which the Scotch were making in recovering their country from
the English, and resolved to do something to help his countrymen, by
getting possession, if it were possible, of the Castle of Linlithgow.
But the place was very strong, situated by the side of a lake, defended
not only by gates, which were usually kept shut against strangers,
but also by a portcullis. A portcullis is a sort of door formed of
cross-bars of iron, like a gate. It has not hinges like a door, but is
drawn up by pulleys, and let down when any danger approaches. It may
be let go in a moment, and then falls down into the doorway, and, as
it has great iron spikes at the bottom, it crushes all that it lights
upon; and in case of a sudden alarm, a portcullis may be let suddenly
fall, to defend the entrance when it is not possible to shut the gates.
Binnock knew this very well, but he resolved to be provided against
this risk also when he attempted to surprise the castle.
2. So he spoke with some bold, courageous countrymen, and engaged
them in the enterprise, which he accomplished thus: Binnock had been
accustomed to supply the garrison of Linlithgow with hay, and he had
been ordered by the English governor to furnish some cart-loads, of
which they were in want. He promised to bring it accordingly; but, in
the night before he drove the hay to the castle, he stationed a party
of his friends, as well armed as possible, near the entrance, where
they could not be seen by the garrison, and gave them directions that
they should come to his assistance as soon as they should hear him
give a signal, which was to be, "Call all, call all!" Then he loaded
his cart, and placed eight strong men, well armed, lying flat on their
breasts, and covered over with hay, so that they could not be seen. He
himself walked carelessly beside the wagon; and he chose the stoutest
and bravest of his servants to be the driver, who carried at his belt a
stout axe or hatchet.
3. In this way Binnock approached the castle early in the morning; and
the watchman, who only saw two men, Binnock being one of them, with
a cart of hay, which they expected, opened the gates, and raised up
the portcullis to permit them to enter the castle. But as soon as the
cart had got under the gateway, Binnock made a sign to his servant,
who with his axe suddenly cut asunder the soam (that is, the yoke which
fastens the horses to the cart), and the horses, finding themselves
free, naturally started forward, the cart remaining behind. At the same
moment Binnock cried, as loud as he could, "Call all, call all!" and
drawing his sword, which he had under his country habit, he killed the
porter. The armed men then jumped up from under the hay, where they lay
concealed, and rushed on the English guard. The Englishmen tried to
shut the gates, but they could not, because the cart of hay remained
in the gateway, and prevented the folding-doors from being closed. The
portcullis was also let fall, but the grating was caught on the cart,
and so could not drop to the ground. The men who were in ambush near
the gate, hearing the cry, "Call all, call all!" ran to assist those
who had leaped out from among the hay; the castle was taken, and all
the Englishmen killed or made prisoners. King Robert rewarded Binnock
by bestowing on him an estate, which his posterity afterward enjoyed.
_XXX.--CASTLE DANGEROUS._
1. Roxburgh was then a very large castle, situated near where two fine
rivers, the Tweed and the Teviot, join each other. Being within five
or six miles of the border, the English were extremely desirous of
retaining it, and the Scots equally so of obtaining possession of it.
2. It was upon the night of what is called Shrove-tide, a holiday,
which Roman Catholics paid great respect to, and solemnized, with much
gayety and feasting.
3. Most of the garrison of Roxburgh Castle were feasting and drinking,
but still they had set watches on the battlements of the castle, in
case of any sudden attack; for, as the Scots had succeeded in so
many enterprises of the kind, and as Douglas was known to be in the
neighborhood, they thought themselves obliged to keep a very strict
guard.
4. There was also an Englishwoman, the wife of one of the officers, who
was sitting on the battlements with her child in her arms, and, looking
out on the fields below, she saw some black objects, like a herd of
cattle, straggling in near the foot of the wall, and approaching the
ditch or moat of the castle. She pointed them out to the sentinel, and
asked him what they were. "Pooh, pooh!" said the soldier, "it is Farmer
Such-a-man's cattle" (naming a man whose farm lay near to the castle).
"The good man is keeping a jolly Shrove-tide, and has forgot to shut up
his bullocks in their yard; but if the Douglas come across them before
morning, he is likely to rue his negligence."
5. Now, these creeping objects they saw from the castle were no real
cattle, but Douglas himself and his soldiers, who had put black cloaks
above their armor, and were creeping about on their hands and feet,
in order, without being observed, to get so near to the foot of the
castle-wall as to be able to set ladders to it. The poor woman, who
knew nothing of this, sat quietly on the wall, and began to sing to her
child. You must know that the name of Douglas was become so terrible to
the English, that the women used to frighten their children with it,
and say to them, when they behaved ill, that they would make the Black
Douglas take them. And this soldier's wife was singing to her child:
"Hush ye, hush ye, little pet ye;
Hush ye, hush ye, do not fret ye;
The Black Douglas shall not get thee."
"You are not so sure of that!" said a voice close beside her. She felt
at that moment a heavy hand, with an iron glove, laid on her shoulder,
and when she looked round, she saw the very Black Douglas, she had been
singing about, standing close beside her, a tall, swarthy, strong man.
At the same time another Scotsman was seen ascending the walls near to
the sentinel. The soldier gave the alarm, and rushed at the Scotsman,
whose name was Simon Ledehouse, with his lance; but Simon parried the
blow, and, closing with the sentinel, struck him a deadly blow with his
dagger.
[Illustration]