A MYSTERY
Before him stood the sister of Sairy Ann, whom he had heard the latter
address as 'Liza Jane. That her sympathies were not with the side for
which he was fighting Noel well knew, but his great fear as he saw the
woman was that her husband might not be far away.
Noel recalled the contempt with which Sairy Ann had referred to her
sister as one of the "secesh," and, in spite of his alarm at the
discovery of her presence, he smiled as he recalled the sharp
declaration of Sairy Ann that in her will she had left her shoestrings
to her "beloved sister, 'Liza Jane."
Before he spoke Noel quickly decided that he would try to find out
whether or not the woman recognized him. He did not believe that she had
seen him when he had been in her sister's house, and yet it was
impossible for him to determine whether his confidence was well founded
or not.
To all appearances no man was near. What he had taken for the "big
house" of a plantation when he had seen the place in the distance, he
now saw was only a bare habitation, and the "plantation" had decreased
to a few uncultivated and unfruitful acres. The appearance of the woman
herself was not unlike that of her surroundings.
"Well," demanded Eliza Jane, "who be yo'? Whar do yo' all come from?
What be yo' all doin' here?"
"Is your husband at home?" inquired Noel.
"No; he ain't to home. What do yo' want toe see him fo'?"
"Oh, I don't want to see him; I just wanted to know whether he was here
or not. In fact I don't want to see anybody just now," continued Noel,
smiling in such a way that the suspicions of the questioner were
apparently relieved in part.
"Has Levi been here lately?" asked Noel abruptly.
"Maybe he has and maybe he hasn't," said the woman. "I can't keep track
of Sam Tolliver's doin's. He has all kinds of men here. Who is Levi?"
"Why, he is a little sutler that used to be in the Yankee army and now
is doing what he can for--"
"I reckon he's been here," spoke up the woman promptly. "What might yo'
all want o' him?"
"I don't want anything of him just now," said Noel, his face again
lighting up with the smile which won him friends on every side. "What I
want now is something to eat. I'm as hungry as a bear and almost as
thirsty as I am hungry. Can you help me? I shan't be able to pay you--"
"Who said anything about payin'?" broke in the woman. "I ain't got much
fo' toe eat, but I reckon pa't of what I has is fo' yo' all. Come in and
set ye down at the kitchen table and I'll see what I can do fo' yo'."
Too hungry and thirsty to delay, Noel promptly accepted the invitation,
and after he had washed his face and hands, he eagerly took his place at
the table as the woman directed.
The young soldier was well aware that he was in the midst of perils. If
the husband of his hostess should return or Levi should come, his
position was not one to be envied. Not that he was afraid of either of
the men in a personal encounter; but he was unarmed, while the man whom
Eliza Jane had called Sam Tolliver was doubtless thoroughly armed and
desperate. Besides, if he was playing the part which Noel suspected, and
was obtaining information concerning the plans and movements of the
Federal troops and reporting the knowledge to the leaders of the
Confederates, he was well aware that the man was one to be feared.
Noel's meditations were interrupted by the approach of his hostess who
placed some corn-bread and a small jug of molasses upon the table before
him.
"'Tis about the best pore folks can have these days," she said. "I don't
know how I happened to save that ther' molasses, but Sam never likes his
co'n-bread unless he can po' molasses over it, and we had a barrel put
in the cellar before the Yanks started all this trouble."
"I don't want to rob you," said Noel.
"Who said anything about yo' robbin' me? I reckon I haven't got much
that would pay any robber toe take. If yo' all don't like that molasses,
why, jest say so."
"I do like it," said Noel, "and I am grateful to you for giving it to
me."
Without further delay the young soldier at once began his breakfast, all
the time aware that the woman was watching him with an expression which
gave evidence that her feeling was more than mere hospitality.
Finally, unable to resist her curiosity longer, she broke in: "What pa't
of the No'th do yo' all come from?"
"How do you know I am from the North? What makes you think that?"
"Jest as soon as I heard yo' all talk," said the woman, "I knew yo' was
a Yank. Strange how queer th' Yanks talk."
Noel laughed and did not give expression to his own feeling that the
dialect that he had heard in the South had impressed him much the same
way as his hostess had been impressed by the voices and words of the
Northern soldiers.
"I reckon," she continued, "that yo' all are one of McClellan's men,
though what yo' all are doin' over yere is more than I can understand.
Yo' all are not looking fo' my man, Sam, are yo'?"
"I assure you that I am not," said Noel promptly. And the young soldier
spoke honestly, for of all men Sam Tolliver was the one he least desired
to see at the time.
"Run away from the army?" inquired the woman.
"No."
"Well, then, what are yo' all doin' out yere? I see yo' ain't got no
coat, but in spite of the dirt I can see that yo' pants is the same as
all th' Yankee soldiers wear."
"How far is the Northern army from here?" inquired Noel, without
answering her question.
"That's more than I can say. Sometimes they say it's in one place and
then again they say it's in 'nother. If Sam was here he could tell yo'.
Sam knows more than any man I ever see."
Noel did not explain his suspicions that Sam's knowledge included some
things which he knew and some things which he did not know.
"I don't suppose you see very much of him now," he said aloud.
"Not as much as I used toe," said the woman, "though befo' the war Sam
used to go out with houn' dogs and be gone days at a time huntin'
rabbits. He was a pow'ful good shot."
"He must have kept you pretty well supplied with rabbits," suggested
Noel.
"Sometimes he did and sometimes he didn't," replied Eliza Jane.
"Sometimes the pesky little varmints would get away befo' Sam had a
chance toe fire. They seemed toe know that he was a dead-sure shot."
Noel's suspicions as to the prowess of the wonderful Sam once more were
not voiced. He was content if only the woman would feed him and permit
him to depart without further trouble.
"Sam says," continued the woman, whose readiness to talk was manifest,
"that there isn't goin' toe be much left o' the Yanks pretty quick. He
thinks there is goin' toe be some fightin' befo' long and the Yanks will
get whipped worse 'n they were at Manassas. I would jes' like toe see my
sister, Sairy Ann. I wonder what she'll think of the secesh then. She
can keep her old shoestrings if she wants 'em! You know she's my own
sister and she's worth a lot of money. Befo' the war she had nigh on toe
two hundred dollars. Think of Sairy Ann leaving me in her will nothin'
but her shoestrings! I believe she joined the Yanks jest a purpose so
she could turn ag'in her own relations. Shoestrings!" snapped the woman,
whose recollection of her sister's generosity renewed her feeling of
anger.
By this time Noel's hunger had been appeased in a measure and he was
eager to be gone. Before he arose from his seat at the table he turned
again to his hostess and said simply, "Do you know where the Northern
army is?
"I done tole yo'," she replied tartly, "that sometimes 'tis said toe be
in one place and sometimes in another."
"Where is it reported to be now?"
"I can't say. Now, if Sam was home--"
Without waiting for further enlightenment as to the knowledge and
ability of the missing Sam, Noel said, "Well, if you cannot tell me
where the army is, you can tell me the road to take."
"No, I can't. Yo' all might take mos' any road an' the first thing yo'
know yo' would run right into McClellan's troops, an' then ag'in yo'
might run intoe General Lee's."
"At all events," said Noel, "I'm grateful to you for your kindness to
me. You have taken me in, and though I was a stranger--"
"But I ain't been entertainin' no angel unawares," snapped the woman.
"You don't look to me very much like a angel, with that mud on yo'
pants. I am thinkin', too," she added, as she glanced out of the window,
"that it might be well fo' yo' toe start right soon, that is if yo' 're
goin' toe go."
"What's the trouble?" demanded Noel, leaping to his feet and running to
the side of the woman, where he looked anxiously out of the window.
The statement of Eliza Jane was correct, for a small body of men was
moving in an orderly manner up the road. Noel watched them with keen
interest, and at first was unable to determine to which side in the
conflict they belonged.
His interest changed to alarm when he saw the men abruptly halt, and
then, at the command of their leader, turn into the yard leading
directly to the house.
The woman by his side had not spoken, but when she exclaimed, "Them's
Yanks," Noel also made the discovery at the same moment. The approaching
men belonged to his own army, and in the thought of being once more
among his friends and comrades the heart of the young soldier suddenly
was lightened. Rushing to the door he ran across the yard to meet the
boys in blue.
To his consternation as he drew near, he discovered that Dennis was
among the number, and also that he was a prisoner. Just what this meant,
Noel was unable to conjecture, but his interest in his comrade was
speedily banished when to his amazement he saw Levi, the little sutler,
also in the company, talking eagerly to the captain and pointing
excitedly toward Noel as he spoke.