The Sergeant, with four men, came on the double quick, and found Tom and
the Sentry standing in the middle of the road talking. The Sentry's gun
stood neglected, leaning against a tree.
"What does this mean, Cummins?" demanded the Sergeant.
"Here's one of the raiders," answered the Sentry, as though that was enough
to account for almost any negligence. And it was enough, for the Sergeant
forgot the Sentry completely. He grabbed Tom's hand.
"That was a wonderful job you boys did down there," he said. "We've been
waiting for you and watching all along the line."
"Am I the first one through?" asked Tom.
"I guess so. Are there any more behind you?"
"I don't know. I got separated from the others. There were three of us, and
the other two were captured. Are you sure that none of them reached the
line on the other side of Chattanooga?" he asked anxiously.
"We haven't heard of any," answered the Sergeant. "The whole country's
waiting for you, and I guess we'd have heard of it if any had come through
the lines. Say, when the news of the raid came out, the North just went
crazy with excitement."