THE RESULT OF THE FLANK MOVEMENT
Even the title of major which had been thrust upon him could not make
the planter of Riverlawn feel like a military commander as he led his
battalion of foot and mounted volunteers to the old road, which might
prove to be a battle-field. His force consisted of only four white
men,--himself, his son, Tom Belthorpe, and Squire Truman. Deck had been
provided with a saddle horse from the stable of the Lyndhall planter, so
that all of them were well mounted.
Four of the mounted boys from Riverlawn, four of them on foot, and about
twenty of the colonel's ablest hands formed the rest of his force. The
latter were as emulous to fight the battle of their master as those who
had been sent to the new road. Major Lyon's boys had already been under
fire, and they were exceedingly proud of the experience. They talked
rather large, perhaps, to the Lyndhall volunteers, and told them they
must stand up to it when the enemy fired, and must not run away though
they were sure they would be shot. They were earnestly counselled not
"to disgrace the race."
At that time a negro soldier was unknown, and most white men, especially
at the South, would as soon have thought of arming and drilling a lot of
baboons and monkeys; and even those in Barcreek who were willing to
accept their services in defence of their families and their property
had never dreamed of such a thing as making soldiers of the negroes.
Their steadiness under fire, though they had been subjected to only a
discharge of random shots, filled the slaveholders present with
astonishment, if not with admiration.
When the force reached the old road, there was nothing to be seen of the
ruffians, for it was quite dark, and they were beyond the hill, which
obstructed their view. But the scouts had reported them as approaching,
and the major in command was not inclined to await their coming. He gave
the order to march; but they had gone only a few rods before the column
was seen at the top of the hill. A halt was called in order to enable
the prudent commander to prepare a plan for the assault.
The advance of the force was evidently perceived by the ruffians, for
they also halted, and in a few moments more a great fire was blazing up
at the side of the road. On the march so far, Tom and Deck had done a
good deal of talking together. Since his brave and determined defence of
Miss Kate in the cross-cut, and his strategy in disposing of Buck
Lagger, Tom had a very high respect and regard for Deck.
"My father isn't much of a soldier, any more than the rest of us," said
Deck, as the major gave the order to halt. "If we fire at those
scalliwags, they will scatter and run away, as they did at the creek
bridge, and be all ready to burn a house or run off with a girl as soon
as they get the chance. I believe we ought to punish them so that they
will remember it till to-morrow or next day."
"Just my idea," replied Tom. "These niggers stand up to the fight like
white men. I believed they would all run away at the first shot from an
enemy."
"Not one of them flinched on the bridge or in the road when the ruffians
fired into them, my father says, for I was not there then; I was in the
artillery service just at that time."
"In the artillery service!" exclaimed Tom, laughing at the magnificent
speech of his companion in arms.
"Exactly so; you have heard the story of the capture of the arms at the
sink-hole; the cannon are mounted in the ice-house. If you see one of
our darkeys flinch when the firing begins, I wish you would let me know,
and we will cut down his hominy ration," rattled Deck, as enthusiastic
as though he had slept all night instead of half an hour. "But I have
got an idea."
"You seem to have one in tow all the time."
"I want you to mention it to my father if you believe in it, and he will
think more of it than if I put it forward."
"Your father seems to think a good deal of what you say and do."
"He will think I am too old for my years; but he is the best father I
ever had, and I want him to come out of this scrape with flying colors."
"But what is your idea, Deck?" asked Tom curiously.
"I think my father is waked up to the bottom of his boots; he won't fool
with any flags of truce, and he will order us all to fire as soon as the
time comes, though his own brother is in the gang ahead of us, or in the
one over on the other road."
"I am sure he won't wince."
"And the moment we fire, the ruffians will all run away, which the
darkeys won't do. That is just what I have seen them do twice to-night.
I wonder what they came over here for if they didn't mean to fight."
"They came over here to burn your father's house and that of mine; but I
reckon they didn't expect to get the reception Major Lyon had prepared
for them."
"They will run away, Tom," repeated Deck; "and that is just what I don't
want them to be allowed to do."
"Not if we can prevent it; for I believe that hanging would do good to
some of them."
"We can prevent it if my father will adopt your suggestion," added Deck.
"My suggestion! I haven't got any suggestion, and I don't know what you
are talking about, Deck," replied Tom, puzzled with the remark. "All the
way I can see to manage this affair is to rush at the ruffians and drive
them off."
"We don't want to drive them off till we have given them a little
wholesome discipline. I suppose you know what a flank movement is,
fellow-soldier?"
"I have an idea what it is."
"We used to practise it when we were snowballing on sides away up in the
glorious State of New Hampshire, if we got a chance to do it."
"We don't practise snowballing much down here, and I never was engaged
in a flank movement at a snowball match. But I have an idea that it is
getting around the enemy, whether in a battle or a game, and taking them
on the side or in the rear."
"You could not have stated it any better if you had been studying the
art of war or the science of snowballing all your lifetime," added Deck.
"Be a little more serious, Mr. Lyon, and I shall understand you better,"
said Tom, looking very grave himself.
"I will be as serious as the parson at a funeral, Mr. Belthorpe. We have
plenty of men to flank them handsomely; for it don't take a great crowd
with seven-shooters in their hands to hold that gang where they are."
"I see what you mean now."
"What kind of ground is it over on the left of this road, Tom?"
"It is one of our best fields."
"Can horses travel on it?"
"Just as well as on this road."
"Then your suggestion to the commander-in-chief of the forces is that he
send a detachment of six men, mounted and armed with repeating rifles,
through the field on the left, with orders to fire on the ruffians when
the fight opens," continued Deck earnestly.
"It is a brilliant idea, and I will do it at once," replied Tom.
"Hold on a minute, and suggest that the detachment be under the command
of Captain Tom Belthorpe," added Deck.
"I shall amend that by substituting the name of Captain Deck Lyon,"
replied Tom, as he started ahead to overtake the commander.
"Don't do that!" shouted Deck.
Everything seemed to be at a standstill; but the blazing fire revealed a
flag of truce flying in front of the enemy. Tom delivered his suggestion
to Major Lyon without mentioning the fact that it came from his son; and
the commander promptly approved it. He believed that there must surely
be fighting this time, and that if the defenders, as he called them,
were defeated, Colonel Belthorpe's mansion would soon be in flames, and
perhaps his lovely daughters would fall into the hands of the vicious
wretches composing the mob.
"How many men do you need?"
"The four mounted men from your place, Deck, and myself," replied the
bearer of the suggestion.
"Very well, I give you the order to that effect; but don't you think
some older person than Dexter had better be in command?"
"Decidedly not, Major!" answered Tom with emphasis. "I believe Deck is
the smartest fellow in the crowd, except yourself."
"All right; have your own way, then," replied the commander. "But can
you tell me the nature of the land on the right hand side of the road?"
"The creek runs from above the mansion in that direction to the river,
and it is swampy on both sides of it," replied Tom, as he hurried away
to rejoin Deck.
During the absence of Tom Belthorpe, the young hero had been carefully
studying the position of the enemy and the surroundings. He could see
the brook, or creek as such streams are called in that region, by the
light of the fire on the hill, hardly deserving that appellation, for it
was only a very slight elevation. The bushes were like those he had seen
near the spring road, and several pools or ponds reflected the light of
the fire. He was satisfied that the ruffians could not retreat in that
direction.
Before Tom joined him the flag of truce with four men began to advance
towards Major Lynn's force. The commander's "infantry," consisting of
four Riverlawn negroes, were drawn up in front. The twenty Lyndhall
hands, miscellaneously armed with clubs and such implements as they had
been able to obtain, had also been formed across the road; and they were
as eager to "pitch into" the marauders as their fellows on the new road
had been; but the commander restrained them.
"Here you are, Captain Lyon, and my mission has been a success," said
Tom, as he rode up to the "cavalry" posted in the rear, where that arm
is not usually placed. "You are to command the flanking party, and
Squire Truman is requested to join the commander at the front."
The lawyer, who had not been informed of the intended movement,
immediately hastened to the front. Tom reported what had passed between
the major and himself, and a few minutes later the squire was seen
riding towards the hill. He had been directed by the major to inform the
ruffians that no flag of truce would be respected, and that he would
open fire very soon.
Deck objected to taking command of the cavalry; but Tom insisted, for he
really believed his companion was better qualified for the position than
himself, and the young man finally yielded the point. Captain Lyon, as
he had been called more than once during the night, proceeded to address
the four cavalrymen, informing them what was to be done, and what was
expected of them.
He did not put on any airs, though he could hardly help "feeling his
oats;" but he was too much absorbed in the success of his enterprise to
think much of his personal self. There were no fences at the side of the
road; and, giving the command to march, he started his spirited horse,
and dashed at full gallop into the field, with Tom at his side, and the
four riders from Riverlawn in rank behind them.
Deck passed beyond the range of the firelight, so that the enemy could
not see his force, and in less than ten minutes they were abreast of
them. By this time the message of the major had been delivered by the
squire; and the result was a manifestation on the part of the ruffians.
Those who were armed with muskets or other firearms appeared to have
been placed in front, and they delivered what was intended for a volley,
though it was a very shaky one.
As the cavalry were passing over a knoll, Deck saw that his father was
marching his fore up the road; for the combatants were too far apart to
do each other much mischief by their fire. The enemy kept up a desultory
discharge of their guns, but they were evidently not repeating-rifles.
When he had reduced the distance by one-half between them, he ordered a
halt. At this point he unslung his breech-loader, as the squire had done
before, and ordered the front rank to fire.
But Deck did not halt; on the contrary, he urged his horse forward at a
more rapid rate, and was closely followed by his command. The infantry
in the road continued to fire at will after the first volley, and it was
evident to Captain Lyon that the enemy were breaking under this hot
work. Those in the rear had already taken to their heels; but the
cavalry dashed in ahead of them, and the young commander drew up his
little force in front of them. As soon as he had given the order to
halt, and the six men in line faced the enemy, he gave the command to
fire in detail. In the case of Major Lyon and his son, both officers did
duty as privates as well as commanders. The retreat was instantly
checked; and this was the situation when Colonel Belthorpe appeared upon
the field.