"Now, Miss Kingston, which do you think is our best course? Iknow nothing whatever of the geography here.""The next town is Mount Pleasant; that is where the Williamsport road passes the railway.If we keep south we shall strike the railway, and that will take us to Mount Pleasant.After that the road goes on to Florence, on the Tennessee River.The only place that I know of on the road is Lawrenceburg.That is about forty miles from here, and I have heard that the Yankees are on the line from there right and left.I believe our troops are at Florence; but Iam not sure about that, because both parties are constantly shifting their position, and I hear very little, as you may suppose, of what is being done.Anyhow, I think we cannot do better than go on until we strike the railway, keep along by that till we get within a short distance of Mount Pleasant, and then cross it.After that we can decide whether we will travel by the road or keep on through the woods.But we cannot find our way through the woods at night;we should lose ourselves before we had gone twenty yards.""I am afraid we should, Miss Kingston.""Please call me Lucy," the girl interrupted."I am never called anything else, and I am sure this is not a time for ceremony.""I think that it will be better; and will you please call me Vin.It is much shorter and pleasanter using our first names; and as we must pass for brother and sister if we get among the Yankees, it is better to get accustomed to it.I quite agree with you that it will be too dark to find our way through the woods unless we can discover a path.
Dan and I will see if we can find one.If we can, I think it will be better to go on a little way at any rate, so as to get our feet warm and let our clothes dry a little.""They will not dry to-night," Lucy said."It is so damp in the woods that even if our clothes were dry now they would be wet before morning.""I did not thihk of that.Yes, in that case I do not see that we should gain anything by going farther; we will push on for two or three hundred yards, if we can, and then we can light a fire without there being any chance of it being seen from the other side.""That would be comfortable, Mr.-I mean Vin," the girl agreed.
"That is, if you are quite sure that it would be safe.I would rather be wet all night than that we should run any risks.""I am sure if we can get a couple of hundred yards into this thick wood the fire would not be seen through it," Vincent said; "of course I do not mean to make a great bonfire which would light up the forest."For half an hour they forced their way through the bushes, and then Vincent said he was sure that they had come far enough.Finding a small open space, Dan, and Lucy, and the negress set to work collecting leaves and dry sticks.Vincent had still in his pocket the newspaper he had bought in the streets of Nashville, and he always carried lights.A piece of the paper was crumpled up and lighted, a few of the driest leaves they could find dropped upon it, then a few twigs, until at last a good fire was burning.
"I think that is enough for the present," Vincent said.we will keep on adding wood as fast as it burns down, so as to get a great pile of embers, and keep two or three good big logs burning all night."He then gave directions to Dan, who out a long stick and fastened it to two saplings, one of which grew just in front of the fire.Then he set to work and cut off branches, and laid them sloping against it, and soon had an arbor constructed of sufficient thickness to keep off the night dews.
"I think you will be snug in there," Vincent said when he bad finished."The heat of the fire will keep you dry and warm, and if you lie with your heads the other way I think your things will he dry by the morning.Dan and I will lie down by the other side of the fire.We are both accustomed to sleep in the open air, and have done so for months.""Thank you very much," she said."Our things are drying already, and I am as warm as a toast; but, indeed, you need not trouble about us.We brought these warm shawls with us on purpose for night-work in the forest.Now, I think we will try the contents of the basket Dan has been carrying."The basket, which was a good-sized one, was opened.Chloe had before starting put all the provisions in the house into it, and it contained three loaves, five or six pounds of bacon, a canister of tea and loaf-sugar, a small kettle, and two pint mugs, besides a number of odds and ends.The kettle Dan had, by Chloe's direction, filled with water before leaving the river, and this was soon placed among the glowing embers.
"But you have brought no teapot, Chloe."
