III
Atthismomentthecooksteppedintoview,and,makingatrumpetofhistwohands,sentacrossthewateralong,weird,andnotunmusicalcry。Themenatoncebeganslowlytodriftinthedirectionofthecamp。There,whenthetinplateshadallbeenfilled,andeachhadfoundaplacetohisliking,Ordeaddressedthem。Hismannerwascasualandconversational。
\"Boys,\"saidhe,\"theoldmossbackwhoownsthatdamhascomeuphereloadedtoscatter。He’sbuiltupthesillofthatgateuntilwecan’tgetadrawonthewater,andherefusestogive,lend,orsellustherighttocutherout。I’vemadehimeveryreasonableproposition,butallIgetbackisquotationsfromtheprophets。
Now,we’vegottogetthoselogsout——that’swhatwe’reherefor。A
finebunchofwhitewaterbirlerswe’dlookifwegothungupbyanoldmossbackinaplughat。JohnnySims,what’stheanswer?\"
\"Cutherout,\"grinnedJohnnySimsbriefly。
\"Correct!\"repliedOrdewithachuckle。\"Cutherout。But,myson,it’sagainstthelawtointerferewithanotherman’sproperty。\"
Thiswassoobviouslyhumourousinintentthatitsonlyreceptionconsistedofmoregrinsfromeverybody。
\"But,\"wentonOrdemoreseriously,\"it’squiteajob。Wecan’tworkmorethansixoreightmenatitatatime。Wegottoworkasfastaswecanbeforetheoldmancaninterfere。\"
\"Thenearestsheriff’satSpruceRapids,\"commentedsomeonephilosophically。
\"Wehavesixtymen,alltold,\"saidOrde。\"Weoughttobeabletocarryitthrough。\"
Hefilledhisplateandwalkedacrosstoavacantplace。HerehefoundhimselfnexttoNewmark。
\"Hello!\"hegreetedthatyoungman,\"fixeditwiththedoctorallright?\"
\"Yes,\"repliedNewmark,inhisbrief,drymanner,\"thanks!IthinkIoughttotellyouthatthesheriffisnotatSpruceRapids,butatthevillage——expectingtrouble。\"
Ordewhistled,thenbrokeintoaroarofdelight。
\"Boys,\"hecalled,\"oldPlugHat’sgotthesheriffrighthandy。I
guesshesortofexpectedwe’dbethinkingofcuttingthroughthatdam。How’dyouliketogotojail?\"
\"I’dliketoseeanysherifftakeustojail,unlesshehadanarmywithhim,\"growledoneoftheriver—jacks。
\"Hasheaposse?\"inquiredOrdeofNewmark。
\"Ididn’tseeany;butIunderstoodinthevillagethatthegovernorhadbeenadvisedtoholdStatetroopsinreadinessfortrouble。\"
Ordefellintoabrownstudy,eatingmechanically。Themenbegananeagerandsomewhattruculentdiscussionfulloflawlessandbloodthirstysuggestion。SomesuggestedthekidnappingandsequestrationofReeduntiltheaffairshouldbefinished。
\"How’dhegetholdofhisoldsheriff,then?\"theyinquiredwithsomepertinence。
Orde,however,paidnoattentiontoallthistalk,butcontinuedtofrownintospace。Atlasthisfacecleared,andheslappeddownhistinplatesoviolentlythattheknifeandforkjumpedoffintothedirt。
\"Ihaveit!\"hecriedaloud。
Buthewouldnottellwhathehad。Afterthenoonhourheinstructedahalf—dozenmentoprovidethemselveswithsaws,axes,picks,andshovels,andallmarchedinthedirectionofthemill。
Whenwithinahundredyardsorsoofthatstructuretheadvancingrivermansawthelank,blackfigureofthemillownerflapintosight,astrideabonyoldhorse,andclatteraway,coat—tailsflying,uptheroadandintothewaitingforest。
\"Now,boys!\"criedOrdecrisply。\"He’llbebackinanhourwiththesheriff。Lively!\"Herapidlydesignatedtenmenofhiscrew。\"Youboysgettoworkandmakethingshum。Getasmuchdoneasyoucanbeforethesheriffcomes。\"
\"He’llhavetobringallofSpruceCountytogetme,\"commentedoneofthosechosen,spittingonhishands。
\"Me,too!\"saidothers。
\"Now,listen,\"saidOrde,holdingthemwithanimpressivegesture。
\"Whenthatsheriffcomes,withorwithoutaposse,Iwantyoutogopeaceably。Understand?\"
\"Cavein?Notmuch!\"criedPurdy。
\"Seehere,\"andOrdedrewthemasidetoanearnest,low—voicedconversationthatlastedseveralminutes。Whenhehadfinishedheclappedeachofthemontheback,andallmovedoff,laughing,tothedam。
\"Now,boys,\"hecommandedtheothers,\"norowwithoutorders。
Understand?Ifthere’sgoingtobeafight,I’llgiveyouthewordwhen。\"
Thechoppingcrewdescendedtothebottomofthesluice,thegateofwhichhadbeenshut,andbeganimmediatelytochopawayattheapron。Asthewaterinthepondabovehadbeendrawnlowbythemorning’swork,noneoverflowedthegate,sothemenwereenabledtoworkdry。Belowtheapron,ofcourse,hadbeenfilledinwithearthandstones。Assoonastheaxe—menhadeffectedanentrytothisdeposit,othermenwithshovelsandpicksbegantoremovethefilling。
TheworkhadcontinuednearlyanhourwhenOrdecommandedthefiftyormoreidlersbacktocamp。
\"Getout,boys,\"heordered。\"Thesheriffwillbehereprettyquicknow,andIdon’twantanyrow。Getoutofsight。\"
\"Andleavethemtofightheroutalone?Guessnot!\"grumbledatall,burlyindividualwitharedface。
Ordeimmediatelywalkeddirectlytothisman。
\"AmIbossingthisdrive,oramInot?\"hedemanded。
Therivermangrowledsomething。
SMACK!SMACK!soundedOrde’sfists。Theman,takenbysurprise,wentdowninaheap,butimmediatelyreboundedtohisfeetasthoughmadeofrubber。ButOrdehadseizedapeavy,andstoodoveragainsthisantagonist,themurderousweaponupraised。
\"Liedown,youhound,orI’llbrainyou!\"heroaredatthetopstrengthofhisgreatvoice。\"Wantfight,doyou?Well,youwon’thavetowaittillthesheriffgetshere!Youmakeamove!\"
Forafullhalfminutethemancrouchedbreathless,andOrde,hisruddyfacecongested,heldhisthreateningattitude。Thenhedroppedhispeavyandsteppedaside。
\"March!\"hecommanded。\"Getyourturkeyandhitthehaytrail。
You’llgetyourtimeatRedding。\"
Themansullenlyaroseandslouchedaway,grumblingunderhisbreath。Ordewatchedhimfromsight,thenturnedtothesilentgroup,anewcrispnessinhismanner。
\"Well?\"hedemanded。
Hesitating,theyturnedtotherivertrail,leavingthetenstillworkingatthesluice。Whenwellwithinthefringeofthebrush,Ordecalledahalt。Hiscustomarygood—humourseemedquiterestored。
\"Now,boys,\"hecommanded,\"squatdownandlaylow。Yougivemeanache!Don’tyousupposeIgotthisthingallfiguredout?Iffightwoulddoanygood,youknowmightywellI’dfight。Andtheboyswon’tbeinjailanylongerthanittakestogetawiretoDalytobailthemout。Smokeup,anddon’tbother。\"
Theyfilledtheirpipesandsettleddowntoanenjoymentofthesituation。Ordinarilyfromveryearlyinthemorninguntilverylateatnighttherivermanisbusyeveryinstantathisdangerousandabsorbingwork。Thoseaffairswhichdonotimmediatelyconcernhistask——astheswiftnessofrapids,thestateofflood,thecurvesofstreams,theheightofwater,theobstructionsofchannels,thequantitiesoflogs——passbytheouterfringeofhisconsciousness,ifindeedtheyreachhimatall。Thus,oftenheworksalldayuptohiswaistinacurrentbearingtherotteniceofthefirstbreak—up,orenduresthedrenchingofanearlyspringrain,orbattlestherigoursofabelatedsnowwithapparentindifference。YouorI
wouldbeexceedinglyuncomfortable;wouldrequireaneffortoffortitudetomaketheplunge。Yetthesemen,absorbedinthemightyproblemsoftheirtask,havelittleattentiontosparetosuchthings。Thecold,thewet,thediscomfort,thehunger,theweariness,allpassasshadowsonthebackground。Inlikemannerthesoftermoodsofthespringrarelypenetratethroughtheconcentrationoffacultiesonthework。Thewarmsunshines;thebirdsbythousandsflutterandtwitterandsingtheirwaynorth;thedelicategreenofspring,showeredfromthehandofthepassingSower,sprinklesthetopsofthetrees,andgraduallysiftsdownthroughthebranches;thegreat,beautifulsilvercloudssaildownthehorizonlikeshipsofastatelierage,astotallywithoutactualexistencetothesemen。Thelogs,theriver——thoseareenoughtostrainallthefacultiesamanpossesses,andmore。
Sowhen,asnow,achancecombinationofcircumstancesbringsthemleisuretolookaboutthem,theforestandtheworldofout—of—doorscomestothemwithafreshnessimpossibleforthecitydwellertorealise。Thesurroundingsareaccustomed,buttheybringnewmessages。Tomostofthem,theseimpressionsneverreachthepointofcoherency。Theybrood,andmuse,andexpandintheactualandfigurativewarmth,andprofferthegeneralopinionthatitisadamnfineday!
Anotherfullhalfhourelapsedbeforethesituationdevelopedfurther。ThenTomNorth’sfriendJim,whohadgatheredhislongfigureonthetopofastump,unclaspedhiskneesandremarkedthatoldPlugHatwasback。
Themenarosetotheirfeetandpeeredcautiouslythroughthebrush。
TheysawReed,accompaniedbyathick—setmanwhomsomerecognisedasthesheriffofthecounty,approachtheedgeofthedam。A
momentlatertheworkingcrewmountedtothetop,stackedtheirtoolsneatly,resumedtheircoatsandjackets,anddeparteduptheroadinconvoyofthesheriff。
Agaspofastonishmentbrokefromtheconcealedrivermen。
\"Well,I’llbedamned!\"ejaculatedone。\"Whatarewecomin’to?
That’sthefirsttimeIeverseeonelonesomesheriffgatherintenriver—hogswithouttheaidofagatlin’oranambulance!What’sthematterwiththatchicken—liveredbunch,anyway?\"
Ordewatchedthem,hiseyesexpressionless,untiltheyhaddisappearedinthefringeoftheforestThenheturnedtotheastonishedgroup。
\"Jim,\"saidhe,\"andyou,Ellis,andyou,andyou,andyou,andyou,gettoworkonthatdam。Andrememberthis,ifyouarearrested,gopeaceably。Anyresistancewillspoilthewholegame。\"
ThemenbrokeintomingledcheersandlaughterasthefullsignificanceofOrde’splanreachedthem。Theystreamedbacktothedam,wheretheyperchedprofferingadviceandencouragementtothoseabouttodescend。
Immediately,however,Reedwasout,hiseyesblazingeithersidehishawknose。
\"Here!\"hecried,\"quitthat!I’llhaveyearrested!\"
\"Arrestahead,\"repliedOrdecoldly。
Reedstormedbackandforthforamoment,thendepartedatfullspeeduptheroad。
\"Now,boys,getasmuchdoneaspossible,\"urgedOrde。\"Webettergetbackinthebrush,orhemaytrytotakeinthewholeb’ilingofusonsomesortofablanketwarrant。\"
\"Howabouttheotherboys?\"inquiredNorth。
\"IgaveoneofthematelegramtosendtoDaly,\"repliedOrde。
\"Dalywillbeuptobailthemout。\"
Oncemoretheyhidinthewoods;andagain,afteralongerinterval,themillownerandthesheriffreappeared。Reedappearedtobeexpostulatingviolently,andanumberoftimespointedupriver;butthesheriffwentaheadstolidlytothedam,summonedthoseworkingbelow,anddeparteduptheroadasbefore。Reedstooduncertainuntilhesawtherivermenbeginningtore—emergefromthebrush,thenfollowedtheofficerattopspeed。
Withoutthenecessityofcommand,ahalf—dozenmenleapeddownontheapron。Thepreviouscrewshadmadeconsiderableprogressinweakeningtheheavysupports。Assoonastheseshouldbecutoutandthebackingremoved,themeresawingthroughofthemassivesillshouldcarryawaythewholeobstruction。
\"Nexttimewilldecideit,\"remarkedOrde。\"Ifthesheriffbringsaposseandsitsdowntolayforus,ofcoursewewon’tbeabletogetneartofinishthejob。\"
\"Ididn’tthinkthatofGeorgeMorris,\"commentedSimsinanaggrievedway。\"Hewasarivermanhimselfoncebeforehewassheriff。\"
\"He’sgottoobeyorders,andserveawarrantwhenit’sissued,ofcourse,\"repliedOrdetothis。\"Whatdidyouexpect?\"
Attheendofanotherhour,whichbroughtthetimetofouro’clock,thesheriffmadehisthirdappearance——thistimeinaside—barbuggy。
\"IwishIdaredjointhatconfab,\"saidOrde,\"andhearwhat’sgoingon,butI’mafraidhe’djugmesure。\"
\"Hewouldn’tjugme,\"spokeupNewmark。\"I’llgodown。\"
\"Bullyforyou!\"agreedOrde。
Theyoungmandepartedinhisprecise,methodicalmanner,pickinghiswayrathermincinglyamongtheinequalitiesofthetrail。Inspiteofthewornandwrinkledconditionofhisgarments,theyretainedsomethingofacityhangandsmartnessthatsharplydifferentiatedtheirwearerfromeventhewell—dressedcitizensofasmallertown。Theyseemedtomatchtherefined,shrewd,butcoldintelligenceofhisleanandnervousface。
Aboutsunsethereturnedfromascenewhichthedistantspectatorshadwatchedwithbreathlessinterest。Itwasinessenceonlyarepetitionofthetwothathadprecededit,butReedhadevidentlygonealmosttothepointofviolenceinhisinsistence,andthesheriffhadshakenhimoffrudely。Finally,Morrisandhissixprisonershadtrailedaway。ThesheriffandNorth’sfriendoccupiedtheseatofthebuggy,whiletheotherfivetrudgedpeaceablyalongside。OnceagainReedclatteredawayonhisbonysteed,butthistimeaheadoftheofficialparty。
Withawhooptherivercrew,nowreducedtoascantdozen,rusheddowntomeetthetoodeliberateNewmark。
\"Well?\"theydemanded,crowdingabouthim。
\"Reedwantedthesherifftostayandprotectthedam,\"reportedNewmarkinhisbrief,drymanner。\"Sheriffrefused。Saidhisdutywassimplytoarrestonwarrant,andasoftenasReedgotoutwarrants,he’dservethem。Reedsaid,then,heshouldgetaposseandhuntupOrdeandtherestofthem。Sheriffrepliedthatasfarashecouldsee,thetermsofhiswarrantwerecoveredbythemenhefoundworkingonthedam,Reeddemandedprotection,Sheriffsaidforhimtogetaninjunction,anditwouldbeenforced。\"
\"Well,that’sallright,\"interjectedOrdewithsatisfaction。
\"We’llhavehercutthroughbeforehegetsthatinjunction,andI
guessI’vegotmenenoughhereanddownrivertogetthroughbeforewe’reALLarrested。\"
\"Yes,\"saidNewmark,\"that’sallverywell。Butnowhe’sgonetotelegraphthegovernortosendthetroops。\"
Ordewhistledajigtune。
\"Kindofexpectedthat,boys,\"saidhe。\"Let’ssee。ThenexttrainoutfromRedding——They’llbeherebyfiveinthemorningatsoonest。
Hopeit’llbelater。\"
\"Whatwillyoudo?\"askedNewmark。
\"Takechances,\"repliedOrde。\"Allyouboysgettowork。Zeke,\"hecommandedoneofthecookees,\"gouproad,andreportifMorriscomesback。Ireckonthistimewe’llhavetoscatterifhecomesafterus。Ihopewewon’thaveto,though。LiketokeepeverythingsquareonaccountofthisStatetroopbusiness。\"
Thesunhaddroppedbelowthefringeoftrees,whichimmediatelyetchedtheirdelicateoutlinesagainstapale,translucentgreensky。Twostraight,thincolumnsofsmokerosefromtheneglectedcamp—fires。Orde,glancingaroundhim,noticedthese。
\"Doctor,\"hecommandedsharply,\"getatyourgrub!Makesomecoffeerightoff,andbringitdown。Getthelanternsfromthewanigan,andbringthemtothedam。Comeon,boys!\"
Overascoreofmenattackedthesluice—way,forbynowpartoftherearcrewhadcomedownriver。Thepondabovehadrecovereditsvolume。Waterwasbeginningtotrickleoverthetopofthegate。
Inashorttimeprogressbecamedifficult,almostimpossible,Themenworkeduptotheirkneesinswiftwater。Theycouldnotsee,andthestrokesofaxeorpicklostmuchoftheirforceagainsttheliquid。Duskfell。Thefringeoftheforestbecamemysteriousinitsvelvetdark。Silverstreaks,ofasupernalcalm,suggestedthereachesofthepond。Above,thesky’sdaysurfaceunfoldedandrecededanddissolvedandmeltedawayuntil,throughthepaleafterglow,onesawbeyondintotheinfinities。Downbythesluiceadozenlanternsflickeredandblinkedyellowagainsttheblue—
blacknessofthenight。
AftersometimeOrdecalledhiscrewoffandopenedthesluice—
gates。Thewaterhadbecometoodeepforeffectivework,andahalfhour’sflowwouldreducethepressure。Thetimewasoccupiedineatingandindryingoffaboutthehugefirethesecondcookeehadbuiltcloseathand。
\"Watercold,boys?\"askedOrde。
\"Some,\"washisreply。
\"Wanttoquit?\"heinquired,withmocksolicitude。
\"Naryquit。\"
Orde’sshoutoflaughterbrokethenightsilenceofthewhisperingbreezeandtherushingwater。
\"We’llstickto’emlikedeathtoadeadnigger,\"washiscomment。
Newmark,havingextractedakindofcardiganjacketfromthebaghehadbroughtwithhimasfarasthemill,lookedatthesmooth,iron—
blackwaterandshivered。
Whenthemealwasfinished,themenlittheirpipesandwentbacktoworkphilosophically。Withentireabsorptioninthetask,theydug,chopped,andpicked。Thedullsoundofblows,thegurgleandtrickleofthewater,theoccasionalgruntorbriefcommentofarivermanalonebrokethecalmofevening。Nowthatthesluice—gatewasdownandthewaterhadceasedtemporarilytoflowoverit,theworkwentfaster。Orde,watchingwiththeeyeofanexpert,vouchsafedtothetaciturnNewmarkthathethoughtthey’dmakeit。
Nearmidnight,however,aswayinglanternwasseenapproaching。
Orde,leapingtohisfeetwithacurseattheboyonwatch,heardthesoundofwheels。Amomentlater,Daly’sbulkyformsteppedintotheilluminationofthefire。
Ordewanderedovertowherehisprincipalstoodpeeringabouthim。
\"Hullo!\"saidhe。
\"Oh,thereyouare!\"criedDalyangrily。\"Whatinhellyouuptohere?\"
\"Runninglogs,\"repliedOrdecoolly。
\"Runninglogs!\"shoutedDaly,tuggingathisovercoatpocket,andfinallyproducingamuch—foldednewspaper。\"Howaboutthis?\"
Ordeunfoldedthepaperandloweredittothecampfire。Itwasanextra,screamingwithwoodtype。Hereaditdeliberatelyover。
WAR!
theheadlineran。
RIOTINGANDBLOODSHEDINTHEWOODS
RIVERMENANDDAMOWNERSCLASH!
Therefollowedavagueandhighlycolouredstatementtotheeffectthataninitialskirmishhadleftthefieldinpossessionoftherivermen,inspiteofthesheriffandalargeposse,butthattroopswerebeingrushedtothespot,andthatthis\"high—handeddefianceofauthority\"wouldundoubtedlysoonbesuppressed。Itconcludedtruthfullywiththestatementthatthelossoflifewasasyetunknown。
Ordefoldedupthepaperandhandeditback。
\"Don’tyouknowanybetterthantogetintothatkindofarowdownhere?\"Dalyhadbeensaying。\"Doyouwanttobringusupforgoodhere?Don’tyourealisethatthisisn’tthenorthernpeninsula?
Whatareyoutryingtodo,anyway?\"
\"SureIdo,\"repliedOrdeplacidly。\"ComealongheretillIshowyouthesituation。\"
Tenminuteslater,Daly,relievedinhismind,wasstandingbythefiredrinkinghotcoffeeandlaughingatOrde’sdescriptionofReed’splughat。
ToOrde’ssatisfaction,thesheriffdidnotreappear。ReedevidentlynowpinnedhisfaithtotheStatetroops。
Allnighttheworkwenton,themenspellingeachotheratintervalsofeveryfewhours。Bythreeo’clockthemainabutmentshadbeenremoved。Thegatewasthenblockedtopreventitsfallwhenitsnethersupportshouldbewithdrawn,andtwomen,leaningovercautiously,beganatarm’s—lengthtodelivertheiraxe—strokesagainstthemiddleofthesill—timbersofthesluiceitself,notchingeachheavybeamdeeplythattheforceofthecurrentmightfinallybreakitintwo。Thenightwasverydark,andverystill。
Eventhenightcreatureshadfallenintothequietudethatprecedesthefirstmorninghours。Themuffled,spacedblowsoftheaxes,thelow—voicedcommentsordirectionsoftheworkers,thecrackleofthefireashorewerethrownbycontrastintoanundueimportance。Meninblankets,awaitingtheirturn,sleptclosetotheblaze。
Suddenlythevastsilenceofbeforedawnwasbrokenbyaloudandexultantyellfromoneoftheaxemen。Atoncethetwoscrambledtothetopofthedam。Theblanketedfiguresaboutthefiresprangtolife。Abriefinstantlaterthesnappingofwoodfibresbeganliketherapidexplosionsofinfantryfire;acrashandbangoftimberssmotetheair;andthentheriver,exultant,roaringwithjoy,rushedfromitspentquietudeintothenewpassageopenedforit。
Atthesamemoment,asthoughatthesignal,asinglebird,premonitoroftheyetdistantday,lifteduphisvoice,clearlyaudibleabovethetumult。
Ordestormedintothecampupstream,hiseyesbright,hisbigvoiceboomingexultantly。
\"Rollout,youriver—hogs!\"heshoutedtothosewhohadworkedouttheirshiftsearlierinthenight。\"Rollout,youweb—footedsonsofguns,andhearthelittlebirdssingpraise!\"
Newmark,whohadsatupthenightthrough,andnowshiveredsleepilybythefire,begantohuntaroundforthebed—rollhehad,earlierintheevening,dumpeddownsomewhereincamp。
\"Isupposethat’sall,\"saidhe。\"Justacaseofrunlogsnow。
I’llturninforalittle。\"
ButOrde,athicksliceofbreadhalf—waytohislips,hadfrozeninanattitudeofattentivelistening。
\"Hark!\"saidhe。
Faint,stillinthedepthsoftheforest,thewanderingmorningbreezeboretotheirearsasoundwhosedifferencefromtheloudernoisesnearerathandalonerendereditaudible。
\"Thetroops!\"exclaimedOrde。
Heseizedalanternandreturneddownthetrail,followedeagerlybyNewmarkandeverymanincamp。
\"Troopscoming!\"saidOrdetoDaly。
Themendrewalittletooneside,watchingthedimlineoftheforest,darkagainstthepalingsky。Shadowsseemedtostirinitsblackness。Theyheardquitedistinctlytheclinkofmetalagainstmetal。Amanrodeoutoftheshadowandreinedupbythefire。
\"Halt!\"commandedaharshvoice。Therivermencouldmakeoutthetroops——threeorfourscoreofthem——standingrigidatattention。
Reed,afootnowinfavourofthecommandingofficer,pushedforward。
\"Whoisinchargehere?\"inquiredtheofficercrisply。
\"Iam,\"repliedOrde,steppingforward。
\"Iwishtoinquire,sir,ifyouhavegonemadtocounselyourmentoresistcivilauthority?\"
\"Ihavenotresistedcivilauthority,\"repliedOrderespectfully。
\"Ithasbeenotherwisereported。\"
\"Thereportshavebeenfalse。Thesheriffofthiscountyhasarrestedabouttwentyofmymensingle—handedandwithouttheslightesttrouble。\"
\"Mr。Morris,\"criedtheofficersharply。
\"Yes?\"repliedthesheriff。
\"Iswhatthismansaystrue?\"
\"Itsureis。Neverhadsolittlefussarrestin’rivermenbeforeinmylife。\"
Theofficer’sfaceturnedaslowbrick—red。Foramomenthesaidnothing,thenexplodedwiththeutmostviolence。
\"ThenwhythedevilamIdraggedupherewithmymeninthenight?\"
hecried。\"Who’sresponsibleforthisinsanity,anyway?Don’tyouknow,\"heroaredatReed,whothatmomentswungwithinhisrangeofvision,\"thatIhavenostandinginthepresenceofcivillaw?Whatdoyoumeangettingmeupheretoyourmiserablelittlebackwoodssquabbles?\"
Reedstartedtosaysomething,butwasimmediatelycutshortbytheiratecaptain。
\"I’venothingtodowiththat;settleitincourt。Andwhat’smore,you’llhavesomethingyourselftosettlewiththeState!About,face!Forward,march!\"
Themenfadedintothegraylightasthoughdissolvedbyit。
Adeepandrespectfulsilencefelluponthemen,whichwasbrokenbyOrde’ssolemnanddramaticdeclamation。