The Liberty Boys Running the Blockade Page 3

of their friends in the city. Dick andBob took their horses, the captain riding a magnificent black Arabianand Bob a fine bay, and all set out together, laughing and talking inlively fashion. They struck across the Common to the road running to thewest of it, and would then make their way into the city past the newchurch and Broadway to Maiden Lane.

  As they were going on at an easy jog, expecting to leave the Common,four or five dark forms suddenly sprang up in front of them and seizetheir bridles, while as many ran up behind and prevented their wheeling.Then some one flashed the light of a lantern in their faces, and a voicewas heard saying:

  "H'm! women! We don't want them. All want is the rebels!"

  The girls' horses were at once set free, and the girls themselves lostno time in wheeling and dashing back toward the camp, Alice taking thelead.

  "Hi! what are you doing?" growled one of men, who were all evil-lookingfellows, as Dick could see. "The gals will bring the rest of therebels."

  Dick was dragged from the back of Major, his black Arabian, and one ofthe men attempted to mount the animal to go in chase of the two girlsbut was immediately thrown.

  "Back to camp, Major!" said Dick.

  In an instant the intelligent animal was flying after the girls, whoquickly recognized his hoof-beats. Meanwhile the men who had capturedDick and Bob knew the danger they would run remaining on the ground, andthey hurried away with the two boys, letting Bob's bay go free. Theywent on so rapidly that Dick was unable to see much of the way, but heknew the direction they took almost by instinct, and could have returnedwithout trouble if he had been liberated. The men kept the two boys inthe middle of the party and held on to them tightly.

  "We got the rebels an' we'll get the reward," said one.

  "Yes, the gals an' the other rebels won't be able to find the house, andthey can hunt all they like."

  It was a sharp decline to the river, down the lane, and one of the menstumbled and rolled several yards, picking himself up with a grunt and agroan and a lot of bad language, and then hurrying after the rest. Dickheard the swash of the water on the gravel bank, and then saw the riveritself dimly, but in another moment some dark object loomed up beforehim, and then he and Bob were taken into a house, the front of which wasmuch lower than the back on account of the steepness of the hank. Theboys were taken to the front and then down a flight of steps to a roomin the rear, where they were left in the dark, the door being locked andbarred on the outside.

  "Who are these fellows, do you suppose, Dick?" asked Bob, when they wereleft alone.

  "I don't know. Tories, no doubt, or just men who want the reward offeredfor my capture."

  "But there is none offered for me," with a laugh. "Why should they takeme with them?"

  "To keep you from giving the alarm. They would have taken the girls ifthey had thought twice."

  "But will the girls be able to show them the way?"

  "They can take them to where we were attacked, and after that the boyswill follow the trail. Mark is a good hand at that sort of thing, and hewill have good boys to help him."

  "Yes, they would all turn out and join in the hunt if he asked them,"declared Bob.

  "But there is no use in our staying in the dark, Bob," said Dick. "Youhave matches with you?"

  "Yes. They did not search us and I have matches, and my pistols andeverything."

  Bob then lighted a sulphur match, the only kind in use at the time, andlooked about him. They were in a room with one door but no windows, andwere evidently under guard at the back of the stone house. Dick listenedattentively for some minutes, and at last heard the sound of some onecoming downstairs.

  "Put out the light, Bob," he said, in a low tone. "If they see it underthe door they may get suspicious."

  Bob blew out the candle, and in a moment all was dark and still in theroom.

  "When the door opens make a rush at it, Bob, and overturn the fellows.There are two of them."

  Bob stood ready to act upon the instant, and the steps of the two mencoming on could be heard plainer than ever, rays of light beginning toshow under the door. The men said nothing, and came on softly, butDick's ears were very sharp, and he could hear them with no trouble.

  The key was turned in the lock and the bolts shot back, and then, as thedoor opened slowly, the boys both threw their weight upon it suddenlyand sent it flying wide open in an instant. There was a startled cry anda heavy fall, and in a moment the place was thrown into profounddarkness.

  "Pick them up and lock them in, Bob," said Dick, and the boys hurriedinto the passage, presently stumbling upon two men who were just gettingupon their feet.

  They seized the men, threw them into the room, closed the door andlocked them in, taking out the key, and then looked for the lantern asthey heard a call from above.

  CHAPTER IV.--The Boys' Escape.

  "Hallo, down there, what's the matter?" called some one at the head ofthe stairs.

  "The blame rebels tried to get out and upset the lantern," answeredDick, in a gruff voice.

  "Huh! where are they now?"

  "They're all right. We locked the door again."

  "H'm! we better come down and help you. We gotter take them away."

  "All right, come on, an' fetch another light."

  Then the boys began to move steadily toward the stairs, finally findingthem.

  "Come on, Bob," whispered Dick. "Don't waste any ceremony on them, buttumble them downstairs as soon as they come. They won't get the othersout in a hurry, for I have the key."

  The boys went rapidly upstairs, but, just as a light appeared at thetop, the men in the room below began to shout:

  "Hallo! Bill, Toby, look out for them rebels; they've shut us up in thestoreroom!"

  "Hurry, Bob!" hissed Dick.

  The two boys dashed up to the top of the steps and came upon two mencarrying lanterns. In an instant each seized one of the Tories and senthim rolling down the stairs uttering startled yells. Then they hurriedforward in the dark to the front of the stone house, opened the door andran out. At the same moment they heard shouts from the house, and thenshots were fired, the bullets passing over their heads. They returnedthe shots, and heard a yell, and a sudden slamming of a door, and then acry from up the bank:

  "Hallo! Dick, Bob, are you there?"

  "Yes, Mark, coming right along!" shouted Dick, and then he and Bobhurried up the steep bank, presently seeing lanterns and a number of theLiberty Boys.

  "We had some little trouble in finding the place," declared Mark, whenDick and Bob joined him and the rest, there being fully a score of them."The young ladies had no idea where the wretches had gone, but we pickedup the trail at length and then had less difficulty in following it.Where were you?"

  "In the stone house--a regular nest of thieves," Dick answered. "I musthave a look at the place later."

  There was no further sound from below, and the boys went on to the top,where they found several of the Liberty Boys and the two girls.

  Dick and Bob now jumped into the saddle and resumed their interruptedride, going with the girls to the house in Maiden Lane. The friends ofAlice and Edith were very charming girls, and the boys spent an hour ortwo very pleasantly, telling the story of their adventures in theafternoon and evening, and talking of the situation in in the city. Theboys at length left the house to return to the camp, Alice and Edithexpressing considerable anxiety, however, lest they be way-laid by themen who had already made an unsuccessful attempt to keep them prisoners.

  In a short time they were back in camp, the occasional tramp of a sentryor the sudden flaring up of a fire from a puff of night air being theonly things to show that there was any one there. The Liberty Boys werealways vigilant, for one never knew when an enemy might be about, andDick had taught them to be on the lookout at all times, whether theyexpected a foe or not. After breakfast Dick took a party of about adozen of the boys in addition to Bob, and set out for the stone house onthe river. Reaching the lane, the boys dismounted, the descent beingrather too steep for the
horses, and Dick, Bob and seven or eight otherswent down. The door toward the road was closed and there was no sign oflife about the place. Dick and Bob went down to the shore where therewas a little wharf, and here they found a door on the lower story, thisbeing closed, however, as were the windows, and no one stirring eitherin or about the house.

  "The place looks like an ordinary storehouse," remarked Dick, "and Isuppose that the people about here think it is such. I shall have to getpermission from the general to examine it, for it is a nest of thieveswhatever else it may be."

  "That is plain enough!" muttered Bob.

  Taking Bob, and leaving the boys to watch the place, Dick set out forPutnam's headquarters to report concerning the place