Gabriel that the reaction from the strain under which he
had been, took the blessed shape of sleep.

Gabriel's place of concealment was simplicity itself. With his own hands
Mr. Sanders had constructed a stout box of oak boards, and around this
he had packed cotton until the affair, when complete, had the
appearance of an extra large bale of cotton, covered with bagging, and
roped as the majority of cotton-bales were in those days. The only way
to discover the sham was to pull out the cotton that concealed the
opening in the end of the box. In delivering his message to Cephas, Mr.
Sanders had called this loose cotton a plug, and the fact that the word
was new to the vocabulary of the school-children gave great trouble to
Gabriel, causing him to lose considerable sleep in the effort to
translate it satisfactorily to himself. The meaning dawned on him one
night when he had practically abandoned all hope of discovering it, and
then the whole scheme became so clear to him that he could have shouted
for joy.

It was thought that a search would be made for Gabriel in the
neighbourhood of Shady Dale, and it was decided that it would be best
for him to remain in the city until all noise of the pursuit had died
away. But no pursuit was ever made, and it soon became apparent to the
public at large that radicalism was burning itself out at last, after a
weary time. When rage has nothing to feed upon it consumes itself,
especially when various chronic maladies common to mankind take a hand
in the game.

Not only was no pursuit made of Gabriel, but the detachment of Federal
troops which had been stationed at Shady Dale was withdrawn. The young
men who had been arrested with Gabriel were placed on trial before a
military court, but with the connivance of counsel for the prosecution,
the trial dragged along until the military commander issued a
proclamation announcing that civil government had been restored in the
State, and the prisoners were turned over to the State courts. And as
there was not the shadow of a case against them, they were never brought
to trial, a fact which caused some one to suggest to Mr. Sanders that
all his work in behalf of Gabriel had been useless.

"Well, it didn't do Gabriel no good, maybe," remarked the veteran, "but
it holp me up mightily. It gi' me somethin' to think about, an' it holp
me acrosst some mighty rough places. You have to pass the time away
anyhow, an' what better way is they than workin'