uman beings."

"No, sir, there are other things just now more valuable to us than
prisoners. We raided a little Yankee outpost. Nobody was hurt, but, sir,
we've captured some provisions, the like of which the Army of Northern
Virginia has not tasted in a long time. Would you mind coming with me
and taking a look? And bring Kenton and Dalton with you, if you don't
mind, sir."

"This indeed sounds tempting," said the commander-in-chief of the Army of
Northern Virginia. "I accept your invitation, General Stuart, in behalf
of myself and my two young aides."

He dismounted, giving the reins of Traveller to an orderly, and walked
toward Stuart's tent, which was pitched near the river. The "captures"
were heaped in a grassy place.

"Here, sir," said General Stuart, "are twenty dozen boxes of the finest
French sardines. I haven't tasted sardines in a year and I love them."

"I've always liked them," said General Lee.

"And here, sir, are several cases of Yorkshire ham, brought all the
way across the sea--and for us. It isn't as good as our Virginia ham,
which is growing scarce, but we'll like it. And cove oysters, cases and
cases of 'em. I like 'em almost as well as sardines."

"Most excellent."

"And real old New England pies, baked, I suppose, in Washington. We can
warm 'em over."

"I see that you have the fire ready."

"And jars of preserves, a half-dozen kinds at least, and all of 'em look
as if two likely youngsters like Kenton and Dalton would be anxious to
get at 'em."

"You judge us rightly, General," said Harry. "We'll show no mercy to
such prisoners as we have here."

"You wouldn't be boys and you wouldn't be human if you did," rejoined
Stuart, "would they, General?"

"They would not," replied Lee. "One of the principal recollections of my
boyhood is that I was always hungry. Our regular three meals a day were
not enough for us, however much we ate at one time. Virginia, like your
own Kentucky, Harry, is full of forage, and we moved in groups. Now,
didn't you find a lot of food in the woods and fields?"

"Oh, yes, sir," rejoined Harry with animation. "I was hungry all the
time, too. An hour after breakfast I was hungry again, and an hour after
dinner, which we had in the middle of the day, I was hungry once more."

"But you knew where to go for supplies."

"Yes, sir; we had berries, strawberries, blackberries, raspberries,
gooseberries, dewberries, cherries, all of them growing wi