," he continued, lowering his voice
almost to a whisper. "When John Brown made that raid of his'n,
Barrington was one of the places that was marked on his map to be
burned, kase there was more niggers here than white folks. 'Member it,
don't you?"

"Good lands!" cried Mrs. Goble, who, if she had ever before heard of the
circumstance, had quite forgotten all about it.

"That's what Riley says," continued Bud, "an' who knows but the thing
we've been a-dreadin' is comin' now? They do say that there's guns an'
things hid somewheres in the woods--"

"You don't tell me!"

"It's jest what I do tell ye, kase I've heard it often. Of course the
niggers knows where them guns is, an' when they an' the babolitionists
like Elder Bowen get ready, they'll fetch 'em out an' go for us."

In a very short time Bud succeeded in talking himself into a most
uncomfortable frame of mind. He did not feel quite safe at home, for his
cabin was exposed, being fully a quarter of a mile from the nearest
house, and he was afraid to go into town. His utter ignorance of the
nature of the danger that threatened him made the situation hard to
bear. As for fighting in case he were attacked--that was something Bud
had not yet thought of. He would have preferred to run. His wife was so
badly frightened that she could scarcely cook the dinner, and Bud could
eat but little of it after it was cooked; but he smoked more than his
share of tobacco, managed to run a few extra bullets for his rifle, and
to bring in a supply of light-wood sufficient to keep a bright fire
burning during the night.

As the sun sank out of sight behind the trees, and daylight faded and
darkness came on, Bud's fears grew upon him. He dared not stay in the
cabin for fear that some evil-minded Union man might slip up behind it,
and shoot him through some of the cracks where the chinking had fallen
out, so he drew one of the rickety chairs in front of the door and sat
upon it, with his rifle for company. That was a little better than being
cooped up within doors, but the unwonted silence that brooded over the
surrounding woods distressed him.

"Durin' all the years we've lived yer I never seen the road so deserted
as it is to-night," he said, in a whisper to his wife. "There's always
somebody goin' one way or t'other, but now they seem to have holed up."

"Mebbe they're feared the outbreak'll ketch 'em," Mrs. Goble suggested.
"What does it look like, any way?"

"Now, listen at he