' 'round heah, an' airly on the day arter to-morrow
mornin', mount a blooded mar that ye'll find standin' afore the door
thar, all rigged out ez fine ez silk, an' go down the Lavergne turnpike,
at a sharp canter, jes ez though ye war gwine somewhar. Nobody on our
lines 'll be likely ter say anything ter ye, but ef they do, ye'll show
'em a pass from Gineral Rosy, which, howsoever, ye 'll tar up afore ye
reach Lavergne, fur ye 'll likely find some o' t' other folks thar. Ef
any o' them at Lavergne axes ye imperent questions, ye must hev a story
ready 'bout yer being the Nashville niece o' Aunt Debby Brill, who lives
on the left hand o' the Nashville pike, jest north o' the public
squar in Murfreesboro, an' ye 're on yer way ter pay yer ole Aunty a
long-promised visit."

"There is such a woman in Murfreesboro?"

"Yes, an' she's talked a great deal 'bout her niece in Nashville, who's
comin' ter see her. I thought"--the earnestness of the eyes relaxed to
a suspicion of a twinkle--"thet sometime I mout come across sich a niece
fur the ole lady, an' hit wuz well ter be prepared fur her."

"But suppose they ask me about things in Nashville?"

"W'll, ye must fix up a story 'bout thet too. Ye needn't be ver
partickelar what hit is, so long's hit's awful savage on the Yankees. Be
keerful ter say frequently thet the yankees is awful sick o' their job
o' holdin' Nashville; that their new Dutch Gineral is a mean brute, an'
a coward beside, thet he's skeered 'bout out'n his wits half the time,
an' he's buildin' the biggest kind o' forts to hide behind, an' thet he
won't dar show his nose outside o' them--leastways not this 'ere Winter.
Talk ez much ez ye kin 'bout the sojers gwine inter Winter quarters;
'bout them being mortally sartin not ter do anything tell next Spring,
an' 'bout them desartin' by rijimints an' brigades, an' gwine home,
bekase they're sick an' tired o' the war."

"My," said Rachel, with a gasp, "what awful things to tell!"

"Yes," returned the scout complacently, "I s'posed hit'd strike you
thet-a-way. But my experience with war is thet hit's jest plum full o'
awful things. In fact hit don't seem ter hev much else in hit. All ye
hev ter ax yerself is whether this is nigh on ter ez awful ez the the
things they 'uns do to we 'uns. Besides, we 'uns are likely ter give
they 'uns in a few days a heap more interestin' things ter think about
then the remarkable stories told by young ladies out fur a mornin'
ride."