trees many insolent and
scurrilous expressions,--which gave me a poorer opinion of them than I
had yet entertained,--and the Indians had marked up the number of scalps
they had taken, some eight or ten in all. Whatever their intention may
have been, the sight of our strength had frightened them away, and we
saw no sign of them as we descended into the valley on the other side.

We toiled on all the next day over a road that was painfully familiar to
most of us, and in the evening came to Christopher Gist's plantation.
Spiltdorph and I made a circuit of the place that night, and I pointed
out to him the dispositions we had made for defense the year before. The
French had burned down all the buildings, but the half-finished trenches
could yet be seen, and the logs which were to have made the breastwork
still littered the ground.

Beyond Gist's, it was a new country to all of us, and grew more open, so
that we could make longer marches. We descended a broad valley to the
great crossing of the Yoxiogeny, which we passed on the thirtieth. The
general was under much apprehension lest the French ambush us here, and
so advanced most cautiously, but we saw no sign of any enemy. Beyond the
river was a great swamp, where a road of logs had to be built to support
the wagons and artillery, but we won through without accident, and two
days later reached a place called Jacob's cabin, not above thirty miles,
as the bird flies, from Fort Duquesne. Here the rumor ran through the
camp that we were to be held till Colonel Dunbar's division could be
brought up from the Little Meadows, and there was much savage comment at
our mess that evening.

"Why," cried Peyronie, who voiced the sentiment of all of us, "'twould
take two weeks or more to bring Dunbar up, and what are we to do
meantime? Sit here and eat this carrion?" and he looked disgustedly at
the mess of unsavory beef on the table, which was, to tell the truth,
most odoriferous. "'Tis rank folly to even think of such a course."

"So the general believes," said a pleasant voice, and I turned with a
start to see a gallant figure standing by the raised flap of the tent.

"Captain Orme!" I cried, springing to my feet, and I brought him in and
presented him to all the others. We pressed him to sit down, and though
he laughingly declined to partake of our rations, against which, he said,
Peyronie's remark had somehow prejudiced him, he consented to join us in
a glass of wine,--where Wagg