know her name, except
that the old negro had called her 'Miss Lindy.' I said that a lot of
times to myself as I rode, with the men's bits jingling at my buck and
their horses' hoofs thud-thudding. 'Lindy--Miss Lindy--Linda--my
Linda--I said it half aloud. It kept first-rate time to the
hoof-beats--'Lindy--Miss Lindy.'

"I wondered, too, why she wouldn't let me cross the Rappahannock by
Kelly's Ford, for I had reason to think there'd be a Union post on the
east side of the river there, but there was a sense of brains and
capability about the girl, as well as charm--in fact, that's likely to
be a large part of any real charm--and so I trusted to her.

[Illustration: "I got behind a turn and fired as a man came on alone."]

"Well, late in the afternoon we were trotting along, feeling pretty
secure. I'd left the Kelly's Ford road at the last turn, and was
beginning to think that we ought to be within a few miles of the river,
when all of a sudden, coming out of some woods into a small clearing
with a farmhouse about the centre of it, we rode on a strong outpost of
the enemy, infantry and cavalry both. We were in the open before I saw
them, so there was nothing to do but make a dash for it and rush past
the cabin before they could reach their arms, and we drew our revolvers
and put the spurs in deep and flew past with a fire that settled some
of them. But a surprise of this sort doesn't last long, and it was only
a few minutes before they were after us--and with fresh mounts. Then it
was a horse-race for the river, and I wasn't certain of the roads.
However, I knew a trick or two about this business, and I was sure some
of the pursuers would forge ahead; so three times I got behind a turn
and fired as a man came on alone. I dismounted several that way. This
relieved the strain enough so that I got within sight of the river with
all my men. It was a quarter of a mile away when I saw it, and at that
point the road split, and which branch led to the ford for the life of
me I didn't know. There wasn't time for meditation, however, so I shot
down the turn to the left, on the gamble, and sure enough there was the
ford--only it wasn't any ford. The Rappahannock was full to the banks
and perhaps two hundred yards across. The Confederates were within
rifle-shot, so there were exactly two things to do--surrender or swim. I
gave my men the choice--to follow me or be captured--and I plunged in,
without any of them."

"What!" I deman