k; he fell back from the rein he had been
holding. Billy almost dropped his musket. He gasped weakly, then grew
burning red. Jackson threw down the match. "Good! good! I see that I can
trust my pickets. What is the young man named?"

"Billy Maydew, sir. Company A, 65th Virginia."

"Good! good! Obedience to orders is a soldier's first, last, and best
lesson! He will do well." He gathered up the reins. "There are four men
here. You will all forget that you have seen me, sergeant."

"Yes, sir."

"Good! Good-night."

He was gone, followed by the courier. Billy drew an almost sobbing
breath. "I gave him such a damned lot of impudence! He was hiding his
voice, and not riding Little Sorrel, or I would have known him."

The sergeant comforted him. "Just so you were obeying orders and
watching and handling your gun all right, he didn't care! I gather you
didn't use any cuss words. He seemed kind of satisfied with you."

The night was dark, Louisa County roads none of the best. As the cocks
were crowing, a worthy farmer, living near the road, was awakened by the
sound of horses. "Wonder who's that?--Tired horses--one of them's gone
lame. They're stopping here."

He slipped out of bed and went to the window. Just light enough to see
by. "Who's there?"

"Two Confederate officers on important business. Our horses are tired.
Have you two good fresh ones?"

"If I've got them, I don't lend them to every straggler claiming to be a
Confederate officer on important business! You'd better go further.
Good-night!"

"I have an order from General Whiting authorizing me to impress horses."

The farmer came out of the house, into the chill dawn. One of the two
strangers took the stable key and went off to the building looming in
the background. The other sat stark and stiff in the grey light. The
first returned. "Two in very good condition, sir. If you'll dismount
I'll change saddles and leave our two in the stalls."

The officer addressed took his large feet out of the stirrups, tucked
his sabre under his arm, and stiffly dismounted. Waiting for the fresh
horses, he looked at the angry farmer. "It is for the good of the State,
sir. Moreover, we leave you ours in their places."

"I am as good a Virginian as any, sir, with plenty of my folks in the
army! And one horse ain't as good as another--not when one of yours is
your daughter's and you've ridden the other to the Court House and to
church for twelve years--"

"That is so