e hopeful ones,
insisted that if the Indians had tortured any prisoners to death, we must
have heard yells and shouts of triumph; yet the night wind had brought to
our ears nothing more than the cries of sorrow.

Viewing the situation in the brightest light possible, many days must of a
necessity elapse before we could hope for any good results from their
brave venture, and if in the meantime the enemy pressed us sharply, we
would be in hard straits, more particularly since so much of our
ammunition had been expended in defending the fort against that first
assault.

When a large number of men are confined in a limited space, and exposed to
danger, it needs but the lightest word to make cowards of the more
faint-hearted, as we soon had good proof.

On the day following the truce, after the enemy had buried their dead,
work on the parallels was continued, and it gave me no little satisfaction
to see that the Tories were forced to perform the greater portion of the
labor.

As I have already said, these trenches extended within an hundred and
fifty yards of the fort by this time, and we knew only too well that it
was not within our power to prevent their being advanced as near as the
enemy saw fit to carry them.

After a certain time mining would probably be begun, and then, if our
supply of ammunition had not been replenished, the end must be near at
hand, when St. Leger would have opportunity to carry into execution his
threat of allowing Thayendanega's murderers to work their cruel will.

All this was talked over and commented upon by our people as the days wore
on, and the more timid seemed to find delight in picturing what would take
place if the fort was captured.

"Why must they keep harpin' on that possibility all the time?" I asked,
angrily, of Sergeant Corney, when I had turned away in disgust from a
group of men who were painting horrible word-pictures, and the old soldier
had followed me to the parade-ground beyond sound of such words.

"It is all as plain as the nose on your face, lad," the old man said,
grimly. "Look about, an' you'll see that them as are makin' the howl over
what the Injuns may do are the faintest-hearted among us. It's all done
for one purpose."

"What can that be?" I asked, in surprise. "How do they suppose any good
can come of conjuring up everything horrible?"

"They're of the same kidney that drove General Herkimer into the ambush,
an' are tryin' to force the colonel to surr