FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179   180   181   182   183   184   185   186   187   >>  
and wished that the general had not taken quite so deep an interest in him. The crisis was coming now, and he nerved himself for it. "I am very much obliged, general," he faltered. "But my time will be up in about two weeks, and I should like to go home and see my folks."' Rodney expected that his superior would be surprised to hear this, and his actions showed that he certainly was, and a little angry, as well. He arose to a sitting posture on the couch, and jammed the tobacco down in his pipe with a spiteful motion as he said, rather curtly: "You must give up all such nonsense. I am not going to deplete my brigade, at this most critical time, by letting everybody go home who takes a fool's notion into his head that he wants to. According to law I am obliged to discharge all one year's men when their term of service expires; but they shall never get out of my lines. I'll conscript them as fast as a provost guard can catch them." The general settled back on his elbow again and looked at his visitor as if to inquire what he thought of the situation. Rodney thought it was dark enough, and showed what he thought by the gloomy expression that came upon his face. He gazed down at the cap he was twirling in his hands and said nothing. The general relented. "I don't want to be hard on you, Rodney," said he, speaking in much the same tone that a kind and indulgent father might use in reproving an erring son, "but can't you see for yourself what would happen to us and our government if we should weaken our armies by discharging troops at this juncture? The enemy has a hundred and forty thousand men in our front at this minute, and more coming. Memphis is taken, New Orleans has fallen, the railroads, except those that run south of us, are in Halleck's possession, and if the enemy along the river moves quickly, the troops we have sent to fortify Vicksburg will not have time to lift a shovel full of dirt before the Mississippi clear to the Gulf will be lost to us. I tell you the situation is critical in the extreme, and if we don't look out, and fight as men never fought before, the Lincoln government will have us in the dust in less than two months. I'll not let a man of you go, and that's all there is about it." The general puffed vigorously at his pipe and looked as though he meant every word he said. Was this the man who had promised on two different occasions that he would lend Rodney a helping hand if the opportun
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179   180   181   182   183   184   185   186   187   >>  



Top keywords:

general

 

Rodney

 

thought

 

critical

 

situation

 

troops

 

looked

 

government

 

coming

 

obliged


showed

 

father

 

Orleans

 

Memphis

 

fallen

 

indulgent

 

railroads

 

minute

 

thousand

 

weaken


armies

 
discharging
 

interest

 

happen

 

crisis

 

erring

 
reproving
 
hundred
 
juncture
 
puffed

vigorously

 

wished

 

months

 

helping

 

opportun

 
occasions
 
promised
 

Lincoln

 

fought

 

fortify


Vicksburg

 

quickly

 

Halleck

 

possession

 
speaking
 

shovel

 

extreme

 
Mississippi
 

expected

 

letting