!" cried he. "Get your scythe, Joe, and mow 'em down as fast as
they come!"

When the little boys heard of this, it amused them greatly. Mistaken for
the British army, indeed! Well, now, that was something worth while!

A happier soul than little, simple, round-shouldered Jock you never saw,
unless it was his poor old grandfather. He could keep step with the best
of them; but unfortunately he had no decent clothes. This was a great
drawback, but Mrs. Parlin and Mrs. Lyman took pity on the boy, and made
him a nice suit.

CHAPTER IX.

THE MUSTER.

Willy proved to have fine powers as a leader. Like the famous John
Gilpin,

"A train-band captain eke was he,
Of credit and renown,"

and the Never-Give-Ups became such an orderly, well-trained company,
that some of the rich fathers made them the present of a small cannon.

Do you know what a wonderful change that made in the condition of
things? Well, I will tell you. They became at once an Artillery Company!
Not poor little infantry any more, but great, brave artillery!

Every man among them cast aside his Quaker gun with contempt, and wore a
cut-and-thrust sword, made out of the sharpest kind of wood. An
Artillery Company,--think of that! The boys threw up their caps, and
Willy sang,--

"Come, fill up my cup, come, fill up my can;
Come, saddle your horses, and call up your men!
Come, open the west port, and let us gang free,
And it's room for the bonnets of Bonny Dundee!"

There was to be a General Muster that fall, and if you suppose the
Perseverance boys had thought of anything else since the Fourth of July,
that shows how little you know about musters.

A muster, boys--Well, I never saw a muster, myself; but it must have
been something like this:--

A mixture of guns and gingerbread; men and music; horses and hard
cider.

It was very exciting,--I know that. There were plumes dancing, flags
waving, cannons firing, men marching, boys screaming, dogs barking; and
women looking on in their Sunday bonnets.

The "Sharp-shooters" and the "String Beans" were there from Cross Lots;
the Artillery from Harlow; the "Pioneers," in calico frocks, with wooden
axes, from Camden; and all the infantry and cavalry from the whole
country round about.

Seth Parlin belonged to the cavalry, or "troop," and made a fine figure
on horseback. Willy secretly wondered if he would look as well when _he_
grew up.

"Saddled and bridled and b