an audience of your
Excellency. 'Tis Mistress Thankful Blossom,--the daughter of Abner
Blossom, charged with treasonous practice and favoring the enemy, now
in the guard-house at Morristown."

"Thankful Blossom?" repeated the general interrogatively.

"Your Excellency doubtless remembers a little provincial beauty and a
famous toast of the country-side,--the Cressida of our Morristown epic,
who led our gallant. Connecticut captain astray--"

"You have the advantages, besides the better memory of a younger man,
colonel," said Washington, with a playful smile that slightly reddened
the cheek of his aide-de-camp. "Yet I think I HAVE heard of this
phenomenon. By all means, admit her--and her escort."

"She is alone, general," responded the subordinate.

"Then the more reason why we should be polite," returned Washington,
for the first time altering his easy posture, rising to his feet, and
lightly clasping his ruffled hands before him. "We must not keep her
waiting. Give her access, my dear colonel, at once; and even as she
came,--ALONE."

The aide-de-camp bowed and withdrew. In another moment the half-opened
door swung wide to Mistress Thankful Blossom.

She was so beautiful in her simple riding-dress, so quaint and original
in that very beauty, and, above all, so teeming with a certain vital
earnestness of purpose just positive and audacious enough to set off
that beauty, that the grave gentleman before her did not content
himself with the usual formal inclination of courtesy, but actually
advanced, and, taking her cold little hand in his, graciously led her
to the chair he had just vacated.

"Even if your name were not known to me, Mistress Thankful," said the
commander-in-chief, looking down upon her with grave politeness,
"nature has, methinks, spared you the necessity of any introduction to
the courtesy of a gentleman. But how can I especially serve you?"

Alack! the blaze of Mistress Thankful's brown eyes had become somewhat
dimmed in the grave half-lights of the room, in the graver, deeper
dignity of the erect, soldier-like figure before her. The bright color
born of the tempest within and without had somehow faded from her
cheek; the sauciness begotten from bullying her horse in the last
half-hour's rapid ride was so subdued by the actual presence of the man
she had come to bully, that I fear she had to use all her self-control
to keep down her inclination to whimper, and to keep back the tears,