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Show 358 RICIIAHD IlUHDIS. "What see you?" demanded Foster, looking in the snme di. rection. His demand was a suflicient waming for me to be cautious, and yet, for the life of me, I could not forbear the question in reply. 41 ''7 ho arc those?" "\Vhat, the llitchcrs 7'' "Y cs! yes! and their companions- the lookers-on." u One of the pitchers is a fellow 11::tmed Hatfield -a close friend of \\~ cbbcr, and one of our most adroit spies; he is the fellow in green; the other two are common strihc~. who will set out on :m exped ition to-night. They arc cxcccllingly expert horse-stealers, anll the people ncar OolumLus wil~ hear of them before they nrc two days older--the tallest one 1s named Jones, the othN Tinker." "And how do they incline- toward you or 'Vebbcr 1" wns an indifferent question, nlmost too indifferently put to answer the purpose of a disguii'ie to my real curiosily, for which it was intended. I heard his answer impatiently, and then, with lips that trembled, I dcmnndcd- " And who are the three lookers-on~ I have not seen them before! They were not with us on the Sipsy last night 1" "Noi they have just come from down the river. The smnlJer fellow is one of our keenest emissaries, and, pcrlHlps, one of our bravest men. lie has just brought up the two men who are with him-" '' ' Vhnt! as prisoners 1" I exclaimed, in my impatience. "Prisoners, indeed! No. \Vhat should we do with prisoners 1 They belong to us. They arc our men." " ' Vhy, then, do you say he brought them up 1" . . "'I' his is the affair. I !ta.vc just finished their cxammatwn. It nppears that the large, fat fellow, is rnthcr a ri~h young planter somewhere in Marengo. He had a brother Wi~h whom he had a quanel. This brother set ofl:' with a companiOn some weeks ago for the' nntion,' wh ere they proposed ~o enter lands. 'rhc elder l.n·othcr avails himself of this opporhlllity to revenge himself for some indignities put upon him by tl1e younger, and despatches after him the fellow in homespun, whom yon sec beside him, his hands in his breeches pockets. ' Vebber, it appears, about the same time, lnicl a trap for the two tra\'rllrrl', one of THB AFFAIR GROWS MORE IKTRICA1'E. 359 whom f~t,I into it very nicely-the other broke off and ,..,.ot away. .1 hey P.nrsncd him, but they must have lost him, but for the t nncly Rid .of the chap in homespun, who, lying in wait, ~hot .down the fng1tive, and lhcn made off to his employer. Accordlllg to our gcucral plan, an emissary was sent nftcr the murderer, and, in s~cn1·ing l1 im, the secret of the brother wus discov<" red. In t ins way, bolh hnvc Leon secured, nnd nro now numbered among our followers." I have a~ridgcd Fostcl·'s narrative, in order to m·oid telling a story t\'·ncc. Here was a dreadful discO\'ery. My stupid a,mnzcment can not .be described. I was literally overcome. laster saw my astomshment, and inquired into its cause. )fy reply ·was, perhnps, n sufficient renson for my astonishment though it cA'cctunlly concealed 1 he true one. ' "Great God! c:1n tJ,is be possible 1 His own brotl1er 1" "Even so. Neither you nor I would have clone such a thing, bad n~ we may be held by we\1-orclcrC'd society. •rho fellow s~ems but a po~r c~·caturc after all, aud could hardly stand durmg our exammnhon. Of such creatures, howc\'er, we mnko the most useful, if not the most dnring members. 'Vc will let him go back to J farengo nfter to-monow, and be a pillar of the church, which, I think it not improbnble, he will instnntly join, if, indeed, he be not nlreacly n member. 'rho other fellow who is called l'ickett, takes to us with a relish, and VVebbcr has found him a plnce to squat somewl1ere on tlte banks of the Big )V arrior. But, a truce to this. llcre 'Y cbber approaches. Do not forget, Williams-and, I am your fr iend. We must act together for mutual benefit. Mum, now." "\\T ebber d~·ew nigh, bringing with him tbc emissary who had g?ne after Pickett and J ohn Hurd is. They remained with the pitchers. among whom, I may add, Pickett was, at tl1is time, incorporated, an~l working away as lustily as the most expert. But I had no tunc allowed me to note either h is, or the \nbors of John Hurd is. 1\fy attention was instantly chnllcngecl by Webber, who, unless angry, was not n man of many words. t "G~t yourself in readiness, '\Vi ll iams; I will set you on the rack m an hour, and !:iltow yon n part of the route." t I proceeded to obey, nud it wns not long, as may be conjecured, before 1 was properly mounted for that journey wl1ich |
