General Shields burst out laughing. ‘Well, you are a “Terror,” indeed,’ he said. ‘Take your ham, by all means. I don’t want it, as you say.’
Ephraim instantly swung himself up on the rafter, and while making a great clattering among the planks, as though looking for his ham, contrived to whisper: ‘Lie low, Luce. I’ll come back fer ye, wanst they go away. We’re close ter our own lines.’ Then he dropped down again, and with his precious burden hugged close to his breast, saluted awkwardly and turned to the door.
‘Stay!’ cried the general. ‘Before you go, perhaps you can give me your version of yesterday’s skirmish, in which the “Trailing Terrors” were so knocked about.’
‘Waal, I didn’t see much of it,’ drawled Ephraim with perfect truth. ‘Ye onderstand’——
What he would have said was interrupted by a loud clatter of hoofs outside. A horse was pulled up short, and a courier, hot and perspiring, rushed into the hut.
‘General!’ he panted. ‘The advance has begun. The cavalry are forward, as well as the two batteries. The cavalry have reached the fords without serious opposition.’
‘Orderly!’ shouted General Shields, scribbling again in his pocket-book.
‘Send that note to General Tyler.—My horse outside?’
‘Good! Come, gentlemen. If all goes well, we shall sup with Frémont to-night. If not, we have a strong position at Lewiston, and there we will await the attack which is sure to be made to-morrow, if we fail in our plans to-day. Come!’
Without another word to or thought of Ephraim, he dashed out of the hut.
CHAPTER VIII. A PAIR OF RELUCTANT RECRUITS.
Ephraim followed the officers to the door of the hut and looked out. For five minutes he maintained this position without moving or speaking; then he turned inwards again, and with his usual quiet grin on his face, hailed: ‘Ye kin git down now, Luce. I reckon the coast is cl’ar.’
Lucius swung down to the floor and burst out laughing. ‘How well you managed that, Grizzly!’ he said. ‘Do you know, at one time I thought that you were going to make a clean breast of it, and tell the general that we had been in the balloon.’
‘I ’low I had some thorts er it,’ answered Ephraim; ’fer he seemed dead sot agin the cunnel himself; but ye never know what’ll happen. After all, they war all Yanks in hyar, and though the ginrul seemed inclined ter be perfeckly fair and squar ’bout them two escaped balloonists, ye carn’t tell how his complexshun might hev changed ef wanst he knew he’d got his claws onter ’em.’