meaning, nor did she endeavor to escape the inference. Her face, yet
white from the strain of the past few hours, became rosy in an instant,
and her eyes fell.

"I know," she answered softly. "Perhaps that may be why I am so
exceedingly anxious your injuries should be attended to."

As I stepped without, and closed the door behind me, I was at once
startled by the rapid firing of shots from the rear of the house, and
the next moment I encountered the young, red-faced officer hurrying
along the hallway at the head of a squad of Federal cavalrymen.
Recognizing me in the gloom of the passage he paused suddenly.

"I owe you a belated apology, Captain," he exclaimed cordially, "for
having mistaken you for one of those miscreants, but really your
appearance was not flattering."

"Having viewed myself since within a mirror," I replied, "I am prepared
to acknowledge the mistake a most natural one. However, I am grateful
to be out of the scrape, and can scarcely find fault with my rescuers.
Five minutes more would have witnessed the end."

"We rode hard," he said, "and were in saddle within fifteen minutes
after the arrival of your courier. You evidently made a hard fight of
it; the house bears testimony to a terrible struggle. We are rejoicing
to learn that Lieutenant Caton was merely stunned; we believed him dead
at first, and he is far too fine a fellow to go in that way."

"He is truly living, then?" I exclaimed, greatly relieved. "Miss Minor,
to whom he is engaged, is sorrowing over his possible fate in the