The man bounded off to execute the order, and just then the captain of one of the guns was killed. Frank immediately seized the priming-wire which had fallen from his hand, and worked with the rest. His fear had given place to a reckless determination to do his duty, for, let the consequences be what they might, no blame could be attached to him. Impatiently, however, he waited for the return of the mate, and his impatience increased when word was brought him that the ammunition was failing. At length, after a delay which seemed extraordinary, a charge was ordered.
The rebels seemed to have an idea of what was going on, for, a few moments before the order was given, their fire slackened considerably; but, as soon as the sailors, in obedience to the command, issued from the woods, they were met with a terrific fire, which threw them into confusion. In vain their officers urged and commanded; the men refused to advance, but remained standing in full view of the rebels, while every moment their comrades were falling around them. At length the enemy made a counter-charge, and the sailors, without waiting to resist, broke and fled in every direction. Frank and his men remained at their posts until the last moment; but they soon found themselves completely deserted, and were obliged to fall back into the woods.
By the exertions of the officers, a few of the men were rallied in the edge of the timber, and, bravely standing their ground, the rebels were met with a murderous fire, and the shells from the Ticonderoga, which now began to burst in their very midst, completed their confusion, and they, in turn, were compelled to retreat.
In an instant, Frank and several of his men sprang out and attempted to recover the howitzers, which had been left between the lines, but the rebels were on the watch, and, after the loss of three of his men, he was obliged to order a retreat. For two hours a severe a fight was maintained, the rebels making several charges, which were easily repulsed by the sailors; and each time Frank made unsuccessful attempts to recover his battery, but was as often compelled to retreat, leaving some of his men dead on the field, or prisoners in the hands of the enemy.
The left of the line rested on the bank of the river, where a full view of the Ticonderoga could be obtained. After the fight had raged nearly three hours, without any advantage being gained on either side, one of the men reported that the ship was making signals. The commander of the expedition hurried along the line, calling out—
"Mr. Howe! Where's the signal officer, Mr. Howe?" But he received no answer. No one had seen Mr. Howe since he had so ingloriously retreated at the commencement of the fight.
"Pass the word along the line for Mr. Howe!" shouted the captain.
The order was obeyed, and finally a faint voice, some distance in the rear, replied, "Here, sir."
"What are you doing there, sir?" demanded the captain, in a voice of thunder. "Why are you not at your post? Get out there with your flag, and answer the Ticonderoga's signals." And the captain began to consult his signal-book.
Mr. Howe looked first at the rebels, then at the captain, then down at the flag which he held in his hand, but he did not move. It was a dangerous undertaking; for, in answering the signals, he would be obliged to stand on the bank of the river, where there was nothing but bushes to protect him, and where the rebels would be certain to see him; but the rattling of the musketry, the sharp whistle of the bullets as they flew thickly about among the trees, and the roar of the Ticonderoga's guns—sounds which he had never before heard—so worked upon the imagination of the terrified man, that the danger seemed tenfold worse than it really was.