"Of course," answered the lieutenant, who had never once thought of that contingency. "It's to be expected that you will take your chances on that. It is what we all have to do when we meet the enemy."
"Have you found them a tolerably brave lot?" inquired Captain Tom, who wanted much to meet some veteran who would assure him that the Yankees were all cowards and did not know how to fight.
"As brave as they make 'em," said the lieutenant earnestly, "and dead shots into the bargain. We have bitten off a good deal more than we can chew in ten years; now you remember what I tell you. Of course, captain, I wouldn't say that in the presence of a civilian; but one old soldier knows how to take another. Now, don't you think, sah, that you partisans could lend us a hand in capturing these Yankees."
"Why, certainly; and I will warn my company out at once," replied Tom readily. "Where will I find you at the end of a couple of hours? I want you and the sergeant to take supper and lodgings at my mother's house to-night."
"Much obliged to you, sah, but we couldn't think of it," said the lieutenant. "Colonel Parker—he's the regular who commands the camp—would take us to task for wasting time if he should hear of it, and besides, we don't want to run the risk of being gobbled."
"Gobbled?" repeated Captain Tom; for that was a word that had not yet reached his part of the Confederacy.
"Captured, you know."
"Who's going to capture you at our house?" exclaimed Tom, who could feel himself turning white.
"The Yankee scouts might, if they should happen to ride into town and any enemy of yours could tell them where to find us; and these escaped prisoners might do it."
Captain Randolph was utterly confounded. His idea of an escaped prisoner was a man running frantically for his life and too badly frightened to look behind him; but the lieutenant's words made it plain to him that the four who were foot-loose somewhere in the vicinity of Mooreville were not that sort. He became really alarmed when the soldier went on to explain the situation.