"I don't blame you for being in a hurry, for if Uncle Titus had got hold of you he would have made you see more stars then were in the sky just then. I wonder if they had been killing Union men. The Seceshers have done that thing in this State. A Union man was murdered in his own house not far from here."
"Dry up, Deck, or I shall never get through with my story!" exclaimed Artie, who did not relish these repeated interruptions.
"Go on, Artie; I won't say another word," Deck promptly promised.
"I reached the creek, and cast off the canoe. I crossed over to the other side, and pulled down stream; for I knew that the two with the box could not be near the shore. I kept on towards home, but I was careful not to make any noise with my oars. Just below I saw a big flatboat, like the gundalow they used to have on the river to carry hay from the meadows. I drove the canoe into some bushes, and waited. The two men brought that long box to the shore, and loaded it into the flatboat, which was big enough to carry six cords of wood.
"The next load was brought by four men; and I could see by the way they handled it that it was very heavy. I stopped till they had brought down two more boxes, and then I thought it was time for me to be going. When the party had all left the shore I rowed along by the bushes that overhang the creek till I got round the bend. I didn't wait to see any more, but rowed as fast as I could; and when I got to the pier I was so tired I could hardly stand up. That is the end of the story, Deck, and you know as much about the affair as I do; and I will answer all of your questions as well as I can."
"You did not find out anything for certain?" added the listener, disappointed because his cousin had not ascertained what was in the boxes.
"I did not; but I have been able to guess at some things; and that is the privilege of a New England Yankee."
"Well, what do you guess was in those boxes?"
"I didn't guess on that question at the time of it; but I was satisfied that they concealed some sort of iniquity."
"What do you suppose they were putting them in the boat for?"