“What regiment?”
“The Fourth Alabama.”
“The Fourth Alabama! What are you doing over here, then?”
“I am a stranger in these parts; and I don’t know where to look. I have just escaped from the Yankees, and don’t know much about this part of the country.”
“What is your name?”
“Allan Garland, sir.”
“What!” exclaimed the old farmer, suddenly becoming interested in the conversation.
“In my opinion, you are a deserter,” added the officer in a crabbed tone. “I advise you to arrest him, sergeant. That pass is good for nothing on this road.”
“No, captain, he is not a deserter,” interposed the farmer with energy. “I know him well; and he is as true and patriotic a young man as there is in the Southern Confederacy.”
Somers looked at the farmer with astonishment. He did not remember to have seen him before; and he could not account for the interest he manifested in his case.