"But I have time to say that I will ruin the whole enterprise if you mean to commit an outrage such as you appear to have in your mind," replied Corny, as vigorously as though he had been the military equal of the one he had called "major" by accident.
"Do you mean to be a traitor to your country, Neal?" demanded Mulgate angrily.
"Neither to my country nor to my uncle."
"Your uncle is a Yankee, and is doing all he can to subjugate the free South. He has no rights which we are bound to respect," said Mulgate fiercely.
"This will never do," interposed Captain Carboneer; and this may or may not have been his real name. "We are getting into a disagreement at the very first step of our enterprise."
"I don't know you, Captain Carboneer, but I wish to be understood as meaning every word I have said; and I will wreck this enterprise, if I am shot for it, rather than allow my cousin to be carried off in connection with it," protested Corny stoutly. "I will do my duty faithfully; but I will not assist in robbing my uncle of his daughter."
"You are quite right, young man; and I would rather be sent to the fort as a prisoner of war than take part in such an enterprise," added Captain Carboneer, in mild but forcible tones.
"You astonish me, captain!" said Mulgate. "Why do you talk about an outrage? I claim to be a gentleman, and to be above any such villainy as you and Corny suggest. I do not propose to rob Captain Passford of his daughter. What I may do depends—depends upon the consent of the lady. If she is willing to go with me"—
"She is not willing to go with you; and she never will be willing to go with you," Corny interposed. "I don't know what you are thinking about, Mr. Mulgate; but Florry cares no more about you than she does about Uncle Pedro, my father's house-servant. She saw you both at Glenfield, and I can't tell which she likes best."
"We had better drop the subject," added Captain Carboneer.