“Indeed, mother, it was no fault of mine. You seem to be blaming me for the misdemeanor of his Majesty’s ship of the line; but really the thing was so well done that I can hardly find it in my heart to be out of humor. I am really suspicious that they had a Yankee gunner aboard. A lubberly British tar could never have taken so straight an aim.”
“I do not like to hear you talk so lightly of the matter,” said Mrs. Joinly. “Your own life has been in imminent hazard, and it appears to me that more serious thought is due to such a circumstance; and, beside, I cannot but reflect upon the fearful state of things around us. In wanton sport, these British officers fire upon a human being as a sportsman shoots at a woodcock or a partridge. How horrible is war, which thus perverts the manners and feelings of mankind; that converts murder into sport, sets aside the great commandment, ‘Thou shalt not kill,’ and makes bloodshed and slaughter a kind of chase, in which the amusement is proportioned to the number and value of the game.”
The young man made no reply. He sat musing for some time, and then, rising somewhat abruptly, he retired to his own room.
In the morning, Mrs. Joinly found upon her table a note from her son, saying that he was to be absent for a few days upon an expedition of importance. It entered into no explanations or details, and the mother was left to conjecture the cause of the young man’s absence. We must now follow him in his adventures.
Since young Joinly had read his father’s letter and his mother’s reply, he had resolved to make some effort for the release of the former. He had considered a great variety of schemes, but they were all dismissed, from one consideration or other. The accident which had occurred to him in the boat presented a new suggestion. The identical ship which had been the instrument of destroying the houses upon Duck Island was proceeding toward New York.
The desire of revenge for that calamity, which had been followed by so many disasters to his family, naturally arose in his heart. This was quickened by the wanton attack upon his little boat, and his mind was nearly resolved upon some attempt to seize upon the commander and destroy his vessel, thus taking an officer of equal rank with his father, and having the means of securing an exchange for his parent, at the same time that he would inflict a merited retribution upon the enemy.
This scheme, wild and extravagant as it might seem, did not appear impossible to the heated fancy of the youth, particularly as he felt a perfect willingness to sacrifice his life in the undertaking. It was at the moment that he was half resolved upon this mad scheme that the conversation with his mother had taken place. Her solemn words impressed him deeply. He retired to his room, and threw himself upon the bed. The sufferings of his family and the sufferings of the whole country were strongly impressed upon his mind.
The war at this period was carried on by the British armies in a manner which was calculated to rouse every feeling of indignation in the American people. The southern coasts of the United States had been ravaged by their troops in a style befitting pirates rather than soldiers, and more recently the borders of Connecticut had met with a similar fate. New Haven had been attacked, and the beautiful town of Fairfield had been laid in ashes. These circumstances were attended with the most aggravating atrocities. Private property was destroyed in mere wantonness. Individuals were shot down, or butchered by the soldiers, where no public object could be gained.
In the darkness of his chamber, these events crowded upon the youth’s imagination. They came attended with all the details current at the time, and heightened by the colors which indignation and rumor imparted to them. His own fancy, too, gave them a vividness beyond the reality; and, amid all these crowding images, his mother’s words came again and again upon his heart: “In wanton sport these British officers fire upon a human being as a sportsman shoots at a woodcock or a partridge.”
In this uneasy manner he spent several hours, but at last fell asleep. After a brief repose, he awoke, dressed himself, lighted a candle, and wrote the letter to his mother which we have already mentioned. After a few brief preparations, he went forth. His step was firm, and his whole bearing showed that his resolution was taken. The gray dawn was just visible in the east. As the youth was about departing, and had already advanced several rods from the house, he paused and looked back. The venerable mansion lay dark and still beneath the arches of the lofty elms that spread their branches above it. The gloom of the scene seemed but an emblem of the shadows that rested upon the hearts of those within, and those once so bright, so cheerful, so happy. A single tear gathered in the young man’s eyes; but he dashed it aside, and strode forward upon his path.