Tired and broken down from the excessive marching of the past few days, the men were but little disposed to go farther, and when the command to “fall in” was given it was but indifferently obeyed. The delay thereby occasioned was, however, productive of good results, for presently the sound of a wagon was heard approaching from the direction we had just come, and in a moment more the missing commissary wagon came in sight, in charge of private George Bush, of Company A. Colonel Johnson’s countenance underwent a wonderful change, as did that of every man in the regiment. Looking stern, however, he demanded to know of Bush “why he had been straggling?”
“Why you see, Colonel,” he replied, “my feet were kind o’ sore, and I couldn’t cotch up; so I seed this here wagon stuck in the mud, and knowd it belonged to us; and you see I knowd as you know what was in it, and so I says to myself, ‘Them ar Yanks shan’t have her;’ and so I confisticated that are team; but it couldn’t pull it nary inch. So you see, Colonel, as the crackers and meat wasn’t very heavy, but the whisky and merlasses wor, so you see, Colonel, there was no alternation but ter empty her out.”
“Empty her out, sir,” interrupted the Colonel, in a voice of thunder, and with a countenance black as midnight; “empty her out, you rascal? Why didn’t you save a part of the contents, at least?”
“And so I did, sir. The meat and crackers wor ondispensable; but you see, Colonel, them ere people about Newtown are mighty poor, and you know, sir, I always wor kind o’ good-hearted, and then them merlasses and the barrel of whisky wor so tarnal heavy”—
“And you gave them the whisky and the molasses?” roared the Colonel.
“Now, Colonel,” said Bush, “you must really excuse me this time if I gave them all”—
“All?” interrupted the Colonel.
“Yes, sir; all the superfluity but the barrel of whisky.”
“Bush, you are a bad soldier,” said the Colonel, “and shall have a week’s extra guard duty for wasting ‘them merlasses,’ as you call it, though, under the circumstances, I might have done the same. But it won’t do to encourage such extravagance in a well-disciplined command. Captain Howard, knock the bung out of that barrel and give each of the men a stiff drink, while you will take care and reserve an extra one for the officers.”
It is needless to say the order was obeyed with alacrity, and the six miles were made in quick time to the song of “Oh, let us be joyful!”