THE CAMP-FIRE AT CAMBRIDGE (continued)

"Oh, Putnam, and Prescott, and Warren, and Pomeroy, were speechifyin' to the men, cheerin', 'em, and makin' 'em savage for the fight. Warren had his musket, goin' to fight like the rest of us. We could see the houses in Boston crowded on top with people, and the h ills all around crowded in the same way, I thought I was goin' to fight for their good, and I felt strong. While the red-coats were comin' up the hill, we saw that Charlestown had been set on fire; and that made me more like a bloodhound still. I wanted to get a chance at the infernal rascals. Waal, we got our orders from Putnam not to fire until we could see the white of their eyes; and we waited quietly till they got within about sixty yards, and then such a blaze and roar of musketry ran along that breastwork as never was seen. Such a stream of fire went into the British ranks, and they fell, it seemed to me, whole rows at a time. Of course they couldn't stand that. They broke and run down the hill, in spite of their officers. That gave us a little breath; and we waited in the same way as before, to see if they would come up to the work again. We got the same orders as before, and kept our fire back. After a good deal of coaxin' and bullyin' from their officers, we saw the red-coats comin' up the hill again, with their general near the head, with his officers around him. We let 'em get as near as before, and then let fly at 'em. We picked 'em off with our true aim, till their ranks were thinned all along the line, and then back, down the hill, they went again, like a flock of scared sheep. We hardly thought they'd come up and try it again; the whole hill in front of the breastwork was covered with the killed and wounded. It seemed like leadin' the men up to be butchered. But Howe and some of the other officers rallied 'em again. The officers were good on the side of the Britishers; for though they were picked off by our marksmen as fast as they came to the charge, those who were still alive rallied the men, and brought 'em up again, sometimes at the sword's point. Just as they were comin' up the hill for the third time, we discovered that our powder was most gone, and that we couldn't get any more then; then was when they day began to turn against us. The Britishers had changed the position of their cannon, and they began to rake our breastwork from end to end, so that we had to leave it and take to the redoubt. Then the fire from all the batteries of the Britishers grew louder and hotter than ever. The red-coats came up to the work again, and we blazed into them with what ammunition we had. It was just then that I saw that major, that led the party of red-coats at Lexington, mount our breastwork. He cried out, 'The day is ours!" but he had no sooner got the words out, than I shot him in the body, and he fell back into the arms of another officer, just behind him."

"The day wasn't for him, was it?" said Hiram.

"No; but he was a brave man," replied Jonathan.

"I marked out Howe two or three times, but I always hit somebody else near him."

"Some Howe you didn't hit," remarked Josiah, with a desperate effort at a pun.

"Exactly," answered Jonathan. "But as I was sayin'" the red-coats come up to the work again, and attacked the redoubt on three sides. Our amminition was out, and a retreat was ordered by the commander of the day, Colonel Prescott; but we didn't feel the humor of retreatin'. We knew that if we had had enough amminition we would have whipped the red-coats, and didn't want to give up the ground. The red-coats mounted the walls of the redoubt; but we clubbed our muskets and fought for every inch of ground we give 'em, though they had bagonets and we had none. I was one of the last to leave the redoubt, and I saw Warren fightin' like a common soldier, I guess the redoubt must have been half full of red-coats before we left it. We had still to fight while we were retreatin'; for they were upon us with their bagonets. I had to swing my musket on every side, to get clear of 'em. I saw Warren fall. I think he was shot in the body. Some of our men run up to him, and took him in their arms, as the Britishers crowded on to get at him with their bagonets. I had to fight my way to the rest of our men that were retreatin', and got cut two or three times with their bagonets; but none of 'em hurt me much, and I got safe to Charlestown Neck, just as our troops were crossin'"

"Did you lose many in retreatin'" asked Zeb.

"I think that's the time we lost the most. Their bagonets done all the damage. But if we had had amminition enough they never would have had a chance to use their bagonets!" replied Jonathan.

"Waal, Jonathan, who brought off the troops, in the retreat?" Hiram enquired.

"Prescott and Putnam, I believe," answered Jonathan. Prescott was only a colonel, and there was two or three generals on the ground; but he had command all through the battle --- and a better commander, or a braver soldiers, wasn't on the ground. He's a vet'ran of the French war."

"You lost your artillery, didn't you?" was the next question.

"Yes; we had no way of bringin' 'em off the ground in time," continued Jonathan. "We held on to 'em as long as we could."

"Waal," remarked Zeb, "they bought that ground pretty dearly. Accordin' to the accounts I've heard, they lost as many in killed and wounded as we had altogether; while our loss was only four hundred and fifty, killed and wounded."

"Yes, they did buy the ground at a high price," was the reply; "and I hope they'll buy all the ground they try to get, at the same dear rate. I've heard it said that General Gage reports the loss at a thousand and fifty-four. I think eighteen hundred wouldn't more 'n cover it. Then there was mor'n eighty officers killed and wounded. We only had a hundred and thirty-nine killed, and two hundred and seventy-eight wounded. Then there was thirty-six taken prisoners by the Britishers; some of 'em I know, might have got away, if they hadn't stopped to see to General Warren.

"Where did Warren fall?" asked Zeb.

"Just outside of the redoubt. I don't know whether the red-coats killed him with their bagonets or not. I suppose they did. I hardly know which he was best at doin' --- fightin', or speakin'. I heard him speak about the Boston massacre; and I thought he was about the best I ever heard speak. He made the blood bile in my veins. I felt as if I could do anythin' to torment them infernal red-coats. I saw him in the battle, as I told you and I don't think a better soldier ever went into a battle. He wasn't only brave himself, but he made others brave that were round him."

"He was always a great man," said Zeb. "they say a great man is great at all times and in all places; and if ever there was such a one, it was General Warren!"

"That's true as gospel," Jonathan returned. "He was a great man at all times."

"It's a pity he fell as soon in the war. I hardly know where we are gon' to get a man to fill his place," remarked Hiram.

"Why, in Washington we've got one,' replied Jonathan. "Perhaps he's a greater man than Warren."

"He's at least his equal in goodness," said Josiah.

"I know from his care of us, that his heart's in the right place; and he has a reputation for bein' a complete general."

"We've got a good deal to see of General Washington yet, Hiram remarked. "I think he'll come up to expectation, though. This forcin' the British to leave Boston, is a good specimen of what he can do."

"Yes, it's a good deal for such a poorly-provided army as this to do," returned Jonathan. "There's Major-General Howe, with ten thousand of the best of the British troops, goin' to march out of Boston; glad to get away from an army of men mostly just from the plough, and a good many of 'em without muskets. It's a rare thing, I tell you!"

"I wish they had tried a battle at Dorchester Heights," said Hiram. "It would have been somethin' to brag on, I know."

The men had finished their repast while they were talking, and they were now anxious to obtain a little rest. The fire was fixed to keep burning all night, by a large log being put on one side, and the fire under and alongside of it; after which the men went around the ten, endeavoring to stop up all the cracks and openings as well as they could. They continued in conversation, however, till they were wrapped in their blankets an disposed for sleep.

"I say, Zeb," Jonathan remarked, "how I would like to see the red-coats movin' out of Boston! They will look so down in the mouth!"

"Yes, I wish we could only get into it before they get away," replied Zeb. "I'd like to have a laugh at 'em."

"They threaten to burn down the town, if they're meddled with while leavin' Boston," said Hiram.

"They're devils enough to do it, too," said Josiah, stretching himself on one side of the fire.

"I believe there's some tories among the folks, that would set fire to the city to spite the whigs!" Zeb remarked, following suit on the other side.

Jonathan and Hiram stretched themselves on the vacant sides of the fire, well wrapped up in their blankets; prepared, like the rest, for the visitation of the drowsy god.

"Josiah," said Jonathan, "you're generally about the first one awake in the mornin'; just crow to-morrow mornin', will you, when you get awake? I want to get up early, and we've got no roosters round this neighborhood!"

Josiah returned no answer; but the substitution of him for a rooster, caused a hearty laugh frm those who were awake. One by one they joined him in his travels through the land of dreams; and the occasional crackling of the fire, and the quiet tread of the sentinels, were the only sounds that broke the stillness of the tent.