| Object ID |
A7 |
| Object Name |
Painting |
| Dimensions |
H-19 W-13 inches |
| Early Date |
1925 |
| Late Date |
1926 |
| Description |
“I think. Captain Hendee,” remarked Warrington, now for the first time offering an opinion, “that the man’s notions, as bad off as he appears to he, are correct. He will probably keep the house in an uproar half the night if he remains. It is more suitable, I think, that he should be taken to the barn. And it is my duty, I suppose, to attend him.”
“I by no means intended to exclude you in my prohibition, sir,” said Alma, addressing Warrington.
“Oh, no, certainly not, I presume. But I think I ought to go with him,” rejoined Warrington. “And a bed of hay,” he added gayly, “is far better than has sometimes fallen to my lot.”
“Hoy! there, cap—cap—capting!” stammered out the stranger, lifting his head, though nearly falling out of his chair at the effort; “say, you Cap—Capting Handy, Hindy—dev—devil knows what; take good care—care my rifle; cost ten pounds, king’s lawful cur—cur—curren—cyation; God d——n—bless him!”
“And of mine, too, captain, if you will. We will leave them in the house till morning, with your permission,” observed Warrington, exchanging a significant glance with Miss Hendee.
Darrow, who till now had manifested a determination that our two outlaws should remain in the house with him, on hearing that the valuable rifles were to be left behind, seemed no longer to entertain any suspicion of the arrangement last proposed, and conceded the point without further objection.
Captain Hendee then ordered Neshobee to take the rifles into the next room, and, pointing out the beds to be occupied by Darrow and his men, took leave of his guests for the night, and with his daughter retired to the other part of the house. Everything being now settled to the apparent satisfaction of all parties, it only remained to get the helpless and unwieldly outlaw to his lodging in the barn. And Darrow and his men all declaring that they would by no means consent to quit their generous entertainer till they had seen him safely disposed of for the night, Warrington and the soberest soldiers to be found in the company now assisted him in getting on his feet and bracing out his legs so that he could be kept from dropping on the floor. When this, with considerable difficulty and no little noise and merriment, had been effected, they planted themselves firmly under each arm, and at the word of command, sportively given by one of the company, trundled, or rather pushed, his huge and staggering carcass forward toward the barn, attended by the whole company, reeling, jostling, and shouting along by his side. After they had arrived there, and succeeded in getting their charge over the threshold, they unceremoniously tumbled him on a pile of hay on the barn floor; when, after exchanging mock ceremonies of parting politeness, Darrow and all his men, now feeling sure of an easy and safe capture as soon as their intended victims were asleep, departed for the house.
“Charles!” said the big outlaw, raising himself on his elbow as soon as the sounds of the receding footsteps of the soldiers had died away; “Charles!” he repeated, in a low, though perfectly sober, tone, “you creep carefully round to those side windows, and see if some of these cusses aint still lurking round the barn to watch us.”
The other, silently complying, soon returned and reported that no one was visible.
“Well, now, Charles,” resumed the first speaker, “you get down there at my feet and see if you can pull off my plaguy old boots. There is more than a quart of rum in them. I can neither run nor fight worth a copper with my feet in such a devil’s pickle.”
“Upon my word, colonel,” said Warrington, while complying with the request just made, “you would make no slouch of a juggler. I saw no chance of succeeding in any way short of drinking or openly refusing. And I was not a little puzzled to decide whether you were stark mad in taking such quantities of liquor, or whether you had some way of otherwise disposing of it which I could not detect. Indeed, for the last half hour I have been perfectly at a loss to know whether you were drunk or sober. How did you contrive to cheat them so cleverly?”
“Buttoned up my high collared coat, so as to come up over my chin, at the outset. Then, minding to stand so as to admit no side views to that hawk-eyed sergeant, or to the others, till they were too far gone to see straight, I dashed every glass down my bosom. Not a spoonful has gone down my throat tonight! so help me Peter! who never lied but three times, as I recollect. But come, we must be thinking of something else now. And the first question to be settled is whether we shall go off without our rifles, and perhaps lose them entirely, or whether we shall hatch up some scheme to get them out of the house.”
“I have strong hope, though I may be disappointed,” said the other in reply, “that we shall soon get hold of them through other agency than our own. I think we had better venture on remaining here for a few moments longer, to wait the result of an effort which I feel quite confident will be made for this purpose.”
“Aha, Charley—been plowing with the captain’s heifer, heh? Well, we will wait a little. Yes, yes; I see now what the sly jade was at when she set in so plausibly to have ‘the loathsome creature’ carried off to the barn. And, indeed, Charles, I suspected, soon after I arrived, that you was in for it there. But how in the name of Cupid, and Hymen, and Venus, and all that sort of heathen cattle, did you happen to pounce upon such a superb piece of housel stuff? I thought you never strayed so far down here to the land’s end?” |
| Credit |
Gift of Thos. Nelson & Sons |
|
