“Let me alone!” cried Louis, and endeavored to break away, but he was no match for the crowd, that speedily pounced upon him and beat him mercilessly until he was glad enough to remain quiet. From the start Louis had suspected what the mission of the men was. The whole crowd were battlefield thieves, and now without ceremony they proceeded to rob the Union and the two Confederate soldiers, who were helpless, of all they possessed that was in the least valuable. Two watches, some silver, and twenty-four dollars in United States and Confederate scrip rewarded their heinous work, and then they were ready to withdraw, threatening to come back and kill the victims if they made any outcry over what had been accomplished. “An’ now you march along, an’ be quick!” growled Caleb Fox to Louis, and Sam Jacks caught the lad by the opposite arm and gave him a violent shove. The men were heavily armed and in an ugly temper, and not daring to oppose them just then, Louis did as directed. The sextet of rascals had evidently been out on their marauding expedition for some time, for their pockets were overflowing with booty--watches, rings, pocket-knives, money, and a miscellaneous collection of other articles. “Old Hooked-nose ought to pony up handsomely fer this lot,” remarked one of the men, as they pushed ahead, towards the Confederate lines. He referred to a certain unscrupulous Jew in Richmond who was not above buying stolen goods, whether taken from Union or Confederate soldiers. “Wot’s the boy got with him?” asked another of the crowd, and all halted, while Louis’s pockets were searched and emptied. As a protest would have been followed only by abuse, Louis said nothing to this, although, as he afterwards remarked, “he did a powerful lot of thinking.” A quarter of an hour’s walking brought all to a hollow beside a small stream. Here, close to a shelving bank, was situated a narrow dugout, sheltered in front by an overshot of rough boards. Before the dugout a bright fire was burning, and two elderly men were cooking coffee and a pot of beans and bacon. “Wot in thunder did yer want ter bring thet kid here for?” demanded one of the campers. “We don’t want no outsiders here, yer know thet well enough, don’t ye?” “He’s a special,” grinned Caleb Fox. “Me an’ Sam Jacks is got an account ter settle with him. Ain’t no use fer to alarm yerself--he’ll never squeal on nobody.” By which he probably meant that Louis should never leave that camp alive. The young Union soldier could not help but shudder at the words. He was not among the regular enemy, he was among a band of thieves, and worse. He made up his mind to break for liberty at the first opportunity which presented itself, even if he had to run the risk of being shot in so doing.