Horse-Shoe Robinson: A Tale of the Tory AscendencyKennedy, John Pendleton
History
Horse-Shoe Robinson: A Tale of the Tory Ascendency
Kennedy, John Pendleton
South Carolina -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783 -- Fiction
Butler said but little to his companion, except now and then to express
a passing emotion of admiration for the natural embellishments of the
region; until, at length, the road brought them to a huge mass of rock,
from whose base a fountain issued forth over a bed of gravel, and soon
lost itself in the brook hard by. A small strip of bark, that some
friend of the traveller had placed there, caught the pure water as it
was distilled from the rock, and threw it off in a spout, some few
inches above the surface of the ground. The earth trodden around this
spot showed it to be a customary halting place for those who journeyed
on the road.
Here Butler checked his horse, and announced to his comrade his
intention to suspend, for a while, the toil of travel.
"There is one thing, Galbraith," said he, as he discounted, "wherein all
philosophers agree--man must eat when he is hungry, and rest when he is
weary. We have now been some six hours on horseback, and as this
fountain seems to have been put here for our use, it would be sinfully
slighting the bounties of providence not to do it the honor of a halt.
Get down, man; rummage your havresac, and let us see what you have
there."
Robinson was soon upon his feet, and taking the horses a little distance
off, he fastened their bridles to the impending branches of a tree; then
opening his saddle-bags, he produced a wallet with which he approached
the fountain, where Butler had thrown himself at full length upon the
grass. Here, as he successively disclosed his stores, he announced his
bill of fare, with suitable deliberation between each item, in the
following terms:
"I don't march without provisions, you see, captain--or major, I suppose
I must call you now. Here's the rear division of a roast pig, and along
with it, by way of flankers, two spread eagles (holding up two broiled
fowls), and here are four slices from the best end of a ham. Besides
these, I can throw in two apple-jacks, a half dozen of rolls, and--"
"Your wallet is as bountiful as a conjurer's bag, sergeant; it is a
perfect cornucopia. How did you come by all this provender?"
"It isn't so overmuch, major, when you come to consider," said Robinson.
"The old landlady at Charlottesville is none of your heap-up,
shake-down, and running-over landladies, and when I signified to her
that we mought want a snack upon the road, she as much as gave me to
understand that there wa'n't nothing to be had. But I took care to make
fair weather with her daughter, as I always do amongst the creatures,
and she let me into the pantry, where I made bold to stow away these few
trifling articles, under the denomination of pillage. If you are fond of
Indian corn bread, I can give you a pretty good slice of that."
"Pillage, Galbraith! You forget you are not in an enemy's country. I
directed you scrupulously to pay for everything you got upon the road. I
hope you have not omitted it to-day?"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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