“Oh, villain! I hope—I _do_ hope that neither steel nor ball may ever save you from the halter!” gasped Elfie, giving his ears a most vicious wring. “See here, my girl, we are coming to the ford! and we must be careful! Just give my ears a holiday for a few minutes, will you, while you draw up your feet and fold your skirts up over your lap to keep them from getting wet,” said Albert, as they emerged from the wooded gorge of the mountain and descended to the banks of the river, now shining like a stream of fluid silver, in the broad moonlight. “I won’t! I don’t care if I do get wet, or drown either! I’d be glad to drown, if I thought I could drown you with me!” exclaimed Elfie. “See how she loves me! she is willing to meet death itself if shared with me,” mocked Albert. “So here we go.” And he plunged into the river. Splash! splash! splash! they went through the water, making the foam fly in every direction. The gallant horse, heavily laden as he was, bravely breasted the current, and reached the opposite shore in safety. “Elfie, my darling, do you know why I made this last raid into Maryland?” inquired the guerrilla, as they struggled up the slippery bank. “No, nor care, you miscreant!” snapped Elfie. “Can’t you guess?” “To burn barns, and steal cattle, and rob hen-roosts, I suppose,” sneered Elfie. “No. I went simply to fetch you, and for no other reason in the world,” answered Albert. “Me! How on earth did you know I was there?” inquired Elfie, thrown off her guard by unbounded astonishment. “By the same means through which I become acquainted with most events that pass in Washington—by my spies. I learned that you were getting up a picnic to go to the Great Falls. And I determined to intercept your return.” “Oh, the traitress! It was Alberta. It was no one but Alberta that informed you. For I remember I mentioned to her at breakfast that morning, that I wanted to get up a picnic to go up the river!” indignantly exclaimed Elfie. “Well, yes, it was Alberta who first told me of the intended excursion. But she did not tell me the day it was to come off.” “No, for the day was not fixed when she ran away, the ingrate, so she could not have told you.” “But one of my other spies, who was a member of your picnic party _could_.” “A spy in our picnic party! That is false, you villain! Albert Goldsborough, have you become mendacious as well as thievish? The members of our picnic party were loyal. We would have taken no others,” angrily cried Elfie. “As far as _you_ know,” laughed Goldsborough; adding: “Now, my dear, I don’t mind telling you, because I never intend to let you go back to report it, that there are no people in the world so profuse in their expressions of loyalty as my spies in Washington!”