"Well, the north is partly to blame," insisted Jack, thinking he had Gray on his side. "Yes; to blame for letting the slaveholders have their own way so long," said Frank. "And just as much to blame for this rebellion, as my father would be for my conduct, if he should attempt to enforce discipline at home, and I should get mad at it and set the house on fire." "A good comparison," said Gray. "Because we were going to restore the spirit of the constitution, which is for freedom, and always was, though it has been obliged to tolerate slavery, the slaveholders, as Frank says, got mad and set Uncle Sam's house afire." "He had heard somebody else say so, or he wouldn't have thought of it," said Jack, sullenly. "No matter; it's true!" said Gray. "The south is fighting for slavery,--the corner-stone of the confederacy, as the rebel vice-president calls it,--while the north----" "We are fighting for the Constitution and the Union!" said Jack. "That's true, too; for the constitution, as I said, means freedom; and now the Union means, union _without_ slavery, since we have seen that union with slavery is impossible. We are fighting for the same thing our forefathers fought for--Liberty!" "They won liberty for the whites only," said Frank. "Now we are going to have liberty for all men." "If I had a brother that was a slaveholder and secessionist, I wouldn't say any thing," sneered Jack. Frank felt cut by the taunt; but he said, gayly,-- "I won't spoil a story for relation's sake! Come, boys, politics don't suit Jack, so let's have a song; the one you copied out of the newspaper, Gray. It's just the thing for the occasion." Franks voice was a fine treble; Gray's a mellow bass. Others joined them, and the party returned to the Academy, singing high and clear these words:-- "The traitor's foot is on thy shore, Maryland, my Maryland! His touch is on thy senate door, Maryland, my Maryland! Avenge the patriotic gore That stained the streets of Baltimore, When vandal mobs our banners tore, Maryland, my Maryland! "Drum out thy phalanx brave and strong, Maryland, my Maryland! Drum forth to balance right and wrong, Maryland, my Maryland! Drum to thy old heroic song, When forth to fight went Freedom's throng. And bore the spangled flag along, Maryland, my Maryland!" "That's first rate!" said Frank, who delighted in music. "Gray altered the words a little, and Mr. Sinjin found us the tune." "Frank likes any thing that has a drum in it," said John Winch, enviously. "He'll get sick of drums, though, soon enough, I guess." "Jack judges me by himself," said Frank, gayly, setting out to run a race with Gray to the parade-ground. IX. THANKSGIVING IN CAMP.