“Does any one here know aught concerning the escape?” he asked sharply, and after waiting a moment for a reply, added sorrowfully, “The success of that which we would do depends entirely upon our being true to each other. If we have one among us whose sympathies are with the Tories, or one willing to avenge private wrongs after having the same as passed his word to the contrary, then will it be impossible for us to be of any aid to South Carolina now in her time of deepest trouble and danger.” “I will answer for it that none of the Minute Boys has done this thing,” Gabriel cried stoutly. “In the first place, we have not among us one who would thus break what is the same as his pledged word, and then again, it would have been impossible for a single lad to have left our hut without my knowledge, for I did not sleep overly well last night.” “Then is the matter even more serious than I had feared, for there is a traitor among us who have pledged our lives to the Cause, and while he remains undetected are we all in gravest danger.” With this the general walked away as if determined upon some course of action, and we Minute Boys remained staring at each other in fear and dismay. CHAPTER XIII THE SEARCH FOR THE TRAITOR It goes without saying that we lads were furious at having lost the prisoner whom we had been so eager to take, but after talking the matter over with Captain Horry we forgot our own disappointment in a measure, as we understood more fully the meaning of that which the general had said. That some one in the encampment had aided Seth Hastings to escape was positive, for all us Minute Boys had assured ourselves that the young traitor could not by any possibility remove his bonds, and this we did not only twice or three times during the day, but when we left him for the night. It was equally certain the Tories could not have rendered any assistance, for they were as helpless as he, and therefore did the matter narrow down to two questions. The first, as to whether some of our company of Minute Boys, angered because the cur was to be treated as a prisoner of war, had taken him away in order to wreak vengeance; while the second and more serious was, in the event of our company being able to show that the Minute Boys had no hand in the matter, as to who had released the wretch. It was indeed a serious matter in more ways than one if Seth had been released and was now able to work us harm, because it was within his power to conduct the enemy over the trail which led across the swamp to our encampment. More serious indeed than this last, was the fact that if the villain had found a friend in our encampment, then had we a traitor among us, and this possibility was sufficient to make even the most courageous tremble. General Marion’s plans were not kept secret from his followers, and if one was ready to do whatsoever he might against the Cause, then were the possibilities for mischief greater far than we could reckon.