I saw, or fancied I did, that the Marshall boys were disgruntled whenever Gabriel gave them advice. Not having become thoroughly well acquainted with the dear lad, they seemed to have an idea he was reading them a lesson, when in truth he was speaking as one boy to another. Therefore did I change the subject of conversation, by idly questioning as to how near General Marion proposed to advance toward the ferry without halting. My attempt was successful, for straightway the Marshall boys began discussing the possibility of our being able to liberate any of the prisoners, and this was a subject which we could dwell upon without fear of exposing the plans as set down by the general. The company rode, as nearly as I could judge, for an hour more, and then we Minute Boys continued on, when the “ragged army” was halted, much as if we had not heard the order. Now once more does it seem necessary I should review the position of affairs, so far as concerns this body of men with whom we had joined fortunes. It was true we might strike a signal blow in the vicinity of Nelson’s Ferry, thereby releasing a greater or less number of those who would be taken to the horrible torture of the prison-ships but for our intervention. Yet he who reads should remember that ours was probably the only armed force within the Carolinas which remained true to the Colonies; then bear in mind that the Britishers overran our land even as did the locusts of old, and say how might a small squad like ours oppose those which the king had sent against us. [Illustration: “‘I PROPOSE THAT WE HALT HERE.’”] Surely for us of the Southern Colonies, this night, when we five set out to spy upon the victorious troops coming down from Camden with our friends as prisoners, was the most desperate for the Cause ever known. We were beaten, hemmed in, and like rats in a corner, could only make one desperate fight, not against death, but simply as proof that our courage held good even until the last moment. When we passed General Marion and Captain Horry at the head of the column, both sat their horses motionless as statues, looking neither to the right nor the left, but each, as it were, peering into the recesses of his own heart, asking in what manner the end would come. It seemed to me as if we were taking final leave of them; as if this parting was to be the last. More than that I saw nothing, and five minutes later, that little handful of Carolinian patriots, tried and true, were left behind, while we five lads rode forward, hoping against hope that it might be possible for us to accomplish something toward showing the British king how strong in our hearts was the desire for liberty. Our horses, jaded by the long march of the day, went forward slowly, and we had not the heart to spur them on, because it was much as if they shared our feelings.