Miss Peyton and Sarah continued gazing
on the preparations with varied emotions, in which concern for the fate
of the captain formed the most prominent feeling, until the moment of
shedding of blood seemed approaching, when, with the timidity of their
sex, they sought the retirement of an inner room. Not so Frances; she
returned to the apartment where she had left Dunwoodie, and, from one of
its windows, had been a deeply interested spectator of all his
movements. The wheelings of the troops, the deadly preparations, had all
been unnoticed; she saw her lover only, and with mingled emotions of
admiration and dread that nearly chilled her. At one moment the blood
rushed to her heart, as she saw the young warrior riding through his
ranks, giving life and courage to all whom he addressed; and the next,
it curdled with the thought that the very gallantry she so much valued
might prove the means of placing the grave between her and the object of
her regard. Frances gazed until she could look no longer.
In a field on the left of the cottage, and at a short distance in the
rear of the troops, was a small group, whose occupation seemed to differ
from that of all around them. They were in number only three, being two
men and a mulatto boy. The principal personage of this party was a man,
whose leanness made his really tall stature appear excessive.
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