Commodore Barney's Young Spies Part 37

If any of the red-coats came upon him, they would suspect that he had been among that company of seamen and marines who had inflicted so much injury upon them during the day just pa.s.sed, and it was not difficult to understand that he would speedily be made a prisoner.

CHAPTER XVII.

MISSING.

I am minded to set down here what I afterward saw printed, concerning the doings in other portions of Was.h.i.+ngton, the particulars of which we were ignorant at the time.

"While the public buildings in Was.h.i.+ngton were in flames, the national s.h.i.+pping, stores, and other property were blazing at the navy yard; also the great bridge over the Potomac, from Was.h.i.+ngton city to the Virginia sh.o.r.e.

"Commodore Thomas Tingey was in command of the navy yard, and, before the battle, had received orders to set fire to the public property there in event of the British gaining a victory, so as to prevent its falling into the hands of the invaders. Tingey delayed the execution of the order for four hours after the contingency had occurred.

"When, at half-past eight in the evening, he was informed that the enemy was encamped within the city limits, near the Capitol, he applied the torch, and property valued at about a million of dollars was destroyed.

"The schooner Lynx was saved, and most of the metallic work at the navy yard remained but little injured. The fine naval monument was somewhat mutilated, but whether accidentally at the time of the conflagration, or wantonly by the British, who went there the next day to complete the destructive work, is an unsettled question.

"At the same time, the Long bridge over the Potomac was fired at both ends. The Americans on the Virginia side thought a large body of British troops were about to pa.s.s over, and fired that end to foil them, while the British on the city side, perceiving, as they thought, a large body of Americans about to cross over from the Virginia side, fired the Maryland end of the bridge. The value of the entire amount of property destroyed at Was.h.i.+ngton by the British and Americans was estimated at about two million dollars."

While we awaited the coming of Darius Thorpe, and believing that the city of Was.h.i.+ngton would be totally destroyed before the Britishers had gratified their desire for vengeance, Jerry started a subject which caused me to be more uncomfortable in mind than I had been concerning the absence of the old sailor.

"The enemy are bent on burnin' all the government buildin's in the city, even if they do no more, an' what about the jails?"

I was at a loss to fully understand the question; but my father replied:

"They won't go so far as to burn the prisoners, lad. All that crowd of evil-doers will be set at liberty, and I reckon they'll be the only Americans who can rejoice because of the English victory at Bladensburg.

"Then in that case," Jerry said grimly, "we can set it down as a fact that Elias Macomber is paradin' the streets with his good friends the British, boastin' of his suffering at the hand of the Americans."

I started up in very unpleasant surprise. Until this moment I had given no heed to the cur whom we had captured twice, since we left the burning fleet at Pig Point; but now I realized that my partner was right. There could be no question but that Elias Macomber was a free man once more, and all our efforts to bring him to justice had only resulted in giving him an opportunity to pose as a martyr!

"Well, he's got a chance to pay off old scores now, if he only knew it," Jim Freeman suggested. "How happy the villain would be if he knew where he could find us in hidin'!"

"Don't talk about him," I said petulantly. "It makes me heartsick to think that after all our work he is in fine feather, strutting around the city as one of the best friends the British had in this section.

Speak of something else. What of Bill Jepson? Does any one know if he came out of the battle alive?"

"I saw him not more than five minutes before the order was given to retreat," my father said. "He had been sent back to the wagons for ammunition, and appeared to be having a royal time."

"We'll hope he got away at the last, for if he's taken they'll hang him as a deserter," I said, and then, finding it impossible to prevent my thoughts from straying to our missing comrade, I added, "Darius wouldn't have stayed away so long unless something serious had happened. We ought to go in search of him."

"Where would you look first?" Jerry asked. "If the Britishers got their hands on him we stand little chance of seein' the poor fellow, for they'll keep him a close prisoner."

"It doesn't seem possible that we can accomplish very much," I said with a long drawn sigh; "but we must do as he would if one of us was missing."

"And what would that be?" my father asked.

"I wish I knew, sir. He surely would search for us, as we must for him; but I am all at sea as to how the work should be begun."

Every member of the party was eager to be doing something, but so far as having any plan in mind, they were all like me, and we sat there staring at each other like a lot of frightened rabbits until I could remain idle no longer.

"I'm going out somewhere!" I cried. "Almost anything is better than sitting here in suspense, when it may be that he has simply fallen into difficulties from which we might extricate him."

"But what of the British?" my father asked, and I replied recklessly:

"We must take our chances as to them, sir. It does not seem probable that two or three lads would be looked upon by them with suspicion, for there must be many wandering around the city this night."

"Who will go with you?"

"That's for me to do," Jerry said promptly. "The other fellows will stay here with you, sir, and the door must not be opened without good reason. Keep under cover while we are gone," he added to Jim, "an'

don't let one of the boys so much as stick his nose outside. Come on, Amos, the longer we stand here talkin' about it the greater will the danger appear."

Then he stepped outside quickly, and I followed his example, closing the door behind me lest father should attempt to say something in the nature of a farewell, which I knew would unnerve me, because I believed it was exceedingly dangerous for any of our party to move around the city.

When we were alone in the night, where the shadows were distorted by the dancing glow of the live embers on every hand, Jerry said grimly:

"It was foolish to make any talk about what we would do toward findin'

Darius, while we were in the smoke-house, because we might have argued till mornin' without comin' to any conclusion; but now that we've started out I'd like to know how we're goin' to work?"

I could make no satisfactory reply to this question, and plainly told him so. We had nothing to guide us on the search. The old man had given us no idea of where he might go, and all we knew was that he disappeared beyond the burning tavern.

"He wouldn't have followed the Britishers," I said after a long pause, "therefore it seems foolish to look for him at the other end of the city. If we only knew what he went after!"

"I reckon the first thing in his mind was to get food, and he might have thought that could be done where the shops were bein' robbed."

"And then would come to his mind the question as to how we might get down the river while father is unable to walk," I added, believing that by thus trying to make out what Darius was most likely to do we could hit upon a plan for the search.

"The only way we'd be able to leave this city by water, if we wanted to get home, would be on the Potomac river, an' he'd need a stout canoe for such a voyage."

We were not coming to any understanding by this line of thought, therefore I harked back to the belief that he might have followed the Britishers to the upper end of the city, and proposed, knowing of no better course, to walk in that direction.

The day was beginning to dawn. No soldiers were to be seen on the streets, and I began to believe that the invaders, wearied with their work of destruction, had returned to the encampment near the burying-ground.

We came upon the ruins of the President's mansion; the fire had eaten out the interior of the building, but the walls were yet standing, and near about, apparently having neither purpose nor business there, were an hundred people or more, all gazing at the evidences of the most approved method of making war by the British standard.

We mingled with these idlers to make certain Darius was not among them, and then went toward the other ruins on a like errand, but with no success.

It was sunrise, perhaps a little later, when we stood near the ruins of the barracks, where a number of negroes were digging amid the glowing embers with the hope of finding weapons which might be restored to a condition of usefulness after being subjected to such great heat.

One of these searchers for useless treasure straightened up as we approached, and I saw that he was an old man, who looked as if he might have been a gentleman's servant.

"Do you live here in Was.h.i.+ngton, uncle?" I asked, and the old darkey replied:

"I'se ain't noways conditioned fur to answer dat question, sah, kase I dunno whar ma.s.sa am ter be foun' dese yere queer days wha' we'se habin'."

"Who is your master?"

"Ma.s.sa Clayton, sah. He's foolin' 'roun' wid some ob dem militious men; but I ain't foun' out wedder he whipped de Britishers, or ef dey done gone got de bes' ob him."