A Yankee Girl at Antietam

								

to-morrow; I’m used up,” he added. “I’m only resting here. I’ll have to
find a safer place to sleep.”
There was the sound of approaching wheels on the near-by road, and with
a quick word of caution the young man disappeared and Roxy turned to see
Polly driving the brown horse and light wagon coming rapidly down the
highway. Roxy ran toward the road so that Polly would not notice any
movement in the thicket; and as Polly saw her she drew rein, believing
that Roxy had waited to make friends again.
“Oh, Roxy! Have you been waiting for me? Well, you are a dear! And have
you forgiven your Polly-Wolly for being so horrid? I’ll never call you
‘Yankee’ again.” And the smiling Polly leaned down to touch Roxy’s rough
straw hat.
“Oh, Polly, I like to be called ‘Yankee’ now! Two Confederate soldiers
rode over the bridge and spoke to me, and one of them told me about
Yankees, so I don’t care now,” and Roxy, with her flushed face and eager
eyes, endeavored to return Polly’s good-natured smile.
“Those soldiers passed me. They are after a Yankee soldier whom they had
held as a prisoner,” said Polly. “Poor chap! I hope they don’t find
him.”
“They mustn’t! They mustn’t!” Roxy declared so seriously that Polly
wondered to herself why the little girl should look so unhappy over the
possible capture of a man she had never seen.
“I reckon it’s because they are both Yankees,” thought the good-natured
girl, who was well pleased to be on friendly terms again with her small
neighbor.
“Well, they said they were coming back. They might run into Northern
troops if they went beyond Sharpsburg. Here they come now,” and Polly
drew the brown horse well out of the road as the two mounted soldiers,
riding at a good pace, clattered over the bridge and stopped their
horses close beside Polly’s wagon.
The men touched their hats smilingly, and the man who had told Roxy that
her father would be proud to be called a Yankee, said:
“The Yank has fooled us and got well away, unless he’s hiding somewhere
near at hand. You haven’t seen any half-starved runaway soldier about
here, have you?” and he turned his sharp glance on the two girls.
“Oh, no!” Polly answered. “We wouldn’t let any soldier starve in
Maryland. But I haven’t seen anyone since I met you on the road.”
The man nodded and smiled, and was about to ride on when his companion
said gruffly:
“What about that other girl? She’s a Yankee. Maybe she’s hiding the
fellow, or else her folks may be.”
Roxy’s frightened glance convinced both the men that it might be
possible the speaker was right, and when she turned and fled up the
slope toward home they were sure of it, and in an instant both the men
were off their horses and after her.
“If she reaches the house and warns him he’ll get away from us again,”
panted the short man as he found himself obliged to climb the wall.