CHAPTER XI. "Compel the hawke to sit that is unmann'd, Ir is not often that hope is rewarded by fruition as completely as the wishes of the young men of the garrison were met by the state of the weather on the succeeding day. It may be no more than the ordinary waywardness of man, but the Americans are a little accustomed to taking pride in things that the means of intelligent comparisons would probably show were, in reality, of a very inferior quality, while they overlook or undervalue advantages that place them certainly on a level with, if not above, most of their fellow-creatures. Among the latter is the climate, which, as a whole, though far from perfect, is infinitely more agreeable, and quite as healthy as those of most of the countries which are loudest in their denunciations of it. The heats of summer were little felt at Oswego, at the period of which we are writing; for the shade of the forest, added to the refreshing breezes from the lake, so far reduced the influence of the sun, as to render the nights always cool, and the days seldom oppressive. It was now September, a month in which the strong gales of the coast often appear to force themselves across the country as far as the great lakes, where the inland sailor sometimes feels that genial influence which characterizes the winds of the ocean; invigorating his frame, cheering his spirits, and arousing his moral force. Such a day was that on which the garrison of Oswego assembled, to witness what its commander had jocularly called a "passage of arms." Lundie was a scholar, in military matters at least, and it was one of his sources cf honest pride to direct the reading and thoughts of the young men under his orders, to the more intellectual parts of their profession. For one in his situation, his library was both good and extensive, and its books were freely lent to all who desired to use them. Among other whims that had found their way into the garrison, through these means, was a relish for the sort of amusement in which it was now about to indulge; and around which some chronicles of the days of chivalry had induced them to throw a parade and romance, that were not unsuited to the cha racters and habits of soldiers, or to the insulated and wild post occupied by this particular garrison. While so earnestly bent on pleasure, however, they on whom that duty devolved did not neglect the safety of the garrison. One standing on the amparts of the fort, and gazing on the waste of glittering water that bounded the view all along the northern horizon, and on the slumbering and seemingly boundless forest, that filled the other half of the panorama, would have fancied the spot the very abode of peacefulness and security; but Duncan of Lundie too well knew that the woods might at any moment give up their hundreds, bent on the destruction of the fort and all it contained, and that even the treacherous lake offered a highway of easy approach, by which his more civilized and scarcely less wily foes, the French, could come upon him, at an unwelcome and unguarded moment. Parties were sent out, under old and vigilant officers, men who cared little for the sports of the day, to scour the forest; and one entire company held the fort, under arms, with orders to maintain a vigilance as strict as if an enemy of superior force was known to be near. With these precautions the remainder of the officers and men abandoned themselves, without apprehension, to the business of the morning. The spot selected for the sports was a sort of esplanade, a little west of the fort, and on the immediate bank of the lake. It had been cleared of its trees and stumps, that it might answer the purpose of a parade ground, as it possessed the advantages of having its rear protected by the water, and one of its flanks by the works. Men drilling on it, could be attacked, consequently, on two sides only; and as the cleared space beyond it, in the direction of the west and south, was large, any assailants would be compelled to quit the cover of the woods, before they could make an approach sufficiently near to render them dangerous. Although the regular arms of the regiment were muskets, some fifty rifles were produced on the present occasion. Every officer had one, as a part of his private provision for amusement; many belonged to the scouts and friendly Indians, of whom more or less were always hanging about the fort; and there was a public provision of them, for the use of those who followed the game with the express object of obtaining supplies. Among those who carried the weapon, were some five or six, who had reputations for knowing how to use it particularly well—so well, indeed, as to have given them a celebrity on the frontier; twice that number who were believed to be much better than common; and many who would have been thought expert, in almost any situation, but the precise one in which they now happened to be placed. the The distance was a hundred yards, and the weapon was to be used without a rest; the target, a board, with the customary circular lines in white paint, having the bull's eye in the centre. The first trials in skill commenced with challenges among more ignoble of the competitors, to display their steadiness aud dexterity in idle competition. None but the common men engaged in this strife, which had little to interest the spectators among whom no officer had yet appeared. Most of the soldiers were Scotch, the regiment having been raised at Stirling and its vicinity, not many years before; though, as in the case of Serjeant Dunham, many Americans had joined it, since its arrival in the colonies. As a matter of course, the provincials were generally the most expert marksmen; and after a desultory trial of half an hour, it was necessarily conceded, that a youth, who had been born in the colony of New York, and who, coming of Dutch extraction, bore the euphonious name of Van Valkenburg, but was familiarly called Follock, was the most expert of all who had yet tried their skill. It was just as this opinion prevailed, that the oldest captain, accompanied by most of the gentlemen and ladies of the fort, appeared on the parade. A train of some twenty females of humbler condition followed, among whom was seen the well-turned form, intelligent, blooming, animated countenance, and neat, becoming attire of Mabel Dunham. Of females who were officially recognised as belonging to the class of ladies, there were but three in the fort, all of whom were officers' wives; staid matronly women, with the simplicity of the habits of middle life, singularly mixed in their deportment with their notions of professional superiority, the rights and duties of caste, and the etiquette of rank. The other women were the wives of non-commissioned officers and privates; Mabel being strictly, as had been stated by the Quarter-master, the only real candidate for matrimony among her sex. There were a dozen other girls, it is true, but they were still classed among the children, none of them being yet of an age to elevate them into objects of legitimate admiration. Some little preparation had been made for the proper reception of the females, who were placed on a low staging of planks, near the immediate bank of the lake. In this vicinity the prizes were suspended from a post. Great care was taken to reserve the front seat of the stage for the three ladies and their children; while Mabel, and those who belonged to the non commissioned officers of the regiment, occupied the second. The wives and daughters of the privates were huddled together in the rear, some standing, and some sitting, as they could find room. Mabel, who had already been admitted to the society of the officers' wives, on the footing of an humble companion, was a good deal noticed by the ladies in front, who had a proper appreciation of modest self-respect and gentle refinement, though they were all fully aware of the value of rank, more particularly in a garrison. As soon as this important portion of the spectators had got into their places, Lundie gave orders for the trial of skill to proceed, in the manner that had been prescribed in his previous orders. Some eight or ten of the best marksmen of the garrison now took possession of the stand, and began to fire in succession. Among them were officers and men indiscriminately placed, nor were the casual visitors in the fort excluded from the competition. As might have been expected of men, whose amusements and comfortable subsistence equally depended on skill in the use of their weapons, it was soon found that they were all sufficiently expert to hit the bull's eye, or the white spot in the centre of the target. Others, who succeeded them, it is true, were less sure, their bullets striking in the different circles that surrounded the centre of the target, without touching it. According to the rules of the day, none could proceed to the second trial who had failed in the first; and the adjutant of the place, who acted as master of the ceremonies, or marshal of the day, called upon the successful adventurers by name, to get ready for the next effort, while he gave notice that those who failed to present themselves for the shot at the bull's-eye would necessarily be excluded from all the higher trials. Just at this moment, Lundie, the Quarter-master, and Jasper Eau-douce appeared in the group at the stand, while the Pathfinder walked leisurely on the ground, without his beloved rifle--for him a measure so unusual as to be understood by all present as a proof that he did not consider himself a competitor for the honors of the day. All made way for Major Duncan, who, as he approached the stand, in a good-humored way took his station, levelled his rifle carelessly, and fired. The bullet missed the required mark by several inches. 'Major Duncan is excluded from the other trials!"" proclaimed the adjutant, in a voice so strong and confident, that all the elder officers and the serjeants well understood that this failure was preconcerted, while the younger gentlemen and the privates felt new encouragement to proceed, on account of the |