Everett T. Tomlinson

“ Slowly the afternoon waned, but patience was a lesson which Reuben had learned from the scout. Never yet had he heard an impatient word or a word of complaint escape the lips of Kit Carson. For one whose natural temperament was so fiery, who was so quick in his movements, and so thoroughly alive to every form of physical activity, his powers of repression and self-control were marvellous. ”

“ The oars of the approaching men could now be distinctly seen as they rose and fell together. Steadily on and on came the little fleet, and now could not be more than two hundred yards away. Why did not the men on board do something? He felt that the time for action had come, but all were standing silent and motionless, apparently fascinated by the sight before them. The smile on Benzeor's face was almost mocking, and Little Peter saw him look from the fleet to the men on board, almost as if he were exulting in their predicament. ”

“ The applause that greeted the winners was sounding but dimly and like some far-away shout in Will Phelps' ears when he staggered into the outstretched arms of Hawley, who was waiting to receive his classmate. Mortification, chagrin, disappointment were all mingled in his feelings, and it was all intensified by the fact that both Foster and Peter John had won their "numerals" and were now marked men in the class. Not that he begrudged either the honors he had won, but his own reputation as a sprinter had preceded his coming to Winthrop, and Will knew that great things had been expected of him. ”

“ Quick as was his action, Robert had seen what it was that the man was striving to conceal, and for a moment he hardly dared to trust the evidence of his own eyes, for it was money which the stranger had been examining, and a large roll of bills had been evidently in his possession.
Surprised as Robert was by the unexpected sight, the expression on his face did not change as he led his horse into the barn, and the old man quickly arose and faced him. Robert could see the manifest fear of the man, and the little eyes and crafty manner at once aroused his suspicions. ”

“ All day long on the dusty road leading from Santiago to El Cancy passed the long white line; faint, hungry women carried a bundle of clothing and parcel of food or an infant while helpless children trailed wearily at the skirts of their wretched mothers. An old man tottered along on his cane and behind him a puny lad and an aged woman; old and young women and children and decrepit men of every class—those refined and used to luxury together with the ragged beggar—crowding each other in this narrow column. ”

“ The cry of Jemima Boone when in the dim light she beheld her father approaching at the head of the rescuing party was one that those who heard her never were able to forget. She sprang from the ground where she had been seated and threw herself into her father's arms. For a time not a word was spoken by any one, while the well-nigh exhausted girl clung to Daniel Boone sobbing as if her heart would break. ”

“ The waves which came creeping, crawling up the long sandy shore, the tall pine-trees whose tops whispered together as they bent beneath the summer winds and winter storms, the fertile plains and noble forests of oak and chestnut, were unchanged; but the struggling men and women of Old Monmouth were yet to endure the bitter hardships and fierce contests, which the closing days of the Revolution brought to them in greater numbers than to almost any other people of our land. ”

“ Kit Carson, strong and quiet, a man who did not hesitate to use the very utmost of his strength and the greatest of his resources when he was fighting, in most ways was quiet and gentle as a woman. Following his plan persistently, not many days had elapsed before the black horse was following the scout almost as a dog follows his master. Indeed he seemed to develop a feeling of strong affection for his captor, and it was plain to all the campers that they never before had seen their leader become so fond of any animal. ”

“ Woe be to the man or group of men that seeks to stand in our way in this day of high resolution when every principle we hold dearest is to be vindicated and made secure for the salvation of the nations. We are ready to plead at the bar of history, and our flag shall wear a new luster. Once more we shall make good with our lives and fortunes the great faith to which we were born, and a new glory shall shine in the face of our people. ”

“ Will did not reply and at once took his place beside his four competitors.
"On your marks!" called the starter, and the silence that rested over the field became intense.
"Get set!" A sigh seemed to rise from the assembly and all were standing.
"Go!" The crack of the pistol was heard and instantly the runners were speeding down the track.
The day was warm and Will Phelps could feel that his face was as wet as if he had plunged in the river. Never in all his young life had he exerted himself as then. The tread of the running feet on the track seemed almost like that of one man. ”

“ Many of the New Jersey people, hopeless now of the success of Washington, were heeding the somewhat lurid "proclamations" which Howe caused to be scattered among the country districts. The groans of the American prisoners who were suffering in the improvised prisons in New York or on board the foul prison ships found a response in the hearts of the timid, who were eager to abandon the apparently hopeless task. Money was wanting, provisions were scarce, jealousy was rife among the leaders, and even the most devoted friends of the cause were clamoring for some decisive blow to be struck. ”

“ Even the darkness was rendered more intense by the dim light that came in through the doorway, where the form of the huge guard could be plainly seen, seated as it had been for some time. The time for hesitation had passed, however, and Robert prepared himself for the final effort.
With every muscle rigid and all his reserve strength summoned to his aid, he was on the point of bounding toward the doorway when he was startled by a sound outside the hut. He flung himself back upon the blankets, but his feeling of disappointment was so keen that the tears started from his eyes. ”

“ The war is being fought to save ourselves from intolerable things, but it is also being fought to save mankind. We extend other hands to each other, to the great peoples with whom we are associated and the peoples everywhere who love right and prize justice as a thing beyond price, and consecrate ourselves once more to the noble enterprise of peace and justice, realizing the great conceptions that have lifted France and America high among the free peoples of the earth.
"The French flag floats to-day from the staff of the White House and America is happy to do honor to that flag." ”

“ Doubtless his room-mate could have explained to him that it was the little city of Sterling that now seemed to be so remote, for he too was suffering slightly from the same malady that troubled his friend.
Why is it that most boys are so afraid to acknowledge that they are ever homesick? Is it the fear that they may appear too dependent and less manly if they confess their longing for home? Certainly no boy who comes from a good home detracts from his own strength of character by acknowledging that he misses the home from which he has gone. ”

“ Suddenly he heard a sound near him that caused him to forget his misery for a moment. A dog was sniffing about the brush heap, and as Robert peered out he could see that it was the same dog which he had felled a little while before in the woods. The blows he had given had not been fatal, he concluded with a sinking of his heart, and his present peril was greatly increased by the presence of the dog near his hiding-place. Even then he could see that the dog had discovered him, for it stood with bristling hair growling and gazing straight at him. ”

“ When a half-dozen fellows are all bunched on the track and everyone is putting out every ounce of strength he’s got and the tape isn’t more than ten yards away and the fellows are all yelling like mad and you can feel that the sprinter from the High School or the Military Academy is right on your heels, even when you don’t, for the life of you, dare to look behind you—why, I’m telling you, Dan Richards, there are mighty few things in life to be compared with it! ”

“ It does no one any good to rebel or complain. Every man must accept the facts of his life, believing that there is a Power that guides and controls far better than he knows how to do."
The scout spoke musingly, almost as if he thought himself to be alone. A brief silence followed his words, and then Daniel Boone turned once more to Peleg. "My lad," he said, "all I say is that one cannot turn back. However much I may sorrow over the loss of my boy, I cannot go back to him. The only direction in which I can move is forward. If one can only find the right way, that is not so bad." ”