the village, but the mill was kept running, and after a little they
began to come back. The farms on each side of the river looked as
peaceful as they had ever looked. The command had grown rapidly.
Thurst Miles of my own neighborhood had come to enlist shortly
after D'ri and I enlisted, and was now in my company.

In September, General Brown was ordered to the Western frontier,
and Captain Forsyth came to command us. Early in the morning of
October 2, a man came galloping up the shore with a warning, saying
that the river was black with boats a little way down. Some of us
climbed to the barracks roof, from which we could see and count
them. There were forty, with two gunboats. Cannonading began
before the town was fairly awake. First a big ball went over the
house-tops, hitting a cupola on a church roof and sending bell and
timbers with a crash into somebody's dooryard. Then all over the
village hens began to cackle and children to wail. People came
running out of doors half dressed. A woman, gathering chips in her
dooryard, dropped them, lifted her dress above her head, and ran
for the house. Unable to see her way, she went around in a wide
circle for a minute or two, while the soldiers were laughing.
Another ball hit a big water-tank on top of the lead-works. It
hurled broken staves and a big slop of water upon the housetops,
and rolled a great iron hoop over roofs into the street below,
where it rolled on, chasing a group of men, who ran for their lives
before it. The attack was an odd sort of comedy all through, for
nobody was hurt, and all were frightened save those of us who were
amused. Our cannon gave quick reply, and soon the British stopped
firing and drew near. We knew that they would try to force a
landing, and were ready for them. We drove them back, when they
put off, and that was the end of it.