Stark and his little band, now reduced from a dozen to nine,
accompanied the army back to winter quarters; for John desired to
see his friends, and also to raise recruits for next season's
campaign, now that he had learned experience, and had inspiring
tales to tell of adventure, victory, and quick retributive
vengeance upon a treacherous and rapacious enemy.

Fritz and Charles both accompanied him, though the latter with some
reluctance. He would rather have remained in the neighbourhood of
the French lines, behind which lay the foe he was bent on meeting
once more face to face; but Stark had represented to him that his
sister would wish to see him once more, and Rogers had appointed
January as the time when he and his Rangers would be back, when the
ice would be firm and hard, and they could renew their wild winter
warfare, whilst during the earlier months of the winter there was
no certainty of carrying on any successful operations. Heavy rain
and soft snow were too much even for the hardy Rangers to grapple
with. They were practically useless now till the frost came and
fastened its firm grip upon the sleeping world.

There was joy in many a city throughout the English colony when the
troops marched in; although there was mourning in many homes for
the loss of some son or brother killed by the foe, or by the many
forms of sickness which prevailed at the fort.

There were troubles, too, with the citizens about the billeting of
the English contingent, and many were the heart burnings which
arose between stubborn townsmen and military rulers before these
matters could be adjusted. But all this made little matter in
houses like that of Benjamin Ashley, who was a true patriot at