R J Reynolds High School - Black and Gold Yearbook (Winston Salem, NC)

Page 10 text:

8 THE BL.-LCE AKD GOLD They broke into Granger's mill last night and stole the supplies of the Continental Army, and father said that from all appearances, they will be overrunning this part of the country very soon, said a third. In the excitement of the moment, Janice forgot her wrongs of the morning and entered eagerly in the discus- sion. 1 To Janice it seemed that the lesssons would never end that day, and it must have seemed the same to all the rest. for everybody was restless and inattentive, and the excite- ment was intenseg for though the war between Great Brit- ain and America had been going on for several months. the armies had not yet come down into Xew Jersey. the place in which this story takes place. The scenes of activity had most all been up around Boston. - It was enough to excite them, for they had heard accounts of the sufferings of people at the hands of the Hessian soldiers. and the foraging of the armies on both sides. ' The session finally dragged to a close and the children were dismissed for the day. Janice snatched up her books and hurried towards homeg wishing to get home as quick as she could to tell the news she had heard, she decided to take a short cut through the woods which bordered their pasture lot, to crawl through the fence and then to cut across the pasture to the house. She started to follow out this course and was well through the dark woods with the pasture in sight. when she was attracted by the sound of a low moan. She stopped, her hands upon her wildly beating heart, and listened. After an interval of what seemed hours to the waiting girl, but which really was only a few minutes, the sound was repeated. For some reason she seemed unable to run: besides she was a brave girl and the thought of some one in

Page 9 text:

THE BLACK AND GOLD 7 something to be remembered. She had found Janice read- ing a romance, and to her such reading was the first step to the destruction of one 's soul, so she had reproved her, as she thought it was for her own good. Janice had seen her mother bestow her treasured book on the red coals of the large iire place and had watched the flames leap mock- ingly up and down it. She was a girl of spirit, but she had not dared oppose her mother, but she loved to read novels as much as any young girl would, so she smuggled them into the house in spite of her mother's reproofs and of course the joy of reading them was two-fold because of the danger that involved it. She walked along the road, her small hands clinched tightly at her sides, and her dainty head held erect in the most defiant manner. She was of medium height, slender and graceful, and was very pretty, in spite of her angry eX- pression, with beautiful brown hair making a loxely setting for her equally lovely face, a low, white forehead, black delicately penciled eyebrows, beautiful black eyes, shaded by long, curling eyelashes, a small, straight nose and a pair of lovely red lips, and rosy cheeks. The upper lip protruded very slightly over the under one, giving it a look of childish innocence. When Janice drew near the school house that morn- ing, she A-saw that something unusual had happened, for the scholars instead of boisterously playing around were gathered under the big sycamore tree in front of the building. 'fOh, Janice, have you heard the news? cried a rosy cheeked young girl, as she disengaged herself from the encircling arm of one of her girl friends and ran to meet the new comer. '4What news? J ' UAbout the Red Coats I cried a dozen voices together. They are coming this way, cried one.

Page 11 text:

THE BLACK AND GOLD 9 distress stayed her, so cautiously stepping a few paces in the direction of the sound, she cautiously parted the bushes and looked around. There on the ground, lying full length among the leaves, lay a young man. He lay motionless, his face as white as death except for a small stream of blood which liowed from a gash on his head, matting his brown hair and stain- ing it a dark red color. Janice lost all fear now and coming nearer she knelt down by the wounded man and with her handkerchief tried to stop the flow of blood. After bathing his face with a handkerchief which she dipped in the brook near by, she rubbed his wrists and hands to start the circulation of blood. In a few moments his eyelids fluttered and opened. He smiled gratefully and tried to speak, but Janice placed her iinger on her lips and shook her head so he would not exert his strength by talking. He obeyed her unspoken command and closed his eyes again. She continued to work with him until he turned rest- lessly and tried to sit up, but only succeeded in hurting himself more, for he sank back with a groan. '4Oh, please, do lie still,7' Janice said despairingly. Wait, and I will get help from my home. 4'You musn't, said the wounded man, catching Janice's hand as she started to rise, so as to detain her. HYou would only make matters worse-for I am a spy, carrying papers to his Excellency, George VVashington, which contain matters of the greatest importance. The general must have them before nightfall. Can you engage someone secretly to carry them? His Excellency is about five miles south of this place, and a rider could reach him before nightfall. Just let the General know that I met with an accident, that I was thrown from my horse and sus-