University of Vermont - Ariel Yearbook (Burlington, VT)

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22 THE ARIEL, 1907 too late to aid in the overthrow of the cursed invader. For weeks have I encamped my army opposite to the British foe, and now has come the glorious moment of assault! Forward, I command thee! The first boats, crowded with soldiers, are already putting forth into the lake. See how they are sunk to the water's edge! If thou wouldst be even among the last to embark, on, coward! Every man is needed nowf, So earnestly, so passionately, with such a convincing sense of the reality of what he saw, did the old man speak, that the Green Mountain Boy, instead of obeying the command given him, climbed eagerly to the top of the second ledge and looked forth, almost believing that he should see embarking that expedition of which Ethan Allen had hinted ere they partedf But, looking out over the tops of the trees, all he could see was the surface of the sleeping lake, with the evening mists drifting across it. But he noted that these mists were indeed drifting westward, toward Eort Ticonderoga, and seemed not unlike a flotilla of ghostly barges laden with ghostly soldiers. Pshaw! exclaimed the young patriot, descending to the woods again. It is but the vision of a crazed old man, a mad master of the mist, who fancies he sees in the evening fog an army of soldiers obedient to his commandsf' Farewell, old man! he shouted, raising his voice. Hold thy post, and some day thou mayst see a veritable army crossing with thy shadows to dislodge the British from yonder fortlv So saying, he plunged into the woods, made his way back to the lake shore, and con- tinued his journey to the cabin of the nearest settler. News spreads fast, even in the wilderness, when there are hearts eager to hear and equally eager to bear it, and in less than a week's time a goodly number of the Green Nlountain Boys had assembled at the old storehouse on Chimney Point, which Ethan Allen had designated as the rendezvous. There was no long deliberation amongst the leaders of that little band of patriots. Ethan Allen had long before determined to strike his first blow against the British garrison then occupying Fort Ticon- deroga, and well he knew that the sooner the blow was delivered the less expected and more effectual it would be. So, the second night after his little band had assembled, he formed them into two companies, one

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THE ARIEL, 1907 21 than be unprepared for it! The young patriot's heart beat fast against his ribs as he crept up the darkening slope of the mountain, but it was with excitement rather than fear,- else he had speedily sought conceal- ment in that vast wilderness of woods. Yet he proceeded with caution, for he realized the importance of the mission on which he had been sent and would not endanger its accomplishment by any indiscretion or foolhardiness. At length, coming to a series of bare ledges, mounting one above another like the steps of a giant's stairway, he saw on the topmost shelf the figure of an old man, extending his right arm as if in command over the fast-darkening valley. Clearly audible now to the listener was the voice of that strange personage, as it rang out over the woods and lake:- Halt! Fix bayonets! Column left-march! Charge! As he gave this last command the old man ran excitedly to and fro along the edge of the rock, waving his arms and cheering till the cliffs and woods echoed. To the wondering Green Mountain Boy, concealed in the edge of the-forest, it seemed as if indeed regiments of soldiers must be pouring down the mountain side, and he listened, trembling, for the clank of scabbards and the tread of a thousand feet. Yet all was still as death throughout the woods,- all save the echoes of that wildly ringing, imperious voice. Could it be that this old man was indeed alone on the mountain? Was he mad, that he shouted thus to invisible hosts? Slowly the truth forced itself upon the Green Mountain Boy, that here was no real military commander, ordering the movements of actual troops, but only some crazed hermit, to whose disordered imagination platoons of shadows were marching through the air. At length the young man determined to step forth and make his presence known. Advancing beyond the shadow of the woods, therefore, and climbing to the top of the first ledge, he interrupted the frenzy of the old man with a ringing shout. ' The fantastic figure stopped and gazed downward. Coward! why hast thou lagged behind? 'i he shouted. VVhoever thou art, I command thee, hasten forward to thy place in rank! See! the army has reached the shore of the lake, and is about to embark. Hasten! or thou wilt be

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THE ARIEL, 1907 23 to march southward by land until opposite the fort, the other to proceed cautiously along the shore in such boats as had been collected at Chimney Point. These boats, with a couple of barges to be brought from Skeens- boro that night by trusted messengers, were to be used in transporting the Green Mountain Boys across the lake. VVhen all were assembled on the opposite shore, an attack was to be made on the fort, under cover of darkness. By midnight the men and boats from Chimney Point lay under the shadow of Mount Defiance, waiting for the arrival of the barges, and such volunteers as they might bring from Skeensboro. The dark hours wore by without sign or tidings of the barges, and Ethan Allen, wrapped in his great cloak, paced the lake shore impatiently. At last, however, just before dawn, the transports came stealing on, silently as shadows. A few hurried greetings, a few stern, brief orders, and the men began to embark in the boats, all eager to be among the first who should land under the walls of the frowning fort. Yet, so long had the barges been delayed, that it was already growing gray in the east before the little fleet pushed out from shore, and the mists of morning, damp and thick, were Boating along the surface of the water. Half-way across the lake, in their slow progress, the rowers suddenly stopped to listen, for, in the intense stillness of early morning, they thought they heard a far-off voice shouting quick and sharp commands. Ethan Allen started to his feet, looming like a giant in the distorting mist. K' By the' God in heaven! he muttered. We have been betrayed. The British have discovered us! Not so! answered a low voice at his side. Dost thou not remember the old man I told thee of-the shouting hermit of Mount Dehance? Listen! The voice is from the east, not the west. The breeze carries it this way, and sound travels far in a fog. The old man remains at his post, as T bade him, and this morning, I fancy, he sees among his shadows the army I prophesied! No wonder his voice carries far, then! exclaimed Allen, greatly relieved. Thou hast eased my mind much, Lewis, and I thank thee. Then he gave the low command to proceed. '