Colonel Winchester had done his duty in discovering that Forrest and Wheeler were raiding through Mississippi, and that a heavy force was gathering in the rear of Grant, who intended the siege of Vicksburg.

It behooved him now to reach Grant as soon as he could with his news.
Refreshed and watchful, the regiment rode away from Bellevue.

Dick looked back at the broad roof and the great piazzas, and then he thought of young Woodville with a certain sympathy.

They had fought a good fight against each other, and he hoped they would meet after the war and be friends.
It was about an hour after sunrise, and the day was bright and warm.

The beads of water that stood on every leaf and blade of grass were drying fast, and the air, despite its warmth, was pure and bracing.