But up and down the lines they were
lighting the cooking fires.
Pennington rose to his feet. He saw Colonel Winchester, standing a
little distance away, and he was about to ask him for leave to look for
his comrades, when he was startled by the appearance of a woman, a woman
of thirty-eight or nine, tall, slender, dressed well, and as Pennington
plainly saw, very beautiful. But now she was dusty, her face was pale,
and her eyes shone with a terrible anxiety. Women were often seen in the
camps at the very verge or close of battle, saying good-bye or looking
for the lost, but she was unusual.
The soldiers stood aside for her respectfully, and she looked about,
until her gaze fell upon the colonel. Then she ran to him, seized him
by the arm, and exclaimed:
"Colonel Winchester! Colonel Winchester!"
"Good heavens, Mrs. Mason! You! How did you come?"
"I was at Danville, not so far from here. Of course I knew that the
armies were about to meet for battle! And it was only two days ago that
I heard the Winchester regiment had come west to join General Buell's
army.
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