“I have a message for the commander of the Fort,” Dane told him.  “I must see him at once.”

“The Major is out at present,” the soldier replied.  “But let me have your message and I shall give it to him as soon as he comes back.”

“I have orders to give it to the Major himself and to no one else,” the courier explained.  “It is very important.”

“It certainly must be,” and the soldier smiled.  “But the Major is very busy to-day, so may not have time to see you.  He is down at the trading post just now looking after the wants of those people who have come in the ships.  They have upset things in general, and are making matters pretty lively around here, let me tell you that.  The Major is almost at his wits’ end.”

“Who are they?” Dane eagerly asked, “and where did they come from?”

“Why, don’t you know?” the soldier asked in surprise.

“No, I have not the least idea.  When I heard the Fort guns roar, I thought maybe old Crabtree had come back again.”

The soldier laughed and looked curiously at the young man.

“Say, where do you hail from, anyway, that you haven’t heard about the coming of the Loyalists?  Why, we’ve been expecting them for some time.”

“I never heard of them,” Dane confessed, “and have no idea who they are.”

“They are the ones who stood by King George during the Revolutionary War, of course.  When England gave up the fight, and peace was decided upon, the Loyalists were in a bad way.  Their property was confiscated, and they themselves treated very badly.  They would not live under the new flag of their enemies, so they got out, and here they are.”

Dane glanced out toward the ships with the light of intense interest in his eyes.  What a story he would have to tell his comrades in the wilderness.  They all knew about the war, but no word had reached them of the coming of the Loyalists.

“Didn’t you want them to come here?” he asked turning to the sentry.

“Want them?  Why, we had nothing to say about the matter.”

“But didn’t you fire upon them?  I heard the roar of the guns when out in the hills.”

The soldier threw back his head and gave a hearty laugh.  He was enjoying this conversation, as it broke the monotony of his duty.

“We weren’t firing upon them,” he explained.  “That was only a salute of welcome.”

“What are all those people going to do?” Dane asked.  “How are they to make a living?”

“Oh, I suppose many will settle here, while others will take up land and farm.  It will be some time, though, before everything is straightened out.  Just look at that crowd down there,” and he motioned to the trading post.  “I guess we’ll have our hands full keeping order.  I don’t envy the Major his job.”

“And there are others he must handle as well,” Dane replied.  “I must see him at once.  Which is the best road to take?”