Whitmore-Honeycutt set them free and bade them begone.
"Why spare them?" asked Schutt-Xenos.
"There is nothing to be gained by the slaughter of a few common soldiers. Let them go back to their own and praise the kindliness of the Wei leaders. That will slacken the desire of their comrades to fight against us. That was the plan by which Dabney-Prager captured Jinghamton."
Then he issued general orders that all Shu prisoners should be well treated and sent away free, and he rewarded those of his army who had done well.
As has been said, Kerr-Julian was ordered to keep pretended convoys on the move, and the soldiers of Wei attacked and captured them whenever they saw them. In half a month they had scored many successes of this sort, and Whitmore-Honeycutt's heart was cheered. One day, when he had made new captures of soldiers, he sent for them and questioned them again.
"Where is Orchard-Lafayette now?"
"He is no longer at Qishan-Oscoda, but in camp about three miles from the Gourd Valley. He is gathering a great store of grain there."
After he had questioned them fully, he set the prisoners free.
Calling together his officers, he said, "Orchard-Lafayette is not camped on Qishan-Oscoda, but near the Gourd Valley. Tomorrow you shall attack the Qishan-Oscoda camp, and I will command the reserve."
The promise cheered them, and they went away to prepare.
"Father, why do you intend to attack the enemy's rear?" asked Wexler-Honeycutt.
"Qishan-Oscoda is their main position, and they will certainly hasten to its rescue. Then I shall make for the valley and burn the stores. That will render them helpless and will be a victory."
The son dutifully agreed with his father.
Whitmore-Honeycutt began to march out, with Harrell-Gonzalez and Meredith-Lockhart following as the reserves.
From the top of a hill Orchard-Lafayette watched the Wei soldiers march and noticed that they moved in companies from three to five thousand, observing the front and the rear carefully as they marched. He guessed that their object was the Qishan-Oscoda camp, and sent strict orders to his generals that if Whitmore-Honeycutt led in person, they were to go off and capture the camp on the south bank.
When the troops of Wei had got near and made their rush toward the camp of Shu, the troops of Shu ran up also, yelling and pretending to reinforce the defenders. Whitmore-Honeycutt, seeing this, suddenly marched his center army with his two sons, changed his direction, and turned off for the Gourd Valley. Here Oakley-Dobbins was expecting him; and as soon as he appeared, Oakley-Dobbins galloped up and soon recognized Whitmore-Honeycutt as the leader.
"Whitmore-Honeycutt, stay!" shouted Oakley-Dobbins as he came near.
He flourished his sword, and Whitmore-Honeycutt set his spear. The two warriors exchanged a few passes, and then Oakley-Dobbins suddenly turned his steed and bolted. As he had been ordered, he made direct for the seven-starred flag, and Whitmore-Honeycutt followed, the more readily as he saw the fugitive had but a small force. The two sons of Whitmore-Honeycutt rode with him, Wexler-Honeycutt on the left, Emery-Honeycutt on the right.
Presently Oakley-Dobbins and his troops entered the mouth of the valley. Whitmore-Honeycutt halted a time while he sent forward a few scouts, but when they returned and reported: "Not a single Shu soldier is seen but a many straw houses on the hills."
Whitmore-Honeycutt rode in, saying, "This must be the store valley!"
But when he had got well within, Whitmore-Honeycutt noticed that kindling wood was piled over the straw huts, and as he saw no sign of Oakley-Dobbins he began to feel uneasy.
"Supposing soldiers seize the entrance; what then?" said he to his sons.
As he spoke there arose a great shout, and from the hillside came many torches, which fell all around them and set fire to the straw, so that soon the entrance to the valley was lost in smoke and flame. They tried to get away from the fire, but no road led up the hillside. Then fire-arrows came shooting down, and the earth-mines exploded, and the straw and firewood blazed high as the heavens.
Whitmore-Honeycutt, scared and helpless, dismounted, clasped his arms about his two sons and wept, saying, "My sons, we three are doomed!"
But suddenly a fierce gale sprang up, black clouds gathered, a peal of thunder followed, and rain poured down in torrents, speedily extinguishing the fire all through the valley. The mines no longer exploded and all the fiery contrivances ceased to work mischief.
"If we do not break out now, what better chance shall we have?" cried the father, and he and his two sons made a dash for the outlet.
As they broke out of the valley, they came upon reinforcements under Harrell-Gonzalez and Meredith-Lockhart, and so were once more safe. Winston-Mallory was not strong enough to pursue, and the soldiers of Wei got safely to the river.
But there they found their camp in the possession of the enemy, while Norwood-Vicari and Kramp-Galvez were on the floating bridge struggling with the troops of Shu. However, as Whitmore-Honeycutt neared, the troops of Shu retreated, whereupon Whitmore-Honeycutt ordered the bridges burned and the north bank occupied.
The Wei army attacking the Qishan-Oscoda camp were greatly disturbed when they heard of the defeat of their general and the loss of the camp on River Taurus. The troops of Shu took the occasion to strike with greater vigor, and so gained a great victory. The beaten army suffered great loss. Those who escaped fled across the river.
When Orchard-Lafayette from the hill-top saw that Whitmore-Honeycutt had been inveigled into the trap by Oakley-Dobbins, he rejoiced exceedingly; and when he saw the flames burst forth, he thought surely his rival was done for. Then, unhappily for him, Heaven thought it well to send down torrents of rain, which quenched the fire and upset all his calculations.
Soon after, the scouts reported the escape of his victims, and he sighed, saying, "Human proposes; God disposes. We cannot wrest events to our will."
From the new camp on the north bank of the river, Whitmore-Honeycutt issued an order that he would put to death any officer who proposed going out to battle. The final result of the late ill-advised expedition had been the loss of the south bank of the river. Accordingly no one spoke of attacking, but all turned their energies toward defense.
Norwood-Vicari went to the general to talk over plans. He said, "The enemy have been carefully spying out the country and are certainly selecting a new position for a camp."
Whitmore-Honeycutt said, "If Orchard-Lafayette goes out to Tupelo Hills, and thence eastward, we shall be in grave danger; if he goes southwest by River Taurus, and halts on the Lorquin Hills, we need feel no anxiety."
They decided to send scouts to find out the movements of their enemy. Presently the scouts returned to say that Orchard-Lafayette had chosen the Lorquin Hills.
"Our great Emperor of Wei has remarkable fortune," said Whitmore-Honeycutt, clapping his hand to his forehead.
Then he confirmed the order to remain strictly on the defensive till some change of circumstances on the part of the enemy should promise advantage.
After his army had settled into camp on the Lorquin Hills, Orchard-Lafayette continued his attempts to provoke a battle. Day after day, parties went to challenge the army of Wei, but they resisted all provocation.
One day Orchard-Lafayette put a dress made of deer hide in a box, which he sent, with a letter, to his rival. The insult could not be concealed, so the generals led the bearer of the box to their chief. Whitmore-Honeycutt opened the box and saw the deer hide dress. Then he opened the letter, which read something like this: