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By Root 1325 0

not spoken since he climbed the horse, and Greene knew to wait, that Washington would begin the conversation in his own way. They moved down again, a shallow ravine, and to one side there was a gathering of men and wagons, and the carcasses of horses. Slowly they were hoisted up and piled on each wagon, to be hauled away by a pair of scrawny animals that were barely alive themselves. He had seen it before, but was still shocked, felt himself flinch, a spasm of sickness. He turned away, spurred the horse up the hill again, and Greene was beside him quickly, said, “I have made certain they haul the carcasses beyond the outposts. The ground is too frozen to bury anything. We have located a deep cut out to the west . . .”

“I am certain the duty is handled, Mr. Greene. It is most unpleasant.”

“Yes, sir.”

He rode slowly, began to think of Mount Vernon, the pride he felt when he walked through the stables, his affection for the tall stout horses.

“At home, the loss of a good horse filled me with great sadness. They always perform, no matter the duty, the weather, no matter their age. They are a blessed beast. God has given the horse a special place on this earth. I have often thought that God judges man on how we treat the horse. What better measure of character is there than how we respect the beast that takes on our burdens.”

“That we have made the horse a beast of burden might bring punishment enough.” Greene made a low laugh, and Washington said, “You are not a man of the land, Mr. Greene. With all respects, you cannot understand.”

Greene did not respond, and Washington said, “My apologies. I did not wish to offend you.”

“None taken, sir. But you are not quite correct. An iron mill requires the labor of horses. My father relied greatly on his teams. I rode often when I was a boy. Even with the . . . problem in my leg.”

They moved into a wide trail, the dirty snow banked high to one side. They were among the cabins now, and Washington saw a small open campfire, unusual, pulled the horse that way. There were four men, and they stood now, surprised, and Washington could see a metal pot hung above the fire, a rising column of steam.

“Gentlemen, do not let us disturb you. Are you cooking?”

They glanced at each other, and one man raised a spoon from the pot, poured the dark brown liquid into a small cup.

“Aye, sir. Soup, it is. One of the fellows here got a might lucky chasin’ a rabbit. This here pot’s done made us several days of good eatin’.”

Greene moved the horse forward, closer to the fire, said, “Several days? How big was the rabbit?”

“Oh, the rabbit’s been gone a while now, sir.”

The man stirred the bubbling brew, and Washington could see something round and dark, the spoon knocking it with a metallic click.

“What is in the soup, soldier?”

The man moved the object around, said, “That’d be a rock, sir. We always hear tell that there’s strength in rocks. We figured if we boil it a while, it might lend something to the soup.”

Greene leaned out, looked down into the pot.

“That appears to be . . . leaves. Seems your soup is a bit . . . soiled.”

The man spooned up the bits of brown.

“Oh, no, sir. Not only leaves, but pine needles as well. The best soup has to have . . . vegetables.”

Washington pulled his horse back.

“General Greene, we should be on our way.”

They left the men to their fire, and Washington moved back into the roadway, then crossed to the far side, climbing the horse over the bank of snow. They were moving toward the edge of the plateau, the ground falling away in a wide sweep. Below, the outer line of earthworks cut across the hillside, and Greene moved up beside him.

“Forgive me, sir. Where are we going?”

Washington had left the staff behind, ordering them to keep to their work at the headquarters. They were followed only by a handful of his guards, and he stopped the horse, turned.

“Captain Gibbs, have your men remain somewhat farther back. I wish to speak to General Greene in privacy.”

The man obeyed, held the guards in place while Washington moved away. Greene followed, was close beside