A couple of hours later, when the people had largely gone home to
dinner, the prisoners were quietly set free, and went to their homes
without attracting special attention. About twilight a carriage rolled
away from before Squire Woodbridge's door, and took the road to
Pittsfield. The next day it was known all over the village that the
Squire had left town, without giving out definitely when he would
return.
"Squire's kinder obstinit, but arter all he knows w'en he's licked,"
observed Abner, which was substantially the view generally taken of
the magnate's retirement from the field.
That night, Perez set a guard of a dozen men at the Fennell house, to
secure the town military stores against any possibility of recapture
by another silk stocking conspiracy, and to still further protect the
community against any violent enterprise, he organized a regular
patrol for the night. If any of the disaffected party were desperate
enough still to cherish the hope of restoring their fortunes by force,
it must needs have died in their breasts, as looking forth from their
bedroom windows, that night, they caught the gleam of the moonlight
upon the bayonet of the passing sentinel.
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