Old Virginia and her neighbours

94 OLD VIRGINIA AND HER NEIGHBOURS.and whether he perished in the wilderness or madehis way to some safer country, we do not know.On a cold day in January his friend Drummond,hiding in White Oak Swamp was found and takento the governor. " Aha " ! cried the old man, witha low bow, "you are very welcome. I wouldrather see you just now than any other man inExecution ofVirginia. Mr. Drummond, you shall beDrummond.hanged in half an hour ! " " What yourhonour pleases," said the undaunted Scotchman.He was strung up that afternoon, but not untilhis wife's ring had been pulled from his finger,for rapacity vied with ferocity in the governor'sbreast. Before the end of January some twentymore had been hanged. An election was thengoing on, and the newly-elected assembly calledupon Berkeley to desist from this carnival ofblood. " If we had let him alone," said Presley,the venerable member for Northampton, to T. M.,the member for Stafford, " he would have hanged"half the country !The governor's rage had carried him too far.His conduct did not meet with the approval of thecommissioners, whose report on the disturbances iswritten in a fair and impartial spirit. He treatedthe commissioners with crazy rudeness.It is saidthat when they had called on him at Green Springand were about to return to their boat on theriver, he offered them his state-coach with thehangman for driver ! whereupon they preferred towalk to the landing-place. Fresh seeds of con-^ tention were sown, to bear fruit in the future.The complaints of Drummond's widow and others