“I have done nothing
to warrant any such charge.”

“We found him in the Widow Robin’s house, pouring strong liquor down his
throat.”

“I had gone inside after information concerning the roads----”

“Which he was getting from a bottle, sir.”

“If drinking from a bottle of necessity constitutes being a spy, I fear
our camp is already a hotbed,” Washington somewhat sagely remarked,
casting his eye around slyly at his officers and men. “Tell me,” he went
on, with sudden sternness, looking Reilly through and through, as though
to read his very thoughts, “is the charge true? Do you come from Howe?”

“The charge is not true, sir. I come from no one. I simply am making a
tour of pleasure through this part of the country on my bicycle.”

“With the country swarming with the men from two hostile armies, any
kind of a tour, save one of absolute necessity, seems ill-timed.”

“When I set out I knew nothing about any armies. The fact is, sir----”
Reilly started to make an explanation, but he checked himself on
realizing that the telling of any such improbable yarn would only
increase the hazardousness of his position. “Well?” Washington questioned, in a tone of growing suspicion. “I certainly did not know that your army or any other army was
quartered in this vicinity.” Reilly hesitated for lack of something
further to say. “You see,” he finally added, prompted by a happy idea,
“I rode my wheel from New York.”

“You may have come from New York, though it is hard to believe you came
on that singular-looking machine so great a distance. Where is the horse
which drew the vehicle?”

Reilly touched his bicycle. “This is the horse, sir, just as it is; the
vehicle,” he said. “The man is crazy!” Harry exclaimed. Washington only looked the
incredulity he felt, and this time asked a double question. “How can the thing be balanced without it be held upright by a pair of
shafts from a horse’s back, and how is the motive power acquired?”

For an answer Reilly jumped upon the wheel, and at a considerable speed
and in a haphazard way pedaled around the space within the hollow square
of soldiers. Hither and thither he went, at one second nearly wheeling
over the toes of the line of astonished, if not frightened, militiamen;
at the next, bearing suddenly down on Harry and his companions and
making them dance and jump about most alertly to avoid a collision. Even
the dignified Washington was once or twice put to the necessity of
dodging hurriedly aside when his equilibrium was threatened. Reilly
eventually dismounted, doing so with assumed clumsiness by stopping the
wheel at Harry’s back and falling over heavily against the soldier. Harry tumbled to the ground, but Reilly dexterously landed on his feet. At once he began offering a profusion of apologies. “You did that by design!” Harry shouted, jumping to his feet. His face
was red with anger and he shook his fist threateningly at the bicyclist. Washington commanded the man to hold his peace. Then to Reilly he
expressed a great surprise at his performance and a desire to know more
about the bicycle. The young man thereupon described the machine
minutely, lifting it into the air and spinning the wheels to illustrate
how smoothly they rotated. “I can see it is possible to ride the contrivance with rapidity. It has
been put together with wonderful ingenuity,” Washington said, when
Reilly had replaced the wheel on the ground. “And you, sir, it is but a toy,” an officer spoke up. “Put our friend on
his bundle of tin and race him against one of our horsemen and he would
make a sorry showing.”

Reilly smiled. “I bear the gentleman no ill-will for his opinion,” he
said. “Still, I should like to show him by a practical test of the
subject that his ignorance of it is most profound.”

“You would test the speed of the machine against that of a horse?”
Washington said, in amazement. “I would, sir. You have a good road yonder. With your permission and a
worthy opponent I would make the test at once.”

“But, sir, the man is a spy,” Harry broke in. “Would it not be better to
throw a rope around his neck and give him his deserts?”

“The charge is by no means proven,” Washington replied. “Nor can it be
until a court martial convenes this afternoon. And I see no reason why
we may not in the meantime enjoy the unique contest which has been
suggested. It will make a pleasant break in the routine of camp life.”

A murmur of approval went up from the masses of men by whom they were
surrounded. While they had been talking it seemed as though everybody in
the camp not already on the scene had gathered together behind the
square of infantry. “Then, sir,” Harry said, with some eagerness, “I would like to be the
man to ride the horse. There is no better animal than mine anywhere. And
I understand his tricks and humors quite well enough to put him to his
best pace.”

“I confess I have heard you well spoken of as a horseman,” Washington
said. “Be away with you! Saddle and bridle your horse at once.”

It was the chain of singular circumstances narrated above which brought
John Reilly into the most remarkable contest of his life. He had entered
many bicycle races at one time or other, always with credit to himself
and to the club whose colors he wore. And he had every expectation of
making a good showing to-day. Yet a reflection of the weird conditions
which had brought about the present contest took away some of his
self-possession when a few minutes later he was marched over to the
turnpike and left to his own thoughts, while the officers were pacing
out a one mile straightaway course down the road. After the measurements had been taken, two unbroken lines of soldiers
were formed along the entire mile; a most evident precaution against
Reilly leaving the race course at any point to escape across the fields. Washington came up to him again, when the preparations were completed,
to shake his hand and whisper a word or two of encouragement in his ear. Having performed these kindly acts he left to take up a position near
the point of finish. The beginning of the course was located close to the battery of half
concealed field pieces. Reilly was now conducted to this place. Shortly
afterward Harry appeared on his horse. He leered at the bicyclist
contemptuously and said something of a sarcastic nature partly under his
breath when the two lined up, side by side, for the start. To these
slights Reilly paid no heed; he had a strong belief that when the race
was over there would be left in the mutton-like head of his opponent
very little of his present inclination toward the humorous. The
soldier’s mount was a handsome black mare, fourteen and a half hands
high; strong of limbs and at the flanks, and animated by a spirit that
kept her prancing around with continuous action. It must be admitted
that the man rode very well.