KIDS CAN
One big thing I want readers to take away from my stories is that they can. Everyone can make a difference. And the truth is, all over the world, kids just like you are making a difference in the lives of others. On this page I want to collect stories of kids that can and do make a difference. Below you will find the story of Dicey Langston, a 15-year-old girl who saved the life of a whole camp of soldiers. Read about the courage and bravery Dicey showed in the story below.
Daring Dicey
By Nancy McConnell
Dicey Langston stood scanning the horizon. It wasn’t hard for her to imagine something evil coming over the hills. Tory soldiers sometimes appeared out of nowhere. She thought of her brother and the other boys that she knew fighting for America to be free. Dicey would do her part. The year was 1776 and Dicey Langston was 15 years old.
As she walked back towards the house Dicey watched as two British soldiers disappeared inside. The beating of her heart sped up and she raced for the door.
The sound of angry voices greeted her as she reached the doorstep.
“Mr. Langston,” a stern voice barked. “You have got to control your daughter. We know what she has been up to.”
Dicey pressed her ear to the door, she heard her father’s voice softer than the soldiers more unsure.
“I don’t know what you mean, my daughter is a good child; I would not be able to get by without her.”
“It is well known to us that you are a rebel sympathizer, Mr. Langston. We’ve spoken to many loyal subjects of the king about you. If you cannot keep your daughter under control, you will answer for her actions.”
The door burst open and Dicey stepping, narrowly missed being hit. She dashed in as the soldiers marched down the steps.
“Father, are you alright?” She knelt by his chair, taking his hand.
“What have you been up to child?” Her father’s voice was weary. Dicey lowered her eyes and said nothing. She had been up to plenty. “Whatever it is, don’t tell me. But you’ll have to stop. Things are too dangerous. It is bad enough that your brother is in danger, I cannot bear to lose you too.”
“But Father,” Dicey protested.
“No, you heard me. I need you around here. What will I do if something happens to you? Be a good child for once,” her father sighed.
Dicey knew he was right.
She had been giving information to the revolutionary soldiers since the war began. It was easy at first. No one paid any attention to a young girl. The village was full of loyalists and the plans of the Tories were often public knowledge. Lately though, things were more difficult. The “Bloody Scouts, a group of British soldiers, were putting fear in the hearts of everyone by committing atrocious acts in the name of the king.
Dicey’s brother James was stationed twenty miles north at the Elder Settlement. It was too far for her to visit and now that her father had forbidden her war efforts she wondered when she would see him again. Her chores taken care of, Dicey headed down to the river where she and James fished when they were younger. She loved those times together. Dicey went there when she missed him most.
Dicey put her feet in the water resting her back against a large boulder. Eyes closed she listened to the gentle bubble of the river and the hot buzzing of insects trying to rid her mind of fear and war.
At the sound of loud rough voices her snapped open. The voices were coming from somewhere above her. Dicey climbed up the bank and peeked over. Two red coats were leaning against the fence along the path. Dicey’s pulse began to race. She recognized one of the men; it was Sam Watson, one of Bill Cunningham’s Bloody Scouts.
“Cunningham wants us to head out before dawn,” Watson said.
“That’s a twenty-mile hike,” the other complained.
“Yup, in the dark too,” Watson said. “The river is high since all the rain. But it’ll be worth it to be rid of those traitors up at the Elder Settlement. They’ll never know what hit them.” Watson snorted with laughter.
Dicey’s breath froze in her chest. The Bloody Scouts were planning a dawn assault.
She had to warn her brother and the other soldiers. But her father had said no more getting into trouble. Still if she did nothing the rebels would be caught off guard and killed for sure.
“Where have you been, Dicey?” her father asked as Dicey ran in the door breathless.
“Down by the river, Father. I’ll start on dinner now.”
Dicey could barely concentrate on cooking. Her mind was busy with a plan. The lives of every single on of those soldiers depended on her.
After dinner Dicey got ready for bed. Her father continued to sit by the fire later than usual. Dicey lay awake in her bed, her knees quaking, silently willing her father to go to bed. Finally she heard the scraping of her his chair on the floor and the click of his cane as he readied himself to retire for the night. The sound of his slow painful limping as he made his way to the bed made Dicey’s heart ache. What would he do if she was caught? She would have to make extra sure she wasn’t.
She held her breath, hoping he would fall asleep quickly. Slowly the cottage became silent except for the gentle snore of her father in a restless sleep.
Dicey drew back the covers and eased herself from the bed. Fully dress she crept to the front door and gently opened it. Out in the cool night air Dicey inhaled deeply then she ran.
Down the road and through the field she raced. It would be faster and safer not to stick to the road. Bushes caught at her clothes and scratched her face. She ran until her breath came in painful gasps. When she could run no more, she walked with her hand pressed to side. The air was cold and pierced her thin dress. She shivered and pulled her shawl more tightly over her shoulders.
The night sped by as mile after mile she kept on. As she approached the banks of the Enoree River her heart sank. The river was much higher than she expected. The waters raced by her, fast and dark. Dicey’s courage almost failed her at that moment as the water swirled black and frigid before her. Then James’ face flashed into her mind, and she knew she could not falter.
She plunged into the icy water. The cold cutting into her like a dozen sharp knives. The current was strong; Dicey lost her footing and went under. She was swept along like a leaf in the rushing water. Frantically she reached out her hand and something solid hit her wrist. She grasped for it and held on. It was the root of a willow tree growing on the rivers bank. Saved!
Wet and frozen Dicey climbed from the river up the opposite bank and continued her race against the dawn. The stars in the sky were shifting as the night passed. There were lights in the distance. A campfire. Had the twenty miles really passed?
The encampment was quiet when Dicey finally reached its borders.
“James!” She called out and there was a flurry of activity as people jumped into action at the sound of an intruder.
Several soldiers confronted Dicey, pointing rifles at her chest.
“I’m James Langston’s sister, Dicey,” she said desperately. “I’ve come to tell you; the Bloody Scouts are coming.” Dicey sank down to her knees and the two soldiers scooped her up and took her to one of the tents. There was her brother. Dicey fell into his arms and gasped out what she knew.
“We must clear out of here right now!” James said. There was a flurry of activity as the soldiers began to break camp. “Dicey, you better come with us.”
Dicey gave him a fierce hug, “No I have to go home, Father doesn’t know I’ve come, and he mustn’t.”
James argued, but Dicey was firm. She would return home, no one would know she had been involved.
The dawn was just breaking on the horizon when Dicey finally saw the front door of her own little cottage. Slipping in, she threw her soiled clothes under the bed and put on a clean dress. She went into the kitchen and began to cook the morning breakfast.
“You’re up early,” Her father said as he came out of his bedroom.
“I couldn’t sleep,” Dicey replied as she put eggs and toast on his plate.
All that day Dicey waited anxiously to hear the news of the raid at the Elder Settlement. But it wasn’t until the next day that word came back, the Bloody Scouts had found the settlement deserted, not one rebel soldier was harmed.
Dicey Langston performed more heroic deeds during her lifetime, including saving the life of her own father. Her fearlessness and devotion to her cause set her apart as a true woman of courage, and a hero of the American Revolution.