down by the fire on an inverted box and took me on one knee. With her head
against his other, Suzanne crouched upon the floor. We were silent, our
hearts beating hard, wishing ourselves with mamma in St. James. Joseph set
Alix upon a stool beside him and removed her wrapping.

"Hello!" said the younger stranger, "I thought you were carrying a child.
It's a woman!"

An hour passed. The woman in the corner seemed to sleep; Celeste, too,
slumbered. When I asked Suzanne, softly, if she was asleep, she would
silently shake her head. The men went on with their task, not speaking. At
last they finished, divided the balls between them, put them into a
leather pouch at their belt, and the father, rising, said:

"Let us go. It is time."

Maggie raised her head. The elder man went and got his gun and loaded it
with two balls, and while the younger was muffling himself in an old
blanket-overcoat such as we give to plantation negroes, moved towards the
door and was about to pass out. But quicker than lightning Maggie had
raised the window, snatched a pistol from her belt, and fired. The two men
stood rooted, the elder frowning at Maggie. Tom rose and showed two rows
of teeth.

"What did you fire that pistol for? What signal are you giving?"

"That is understood at the flatboat," said Maggie, tranquilly. "I was to
fire if you left the house. You started, I fired, and that's all."

"----! And did you know, by yourself, what we were going to do?"