me de cannons grand--dey brow-brou! boum-boum!--what you call
discomfortable. Time is de great t'ing, so de hofficier wipe de tears
out of his face again. 'Coum up,' he say; 'de privator is yours.'

"Away dey go. You see dat spot where we coum to land, Ma'm'selle
Landresse--where de shingle look white, de leetle green grass above?
Dat is where mon onc' 'Lias he bring in de King's ship and de privator.
Gatd'en'ale--it is a journee awful! He twist to de right, he shape to
de left trough de teeth of de rocks--all safe--vera happee--to dis nice
leetle bay of de Maitre Ile dey coum. De Frenchies dey grind dere teeth
and spit de fire. But de Henglish laugh at demdey are safe. 'Frien' of
my heart,' say de hofficier to mon onc' 'Lias, 'pilot of pilots,' he
say, 'in de name of our greshus King I t'ank you--A bi'tot, good-bye!'
he say. 'Tres-ba,' mon onc' 'Lias he say den, 'I will go to my
privator.' 'You will go to de shore,' say de hofficier. 'You will wait
on de shore till de captain and his men of de privator coum to you. When
dey coum, de ship is yours--de privator is for you.' Mon onc' 'Lias he
is like a child--he believe. He 'bout ship and go shore. Misery me,
he sit on dat rocking-stone you see tipping on de wind. But if he wait
until de men of de privator coum to him, he will wait till we see him
sitting there now. Gache-a-penn, you say patriote? Mon onc' 'Lias he has
de patreeteesm, and what happen? He save de ship of de greshus King God
save--and dey eat up his hoysters! He get nosing. Gad'rabotin--respe
d'la compagnie--if dere is a ship of de King coum to de Ecrehoses, and
de hofficier say to me"--he tapped his breast--"'Jean Touzel, tak de
ships of de King trough de rocks,'--ah bah, I would rememb' mon onc'
'Lias. I would say, 'A bi'tot-good-bye.'... Slowlee--slowlee! We are at
de place. Bear wif de land, ma'm'selle! Steadee! As you go! V'la! hitch
now, Maitre Ranulph."

The keel of the boat grated on the shingle.

The air of the morning, the sport of using the elements for one's
pleasure, had given Guida an elfish sprightliness of spirits. Twenty
times during Jean's recital she had laughed gaily, and never sat a laugh
better on any one's countenance than on hers. Her teeth were strong,
white, and regular; in themselves they gave off a sort of shining mirth.

At first the lugubrious wife of the happy Jean was inclined to resent
Guida's gaiety as unseemly, for Jean's story sounded to her as serious
statement of fac