s complete," said Oscar; "but I should think the British might
have tracked them to their retreat, for it's likely they had to go home
pretty often, to get food, and look after things."

"Yes," added his grandmother; "but they reached their retreat by a
canoe, so that no footsteps could be seen leading to it; and they were
careful not to go out or in during the day-time. I have heard my
brother James tell about it. I believe he saw the very hole once,
where they went in."

"Uncle James was a famous hand for telling stories," remarked Mrs.
Preston. "I shall never forget what a treat it was to me, when I was a
child, to have him come to our house. I used to run out and meet him,
when I saw him coming, and coax him to tell me a good lot of stories
before he went off. I can remember some of them even now. He used to
tell a story of a crabbed old fellow, who was very much annoyed by the
boys stealing his apples. So, after awhile, he got a spring-trap, and
set it under the trees, to catch the young rogues. But the boys got
wind of the affair, and the first night he set it, they picked it up,
and very quietly put it on his door-step, and then went back to the
orchard, and began to bellow as though they were in great distress.
The old man heard the uproar, and started out, in high glee at the idea
of catching his tormentors; but he hardly put his foot out of the door,
before he began to roar himself, and he was laid up a month with a sore
leg."

"That was old Zigzag," said the grandmother; "I knew him very well."

"Old Zigzag!--what a funny name!" exclaimed Ralph.

"That was n't his name, although he always went by it," added the old
lady. "He was a very odd character, and one of his peculiarities was,
that he never walked directly towards any place or object he wished to
reach, but went in a 'criss-cross,' zigzag way, like a ship beating and
tacking before a head-wind. He was a hard drinker, and was almost
continually under the influence of liquor, and perhaps that was the
cause of his singular habit. He was a terribly ugly fellow, when he
was mad, and the boys used to tease him in every possible way; but wo
to them if he got hold of them. He lived all alone, for he never had
any wife or children; and he would not allow anybody to enter his
house, on any account, but always kept the door locked. If his
neighbors had business to transact with him, he would step into the
yard and attend to them; but even in the