he Spaniards and the
Romans, and the x's and y's and the tangents, and all the other
things into a regular jumble--and it is a nice business that would
have been. It is the best thing in the world for him, always
supposing that he don't get his growth stopped, for want of
victuals."

"You don't mean, really and seriously, Gerald, that we are likely
to be short of food?"

"And that is exactly what I do mean. You may be sure that the Dons
know, mighty well, that they have no chance of taking the place on
the land side. They might just as well lay out their trenches
against the moon. It is just starvation that they are going to try;
and when they get the eighteen French sail of the line that Mr.
Logie brought news of, and a score or so of Spanish men-of-war in
the bay, you will see that it is likely you won't get your mutton
and your butter and vegetables very regularly across from Tangier."

"Well, it is very serious, Gerald."

"Very serious, Carrie."

"I don't see anything to laugh at at all, Gerald."

"I didn't know that I was laughing."

"You were looking as if you wanted to laugh, which is just as bad.
I suppose there is nothing to be done, Gerald?"

"Well, yes, I should go down to the town, and lay in a store of
things that will keep. You see, if nothing comes of it we should
not be losers. The regiment is likely to be here three or four
years, so we should lose nothing by laying in a big stock of wine,
and so on; while, if there is a siege, you will see everything will
go up to ten times its ordinary price. That room through ours is
not used for anything, and we might turn that into a storeroom.

"I don't mean that there is any hurry about it, today; but we ought
certainly to lay in as large a store as we can, of things that will
keep. Some things we may get cheaper, in a short time, than we can
now. A lot of the Jew and native traders will be leaving, if they
see there is really going to be a siege; for you see, the town is
quite open to the guns of batteries, on the other side of the
neutral ground.

"It was a mighty piece of luck we got this house. You see that
rising ground behind will shelter us from shot. They may blaze away
as much as they like, as far as we are concerned.

"Ah! There is Bob, coming out of his room with the professor."

"Well, take him out and tell him, Gerald. I want to sit down, and
think. My head feels quite in a whirl."

Bob was, of course, greatly surprised at the news;