eady for a shot.

"Neevarious!" he exclaimed. "Here's suthin' that'll have to be 'tended
to 'fore I take the water."

"Clarke is full of hartshorn and vinegar," said Preston. "He was like
that in America. He could make more trouble in ten minutes than a
regiment could mend in a year. He is what you would call 'a mean
cuss.' But for him and Lord Cornwallis, I should be back in the
service. They blame me for the present posture of affairs in America."

"Jack, I'm glad that young pup ain't me," said Solomon. "Thar never
was a man better cocalated to please a friend er hurt an enemy. If he
was to say pistols I guess that ol' sling o' yours would bu'st out
laughin' an' I ain't no idee he could stan' a minnit in front o' your
hanger."

"It's bad business, and especially for you," said Preston. "Dueling is
not so much in favor here as in France. Of course there are duels, but
the best people in England are set against the practise. You would be
sure to get the worst of it. The old General is a favorite of the
King. He is booked for knighthood. If you were to kill his son in the
present state of feeling here, your neck would be in danger. If you
were to injure him you would have to make a lucky escape, or go to
prison. It is not a pleasant outlook for one who is engaged to an
English girl. He has a great advantage over you."

"True, but it gives me a better chance to vindicate the courage of an
American. I shall fight. I would rather die than lie down to such an
insult. There has been too much of that kind of talk here. It can not
go on in my hearing without being trumped. If I were capable of taking
such an insult, I could never again face the girl I love. There must
be an apology as public as the insult or a fight. I don't want to kill
any man, but I must show them that their cap doesn't fit me."

Jack and Solomon sat up late. The young man had tried to see Margaret
that evening, but the door boy at Sir Benjamin's had informed him that
the family was not at home. He rightly suspected that the boy had done
this under orders from the Baronet. He wrote a long letter to the girl
apprising her of late developments in the relations of the ministry and
Doctor Franklin, regarding which the latter desired no secrecy, and of
his own unhappy situation.

"If I could bear such an insult in silence," he added, "I should be
unworthy of the fairest and dearest girl on earth. With such an
estimate of you, I