lf a house in the woods."

"Well," said Esau, helping himself quickly, "there's no room here in
London to build one, and if there was the people wouldn't let me have
the ground."

"And it's all madness, and wild as wild."

"Well, you might give your poor son, who has just escaped outer prison,
a hot potato," said Esau, grinning at me again.

"Oh, my dear, I beg your pardon. There, let me help you. That's a
beauty."

"Then why didn't you give it to Mr Gordon?"

"Do be quiet, my dear. How you do talk. I really think you're half
crazy."

"I was, mother, to stop with old `going, going, gone' so long. Never
mind; I'm going to have land of my own, and a house in the woods, where
I can go and shoot bears and wolves."

"There, Mr Gordon, my dear, that's how he has been going on ever since
he came home."

"Hold your plate for some more gravy," said Esau to me. "That's the
worst part of it. I shan't have mother to make hot steak pies and
lovely crusts."

"It isn't half so good as I should like to make it, Esau," said the poor
little woman sadly; "but do be a good boy, and leave off all that
dreadful talk. Mr Gordon don't go on like that."

"No, but he thinks all the more, mother."

"He don't, I'm sure. Now do you, Mr Gordon?"

"I'm afraid I've quite made up my mind to go, Mrs Dean," I said sadly.

"Oh, my dear, don't," she cried. "It's too dreadful. Right on the
other side of the world, where there's bears and wolves, and for all we
know perhaps savage Red Indians."

"Oh, there are, mother, lots of 'em; and they scallop people and roast
'em."

"Esau!" half shrieked the poor little woman wildly.

"Don't eat 'em afterwards, do they, Mr Gordon?"

"Don't listen to him, Mrs Dean," I cried. "He is saying all this to
tease you."

"I thought so," she cried triumphantly. "Then he doesn't mean to go?"

I was silent, and Mrs Dean's knife and fork dropped on the table.

"Tell me--the truth," she cried, rising and laying her hand on my
shoulder.

"The truth is, Mrs Dean, that we have both lost our situations, and
that I'm afraid Mr Dempster will be so malicious that he will keep us
from getting others."

"Yes, I'm afraid of that," she said sadly.

"So as we have heard that any one who likes to try can get on out there,
we did think of going."

"And we do think of going, mother dear," said Esau gently. "Come, try
and look at it sensibly. I know you will not like me to go, and when it
comes to t