These weeds
'll be all over my garden again directly. You're going to stop, I
s'pose?"

"Yes."

"Well, call me if they seize the boat. We can't let 'em have that.
When they do go, they'll have to swim."

So Morgan went off to his hoeing, and I stopped under the shade of the
big magnolia to keep my long watch.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN.

I kept about near the rough shelter rigged up for the two blacks,
wondering how my father would set about giving them their freedom, for I
seemed fully to understand that this was what he intended to do. Every
now and then I glanced toward the place, where everything was
wonderfully still, and at such times I found myself thinking about
Morgan's words; and it appeared only natural that the poor fellows
should try to escape, being quite in ignorance of the hands into which
they had fallen; but if they did, I was fully determined to put a stop
to their taking our boat, for I did not mean to lose that, and have my
fishing expeditions spoiled.

After a time my task began to grow tedious, and I wanted to go and peep
in to see if they were asleep; but somehow I shrank from doing this, and
I began to wander about, now up to the house, and now back to the river,
thinking, as I stood there gazing down into the clear water, that it
would not be safe for the two blacks to lie there after dark, when the
great alligators came crawling out of the pools in search of food. For
there were plenty of accounts current among the settlers of how people
had been attacked by the great reptiles, and I meant to suggest to my
father that the two should be sheltered in the great shed, which had a
strong door.

I glanced toward the canvas which hung from the spar, and suddenly awoke
to the fact that there was something black at one end; seeing directly
after that a bright eye was watching me, but only to be carefully
withdrawn as soon as its owner realised that he was seen.

I smiled to myself at this, and went off into the garden, where I could
hear Morgan's great hoe with its regular chop-chop, as he battled away
with the weeds which refused to acknowledge the difference between wild
waste and cultivated ground.

"Hullo!" cried Morgan, as soon as he saw me. "What, have they slipped
off?"

"Slipped off? No," I said, indignantly. "I want a peach."

"Right, my lad," said Morgan; "and, look you, get one off the further
tree; they're not the best to look at, but they're the sweetest and the
best to