to accede to her wishes.
Never was there such a tigress in love before, I really believe.

"Hear me," replied I; "as long as I am chained, I never will give any
answer upon the present subject, that I swear."

She rose from my side, and walked away.

It is impossible, my dear Madam, for me to describe what I suffered from
this woman for more than six weeks, during which she kept me chained in
this way--at one time entreating me, the next moment kicking me, and
throwing me down. I had no peace--my life became a burden to me, and I
often entreated her, in mercy, to put an end to my sufferings. I also
had my paroxysms of rage, and then would spurn her, spit at her, and do
everything I could, and say all that I could imagine, to show my hatred
and contempt. At other times I was sullen, and that always annoyed her.
She would bear my reproaches patiently--bear any thing, so long as I
would talk; but if I remained obstinately silent, then, in a short time,
her fury would break forth. I pitied her, notwithstanding her
ill-treatment, for the woman did love me (after her own fashion) most
intensely.

It was on the seventh week of my confinement on the chain, that one
morning very early, as I was lying in the tobacco-shed, for she had
turned me out of the cabin, I perceived among the trees, which were
about three hundred yards from the cabin, two Indians, in what is called
their war-paint, which is a sign that they were on a hostile excursion.
I remained perfectly quiet, and well concealed, that I might watch them.
The convicts had more than once told me that the Indians would attack
us, in consequence of an insult which my mistress had offered to their
chief, with whom her husband had been so friendly; and when they stated
what had passed, I agreed with them that they would not fail to resent
the insult as soon as they could. I had therefore always been on the
look-out, but had never seen any Indians before. My mistress, to whom I
had, in our days of sweet converse, spoken about them, always laughed at
the idea of their attacking her, and said that they might come if they
liked. She had made every preparation for them, as she had loop-holes
stuffed up with moss just below the roof of the cabin, from which you
could fire down upon them till they were within four yards of the cabin,
and other loop-holes, from which you might shoot them when close to; the
window and door were impregnable, and, provided that we were once in