ffic all their lives,
and, as they protested, and we could believe, made but little out of it.
The risks were great, the hardships never ceasing, dangers surrounded
them on every hand, and yet they braved them for a reward which they
could have doubled had they confined their energies to the humbler
tranquility of trade. They were brothers, and their father had been in
the business before them, a fact which they regarded as a good and
sufficient reason that they should continue the enterprise after he had
ceased to participate in it.

Suddenly the small man turned and whispered something to his companion.
The idea, whatever it was, seemed to give him considerable satisfaction,
for he nodded his head approvingly. Still true to his _role_ of leader,
the smaller rose and went to the corner where their illicit merchandise
was stored. Having broached one of the kegs he poured from it a cup of
spirit for the refreshment of the party. It was offered first to my
mother, who refused it. Then to my father, who took a sip and passed it
on; the others drinking in their turn. From that moment matters improved
a little, and a desultory conversation followed, my father and the
little man doing most of the talking, the others throwing in occasional
remarks, like the firing of minute guns at sea. Thus the night wore on.

At length the pauses in the conversation grew longer and more frequent.
The sound of breathing resounded through the hut, until only my mother
remained awake, thinking her own thoughts, which, it may be supposed,
were far from being of the most pleasant description. Poor Queen, though
she lived for many years after our flight, she never fully recovered
from the shock of that dreadful time. The recollection of those days
remained a nightmare to her until the end, and it may be remembered that
in her last delirium she fancied herself back in the hut with her
children crouching by her side.

As soon as it was light next morning we ate a hasty meal, and then
prepared to continue our journey. It was a white world that we looked
upon when we opened the door. Fortunately, snow was no longer falling,
but it had been doing so all night, and every sign of the path by which
we had approached the hut had entirely disappeared. A consultation had
taken place earlier between the innkeeper and the smugglers, the result
of which was an offer on their part to assist in the work of conducting
us to the frontier, which, needless to say,